Month: July 2022

 
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All this for Velveeta Nails…

Why yes, I DID purchase the viral Velveeta Nail Polish…did you think I wouldn’t?

I snatched up the Nails.INC x VELVEETA Pinkies Out Polish Creamy Smooth Cheese Scented Nail Polish Duo ($15), as well as the Nails.INC x VELVEETA Irresistible Nail Stickers ($4.99). I cannot wait to experience the cheese fingers for myself!

I have a strong aversion to paying for shipping, so I loaded my cart with items to hit the $50 threshold for free shipping. I had always wanted to try magnetic nail polish, so I got the Get Magnetized Magnet Effect Nail Polish Duo ($15). I also got Color Changing Nail Polish in “Feel the Hotness” ($10), Leopard Spot Topper in “Prowling in Paddington” ($10), and Nourishing Lip Balm in “Share My Fantasy” ($3.20).

I used a code to get 10% off my first order, as well as a free Gel Effect nail polish in “Regent Place”.

I do find it rather odd that Nails Inc (a London based company) is selling a nail polish themed after a product that is rare to find (affordably) in the UK. In fact, I’ve mailed Velveeta to friends in Scotland, as it’s so hard to find. I’ve also packed it in my (daughter’s) carry-on while traveling to Alaska, and got popped by Security. Apparently, fake cheeze looks like C4, when packed inside a 6 year old’s luggage…

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Lavender Notes

I had just re-dyed my hair blue, and the edges of my nails were blue…if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em!

I chose Sinful Colors “Lavender Notes” to camouflage my stained nails. It worked quite well, if I do say so myself.

This is two coats of “Lavender Notes” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat. Since it’s a matte polish, I didn’t use a top coat…EXCEPT Glisten & Glow Top Coat on my pinkies. I really like it better with a glossy top coat – it makes the shimmer really POP!

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FOMO

If I gave out awards for the most outstanding nail polish of the year, Nailtopia “FOMO” would ABSOLUTELY be a contender, if not my #1 pick.

“FOMO” is a fuchsia shimmer, with flashes of bright blue. It’s just a fantastic combination and looks amazing on my skin. I first wore it several weeks ago and I circled back to it again for my vacation polish. Wearing the same polish twice within a few weeks is just UNHEARD of for me, but I love it that much.

This is just two coats of “FOMO” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat. It’s a long lasting polish, although I did get some peeling after several trips to the pool.

I was a bit annoyed that the polish was leaking when I received it – that’s why there’s smears all over the cap. I imagine that it started literally boiling in my mailbox – it’s getting over 100 degrees every day here! I cannot be mad though – it was only $1.75. I should buy more!

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Overboard Hauls

I have always been obsessed with eye shadow palettes, but there haven’t been many good ones in a long while…until NOW!

This post will be a combination of an order I placed a few weeks ago, but it arrived the same day I got my hairs did and bought a bunch of stuff at Ulta. I placed the online order because the Saturday before THAT, I took Lily to get her hairs did and wanted to use the $10 off $40 coupon mailer, but it didn’t go into effect until Sunday. I also had a coupon in the app, so I got to use both!

I had been eyeing the Thor: Love and Thunder line at Ulta and I was THRILLED to find Ulta Beauty items for BOGO. Not BOGO 40% or 50%, but Buy One, Get One FREE. I got the Thor: Love and Thunder Be Worthy Break Apart Eye Palette ($25) and the Thor: Love and Thunder Valkyrie Eye Palette (FREE, from $20). The two palettes also got me a FREE Tote Bag, which was arrived several days later. Although the packaging is top notch, I am a bit disappointed in the quality of the eye shadows. They are not as pigmented as previous palettes (I am thinking of the the AMAZING Frida Kahlo palette). The shadows are a bit flaky and have a lot of fallout. If I had paid full price for both, I’d be PISSED. I’ll still use them, but I think I’ll have to use a primer.

