March 2017 Out of My Face

I cannot believe it is April! I had good intentions to get this up in March. Dah well!

Here's what I used up in March:

• Wen Lavender Mint Treatment Oil
• Serious Skincare Olive Oil Replenishing Body Oil
• philosophy Living Grace Whipped Body Creme
• Wen Styling Creme in Tea Tree
• Andrew Lessman Healthy Hair, Skin and Nails 720 count
• Skinfix Rich Hand Cream
• Serious Skincare Reverse Lift Reverse Serum 1oz
• philosophy Purity Made Simple
• Wen 613 Ultra Nourishing Intensive Body Treatment
• Skinfix Hand Repair Cream
• Andrew Lessman Healthy Hair Skin & Nail 720 count
• Beauty Secrets Acetone Nail Polish Remove 32oz
• Covergirl Queen All Day Flawless Foundation
• Dickson's Daily Refreshingly Clean Cleansing Cloths
• tarte Gifted Mascara
• Mally More is More Mascara

The Serous Skincare Reverse Lift Firming Facial Serum with Argifirm is a newbie item. I was going to mention it in my favorites for February. Then I was going to do a separate post on it but then I felt like I needed to use it some more. I got this in one the Serious Skincare Halloween surprise boxes I picked up from HSN. I was like ummm I don't have wrinkles and my face doesn't need any lifting. I went on HSN to check out the reviews and what surprised me was that several reviews mentioned that this serum helped with pores, smoothing out the skin, easier makeup application and brightness. I then said SOLD! So I gave it a go and I really like this. It definitely makes my skin smoother and my makeup more seamless. I've used it twice a day and then I switched to just using it in the morning. I have a 2oz size that I got in a set of serums. So I'm glad I have another bottle handy. After I used the 2oz bottle up, I'll decide if this is a keeper in my routine.

Another newbie to the list are the Dickson's Cleansing Cloths. These were on my list to try since I like their witch hazel toner. I scooped these up from Walgreens. There are pricey. I think they were either $6.99 or $7.99. I had a $1 off coupon. First use I used them on my eyes like a dummy! Then I was like they have witch hazel in them fool! So needless to say it burned my eyes *head palm*. So one "downside" is that you can't use these to remove your eye makeup. It removed my face makeup fine. Then I used these on no makeup days when I need to clean my face but didn't feel like using a face wash. They are nice but I more than likely will not repurchase them since I use cloths like these to mainly remove all my makeup.

The Skinfix Hand Repair Cream is another newcomer. After trying and loving their Rich Hand Cream, I wanted to give this a try. QVC has a deal on a set of 3. I really like it but I feel like I go through it quicker than the Rich Hand Cream. I've already ordered another set from QVC. Once is going in my travel bag.

And there you have it. My next empties post will combine April and May since I have work travel coming up. *sigh*

TTFN - ta ta for now!

#ManicureMonday Bobbi Brown Turquoise & Cult Nails Dance All Night

What happened to the days when you had aches and pains and all you had to do was take some Tylenol and lay down? Sheesh. First I had a knee issues. I got that worked out then my back wants to start acting a fool! I tell you. Smh. Dah well. Let's talk nail polish!

Today I'm wearing Bobbi Brown's Turquoise. The color of this polish is self explanatory. It's a pretty shade. It's a shade you can definitely find at a cheaper price point. At first I was only going to do an accent nail with Cult Nails Dance All Night. I liked the way it looked so I did it on each nail. Dance All Night is described as "multi sized blue and green glitter intermixed with a color shifting micro glitter that goes from gold to orange". The base of the polish is clear which is nice for layering with other polishes. It's a bummer that Cult Nails is no longer in business. They had some pretty polishes.

Going to keep the nail posts going in April. So see you next Monday!

#ManicureMonday Essie Angora Cardi & China Glaze Beach It Up

Hellllooooooo!

Here we are. Another Monday on deck. Traffic this morning was THEEEEE worst! I swear one day, I'm going to just turn around and go back home! I definitely need a shorter commute or the ability to telework.

Ok enough adulting ranting. Let's talk about some nail polish.

Today I'm wearing Essie's Angora Cardi. This is the polish that I mentioned in my March Shop My Stash post that was all the rage recently. It was their #1 most pinned shade for fall 2016 on Pinterest. It's supposed to look go on any skin tone. It's described as a lush, deep dusty rose polish. This is my second time wearing it and I really do like it. This may be one of my go to nail polishes for work travel. As an accent nail I am wearing Beach It Up by China Glaze. I picked this up yesterday at Sally Beauty. I always troll the nail polish displays whenever I pop in there. It is from their 2017 Spring Fling collection. It described as a dense rose gold and copper glitter in clear base. I like it. I want to see if I'll like it as a full mani. Stay tuned for that.

