Glam Bag November!

   This month our Ipsy glam bags featured products to make glammies party perfect! We were given a nice variety of products to try that I absolutely loved, all nicely packed into an adorable chocolate brown clutch!

   In this month's bag I received a sample of Bare Minerals Marvelous Moxie lip gloss, a sample of The Balm's Meet Matt(e) eyeshadow, a sample of Chella Defining Eyebrow Gel, a pencil eyeliner in black by Starlet Cosmetics, and a bottle of Nailtini nail polish. Such lovely items this month, no?




Bare Minerals Marvelous Moxie Lip Gloss in Dare Devil ($18.00 for full size)

   I really like this gloss! It feels tingly on my lips, it's a little sticky but still enjoyable. I also love the angled applicator, it makes putting the gloss on evenly easy! The shade is very nice, although it leaves a subtle hint of color on the lips it's still visible enough that you can pull of a fun and flirty look!

   You can find this gloss on the Bare Minerals website!





The Balm Meet Matt(e) Eyeshadow in Matt Batali ($34.50 for full palette)

with flash

without flash

   This is a really nice eyeshadow! This shade is one of many "Matts" in The Balm's Meet Matt(e) palette, it is a grayish purple, good for a smokey eye. The shadow has nice pigment, and feels nice on the eyelids. It has virtually no fall out, and isn't too hard, making it easy to apply evenly. I really like this shadow, and I plan to buy the full palette!

You can get the full palette at The Balm's website!




Chella Defining Eyebrow Gel ($18.00 for full size)

   At first I wasn't too keen on this product, especially since this was the 'or' product if you didn't get mascara. I never thought I really needed brow gel, but I have to say I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked it. The applicator is the same as mascara, and the gel is clear. It makes application and shaping the brow pretty easy, and it doesn't stiffen. I guess this would be the equivalent hair gel! I like this product, and I'm glad I got to try something new!

You can get this on the Chella website!




Starlet Cosmetics Eyeliner in Black ($11.00)

   This is a great liner! It's creamy and glides over the lids smoothly! It lasts pretty long too, and is great for a smokey eye or a wing tip!

You can get one at the Starlet Cosmetics website!




Nailtini Nail Polish in Millionare ($13.00)

   This polish is super pretty! This polish is from Nailtini's Speakeasy collection, it has rose gold glitter and gold confetti to glam up your nails either stand alone or over another color! I would suggest 2 or more coats to really get that glittery look. This polish is also paraben free, so it's perfectly safe for nails! This is a fun and versatile polish that has many possibilities!

You can pick up a bottle or any others from the collection at the Nailtini website!



   If you would like to get a monthly bag of beauty goodies, check out Ipsy today!
   

I'm Back! Disney's Electric Holiday & Barney's New York Collaboration!

   Hello all! I'm finally back, all power and heat/hot water has been restored for the most part to my area and thank goodness I can report that my family and I got through this mostly unscathed! Unfortunately as we have all seen on the news there are many people who were not so lucky, so I encourage anyone who can to help out and donate whatever you can! With that in mind I'd like to tell you all about this amazing Disney collaboration with the famous and highly fashionable Barney's department store!

                                     

                          

   Electric Holiday is this years big holiday project from Barney's, and the collaboration with the Walt Disney Company is sure to make this the best one yet! It features a modern and creative medley of fashion, music and lights in a gorgeous display in the windows at Barney's flagship Madison Avenue store! On top of this colorful and vibrant wonderland, there is an exclusive holiday collection of Disney items along with items from top designers, and from now until January 3rd, 25% of the proceeds from sales of this collection will go to the American Red Cross for disaster relief! Here's a little peek at the displays at the store!

  

   But Wait! There's More! 

   
   On top of all this Disney haute goodness, Disney made an adorable cartoon short starring Minnie Mouse and several fashion greats to kick off this big holiday blowout! The short has cameo appearances from stars like Lady Gaga and Naomi Campbell, and also features appearances from well known fashion editors, designers and photographers who make Minnie (and a few of her other Disney pals) into runway rock stars! Another fun tidbit, each Disney character featured in the short takes the runway in a one-of-a-kind look by some of the fashion world's biggest designers!


   If you would like to check out this fun and fashionable holiday collection you can visit the Barney's website. I also highly recommend a visit to the store, if not for the shopping for the fabulous window display!

   As I've said in previous posts, this seems to be the year of Disney, and as a huge Disney fan I am more than excited about this collaboration! And with that I leave you with the adorable short for this amazing holiday project. Enjoy!

              

Will Be Back Shortly

Hello All!


   Unfortunately I will be out of commission for a little while, so no new blogs til maybe a week or so. NYC is still reeling and rebuilding in hurricane Sandy's wake, and unfortunately I live in an area where there is damage and no power or running water. Right now I am further uptown in the city where everything is status quo, but I will be returning home to my neighborhood tomorrow to survey damage and see if I can do anything to help out the people of my community. I hope that any readers who were caught in this disaster are safe and well, and my heart goes out to anyone who is suffering and still reeling from this mess. 