I splurged on my daughter a little bit and ordered some of the wet n wild Lilo & Stitch products. I was disappointed that the eye shadow was out of stock online, but I got her the Hula Honey Glow Face Palette ($10.49) and Experiment 626 Makeup Brush Set ($16.99). I also snagged a few clearance items – Nailtopia Nail Lacquer in “FOMO” ($1.75, down from $10) and Lime Crime Unicorn Hair Color Removing Wipes ($2.80, down from $4). I also grabbed a Colourpop Sonic Blooms Glossy Lip Stain in “Tutti Frutti” ($8). I went to use it the other day, but it was BROKEN! The lip of the bottle had broken off inside the cap. I’d seen nail polish do this, but never a lip product. Ulta Customer Care was very helpful and immediately sent me a replacement.

Oh, and I got a Truly Beauty Break with my $60 purchase – it came with 4 full size products: CBD Jelly Anti-Blemish Body Cleanser (smells like a watermelon Jolly Rancher!); Nice Melons Whipped Body Butter (it had melted in my mailbox); Berry Cheeky Clearing Butt Polish (both my children tried to steal this from me!); and Berry Cheeky Clearing Butt Serum.

All that came in the mail…and I still bought more stuff in person. I was SO excited that my store had the wet n wild Lilo & Stitch Ohana Palette ($16.99)! I also splurged on two more Colourpop Glossy Lip Stains in “Ice Pop” and “Twice Shy”, as well as one of their new eye shadow palettes – X-tra Celestial “Clearly in Love” ($12). (I wanted that free makeup bag.) The Colourpop eye shadow is so much better in quality than the Ulta! It’s creamy and has incredible color payoff without a primer. Ulta needs to get on it. I also snagged a new bottle of Poo-pourri in “Amalfi Flush” for the family vacation…if you know, you know.

Since I wasn’t able to use all the Ulta points I had saved up on the Dyson Air Wrap a few months ago, I used $250 on my hair and purchase…that makes $500 so far this year!

$366 to Diamond in 2023.

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Pride or 4th?

Why choose between a Pride Month and a 4th of July Mani? Why not both? (Yes, I realize it’s almost mid-July – my manis are as backed up as my colon.)

To be honest, I wasn’t really feeling Independence Day this year…how the hell can anyone celebrate “freedom” right now?

In any case, this is two coats of Sinful Colors “24k Drips” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat. I used Sinful Colors “Pride” for my accent nails, topped with Glisten & Glow Glitter Grabber. I then topped ALL of my nails with Glisten & Glow Top Coat.

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June 2022 Sucreabeille Mini Subscription Bag

A combination of system glitches and a credit card issue stopped my Sucreabeille subscription bag…but I’m happy to report that I cleared the issue up and am back on track!

I am CRAZY for this month’s unreleased scent, “Freak in the Spreadsheets” – and that’s ME. I am totally a freak in the spreadsheets, every DAMN day. I am horrible at guessing fragrance notes, but I detect old photographs and a hint of cherry. Old photographs DO have a smell…

“Sparkling Cherry” has a sharp cherry scent, followed by an alcoholic tingle – think of a Cherry Wine Cooler – I don’t hate it.

“Glittertrash” is sickly sweet and reminds me of a watermelon jolly rancher. Nope.

“I’m a Delicate Fucking Flower” is a fairly generic floral scent, a bit too heavy on gardenia for me, but still nice.

I don’t think “Liquid Gold” repels mosquitoes…but it certainly smells like it does. It smells like Deep Woods OFF! on me…

“Cup of Ambition” is the perfect mocha scent – I could wear this EVERY DAMN DAY!

I subscribe to the Mini Subscription Bag at just $15/month (shipping is extra), but there’s also a Medium Subscription Bag for $40/month and a Full Size Subscription Bag for $70/month. Click here for a $5 off coupon (for you AND me)!

