My Halloween Manicure and NOTD!

Two posts in one day! I know, I know. Think of it as a Halloween treat!

This is just a quick post to show you what I have on my nails today, right at this very moment!

Ta-daaaa! I opted to keep it simple this year and just go for a funky french. If I could rock some nail art, I sure as heck would, but as you might have seen by my last post, it's not exactly my forte. This mani was so simple! Two coats of Revlon Colorstay in Sunburst, a stripe of Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear in Black Out, and then a coat of Seche Vite. Hope you all like it!

xo

Easy Halloween Nail Art!

Happy Halloween everyone! Whether you go beg candy from your neighbours or not, I hope you all have a great evening! If you're like me, you have no costume or plans to go out, but want to do something to get in the Halloween spirit! Also, if you're like me, you're extremely bad at nail art. Fear not, for I am going to show you my extremely bad nail art to give you some easy and festive ideas for your nails!

Disclaimer: my detail brush is extremely frayed, so this is actually worse than it would normally be! Here we go!

So here are my four ideas. Starting from left to right, I'll walk you through what I used and what I did!

Let's start off with all of the polishes I used:

• Sharon by Zoya
• Posh by Revlon
• Sunshine Sparkle by Revlon
• Superstar! by Pure Ice
• Black Satin by Rimmel
• Happy Go Lucky by China Glaze
• Recycle by China Glaze

Note: All of my nails got a coat of Gelous Advanced Nail Gel Coat before I started.

Jack-o-Lantern: To start off I used two coats of Sharon. Once that was dry enough, all I did was draw on my face using a tiny brush and Black Satin. Finally, I smoothed it all over with a coat of Seche Vite.

Mummy: This nail is the most complicated and has the most steps. I started off with three coats of Oxygen. I chose this because I didn't want the bandages to be stark white; I wanted them a little yellowed. Once that was dry, I drew on my bandages with a tiny brush and Recycle. Next, I used a large dotting tool and dotted on Black Satin for the outline of the eyes. Then, for the whites of the eyes, I used Superstar! to make a slightly smaller dot. To finish off the eyes, I used a small dotting tool and dotted on Black Satin once again. Using a tiny brush, I drew on the mouth and the outline of the tooth (which really looks like a tongue). The yellow colour inside the tooth is Sunshine Sparkle by Revlon, dotted on with a small dotting tool. The whole nail then got a coat of Seche Vite!

Gravestone: Two coats of Recycle started off this nail. After that it was as simple as drawing on the letters with a tiny brush and Black Satin, and then using that same tiny brush and Posh to draw on the grass! I finished off this nail with a coat of Seche Vite.

Candy Corn: I started off painting my entire nail with Super Star! Next, I painted on a thick curved stripe of Happy Go Lucky, followed by another thick curved stripe of Sharon. To finish up, I smoothed on a coat of Seche Vite!

I hope you find some inspiration from my quick and easy Halloween nails! Maybe you're better at nail art than I am and can even build upon these ideas! I'd love to see photos of your spooky manicures!

xo

Unboxed: October Boxycharm!

 

It's that time again! Already, I know! I just received my October Boxycharm and wanted to get a post in before October actually ends! I really loved September's box and have been very anxious to tear into the next one! Let's take a peek at what's in it!

A handy card, for your reference! Let's go in card order!

The first item is the most expensive beauty box item I've ever seen. It's a full size bottle of Palmetto Derma Collagen Booster & Restoration Serum! I'm super excited to see this in here! I've had a little bit of a skin care revolution over the past few weeks, and serum was definitely a missing piece of the puzzle. This is my first serum and I'm very excited to try it out! The card promises a lot: it says "this serum protects from premature aging and creates youthful, glowing, and beautiful skin, all day and night!" We'll see! It's very liquidy and it doesn't really have a smell, which is nice. This bad boy is vegan and cruelty free, but will run you $48! If that's a little steep for you, Boxycharm were kind enough to send along a coupon code for 20% off the entire Palmetto Derma website! Just enter BCPD2 at check out and save yo' pennies!

