December 2015 Boxycharm Unboxing! #PopFizClink

I finally got around to picking up my Boxycharm since I was out of town for the holidays, and I'm super excited about what's in my box this month! I hope you all had an amazing holiday, and I don't know about you but I'm dreading going back to reality. Anyway, here's what's in my December Boxycharm!

I was totally floored that a Tatcha product was in this month's box because they are notoriously spendy. I received Tatcha Petal Fresh Original Aburatorigami, which are blotting papers with gold flakes embedded in the paper. So fancy! these will definitely come in handy to soak up the excess oil my face produces throughout the day. These sheets are also about double the size of regular blotting papers, so they are huge.

I also got a Jelly Pong Pong All Over Glow, a pink gel luminizer. It feels nice and almost cooling on the skin, and blends out well for a pretty sheen. I just wish Boxy would put in a few powder highlighters since I don't really use cream ones. But I'll try it out for sure! 

I also got the Nelson J Argon Oil 7 Moisture Healing Mask and NCLA So Rich Cuticle Oil. I get a lot of use out of hair masks, so I'll definitely use this once I get through a few others. The cuticle oil is MUCH needed; my cuticles are peeling like crazy and just look pretty terrible in general. Both of these products seem like they would preform well!

The last products I got was an OFRA Long Lasting Liquid Lipstick in Americano and Bellapierre Waterproof Gel Lip Liner in Cinnamon. I'm so excited that I finally get to try these liquid lipsticks since I've heard nothing but good things about them. The shade is a warm, orange brown which is not something I would normally pick out for my self but it'll be fun to experiment! The lip pencil matches fantastically with it, and is an extremely creamy formula.

Top: OFRA Americano, Bottom: BellaPierre Cinnamon

Boxycharm never disappoints, and this month they pulled out all the stops including adding a sixth item to the usual 5 full size products you get each month for only $21. Seriously, sign up for Boxycharm if you can because it's the shit.

xoxo

Jessica

December 2015 Ipsy Unboxing!

It's time for seeing what's in my December Ipsy bag! I'm actually impressed with the size of the products this month, with the majority of products being full size! I'm not a fan of the bag because the material feels kinda cheap to me, but let's see what I got this month!

The three makeup items in my bag are the Pacifica Power Of Love Natural Lipstick in Nudie Red, ModelCo Lip Enhancer Illusion Lip Liner, and Elizabeth Mott Thank Me Later Eyeshadow Primer. 

The lipstick is a gorgeous nude mauve color with a satin, almost matte finish. It also feels pretty moisturizing for having an almost matte appearance. I'll definitely wear this on a daily basis! The lip liner fooled me because of the color on the end of it, which is a bright pink and I thought "oh great, a hot pink lip liner that I'll never use." But when I opened it up and swatched it, it's a beautiful brown nude! This would go with literally any color and can apparently give the illusion of fuller lips since it's such a natural shade. Score! 

Top: Illusion Lip Liner, Bottom: Pacifica Nudie Red

The eyeshadow primer seems interesting because it almost feels like a lotion with a slight slip to it. I'll definitely test it out to see how my shadows wear through out the day.

The last two items in my bag is the Jersey Shore Cosmetics Vanilla Bean Anti-Aging Lip & Hand Polish and the Marc Anthony Coconut Oil & Shea Butter Deep Conditioning Treatment.

The Lip & Hand Polish is basically a sugar scrub used to exfoliate both the hands and lips. It smells pretty strong of vanilla, which I am actually really enjoying. I love sugar scrubs so this convenient tube with be great to have on hand (literally)! I am also a big fan of hair treatments, so I'm excited to try this coconut oil one. Hopefully this doesn't weigh it down, but I won't know until I try it!

That's it for Ipsy, and this subscription lives to see another month. I'm pretty happy with all of the products this month, but we'll see with next months bag if I'll be giving Ipsy the axe since I haven't been loving it for the past couple of months and thinking about cancelling.

What did you get in your glam bag?

xoxo

Jessica  

December 2015 Birchbox Unboxing!

My Birchbox has arrived and I'm excited to see what is in store for me for the month of December! I must say, the boxes lately have been amazing and they've been piling up on my shelf because I want to save all of them! Let's take a look at what I got...

The two make up items in this months box is a Supergoop! Daily Correct CC Cream SPF 35 in Light/Medium and a Coastal Scents styleEYEs Eyeshadow Duo in SocialEYES. The eyeshadow quality is not too shabby, but the colors are perfect for the holidays! A shimmery gold and shimmery emerald green, which is a really pretty combo. Most BB and CC creams tend to be a little orange for me, but this ones seems to be okay so I'll give it a shot. It also has nice coverage for a CC cream, which surprises me.

