Super Secret Not Out In Stores Yet Vaseline Lip Balm

*I received this item free from Influencer for testing purposes. All opinions are my own*

I think I can finally talk about this, if not...oops. Vaseline has reformulated AND repackaged their Lip Therapy lip balms and I was lucky enough to get one a few months ago to test out. I believe these will be available in stores soon, but as of Monday this week I have not seen them in any of my local stores. There are several different types, I received the cocoa butter one. Let's see what's going on with these shall we?

First, can we talk about the cute vintage tins? Gone are the cute but hard to use little mini Vaseline tubs for lip balm, and in come these large tins inspired by designs for way back when. The tin is just under two inches across and there is 0.6 oz of product in here, so you are getting quite a bit more than in the old packaging. The color of the tin will depend on what type of balm is in it, I know the Aloe one is like greenish and I believe the Rosy Lips one is pink.

Inside is the lip balm most of you are familiar with, but I guess they've reformulated it. The back only lists three ingredients; petroleum, cocoa butter, and some flavor/aroma. There's no coloring in this at all, as you can see, and while there is a nice cocoa butter scent I wouldn't really call if flavored like a chapstick is. The balm itself has a really nice slip to it without being overly greasy and I'm loving how hydrating it is. I've been using this as my purse lip balm since I got it and I'm really happy with it. Even my 4 year old loves it.

I have no idea how much these are going to be. Since they are bigger than the old tubs I imagine they'll be a bit more than those but I can't imagine them being over $10. Once they come out I will probably pick up the other varieties and give them a test, but for now I'm really happy with the one I received and I will continue to use it till I finish it in 50 years.

Winter Essentials 2015 Birchbox

Winter is that time of year where everything is decorated, music is playing on every speaker, and cold, dry air to dry out your skin and hair. Nothing quite like below freezing temperatures to make you stock up on lotion. The editor box from Birchbox this month is called the Winter Essentials box and is full of products to help keep you looking and feeling good this holiday season. I love these themed boxes, they always have the best curating I think. And since the weather here has been super cold (well below freezing some days) I was more than ready for some Birchbox help.

This box has 6 items in it, though the sixth item is more of a treat than a beauty product. There are two beauty items, two skincare items, a hair care item, and the bonus treat. That's a nice ratio of items, I hate getting boxes that seem to be all one thing. The box itself is pretty, but a bit plain compared to the November box (which is in my top 5 designs for sure). And as a bonus I got this box ridiculously fast. As in two days after I ordered it, even though I used standard shipping. So kudos to Birchbox for being awesome.

Let's start with the eyeshadow duo I received. Some of you may be looking at the picture and thinking "that's not the shadow that comes with the box." And you would be right, I was sent the wrong one by mistake. I've already contacted customer service about it and they have the correct one being shipped to me as we speak. All the boxes this month are getting an eyeshadow duo from Coastal Scents's new palette set, you just had the option to pick which duo you got. I actually picked this green and gold duo for my regular box and a pink set was suppose to come in this box. I'll be gifting the extra green/gold duo to a friend when it arrives.

Aren't these gorgeous swatches? I LOVE how pretty they are and I know my picture doesn't do them justice. Coastal Scents has great eyeshadows so I know I'll be picking up their new palettes after all my Christmas shopping is done and I have money again.

Chuao is a tasty chocolate company that makes some super unique chocolate bars, like this one. It's a chocolate pod (aka individual sized bar) with pieces of cinnamon toast cereal in it. I don't like cinnamon cereal but that's my son and husband's favorite so they split it. Hubby said it was alright, the kiddo loved it though. I've had other bars from them and I do like them. If you don't want to order them online I have seen them at Target. This was a fun little perk for sure, I love it when we get bonus items.

I normally love getting things like this, but my hair isn't quite to the length I need to really use and enjoy a leave in conditioner. I haven't tried eSalon before, or even heard of them to be truthful, but I'll stick this into the box of stuff to use as my hair gets longer. It is a decent sized tube though and does smell nice, so it can't be awful.

