Much love xo
UPDATE: This issue is now fixed and my GFC is working again
Friday, March 29, 2013
Google Friend Connect No Longer Working - FIXED
Much love xo
UPDATE: This issue is now fixed and my GFC is working again
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Versatile Blogger Award!!
Hey lovelies! I cannot believe that I have been nominated for two awards in the same week; it means the world to me, you all are amazing! The lovely and gorgeous Athena over at Modestly Sophisticated nominated me for the Versatile Blogger Award and I can't thank her enough! You can check out her VBA post here
Rules:
- Thank the person who nominated you for this award and link back to their blog
- Tell 7 things about yourself
- Select 15 blogs that you recently discovered or follow regularly to nominate. Let those blogs know that you nominated them.
Seven facts about me:
1. My favorite food is sushi. I LOVE IT. If you have never tried a godzilla roll, you're missing out!
2. I love the city of Venice and I really hope to live there someday
3. One of my favorite movies is The Italian Job (2003). This is how I came to love Venice and Mini Coopers!
4. In case you have never read my F.A.Q, I am 6'1
5. I love horror, especially zombies!
6. I have a weakness for banana cheesecake. It is delicious kryptonite
7. I love to read and I try to have a novel in my bag at all times
I nominate:
Sara // DancingWithDragQueens
Maddy // Missing All The Cracks In The Pavement
Kristina // Kristina's Beauty Bag
Christina // The Daily Sugar
Steph // Fun Size Beauty
Diana // FashionCandyFloss
Emily // WhatSheHearts
Pocket Rocket Fashion
Georgia // Georgia's Unique
Lexy // MissGlammyGirl
Sarah // StarlingBright
Robin // DiaryOfAClassyBroad
Anastasia // Glamorable
TheGlitterThread
Stiletto Siren
Thank you again Athena! To those nominated, congrats! I look forward to reading your answers.
Sara // DancingWithDragQueens
Maddy // Missing All The Cracks In The Pavement
Kristina // Kristina's Beauty Bag
Christina // The Daily Sugar
Steph // Fun Size Beauty
Diana // FashionCandyFloss
Emily // WhatSheHearts
Pocket Rocket Fashion
Georgia // Georgia's Unique
Lexy // MissGlammyGirl
Sarah // StarlingBright
Robin // DiaryOfAClassyBroad
Anastasia // Glamorable
TheGlitterThread
Stiletto Siren
Thank you again Athena! To those nominated, congrats! I look forward to reading your answers.
Photo is from Google Images
Much love xo
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Organix Argan Oil & Shea Butter Conditioner - Review
Woah. Can you believe it? Spring is in the air! Or is it love? Yes let's go with that, love is in the air! I've fallen just a little bit in love with this new conditioner. As you lovelies know, I struggle with excruciatingly dry hair so I am always on the lookout for new and awesome products to give my hair the love and moisture that it needs, there is nothing wrong with trying new things right?
If you've been following my blog for awhile then you've probably seen me refer to the Organix brand on more than one occasion. Why? Well, for starters their Extra Strength Argan Oil has been an absolute lifesaver for my hair. I use it every single day and I can honestly say that currently, it is the only hair care product to vastly improve the health of my hair. In addition to that, their entire line is paraben, sulfate, cruelty and gluten free; if you don't know what the hype surrounding parabens and sulfates is, check out my post here. Since my Nexxus conditioner was down to the last use, I was on the hunt for a new (and hopefully cheaper) conditioner to try; I browsed the Ulta website, saw this and didn't hesitate to order it. I figured, how could I go wrong with argan oil and shea butter? As it turns out, I was right!
I try not to let the scent of a product influence me too much but, my goodness do I like the scent of this conditioner! It's light, creamy and oddly smells of coconut which boggles my mind since coconut is absolutely nowhere on the list of ingredients. The consistency resembles a light custard or pastry cream (does anyone else want cheesecake now? Just me?) As far as performance, it was not without a bit of trial and error that I got this conditioner to work for my hair. My usual routine of leaving my conditioner in for a quick ten minutes while I showered or washed my face just didn't cut it; with this method I achieved softness but the effect did not last long and wore away within a day or so. Now for take two! In order for this conditioner to really work it's magic, I let it soak into my hair under a shower cap for an hour, I also utilized the occasional burst of heat from my hair dryer during this time. The result? I'm honestly blown away by how soft this conditioner makes my hair and now, my hair has stayed soft and moisturized since I started using the shower cap. My favorite thing? Not only is my hair naturally dry but, it is incredibly frizzy; especially the ends and taming that frizz is usually an epic battle that I loose quite often. However, this really does get rid of a considerable amount of frizz and tangles in my hair making it A LOT more manageable. Would I re-purchase this? Yes.
