Smash Hit
Sinful Colors “Smash Hit” has been sitting in my living room nail cabinet, waiting its turn to be used, since the end on 2018. I’ve been trying to work my way through them, but there at least a couple dozen still in there, as well as a couple dozen in my bedroom.
I was feeling like something cold and icy, so I decided on this icy, sheer blue. This is two coats of “Smash Hit” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Matte Top Coat. The glitter is iridescent dots, with a few flakie shards thrown in for interest.
This polish reminds me of “Wrapped in Plastic”. It also reminds me of Bumble, from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.
First Ulta Haul of 2021
Remember how excited I was about NatureLabs.Tokyo Perfect Shine Shampoo & Conditioner? Turns out that it was the wrong product. I had sampled Perfect SMOOTH Shampoo & Conditioner. Oops. I bought a bottle of the NatureLabs.Tokyo Perfect Smooth Conditioner ($14) and I like it much better than the Perfect Smooth. Ugh. I’ll buy more Shampoo, I guess…
I am a sucker for Urban Decay foundation. Every time they release a new one, I’m all over it. Their newest is Urban Decay Hydromaniac Glowy Tinted Hydrator Foundation ($29). I was expected something like a tinted moisturizer, but it was a medium to full coverage foundation. I just put on on my face with my fingers and was like…oh NO. I grabbed my Beauty Blender and buffed it out. It gave nice, smooth coverage. If I left my house more than once a week, I’d use the hello out of it.
I also added a pack of Kitsch Face Masks ($12.99). My kids like these masks best, so I keep on buying them.
A few nice Platinum/Diamond freebies came with this order. I got a Too Faced Damn That’s Sexy Mascara set with my $25 makeup purchase and a deluxe sample of BareMinerals Original Liquid Foundation in “Fairly Light 03”. I haven’t tried either yet.
$1,145 to Diamond for 2022!
…and that’s how I went to the prom with Geena Davis
…but you probably already read about that in People.
I will buy you a socially distanced beer if you know what I am talking about…
The star of my first 2021 manicure is Julep “Geena – Rose Quartz for January”. It’s sheerer than I expected – I thought it would be a textured glitter – but it was a smooth jelly glitter. I like it, although I’d like it more if my nails weren’t so stained.
This is two coats of “Geena” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and topped with Glisten & Glow Top Coat. So shiny!
Sephora Favorites Hello! Greatest Beauty Hits (and more)
Ooooh! Sephora Sale on Sale! An extra 20% off sale items…so tempting.
I’d been eyeing the newest Sephora Favorites Hello! Greatest Beauty Hits set. $8 on sale is better than $10…but $6.40 is even better. I was most interested in Sol de Janeiro Cheirosa ’62 Eau de Parfum – it was so summery. Also in the set: It Cosmetics Lash Blowout Volumizing Mascara; Tarte SEA Jelly Glaze Anytime Lip Mask in “Strawberry Jelly”; BareMinerals Gen Nude Powder Blush in “Call My Blush”; First Aid Beauty FAB Pharma Arnica Relief & Rescue Mask; and Sephora Collection Ultra Glow Serum: Glow + Strengthen Vitamin C Serum. As usual, the set comes with 15% off vouchers for each product – I might actual used the Cheirosa ’62 one.
While browsing the sale section, I found a few other smokin’ deals. I splurged on a Fresh Rose Hydration Skincare Essentials Set ($55, down from $63 – $44 after discount). I also picked up the tarte SEA Yours & Mine Quench Lip Rescue Duo ($17, down from $19 – $13.60 after discount). I really like the Lip Rescue I got in the Give Me Some Balm Set – all the mask wearing has dried out my lips! The Milk Makeup KUSH Triple Brow Pen ($11, down from $22 – $8.80 after discount) was a bad purchase. The first time I used it, it was GREAT. The color “Dutch” was a perfect match to my brows and each stroke was like a little hair. The second time I used it though, it did not work at all. It’s like all the color went out of the pen after one use! Ugh, if I wasn’t so lazy, I’d take it back.
For my samples, I got Kiehl’s Calendula Water Cream and amika Flash Instant Shine Mask.
I made this purchase in 2020, but it wasn’t enough to put me into VIB status – I still needed like $65, but I didn’t want to buy something dumb. I feel like such a peasant.
Semi Santa
Santa, I’ve been a good girl all year and have worn my mask and washed my hands SO MUCH…it’s time for more soap!
