Month: September 2018
Dream Dust
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Nails Inc. “Dream Dust” is dreamy AND dusty! “Dream Dust” was my first pick to try from the Nails Inc. Unicorn Nail Polish Duo.
I just took the polish off a few minutes ago and rest assured – the gold is actually glitter, NOT shimmer. I feel like I will never get all the glitter off my skin, no matter how many times I wash my hands.
This is two coats of “Dream Dust” over Glisten & Glow Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
Possible dupes are Essence “Space Glam” and Zoya “Faye”, but I feel like there’s a lot more gold in “Dream Dust” than the other two.
September 2018 Julep Maven Box – Side Hustle
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Sooooo… I sure did pick some…interesting…shades for this month’s “Side Hustle” Julep Box. All of the choices were rather muted, but these colors wouldn’t be out of place on a rack of khakis at Old Navy.
Wonder Maven “Keller” is camel sheer holographic and Boho Glam “Bradley” is mesquite green with gold ghost shimmer. At least they both have some sparkle…
I also added a new bottle of Julep Oxygen Smoothing Base Coat to my box – I’m running low.
To be honest, I’m most excited about the Rose Gold Alphabet decals – what should I spell first???
Not a Julep Maven? Click HERE to join – I’ll get a $15 credit and you’ll get your first box free!
Influenster Vox Box – Perricone MD
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I qualified for a another Influenster Vox Box – especially so soon after the last one. I was also excited to get such a high end brand like Perricone MD!
Inside the Vox Box, I received a full size bottle of Perricone MD No-Rinse Micellular Cleansing Treatment. I received the bottle free for testing purposes, but the full size bottle retails for $45.
The first thing that struck me about the product was the heft to the bottle – it’s in a REAL glass bottle. It’s so rare to see glass bottle these days!
Unlike other Micellular Waters that I’ve tried, the Perricone is a thicker product – almost gel-like. It’s also bright blue. It feel so refreshing on you face, but it isn’t stinging or tightening like my usual toner (Sea Breeze). There’s also no residue or feeling that you need another rinse. As an added bonus, I was also able to use the cleanser to remove some medical tape residue on my breasts after my recent nipple reconstruction surgery – BONUS!
I highly recommend this product based on performance, although it’s quite a bit out of most people’s price range.
Thanks again Influenster – I’ll be sad when I run out of this product!
I Put a Spell on You
…and now you’re mine!
I’ll admit it, Deborah Lippmann “I Put a Spell on You” is nowhere near as pretty on my nails as it is in the bottle. I was expecting it to be a swirly purple/pink pearl duochrome, but the effect is much more muted on the nail. It’s more of a pearlized baby pink and very, very sheer. It is still very pretty though – like the inside of an oyster, except without all the poo.
This is two coats of “I Put a Spell on You”, over Glisten & Glow Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat. I don’t think the polish formula is at all compatible with the top coat – can you see all the bubbles that formed, especially on my index finger? At least it’s very aquatic looking.
I feel like the polish is similar to Sinful Colors “Bali Mist”. I swear I thought I had that polish, but I cannot find it searching my site…very weird. I’ll have to look in my bins later.
Sephora Play! August 2018 – Beauty Schooled
Just so you know…I canceled my Birchbox. August’s box was the last one that I will review…I finally put my money where my mouth is – back in my wallet.
I don’t know why I always end up procrastinating on the Sephora Play! box – or why I always end up leaving it to be reviewed last. I know I didn’t receive it last. It’s usually the best box I receive each month, too. I must crave delayed gratification?
I snatched up the Origins Original Skin Retexturizing Mask with Rose Clay. I love clay masks…but add rose into the mix…the mask is rose colored AND has a light rose scent. I am not sure what it retexturized, but it made my skin soft and smooth.
Also in this month’s Beauty Schooled box/bag: Make Up For Ever Artist Rouge Lipstick in “C211” (ugh, what’s up with the goddamn number – it’s a dusty rose nude); Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Gel (skip); Living proof. T.B.D. Multi-Tasking Styler (their products are always good); Benefit Cosmetics Hoola Matte Bronzer (I already have one of these open); and OUAI VOLUME Shampoo and Conditioner.
I remembered to use my 50 point card this month – go me!
Give up 2 pumpkin spice lattes and you’ve paid for it! Sephora Play is only $10/month. You can sign up at sephora.com/play.
