Spring Nail Polish Swap - Reveal

Hello,

Well surprise, surprise I participated in another swap!  This one was the Spring Nail polish Swap! 

We were to send our partner a polish and some goodies and make them a special card too!  I was paired with Kristy from Twist and Sprinkle.  We got to know each other and our nailpolish tastes a bit and she sent me the cutest package!

How cute is that all wrapped up?!?  After a long week this was such a wonderful surprise to come home to.
And inside...

A lovely travel manicure set - this is going right into my purse :)  Some lotion to keep my hands soft and hydrated and Revlon "Girly".  I have wanted this polish for a while so it was a great surprise :)  Yea!  Thanks again Kristy!

What polish would you like to pop up in your mail?

Jasmine

Total Beauty Mystery Collection - Revealed!

Hello!

One of my favorite beauty websites to read is Total Beauty.com.  They always have interesting articles like "Orange is the New Black - The Weirdest Place you'll Find Rad DIY Beauty Tips". They also have "Collections" which are kind of like a one-time subscription service where you get a bunch of beauty stuff at a discount based around a theme.  Well I was reading on of my favorite blogs Making up the Midwest (she's from Chicago, makes amazing videos, reviews a TON of products and always has the 411 on the best deals.) - Go follow her now, I'll wait. 
She mentioned that Total Beauty was doing a Mystery collection box for $26 + free shipping but she had a discount code so you could get it for $22.10 +free shipping.  I had my debit card out faster than you could say "Beauty Hoarder".  It promised 7 full size products and 3 deluxe sizes + 2 Full Size NYX products that were not a Mystery (You knew you were going to get their color balm and a roll on shadow)
So here's what arrived today!

 

It only took 5 days to get here - so what's inside?

 

 

 



ALL SORTS OF GOODIES!

 

 

4 Revlon ColorStay Polishes in (LtoR) Jungle, Seashell, Sunburst & Trade Winds 

 Value - $20.00 (4.99 ea)

 

 

Revlon Lip Butters in Pink Lemonade & Sorbet!  Value - $12.98 ($6.49 ea)

 

 

NYX Roll on Shimmer in Nude & NYX Color Lip Balm in Thank you   

Value - $8.25 ($4.50 & $3.75)

 

Ziaja Goat's Milk Day Cream - which I may use as a hand cream :)  And Chella Resurfacing Mask (Enzyme and Lactic Treatment) My favorite kind of mask - the kind that takes some skin off! 
Value - $6.33  ($2.25 & $4.08)  A bottle of the Chella Mask usually runs $60!

Ferro Cosmetics Blush X3 Mineral Blush in Terra Cotta & Suzie's Glow - the Ferro Website is so cool you might want to check it out if you like Mineral makeup.  The full size are 4 grams and cost $17.00, I'm going to guess these are a gram each?  They get all over when you open it because it doesn't have a sifter and a little goes a long way.

 

 

It's Terra Cotta on the Left and Suzie's Glow on the right - so pretty (I wasn't able to really catch the colors)  Value -$8.50 (4.25 ea)

 

 

 

 

Revlon ColorStay Shadow Palette in Sea Mist - Great colors!  Value $5.99

The Honest Co.  organic lip balm in Sweet Orange Vanilla - $3.32 (Usually these come in a trio for $9.95).

 

Total Value - $65.37  Now I was using Target, Cherry Culture and Amazon prices - so I may be lower than what you could find these for, but that's where I would buy them.

 

It is a lot of Revlon products - but I like the ones I got a lot. I also like that they introduced me to new affordable brands.  I am also pleased that the other half of the products are almost all cruelty free and made with more "natural" ingredients, so I feel did they did a good job of giving you a Total Beauty package.  I only paid $22.15 - am I pleased - oh yeah!

 

What do you think?

 

Jasmine

Nail Polish Frenzy

Hello!

Well I acquired some more nail polish this week - I don't know what's wrong with me!  I've got the WANT-sies! 

What I need to do is film my polish collection video - like Martha from Quick Cheap & Pretty.  I think it will shame me into realizing I have every color :)  Well, not every color...

So here's what I got:

From the Left - OPI Pirouette My Whistle, OPI Lucerne-Tainly Look Marvelous, Finger Paints - Colorful Collage, ORLY - Sparkling Garbage, Sinful Shine (from Sinful Colors) - Picante, Revlon - Lagoon Afternoon

I got the OPI polishes at Carson Pierre Scott, the Finger Paints & Orly at Sally Beauty Supply, and the last two at Walgreens.

