Friday, November 24, 2023

Love It Or Leave It; Review 2.0: ColourPop So Jaded 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 declutter 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. 

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 all sorts of colorful looks with this palette. Honestly, looking at the layout of the colors I thought it might be hard to pair things together, even with my Decide Now! app, but I've been pleasantly surprised at how nicely everything works together. I purchased this palette in the first place because whenever I'd see people do looks with it, I thought the looks were beautiful. I also love the versatility in this palette wherein you can do both neutral and colorful looks with it. There's also a good mix of light and dark colors to create a lot of shade and textural variety, you can do both soft or smoky looks. I really love the quality of this palette - the color payoff is excellent, the shadows are beautiful and they blend well. This is definitely a keeper in my collection!

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

Disclaimer: I purchased this myself.

Monday, November 6, 2023

Love It Or Leave It; Review 2.0: ColourPop Smoke N' Roses 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 declutter 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. 

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 rosy looks with this palette. I really love the quality of this palette - the color payoff is excellent, the shadows are beautiful and they blend well. I have to be honest in that I have mixed feelings on this palette because when I do softer looks with it, I absolutely love them; but when I do more smoky, dark looks, I feel like they just don't look good; or at least in my opinion I don't like the way they look. I use a randomizer (the Decide Now! app) to choose 5 shades for me and then create a look, in case you're wondering why I'm creating looks I'm not necessarily a fan of. I like the app because it makes me use colors I may not think to reach for or to pair together but sometimes I generally dislike an entirely dark look on myself in general. I have decided to hang onto it for the time being. 

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

Disclaimer: I purchased this myself.

Friday, November 3, 2023

October 2023 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. NYX Mauve Me Ombre Blush: I feel like my journey of testing makeup to see if what I own sparks joy is making me realize that although mauve blushes look fine on me, I just don't love them the way that I love my more pinky, peachy, and purply blushes and I'd personally rather hang onto the ones I know I'll be reaching for versus ones I'm not as excited about. 

2. ColourPop Flexitarian Super Shock Cheek: While I like this as a base for my powder highlights, I feel like on its own that it's too white and cool-toned for my personal preferences. I like a warmer toned highlight on my skin.

Disclaimer: I paid for both products mentioned above.

Thursday, November 2, 2023

October 2023 Arrivals

 Ok folksickles! I'm back to replenishing on things that I'm running out of and buying mostly just necessities.

1. Green Pharmacy Green Tea and Tea Tree Oil Facial Toner: I decided to pick this up because I've been really enjoying using the Green Pharmacy Rose Water and Almond Oil Facial Toner and figured I'd try another toner in the line. I was worried that this would smell excessively of tea tree oil and the scent of that makes me nauseous lately but luckily this has a tea scent that I really enjoy.

2. Biore UV Aqua Rich Water Essence SPF 50+ PA++++: This is my third time buying this sunscreen and I just love it, the texture is fantastic and I've found that this works great as a primer, foundation goes over it smoothly and stays put all day long.

3. e.l.f. mini haul: I purchased both these products because I was either low or entirely out of the corresponding categories that the products fall into. I have heard good things about both of these so I decided to give them a try:
e.l.f. Halo Glow Liquid Filter in Fair
e.l.f. 16Hr Camo Concealer (Matte Finish) in Fair Beige - to note, I wanted to get the hydrating formula but it seems the color range is a bit different because the Fair Rose was too light and the Fair Beige was too dark.

4. DUO Quick-Set Striplash Adhesive in Clear: I feel like this was a bit of an emergency purchase because I had a black brush-on glue and was trying to make it work and it just made a giant mess which continued to frustrate me. I went out and purchased a glue I knew I had success with in the past!

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

Disclaimer: I purchased everything listed above.

