Update on unboxings!

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Hi everyone,

I have a huge backlog of boxes and posts to put up, especially:

  1. Sunset45 – Little Luxuries Box (link, non-affiliate)
  2. Birchbox – arrived this week
  3. Ipsy – arrived this week
  4. FabFitFun – This one is new, and I’ve been having shipping issues. Pretty bummed about my first box! 😦
  5. Boxycharm – Just got my shipping notice. 😀

I’ve been working on some side projects, such as ranking up in League of Legends and streaming, as well as formulating some eyeshadow for fun.

If you want to check out the project I’ve been working on, click the image below (it redirects to my twitch stream).

My twitch stream!

Unboxing Boxycharm September 2014, Fashion week fabulous!

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Hi everyone! 

I got my September Boxycharm today. I’m glad about the colors this month. (Last month got some really odd colors for my color profile.) Overall I like this box, though I’m getting kind of sick of getting Hello by Harvey Prince. It has been in literally every subscription box I’ve gotten. I’m so glad about the Tarina Tarantino collab with boxycharm, I’m really pumped about this mascara! New subscribers to boxycharm get the hyperlight we got in an old box, so this is exciting. Ths is a pretty good fall themed box with dark NCLA nail polish, perfume, lip gloss (ick), mascara, and fall colored eyeshadow.

This box also included 2 coupon codes:

  1. 10% off mynamenecklace.com – BOXYCHARM
  2. 20% off tarte.com – FALLBOXY (10/10 – 10/24)

All of the items laid out

This is the intro card to the box:

Items listed on card included

The items!

Tarte lipsurgence lip gloss in tipsy:

This was the color I wanted so I’m glad I got it. Still not the biggest fan of lip gloss though.

Coastal Scents London Go Palette:

I really wanted the Moscow one, but this was my second favorite. I’m glad there is a red shade in this! Coastal Scents is an ok brand, but I’ve never had a problem with them. Their eyeshadows aren’t always so pigmented, but I love the Revealed palette I have from them that is a dupe of Naked 1 and Naked 2 from Urban Decay.

London Go Palette

Closeup of London Go Palette

NCLA Nail Lacquer

I love funky nail polish colors, and this dark color is perfect for fall! I’m so sick of the red/pink nail polish.

Tarina Tarantino Mascara (Fleur de lash)

I need a new mascara, and this came at the perfect time. I like the look of the brush on this, but it looks a little clumpy. I’ll see how it goes after using it for a bit.

Harvey Prince Hello

I actually already bought the full-sized version of this with Birchbox points. I wear it sometimes. I really like the scent, but this has been in literally every subscription box I’ve seen. I wish they’d move onto a new scent. ಠ_ಠ

Boxycharm September 2014 Box Contents Spoiler!

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Boxycharm sent a box to 11th Gorgeous, I’m assuming to hype up this month’s box. If you want to watch the video, it’s here. (I personally did not really like it, but they did show the products well.)

The items that are in this box look realllllly awesome.

Items:
Box Value – $95.95

  • tarte LipSurgence lip gloss – $19.00
  • Coastal Scents Go Palette – $12.95
  • NCLA Nail Lacquer – $16.00
  • TARINA TARANTINO Fleur de Lash Mascara – $19.00
  • Hello by Harvey Prince – $29.00 (must be the rollerball)

My first indies – Glamour Doll Eyes

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Hi everyone,

Sorry for the delay in posting – it’s been a hectic 2 weeks. Recently I received samples from Glamour Doll Eyes (Link to site, no affiliate). Glamour Doll Eyes is a little more established than say, an indie favorite I’ve been watching, Hello Waffle (still love HW a lot!). I picked out 6 samples I would like to try, and I’m probably not the best person to pick. Ha. I picked colors I thought I didn’t have in my collection, or I loved. So, I ended up with greens (foresty, mint), white, bright pink, gold, and a purple.

All of them lined up

As you can see the colors are really pretty. Also, there is a coupon to Sedona Lace. Use glamourdoll to get $4.00 off your order.

The names of the shadows

I picked 6 samples: Midnight Kiss, Candy Floss, Oddity, Mackinac, Gold Digger, Angel Wings. These are from various collections (Blogger, Best Seller, Circus).

These are similar to full size jars from others

They use the shiny black tops that a lot of other brands use as well.

How they are sealed
I really like the packaging on these because I like when items are sealed. coughLooking at you Nyx cough

Midnight Kiss

Midnight Kiss is the purple that I ordered. On their site it is described as purple with a red and blue shift. the red shift is a little more subtle than the blue shift in person. I personally find it to be a pretty cool toned silver with a much more noticeable blue shift than red.