Overall, I really like this conditioner and I am thrilled with how it makes my hair feel (when using the right method of course) Unfortunately, I do have a few gripes with this product. For one, it does not add any sort of shine to my hair even though the bottle claims that it will. I can overlook this because I use oil in my hair everyday and that gives me shine but, in case you are looking for a glossy conditioner to add lots of shine, this is not the one. Secondly, this is not a "quick use" conditioner, I only see great results when I leave the conditioner in for a lot longer than usual. Even though I love how this works with my hair, it becomes very inconvenient at times and I find myself reaching for other hair care when I am in a hurry.
Ingredients: Aqua (water), Cetearyl alcohol, Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Glycerin, Cetyl Alcohol, Behentrimonium Methosulfate, Argania Spinosa (Argan) Kernel oil, Ceteareth-20, Lanolin oil, Dimethiconol, Parfum (fragrance), Diazolidinyl Urea, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate, CI 19140 (Yellow 5), CI 16035 (Red 40).
Be advised, this conditioner does contain silicones and what sppears to be a sulfate. However, I did a bit of research on Behentrimonium Methosulfate and it is NOT actually a sulfate! It is created from rapseed oil, and it's purpose is for detangling and thickening.
The new Argan oil & Shea butter line contains a shampoo, conditioner, weightless oil, curl enhancing yogurt, and a moisture restore mask. You can check out all of the products here. Every product in this line retails for $7.99.
Much love xo
If you've been following my blog for awhile then you've probably seen me refer to the Organix brand on more than one occasion. Why? Well, for starters their Extra Strength Argan Oil has been an absolute lifesaver for my hair. I use it every single day and I can honestly say that currently, it is the only hair care product to vastly improve the health of my hair. In addition to that, their entire line is paraben, sulfate, cruelty and gluten free; if you don't know what the hype surrounding parabens and sulfates is, check out my post here. Since my Nexxus conditioner was down to the last use, I was on the hunt for a new (and hopefully cheaper) conditioner to try; I browsed the Ulta website, saw this and didn't hesitate to order it. I figured, how could I go wrong with argan oil and shea butter? As it turns out, I was right!
I try not to let the scent of a product influence me too much but, my goodness do I like the scent of this conditioner! It's light, creamy and oddly smells of coconut which boggles my mind since coconut is absolutely nowhere on the list of ingredients. The consistency resembles a light custard or pastry cream (does anyone else want cheesecake now? Just me?) As far as performance, it was not without a bit of trial and error that I got this conditioner to work for my hair. My usual routine of leaving my conditioner in for a quick ten minutes while I showered or washed my face just didn't cut it; with this method I achieved softness but the effect did not last long and wore away within a day or so. Now for take two! In order for this conditioner to really work it's magic, I let it soak into my hair under a shower cap for an hour, I also utilized the occasional burst of heat from my hair dryer during this time. The result? I'm honestly blown away by how soft this conditioner makes my hair and now, my hair has stayed soft and moisturized since I started using the shower cap. My favorite thing? Not only is my hair naturally dry but, it is incredibly frizzy; especially the ends and taming that frizz is usually an epic battle that I loose quite often. However, this really does get rid of a considerable amount of frizz and tangles in my hair making it A LOT more manageable. Would I re-purchase this? Yes.
Overall, I really like this conditioner and I am thrilled with how it makes my hair feel (when using the right method of course) Unfortunately, I do have a few gripes with this product. For one, it does not add any sort of shine to my hair even though the bottle claims that it will. I can overlook this because I use oil in my hair everyday and that gives me shine but, in case you are looking for a glossy conditioner to add lots of shine, this is not the one. Secondly, this is not a "quick use" conditioner, I only see great results when I leave the conditioner in for a lot longer than usual. Even though I love how this works with my hair, it becomes very inconvenient at times and I find myself reaching for other hair care when I am in a hurry.
Ingredients: Aqua (water), Cetearyl alcohol, Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Glycerin, Cetyl Alcohol, Behentrimonium Methosulfate, Argania Spinosa (Argan) Kernel oil, Ceteareth-20, Lanolin oil, Dimethiconol, Parfum (fragrance), Diazolidinyl Urea, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate, CI 19140 (Yellow 5), CI 16035 (Red 40).
Be advised, this conditioner does contain silicones and what sppears to be a sulfate. However, I did a bit of research on Behentrimonium Methosulfate and it is NOT actually a sulfate! It is created from rapseed oil, and it's purpose is for detangling and thickening.
The new Argan oil & Shea butter line contains a shampoo, conditioner, weightless oil, curl enhancing yogurt, and a moisture restore mask. You can check out all of the products here. Every product in this line retails for $7.99.
Much love xo
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Liebster Award!
