Month: September 2015
Nails on a Blackboard
I was strolling through Target and I came upon Sinful Colors “Blackboard” – Limited Edition Demi-Matte from The Chalkboard Diaries Collection. I had heard it was a Walgreen’s exclusive shade, but I guess not? I was never able to find it at Walgreen’s, but I accidentally find it on a clearance end cap at Target for 58 cents. 58 cents!
It’s just like the blackboards of my youth – something I’m fairly certain my children will never experience. It’s similar to Zoya “Dovima”, but blacker. And smoother. This is two coats over Sinful Colors Base Coat – no top coat.
Unfortunately, “Blackboard” still suffers from the same fatal flaw as the Zoya Mattes – heinous edge wear. I washed a frying pan and I already have white half moons at the tips of my nails…
Sephora Play – September 2015
It’s here! The first Sephora Play box! Like I need another subscription box…I DO. I NEED MORE BOXES.
Inside the first Play box: Sephora Collection Rouge Infusion in “Peony” (I got this same color in the new “Gimme Some Lip” box – but I like it); Marc Jacobs Highliner in “Blacquer” (I now have enough black eyeliner to transcribe the bible); Ole Henriksen Sheer Transformation; Bumble and bumble. Hairdresser’s Invisible Oil Primer (Mmmm – excited about this); GlamGlow SuperCleanse (I love putting mud on my face); and Elizabeth and James “Nirvana White” (Ugh, this is my 3rd one – I can’t give this shit away.)
My box also came with a card that will give me 50 extra points with my next Sephora purchase – WIN!
Sephora Play is only $10/month. You can get on the wait list at sephora.com/play.
Purple Haze All in My Brain
Back to normal nails – no stamping, no glitter – just purple.
This is Sinful Colors “Purple Haze”. It’s got a swirl of silver shimmer to it – can you see it in the bottle? After Sinful Colors Base Coat, I painted two coats. It was a thick polish and I had to smoosh some off my brush. I was shocked to find a few bubbles – this is Sinful Colors, not Julep polish! Thankfully, my trusty “HK Girl” hid the evidence.
I think the lens on my phone must be filthy – it was cloudy out, but certainly not enough to cause the aura around my nails in the pic. It kinda fits though, doesn’t it?
Target Beauty Box – September 2015
Yup, every month now!
I’ll admit, I’m not in love with the “Fall in Love” Target Beauty Box – but I reserve the right to change my mind once I try the products. Inside: Jane Carter Revitalizing Leave-In Conditioner; Curls Creme Brulee Whipped Curl Creme (I don’t have curly hair, but maybe it tames frizz); Dove Quench Absolute Creme Serum (Again, I don’t have curls); SheaMoisture Jamaican Black Castor Oil (I am supposed to put this in my hair…UGH, I thought it was hand lotion); Aquaphor Healing Ointment (I could have used this a month ago, when I got my most recent tattoo – I just bought a HUGE tube of it); and Colgate Optic White Platinum Express White Toothpaste (I can throw this in my travel bag).
A very curly hair-centric box, but hey – another $3 off coupon. It wasn’t a total waste of $5.
My First Attempt at Stamping
I couldn’t wait to try out my new stamping gear from moYou. I used Sinful Colors Base Coat and RUFFIAN “Naked” as my base – I wanted to try the french manicure plates to see if I could get a clean line.
Things I learned…
1. Work FAST – the polish dries quickly on the stamper
2. Make sure your nails are DRY and not sticky
3. ROLL the stamper and do not just press down
4. The French manicure strips are impossible to get on right
5. Small designs like flowers are infinitely easier than french tops it whole nail patterns – see my pinky
6. Be very careful with your nail polish remover when cleaning up – the pump on my Zoya Remove+ splashed all out the sides and dotted my nails
7. I have no idea how you’re supposed to clean your plates after stamping without ruining your nails
All things considered, my first attempt at stamping didn’t turn out too badly. I have the deepest admiration for the girls who can get the stamp to cover their entire nails cleanly – I failed at getting full nail coverage. I do have huge, long fingernails – but still.
