July 2011 Birchbox

EEK! I just got my Birchbox in the mail not more than two hrs ago. I snapped these quick pics to show you all what I got.

Birchbox had famed fashion designer Cynthia Rowley curate this month's box. First off, look at the beautiful box sleeve she designed. I know it's just a box sleeve and I'll eventually throw it out, but it's so pretty and such an unexpected surprise. It looks like liquid quartz.



Click on the above pic if want to read the card

Instead of their signature magenta tissue paper, they instead opted for this summer friendly aqua color. Gosh, even the border on their card is pretty.  And here are the lovely items inside:

From Left to Right:
Renken Shine Flash - It's a weightless shine spray. Can't wait to try this. I love shine sprays.
Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse Multi-usage Dry Oil - I wonder how this compares to Josie Maran's Argan Oil.
Zoya Touch Collection Nail Polish in Pandora - I'm loving the mini size of the bottle. I'm not sure how it will look with my skin tone. First impression....it looks like it might be too pink based and frosty. I'll post pics once I swatch.
Philosophy Purity Made Simple One-Step Facial Cleaner - I've always wanted to try this but was never given the opportunity. I think this is my favorite of the whole package.
Kind Fruit & Nut Almond & Apricot Bar - According to the wrapper, it is all natural, gluten and wheat free, low glycemic index index (48), 5g of fiber, non GMO and no trans fats, dairy free, very low sodium, no sulphur dioxide. Sounds boring and healthy. Looks delicious!

I was planning of reviewing the products that I received in June (and never posted) but for some reason I can't find any of the pics I had taken and I've lost the information that I had. Once I locate all that, I will post my reviews.

For more information on Birchbox or if you would like to sign up, click here (referral link).

Watermelon Nail Art

Note to self: When photographing your nail art, DO NOT enlarge picture. It will just enlarge your imperfections.

For once I was really happy with a nail art design that I did. I had seen some watermelon nail art around but I never really wanted to do it until I got Essie's Watermelon nail polish. This polish is perfection. The color is beautiful magenta and does lean a little more red on the nail than it does in the bottle. And because it's really opaque (coverage in one coat) and dries within minutes, it's perfect for nail art. That's why I decided to do this:

Used:

Essie  - Watermelon

Sally Hansen - Chartreuse Chase

OPI - Don't Mess With OPI

Color Club - Black

The hardest part for me (as you can probably tell) was making the seeds. I still don't have the hang of it. I was still really ill when I did this. 

Anyway, thought I'd post this pic before I take it all off and start practicing my Harry Potter inspired mani for the midnight showing this Thursday.

SayAnythingBr00ke's Charity Giveaway

I hope you have all had a better weekend than me. I've been stuck in bed with a really bad cold (all thanks to the boyfriend) since Friday. The only thing I have to look forward to is watching the new episode of True Blood tonight.

But I wanted to get out of bed and post about the most amazing giveaway I have ever seen. And it's all to benefit a good cause. Youtube makeup guru SayAnythingBr00ke is giving away over a $1000 worth of great makeup. Including: A complete set of OCC vegan friendly brushes, OCC lip tars, OCC nail polishes, Mac Ripe Peach Blush, China Glaze OMG nail polish, and much much more.

All she asks in return is that you donate to the animal shelter she has chosen for her giveaway. You don't have to donate, but she strongly encourages it.

Go here to donate: http://sayanythingbr00ke.chipin.com/animal-shelter-inc-sterling-ma
To enter, you must be subscribed to her channel, and you must leave a comment. That's it! Giveaway is also open internationally and will end Friday July, 29 2011. Video below will give you more detailed information:



Watch this video and be amazed at all the jaw dropping makeup she's giving away. I would be happy just to get Ripe Peach. Which is your most wanted item?  Make sure you spread the word around so we can make a difference.

