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Carrie Ann

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There are lots of holographic polishes coming out right now, but this is the first sheer holographic polish that I’ve come across.

Julep “Carrie Ann” is described as blush sheer holographic – it leans a bit too pink to be a true nude, but it is “nudish”. The holographic shift leans gold, which is a welcome change from the usual silver or rainbow shift.

I started with Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat. I did a sloppy job on the second coat – tired – so I have extra crispy edged around my nail beds. Amateur mistake. Even though I used “HK Girl” to protect my nails, my nails couldn’t stand up to dishes and toilet cleaning on Saturday. Alas, I wore this polish less than 48 hours.

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20ROUGE, Part II & III

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Merry Xmas to me! I make Xmas shopping SO easy for my husband.

Well, as much as I love torturing him and making him visit Sephora and Ulta to go shopping for me…I love saving money more. So I decided to forego the torture and take this opportunity to order myself some Sephora exclusive items.

I’d had my eye on the Kat Von D Metal Matte palette ($60) since it launched. In real life, it’s HUGE. I’m glad I ordered when I did – it was already out of stock when I went to Sephora on the 4th. I’m still disappointed that I missed out on the Mi Vida Loca palette last year. I had bought it for my ex-BFF, and I thought she was getting it for me, but she blew it off for too long and it sold out. c’est la vie.

I also said, “fuck it” and ordered the Kat Von D Everlasting Mini Liquid Lipstick Set. I don’t have any of these shades and I wanted to try the new shade “Plath”, plus some older shades – “Backstage Bambi” and “Mother”.

I was a good girl and did not open the boxes – I just shoved them in my husband’s junk drawer to wrap later.

For samples – I didn’t get what I picked again. I don’t remember what I picked, but I ended up with Wildfox perfume (never heard of it, smells like a generic Victoria’s Secret type scent); Clinique Beyond Perfecting Foundation + Concealer in “neutral”; and Juliette has a Gun Not a Perfume (insert says it is pure Cetalox, a background note in perfume – interesting, it smells very generic).

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At the last minute, I decided to order one more thing for myself – MILK MAKEUP Gel Brow in “Pilsner” ($18). I had used 100 points to get a sample of it with my last order – all the way back in August – and I like the way it lasts. I don’t like having to sharpen it, but other than that, it’s a winner.

This one will not be waiting until Xmas – I’ll break into it as soon as I’m done with my little sample.

Samples this time were Sephora Instant Moisture + Cream; Tatcha One Step Camellia Cleansing Oil; and Josie Maran Surreal Skin Argan Finishing Balm.

 

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November Julep Maven Box – Light & Shadow

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It’s Julep time!

This month’s “Light & Shadow” theme brings a range of colors and finishes. For polishes, I chose Classic with a Twist “Carrie Ann”, blush sheer holographic, and It Girl “Mercedes”, canyon rose metallic (what’s a canyon rose?). Both gave me a Thanksgiving vibe – perfect for November. For my beauty product, I chose a new shade of Eyeshadow 101 Creme-to-Powder Eyeshadow Stick – “Burgundy Shimmer”. I have high hopes for upping my game on lazy makeup days (basically, when I hit snooze too many times).

I used Jules to get another Oxygen Bonding Base Coat. It really DOES make a difference with Julep polishes – less bubbles and it sticks so much better.

The treat in my box was a single chocolate ball. I just popped it my mouth – not bad, better than Hershey. Why only one?

Not a Julep Maven? Click HERE to join – I’ll get a $15 credit and you’ll get your first box free!

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Celebratory Blue…NOT

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So…as I painted my nails Tuesday night, hate-watching the Election coverage with my soul-mate across the Atlantic, I thought I had picked an appropriate celebratory blue for the occasion. I was wrong…sooooo fucking wrong.

I’m not gonna get too deep into politics and feelings and shit, but the wind is still knocked out of me from Tuesday night. Anyone who knows me, knows how cynical and dark I am, but never in a million years would I have expected things to turn out this dark. Sure, our choices were shit…but DAMN. Obviously, I overestimated the power of Beyonce and Jay-Z in the Rust Belt.

Back to my nails, this knockout of a blue is Sinful Colors “Don’t Flake” from The Luxe Fragments Collection. I absolutely love this collection of jelly polishes with (mylar?) flakies. This is almost full coverage in two coats over Sinful Colors Base Coat and under “HK Girl”.

Excuse me, I’m going to go watch Idiocracy and cry myself to sleep.

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Blood Moon

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I am OBSESSED with this season of American Horror Story. I am even going to force my sister to take me to Roanoke next year….during the daytime, of course. I have no interest in seeing a REAL Blood Moon.

My Blood Moon is ciate London “Dangerous Affair”, from my August’s ipsy bag. Now I know why people go nuts over ciate – this polish is amazing. Not too thick, not too thin – just perfect. and the brush is wide and flat – one of the most perfect nail polish brushes I have ever used. Am I gushing? I feel like I’m gushing.

