Makeup Purge #2

Hi Ladies!
I'm back with another edition of Makeup Purge! I did this purge right before the holidays since I hadn't done one for quite some time. I asked for a bunch of makeup for Christmas and knew that I had to make room for it :)

Lets jump right into it!

Review: Influenster Frosty VoxBox*

Hi Ladies! 

I was super excited when I saw that I was going to be getting another Influenster VoxBox! I think that Influenster is a really cool program and think its a great way to try out new products! For those of you unfamiliar with Influenster, it is a site that works with different brands to promote their products. As an Influenster you link up all of your social media accounts. The more active you are in social media, the better chance you have at getting chosen for Voxboxes. However, some Voxboxes can be completely random or very specific having to do with specific demographics. You also complete quizzes on different subjects to become "experts" in that area.  I recieved the Frosty VoxBox for testing and review purposes. I think that this box had a good variety of products in it from food items to beauty! 

Hello Pretty Bird x Memebox Haul of Fame Collaboration Giveaway Prize

Hi Ladies!

I hope that everyone had a nice and relaxing holiday with their family and friends! Today I'm going to share my Hello Pretty Bird x Memebox Collab Giveaway Prize! Rebecca from Hello Pretty Bird recently curated a special edition box with Memebox. She picked her favorite Korean makeup items to feature in the box and was hosting a giveaway for one of her boxes. I was the winner of her giveaway. I was so excited to try out all the products. Instead of reviewing each product separately, I decided to do a mini review of each.

Here are the items that I recieved!

Dermstore Haul: Too Faced, Tarte, and FarmHouse Fresh*

Hi Ladies!

Today I am going to share with you my Dermstore haul! For those of you unfamiliar with Dermstore, it is a online beauty store that carries a bunch of well known beauty brands such as Lorac, Too Faced, Tarte, and Laura Geller, They also carry smaller harder to find brands such as Eddie Funkhouser, Rouge Bunny Rouge, and Pacifica. They actually have 3 sites; Dermstore.com, Blush.com, and Hairenvy.com. Dermstore is their main site which carries all of their products (skincare, cosmetics, hair care). Blush.com focuses on cosmetics/beauty and Hairenvy focuses on hair tools and products. When in doubt, Dermstore will carry all the items. It is very easy to navigate between the three sites as they are all linked at the top of the website.

Here are the items that I purchased from Dermstore:

FarmHouse Fresh Splendid Dirt Nutrient Rich Mud Mask in Pumpkin Puree $20.00

I have never heard of FarmHouse Fresh before but I love facial masks! The ingredients such as pumpkin interested me and the fact that it got good reviews was also a reason that I chose to get it. I am very interested to see how I like this mask. FarmHouse Fresh makes other masks as well so if I like it, I may pick up some more!

Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette $49.00

My favorite makeup brand! Ok, I know I am REALLY late to jump of the Chocolate Bar bandwagon but... I finally decided to pick it up! I'm not sure if its even worth doing a review on since everyone has already seen this all over the bloggosphere and Too Faced has already come out with the Semi Sweet Chocolate Bar. I may do a post on looks that I create with this palette. Is anyone interested in seeing that?

Tarte Amazonian Clay 12 Hour Blush in Exposed $26.00

I don't own any Tarte blushes besides a deluxe sample that came in a holiday kit that I got last year. I had a really had time picking which shade that I wanted to try! I finally decided on Exposed which is a "nude" shade which is a pinkish-brown.

Besides my order, I got some free gifts with purchase!

I recieved some great quality Harry Josh Pro Tools hair clips to section my hair and some processional whitening gum. Also included with my order was a 2 year subscription of  Martha Stewart Living Magazine and Midwest Living Magazine. I was able to opt out of receiving the magazines but I need some help with cooking and some recipes would be very helpful!

Here are some great bonuses to shopping at Dermstore, Blush, and HairEnvy:

• Over 800 brands, including physician-strength formulas and hard-to-find specialty brands
• Over 100,000 product reviews from real customers
• Free shipping on all orders all the time
• Free samples with every order
• Free magazine subscription to magazine such as Us Weekly, More, People, Stylewatch with qualifying purchases

Dermstore also has a beauty subscription service called Blush Mystery Box which you can check out below!

Get over $100 worth of beauty products at DermStore.com for as low as $24.95 + get FREE 1-3 day shipping! Limited quantities available.

My favorites – save 10% every time you shop from you’re My Favorites list on DermStore.com + FREE 1-3 days shipping on all orders! *Some restrictions apply.

Overall, I was really happy with my Dermstore experience. My order shipped two days after I placed the order and recieved my products 3 days later. I love that they always offer free shipping along with a free gift! 

Let me know if you want to see any reviews of the products above!

Have you purchased from Dermstore? What are your thoughts? Post your comments below! 

