Month: December 2019

 
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Rockstar Pink

I’ll always have a soft spot for the Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear line of nail polish. For years, it was was the main polish in my collection! It’s cheap and available everywhere. There are colors and finishes for every mood – and every once and awhile, I’ll still grab one or two to add to my collection, when they’re on sale or clearance.

Sally Hansen “Rockstar Pink” is rockstar polish – it’s a nearly full coverage microglitter, full of pink, blue and fuchsia.

This is two coats of “Rockstar Pink” over Sally Hansen Double Duty Base & Top Coat and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat. I feel like it was shinier without the top coat, almost like it reduced the surface of the glitter to reflect light. Interesting.

Also – this was a SONOFABITCH to get off – lots of scrubbing.

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Ulta Cyber Monday 2019

Ulta offered a HUGE Wintry Wonders 24 piece Beauty Bag with $80 purchase on Cyber Monday. Of course, I still had some gift shopping left to do…

Obviously, I’m not going to ruin Xmas by showing all the gifts I bought – but I can show the few things I picked up for myself. I’d been wanting to try It Cosmetics Confidence in a Cream Rosy Tone Moisturizer for a bit, but the price ($48) was putting me off. 30% off though – you have my attention. I’ve been using it for nearly a week and it’s too soon to tell if there’s a dramatic change in the tone of my skin – but the texture of my skin is amazing right now. It’s dewy and clear – no breakouts, which is a good sign. I’ll continue to use it, but I’m not sure if I’d buy it again at full price.

I also picked up a sale Makeup Revolution Good Vibes Lip Balm with Cannabis Sativa ($4.90, down from $7). There’s no tint, no fragrance and no taste to this lip balm – I mean, it works as a lip balm, but I think slapping Cannabis on the label is just a selling ploy – there’s nothing a special about this lip balm – disappointing.

So, inside the Wintry Wonders bag: MAC Lipstick Sample Card, with “Velvet Teddy”, “Mocha”, and “Hug Me”; Becca Sample Card with First Light Prioming Filter and Backlight Priming Filter; Tom Ford Metallique (why do all Tom Ford scents smell so old lady?); Rusk Pro Restore01 Leave-In Conditioner; Ralph Lauren Romance; NARS Climax Mascara; Ahava Extreme Minerals Extreme Firming Eye Cream; Sagely Naturals CBD Cream; 18.21 Man-Made Wash in “Sweet Tobacco” (GROSS); Philosophy Purity Made Simple Moisturizer; Clinique Beyond Perfecting Super Concealer Camouflage + 24-Hour Wear Sample Card; Juice Beauty Phyto-Pigments Flawless Serum Foundation Sample Card (I’ll put it on my Jade Egg); Boscia Purifying Cleansing Gel; Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion; Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer; Marc Jacobs Daisy; Unwined by Hask Red Wine Inspired Repairing Shampoo & Conditioner (very interested in trying this – even though I’m allergic to red wine – it should be okay, as long as I don’t drink it); Marvis Classic Strong Mint Toothpaste; Mario Badescu Botanical Exfoliating Scrub; Too Cool for School Pumpkin Sleeping Pack; Hempz Blushing Grapefruit & Raspberry Creme Daily Herbal Color Preserving Conditioner (but no shampoo???); Anastasia Beverly Hills Dip Brow Gel in “Dark Brown” (Yasssss…cannot wait to try it); Giorgio Armani Light di Gioia (surprisingly, it’s not horrible – reminds me of sunflowers); and Living proof. restore Perfecting Spray. This is a really nice bag, full of brand new products for the most part.

In addition to the gift with purchase, I was able to use a $10 off coupon on my order. $157 to Diamond…so close!

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Julep Sales on Sales on Sales

Julep is still going with the nail polish sales – they sent out an email offering an additional 50% off all clearance polishes, which were already 50% to 70% off. Believe it or not, there are quite a few Julep polishes that I don’t have!

The first thing I grabbed was the Hypnotic Frenzy Set, which includes 6 mini polishes for $10. The polishes are Boho Glam “Agatha”Gilded bronze multidimensional glitter, Bombshell “O’Neill”Sleek copper chrome, It Girl “Vinsy”Blooming pink multidimensional glitter, Classic with a Twist “Brita” – frozen raspberry chrome, Bombshell “Kirra”Icy purple multidimensional glitter, and Boho Glam “Maryann”Lilac mauve shimmer. The bottles are teensy!

