Love It Or Leave It; Review 2.0: ColourPop Blush Crush Pressed Powder Palette

Hello folksickles. As a makeup junkie and blogger you may have realized that I review a LOAD of eyeshadow palettes and I like to think of myself as being largely an eyeshadow junkie. In order to de-clutter a bit  I've decided to pick out a palette or series of eyeshadows for the month and have that be my monthly selection for those instances where I'm not doing a tutorial for the blog. Every month I'll do a recap on the eyeshadows - how I feel about them and whether I'll be keeping them or giving them away (and why :P) as well as if I think it's worth its price tag. 

ColourPop Blush Crush Pressed Powder Palette

You can find a look I did with the palette here. These are the looks I created this month:

So as you can see I created some soft, some smoky, soft pink looks. I really love the quality of this palette - the color payoff is excellent, the shadows are beautiful and they blend well. I really enjoyed playing with it and will definitely be holding onto it! I feel like the looks I created are so soft, pretty, and romantic yet appropriate for any occasion. This palette has been a pleasure to use honestly and I am sad to be putting it away, which is always a good sign to me.

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Disclaimer: I purchased this myself.

Nail Polish Review: Rumi 18 Seven days matte water nail polish

Nail polish: Rumi Seven days matte water nail polish in 18

What the brush looks like:

My nails with 2 coats of polish, all nails have inm Out the Door Topcoat for Nails on.:

Availability: I am unable to find this online; there is a Rumi store at a mall I occasionally go to and they had this polish there. I believe that after sales tax I paid close to $5 for this.
Would I buy this again?: No.
Notes: I'd describe this as a metallic ruby red with gold and ruby micro-shimmer.  In terms of wear, this chipped within two days of having it on. On some of my nails this peeled right off and in fact it came right off my pinky nails pretty much right after I took the photo above and that was the day after I had painted my nails. This color is absolutely stunning, I love it, but the wear is so disappointing that I really cannot justify purchasing or recommending this product. I am genuinely unsure if maybe it's meant to be worn on its own without a base or topcoat but my experience with its poor wear was just so disappointing that I will be passing it along.

 
Please let me know if you have any questions or comments. 

Disclaimer: I bought this myself.

Blush Review: YSL 5 Fuchsia Temptation Crème de Blush Cream Blush

Today's blush review is going to be on YSL Crème de Blush Cream Blush in 5 Fuchsia Temptation.

Availability: This has been discontinued.

Would I buy this again? Probably not.
Notes: I'd describe this shade as a bright fuchsia that blends out to a sheer, fuchsia-toned bubble gum pink. I wore this for 8 hours and while this faded just a bit it was still on there. I think this is such a pretty shade and what disappoints me is that it's super sheer when applied with a blush brush (I use the Sephora 55.5 brush). You see how pale I am so things typically show up pretty easily on me but I really had to pack on a lot of this blush for it to show up.

Please let me know if you have any comments or questions.

Disclaimer: This product was a gift from my best friend.

Candle Review: Bath & Body Works Pumpkin Caramel Latte

 Hi folks, so I have another home fragrance post for you. 

Candle: Bath & Body Works Scented Candle in Pumpkin Caramel Latte

Availability: This has been discontinued.

Would I buy this?: If it were relaunched, yes!

Notes: So unlike the ones launched for the US market, this one doesn't have note descriptions on it. My Canadian best friend has been holding onto this for ages (he removes the stickers off them, which is why it looks naked). In any case I'll do my best to describe its scent.

Here's what I'm getting from smelling the candle cold - it smells like a creamy, toasty, sweet, almost ever-so-slightly nutty but in a fatty nut scent - something like a macadamia. There's a very, very faint coffee note. Overall the scent of this is cozy and it's sweet without being overly cloying. 
As the wax warms and burns, the scent intensifies, it's warmer but I wouldn't say it changes much. 

I find this candle melts and burns alright (as you can see it sort of pools a bit, I'm unsure if this is due to the age of the candle); it has a throw that smells up my entire room.

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Disclaimer: My best friend got this for me as a Christmas gift. 

Candle Review: Country Home Candle Happy Days

  Hi folks, so I have another home fragrance post for you. 

Candle: Country Home Candle in Happy Days

Availability: This is available at countryhomecandle.com - I am unsure as it is a Canadian brand if it can be found in-store somewhere in Canada but the store does list US prices (which is what I always list things in so I'll be listed those here too) so I believe they ship to the US. This is available as a 16 oz. candle for $14.06, 26 oz. candle for $20.31, or as a pack of 6 wax melts for $4.68.

Would I buy this?: I am genuinely unsure; I like the scent but will have to burn this more often and see how much shipping is before giving a definitive yes.

Notes: Here is a scent description from countryhomecandle.com: Happy Days is meant to be happy, cheerful and fun. An invigorating aroma that combines bubbly champagne with notes of berries and citrusy tangerine to produce a fragrance that is refreshing and refined.