Next up is an Eclipse Concealer Palette by Coastal Scents! This is interesting; I'm not sure how much I'll actually use it! I love the highlighter and the green, and it seems like it would be great for contouring (or even perfect for Hallowe'en makeup!), but aside from a light bronzer, I don't even do much of that. This would be great if you are a makeup artist, as there seem to be a wide variety of skin tones represented here! I'm intrigued to get this, if I'm honest. We'll just have to see how much I reach for it to contour! This palette costs $19.95, although right now it's on the Coastal Scents website for $14.95!

Next up is a duo of mini nail polishes (0.25 fl oz each). Cult/Commerce and Boxycharm teamed up to create this duo, entitled the "Shady" collection. There is a smoky charcoal grey and a deep purple with some lighter pink shimmer. I can't actually find anywhere to buy these yet, as the card refers us to the website www.luckyscent.com to purchase, nor did I find anything in a quick google search. I'm sure something will surface soon, however. If you could find anywhere to buy these, they retail for $21, which I think is rather steep for 0.5 fl oz between the two (the size of one regular bottle of polish). I have done a full manicure with these and they are rather nice, but I just have such a hard time justifying that price for any nail polish. There are many cheaper polishes that do the job just as nicely for a quarter of the price. Anyway, I do like these, and I'm glad a subscription box gave me the opportunity to try them.

Fourth in the box is a single eyeshadow from Be a Bombshell in Mardi Gras. This looks like a deep violet in the pan but swatches a much warmer and lighter purple. The website insists that this colour has shimmer, but to me it's as good as matte. It's not the softest shadow I've ever felt, but the pigmentation is pretty good! The swatch above is two passes. This would make an interesting colour for a smoky eye! Be a Bombshell's single shadows retail for $14.

The last item in the box is an Ultra Gem Pencil by Starlooks in Ultra Hunter. I don't see this particular collection on the Starlooks website yet, however they do have other fabulous liners! This pencil is a bright emerald green. It's extremely creamy and applies like butter, which I love! These can apparently also be used as an eyeshadow base. This particular green, however, is a pain in the butt to remove. It stains green and leaves glitter for days in your eyelashes and around your eyes. I tried this on the day I got it and it took me at least two face washes to get it mostly gone. Even after that, I still had glitter everywhere! I love Starlooks' other eyeliners and will probably stick to them in the future. These pencils cost $14 and, if you're not afraid of a little glitter, are well worth the money! It also appears that they have a promotion to get 20% off cosmetic orders using the code IPSY at checkout! I know this is a Boxycharm post, shhhh, don't tell anyone.

That's it for this month! All in all, I'm happy with this box! I know that some people were less than impressed, but I like it! The theme of the box was "Bewitched," and I could definitely see how all of these items together could create that perfect Hallowe'en look! The total value of the products inside is $116.95. Not bad at all for the $21 I paid!

If you'd like a box of your own, why not subscribe to Boxycharm! It's $21/month for at least four full size products! Of all my subscription boxes, this one is definitely a fast favourite!

And, as always, let me know if you'd like an extensive review of anything you see here!

xo

Coastal Scents Go Palette in Moscow

Let's take a look at a little bargain palette today! When this guy showed up in my Boxycharm, I was initially pretty stoked! It looked cool, but does it measure up? The short answer is.... well, there isn't really a short answer.

This palette is quite reasonably priced at $12.95 includes 12 decently sized shadows in a compact with a quite large mirror. The packaging itself isn't anything special, just cheap black plastic. I can forgive the lack of luxurious packaging for the price, though! Let's take a look at the shadows!

These particular shades are all metallic and were inspired by Moscow, the capital of Russia! I don't see shade names anywhere on the box or the compact itself, so we'll just have to go from left to right by row.

Row one

The very first shadow is a very light olive, almost an acid green. This feels finely milled and very soft and isn't too powdery. Pigmentation is pretty good, it is buildable and very blendable!

Next is a sky blue packed with warm golden shimmer. This one is just sliiightly powdery, so you might want to give your brush a tap before you apply. It does feel very nice and soft, though. Once again pigmentation is nice, and once again it is buildable and very blendable.

