2015 Year to Date Favorites

It's been an age. I know. I'm finally past one of two certification exams, and I am over the hump of the semester that is mid-terms. So I'm able to chat about some of my favorite things! 2015 has been a year of lazy, no-makeup blah-ness. However, I have managed to try a few new things and rekindle my love for some tried and true favorites.

Jamberry Nails Cuticle Oil: Okay, so since I have started to make a little side business selling nail wraps, I've realized that I should probably take care of my hands a little better. One of those ways is with Jamberry cuticle oil. I am obsessed with this stuff. I don't get nearly as many hangnails (are those the painful skin cracks on your hands right by your nail? Or is the hangnail the actual hanging nail?) and the dry patches around my nails are going away. I usually use it at least once a day, but have been aiming for twice. It's an incredible value for $10. I've used it twice a day for a month, give or take a few days, and it's not even a quarter of the way gone yet. I got this in my starter kit, or else I wouldn't have really tried it... it's incredible, though, and I'm glad I did.

Neutrogena Moisture Smooth Color Stick: Juicy Peach is my favorite lip product right now. First, it smells divine. Second, it's just tinted enough to be subtle, but it gives a pop of color too. It's also really easy to re-apply. And it really does moisturize! I'm not sure of the ingredients on it, but it doesn't make my lips thirsty for more like some lipsticks or lip glosses do, or even some chapsticks. I'm always tempted to wear it to bed like a chapstick.

Davines OI All in one Milk: So, I tried this from a Birchbox way back in October or November and I hated it. But recently I was staying at my boyfriend's place, and I picked it up off of his counter. I used my normal shampoo and conditioner, so I figured I'd give it one more shot. It didn't weigh my hair down at all, and it made it very soft. I loved the way my hair looked that day when I went to work. I've now ruled that part of my hair care routine out and determined that it was either the shampoo or conditioner from the Davines line that weighed my hair down. I'm glad I gave it another shot.

Benefit Moisture Prep Toning Lotion: You guys. I went without this for like two months when my little starter sample ran out and I was so sad. But I sucked it up and spent the $30 and my skin feels much softer now. When I find a skin care routine that works, I've just gotta go with it. No more procrastinating, no more "I'll try something else." Just go with what works, for the most part. Of course, I'll try new things, but when it comes down to it, I need my previously tested awesome toner lotion.

Clarisonic Mia 2: So I love my boyfriend with all of my heart and soul, but I'm certain he is to blame for the death of my first Clarisonic Mia. He wasn't very careful of the little shelf it was on, and kept knocking it over. Every time I heard that "thud", my heart dropped. I tried to charge it one day, and it wouldn't charge. I told my mom, hoping that she had paperwork or something on it, but on Christmas morning, I had a brand new Clarisonic :) I'm so happy! It's no different than the original, really, other than the color, but it works wonderfully and I am grateful to have it again. I'm trying to make more of a consistent commitment to my skin and my beauty routine, so this is a great way to start that!

I promise I'll be back in the next day or so with more posts from the past month or two. It's good to be back!

Empties | September 2014!

So apparently I have a ton of empties for the month and had no idea? Let me get right into it, because I have a lot to talk about!

Whish Shave Crave Shaving Cream
I'll spare you a third raving about this from me. I said it in my favorites, I said it in my Birchbox unboxing for the month... it's great. I love it. I have a backup. I will continue to love it forever.

MAC Zoom Lash Mascara (Sample)
Reggie gave me a sample of this years ago, and I remember loving it, so I purchased one off Yerdle for 50 credits and $2 shipping. Thank God, because this mascara ended up being the WORST. It's because it was made in 2008 and was probably used before. The person swindled me, and I've learned my lesson about mascaras without checking up on the person's reputability first. I'm just glad my red, itchy, watery eyes are no more.

Davines OI Shampoo (Sample - Not pictured)
The shampoo worked okay. It made my hair feel clean. I don't have much to say about it other than "it was a shampoo", so I probably won't repurchase.

Davines OI Conditioner (Sample - not pictured)
The conditioner did make my hair feel very soft. However, the full size of this product is too rich for my blood. Thanks but no thanks. The sample packet gave me three good uses, and I will remember them fondly.

La Fresh Oil Free Makeup Remover Wipes (Sample)
These worked well on everything except waterproof mascara and eyeliner. Granted, I guess that's the purpose of waterproof mascara and eyeliner. But, I wiped my face down with these and it got all of my foundation, eyeshadow, lipstick, etc off. When I would look at a cloth after using it, it was filthy. So again, it did its job. Was I blown away by these? Not really. Would I repurchase? I'd consider it. I'm sure there's a comparable brand out there. Makeup wipes aren't something I've found a Holy Grail Brand for yet, so I'll keep an open mind.

K6 Skincare Clean Antioxidant Facial Cleanser (Sample - not pictured)
Things I like about this product: no stinging if it accidentally gets in your eyes. Vegan. Cruelty-free. Doesn't have a crazy smell. Cleans well. Many uses out of the sample. Things I didn't like about this product: pretty much everything else. Honestly, I prefer a cleanser to lather a little bit. Just so I know where I'm cleaning and where I've missed. I also think it was a little drying for my skin. It wasn't anything too crazy, but it was drying. I probably wouldn't repurchase, since I already have two cleansers I love that work great for me.

Fresh Soy Face Cleanser
This is one of two of my go-to cleansers. It lathers well, makes my face feel moisturized and clean, and doesn't get stingy all up in my eyeballs. It cleans my face well and I love using it with my Clarisonic. It's $38, which is really, really steep, but it lasts forever and works so well that I would seriously consider repurchasing.

