First Ulta Haul of 2022
I placed my first Ulta order of the year…I had no specific plan in mind, I just kept adding to cart until it felt right.
I take that back, I did have a bit of a plan. I am running out of conditioner, so I picked up a refill of NatureLab.Tokyo Perfect Smooth Conditioner ($23). The shampoo lasts forever, but I go right through the conditioner. Speaking of refills, I got a refill of my KVD Beauty Lock-it Foundation – it was half off ($12, down from $24)! My favorite Ulta Ultra Slim Brow Pencil in “Dark Brown” was also half off ($5, down from $10), so I got another one of those, too.
I need eye shadow like a need another kid, but I got the NYX Limited Edition Lunar New Year Eyeshadow Palette ($10) anyway. I am annoyed that I haven’t had a chance to play with it yet.
I cannot pass up cheap nail polish, so I got China Glaze “Diamond in the Rough” and “Bring on the Bubbly” for $1.88 each. They’ll make good toppers.
My order qualified for a tarte 4 piece Beauty Break, which includes tarte Stay Spray, sugar rush Lip Slip in “Dragon Fruit”, sugar rush Lash Smoothie Volumizing Hemp Mascara, and a shape tape glow wand. Tarte isn’t my favorite makeup brand, but it’s not bad.
$3.50 off coupon and $1,150 to Diamond for 2023.
January 2022 Ipsy Bag – Happy Vibes
Why yes, I could use some happy vibes right now.
My product choice this month was the Rose+Quartz Hair Mask. I have not had a chance to use it yet, but I am looking forward to trying it out this weekend.
Also in this month’s happy, happy bag: Benefit The POREfessional Lite Primer (looking forward to trying this); Belle en Argent 8 Free Nail Polish in “What She’s Having”; Purlisse Beauty Ageless Glow Serum BB Cream SPF 40 in “Fair” (I feel like this product is going to do a lot of things); and Sophia + Mabelle SMALL + MIGHTY Extreme Volume Mascara in “Black”.
Looking forward to my Glam Bag X next month!
I subscribe to the basic ipsy bag for $13/month and Glam Bag X for an extra $43/quarterly. If you’d like to try Ipsy – click here. I’ll earn 250 points if you sign up through my referral link.
Royal Cake Pop Nail Party
There’s nothing I like more than a good, ole fashioned Nail Party!
Last weekend (BEFORE I was infected with the ‘rona), I was blessed with a 24 hour visit from close friends. Although Shari is not at all interested in my beauty and nail obsessions, Brittany was more than happy to play with my nail stuff, while Shari taught a ZOOM Sunday School Class. Nails are so much more fun together!
I started off with Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and two coats of Sinful Colors “Royal Cake Pop”. Going through my nail decals, I came across a small pack of Scratch Accent Nail Wraps in white and gold. (These are old, old, old – from a 2016 Beauty Box 5.) I thought the white and gold with give off a nice “Art Deco” vibe with the chromed silver finish of “Royal Cake Pop”. The white strip on my pinky turned out fantastic, but I was startled to see that the gold strip turned olive green over the silver polish!
I finished up with a coat of Glisten & Glow Top Coat. This manicure felt like it last forever – a full week with just minor edge wear. Thank you Confection Crush Collection!
I’m looking forward to another nail party…someone come play with me! (After quarantine is over, of course!)
Barbie Skin
Sinful Colors “Frosted Sugar Cookie” looks like Barbie skin to me – is that weird? Have I been playing with Barbies too much lately?
This is two coats of “Frosted Sugar Cookie” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat. It’s still a semi-sheer matte finish, but there’s an underlying blue shimmer that is very, very faint.
I am really digging Sinful Color’s super large Confection Crush Collection – I cannot decide if I should steamroll through all the shades, or if I should mix it up…
Still a Little Sale Left…
That’s right, there’s still a little Semi Annual Sale left at Bath & Body Works. I bopped in a few days ago to see what was 75%.
I have never heard of “Whipped Rose Latte”, but roses and coffee? Yes, please. It’s a pleasant, homey scent – nothing like you’d expect a rose scent to be like. The only product left was Body Cream (75% off), so that’s all I got. My husband sniffed it and HATED it…sigh, so the cream is relegated to my office.
The only 75% off Hand Soap was “Boardwalk Vanilla Cone”, so I just got one. I also grabbed 3 more 75% off Wallflower Refills.
Lily wanted the Tea Tree & Peppermint Essential Oil Mist, but I am not sure what for. It wasn’t 75% off – it was $4.95.
I got more coupons in the mail a few days ago…should I make another visit?
Pistachio Praline
I figured it out!
