Monday, June 12, 2017

Shop My Stash Summer 2017 Edition!


Welcome to the Summer edition of Shop My Stash!

I'm kind of getting bored with these posts. They do help me go through what I have and rotate out my items. But then I'm like ok ok ok what are you using because you need to get this post up! That's not fun for me. Also sometimes I don't actually reach for the items I pull. For the most part I do but sometimes I end up reaching for other things. Plus life is in progress. I have another work trip coming up, house stuff to do, blah, blah blah! You know adulting. So I decided to pick out a bunch of items to use for June, July and August.

So here's what I playing around with this summer!

Shadow Play


Naked 1, 2 & 3

Vice Ltd.

I feel like I haven't shown my OG Urban Decay Naked Palettes any love in while. So Naked 1, 2 and 3 will be in the rotation for the summer. Have you heard that there's a new Naked palette coming out!!?!? It's called Naked Heat and it warm toned palette! *twirls* I also picked up the Vice Ltd palette via a blog sale. So I'll throw that in for some color.

Polish Play

First Row: Tiana, Cindy, Bar, Cece, Merida
Second Row: Zooey, Brita, Aurora, Finley, Dream

Ivy League, Twisted Pink, Violet Voltage, Lacey Lilac, The Real Teal, Pacific Blue 

With nail polishes for the summmer, I said ok I'm going to grab some Zoya nail polishes and be done. Then Sally Hansen popped in my head. Then I ended up with a whole heap of nail polishes.

Fragrance Play


I already knew that I wanted to play around with philosophy's summer scents for summer time!. It's only fitting right? I will be playing around with Summer Grace, Falling Love Summer and Sea of Love. I have the spray fragrances for Summer Grace and Falling in Love Summer. I'm debating if I want to pick up the Sea of Love spray fragrance. I'm also going to throw Wen's Summer Mango Coconut into the mix to get my coconut fix.

I will still do my Top 5 posts for June, July and August. I'm sure some other random posts will pop in my head to do.

So see you in September for another Shop My Stash post!!

Sunday, June 11, 2017

May 2017 Top 5


Here's my top 5 for May!


philosophy Honey & Cream

I saw sneak peeks of this new philosophy scent on social media. I was curious but then forgot about it. It was included in the philosophy joyful bath & body 4 piece mega collection that was a Today's Special Value in April. They did a similar set like them last year with MEGA 64oz shower gel. Now I said that I would not get a set that had this much shower gel! Never say never right? HA! The value was ridiculous and it came with two super sized Glazed Body Souffles. You know these are my favorite body moisturizers. So I caved and did auto delivery. The Hone & Cream scent has "honey notes and light, fluffy cream". It just smells good. It's kind of calming as well. I'm sure at some point it'l be available at retail and you can give it a whiff.

philosophy Lemon Custard

I also ordered the philosophy super-size body souffle & body spritz set in Lemon Custard when I ordered Honey & Cream. I have raved about the shower gel last year. I had the Glazed Body Souffle in another set but I ended up returning it. So I jumped on this. The Lemon Custard scent has "lemon zest with a silky, smooth custard finish". This definitely a pick me up scent. The custard component mixes well with the Lemon. I reached for this on morning when I need that extra something to get me going.

Serious Skincare Continuously Clear Medicated Moisture Replenishing Cream

I ordered the Serious Skincare Over 40 Breakout Control Kit from HSN. I have been wanting to try the Continuously Clear line for a while. So I said why not with this set and grab some Vitamin C products as well. I've enjoyed the three Continuously Clear items but the stand out was the cream! This line has two moisturizer, this one and the gel. When I originally looked at this line I leaned more so towards the gel since I'm oily but I'm learning that oily skin still needs to be moisturized properly. When they explained the cream, they said they created for mature skin that needs moisture and the gel was more so for younger skin (teens and young adults) that don't need as much moisture. I thought that was a cool idea. Still I thought that the cream would be "too much" for my skin. Not the case at all and the cream is fantastic! I wasn't heavy on my skin and it didn't make me greasy. I was impressed by the ingredient deck which includes Retinyl Palmitate, Glycolic Acid and Hyaluronic Acid. I would definitely repurchase this on its own. I still my try the gel at some point to use as a daytime moisturizer.