I'm so stoked about getting the Avene Hydrance Optimale Hydrating Serum! I just used up the last drop of my beloved Shiseido serum, and need to find a replacement! I've heard this is a good one too.

However, I'm so over perfume samples because I just don't ever remember to use them. I'll probably pass on this Christian Siriano Silhoutte Perfume sample. Unfortunately I have a cold so I can't even smell it at the moment. I'm also not a fan of sea salt sprays because they tend to just make my hair a frizzy disaster, so I'll also pass on this Harvey Prince Sea Salt Texturing Mist as well.

Meh, I wasn't super thrilled with this months box, but I do enjoy the serum, the eyeshadow duo, and the box itself of course.

What did you get this month?

xoxo

Jessica

Drugstore Micellar Water Face-Off

Micellar water is just beginning to take off here in the U.S, and they are slowly starting to appear in local drugstores. The first one I ever tried was the Simple Cleansing Micellar Water, and absolutely fell in love. I recently picked up the Garnier Skin Active Micellar Cleansing Water, which has been around for a while in other places around the world but just recently launched in the U.S. I've put the two to the test, so let's see which one comes out on top!

First off, I just want to disclaim that I typically use micellar waters in the second round of makeup removing in my nightly routine and hardly ever use it alone to remove and cleanse my face. Obviously, we all have those nights where you're too lazy or have had one too many drinks, to go through my whole cleansing process. I personally like to use an actual cleanser you rinse off because I like that clean feeling, but it's really up to you and the amount of makeup you wear. If you were to use just a micellar water alone, it does take a fair amount of cotton pads to get the job done to rmeove a full face of makeup. I do love using this in the morning to cleanse and remove any last traces of makeup though!

That being said, the Simple Cleansing Micellar Water is typically around $7 and you get 6.7 fl. oz of magical goodness. The Garnier Skin Active Micellar Cleansing Water is around $9 and contains 13.5 fl.oz, which is double the product for only a few bucks more. After trying both for a while, and even doing a side by side comparison test on my face...

I can't tell the difference...

Both feel nice on the skin, doesn't irritate my skin, sting my eyes or break me out, and removes pretty much the same amount of makeup in the same amount of time. Honestly, they both are amazing! The only difference is the ingredients list, with the Simple one actually having a lengthier list than the Garnier version. I guess it's not so Simple after all! I do find it strange though that both say avoid getting it in your eye when I use it to help specifically remove leftover eye makeup. Like I've said, it doesn't sting or irritate my eyes and I even wear contacts and have sensitive eyes, so it shouldn't be a problem. Just don't use them as eye drops I guess?

Simple Micellar Water

Garnier Micellar Water

I cannot tell the difference between the two; so it really comes down to what gets you the most bang for your buck, which is definitely the Garnier one. It's twice the size for only a buck or two more, so it's the clear winner for me. But if for some reason I can't find it or it's out of stock, I'm perfectly happy with the Simple one too. 

Go Garnier for releasing this in the U.S finally! I'm excited to see other brands hoping on the micellar water craze and giving us more options in the drugstore.

P.S Post title pun intended. 

What are your thoughts on micellar water? Love it? Hate it?

xoxo

Jessica

Mini Walgreens Haul

I was killing some time in Walgreens yesterday and of course I picked up a few items! I purchased the much anticipated Garnier Skin Active Micellar Cleansing Water ($8.99) that just arrived in the U.S! I've been so jealous of those in the U.K and other parts of the world that have been using this for a while now. It's a decent size for the price too! I love my Simple Micellar Water, so I was stoked to finally pick this up to compare it. Stay tuned for a drugstore micellar water comparison post soon. :)

I also bought another Revlon Lip Butter in Pink Truffle, an amazing sheer pink brown nude. Lip Butters are great when I'm wanting a really natural lip color that's also moisturizing, and it's so easy to slap on without thinking about it. 

Apparently I was in a lip gloss mood and picked up a Rimmel Show Off Lip Lacquer in Light Year, a deeper brown-mauve and Rimmel Stay Glossy Lip Gloss in Blushing Belgraves, a pink nude. The Show Off Lip Lacquers are a thicker, opaque formula but don't have amazing lasting power. I haven't tried any of the Stay Glossy glosses but this one seems like a good, everyday gloss to throw in my purse.

Top to bottom: Blushing Belgraves, Light Year, Pink Truffle

Surprise, surprise, all of them are brownish nude shades because I need more of those right? #makeupaddictionprobs.

That's all I have to share from my Walgreens visit, what have you picked up recently that you've been dying to try?

xoxo

Jessica

Festive Nails!

 With the holidays quickly approaching, 'tis the season for festive nails! I've gathered up a few of my favorite polishes that capture the holiday season and can be worn in endless combinations through the New Year.

