I'm still alive!

Hey there.

Soooo, I know I said that I'd write more posts during my two week break between semesters.. and then totally didn't. My apologies. I got caught up in playing this one video game with my boyfriend. Diablo 3, have you heard of it? If not, I'm sure if you ask any guy in your life, he can tell you what it's about. So yeah, the game came out on May 15, and my boyfriend got me addicted to it! It works out pretty well for him because I don't complain about him playing the game all the time... since I'm usually playing with him! Haha.

I've already logged waaaay too many hours on D3.

And then my summer classes started up, so I've been juggling classes, school work, and Diablo 3. I should really cut out the game, but it's hard. I'm too into it. I'm already on level 55 (the max is 60)! I'm slowly trying to wean myself off of it though. My classes keep me really busy as well. I have class twice a week, for 7 hours at a time!! Isn't that crazy? My first class is from 1-4:30pm, and then my second class is from 5-8:10pm. I also have to do some classroom observations, which means my Tuesdays and Thursdays will be even longer. Sigh. At least I'm already half done with one of my classes!

So, my beauty ban ended yesterday. I didn't adhere to my own rules. D'oh. I stayed away from more expensive beauty products, but I did buy a few things from the drugstore. I might stick to the ban for a little while longer because I don't use as many products in the summer time. Might as well shop my stash a while longer. I will make one exception though: NARS Ramatuelle eyeshadow trio. I've been coveting it for a while though, but decided to wait until the end of my ban to buy it. Is it worth it? Let me know in the comments :)

All righty, I just wanted to check in. I'm still alive! And I still read my favorite beauty blogs frequently. I just need to find a good time to take pictures of stuff and write posts. I have to write my empties post for April/May before it's too late, and it's no longer relevant :p

Happy weekend!

My most recent haul... and why I'm on a beauty ban!

Hello everybody! 

I'm done with classes (yay!) so now I have a bit more free time on my hands, which means more time for posts! I only have a 2 week break between the end of my semester and the start of summer classes, so I'm hoping to make the most of my time! It feels so nice to be done with this semester :)

So first off, I want to talk about my most recent beauty haul. I walked into Sephora with the intention of killing some time before meeting up with my friends. And instead, I walked out all of these things (excluding the Revlon lip butters). Whoops.. I just can't resist beauty products! 

Tarte Gel Liner in Brown - I've been wanting to switch up my eye liner routine so I decided to try Tarte's gel liner in brown. I swatched it in the store and really liked the color. It didn't budge at all when I tried to rub it off with a tissue, which convinced me of its staying power. I ended up returning this though because it did not sit well on my oily lids, even with primer :( I'll write a longer post about it in a few days. If you don't see it, feel free to give me a holler to remind me.

Laura Mercier SPF 15 Mineral Powder in Tender Rose - Ever since I heard Estee of Essie Button rave about Laura Mercier's mineral powder, it's been on my list of things to buy. So, of course, when I was presented with the opportunity to get it, I took it (the opportunity. Not the LM powder.. that would be stealing. Hah). And I have no regrets. I've been loving it so far! No break outs so far, which is always a good sign. And my skin looks fabulous.

Benefit Boi-ing concealer in #2 -The Benefit Boi-ing concealer has been working really well for me. It covers up all my dark spots and gives me a fresh, polished look. Love!

Benefit Triple Performing Facial Emulsion - All right, this one was an impulse buy. There was a Benefit event going on at the Sephora I went to and I got roped in by one of the SAs to buy this moisturizer. I also kind of wanted the mini travel version of it, so I decided to give it a chance. It did smell nice when she put it on me. Well, it was a whole different story when I got home. Maybe it was the bright lights, and the loud music that disabled my sense of smell because when I put it on the next day, the smell gave me a headache. One of those dull headaches that last all day. It sucked. The thing is, it's not a horrible smell. Some people might actually like it. It just wasn't for me. I can say this with confidence because I used it again the next day, thinking maybe I'd change my mind. Nope. I just don't like it. Needless to say, I returned this. I do still have the travel size one though. 