   If anyone would like to help or volunteer, you can donate to the American Red Cross, visit the NYCService page on facebook for info, or go to nyc.gov to sign up for volunteering. 

  
   I wish all of you well, and safe travels wherever you go. 

Beauty Army October Box!

   This month Beauty Army did very well with their samples selection, I even managed to grab two full size products! I was so happy and excited, I couldn't wait for it to get here!

aw, it's pink!

Breast Cancer Awareness! <3

   

      I loved that this month's box was pink! It was in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness, and proceeds from this month's sales went to Strides Against Breast Cancer! That is so awesome!

   This month I received a sample of Bath and Body Works Paris Amour shower gel, Ineke Hothouse Flower perfume, Lipsi Cosmetics Aphrodite Powder, Skyn Iceland Hydro Cool Firming Eye Gels, a full size Skinn Cosmetics lip color, and a full size of You Da Balm Coconut lip balm.




Bath and Body Works Paris Amour Shower Gel ($11.00 for full size)

   I am a loyal Bath and Body Works customer! Everything I get from them is amazing and the wide variety of scents makes it difficult to want to leave one their stores! This was a scent I actually had never tried yet, so I was very excited! This has a blended floral and fruity scent that I loved! It isn't overpowering, and it leaves my skin with a very subtle accent. The shower gel itself is great as always, it lathers well and cleanses great. There is no residue or feeling like you aren't completely clean. This is a great product, I highly recommend it!


Ineke Hothouse Flower Perfume ($95.00 for full size)

I am in love with this perfume! I am a fragrance junkie, so I am always looking for the next great addition to my collection! If you are also a lover of perfumes, I highly recommend you try this! This perfume has a very light gardenia scent, and lightens ever so slightly on the skin. It is a very sophisticated fragrance, and a little goes a very long way! I am so glad I got to try this, my pocket unfortunately can't handle the price tag so I'll just have to nurture this little sample like it's the One Ring!

my precious!

Lipsi Cosmetics Aphrodite Powder ($20.00 for full size)

unblended

blended

   This is a finishing powder made to absorb excess oil, leaving makeup looking fresh and your skin glowing. You can use this over foundation or stand alone, either way it's a great powder! It blends effortlessly into skin, and is very light! The best thing about this powder is that it is good for all skin types and tones! Before blending the powder looked so pale, and with my Olive skin tone I was worried that this would not work for me. But after blending I was surprised to see it was virtually invisible! This is a wonderful product and a must try!




Skyn Iceland Hydro Cool Firming Eye Gels ($30.00 for 8 pairs)

   I was really excited to try this product, it seems that everything I use for my poor puffy eyes don't really do anything. I saw some great reviews on this product, so I was hopeful that I had found the answer for my tired eyes!

before, sorry about the slight blur!

   These eye gels stick to the under eye area, and have to stay there for 10 minutes. Afterwards you simply peel off and dispose, hopefully revealing rejuvenated skin!

   When I first put them on I immediately felt the cooling sensation! The gels feel a little weird at first under the eye but you get used to it.

I dunno why, but I thought I kinda looked like a panda! XD

   And the final result:

   I know the before pic was a bit blurry, but you can see that the slight darkness under my eye is gone, and it does look like it reduced my puffiness. It sure felt like it! I think that 30 dollars for only 8 pairs is kind of steep, especially since they recommend to use it once a week. There's usually like 4-5 weeks in a month, so I guess for about a month and a half's worth of eye gels it isn't terrible. I really like the results, but I don't know if I want to spend that much right now. Maybe another time I'll splurge, but til then I'm very glad I got to try this, and I recommend that anyone who can afford it to try it!




Skinn Cosmetics Twin Set, Coral Poppy ($18.50)

I love that there was a mini mirror on it!

   This was the product I was anxious to try! And it was full size, yay! This was an awesome lip duo with a lipstick and gloss. The quality was great, and they both had separate features that I loved!


   Even though I wasn't a huge fan of the gloss, I like that it has vitamin E and soy for soothing dried lips. It was a little too sticky for me, and didn't look very shimmery on my lips. It also seemed like the gloss wasn't glossy enough, so if you do buy this I would suggest maybe two or three applications for a more glossy pop.

   I really like the lipstick! It looked a little too orange when I first saw it, but when I put it on my lips it looked a little more red. I am always ready to welcome a new shade of red to my collection, and this one was a nice addition! It is matte, but very creamy. The added bonus to this lipstick is that it boosts collagen production! It claims to not feather, but unfortunately I did have a little of that. It isn't a big deal, I still like the product very much. My lips felt moisturized and looked great! 

gloss over color

   Some people said that the gloss had a taste and that it tasted good. It didn't taste terrible but it didn't taste good either. I doubt taste factored in when the company released this product, but it definitely smells good! It smells like a fruity candy, making you wish it were edible!