Well, not really…someone told me how to fix my Grand Canyon issue. Someone in the Sinful Colors fb group suggested NOT using a base coat. I’ll be a sonofabitch…it worked! Just two coats of Sinful Colors “Pistachio Praline” and there’s not a streak in sight. Perfection!
I’ve never personally encountered a Pistachio Praline…I would eat the shit out of one. I loooove pralines. All of the new Sinful Colors polishes make me hungry!
Rosewater Delight
Crackle nail polish can be great…if it is SUPPOSED to crackle. Unfortunately, Sinful Colors “Rosewater Delight” is NOT a crackle polish. “Rosewater Delight” is from the Confection Crush Velvet Matte Collection.
This is two coats of “Rosewater Delight” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat. The Grand Canyon on my thumb nail is completely puzzling to me – why did that happen? There are creeks like that on most of my nails…what on earth?
I need to do some research…
Sucreabeille!
I’ve got a new obsession…it’s an Indie Fragrance House called Sucreabeille. My sister sent me a link months and months ago, but I hadn’t made a purchase until this past Black Friday…I delayed my posting a bit, because I didn’t want to spoil a gift. I got so many different scents, that it did take me a bit to work through them all.
All of Sucreabeille’s scents are available in either perfume oil or eau de Parfum. I prefer EDP, so that’s what I ordered.
I couldn’t resist the Challenging Discovery Set ($28), which includes 5 1 ml samples of strange and unusual scents: “Black Honey” (a rich blend of honeys and incense); “Chloroform” (an indole heavy gardenia – unfortunately, it literally smells like cat shit on me); “Final Boss” (and now I know that synthetic ambergris smells like cat piss on me – maybe I should try “Final Boss” and “Chloroform” together); “Cute Rage” (all I smell is APPLE); and “What Fresh Hell is This?” (smells like a black jelly bean on me – giving it to my son). I’d say that this was a wasted purchase, except I really had fun trying the scents and torturing my family with them. “Final Boss” was the only one bad enough that I had to wipe off immediately, and I am in LOVE with “Black Honey”.
I also selected a set of 5 sample drams ($60) to try out: “Goth. As. Fuck.” (I’d argue that this is also a challenging scent – incense, patchouli and beeswax – but I am up to this challenge); “I Come From a Long Line of Terrifying Women” (I admit, I bought it just for the name, but the mix of whiskey and tobacco is intriguing); “Lilith Fury” (Again, the name got me – it’s a spicy chai scent); “Mouthy Broad” (whiskey and roses); and my favorite of the whole order, “Memento Mori” (the mix of incense and Egyptian Musk is an almost exact dupe of the Blue Rose incense we used to buy at Scarborough Faire – it brought back a flood of memories.)
Since I bought during a black Friday sale, I got lots of freebies. I got a whole-ass oil rollerball of “Krampus” (a delicious gingerbread scent), as well as 3 oil drams from the Winter Collection: “Frozen Moon” (sugar plums and marshmallows), “Whispering Black” (cedar and rain), and “Heartwood” (rose wood and cedar wood, it reminds me of the cedar balls my mother kept in her armoire).
Did I mention there is a monthly subscription box, too? I sure did sign up!
There was a killer after-Holiday sale, so I have another order coming!
If you’d like to try out Sucreabeille, use my referral link and we’ll both get a $5 off coupon!
Hustle
Welcome to my last mani of 2021!
I was feeling matchy-matchy, so I wanted to match my nails to my new Stitch Fix dress. How fortuitous that the polish from this month’s ipsy bag is a match?
I started with Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and two coats of Complex Culture “Hustle”. “Hustle” is an orange-leaning red and brilliantly glossy. I wanted a little accent, so I used Nicole by OPI “Pick of the Glitter”, followed by Glitter Grabber on my thumbs and ring fingers. I finished with Glisten & Glow Top Coat, EXCEPT for my pinkies – I wanted to see “Hustle” mattified, so I used Glisten & Glow Matte Top Coat.
I was taking a risk with “Pick of the Glitter” – blue and rose gold glitter on a red polish – but it turned out fantastic. The little bit of blue is really eye-catching.
Watch out for that Semi!
…And just like that, the Bath & Body Works Semi-Annual Sale is upon us!
Since the sale just started, I took it easy on the hand soap – only 4 made it into my bag. The sale hand soaps were still $3.50 each, plus, I just stocked up.
I DID stock up on $3.50 Wallflower Refills – I didn’t mean to buy 8, but my child kept putting them into my cart!
I have been wanting to try the “Rose” scent, so I jumped on 50% off Body Lotion and Shower Gel. I let Lily pick a Shower Gel and she got “Berry Waffle Cone” for 75% off.
I got a $10 off $40 coupon in the mail – nothing in my email yet. I need another coupon so I can go back!