Jack Black Lip Balm in Lemon & Chamomile - I looooove their lip balms. Moisturizing and smells amazing. I bought this one as a back up to my current one.

Revlon Lip Butters in Candy Apple and Peach Parfait - I don't know what it is about these Revlon lip butters. They're like Pokemon to me, I just wanna catch 'em all! I have been on the hunt for these two shades for the longest time. Every time I go to the drug store, they're always sold out! So when I saw that Target was doing a sale on the lip butters AND offering free shipping on them regardless of how much you spend, I went for it. I am planning on doing a post (or two) on my Revlon lip butters, so be on the look out for those. I love Candy Apple so far, and I'm actually a bit "ehhh" on Peach Parfait. Gasp. 

I got this Ole Henriksen flawless beauty regime as my 500 point Sephora gift. Have any of you ever used Ole Henriksen products? I've never tried Ole Henriksen's skincare products (do toners count?), so I was curious to see how well it would work for me. I've been looking something to bring some brightness and evenness to my skin. I can't seem to get rid of the spots on my face, and it's driving me nuts. I've been trying different serums and treatments, but nothing's worked so far. Maybe this will do something to all those darned spots. I'll keep y'all updated! 

I've been kind of obsessed with nail polishes lately. I picked up these two Essie polishes at a local beauty store because it's cheaper than buying from a drug store. Armed & Ready is a dark, brownish grey color with a coppery, gold shimmer. Absolutely Shore is a light, sea foam green shade. I've only tried Armed & Ready at this point, so I can't say much about Absolutely Shore. I like Armed & Ready though. I love the coppery shimmer; it really adds a little somethin' special to the color. 

Beauty Ban

I've been spending a lot of money on beauty products lately, so I decided to put myself on a month long beauty ban. It started on April 29, and will be going until June 1st. I'm really hoping to finish some of my older products sitting at home so that I won't feel so guilty next time I want to buy something new.

I did kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiind of break my ban the other day though. I bought nail hardener... and nail polish (OPI Are We There Yet?). I'm terrible. It's actually pretty hard, especially when I read all these awesome beauty posts about soooooo many things I want to try.

Have you ever put yourself on a beauty ban because you realized you were spending too much money? How did you get through it?

Lists make me feel productive

(image source)

I love writing lists. They make me feel organized, productive and on top of things. Whether or not I always follow my lists...well, ahem* that's another story. But yes, I love lists. Seeing everything I need to do, want to accomplish, look forward to, want/need to buy, etc, makes me feel like I know what I need to get done. And crossing something off my list? Ooooooh, it feels amazing.

With the end of my semester coming to a close, I have several things I need to get done before I can enjoy my two week break before summer classes.

1. Finish my 15 page final paper.
2. Complete notes for my final presentation.
3. Study for my final exam.

My big 3 for this week. Actually, it's more like 3 days. I need to have everything completed by Thursday at 5pm. Eep. I need to get a move on.

So. What am I doing, writing this post then? I just wanted to make a list of upcoming blog posts so y'all know that I'm not abandoning this blog! I have stuff I want to talk about, but right now is not the best time.

Upcoming blog posts (in no particular order)
1. Revlon lip butters (I know, I know. Everyone's written about these, but I will risk sounding like a broken record because I'm kind of really loving my lip butters. This may or may not be split into two posts.)
2. April/May empties (Because the feeling of finishing a beauty product is so awesome that it must be shared!)
3. My most recent haul ... and why I'm putting myself on a beauty ban
4. Revlon super lustrous lipsticks
5. Current skincare routine
6. Current makeup routine (I should come up with better names for these two)
7. Tidbits on my life

Until then... :)

PS. Follow me on twitter! @freshfacedme (freshfacedgirl was already taken. Boooo)

MAC So Chaud

Oh. Snap.

