The Frosty VoxBox

Hello Lovelies! 

It has been quite awhile since I received a package from Influenster, but it is always awesome when I do. This particular box is called the Frosy VoxBox, and it was filled with quite the variety of items. I want to start this off with just issuing a public thank you to Influenster for once again sending me some fun stuff to try.  If you would like to join, just follow this link, and you too will have the opportunity to receive a box. 

Rimmel London Just Let It Go Eye Makeup Remover, and Scandaleyes Waterproof Eyeliner 

I always excited to receive full size samples, and I am especially happy that they are from a company like Rimmel, because they are good budget friendly brand. Although I personally prefer liquid eye liner, I am quite impressed with Rimmel's Scandaleyes liner, it has good pigmentation, glides on smoothly, and it is quite lasting. (It also comes in 10 different shades!) To be honest I was a bit more hesitant to test out the Just Let It Go makeup remover as I have sensitive skin, and I worry about them irritating it, so instead of testing this on my face I applied a variety of products to the inside of my wrist for a test run. I applied swatches of Urban Decay's Perversion Mascara, a black glittery eye shadow from the NYX Smokey Palette, Kat Von D Autograph Eye Liner, Benefit's Boiing Concealer, Bh Cosmetics Eyebrow Pencil, Mirenesse's Lip Bomb Lip Stain in the shade of red, and of course the Scandaleyes Eye Liner in Black. I followed the directions on the bottle, and actually used cotton balls to remove them, and the only products I struggled to remove were the lip stain, and of course, the Scandaleyes eye liner. 

NYC Expert Last Lip Color in Sugar Plum

NYC is a brand that I use to use when I was just learning how to use makeup, mostly because it's super cheap, it is of an okay quality, but there are much better budget friendly brands out there (E.L.F Cosmetics, and NYX) Now that I have established my view on the brand I thought the Sugar Plum lip color was okay, it isn't something I would ever purchase though. I do not like the super fruity scent, the lack of pigmentation, and it is not long-lasting like the name states. On top of all that this particular color does nothing for me. 

Eco Tools Sleek + Shine Finisher Hair Brush 

Eco Tools is a brand I have been using for quite awhile, and I definitely would recommend the brand to anyone out there searching for an eco friendly, affordable, and good quality product. I personally own a couple of their cosmetic brushes, and the Smoothing Detangler Hair Brush, and I use them on a regular basis. This brush is a wonderful addition to my routine as it works wonderfully to finish off any style, and a brush like this is also happens to be a must-have to create vintage styles. 

Boots No7 Protect & Perfect Advanced Serum and Coupon

All I can really say about this sample is that I am not fond of receiving samples of this size, there is no possible way I can accurately review the product this way. I do like that Influenster included a coupon for the people that do end up being intrigued by this product, but it is regularly sold for $30 at Target, and there is no way I am spending that much money on something I have no previous experience with, but I will add that I have seen a couple positive reviews for it. 

Red Vines Fruit Vines Bites in Strawberry

Unfortunately this bag didn't even last long enough to make it's spot in the Frosty VoxBox overall photo, because they were completely addicting. They are the perfect chewy, sweet snack, and I love the strawberry flavor. I definitely want to get more of these, like right now. 

Celestial Seasonings Candy Cane Lane Green Tea and Coupon

My cupboard is filled with a variety of Celestial Seasonings teas, but I have never tried this before, so I was quite intrigued. As soon as you open the package you can smell the distinct peppermint scent, and the tea is exactly what you would expect, it tastes like a peppermint candy cane. 

McCormick Gourmet All Natural Thyme 

This is actually a pretty awesome thing to receive as I do actually love to cook, and a good variety of spices is key to achieve good tasting food, and there is nothing better than saving a bit of money due to samples from awesome companies. My all time favorite way to use Thyme is for roasted vegetables, try it yourself! 

Roasted Herb Vegetables

You Need:

Thyme

Salt

Pepper

Olive Oil

Garlic

Zucchini 

Red Potatoes

Carrots

Onions

Green Beans

All you do is chop the vegetables up, toss them in oil, and then toss them in the seasonings. Cook at 450 degrees for 30-45 minutes, and you have an amazing yummy array of vegetables.

Overall, this was a wonderful Voxbox, and I am extremely appreciative for receiving it. I would recommend most of these products, especially for someone who is seeking out items that are budget friendly. 

 Here is a look I created using my Frosty Voxbox products ( NYC Lip Color, Scandaleyes Eyeliner) pairied with products I received in my Ipsy bag. 

 

#frostyvoxbox #getadvanced #influenster 

Makeup by One Direction

Hello Lovelies! 

