Jacqueline | Julie | Blu | Cassi | Neely | Gie Gie

I've mentioned this before, and I'll say it again; I love pastels! When I saw the Lovely 2013 Spring Collection I fell in love. This is the collection that I've been waiting for. I was so bummed when brights, and neons, were the trend.

For the Zoya 2013 Earth Day Promotion I bought the Lovely. I swapped out Piaf for Cassi, and this makes for a better spring collection, I think. Neely, Jacqueline, and Blu are creams. The others are shimmers.

At first I thought Blu was going to be a dupe for Kristen. Kristen is more of a dusty color, and waaaay more sheer. Blu is just beautiful, and I like it better than last year's bloggers favorite Essie Bikini So Teeny. *gasp*

I have already applied Julie, and it's a beautiful color. What I love about it most is that I can get away with one coat, although it is a bit sheer. It's not streaky, at all.

Cassi is soooo not photographed true to color, just throwing that out there.



Did you pick up any nail polishes in this years Earth Day promotion? Sorry about not mentioning anything on the blog, I completely forgot. I actually canceled the Julep box in favor of this promotion. It's so much better!! That's probably why I didn't think about it, I was too busy saying goodbye to yet another Julep Maven box. No, I have not purchased one since the last time I posted about one.

Also, another question: Am I the only one that doesn't like to buy any Zoya polishes unless there's a sale going on?

Ramble ramble ramble

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So, I bought some stuff this month. . .

I'm calling this my Spring haul simply because I don't buy make up very often. I don't know why. I want to, I look, and gawk at the products whenever I go near any, I just don't reach out and pick anything up. Weird.

On Friday I went to Target on a mission to pick up some lip products, and ended up getting more than I wanted too. I also placed an order for some Avon nail polished with my mom, and those arrived on Saturday.

So, here's a look at some of the products I plan on reviewing/using/probably loving.

The ELF eye liner was bought on impulse. I was browsing around looking for a new liquid eyeliner. I'm the type of person who likes to do some sort of research first, and I didn't even know where to begin with eyeliners. I walked past the little ELF section, saw this, and figured that for $1, I couldn't really go wrong. First impression: I really like it! I'm pleasantly surprised.

I posted a wish list in February, and the Maybelline Color Tattoo was on it. I didn't get the color I originally wanted, instead I picked up Inked in Pink. I already like them better than the Avon cream shadows, which is the only other cream shadows I've ever tried.

Avon Sparkling Red Rouge (the red glitter one)- It looked more pint in the catalog, but that's ok. I really like it, the silver glitter makes it look different than China Glaze Ruby Pumps.

Avon Inspire (yellow)- I don't have a pale yellow, and that's pretty much why I bought this one. It was on sale, and I figured why not?

Mark Mint Tea and Saffron came as a set. I wanted Mint Tea because it reminds me of Chanel Peridot, and I don't have a dupe for that one yet. I wish I had the actual color to compare. The other one is a pretty gold color. I really like them. They were in the What's New catalog, and should be available soon, if not now.

Essie Madison Ave-Hue- Oh my gosh this is such a pretty color. Pink with silver glitter. It reminds me of Bikini So Teeny, with the cream color and subtle glitter. I haven't swatched it yet, so I don't know if I'm going to run into the same problem where the glitter doesn't show up. I'll do a swatch soon and let you all know. The glitter is so fine that I am a bit worried.

The best for last. I went a bit crazy. To some of you, this is nothing, but I am not a lip gal. I own four Revlon Lip Butters, and 3 lip glosses. I use only about 3 of those products, and that's when I remember to put them on. I don't know what inspired me, but I wanted a lot. I just kept picking them up, and even my husband grabbed one for me. He kept wanting me to get a purple color, but I told him no.

Some of these are from that wish list, and some are ones that I've wanted for a while.

The Rimmel Kate Moss lipstick is literally the first lipstick I've ever bought. This Lasting Finish shade is 12. Red with an orange tint, or orange with a red tint, I can't really tell the difference yet. I really really like it. I'm kind of obsessed with it right now.

