September Birchbox

I intended to do a September Birchbox post right after I got my (first ever) Birchbox but I was all hectic with school and everything and so I just let it slip my mind. I also didn't take any pictures because I used one thing before even thinking about it so I will link to each product I got just for you! :)

http://www.birchbox.com/

Ok so first of all, I was VERY excited to get this Birchbox because I had been reading about the service for a long time and I wanted to try it. I signed up in early August but you don't get your first Birchbox until the month after you sign up so I had a month's wait before I received it. You spend $10 a month and for that you get 4-5 deluxe beauty/skin/perfume samples and one treat. Each box is customized based on your own personal Beauty Profile. Many many many people on YouTube have these wonderful un-boxing review videos. I'm not that comfortable with the whole reviewing thing yet so I probably won't do YouTube for a while if ever. Anyways...

http://www.pangeaorganics.com/product/cream-thyme-nigerian_ginger-sweet_lavender-combo-skincare-men-combination-normal-anti_aging-antioxidant-anti_inflammatory-gluten_free-t_zone/nigerian-ginger-sweet-lavender-and-thyme

I was allergic to this product, otherwise I would have loved it. It made my skin puff out and turn bright red. That's just me though, I'm very sensitive to herbal stuff. Oh well, you win some you lose some.

http://www.incoco.com/product.aspx?productid=101&categoryid=70#153

Speaking of winning some, wow did I win when it comes to this product. I love these things. They lasted on my nails with ABSOLUTELY NO CHIPPING for a week before I took them off and the only reason I took them off was because my nails were growing out and I had a gap at the bottom of my nail. I could have left them on for two weeks (how long they are supposed to last) but I got impatient (I have nail add). This is my favorite thing from my Birchbox. I will definitely buy these babies. I will buy them for my sisters, my friends, EVERYONE because they are so cool. Perfect manicure, no work, $7.99, lasts a week? What more could you possibly want out of a nail product? They are also really easy to apply! I'm in love!


http://www.jouercosmetics.com/product/category-35/default.aspx

I liked this lip product and I was pleased to find a lip product in my Birchbox. I really like the way it feels when I put it on and that it is a cross between a gloss and a balm. This is probably something I would purchase if it were on sale but I will have to use it longer to see if it is worth the $12 price tag.


http://www.livgrn.com/store/liv-grn-online-store/fragrance-collection/earth-collection/earth-eau-de-parfum-spray

The last sample I received was of this perfume. I love the scent, it's very pretty, but I don't think I would pay $60 for it. Again, it's something that I will have to try for a while to see if I'm in love with it. I do like that they are organic, but I'm just not sure about the price. Also, I don't know how to tell top notes from bottom notes and my nose is very stuffy so you will have to read what they say on the website to see what it smells like. I think it smells like pretty.

Finally I received a Birchbox friendship bracelet. It was a pink rope and a silver square (the Birchbox sample). Some YouTube bloggers were really excited about this. I don't really care about it. Mine broke after 4 hours of wearing and it is pretty cheap looking. I guess it's a nice sentiment, but I like the products better than the treats anyways!

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Urban Decay Cream Shadow in Delinquent

I've been going through a very purple phase lately, so I love the color of this shadow. I haven't attempted to use it yet because it is very intense, but I can definitely envision this in a very dramatic purple eye look. It is very similar to the powder shadow that Urban Decay does in Flash. I really like that these shadows, once dried, don't smudge at all. You couldn't move this out of place if you tried! I'll have to post more after I actually use it!

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Urban Decay Cream Shadow in Asphalt

The swatch shown here is pretty bad quality. Let me describe the product: It is a dark black cream shadow with the most gorgeous glitter that I have ever seen. It looks like something I would do to my nails to make it look like a starry night. Of course, I have no clue how I would use this product on my eyes, but it is certainly fun to look at. That is probably the reason I was able to find it for so cheap on ebay.

If I find a way to use this I will keep you all posted!

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Urban Decay Lip Junkie in Midnight Cowboy

I have mixed feelings about this product. I received the sample size shown above with another purchase I made. Let's do a pros and cons list!
Pros:
It's a plumper! (I absolutely adore plumpers!)
It has a nice minty taste.
It looks really good layered over a dark lipstick.

Cons:
The color, I am not a nude lip person and this makes me look zombie pale.
The tingly feeling from the plumper kind of hurts my lips. (I grin and bear it.)
It's sticky.

So does this make me want to purchase more urban decay lip products? No. I'll keep trying to use it, but I really don't think this is anything to write home about.