Today I am here to review the Makeup by One Direction Limited Editions sets, which consists of the Electro Glam Mascara, Liquilights Glow Gloss, and the Rock Me Nail Kit. The Makeup by One Direction was released on November 15th, and can be found at Macy's, Dillards, Boscov's, Stage Stores, Beauty Brands, and Lord & Taylor. 

ELECTRO GLAM MASCARA

The Electro Glam Mascara comes in three fun shades, and can be used not only for eye lashes, but for hair, and even eye brows. Pictured Below are all of the shades, and a sample of each against my red hair. My personal favorite was the blue, as it showed up the best in my hair, but all the colors are fun and highly pigmented. 

 LIQUILIGHTS GLOW GLOSS

Liquilights Glow Gloss is the perfect gloss for a fun loving, sparkly person. By day it's a simple sheer glitter gloss, and by night it transforms and illuminates under UV black light. The gloss can be worn by itself, or for even more of a pop, it can be worn over a vibrant shade of lipstick, you could even purchase the One Direction Creme Lipstick to pair with it. The gloss is long-lasting, and full of sparkle. Below are pictures of the shades by themselves, unfortunately I do not own a black light to show off the way they illuminate. 

ROCK ME NAIL KIT

The Rock Me Nail Kit consists of three colorful UV-Reactive nail polishes, and UV-Reactive glitters.  

For each nail I did two coats of polish, as you can see the blue polish named Happily, is a bit more sheer than the others, and may need another coat. Moments, the pink shade, is by far my favorite, it looked great even with one coat, and Diana is a fun glittery polish, the more coats you do, the more glitter you get. 

Overall I was pretty thrilled with these kits, they are fun, colorful, and the perfect gift for One Direction fans. 

Before you run out to buy these kits, they are actually having a giveaway (I am not involved with the giveaway.) so follow the link below and check it out for you chance to win.
https://promosimple.com/ps/5bda

#makeupby1D #thelookscollection #markwins 

https://www.facebook.com/MakeupbyOneDirection

Sponsored By Brand Backer 

June Ipsy Bag Review and Swatches

Hello Lovelies! 

 I came home today to find my package from Ipsy stashed in my mailbox and after opening I knew I needed to get the review and swatches done asap, so here we go!

This month's theme is "On the Wild Side" and features a lovely animal printed bag that I happen to love, and some products from brands I have never heard of before.  

To start off my review I am going to begin with the product I was most curious about, the Sparkling Cream Palette from J.Cat Beauty. I had never heard of J.Cat before seeing this product, and I don't have much glitter in my collection so I was eager to test it out and swatch it. At first glance I expected this glitter to be an eye shadow, but it is actually not safe to use around your eye so it is definitely not for everyone, but I know it will come in handy for me when I am working on more creative makeup pieces. Although it is described as cream the top layer of the glitter is just like regular loose glitter, but as I rubbed the brush in a little bit I could tell it did have a slight creamy texture, but nothing like I expected it to be. Overall I feel these palette would be awesome for someone who does a lot of creative types of makeup, or body painting, because they are quite cheap ($4.49ea.) and they come in a variety of different shades.

BONUS TIP: For my lovely readers who received this in their Ipsy Bag and don't see yourself using body glitter, you could always mix it in with some nail polish to create a lovely glittery shade of polish.

Although I think the body glitter was a bad choice to add into the Ipsy bags I do find myself still curious about the J.Cat brand so I was excited when I realized the fake lashes in my bag were also from J.Cat. At first glance these lashes are perfect to add some drama to any look, and they are a great choice for my favorite styles of makeup. Although I didn't like the lash glue that came along with these lashes I think they are a pretty good pair of cheap lashes ($3.99ea.), but you can also find the same quality lashes around the same price at drugstores.

If you have read any of my previous posts you would know that I absolutely love NYX Cosmetics and am always excited when I receive a new product from them, this time I received a blush named angel. Angel is a soft matte pink shade that looks nearly nude on my pale skin tone, and I absolutely love it. This blush is perfect to add just a little emphasis to the cheeks, but not go over the top with color. I absolutely love NYX products because they are high-quality, and affordable, these powder blushes are only $5.

I am not sure how I have never heard of Starlooks before, because if the rest of the products they offer are anything like the lip liner I received, they are definitely quality. The liner I received was in a shade called Tipsy which is a lovely shade of coral that I would more than likely never choose for myself, but I absolutely love. When I tested the liner I realized that is quite smudge-proof, and long-lasting, which is something that's very important to me. These liners are a little pricier compared to some lip liners, but at $12 I think they are still pretty worth it. I would love to test more products from this company, and hopefully will be making an order in the near future.