Candy Floss
I love how bright this color is! It’s a bright fuchsia with a cool shimmer! It definitely needs a primer underneath it though. If you go down to the swatches you can see tht it isn’t as bright if there isn’t primer. Here is a link to the item: http://www.glamourdolleyes.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=31_32&products_id=851

Oddity
This is my favorite eyeshadow out of the ones sampled. The payoff on this shade is great and I love the foresty/warm green. This is something I would wear a lot. Link to item: http://www.glamourdolleyes.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=92_95_99&products_id=460

Mackinac
I love mint greens, but I kind of wish this one was more matte. It’s payoff is pretty good, but it’s reallllly shimmery. Link to item: http://www.glamourdolleyes.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=92_106_107&products_id=926
Gold Digger
I wanted to love this one. I love greens and golds, but something about it falls flat. I think I wanted it to be a bit more shimmery. It photographs well, but in person I wish it was a bit brighter I think.

Angel Wings
I thought I needed a white, lol. The payoff on this is good and it’s pretty close to a pure white, just has a cool toned shimmer. Link to item: http://www.glamourdolleyes.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=31_32&products_id=592

Swatches
Primer is definitely needed under most of these, but color payoff without them isn’t bad. Oddity is by far the most pigmented.

Swatches Closeup
Swatches Closeup 2

Overall thoughts:

These are nicely formulated, but you definitely need a primer under them because they won’t stay on long. I am preferential to NARS Smudgeproof. The colors are beautiful, though they don’t blend all their colors themselves (some are the ones they buy from their distributor). I think that is a little odd. Some of the colors fell flat for me (Mackinac, Gold Digger), but I looooove Oddity.

Unboxing Birchbox July 2014: Power Up!

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Hi everyone. This month was an exciting month for Birchbox because you got to pick one of your samples!! I, being a nail polish addict, picked nail polish of course! (If you want to see what the choices were, check out my previous post here.)
This month I received:

  • Cynthia Rowley Beauty Eyeliner
  • Ruffian Nail Polish Ambrosia
  • Ruffian Nail Polish Remover
  • Naobay Body Lotion
  • Real Chemistry 3-Minute Peel
  • 100% Pure Shower Gel

 

This box is a partnership with Women’s health, and they have challenges all month in the booklet! They’re kind of silly, but look like a ton of fun. 🙂

 

 

Items Received and Value Breakdown:

Cynthia Rowley Beauty Eyeliner
Full Size- 0.04 oz $16.00
Sample Size- 0.03 oz $12.00

Thoughts: Nice, deep black.  Just another eyeliner.

RUFFIAN Nail Lacquer – Ambrosia
Full Size- 0.17 fl oz $11.00
Sample Size- 0.17 fl oz $11.00

Thoughts: More silver than lavender, small as hell.

RUFFIAN Dressing Room Nail Lacquer Remover Towelettes
Full Size- 10 count $12.00
Sample Size- 1 count $1.20

Thoughts: There are better cheaper removers than these, e.g. LA FRESH. Don’t waste your money, they don’t work well.

Naobay Body Radiance Lotion
Full Size- 250 mL $24.00
Sample Size- 30 mL $4.25

Thoughts: Smell fades fast (a plus in my book), but feels kind of sticky at first.

Real Chemistry Luminous 3-Minute Peel
Full Size- 1.7 fl oz $48.00
Sample Size- 0.17 fl oz $4.80

Thoughts: Cool? Haven’t tried it yet, but I am intrigued.

100% Pure Gingerade Shower Gel (Honey Cream Wash)
Full Size- 390 mL $15.00
Sample Size- 10 mL $0.38

Thoughts: This isn’t bad, but nothing special.

Total Value = $33.63

Overall thoughts

This box is much better than last month’s value of $12.23. I honestly think this box is better curated because it seems like one of their more generic boxes for those that picked the ruffian polish, which is understandable. That being said – it is ridiculous that the ruffian full-size is 5 mL. For real?! Even Julep, who is notorious for having bullshit small full sizes, is better than this. It is bad when Julep is better than you. The color is okay, thought it would be a little bit more lavender. It’s more silver tinted lavender than lavender tinted silver. The eyeliner is nothing impressive, it goes on nicely, but not sure the staying power is good. It is a nice deep black though. Don’t even waste your money on those nail polish removers though. For considerably less, the LA fresh ones are much cheaper and work 10x better. The rest is ok. It’s an okay birchbox, but not a great one.

 

See unboxing pictures below:

This is the card that came with it:

And here are the values/descriptions they gave:

All of the items laid out:

The booklet with 12 challenges! You can do these challenges and tweet @birchbox with pictures tagged as #powerupchallenge and #giveaway and you might win something!