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Hex Boyfriend

Sometimes you buy a nail polish and it’s like…OOF, whyyyyyy?

China Glaze “Hex Boyfriend” called out to me from the clearance rack at Ulta, as I was standing in line to pay for my daughter’s haircut. $1.88 is a pretty low risk investment, but this polish wasn’t even worth that. Even though it is only from the Halloween 2020 Collection, it’s so thick that it was almost unusable. Adding OPI Thinner didn’t even help! I might have been better off sticking to a single coat, but it was so uneven, that I had to try to smooth it out.

Although not apparent at the time, I was left with peaks and valleys in my nails, like a relief map of the Rocky Mountains. This formula might have made a fantastic crackle polish!

From the way it looked in the bottle, I was expecting a dark, mysterious green…but on the nails, all I got was black. Flat black, like a theatre set. Boring.

This is two coats over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat. No top coat, except for Glisten & Glow Top Coat on my pinkies. Even glossy, it’s boring.

I could’ve gotten better results with a Sharpie.

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Double Semi

Oops, I did it again…I went wild at Bath & Body Works.

I was planning on going in person, but Lily was at Band Camp and I promised her that I wouldn’t go without her…but then I got an email with 20% and free shipping…and I lost all of my senses. I’m not gonna outline every single thing that came in the box…it was A LOT. I got 11 Wallflower Refills ($2.80 each with discount) and 14 Hand Soaps ($2.60 each with discount). I added only one scent to my shower – “Fresh Cut Lilacs” – I got Shower Gel, Fine Fragrance Mist & Ultimate Hydration Body Cream ($3.16 each with discount). I got Lily “Waikiki Beach Coconut” Shower Gel ($3.16 with discount) to match some shampoo she likes. I splurged on a “Pink Lilac & Vanilla” 3-wick candle ($9.56 with discount) and a “Cacao Rose” Essential Oil Mist ($6.20 with discount) for my pillows. The receipt doesn’t say how much I saved, but it must have been at least $125.

When Lily got back from Band Camp though, we took a peek at our local store, since I still had my $10 off $40 coupon. There was this lady there shopping – we think she was a PLANT – and she kept having me smell candles and I ended up buying a bunch of 7oz candles…but they were only $3.07! I got myself a loofah, but I let Lily pick out some random bath stuff – I hope she likes smelling like “Cucumber Melon” Shower Gel and “Dreamsicle” Body Spray. Ick. This receipt at least tells me that I saved $110 – I only spent $41!

The Semi-Annual Sale still has a few days left – go git ya some!

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Wet Ulta Haul

Lily discovered the absolute BEST hairbrush for wet hair at LaLa’s house, so we had to order them for ourselves! I ordered two WET BRUSH Pro Flex Dry Brushes – at $15.99, not cheap…but these brushes are THAT good. She grabbed the coral one, and I was left with the teal, which is the color I would’ve chosen anyway.

I had a $10 off $40 coupon, so I filled my basket with other things I needed. I got a 12oz Thayers Witch Hazel in “Rose Petal” ($10.95), as well as a travel size at BOGO 40% ($2.39 after discount). After scrolling through the clearance, I found the I ❤ Revolution Mini Rose Cream Palette for 50% off ($4.50, down from $9). I also tried out the new Colourpop Glossy Lip Stain in “Caftan” from the Shore Thing Collection ($8) – I am OBSESSED with this lip stain. I stays on for hours and doesn’t dry out my lips like the matte lip paints I love so much. I’ll be stocking up on these.

My $50 purchase came with a Megababe 4 piece gift…that’s giving me serious deja vu. It included a mini Rosy Pits Daily Deodorant (my fave), Thigh Rescue, Squeaky Clean Hand Sanitizer, and Squeaky Clean Antibacterial Wipes…It’s almost identical to the Megababe gift I received a year ago! I ain’t even mad…

Just $494 to Diamond in 2023.