Month: February 2017
February Ipsy Bag – Much Love
I’m loving the February Ipsy Bag – “Much Love”, in fact.
Inside this month’s cute little denim bag: Trust Fund Beauty Nail Polish in “$12 Latte” (It’s actually darker than a latte – more like $12 Mocha); NYX Butter Lipstick in “Lifeguard” (Yup, Baywatch red); BellaPierre Cosmetics Volumelash Waterproof Mascara (Ugh, hate waterproof mascara); Hikari Cosmetics Cream Pigment Eye Shadow in “Latte” (Oooooh, another latte – it’s going straight into my Z Palette…speaking of Z Palette, they’re in the middle of a controversy for being assholes on social media – I won’t be buying another one, but I already gave them my money for this one); and BeFine Food Skin Care Gentle Face Cleanser (I’m running low on cleanser samples, so this came at a good time).
Another great bag this month!
If you’d like to try Ipsy – click here. I’ll earn 250 points if you sign up through my link.
It’s Not Black, It’s Brown
Julep “August” is the final polish from February’s box. Much like “Maylee” – “August” looks black, but it really dark, dark brown. Julep calls it chocolate cherry ghost shimmer. The shimmer is barely there, you have to look really, REALLY hard.
This is two coats over Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat and under “HK Girl”. Also like “Maylee”, “August” lasted a really long time – longer than I wanted it to.
My paternal grandfather’s name was August, but he died before I was born. My mom said she felt sorry for him when my grandmother hit him over the head with a frying pan…until he said she was mad at him for going “to the cathouse”.
Get Naked
A sale I couldn’t resist – half off Urban Decay Naked Skin Ultra Definition Powder Foundation ($18 instead of $36). I’d been wanting to try it, since I’ve had a hard time finding the perfect shade in other brands. I picked “Medium Light Neutral”, which the website listed as the closest match to 3.5, my perfect match in the liquid. Yup, another great match. I tried it with my usual kabuki, the enclosed sponge and my Urban Decay Good Karma Optical Blurring Brush (I hated it for liquid, hoping to find a use for it). All worked well, but I preferred the light coverage of my kabuki. The Good Karma Brush was too thick on my nose, but was nice on my cheeks, which have more color variation.
I ordered from Sephora, but the price drop was also at Ulta and other stores. I didn’t order anything else, so I needed that free Flash shipping. I wasn’t able to use a freebie code, so I just got the regular three: Sephora Express Eye Makeup Remover Wipes, Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Complete Coverage Concealer, and Dior Sauvage (Ooooooh, I can make my husband smell like Johnny Depp).
I just hope this price drop doesn’t mean that a discontinue is imminent – the color match is so good!
Party Pooper
I’ve got poop on my fingernails!
I “borrowed” Five Below “Party Pooper” from my daughter. “Santa” was kind enough to leave this cute emoji topper in Lily’s stocking this Xmas. Mommy was just biding her time until she could borrow it…
I started with Sinful Colors Base Coat and two coats of Sinful Colors “No Text Red”. I wasn’t sure what color would accentuate the light colored emojis the best, so I just went with the most basic red I could find. I then topped with a single coat of “Party Pooper” – yes, all these emoji glitter in just one coat! There are smileys and hearts and ghosts and POOPS! I got so many poops on my nails – can you see them?
I had to finished with a VERY thick coat of “HK Girl”. Those emoji glitters don’t flatten on your nails – they stick up a bit, so I just laid it on THICK.
February Birchbox – Lip Love
“Lip Love” – huh, huh, huh, uh. I can’t even make a joke – I feel too much like Beavis & Butthead.
February is supposed to be a romantic month, so why not have a lip-centered box? Inside Birchbox’s “Lip Love” February box: Acure Organics Purifying Fruit Peel (yes, please); Dr. Lipp Miracle Balm; Manna Kadar Cosmetics Lip Locked Stain in “Rosette” (this month’s sample choice); Oribe Apres Beach Wave and Shine Spray (not sure if I have enough hair left to use this); and Real Chemistry Luminous 3-Minute Peel for Body (I’ve gotten the face version before, not sure how much of my body this peel will cover?).
All in all, a pretty decent box – I’ll likely use all of the products except the Wave Spray.
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.
Got Any More of Them Free Gifts with Purchase?