Here's what I'm getting from smelling the candle cold - it smells like some sort of sweet and sour candy to me. I totally get that berry, tangerine, champagne situation like the scent is described but I can't point each note out separately, if that makes sense. It definitely smells like a combination of all three with a sugary kind of note. I'd describe this scent as sweet and uplifting.
As the wax warms and burns, the scent intensifies, it's warmer but I wouldn't say it changes much. 

I find this candle melts and burns very well; it has a throw that smells up my entire room.

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Disclaimer: My best friend got this for me as a Christmas gift. 

March 2022 Departures

Ok folksickles. Departure blogs will contain items that aren't empties but that are going to be given away for one reason or another. I'm working hard to curate my makeup collection and want it to include only the products that I think truly work well, that I reach for often and do what they're supposed to do.

1.  ColourPop Making Mauves Pressed Powder Palette: As much as I want to love this palette and have created looks I like with it, I find it to be overall too cool-toned for me where it can make me look tired. Given that I have hooded eyes to start with, I prefer shades that make my eyes/eyelids look brighter and larger. This also has a really bizarre scent to it and airing it out hasn't caused the scent to diminish. I will be passing this along.

2. pop arazzi Denim After Dark: This is a beautiful navy nail polish but unfortunately it started chipping within three days of wearing it so I shall be passing it along. 

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Disclaimer: I purchased these myself.

March 2022 Arrivals

Ok folksickles! Look at me for a change, pretty much only buying essentials. 

1. IUNIK Propolis Vitamin Sleeping Mask: I've been running low on my sleeping mask and I really like to use them as a layering step to add extra hydration to my skin as, like I've mentioned in the past, my skin is dry but cannot absorb heavy, thick, hydrating products so I notice that layering lightweight products works better for me. With that being said, I heard that this sleeping mask is fairly hydrating and since I was able to get it on Flip Fit with a 30% discount I thought why not.

2. DECEIM Mini Haul: So, funny story about this, these are the same items from my January Arrivals and the reason for that is I originally placed an order at DECEIM at the very start of December, hoping to buy my friend some Christmas gifts, and also to get some things I wanted to try for myself. Well, the middle of December rolls around and my order appears to be stuck somewhere at the shipment center and wasn't moving so I emailed DECEIM and they sent me a replacement order. I thought that was it. Ha, well, I guess now in March the shipping center came across my package and thought to themselves "oh, well, she might want this stuff." So in short, I received my order from December just a week ago as of writing this post. I know 100% that this was my December order because the packing slip had my order date on it.  

The Ordinary Caffeine Solution 5% + EGCG

The Ordinary Retinol 0.5% in Squalane 

The Ordinary Buffet Serum

3. Rumi Seven Days Matte Water Nail Polish in 18: This is such a pretty red with golden sparkles that I could just not pass it up!

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Disclaimer: I purchased everything listed above.

March 2022 Favorites

Hey folksickles,

Alright, all the goodies I've been enjoying in March :) 

1. Korres Cashmere Rose Elasti-Smooth Body Butter: I absolutely adore this body butter! It smells delicious and is incredibly hydrating. You only need a tiny bit to get loads of hydration and silky smooth skin. 

2. e.l.f. Cosmetics Total Face Sponge: This sponge is just absolutely fantastic! It gets enormous when wet (compared to when dry), is super squishy, and bouncy. My absolute favorite thing about this sponge though is that it isn't very absorbent so it blends out your complexion products perfectly without sucking much of them up into itself. This ensures that you get a fuller coverage, need less complexion product, and makes the sponge itself super quick and easy to wash. My only complaint about these is that because they're this deep maroon berry shade they end up leeching a lot of colorant when they're washed; I wish they weren't dyed or were dyed with something that didn't leech.

3. Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face Base: I've been testing out my moisturizers to see if there's any that are no longer fresh or that I don't like because I've got a whole bunch in my collection - I use each for a week unless it smells super off before deciding that I want to do with it. Well, the week I was using this I would look forward to my nighttime routine (I use this at night, despite it doubling as a primer, because I use a moisturizer with SPF during the day) so that I can slather this on my skin. This feels luxurious in that it has a rich texture to it, but it absorbs nicely and isn't too thick. You don't need a lot of product at all and honestly, I think it might just be worth splurging on every once in a blue because I'm enjoying it so much! That being said, who knows if I'll ever actually buy this because, like I said, I've got a whole bunch of moisturizer. :P

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Disclaimer: I paid for the products mentioned above myself with the exception of the Bobbi Brown product, which was provided for testing purposes.

March 2022 Empties

 All my monthly trash on display for you to see. :P

1. The Ordinary Hair Care Multi-Peptide Serum for Hair Density: I feel like this genuinely did help my hair to grow and thicken up a bit, especially when I used it regularly. I'd definitely pick it up again sometime in the future as I like that it's a drug-free option that helps my hair feel thicker. I definitely saw a difference in hairs starting to grow in the sparse spots I put this on.

2.  beauty 360 Original Nail Polish Remover Pad: I purchased these to use on my feet since my local CVS, unfortunately, was closing and out of the liquid remover. These work fairly decent and do a good job of removing my nail polish. I'm able to get both feet done before it dries. That being said the pad is a bit thick which, overall, is not bad but it's difficult to get it around the cuticle area to remove nail polish there. 

