Summer 2014 Haul (part 1)

Heeey everybody. You're probably thinking, "Why is Stacie posting a haul from a year ago?!" Yah, it is a bit strange... okay, maybe a lot strange. But, I already had to pictures all edited and ready to go, and I thought it would be good to have the swatches here for reference. As a bonus, I've used these things, so I can give a quick review.

So, I guess I'm going to start off the haul with the most regretful item. I really meant to get this haul up last summer and rave about how much I love the A La Mode palette. I don't know what kept me from posting last summer, maybe my crazy work schedule? Probably. I'm truly, truly sorry to share this if it makes you annoyed that you can't get it, but if you can see the swatches, you can dupe them out. I'll even try to find some dupes within my collection. As a final note, I think the Sugar Pop palette from Too Faced looks like it might have somewhat similar colors, and they look perfect for summer, anyway.

Too Faced A La Mode Eyes palette

So... the colors are absolutely gorgeous. They're pigmented, smooth, and just delightful. In my mind, they are the epitome of summer. As an added bonus, the names are in French (or at least most of them are)! You know how much I love French. It was only slightly painful to hear reviewer's pronunciations of the words.

I think last summer is when the Pixel brand came to Ulta, and I was super excited to try out some of their stuff. I picked up two lip glosses in different formulas to see if there was a difference. This one in a squeezy tube was thicker and more pigmented, so it stays around longer than the other one. This color was pretty much my lip color of last summer. I don't know if I'll be able to use it this summer so much, but we'll see. I have no idea what the name is, but you'll recognize the color when you see it in the store.

This one is a perfect soft pink. The best part of the Pixel brand is its affordability. It's pretty low on the price spectrum, and it's good quality! I recommend checking out the brand.

This has got to be one of my favorite blushes ever! Seriously. It's the perfect soft shade that just warms up the face and gives the perfect flush. It's soft, feminine, lovely. I wish I could just buy the blush by itself. The highlight is alright, but not my favorite. It has a pinky purple iridescence that I don't think looks very natural, and I like my highlights to look somewhat realistic. And a bronzer is a bronzer is a bronzer, in my mind. I feel like they pretty much all look the same, and I don't use them that much, so I have a lot building up in my blush/bronzer drawer.

The whole summer haul was broken up into three sub hauls. This is the second bunch, and it was pretty much a L'Oréal haual, haha. If you're interested, I have a review on the mascara here.

 

E.L.F Lip Scrub

I heard all about it from several people and thought it was time to try it out. It is pretty good, and it's nice that it's in a solid, portable form. I've made lip scrubs before by just rubbing brown sugar on my lips or mixing it with some lip balm first, but this is the easiest, least messy way possible.

I think the OPI polishes were Limited Edition, but the L'Oréal polish is in the permanent collection, and it's name is "Now You Sea Me." It's not exactly my cup of tea, but I think it's a good color to have for nail art.

L'Oréal Colour Rich eye shadow quad in Rose for Romance

I'd been wanting to get this quad for a while, and I have to say that I'm pretty disappointed. I have a Colour Riche quad in Blue Haute Couture, and all the colors are super smooth and delightful. The two darkest shades are pretty nice, but the two pink shades are flaky, dry, and patchy. I can't believe it!

L'Oréal Colour Riche Collection Privée lipstick
in Jennifer's Nude

This color is so lovely. It's funny, though, because I remember being in a big hurry to buy it--I thought the collection was limited edition. Turns out, it's part of the permanent line now. Still, it's a good, soft rosy color to have.

L'Oréal Colour Riche Collection Privée lipstick in Julianne's Nude

I don't show it in the group shot, but I got this around the same time. I wear this one more often than the other. It's such a nice, soft pink--perfect for spring! Both lipsticks are light and moisturizing, but still provide a decent amount of color and shine.

This has gotten pretty long, and there are a lot of pictures, so I'm breaking this up into two posts. I'll be back with more in a little while!

Stacie

E.L.F. Smudge Pot in Cruisin' Chic: Possible Dupe?

