Friday, April 01, 2016

Play! by Sephora | March 2016: The Perfection Collection

Hey guys! Today I have the oh-so coveted Play! by Sephora box for March. This is Sephora's take on a monthly subscription box - except this one has an insane waitlist to even get one. I think I signed up quite a few months ago to wait on the list and then, just recently, randomly received an invite from someone to bump up and start getting the boxes.

Anywho, this month's theme is: The Perfection Collection / Blur the lines and clear the canvas: this month we're helping you master the art of the perfect complexion. Uncover the primer that takes your skin from prepped to pristine, the tools for finishing touches, and all of the other steps to take for putting your best face forward.

What's in the box?
  • Sephora Collection The Perfectionist: Airbrush Sponge ($12) - Sephora's own take on the infamous BeautyBlender. One side is for precise concealing, blending in hard-to-reach areas, removing makeup mistakes and getting into small corners while the other larger side is for smoothing foundation over the larger portions of your face. I have yet to try this to compare to my beloved BeautyBlender but I'm pretty interested in finding out!
  • Kat Von D Tattoo Liner in Trooper ($19) - "This waterproof brush-tip liquid liner glides on to reveal precise, bold strokes of highly pigmented color." This is my go-to liquid liner, especially for creating the tail end of a cat eye. It's so precise and dries very easily!
  • Maison Martin Margiela "REPLICA" Fragrance in Beachwalk ($125 for 3.4 oz) - "Beachwalk combines fresh and radiant notes of bergamot, coconut milk, lemon, pink pepper and musk to evoke a familiar by forgotten memory - a walk along the sandy beach." With all of those different notes, I was expecting a different scent. While it's nice, it just straight up reminds me of sunscreen. Whomp, whomp.
  • Fresh Soy Face Cleanser ($38) - "Instantly whisks away everyday impurities and makeup without stripping the skin of its essential oils." This cleanser is rich in amino acids, soy proteins (they support moisture retention giving the skin a nice firm look), rosewater to balance and tone the skin, cucumber extract and nourishing borage seed oil to enrich the formula. This cleanser is fab for all skin types and is fragrance and soap-free.
  • MURAD Invisiblur Perfecting Shield ($65) - One of my absolute favorite primer, corrective treatment and moisturizer all-in-one! It contains mushroom peptides to diminish the look of fine lines and wrinkles while blurring imperfections. My foundation never budges when this is underneath and my skin always feels soft at the end of the day; never dried out.
  • Smashbox Photo Finish Primer Oil ($42) - I was so excited to see a sample of this in the box! This primer oil is infused with 15 essential and lipid-rich plant oils to moisturize the face, leaving a dewy finish. I'm always a little weary to put any type of oil on my face for fear it'll break out but I've only heard good things with this so I can't wait to try it out!
  • * Empty Jar - Apparently, there was an empty sample jar in this month's box to bring into your local Sephora to have them match you to a foundation using the Color IQ service and then you could bring home the foundation sample. Unfortunately, my box didn't contain this but that's okay because I'm sure they do that there anyway. For those who don't know what the Color IQ service is, it's the first and only beauty service that scans the service of your skin and assigns it a Color IQ number that matches you to precise lip, foundation and concealer matches. This sounds amazing!
What do you think of this month's box? Pretty interesting, right?
Thursday, March 31, 2016

Violet Voss Holy Grail Pro Palette | Swatches & Review

Ladies and gentlemen - without a huge thing about how excited I am for this post (which I totally am and having a hard time hiding!), I give you: the Violet Voss Holy Grail Pro Palette! #obsessed By the way, a little birdie told me (and by birdie, I mean I checked the website) and found out this palette is set to re-launch tomorrow (buy) so keep your eyeballs peeled if you're looking to add this to your collection. There's actually a countdown on the link so you can make sure you don't miss it!


The Violet Voss Holy Grail Pro Palette is a limited edition summer palette filled with 20 (1.8 grams each pan) cruelty-free eyeshadows in metal, matte and satin finishes. I think it's pretty obvious this palette is extremely warm-toned but I feel like everyone would find something they'd like in this one.

I really love the palette packaging itself. It's made of a sturdy matte cardboard type of material that has withstanded being near a sink without being ruined so that says a lot in and of itself. The inside top flap has a nice large mirror which is always nice to have when you're traveling around.