Enjoy!

 Obviously, I'm drawn to the classic reds, greens, golds and a shit ton of glitter for the month of December, but blues and whites are also gorgeous for a winter wonderland theme. Sally Hansen Complete Salon in Wine Not is a deep, cranberry red and Essie A-List is a classic bright red. A green polish I really like is OPI Jade Is The New Black is gorgeous! Essie Lots Of Lux is a glittery blue with purple and silver shimmers that isn't "in your face" glitter. Essie Baby's Breath is a great cream colored polish that pairs well with everything!

If I could douse myself in glitter everyday, I totally would. Unfortunately that's not the case and I'm forced to confine it to my nails most of the time. For a classic gold with holographic glitter, Sally Hansen Complete Salon in Crown Jewels is one of my go to's. Essie Jazzy Jubilant is a mixture of silver, teal, copper reds that can jazz up any look! For a really intense, glitzy glitter that can definitely be worn alone, China Glaze Marry A Millionaire is a purple, gold, green  glitter is amazing. It's not your traditional holiday polish, but it takes shine to the next level for sure.

I'm currently rocking the 'Festive Funfetti' look right now and I'm absolutely in love. I used Essie Babies Breath and a combination of Sally Hansen Crown Jewels and Essie Jazzy Jubilant over it.  I'll probably will repeat this look for New Year's Eve. :)

What polishes can you not wait to wear this holiday season?!

xoxo

Jessica

Unique and Unusual Makeup

I was combing over my makeup collection the other day (as I do often), trying to rotate items and remind myself to use certain products when I came across a few things that are kind of unique in shade, formula, etc.. I'm guilty of buying the same shade or type of product over and over again because I'm the most drawn to them (duh). This isn't a bad thing necessarily, but can create monotony in my makeup collection. I'm looking at you, my gazillion peachy-pink blushes... Here are a few items that stand out from the crowd to me!

In a sea of mauves and nudes, a few lip products I own that are different and interesting to me is my Nyx High Voltage Lipstick in Playdate, Nyx Simply Vamp Lip Cream in Covet, and Jordana Easyliner For Lips in Silver Lilac. Nyx Playdate I LOVE because it's a surprisingly wearable lavender shade, which I did not know was possible! It's my favorite straight up purple lip color and is a great formula too!

NYX  High Voltage Lipstick in Playdate

 The Jordana lip liner is such an interesting shade and so hard to describe; it's like a purple-magenta with an almost purple/silver sheen that's subtle. It's not one I wear often because I just hardly use lip liner to be honest, but if I want to rock a purple lip with a twist, I would grab this.

The NYX Simply Vamp Lip Cream in Covet is a metallic brown-red, and is definitely not your run of he mill vamp shade. I'm not a fan of it on it's own on my skin tone and metallic lips are hard to pull off with super dry lips, but it vamps up any red when layered up! 

Top to bottom: Playdate, Silver Lilac, Covet

I have quite a few nail polishes now, and these two are shades are hard to find duplicates of. I'm talking about ORLY On The Edge and Sonia Kashuk Russian Roulette. On The Edge is a true indigo, meaning it's hard to pin down whether it's an electric purple or blue depending on the light. This is on of my favorite shades ever! Russian Roulette is like a purpleish cherry cola type color with gold and purple shimmer. Both aren't your typical nail colors!

Hard Candy Baked Ombre Blush in Sunburst has been a long time favorite because it not only looks stunning in the packaging, but is one of the prettiest, unique blushes available in the drugstore. It's a very glowy cool toned pink blush that's hard to describe. This bronzer/blush from theBalm in Balm Desert is an interesting take on your usual bronzer because it's a warm, rosey toned powder that can be a bronzer and blush in one!

And of course, the king of one-of-a-kind products is Colour Pop! They get the award for having a unique gel like powder formula AND an array of unique colors to choose from for a variety of different products. Colour Pop Highlighter in Monster and Super Shock Shadows in So Quiche and BAE are among the most unique in the range.

Monster is a duochrome highlight with pink and purple shifts and a white base. It applies mostly pink in tone on the cheeks, but from different angles it reflects a soft purple too! So amazing.

Both Bae and So Quiche also shift in color, with Bae being a duochrome of deep purple, blue and turquoise glitter. It's a gorgeous unique spin on the classic blue-brown duochrome shade we love, and changes depending on the eye base used.

So Quiche is like Mardi Gras in a shadow; olive green with shifts of purple and gold glitter. It's certainly one of a kind!