Hey everybody! I'm super excited for this post. I've been wanting to write it for a while. In the last post, I talked about my E.L.F. haulage, and today I'm going to focus on one of the particular items that I bought in that haul--the Smudge Pot in "Cruisin' Chic." All on its own, it is AWESOME. The texture is smooth and light, it's easy to blend, it lasts really well, and the color is gorgeous. At $2, there is literally no down side.

E.L.F. Smudge Pot in Cruisin' Chic

Just look at that color! A taupey bronze with a golden sheen. So, so pretty. It's a great neutral for everyone! And I love the packaging, too. It looks so clean, and it's not as heavy and bulky as other cream shadows.

From left to right: Nude Compliment and Metallic

When I first swatched "Cruisin' Chic," besides admiring its beauty, I also thought it looked similar to some other cream shadows I owned. I dug through my collection and found these guys: the Limited Edition Maybelline Color Tattoo in "Nude Compliment" and Ulta Cream Eye Shadow in "Metallic." I really wanted to find a dupe for the Color Tattoo, since I really like the color and it was limited edition. Finding a dupe for "Metallic" would be a nice bonus, too, because the texture is a little thick and can look scaly on the lids--not a good look!

As you can see in the picture above, they look pretty similar in the pot, but how will their swatches compare?

Swatches from left to right: Nude Compliment, Cruisin' Chic,
and Metallic

I included two different shots to show how dimensional the shades are. In a bright, direct light, the golden sheen of "Cruisin' Chic" is really brought out. "Nude Compliment" isn't nearly as shiny, but there is a slight warmth there, and "Metallic" lives up to its name by being very shiny and leaning more toward the cooler end of the spectrum. Toward the bottom of the lower shot, you can see that when the swatches are all in shadow, they look the most similar.

As a final verdict, I don't think that "Cruisin' Chic" is an exact dupe for either "Nude Compliment" or "Metallic," but it's close enough for me. In my experiments with the shade, it can look a little darker when built up, as well. "Metallic" actually looks like it would be a better dupe for "Nude Compliment," but I can't get over the texture. All in all, "Cruisin' Chic" is a winner in my book.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope your week is going well!
~Stacie

A Little E.L.F. Haul

Hey everyone! I hope things are going well for you, and if you live in the United States, I hope you are enjoying a nice Memorial Day Weekend. If you have a loved one that fell in the line of duty, I am grateful for their sacrifice, and my heart and prayers go out to your family.

I've been wanting to try some of these things from E.L.F. for a while, and I was in a store not too long ago that had them. Since they're only $2 a piece, I decided to try them.

E.L.F. Lip Balm Tints in Grapefruit and Berry

I remember Emily (emilynoel83 on YouTube) recommending these and saying that they had a decent amount of color. Well, the Grapefruit shade isn't too bad, but the Berry shade is pretty sheer. I had to really work to build up the pigmentation that you see in the photo. I wanted the picture to show the swatches next to each other to show the difference. Also, the Berry swatch almost seems not to exist when cropped by itself. So weird. Even odder is that Emily was really impressed with the Berry shade. There was a year between her review and my buying it, so maybe they changed the formula? Or maybe it was just a bad batch.

E.L.F. Smudge Pots in Ain't That Sweet? and Cruisin' Chic

I'm really glad I picked up these guys. I'm sad that the store I was in didn't provide the whole range. Eventually I'll have to break down and order off the website. I'm not one for really ordering online because I'm too impatient and all about that instant gratification. The formula is thin, but pigmented, which I like, because it blends really nicely. While I like the pigmentation of the Maybelline Color Tattoos, they are a thicker, true cream eye shadow. This almost feels more like a gel.

E.L.F. Moisturizing Lipstick in Ravishing Rose

And this guy was late to the party. I bought him at Target months after buying the others, but I figured I might as well add him since it is an E.L.F. product.

Ravishing Rose swatch

At this point, I can't really comment on staying power, but the color and feel are both really nice. It's perfect for spring, as it comes of as a soft red with an underlying hint of raspberry. It's even good for a summer look.