Items I used up during the month of June

We always see people blog about their hauls, but what about the stuff that we actually use up? I got inspired by 15stepsblog.  She started blogging about this and I thought it was genius. I do have to warn you. I used to work at Bath and Body Works years ago and I still have boxes of items that had been retired due to repackaging. I'm trying my hardest to work through them before I buy more BBW merch. Here are the items I've used up this month in no specific order:

1. Two Faced Lash Injection Mascara
Pros- It was very thickening and really gave my lashes a lot of length. The brush was very thick and large.
Cons-  I don't know if I just got unlucky and picked out an old tube, but the formula was very dry and it stopped working about two weeks in.
Will I purchase this again? No, there are too many mascaras out there that I would like to try before returning to this one.
What I'm replacing it with- Clinique's High Impact Mascara

2. Bath & Body Works The Perfect Autumn Pear Shower Gel
Pros- I LOOOOOVE this scent. When it first came out (2006) I stocked up on the lotion, shower gel, and all the scent ports and candles that I could find in this scent. Sadly, this is my last of my Autumn Pear collection. The bottle says it has scents of Asian pear, melted caramel, warm spices, and ground vanilla bean. BBW, please bring this back! Pretty pretty please!
Cons- Sadly discontinued.
Will I purchase this again? No, it's been discontinued.
What I'm replacing it with- Bath & Body Works Exotic Coconut

3. One 'N Only Aragan Oil Restorative Mask
Pros- I didn't really like this when I first used it. But as I continued to use it, I noticed my hair was much more manageable, shiny, and was no longer dry. I use hair masks in lieu of conditioner and this is just great.
Cons- Wasn't to keen on the scent, but it's not unbearable. And its worth the results.
Will I purchase this again? YES!!

4. C.O. Bigelow Restorative Hair Mask
Pros- I loved that this one came in a travel size.
Cons- I didn't see the difference between this and any other regular conditioner. I was hoping it would have similar results to Fekkai's Glossing Conditioner since it says it contains Olive Oil and honey extract. Sadly, it does not compare.
Will I purchase this again?  No, not worth the price.

5. Marlies Moller Hair Tip Care Hair Mask
Pros- I could definitely see that my hair was much stronger than usual with this. I also couldn't find any split ends while I was using this. Coincidence?
Cons- The packaging has this hair mask in a tub that comes with a spatula for scooping out. I didn't like that mostly because water would seep into the packaging while I was trying to apply to my hair. I also wasn't crazy about this scent either. Even my boyfriend didn't like the way it smelled. Bad deal.
Will I purchase this again? No, the smell really bothered me.

6. Fekkai Shea Butter Hair Mask
Pros- This really hydrated my hair the first time I used it. I loved the way it smelled and even left my hands really soft.
Cons- After a while, I noticed I was getting major build up in my hair. That may be because I use this more as a conditioner rather than a typical hair mask.
Will I purchase this again? Yes, but not right away. And I will use it as it is intended to be used next time.
What I'm replacing ALL of the hair masks with? Another tube of One 'N Only Aragan Oil Restorative Mask!

7. Bath & Body Works True Blue Spa Shea Butter Like Butter Shower Cream
Pros- I used this as a shaving cream instead of a shower cream. I shave my legs and then go back over it with more product before I rinse off. It was more hydrating on your body than your typical shaving cream. I even liked this better than the True Blue Spa shaving cream that they have in their line. 
Cons- Didn't like the bottle. Although it is a good sized bottle, it was really hard to squeeze the product out.
Will I purchase this again? Yes, but not right away. I have many more shower creams and shaving creams to go through before I need to buy another one.
What I'm replacing it with- Bath and Body Works True Blue Spa Be More Pacific with Monoi Oil Shower Cream.

Things I'm tossing because I just didn't like them:
1. CND Solar Balm - I picked this up at Ulta in the clearance section for $0.99. Ugh, deeply disappointed. I thought this would be slightly reminiscent of  Solar Oil. It was not. It had that gross smell that tells you it had turned bad. And when I put it on my cuticles it was just a greasefest. Nasty.

2. ELF Cream Eyeliner - This is another item that might have been old (I have the worst luck apparently). It was hard to pick up with my eyeliner brush and was just not smooth in applying. In the trash bin it went.

Top of My Wish List

I have had the same wire eyeglasses for the past ten years. I know I've needed to upgrade for quite some time but when my Optometrist said my prescription has not changed over the years, I didn't see a need to buy new frames. I've taken great care of the ones I already have. That is until I saw these:

EEK! These Francis Klein Eyewear frames are fabulous and totally appeal to the naughty librarian in me. I'm actually returning to school in the fall to get my masters in library sciences and these would be great to start off the semester.

