Target Beauty Box – April 2016
Last August’s box was also “hello Sunshine”?
No worries, totally different stuff in this box. Inside: Maybelline Dream Velvet Foundation (I’ve been wanting to try this so bad – I hope it’s the one! Oh and a $2 off coupon!); Laneige Water Bank Soothing Mask (ooooooh, I haven’t tried this one before); Pantene AIRspray Hair Spray; Covergirl Colorlicious Lipstick in “Kiss of Peach” (Meh); Hawaiian Tropic Island Sport SPF 30 Lotion (I’ve been using spray sunscreen the past several years, so I dunno if I can go back to the old fashioned kind); Marlowe No. 022 Body Butter (again, I still cannot smell anything); Simple Cleansing Facial Wipes (I wonder how face cleansing wipes would work on your butt? Seriously, I’ll never use them up if I stick to my face…); and CeraVe Healing Ointment.
I’d have liked a little higher end stuff in a $7 box, but it’s not bad. I think I’ll use my $3 off $15 coupon…I’m gonna try.
Beauty in Bloom
The last few Limited Edition boxes from Birchbox haven’t been that exciting…but I was enticed by the “Beauty in Bloom” box. I can’t pass up flowery products.
Inside this flower-filled box: Darphin Intral Toner; Davines Oi/Oil Absolute Beautifying Potion; Jurlique Rosewater Balancing Mist; Laura Geller Beauty Baked True Color Blush in “Maui” (so red – I can’t wait to try it); Lollia Relax Shea Butter Handcreme (Lavender and Vanilla, but I can’t smell anything through this blasted cold); Mally Eye-Amplifying Shadow Liner in “Stone” (taupe-ish); NEST Fragrances Grapefruit Classic Candle (even my husband said this smells “yummy”); NEST Fragrances Indigo Eau de Parfum (I’d been curious about NEST for a while – this one is very exotic smelling, almost like nag champa…but without the weedy undertones); Smith & Cult The Shining Lip Lacquer in “Hi-Speed Sonnet” (so glittery); stila Huge Extreme Lash Mascara; and an Umbra Prisma Tray (I’m not big on gold, but I really like the geometric styling of this jewelry tray). A GREAT deal!
Although the box was $64, I found a 20% code and used $10 in points, so the total was just $41.20.
Oh…in my free sample pack: Cynthia Rowley Beauty Eyeliner in “Silver” (my third one) and Cargo Swimmables Shadow Stick in “Dory” (like Finding Nemo!)
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.
Like a Virgin
Like a virgin…touched for the very first time.
My nails. I am talking about my nails.
Painting my nails every 2-3 days for the last few years has left them as yellow as banana pudding. The staining is visible through any clearish polish and I thought bare nails would be out of the question forever…or at least until I stopped painting and let them grow out. Not so…I discovered Perfect Formula Pink Gel Coat. I used points on a Sephora order a few months ago to add a sample on a whim. I’m just now trying it and THIS SHIT IS AMAZING. Through the magic of an optical brightener, my nail beds are pink again and the tips look whiter. It’s like I just had a french manicure. This is just two coats – no case or top coat needed…AND it dries within a minute or so.
…but there’s also some bad news. This shit costs $30 at Sephora. Keep an eye out for sample versions…
April Beauty Box 5 – Take a Hydration Vacation
This is it – the last straw! As soon as I saw this lame box, it was over. I emailed Beauty Box 5 customer service to cancel my subscription last night.
April’s theme is “Take a Hydration Vacation” and it is full of brands I have never, ever heard of. Inside the box: Soapbox Sea Minerals Body Wash (smells like fabric softener); Jelly Pong Pong Paradise Pigments (hot pink cream blush – just what I needed); Maskeraide All Eyes on Me Hydrating Eye Gels; Chella Passionate Pink Moisturizing Lip Pencil (very pink); and Global Beauty Care Green Tea Makeup Remover Wipes (they send wipes every other month at least). I wanted to love this box – I gave it over two years – but I just don’t.
I’m not sure how many months are left on my subscription, so this might not be my last box…ugh.
Furious Poisonberry
After years of painting, I’ve finally found THE polish that matches my car perfectly. And I didn’t even find it myself – it just appeared in my last Target Beauty Box.
This is Sinful Colors “Poisonberry” – two coats over Sinful Colors Base Coat and under “HK Girl”. Just…wow. The first coat was smooth, not streaky – and totally opaque. The second coat self-evened perfectly.
It’s very similar to Kat Von D “Bauhau5”, which is slightly more berry colored.
Mystery Revolution
Honest…I didn’t expect to be placing another Makeup Revolution order so soon. But they offered an Easter Mystery Bag worth £25 with a £30 purchase, plus 20% off for downloading their new app…so…
I ordered on Thursday, March 24th and got a notification that it shipped on Monday, March 28th. I received my package on Tuesday, April 5th. Just 8 days to get from London to me! Sally lives in Scotland and ordered the day after I did and got hers the same day I did – what is that about?