I did pick up a Maybelline Color Whisper, but it's not in the shade I originally wanted. I chose Pink Possibilities, and I tired it out last night. Gorgeous color. These lipsticks are making me wonder what I've been doing with my life. I feel like I've been missing out. Now I understand why girls carry around so many different colors in their bags.

I also grabbed a Loreal Colour Riche Caresse in the shade I originally wanted; Coral Tattoo. This is also my first ever Loreal Paris product ever.

To go along with the firsts theme, I picked up two Covergirl lipsticks/gloss/balm/whatever. These are the first Covergirl products I've ever tried. The first one is the Jumbo Gloss Stain in Ruby Twist. I wanted something a bit more orange, but the hubby suggested this one.Hey, he picked out the Neutrogena lip gloss that I love, so I do value his opinion when it comes to these sorts of things. Even if he is color blind... Moving along! I also picked up the Blast Flipstick in Glimmer which is two colors in one. He got his plum color, and I got a nice dark pink shade. This was the Hubby's suggestion. He's strange.

Lastly the company with the longest product names on the planet Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Honey. I wanted it, I bought it. Nothing much to say. It smells really nice, though. That's a plus.

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That's it. That's my crazy adventure that I spent way too much time on in Target. Let me know if you've used any of these products before, and which shades you suggest. I'm trying to venture out of my comfort zone a bit, without going too bold. Just throw some suggestions at me, I don't have any friends who wear makeup, so you guys and other bloggers are all I have in the beauty world. That sounded more desperate than I intended...

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Basin Haul | Last one for a while

I went to Basin at Downtown Disney over the weekend. My husband and I had gift cards, and we decided to spend them =). Below is everything we got with our two $25 gift cards.

Fresh Soaps

Mickey (Pink)- Scent is Pink Sugar, my favorite Basin scent

Mediterranean Mint

Bag- Assorted soaps for 3.74. It's a really great deal. I was lazy, and didn't identify the soaps. I know one is oat meal though. The other soaps are by weight, the two above are 6.59 and 5.39. I received the same amount of soap for a cheaper price. The trick is getting a bag with good scents, one that's easier at Basin White located at the Grand Floridian.

Basin Hydrator- Love

Basically it's a lotion. The blend of scents is so strange; Peach, Cherry Blossom, and White Jasmine. It's a very nice blend. None of the scents are too over powering, ands quite sweet. 

Egg Noggin' conditioner and shampoo bar

Perfect for my oily hair. I've used the shampoo bars before, but never a conditioner bar. 

Bath Bombs

Two Lemongrass and one Sandlewood & Patchouli. My husband picked these out.

For once I didn't want to buy too many bath bombs. I still have some left over from the last time I went. I also have some soap left over from almost a year ago, so that logic can be thrown out the window. If you want any reviews of the products, let me know, and I will do my best. Basin is a little hard to get to, but you can order online. As far as I know the scents are true to their descriptions. I suggest Pink Sugar though, I don't think you can go wrong with that one, in my opinion.

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Ulta Butter London BOGO Haul

I originally said that I wasn't going to participate in last weeks BOGO, but you give a mouse a cookie, they're going to eat the cookie! There was also a code for free shipping on orders $25 and more, so since shipping was going to be about $5 anyways, I figured I could spend the extra $5 and get free shipping!

First are the nail polishes. For Butter London I got Rosie Lee, which is a beautiful brick red, boarder line copper shimmer with a clear polish. It's not pale pink like the website says, not sure how they got that description. Next is Fairy Lights which looks NOTHING like it does on the BL site. I thought Ulta had the color wrong, but no no, they are correct. It is the exact same as Julep Maria, and I will put up a proper swatch some time this week if I have time. Kind of annoyed that I bought a dupe.

I have been wanting Essence for a while now, and since they are $1.99, I figured why not! I bought Black is Black since the only black that I have is a tiny Sally Girl polish. Sweet as Candy is a sheer pink, and it looks perfect for a french manicure. I've only swatched them quickly on nail wheels, so I'll have to do a proper swatch one of these days. Black is Black looks like it'll take 2 coats to be opaque, and Sweet as Candy looks like it'll take forever.