Last, but not least, there is the gel eyeliner from Cailyn Cosmetics, another company I have never heard of, so thank you Ipsy for introducing me to a bunch of new things this time around. Before I get to reviewing this product I must tell you that these sell for $21 each, so if this doesn't make you want to subscribe to Ipsy, I don't know what will. I received the eye liner in purple, which is an odd shade for me, but it will be wonderful when I am working on more creative looks. I love gel liners because they are easier to work with when trying to create a precise line if you use the right brush, I believe the brush that is paired with this liner is a little thick, but it will get the job done if you don't own an eye liner brush already. This liner is definitely long-lasting, smudge-proof, and waterproof, which makes it harder to take off, but if you are in the search for a good resistant eyeliner this is the one for you.

If anyone is interested in joining Ipsy, sign up here . I absolutely love Ipsy and would never cancel my subscription, the products are amazing and definitely worth the small price a month. If you have any reservations about joining just remember that most months you receive $30+ worth of products and adorable makeup bags, and you also get to try new things. :)

March Ipsy Bag Review

Hello Lovelies!

I was super surprised to see my package from Ipsy in the mail on Friday, especially considering that I had received the tracking code about ten minutes before checking the mail. I tested the products out later on Friday and just had to get the review out to you guys as soon as possible. 

This month's theme is "the great escape" which seems a little more like we are welcoming summer instead of spring, but it's still nice to see something different. I do love the nautical printed bag, I am so happy that they finally agreed to do some prints, and I am hoping next month's in something more "springy" and possibly floral. Overall this month doesn't include much, this has to be the smallest amount of samples I have received yet, but the products we did receive are quite nice.

LA Fresh Travel.Lite Makeup Remover Wipes $1.99 for 8 wipes 

Wipes such as these ones are a necessity for makeup bags, and traveling, although I do find these a bit expensive for such a small pack. These wipes do work well to remove makeup quickly, but they are a tad bit too greasy for my skin, and the scent makes me think of baby wipes. 

 I have heard a lot about the Glam RX Touch Up Palette but have never really wanted to purchase it for myself, and this is kind of a mini of that. The real touch up palette consists of concealer, lip balm, shine erase powder, black eyeliner, mirror, and magnetic bottom level that can hold your personal makeup that comes in a metal tray (They are $17). This Glam RX thing that we received with out Ipsy bag does not include any of the makeup, it's simply the mirror and magnetic bottom level. Considering most of my eye shadows are in palettes this wont really be of any use for me, except to hold my little sample trays I have received from Yaby, Coastal Scents etc. If you are the type of person who uses a lot of single eye shadows this palette may work nicely for you depending on how you like to organize you makeup, and if you feel like "de-potting" some of your shadows. 

 These small shadow samples are from Yaby Cosmetics, shadow in top picture is called "Sand Dune", and bottom is called "So Vein". "Sand Dune" is almost a perfect match to my skin color and works well for a nude natural eye, and I absolutely adore "So Vein" and it's bright shade of teal. (I am using the Glam RX palette to store these.)  Both of these shadows blend well and are highly pigmented, they especially pop when paired with a eye primer/base. You can purchase these trays in a 3 gram size for $3.15 each.  

Juice Beauty Hydrating Mist  $22 for a 6.75 oz bottle. 

This hydrating mist is made from organic ingredients and is said to be great for all skin types. The first thing I noticed when spritzing this upon my face is that not only does it feel refreshing, but it also smells refreshing. My skin instantly appeared brighter and it made me feel more awake and ready to go. As a hint on the products website they say to refrigerate this product in the summer months for an even more refreshing sensation, and I can not wait till it's warm enough to test that theory. This product in itself has me browsing through Juice Beauty's website and wanting to make a little order of my own, so stay tuned. 

Overall this month's bag seems to be disappointing people because of the small amount of products, but I have decided I will just look at the positives. 

1. I have never tested anything from any of these companies before, and they all turned out quite well. 

2. We finally received a printed bag after asking for months, and I love nautical prints. 

3. Ipsy attempted to compile a bag that would leave us happy in hopes that we were planning a spring getaway. 

Ulta Haul

Hello Lovelies!

 

On Friday night I got a little break from my regular schedule and got the chance to go get some dinner with my love at Buffalo Wild Wings. After our dinner I decided that I wanted to head to Ulta for the first time, I have shopped around online but before Friday I have never stepped foot in the actual store, which I like to call heaven. Now, I wasn't sure what to expect but if you have never been there and you have a fondness for hair and makeup you definitely need to make the trip. Before today I thought of Sephora as heaven, but Ulta has quickly became my favorite.