This was the one item going in I knew I'd have to pass on. Juara makes some great skincare items, but I'm dealthy allergic to coconut so this coconut hand and nail balm is getting passed onto the same friends who are getting the extra green shadow duo. I'll let you guys know what they thought of it, but I'm expecting good things for sure.

How adorable is that little tube? I put a regular sized tube of lipstick next to it for a size comparison. It is soooo cute!

This tiny little baby is by Jane Iredale and is their Just Kissed Lip and Cheek stain in Forever Peach. I haven't tried it on my cheeks yet, but it did give my lips a nice and bright glow to them. And it smells so good, I want to eat it.

There's just a nice peachy tint to it, and according to the info card it will adjust to your skin for a natural, customized shade. This is a very Spring/Summer feeling color, which makes it a nice little perk up in dreary December. And since it's a baby sized lippie I can probably actually finish it before 2017 rolls around.

And last we have one of the items I was most excited about. Derma e is an awesome skincare line that I pick up from time to time at Marshalls for pennies on the dollar (love their clearance section) and I've been wanting to try their microdermabrasion scrub forever.

While the jar looks pretty nicely sized the bottom is false and there is really only two uses in their. I hate when companies do that, it just feels like they are lying to me. And at almost $33 a pop I want to know if it actually works before I buy it. I'm testing out a bunch of other skincare items right now so this will have to wait for a bit. But I'm going to enjoy using it even if I did get lied to.

Overall I really liked this box. I thought the curation was great, the items picked were perfect for a winter essentials box, and I'm really happy with my items minus the few hiccups. And for $10 the value is there for sure just in the lipstick and face scrub. Add in everything else and the value goes up fast.

November 2015 Birchbox

I adore getting a Birchbox every month, even if I really don't need more beauty stuff right now.Oh who am I kidding, I always need more beauty stuff! Most of my boxes are pretty great, though lately I feel like they've been kind of "meh". My October box was one of those, I couldn't even bring myself to review it. The stuff was fine, it was just really....boring I guess. I used it all, but I wasn't excited about it. Maybe I'm getting old and jaded, but I'm becoming harder to wow I've noticed. Let's dive into the first November box and see if it wows me a bit more than October's did.

First, can we talk about how pretty the box design is this time? I love darker tones, especially this time of year, so this pattern was a total hit with me. I'd love a notebook with this pattern on it, or something similar. If you know of one please link it to me down below in the comments.

5 items is a pretty standard box, but this one had a really good mix. One hair, one skin care, one perfume, and two makeup items. If the perfume had been another skin care item this would be the perfect item ratio for me. Only one "full sized" item this month, and you'll probably be super surprised which one it is.

Let's start with the hair care product first. My hair hasn't grown out enough to use anything I've received lately, but I did adjust my profile so I'll be getting short hair items only. This is a moisturizing fluid, to help make your hair more manageable and nicer looking. This sample is huge too, so I'm super excited about this. I'm kind of on the fence about Davines so I'm hoping I really like it. A full size is 125 mL (this is 50mL for reference) and only $26, so if it works like I think it will I'll probably pick one up. I'll post about this again in 3 months or so when I can actually use it.

I love a good body scrub, so I was really excited to receive one this month. Until I saw the size. Seriously, could it be any smaller? I'll get one use out this max.

And as you can see from the picture it isn't the grittiest thing out there. I haven't tried this yet, I've been to busy to take longer than 5 minutes in the shower lately, so I'm saving this for the weekend. It smells ok, not a scent I would choose on purpose but I don't hate it. A full sized is $25, so no matter how it works I won't be buying a full sized. I'd rather make my own for a fraction of the cost.

Another theBalm product! I've been fascinated with this company and their adorable vintage packaging but they're a tad expensive for my budget so I never buy them. I received a bronzer from them over the summer that I like, and now I have a blush. This is the Frat Boy shadow/blush (who wears matte pink eyeshadow?) and is a super pretty matte light peachy pink color.