3. berkley jensen unscented baby wipes: As I've mentioned in the past I really like to use baby wipes for wiping down surfaces including those of my makeup collection and for removing swatches when I do photos for this blog. I love these wipes! They have a nice thickness to them and stay moist really nicely (I keep my wipes upside down so the liquid doesn't gather over the bottom wipes while the ones at the top dry out). I also love that you get 100 in each pack because each pack lasts me several months. 

4. Molton Brown Vintage with Elderflower Body Lotion: This smells really delicious but unfortunately I didn't find it hydrating enough for my body and had to use a lot to get the level of hydration that I wanted. Granted, I got this on sale for $11 so I used it with abandon guilt-free but if I had paid full price for it; well certainly I'd have been upset!

5. Shiseido Prepare Razor L-Type: I really like to use these razors to fix up any precise areas of facial hair growth (for instance right under the nose) that's in sensitive areas and would hurt to pluck. This razor has dulled.

6.  ProBeauty Essentials Faux Mink Wispies x2: These lashes a re a bit hard to get the hang of because they seem to want to just jump off the lash-line or not glue quite to where the lash-line begins. It took two pairs for me to finally got the hang of them. That being said they're a very pretty lash that gives great length and volume. 

7. theraWell 100% Pure Essential Oil in Sweet Orange: This oil smells exactly as described, I would say it has more of an orange rind scent rather than the meat of an orange. Overall I found the scent of this in my diffuser to be pleasant but lightweight and faint. 

8. Tree Hut Vitamin Moroccan Rose Sugar Scrub: I really loved this scrub, as I do most Tree Hut scrubs because they feel scrubby and invigorating to use. This has a sweet yet floral rose scent to it.

9. Odacite All-Embracing Serum: Frankly I found all this serum did was give me a lot of hydration and glow because it's oil-based. That's not necessarily a bad thing but honestly I wish it would do something about my redness and although I didn't mind it too much, I'm not the biggest fan of the herbaceous scent this has. It does come with three amethyst beads which I think is cool; for the longest time I thought they were crystal pieces but they are, in fact, beads and are pierced in case you want to string them onto something.

10. SENKA Perfect Whip Collagen in Perfect Face Cleansing Foam: I am so sad to have used up this cleanser. It foams and hydrates the skin so beautifully and I know the next three cleansers I have lined up just don't work as well and I'm definitely looking to use those up before I replenish on another cleanser which makes me sad because this one was inexpensive and worked so well!

11. theraWell 100% Pure Essential Oil in Lemon: As with the orange I found the scent of this to be more of a rind scent with a rather faint throw. I personally like lemon essential oils with a tiny bit of sweetness that smell more like lemon juice so I can't say this was very up my alley.

12. A'pieu Lacto Bacillus Moisturizing Toner: Honestly I feel like this toner was pretty middle of the road for me. Due to its lactic acid, it was exfoliating but it didn't really do much in terms of moisturizing my skin. 

13. Eminence Organics Strawberry Rhubarb Dermafoliant with Lactic Acid: Honestly I absolutely love this exfoliator due to how it makes my skin feel like a baby's butt and due to its delicious scent. In addition to those things, this lasted me over a year - I exfoliate every other day -which I genuinely think makes it well worth its price tag. I am so sad to have used it all up but I'm sure that I will be replenishing on it at some point.

14. Origins Original Skin Retexturizing Mask with Rose Clay: I liked this mask ok - my skin felt very silky and smooth when I'd go to wash it off. That being said it's a little drying for me and felt tight on my skin as it was drying.

15.Dove refreshing cucumber & green tea Nourishing Body Wash: This is a great hydrating body wash and I love to use it for shaving my legs and pits.

16. Secret Lavender 48 HR Invisible Solid: Honestly this is my favorite deodorant at the drugstore - not necessarily this exact scent, - but I've been using Secret for years without any issue. It's always gentle to my pit skin while keeping me fresh and dry.

17. Softsoap Lavender & Shea Moisturizing Hand Soap: This soap has such an odd scent where it's neither obviously lavender or Shea but smells like a fresh bathroom. It does a nice job of keeping my hands clean. My main beef is that the straw section of the dispenser doesn't reach all the way to the bottom so even though I put a little water in there to help the soap get a bit more loose I still can't get it all out of the packaging which is annoying.

18. LUSH Mint Julips Lip Scrub: While this did a good job of physically scrubbing my lips I think that, because it had menthol in it, my lips were ultimately left drier after having used this. Unfortunately it decided to take a tumble into the toilet so we're parting ways.

19. Trader Joe's Pumpkin Overnight Face Mask: This mask is a very nice, lightweight, refreshing, lightly hydrating sleeping mask. I felt like it really helped seal the rest of my skincare in and it left my skin feeling very soft and smooth. I enjoyed it while I had it.

 

20. Trader Joe's Oatmeal & Honey Soap: I absolutely love this soap, it's gentle and does a great job of leaving and keeping my skin soft.

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Disclaimer: I purchased all of the above with the exception of the Odacite and LUSH products.