Wednesday, November 1, 2023

October 2023 Empties

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

1. ogx smoothing+ coconut coffee scrub & wash: Several people I watch on Youtube were raving about this and the matching body lotion and while I couldn't find the body lotion at a decent price, I did find this and decided to give it a try. This smells delicious, it smells like a toasted coffee to me, I don't get much coconut but I love it regardless. I found that this left my skin feeling soft and smooth although I will say the scrub particles in here are too small to do any actual exfoliation so I used a more abrasive body scrub in addition to this.
 
2. Julie G Nail Color in Kickin' It: I feel like I've held onto this polish for so long because it's such a pretty shade but I'm essentially entirely out of it where it's both goopy due to age and difficult to get to because there's not much left. It's that time to say goodbye.

3. Dr Teal's Shea Sugar Scrub in Prebiotic Lemon Balm: This was a bit more scrubby versus the one I had in the past, which I wasn't mad at - I feel as though it provided a nice exfoliation for my skin and left my skin feeling soft. That said, I felt like it kind of turned into soup by the end of its lifespan.

4. Ardell Professional Studio Effects Lashes in Wispies: I really love these lashes because they're on the softer, more natural side but they still add a bit of length and volume. Unfortunately, however, the inner corner of the left lash in this pair kept wanting to pop off my eye. 

5. Moana Dominican Handcraft Coconut Candles in Coconut and Orange: Despite this having instructions on how to burn the candles (nothing out of the ordinary) I personally think this was meant more as a decorative souvenir type item because the wax in these candles melted very unevenly, there isn't enough of it to try and salvage it out of the coconut to make a wax tart to use in a wax burner, and because they didn't burn for long in the first place. That said, the orange scented candle had nearly no scent and no throw but the coconut one smells really nice and made me crave Bounty bars as it was burning.

6. Charmed Aroma Strawberry Donut Candle: I am so sad that this candle burned out entirely because it smells absolutely delicious! I love that my bestie got this very yummy candle for me and the ring inside it is beautiful also. 

7. Nature Republic 49 Wild Pink Color & Nature Nail Color: I am so sad that this nail polish has come to an end because it's such a pretty sparkly silvery rose gold and definately has what feels like a party vibe. That being said, it's very dry and goopy at this point and it has also developed an off-odor. 

8. MAKE UP FOR EVER AQUA MATIC in I-30: This is another item that I'm sad to be parting ways with but I've got to come to terms that it's both broken and pretty much gone and it's also completely dried out so it's that time to say goodbye. 

9. wet n wild Ultra Black Breakup Proof Skinny Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner in Ultra Black: Honestly I have mixed feelings on this liner because at first I felt like it gave me really nice precise lines and it was easy to work with. However, as time went on this would fray (which I did fix by using a moist paper towel or wipe to taper the bristles back together) but the product itself also became slightly smudgy so I'd have to go in and fix things. 

10. Sephora Collection The Mascara: I honestly liked the mascara in terms of how it worked - this gave me volume, length, and definition as it claims to. That being said, if my eyes got even a little teary or wet, this would smudge. Additionally, when I went to wash it off it would seem like it all came off but by the time I went to apply my eye cream, this would give me racoon eyes. 

11. Duo Rosewater & Biotin Striplash Adhesive: Personally these Duo brush on adhesives are staples in my collection. I like this one in particular because I feel like it's a bit more conditioning than the rest so if this is available I get it.

12. Bath & Body Works Golden Sunflower Ultimate Hydration Body Cream: This is a really nice hydrating body cream, I love how it feels and how it makes my legs very smooth and silky. That being said, I feel like the price on these has become ridiculous. They're nice, but not nice enough to pay $17 for. I got mine on clearance. 

13. Trader Joe's Honeycrisp Apple Scented Candle: This candle smells delicious and had a great throw that scented up my entire room. My only complaint is I felt like I burned through it really quickly - it lasted less than a week. Other than that though I really enjoyed this candle.

14. Dr. Teal's Pure Epsom Salt Soaking Solution in Glow & Radiance: I'm going to be honest in that, because I used this to soak just my feet, I can't speak to it giving much glow or radiance. That said, this has a delicious citrus scent and leaves my feet feeling relaxed, soft, and smooth. 