This is such a wearable color, I really like it right now. I haven't actually worn it on my face, just swatched it repeatedly. I'm working on a blush right now so this hasn't made it into the rotation, but I'll use it starting in December for sure. A full size is $21, so I probably won't buy one after my teenie sample is used up. I'm still cranky about the small pan sizes of theBalm samples, but they are cute and I'm a sucker for that.

I HATE getting perfume as a sample, I'm so damn picky I almost never like them. They also feel like such a cheap sample, you can get these tubes for free a lot of the time at various stores. This is Joyful by My Daughter fragrances, and it does actually smell really nice. I think it smells grape-ish, my friend said it was super floral, the packaging says citrus and flowers. But at $85 a bottle I don't care how good it smells, I'm not buying it. I'm waaaay to cheap to spend that much on anything beauty related, especially a perfume I'd wear once a week tops.

And last is the much anticipated item, a lipstick from Birchbox's very own brand new cosmetics line! I was actually going to order the whole line but then I saw they were the sample choices for this month. I got a lipstick in this box and the eyeshadow pencil in my other box (being reviewed tomorrow), so this was a good way to try before I drop $50 on the whole set. These are billed as an affordable and travel friendly cosmetics line, which actually means tiny ass items at regular prices. This lipstick is TINY, only 0.6 grams of product in it. And guess what, according to Birchbox this is full sized. Is that not the most ridiculous thing you've ever heard? A deluxe sample sized item being called a full size product. $8 isn't bad for a full sized lipstick, but for this tiny little stick? I don't think so.

The shade I picked was Glam Life, which is a matte plum shade. It's pretty enough but I think they could have tweaked the color a bit more. I've heard rumors that the red shade in the line makes you look like a clown, so I'm SUPER glad I didn't pick this one out. It's a matte lipstick, so I expected it to be drying but man, this thing sucked all the moisture out of my lips. They felt like the Sahara desert after I applied it. And it did not hold up as well as I'd prefer after eating some pizza. If you are going to be that drying you better stick to my lips like glue. I'll use this up but I'll pass on buying the rest of the lipsticks from this line. Oh and as a packaging complaint, my lid does not go on all the way, there's a little gap between it and the actual tube that's driving me nuts.

I didn't hate this box, but it was another "meh" for me. The blush is a thumbs up, and I do like the scent of the perfume, but I either haven't tried the other products or didn't like them at all. I did get the editor box this month so hopefully that one will make up for what I didn't like about this one. If you received a Birchbox this month what did you think of it?

Project Pan 2015

I like to do little monthly Project Pans throughout the year, but as I get to the last few months of the year doing a big push to finish a lot of products is what I'm all about. For those who may not know what Project Pan is, it's a community of beauty lovers (and bloggers) working to "hit pan" or finish up products. We post them on Instagram or whatever our social media of choice is, and we encourage each other to finish that foundation to the last drop. So doing a Project Pan is just picking specific items and really focusing on finishing them up. If you find yourself knee deep in half finished items then doing something like this can be so helpful for you.

So this year I'm actually dividing my Project up between makeup and skincare/hair care items. I tend to go through skin and hair stuff faster than makeup so I'll be refilling that box whenever I finish everything in it. I won't be putting new makeup items into the makeup box, I've found that if I have new things I neglect the old things and never really finish stuff. I like to keep my Project Pan items in a box and basket so everything is already there for me and I don't have to dig through my massive hoard trying to find stuff. Plus if it's right there in my face I'm more likely to use it up faster I've learned.

So for skincare and hair care I have the Cetaphil wipes I hate, the Oribe Beach Waves spray from my last Birchbox, a Hyalauronic face gel, some argan oil for my hair, the Jouer clearing face oil from another Birchbox, the Glamglow foil pack, some lip scrub, and a weird toner thing from Paula's choice. I picked these items either because they were over halfway done and I just needed to finish them or because I hate them and need them out of my house finally. Some things like the face gel and argan oil I have a ton of in my stash so I'm just trying to destash my stash a bit. I'm pretty sure everything but the face gel will be done by the end of September.