Butter London Nail Polishes (Brown Sugar, Wallis, All Hail the Queen)

I mentioned in my May Shop My Stash post that I was having some chipping issues with the Butter London polishes I took to San Francisco. I believe the culprit was the base coat I was using. These three polishes I wore a lot through the month and I've continued using them into June. Brown Sugar got the most use. It's a opaque, copper shimmer with gold glitter. IWhen I first put it on, I wasn't too sure about it. Then I ended up really liking it and I received compliments on it. This may be my go to nail polish for the summer. Wallis is a unique shade that's a golden olive green shimmer. I used All Hail the Queen (holographic beige shimmering) in a recent nail post.

Juvia's Place Blush Palette Vol 2

When I saw on Instagram that Juvia's Place was coming out with blushes, I was super excited! I scooped this when they have a free shipping promo. By the time I ordered Vol 1 was sold out but I was able to order it via Hautelook. So it'll be in rotation soon. In these palette there are 4 matte blushes and two shimmer blushes. I have not worn the shimmer blushes on their own. I mix them with the matte blushes using them more so like a highlighter. The matte blushes are smooth and you can build the color on your cheeks. This is hands down my favorite blush palette that I've tried!

And let's throw in a couple of quick bonuses shall we? These are products that caught me by surprise.


Cafe Bustello Espresso Style K Cups

I stumbled upon this coffee on sale at CVS. One of my YouTube faves Jennifer Wan, has mentioned it in her vlogs, so I said why not. I was kind of leery since it said Espresso Style. But I was tickled that it says stands up to sugar and cream on the packaging. So I gave it a go and I really really like it! I do add sugar and cream to my coffee. Sometimes I can be heavy handed with the cream and my coffee can be too sweet. This does stand up to cream and sugar. It has a very nice flavor that's not too strong even thought it's an Espresso Style coffee. It gives me that jolt I need first thing in the morning. I need to try is as an iced coffee! *note to self*

Brows

Brows are something in my routine that at first I didn't really do.. Then I started doing them but I was never really "obsessed" with them like some tend to be. That's kinda changed over the last couple of months. Everyone raves about Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz. I've looked at it here and there but never have been moved to purchase it. Well that changed during Ulta's 21 Days of Beauty and Brow Wiz was on sale for $10 I think. I ended up getting two shades (Chocolate and Ebony) from Ulta's website. Both shades work for me but I like Ebony a little more. I have enjoyed using Brow Wiz and you can get a nice natural looking brow with it. Then I started thinking about the NYX Micro Brow Pencil that's a dupe. I tried it when it first came out but then I couldn't pick the right shade and I hadn't used a brow pencil that fine in a long time. So I gave it another try and I picked up the shade Chocolate. It is too light to use through my full brow. Then I remember people mentioned using a lighter shade in the front part of their brow because it looks more natural. I gave that a go and color me surprised, I liked the way it turned out. I used the NYX pencil through the first 1/4 of my brown and I used Iman's brow pencil through the rest of my brow. So yay brows!

There you have it. Let's see what June brings!

Monday, June 5, 2017

Top 5 - Travel Edition (San Francisco)



For my work trips I am usually gone a week. So it's hard to not take too much stuff since I am going for quite a while. I typically try to take tried and true products but I also may take something new to try out. Here are my 5 favorites from my San Francisco trip.

Garnier 5 Second Blur Instant Smoother

This was the primer I decided to take. I scooped this form Walgreens when it was on sale for like $8. I should have gone back and picked up another one. This is a really good primer. It takes down the shine on my face and smooths out my skin. Foundation goes on effortlessly with this primer.  I also wore it alone with no makeup.

Serious Skincare Creamerum Evolve

Travel takes a toll on your skin especially being on an airplane. So I added this to my morning routine before both of my flights. I continued using it for the week because my skin apparently needed the extra moisture. The keep my skin hydrated and plump!

Kat Von D Liquid Lipsticks

I picked up the shades Sanctuary (nude coffee) and Crucifix (deep chocolate) during the recent Sephora sale. They came the day I was packing and I threw them in my makeup bag. I really enjoyed these shades! Sanctuary is nude perfection for my skin tone. I love good chocolate lip color and Crucifix is just that. I also think that these have been reformulated. They felt a lot nicer on the lips than some of the original shades I have. I'm tempted to get more shades but I'm trying to be good.

