Month: May 2018
The Infinity Gauntlet
Come on, Infinity War is the biggest movie on the planet right now. How could I NOT do Infinity Gauntlet nails?
I put down a single coat of Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat to get started. I get anxiety when I mismatch my polish to my base coat, but I’m using so many brands that I compromised.
My thumb holds the Time Stone – two coats of OPI “My Gecko Does Tricks” topped with Sinful Colors “Green Ocean”.
My index finger became the Power Stone – two coats of Julep “Paulette” topped with Zoya “Monet”.
The Space Stone resided on my middle finger – two coats of Sinful Colors “Prized Plume” topped with Sally Hansen “Family Jewels”.
My ring finger became the Reality Stone – two coats of Formula X “Boundless Berry” topped with Sinful Colors “Unwrap Me”.
My pinkie got the Soul Stone – Sinful Colors “Courtney Orange” topped with SpaRitual “Citrine Luminary”.
I finished off the Gauntlet with gold metal studs, sealed with Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
Alas, I just have five fingers on each hands, so I had to hold the Mind Stone. Oh, and I don’t have a Mind Stone, so I used a peach from our peach tree in the backyard. It was eaten shortly after this picture was taken.
What other movie manicures should I try?
Kat Von D – 10th Year Anniversary Collection
I’ve been waiting months and months for this…and on Cinco de Mayo, Kat Von D released her 10 year Anniversary Collection. It’s everything I thought it would be and more.
The 10th Year Anniversary Eyeshadow Palette ($52) was the first thing into my cart. I am blown away by the quality of the shadows. I tried it yesterday, without primer and it was ultra, mega, SO pigmented. Although Kat excels at matte eyeshadows, I’m really drawn to the transformer shades in this collection. I did a look centered around “Alexandra” (rose gold glimmer) and it matched my rose gold hair perfectly. When my husband got home from work last night, he actually said my makeup looks cute…and he NEVER says that. Literally, the best I can hope for it, “You look nice,” but usually I get “What is wrong with your face?”
So, this palette gets the husband stamp of approval – that’s even higher praise than “Jeffree Approved”!
I also picked up the 10th Anniversary Lipsticks – Everlasting Glimmer Veil in “Gold Skool” ($22) and Studded Kiss Lipstick in “Santa Sangre” ($19). I wore “Gold Skool” with “Lolita II” Everlasting Lip Liner yesterday and it KILLED. Now, the $64,000 question – how does it compare to Jeffree Star “First Class”? The two aren’t even really similar – “First Class is a black-leaning metallic, while “Gold Skool” has more of a glittery gold dust finish. Not dupes at all!
I dropped $93, but I didn’t even get the whole collection. There’s also a brush set ($125), a highlighter ($30), an eyeliner ($20) and a traincase ($150). I wanted them all…but I also wanted my family to eat this month. I am VERY happy with my purchase and I am confident when I say that Kat Von D has overtaken Urban Decay as my favorite cosmetics brand.
Since I have Sephora Flash, I broke my order up into two orders, so that I could get double samples and use two promo codes. I got my doubles AND Sephora still sent it all to me in one box. Winning!
I used a promo code to get an Amore Pacific Set, which includes Vintage Single Extract Essence, Botanical Radiance Oil and The Essential Creme Fluid. I also used a code to get a fragrance sample bag with Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb, Yves Saint Laurent Black Opium, Stella Peony (the one I wanted to try – need to buy it); Philosophy Amazing Grace Ballet Rose (another love); Giorgio Armani Sky di Gioia, Chloe Fleur de Parfum, Marc Jacobs Daisy Eau So Fresh AND Urban Decay Troublemaker Mascara. Nice!
For my sample picks, I got 2 Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade (each sample card had 4 colors AND a tiny brush – been wanting to try this so bad!); Urban Decay Vice Special Effects Top Coat (includes 4 colors – “Fever”, “Reverb”, “Ritual” and “White Lie”); and Clinique Moisture Syrge 72-hour auto-replenishing hydrator. Wait! That’s only 4 samples! They screwed me!
But…only $568 until Rouge…I might do it!
May 2018 Birchbox – Soak in the Sunshine
Ugh, Birchbox – what is this weird shit?
I mean, I picked the curated box, so I knew what I was picking – but it’s weird. The Whal Myung Skin Elixir is throwing me off – it looks like some illegal product you get from a back room in a massage parlor. That, of course, means it is probably FIRE – or will will set my face on FIRE.
