Author: Lara
Readie or Not
I cannot even pretend to know what the name of this polish is supposed to mean – Sinful Colors “Readie or Not”. Is it a typo? Is it a purposeful use of the old middle english spelling (Chaucer, etc.)? Who even knows how they come up with these names. I’m convinced that Sinful Colors just picks random names and phrases out of a huge bucket…I’ve said it a million times, I’d be SO much better at naming nail polishes…
In any case, “Readie or Not” is a fuchsia/eggplant foiled polish. A thin polish that applied smoothly, I got full coverage in two coats. I started with Sinful Colors Base Coat and ended with “HK Girl”.
This polish was decently long lasting, with minimal chips and edge wear. Yay!
August Birchbox – Easy Does It
Yup, I had to get the curated box again. It’s like I just can’t handle surprises anymore…
I’m a big fan of the stila liquid lipsticks, so I mostly chose it just for the stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick in “Aria”. I thought it would be a dusty red, but it turned out to be more berry – I love it. Also in this month’s box: Dr. Jart+ Water Fuse Ultimate Hydro Gel (I’m about to use up all my Water Drop, so woo!); Living proof. Restore Mask Treatment; pur-lisse Blue Lotus Seed Mud Mask (yasss); and amika Bombshell Blowout Spray (my 3rd or 4th one).
Box is somewhat mediocre, but enough to get me through. I heard that Wal-mart is in talks to buy Birchbox…if that happens – I don’t know if I’ll keep it. Hmmmm….
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.
Sephora Play! August 2017 – The Innovators
So at first, I thought this box was called “Makeup Geek” because of the bag – but it’s really “The Innovators”, so let’s see what innovative products Sephora wants me to try this month…
First off, we’ve got the world’s tiniest beautyblender – beautyblender micro.mini. What is this, a beautyblender for ants?!?!?! Also in this month’s box: Clinique HIM Dual-Ended High Impact Mascara & Primer Duo; Hourglass Vanish Seamless Finish Foundation Stick in “Shell” (hyped to try this – maybe I could take a few hours and apply it with that beautyblender?); Burberry “My Burberry Black” (spicy jasmine and rose – not bad); Alterna Haircare CAVIAR Anti-Aging Miracle Multiplying Volume Mist; and Korres Golden Krocus Ageless Saffron Elixir Serum (knowing how expensive saffron is, I am interested to see how this works).
Yet another great box – I feel like it’s worth much more than $10!
If you haven’t signed up yet, you are insane. 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.
Impeccable
Impeccable, which means…not peccable? Peccable is a real word, although rarely used – at least when compared to its antonym, Impeccable. Peccable means “capable of sinning”, the opposite of which is not exactly how Impeccable is usually used today. In context, it is more likely to be interchangeable with flawless or faultless. ANYWAY…this brief lesson in etymology leads into my description of Formula X “Impeccable” – it’s a dusty blush nude, innocent and incapable of sin.
I am much happier with the shiny Formula X formulas than the mattes or glitters. This is two coats over Sinful Colors Base Coat and “HK Girl”. It’s a medium consistency polish, but very full coverage without being chalky.
I need to try “Impeccable” with a gold glitter.
Redrum
Redrum…REDRUM…
Sinful Colors “Redrum” is aptly named – it looks like blood, bubbling up from…the abyss? Wherever blood bubbles from…I started with Sinful Colors Base Coat and then used several different colors to contrast: Sinful Colors “Snow Me White”, “Black on Black” and “GoGo Boy”. “GoGo Boy” was a last minute addition to my plan, since Lily had just used it to paint her nails and it was sitting there on the coffee table. “HK Girl” made it super shiny.
I’ll be honest, this was my second try with “Redrum”. On my first try, I made the mistake of painting each nail and letting them dry a few minutes. I added “Redrum” and then my nails were just red. Huh? I googled to see where I went wrong and found that I needed to add “Redrum” while the first polish was still wet. I removed all my polish and started over, this time, painting each nail individually and then immediately adding “Redrum” – BINGO!
This time, I was very pleased with the result – it’s like the next level of crackle polish. I’m looking forward to trying the other four.
Razzle Dazzle
2017 is Kat Von D‘s year. I feel like she is dropping a new product every other week. Last week, she dropped her new Everlasting Glimmer Veil Liquid Lipsticks ($22). Of course, I wanted all 9 of them, but I controlled myself and ordered the prettiest two. I got “Razzle” – magenta with pink glimmer – and “Dazzle” – crimson with pink and gold glitter.