  • Crystal (satin) - a light champagne. A super gorgeous highlight shade. I find myself using this a lot. It's very soft and pigmented.
  • Ploof (satin) - a light shimmery pink. Another great highlight shade but with a warm pink tone that fits in perfectly with this palette. Pigmented, smooth and longlasting.
  • Thanks A Latte (matte) - a pale bisque. I really like that they have a nice, neutral shade in this otherwise fun and warm palette. This shade is great for an all-over-the-lid color before applying other shadows as to make transitioning and blending easier as well as a nice color to make a look more wearable. A teensy bit chalky but totally workable.
  • Transition (matte) - a light medium brown. The name says it all! This is a great warm, transition shade that blends like a dream!
  • Hashtag (matte) - an intense 70's orange. Wah-bam! Talk about a nice, pigmented orange! I don't even normally wear orange and I find myself gravitating to this shade all the time. Pigmented, smooth and longlasting.
  • Awesome Sauce (satin) - a bronze-y peach. I feel like the next four shades kind of blend together in the swatches but they're so uniquely different. Awesome Sauce is gorgeous, soft peachy bronze that is so pigmented and easy to work with.
  • Bestie (matte) - a soft brown with peach undertones. I also love this as a transition shade as well. It's not as warm as Transition which is a nice option to have. Pigmented and longlasting.
  • Toffee (metal) - a burnt orange bronze with gold sparkles. Such a lovely shade! Silky smooth to work with and lasted about eight hours.
  • Chill (metal) - a light brown bronze. Swatch-wise, Toffee and Chill kind of look the same, but on the eye, they're totally different. Chill is lighter but still silky smooth, pigmented and blended well.
  • How U Doin (metal) - a burnt rose gold. Nothing like a gorgeous rose gold! I love the finish and find this to be smooth, pigmented and finely milled.

  • Bat My Eyes (metal) - a dark bronze-y brown. What a gorgeous brown! I'm really excited to use this more but so far I've found it to be pigmented, silky smooth and longlasting.
  • Cool Beans (metal) - a metallic mauve that swatches like a bronze. Seriously. I couldn't think of a better description because what it looks like in the pan is completely different than what it looks like in real life. That being said, it's gorgeous, pigmented and smooth to work with.
  • R U Kitten Me (matte) - a medium brown with red undertones. In real life, this shows a little more red undertones but it's stunning nonetheless. Pigmented, smooth and easy to blend.
  • So Jelly (satin) - a pink with slight duochrome. How cute is this name? I wish the swatch showed how duochrome-y this is! It's slightly sheer but can easily be built up with layers or by wetting the brush before applying.
  • On Fleek (metal) - a metallic burnt reddish brown. So gorgeous and the name; I'm dying! Pigmented, smooth and longlasting.
  • Brownie Points (matte) - a dark brown with slight warm undertones. Goodness, there's a lot of browns but heck, is that such a bad thing? I feel like a broken record here but super pigmented and blended like a dream without losing the color.
  • Teddy Bear (matte) - a plummy dark brown. Out of all the browns, this one is my favorite! Silky smooth to work with.
  • Glamping (metal) - a warm reddish brown bronze. Glamping was a tough cookie! It seems to be the only one that sheers out a little once worn throughout the day. 
  • Cranberry Splash (metal) - a warm metallic red.  Such a fun color! I found this shade easy to work with, silky smooth and longlasting.
  • Wine N Dine (matte) - a vibrant fuchsia cranberry mix. Can we talk about this? HI. HELLO. I've never owned a color like this before. It's so incredibly pigmented and easy to work with. I love it.

Overall: I'm pretty impressed that with 20 shades in this palette, there was really only one that I had a tough time with and even then, it was still workable. Each shade was pigmented and easy to work with it. Almost all of them were long lasting and applied like butter. My favorite shades out of this palette were Thanks A Latte, So Jelly, Teddy Bear and Wine N Dine!

all over the lid: Thanks A Latte / inner and outer lid: Teddy Bear / middle: So Jelly / inner corner: Crystal

Violet Voss | Buy ($52)
* Use code: HOLYGRAIL10 for $10 off. 
Thursday, March 24, 2016

Deal Alert | NuMe Anniversary Sale!

Hey all! Today is NuMe's fifth anniversary (happy birthday!) and to celebrate, they're practically giving away curling wands and straighteners this weekend (but the codes work now!). Okay. Maybe not giving away. But pretty damn close!


Any set $89.99 (including Octowands) with the code ANNIVSETS or click here to unlock it automatically.

Any classic wand (reg $79) $19.99 using code HAPPY5YEARS or click here to unlock it automatically.

Any magic wand (reg $89) $29.99 using code ANNIVMAGIC or click here to unlock it automatically.

Silhouette straighteners (reg $99) $24.99 with code ANNIVIRONS or unlock in automatically here!

As you guys can see, NuMe is going cray for its birthday! Make sure to hop on these deals quick before they sell out! 