Next up is a lighter burgundy colour. This one is also soft and not powdery, and the pigmentation is average. It is slightly buildable but in general I'm not too impressed with this shade.

The final shade in this row is the best one in the palette. It a super soft and very highly pigmented golden brown. It's like touching suede! Beautiful! This blends like a dream and I wish I could get this in a single!

Row two

Moving on to row two, we begin with an emerald green. This shade is pretty soft but is one of the ever so slightly powdery selections, so give that brush a tap! The pigmentation is pretty good and it builds and blends quite nicely!

Next we have a gunmetal colour. This is more of a matte shade that has some very obvious silver glitter in it. I'd like it without the glitter, to be honest. This stuff is extremely powdery and feels rough and hard. The pigmentation is below average. It builds okay, but it might take you several passes to get the intensity you want, and by that time you will probably have silver glitter everywhere. It doesn't blend very well either. Pass.

This next shade is absolutely lovely and one of the best in the palette. It's a suede-soft cocoa brown. It's not at all powdery, super pigmented, super buildable... it's awesome! I'd totally grab a single of this one too!

The last shadow in this row is just as lovely as the one before it! It's a gorgeous copper colour. The pigmentation is amazing, it feels so soft, and it is not at all powdery. Love this one!

Row three

We start off with a slightly powdery steel blue. This one feels nice and soft. The pigmentation is pretty good, and you can easily build it.

The next shade is quite similar to the last, though it is slightly more of a green toned blue. Again, nice and soft. Again, nice, buildable pigmentation.

I thought I wouldn't find a shadow that I disliked more than that gunmetal one, but this one takes the cake. The deep indigo colour is very pretty, but other than that it's a hot mess. It's extremely matte, extremely powdery, poorly pigmented, and it just doesn't feel that nice. It's somewhat buildable. I'm just so not a fan.

Let's end on a good note with a beautiful bronze shade! Like the other browns, this one is silky soft, extremely pigmented, and extremely blendable. I love it!

So, is this palette worth it? Yes! The selection of shades in this particular version of the palette is decent and not too discordant. You could definitely come up with a lot of looks. While the browns are definitely gorgeous and steal the show, there are a couple of duds that don't really do it for me. The blues and greens aren't as amazing as the browns, but they're still very nice and buildable. You might get a nice boost from using primer too!

I really want to get my hands on a couple more of these palettes to give them a try too! Have you tried this or any of the other Go Palettes? Let me know what you think!

xo

Unboxed: October ipsy!

Well hello there! It's that time where I open my ipsy bag and tell you what's in it! Let's go!

Let's start with the bag, shall we? This one is a cute one! It's teal and patent and is covered in raised squares in a grid pattern. It feels nice and glossy and I love the colour!

Okay, onto the meat and potatoes. First up, a 1 oz jar of Ayres Patagonia Body Butter, which, according to the jar, has essential oils of jasmine and rosemary. This stuff is suuuuper thick! It smells like Noxema or some sort of medicated sunscreen, which doesn't exactly ring my bell but I feel like it will be good for spot treatment of super dry patches of skin in the winter months. A full size jar of this stuff costs $28!

Next up is a 1.5g lipstick from noyah in Deeply in Mauve.The lipstick is all natural, synthetics free, and never tested on animals! This is absolutely not a colour I would ever wear, as I am not brave in the slightest with my lip colours. I did try it on and it is very nice and creamy, it doesn't tug at all and it is fairly pigmented! The only thing I don't love is that it has a very costume makeup smell to it; it reminds me of the smell of the makeup I'd put on for Hallowe'en when I was a kid. If that doesn't bother you, though, the formula seems nice! A full size tube of this will run you $18, and they also have four other shades in this formula! As a little extra, if you use the code FALLinLOVE at checkout, you will get 15% off plus a free lip balm! This code is good through November 30th, 2014.

Next is a 15 mL tube of brightening cleanser from Indie Lee, which is 100% all natural paraben free and phthalate free, according to the packaging. I have very temperamental skin, so I always love trying out a new cleanser! This stuff is definitely scented, but I find myself at a loss to find something to compare it to. Jelly beans? Anyway, it doesn't smell bad at all. Definitely looking forward to trying this one out! A full size cleanser will cost you $32 and you can buy it here!