A few were $3.50, like “Geena – Rose Quartz for January”Rose quartz iridescent shimmer and Bombshell “Kaia”Flaming red orange metallic. I actually got two of “Kaia” because I thought that was how my niece’s name was spelled….spoiler alert, it is not. Dammit.

The rest were $2.50 each. I got “Clarity”Lucid azure duochrome , “Leo”Golden honey duo metallic, “Betsey – Peridot for August”Peridot birthstone iridescent shimmer, It Girl “Geneva” Supernova Iridescent Microglitter, Boho Glam “Chira”Rich Teal Microshimmer, and “Lucky Libra”Prosperous teal iridescent .

Just $35.50 for all these polishes, 15 in all, plus free shipping.

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Elsa in Blue Jeans

It’s December. Time for cliched seasonal manicures!

In honor of Frozen II, I figured I would pull out Funky Fingers “Elsa” and combine it with a new polish. I started with Glisten & Glow Base Coat and two coats of Layla Cosmetics LAYBA Nail Polish in “Sexy in Blue Jeans” from November’s ipsy bag. I’ve never heard of the brand before, but the polish is quite nice. It’s the perfect consistency and the brush is good quality. Everyone could use a nice indigo creme polish like this.

Remembering how hard it was to fish these damn snowflakes out of the bottle, I only used “Elsa” on my Thumb and ring fingers. I topped my thumb, index and middle fingers with Glisten & Glow Top Coat. I used Glisten & Glow Matte Top Coat on my ring finger and pinky. I definitely like the matte better – it’s more sophisticated.

I really like how my nails turned out – they remind me of a festive holiday sweater. They also remind me of this look I did FIVE YEARS AGO with the similar Funky FIngers “Olaf”.

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Barbie Friendsgiving

I know I need more eye shadow like I need a hole in the head…but I thought I missed out on the PÜR x Barbie Endless Possibilities Palette! But then it popped up in Ulta’s pre-Thanksgiving Friendsgiving sale for 40% off, so…

I had passed on it when it launched several months ago, because I did not want to pay full price – $34. 40% off brought it down to $20.40, which is much more reasonable. I was not familiar with PÜR ‘s eye shadow quality, but it turns out that is really soft and buttery – it blends very well. There is a good range of pinks and browns in the palette, but the most pleasant surprise was the blue eye shadow. I grew up in the 80s and ALL of my Barbies had that same baby blue eye shadow. The blue in this palette is an almost perfect reproduction of that baby blue – somewhat sheer, with a pinkish shimmer. This might be the only blue eye shadow I own that doesn’t look completely ridiculous.

I also picked up 2 of the 4 PÜR x Barbie Lipsticks for $10.80, down from $18 – “Legendary”, Barbie pink, and “Timeless”, dusty mauve pink. Although they are insanely pigmented and have decent staying power – it IS lipstick and gets all over EVERYTHING.

I also got a 4 piece gift (with a $35 PÜR purchase), which included PÜR 4-in-1 Correcting Primer, 4-in-1 Lip Duo, Lit Mist Illuminating Setting Spray, and a makeup pouch. I tried out the primer and it is really nice.

I was kind of pissed that the PÜR x Barbie collab went down to 50% on Cyber Monday, but oh well.

$266 to Diamond…stay tuned!

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Buttered Popcorn

The Buttered Popcorn Jelly Belly is one of the most hotly contested flavors of jelly beans, even more so than the black licorice jelly beans. People have strong feelings about this particular jelly bean – mostly negative. I, for one, actually enjoy this buttery little jelly bean, especially eaten together with Peanut Butter Jelly Beans. I know – I’m an odd bird.

This is the nail polish inspired by that tasty little bean – Jelly Belly x Sally Hansen Insta Dri “Buttered Popcorn”. It’s a cream colored polish, filled with different colors of gold glitter. Even though the first coat was a bit streaky, the second coat gave really good coverage. This is two coats over Glisten & Glow Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Matte Top Coat. I really like the matte finish with glitter polishes like this – it feels almost luxurious.

The only thing that could make this polish better is if is actually SMELLED like Buttered Popcorn.

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More Ulta Friendsgiving

So I received my second Ulta Friendsgiving order right before Thanksgiving, but I’ve been sick AF since Monday…the whole damn house needs to be quarantined!

So many good sales before Black Friday and Cyber Monday! What could I pick up to get me to $65 for that 23 Piece Friendsgiving Beauty Besties Beauty Bag???

