July MyGlam Bag

Theme: Beach Beauty

Nail Polish in Reverso from Circus by Andre's Choice (13.2ml/4.5 fl.oz.) Full Size

Kiehl's Ultra Facial Oil-Free Lotion for Normal to Oily Skin Types (30 ml/1.0 fl.oz.)

Josie Maran Magic Marker Lip & Cheek Stain in Tango (2.5 g/0.09 oz.)

NuMe HydroPunch Hydrating Conditioner (20 ml/0.67 oz.)

Yes to Cucumbers On-the-Go Facial Towelettes (Pack of 10)

+ Discount codes for Numestyle.com

Instead of the lip stain, some people may get Buxom's Big and Healthy Lip polish. And instead of the Kiehl's moisturizer, some may get Juice Beauty's Green Apple SPF 15 Moisturizer. 

Judging from the card that came with the bag, the bag will include 1 of 3 possible nail polish colors (Spectacle, Somersault, or Reverso). The card and the official website for the polishes have slightly different looking pictures of Spectacle. On the card, it seems like a bright, neon fushcia. On the website, it looks like an orange. Somersault is a neon yellow. Reverso, whcih came in my bag, is a clean pure white. I tested it out a little and it's pigmented. However, it suffers from a common problem of white nail polishes, it applies a little chalky. I'm not crazy about white nails (I just think it looks like white-out) but this will be great as a base for neon polishes to give them that extra punch. Perfect for summer!

The moment I swatched the lip stain I loved it. It's very pigmented and applies smoothly without bleeding out into fine lines. Tango is a really pretty watermelon pink. Great color for summer!

Overall, I loved this month's bag and I liked last month's as well. Hope MyGlam can keep this up!

What was in your fun-mail this month?

Also, here's a shot of the nails I'm wearing right now. I'm a messy DIY manicurist. Orly's Pixie Dust layered with Revlon's Whimsical.

Mint & Gold Nails

I am loving my mint and gold manicure right now. I don't know why but this color combo just shouts, "Summer!" to me. I have on Revlon's Minted and Milani's Ms. Milani. Really love the colors but the application leaves a lot to be desired. The gold is metallic and shows brush strokes. The mint green applies really streaky and has a big leveling problem. I need three coats to get an even coverage and definitely need a couple of coats of top coat to make it smooth.

What nails are you rocking at the moment?

Target Summer Beauty Bag + June MyGlam Bag

Opened my mailbox today expecting only the June MyGlam bag but found an extra surprise. Here's what I got in both packages.

Target Summer Beauty Bag

The Target Summer Beauty Bag came in a really pretty, plush fabric makeup bag. Inside the contents were:

Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunblock in SPF 70 (1.0 fl. oz./29 ml)

Tresemme Split Remedy Shampoo & Conditioner (1.0 fl. oz./29 ml each)

Aveeno Smart Essentials Daily Detoxifying Scrub (1.0 fl. oz./28 g)

Sample of Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter in Peach Parfait

Garnier Fructis Color Shield Shampoo & Conditioner (0.34 fl. oz./10 ml each)

Coupon book for beauty brands/products

I'm really pleasantly surprised at what was included. After all, the bag was free. I love the Neutrogena sunblock and the bag itself is AWESOME. 

June MyGlam Bag

Last month's bag was a bit of a dud for me. I think this month's bag was a lot better. Also, they switched it up with the bag. Yes, it's still cheap but look at this glittery gold bag! If that isn't fun and fabulous, I don't know what is.

Philosophy Take a Deep Breath Energizing Oxygen Gel Cream Moisturizer (12 ml/0.4 fl. oz.)

NYX Round Lipstick in Saturn

Living Proof frizz Nourishing Styling Cream (60 ml/2 fl. oz.)

Marbella Permanent Eyeliner Pen in 30 (12 ml)

Free shipping code for philosophy.com

Living Proof kit special offer 

I wasn't all too excited about the lipstick shade because it looked way too brown/red. But when I swatched it, it reminded me of a deeper/redder version of Nars Orgasm or Milani Luminous or the hundred other variations of the popular peachy-pink with gold shimmer color.

