Motherfucking Unicorn!
I had JUST placed a big Ulta order, but I found myself placing another one, just a week later…because….
Ulta came out with a Rainbow Highlighter! I had actually gone to the store in person to buy it, but they didn’t have it yet, so I went ahead and placed an order online, to take advantage of the Buy 2, Get 2 Free sale.
In addition to the Rainbow Highlighter ($10), I also picked up the new Metallic Liquid Lipstick Kit ($16), the new Glitter Tears 3 Piece Eyeliner Set ($16) and a Skin Clearing Tool ($10) – yup, I’m gonna pop some pimples. I didn’t do the best job in picking products – I got the 2 $10 products for free, instead of going for higher priced items. Oh well. At least I was able to use a $5 off $15 coupon to counteract the shipping charge.
I also got a few free samples – bareMineral Skinsorials, with Pure Plush Gentle Deep Cleansing Foam, Skinlongevity Vital Power Infusion and Bare Haven Essential Moisturizing Soft Cream; and Lab Series Future Rescue Repair Serum.
The Metallic Liquid Lipstick Kit came with 3 mini Liquid Lipsticks, in “Athena” (metallic red), “Apollo” (metallic plum), and “Zeus” (gold). These lipsticks are vividly metallic – like amazing. My one complaint was that they don’t dry down completely – they stay a bit tacky and transfer a bit. Even so, they stay all day. I’m wearing “Zeus” in the look to the right.
The Glitter Tears Eyeliner Set comes with 3 mini glitter eyeliners – “Galaxy”, “Comet” and “Solar” – I don’t remember which is which and they aren’t labeled. I’m pictured wearing the rose gold one.
That Rainbow Highlighter…it practically jumped onto my fan brush and then onto my face, staying in rainbow formation. Of course, my husband said I look like a deranged Easter Bunny, but what does he know?
I’m actually wearing ALL Ulta makeup in this pic. In addition to the Rainbow Highlighter, “Zeus” and rose gold glitter tears, I’m wearing Ulta Minerals Finishing Powder, the Ulta Eye Shadow/Mascara/Blush from the February Freebie bag and the Ultra Slim Brow Pencil.
Robin Eggs
How’s this for an Easter Manicure? Robin eggs!
I started with Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat and then two coats of Julep “Cassidy” (Bondi blue creme). The blue wasn’t quite right – it’s not quite dusty enough…but it’s close. For the speckles, I used Funky Fingers “Varsity Blue”. Maybe robin eggs don’t have such shiny speckles, so instead of a shiny top coat, I used Zoya Velvet Matte Top Coat to mute some of that shine and sparkles.
Even though my nails wouldn’t exactly blend into Mama Robin’s nest, I’m quite happy with how they turned out.
Target Beauty Boxes – April 2017
I skipped last month, but April’s boxes were so nice, I had to snag them both.
The box on the left is the “regular” box, which includes: La Roche-Posay Toleriane Purifying Foaming Cleanser (fancy); Sally Hansen Double-Duty Base & Top Coat (it’s not quick dry, so I doubt I’ll use it for anything but a base coat); HASK Argan Oil Repairing Deep Conditioner; Dr Teals Lavender Foaming Bath (I don’t have a bathtun!); eb5 Facial Cleanser (Yeah, more cleanser!); Rimmel Colour Precise White Eyeliner (this has me both excited AND scared – what crazy looks can I do with this?); and Banana Boat Dry Balance SPF 50 (ooooooh, matte sun protection).
The box on the right is the “natural”box, which includes: SheaMoisture Kukui Nut Facial Cream Cleanser + Face & Neck Cream; Juice Organics Deluxe-Size Volumizing Shampoo & Conditioner; Burt’s Bees White Tea Extract Facial Cleansing Towelettes (I hope these don’t burn like the other ones do); Hello Extra Whitening Pure Mint Flouride Toothpaste; Yes To Tomatoes Detoxifying Charcoal Mud Mask (So excited to try this); ACURE Pore Clarifying Red Clay Scrub; and Raw Sugar Lemon Sugar Body Wash.
Wow, both boxes are amazing!
Each box was $7 and came with a $3 off $15 coupon. 5% off with my Red Card, too!
The Return of Lunchtime Shopping
Oh, Bath & Body Works…it’s been so long.
Even though I moved (and moved offices) 7-8 months ago, I haven’t taken advantage of the fact that I am now 5 minutes away from a Bath & Body Works again. I got an email on Wednesday that drew me in. Not only were Hand Soaps $3 each, but Shower Gels were $5 and I had a coupon for $10 off $30.
I was conservative and grabbed two Shower Gels – “Waikiki Beach Coconut” and “White Citrus”. I grabbed 6 Hand Soaps, plus a new bath scrunchie. (You never know when a beetle will start living in your bath scrunchie.)
$23.27 – not bad.
Everlasting Flash – April 2017
I am going to tell you a tale of some of the best customer service I’ve ever received. Without fail, Sephora has provided excellent customer service – and this time, I didn’t even know I needed customer service!