These are my powders and eye stuff. Top row is the ELF eyebrow kit and an ELF bronzer. Love the eyebrow kit but it's almost done and I love the NYX brow gel better. The bronzer I HATE and will toss at the end of September. I'm basically just trying to get some extra use out of it to make me feel less guilty about tossing it. Next row is all eyeshadow minus the very last item which is an ELF cream eyeliner. The shadows are almost finished so I'm just trying to use them up, and the eyeliner needs to be used up this month or tossed, I've had it way longer than I'm comfortable with.
Bottom row is the Coastal Scents trial quad for the Revealed 2 palette. Since I own the palette I need to finish up this quad so there's no doubles in my palette box. The Ulta quad is halfway done already, with really only the dark brown left. The other shade in it only have a week's worth of shadow left in it. The next pot is the Smashbox eyeshadow primer I had to depot after the tube broke open. I need to finish this up, sticking my finger in it is gross to me and I'm worried about an eye infection. The last item is a cream mousse golden eyeshadow/highlighter. It's weird and I just need to use it up. I imagine I'll have 3 eyeshadows done by the end of the month and pan hit on another.

Lastly the tubes of stuff. Let's go left from right. First is the Ofra eye brow pencil I hate and tossed a day or two ago. But I used up quite a bit of it. Next is an ELF lip crayon that I really like but it's getting low so I might as well finish it up. The concealer is a yellow based one by ELF that I like but needs to be finished or tossed by January 1st. Same goes with that purple tube, that's a cream eyeshadow that I need to either use up or toss before it gives me an eye infection. The Miranesse lip crayon is almost brand new but I broke the cap so I need to try and finish it up before stuff gets in it. The Mary Kay lip gloss is really season specific so I hardly wear it, but again I need to use it up or toss it by January 1st. There's nothing wrong with the Maybelline mascara and it's only been open a month or so, but it isn't waterproof and the rainy season is upon us so it'll get tossed at the end of September as well. But I don't keep mascara longer than 3 months anyways so I'm not stressing a month early on the tossing. The ModelCo lipstick was in my last monthly Project Pan and I just want to continue working on it. I've got maybe half an inch left so I'll finish this for sure before January. The lollibalm is another Birchbox item AND was also in last month's Project Pan. There's maybe 1/4 of an inch left so it will probably be done by time this post goes live. And lastly is a deluxe sample of an It Cosmetics CC Cream I just got from Ulta (love free Ulta goodies) and I want to test it out so into the box it goes. These are normally about a week or so worth of product so it may be done by time this post goes live.

I think I'll get about 80% of the items done by January 1st, but I'd really like to get every single item done. I think if I do hit 100% completion I'll treat myself to a really nice new product or maybe some higher end skin care stuff. If you want to see how I'm doing on this make sure you follow me on Instagram and check back every Thursday here for a brief update. Wish me luck and good luck to anybody working on a Product Pan of their own.

My Not so Little Lipstick Haul

Somebody asked me once what one makeup product I could not live without and without even having to think about it I said lipstick. I own a fair amount (according to my husband fair amount means I'm like the crazy cat lady but with lipstick instead), and every time I go to Ulta or Target to get some shampoo or whatever I end up buying another lip product or six. And as soon as I buy some I immediately have to start planning which ones I'm going to buy next. I might have a slight problem in retrospect. But can you really blame me? The right lip product can make or break a look, as anyone who has found their perfect shade of red can tell you. Today I'm going to show you the lip products I bought or was wonderfully gifted during June, because what fun is a lipstick collection if you can't show it off?

First up are my NYX lovelies. I've been exploring their entire line for the last few months, picking up a few items here and there. For the most part I really like the company, and they have a great selection of affordable lipsticks. I did a big review of some a month or so ago of their Round Case Lipsticks, so this time I tried to pick some different products (though I did get one more Round Case Lipstick).

The High Voltage Lipstick line is fairly new I believe, and judging by the picked over display at my local Ulta are pretty popular. I only bought one because I wasn't sure how different these would be from their other lipsticks, and of course it was one of the reds. Hollywood is a highly pigmented, creamy bright red that I've fallen completely in love with. These are much more opaque and pigmented than the Round Case Lipsticks, and offer more fun colors like a bright purple I need to buy.

