Category: Makeup
My Sissy Loves Me
I went over to my little sister’s house yesterday to hold her new baby – a little cutie named Evelyn – and I got to open my birthday present early!
I got excited as soon as I saw the Sephora bag. The first thing I pulled out was a Peter Thomas Roth Rose Anti-Aging Kit with Rose Stem Cell Bio-Repair Cleansing Gel, Pink Bombshell Lip Balm, Rose Stem Cell Bio-Repair Gel Mask and a Signature Rose Printed Bag. She knows me so well – almost every year, she gets me something rose scented – my absolute favorite flower scent on the planet. I have never heard of Peter Thomas Roth, but I am excited to try it. I also don’t know what the deal is with plant stem cells being in every product these days. All plants have stems, right?
I reached into the bag again and pulled out the Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette – I literally squealed with delight! I had wanted this one so bad…and it smells like chocolate! She doesn’t pay much attention to my beauty product obsessions, but she knows that I like chocolate.
The last thing in the bag was Zoya “Leslie”. She had gotten it in her Allure Beauty Box and knew she wouldn’t use it. I don’t get the Allure Beauty Box, but I might have to start…
She couldn’t have picked more perfect presents for me – she is so thoughtful and picked out perfect presents for me. Good thing I have 3+ months to pick out presents for her that are just as thoughtful…
Love/Hate/Ulta
My 20% at Ulta coupon expires today, so of course I had to use it – I can’t let it go to waste!
After gymnastics, I carted Lily straight to Ulta. I sat her in a stool beside me and started in with the foundation. I knew that I wanted to get Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Ultra Definition Liquid Makeup – I just wanted to check the colors. I had sampled 3.5, but I wanted to check the lighter colors. Ultimately, I stuck with the 3.5 I also wanted the Good Karma Optical Blurring Blush, but they were out of stock. I went ahead and picked up Naked Skin Beauty Balm in “Light” as well – even though this Ulta still doesn’t have a sample of it out. I, too, like to live dangerously. (I washed my face as soon as I got home and put it on – I like it! It’s light coverage, but blends well and doesn’t accentuate my winter dryness too badly.)
I tried out their new powder foundation – Naked Skin Ultra Definition Powder Foundation, but my skin is too dry right now for a powder foundation. I wanted to get the Naked Skin Ultra Definition Pressed Finishing Powder in “Medium Light” – but of course, that was out of stock, too. That’s what I hate about the Copperfield Ulta – they are always out of stock! They didn’t have the Vice 3 when I wanted it either!
I checked the clearance polish, but nothing jumped out at me. There was another clearance kiosk by the checkout and I couldn’t resist a Revlon Electric Chrome Super Lustrous Lipgloss in “Killer-Watt”, from the Amazing Spider-Man Collection. It rang up $1.97. I tried it this afternoon and absolutely love it.
Luckily, I received another 20% off online only coupon today, so I didn’t bother driving across town – I just ordered the rest of what I wanted off the website. Grrrrrr…the Willowbrook Ulta always has what I want. Luckily, I’m moving offices within the next few weeks and it is just barely close enough to Willowbrook to be able to bop over during my lunch hour…
HEB Enabler
I love my enabler husband. All we needed was yogurt for smoothies, but he let me meander through the cosmetics department first…just in case there was a polish I missed.
Of course there was…I found Sally Hansen Sugar Shimmer “Work of Tart”. I also spied a Milani Runway Eyes wet/dry shadow in “Girls Luv Pink”. The sticker on the shadow said $3.34 – a good deal – but it rang up for $1, just like the polish. Score!
Review – Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Ultra Definition Liquid Makeup
I am *almost* 39 years old and I still haven’t found the perfect foundation. Most of the time, I just wear moisturizer and translucent powder, hoping for the best. I think I might be closer though…
My samples have started piling up, so I’ve been making a concerted effort to start trying more of them. Yesterday morning, I came across a sample of Urban Decay Naked Skin that I had gotten back in March. The description from Urban Decay’s site makes it sound like magic:
Naked Skin uses light-diffusing spheres to ‘blur’ imperfections for a luminous, demi-matte finish that feels invisible but looks professionally retouched.
I started with the Urban Decay Pore Perfecting Complexion Primer Potion ($31). I was very similar to Benefit The POREfessional – it made everything smooth and closed those pores right up. I then applied Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Ultra Definition Liquid Makeup in 3.5 ($39) – what a long name! I just used my fingers, but it glided on smoothly on top of the primer. Luckily, 3.5 was a pretty close match. It covered all the redness and didn’t stick to my peach fuzz too badly. I finished with Ulta Minerals Finishing Powder – it looked amazing! (I tried to take a few selfies, but my bathroom lighting is shit.)
$39 is a lot of money to spend on foundation – I have several other samples that I want to try before I make a final decision. Also, I’m not positive whether the success was from the foundation or the primer. I want to try the Naked Skin Beauty Balm, too. Within the next few weeks, I want to try to go to Sephora and try their Color IQ system to help me verify the color I need – it’s a computer that takes pictures of your skin and tells you what brands and shades will match. Science and shit!
January Ipsy Bag – Fresh Start
This is it – the last of my subscriptions for the month.