Hey lovelies! I'm excited to announce that I've been nominated for the Liebster Award TWICE! By the gorgeous ladies Maddy and Sara! You can check out Maddy's blog here and Sara's here. If you're not sure what a Liebster Award is, here's a little info: "The Liebster Award is given to up and coming bloggers who have less than 200 followers. It's a great way for new and undiscovered bloggers to meet new people, get more followers and find new blogs that they want to follow"
Now onto the rules! :
- List 11 facts about yourself
- Choose 11 bloggers with less than 200 followers to nominate (not including your nominator)
- Ask 11 new questions for the bloggers that you nominate
- Answer the 11 questions given to you by your nominator
- Thank your nominator and give a link to their blog
11 Facts About Myself:
1. I love, love, love pinups, the 50's and anything vintage
2. My shoe of choice are converse
3. My favorite film is Ever After
4. My favorite color is grey
5. I LOVE Frankenstein and Bride. I try to collect any merch of them that I can get my hands on
6. I listen to scores more than any other type of music
7. I love animals. Especially, cats, owls, bats and penguins
8. I am actually allergic to cats and yet, I own five. I would never ever trade them or any others for the world
9. I attend comic con every year
10. I currently have three tattoos and I plan on finishing my half sleeves in the near future
11. My blog name is based on one of my tattoos
Maddy's Questions:
1) Who is your fashion/makeup icon and why? This is a very difficult question for me, simply because I've been inspired by so much and so many people both famous and non-famous. I've always loved retro/pinup style fashion so I absolutely adore Marilyn Monroe and Bettie Page. If I had to choose for the present, it's just impossible to narrow down so my favorites are Tess Munster, Teer Wayde, Marfmellow, Vintage or Tacky, GoldieStarling and so many more. To me, these women are just absolutely stunning and I'm awed by their makeup, fashion, and confidence.
2) What is your favorite thing about yourself? I like that I'm a very carefree and confident person, it allows me to walk through a lot of situations with my head held high. Also, my eyebrows! For some odd reason they stay the same shape and I never have to shape them or bother them.
3) What would you do if you came to a large sum of money? Well, first and foremost I would pay off all of my hospital and schooling bills and after that, I would absolutely donate to a few charities, depending on how much I had left my next goal would be to purchase my own home
4) What would your three wishes to a genie be? 1. Health for myself, friends, family & pets. 2. A lifetime supply of cheesecake in a variety of flavors. 3. More wishes.
5) Best new dish you've recently tried. Baked lasagna from scratch!! I LOVE to cook and recently I've started making all of my meals completely scratch from start to finish. Amazing!
6) One fashion/beauty item you can't live without. Red lipstick! I adore red lipstick and my look honestly doesn't feel complete without it.
7) One fashion/beauty item you regret buying. Oh boy, well thankfully I have not purchased many duds on my makeup and fashion journey. If I had to pick however, I would say lime green converse. Now that I think back, I didn't give them the wear and love that they deserved.
8) A goal you wish to accomplish by the end of 2013. Graduating, getting healthier and moving out. Wait..that's three. Oh well!
9) Best advice you ever received. Be yourself. No matter how outrageous, loud, or quirky. The best thing you can be is yourself because you are amazing, you are YOU and people will love you and you will love yourself.
10) What is something you could improve on? I try to learn and evolve as much as possible. With that said, I know that I could improve upon the content that I post on my blog to include a lot more fashion and not just reviews.
11) What came first, the chicken or the egg? Some primitive form of bird; something had to lay the egg right??
Sara's Questions:
1. When and why did you start blogging? I started blogging on January 30th, 2012. I started because I love makeup, I love writing and I felt that I had something to offer even if it only helped a few people.
2. What's one thing you've learned about yourself because of blogging? I've learned that I'm not the bad writer that I sometimes view myself as and that my blog posts do actually help a few people and that's all that matters.
3. What is one thing that has surprised you about blogging? (Ex. I didn't expect people to be so nice) It's not as easy as some might think. A lot of thought and effort goes into purchasing, reviewing, styling and keeping up with everything. I love it and I absolutely wouldn't change it but, some seem to think that it's just merely sitting behind a keyboard.
4. If you could only wear one makeup up look the rest of your life, which would it be...eye makeup with bare lips or lipstick with no eye makeup? Lipstick with no eye makeup, I need my red lips!
5. Who is your biggest beauty inspiration? This is a very difficult question for me, simply because I've been inspired by so much and so many people both famous and non-famous. I've always loved retro/pinup style fashion so I absolutely adore Marilyn Monroe and Bettie Page. If I had to choose for the present, it's just impossible to narrow down so my favorites are Tess Munster, Teer Wayde, Marfmellow, Vintage or Tacky, GoldieStarling and so many more. To me, these women are just absolutely stunning and I'm awed by their makeup, fashion, and confidence.
6. What is your biggest pet peeve about bloggers that you've noticed? People who do not show appreciation for their fans/followers/readers, etc. This applies to far more people than just bloggers! You would not be in the place that you are if not for your amazing and dedicated followers. It saddens me to see individuals who brush off those who stand behind them as though they've gotten where they are simply by a gust of wind.
7. What age did you start wearing makeup and what was the first makeup item you owned? I was 14/15 and I wore heavy eyeliner. My first and favorite was Estee Lauder's Automatic Eyeliner. Ahh the memories!
8. What is the best advice you've ever received? Be yourself! No matter how outrageous, loud, or quirky. The best thing you can be is yourself because you are amazing, you are YOU and people will love you and you will love yourself.