The Round Case lippie I added to my collection is such a non-me color that I'm surprised I bought it, but it has ended up being a new favorite. If you follow me on Intagram you know I love the bright and bold colors, so Cocoa (a soft, neutral brown shade) is way outside my normal. As with all the other lipsticks in that line, it applies well and stays on as long as you'd expect from a regular lipstick. It is a great everyday color and if you love neutral lips I highly recommend getting this one.

The Butter Lip Balm line is newish, came out about a year ago I believe. For some reason these have never interested me, but I finally bought some literally so I could review them. Certain colors that I want seem to always be out of stock at my Ulta, so I settled on Panna Cotta (a very sheer pink) and Ladyfingers (a bright pinky mauve color) finally. Panna Cotta is sheer enough I don't really notice any color on my lips, but Ladyfinger gives me a nice flush of color. They're decent lip balms and they smell really nice, but I don't know if I'd get any more. Maybe if they were on a good sale or the red one was finally in stock.

And lastly is my biggest disappointment from NYX. I've been lusting after certain shades of their Soft Matte Lip Cream line for over a year now, but they are ALWAYS out of stock at my Ulta. Finally one of the shades was available when I was in buying all the other NYX lippies, so I snagged it and rushed home to apply it. The color  (San Paulo) is gorgeous and rich and I loved it, till about an hour later when half of it had dissolved into a patchy mess all over my lips. While I was at work. I really expected better lasting power from a matte product than this. If I do any eating, drinking, or talk for a while (like I do at my job) this fades in patches and really looks awful. I wanted to love this but I really can't. If you have any suggestions on making it work I am all ears.

My second lip haul of June was born out of necessity believe it or not. I finished my favorite lip balm during my Spring Project Pan and the one I was using just wasn't cutting it. The Baby Lips line by Maybelline had a huge cult following so I figured for under $4 I'd give them a try. I bought one of the clear sunscreen ones (Quencher) and one of the Crystal ones (Pink Quartz). I can see why people like these, they're fun looking, smell incredible, and are a decent lip balm. Are they the best lip balm in the whole world? No, but they're better than what I was using and are ten times more fun. They both smell like candy and the Pink Quartz one not only has a light hot pink tint to it but also has little bits of glitter in it. I'll be picking more of these up probably next month, I'm on a strict no buy this month now.

My very last lippie of the month was actually given to me as a thank you present by Air Repair. If you follow me on Instagram you've already seen my review of it, but in case you haven't I'll share it with you. This is a bronzey pink lip gloss that is basically a tinted version of their rescue balm. What this means is it's not sticky at all, smells like roses, and will not only moisturize your lips but help repair them. I believe this is the only color available, but if they ever put out more colors I would buy them in a heartbeat. This is how you do lip gloss, not that awful sticky mess most other companies call lip gloss. Air Repair can do no wrong in my book, I've seriously loved all of their products.

Those are my goodies from June, did you see anything you have to have right now? I'm ok being an enabler, and you deserve a new lipstick or twelve. What lip products should I get next? Am I totally wrong on the Soft Matte Lip Cream sucking? Are you a Baby Lips fanatic as well? If you want to see these on my lips I'll be posting them to my Instagram account all week, so make sure you are following me.

Nars Birthday Lipsticks from Sephora

While looking through all my various lip products I came to the realization that I never blogged about the two lip crayons by Nars that is the 2015 Birthday gift from Sephora. And that's a crime you guys, someone should have yelled at me and said "where's the birthday goodies post?!?!" I actually only got these and the Ulta Urban Decay Eyeliner this year (sad face), so I kind of spaced on doing a full write up. Let's just pretend this is still April and I'm not two months late on this post.