This might be the most cohesive Ipsy Bag that I’ve ever received – I could conceivably use all of these products together and not look like a clown! January’s theme is “Fresh Start” and includes Elizabeth Mott All Over Shadow Brush (I will never have to buy brushes again); Hikari Cosmetics Mechanical Eye Liner in “Storm”; (MALIN+GOETZ) Mojito Lip Balm (I’m wearing it now – I leaned over to give my husband a smooch and he didn’t gag, so that’s a good sign); Pacifica Natural Mineral Coconut Eye Shadow in “Ethereal”; and Velvet 59 Velvet Rose Lipgloss in “Noisette”.
I’ll be trying all these out tomorrow…
If you’d like to try Ipsy – click here. I’ll earn 250 points if you sign up through my link.
January Beauty Box 5 – Hello!
My Beauty Box 5 and Ipsy Bag got to share the mailbox yesterday!
January’s Beauty Box 5 is “Hello!” this month. Inside are Hard Candy Kal-Eye-Descope Baked Eyeshadow Duo in “make believe” (I am getting addicted to wet/dry shadows!); Sally Hansen Salon Effects French Mani in “Gold Cabaret” (I’ve never tried these – this should be interesting); Ultraflesh The Gold Standard Mascara in “Blackout” (What an odd, filthy name for mascara!); Softsoap Nutri Serum Vitamin E Body Wash; and Garnier Fructis Daily Care Fortifying Shampoo (well, now I have to buy the matching conditioner for my travel bag…sneaky).
So glad to be getting makeup in my box again…
January Birchbox – Relax & Recharge
I got my Birchbox on Friday, but I’ve been so busy (and feeling a bot under the weather), that I haven’t had time to mess with it – I really need to relax and recharge!
A coincidence that January’s theme is “Relax & Recharge”? I think not…Inside my box: Balance Me Wonder Eye Cream (I need to start testing all the eye creams I receive); Briogeo “Don’t Despair! Repair” Deep Conditioning Mask (I actually used this today – I have been using the sample I received in my September Ipsy Bag about once a week for the past month – my hair is already fairly healthy, so I haven’t really noticed a difference); Manna Kadar Lip Locked priming gloss stain in “All of Me” (finally a Manna Kadar product I might try – I keep getting highlighters); Perlier Intensive Nurturing Body Balm in “Shea Lavender” (I ABSOLUTELY LOVE the Perlier Body Balm from my June Birchbox – it’s the reason I picked this curated box); When Travelmate Sheet Mask; and 2 teapigs tea temples (I assume that is a fancy name for a tea bag?) – “Liquorice and Peppermint” (gross) and “Chamomile Flowers” (maybe not gross).
I am committing to trying all these products within the next week – maybe they will make me feel less run down and snotty?
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.
January Julep Maven Box – The Chrysalis Collection
If Julep hadn’t given us the option of customizing our boxes, I probably would have quit by now. This last month, they added even more options to the boxes – they offer items from previous months now!
January starts anew with “The Chrysalis Collection”. Julep Luxe Lip Treatment is new this month – it’s a sheer, cooling lip tint. I chose “Sheer Fig”. I also chose one of their new shades of Gel Eye Glider – “Olive”. I picked one polish – Classic with a Twist “Maryam” – dark merlot shimmer. As a bonus, I received “Tyra” Metamorphic Top Coat – every one got one of the their three new top coats…the others are “Tilda” and “Bjork”. There was also a little box of Junior Mints…I already ate them. My mom loved Junior Mints. I can’t eat them without thinking of how that’s what she would always buy when we went to the movies…
This is one of the best boxes so far!
Not a Julep Maven? CLICK HERE to join! Get a FREE Snow Day Welcome Box with code HIFRIEND!
After Xmas Haul
You know what’s better than Xmas shopping? After Xmas shopping!
On Friday night, we hit Walmart, in search of 75% off beauty sets, as seen on Nouveau Cheap. Although I did spy a few sets from Flower, Hard Candy and e.l.f. – they were all atrocious eye shadow and I passed. I did, however, find a Scinti Countdown to Christmas Gift Set – it’s like a nail art advent calendar. I really just wanted the little mustache nail decals. It ended up being $3.72, so not bad, even if it is a brand I’ve never heard of.
On Saturday night, I talked my BFF into a trip to Walgreen’s, again in search of clearance Xmas. Along with a shit-ton of Gift Tags, I found a Conair Ultimate Style and Volume Gift set for $5. I really only bought it for the bun maker thingy. I also picked up a Red Velvet revo and the most awesome thing ever – a dancing Xmas Tree that sings “Feliz Navidad”!
I think I made my BFF sad when I carried that fucking tree down every aisle, making it serenade all of the other shoppers. Shenanigans!
Goodbye Crater Pores!
Whoever packed my box did a great job color-coordinating the tissue paper!
Birchbox has the best loyalty points system, hands down! I had $30 in points just a few months ago and here I am with $30 in points again!
After trying a sample of Benefit’s The POREfessional in Ulta’s Cyber Monday Bag, I had to have a full size. (This stuff is like the most magic nose spackle ever!) Also needed a back-up Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz. With a 20% off code, $30 in points and free Ace shipping, I only paid $11.60.
The free samples were so-so this time: Harvey Prince “Imperial Gardenia” (which I received in my June Box) and evologie Stay Clear Cleanser. Hit me up if you like Gardenia and you can have the perfume…