9. What's one beauty rule you always follow? I guess maybe prepping my nails before polish?
10. If you could be somebody else for one day, who would it be and why? Chris Hemsworth, I mean...who doesn't want to be Thor?
11. What are you most proud of with your blog? How much Dollface Beauty has grown! I started doing this with absolutely no clue and here I am over a year later going strong with 17 followers and over 5,000 page views. Thank you!!
Questions for my nominees:
1. Who or what has been your biggest inspiration in life so far?
2. If you could have one superpower, what would it be and why?
3. What is your one ultimate holy grail product?
4. When you first started using makeup, what was your biggest "makeup crime"?
5. If you could be whisked away to one place, where would it be?
6. What are you most looking forward to in the next year?
7. What is one fashion item that you can't bear to throw away no matter how old it gets?
8. If you listen to music while putting on your makeup, what song really pumps you up for the day?
9. Is there a makeup/fashion trend past or present that you love but, haven't tried yourself?
10. What do you hope to achieve with your blog?
11. If any, what message or advice does your blog portray?
I Nominate:
Kristina // Kristina's Beauty Bag
Mary // Glitter Odyssey
Miss Dalisay // Beauty Rehab
Michaela // I Sold The World
Dee // Xxelle Fatshion
WeLoveSwatches
Jen // JenTea
Alisa // Curious Alisa
Athena // Modestly Sophisticated
V // Beauty Out Loud
Gabs G // Beauty Madness
Photo is from Google Images
Much love and many thanks! xo
Questions for my nominees:
1. Who or what has been your biggest inspiration in life so far?
2. If you could have one superpower, what would it be and why?
3. What is your one ultimate holy grail product?
4. When you first started using makeup, what was your biggest "makeup crime"?
5. If you could be whisked away to one place, where would it be?
6. What are you most looking forward to in the next year?
7. What is one fashion item that you can't bear to throw away no matter how old it gets?
8. If you listen to music while putting on your makeup, what song really pumps you up for the day?
9. Is there a makeup/fashion trend past or present that you love but, haven't tried yourself?
10. What do you hope to achieve with your blog?
11. If any, what message or advice does your blog portray?
I Nominate:
Kristina // Kristina's Beauty Bag
Mary // Glitter Odyssey
Miss Dalisay // Beauty Rehab
Michaela // I Sold The World
Dee // Xxelle Fatshion
WeLoveSwatches
Jen // JenTea
Alisa // Curious Alisa
Athena // Modestly Sophisticated
V // Beauty Out Loud
Gabs G // Beauty Madness
Photo is from Google Images
Much love and many thanks! xo
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Tarte Clean Slate 12HR Deluxe Primers - Review
Hi lovelies! Can you believe that these are my first products from Tarte, EVER?! I'm just as shocked as you all are. Since primer is without a doubt one of my top five makeup essentials, this seemed like the perfect little thing to try out and dip my toes into the Tarte brand. This little trio contains samples of Tarte's 12hr poreless, flawless and creaseless face and eye primers. I can't say that I'm in love with any of these but for $9 (0.25 and 0.09 oz), I'm still happy that I got to try them all.
My biggest gripe with this trio is that, there is not much product in any of the tubes. I know, I know, for $9 how much product did I expect? I understand that completely but, it was a let down for all three tubes to be filled with 80% air and having to flatten the tubes just to sample any product. Perhaps these were just duds?
Let's start with Clean Slate PORELESS, this is the perfecting primer; it is comparable to Smashbox Photo Finish, NYX Shine Killer or any other silicone based, gel like primer. This did a pretty decent job of smoothing out my pores for a short while but, I just can't get over how thick and sticky this product is. It is very hard to blend out, leaves my skin feeling tacky and no matter what method of blending or how little primer I used, it continuously pilled each and every time. I have never had an issue with any of my makeup pilling or balling up until now. As far as wear, once (finally) blended in, it seemed to disappear as if I hadn't actually applied anything. I could still feel the primer on my skin but, any pore minimizing properties that it had left the building within ten minutes; it in no way kept my pores smaller nor did my makeup wear longer than usual. I recommend NYX Shine Killer instead of this.
Next is the Clean Slate FLAWLESS, this is the brightening primer. When I first started using this, it seemed to do absolutely nothing; the subtle pink tint would just blend into my skin and disappear. Since I hate to let products go to waste, I started adding a few drops of this to my homemade BB cream and that is when I actually noticed some results. It perks my skin up a bit and gives the tiniest barely there glow. As far as perfecting or allowing my makeup to last longer, this primer provided none of that for my skin. I am on the fence because the primer is not necessarily bad since it does provide the brightening aspect that it claims to have but, the effect is so subtle it is easily not that memorable. Since it doesn't do much else as far as being an actual primer, I would not re-purchase this; I recommend NYX Pore Filler instead.