If you are part of Sephora's free rewards program, you get a free birthday gift every year. Last year was a Make Up Forever mini mascara and mini lipstick, which I found to be really cheap feeling and didn't like at all. So when they announced that this year's gift was from Nars, I was ecstatic. Nars is a very expensive brand so the chances of me every buying anything from them are slim to none. So getting two items from them (and both lip products, my personal favorite) was an awesome birthday gift. They are deluxe mini size, which if fine by me since a full sized costs a whopping $26! You receive a Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in the shade Cruella (a classic red) and a Satin Lip Pencil in the shade Rikugien (an almost shimmery neutral pink).

Rikugien is the most wearable of the two, since it is a lovely neutral shade of pink. The satin finish means it's slightly glossy, slightly shimmery. This is what I'd call an everyday shade, something you could put on to go grocery shopping or out to lunch with friends. I keep forgetting how much I like this particular shade, but every time I wear it I think I need to wear it more. I'd love to find an affordable dupe for this shade, since $26 is my total monthly beauty budget typically.

Cruella is a gorgeous red shade, and the matte finish makes it much easier to wear than a full gloss red. I don't reach for this particular red very often though, I find it uneven in how it fades and it does feather quite a bit so it takes some planning to wear. I wish this had the lasting power you typically associate with matte finishes, then I'd probably wear it at least once a week. The shade is stunning, and a matte red goes great with the retro look I like to do quite a bit.

Rikugien

Cruella

I like the crayon format but I wish they were twist up instead of needing to be sharpened. Because they are fatter than any sharpener I own I'll probably end up paying the $6 for the Nars one, unless I can find a cheaper one the right size somewhere else. I feel like needing the sharpener is a way for Nars to get even more money out of you, which is lame. You already spent $26 on the lip crayon, you'd think they'd throw the sharpener in for free. And that's my problem with these high end brands, they are so expensive and require expensive tools to use them properly. It makes them really out of reach for people like myself who don't have $100 to drop on a fancy primer than will make my $100 foundation actually look good. So while I liked these two crayons I'll still avoid Nars and their high priced makeup till I win the lottery.

An Interview With Glow Cosmetics

*I received these products free for testing/reviewing purposes. All opinions are my own*

So often we hear about how lazy and unmotivated "kids these days" are, which is a stereotype I find to be completely unfair and untrue. In my job I get to meet kids every day who are involved in sports, student government, helping their community, and now running their own businesses. Hillsboro School District has a new program called IGNITE, which stands for Inspiring Growth Now In Teacher Education. This year IGNITE is partnering up with Tuesday Market to allow high school students a chance to create and run their own businesses, and I have had the pleasure of interviewing a pair of girls who have created their own skin care line.

Glow Cosmetics is an all natural, hand made line of scrubs and masks created by Becca McInally and Ruth Teklu. Each and every item is crafted with the utmost care, and have been designed to pamper and soothe your skin. The focus of the company is to use the most natural products possible, free of perfumes, parabens, and preservatives. They want your skin to glow and thrive, like a sunflower reaching for the warmth of the sun, which is why you'll find a sunflower on all of their labels. Though this is the first time either girls has run a business, they are handling it like pros and I was very impressed with their professional attitude and smart decision making. Currently their products are only available at their booth in the Tuesday Market, but eventually they would like to expand to an online market if this summer goes well.

They were kind enough to give me a sample of each of their products, so I've been able to test out the entire line. Currently they offer two different lip scrubs, a bath fizzy, a charcoal clay mask, a face/body scrub, and a body scrub. All of these items minus the body scrub are vegan, and as I mentioned earlier are hand made and cruelty free. Each product is designed to combat a specific problem while giving your skin the boost it needs. And all of the products have cute and clever names that reflect what is in them, which I really appreciated.

There are two lip scrubs in the line, a mint one called "Minty Fresh", and a licorice one called "Lick-o-rice". Both are completely edible, so once you have scrubbed your lips you can just lick the scrub off instead of rinsing it off. And the flavors are tasty enough you'll want to for sure. The Minty Fresh is my favorite out of the two, with a light spearmint flavor. The scent, flavor, and lovely light green shade remind me of a candy I use to love as a child. The Lick-o-rice one is a pale pink and is not overpowering in it's licorice flavor at all. It smells just like the old fashion licorice whips you find in good candy shops. Each container retails for $2.50, making these very affordable. And each lip scrub has a shelf life of three months, since it is free of preservatives.