Two posts in a row? What the what! 

MAC So Chaud was my very first bold lip color purchase. 

I bought it last year on a whim. I'll be honest, the color scared me. It was just so... bright and attention grabbing. I didn't know if I wanted to grab all that attention. It took me two trips to Macy's, several swatches on my hand, a few swipes of it on my lips, lots of staring at myself in the mirror and a bit of talking up by the MAC SA to convince me to buy it. Huh.. I guess that doesn't really sound like a whim, does it? Whoops.

Since then, I've only worn it about half a dozen times. Maybe less. But wait! There's more. Of those times, how many times have I actually worn it out of my house?

*Drum rolllllllllllll please* 

Once. 

Like I mentioned in my other posts, I'm not too keen on bold lip colors. I usually stick to rosy, pink colors that are close to my own lip color. But I'm attempting to break out of my comfort zone this year; I've obtained several bright shades and have been wearing them on occasion. Baby steps! 

So Chaud is a reddish orange, matte shade and it's a part of MAC's permanent line. When I first saw it at the MAC counter, I thought it was a bright red, but upon further inspection, it has quite a bit of orange in it. It's quite pigmented; I usually pat the lipstick on, rather than swipe the color on my lips. The lasting power of this lipstick is impressive. Because of its vibrant hue, it almost stains my lips. Even with eating and drinking, the color stays on my lips, albeit a little faded. It can be a bit drying though because it's a matte shade. I usually wear lip balm underneath so my lips don't dry out. In the pictures below, I'm wearing Kiehl's Lip Balm #1 under So Chaud, which is why it looks a bit more glossy than a matte lipstick. 

In natural lighting, So Chaud looks quite red, but with flash, it leans more orange. 

It really looks like a bright red on my lips in natural lighting. It reminds me of Mad Men lips. 

Like Betty Draper and Joan Holloway. It's such a classic look.

I love the pop of color it gives to my every day look. 

With the flash on, the orange hues are quite evident, don't you think? 

Overall, I think So Chaud is a lovely addition to my collection. It's unique and makes quite a statement when worn. It also fits in with this season's trend of bright orange and coral colors. I'll definitely be wearing it more often as the weather gets warmer! 

The sky is falling

I love today's Google homepage. It's an animation of flowers growing, and this is the end result. Lovely, right? It's been raining all day in NY, so it's nice to see a burst of color, even if it's on my computer screen. 

I stopped by the MAC counter at Macy's earlier this week, and tried on the MAC Vegas Volt lipstick. I'm not big on bold lips so I was a little afraid of how it would look on me. But I think it turned out nicely. I loved the bright color on my lips. What do y'all think? I didn't get it, but it's definitely on my list of beauty products to purchase. I also tried on Ravishing, which is a bit more toned down than Vegas Volt. I took a picture of my lips, but I'm not posting the picture because I took it while I was on the subway, and the lighting is off :(

Despite the rainy weather, today was not bad. I went out with my parents, and I managed to pick up 3 full sized Origins moisturizers for free! Whoo-hoo! Such a good deal. So, how did I get three? My master plan: I got two of them from Sephora; my mom and I went in separately to get the moisturizers. A Perfect World for me, Starting Over for her. And then I went to Origins to pick up another tube of A Perfect World. 

I received a sample of Origins A Perfect World a few weeks ago and liked how it made my skin feel. I wanted to get a full size one, but I was reluctant to spend the money because I've been spending way too much money on beauty products. I'm so happy about the excellent timing of this Origins Earth Day promotion. Now I'm pretty much set on daytime face lotion for the next year! 

I got bored and thought my nails looked boring, so I decided to glitz them up with OPI Glitzerland. And now they're glittery and glamorous looking! I want more spring colors in my nail polish collection though. I have a lot of dark and neutral colors, but barely any cheery ones. I really want to pick up a bottle of Essie Mint Candy Apple. I've been seeing mint all over the blog'o'sphere and I think I need to jump on the mint bandwagon. That will be my next NOTD.