Fourth is a full size black Tattooed Waterproof Eyeliner from skone Cosmetics. It's a felt tip pen sort of deal. I drew a few lines on the back of my hand to see what it's like. It's nice and black, doesn't bleed, and definitely stays where you put it! The felt tip is easy to use, and you can easily adjust the thickness of your line by varying the pressure. I like this! Looking forward to playing around with it! These cost $15, but you can get 10% off if you use the code IPSY at checkout!

I definitely saved the best until last, in this case: a full size nail polish from Nicole by OPI! This is in the colour "On a Gilt Trip" and it is just gorgeous. It's the perfect gold: warm without being too yellow, not brassy. Be still my beating heart! This dries down to a matte suede finish. I won't say too much here because this one is definitely getting a full review! OPI polishes tend to hover around the $8 range and you can find them pretty much anywhere.

So that's my ipsy bag this month! I enjoy pretty much everything here! I wish that the lipstick were a different shade, and am not a huge fan of the smell of the body butter, but that is easily outweighed by the eyeliner and nail polish! As usual, let me know if you want a more extensive review of anything you've seen here and I can make that happen! And, if you'd like, you can subscribe to ipsy!

xo

Hello by Harvey Prince

Well "Hello" there! Get it?  Get it?! Of course you do. Harvey Prince seems to be pushing this scent for fall right now, so let's talk about it!

Hello has got the freshness and sweetness of citrus notes but with a heavier undertone to lend it some weight and body, which grounds so it doesn't seem like a cheap body spray. It is just the right weight for fall! I feel like this is best worn as an everyday scent. While it is lovely, I prefer something a little more sophisticated for the night time. And, while I firmly believe that you earn every right to wear whatever the heck you'd like as you age, this is not something I could picture my grandmother wearing. It is definitely a younger scent, however it is not juvenile.

The staying power of Hello is excellent and I very much enjoy the shifting notes as it wears. The perfume doesn't transform entirely, but just enough to keep you smelling your wrists all day!

My only real gripe is a personal and highly subjective one: while the musky sweetness could be right up someone's alley, for me it can sometimes be a little too much... but not often.

As perfumes go, this one is a little more on the expensive side: a 1.7 oz bottle of Hello costs $55! I'd say it's definitely worth the splurge, though, as it's one of the only scents to immediately butt its way into my everyday rotation in a long time!

I'm always looking for great new fragrances; what are some of your favourites?

xo

Unboxed: September Boxycharm!

You guys, I am in love. Boxycharm is the new man in my life. I was wary at first of spending $21 on a beauty box but holy smokes, I'm so glad I got over that. Look at this! Look at it! Every single item in here is a full size product. Definitely gets my blood pumping! Let's go in the order of the card, shall we?

We kick it off with a tarte LipSurgence lip gloss in Park Ave Princess. This is a beautiful semi-sheer nude gloss infused with golden shimmer. It has a doefoot applicator with more of cutout than a scoop. It's hard to explain! This stuff is very thick and sticky and I definitely feel it on my lips, which I am not the biggest fan of. It does look very pretty on though, and I bet it would look great layered! It also smells very pleasantly like vanilla. Not too overpowering, but it's there. This will run you $19 and you can buy it in several other shades! This is worth almost the full price of the box right off the bat.

Moving along, we come to a Coastal Scents Go Palette in Moscow. This palette includes 12 metallic shades inspired by Russia's capital. They are all in one nice little compact that includes a decently sized mirror. The packaging feels sort of cheap and and not very luxurious, but for the price I can forgive that. About half of the shades are out of my comfort zone but that's not the fault of the product. I swatched all the shades and they're decently pigmented. They're quite soft and not too powdery (some are more powdery than others) and they blend fairly well, but they could absolutely use a boost from primer. I won't say too much more because I plan on featuring this in a post of its own. There are several different palettes available, inspired by different cities, on sale for $8.95 (they are normally $12.95)!

