Month: September 2020
Sweet 16
I don’t know where my daughter got this nail polish, but she brought it to me to try out. I have her trained a little bit, huh?
This is Del Sol Color Change Nail Polish in “Sweet 16”. I hope you appreciate the patience it took to wait 3 days to get a picture of the color change in sunlight, as I waited for Hurricane Beta to pass through my area. The label led me to believe that the polish would turn RED in the sunlight, but the best I could do was a faded orange.
This is two coats of “Sweet 16” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat. I went glossy with Glisten & Glow Top Coat on my thumb and ring finger and matte with Glisten & Glow Matte Top Coat on the rest of my fingers. Matte is the way to go with this polish – it made my nails look like stained glass. Neither top coat affected the polish’s (weak) reaction to sunlight.
September 2020 Ipsy Bag – Good Vibes
Ooooh…corduroy. This month’s ipsy bag has me feeling some kind of way. At least I don’t have to hear it rubbing together between my thighs.
My product choice this month was a Generation Clay Urban Defense Purifying Pink Clay Mask. I love me some clay masks. I used the mask today and it was very nice. It dried quickly and I could feel it sucking all the gunk out of my pores – highly recommended.
Also in this month’s “Good Vibes” bag: Sundays Nail Polish in “No 18” (visuals coming soon); tarte Big Ego mascara in “Black” (ohhh, I have so much mascara); Georgette Klinger Volcanic Mineral Scrub (this smells HORRIBLE); and Pacifica Beauty Desert Sunset Matte Blush & Bronzer Duo (used this today as well, very flattering).
Good products this month, even though the bag itself reminds me of baby poopoos.
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September 2020 Allure Beauty Box – Opening Up
That’s a bold move Allure, curating a box around the world opening up from COVID-19. Let’s see what Allure thinks I need to get back into the world of the living…
I’ll be honest, I’m far from the world of the living, so the only product I’ve sampled so far is the Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm. The lavender component is so strong that it made me eyes water when I used it. It did rinse clean though – IO feel like many cleansing balms do not. It’s ok, if you like cleansing balms.
The rest of the products in the box seem like a hodgepodge. I don’t use dry shampoos, so I won’t be likely to use Waterl<ss Dry Conditioner. I *might* try the Wander Beauty Unlashed Mascara and the Cleo Noir Twist Up Eyeliner in “Purple”, as well as the e.l.f. Highlighting Brush. I don’t go outside if I can help it, so it will be a while before I break out the La Roche-Posay Anthelios 50 Ultra Light Sunscreen Fluid. Oh, I also got a sheet mask – Glam Up Revitalizing Japanese Sake Sheet Mask.
This is the last $15 box – I’ll see what next month’s $23 box brings…
The Allure Beauty Box is $15/month, but they give you $5 off your first box. They also offer an option for $150/year – a savings of $30. Sign up via my referral link.
Feeling Grinchy
Is it too early to be feeling Grinchy?
Or maybe it’s not that I’m feeling Grinchy, it’s just that humanity is really showing it’s ass right now…
In any case, I needed a sparkly green nail polish to match my recently pedicured toes, so I grabbed China Glaze “Grinchworthy”.
This is two coats of “Grinchworthy” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
Macaroni in a Pot
Macaroni in a pot…that’s some wet ass polish.
I’m sorry, I couldn’t resist. Please forgive me.
This nail that is so reminiscent of the neon orange cheese powder in a box of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, is Sinful Colors Quick Bliss “Hit the Spot”. I was expecting to hate this on my nails, but it actually looked really nice. It was so bright, I kept surprising myself, doing double takes whenever I’d catch sight of them walking by the bathroom mirror.
This is two coats of “Hit the Spot” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
I bet this would look even more like Macaroni & Cheese powder with a matte top coat…hmmmm…
Forever Flawless
I know I just bought a new eyeshadow palette…but I’ve been waiting literally FOREVER for these two Makeup Revolution Forever Flawless palettes to arrive at Ulta from the UK…and last Monday was Diamond Offer Day, so…
The Makeup Revolution Forever Flawless Flamboyance Flamingo Palette Is a creamy collection of pink and coral eye shadows, with a few pops of blue and glitter. Some of the pinks are VERY bright – be warned. I may have left the house looking like a gay raccoon…The quality is very good. With Makeup Revolution, you never know what you are going to get. Sometimes the quality is rough – basically kitty litter – but sometimes, it’s creamy and blendable like this one!