Last Wednesday, I decided to take advantage of this month’s Everlasting Flash Deal and get early access to one of Kat Von D Cosmetics new line of Everlasting Lip Liners ($18 each). The deal was for “Lolita”, so of course I had to have it. I also ordered one of the new Everlasting Lip Liquid Shades ($20)- “Miss Argentina” (in homage to the character from Beetlejuice). The very next morning, I noticed an email that my order for “Lolita” had been resubmitted. Weird. I didn’t really think about it much, but on the way home from work, I got a call from Sephora Customer Service. It seems that they accidentally sent me a “Lolita II” Lip Liner instead of “Lolita”, so they sent me the right one as soon as the error was discovered. When I asked what to do with the “Lolita II”, she just…to just keep it. THEY LET ME KEEP IT…free ya’ll. I think I even got points for it.
…and this is why I LOVE Sephora. Rouge for life.
Oh yeah, for samples, I got a card with Urban Decay Optical Illusion Complexion Primer (I’ve been wanting to try this so bad!) and 2 shades of Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Ultra Definition Makeup (shades are 2.5, 5.0 and 8.0 – I wear 3.5, so not very useful), Shiseido Benefiance WrinkleResist24 and Belif The True Cream – Aqua Bomb (one of my faves). I also used a code to get a deluxe sample of Kate Somerville EradiKate Acne Treatment (this shit is powerful and turned my skin into lizard scales after a single use; it’s 3% sulfur, so I’ll be saving for BAD breakouts).
The 15% off spring event is next week…need to dig through the couch for change…
Ming Says Spring!
Somehow, Julep “Ming” made it into my Julep box this month. Described by Julep as as sheer wild orchid jelly, it is the “Spring-iest” polish ever. A true jelly, it is indeed very, very, very sheer.
This is two coats over Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat. I was tempted to do one more, but I stopped. I was afraid it would get too thick around the edges. I topped with “HK Girl”…and it still got a bit thick around the edges.
“Ming” would be great in a glitter jelly sandwich…I got ideas.
Hand Jive
Have you ever been confused by how a polish turns out? Funky Fingers “Hand Jive” didn’t turn out the way I expected at all.
“Hand Jive” looks so orange in the bottle – neon orange, even. On my nails, not so much. It turned out peachy. Not that anything’s wrong with that…it just wasn’t what I was expecting. I should have remembered the formula from the other “Grease” polishes, but to be fair – that was over two years ago!
I started with Sinful Colors Base Coat and then two fairly goopy coats of “Hand Jive” followed. I topped with “HK Girl”.
I think this manicure would have lasted a week or so, but to be honest…it was too boring for me. I had to let it go.
Ulta 21 Days of Beauty – Day 14
So proud…I made it all the way to Day 14 of Ulta’s 21 Days of Beauty before placing an order!
I had to pull the trigger on trying It Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC+ Airbrush Perfecting Powder SPF50+ in “Light” for half price ($17.50 instead of $35). I’m always on the hunt for the perfect powder foundation. Trying it for the first time this morning, I wasn’t disappointed. This stuff is THICK. I used the included sponge for the first application, over only moisturizer – no primer – and it is THICK. Thick, but not as cakey as MAC Studio Fix. It covers almost as much as a liquid foundation, so I switched to my usual kabuki to buff it out evenly. I’m going to try over a few different primers next – it tended to settle into my nose pores, so I’m thinking that’s the only place I’ll really need it. A good buy!
I also took advantage of an NYX BOGO half sale – I got the Cosmic Metals and Lid Lingerie Shadow palettes (normally $9.99 each). They are like matte/shimmer twins. I wore Lid Lingerie today without primer. Note to self: NYX shadows ALWAYS needs primer. The colors are nice though.
I also grabbed another Ulta Ultra Slim Brow Pencil in “Dark Brown” ($10) – it is my new go to. Also, it put me over the threshold to get $5 off my order. For free samples, I got an Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Powder Duo (I have like 6 of these) and Smashbox Photo finish Foundation Primer (I have like 16 of these). They also threw in a huge sample pouch of DevaCurl Buildup Buster…but I don’t have curls or use a lot of product in my hair.
Free shipping since I got a Beauty Steal, so I didn’t have to hit the $50 threshold!
That Would Be Enough
I can’t resist a Hamilton reference to go with Julep “Eliza”.
My sole polish pick from this month’s box, “Eliza” is described as infinite ocean holographic. I don’t see much of that infinite ocean off the Gulf of Mexico, but I got a taste of it in Mexico last summer. It really does seem like glitters on forever.
This is two coats over Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat and under “HK Girl”. It’s an extremely smooth applying polish. It wears forever, too. I’m on day four and it should last a few more days.
It’s polishes like this that make me think…how lucky we are to be alive right now.
That was bad – I apologize.
April Julep Maven Box – Relax & Remix
So, I wasn’t feeling all of the Spring-like polishes available in this month’s “Relax & Remix” Collection. So I picked just one polish – Julep Bombshell “Eliza”, infinite ocean holographic. No idea why Julep It Girl “Ming” – wild orchid jelly – is in my box. Thanks, I guess?
I decided to enlarge my makeup collection. I picked a new shade of Feels Like Velvet Full Coverage Eye Shadow Duo – “cinnamon & spice”. I LOVE these colors on me. They’re very warm and light up my face. I’m also impressed with the creamy formula – they stayed put all day without primer. I also picked a matching lippie – It’s Whipped Matte Lip Mousse in “Say Hello”, rich marsala matte. It’s Whipped doesn’t last through meal, well…not tablitas and fajitas, anyway. I’m not sure ANY lippie would last through the juicy smoked ribs I ate yesterday.
Not a Julep Maven? Click HERE to join – I’ll get a $15 credit and you’ll get your first box free!