Lastly, is the Clean Slate 360 CREASELESS, this is the eye primer and my least favorite of the trio. I found this primer is be very oily/greasy no matter how much I shook the tube before hand. Since the main goal of primer is to stop or decrease oil production during wear, the oiliness of this product just doesn't work. I also hate the texture of this product once applied, since this primer is so oily, it left an uncomfortable film on my eyelids. As far as wear time, my eyeshadows did not last very well with this as there was significant fading and creasing throughout the day. This would be better suited for someone with dry eyelids. I recommend theBalm's Put A Lid On It or Too Faced Shadow Insurance over this.
Overall, would I purchase any of these primers again? Absolutely not. None of them worked that well with my skin and I feel that I have much better alternatives in my collection as listed above. The best thing of all about those alternatives? Each one is cheaper than its Tarte counterpart so, I recommend trying those instead but, if you are a Tarte lover or just you just want to try the brand, the trio is worthwhile picking up since it is only $9 and allows you to try three products.
I could not find this trio pack on Ulta.com but it might still be in stores. Online they have another trio called Prime, Shine & Define here
You can purchase the full size Poreless here
$30 // 1 oz
You can purchase the full size Flawless here
$30 // 1 oz
You can purchase the full size 360 Creaseless here
$19 // 11g (0.39oz)
Much love xo
My biggest gripe with this trio is that, there is not much product in any of the tubes. I know, I know, for $9 how much product did I expect? I understand that completely but, it was a let down for all three tubes to be filled with 80% air and having to flatten the tubes just to sample any product. Perhaps these were just duds?Let's start with Clean Slate PORELESS, this is the perfecting primer; it is comparable to Smashbox Photo Finish, NYX Shine Killer or any other silicone based, gel like primer. This did a pretty decent job of smoothing out my pores for a short while but, I just can't get over how thick and sticky this product is. It is very hard to blend out, leaves my skin feeling tacky and no matter what method of blending or how little primer I used, it continuously pilled each and every time. I have never had an issue with any of my makeup pilling or balling up until now. As far as wear, once (finally) blended in, it seemed to disappear as if I hadn't actually applied anything. I could still feel the primer on my skin but, any pore minimizing properties that it had left the building within ten minutes; it in no way kept my pores smaller nor did my makeup wear longer than usual. I recommend NYX Shine Killer instead of this.
Next is the Clean Slate FLAWLESS, this is the brightening primer. When I first started using this, it seemed to do absolutely nothing; the subtle pink tint would just blend into my skin and disappear. Since I hate to let products go to waste, I started adding a few drops of this to my homemade BB cream and that is when I actually noticed some results. It perks my skin up a bit and gives the tiniest barely there glow. As far as perfecting or allowing my makeup to last longer, this primer provided none of that for my skin. I am on the fence because the primer is not necessarily bad since it does provide the brightening aspect that it claims to have but, the effect is so subtle it is easily not that memorable. Since it doesn't do much else as far as being an actual primer, I would not re-purchase this; I recommend NYX Pore Filler instead.
Lastly, is the Clean Slate 360 CREASELESS, this is the eye primer and my least favorite of the trio. I found this primer is be very oily/greasy no matter how much I shook the tube before hand. Since the main goal of primer is to stop or decrease oil production during wear, the oiliness of this product just doesn't work. I also hate the texture of this product once applied, since this primer is so oily, it left an uncomfortable film on my eyelids. As far as wear time, my eyeshadows did not last very well with this as there was significant fading and creasing throughout the day. This would be better suited for someone with dry eyelids. I recommend theBalm's Put A Lid On It or Too Faced Shadow Insurance over this.
Overall, would I purchase any of these primers again? Absolutely not. None of them worked that well with my skin and I feel that I have much better alternatives in my collection as listed above. The best thing of all about those alternatives? Each one is cheaper than its Tarte counterpart so, I recommend trying those instead but, if you are a Tarte lover or just you just want to try the brand, the trio is worthwhile picking up since it is only $9 and allows you to try three products.
I could not find this trio pack on Ulta.com but it might still be in stores. Online they have another trio called Prime, Shine & Define here
You can purchase the full size Poreless here
$30 // 1 oz
You can purchase the full size Flawless here
$30 // 1 oz
You can purchase the full size 360 Creaseless here
$19 // 11g (0.39oz)
Much love xo
Monday, March 18, 2013
Follow Me On Bloglovin!
Follow my blog with Bloglovin
Hey lovelies! I just received the news that unfortunately, Google Reader has now come to an end (effective July 1st) For all of my RSS users, I've now created a Bloglovin account! For those of you who follow my blog, I strongly suggest that you follow my blog via email so that you never miss a post no matter what. If you prefer an RSS feed follow me on Bloglovin via the sidebar button.
Much love xo
Hey lovelies! I just received the news that unfortunately, Google Reader has now come to an end (effective July 1st) For all of my RSS users, I've now created a Bloglovin account! For those of you who follow my blog, I strongly suggest that you follow my blog via email so that you never miss a post no matter what. If you prefer an RSS feed follow me on Bloglovin via the sidebar button.