I’ll keep on trying – practice makes perfect.
Vegas Recap
So…I already shared my Sephora Makeover, but I thought I would share a few other highlights from my Vegas trip.
First, I’ve gotta talk about my nails. I had no idea what I was going to wear, so I picked a neutral polish – Julep “Rachael”, graphite shimmer. I accented “Rachael” with Julep “Kirby” – silver jagged glitter top coat – on my thumb and ring finger. I had to use the Chandelier Bar at our hotel, The Cosmpolitan, as a background – it was just too perfect. I started with Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat and ended with “HK Girl” – and my nails looked pristine the whole weekend.
Next up…I made the mistake of letting myself get pulled into a skin place at our hotel called Skins 6/2. Before I knew what was happening, some chick was putting crap all over my face. Turns out it was SNAKE VENOM and according to her, it was like all-natural botox. I’ve gotta admit, it momentarily seemed to work. Of course, they were having a one day sale on their Forever Flawless Snake Venom Serum – just $500 instead of $1,500. Really? Did she really think I was going to fall for that shit? My bullshit scam meter was on high alert, so I high-tailed it out of there. A quick google gave me this and this and this. Looks like I managed to avoid a really nasty rash at the very least. Oh…my wrinkles were back by that evening.
Fast forward to the next day…walking through the Miracle Mile shops and a girl at a kiosk tries to get my attention to sample something. I am still irritated by yesterday’s snake oil, so I ignore her and keep walking until my slightly alcohol addled brain realizes that it was a moYou kiosk. I immediately take two steps back and say, “Is this THE moYou?” Yup, it was moYou nail stamping. I’d been wanting to try nail stamping and moYou London is the Cadillac of nail stamping, but I was under the impression that it was only available in the UK. Well, not anymore – they even have a US website now.
I picked up the starter kit + french manicure kit and the saleslady even threw in a free corrector pen and black polish, all for $90. So brace yourselves…nail stamping is coming!
Vegas Sephora Makeover
When I made VIB status at Sephora, I got a voucher for a free custom makeover. Even though there are Sephoras everywhere here, it’s not like I have the time to schedule a makeover. I had nothing but time while I was in Vegas this past weekend, so I figured – why not now?
I scheduled my makeover at the Miracle Mile Sephora, right on the Vegas strip. (I was too lazy to walk all the way to the Forum shops.) I told my artist, Glenn, to start me over completely. He used Sephora PANTONE Color IQ to get my exact skin tone – 1y06. He tried the matching shade of Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Invisible Cover Stick Foundation in “118 – Flesh”, but it was a bit too dark, so he went with “115 – Ivory”. The Color IQ system is AMAZING – now I’ll always know the right color for me!
Glenn taught me the error of my ways – all along, I had been putting foundation first, then doing my eyes and getting eye shadow fall out everywhere. He showed me how to do my eyes first, then use eye cream to clean up the fallout. The eye cream sucks up the makeup, plus freshens under your eyes. For my eyes, he used a combination of the Kat Von D Shade & Light palette + Metal Crush eye shadows in “Raw Power”, “Thunderstruck” & “Symphony”. For the liner, he used Kat Von D Tattoo Liner (which I’ve got). Mascara was Dior.
My eyebrows…are a WORK OF ART. They’re bigger than my usual, but ON FLEEK. Glenn introduced me to the Hourglass Brow Sculpting Pencil. I’m breaking up with my Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz!
He then went to work on my foundation with the Make Up For Ever system. First was the Skin Equalizer, then the stick foundation. He used a foundation brush and it blended beautifully. He finished with NARS Light Reflecting Setting Powder and Make Up Forever Setting Spray. He did go a bit nuts contouring with bronzer, which is not my usual look, but I don’t look like Kim Kardashian, so there’s that.