Have a wonderful week! :)

How RUDE! Illamasqua Cream Blush in Rude

Hello everyone! How was your week? 

This week went by pretty quickly for me but currently, I am trying to survive this sudden attack of allergies. Gahhhhh, it's been bad these past few days, but it just hit me like a BRICK today. Probably because the weather was nice, so all the pollen just lingered in the air. My allergies just kept getting worse and worse as the day wore on. I nearly clawed my eyes out because they itched so bad. My boyfriend had to hold my hands down so I wouldn't destroy my poor eyes. I took some Claritin when I got home though, and I am feeling much better now. Thank goodness for medicine!

It looks like I'll be rockin' my glasses for now since my allergies are so severe. Nerd alert! ;)

So, on to real reason why I'm writing this entry...

I picked up this Illamasqua cream blusher from Sephora a few weeks ago, and I am loving it so far.

The shade I purchased is called Rude (the name reminds me of Stephanie Tanner's famous line, "HOW RUDE!" I loved Full House when I was growing up) and it's a warm, coral color. I wasn't too sure about it at first because the color is a bit out of my comfort zone. It looks a little intimidating in the pan because of its bright color (at least, it made me feel intimidated), but the color is much more low key once you blend it out. If you're wondering, I use my fingers to blend out the color. I'm usually in a rush in the morning, and I feel like cream blushers are easier when you use your fingers. I haven't had any problems with it so far. Just remember to make sure your hands are clean.

The color is lovely on my cheeks; it gives me a natural flush. I love that natural flushed look! The pigmentation is great, and lasting power is excellent. It lasts all day when I wear it over powder, and my days are pretty long! It gets me through a 12 hour (or longer) day. Not bad, eh?

If you're interested in trying out a cream blusher, I'd recommend this one! It'll cost you $24 at Sephora, excluding tax. And if you live somewhere that doesn't charge tax, then lucky you! Illamasqua offers 9 shades of their cream blusher at Sephora, but not all stores carry the 9 shades. Some of the blushers might only be available online. I'm not too sure. The Sephora I purchased mine from only had 4 colors. Check out Sephora's site for a list of the available blushers. I want to try Seduce, Laid and Betray next. Hahaha, these names crack me up. Especially in the order which I listed the ones I want to try. First, I seduce, then I get laid and finally, I betray (or get betrayed?)! Haha, ahem. It's late, and I'm tired... so please excuse my somewhat inappropriate comment. I'm silly.

Anyhoo, I swatched Betray when I was in the store, and it's a beautiful rosy plum color that would be great for the cooler seasons.

Beautiful coral color! Isn't it lovely? I think it's perfect for spring and summer. It's so cheerful. I looooooove it. It's so easy to use and I don't have to use a lot to get some color on my face. I'm obsessed with blushes. I pretty much don't leave my house without some color on my cheeks. I feel like it makes me look alive. It's true. I'm kind of pasty and pale with just foundation and powder on... blush gives some life to my face. 

I always want to buy new blushes, but I'm generally pretty good about resisting those urges. I feel guilty buying more of something when I can't even manage to finish up one blush. I don't think I've ever hit the pan on ANYTHING! That's my goal this year... to hit the pan on something in my makeup collection. Anything. ANYTHING. You know, when I think about it, my blush collection is pretty small compared to some other beauty bloggers. Maybe I'll post a picture of it one day. I have a lot of sample blushes too, but I hardly ever use those (read: never). They're all those "Free Gift with Purchase" Clinique eye shadow and blush palettes. Almost all the makeup bags I have at home are from Clinique. They know how to get me, with their free gifts and whatnot. 

Swatched heavily.

Blended out. My hand looks like it's blushing! 

Have any of you tried Illamasqua's cream blushers? If so, what did you think? 
What are some of your favorite cream blushers? 