Now let the rest of Monday proceed. -______-

TTFN - ta ta for now!

March 2017 Shop My Stash

Here's an update to my February Top 5 post. I decided to return the Mally Eyes on You 4-Piece Collection that included the Ageless Eyes V.2 Eyeshadow Palette. After looking at it some more, it is very very similar to her Nude Attitude palette which I do own. Also I forgot to mention that I did experience fallout with the lighter shimmer shades which didn't bother me a whole lot. The Ageless Eyes palette is still a favorite for the month. It's just not a keeper in my collection.

Ok now on to March! Here is what I'm playing around with for the month.

Shadow Play

More new brands on deck! I picked up two Makeup Revolution palettes from Ulta. I have done some serious damage at Ulta recently. Oy vey. I came across the Ultra Eye Contour palette (left) and I was like ok this is a dupe for the Kat Von D Shade & Light Palette! I also picked up the New-trals vs Neutrals palette (right). I was poking around on Ulta's website (trouble trouble!!) and came across the You Had Me Aloha palette by Cargo (top) The colors spoke to me but I went back and forth on purchasing it because I do not need anymore palettes! Guuuhh!!! But as you clearly can see I caved. Let;s see if these are keepers.

Polish Play

For nail polishes this month, I pulled out some of the higher end nail polishes I have from Bobbi Brown (Twilight and Turquoise), Dior (Amazonia), Dolce & Gabbana (Mint) and Chanel (Black Pearl). I also pulled a couple from Sally Hansen (Spark in the Dark and Bare Hug) and one from Essie (Angora Cardi) that was all the rage this past Fall. I can't remember who did the post, but the claim was that this nail polish looks good on any skin tone. From there it was sold out everywhere. I recently just go my hands on it from Ulta. Sorry for the lack of nail posts. My nails have taken a beating. I've been trying to get them back in shape and they seem to be on the mend. So hopefully there will be more nail posts this month.

Fragrance Play

I mentioned Juicy Couture Viva La Juicy Sucre Eau de Parfum in my February Top 5 post. So of course I still want to play around with it some more. Cashmere Glow from Bath & Body Works is back. I also have the shower gel and body cream. Come the end of the month whatever I use up is what I use up. I'm ready to be done with this scent. Another new scent I recently picked up is La Nuit by Lancome. I've only worn it twice. So I need to give a good go to see if I'm going to keep it, Isn't the bottle pretty? Lancome is becoming another favorite for fragrance.

And here we go!

February 2017 Top 5

Hey. Hey there. How ya doing? Here's my top 5 for February!

Juicy Couture Viva La Juicy Sucre Eau de Parfum

Juicy Couture is becoming one of my new favorite brands for fragrance. I got this from HSN when it was at an event price and free shipping. I have two other Viva La Juicy scents (Viva La Juicy and Viva La Juicy Rose). What sold me on this one was the fragrance notes. They are:

Top: Brazilian gardenia, mandarin and red currant
Mid: Orange flower, jasmine flower, peach nectar and almond cream
Base: Cocoa bean, sandalwood, whipped cream and vanilla extract

They base note alone caught my attention. I'm a fan of sweet scents but not overly sweet and look at the bottle! Could this be any cuter. When I got it home I wore for a week straight and I LOVE IT! It's a fun and flirty scent. Next time you're out and and about, give this a whiff.

NYX Sweet Cheeks Blush Palette

I scooped this up from Ulta. Did I need more blush? Of course not but hey lol! I've been a fan of NYX powder blushes in the past. This palette is really nice and I like the shade selection. With some blush palettes, there are shades that are similar to each other. With this palette each shade is something different. Two of the lighter shimmery blushes I used as highlighters. The other blushes and nicely pigmented and show up nicely on my deeper skin tone. This palette will definitely come in handy for travel. Now I'm curious about the Strobe of Genius palette. Stay tuned to see if I pick it up. I probably will. *shifty eyes*

Origins Mask Out of Trouble 10 Minute Mask to Rescue Problem Skin

Two YouTubers I watch with a similar skin type as me (Nicole Guerriero and Kristina Braly) said that this mask had really helped their skin. So I was curious. I've looked at Origins skincare off and on but have never picked anything up. I made an exchange at Sephora and picked this up. When I put it on my skin, I said oh! I lik the smell lol. I'm weird and like minty/menthol smells. The scent is kind of soothing to me. Again I'm weird. It was easily to apply and rinse off. I can't stand masks that hard to put on and take forever to remove. When I removed it my skin felt soft and "looked" clean and bright. By that I mean, it brought all the gunk out of my skin. The next morning my skin looked even better. I used it a few more times just to make sure and had the same results. So I think I have found a mask to keep in my routine for when my skin starts acting up.

