Tag: essence
CeraVe Ulta Haul
I know buying face wash is not very exciting, but 40% off CeraVe was a deal I couldn’t pass up…I got CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser with Ceramides and Hyaluronic Acid ($10.79, down from $17.99) for me and CeraVe Acne Control Face Cleanser, 2% Salicylic Acid Acne Treatment ($11.39, down from $18.99) for Lily.
Essence and Milani was also on sale, so I got Essence Electric Glow Color Changing Lipstick ($3.49, down from $4.99) – almost as good as Frog Prince, but not quite – and Milani Precision Brow Pencil in “Dark Brown” ($7.69, down from $10.99). It’s a decent pencil – as good as Ulta’s!
Oh, there was definitely more stuff in this order…but Xmas is coming and Nailtopia was also 40% off.
$148 to Diamond in 2024.
October 2020 Ipsy Bag – You’re Magic
Good old, reliable ipsy. I can always count on ipsy for a good bag.
Not only was this month’s bag out-of-this-world black pleather with gold embossing, but the contents kicked butt, too. I’ve been using the HELL out of the Illuminati Cosmetics Quad Palette in “Secret Society”. I’ve never heard of this brand before, but it’s really good quality.
My product choice this month was Tarte Maracuja Tinted Hydrator in “Fair Neutral”. I was shocked at how much coverage was in a tinted moisturizer. For me, it gave medium coverage while feeling light om my skin. It did get all over the inside of my mask, so that was annoying.
Also in this month’s bag: Benefit Gimme Brow+ Warm Golden Blonde 2 Volumizing Eyebrow Gel (I’ll literally never use this); Essence Cosmetics Pure Nude Highlighter 010 in “Popping Champagne” (this was a nice subtle highlighter – I liked it); and Timeless Beauty Bar Apres Sea Face Sheet Mask and Face the Day Face Sheet Mask Set.
All in all, a good mix of products – I’ll use 4/5. Allure better get their shit together or I am canceling and upgrading to Ipsy Plus.
I subscribe to the basic ipsy bag for $12/month. If you’d like to try Ipsy – click here. I’ll earn 250 points if you sign up through my referral link.
National Lipstick Day
I took a short vacation – a few days floating in the pool, no schedule, no plans was just what I needed. I’m a little bit behind on my beauty posts, but it was worth it.
National Lipstick Day was back on July 29th and Ulta had a lot of fantastic deals. I’m having to wear a mask whenever I leave the house, but just know that I am STILL wearing lipstick under that mask. Ridiculous, I know. The liquid lipsticks I’ve been wearing for the last few years have a tendency to be drying, so I decided to take advantage of a great BOGO sale to pick up Lipstick Queen Medieval Lipstick (regularly $24), a reddish balm; and Lipstick Queen Blue By You Metallic Lipstick (regularly $25), which turns to a metallic pink. I love Lipstick Queen Frog Prince so much, that I thought I’d try a few more shades. These lipsticks are really moisturizing and they match any skin tone. I also got a free Lipstick Queen Altered Universe Gloss mini with $25 brand purchase!
Speaking of color-changing lippies, Harry Potter X Ulta Beauty Bewitching pH Lip Balm ($10) was back in stock, so I got it (for myself). It turns my lips a glittery, peachy pink. It’s a bit gritty though, which is annoying. I also picked up a clearance Essence Fruit Kiss Caring Balm in “Raspberry Dream” ($1.49, down from $2.49). I’ve started leaving lip balm scattered around the house, so what’s one more?
PÜR 4-in-1 Pressed Mineral Powder Foundation was 40% off ($17.70, down from $29.50), so I decided to try it out – I picked shade “Ivory”. The packaging is really neat – it’s packed into a Lucite compact. It has less coverage than I was expecting, but it photographs really smoothly. I’ll have to use it a bit longer to determine whether it will be a permanent replacement for my KVD powder foundation.
Absent good sales at Bath & Body Works, I decided to try out Ulta’s Moisture Gel Hand Soap at BOGO 40% off (regularly $6). I chose “Pink Grapefruit” and “Sea Salt Splash”. I am obsessed with the “Pink Grapefruit” – it smells just like my favorite Albanese Gummie! Oh, and a clearance Ocean Vibes Foaming Hand Wash ($3).