Weekend Update: Spring Edition

The weekend always comes and goes so fast...

I love seeing the flowers and trees in full bloom in New York. It brings so much color and vibrancy to the city streets. But spring time also means allergy season for many people, myself included. It's one thing I do not look forward to. Itchy, watery eyes, constant sneezing, itchy throat, red nose... it's not an attractive sight. My allergies have gotten better over the years though; I think it's partly because of this herbal supplement my parents made me take last year. It helped some. I haven't taken any this year (yet) because my allergies have not acted up, but we'll see how the rest of this month goes. Gah, I really hate allergies! It makes me feel awful all the time. 

Anyhoo, enough about that.. I'll deal with it when it happens. I just want to share some pictures and tidbits from my life. But don't worry, I have some beauty posts lined up! Here's a quick look at my weekend. 

From the top left corner, clockwise: 1) Spotted in Chinatown! No Parking signs lining Division Street in preparation for filming on Monday. Does anyone watch Blue Bloods? Is it any good? I wish I had more time to watch television! 2) Pretty trees in Chinatown. I snapped this while waiting for my boyfriend. 3) Late lunch with my best friend. I love Venezuelan food! So delish. 4) Flowers, flowers, everywhere! 

My best friend also bought me a cupcake as a belated birthday present. This is the "Vivienne Westwood" cupcake. Isn't it cute? It came in a purple Chinese takeout container. The frosting was a red wine buttercream, with blackberry drizzle. The cupcake itself was just okay. It is pretty to look at though.

Happy [belated] Easter to those that celebrate! I went to church in the morning, and then spent a low-key afternoon with my boyfriend. 

Hope you enjoyed the photos! I used to take pictures allllllllll the time because I carried my camera with me everywhere, but I've gotten really lazy about it over the years. I use my phone as my camera nowadays. It's so handy and there are so many cute photo apps I can choose from. I really need to remember to take more pictures of my everyday life though. I love looking back on old pictures... and in order to do that, I need to take more pictures! 

How did you spend your long weekend? I'd love to hear about it! :) 

The "I didn't forget about this blog" haul

Hello there friends! 

It's been nearly a month since I've updated, but fret not, I haven't forgotten about my little blog. Life has kept me busy, so I haven't had much time to update. My bad. I told y'all I sucked at blogging. Buuuuuut, I've been thinking a lot about what I want to write about on here. I had originally planned on doing a post about my daily make-up routine; I had the pictures taken and everything, but they're a bit outdated now so I'll save that post for another time. 

Today, I went on a bit of a shopping spree. I was meeting up with some friends for lunch so I decided to run some errands beforehand. Might as well be productive, right? Hmmm.. I had to return a few things, and somehow I ended up with all of these things. Whoops. The good news is, now I have something new and exciting to blog about! Moahaaa. Yay for hauls! 

My overall haul. Please excuse the pile of books and papers on the right. I need to organize my life better.. 

Sephora: This week, VIBs and BIs get 15% off their purchases until Friday, April 6. I'm not sure about BIs, but VIBs can use their coupon as many times as they want. Booyah! I actually made these purchases at two different Sephoras (because I'm crazy like that). I bought the Illamasqua cream blush in Rude and Jack Black lip balm in Lemon & Chamomile in the morning, and the Clarisonic replacement head in the afternoon. I'm excited to try to the Illamasqua blush; I've heard a lot of great things about it so I hope it works out for my skin. Review coming soon!!