The bath fizzy is a light sky blue shade and is the size of a tennis ball. The relaxing smell of lavender is strong enough to smell through the packaging, I could sniff it all day. I actually haven't tried this yet, my son fell in love with it the moment he saw it so I promised him I'd wait till his next bath to use it. The lavender essential oils in it will make for the perfect wind down bath, and the actual bath fizzy is large enough you could cut it in half to get two uses out of it. Each ball retails for $6.50, and as I mentioned are tennis ball sized so you get quite a bit for the price.

The only non-vegan item in the line is the Lemon Bar, a citrus based sugar scrub for your body. Containing fresh lemon zest, honey, lemon and orange essential oils, baking soda, and sugar, this is the perfect scrub to use in the morning to perk you up while scrubbing you down. The scent can best be described as a lemon starburst, I've probably spent an hour total just smelling it. And it left my leg feeling so soft afterwards, the dual exfoliating agents (sugar and baking soda) really do their job. The citrus oils help brighten your skin while the anti-microbial and healing properties of the honey will help heal your skin. I really enjoyed this one, the combination of the ingredients plus the smell just made me feel great. A jar of the scrub retails for $7.50 and has a shelf life of about 3 months.

My favorite thing in the whole world is coffee, so when they gave me a jar of the Daily Grind, a coffee based face and body scrub, I was ecstatic. Coffee is excellent for the skin and has been know to help diminish the appearance of cellulite, so with swimsuit season right around the corner I have a feeling this will be a popular one. While this is a courser scrub than I prefer for my face, I loved it on my legs. The difference in size between the sugar and the coffee grinds really helped in scrubbing and buffing away the dry skin I've been battling since my camping trip. And coffee grinds plus hot shower equals my whole bathroom smelling like a coffee shop, so I was in heaven. This scrub also retails for $7.50 and has a 3 month shelf life. I will be purchasing another jar of this scrub for sure before the summer ends.

I saved the best for last, a product that if you had told me was from a top skin care line I would have believed it hands down. The Diamond In The Rough charcoal clay mask, which was the first recipe they created for their line, is designed to pull all the impurities out of your skin. The bentonite clay based mask also contains aloe vera to soothe your skin, and tea tree oil to help combat acne, with the crown jewel being the charcoal, which acts like a little vacuum to pull everything out of your pores. There's a bit of a rough texture to this mask, so I scrubbed a bit as I applied this to my whole face, then I scrubbed again as I rinsed it off after it had completely dried. The grit exfoliated my face perfectly without overdoing it, and the aloe helped prevent any redness I may have caused. The mask dried up the little cluster of acne I had forming on my forehead and completely sucked up all the excess oil and gunk from my face. I would hand down purchase another container of this, this is a really great mask. The mask retails for $7.95, which I think is a steal, and also has a 3 month shelf life.

I am incredibly impressed by Glow Cosmetics and all the products they currently offer. I would love to see them be successful and grow, adding new products to their line. The fact that this whole business was designed and is ran by two girls not even out of high school yet blows my mind, I see good things in the future for Becca and Ruth. If you are interested in following the story of Glow Cosmetics you can find them at the Tuesday Market in downtown Hillsboro all Summer and you can also find them on Twitter. I wish them all the luck in their business and I can't wait to see what they come up with next.

Adore Me, Love Me, Tell Me I'm Pretty

Hello my lovely readers, do I have a treat for you today! Today I am teaming up with Adore Me, an online lingerie company, to bring you a lovely makeup look tutorial inspired by one of their fun new retro bikini sets. There is nothing sexier than just the right set of lingerie, whether it is fun and flirty or sexy and sultry. And sometimes we want to be sexy outside of the bedroom, like at the beach or a pool party. So strap yourselves, and let me show you how to do a fun and flirty retro makeup look to perfectly compliment this. And as a (hopefully unnecessary) side note, there are no pictures of me in lingerie in this post and any comments asking for ones will be instantly deleted. Please be respectful of me and the other people who read this blog.