The Marbella eyeliner looked promising. However, if you can make it out in the photo above, it bled into the fine lines on my hand. Also, the eyeliner says, "Don't use with lenses." The pigmentation is decent. It took 3 swipes to get that color in the swatch. It's very liquidy, which might explain the bleeding, and decently smudge-proof.

If you're a Myglam subscriber and/or you signed up for the Target Beauty Bag, I hope you enjoyed your spoils!

GOSH Cosmetics Spotted in NYC Duane Reade

I was browsing my local Duane Reade on Nostrand Ave. and Ave. U in Brooklyn when I stumbled upon this magnificent display. GOSH is a UK Danish cosmetics company that has become quite a phenomenon in the online beauty community. Duane Reade is exclusively a NYC drugstore and many of their larger, Manhattan stores have huge beauty sections. They have some harder to find brands such as Becca and Pop Beauty as well.

The display was well stocked and had testers! How amazing is that to have testers in the drugstore. I didn't pick anything up though. Prices averaged between $10 and $20. It is definitely on the pricier end of the drugstore cosmetics. I swatched the famous GOSH Darling lipstick (creamy with a sheen and a pale milky, biege color with lots of pink) and it was priced at $14. The eyeshadow palettes in the middle of the right side were around $13 if I recall correctly.

I can't vouch for stock in other Duane Reades but if my small neighborhood Duane Reade has it, chances are it's in a bigger and more centrally located one. Happy hunting!

Sephora Haul

I recently went on a Sephora haul with birthday money and a $100 gift certificate from my

boyfriend. Ah, the giddy happiness you get from tearing into the packaging and swatching new products. Here's a quick look on my haul and my first impressions.

  Benefit Confessions of a Concealaholic

Stila Love at First Blush Set

NARS Sin/Casino Duo

Urban Decay All Nighter Makeup Setting Spray

Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blush in Exposed

Tarte EmphasEYES Inner Rim Brightener

The Benefit kit contains a instructional booklet and travel sizes of Erase Paste, That Gal brightening face primer, Boi-ing concealer in Light/Medium shades, Lemon Aid, Eye Bright as well as concealer brushes. I am super excited to try out all these products.

The Love at First Blush set come with a blush with shimmery lilac, matte pink, and shimmery dark pink along with two lip glazes (Bubble Gum and Pinkle Twinkle). It was hard getting decent swatches (the swatches are on the right of my hand, the bottom color is at the top). The colors are pretty and the design is adorable. I have a feeling the blush with show up better on my cheeks. The glosses are pigmented and a little sticky. Bubble Gum is on the top left and Pinkle Twinkle is the bottom left. Pinkle Twinkle comes off a little more berry than it is in the tube and Bubble Gum is a creamy lilac. 

Lip Glaze Swatches (Left Top to Bottom): Bubble Gum, Pinkle Twinkle
Swatches of blush  (Right, Bottom Dark Pink at Top)

I suppose the lighting in my living room isn't bright enough because I had swatched the blush in Sephora and found the pigmentation decent under the bright fluorescent lights of the store. It's a nude with quite a bit of pink in it. The inner rim brightener looks a little chalky but it's creamy, pale nude that can be softened by blending. 

I've been lusting after a NARS duo for awhile and I'm so happy with the one I got. I didn't want to get the popular Orgasm/Laguna duo because I use Milani's Luminous blush and I just didn't want to spend all that money on something so similar to what I already had. The blush is a berry and Casino is suppose to be a dark brown. I would guess I'm around an NW25-30 right now so I'll see if the color works for me. 

 

Lastly, these are the samples I got with my order. I probably wouldn't have to purchase any high-end skincare after all the samples I gathered =)

Quick Tip: Instantly Exfoliated Lips

For the past week, my lips have been oddly chapped despite daily usage of lip balms. No matter how much of it I slapped on, my lips were constantly chapped and peeling.