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Urban Decay Shadow in Flash

I love this color. I can't get over how much I love this color. It is bright and dark at the same time. It's the most fantastic purple I have ever seen. It can be used as a liner or as a shadow for a gorgeous night look. I purchased this on ebay for about $5 which is what I would suggest everybody do because it retails for $17!

Urban Decay Pigment in Rockstar

This is the best out of the three Urban Decay pigments that I purchased. I still am not impressed with the pigmentation though. It's pretty ironic that a product called "pigment" has such poor pigmentation. Rockstar is a deep purple that would work best as a liner. Unfortunately this really doesn't match the quality of an Urban decay shadow or MAC products. I really regret purchasing these.

Urban Decay Pigment in Protest

Like I said in my last post, I was very disappointed with the Urban Decay Pigment. I really disliked this one in particular. It's an interesting Army-green color. The packaging is very inconvenient. As you can probably see, it was impossible to get a clean swatch from this. The pigmentation of the product is awful. I can definitely see why it's no longer sold!

Urban Decay Pigment in Gunmetal

I recently bought a three pack of Urban Decay pigments on Ebay and this is my review of the first!

This pigment is in Gunmetal and frankly I'm disappointed. I expected the Urban Decay pigments to be comparable to MAC pigments because their eyeshadow is just as good if not better. I didn't think the pigment was good in this product. I think it is very difficult to apply neatly. I will try to apply this by pouring this out and using my own brush but I am not hopeful.

Rite Aid Renewal Brushes

I stopped by my local Rite Aid the other day to pick up some Eco Tools brushes when I found these babies. Rite Aid has replaced the awful, crappy brushes they used to sell with these Rite Aid brand brushes. I purchased the powder brush, the foundation brush, the shadow brush, and the blending brush and I love them!

The powder brush is big and fluffy and works great. It is very soft and has a lot of bristles. I believe all the bristles from the line are made of synthetic hair. The foundation brush is great and I have been using it daily ever since I purchased it. The shadow brush works really well for the lids and the crease. I really like the blending brush as well because it is very short and really gets in to hard to reach areas.

Has anyone else tried these brushes? Please leave comments, questions, and subscribe!

Some Models

Both girls looking down.

Becca's eyes open

Becca's eyes shut

Maddy

 These are just two looks that I did on my best friend Becca and little sister Maddy. All photos were taken by my other sister Liz Powell. It was so long ago that I don't remember exactly what I did, but I will describe each look anyway.

On Becca, I did a look that would be best worn on Halloween or at a crazy club or during Carnivale. The look is very heavy on the turquoise because that is my absolute favorite color.

On Maddy, I tried my best to make her look like a Kardashian. I bronzed the hell out of her face and used lots of dark shadowy make-up.

I liked both of the looks that I did on them although I wouldn't wear them on a day to day basis. Thanks to both of them for being such willing models!

Purple eye tutorial

Photo taken by Liz Powell.

I have to give credits to my sister for a. being my model and b. taking pictures of all my items to review this afternoon (I took the pictures of her).

This is a tutorial for a purple eye I did on myself the other day that I was complimented on a lot. I thought I would do it on my sister and post it for everybody to see.

The first picture is of the materials I used, the second two are of the finished result.

Materials:
Gel Eyeliner (or pencil if you prefer, I used Mac fluid line in Blitz and Glitz)
Dark Purple shadow (I used Urban Decay's Flash)
Light Purple shadow (I used Urban Decay's Grifter)
Medium Purple Shadow (I used MAC's Trax)
Highlight (if you have one handy)
Primer
Angled Eyeliner brush
Fluffy brush for Crease
Lid Brush

Step 1. Prime the eye. I always use primer, I never skip it. I'm completely rigid about this.
Step 2. Use a highlight on the browbone and inner corners of both eyes.
Step 3. Use the light purple shadow on the lid. I also used MAC's big bounce eyeshadow in Good Fortune on top of the light purple to make the glitter stick more and give it a purple effect. This is not necessary but I love to use the big bounce eyeshadow because it's so cool.
Step 4. Use the medium purple shadow on the crease.
Step 5. Apply a thick line with the dark purple shadow to the top lid. Don't really blend this.
Step 6. Apply a bit of liner to the bottom outer third of the eye.

Voila! Please leave Questions and Comments and subscribe!

Covergirl Eyeshadow Singles

Apparently the names of these eyeshadows are on the little piece of tape that you have to rip off to open the packaging after you purchase them, I did not know this, they are gone. Anyways, these little single eyeshadows are amazing if you are on a tight budget. I was bored at work (I work in a grocery store pharmacy while attending college) and decided to look at the CoverGirl single eyeshadows. I needed a white with no sparkle to use as a highlight and when I saw the other two colors it was love at first sight.