Third is an NCLA nail lacquer in Catwalk Queen. This is a 5 free light beige creme polish. I have done a full manicure with this and I must say, as someone who has worn a lot of nail polish in her days, this is lovely. The formula is a little thick but it is exquisitely pigmented for such a light shade. The drying time was fairly good and it dried down reasonably glossy! I'd love to comment on wear, but I change my nail polish so frequently that there isn't ever enough time to test for it! Though this is quite a nice polish, the price is a little hard to swallow for me. One of these babies will cost you $16! They have plenty of equally pretty shades to choose from for sale on their website (prices vary for different shades)!

Next is a tube of Tarina Tarantino's Eye Dream Hyperlight. This packaging is freaking beautiful. It's an extremely shiny gunmetal tube that is quite heavy - very luxurious! It's a twist up product with a brush applicator. I actually haven't tried this yet but I'm very excited to! Since I can't offer up a subjective experience, I'll just relay what the card has to say: "luminizes and brightens under eyes and along cheekbones for an instant highlight and lit-from-within-glow!" This stuff will cost you $22, but please note that the company only ships cosmetics within North America.

The last thing in the box was something I was extremely excited to see: a purse size spray bottle of Hello by Harvey Prince! I had received a sample of this previously in another box (I can't remember which) and I immediately fell in love! I absolutely plan to do a full review of this scent, but I will say here that this is a fresh scent with just the right amount of sweet muskiness. It's definitely a daytime scent that is young but not juvenile. This scent, along with Ageless by Harvey Prince, are definitely what I've been obsessed with wearing lately! If you want to pick this up, and you absolutely should, you can buy it here for $26. This isn't the exact size I received in my box, but I can only seem to find this size on their website.

Just a couple little extras to finish off this box: If you'd like to get 10% off at MyNameNecklace, you can use the code BOXYCHARM at checkout until October 31st.. It also looks like they have 10% off sitewide plus free shipping using the code EB14, which will probably run a little longer since it's for Christmas! tarte also snuck in a coupon for 20% off using FALLBOXY at checkout. This is only good until October 24th, so just a few days from today. But if you know what you want, go for it!

Alright guys, that wraps up my first ever Boxycharm! Total cost: $21. Total worth: $98.95. Pretty good return on my investment, I'd say! I haven't made it a secret that I am extremely happy with this box so far, and I can't wait until October's gets here so I can show you what's in it!

As always, if you guys want to see a more in depth review of anything here, do let me know and I can make it happen! And, if you'd like to, here's where you can subscribe to Boxycharm!

Hope you're all having a lovely week so far! xo

Unboxed: October Birchbox!

Hey loves! I know we're more than halfway through October, but better late than never, right? ;)

Here's what's happening in my October Birchbox this month! There's a good mixture of products this time, so let's dive right in!

First up we have a 30 mL sample of BeeKind body lotion by Gilchrist and Soames. This is a nice size! Says the blurb on the card, "Made with honey and organic chamomile, this healthy UK fave sinks in to restore skin." First impression is that it has a heavy lemon scent, almost like citronella. I don't mind that scent at all but I can see how it could put somebody off. I stuck a little bit on the back of my hand, it feels nice and not greasy! Full size bottle is $15, which is not bad. You can buy it here!

Next is a .25 oz tube of dr. brandt's pores no more vacuum cleaner extractor mask. The idea of a pore vacuum cleaner kind of grosses me out, not going to lie. I guess this is to take the place of a pore strip which, while fun to inspect the aftermath, takes a whole lot of skin off your nose. This is an "award-winning gel that degunks pores for fewer blackheads and smoother skin." Doesn't have much of a scent to it at all. I'm actually really curious to see how well this works! Hopefully there is enough in the tube for me to actually fully try it out. Full size is $45 and you can buy it here!

Moving right along, I got an undetermined size sample of Harvey Prince's perfume "Petaly Noir." This is definitely an evening scent. While I generally adore Harvey Prince, this perfume isn't the one for me, though I do enjoy that it has a spray top rather than one of those little caps which are impossible to get off. According to my little card here, this is a "lush floral scent that evokes a midnight stroll among blossoming orchids." It's just a little too heavy and floral for my taste; something I could picture my grandmother or my second grade teacher wearing (you know what I'm talking about, admit it). If you'd like to purchase this in its full size, limited edition luxury bottle, it will ring you up $55 and you can do it right here!