Enjoy the rest of your Memorial Day, and I hope the rest of your week goes brilliantly!
~Stacie

PR: NYC Big Bold Plumping Lip Gloss

NYC Big Bold Plumping Lip Gloss in Big City Blush

Hey guys! Today's post is going to be another review that I've been meaning to do for ages! Everything about this lip gloss is supposed to be BIG and BOLD. Unfortunately, I think that played into its demise. I mean, take a look at the applicator! It's HUGE! Look how big it is compared to the tube of gloss:

Gloss applicator compared to tube

A wand like that makes it difficult for precise application. It doesn't matter so much for this gloss, though, since it is incredibly sheer (I have the shade Big City Blush). Take a look at the swatch:

Big City Blush swatch

It's incredibly shiny, but there's hardly any color. And it's a shame because the color in the tube looks gorgeous. Besides the color being a dud, the gloss is also very sticky. I think you can see in the size comparison photo that some of the gloss folded over on itself and created a little peak. Ick. Too goopy for me. But the biggest problem that this gloss has is the SMELL. It smells so nasty and chemically, that I cannot get over it. Maybe it's due to whatever they put in the gloss to make it a plumper, but if that's the case, I don't want it. I don't even want a plumping lip gloss! I just got it because of the color--you can imagine my disappointment. But I know if the smell is that strong, I don't want it on my lips.

So really, this lip gloss loses on all fronts. It's sheer, it's goopy, and it stinks. There's no benefit, so just stay away! I don't know if the other shades are as bad, but this has ruined my intention of ever trying another.

~Stacie

Limited Edition Wet n Wild Spring 2015 Blush & Glow Trios

Wet n Wild Spring 2015 Limited Edition Blush & Glow Trios in
Sunset Junction and Solar Powered

Hey everybody! I'm so excited for this post! You have probably heard about the Limited Edition Wet n Wild products, and for the past week, I have hunted all over for them. I've crossed half of my state, and searched in any drugstore that I was able to. Finally, I found them in my own hometown. It was kind of a strange finding, though. There was only one by itself in a Walgreens with a price tag. The display was even gone. I decided to look over the other makeup as well, and found the Sunset Junction in a different display. I don't know if someone was trying to hide it, or if they mistakenly put it there. Anyway, I was relieved to find two of the three. I still have hope to find the third one, but if I don't, I'll be satisfied enough to have found these two.

Blush & Glow Trio in Sunset Junction

Sunset Junction swatches

Here is the Sunset Junction trio. Isn't it beautiful? The highlight is strong and pretty shimmery. The blush is soft but pigmented, with a satin finish. The bronzer is also a satin-finish, and it's warm in tone, so it's not going to be a contour shade (which is fine by me--there's too much contouring going on!). The trio is so buttery soft to the touch! I wish all products felt this way, and I'm impressed that a drugstore brand is providing such a texture, although maybe I shouldn't since Wet n Wild is known for having nice textures.

Blush & Glow Trio in Solar Powered

Solar Powered swatches

This trio has just as gorgeous of a texture as the other. The blush shade is a gorgeous burnt rose color, and it's the sort of color that I think will be my go-to summer color. The two bronze shades look pretty similar, with the main difference being that one is more of a satin with glitter and the other is more of straight shimmery shade.

In short, I recommend that you try to find them if you can. If you can't, I think I might be able to find dupes, and I'll work on finding them and write another post. Until then, I hope you have a good day, and a great weekend :)

Stacie

Soap Showdown

Hey everyone! I hope you're doing well and just excited as I am that there is some regular posting going on. Today's post is about some some soaps that I've used recently. I don't know what it is, but lately I've really gotten into using bar soap as a body cleanser instead of liquid body wash. Maybe it's because it seems more old fashioned. When I use bar soap, I feel connected to the millions of people who went before me for the past hundreds of years and got by with only a humble cake of soap for cleanliness. None of this new-fangled liquid stuff. I've also been more wary of chemicals lately, which is slightly ironic, and I feel like there's more chemicals involved in liquid body wash than soap. Plus, the soap bar has had hundreds of years to prove its reliability, so why not tap into that for a while?

