Julep Sales on Sales on Sales
Julep is still going with the nail polish sales – they sent out an email offering an additional 50% off all clearance polishes, which were already 50% to 70% off. Believe it or not, there are quite a few Julep polishes that I don’t have!
The first thing I grabbed was the Hypnotic Frenzy Set, which includes 6 mini polishes for $10. The polishes are Boho Glam “Agatha” – Gilded bronze multidimensional glitter, Bombshell “O’Neill” – Sleek copper chrome, It Girl “Vinsy” – Blooming pink multidimensional glitter, Classic with a Twist “Brita” – frozen raspberry chrome, Bombshell “Kirra” – Icy purple multidimensional glitter, and Boho Glam “Maryann” – Lilac mauve shimmer. The bottles are teensy!
A few were $3.50, like “Geena – Rose Quartz for January” – Rose quartz iridescent shimmer and Bombshell “Kaia” – Flaming red orange metallic. I actually got two of “Kaia” because I thought that was how my niece’s name was spelled….spoiler alert, it is not. Dammit.
The rest were $2.50 each. I got “Clarity” – Lucid azure duochrome , “Leo” – Golden honey duo metallic, “Betsey – Peridot for August” – Peridot birthstone iridescent shimmer, It Girl “Geneva” – Supernova Iridescent Microglitter, Boho Glam “Chira” – Rich Teal Microshimmer, and “Lucky Libra” – Prosperous teal iridescent .
Just $35.50 for all these polishes, 15 in all, plus free shipping.
Elsa in Blue Jeans
It’s December. Time for cliched seasonal manicures!
In honor of Frozen II, I figured I would pull out Funky Fingers “Elsa” and combine it with a new polish. I started with Glisten & Glow Base Coat and two coats of Layla Cosmetics LAYBA Nail Polish in “Sexy in Blue Jeans” from November’s ipsy bag. I’ve never heard of the brand before, but the polish is quite nice. It’s the perfect consistency and the brush is good quality. Everyone could use a nice indigo creme polish like this.
Remembering how hard it was to fish these damn snowflakes out of the bottle, I only used “Elsa” on my Thumb and ring fingers. I topped my thumb, index and middle fingers with Glisten & Glow Top Coat. I used Glisten & Glow Matte Top Coat on my ring finger and pinky. I definitely like the matte better – it’s more sophisticated.
I really like how my nails turned out – they remind me of a festive holiday sweater. They also remind me of this look I did FIVE YEARS AGO with the similar Funky FIngers “Olaf”.
Barbie Friendsgiving
I know I need more eye shadow like I need a hole in the head…but I thought I missed out on the PÜR x Barbie Endless Possibilities Palette! But then it popped up in Ulta’s pre-Thanksgiving Friendsgiving sale for 40% off, so…
I had passed on it when it launched several months ago, because I did not want to pay full price – $34. 40% off brought it down to $20.40, which is much more reasonable. I was not familiar with PÜR ‘s eye shadow quality, but it turns out that is really soft and buttery – it blends very well. There is a good range of pinks and browns in the palette, but the most pleasant surprise was the blue eye shadow. I grew up in the 80s and ALL of my Barbies had that same baby blue eye shadow. The blue in this palette is an almost perfect reproduction of that baby blue – somewhat sheer, with a pinkish shimmer. This might be the only blue eye shadow I own that doesn’t look completely ridiculous.
I also picked up 2 of the 4 PÜR x Barbie Lipsticks for $10.80, down from $18 – “Legendary”, Barbie pink, and “Timeless”, dusty mauve pink. Although they are insanely pigmented and have decent staying power – it IS lipstick and gets all over EVERYTHING.
I also got a 4 piece gift (with a $35 PÜR purchase), which included PÜR 4-in-1 Correcting Primer, 4-in-1 Lip Duo, Lit Mist Illuminating Setting Spray, and a makeup pouch. I tried out the primer and it is really nice.
I was kind of pissed that the PÜR x Barbie collab went down to 50% on Cyber Monday, but oh well.
$266 to Diamond…stay tuned!
Buttered Popcorn
The Buttered Popcorn Jelly Belly is one of the most hotly contested flavors of jelly beans, even more so than the black licorice jelly beans. People have strong feelings about this particular jelly bean – mostly negative. I, for one, actually enjoy this buttery little jelly bean, especially eaten together with Peanut Butter Jelly Beans. I know – I’m an odd bird.
This is the nail polish inspired by that tasty little bean – Jelly Belly x Sally Hansen Insta Dri “Buttered Popcorn”. It’s a cream colored polish, filled with different colors of gold glitter. Even though the first coat was a bit streaky, the second coat gave really good coverage. This is two coats over Glisten & Glow Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Matte Top Coat. I really like the matte finish with glitter polishes like this – it feels almost luxurious.