To top off my cart, I added another pack of Kitsch Face Masks ($12.99). Face masks are definitely not going away any time soon. I also got a clearance travel size Schmidt’s Rose + Vanilla Deodorant Stick ($2.49, down from $4.99). I thought that this one had given me a rash, but now that I’ve used other scents from Schmidt’s, I think it was something else. Gonna give this one a try again.
The National Lipstick Day gift with $70 purchase was a 10 piece lipstick sampler worth $70! Inside the Sampler: Buxom Full-On Plumping Lip Polish in “Dolly” (I’ve gotten their lip cream in “Dolly” before); tarte Sugar Rush Lip Sip in “Dragon Fruit”; Lipstick Queen Saint Lipstick in “Peachy Natural”; Ulta Beauty Jelly Gloss Lip Gel in “Suntan”; L.A. Girl glossy Plumping Lip Glossin “Plush”; Winky Lux Disco Kitten Gloss in “far out”; Milani Lipstick in “Bahama Beige”; Zoeva Pure Velour Lips in “Clear Message”; p/y/t Beauty Plumping Gloss; and Urban Decay Vice Lip Chemistry in “Physique” (these are fun stain/glosses). What a great bunch of new samples. I also qualified for another free tote with my $75 purchase. The white one was sold out, so I got another pink one, which I gave to Lily for her craft supplies. Oh, and I used a $3.50 off $15 coupon.
Just $481 to Diamond in 2021.
Mostly Purple Haul
The fact that most of the products in this order were purple was entirely coincidental!
The intentional part of the order is the purple hair dye – I’m sampling a few different semi-permanent dyes to see if I can get my hair purple enough to claim the title of MEGA-MOM. I mean, dying my hair school colors would make me the MEGA-MOM of the year, right? I picked up a sample packet of Lime Crime Unicorn Hair in “Pony” for $2.50 (I have reservations about Lime Crime, but since they’ve sold out, I’m less concerned about supporting the questionable creator) and Keracolor Travel Size Color + Clenditioner in “Purple” for $8.99. I’ve only tried the Keracolor, but it did NOTHING to my hair. I only left it in 5 minutes in the shower, so I am going to try it again for 30 minutes before making a final verdict…but I’m not optimistic. I may have to break down and try Manic Panic – but I’m hesitant to stain every single thing I own.
The other purple products I picked up: Zoya Remove + (always needing this) and Nexxus Frizz Defy Active Frizz Control Shampoo and Conditioner. I’ve had a bad case of the frizzies lately, so decided to try these while they were 40% off. What I don’t understand is why the Conditioner is so much more than the Shampoo, $19.99 ($11.99 on sale) for the Conditioner, versus $13.99 ($8.39 on sale) for the Shampoo. Fingers crossed for smooth hair soon.
I also picked up some other 50% off products – my holy grail eyebrow pencil, Ulta Ultra Slim Brow Pencil in “Dark Brown” ($5, down from $10) and a wet n wild Megalast Liquid Catsuit Metallic Lipstick in “Life’s No Pink-Nic” ($2.49, down from $4.99). The lipstick looks reddish in the tube, but is a dusty rose/copper – neither of which are pink, as the name implies. So confuse.
I got two different sample bag with my order, a hair sample bag and a brow sample bag. Inside the hair sample bag: HASK Cactus Water Shampoo & Conditioner (excited to try this); Alterna Haircare Caviar Anti-Aging Replenishing Moisture CC Cream; Wella Professional Invigo Volume Boost Crystal Mask; Seed Phytonutrients Scalp & Roots Oat Mask (WEIRD); System Professional Smoothen Shampoo Hair Structure Softener (WHAT THE FUCK DOES THAT MEAN? This product scares me); Curlsmith Scalp Stimulating Booster; and Macadamia Professional Essential Repair Daily Deep Conditioner. Inside the brow sample bag: Urban Decay Brow Endowed Brow Volumizer in “Brown Betty”; Benefit Precisely, My Brow Pencil in “3.5 Neutral Medium Brown”; Tweezerman Micro Mini Tweezer (OMG, it’s miniscule); Covergirl Clear Brow Setting Gel; Anastasia Beverly Hills Clear Brow Gel; and essence lash & brow gel mascara style & comb. What am I going to do with all this clear brow gel???