Origins: I had originally gotten their Clean Energy gentle cleansing oil, but it clogged up my pores so I had to return it. I really wanted to like it, but it just didn't work out. It did leave my face feeling very clean and soft though, so maybe it'll work out for someone else whose skin is not as sensitive as mine. If you're looking for a nice cleansing oil, I'd recommend this one! It smells lovely too :)

Rite Aid: Rite Aid is having a month long promotion on Maybelline, Garnier (hair and skin care products), and HerbaShine hair colors. It's BOGO1/2 off so I thought it would be the perfect time for me to try out Garnier's BB Cream I've been reading so much about. Will definitely post a review once I get a chance to try it out. Has anyone tried it out yet? What are your thoughts about it? Leave me a comment :) 

LUSH: This is my very first purchase from LUSH. I've been looking for something to help with the sad condition of my hair. I have very fine, oily hair and there's not much of it. It's also very flat. Soooo, I walked in with the intent of getting on of their shampoo bars I've heard so much about. That's the blue bar sitting in the little tin in my picture: the Seanik shampoo bar. Clearly, my plan of buying only one thing did not work out the way I planned since there are so many other items in the picture.. I was worried my hair would get too dried out by the sea salt in the shampoo bar, so the SA at LUSH recommended the Veganese conditioner so I just went for it.

Then she gave me this mini hand treatment and it left my hands feeling sooo soft. Aaaaand since I am so easily swayed by lovely beauty products, I decided to bite the bullet and get the Buffy body butter (it was one of the products the SA used on my hands). When the SA said that it can be used on wet skin in the shower, I was sold! I really hate applying lotion on my skin after I shower, so Buffy seemed like the perfect solution. I don't like the way lotions leave a oily, sticky feeling (even the ones that claim they don't!!) on my skin afterward. And the two black jars are samples of their Big shampoo and Flying Fox shower gel. Let's see how all of these goodies work out!

All righty, that's everything! Let me know if you've ever tried any of the products above and your thoughts about them. I would love to hear other people's opinions :)

Have a lovely week!

L'Oreal Infallible Eye Shadows

It seems like Sundays are my favorite day to post... it's the calm before the storm.

Today, I'll be jumping on the L'Oreal Infallible eye shadow bandwagon! Have you heard or tried them yet? If not, well keep on reading, and maybe at the end of this post, you'll want to go out and try it for yourself! A lot of people say that these eye shadows are a dupe of Armani's Eyes to Kill. Unfortunately, I don't own any Eyes to Kill so I can't give you any comparisons of the two, but I can give you my input on the more inexpensive of the two. 

I currently have four: golden sage, bronzed taupe, amber rush and iced latte. My favorite is bronzed taupe. Granted, it is the first one I purchased out of the four so I've been using it the longest, but I really love the color. I find myself reaching for bronzed taupe every single morning. Yeah, I'm pretty boring when it comes to eye makeup, especially lately. I'm always in a rush in the mornings, so a quick swipe of bronzed taupe is all the time I can afford. 

This post will be a picture heavy one because I wanted to be thorough for y'all, haha. I forgot to take a picture of the other side of the eye shadows though.. whoops.

All four of my eye shadows. 

Golden Sage, you're up first! 

Every eye shadow comes with this "Do Not Discard" cover over the eye shadow. The color is a lovely sage with golden specks. I suppose you can say that the title of this shadow does a good job describing the color. I'm terrible at describing colors, to be honest, so bear with me. I've only used this once, paired with iced latte. It's a lovely color and blends easily. One of the things I love about these shadows is how smooth and creamy it looks after application. It last about 8 hours on my oily lids, even with a primer underneath. I don't know if it's the shadow or my eye lids were being weird that day. Either way, it's not 24 hours like the advertising claims, but it lasts a decent amount of time. 

Bronzed Taupe, my favorite. 

Under the natural lighting, bronzed taupe looked reddish rather than brownish taupe, so I had to take another picture to get the true color of the shadow. The second picture is not ideal, but it's better than the first you. If you scroll down, the swatch of it on my hand will give you a better idea of what the color looks like. With that said, I love this color. It looks great on my lids; just a touch of smoky taupe with a specks of bronze and gold. It's a great every day shade that is work appropriate. It also blends wonderfully. I use this with my NARS Lhasa and the two colors really complement each other. Love love love! 

