Essie Color Cube Giveaway Winner!

Hey guys!

I have the winner up from my Essie 2011 Resort Color Cube giveaway. The winner is...

Congratulations to Grace Horan! Please email me by the end of the week. :)

Product Reviews - Conscious Box December 2011

Hello, everyone!

I have a couple product reviews to share with you. I have the 22 Days Daily Mocha Bar, and Mineral Fusion Body Lotion in "Waterstone".

The first product I have is the Mocha Bar. Between my sample boxes and a diet, I've really been on a protein bar kick lately. I really did like this one, though I didn't think it was anything with a particular "wow" factor. I still liked it, though, and would definitely munch one again. It was very healthy, and very filling -- probably because high protein counts make my stomach happy. :)

 The next product I have for you right now is the Mineral Fusion Mineral Body Lotion in "Waterstone".

This is probably one of those admissions that will get me censored by some medical agency, but I actually used this on severely chapped lips (don't ingest your lotions, kids). It worked very well, and the chapping was gone in a few days. I also used it on my hands. I can't get over how much I liked the scent. It also lasts really well. I had a little carton of the lotion, and I still have some left.

It's also very inexpensive -- the fullsize I show on the left is only $10.22 on Amazon. :)

These are two products I really recommend!

Birchbox - January 2012

Happy weekend, everyone! Don't forget that my Essie giveaway ends tomorrow!

I have my January 2012 Birchbox to share with you guys.

 

What did I get?

 

1. Borghese - CuraForte Moisture Intensifier  ($9.92)

2. Juicy Couture - Viva La Juicy (?)

3. Jouer - Body Butter ($4.82)

4. Stila - Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner in "Purple Tang" ($20.00)

5. Larabar - Mini Peanut Butter Cookie ($1.00)

= $35.74 value

I really liked my samples this month, though I wish I had received a Zoya in my box. :( I think the Stila is quite nice, though I'm not sure how much I'll wear the amethyst shade.

Product Review - Julep Nail Polish Remover Pad

What's on your nails? Right now I have OPI "Mermaid's Tears" on my right hand. I had one of the Color Icon glitters over it on my left hand, but managed to pick off all the glitter at work today, so tonight I need to add another coat to my right hand and actually paint my left hand from scratch.

A couple of weeks ago, I used my sample nail polish remover pad, which came in my January 2012 "It-Girl" Julep Maven box as a little extra. It was a great product -- a red felt nicely saturated with remover -- and it certainly removed all ten nails worth of polish. It probably could have done more, but I only had ten! I did use it to remove a creme, though, so it might have met its match with glitter.

I don't have a photo of the pads, but they're little red felt squares. :)

I hope they put these up for sale, because they would be a really nice travel supply.

Product Review - Anastasia Beverly Hills HydraFull Gloss in "Sugar Pink"

This evening I have a beauty product to share with you. I have the Anastasia Beverly Hills HydraFull Gloss in "Sugar Pink" today.

This was in my Birchbox for November, 2011. While I was happy to receive the product, though, I rarely to never wear bright pinks, so this was a real departure from my routine to wear.

The gloss is very sticky, and is applied with a little plastic paddle. This worked well -- when I could get enough product on the paddle. I think I used a lot of my gloss very quickly, though, because I've only applied it 5 or 6 times, and now to get any gloss on the paddle, I have to rescrew it into the little tube to reach the gloss that is left in there.

It lasts okay, though nothing too special. On the other hand, I didn't think it was any less durable than other lipglosses I have tried. It also didn't make my lips break out in a weird rash, which is always a plus.

I hope that Birchbox eventually sends me this sample in Bellini, the "peach" version of this sample.

Polish Review - Julep "Megan"

Wow, a hundred followers! This publicity is going to go to my noggin if you keep spoiling me! XD

I have a crazy busy day, but I wanted to knock out a couple of reviews, so keep an eye on this page today. Also make sure that you are entered for the Essie Color Cube giveaway! I will be ending this giveaway on the 29th, so enter soon! For now, I have Julep's "Megan" to share with you. This came in my January 2012 Maven "It-Girl" box, and was indeed the reason that I selected this box. It's a beauty!

 

Megan is #4, in the middle.

I loved this polish online on the Bombshell Julep Maven box, but I knew I would never wear its counterpart, a light pink. Luckily, Megan was available in It-Girl with two other lovelies. 

However, after I ordered, I started to worry that it would be a dupe for Revlon "Ocean". 

However, you can see Revlon Ocean here (#17) compared with Megan (#4) and you can tell that Ocean leans a little more green/teal, whereas Megan has more blue. You can also see that Megan applies with a lot less brushstrokes.

Megan is, however, definitely a metallic more than a shimmer. It's not quite a frost, but it leans a little in that direction, too.

While I admit that I had some nail carnage prior to wearing Megan, and I couldn't leave my nails alone, I did not think that it wore really well. However, it was really pretty while it did last (for about 2 days).

I love this color. I recommend it to everyone as soon as it comes available!

Product Review - Julep "Fast-Dry Topcoat"

 

I had one more quick review I wanted to get out to you guys today. For my December Julep Maven "Bombshell" box, I received a bottle of Julep's "Fast Dry Topcoat". 

I first used this with Julep "Demi". I had sort of thought that the topcoat was intended to be used as a topcoat to get the polish to dry faster, as many people have done with glitter sandwiches, etc. However, I had a bit of a rude shock when my topcoat turned a permanent shade of light-Demi as a result!

The topcoat itself seems to last nicely, though I don't know how much I can say for the durability-affecting qualities. Polishes (mostly Demi, since they seem to be a perma-pair) dried quicker than they would have normally, though as I said, beware, because the polish will tint the topcoat if they are not completely dry. The other way to get around this is to wipe off the brush between dips into the bottle.

The other strange thing about this topcoat is that it has the distinct eau of "skunk" during application. Afterwards, there is no trace of this, but it is kind of amusing to have "skunk" topcoat, I think. Unless you are diametrically opposed to anything vaguely skunklike, it isn't too bad.

... and why would you be diametrically opposed to skunks??