I only got 13 soaps at the Semi-Annual Sale, not many at all! When I put them under my sink, they didn’t even fill up the whole soap section.
I meant to get $40 of stuff, so I could use my $10 off $40 coupon, but I ended up with about $80…oops. Some of the soaps were 50% off ($3.75 – not a great deal) and some were 75% off ($1.87 – much better). I also got 8 Wallflower Refills ($3.50 each) and a few body scrubbers.
A light haul…I’m sure I’ll be back before the sale is totally over.
Goodbye 2020!
Although I’m not feeling very festive, my nails sure are…
After Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat, I started with two coats of Color Club “Get Lost”, from this month’s ipsy bag. It was more streaky than I would like, but I made it work.
My friend Brittany inspired me with just a touch of glitter on my nails, no one has time to scrape of individual pieces of glitter with a butter knife…I used a recent Walmart clearance find – Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear “Confetti Craze”. It’s very similar to Sinful Colors “Pride”, so I guess I didn’t need it…but it was only $1.
I did get a proper matte moment with Glisten & Glow Matte Top Coat. I opened a new bottle and it was oh, so nice.
Goodbye 2020, don’t let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya…
December 2020 Allure Beauty Box – Hello Hibernation!
Okay, this is more like it!
I’ve been threatening to cancel my Allure Beauty Box for several months now, but the December box was full of really good products!
The STAR of December’s box was the Ciate London Trend Edit Palette ($24). This is a beautiful eyeshadow palette full of rich browns and spicy shimmers – I’m a sucker for a red shimmery eyeshadow! Just this palette is worth the cost of the box!
Also in this month’s “Hello Hibernation” box: Mudmasky Leave-Me-On Winter Mask; Caudalie Vinosource S.O.S. Thirst-Quenching Serum; ByMe x MyBeautyBrand Black Liquid Eyeliner; La Roche-Posay Retinol B3 Serum; and Cetaphil Deep Hydration Healthy Glow Daily Cream (this is a rich, thick face cream – I prefer to sleep in it, than to wear for daytime).
In addition to the normal box, there was a special “Beauty Loot” pouch, just for me! Inside the pouch was a deluxe fragrance sample of Proenza Schouler Arizona! It’s a mature and mysterious scent – it reminds me of Neiman Marcus for some reason…
Keep kissing my butt, Allure – I like it!
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Santa Claws
I decided that my nail stains (thanks “Sour Apple Killer”) had grown out enough to try to attempt a sheer glitter polish, so I decided on Sinful Colors “Santa Claws” for my official Xmas manicure. There’s a slight rose gold cast to the base, so it hid the stains somewhat.
This is two coats of “Santa Claws” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and under Sinful Colors Radical Matte Top Coat.
I’ve been obsessed with matte nails the past several months, and let me just say it…I am VERY disappointed in Sinful Colors Radical Matte Top Coat. It is neither radical, nor very matte at all. I’ll be going back to my trusty Glisten & Glow Matte Top Coat – it’s the best I’ve used, so far.
December 2020 Ipsy Bag – Home for the Holidays
Well of course, I’m home for the holidays – we cannot go anywhere!
I cannot stop stroking this month’s fuzzy makeup bag – it’s like a pink sheep!
I am loving getting a Color Club Nail Polish every few months – this month, I got “Get Lost”, a creamy powder blue. Lily already snatched it to use – I hope I get to use it soon.
Also in this month’s bag: Feel Enzymatic Exfoliating Cleanser (I love the almond-y scent); Goldfaden MD Facial Detox Clarify + Clear Mask (I LOVE this mask – it’s got a hint of tingle and it made my skin AMAZING); IBY Beauty Lush Eyeshadow in “Yoga Pants” (A perfect “lazy” eye shadow – a single swipe across the eye and you’re done); and Kensie Life Beat Body Lotion (the only product in this month’s bag that I haven’t sampled yet).
This might be the best bag I’ve received all year. I did not select a product this month, but their picks were perfect for me.
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.
Le Tits Now!
Why “let it snow” when you can “le tits now”?
I occurs to me that the blue I used – Sinful Colors “Zzzapped!” – is pretty close to Jeopardy Blue. What a happy accident…thinking a lot about losing Alex Trebek (and Sean Connery, too I guess) this year.
This is two coats of “Zzzapped!” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat. For a the snowy nails, I used Funky Fingers “Elsa”. I guess I am still stuck on matte nails – I topped them all with Glisten & Glow Matte Top Coat.