Been a while since I got one of these Ulta Bags – I’ve passed on the last one or two that Ulta offered. But this one looked fairly good…so when I was FINALLY getting my hair cut on Saturday, I decided to indulge.
The 12 products inside the snaky aqua bag: Amped Mascara in “Jet Black”, Full Size Matte Lipstick in “Petal” (limited edition), Full Size Brow Tint in “Medium”, Eye shadow Palette shades in “Lace”, “Charm”, “Nostalgia”, “Vintage”, “Delicate”, and “Seaside” (these shadows are the thing that drew me to the bag), Cheek Palette shades in “Fresh Glow Highlighter” and “Nude Pink Blush”, Eye Makeup Remover Pads, Full size Nude Matte Eye Shadow Primer, Lip Gloss Stain in “Treason”, Dual Eye Liner in “Majesty” and “Smoke”, Blush Brush, and a Cosmetic Pencil Sharpener. The bag also had a coupon for $5 off any $15 Ulta Beauty cosmetics or brush purchase.
So I had to spend $21.50 on Ulta products to get my free little bag – and it was easier than I thought it would be. I’d been wanting to try Ulta’s new Ultra Slim Brow Pencil in “Dark Brown” ($10) – a dupe of ABH Brow Wiz, I’m hoping. I grabbed a nail clipper for Lily, since she was using one of mine; an Ergonomic 3 Way Nail Buffer; some eyeshadow applicators and a couple of packs of Exfoliating Cotton Pads – I can always use more cotton pads.
PLUS, I had a $10 off coupon for my birthday AND a code for a deluxe sample of Benefit The POREfessional AND double points for my birthday month. All in all, I spent about $13 for all these goodies – SCORE!
Black Metals
Thank you Black Moon Cosmetics, for bring back the Black Metals Collection.
Originally launched last fall (October?), the Black Metal Trinity was released as a Limited Edition Set, and included “Immortal” (blackened purple), “Armageddon” (blackened red), and “Sorrow” (blackened blue). “Myth” (blackened green) was available separately. I wasn’t feeling the green, purple or blue, so I passed and it sold out. Fast forward to February and Black Moon Cosmetics has added the collection to their permanent collection AND added a new shade called “Eternal” (blackened rose gold).
I HAD to have “Eternal”. I also added “Armageddon” and “Sleepwalker” (matte blackest black) to my order.
I haven’t had a chance to try “Sleepwalker yet – it’s not exactly an every day shade. “Eternal” looks amazing on – darker than I’d expected, but looked fantastic all day. “Armageddon” is my favorite – the most glittery red lipstick I’ve seen. This is what I WISHED Urban Decay “Trap Queen” had been.
Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene
…I’m begging of you, please don’t take my man. I’ll starve!
Julep “Jolene” – iron ore metallic – is a bombshell, just like her namesake. There’s the barest hint of gold and a rainbow of shimmer reflected in that iron ore. This might be my favorite from this month’s box.
I started with Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat, two coats of “Jolene” and finished with “HK Girl”. To be honest, it still looked pristine four days later, but I took it off just now to try something different.
Lara & the Holograms
Birchbox sends you an email saying that I have $19.50 in points that are in danger of expiring…what do you do? WHAT DO YOU DO?
I…get on the site and starting shopping immediately. I settle on a Milk Makeup Holographic Stick ($28) – just $8.50 after my credits. Imagine my surprise when I opened up my box to fine 2 Holographic Sticks! (Birchbox must like to send me two of things.) I guess it’s Sally’s lucky day – she’ll be getting the other one!
I also used a code to get a free Tony Moly Nose Pack. I’m guessing it’s like a Biore Nose Strip?
To be honest, I’ve been a bit bored with Birchbox, since they ended their original points system. I admit it was a pain in the ass to review all those products, but it was worth it for those sweet, sweet points. I’m not saying I’m gonna cancel, but it’s a possibility.
Haute Koffee
Behold…Sinful Colors “Haute Koffee”. Why is this polish called “Haute Koffee”? Coffee is NOT supposed to be this color. Coffee is brown, not maroon. How about “Haute Merlot”?
Regardless of the ridiculous name, this polish is life itself. Perfectly matte, but with a touch of shimmer. This is the best yet from the Kylie “Trend Matters” Collection. I cannot believe I’ve been sitting on this polish since September.
This is two coats of “Haute Koffee” over Sinful Colors Base Coat. I could just stare at it for hours and hours…