Tarte Palettes (Maneater and Sex Kitten)

I got two new palettes from Tarte. I got them the week before my trip. I did a couple of looks with each palette to make sure that I liked them enough to travel with. I've really been enjoying these smaller Tarte palettes. Maneater is warmed toned and Sex Kitten is cool toned. The each have seven eyeshadows and a highlighter. The eyeshadows are smooth, pigmented and easy to blend. They pair nicely together as well.

Nail-Aid Acetone Spray Remover in Keratin & Cocoa Butter

I think I saw this on Snapchat and said hmmmm this would be good for travel. It removed my nail polish without any extra effort. I really like how my nails and nail area were nicely conditioned and not dry! I'm not sure how long this would last with regular use but it's great for travel. I ordered from the company's website. Their products are at Walmart too. I'm curious about their base coats.

BONUS: Qflmy Vintage Retro Canvas Messenger Bag Crossbody Shoulder Bag

I was ready to take my Dooney & Bourke Multi Color Nylon North/South Triple Zip Crossbody, Then I decided I wanted something that could hold a little more and I didn't want to spend a lot of money. I took to Amazon and ordered the Qflmy Vintage Retro Canvas Messenger Bag Crossbody Shoulder Bag in grey. This bag is fantastic for travel or even just for everyday. It's lightweight and there are tons of pockets for organization. The shoulder strap is nice a long so I could crossbody it with ease. I may order one of the brown colors and maybe even black.

And here is a pic of the Bay Bridge lit up. I was able to get out to the Ferry Building which I highly recommend checking out if you are ever in San Francisco.


I have another trip at the end of July and possibly on at the end of October. So I'll try to do Top 5 posts for those two trips.

I still have my Top 5 for May! Stay tuned!

April/May 2017 Out of My Face


Here's what I used up April and May!


  • Serious Skincare Pure Pep Fading Fluid (2)
  • H.K. Girl Fast Drying & Super Shiny Clear Top Coat
  • Nene's Secret Gorgeous Grow
  • Josie Maran Argan Balm
  • Korres Body Butter in Mulberry Vanilla
  • Majestic Oil Hydrating Shampoo
  • Majestic Oil Hydrating Conditioner
  • Skinfix Hand Repair Cream (2)
  • philosophy Pure Grace Perfumed Olive Oil Body Scrub
  • One 'n Only Argan Oil
  • Purity Made Simple Mask
  • Serious Skincare A Force XR Serum 2oz
  • philosophy Shampoo, Shower Gel & Bubble Bath in The Gingerbread Man 32oz
  • philosophy Glazed Body Souffle in Fresh Cream
  • One 'n Only Argan Spray
  • Neutrogena Clear Pore Oil-Eliminating Astringent
  • Urban Decay All Nighter Makeup Setting Spray
  • Chi Silk Infusion
  • Neutrogena Makeup Remover Cleansing Towelettes
  • philosophy The Present
  • Vitafusion Women's  Adult Gummies
  • philosophy Whipped Body Creme in Pure Grace
  • Wen Replenishing Treatment Mist in Winter Vanilla Mint
I know hair oils are all the rage but I'm kinda old school when it come to moisturizing my scalp. A blogger I follow did a Dry Flaky Scalp Solutions: Hair Grease post and I picked up a couple of her recommendations. I picked up Nene's Gorgeous Grow and Profectiv Mega Growth Growth Revitalizer Hair & Scalp Moisturizer. Of the two, Nene's Go Go Gorgeous was the stand out product. I've already ordered two more jars. My scalp can get very dry and itchy. This helps soothe my scalp, there's no buildup and it doesn't weigh my hair down. 

I picked the Majestic Oil Hydrating Shampoo and Conditioner after trying the hair oil. I got the smaller sizes to try. I got 3 washes out of the shampoos and 4 uses of of the conditioner. I really enjoyed these two products. The shampoo got my hair clean and I was still able to finger comb my hair. The conditioner was really nice. It made my hair soft and moisturized. I was tempted to run out and get the full sized bottles but I don't need them right now. I have other items to use. Even though I enjoyed these two products, I'm not sure I will repurchase them any time soon. Trying to use what I have and I may go back to using Wen.

See you again for some more empties!