-Tanya xoxo

*I was provided a promotional credit to try out Dermstore. However, the thoughts and opinions in this post are my own. I am always 100% honest in my reviews for all products and services discussed on my blog.

Review: Ipsy Glam Bag December 2014

Hi Ladies! 

I'm here to share with you my last Ipsy Glam Bag of the year! I can't believe that December is more than half over! This month has been crazy for me! Running around doing Christmas shopping, decorating, and going to holiday parties. Even though it is hectic, Christmas is my favorite time of the year. Let's talk about Ipsy..For those of you unfamiliar with  Ipsy, it is a monthly beauty subscription service. For $10.00 a month, you get 4-5 deluxe to full size beauty products. To learn more you can check out my previous Ipsy reviews on my Subscription Reviews tab at the top of my blog.  The theme of this month's bag is "Fearless Heroine".  I  wasn't really wowed by anything in my glam room this month. It was kind of disappointing because last December I got my first glam bag and I was really impressed! This month...not so much. 

Let's move on to what I recieved:

Boogs Bracelets*

Hi Ladies!

Today I am going to talk about a local company called Boogs Bracelets. For those of you that love hand crafted items that you can find on Etsy, you will love Boogs Bracelets. The company was created and owned by fellow Bostonian Susan Goldstein. All of her bracelets are hand made. Susan specializes in Cancer Awareness Bracelets but also makes fashion bracelets, bracelets for girls, and bag bracelets.

Review: ColourPop Cosmetics Lippie Stix and Lippie Pencil in Bichette and Brink

Hi Ladies!
Today I'm going to share with you some ColourPop products that I recently purchased. If you are unfamiliar with ColourPop, it is a newer cosmetic brand that is cruelty free and made in the U.S.A. They exploded into the industry with their insanely pigmented pressed pigments and shadows that are a unique texture and only $5.00 each! You can check out my review of some of their shadows HERE. This fall they launched their Lippie Stix and Lippie Pencils in a variety of shades and finishes. These are also only $5.00 each.

Here are the ones that I picked up!

ColourPop Lippie Stix and Lippie Pencil in Bichette

Bichette is considered a deep wine colored lipstick with a matte finish. I would consider this more of a red with a pink undertones than a deep wine color. It is super pigmented and long wearing. Even though it is a matte lipstick, its not super drying. I always make sure to apply some lip balm to my lips before using any matte lipsticks to keep them moisturized. Using the lippie pencil makes it alot easier to get a clean line since this is such a dark color. 

ColourPop Lippie Stix and Lippie Pencil in Brink

Brink was curated by well-known Instagram celeb Brittany Suleiman. It is a mate dusty rose/pink and was inspired by the Kylie Jenner lip color. I absolutely love this color! It is so flattering and so easy to wear. I think this would be a great color on many different skin tones. I have been wearing this color a ton lately. As you can see above its very creamy and pigmented.

Overall, I'm VERY impressed with the ColourPop lip products so far. I have a BUNCH more on my Christmas list so hopefully I will be reviewing more of these in the near future. They are extremely pigmented and creamy and are so awesome. I think everyone should give these babies a try considering their amazing price tag!

Have you tried any of ColourPops new lip products? If so,which ones? Post your comments below!

-Tanya xoxo

The Resolute Beauty Blogger December 2014

Hi Ladies!  Beauty Bloggers Shalunya from Shalunya and Boyet and El from The Beauty Isle teamed up to create The Resolute Beauty Blogger. They wanted to do this to not only stay on track with their Beauty Blog Resolutions for 2014 but also to give other beauty bloggers the chance to join in on the action. I have posted my goals and updates each month for the past year.

Here are my goals and FINAL updates on each:

Collaboration: Holiday Makeup Looks

Hi Ladies!
Who else is in full swing holiday mode? With all of the holiday posts floating around, I decided to put together a collaboration with a few of my beauty blogger friends. The purpose of the collab is to give you ideas for different makeup looks that you can create for holiday parties, gatherings, etc.

Below are the bloggers that are joining me in this collab along with the colors that they will be incorporating into their looks.

El from The Beauty Isle - Green/Turquoise
Elle from Elle Sees - Gold
Cyndi from CDel Beauty - Peach/Purple
Lily from Beauty with Lily -Gold/Cranberry

I decided to do a classic neutral makeup look with browns, cream, and champagne shadows.