Also in this month’s “Soak up the Sunshine” box: Wander Beauty Catch the Light Highlighter & Glowtion (love me some glowtion); KNC Beauty All Natural Collagen Infused Lip Mask; OUAI Volume Spray; and Georgette Klinger Coconut Cleansing Milk.
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.
May 2018 Julep Maven Box – Golden Hour
No information card, no candy this month – what’s up with that Julep?
The featured product this month was new shades of Skip the Brush Creme-to-Powder Blush Stick and I wasn’t really feeling it, so I went all polish. I was elated to see that this month’s collection includes Bombshell “Lilith”, Orchid Blossom Shimmer. Even though we call her “Lily”, her given name is “Lilith”. Now I just need a “Russell” polish to complete out family collection!
I also added Classic with a Twist “Presley”, Sizzling Hibiscus Iridescent, and Smooth Start – Oxygen Smoothing Base Coat. I’d been using Oxygen Bonding Base Coat, but sometimes you gotta mix it up. Oh, and I got Flowering Cacti decals – can’t wait to play with them, too!
I used Jules to add Bombshell “Tanaya”, Vibrant Marigold Crème. I know I am not a yellow polish fan, but it will look SO good with the cacti.
Not a Julep Maven? Click HERE to join – I’ll get a $15 credit and you’ll get your first box free!
Too Busy Being Awesome
Of course, I’m “Too Busy Being Awesome”…
..I’m not bragging, that’s just the name of the polish. We were killing time at Ulta the other day, and I came across China Glaze “Too Busy Being Awesome” in the clearance aisle – half price, plus another 50% off made this polish less than $2. It’s from the My Little Pony Collection. They had several others from the Collection, but either they were ugly (mint green) or Lily already had them. Lily thinks I bought this polish for her, but I didn’t – I bought it for meeeeee…now that I’ve tried it, it’s hers.
This is two coats of “Too Busy Being Awesome” over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat. No streaks, no bald spots – although there were a few pinprick bubbles in the top coat.
Frightmare Nails
I love doing my nails for Texas Frightmare Weekend. It gives me an excuse to do either horror themed nails, or goth at the very least…
It took me a bit to come up with what to do. I decided to do marbled nails with Sinful Colors Hypnotic Transforming Top Coat. After Sinful Colors Base Coat, I alternated with “Redrum” (basic red) and “Concrete Jungle” (dark grey). This is two coats of each. On half my nails, I started with red, and the other half I started with grey. I finished with Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
There’s not a lot of contrast between the red and grey, so it’s hard to make out the swirls in the picture, but I was very happy with how it turned out. It looked like scabby dried blood – perfect for a Horror Movie Convention.
In the Mood…for $1 Polishes
I didn’t even go to Five Below looking for nail polish…but nail polish found me. Those buckets of $1 Funky Fingers nail polish by the register got me like…
The first two polishes I grabbed are “Mood” polishes – they shift colors with temperature changes. The purple one is “Mellow Mood” and the pink one is “In the Mood”. Having just chopped my nails off, I might need to wait a few weeks before trying these – you need long nails for mood polish.
The other pink polish is a pearly pink called “Material Girl” – just like Madonna’s dress in the video!
The last polish is a sheer dark purple called “Tint for Tat” – I’m hoping it’s a good one and not a trainwreck.
Sephora Play! April 2018 – Insta Beauty
I am fully aware that I am prone to hyperbole…but…this month’s Sephora Play box might be the best box I’ve ever received. I say that not because the products are good or high dollar, but because there are several BRAND NEW products that I’ve been wanting to try.
I just saw It Cosmetics Bye Bye Pores Pressed Poreless Finish Airbrush Pressed Powder in an Ulta circular. I wore it this morning, over only moisturizer and…WOW. It’s translucent and adds no color, but it adds a soft focus veil that is hard to beat. I think I need to buy a full size!
I have also been curious about Urban Decay Hi-Fi Shine Ultra Cushion Lipgloss in “SPL”. I am not in a glossy lip phase, but who is to say that glossy can’t come back in 2018?
Also in this month’s Insta Beauty box: Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Perfector in “Shade #6” (fingers crossed that it matches my skin tone); Fresh Lotus Youth Preserve Rescue Mask; Peter Thomas Roth Skin to Die for No-Filter Mattifying Primer & Complexion Perfector; and Miu Miu L’eau Rosee (I have a deluxe sample of this and I wore it ALL winter).
Again, I will use every single one of these products!
If you don’t get Sephora Play, join us for Festival Fun. Sephora Play is only $10/month. You can sign up at sephora.com/play.