Mally's Ageless Eyes V.2 Eyeshadow Palette

I mentioned this palette in my February Shop My Stash post. I kept reaching for this palette during the month. It's a complete palette. I didn't have to pull in any additional shades to do an eye look. The dark matte brown is fantastic. The palette also has a matte black. Overall it's  neutral palette with some subtle pops of color. You can do a nice simple look or a dark and smoky look. The shadow quality is on par with Mally's other palettes I have tried. If you're looking for a new palette to play around with then check this one out.

Mally's More is More Mascara

A friend was nice enough to send me this mascara. I had seen it on QVC but really wasn't moved to try it since I'm stuck on Tarte mascaras. This mascara claims to give you the look of false lashes and I love it! The applicator is plastic and I tend to like plastic applicators more so than your traditional mascara wands. This mascara gives me length, volume and curl. It doesn't smudge on me and it's easy to remove. So score!

Sorry for the so so photos *head palm*. I have another camera I keep meaning to test out. I'll try to give it a go for the next go round. On to March!

Bag of the Moment - Vince Camuto "Cecil" Leather Slouchy Shoulder Bag

Hellllloooooo!

Let's talk about the Vince Camuto "Cecil" Leather Slouchy Shoulder Bag that I picked this bag up from HSN. I had my eye on this bag when it was a Today's Special but I couldn't makeup my mind about it. I saved it to my favorite items list. The favorite items list alerts you when something goes on sale, sells out, comes back in stock etc. I got an alert that the bag was on sale and I saw that it was on free shipping. Since I have been clearing out my bags, I noticed that I didn't have a go to black bag. So I ordered the Cecil bag in black to give it a whirl and I have really been enjoying it. It's a nice size for everyday. You can get a lot of stuff in the bag but it doesn't become too bulky. Also for a leather bag, it is lightweight with no items in it which is a plus. You don't want to start out with a heavy bag then add your stuff then it becomes super heavy. If you looking for a good hobo bag then check this one out. I was tempted to get another color but then one I was eyeing is sold out. So I think I'm good with just the black. See I'm making progress.

TTFN - ta ta for now!

Jan/Feb 2017 Out of My Face

Helllllloooo and happy March! I can't believe it's March already! Life is still in progress but things are kind of getting back to normal. I have a few posts that I want to get up. So let start with some empties shall we? We shall!

Here is what I've used up in January and February:

• Vaseline Cocoa Butter
• One n Only Argan Oil
• philosophy Falling in Love Spray Fragrance 4oz
• Proclaim Cocoa & Shea Butter Hand & Body Lotion 3oz
• Silk Elements Shea Butter with Olive Oil Hand Cream 3oz
• Fresh Cream Glazed Body Souffle 16 oz
• Duri Rejuvacote
• Serious Skincare Ultra-Mare Pure Marine Serum Concentrate
• Skindinavia The Makeup Finishing Spray Oil Control
• Skinfix Ultra Rich Hand Cream
• Beaute Essentielle Antioxidant Facial Wipes in Pomegranate Acai
• Serious Skincare Pure Pep Fading Fluid
• Serious Skincare Dermal Crepe Resist Eye Cream
• philosophy Take a Deep Breath SPF 30 Oil-Free Oxygen Moisturizer
• Wen Fall Ginger Pumpkin Treatment Oil
• Ween Fall Ginger Pumpkin Replenishing Treatment Mist

I came across the Beaute Essentielle Antioxidant Facial Wipes in Pomegranate Acai at TJ Maxx. They were $3.99 for 60 wipes. At first I thought they were just ok. The more I used them, the more I grew to like them. They are a nice size to remove makeup. They're not harsh feeling and nicely saturated. I also picked up another version that's next on my list to use. There were a TON of different facial wipes at the one TJ Maxx store I went to and the prices were very good compared to the drugstore, Ulta, etc. If you need to stock up on some wipes, I say check TJ Maxx or Marshalls. I think the philosophy Take a Deep Breath Moisturizer is a good one for the daytime. It didn't interfere with my makeup and it didn't make my skin extra oily. I would definitely repurchase it. I've purchased "fancy" balms, butters and what not but when I went back to using Vaseline Cocoa Butter on my feet, back and other places that needed a little extra attention, I said to myself yep I'm sticking with this. It gets the job done and you can't beat the price. Not too shabby these last two months in trying to use stuff up. I lost my mind in February and picked up a bunch of stuff here and there. So yea I have MORE stuff to try and use up. Oy vey lol!

Let's see what I use up next!