Here's a quick tip to instantly slough off that dead skin with little effort/waiting on your part. Liberally apply some lip balm. Use your finger to really massage it in and then apply another layer. You want to feel your lips plump up/soften as well as have an extra layer on. Hop into a hot shower and go through the normal routine. At the end, take a cotton round, q-tip, or washcloth to slowly exfoliate your lips. After your shower, remember to some lip balm on to really seal in the softness and moisture!

What I'm Loving Right Now

Here's what I've been loving for the past couple of months.

Tarte Smooth Operator in Agent 06 + Neutrogena Healthy Skin in Fresh Beige 70

You know what is just as awesome as buying a shiny new makeup purchase? Going through your stash and rediscovering something you've forgotten about. I seemed to have a knack for color-matching for foundation at the extremes of my color spectrum. The Tarte is 1-2 shades to light and the Healthy Skin is 1-2 shades too dark. Obviously, mixing the two gives me a near perfect match. The thing I love though is the finish. Each on their own have a lovely finish. The Tarte has a natural/satin finish. The Healthy Skin has a very luminous, dewy finish. The two mixed together has a very skin-like finish. I have no idea how that happened but I'm definitely loving it.

I highly recommend each on their own because I find that they both improved the appearance of my bare skin a little.

Wet n' Wild Silent Treatment Trio

Loving this trio! It's neutral eyes with a bit of smokiness in it. The lid color is something I'll call a lilac/taupe that is very pretty and a little frosty. The highlight color is pinkish-peach and actually shows up as opposed to most drugstore highlights. The crease color is a cocoa brown with goldish glitter that doesn't show up on the eye. The crease color isn't as pigmented as it looks but it works for me since I can make a soft outer corner.

Wet n' Wild Mega Liner Liquid Eyeliner in Black

Anyone who claims you can't get good makeup in the drugstore needs to try out this eyeliner. The brush tip is very thin and precise, so it does make it a butt to fill in thicker lines. Still, I love it and will keep repurchasing this. The color is dark and pigmented. The huge plus? This thing last and is water-resistant without it being marketed as such. I have rubbed my eyes in the shower and it only started to run.

Nuance Wild Lime Exfoliating Gel

Before I commandeered my boyfriend's unused Clarisonic Mia, I used this to exfoliate my face and loved it. It left my skin just as soft and supple as the Mia. My moisturizer seemed to absorb better and my skin had a nice glow to it. While it doesn't feel as abrasive as the Mia, it tingles quite a lot so this might not be for sensitive skin.

Rite Aid Renewal Brushes!

I stumbled across these first in Sept. when I was in Boston and was extremely surprised by them. At that point, drugstore makeup brushes were mainly CVS' Essence of Beauty brushes or Ecotools. These Rite Aid ones looked considerably fancier with its duo-fibers. I snatched three up a little bit later. I got the Powder Brush, Angled Blush Brush, and the Duo-Fiber Blending brush.

They each came in a box which had an informative blurb on the back. There was a face diagram that showed where/how to use these brushes. I think these would be an excellent introduction for people just getting into makeup.

The brushes themselves were initially disappointing. I found the actual brush head quite small, even when compared the CVS travel brushes. However, the brushes overall had a good sturdy weight to them. They also looked much better than the CVS ones. The brushes were full and soft. The bristles were synthetic so they can be used with powder, liquid, and cream products. The handle is matte black and rubberized, which provides a good grip.

After using them a few times, I've come to really like them. The powder brush is full and does a great job of dusting a fine layer of setting powder. While the angled brush is small (just a little wider than two fingers), it fits perfectly into the hollows of my cheeks. It blends well and is very precise, which is great for contouring.

I haven't gotten much use out of the the stippling brush. I did use it to stipple on foundation once and it did a pretty good job. It also didn't take that long considering its size compared to the Sephora stippling brush. I guess it would be very comparable to MAC 188's size.

Overall, these are excellent brushes and worth the price ($8 each, I believe). Quality wise, these are leagues better than the CVS ones and are comparable to Ecotools. They are more affordable than say MAC, Sephora, or Sigma and you aren't losing much in terms of quality or performance. Rite Aid also has a travel kit and eye brushes. I probably will be picking those up some time in the future.