Much love xo
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Birchbox March
Hey lovelies! It's Birchbox time again and I'm proud to say that they have seemed to really step it up with the sample sizes this month (let's hope it stays that way!) While I didn't get the box that I was coveting, I did receive some nice samples. I received box 11 which included:
Honestly, I didn't have high hopes for a shave cream because I usually just buy the $4 cans of Skintimate and call it a day, I mean how great could a shave cream really be? Nevertheless, I wasn't going to let this product go to waste. The cream has a pretty interesting scent, in the tube it reminds me of grape candy rather than anything blueberry but, once on my skin that's when the scent became very unpleasant. I know smells can change drastically depending on ones body chemistry and well...my chemistry turned this "blueberry" into BUTTER! That's right, it smelled like butter once on my skin. Now, I like butter as much as the next person but, I'd rather not smell like it; thankfully once washed away the smell didn't linger. As far as performance, I did like how sheer the cream was, it allowed me to see exactly what I was doing instead of blindly shaving beneath mounds of foam. Another pro was that it left my skin feeling extremely soft and smooth; definitely one of the closest shaves my legs have ever seen. While I still don't think that this or any other shaving cream is worth the price, it is a really nice product and if it were to go on sale I would definitely purchase it; until then I'm content with using drugstore shaving products. Full price: $20 // 150ml
Next up is the Caldrea body lotion, I received three packets with a pretty good amount in each packet. My skin has never been super dry or crying out for moisture but I do need to moisturize well and honestly, this lotion did absolutely nothing for my skin. Although the scents were pleasant (not great but pleasant), the formula of the lotion is extremely light, watery and not the least bit hydrating; five minutes after applying, my skin felt as if I had honestly used nothing. I don't expect body butter type hydration from a simple body lotion but I do expect for the lotion to not just completely disappear! This would be better suited as a simple hand lotion rather than full body and for the price, there are MUCH better alternatives. Full price: $22 // 8oz
I can't believe that I have never tried nail polish strips until now! I've heard nothing but great things about Incoco and so this was the item that I was looking forward to receiving. I was hesitant about using them since I have NEVER been good at using peel and stick type items. I'm so glad that I received these because I am in love! The directions were clear and these were super simple to use, I had all ten fingers done in less than 10 minutes. Incoco claims that these will last up to 14 days, I have my doubts that they will last that long but, I will update this post when they do start to wear away. Would I purchase these? Absolutely! I'm already planning on cashing in my points to pick up a few packs as we speak. Full price: $9-$11 (depending on the design) // 16 strips per pack
- Serge Normant Meta Revive Volumizing Dry Shampoo w/ Cedar Bark
- Whish Blueberry Shave Cream
- Caldrea Body Lotion (3 packets)
- Incoco Nail Polish Strips
- Madewell Emery Board
The largest item in my box this month was the Serge Normant dry shampoo. If you've been reading my blog for awhile then you know that I have extremely dry hair naturally so, a dry shampoo is one product that I've never needed but, I hate to let a product go to waste. Since most dry shampoos (including this one) are marketed as volumizing sprays, I figured that would be my way to get use out of this product. Unfortunately, my first attempt resulting in me actually having to wash my hair! Spraying this directly onto my hair turned it completely white, chalky and sticky but I still wanted to find some way to be able to use this and I did. I spray a tiny bit onto my comb and work it through my roots that way, I prefer this method because it gives me more control and allows me to concentrate the spray where my hair needs it most. One to two sprays is sufficient for my hair. Even though I found a way to make this work, the only thing that I really like about this spray is the scent; it's light and perfumey with just a hint of musk, much better than the usual hair spray smell to me. There was a lot of trial and error involved in using this because the formula isn't very good, it's powdery, heavy and using too much will quickly end up making your hair look and feel horrible (I learned the hard way). Would I purchase this? Definitely not, I just don't have a need for a dry shampoo and this spray is far from the greatest but, I'm glad that I'm able to make use out of this sample until it runs out. Full price: $25 // 4.5oz
Honestly, I didn't have high hopes for a shave cream because I usually just buy the $4 cans of Skintimate and call it a day, I mean how great could a shave cream really be? Nevertheless, I wasn't going to let this product go to waste. The cream has a pretty interesting scent, in the tube it reminds me of grape candy rather than anything blueberry but, once on my skin that's when the scent became very unpleasant. I know smells can change drastically depending on ones body chemistry and well...my chemistry turned this "blueberry" into BUTTER! That's right, it smelled like butter once on my skin. Now, I like butter as much as the next person but, I'd rather not smell like it; thankfully once washed away the smell didn't linger. As far as performance, I did like how sheer the cream was, it allowed me to see exactly what I was doing instead of blindly shaving beneath mounds of foam. Another pro was that it left my skin feeling extremely soft and smooth; definitely one of the closest shaves my legs have ever seen. While I still don't think that this or any other shaving cream is worth the price, it is a really nice product and if it were to go on sale I would definitely purchase it; until then I'm content with using drugstore shaving products. Full price: $20 // 150ml