I took a close-up of the OPI Pirouette My Whistle because it's an interesting looking polish and I'm not sure how I'm going to use it - I need to Google some nail pictures to see what others have done because I kind of don't like it!

It's just "blah" right?  And that's three coats.

Here's my nail wheel with all the colors swatched - they (of course) look much better in person!

I LOVE the Finger Paints Holo Glitter!  And the Sinful Shine is soooooo much better than the usual Sinful Colors.  I only used to coats and the color is bright, smooth and shiny!  The ORLY Sparkling Garbage I bought after seeing amazing pictures on Beauty Redefined by Pang.  She actually captures how pretty it is. 

So that's my little haul!

Jasmine

Revlon Pacific Coast Collection - LE White Mist Gel Eyeliner

Hello!

Today I wanted to share the One item I picked up from the new Revlon Pacific Coast Collection by Gucci Westman.

Picture from LisaLovesMakeup87.blogspot.com

 

The 4 nail polishes were colors I feel like I have, the 2 eye shadow palettes were colors I have (and I really didn't like how they looked in the ad pictures...) I had heard the mini blush sticks were a bit waxy, and the lip butters are part of the permanent collection from what I can tell.  SOOOO I just got the white gel eyeliner.

 

 

I got it at Walgreens for $9.99.

 

 



The brush hooks into the lid - it's not the best mechanism I have ever tried but just using the short part of the brush works ok.  I was really hoping the eyeliner would be an opaque white - but it's a shimmery sheer white.

I swatched it both "wide" and "thin" on the left and then on the right I smudged in some matte pink eye shadow to see if I could also use it as a base for making it what ever color I want - and it will work with some finessing :)

Overall - it's ok.  I fully admit to being a gel eyeliner snob, I primarily only use Bobbi Brown, Inglot, and MAC fluidline so this is one of those things I really need to be wowed by and I am willing to pay a bit more for and Inglot is only $12 sooo $9.99 for Revlon is pushing it.

Have you tried anything from this collection?

Jasmine

Ohh La La Lips - Revlon Matte in Really Red

Hello!

Today's ohh la la lips is a Matte lipstick from Revlon, which still exists but I am having an increasingly hard time finding.  I like Matte formulations especially with red lipsticks as the glossy ones have a tend to bleed on me even with lip liner. 

This lipstick is what I would consider a true red and the formula is very pigmented, I swatched it against other colors I have worn for the Oh La La Lips posts and you can see it is definitely the Red-est :)

The formula is not drying (but I do always exfoliate and balm up before wearing a matte red).  It also stains your lips a bit but in a way I like - it's just like a gradual fading.

Before RED!!  Blah

After the transforming powers of a red lipstick!

Hope your having a fabulous week!

Jasmine

Like a hole in the head...

Hello!

I recently picked up some new polishes at Jewel/Osco (a grocery pharmacy chain), CVS and Ulta.  I need these polishes like I need a hole in the head.  Seriously, it's just greediness at this point.  But on to the goodies!

The first 3 I got at Jewel/Osco for 1/2 off!  They were about $2 each, the blue Milani is called Blue Print and green is Green Sketch, because I do so much nail art (said no one ever).  But if I DO I am ready!  The Revlon is #092 Blue Lagoon, I am so drawn to pastels lately!  I guess I can't wait for spring!  The Spoiled colors I got at CVS, they are much better looking in real life.  The blue is Use Protection (what? What kind of name is that?) and the rose gold is Jewelry Heist (now that makes sense).

Then at Ulta I picked up my first essence polish - the bottles are so cute!  It's called "date in the moonlight".  I also got Essie's Marshmallow so I can make Jelly Sandwiches.  I saw a post on glitter sandwiches done with Marshmallow on KellyGonzo.com and I really wanted to duplicate it.  The Spoiled polishes I got at CVS should work nicely. 

Sorry about the crappy pictures...I have been meaning to grab some nail wheels to do swatches, I promise a better polish post in the future!

Jasmine

Revlon Shanghai palette by Gucci Westman - FOTD

Hello!

As promised I wanted to show some of my bolder makeup looks. I had picked up this cream eyeshadow palette from Revlon a few weeks ago, it's part of the Shanghai collection by Gucci Westman for Revlon.

