Wednesday, September 26, 2012

September Birchbox 2012

Hey all! I was going to post this a week ago but I was so caught up with school and work. I know some people didn't enjoy this month's box, but I like it. Not the best, but there are some products I've been wanting to try. Here's what I got!

As always, Birchboxes come in their signature brown little box. I like to keep them and use them various things like storing my makeup or jewelry.

Each month, Birchbox has a theme and the products inside correspond with the theme. The theme for this month was the Birchbox September issue. They have a magazine? Huh, I didn't know that!

The first thing I saw was this little gift certificate for Madewell. I've never heard of this site so I can't wait to see what kind of things they carry!

Next, I saw this little booklet about fall trends to try. I don't know if this is their magazine or not, but I think it's very helpful to those who want to try fall trends. Red and berry lips, here I come!

I'm pretty sure you get a little perfume sample in every box and this month I got Kate Spade's Twirl. I really like the scent, very floral and sophisticated. It's a perfect fall scent!

This was the product I was super excited about! It's Benefit's The Porefessional primer. I've tried so many different kinds of face primers and I've heard Benefit's is really good. Can't wait to try it!

Next thing I got in my box was a Color Club nail polish in the color Insta-this! It's a royal blue color with a creme finish. I've heard it looks a lot like the Sally Hansen nail polish called Pacific Blue. 

When I saw this, I was like, "Why did I get a piece of ribbon?" Sometimes the things Birchbox puts in the boxes are kind of weird. I later found out it's a hair tie. I just gave it to my little sister since I personally have no use for it.

I also received a sample of Nexxus Pro Mend shampoo, conditioner, and treatment. Honestly, I never use these samples. My bathroom drawers are full of little shampoo samples. They do come in handy whenever I'm traveling. In the meantime, my bathroom drawer will become the home for them.

Last (and maybe least), I got a zipper bag. Yes, you all heard right, a zipper bag. What the heck?! This is probably the most random things I got in a Birchbox. It says that you can store your makeup in it but I'm more likely to use it as a sandwich bag. So random!

That's what I got in this month's Birchbox! There were some hits and misses but I do like that you get a variety of samples. Tell me what you guys got in you box! Did you like it? See you guys later! :)


Tuesday, September 18, 2012

My Favorite Lip Glosses!


Hey there! I haven't been blogging as much as I would like but now I plan on blogging about once or twice a week. Yay! I am a true lipstick girl but lately I've been wearing lip gloss. So, I thought i would show you guys my favorite lip glosses!

The first lip gloss (from L to R) is the Sephora Collection Brilliant Shine Lip Gloss in Red Velvet. It is a super sheer red lip gloss. I went into my local Sephora about a year ago and I found it in one of those bins near the checkout stand for $4. I figured, "Why not"? I love the consistency of it: not too thick and not too watery. The scent smells like synthetic fruit which I don't really mind. It's a great beginning lip gloss for those who want to wear red but are intimidated by it.  I believe this line of lip gloss has been discontinued, which is a shame because I wanted to try more. Overall, this lip gloss is great!

The second lip gloss is Nars lip gloss in Stella. It's the most expensive one from the lot (coming in at $24) but I truly enjoy it! The Sephora website describes it as a "muted raspberry" color, which is true. It has some shimmer in it but not so much like a glitter bomb. Normally, I hate wearing shimmery lip gloss but Stella is really subtle. The texture leans more towards the thick side which makes it last longer on my lips than the Sephora brand lip gloss. Great lip gloss, but I'll wait until Sephora has another Friends & Family sale to buy more of them.

The third lip gloss is Stila lip glaze in Black Cherry. This is the thickest and stickiest lip gloss from the whole group. I don't recommend this if you don't like thick and goopy lip glosses. I bought this at L.A. IMATS this past June and I fell in love with it! It's a beautiful sheer burgundy color that is perfect for fall/winter! These are also fairly expensive ($22 a piece) but I would totally buy some more in value sets. This particular shade has no shimmer which is another reason why I love it so much.  Since Stila lip glazes are super thick, they really last a long time on your lips. I've gotten six hours of wear on these! Definitely recommend it if you love thick lip glosses!

Time for some inexpensive options! The fourth lip gloss is Revlon Super Lustrous lip gloss in Coral Reef. I've been looking for a good color lip gloss for the summer and I stumbled upon Youtube Beauty guru Amarixe's blog post about these (http://www.amarixe.com/2011/02/revlon-super-lustrous-lip-glosses.html). I LOVE THIS LIP GLOSS! It's perfect! I love the consistency of them. I love the wide color range. I love how their texture. I love everything about this lip gloss! This is definitely my favorite lip gloss from the group! Can't say enough good things about it!

The fifth lip gloss is Buxom Big & Healthy Lip Polish in Dolly. Once again, another Youtube guru (MissJenFABULOUS) made me want to try these out these lip glosses. Buxom lip glosses are sold as being plumping lip glosses. I think I have normal sized lips but I just wanted to give this a shot. Once you put it on, you feel an immediate tingling sensation. Some people might not like that but I actually like it. It feels very cooling to the lips. Dolly is a neutral color, more on the pink side, that has shimmer in it. Like the Stila lip glazes, it is very thick. Love this lip gloss!

Last but certainly not least is another drugstore find, Maybelline Shine Sensational Lip Gloss in Tempting Toffee. I actually got this gloss because emilynoel83 on Youtube liked it! Here's a link to her video about it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZ0WjdAFpqY. They are not sticky and I love the scent on this one. It's smells very sweet, like caramel. Tempting Toffee is a rosy nude color that's perfect for anytime. I definitely need to try out some more of these lip glosses!

That concludes my top six favorite lip glosses! I love all of these and I hope you try them out too! Leave me a comment on what your favorite lip glosses are! I love trying out new things! Until next time!