HUGE Make-up Haul

So, this make-up haul has been a couple of weeks in the making.  Over the year I have earned a lot of "points" (which can be redeemed for money to spend on the site) through Ulta's ULTAmate reward program and through Birchbox.  These saved "points" allowed me to go a little crazy and get some products that I've had my eye on, along with new products.

I LOVE trying new make-up products.  I try to research before hand so I don't get a "dud" product and just waste me money.  

Here are all the products I've purchased over the past couple of weeks:

All of these products were paid for by me.  I can also do more in-depth reviews after I get a chance to use them.  These products are broken up by category, starting with eye products.

Eyes:

This palette is the only thing I ordered off of Birchbox's website.  I had built up about $30 worth of Birchbox points and had a 20% off coupon.  

Emilynoel83 on Youtube raved about this palette in her yearly Emily Awards videos.  

This is theBalm Rockstar Palette.  This palette comes with 12 eyeshadows, 2 different lip/cheek "glosses", a luminizer and blush (Mary-Lou Manizer and Fratboy, if you are familiar with theBalm's products).

Each column of eyeshadow has a "rock" theme to them.  The first being Heavy Metal, then Classical, and Alternative, with each having a different finish to the shadows.

Excited to play with this palette and come up with a lot of different looks.

This trio is Wet n' Wild in Knock on Wood.  I have heard so many great things about the Wet n' Wild Color Icon shadows that I just HAD to grab one trio.  And for 3 dollars, who could beat that price.

A palette I have been really wanting is Urban Decay's Naked 2 palette; however, for $42 I got the LORAC pro palette that came with 16 different colors (8 matte and 8 shimmer).  To me, that is more bang for the buck.  I usually don't do completely matte or shimmery looks, so it is nice to have a difference in textures and finishes.  I'm excited to play around with creating different looks.

  This was another Emily Award Winner from Emilynoel83. 

This Milani shadow was on clearance at Target.  I haven't used Milani products in about 8 years.  I figured I should try it out.  This shade is #02 Black Out , a really pretty glittery black.  This shadow can be used wet and/or dry.  I think this could be good to line the lash lines for a little extra something.

I have wanted to try MAC's loose pigments but I can't bring myself to spend $20+ on them.  I've seen a lot of NYX items listed as MAC dupes so I figured this could be good.  I got only one in the color Nude because I wanted to see how they last on my eye before getting a few different colors.

I've seen a couple of videos on youtube where they use a lavender colored pencil rather than a white or nude color on the waterline as a brightening effect.  I like NYX's jumbo pencils.  I have a few.  They also make great eyeshadow bases.

I was in the need for a new waterproof mascara.  I don't wear waterproof mascara on a everyday basis.  This is for when I go to the beach or know I am going to be outside all day in the Florida heat.

I grabbed Revlon Grow Luscious Plumping mascara waterproof in Blackest Black.  I really like Revlon Grow Luscious by Fabulash mascara, so I figured that the Grow Luscious Plumping mascara would be good too.

Clinique Bottom lash is a mascara with a tiny brush that is perfect for coating your bottom lashes without getting all over your under-eye area.  With my normal mascara's I tend to hit my under-eye with the large brush.  So I wanted to grab this little guy to see if the smaller brush was actually worth it.  

This LORAC 3D liquid Lustre Diamond caught my eye.  I got the one in silver (it comes in gold also).  

The box description is "Amp up your look with LORAC 3D Liquid Lustre! This paraben-free, long-lasting, shimmering top coat can be applied over eye shadow or worn alone on eyes and cheeks for luminous, prismatic, 3-Dimensional sparkle and shine."  

Lips:

This is EOS lip balm in Pomegranate Raspberry.  EOS lip balms are 100% natural, 95% organic, paraben and petrolatum free, gluten and cruelty free  products.  I have several of these lip balms and I love them (so does my husband).  These lip balms are full with antioxidant-rich vitamin E, smoothing shea butter and jojoba oil, keeping your lips moist and soft.  It also smells AMAZING.