What unique products do you have in your collection?

xoxo

Jessica

Products I've Used Up: November

I'm back again sharing pictures of the trash that I saved to put on the internet! Hahaha bloggers are strange creatures. Anyways, I do have another round of empties for the month of November! This time it's much more reasonable in quantity since I have already gone through the majority of samples, back ups and other products I just wanted to finish last month. Let's take a closer look at my empties!

I finished only a few beauty related products this month: Nyx Control Freak Clear Brow Gel, e.l.f Mineral Blemish Powder in Sheer and Malin + Goetz Mojito Lip Balm. The Nyx brow gel is an absolute MUST for me to set my brows daily, and I already have a back up! I'm currently trying a different one but it's just not the same. This has pretty great hold without being overly crunchy.

 The e.l.f blemish powder is soooo old I don't even think it's being sold any more. I bought it a forever ago hoping it would be a cheaper alternative for the amazing Bare Minerals Blemish Therapy Powder that dried up  and got rid of any blemishes practically over night. Unfortunately, it wasn't but I continued to use it to help conceal and somewhat treat acne. This lip balm that I got in a Birchbox is probably one of my all time favorites! It's super moisturizing and I felt like it coated my lips without slipping all over the place. Plus it comes in a tube and not a tin/jar! I might repurchase this one after I get through some others.

I also went through the Boots No7 Botanics All Bright Micellar Water and The Body Shop Seaweed Mattifying Moisture Lotion SPF 15. Both were alright, but I don't think I'll be repurchasing them again. The micellar water slightly stung my eyes, didn't remove makeup too well and I just found myself missing my Simple one. The seaweed lotion I liked for the SPF and didn't leave my face greasy but I can't justify the price of it. I feel like you can find cheaper alternatives elsewhere.

Hair care items I finished included my beloved Frizz Ease Dream Curls Daily Styling Spray, R + Co Park Ave Blow Out Balm and Davines LOVE Shampoo. The Frizz Ease spray is a hair care staple for me because it helps enhance my curls, tame frizz and is also a heat protectant! This is like my gajillionth bottle and I've already replaced it. The shampoo and blow out balm are samples and I loved them both! The balm smells so amazing and felt it helped smooth my hair (even though I don't do blowouts). The shampoo was on par with my Shea Moisture Curl & Shine Shampoo, which is my absolute favorite at the moment. It left my hair clean yet still super soft and smooth. I would definitely consider purchasing the full size!

And of course, I burned through a few candles. I'm currently in love with Signature Soy Candles in Nordic Pine and Merry & Bright from Target. The combination of the two literally smells like Christmas. I'm so addicted I bought the bigger sizes of both! I love the scent of evergreen pine trees (typical Pacific Northwest girl right?) so this time of year for candles is my favorite. Merry & Bright describes the scent exactly; a warm, light, not too sweet scent of pine, ginger and clove. Highly recommend!

Like I said, my empties bin wasn't nearly as full this month! What products have you used up? Have candle suggestions?

xoxo

Jessica

November 2015 Favorites!

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! I'm still trying to recover from my multiple food comas, but I had a wonderful holiday. As Thanksgiving passes, it brings the month of November to a close, and officially kicks off the holiday season! I thought I would share a few of my favorite products I loved (and continue to love) from the month of November!

My newly discovered favorite primer at the moment is the Nivea Men Sensitive Post Shave Balm, and I actually just did a post about it if you were wanting more deets (link here). It's truly an amazing primer! I've been using my Benefit Sweet Cheeks set, specifically the Hoola Bronzer and Rockateur Blush from it. It makes a stunning combo on the cheeks for a beautiful dusty mauve look!

I've also been grabbing my Maybelline Lipstick in Warm Me Up, an everyday nude pinky-mauve that goes with everything. It's probably my most worn lipstick out of my whole collection! I got this sample of Benefit Gimme Brow in Dark Brown in my Ipsy bag this month and now I'm HOOKED. It's so easy to fill in and brows quickly and sets them in place all in one. It also doesn't leave my brows feeling wet and sticks to my brow hairs instead of just becoming a mess all over my skin. Definitely going to buy the full size when I run out!

A few skin care favorites I have are the Shiseido Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate and the Freeman Charcoal & Black Sugar Polishing Mask. I've been using the Shiseido as a serum after cleanser, and it makes my skin look and feel so good. My face looks brighter, clearer and hydrated without looking oily. I'm going to be totally bummed when this sample runs out because the full size is spendy. The charcoal mask I've actually have been using as a scrub in the shower, and it also leaves my skin feeling smooth and clean. It has a very interesting warming sensation when first applied, and was too intense for me as a mask because it felt like it was burning my skin. But as a scrub you rinse off it's so amazing! I highly recommend picking this up if you're into charcoal; it's cheap too.

Those are my favorites from the month of November! What were you're favorites from this month? Get any Black Friday steals?

xoxo

Jessica