 

Before I get into sharing the items that I purchased from Ulta I must explain my hauls are going to be a bit different from a lot of beauty gurus. Now I follow a fair share of beauty gurus on Youtube and on here and a lot of them really go all out when they do hauls, and they spend quite a chunk of money, but I can't do that. Now, I am not going to give you some sob story of how difficult my life is because there is a lot of people in this world who don't even have what I do, but basically I am a young mother working to take care of my two children that has an immense passion for fashion and beauty. I am hoping some day I will be able to share my gift and passion with more people, but for now this blog, my Youtube channel, and my Polyvore account (it's almost like a dress up for adults)  is my way to do that.

 

Anyways, now onto the couple of products I decided I couldn't go without today.

 



I am a huge fan of a lot of products from Urban Decay and I have made many small purchases from them, and I have received samples, but I have always lusted after the Naked palettes, so today I finally brought myself to purchase one. Now it took me a little bit of wandering before I finally settled on getting Naked 2, I honestly want both, but I DEFINITELY can not afford that. I do love all of the different shades that both palettes offer, but I went for Naked 2 because of the shades called Blackout and Pistol.

I fell in love with Benefit Cosmetics  because of there amazing graphics and artwork and then I got the chance to try a couple products from them and that solidified my love for the company. Not only does Benefit offer wonderful makeup, but they have a spectacular like of skincare products for pretty much everyone. One of the first products I was able to test was the foamingly clean facial wash, and I have never came across a better face wash, so I decided I had to purchase a full size bottle of it. The Foamingly Clean Face Wash cleanses skin, removes makeup and impurities with a soft, gentle lather. I also love the Refined Finish Facial Polish, but I will leave purchasing that for another day.



Since I absolutely love cosmetics I have heard of  Too Faced many times, but because I am just recently starting to really expand my collection I have never purchased anything from them before. I know they are a good company and they have high quality products, but I decided to try this little sample set of five products. Included in this set is Lashgasm Mascara, Shadow Insurance, Glamour Gloss in Sheer Lilac, Lip Insurance, and Primed & Poreless. The Lashgasm works wonders at making your lashes look longer and it doesn't clump up, I wish it would make my lashes look a bit thicker though. I personally feel that an eye shadow primer is a necessary to create a sleek "flawless" look and I believe the Shadow Insurance works very well, my shadow lasted longer and I had no issues with creasing or smudging of my shadow or my eyeliner. I am not a huge fan of the shade of Glamour Gloss that was included in this set because I am so pale it didn't work well with my skin color, but the gloss lasted long, wasn't sticky, and had a pleasant minty sensation. Before I applied the lip gloss I used the Lip Insurance that was included in the set which helps create a smooth application that lasts longer and provides a good base for color. I feel the same about skin primer that I do about eye shadow primer, so of course I loved the Primer & Poreless which helps minimize the appearance of pores and fine lines. Overall this set is a good beginner set, sample set, or even a gift, that almost every makeup lover could easily enjoy.



 I mentioned in my last tutorial that I somehow managed to lose my last brush for teasing and shaping so I picked up this simple and cheap one here. I use it to help tease when creating either pompadours (poofs), victory rolls, and when I am lusting after a more voluminous look.



After we left Ulta we decided to stop at our local Walmart and wander around for a bit because I had a couple simple things to pickup, and since I work at Walmart I get a little discount. Typically, when I am just wandering aimlessly through the store I tend to thoroughly check out the makeup department and I always stumble upon something I must purchase. This little palette here is from Hard Candy, and it's the Top Ten Eye Shadow Palette in neutral shades. All of the shades are shimmery and so far I have loved it. Hard Candy is definitely a cheaper alternative that has some decent makeup, I use the Glamouflauge concealer almost on a daily basis.

 

 

 

A little look I created with my purchases.....  (Check out the Marvel t-shirt!!)





January Beauty Army Box and Ipsy Bag

Hello Lovelies!

This month seems to be going by very quickly and it is time to review my monthly subscriptions and give you guys an update on what's going on at the moment and what will be coming next. Before I begin my little review I would like to share some information with everyone. Lately I have been working on revamping my blog to make it more appealing for everyone, and hopefully within the month I should have some wonderful new custom graphics. If you have any suggestions at all feel free to comment or email me at briannagrim@gmail.com.

 

Do you like the hairstyles pictured above? If so then you will love the tutorials I am about to begin filming, I will be working on a couple different hairstyle tutorials all including a lovely victory roll so stay tuned.