Swatches of ruffian ambrosia on my accent nail…. on second thought I am really loving this color!!

A close up:

 

What do you think of this box?

[New!] Sunset45 Little Luxuries Subscription Box Unboxing and Interview w/founder!

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Hi everyone!

Delancy, the founder of Sunset45, sent me a box of her unreleased subscription service to review and I also interviewed her!

What is  ?

Sunset45 is a monthly subscription box that offers you an affordable and wearable way to keep up with runway trends. Each month you will pay $30 to receive $100 of curated jewelry, perfume, sunglasses, and other accessories. This will not be like other subscription boxes where everyone receives the same items and there is only one pricier items with 2-3 cheaper items, each item will be worth the money.

Cost: $30
Cycle: Monthly
Types of Items: Jewelry, accessories, perfume, etc.
Number of items: 3-6

Interview with the founder, Delancey

What motivated you to start this box?

I started my business because… well, it just felt right. My parents owned an accessories company when I was younger and I’ve had jobs designing for manufacturers since I was 16 years old. Because I’ve been working with these vendors for over ten years I have a good relationship with them, which in turn allows me to import jewelry at an extremely competitive price–even below wholesale price points. As a matter of fact, the importers I work with supply to stores like Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, and Bauble Bar.

I attended Parsons but never intended to be a fashion retailer, I was much more interested in the design and editorial aspects of fashion. But after years of trying out disappointing subscription boxes I felt like this business was something that I needed to do. I wanted to offer something beyond a typical monthly box however, and I saw that none of these subscription programs kept up with what’s current on the runway. I feel like it’s so important to pay attention to runway trends because ultimately, the runway is where everything trickles down from.

What do you want people to get out of this?

1.) I really want people to get more than their money’s worth. I want to offer a subscription program that *I* would be happy to receive, not one padded with fillers like tiny lip balm samples or cheap hoop earrings. Most of the boxes I’ve tried usually come with ONE pricier item and 2-3 cheapies, which I personally hate.

2.) I want to offer a real sartorial solution to women who want to experiment with different trends and refine their closet repertoire. They may not have the time to follow runway shows, or they may live in an area that doesn’t offer a ton of shopping options, or maybe they just want to challenge their personal style. Whatever the case, I want to bring something fun, high-quality, and relevant to their doorsteps every month.

How do you sign up?

The sign up process is very simple: you select either a “Classics” or a “Lavish” box, then fill out some basic information! As you know, the program is about exploring different styles and runway trends, so while I’ll ask for *preferences* and sizing, you won’t always get silver jewelry because you specified a preference for silver, etc. Think of The Little Luxuries Box as a magazine subscription, but with wearable, tangible content. It’s designed to keep customers current and styled on a budget. 🙂

Will people be getting the same box?

People will NOT be receiving the same boxes. There are at least 5 different combinations each month. I was also an avid subscription box customer and it always annoyed me to see everyone receive the same items (especially when it comes to fashion!).

How many items will people get per box?

Generally people will receive around 3-6 items in each box. I’m more concerned about delivering items I think will make the customer happy than fulfilling a number requirement. For one month, I may get a really great deal on pieces and include 6 items. Another month I may only send 3, but those 3 items would be more expensive, like 925 sterling silver jewelry, etc.

Can you fill out a profile of likes/dislikes?

The box isn’t customizable because of the nature of the program is all about exploring new trends. I’ll only be asking for very basic information (ring size, earring type, whether they prefer gold or silver, and if they’re comfortable wearing crosses and other cultural/religious emblems).

 

The Unboxing!

This is the fun part!

dun dun dunnnnnnnn *cue music*

First I received the box, with the Sunset 45 logo on one side and the name of the box on the other!

   

The best part about this is opening in it. So I opened it up and saw this:

What’s underneath?!

This is with the first layer peeled off, everything looks wrapped well and padded well!

Then I found the card with descriptions

Here is what the card says,

This month we explore two runway trends that will bring an unexpected edge to your summertime outfits: geometric black and modern pearls.

Though we often relegate the color to our winter closets, black plays astonishingly well with summer fare. Clean, geometric lines lighten and refresh the color, making it the perfect complement to everything in your warmer weather wardrobe.

The modern pearl is treated irreverently—exaggerated in size, suspended in lengths of gold, and draped casually over virtually any outfit. Unlike traditional strands of pearls, these playful pieces are entirely absolved of buttoned-up connotations.

The best thing about these two trends? They’ll work just as flawlessly in your fall/winter repertoire as they will this summer.