You Da Balm Coconut Lip Balm ($8.99 for 3 tubes)

   This is a nice lip balm. It smells very good, and leaves my lips feeling soft and moisturized. It has a bit of a sleek feeling at first, but my lips absorbed it quickly and there was no problem. This was another full size I managed to snag, and I'm very glad I did! It isn't sticky either, and the coconut scent isn't too strong. 



   If you would like to try out Beauty Army and try out amazing beauty brands you can sign up here!

October Lookbag Debut!

   Ready for the new Look Bag? (check out description of service here!) This month I got 3 full sized products along with some deluxe size samples! I was so excited! This was their first bag since they shut down the service a few months ago so I was expecting great things! 

   While I enjoyed my bag, there were some issues I had with some of the products in it. For instance, I could not find price listings for some of them, leading me to believe they gave me discontinued products. It almost felt as if they were unloading old stock on customers, which is not a good foot to start on when you are making a comeback. I got three full size products and 2 deluxe samples, which I did enjoy, and I was happy to see the assortment of beauty products they were offering.

   In the bag I received a full size of Pixi's Lip and Line Primer, a full size York Peppermint lip balm, a sample of Freeman Beautiful Body body wash, A full size Stila eyeshadow, and a full size Pop Beauty nail polish. Is that not an awesome bag of goodies or what?




Pixi Lip and Line Primer ($18.00)

   This was my favorite product in the bag. I was introduced to this great lip primer by my friend Nikki. I love how well this works! This primer makes my lip color look amazing and keeps it from feathering. Since using this primer my lip color has lasted much longer than before, and I love how it conditions my lips so I don't have to worry about whether it's drying my lips out. I was going to buy this on my own, but I'm so happy this was a part of my bag! This is definitely a product to try!




York Peppermint Lip Balm (Price Unknown)

   This is apparently a very rare and hard to find lip balm. I thought it was very nice that they included these in our bag, and I love York Peppermint Patties, so I was excited to try this. Unfortunately it was not everything I had hoped. It smelled pretty weird, I was not at all a fan. The smell reminded me of that bootleg play-doh you would get at a drugstore. If you can hold your nose it's a decent lip balm, it did make my lips smooth, but I just could not get past the smell, my stomach was actually turning from it. The upside to this is I am now the owner of a rare item. :)

*Update: I just found out that this item is in fact discontinued, and could have been expired and bought from an overstock in a factory, thus explaining why it smelled weird. C'mon Look Bag, get it together here!*




Freeman Beautiful Body Body Wash, Cucumber, Melon and Ginseng ($14.99 on amazon)

   I liked this body wash a lot. It smells very refreshing and left no residue on my body. It lathers very well, and I felt clean and soft after my bath. I liked this wash so much I went to find it online to purchase a full size. But the brand site no longer carries this, and the only place I could find it was amazon. I'm confused, the point of these subscription services is to introduce us to different brands we may like and buy from them, so when I go to buy a full size I expect to find it. This was another reason I felt like this may have been old stock from previous bags.




Stila Eyeshadow, Sajama (you can find it super cheap if you Google it)

   Ok here's the one thing where I have say they really messed up. I really liked this color, and when I swatched it I had no problems. But then a few days ago I received an email from the Look Store saying that the Stila eyeshadows may have been past their expiration date! Really? They were still factory sealed but even so, I feel like they should have been more attentive to this sort of thing, as this can pose a health risk to customers. After doing a little research I found that so long as it was sealed, and didn't smell weird or look weird and you are the only person using it, you can still use it. I swatched it, and I love the color, but I feel bad now because I received a nice product I'm reluctant to use. 

Pop Beauty Nail Polish, Broken Black ($10.00)

   This is a black crackle polish. It works well, and apparently you get a different design every time. I already have a crackle from Julep, but I don't mind another. I didn't swatch this because it needs to sit over another color to crackle. I had just done a Ciate manicure so I was like naaaaah. I did like that this was full size, and I plan to use this to make some cool nail art!



   On the whole, I feel like this comeback wasn't horrible, but with two strikes as far as product quality and one with availability I just felt like I didn't get that wow factor I was expecting. And with the new development with yet another possibly expired product in the bag I honestly don't know what to think. The last time I received a bag was in July and it had some really nice things, so I'm hoping this is just a fluke, and that they will warm up to the really good stuff. 

   My friend contacted the Look Store regarding the expired items, and basically she was told that they aren't allowed to say whether it is safe or not, but that they recommended we didn't use them. I don't understand why they wouldn't be able to, maybe it's a brand policy rather than the company. However, we were told that to make up for this we were getting an extra item in the November bag, so here's to hoping it's better!

   If you would like to try out The Look Bag, sign up here! And if you use promo code TLB you can get 25% off your first bag! I'm not sure how long the promo will last so get it before it's gone!