Part of why I got it was the ads picture of Emma Stone - she looks fabulous and I love when I see a "pale" girl with lots of color on:

So it came with a little book (you can see it above) that shows how to get the "look" and so I followed it step by step:

And toss on some red lipstick (which goes against the bold eyes, neutral lip theory):

As you can see I didn't get the burgandy shadow as dark as Emma's in the picture - and I put a lot on in "real life" it was much more intense than this picture shows.  It is a pretty combination but I think it need a more neutral lip.  ( I used Revlon's Cherries in the Snow). 

I have read reviews that said this product creases, but I had no problems, I also used a primer.  In fact I felt that the cream eyeshadows were a bit dry, especially the burgandy and as you can see above I got more glitter than than color.  Overall, although the ads are lovely I don't feel the product is user friendly or a palette you would reach for often.

Have you tried any of the Revlon Shanghai collection?

Jasmine

NOTD ~ Chic by Revlon

Hello:

Recently 3 of of my nails Broke, Broke, Broke :(  So I've been waiting for them to get to an even length.  I got a grey blue blue polish by Revlon called Chic, and with dark somber colors I think you need short nails anyways so here it is:

It came out a bit darker than I had imagined, and it defenitly dries to a semi-matte finish so I need to keep up with glossy top coats!  Can't wait for more fun fall colors now that my nails are back!

Jasmine

NOTD - Revlon Top Speed Nail Polish in Guava

Hello: 
I don't do a lot of Nail of the Day posts, as I usually just do mine once a week.  Unless there's chipping... oh I can't stand chipped polish.  And since I'm a nail art novice it's just a simple manicure.  I use Orly's Top 2 Bottom basecoat (and as the top coat) and then usually two coats of polish in between.

Color - 140 Guava



I love Coral and Pink nail polishes and this was part of my summer haul back in June (see post HERE).  It does dry quickly but the formula is a bit thick so I painted with care!  The color is a little more pink and deeper than these pictures came out.  But as I almost always do my nails at night I took pictures in artificial light (gasp!) I think its a really universally flattering color as I have noticed a few ladies at work sporting similar colors and it looks great on all.  I also got one of the Revlon Colorstay polishes this week so I'm interested to see how that compares. 

I also want to mention that I really like Orly's Nailtrition for those inevitable times when I break a nail and have to clip them all and nurse them back to health.  It leaves a subtle shine and really does seem to make my nails stronger and healthier.  You apply it daily for a week, and by then you are usually back in the game :)

Hope you all are having a fabulous week!

Jasmine

Revlon's Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain... Kiss-a-licious but misses out on the Stain

Hello:

Recently I tried Revlon's Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Rendezvous, a fun wearable coral. 

You can see some gold fleck in this photo, but I really didn't see it once it was on.

The product goes on smoothly, and has a slight minty smell.  It did not feel as rich and creamy as the Pixi Balm stain I tried recently (see review here).  To me it seemed more like a tinted chapstick, not a stain.  It  came off quite easily with eating and drinking and just...wearing.  It's a lovely color though, and definetly hydrating, so I would wear it just for that.  But I was hoping for the long lasting performance of a stain.

Bare lips

With Rendezvous

Overall, I'm glad I got this color, it will be great to throw in the purse.  But if I'm looking for a stain, I'll have to go elsewhere :(

Jasmine

Revlon's Just Bitten lip stain is... Just Right

Hello:
Happy 4th of July to anyone in the U.S!  It is HOT, HOT, HOT here so the idea of wearing lipstick for a night out was not appealing, but a stain that lasts?  Now here was the perfect opportunity to try out Revlon's Just Bitten stain (in Mystical) that I got a week or so ago.

So here are my lips with no color :

I swear my lips are not this thin - I was smiling "tightly"

And then here I am with just one "swipe" of the "marker like" stain tip.  It is super easy to put on and I normally have very dry lips, but amazingly this did not feel drying even before I put on the balm.

You can see on my lower lip I missed a bit of the upper part - but it's a very easy color to wear.

 I really like the color, it's the same tone as my lips, just a bit darker.  And here I am with the stain and the balm over it:

It kind of dulled the color, but added shine.  I think next time I would put more stain on first.  Overall I really like the product, and am looking forward to trying other colors.

What is your favorite lip stain?

Jasmine