Next to last is a little baby 0.4g black glittery eyeliner from Lord & Berry. At first glance I was a little disappointed... the glitter in this is large and obvious and looks like something I would have loved when I was 12. I guess I'm more of a shimmer girl when it comes to my eyeliner. It's certainly not the most pigmented but it's smooth and might be fun to layer for the holidays. For a more exact description, "This blendable pencil from the UK brand is studded with bits of silver shimmer." A full size pencil is $18, jeebs. I feel like I could easily pay half of that and get something I enjoy using twice as much. If this is totally your bag and you're foaming at the mouth to get your hands on it, do it here!

And, finally, we have a full size lipstick from ModelCo. It's the Party Proof lipstick in Kitty. Kitty is a "hydrating, semi-matte formula in a soft pink shade that lasts as long as the party does." It goes on nicely as far as the back of my hand is concerned, but it seems more of a pinky nude on my skin tone than pure pink. I also have to note that, for better or for worse, it smells very strongly of tutti frutti. I don't mind it but I know some people who don't like their lipstick to smell like anything. I like this fine I guess. It's a nice shade but I don't find myself getting excited over it. Birchbox's little card insists that a full size tube is $24, however on the company website it's listed for $16.95! Grab it here if it's calling out your name!

Alright guys, that wraps up October's Birchbox! I feel pretty good about this month! I'm very low maintenance when it comes to my hair and I seem to get an awful lot of hair products, so I'm happy not to see any in this box! For me it's definitely one of the better Birchboxes as of late.

If you guys want to see a full review of anything I mentioned here, let me know and I will get that done for you! And if you want to subscribe to Birchbox yourself, here is their website!

xo

Allanah

Subscription boxes... which one is best for you?

Alright, so I quit my job. I have always kept this blog in the back of my head. I miss it. Shall we jump back in? Let's. That's all I'm going to say about that!

Over the course of the past several months, I have somehow managed to subscribe to not one, not two, but THREE beauty boxes: Birchbox, ipsy, and Boxycharm.

In case you have no idea what any of those words mean, I will give you a brief overview from least favourite to must have!

Birchbox is a monthly subscription box that costs $10/month for a women's box, and $20/month for a men's box. They send you five or so small to luxury sized samples from a huge list of brands. You can get anything from makeup to skin care to new shampoo and conditioner. The samples tend to be on the smaller size, but you at least get your money's worth and it's a nice way to try out some new products you would never otherwise buy for yourself. Plus, every once in a while they throw in a little gem. Here was my last Birchbox so you get an idea:

ipsy is a monthly subscription box that costs $10/month. When you sign up, you take a little quiz to determine what your needs and wants are; this information is used to determine what they send to you each month. You can retake the quiz anytime you'd like. It is slightly more personalised than Birchbox! Once again, you can receive five or so samples of any sort of beauty product: makeup, perfume, hair products... The sample sizes in ipsy tend to be larger than in Birchbox, and sometimes you even get a full sized product! Plus, instead of a cardboard box, your products are sent to you in a cute little makeup bag. I tend to enjoy the brands more in ipsy and overall feel that it's a better value than Birchbox, however there is a waiting list to sign up! Here is my latest ipsy bag!

Now, full disclosure, I have only received one box from Boxycharm so far, but I. Am. In. Love. This monthly subscription box is more expensive at $21/month, but you absolutely 100% get your money's worth. Holy smokes. Five full sized products for September, guys. Birchbox and ipsy are fun to open and see what little surprises are there, but Boxycharm feels like Christmas! There is a waiting list for Boxycharm as well, but it is definitely worth the wait! Here is a sneaky peek of my first ever Boxycharm!

Ah, it's good to be back. I plan on giving you an unboxing post for each of these boxes as I receive them as well as reviews for some of the products in them, good or bad. Keep an eye out for more in depth posts on the ones you've seen here today!