I had to have the new “Fortune Favours the Brave” palette, since it’s unlikely to be released stateside. I am addicted to this palette – I’ve used it for three days straight and haven’t tried any of my other new palettes. The included brush is shit, but the quality of the shadows is top notch. I also got the new “Chocolate Vice” palette. I decided to try the new Lip Amplification in “Epic Love” – I was expecting a dustier rose, but again – bright ass pink. It’s wearable though. I’m not too much of a blush person, but I had to snag two of their newer blush palettes – “Blush Queen”, which is reminiscent of the Laura Geller Baked Blushes I love and “Golden Sugar 2”, which is beautiful rose gold shades.
And then there is the free shit…OMG….so much stuff. I’m most excited about the “Colour Chaos” palette – my husband was horrified by the prospect of me using these bright ass drag queen shadows. Also included in the bag: Ultra Velour Lip Cream in “Move Your Mouth Forever” (nude) ; #Liphug Lipstick in “Let’s Move the Bar” (orange); Radiant Lights “Glow” (an illuminating powder); Amazing Sheer Lip Gloss in “Hey Girl” (peachy); Vivid Blush Lacquer in “O’ Boy” (pink); The One Blush Stick in “Malibu” (rust); and a Mono Eyeshadow in “Adore Moi” (buttery brown).
A lot of interesting stuff to try in the mystery bag – and each one was different. Sally got totally different stuff!
Normally, I like to try most of the stuff I buy before I post, but there’es really too many goodies to try. I’ve let you down…and I am truly sorry for that.
So basically, I ordered all of this quality makeup from overseas and STILL paid less (less than $50 USD with shipping) than buying a single prestige palette – Too Faced or Urban Decay, etc. I am HOOKED on Makeup Revolution.
Vivid Sheers
I couldn’t wait to dig into my new Julep polishes this month’s “Brights + White” Collection.
I decided to experiment…after busting open my new Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat, I did two coats of Julep “Brigitte” on my thumbs and pinkies. I used my dotting tool to dot “Brigitte” on my index and pointer fingers. I left my middle finger as is. I then layered Julep “Ari” and “Delaney”, overlapping to create purple in the middle. After the first coats, I did more dots on my index and ring fingers, also adding some on my pinkie. Then another coat of “Ari” and “Delaney”. I finished with “HK Girl”.
The white did make the sheers pop, but that was just too much polish for my my nails. It was so thick that is became like dried acrylic paint – peeling up at the edges, as you can see on my pinky. I also didn’t paint my nails very neatly, which exacerbated the peeling. Lessons learned.
I couldn’t stand it anymore – I had to take it off and try something else.
This time, I decided to do a simple pond mani with Julep “Gigi”. I didn’t start with white base, just Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat. I did “Brigitte” dots, then “Gigi”, then dots, then “Gigi”. In retrospect, I might have done one more set – the dots on my thumb and middle finger are bit too aligned and should be more random. Again, I finished with “HK Girl”.
I really like the way these turned out – nice and summery.
I am craving a dreamsicle SO BAD right now!
April Julep Maven Box – Brights + White
Julep’s April collection is very, very interesting – “Brights + White”, a collection of vivid sheer polishes, meant to be layered.
This month’s beauty product is Love Your Bare Face Cleansing Stick. It’s like a stick of deodorant, but oils and enzymes to clean your face. I also got the Kaolin Clay Konjac Sponge (it even came with a little suction hook to hang it to dry – LOVE that) to go with it. I tried it last night – it was weird, but my face felt very clean and impossibly smooth after using them.
I couldn’t pick just one of the vivd sheer polishes, so in addition to It Girl “Ari” – extreme fuchsia vivid sheer, I got It Girl “Delaney” – blue atoll vivid sheer – and Boho Glam “Gigi” – zesty mandarin vivid sheer. The collection came with Classic with a Twist “Brigitte” – bright white creme – to use under the sheers to make them pop. I used more jules and also added Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat – I was out! Since I added three products, I got a free bonus – Classic with a Twist “Lulu” – wisteria mist soft focus (demi-matte).
My only complaint was the candy in the box. Sour Apple Air Heads. I HATE Sour Apple ANYTHING and Air Heads are asking for a visit to the dentist.
Not a Julep Maven? Click HERE to join – I’ll get a $15 credit and you’ll get your first box free!
Endless Love
I’ve had this polish nearly two years and I am just now getting around to trying it. I can’t believe it has taken this long to try this amazing polish.
RUFFIAN “Endless Love” is a chrome pink dream. I started with Orly Bonder and really could have gone with just one coat. I did two. Even though it goes on smooth and gives full coverage in one coat, it is very unforgiving of any ridges or peeling in your nails, so it looks best when your nails are in their best condition. It didn’t bubble as badly as the other RUFFIAN polishes I’ve tried, but I’ll chalk that up to user error – that was before I was using a base coat and a good top coat. I used “HK Girl” this time.
Rhymes with Delores
I am so in love with Julep “Delores”.
“Delores” – iris linear liquid holographic – is the perfect cool purple. I cannot believe how smoothly the formula went over Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat. It was full coverage in one coat, but I did two to make sure the color popped. It dried somewhat matte, to my surprise. I finished with “HK Girl” and WOW! It is ridiculously shiny.
You got any more of those holographic polishes? More, more, more!