Bath & Body Works Mango Mandarin Bubble Bath
I decided to take a bubble bath one night and finished this sucker off. It bubbled quite nicely and smelled incredible. It was after a long and stressful day and I was so pleased to just fill the tub up with the mango-y smell and relax. This didn't smell too citrus-y, but just enough to perk up my senses just a little.

Cover Girl Exact Eyelights Mascara
By the end of the day, there was some major flakeage with this product. My mom gets me one of these every Christmas, and I'm always 'meh' about it. What's with the exact eyelights deal? It's just... mascara. Black mascara that doesn't do anything to wow people with my beautiful chocolate brown eyes or anything. It's plain old black mascara and I wasn't blown away by it.

Secret Outlast Gel Antipersperant
I usually prefer gel deodorant, but I prefer the deodorant I got in my VoxBox better when it comes to controlling my sweaty self. I felt clean with this. It did its job wonderfully. I have a backup and would repurchase it. I think maybe it's just a situational use instead of every single day? Maybe when I go to work or class, this will work, but when I take a Pure Barre class, the other one will work? Who knows.

Philosophy Miracle Worker Anti Aging Moisturizer for Blemish Prone Skin (Sample)
This worked really well. It made my skin feel really really soft. I got 3-4 uses out of the tiny package. Would I repurchase? Probably not. It's too expensive for me. But if someone gave it to me as a gift, I'd be incredibly thrilled to use it again.

Makeup Forever Artist Shadow (Sample)
I like this brand a lot from what I was able to try. The shadows stayed on all day and the colors were beautiful. I like that it told me how to apply it to get a pretty look.  I hope I get the opportunity to try more shadows from this brand because I really enjoyed them!

Bikini Zone Anti-Bumps Shave Gel
This stuff paired with the after shave lotion stuff is awesome. I prefer it as opposed to shaving cream or similar for that area. I rarely get bumps when I use this and a really good razor and I would definitely repurchase, since it's a reasonable price and works well.


The ones that weren't pictured were at my boyfriend's place, but believe me, I used them. I had a lot more empties than I thought I did! A lot of products I used up this month were 'meh' products, or products someone had given to me as a gift that I wasn't thrilled with. There were some good ones in there, though, so it will be interesting to see what October has in store in regards to empties!

Subscription Addiction: September Birchbox Success!

This month was Birchbox's anniversary month. To celebrate four years of existence and awesomeness, they made their usual box all pretty and fancy, and included a crapton of awesome extras. As usual, I was pleased with the majority of it! Here we go!

Subscription Box: Birchbox

Description: Each month, you'll receive a selection of samples that we’ve tried (and retried) ourselves. We source our samples from both well-known brands and emerging gems. The women’s subscription includes everything from skincare to makeup, as well as fun non-beauty extras. The men’s subscription delivers top-tier grooming products in addition to lifestyle accessories ranging from hip socks to tech accessories.  

Pricing: $10/month.

Referral Link: Here

Product #1: Dr. Jart+ Black Label Detox BB Beauty Balm
I haven't tried this yet. Everyone raves about Dr. Jart, but I just haven't had the opportunity to try this particular product yet. It's my first BB anything, since my collection is so new, but I'm excited to try it.

Product #2: Mereadesso All in One Moisturizer (Travel Size)
I love this! It makes my face so, so soft, and the packaging is excellent, especially for a sample/travel size. RESEALABLE? HECK YES. It didn't break my face out, either. I probably wouldn't repurchase, since it's crazy expensive, but I'm going to definitely use it up.

Product #3: Davines OI All in One Milk 
My hair definitely felt soft after this, but I felt like it was weighed down. I do have to say, though, the times that I've used it, I haven't been doing my usual haircare routine. I keep this at my boyfriend's house, and I don't have a blowdryer there. It's a HUGE size, though, so I want to use it up and make sure I give it its proper due test.

Product #4: Davines OI Shampoo
The shampoo combined with the OI Milk was... strange? I don't know. I love that they included this as an extra sample because of the anniversary, and it made my hair feel clean, I just feel like maybe all three (there's one coming up) products combined weighed my hair down. I'll experiment and follow up.

Product #5: Davines OI Conditioner
The conditioner made my hair feel INCREDIBLY soft. I do love the conditioner and know for sure that wasn't part of the weighing down problem. I don't think I'll repurchase it, because it's very expensive, but I'll absolutely continue to use it until it's gone. Again, because this was included as an anniversary special, it's hard to complain too much.

Product #6: Harvey Prince Ageless Liquid Loofah
Um, my grapefruit obsession is becoming a problem! But this product is AMAZING. Harvey Prince is one of those scents I've heard so many good things about on the internet, and I'm looking forward to using it up. It's supposed to be exfoliating, but I don't really feel like it exfoliated my skin? But honestly, it smells good and made me feel fresh and clean, so who cares?

Product #7: Temptu S/B Highlighter
Apparently this is a brand often associated with the spray guns, or whatever they're called. Airbrushes? You can use it on its own, but rumor has it you can also use it with the airbrush. I'm honestly going to pass this on or trade it. I'm not going to open it, and it doesn't seem like something I'm going to take the time to use. Know thyself.

So overall, it was definitely a month where I got my money's worth! I do wish there were more makeup products in this month's box, but the samples I did get were mostly worth the money, and I have a hard time complaining about the generosity of Birchbox, especially when I got all the anniversary extras. This wasn't a box where I went "meh", like BeautyBox5 (don't even get me started), so I'm still very pleased!