Ipsy Bag

This month's theme was "Super Star" and was filled with quite the variety of products. The bag itself is a dark blue with a star print on the inside of the bag, it's nice, but I am getting quite bored with getting plain bags, I'm ready for a lovely print. (I am crossing my fingers for something vintage inspired.)

When I opened the package my first thought was, Yay! another makeup brush from SOHO! I received a SoHo Smudge Brush back in September 2012 from Ipsy and absolutely love it and use it on nearly a daily basis, so to add an eyeliner brush from them to my collection is quite exciting. This brush's shape includes a wonderful grip for klutzy women like me whom happen to drop their brushes a lot.

I myself feel that the right hairspray can make or break a hairstyle, and Big Sexy Hair's hairspray is wonderful, a little pricey for my taste considering I go through hairspray very quickly but it works very well. It is quite easy to go overboard with this spray and make your hair very stiff, so remember just a little goes a long way.

Since I am a "pin up girl" red lipstick and red nail polish are staples in my signature look and I am always on the lookout for better products to test and this month I received a lovely red nail polish from Tini Beauty called Bloody Mary. Now, the last polish I received from Tini Beauty that I reviewed I was not a fan of, it was a glittery polish in green and gold, but this one is wonderful. This polish only requires one application for a solid red color, and it dries quickly. I typically use a top coat when doing my nails but I wanted to test it's durability without one and it lasted three days with no chips. This nail polish definitely improves my outlook on Tini Beauty.

Like most people at this point I am definitely ready for spring and summer to come, and this Tuscan Blood Orange Body Butter from Pacifica makes me even more impatient. Typically I am not a fan of orange scented items, but I absolutely adore the scent of this lotion, it has notes of orange which is offset with scents of strawberry and raspberry. I am very picky when it comes to lotions because I do have sensitive skin but my skin had no issue with this lotion and it doesn't leave that nasty greasy feeling some scented lotions leave behind.

 

Obviously, oils such as this argan oil from Josie Maran Cosmetics have been trending in the past year or so and I have received a lot of them with my subscriptions. This argan oil has many different uses which include skin moisturizer, skin treatment, split end treatment, and cuticle softener. I have yet to test all of it's uses but I did test it on my freshly dyed Ruby Rush hair and it did make my hair very soft yet a little greasy. I have yet to notice any difference in my split ends but I do like how soft this oil makes it and that my hair is a little less frizzy on its bad days.

Beauty Army Box

As you can see from this picture this month was Beauty Army's birthday so they included an extra choice this month and I decided to go with the Mark scanda-lash mascara in brown. I rarely purchase brown mascara, but I do like it for more natural looks so I decided to go with brown this time. This mascara separates the lashes wonderfully and is perfect for a more subtle natural look.

Apparently products from Mark have been a favorite for Beauty Army, last month I received this red Mark glow baby glow gloss and this month I not only received the mascara but this pink gloss called Honey, which nicely hook together. This gloss is another product great for a subtle natural look or a colorful eye and nude lip combination. Just like the red glow baby glow this gloss is wonderfully pigmented, non-sticky and quite long lasting.

The past couple months have been quite hectic in my household and honestly I do not make enough money to really have a true spa day so products like these firming eye gels from Skyn Iceland  are very welcomed as samples. Now I did find these soothing for about a total of ten minutes and my eyes felt a little refreshed after, but they are definitely not worth $30 for only eight in a pack. They are suppose to tone de-puff under eye skin within ten minutes, but honestly I didn't even notice a physical difference.

Like I have stated many of times in my posts I am not a fan of small foil samples such as this serum and moisturizer from Enspri Skincare because there is not enough in them to really make a judgement on the product. I did test them but within one application I seen no difference between them and any other average serums and moisturizers.

As you can probably see from my other posts I am a HUGE fan of the Yes to...   products, so I was excited to be able to try something new from them. Now once again back to the foil packet issue, but I did feel refreshed after using this eye treatment and noticed a slight difference, and I have full faith in all of the products from their arsenal. This company is known for their wonderful, hard working, natural products that have rave reviews from customers.

Simple enough this Lash Card  is meant to prevent clumping and smudging of mascara and it is nice to have on hand, but I honestly do not see the point of wasting money on the product unless you absolutely can not apply mascara without causing a disaster.

Yet another small sample of Whip Hand Cosmetics  Camo Collection eyeshadow, this shadow is a beige shade called Air Force. Like explained before this shadow blends well and works well for natural looks, but I really would like a better selection of makeup products then what Beauty Army has been offering lately.

Now, this picture is of a simple subtle two minute look I created using the Mark Scanda-Lash Brown Mascara, the Air Force shadow from Whip Hand Cosmetics, and the Mark Glow Baby Glow Lipgloss in the shade of  Honey.