No good coupons when I ordered, just the usual $3.50 off $15 coupon. $460 to Diamond status.
1/21 Days of Beauty
It’s that time at Ulta again – their 21 Days of Beauty Sale. It’s rare that I find deal that interest me during the 21 Days of Beauty, but I wanted to give Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz a try at half price ($10.50, down from $21). This time, I got “Chocolate”, a darker shade than my previous “Soft Brown”. It’s been a few years since I’ve used Brow WIz and my base hair color is a biot darker than it was then. Now that I’ve gotten used to the richer, thicker Ulta Brow Pencils, I actually like them better than the ABH. Who knew that a cheaper product would be better?
The Essence Lipsticks were an impulse buy, but at $3.49 each, they were a steal. Not even that much – they were BOGO 50% off. Essence Kiss the Black Sheep is a black lipstick that turns baby pink and Essence Kiss the Flamingo is a pink lipstick that turns…more pink? Kiss the Flamingo does have a more coral tone and I feel like it lasts longer on my face than the Black Sheep.
Still no free samples with online orders. I’m waiting.
$122 to Platinum status for 2020.
We Will Spock You!
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Have you ever bought a polish based on the name alone?
That’s how I ended up with essence cosmetics “We Will Spock You!”, from the ‘Out of Space Stories’ Collection – I was browsing Ulta the other day, while my kids were getting haircuts. I saw the name and had to have it. The fact that it was being clearanced out for $1.49 was a happy coincidence.
This is THREE coats of “We Will Spock You!” over Glisten & Glow Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat. I barely got full coverage with three coats. The polish is very thin and easy to work with though.
I was thinking that I don’t already own a silver holo, but then I remembered Julep “Tin Man” – it is very similar, but whiter? Does that even make sense?
Just $301 to reach Diamond status – this is after the haircuts, even! That means I’ve spent about $899 at Ulta this year – wow!
Space Glam
Oooh…Space Glam!
Essence Cosmetics “Space Glam” is a complex nail polish. The gold shimmer hits you first, but the base is a duochrome, color-shifting wine to mauve to lavender.
This is two coats of “Space Glam” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
Come to think of it, this polish seems really familiar. I wracked my brain and figured it out – it’s very, very similar to Zoya “Faye”. “Faye” is a tiny bit less gold and more mauve, but they’re very similar.
SAT Shopping
What do you do, when you’re stuck waiting for you kid to take the SAT? If it had been close to the house, I would have gone home and taken a nap, but of course, none of the schools were less than thirty minutes away. Time for a little SAT Shopping…
I managed to kill over two full hours at Target, but didn’t come home with anything cool – just boring stuff like garbage bags and birthday cards and office supplies. I even tried on a few swimsuits, which wasn’t quite as horrifying as I expected, although it definitely wasn’t fun.
I also swung by Bath & Body Works, but not to buy. One of the new summer fragrances was Sea Salt Mango and I was dying to know how salt smells. I can’t say that smelling it answered my question – it smelled beachy, maybe a bit spicy? I also smelled Rose Quartz, which is a smoky rose + patchouli that I might have to add to my collection soon.
My real kryptonite was Five Below. I was all excited about the little skull rose garden I found, neglecting to notice that I had grabbed one with no seeds in it. (I went and bought another one yesterday to get some seeds – $3.) I have never been able to get anything to grow from these Buzzy sets, but maybe this is the one that will grow? I also couldn’t resist three new glittery polishes: Funky Fingers “Betcha I’m a Unicorn“, “Unicorn Dust”, and “Supernova”.
…and just a few steps away from Five Below is Ulta. I spent at least another hour roaming the aisles at Ulta.
I immediately grabbed essence cosmetics “space glam” ($2.99) – I liked “outta space is the place” so much, that I wanted to try more from the collection.
While browsing clearance stuff, I found Pacifica Cocoa Rush Anti-Fatigue Mask for 75% off – just $3.75. It’s like rubbing chocolate pudding all over your face. It’s a hydrating mask – it doesn’t dry and pull out the pores like I prefer, but it made my skin very, very soft.