The brown color has a gorgeous shimmer and can be used to make a really nice natural look. It would probably make a good bronzer too. The pigmentation of the eyeshadow is really good too, almost as pigmented as an Urban Decay or Stila product. I love shimmery browns because they really accentuate the eyes (Naked palette anyone?). 

The white color is the perfect highlight. It's not shimmery and it doesn't have a lot of glitter (I've been having a problem with glitter fallout lately) which is a profound relief. I've used it pretty much every day since I got it and I have loved the results. All beauty gurus suggest having a plain white single in your beauty kit and now I know why!

The silver color is probably my favorite. I love the shimmer that it has and I think it is the perfect crease color. This is a color that could easily dress up a more plain shade. It is very versatile, it could be worn in a night look or in a day look. 

Before going to my first day of class, I used the three of these colors to make a nice every day look. I used the brown on the lid, the silver in the crease, and the white as a highlight. I blended thoroughly and it worked really well! I would suggest everybody at least have a white single in their kit and buy CoverGirl single eyeshadows!!!

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Ecotools by Alicia Silverstone 4 Piece Backstage Vanity Set Review

You can see the wipes I use for my face, more brushes, storage and some posters in the background... oops!

These brushes are really neat and they come in an adorable holder that is perfect for my shorter brushes! Ecotools is simply the best if you have a limited budget for brushes (like I do) and can't afford MAC brushes. This set was about $12.99 which was great because a stippling brush like that starts at $30 in high end brands. So lets review the brushes...

1. The Stippling Brush: I love this brush. It has white fibers that extend past the brown fibers on the brush to give a perfect airbrushed finish. I love the way the bristles feel on my face and this brush works perfectly with my MAC mineralize skinfinish. I originally wanted a stippling brush because this is the type of brush they use at MAC when they do make-up on people. Of course, their stippling brush is probably 10 times more expensive so this was an amazing find!

2. The Angled Eyeshadow Brush: This brush is great for highlighting and the crease. I know people like to use pointed brushes that look like paintbrushes to put shadow in the crease, but I like to use an angled eyeshadow brush for the crease because I feel like it fits my crease my well. This brush is very high quality and I love to use it!

3. The Eyebrow/Lash Comb: I hardly use this brush. The one pictured is actually one that I got in another EcoTools set because I gave the one that came in this set away (they looked exactly the same). I've used it a couple times to separate my lashes, but other than that I have no use for it. I have almost invisible eyebrows so I don't do anything with them, no plucking, nothing.

All in all I would definitely suggest buying this kit. Even though I had no use for the Eyebrow/Lash Comb, I think it was definitely worth the $12.99 for the stippling brush, let alone the angled eyeshadow brush and the beautiful holder.

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MAC Shadestick in Street Cool

I went into MAC me over wanting to purchase eyeshadow, but when this product was used on me, I knew I had to have it. It looks like an eye liner pencil but with a thicker stick. The package twists up so you don't have to worry about sharpening as well which is something I really like. The best part, however, is the actual product. The girl who did my make-up was over the moon about this product. The consistency of the product is very much like a MAC paint pot so the pencil can be used as a primer which is great. She put it on my lid and then blended it out and used some of the colors from the Lady Grey palette as well, which ended up looking amazing. What really sold me on the product (apart from the gorgeous grey-purple color) was that it can be very easily applied for a very casual day time look or turned into a glamorous night look.

While experimenting with the pen I have done a couple things. I went to work with just the pen on one day which worked really well. I tried to use it after putting primer on by accident and it just led to ugly creasing. The most success I've had with it was when I put it onto the lid, put Urban Decay flash over the outer third of the lid, and put a white shimmer highlight on the brow bone. It created a fantastic purple nighttime look.

I would definitely say that this product is a keeper and I really hope to purchase others in this line!

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Strawberry Cupcake Lip Balm

I purchased this lip balm on ebay. I don't know who makes it but I love it! It smells really good and moisturizes very well. I would definitely buy this again, plus it's adorable!


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Smashbox O-Gloss Gold Review

 This lipgloss is truly amazing. I have Too Faced Mood Swing color changing lipgloss and I always wanted to try the O-Gloss but didn't feel like shelling out $22 for it. Luckily my local beauty boutique had this at 50% off which made it much more tempting. I am very happy that I purchased this! It plumps my lips a bit without a strange feeling and the color that this gives me is this gorgeous gilded peach color (not anything like how it swatches). I had to order the other two (O-Gloss and O-Gloss Noir) immediately!