Face:

So, I have combo/oily skin and I need to wear a make-up primer or I would have wasted my time with bothering to even apply make-up within a few hours.  I have never used any Laura Geller products but I have wanted to try several different ones, but I settled with getting this one first and seeing how I liked it.

This is the first of 3 different concealers I got in this haul.  Why 3 you may ask... Well, Benefit's Erase Paste is a salmon-y toned concealer for under-eyes.  The salmon color helps to counteract the blue tones that can happen from lack of sleep or just genetics.

This is Physicians Formula Conceal RX Physicians Strength Concealer.  On the box it claims to have maximum comfort, maximum coverage, ultra-ling wear, a natural smooth finish, and has a no mask effect.  I think it is always good to have a maximum coverage conceal and foundation in your make-up collection.

This concealer purchase was a repurchase for me.  I have used a tube of NYX's HD ? before and really liked it.  It is great for covering any random spots and around the nose.  It also blends really easily.  

This is Physicians Formula Glow and Happy Boosting Blush in Natural.  Physician Formula products are hypoallergenic, paraben-free, and gluten free, non-comedogenic and dermatologist approved.  This looks like it will give a very natural (hints the name) wash of color on the cheeks.

As I have said before I have combo/oily skin.  I use a finishing powder to finish all my looks to set the make-up.  I got two different powders to see which one I liked better (this Palladio and the NYX one below).

The first thing I noticed with just taking off the plastic on this Palladio Rice Powder was that it is MESSY! Oh man... It went EVERYWHERE! So I already know that this product will NOT be traveling with me ANYWHERE! Nope, Nope.

This first thing I noticed about THIS setting powder was that had a plastic sheet that only allowed a small amount of product out at a time.  This finishing powder is in the color Light/Medium.

I got the Palladio Rice Paper Oil-absorbing blotting tissues to keep in my purse to blot when needed throughout the day.

Nails:

I got a new base coat.  I also have Revlon's Colorstay Base Coat, and I have to say I am not a fan of it.  Whenever I remove my polish, it feels like the base coat doesn't completely come off.  Maybe it is my polish remover...

This is Essie's Fiji.  To me, it is a perfect baby pink color.  It looks like it is the perfect pinky-nude in the sense that it would go with everything.

This is Essie in Peach Daquiri.

I have never bought a China Glaze polish.  This color jumped out to be as being a PERFECT summer color. This is Flip Flop Fantasy.

This is China Glaze in Turner Up Turquoise.  It is a very Green-ish turquoise over a blue-ish turquoise.

Hair:

I have heard a lot about the benefits of coconut oil for many things.  Personally, I probably wouldn't use it in food because I can't stand the taste of coconut (but then again, I'm not sure if the flavor of coconut oil actually shows up in food).  I've seen posts on Pinterest with hair masks using just coconut oil and I wanted to try it.  I ordered my jar off of amazon along with the Tangle Teezer (below) and the clear make-up case (last pictures), so I was also able to get free shipping with my Amazon Prime membership! YAY

Honestly, I don't know where this Tangle Teezer has been all my life.  In this whole haul, this is the only thing that I RIPPED out of the packaging to use.  I have LONG, THICK, WAVY/CURLY hair.  My hair gets tangled easily and I spend a good 10 - 15 minutes trying to carefully get the knots out without ripping all of my hair out.  This little "brush" has quickly become a Holy Grail product for me.  I don't understand why I didn't have one sooner.

The last two hair products I have gotten a Hot Tools hair dryer and tapered curling iron.

This past week, Ulta had an AMAZING deal where you spent $48 on Hot Tools you got this Tapered Curling Iron (1 inch to 1/2 inch) for FREE!!! YAY We LOVE FREE!  I have been in desperate need for a new hair dryer.  I am 24 years old and I don't think I have EVER bought myself a hair dryer.  I usually used my moms, or took one of my parent's when they got a new one.

This dryer comes with 3 different attachments: Narrow concentrator, Finger diffuser, and Pik.  It has multiple heat and airflow settings.

So, I was SUPER excited when I saw this deal and figured I might as well get the dryer since it came with such a good deal.  The hair dryer originally $64.  It was on sale for $59 and I used a 20% off coupon with it.  The curling iron that was the free gift with purchase was about $59.  So, all and all, I got an AWESOME deal! GO ME!