Oh boy, probably my favorite item is the Burt's Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream. I have been wanting this for ages, but I never actually took the plunge to buy it when I saw it in stores. So glad I ordered it!!! The last thing I bought was the Almay eye make up remover because I needed something that was a dollar, and that seemed like a good choice. Travel size!!

Then I choose 3 samples, and I basically picked the three that were not fragrance samples. The first one pictured, is the Bioré Blemish Fighting Ice Cleanser that I figured I could stick in an over night bag. The second one, to be honest, I have no idea what it is. It's some sort of skin care, but I couldn't be bothered to read the paper. The last one is the Laura Geller Spackle primer. I am scared about this. That word "bronze", I am the opposite of bronze. I doubt this will work for me.

Think I'm done with Butter London? Think again I have 4 more on their way from Coterie, if they will ever get off their butts and ship the order I placed on the 13th. I'm getting Knackered, All Hail the Queen, Bluey, and a matte top coat. All for only $11!!!! How could I resist? I plan on doing a nail polish collection video when they get here, whenever that will be.

I wanted to mention that I am sick AGAIN, so don't expect too much blogging from me. I spent most of the morning sleeping, and I have developed a cough this time. Grrr, no idea how I keep getting sick.

Hope you all are well, and I will see you again [hopefully] soon!

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P.S. Let me know what you think about these hauls. I'm really iffy on them, but I mainly post them when I have something to say about the items in the haul. What posts do you like to see? I'm trying to gather ideas of what to post, and I want to make sure it's something you are interested in.

Some Mark Goodies

I ordered from my mom a few weeks ago. I mainly wanted the Shine Fighter, mascara, and the rings (which were a rep. preview. Shhhh), but then she showed me these little sets that were sooo cheap, and I am a sucker. I don't do hauls/buys too often, I honestly don't shop that much anymore.

First Set - $6 each (I ordered two)

Help Wanted: A good smelling exfoliator that I had been searching for. It's normally $10 on it's own!

Self Sanctuary: Body wash that I am loving! It smells so nice, and luxurious.

Got To Glow: The one thing in this set that I will probably not use. I may try it out, but the unused one will probably be regifted to someone.

Shine Fighter

My love =) I will do a review on this little oil control mask.

Lash All You Want Mascara

I normally use Avon mascara, it really does wonders for my lashes, but I figured I could give the Mark one a spin. I haven't tried it yet, but it does smell like dirt, literally. There was an Avon one that smelled the exact same as this. Not sure how I feel about that,

Nail Polish

This is a second set that cost $7. The pouch in the first picture came with it. These were discontinued and I was jealous that my mom got them and I didn't. I was happy to find it.

Industrial - Grey

Steel Plum - Muted purple

Violet Daze - Duo-chromey purple

Tickled Pink

Rings

They come in a set of three, and I'm not going to lie, they feel cheap. I looked up the price, they cost $16. I think that's a bit much for the quality. That's honestly how a lot of Avon's fashion items work. Especially their shoes. I got them at a reduced price, and would never pay full price for them. They are cute though, don't get me wrong.

Would you ever order from a catalog? How do you feel about not knowing the quality of an item, or more importantly, how a product like a body wash smells?

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Copious finds and international loves

My experience with Copious is a bit mixed. On the bright side I met a wonderful seller who was really sweet and worked with me. On an unfortunate note the site was having some MAJOR issues. My payment wasn't going through (eventually did, as you can see), and the errors resulted in many ONE penny charges, and a few others as well. Other's were also having issues.

I ended up with 2 of each brand, Rainbow Honey, Models Own, and Sinful Colors.

I've already started looking into more Models Own nail polish, and have found a few e-tailers who sell the brand in the states. Because of those wonderful people, I've also started looking at a few more international brands, especially some Australian ones.