I started with Orly Bonder. This is two coats. The first coat had a few streaks, likely because the polish has a bit of a jelly to it. It was fully opaque at two coats though. I finished with “HK Girl”.

Next time I see ciate at TJ Maxx or Marshall’s…it’s MINE.

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Target Beauty Box – November 2016

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I skipped out on the October box, but I couldn’t say no to the November box – Beauty Ballot.

Inside my Ballot box…L’Oreal Advanced HairCare Volume Filler Thickening Shampoo (but no damn conditioner); Andalou Naturals 1000 Roses Beautiful Day Cream (looking forward to this); HASK Keratin Protein Soothing Deep Conditioner (I guess I can use this conditioner with the L’Oreal shampoo); Laneige Water Bank Soothing Mask; W3LL People Bio Brightener Stick; L’Oreal Voluminous Primer (I like the Voluminous Mascara, but I’m WAY too lazy to use a mascara primer); and Revlon ColorStay Eyeliner in “Black” (It has a cool little smudgy tip).

Another $10 box, but this one seems more stuffed than the last one – I ain’t even mad. I also got my $3.50 off $15 coupon – if I remember to use it. Don’t forget the 5% Red Card discount.

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20ROUGE, Part I

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Sometimes, you just gotta TREAT YO SELF.

I’ve held back several months…but when that 20% off discount code hit my inbox…I decided to use the fuck out of it. Sephora is not like Ulta, throwing around 20% off codes like confetti. They do it exactly ONCE a year…and I was not Rouge yet last year, so this is the first time I’ve gotten to take advantage.

Even though I had placed an Xmas present order online earlier, I decided to swing by Sephora after work to pick up something I’d been lusting over for months – GlamGlow GravityMud Firming Treatment. I can only watch so many of Jeffree’s silver snapchats without wanting to try it myself. I wasn’t about to spend $69 on it…but $55.20 seems so much more reasonable. (I know I’m full of shit.)

I tried it Friday night…and it was worth every fucking cent. It smells like coconut (my husband said pina colada) and tingled slightly. I don’t know if it lifted anything, but my skin DID feel firmer and smoother – much more so than with any of the other masks I’ve tried. The effect was most noticeable on my forehead. It will be hard to limit myself to using it just twice a week.

I also got my Rouge Renewal Gift – NARS Blush in “Goulue” (what kind of word is that?). I tried it today and it is perfect for me – much better than the famed “Orgasm”. I also got a free totebag – you can always use a new totebag.

I placed a few online orders – I’ll document those as they arrive…

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You Say Tomato…

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Is it orangey red? Or reddish orange? I can’t tell exactly what color Sinful Colors “HollyWood” is.

In any case, “HollyWood” reminds me of a juicy, ripe tomato. My husband is NOT a fan. He asked, “This is one of those one day polishes, right?” He hates tomatoes with the passion of a sugared up three year old.

This is two coats of “HollyWood” over Sinful Colors Base Coat. I’m getting much more comfortable with matte polishes. The Sinful Colors polishes are much tougher than the Zoya polishes I started with – they can take 8-9 hours of laptop pounding. Don’t be afraid of the matte – embrace the matte.

Oh…and it also matches KitKat wrappers. I know this because I have been sneaking them out of my kids’ loot bags since Halloween. Shhhhh…

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Drip Drip Drip

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Yeah, I know it’s November 3rd. Excusescakes.

Here are my lovely Halloween nails – the tried and true blood drip. My nail buddy, Angie, did really pretty ones this year, so I absolutely copied her and did matte black with red glitter. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

After Orly Bonder, I did two coats of Zoya “Dovima” and used a large and small dotting tool to drag Zoya “Chyna” on the bottom. “Chyna” kept its texture quite well – no major chips over almost a full week.

I did a blood drip last year, too. So shoot me, they’re cool looking.

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Sephora Play! October 2016 – The Cool Cut

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This is it – the Sephora purchase that put me over the edge for Rouge status in 2017. $10 and BOOM.

October’s theme is “The Cool Cut” – innovative products that are about to hit it big.

One of my favorite Sephora sample discoveries is in this box – Belif The True Cream Aqua Bomb. It has me jumping on the Korean Beauty bandwagon. Also in this month’s box: Smashbox Always On Matte Liquid Lipstick in “Driver’s Seat” (interested in how their formula compares to Kat Von D and Jeffree); Cristophe Robin Regenerating Mask with Rare Prickly Pear Seed Oil (Winnie the Pooh approved?); Skin Inc. Pure Revival Peel (also good stuff – I bought some the last time I was in Vegas); Blinc Mascara Amplified; and Yves Saint Laurent Mon Paris (not bad – smells like rich people).

If you haven’t signed up yet – you are missing out! This is by far the best subscription box I get every month. Sephora Play is only $10/month. You can sign up at sephora.com/play.