Miscellaneous: 

So, the main reason I got this clear travel make-up case is because my husband and I are going on vacation in April and I don't have a good make-up bag to bring on a LONG airplane ride.  I was so excited when I heard we were going I had to buy something to bring on the trip so I "settled" for this make-up for now.

This picture is only to show how much this bag can hold.  I had placed everything in the first picture in this case and there is still plenty of room to spare.

February's Birchbox

Another month, another Birchbox unveiling...

Birchbox theme this month is "Red Carpet Ready".  February is packed full of all the major award shows and Birchbox wants you to feel the glamour that all the attendee's feel with these 5 (plus an "extra") samples.

Here is what my "Red Carpet Ready" Birchbox looked like when I opened it: 

The first sample I pulled out was these Show Stoppers: Designer Fashion Tape.

Here is Birchbox's description:

Celeb stylists swear by these double-sided tape strips, which prevent any wardrobe mishaps. 24 strips, $9.99 

The next sample I pulled out was a perfume sample from Juicy Couture: Couture La La.

Here is Birchbox's description:

Roll out the red carpet for this new scent, a stunning mix of mandarin, red current, lily, and orange blossom.  Full-size, $19-90

The next sample I pulled out was Beauty Protector: Protect and Detangle.  

Here is Birchbox's description:

Great for all hair types, this nourishing elixir performs seven hail-functions.  Among them: locking in color, adding shine, and instantly detangling.  Full-sized, $21.95

The last "free floating" item in this month's Birchbox was a piece of Ghirardelli Chocolate Square.  I got the flavor in Caramel.  Now, I personally LOVE this chocolate; however, I HATE it when Birchbox sends me food products for a couple of reasons.

I live in Florida.  It gets HOT! 

Because it gets so hot, products sit in the heat in the mail truck AND my metal mailbox until I can check the mail.  So by the time I get to the mailbox, it is (99% of the time) melted and gross and I end up just throwing it away.  

(Luckily this time it has been cooler the past couple of days and I was able to check the mail earlier, so this piece was not melted and gross.)

The first item I pulled out the little box inside this month's Birchbox was My: Multi-Purpose Mattifying Moisturizer.

Here is Birchbox's description:

Rich with pili and morginga oils, this healthy moisturizer gives skin a velvety matte finish that lasts all day.  Full-size, $68

The last item in this "Red Carpet Ready" Birchbox is Secret Agent Beauty: Kiss Kiss Rendezvous.

Here is Birchbox's description:

Like a master spy, this sheer, vitamin-infused gloss gets to work without leaving behind any trace evidence (i.e., sticky residue). Full-size, $16

Well, here are the items I received in February's Birchbox.  If you are interested in joining Birchbox, click the link HERE.  

I will post a review of these products sometime next week after I have time to play around with them.

What items did you get in your February Birchbox??

January 2013 Beauty Favorites

Beauty Favorite's of January 2013

I can't believe the first month of 2013 has already come and gone... 

For me this month in the world of makeup has been leaning towards more natural, neutral colors.  So here the the products I reached for the most in January:

 I have combo/oily skin, so for me a makeup primer is a MUST.  (Something I ran out of but would be in here if I hadn't thrown the bottle away is Urban Decay's make-up setting spray).  This primer I had actually won in a Birchbox giveaway a few months ago and ran out of it this month. (So, I am on the hunt for a new primer).  This MANNA beauty simplified Camera Ready primer was used on a daily basis and did what it was supposed to do (keep my makeup from melting off my face). The reason why I will not be buying this is because it is $42 for a 20ml bottle.  Kinda expensive for me when I can probably find one just as good for a fraction of this price.

I love, love, love Revlon Colorstay for Combo/Oily skin.  I would say it is medium coverage, and is easily build-able if you need more coverage in areas.  My color is 240 Medium Beige.  This foundation feels great on my skin and doesn't make me break out.  When I ever run out of this, this is a definite repurchase for me.