I LOVE these lipsticks. They’re so comfy and flexible. The glimmer is amazingly vivid and long lasting. I will say that my lips did feel dry and crack-y after eating and wiping my lips with a napkin, but other than that – they felt fine. I think I need more of these…oh, and Sephora is SOLD OUT. They’ll be back in stock on 8/22, so set your reminders…
For my regular samples, I got Lacoste Eau da Lacoste (smells preppy…tossed it to my son…he’ll probably just use it to set something on fire); Dior J’adore (still too floral for me – tossed it to my daughter); and Farmacy Honey Savior All-in-One Skin Repair Salve.
I lucked into a promotion code that provided a 12 sample skincare bag: Tata Harper Clarifying Mask for Blemish-Prone Skin; Hum Raw Beauty Green Superfood Powder in “Mint Chocolate Chip Infusion” (do I look like Gwyneth Paltrow to you?); Sol de Janeiro Brazilian Bum Bum Cream; Kopari Coconut Melt Moisturizer; Farmacy Honey Potion; Dr. Andrew Weil for Origins Mega-Mushroom Skin Relief (but are they MAGIC mushrooms?); Youth to the People Kale + Green Tea Spinach Vitamins Age Prevention Cleanser (ugh); Boscia Revitalizing Black Hydration Gel; Kora Organics Noni Glow Face Oil; Josie Maran Surreal Skin Argan Finishing Balm; Tarte Drink of H2O Hydrating Boost; and First Aid Beauty Coconut Skin Smoothie Primer Moisturizer (I really like this stuff – I already used up my deluxe sample from June’s Play! box). A few things I won’t use, but the rest are great!
Only $329 left to ROUGE…
Hypnotic Transforming
Sometimes, you just gotta pay full price.
I had been seeing Sinful Colors‘ new collection of Hypnotic Transforming Top Coats and I had to have them all…and I was willing to pay the full price of $1.99 each. On the way back from dinner, I scammed my husband into letting me “pop” into Walgreen’s. We drove by a Walgreen’s in Richmond that I’d never been to…lo and behold, there is a pristine display of of the top coats I am looking for!
I grabbed all five: “Redrum” – red, “Rebel Rebel” – blue, “Concrete Jungle” – gray, “Purpunk” – light lavender, and “Punk the Town” – plum. These polishes appear to be a step beyond crackle top coats – they make bubbles and streaks. So excited to try them!
Ultimately, I didn’t end up paying full price for my polishes – I had $5 in Walgreen’s points from their Beauty Enthusiast program. I’d finally spent $50 on beauty products there.
I was also pleasantly surprised to find this year’s new Lay’s “Do Us A Flavor”: “Crispy Taco”, “Everything Bagel” and “Fried Green Tomatoes”. I even found my sister’s first and middle name on Coke bottles. This was a very productive trip!
Buckshot
Doesn’t this look like my hand just got hit with a load of buckshot?
Sinful Colors “Cherish Me” is from the new “Moon Metals” Collection and it is just flat out weird. It’s super sheer, which is disappointing, but I guess necessary with this tiny, tiny glitter. This is two coats (over Sinful Colors Base Coat and under “HK Girl”) and you can barely see it. And the glitter…there isn’t much of it!
I’ll be honest, I am not in love with this polish.
Target Beauty Box – August 2017
Another month, another Target Beauty Box.
The “Hello Routine” Box has a little bit of everything: Herbal Essences Argan Oil Shampoo (but no conditioner – assholes); up & up 25 ct. Facial Wipes (Beauty Hack – I use these to clean up eyeshadow fallout under my eyes before doing my foundation); Dove Dry Spray Invisible Deodorant (giving to my son); Biore Deep Cleaning Pore Strips (Just one strip, but with a Limited Edition Pattern); SpaLife Nourishing Facial Mask (always welcome); and Garnier Clearly Brighter Daily Scrub (and scrubs are always welcome).
Another good box. I wish I didn’t have to go to the trouble of ordering these each month and they just showed up on their own…
So $7 again this month, plus free shipping and 5% off with my Red Card. And another $3 off $15 coupon. I am so proud of myself that I actually used the coupon from last month’s box – I bought some OGX Bamboo Fiber-Full Shampoo and Conditioner, plus some up & up polish remover. Go me!
Jonna Iguana
This is it – I’ve found it. Julep “Jonna” is THE GREATEST POLISH EVER MADE.
Described as an iguana green duochrome, “Jonna” is possibly the most amazing and beautiful polish ever. It shifts from a pale green to a vibrant turquoise – I don’t even know how that’s possible. Science.
“Jonna” reminds me of the iguana we used to have, “Cheech”. He was one of the most beautiful iguanas I’ve ever seen and reasonably tame. I think he thought I was his girlfriend – he mounted my arm and bit my finger once when I was hand-feeding him.
The polish went on smoothly – no brush marks like many chromed polishes. This is two coats with Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat and “HK Girl”.
The polish was super long-lasting as well. I was able to wear it from Thursday to Wednesday with minimal wear – a whole week!