Here is a closeup on the items for the Lavish Box:

Note that there is no comparison of values for these because they are manufactured by her (importers).

The cute note in the box!

NOW ONTO THE ITEMSSSSSS

All of the items spread out

Wow, this is a nice selection of items. The theme for this box is Geo Black and Modern Pearls, which you can see all items follow that theme nicely. The sunglasses are big, but sleek and make a statement. The silver detailing on the edges gives them a personal flair. The black statement necklace is big, but elegant and goes with almost anything. The pearls are nice with a golden hint in the current chunky style. The perfume is unique, but not very strong – you’ll tease people with a hint.

 

Earring drops/bracelet set – “Sabine”

These are biggg pearls. Like super big. However that’s currently the style. This set is beautiful, and I’m in love with it. I love the bracelet, and you get used to the weight pretty easily! I can’t wear the earrings because mine are permanently in until I cut them out (oops), so I will have to take pictures with my sister.

The two together:

Up close of bracelet:

Up close of earrings with quarter for scale:

Necklace – “Maggie”

I really love statement pieces like this. The two drops at the end that slant down make this look really nice. When I wore this to work, I got a bunch of compliments on it.

How I styled this for two days. For the first day, I styled it with a black shirt from J.Crew, the second day I styled it with a purple dress from Francesca’s collection!

 

 

Rollerball Perfume- “Mienn”

 

I’ve gotten really into Korean beauty items because my boyfriend and his family are Korean, and this is pretty cool because it’s pretty big there. It smells unique and lightly floral, but it’s not very strong. It’s kind of hard to tell this is on, but it matches my body chemistry pretty well.

Sunglasses – “Radio”

I at first thought these were going to be too big for my face but I love them. It’s not something I would normally pick out myself, so sometimes it’s a good thing someone else picked them out for me. 🙂  I normally stick to wayfarers, but these are AWESOME. I like the gradual fade on these and that they don’t make things yellow like some sunglasses.

   

 

 

Overall thoughts

I really love this box. At first when I saw the pieces, I wasn’t so sure it was -my- style, but they’re easy pieces to assimilate into your collection. I love that these pieces are very runway style based and are great quality pieces to build your jewelry collection with. The quality of these pieces feels very good, I honestly think with just the jewelry itself, it more than pays for the collection. The sunglasses probably don’t cost that much to make, but the little touches added to it make it worth it. Perfume can really be a toss-up depending on the person and their body chemistry, but I think this one adapted well to me and is easy to throw in a bag for traveling. Overall I have to say I liked every single item in this box and I would definitely purchase it.

In summary, I felt fly like a G6. 😉

 

Birchbox May 2014 Unboxing! “Freewheeling”

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Hi everyone!

My May Birchbox came super early. If you check women’s boxes, my box isn’t even posted yet! The theme for this month is Freewheeling.

 

Items Received:

Beauty Protector Protect and Shampoo
Full Size- 8 oz $21.95
Sample Size- 1? oz $2.74

Beauty Protector Protect and Condition
Full Size- 8 oz $21.95
Sample Size- 1? oz $2.74

Laqa&co Sheer Lip Lube Pencil in coral
Full Size- 0.07 oz $18
Sample Size- 0.07 oz $18

Supergoop! Sunscreen
Full Size- 1.6 oz $19
Sample Size- 0.3 $3.56

32 Oral Care Breath Crystals
Full Size- 15 ct $9.99
Sample Size- 2 ct $1.33

Total Value = $28.37

This month the boxes came in yellow to promote Kate Spade’s new Saturday line!

Yellow boxes this month!

Opening it up,

I received 4 items and breath mints. I guess it’s time that I get shampoo/conditioner/breath mints. I’ve managed to avoid it for this long. 😛 I’ll bring them when I’m traveling.  I’m really pumped about this lip crayon though!! I tried it on this morning, and your lips have to be exfoliated really well, otherwise it’ll show any imperfections.

The front of the card:

Everything laid out!

[Unboxing] Ipsy April 2014 – Beauty Rocks with a B&A and FOTD.

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Hi everyone!

I decided to do a little something different this month with the unboxing. I wanted to challenge myself to use all of the Ipsy items to create a look. You’ll see below what I ended up creating!

This month’s theme for Ipsy was Music. As you can see from their spoilers (see my previous post about them). They definitely added in items that can help you create a kind of rockstar look, just kidding not really. The only thing rockstar-y is the black eyeliner.

All of my April items!