Eye primer is another must have for me (damn, oily eyelids...).  Now I have tried several eye primers and my favorite this month is definitely Urban Decay Primer Potion.  Keeps my eyeshadows from creasing, clumping, and fading throughout the day.  Is light on the eyes and doesn't cause any eye irritation when I wear my contacts

My go-to eyeshadows this month were definitely from theBalm's NUDE'tude palette.  There are four matte shades: Sultry (matte medium cool brown), Sexy (matte dark redish-purple), Sleek (dark matte brown), and Serious (matte black).  The rest are a mix between frosted and shimmery shades.  With this range of shades you are able to create simple day time looks and dramatic, sexy night out looks.  These shadows aren't chalky and are easily blendable.  Love this palette.

Now mascara is the one makeup product I could NEVER live without.  Even when I don't wear a lick of makeup I ALWAYS put mascara on.  It opens up the eyes and makes you look more alert and like you put some effort into your appearance.  I have a ton and use them all.  But this month I reached towards this Victoria's Secret Triple Drama Mascara.  It lengthens and gives my lashes volume without being clumpy.  Also, it doesn't end up giving me raccoon eyes by the end of the day.  This is definitely a "wetter" formula, which is my personal preference.  Again, I LOVE mascara and I am picky about them.  

My second Victoria's Secret product this month is their oil-free concealer, which I can longer find in stores or on their website. =[  And I am almost out... This concealer works great on my skin.  It doesn't cause breakouts and covers the spots that I do have.  It is creamy and easy to blend into my skin/foundation.  

Now, being that it is winter and even though I live in FL, I still don't really hit up the beach all that much and I don't go to tanning beds anymore.  I prefer matte bronzers because they can look more natural than shimmery bronzers for contouring and all-over natural color.  NYX is a brand that can be found at ULTA and is around $8.99 and this has lasted me forever. They have a few different shades.  The shade I have is 'Deep Tan" but you can use it lightly.  Great matte bronzer.

My favorite blush this month is Tarte Amazonian clay 12-hour blush in "flush". I got this blush for my birthday in the end of November and I have used it quite frequently ever since (it still looks like I haven't even touched it).  This blush is the most pigmented blush I've ever owned.  You BARELY have to tap your brush in it to get amazing color payoff on your cheeks.  Flush is a berry toned blush and I love it! 

 

My most reached for lip product this month was Revlon Lipbutter in Berry Smoothie.  I love Revlon Lipbutters.  They are silky and moisturizing on the lips.  It is a shimmery "berry" color on the lips.  Now, these don't last all day because of the soft, creamy texture tends to wear off.  But for me, that is fine because I find long wearing lipsticks are drying and peel off leaving the lipstick patchy on the lips (not a good look for me).   The trend this month for me has been berry toned products.

Now, away from makeup products and on to the "others" favorites this month. First is this St. Ives Apricot Scrub.  This is the best exfoliate I've used in a long time.  It exfoliates your skin without hurting.  The "beads" are a good size to get the dead skin cells off.  I only use this product 2-3 times a week and I can definitely see a difference in blackheads and blemishes on my face.

The next two products are haircare products.  One is a masque and the next is a styling cream.  Macadamia Natural Oil Deep Repair Masque is AMAZING.  I got it for Christmas from my mom.  You use it once a week and leave it in your hair for 5 - 7 minutes.  I usually put it in after shampoo and then go about the other shower activities (shaving, washing, etc.) then rinse it out.  My natural hair texture is curly, fizzy, dry.  I have color treated, LONG (mid-back) hair and this stuff is amazing.  My hair comes out feeling silky and smooth and also cuts down on the frizz that my hair naturally has/does. 

 My last January favorite is the Paul Mitchell Crunch-Free Curl Definer.  OMG! This has become a holy grail hair product for me.  I've used it almost daily.  Most gels and mousse's leave my hair crunchy and can have a "wet" look to the hair.  But this Paul Mitchell product does none of the things other gels and mousse's have done.  This stuff is AMAZING!! I even use it with curls that I use heated tools to get and on second day curls to liven them back up.

Well, those were my most reached for products of January 2013.  Hope your first month of 2013 was a good one.

Follow and comment with your favorite products so far in this new year! =]