I also got the Makeup Revolution Forever Flawless Spirituality Palette, which is full of rich burgundies and coppers – it’s very similar to the Kat Von D Lolita Por Vida Palette, but a helluva lot cheaper! These palettes were just $10 each, on sale from $15.
Wearing a mask whenever I leave the house, I’ve been living for balm stains. I had been waiting for the Milani Rose Transforming Lip Balm ($9.99) to come back in stock. It turned my lips a baby pink, with a hint of pearl. It’s okay, nothing special.
I got a few Diamond Freebies with my order – Becca Cosmetics Hydra-Light Lip Plumping Balm and Covergirl Fresh Mascara. I haven’t tried either yet.
$269 to Diamond in 2021. Oh, and my order came with ANOTHER $10 off $40 coupon!
Very Cherry
Forget for a moment that “Very Cherry” Jelly Bellies are plain old red jelly beans. Jelly Belly x Sally Hansen Insta Dri “Jewel Very Cherry” is an iridescent magenta dream. The base does lean red, but this is definitely a pink polish. I forgive you, Sally, for trying to make me believe this beautiful polish is a cherry jelly bean.
I started with Sally Hansen Double Duty – will I ever finish this damn bottle? This is two coats of “Jewel Very Cherry”, topped with Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
This polish looked very familiar to me, once it was on my nails. It might be a dupe of one of my OLDEST polishes – Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear “Hot Magenta”. They are not an exact match – but they are pretty darn close.
Stoned Vibes
While taking my daughter to Ulta for a back-to-school haircut, I had a moment to go shopping for myself…
Urban Decay Cosmetics just launched the “Stoned Vibes” Eyeshadow Palette ($54) and I had been on the fence about it, but seeing it in person lured me in…well, that AND a $10 off a $40 purchase coupon. I’ve had a chance to sample several of the “stoned” shades and they are very different than what you’d expect. They’re very sheer, but buildable. Be warned, they leave a lot of fallout all over your face. The colors are a nice range of colors, too. I’ve seen a few negative reviews, but it’s kind of nice to see Urban Decay branching out and releasing something different than another Naked palette.
I also scooped up some clearance goodies: a few 75% off Frida Kahlo x Ulta Beauty items – a back-up Blurring Primer and the Beso de Amor Cheek & Bronzer Duo. There were also a bunch of Jelly Belly x Sally Hansen polishes at 50% off – “French Vanilla”, “Jewel Very Cherry”, and the “Hop Into Spring” Duo with “Birthday Cake” and “Jewel Bubble Gum”.
I also bought 3 tiny Conair Quick Smooth Hair Brushes, because they have velcro in them to make your hair smooth. I couldn’t tell a difference, honestly. And, they were $6…and I expected them to be $3 because they were so tiny.
The cashier let me break my purchase into two transactions, so I could use the $10 off coupon on the eyeshadow and another $3.50 off coupon on everything else. Just $299 to Diamond status in 2021.
Mercury Rising
Cuccio Colour is a new brand to me – it was an add-on to last month’s ipsy bag. I giggle every time I say it…you know, because coochie. I am a child trapped in a woman’s body.
Cuccio Colour “Mercury Rising” is a dark violet creme. It covered well and was not streaky. It also lasted without chips.
This is two coats of “Mercury Rising” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat. It’s shiny alone, but I topped all but my pinky with Glisten & Glow Top Coat. My pinky got the matte treatment with Glisten & Glow Matte Top Coat.
Is this polish misnamed? Isn’t Mercury known as “the red planet”? Just a thought…
Energetic Snake
Fresh off “Witchy Snake”, I couldn’t wait to try the other Bebe Rexha Snake-like Top Coat. Check out Sinful Colors “SSS Sparkle”.
I wanted a bright primary color that would pop against the gold, so I started with a single coat of Sinful Colors “Energetic Red” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Top Coat. I then topped all of my fingers, except the ring fingers, with “SSS Sparkle”. I finished the job with Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
I wasn’t expecting the glitter crackle to dissipate so much – it crackles, but also shrank onto the nail, leaving bigger crackles than her black sister.
I really liked the orange leaning “Energetic Red” – it’s still on my toes!