15. ORLY Kiss The Bride Nail Lacquer: When I tell you, I am SO SAD to have run out of this nail polish, I absolutely adore it! It's a great milky pink shade that looks great with literally anything and everything and is perfect for any occasion. That said, because I reach for it so often, I am pretty much out. 

16. now essential oils 100% pure lemon: This is a really nice, sweet lemon essential oil that I like using in my diffuser. 

17. Biore UV Aqua Rich Water Essence SPF 50+ PA++++: As always, I'm sad to have used this all up - even though I went and bought a backup - because I love it so much! It's a great hydrating, yet lightweight SPF that also works fantastic as a primer for the face. I am a big fan!

18. Dr. Bronner's Pure Castile Soap in Almond: I'm sad to have used this all up - I purchased a few of these at Marshall's at the start of the year and it seems like it's no longer in stock there so I have to go out and pay full price for the soap. I really enjoy using these to wash my brushes with. 

19. CALA SPOOKY LASHES in Electra: These lashes are beautiful - I personally really love the wispy yet spiky effect that they have. That being said, I find that they like to pop off at the inner and outer corners of the eyes so they're a bit fiddly to apply.

20. Dove summer care grapefruit & lemon balm body wash: Since I've gone to my doctor and gotten a cream for my eczema, I've gone back to using this for shaving and found that it hasn't caused me any further irratation. This foams up nicely, smells good, and provides a nice glide for my razor.

21. Soapology Dead Sea Salt Scrub in Waterlily and Jasmine: This scrub smells absolutely delicious and decadent, a truly wonderful floral experience. It's also really abrasive and scrubby just how I prefer my scrubs to be. That being said, I personally found that this is somewhat greasy and tends to leave a residue behind on everything it touches whether that's surfaces or skin which is then, in my experience, difficult to remove. Additionally, as someone who shaves, I prefer sugar scrubs mainly because when salt gets into wounds it stings in quite a prominent way and that's no fun.

22. HM mint essential oil: This oil, in my opinion, is alright. It's quite pricey for a small bottle and doesn't have a particularly strong scent where I felt like it carried through in my diffuser.

23. LASH ADHESIVE (this came with the CALA SPOOKY LASHES): I am tossing this because, frankly, for one it smells like garlicky mushrooms which I think is kind of strange. Additionally, and the main reason I'm getting rid of this, is because it's black. I personally just don't understand who a black lash glue is good for because if you mess up or need to hold it on the inner or outer corners to keep the lashes from popping off, it just will smudge and go everywhere. It makes a mess that is then difficult to remove because lash glue isn't just tint, it's also texture. Maybe I'm just not the best at applying lashes but because this makes such a mess, I cannot get my lashes to stick on in a clean way without making a giant mess and it's literally doing the opposite of sparking joy - it is sparking massive disappointment and frustration. 

24. Bath & Body Works Pumpkin Caramel Latte: Another item that, unfortunately, did not spark joy. Now, the issue with this is that my lovely best friend sent it to me, but he's been keeping it in his stash forever so because the wax was old, it burned very poorly and the candle wicks would constantly sink into the wax pool and go out. I was able to salvage the melted wax by pouring it into my silicone cupcake liners that I use to make wax melts out of remaining candle wax but I'm just sad I couldn't enjoy it as a candle. It smells really good though and it's a scent that really should make a comeback because I'm sure it would do well.

25. Green Pharmacy Rose Water and Almond Oil Facial Toner: I am genuinely so sad to be done with this toner because I loved it so much. It smells delicious and left my skin feeling very soft and smooth.

26. South of France Orange Blossom & Honey Triple Milled Soap: This soap smells so delicious and left my skin feeling very soft, silky, and pampered. This foamed up really nicely as well.

Disclaimer: I purchased all of the above with the exception of the Moana Dominican Handcraft, Soapology, HM essential oil, Bath & Body Works (candle) and Charmed Aroma candle which were gifts