Starlooks Luscious Longwear Lip Pencil in Naked – this is actually kind of coral
Full Size- .06 oz $14.00
Sample Size- .06 oz $14.00

Urban Decay 24/7 Velvet Glide-on Eye Pencil in Black Velvet – oops forgot to use this in FOTD. This is eyeliner sample number 20 I received!
Full Size- .04 oz $20.00
Sample Size- .03 oz $15.00

Elizabeth Mott pop! Goes the shadow in Champagne – this isn’t pigmented really well. It’s very similar to galore in the Kat Von D Esperanza palette. I would call it a less-pigmented dupe.
Full Size- .07 oz $12.99
Sample Size- .07 oz $12.99

dr. brandt microdermabrasion skin exfoliant – this is the second sample I received of this (first one I got in ipsy). The price of this is ridiculous!
Full Size- 2 oz $78
Sample Size- .25 oz $9.75

Coastal Scents Classic Shadow Medium Natural – I really like this brush a lot. After an initial shedding, no hairs were lost.
Full Size- 1 Brush $2.49
Sample Size- 1 Brush $2.49

Total value of the box: $54.23

Here is my before face:

Before

Before Wee no makeup!

Here is a picture of some of the items I used:

Some items used

Items!

What my lips looked like with half lipliner and half lipstick:

lipliner close up

Top is lipliner, bottom is lipstick

And here is the final result!! My FOTD (Face of the Day)

My FOTD

After

 

Influenster VoxBox Unboxing March 2014

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Hi 🙂

Today I received the Influenster Uni Voxbox! This box was free and I received it for testing purposes. I created a video of the unboxing, but underneath I will include pictures and the product analysis! So if you don’t like watching videos just scroll down!

Included in this box are:
– Broadway Nails imPRESS Press-on Manicure ($5.99 – pink)
– Expert Last Lip Color in Forever Fuchsia ($1.99)
– Pilot Acroball PureWhite ($1.53 for one – 3 pack = $4.59)
– Rimmel London Stay Matte Liquid Mousse Foundation ($4.99-$5.49 – ??? they gave a range for this, how odd.)
– Platex Sport Fresh Balance Tampons ($3.99 – $4.99)
– Red Rose Real Tea Water Enhancer ($4.49)

Total Value = $22.98 – $24.48

*note the prices for this are given on the card.

Thoughts:

Broadway Nails imPRESS Press-on Manicure ($5.99 – pink) – I don’t think I’ve used press on nails since I was about 10 years old. Will definitely give these away.
Expert Last Lip Color in Forever Fuchsia ($1.99) – Almost the cheapest thing in the box, but I love love love this. It’s a little drying, but it looks like a dupe for MAC Candy Yum Yum
Pilot Acroball PureWhite ($1.53 for one – 3 pack = $4.59) – I love pens. This is fine point (loveee) and it works well.
Rimmel London Stay Matte Liquid Mousse Foundation ($4.99-$5.49 – ??? they gave a range for this, how odd.) – They gave me ivory. It is still too dark for me. Not the right color at all. Less is definitely better for this.
Platex Sport Fresh Balance Tampons ($3.99 – $4.99) – Love these. Use them a lot. Always good to have more tampons.
Red Rose Real Tea Water Enhancer ($4.49) – Meh. I’m not the biggest fan of Red Rose, but I will try it out.

 

 

 

Swatches!

This is what it looked like on my lips

Lips lips lips. (unedited other than cropping and adding text)

Overall this was an awesome box and I’m glad I received this!

Note: I received this box complimentary for testings purposes from Influenster. (i.e. this was free)

Benefit x Birchbox Event (Benefit birchbox unboxing!)

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Hi 🙂

Tonight I went to the Birchbox Event with my cousin at Benefit Soho. One of the people who work there said Birchbox likes to keep the events under 25 people so it’s intimate. It was a lot of fun!

To recap, I got a free birchbox, eyebrow services, $35 credit to benefit store, cupcakes, and bubbly!

 

When you first walked in, this was the display that you saw:

So pretty. Much wow.

I loved the display!

Birchbox Soho was pretty small:

Prettty small.

Then I saw the bubbly…

And then the cupcakes!

This is my favorite cupcake!

Then I got called to get my brows done.

Call me Miss Lobster!

But ha! then my cousin got pulled in for hers.

And I got distracted…

Cupcake and pretty ladyyyy!

Now let’s talk the goodies:

The Goody Bag!

Ahhh the box. I love the pink boxes.

The card that came with it:

The Box!!

The awesome box. In it is:

  • Stay don’t Stray
  • It’s Potent!
  • BADgal Lash Mascara
  • Creaseless Cream Shadow in No Pressure!/Liner
  • twistband

The flats!

All of the shade!

 

And this is what my brows looked like when they were done!

My brows much less swollen and lobstery.