Punch Studio Jasmine Luxury Soap

First up is some deliciously fragrant jasmine soap from a Punch Studio holiday set I got a couple years ago. I know, I'm a little late in getting around to using the soap. But it just looked so pretty in its lovely box and smelled so nice that I hated to use it. Thankfully, even though this one is gone, there is still a second one to use. I plan to do a full post on the set I got, because I think they come out with one every Christmas season.

The bar is a good size, not too big or too small, so there's no risk of slipping and sliding in the shower. It's very fragrant, and the smell lasted a good while after I was out of the shower and dry. It also creates a nice lather, which I feel is integral to feeling like I'm actually clean after using a soap. Another perk to the soap is that it's made in the USA. Woo! I'm always happy when something is made within my beloved country. Let's create and support local jobs :) If you're interested, I see Punch Studio stuff a lot at T. J. Maxx. That's where we got the set this is from, and I often see their stuff throughout the year. Just check out the area where soaps/shampoos are sold.

Addison & Gates Blackberry & Vanilla Luxury Soap

Here we have my beloved little Blackberry & Vanilla soap. And I do mean little. It's a cube with sides about 1.5 to 2 inches long. The size does pose a small problem, because it's more difficult to handle and use quickly in the shower, and the corners are slightly uncomfortable, but it's not too much of a hassle to get a good lather. I quickly got over the size issue because the smell is SCRUMPTIOUS. Oh is it heavenly. It makes me want to bite it. I haven't, though, in case you were worried. The scent is so pungent that it scents the entire shower area when dry. This isn't one of those soaps that you have to add water and practically put your nose on in order to smell. I like that, since I rely on my soap for perfume as much as cleanliness. And isn't the packaging adorable? I had to have a shot just to dedicate to the pattern. It's like a geometric floral. While the small size was a tad annoying, it was only a trial size, and there were bigger bars I could've bought. I bought this at World Market, and I recommend checking that store out even if you don't want the soap. There are so many neat things there.

Edna Lucille Southern Magnolia Homestyle Soap

This soap was a gift, and I wanted so much to love it. Not only because it was a gift from my well-intending mother (who knows of my deep love of magnolias), but also because the packaging makes me think of old-timey goodness. I'm just such a sucker for retro.

To start off, the smell is not exactly what I would love. There's definitely magnolia there, but there's also a soap smell mixed in. The other soaps just make you think of their name, but this makes me think of soap and powdery magnolias. Besides the smell, it doesn't really lather all that well. The soap is kind of a mix of a creamy soap and these weird translucent soap chunks. Maybe if it was entirely made of the creamy colored material, it would be better, but the cubes throw it off. It also leaves me skin feeling kind of slick instead of moisturized. I'm wondering if there isn't some sodium hydroxide in there. I'll see if I can find the ingredients list. Sodium hydroxide is a strong base, and it will leave your skin feeling that way. Stay away!

Asquith & Somerset Magnolia Luxury Soap

This soap was also bought at World Market. It's funny that I would buy an abnormally small and an abnormally large soap in the same shopping trip. This guy is just a little too big to fit in my soap dish, which is a bummer because the dish cuts into the soap, and I don't want to waste crumb of this stuff! It is so heavenly! It's what the other magnolia tried to be and failed. I don't get what's up with the royal pig on the packaging, though. It doesn't matter because this soap is the bomb dot com! It has a rich lather, luxurious scent, and cleans while still being moisturizing.

It's kind of hard to rank them, because I like three of them so well, but the Asquith & Somerset Magnolia soap is my favorite and the Edna Lucille Southern Magnolia is my least favorite. The Blackberry & Vanilla and Jasmine soaps are both so nicely scented, but their lather is just a little weaker than the Magnolia soap, so they have to tie for second. If you can't find these particular soaps, I would just head on over to World Market or T. J. Maxx and look for any soap that says "triple milled" or "luxury" in a scent that you like. It's most likely a winner.

Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you have a lovely day!
Stacie

PR: Wet n Wild Coloricon Eyeliners

Hey lovelies! I'm so happy that I said I wanted to post, and I'm able to get a post done on the very same day! Woo! And I have been wanting to do this review foreeever. The pictures have been in my camera I don't know how long. It's ridiculous.

Top to bottom: Bronzed, Amethyst, Turquoise, and Taupe

I have the Wet n Wild Coloricon Kohl Eyeliner in 660A "Bronzed," Coloricon Eyeliners in 661C "Amethyst" and 659C "Turquoise," and Coloricon Brow & Eye liner in 648 "Taupe." I hate it when spelling isn't consistent within a brand. Sorry if it doesn't matter to you, but it's a pet peeve of mine. I don't know why the "Bronzed" shade is labeled as a kohl eyeliner, because it is sold right along the other eyeliners and it performs just the same.

There's no denying that some lovely swatches can be obtained from the pencils, but actually getting the color on your eye is a problem. The pencils are so hard, it's like trying to line your eyes with a rock. Not only is it unpleasant, but it's dangerous. I had to go over the same spot multiple times to get the swatches you see in the above picture, except for "Taupe," which is another problem. While it is labeled as a brow and eye liner, I don't like the color for around my eyes, so I would only use it for a brow product. The product is significantly softer than the other pencils, so a lot of product comes off in my brows. It's very difficult (if not impossible) to get a soft/natural look, and I'm not one for full-on, drawn on brows. If only Wet n Wild would switch their formulas!

If you're willing to scrape at your eye to get good pigmentation, then go for it (they're only around a dollar each), but I don't really see the point since the shades are pretty basic and lots of drugstore brands have shades very similar. If you're looking for a good, cheap eyeliner, check out Jordana. NYX and Rimmel have some fun-colored eyeliners that also have great staying power.

Thanks for dropping by, and I'll talk to you soon!
~Stacie

Life update: Where have you been?

Hey everyone! It has been a looong time since my last post, and I am sorry about that! I wanted to take a little time and just explain what exactly has been going on and what the plans are for the future.

To start off, the past year has been a crazy one full of moving and transferring and more transferring and tons of classes and it's just been nuts. I hate using the term, because I feel like it's too often said that "life is crazy right now," but the past year has been the craziest my life has ever been. I thought I knew what busy was, but I was WRONG. I thought I could handle 18 credit hours of pure, full-on math and science classes, but I was sort of wrong. I mean, I did survive the semester, but just barely. The past week has been me trying to rest while also running all over the state to do things with friends and family before I leave for an internship. Maybe I'll have actual time to rest when I'm at the internship? Or maybe I can rest when I retire in forty something years. Who knows?

So, in short, no blogging was done because there was no time to blog. Besides that, I had no money to buy things to blog about, so there's that. BUT, as mentioned in the previous paragraph, I do have an internship coming up, and it is paid, so maybe I'll have some time and money to blog during the summer. I'm hoping so, because I miss it.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, I quit the no-poo thing a few months ago. I gave it a good month's try, but my hair was not getting any better, and I kept reading things that made me think using baking soda is actually not such a good way to clean your hair. Apparently the skin's natural pH leans more towards acidic and baking soda is basic, so it can lead to some bad results. The past semester involved two chemistry courses and both dealt in-depth with pH, so I know that it's nothing to mess with.

Now that we're pretty much caught up, I thought it would be good to lay some plans for the future. I did change the blog's name, and I'm ashamed to say that I will be changing it again. I'm not particularly fond of this name, and it definitely needs changing. I feel so flightly and unable to choose anything, since this will be the second name change, and I've changed my major twice as well. Can I not decide on ANYTHING? Why yes, I can actually. I think I'm getting close to a name and major that I like, so I really feel like the next year will bring some stability to my life. Along with the blog's name change, the layout will change. I don't know how long it will take, but hopefully it will be done by the end of the summer.

I hope to start posting again this week, and I appreciate anyone that has stuck around through the past years. I hope your lives are not nearly as stressful as mine, and I hope you're looking forward to the summer as much as I am!

~Stacie