I had been drooling over the Hask Rose Oil & Peach Shampoo and Conditioner ($5.99 each) since I saw them at Walgreen’s a few months ago. I knew they would eventually show up at Ulta, so I waited. It sounds weird, but the shampoo is more rose scented and the conditioner is more peach scented – why? They are a more budget-friendly choice than the Redken and Nexxus products I’ve been buying lately and work just as well. They smell less salon-y, too.

I noticed that Mamonde Petal Spa Oil to Foam Cleanser was half off ($10.50, down from $21) AND came with a free gift! I’ve gotten several samples in beauty boxes and really like the scent, so I splurged. The free gift was three samples: Mamonde Petal Spa Oil to Foam Cleanser, Mamonde Rose Water Toner, and Mamonde Plum Blossom Lip Sleeping Mask. Since I cannot resist anything rose, I also picked up the new Biore Rose Quartz + Charcoal Pore Refining Scrub ($7.99) – it’s very gentle.

I hadn’t gotten my first Friendsgiving order yet when I placed this one, so I ended up adding two more Zoya Remove+ ($10 each) to my cart – oops!

Inside that hot pink sequined Beauty Besties Bag: ANOTHER Mamonde Petal Spa Oil to Foam Cleanser (happy to have it for travel); Redken Color Extend Magnetics Shampoo & Conditioner (I just used up a full size of the conditioner, but still have some of the shampoo left); Maybelline The Colossal Mascara; Yves Saint Laurent L’Homme; Anastasia Beverly Hills Lip Gloss in “Moon Jelly”; Giorgio Armani Acqua di Gioia; Prada Candy (2 of these, so Lily got one); bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Sample Card; it Cosmetics Blurring Foundation No 101; Benefit The POREfessional; Philosophy Purity Made Simple 3-in-1 Cleanser for Face and Eyes; Peach & Lily Glass Skin Refining Serum (looking forward to trying this); Paradoxx Secret Weapon Conditioner (why is this hair conditioner in a little metal tin that will immediately rust in my shower?); Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara; Ulta Beauty Sugared Vanilla Moisturizing Body Lotion; Moschino Toy 2; Ulta Beauty Charcoal Nose Strips; La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Moisturizer; Bed Head Small Talk; Love Wellness Lights Out Dietary Supplements (ooooh, sleeping pills that probably won’t work on me!); John Varvatos Eau de Toilette; Elizabeth Arden Advanced Ceramide Capsules; and Hempz Pink Pomelo & Himalyan Sea Salt Herbal Body Moisturizer. Phew – my fingers are tired. These are really good samples – I will use at least 75% of them!

In case you are noticing that the math doesn’t add up, there were a few other items that I added to my cart that will be Xmas gifts. Shhhh…don’t tell!

I got to use a $10 off coupon, in addition to the many sales. Just $319 to Diamond…

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November 2019 Sephora Play! – Beauty for Self-Care

Self-Care? Let me tell you, I self-cared the fuck out of myself last week. I laid my ass on the couch every day…and enjoyed every minute of it. I think I put a mask on my face every single day, except one. I’m paying for it now, though – I went back to work today and ended up staying until 6:30….and to top it off, I think I’m coming down with a cold. FRACK.

November’s Play! box is a six heavenly samples to help me with my self-care. I was most excited to sample the Clinique Almost Lipstick in “Black Honey”. My lips have been feeling dried out and it was a nice change from my drying liquid lipsticks. The color didn’t last very long though, not even until lunch.

Also in this month’s box: NARS Lipstick in Tolede (haven’t tried yet); Glamglow GLOWSTARTER Mega Illuminating Moisturizer in “Nude Glow” (I LOVE this stuff); Lancome Hypnose Drama Instant Full Body Mascara; Dr. Jart+ Cicapair Tiger Grass Color Correcting Treatment SPF 30 (I got this a few Decembers ago – it’s decent); and Yves Saint Laurent Black Opium (too strong for me).

Sephora Play gives you 5-6 prestige samples a month, for just $10! You can sign up at sephora.com/play

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Diamond in the Raw

Words cannot describe the magic of Sinful Colors Sinful Shine “Diamond in the Raw”. It’s so shiny that it looks black and white at the same time! It’s literally like ground up diamonds in polish-form.

This is two coats of “Diamond in the Raw” over Sinful Colors Base Coat (almost empty) and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat.

I was disappointed in how quickly the polish chipped, but I blame it on washing all of my makeup brushes the other day. My hand were all pruny and a few tips had chipped.