For my lips, he went neutral with liner and lipstick from Buxom. Glenn was an absolute rock star. My makeover was supposed to be 45 minutes and he spent an HOUR and 45 minutes with me. We spent the whole time talking about our shared interests – John Waters, Face Off & Rocky Horror.
Since I was fresh off a $250 Gremlins slot machine win, I went a little nuts…but not TOO nuts. I got the Make Up For Ever Skin Equalizer & Ultra HD Invisible Cover Stick Foundation. I held back on the Kat Von D Shade & Light palette (it’s so similar to my Monarch palette), but I did get Kat Von D Metal Crush Raw Power. I also got the Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil in “Warm Brunette”. I also got a Sephora lip brush – I think it will allow me to use Kat Von D “Piaf” without looking like a lunatic.
The best part? They let me use my VIB 10% discount again!
The next day, I used the techniques that Glenn taught me. I used my Beauty Blender with the foundation stick and the results were even better – I was able to get thinner, more natural coverage. I was right about the lip brush – I rocked “Piaf” on Saturday night and didn’t look like a freak!
September Ipsy Bag – Face Fashion
“Face Fashion” – is “face” being used as a verb or a descriptive noun? I am so confused…am I being told to look toward fashion or being advised that these products are fashion for my face???
In any case, all of the products in this month’s ipsy bag are for my face: NYX Cosmetics ipsy eye Shadow Trio (LOVE these limited edition colors); Evelyn Iona Cosmetics Cream Blush in “ASH” (Looks pink to me); J. Cat Beauty #MOTD Waterproof Slide on Pencil for Eyes in “Bronze” (cool color, but UGH – waterproof); ACURE Argan Oil Cleansing Toilettes; and Crown Brush Oval Concealer Brush (I was hoping for a lip brush).
The bag this month…so sophisticated! I’m adoring the bronze pattern.
If you’d like to try Ipsy – click here. I’ll earn 250 points if you sign up through my link.
September Birchbox – Better Together
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“Better Together” is Birchbox’s September theme – and the box is chock full of extras to go with my main samples.
Inside my box: (MALIN + GOETZ) Grapefruit Face Cleanser, with a bonus foil pack of Vitamin E Face Moisturizer (both are going to Vegas with me later this week); Davines LOVE Smoothing Shampoo, with a bonus foil pack of LOVE Conditioner (I LOVED Davines Minu in my July box, so this was my sample choice this month); English Laundry Eau de Parfum Signature for Her (In deed, it smells English…like the Queen Mum herself); Juice Beauty Green Apple Peel Sensitive (I prefer clay masks to peel off, but I’ll give it a spin); and POP Beauty POP Portfolio Shadow Trio in “Sugar Plum” (I am suspicious of silver and purple eye shadow).
If you would like to try Birchbox, click on my referral link – https://www.birchbox.com/invite/5453f – I’ll get 50 points if you join.
September Beauty Box 5 – Fall on Fleek
September’s theme is “Fall on Fleek” – but there are no eyebrow products included. I’m thinking they need to brush up on their beauty slang…
Inside my fleek box: Elizabeth Mott Tints & Sass Lip + Cheek Stain (I LOVE this stuff – it’s so much better than Benetint – I originally got a full size in an ipsy bag last summer); Beautiful Nutrition Lemon Rinse Gentle Clarifying Treatment (Weird); Harvey Prince “Sincerely” Mini Roller (I could smell this before I even opened my box – very old lady smelling); Bellapierre Shimmer Powder in “Snowflake” (more illuminator – ugh); and Be a Bombshell Cosmetics Eye Crayon in “Amazon” (bright ass turquoise – I LOVE it).
I’m thinking I could put together a really HOT old Bingo lady look with these products – blue eye shadow, wine stained lips, lemony hair, white glitter powder and old lady farts perfume.