The only thing that could make this polish better is if is actually SMELLED like Buttered Popcorn.
More Ulta Friendsgiving
So I received my second Ulta Friendsgiving order right before Thanksgiving, but I’ve been sick AF since Monday…the whole damn house needs to be quarantined!
So many good sales before Black Friday and Cyber Monday! What could I pick up to get me to $65 for that 23 Piece Friendsgiving Beauty Besties Beauty Bag???
I had been drooling over the Hask Rose Oil & Peach Shampoo and Conditioner ($5.99 each) since I saw them at Walgreen’s a few months ago. I knew they would eventually show up at Ulta, so I waited. It sounds weird, but the shampoo is more rose scented and the conditioner is more peach scented – why? They are a more budget-friendly choice than the Redken and Nexxus products I’ve been buying lately and work just as well. They smell less salon-y, too.
I noticed that Mamonde Petal Spa Oil to Foam Cleanser was half off ($10.50, down from $21) AND came with a free gift! I’ve gotten several samples in beauty boxes and really like the scent, so I splurged. The free gift was three samples: Mamonde Petal Spa Oil to Foam Cleanser, Mamonde Rose Water Toner, and Mamonde Plum Blossom Lip Sleeping Mask. Since I cannot resist anything rose, I also picked up the new Biore Rose Quartz + Charcoal Pore Refining Scrub ($7.99) – it’s very gentle.
I hadn’t gotten my first Friendsgiving order yet when I placed this one, so I ended up adding two more Zoya Remove+ ($10 each) to my cart – oops!
Inside that hot pink sequined Beauty Besties Bag: ANOTHER Mamonde Petal Spa Oil to Foam Cleanser (happy to have it for travel); Redken Color Extend Magnetics Shampoo & Conditioner (I just used up a full size of the conditioner, but still have some of the shampoo left); Maybelline The Colossal Mascara; Yves Saint Laurent L’Homme; Anastasia Beverly Hills Lip Gloss in “Moon Jelly”; Giorgio Armani Acqua di Gioia; Prada Candy (2 of these, so Lily got one); bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Sample Card; it Cosmetics Blurring Foundation No 101; Benefit The POREfessional; Philosophy Purity Made Simple 3-in-1 Cleanser for Face and Eyes; Peach & Lily Glass Skin Refining Serum (looking forward to trying this); Paradoxx Secret Weapon Conditioner (why is this hair conditioner in a little metal tin that will immediately rust in my shower?); Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara; Ulta Beauty Sugared Vanilla Moisturizing Body Lotion; Moschino Toy 2; Ulta Beauty Charcoal Nose Strips; La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Moisturizer; Bed Head Small Talk; Love Wellness Lights Out Dietary Supplements (ooooh, sleeping pills that probably won’t work on me!); John Varvatos Eau de Toilette; Elizabeth Arden Advanced Ceramide Capsules; and Hempz Pink Pomelo & Himalyan Sea Salt Herbal Body Moisturizer. Phew – my fingers are tired. These are really good samples – I will use at least 75% of them!
In case you are noticing that the math doesn’t add up, there were a few other items that I added to my cart that will be Xmas gifts. Shhhh…don’t tell!
I got to use a $10 off coupon, in addition to the many sales. Just $319 to Diamond…
November 2019 Sephora Play! – Beauty for Self-Care
Self-Care? Let me tell you, I self-cared the fuck out of myself last week. I laid my ass on the couch every day…and enjoyed every minute of it. I think I put a mask on my face every single day, except one. I’m paying for it now, though – I went back to work today and ended up staying until 6:30….and to top it off, I think I’m coming down with a cold. FRACK.
November’s Play! box is a six heavenly samples to help me with my self-care. I was most excited to sample the Clinique Almost Lipstick in “Black Honey”. My lips have been feeling dried out and it was a nice change from my drying liquid lipsticks. The color didn’t last very long though, not even until lunch.
Also in this month’s box: NARS Lipstick in Tolede (haven’t tried yet); Glamglow GLOWSTARTER Mega Illuminating Moisturizer in “Nude Glow” (I LOVE this stuff); Lancome Hypnose Drama Instant Full Body Mascara; Dr. Jart+ Cicapair Tiger Grass Color Correcting Treatment SPF 30 (I got this a few Decembers ago – it’s decent); and Yves Saint Laurent Black Opium (too strong for me).
Sephora Play gives you 5-6 prestige samples a month, for just $10! You can sign up at sephora.com/play.
Diamond in the Raw
Words cannot describe the magic of Sinful Colors Sinful Shine “Diamond in the Raw”. It’s so shiny that it looks black and white at the same time! It’s literally like ground up diamonds in polish-form.