* This post is sponsored by NuMe. Affiliate links are used in this post.
Wednesday, March 16, 2016

Farmhouse Fresh | Guac Star Soothing Avocado Hydration Mask

And guac, guac, guac, guac and guac, guac, guac, guac! Hahaha. I'll see myself out. Today I'll be sharing with you the brand new  Farmhouse Fresh Guac Star Mask - a soothing avocado hydration mask!

This baby is chock full of some amazing goodies. It's packed with avocado butter, extract and oils for the fatty acids to protect our skin, vitamins B5, B6, K, E and C, copper, folate, potassium for natural moisturizing. Who knew avocados had all that good stuff in them? But it doesn't stop there. It also contains antioxidants from Goji berries, pomegranates and coffee seeds and anti-irritants like Allantoin, green tea and sodium PCA for the ultimate hydrating and soothing mask. *98% all natural (contains beeswax).

Fun fact: I'm obsessed with Farmhouse Fresh products - it all began with their Whoopie! Shea Butter Cream (review) so I was pretty stoked to try their new face mask out. First off, let's talk about that adorable small mason jar packaging? I die. Once you get over the cute jar and open it, the scent is so dreamy. I'm picking up warm scents of an apple pie (might just be me?) but if avocados smell/taste like apple pie, I am clearly missing out and why didn't anyone ever tell me this!?

FHF suggests popping this bad boy in the fridge for a refreshing feel. I'm so doing that in the summer. Me? I just dove right in and applied with a face mask brush I had but you can obviously use your fingers and applied it to clean skin. I left it on for about 30 minutes and then washed it off with warm water and patted dry. 

After the mask, my skin felt smooth, supple, hydrated and moisturized immediately after - and the day after! The day after, guys. HOW!? I'm still blown away. Granted, I didn't wear makeup after this but still. C'mon. That's amazing! I actually got nervous because usually when my skin still feels like that the day after, that actually means that it's oily and a break out is about to go down. I'm happy to report that I haven't experienced anything of the sort! 

Lastly, FHF says that this can be used daily but with such killer results I ended up using it about once every three to four days instead. It really just depends on how parched your skin is. 


Overall: YOU. NEED. THIS. NOW. I'm blown away from the results! The scent is so delicious. Pop this baby in the fridge for those summer days and you are alllllll set.

FarmHouse Fresh |  Shop ($22)
* press sample
Monday, March 14, 2016

#GoodyBrushEd | Soft & Fluffy Waves

#GoodyBrushEd #CollectiveBias
This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias Inc., and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. 

Happy Monday y'all! Today I'll be sharing with you a tutorial on how to get soft and fluffy waves using three of my favorite hair brushes. 


This tutorial is great for my thin-haired babes because it focuses more on creating lift from the brushes and heat rather than relying on lots of products to create volume which can sometimes cause the opposite and weigh the hair down.


Also, all these Goody goodies (see what I did there?) can be found at your local Walmart which always makes me happy because, let's be honest, we are all there more than we'd like to admit. #obsessed

Onto the tutorial:


  • So first we'll be starting with damp hair. Using the Goody Detangle It Vent Brush, I gently brush through my hair to get rid of any tangles I may have. I find this brush to be amazing for wet hair and that it never pulls or snags!
  • While we won't be relying much on products for lift and volume, I did go ahead and massage a tiny bit of my favorite volumizing hair mousse into my roots while my hair was still damp and then went back in and brushed it through with the Goody Detangle It Vent Brush.
  • Next, we'll be blow drying! I recommend lightly misting a heat protectant on my hair (especially your ends) before using any heat tools. Then I split and clipped my hair into sections and focused on blow drying the bottom half first.
  • Once the bottom is done, I unclipped the top and focused on really getting some volume up there. Using the Goody Amp It Up Round Brush, I wrapped the front section of my hair around it the bristles, starting at the roots and started to blow dry. I continued to do the same motion for the rest of the top half of my head.
  • Next, I sectioned my hair off again like I previously did and taking my favorite curling iron, I curled the bottom half of my hair. After each curl, I would release the curl into my hand (make sure you wear gloves if it's too hot!) and let it cool off, cupped in my hand. This helps set the curl so you don't lose the shape.
  • After the bottom half is done, I moved onto the top half and did the same release the curl into my hand and let it cool off motion. Then I lightly sprayed the curls with a lightweight hair spray. 
  • Lastly, taking the Goody Clean Radiance Oval Cushion Brush, I lightly brushed out the curls to give super soft, fluffy waves. How easy was that!? Note:  The Clean Radiance Oval Cushion Brush has copper bristles that massage the scalp and actually reduce the natural build up on your scalp over time as well as restore your hair's natural moisture balance. How awesome is that? 