I took advantage of BOGO 40% off on NYX lippies. I picked NYX Soft Matte Metallic Lip Cream in “Cannes” immediately. I already have the regular Soft Matte in Cannes and want to compare the two. I wore it yesterday and it is so comfortable to wear. It has a soft, whipped consistency like the Julep it’s whipped, but is long lasting. I need ALL of them. I also tried Unicorn Blood Lip Gloss in “Black Hole” – I wasn’t sure how it would turn out – it’s blue glitter. I do NOT need all of them.
I was able to use a $5 off $10 coupon from my email – score! Only $309.39 to Platinum.
Coolest Polish of 2018
Is it too early to declare Essence Cosmetics “outta space is the place” as the coolest polish of 2018?
This polish popped up randomly in an Ulta Facebook ad – and I knew it had to be mine. I hadn’t even seen it in person, but I knew we were meant to be together. “Outta space is the place” ($2.99) is part of the new “Outer Space Stories” Collection by Essence. I don’t have a lot of experience with Essence – it’s a budget brand, like wet n wild.
What’s so impressive about this polish, you may ask – it just looks like a plain white polish? It’s not a plain white polish. It’s an iridescent unicorn polish that shifts pink, blue and purple in the light. Judging by all the big brands falling all over themselves to release shiny, pastel unicorn collections (I.E. wet n wild’s Goth-O-Graphic Collection and Too Faced’s Festival Collection) – 2018 will be the year of the unicorn.
This is two coats of “outta space is the place” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat. The edges of my nails are rather crispy – that’s totally my bad, as I did a shit ass job painting my nails this go-round. The lighter the polish, the lighter hand you need…or you get these crispy edges.
A Clean Face is a Happy Face
I told you I was going to place an Ulta order…
It got here quick, too. Ulta needs to work on their shipping though. It came in two boxes – one had just the Ulta Ultra Slim Brow Pencil in “Medium Brown” (been wanting to try a little lighter look) and everything else in the other box. The two boxes were the same size.
The #1 thing I wanted was the nail polish – essence “outta space is the place”, from their new Out of Space Nail Stories Collection ($2.99). It’s an iridescent white – I’ve never seen anything like it! I also picked up 2 essence Kiss the Mermaid Lipsticks ($3.49) – one for me and one for Lily. I’ve been using the fuck out of my Frog Prince Green Lipstick – this one is a blue stick that turns purplish pink.
I’ve also been wanting to try a few of the new Pacifica rose products: Pacifica Rose Kombucha Flower Powered Face Wash and Rose Flower Hydro Mist (regularly $10 each, buy one sale BOG40%off). The face wash is creamy and strongly scented. It foams A LOT – a little goes a long way. I’m getting use to the face mist – it’s a very different way to hydrate your face than the creams and lotions I’m used too.
I also grabbed two of the new Wet n Wild Megalast Liquid Catsuit Metallic Lipsticks ($4.99) in “I Don’t Dessert You” and “Satin Sheets.” I totally duped myself – these are dupes of Jeffree Star “No Tea, No Shade” and “Pussy Whipped”. Jokes on me!
The last thing I added to my cart was Ulta Warming Charcoal Cleanser ($10)….so I could get the free gift with purchase makeup bag. The cleanser does warm up, but not as much as others I’ve had. The cleanser is very, very gentle. This might be one of the better makeup bag gifts. Inside the bag: an eyeshadow palette, a blush/bronzer duo, Liquid Illuminator in “Northern Lights”, Plush Drama Volumizing Mascara, Nude Lipstick in “Pink Chocolate”, Mattifying Face Primer, Tinted Eye Primer in “Peach Glow”, Juice Infused Lip Oil in “Coconut”, Eye Liner Pencil in “Blackout”, Brow Shaping Gel in “Clear”, an eye pencil sharpener, Lip Liner Pencil in “Bittersweet”, a tapered blush brush and a $5 off $15 coupon. The colors are springy and neutral.
I have been choosing skincare samples from Ulta lately – I got a Skinfix Face Cleansing Cloth and Vichy Aqualia Thermal Creme Riche. I was also able to use the $5 off coupon from my last Ulta order.
$330.6o to remain Platinum…that’s like one hair appointment!