Month: November 2018
Inspired by Brianna
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If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times – imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
I thought I was obsessed with Sinful Colors…until I joined a Sinful Colors fb group. These ladies are giving me run for my money – and I am loving it! They are giving me so much inspiration and commiseration about how hard it is to find the Limited Edition shades at Walgreen’s these days. I was immediately inspired by a manicure I saw by a girl named Brianna (@simplynails94), that I had to imitate it.
I started with Sinful Colors Base Coat and two coats of Sinful Colors “No Filter”. (“No Filter” actually belongs to my daughter – she had picked out for herself.) I topped with a coat of “Zest of Times”, one of my favorite pink toppers. I finished with Glisten & Glow Top Coat, although I wish I had tried a matte coat instead.
This combination seemed so familiar – I searched my site and it turns out I had done something similar a few years ago, layering “Zest of Times” over “Starry Night”.
The Wiz
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What do you wear when you’re going to see The Wiz? Some wicked nail polish, duh.
The Wiz was being performed at TUTS, and I was excited to take Lily to her first real musical. I had taken Logan to see Hamilton there earlier this year, so I wanted Lily to see one, too. As soon as I started seeing ads, I knew she would love it…and she did. She was singing and dancing in her seat!
I don’t need much of an excuse to pull out the Deborah Lippmann Wicked Nail Polish. After Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat, I did two coats of my favorite green – “Defying Gravity”. I used the glittery “One Short Day” to add sparkle to the tips, topping with Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
Lily used my polish, too. She just used “Defying Gravity” as the base and used a dotter to write “The Wiz” on her nails in red. She is so creative with her nails – I wonder where she gets it from?
Sephora Play! Smarts – Complexion Your Way: Matte
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On the second weekend of Sephora’s ROUGE BONUS 20% off sale, they dropped new Sephora Play! Smarts boxes – Complexion Your Way ($20), with a choice between “Matte” and “Dewy”. Of course, I chose “Matte”.
The star of this box was the Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r Matte Longwear Foundation + Primer. The sample card came with Primer and three shades of foundation. Amazingly, the lightest shade, “150”, was the near-perfect shade for me. There was just enough in the pack for a thin full face application (with a Beautyblender). It was BEAUTIFUL, especially topped with the Cover FX Perfect Setting Powder, also included in the box. This will definitely be the next foundation I buy.
Along with a nifty netted zipper bag, the “Matte” box had It Cosmetics Confidence in a Cleanser Skin-Transforming Hydrating Cleansing Serum (love this cleanser); Clinique Chubby Stick Sculpting Highlight; Smashbox Photo Finish Pore Minimizing Primer; Peter Thomas Roth Hungarian Thermal Water Mineral-Rich Moisturizer; and Sephora Collection Beauty Magnet Concealer Brush. I will use all of these, immediately.
I added another purchase to my order – the Ellis Brooklyn Bibliotheca Discovery Set ($20), a fragrance sampler that includes six of the brand’s set. Can you believe that the one I originally received was totally evaporated??? I was SO pissed. I called Sephora immediately and they sent me a new one, no questions asked. Luckily, it was fine…and I got two more samples. Oh yeah, did you hear that Sephora only gives two samples per order now? There will be riots in the street!
Back to the Ellis Brooklyn set…it was utterly disappointing. I really didn’t like any of the scents enough to buy a full size. I had especially high hopes for “Rrose” – I love a good rose, but it was bland. “Raven”, “Myth” and “Sci Fi” were the best of the bunch, but didn’t last long enough for me to get a feel for on me. “Rives” was straight up POISON that gave me a headache (probably the lavender). I wore “Fable” today and I cannot even remember what it smelled like. I am utterly disappointed in this set. I was hoping to find another high quality niche brand to love, like Atelier or Replica, but every formula was weak and was gone within 10 minutes. FAIL.
Oh samples! In the first shipment, I got foundations – Milk Blur Liquid Matte Foundation (3 shades on a card) and Giorgio Armani Face fabric Second Skin Makeup (4 shades foil packs). The second shipment gave me another sample of Ellis Brooklyn Myth and Dior Joy. Oh, joy.
Just $44 to Rouge!
Once Bitten
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Once Bitten is a seriously underrated movie. A young, virginal Jim Carrey, lured into the sordid world of vampires while searching the streets of LA for sex…oh wait, wrong site.
This is Sinful Colors “Bitten”, one of my Halloween scores. Red nails go with everything, really. This is two coats of “Bitten” over Sinful Colors Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
A juicy red crelly, it’s another dupe for Zoya “Sooki”. I keep buying the same polishes, over and over.