Next up is the Caldrea body lotion, I received three packets with a pretty good amount in each packet. My skin has never been super dry or crying out for moisture but I do need to moisturize well and honestly, this lotion did absolutely nothing for my skin. Although the scents were pleasant (not great but pleasant), the formula of the lotion is extremely light, watery and not the least bit hydrating; five minutes after applying, my skin felt as if I had honestly used nothing. I don't expect body butter type hydration from a simple body lotion but I do expect for the lotion to not just completely disappear! This would be better suited as a simple hand lotion rather than full body and for the price, there are MUCH better alternatives. Full price: $22 // 8oz
I can't believe that I have never tried nail polish strips until now! I've heard nothing but great things about Incoco and so this was the item that I was looking forward to receiving. I was hesitant about using them since I have NEVER been good at using peel and stick type items. I'm so glad that I received these because I am in love! The directions were clear and these were super simple to use, I had all ten fingers done in less than 10 minutes. Incoco claims that these will last up to 14 days, I have my doubts that they will last that long but, I will update this post when they do start to wear away. Would I purchase these? Absolutely! I'm already planning on cashing in my points to pick up a few packs as we speak. Full price: $9-$11 (depending on the design) // 16 strips per pack
Is it bad that my second favorite item in the box is the emery board? That's bad right? Well bad or not, I've really taken a liking to this ultra simple item. I've never used a nail file that cost over $1 and honestly, that's most likely why I no longer have them because they constantly broke in half. I'm not saying the Madewell version won't eventually because it's still a typical emery board but it does feel quite sturdy and the little plastic sleeve keeps it from bending in your purse. As far as performance, it shaped my nails quickly, effectively and worked perfectly with my new nail strips! Now, would I purchase a $5 emery board? Most likely no but, it is a really nice nail file and I must admit that I adore the floral print.
Overall, I thought that I was really, REALLY going to dislike this box but the nail strips, emery board and shave cream redeemed it for me; the nail strips alone paid for the box and so everything else were nice little extras. I enjoyed 3 out of the 5 items in the box and that is great in my book. Happy Birchbox-ing lovelies!
Much love & Looking forward to April!
Update! This is now day 8 and my nail strips are still going strong! Only minor chipping involved
Overall, I thought that I was really, REALLY going to dislike this box but the nail strips, emery board and shave cream redeemed it for me; the nail strips alone paid for the box and so everything else were nice little extras. I enjoyed 3 out of the 5 items in the box and that is great in my book. Happy Birchbox-ing lovelies!
Much love & Looking forward to April!
Update! This is now day 8 and my nail strips are still going strong! Only minor chipping involved
Monday, March 11, 2013
WOW!
Hey lovelies! Dollface Beauty now has fifteen amazing readers and I've reached almost 5,000 page views!! How incredible is that? I'm so happy it's insane; it still blows my mind every single day to know that people read my blog and actually enjoy my posts. I just wanted to write a quick message and say thank you, THANK YOU to each and every one of you. It is an amazing feeling to hear from you all and to know that I'm doing a good job so far. If you have any suggestions for me on how to improve, please don't hesitate to let me know. As I've said before, my biggest goal is to grow, improve, and evolve with you all!
So THANK YOU to all my lovelies that take time out of your day to read my blog, it means the world to me and I hope that this little blog continues to grow. I love you all.
Much love xo
So THANK YOU to all my lovelies that take time out of your day to read my blog, it means the world to me and I hope that this little blog continues to grow. I love you all.
Much love xo
Thursday, March 7, 2013
MAC Russian Red Lipstick - Review
All in all, I can see why Russian Red is one of MAC's most famous lipsticks, it is by far a new favorite of mine next to Scarlet Ibis and OCC's NSFW. On days where I need an incredibly long lasting lip color, this will be the first thing I reach for. Sadly, nothing can be absolutely perfect and this is where the formula falters, it is incredibly drying; so drying in fact that it was too uncomfortable and annoying to ignore. I will say that there is a silver lining to this and that is, it doesn't LOOK drying. Meaning that, to the naked eye, my lips seemed perfectly fine. It was only on the inside that I was crying to the lip balm gods.The lipliner that I used with this lipstick was NYX Slim Lip Pencil in 817 "Hot Red" Check it out here
Purchase Russian Red here
$15 // 0.10oz (3g)
Much love xo
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
TheBalm Balm Jovi Palette - Review
It's not everyday that you find a makeup palette that is just...perfect. If you've been following my blog for the past few months you'd know that lately I've been diving more and more into TheBalm cosmetics. I've always heard great things but it wasn't until I received a few samples in my December and January Birchboxes that I really became intrigued. When Birchbox had their one day flash sale and this palette went from $39.50 down to $25, I was all over it! (No longer available from Birchbox)
This palette comes with twelve eyeshadows, two lip colors as well as a blush & highlighter (Frat Boy and Mary Lou-Manizer respectively). TheBalm is known for their products being multi-purpose and this palette is no different; Mary Lou and Frat Boy double as eyeshadows, the lip colors double as cheek stains and the shadows can be used as eyeliners; both wet and dry.