I can't say too much about Amber Rush because I've only used it once, and I don't know how I feel about it. The color is a coppery red with a hint of gold. It clumps together when I try to pack on the color. Aaaaaand, it's a little too red for me. I still prefer bronzed taupe. 

Last but not least, Iced Latte! I'm not too sure how I should describe iced latte. It's an off-white pearly color (does that even make sense?). The color reminds me of coffee with a large splash of Coffee-Mate creamer. A lot of creamer. I like how it give my eyes a bit of brightness when I use it. The color blends well and lasts a decent amount of time with primer underneath. I usually pat this color all over my lids as a base or on the center of my eye lids to help highlight. 

Swatch time!

Under natural lighting. Left to right: Ice Latte, Amber Rush, Golden Sage, Bronzed Taupe

Under fluorescent lighting. Left to right: Iced Latte, Amber Rush, Golden Sage, Bronzed Taupe

So, what did you think? Would you buy it? 

If you're on the fence about it, I would definitely recommend trying at least one of them. They're really affordable, you can find them at all major drugstores (Rite Aid, Walgreens, CVS, Duane Reade... for all you NYers) and Target. Aaaaaaaand, if you check out Nouveau Cheap (one of my favorite beauty blogs), she'll let you know when those places are having sales on L'Oreal products and then you can save some more money! I love it!

Have a lovely week :)

February MyGlam Bag

I know, I know. I said I would be more consistent about this whole blogging thing, but I swear I've been working, just behind the scenes.  

Let me just say, it's been a busy two weeks. I spent this entire weekend at school, finishing up a weekend seminar for my hybrid online health education class. I haven't had time to write, but I've been working on future posts. I haven't forgotten about this blog! I said I would try, and I will... I am. 

So. This is my February MyGlam bag. Ever heard of it? It's another one of those monthly beauty sample subscriptions like Birchbox. I considered getting the Birchbox subscription for awhile, but after seeing the contents, I didn't think it would be worth it because most of the stuff didn't interest me. But when MyGlam came along, I decided to try it out. I missed their first bag (the best one so far, IMO), but I did manage to make it for the January bag! I decided not to do a post about it since it's the end of February. But here's a quick list of the items I received: Freemans cucumber peel-off mask, theBalm eye shadow, Wen cleansing conditioner, Sheer Cover concealer and a cute nature-themed make-up bag. 

For February, MyGlam went with a Valentine's Day theme. What's in the bag: two Ghirardelli squares, X-Out Shine Control, NYX Roll-on Shimmer in Platinum, Freemans Goji Berry Hydration Mask, two samples of Dead Sea Premier and a $100 gift certificate to NUME. My initial thoughts? I wasn't too fond of this month's bag. So far, I've only used the hydration mask. It's not bad; it smells nice. I haven't touched any of the other samples, so it feels like a waste of a bag to me. But, they are a newly established company, and I'm curious to see what else they have planned. Soooooo, I will hold on to my subscription for a little longer. 

A lot of people have been complaining about the issues they've been having with MyGlam's shipping system and how things aren't getting shipped out on time or whatever. Listen. They're a new company. Cut them some slack! They're still trying to get the hang of things and they're working hard on getting great samples. They still need time to figure out a good system that really works for them. I can't imagine how it feels to be at the MyGlam office, reading through all the complaints and negative comments when I'm trying to make things better for all the complaining people! Sigh. I say, just lay off them. Maybe when they're 6 months in and still having these issues, then there's some reason to complain. Okay, I just wanted to get that out of my system... :)

Here's a little preview of posts to come! 

Make-up Crazy

So. I went a little crazy at Sephora this week. Aaaand it's only Wednesday. My excuse? It's been long, tiring week. That's a good reason, right? Yeah, that's what I'm telling myself. 