Isn't this piece fabulous? I was instantly drawn to the fun retro pattern and bright color accent colors. Better yet, I had the perfect shade of lipstick sitting in my drawer, so creating a look based off of this. And this gave me the perfect excuse to finally do a full makeup tutorial, which is something I've been thinking about doing for about a month now.

Start with a freshly cleaned face. I always tie my hair up before I do my makeup, but I have crazy long hair so it gets everywhere. I also always start with my eyes first, so I can clean up any fall out before I do my face stuff.

Prime your eyes from lid up to your brow bone. I used the Smashbox 24 Hour Photo Finish Shadow Primer.

Take a light colored matte shade, apply it from your crease up to about the halfway point between the crease and your brows. I used the light matte pink shade from my Revealed 2 palette.

Now take a shimmery peach shade and apply it over your entire lid, making sure to blend any harsh lines that may form. I used the third from the left on the top row of my Revealed 2 palette, a nice peachy pink shade.

Now take a shimmery mocha shade and lightly apply it to your crease and the outer corners of your eyes. Blend, blend, blend, you want no harsh lines at all. Once the crease is where you want it apply a bit more shadow to the outer corner of your eye to increase the intensity of the look. I used the fourth from the left on the bottom row of my Revealed 2 palette, which is a purplish mocha shade.

Lastly, apply a highlighting shade along your brow bone and to the inner corners of your eyes. I used a shimmery light gold shade from the Revealed 2 palette.

Now you are going to lightly apply a brown pencil liner along your bottom lashes for some added sultry intensity. Don't go to heavy here, just enough to make your lower lashes look fuller. I used a Pacifica pencil.

And now for that retro flare, apply a nice winged eyeliner. I find it easiest to do a thin line along my lid, then draw my wing from the tip in (lining the angle up with my bottom lash line). Next I draw from the tip into my top lash line, which I will then thicken up a bit to match the wing. I prefer felt tip pen style liquid eyeliners, like the Eyeko Skinny Liquid Liner, but use whatever you are most comfortable using. Remember, winged eyeliner takes practice and patience, so don't get frustrated if it doesn't come out just right.

Apply your falsies if you wear them (I don't), then top with your favorite black mascara. I did 2 coats of Smashbox Full Exposure on both my top and bottom lashes.

The next step is optional, but I feel that a well done brow can really elevate a look up. Wax and powder topped with a brow gel is my current favorite way to do my lashes, using the ELF eyebrow kit and the Anastasia Beverly Hills clear brow gel.

Face primer is next, and I'm a firm believer in a really good primer to help smooth out your pores and help your foundation apply smoothly. I'm currently testing out the Smashbox Photo Finish primer.

Dot your concealer of choice under your eyes, over your brows, and onto any blemishes or spots. I prefer a brush to smooth my concealer out, and your goal is to clean up any mess under your eyes (and dark circles) and even up any mistakes along the tops of your brows. This can also help hide any brow hairs you may have outside of your brow shape.

Now your foundation and/or powder of choice. I applied a Maybelline BB Cream with a Blender sponge then my Rimmel Stay Matte powder with a large, dense, brush and buffed it all in to give my skin an airbrushed look.

Our color theme is coral, so apply a nice coral colored blush to the apples of your cheeks lightly, blending out along your cheek bone. If you like to do some contouring, do some light powder contouring here. I used an ELF Contouring Blush and Bronzer combo called St Lucia. Then highlight along your cheek bones, nose, cupid's bow, and forehead (lightly, no disco balls please). I used another ELF product, this time the baked highlighter in the shade Moonlight Pearl.

Lastly is the cherry on my makeup sundae, a bright and flirty coral shade by NYX called Rose.

Add some sexy hair, slip into your new bikini, and you are ready to light that party up! I hope you guys enjoyed this tutorial as much as I enjoyed creating it for you. If you want to purchase the bikini that inspired this look, you can find it here. And stay tuned for some more Adore Me collaborations over the next week or so.