This is two coats of “Diamond in the Raw” over Sinful Colors Base Coat (almost empty) and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
I was disappointed in how quickly the polish chipped, but I blame it on washing all of my makeup brushes the other day. My hand were all pruny and a few tips had chipped.
Soap, Soap, Soap!
So, I’ve been sitting on my hands all day, trying not to order goodies from Bath & Body Works. The entire store is Buy 3, Get 3 and the Black Friday bag looks really good…but you and I both know that the Semi-Annual Sale will be better. I can wait 30 days, can’t I?
Last Saturday was a killer deal though – $2.50 Hand Soaps! The limit was 15, so 15 was how many I bought. Most were Xmas scents, but I stocked up on some “Rose Water & Ivy” as well.
They let me stack coupons, so I got to use a $10 off and a free item coupon. I wanted to get another “Rose Water & Ivy” Body Wash – but it’s off the shelves. The Fuck? Same for “Black Peony”! I was going to settle for “White Citrus”, but they had everything BUT the body wash. I gave up and picked out a Body Wash for my husband – he got Aromatherapy “Stress Relief” – he likes those mint and eucalyptus body washes, but I cannot STAND a minty bunghole.
The receipt said I saved $83.50 – not bad!
November 2019 Ipsy Bag – Wild Side
Ipsy wants me to take a walk on the “Wild Side” this month. I used to be 100% leopard print everything in the 90s – this little bag would’ve matched everything I owned in the 90s.
The only product in this month’s bag that I’ve tried so far is the La Chloris Urban Botanics Ultra Glow Moroccan Rose Mask. It’s a 15 minute pink clay mask that smells like roses. It was a GREAT exfoliator.
Also inside this month’s “Wild Side” bag: MURAD Essential-C Day Moisture Broad Spectrum SPF 30; Layla Cosmetics Layba Nail Polish in “1012” (an odd blue-gray polish); Hola Neon Tinted Lip Balm in “Call Me”; and Gigi Gorgeous Living Lip Balm in “Natalia” (Gigi is an influencer, but I don’t know much about her).
An super cool bag with less coll contents this month.
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.
Ulta Friendsgiving
Ulta is luring me in with their Friendsgiving sales and coupons and gifts with purchase…it’s not even Black Friday yet and they’ve got me placing three orders within a week or so!
After the purple shampoo sample I picked up for my son in my last order, he asked me for more. I decided to get him a full size bottle, but I chose a cheaper brand – Clairol Shimmer Lights Purple Shampoo for Blonde & Silver Hair ($9.99). I don’t feel like it worked as well as the Joico – his hair almost seemed to have a pinkish tint – I accused him of using my Overtone Conditioner, but he said it was the Shimmer Lights. I’ll continue to monitor his hair situation.
Sally Hansen products were 40% off! I grabbed a few Hard as Nails Xtreme nail polishes for $1.79 – “Heart of Sass” and “Rockstar Pink”. I also got one of the Jelly Belly x Insta Dri polishes – “Hot Buttered Popcorn” – for $2.99. My daughter actually BROKE her last nail clippers with here thick ass nails, so I got her another nail clipper ($1.79). Almost out of habit, I added a Zoya Remove+ Nail Polish Remover ($10).
I cannot pass up a 50% off lippie – I limited it to one – NYX Soft Matte Metallic Lip Cream in “Rome” ($3.50, down from $7).
So Ulta was giving a gift with purchase for a $17.50 purchase, so I looked around to see what I could find…I immediately put a Lash Separator in my cart ($9). I hate the tarantula mascara look and this little gadget is great at separating the clumps. I cannot believe that I’ve gone 30+ years of using mascara without it. I grabbed a Matte Metallic Liquid Lipstick in “Golden Age”, rose bronze with pearl shimmer, ($4, down from $9). I also got Juice Infused Lip Oil in “Sweet Rose” ($9) – this stuff is GREAT for removing liquid lipstick. The oil does NOT smell like roses though – it smells more like olive oil – why?
The gift with purchase came in a very nice black patent vinyl bag and included these Ulta products: Luxe Lipstick in “Mischevious”; Pack of 5 Pre-Moistened Makeup Remover Facial Towelettes; Hydrating Face Primer; Jelly Gloss Lip Gel; Tinted Eye Primer in “Champagne”; Bold Ambition Mascara in “Jet Black”; an eyeshadow brush and a cheek brush. The bag didn’t come with an Ulta coupon!
Oh hey, I don’t even really like MAC products, but this Beauty Break was super cute because of the HUGE lipstick-shaped carrying case. It also came with 3 minis – Matte Lipstick in “Sin” and two lipglasses in “Wildchild” and “Oyster Girl”.
No special coupons, but I was able to use old faithful – $3.50 off $15.
$376 to Diamond status…