Anyhoo, I've been in the market for a good concealer, and the SA at Sephora recommended one from Smashbox. I've used it twice, and have not yet made up my mind on how I feel. Will do some swatches soon. In addition to the concealer, I've also been curious about trying the Korres mineral illuminating powder. Sooooooooo, of course I picked it up to try out. And since my day was so crummy, I treated myself to two more items: Buxom's Big and Healthy lipgloss in Sandy and NARS eye shadow in Lhasa.

This is my first loose powder product, and I have to say, it's messy. The shimmer is not too crazy, and it gives my face a lovely dewy glow. I generally like Korres' make-up products (I am totally in love with their blush in #15 Natural). I've used it twice so far, and I'm curious enough to keep using it to see how my skin reacts. 

I've been hearing so many good things about NARS Lhasa that I couldn't resist getting it. And, it was the last one at the store, so it was definitely meant to be. The color is beautiful and I absolutely loooove it. Granted, I've only used it once but I'm confident that NARS will be good to me. The color is this lavender, taupe-y color, and it really is lovely. This is most expensive [single] eye shadow I have ever purchased, and I think that this product is worth the money. Maybe I'll change my mind down the road, but for now, I'm lovin' it.

I like the Buxom lip gloss so far, but I don't wear lip glosses that often so I'm still getting used to the sticky consistency of it. But the color is nice, and the tingling is... different. It's not unpleasant, but it's interesting. I wouldn't recommend wearing it on a windy day; my lips were definitely very cold after all the tingling and the wind. Brrr. 

Smashbox concealer... I'll get back to this. 

On Tuesday, I stopped by Sephora again. I know, I'm bad. I had to return a few things, and ended getting the Make Up For Ever Face & Body liquid foundation in #20 Ivory. I love this foundation. It's lightweight and sheer. Some people might not like the smell, but it's not so overpowering that I can't let it go. I actually don't mind the smell. The price is a bit steep, and so it took me a while before I finally decided to make this purchase. The sample I got from Sephora pushed me to a YES. Even though it's $38, it's 1.69 oz of liquid foundation, and I know it'll last me a good amount of time.

The Laura Mercier foundation primer is my second tube. I'm not quite done with my first one, but I wanted to be prepared in case I ran out. I love this stuff. It's well made and does an excellent job priming my face for the rest of my make-up. I personally like the oil free one. I tried the radiance primer, and I don't know... I didn't like it that much? Maybe my skin was having an off day, but for now, I'm sticking to the oil free primer. As for the Josie Maran moisturizer... it was an impulse buy. Sephora, they know how to get you... with their mini products within reach while you're on line. I picked it up because I wanted to redeem my VIB NARS free gift (not pictured) and I needed a $35 purchase or more to get it... so I just grabbed the moisturizer. As for the product itself, I have no idea if it's any good. I guess I'll be finding out. Yeah... I bought the foundation and the primer and moisturizer at different times... at two different locations. I know, I'm ridiculous. I just couldn't resist the NARS gift! Since NARS products are normally so expensive, and the gift had some things I would want to try, but would normally be reluctant to pay full price for so it seemed like the perfect situation to me.

I'll post up a picture of it next time. The VIB gift consisted of three minis: NARS Laguna, Orgasm illuminator and eye shadow primer. Come on, tell me that you wouldn't pick up a few things some Sephora just to get that free gift. Right? Maybe I'm just nuts. 

And then today... I went and got myself another lip product. Because you know, I really need another one.. after reading some reviews on Clinique's Almost Lipstick in Black Honey, and trying it on the store... I just had to get it. Oh, and the lip liner? It's the Sephora nano lip liner (I don't remember what color...) and I just wanted to try using lip liner, so I picked up the cheapest one I could find.

SIGH. Someone needs to get me some help. Like Make-Up Addicts Anonymous or something. For real. Okay, this has been a really long entry. I think I should go, hah.


Does anyone else have a serious addiction to all things beauty? 
Because if you do... we should be friends. Seriously.