Monsty Skin
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…and back to our regularly scheduled nails.
Pretend it’s October still, thanks.
Right before Halloween, I decided to dig into my stash and create “Monster Skin” nails – or, as my nephew would say, “Monsty Skin” nails. I started with Sally Hansen Double Duty Base & Top Coat. I them did a single coat of Sally Hansen Gem Crush “Cha-Ching!” – it still gives full coverage in one coat. I thought I would top it with a lime green crackle coat – Sally Hansen Crackle “Sage Smash” – but it was dried up! Finally, I chance to try out Julep Voila! Nail Polish Thinner! The bottle said 1-2 drops, but I I probably put in 10-20. I shook it and shook it and managed to thin enough around the brush to mostly a full coat on my nails. It kind of crackled…somewhat. I sealed the deal with Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
What came out on my nails, was not the same as what was on my nails. Instead of “Monsty Skin”, I got “Bloody Grinch”. I don’t hate it.
Fingers Crossed…
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Not only are my fingers crossed for BETO to run the Texas Senate Race tonight, but my toes, too. If I could cross my tits, they’d be crossed as well.
I am pretty OCD and am stickler for blogging in the order of my Instagram posts, but tonight I bent my rules to post about my BETO nails. I mean, I still have Halloween nails to post, so what’s another few days when it’s already been a week?
I got these Rose Gold Decals in my September box and I love them…but what to spell with them? I guess I could spell my name. Or my kids’ names. Or maybe I could just spell “FUCK OFF” like a sophisticated version of a knuckle tattoo. I decided to test them out with “BETO”. I almost put “VOTE” on my other hand, but got lazy.
After Julep Oxygen Smoothing Base Coat, I did two coats of Julep “Della”, a freebie from the April box. It reminds me of PRUNES! I carefully placed the decals with tweezers, then finished with Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
In just a few hours, BETO may or may not be a new Texas Senator. Will you cross your fingers, too?
ROUGE BONUS
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Oh, Sephora…you really do spoil me. This past weekend and now this weekend, Sephora is offering 20% for Rouge Members. You know I took advantage the very first day of last week’s sale – I had to get that sample bag!
I really wanted to smell some Ellis Brooklyn scents, but they didn’t carry them at my local store. Boo. I had a hard time coming up with something I needed/wanted – until I noticed how many shades of lippies that Kat Von D is discontinuing. I was vaguely aware, but not fully – they are getting rid of about a third of their shades of Studded Kiss, Everlasting Lip Liquids, Everlasting Glimmer Veils, and Everlasting Lip Liners. I decided to grab an Everlasting Lip Liquid in “Underage Red” ($13) – you know, because the name pisses so many people off. I also got an Everlasting Lip Liner in “Misfit” ($11) – a darker maroon. I’ve gotta say, the two of these colors together is stunning. I’m very happy with my purchase.
So…that sample bag…so packed full! It included Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Color (in little weird plastic pots); Urban Decay Cosmetics Naked Skin Ultra Definition Liquid Makeup (2 shades); NARS Power Matte Lip Pigment in “American Woman”; Tory Burch Eau de Parfum; Kiehl’s Creamy Eye Treatment; Sol de Janeiro Brazilian Bum Bum Cream; Kiehl’s Ginger Leaf & Hibiscus Firming Mask (excited to try this); and Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer.
Just $86 Until ROUGE for 2019. I will do it!
October 2018 Allure Beauty Box – Fall Update
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It has started…the busy season. The kids have a shit-ton of activities, the holidays have started and work is a clusterfuck. I’m sure I’ll catch up – sometime in January.
Ooooh, another full box from Allure this month. The theme is “Fall Update” – a box full of fall products. I immediately perked up when I saw a very large tube of Sunday Riley Ceramic Slip Cleanser and Sunday Riley Good Genes Lactic Acid Treatment. I feel like I’m getting Sunday Riley in every box these days. I ain’t complaining.
Also in this month’s box: Hourglass Caution Extreme Lash Mascara in “Ultra Black”; Yves Saint Laurent Matte Liquid Lip Stain in…no idea, the writing is way to small to tell what shade it is; Caudalie Vinopure Skin Perfecting Serum; First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream; and BKR Paris Water Balm.
The Allure Beauty Box is $15/month, but they give you $5 off your first box. They also offer an option for $150/year – a savings of $30. Sign up via my referral link..