YESROUGE, 1 & 2
Sephora’s huge VIB event came a little early this year. From August 24th through September 3rd, with the code YESROUGE, Rouge members are eligible for 20% off anything and everything at Sephora. (VIB get 15% and Beauty Insiders get 10% off.) They changed it up a little bit this year. The code can be used multiple times in store, but only once online. Boooooooo!
Since I could only use the code online once, I tried to fill my cart as full as I possible could. Of course, the thing I wanted most (a limited edition Flamingo print Tangle Teezer for $16) was sold out. I consoled myself by buying a bunch of other stuff that I didn’t need.
It’s a HUGE risk to buy fragrances, scent unsmelled. I’ve been jonesing to try more Jo Malone fragrances, so after flip flopping between Peony and Blush Suede and Red Roses, I decided to go a different direction. Sephora also carries Jo Loves, which is the line that Jo Malone launched in 2011 after she sold her original brand. I chose Jo Loves White Roses & Lemon Leaves – A Fragrance Paintbrush Gel ($55, $44 after discount). This scent is like an avalanche of memories. The scent of white roses brings me back to the courtyard outside the church I attended as a child. Besides my grandmother, those roses were literally the only fond memory I have of attending church. This is the scent of a real rose – NOT rose perfume. My only concern is that the gel won’t last very long – it’s hard to gauge how much product is inside the white plastic tube. Fingers crossed…
I am kicking myself for ordering Kat Von D Everlasting Glimmer Veil Liquid Lipstick in “Wizard” ($22, $17.60 after discount). The price went down to $15 the day after I placed my order. Fuuuuuuuck.
I also added a few nail polish sets from the Sale bin: Nails Inc. Unicorn Nail Polish Duo ($10.50, $8.40 after discount), which includes “Sparkle Like a Unicorn in Dream Dust” (3D high sparkle) and “Rainbow Wishes” (soft rainbow sheen) AND Deborah Lippman The World is Your Oyster Nail Polish Duo ($10.50, $8.40 after discount), which includes “Chantilly Lace” and “I Put a Spell on You”.
For samples, I actually got the ones I selected when I ordered: Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Longwear Foundation (4 shades to try!); COOLA Mineral Face SPF 30 in Matte Tint; and Guerlain Mon Guerlain Eua Florale (too much musk with the jasmine – gave me a headache when I wore it yesterday.)
Of course, I did manage to forget something I actually needed for my online order – replacement heads for my Clarisonic.
I headed to Sephora yesterday and quickly picked up a two pack of Clarisonic Acne Facial Cleansing Brush Heads ($44, $35.20 after discount). I looked all around the store and nothing caught my eye (I am biding my time on the Urban Decay Born to Run palette and the Anastasia Norvina Palette.) I was in the checkout maze and something caught my eye…I ended up bringing home the Amika Polished Perfection Mini Straightening Brush ($35, $28 after discount). I wasn’t sure what it would do, but I was looking for something that would give the front of my hair some OOMPH when I skip a day washing. I am just a little bit in love with this device. It heats up quickly and does what it says it does. It made my hair really shiny and smooth, too. Both my kids did their hair with it too and I have to say, I am super jealous of how smooth and shiny is made my son’s long, luscious hair. But then Lily wanted to use it on the cat…Um, noooooo.
I even remembered to bring in the 50 point card from this month’s Play! box. Now that I can get $100 for 2,500 points, I am gonna take advantage!
So after all this shopping, I just have $241 left until ROUGE. That’s just $60/per month, for the next four months. Hallelujah!
Blazing
So I found this gem, digging around in my basket of untried polishes…how did I pass this one by? It’s gorgeous!
This is Formula X “Blazing” – one of the polishes I picked up for $2 each last summer when Sephora discontinued the Formula X polishes. A blue-leaning burgundy, with a firey shimmer, I got full coverage in a single coat! Of course, I did two coats – just to make sure. I used Glisten & Glow Base Coat and Top Coat.
The lasting power is impressive – I painted my nails several days ago, but they still look fresh…and it is still going strong. It looks so good, that the guy at the oil change place asked if I had just gotten them done. (I am not sure if he was flirting or just really appreciated my nails…Lily says flirting.)
“Blazing” is a close cousin…or even sister…to Julep “Laurie”. Man, I should keep better track of dupes…but I am too goddamn lazy.