My favorite thing about this palette is how pigmented the shadows are, a little bit truly does go a long way. One downside is that they are quite powdery and rubbing your brush too hard will create a lot of excess product and make a mess of the palette (and probably your eyes!) My absolute favorite shadow is Presto, it's a dark brown that I've been using for my brows as well as a crease color. My other favorites are Alice Copper, Third Eye Blinded, Blink 1982 and Adagio. My least favorite is Metal-ica simply because it's a color that I do not wear often. All of the shades blend quite effortlessly except for Solid Gold (Mary Lou-Manizer) the application is very patchy and the pigment seems to all stick to one place making it a pain to blend out.
The lip/cheek colors dry to a semi-matte finish. Milly is relatively sheer brown toned pink; Vanilly is an opaque bright red identical to OCC's NSFW Lip Tar. A balm or primer underneath might be preferred as both are a bit drying but not overly so. Unfortunately, Milly is not flattering to my skintone at all; it is a very nude color on my lips and because of this, it ends up making me look almost sickly.
Overall, I really love this and for the first time with a palette, I find myself using every single product with the exception of Milly and Frat boy. My dislikes with these two being that they do not suit my skintone well; Milly is too nude for me and I wish Frat Boy could have been Hot Mama instead. I can only hope that TheBalm brings this palette back and makes it permanent at some point. One can hope right?
Milly & Vanilly Lip/Cheek colors // 4g
Solid Gold (Mary Lou-Manizer) // 4g
Eyeshadows // 10.8g
Don't You Want Me? (Frat Boy Blush/Eyeshadow) // 2.8g
This palette was a little hard to track down because it is now pretty much sold out everywhere. I was able to find it still available at a few places though so if you would like to purchase, act quickly.
Amazon
Perfumania
DermStore
BeautyBridge
Ebay: here and here
Much love xo
This palette comes with twelve eyeshadows, two lip colors as well as a blush & highlighter (Frat Boy and Mary Lou-Manizer respectively). TheBalm is known for their products being multi-purpose and this palette is no different; Mary Lou and Frat Boy double as eyeshadows, the lip colors double as cheek stains and the shadows can be used as eyeliners; both wet and dry.
My favorite thing about this palette is how pigmented the shadows are, a little bit truly does go a long way. One downside is that they are quite powdery and rubbing your brush too hard will create a lot of excess product and make a mess of the palette (and probably your eyes!) My absolute favorite shadow is Presto, it's a dark brown that I've been using for my brows as well as a crease color. My other favorites are Alice Copper, Third Eye Blinded, Blink 1982 and Adagio. My least favorite is Metal-ica simply because it's a color that I do not wear often. All of the shades blend quite effortlessly except for Solid Gold (Mary Lou-Manizer) the application is very patchy and the pigment seems to all stick to one place making it a pain to blend out.
The lip/cheek colors dry to a semi-matte finish. Milly is relatively sheer brown toned pink; Vanilly is an opaque bright red identical to OCC's NSFW Lip Tar. A balm or primer underneath might be preferred as both are a bit drying but not overly so. Unfortunately, Milly is not flattering to my skintone at all; it is a very nude color on my lips and because of this, it ends up making me look almost sickly.
Milly & Vanilly Lip/Cheek colors // 4g
Solid Gold (Mary Lou-Manizer) // 4g
Eyeshadows // 10.8g
Don't You Want Me? (Frat Boy Blush/Eyeshadow) // 2.8g
This palette was a little hard to track down because it is now pretty much sold out everywhere. I was able to find it still available at a few places though so if you would like to purchase, act quickly.
Amazon
Perfumania
DermStore
BeautyBridge
Ebay: here and here
Much love xo
Friday, March 1, 2013
MAC Mineralize Rich Lipstick
MAC is releasing a new line of lipsticks today (in stores March 7th) These lipsticks are called Mineralize Rich and are a bit different from your standard MAC lipsticks. The first feature that you'll notice right off the bat is the different and bit larger shape of the tube; the bullet itself is also larger which MAC claims to help deliver better coverage in fewer strokes.
From the MAC website: "Introducing a new Mineralize masterpiece for lips with a luxurious, lightweight formula enhanced with 77-Mineral Moist complex for nutrient-rich moisture. The impact is instant - softer, smoother, more supple lips"
There are 12 new shades available in this line including four nudes, a few reds and a few very spring inspired colors. A couple of the new shades catch my eye like Everyday Diva, Style Surge and Lady At Play but nothing looks especially unique and as a girl who prefers matte lip colors, I probably won't be picking these up. If I do decide to drop the extra $7 for these I will most definitely be posting a review! These lipsticks are now part of MAC's permanent line.
These lipsticks retail for $22 // 0.14oz
Traditional MAC lipsticks are $15 // 0.10oz
You can check out these lipsticks and purchase here
Much love xo
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