From L to R

RH The Element of Magic

RH Celestia

MO Beach Party

MO Tropical Sun

SC Nail Junkie

Julep Frieda (for comparison)

SC Forget Now

I've been wanting Models Own for a while now, they're color selection is amazing. I also had the chance to discover some Rainbow Honey. Love love LOVE their bottles. That is such an odd thing to like about nail polish, but they're so cute! They're two minis, and while I was swatching I noticed now inconvenient the brush is to work. It's rather large considering how small the length of the actual brush is.  The colors are worth it though.

I also don't own any Sinful Colors, and those were a surprise that she was going to pick, so I had no idea what I was going to get. I am trying to ignore the Sinful-blogger drama that went on, and just trying to enjoy the colors. When I saw Forget Now I immediately thought about Frieda. Frieda has a bit more of a metallic finish, but the shade is close enough to please me.

Have you tried any brands that are sold exclusively online? I'm finally taking the plunge, and I am hooked!

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Basin Buys

 I try my hardest to go to Basin every time I go to Disney. They just reopened the store in the Marketplace at Downtown Disney. I love their bath bombs the best, and they have new treasures to play with! I opted to go light this round, only picking up three bath bombs and two different soaps.

$4.99 ea. OR 3 for $12.00 

Pirate Treasure

"Ahoy Matey! Thar be a surprise pirate treasure in every bath bomb!"

$4.99 ea. OR 3 for $12.00

Viva la Juicy

"An irresistible blend of honeysuckle, spring blossoms, and juicy citrus fruits."

$4.99 ea. OR 3 for $12.00

Hidden Treasure

"Whimsical and delightful - inside each bath bomb is a surprise too!"

Tea Tree

"Enriched with tea tree oil to treat acne and prevent brakeouts. Added peppermint oil cools and nourished oily skin."

Fluffy Pet Soap

"We've added essential oils to inhibit buggy invaders and aloe vera to soothe any itches. Your cat or dog will thank you!"

If you've been brave enough to use this on your cat, let me know! I will be using it on my dog, I enjoy that my cat likes me, and I want to keep it that way lol.

That's all that I got from my latest trip to Basin. I want to do a review of the Tea Tree soap, It smells lovely! There are so many good things that tea tree oil can do. I haven't opened them, and I don't want to until I'm ready to use them to keep them nice.

Quotations are copied from the signs at the store.

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"Its the golden ticket!"

Ashley - Ellie - Nessa - Sheryl - Sarah - Kylie (magnetic) - Fina

My mom woke me up and brought my maven box in to show me saying "you have the golden ticket". I opened my eyes and shot up looking for my glasses lol. She was holding a gold Julep Maven box. That only means one thing. Mind you, she has no idea what the golden box means, she just pointed out the box was gold. Each month Julep upgrades 100 maven boxes to a golden box. No one knows who is going to get it, so its a surprise! Usually the golden boxes are worth at least $100. Inside my box was each of the products that was included in the Maven boxes.


To be honest, I suspected it in the back of my mind after I read "shipping times vary on weight", and my box had been missing since the 29th. I figured my luck couldn't possible be that great. Thank you life in proving myself wrong in a good way.


Julep is having issues with defective brushes lately. These are my brush results:

Brushes that are wonky: Ashley, Sheryl, Kylie, Fina

Brushes that are good: Ellie, Nessa, Serah 

On to the pictures!!

Become a Maven today!

Clearance???

Do you check the clearance beauty section?

If not, you should! I found these little beauties amidst the clutter of beauty rejects. This is my second time finding Essie in those bins. First it was French Affair. Love love love to this day!

First is Wicked, which is this deep blood red color that will be perfect for fall. I only have one dark red, and that's OPI Lincoln Park After Dark which usually comes off as black. Wicked was originally $7.99 and was reduced to $2.06. You can tell it was used just by looking at the cap.

Next is Vermillionaire, this bright pinkish orange. This color was originally $7.79 and was dropped to $1.96. This one you can also tell was used. Someone made a mess of the inside. Neither of them have crazy amounts of product missing, and to be honest, you can hardly tell they were used. I assume they were swatched, rejected, and returned. That's perfectly fine, makes me happy!

Moral of the story: Check the clearance area!!!