What's your favorite way to get waves? Make sure to check out Goody Brush ED for more tutorials and information on the brushes used in mine!

Goody | Facebook - Pinterest - Instagram - YouTube 

#GoodyBrushEd #CollectiveBias
This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias Inc., and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. 
Tuesday, March 08, 2016

What's New + Giveaway| L'Oreal Brow Stylist Pro Kit, Infallible Contour Kit, Infallible Pro Matte Gloss, hair care - and more!

Happy Tuesday, y'all! I am so excited for today's post because I'll be sharing with you the newest beauty and hair products from L'Oreal Paris. Guys, L'Oreal has even recently come out with a contour palette as well as a brow kit that compares to some other well known brow/contour brands so I'm really stoked to share those with you as well. Let's hop into the post because there's a lot to cover!


  • L'Oreal Paris Advanced Hair Care Extraordinary Oil Nourishing Conditioner - Let me just first admit that I never use conditioner. We just rarely get along! Until this came along. I condition first and shampoo second and haven't looked back! My hair has never been softer and I haven't experienced any greasiness like I usually do when using a conditioner. I also only use the conditioner on the ends and don't dare venture up any further. What I love about this conditioner as well is that the scent is so amazing. It smells like a really pretty perfume that I can't place my finger on which one it reminds me of.
  • L'Oreal Paris Advanced Hair Care Extraordinary Oil Nourishing Shampoo - With the word "oil" in a shampoo, it's hard for a thin-haired girl to get on board with this (especially one that boasts six different oils in it!) but I'm so happy I did! Like I previously said, I condition first, rinse and then go in with this shampoo. I absolutely love my hair using this method with these conditioners and shampoos and highly recommend it. 
  • L'Oreal Advanced Hairstyle Boost It Plumping Foam - I know I keep reiterating this but I feel like it's a major player in why things do and don't work with my hair. Having thin hair and using foams and what now can sometimes do the exact opposite and drag down my hair instead of plumping it up. Not the case with this one! It's super lightweight. I towel dry my hair and apply a quarter-sized amount to spot right below my roots and then work up into the roots and then blow dry. This leaves my hair volumized all day! 
  • L'Oreal Paris Advanced Hair Care Extraordinary Oil Lustrous Oil Serum - Damnnn L'Oreal, back at it again with the oils! ;) This serum is used to renourish and rejuvenate your hair when it's feelin' a little dry. I use this sparingly on my ends when they're feeling a little parched but I can see this being perfect for my curly-haired babes that need a little somethin' somethin' to keep their curls in place. 
  • L'Oreal Root Cover Up - So while this is mainly used for covering greys, I'm thankfully not there (yet) and actually use this for something else! This works great for giving the appearance of a thicker hairline and density for those with sparse hair or thin hair. This lasts until you wash it out the next time you shower.
  • L'Oreal Infallible Matte-Matic Eyeliner - Smooth, pigmented but I can still smudge it before it sets? Yes, please! I'm super impressed with this little baby and find myself gravitating to it more often over NARS liner. 
  • L'Oreal Brow Stylist Prep & Shape Pro Kit - My brows have minds of their own currently but I've been loving this little kit to keep them in shape. The wax is tinted a light brown and honestly, I could go with just using this to pull my brows together. The wax is amazing! The brow shade itself matches my brows perfect and with the wax, I don't have to worry about the color smudging or moving throughout the day. I highly recommend this kit!
  • L'Oreal Infallible Pro Matte Gloss in Rebel Rose - I wasn't quite sure what to expect from a matte gloss but I'm lovin' the results. The consistency is moussy and smooth to apply and feels nice on the lips. It lasts about five hours and leaves a nice, light stain behind. The shade itself is a vibrant hot pink fuchsia that is so in for spring!
  • L'Oreal Infallible Pro-Contour & Highlight Palette in Light - The contour and highlight are super complementary to each other which is really nice to have together all in one place. The contour color looked cool-toned in the kit however, it seemed a little warmer and sheer on the skin but was quite buildable. It was kind of the same with the highlight too. It was sheer on the skin but built up to a pretty glow. I recommend dampening your brush and applying the highlighter for the ultimate wah-bam! highlight.
Swatches / Pro Kit wax + shadow | Matte-Matic Pencil | Rebel Rose | Contour Palette

Giveaway Time!

Here's your chance to win a L'Oreal Paris prize pack featuring the goodies you see above! Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

* All L'Oreal products in this post can be found at your local Rite Aid!

// Products were sent to me as a member of the Rite Aid Network with L'Oreal but all opinions are 100% my own.