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Too Faced Ooh La Rouge Duo Sided Blush in Avant Garde

I purchased this blush/bronzer duo for $9 on sale at a local make up boutique. I can't say enough good things about it. I love the color that this blush puts on my cheeks. I have had really good luck with blush colors from Too Faced so far. I would definitely suggest this product to people looking for a good blush!

MAC Lady Grey Palette

Read this for swatches and picture! (I accidentally deleted my pictures and no longer have the palette intact.)

I got this palette from MAC after attending their MAC Me Over event. It was $38 which is a lot less than their quad palettes usually are. I really like this palette because it gives a very good neutral look. All the colors are highly pigmented and lovely. I would definitely suggest picking one up!




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Stila Beach Palette #1 Review: Stunning in Sayulita

This is the first of the 5 Stila Collectible Beach palettes. They are very much like the Santa Fe palette I reviewed earlier. They each cost $14 and they are all amazing. Each comes with a blush and a highlight and four eye colors. The palette has an inspirational quote at the top, a mirror, and get the look instructions. I absolutely love these palettes!


This palette has a tan, a brown, a brownish lavender, and a green and they go really well together. This is one of the more casual of the Beach Palettes and probably my favorite of the four I own so far (I don't have number 5 yet). All the colors are very well pigmented. I would definitely suggest people to buy this!

Smashbox Fusion Softlights Baked Stardust review

I got this product on sale at a local beauty shop that I frequent. I was assured by the person helping me out that it flatters everybody. I do like the color that comes from it, but so far I am unsure of how to use it. I have tried swirling my bronzer brush around it to get all the colors onto it and that swatch above is what I get. The colors can be used individually but are so small that it would be hard to do. I will continue to look this product up to find what I am supposed to do with it and keep you posted! If you know how to use this product, please leave a comment!

Smashbox Eyeshadow Palette Pro

I purchased this palette from ebay for about 11 dollars. I believe it was part of a larger Smashbox palette because the palette doesn't have a specific name and none of the colors have names. I was a little disappointed with this palette because the colors aren't as pigmented as an Urban Decay or Stila product but all in all it is a good palette. I was able to make a good eye look using the colors in this palette.

Stila Baked Trios

Champagne Glow

Champagne Glow

Gold Glow

Gold Glow

Bronze Glow

Bronze Glow

I recently purchased all three of the Stila Baked Trios from ebay. These products are amazing when worn wet or dry. I would definitely recommend buying them but from ebay or Amazon because they retail for $28 and are probably not worth that price. I bought two of them for about 10 dollars and the third for 5 so ebay is definitely a good place to check out.

I have used Champagne Glow the most because it is the first one that I purchased. The middle rust color is really gorgeous. I really enjoy all three trios because they are so pigmented that they show up very well on my skin. Bronze Glow is probably the easiest to wear in the day time and Gold Glow is probably the best for a night time look. They all also see to correspond with seasons. Champagne Glow reminds me more of Winter with the beautiful rust color and the silver, Gold Glow is definitely Summer, and Bronze Glow looks like a great color for fall.

Stila Santa Fe Palette

I recently found this palette at my local Urban Outfitters. It looks very similar to the Stila beach palettes that were released over the summer and it cost the same ($14). I really like the colors in this palette, it gives a beautiful natural look. The only odd thing is that when I went to look up the palette on the Stila website to see if there were any others in a set, there was no record of it. There is also no record of it anywhere else on the internet. I've Googled it, checked Sephora, went to the Urban Outfitters website, went on Ebay, and used my phone to scan the barcode and search that. Nothing. I've also emailed Stila about it because I really want to know why this product doesn't seem to exist!

Please leave a comment if you have this palette. Questions and comments are always welcome!

Bath and Body Works Paris Amour Fragrance

I haven't been to Bath and Body Works in a while because I tend to go a little overboard when I do. Recently, I stopped by our local Bath and Body works with a friend to see what we had been missing and we definitely found it in Paris Amour. Paris Amour has quickly become my favorite scent from B&BW. I can't place any one title on it, it doesn't smell like anything I've ever smelled before. Also, the packaging is adorable. I purchased the two items above (an eau de toilette and body lotion both travel sized) for 15 dollars which is really cheap, especially since the edt is 1 oz which could cost $60 in a designer fragrance. The smell comforts me and really lasts all day. It is a very romantic, young scent and everybody should check it out!