BUT these seem to only be sold in their boutique in France. Last I checked I wasn't planning any trips abroad in the near future.  And since I cannot find a price on these, that usually means theses are way out of my budget. Boo. Tears. Sadness.

So if anyone knows of 1. where I can find these in the states, 2. know of any affordable versions of these, please contact me ASAP. My vision will thank you for it.

Meet the Love of my Life

Three posts in ONE day! Wow, such a rareity with me. But upon looking through my pics for posts I ran into the adorable face of my Chihuahua/Mini Pinscher mixed puppy. He just turned 6 months and now weighs 5lbs 3oz....what a fatty.

I'll be MIA for a couple of days. My cousin and I are heading to San Antonio, Texas to go see New Kids On The Block/Backstreet Boys concert. LMAO, I still can't believe my cousin convinced me to go. But at least I'll get to see my 10yr old crush...Donnie Wahlberg from the SECOND ROW. I totally just dated myself. Oh well, NKOTB/BSB here I come!

So Close, Yet so far - Chanel Quartz, Sephora by OPI Already Famous, Afterthougths Racer Brown

After seeing various posts of Chanel's last fall 2011 nail colors, I like everyone else, could not wait to go and buy Peridot (which I did). But the quiet and demure Quartz was the one that really caught my eye. It reminded me of my favorite nail polish that I wore almost everyday my freshman year of high school. I bought it from a mall boutique Afterthoughts (I think they were bought out by the company that owns Icing. Don't quote me on this, I have no idea really). I was obsessed with brown. Brown eyeshadow, brown lipstick, brown accessories...what was I thinking?

So I immediately jumped at buying Racer Brown. A beautiful taupey brown with a subtle silver frost.  And it was love at first swatch. It looked so nice against my skin tone. And I constantly had compliments whenever I wore it. The head cheerleader even became my friend after I manicured her nasty talons with it. She in turn introduced me to my Senior crush who became my Senior boyfriend for a magical two months (ha!).   What more can you ask for from a lightly frosted brown nail polish?

Afterthoughts - Racer Brown, no topcoat

Sadly, my love affair with Racer Brown slowly faded when I discovered that glitter polish looked best over purple, blue and black. I tried my best to dupe Chanel's Ciel de Nuit (so THAT'S where it all started) layering my 99 cent glitter polish over any navy blue polish I could find.

It is now old and the formula lacks what it once was. Its now stringy and streaky and smells funny. I even tried to salvage it by thinning it and I have yet to be successful. I still cannot part with it. I almost did this past April during Zoya's Earth Day Exchange. Almost.

So when I saw the posts of Quartz, I thought I had found my long awaited Racer Brown doppelganger.




Afterthoughts - Racer Brown, Chanel - Quartz, Sephora by OPI - Already Famous

I was mistaken, pleasantly mistaken, but mistaken nonetheless. Racer Brown leans more red while Quartz leans more gray. I compared Quartz to Sephora by OPI - Already Famous. While it's not a dupe at all, it might satisfy your lemming of Quartz and save you $15. In the above picture, the label around the Chanel bottle distorts the color. If you enlarge the picture and compare the two bottles from above the label, you will see the colors look like a very close match.

As you can see from this above picture, Already Famous is much more gold and obviously more shimmery than Quartz. I have to say that the swatch on the pinky is not at all what the color looks like. On the pinky it looks out right gold, it is not. Swatch on middle finger is more true to its color.



Left - Chanel Quartz, Right - Sephora by OPI Already Famous

That is also true for Quartz, the swatch on the pointer finger is more true to color than the ring finger. So if you look at the pointer finger and the middle finger, you will have a better idea just how close they are.

And of course you have Racer Brown on the Thumb which sticks out, well, like a sore thumb. HA!

But I absolutely love Quartz. It's a lovely shade that seems to love my skin tone. And the formula was great. Completely opaque in two coats! But I will predict, come fall, we will see a lot more options for dupes on this one.

And for those of you wondering, no I haven't swatched Peridot yet. It's so pretty in the bottle that I'm afraid to use it all up. :-)