Here are the products that I used:

Face:
Rimmel Stay Matte Primer
Makeup For Ever Mat Velvet in Vanilla
Nyx HD Photogenic Concealer in Beige
Nyx Dark Circle Concealer in Light
Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser for Dark Circles in Medium
Nyx Stay Matte But Not Flat Pressed Powder in Soft Beige
Motives Bronzer in California Girl
theBalm Blush in Hot Mama
Laura Geller Baked Highlighter in French Vanilla
Urban Decay de-slick Makeup Setting Spray
Brows:
Anastasia Beverly Hills Dip Brow in Auburn
Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Powder Duo in Soft Brown
Anastasia Beverly Hills Clear Brow Gel
Nyx Push Up Bra for Eyebrow (highlighter side)
Eyes:
MAC Paint Pot in Painterly
Lorac Pro Palette 1 & 2
Kat Von D Tattoo Liner in Trooper
Rimmel Scandaleyes Waterproof Kohl Kajal Liner in Nude
L'Oreal Telescopic Mascara in Blackest Black
Lips:
ColourPop Cosmetics Lippie Stix and Lippie Pencil in Bichette

  

Tutorial for the eyes:
Step 1: Apply MAC Paint Pot (or makeup primer all the way to brow bone.
Step 2: Highlight the brow bone with the color Buff in the Pro 2 palette (or a cream colored matte shadow)
Step 3: Apply Lt. Brown (Pro 2) as your transition color to your crease and above crease. You can use any light brown matte shadow. Make sure to blend this out good.
Step 4: Take Cream (Pro 1) and apply to your mobile lid. You can also use any champagne, cream, or light colored shadow that isn't super shimmery.
Step 5: Apply Mocha to your crease (Pro 2). Any mid toned brown will work. Don't go super heavy with this. Apply it lightly.
Step 6: Take Cocoa (Pro 2) and apply lightly to outer v. Any dark matte or shimmer brown would work.
Step 7: Liner lower lashes with Lt Brown, buff it out, then go over with Mocha.
Step 8: Lightly blend over all the colors.
Step 9: Apply a black liquid liner to the top lash line/
Step 10: Apply a nude or white liner to your waterline.

Please make sure you go check out the other ladies' looks!

El from The Beauty Isle
Elle from Elle Sees
Cyndi from CDel Beauty 
Lily from Beauty with Lily

I hope that you enjoyed this post! Do you have a go-to look for the holidays? Post your comments below!

-Tanya xoxo

CambridgeSide Galleria Glamour Swap*

Hi Ladies!

Today I am going to share a fun holiday blogger event that I recently went to at the CambridgeSide Galleria in Cambridge, MA. It was hosted by Blog and Tweet Boston and the team at the CambridgeSide Galleria. The event was a chance for us to check out the latest holiday gift ideas, mingle with fellow bloggers, and snack on some food and drinks from some great restaurants. We were also given the opportunity to participate in a Glamour Swap! 

Here are some cute holiday outfit ideas:

My favorite is the comfortable one piece jumper and scarf that would be perfect for Christmas morning!

Beauty Empties

HI Ladies!

It's been quite a while since I did my last empties post. It takes me quite a while to save up enough to post about. The empties in this post have been saved over about a 4-5 month period.

Let's get right into them!

Batiste Dry Shampoo: I use Batiste every other day and go through a bottle in about 2-3 months. This is the best dry shampoo that I have tried so far. It does leave a powdery residue on your hair if sprayed too close but it can easily patted out. This dry shampoo does a great job at soaking up oils in my hair. 

Would I repurchase? Yes, I already have.

Redken Forceful 23 Hairspray: This is the only hairspray that I use. Even though it is a little pricey, it is so worth it. It keeps my curls in place without making them look crunchy or wet. It keeps my hair looking natural as if I had no product in it. 

Would I repurchase? Yes, I already have.

Redken Color Extend Shampoo and Conditioner: I began using this when I started to color my hair. Its supposed to help your hair color last longer. I have never really been a fan of how it makes my hair feel after using it. It just doesn't feel clean. I would say it probably does help keep the color in but I just really don't like it. I also think its expensive. 

Would I repurchase? Probably not. I have recently purchased the L'Oreal Everpure Moisture Shampoo and Conditioner which is for color-treated hair and sulfate free. Thanks to Kate from Kate Spitz Blog for introducing me to this.

Not Your Mother's Beach Babe Texturizing Shampoo and Conditioner: I got these in an Influenster Vox Box. You can read my review of them HERE. I really liked this shampoo and conditioner for the summer time when I wore my hair scrunched or curly. It smells great and adds natural waves to my hair. 

Would I repurchase? Yes, but only in the summer.

M.A.C. Brush Cleaner: This bottle took me quite a while to use up. I mix it with water and shampoo to clean my brushes. 

Would I repurchase? Probably not, I would just buy a cheaper brush cleaner.

Urban Decay De-Slick Makeup Setting Spray: I really like

NYX HD Photogenic Concealer in Yellow: I reviewed this concealer HERE. I think it is a pretty good concealer especially considering the price. 

Would I repurchase? Not the yellow shade but I have repurchase the Beige shade.

Rimmel Scandaleyes Mascara: I love this mascara. It gives me great volume and drama and you can't beat the price. 

Would I repurchase? Yes, I already have.

e.l.f. Studio Makeup Remover Cleansing Cloths: I love this wipes. They are so inexpensive and work really good. They are also pretty big. I have purchasing these for years. Would I repurchase? Yes, I do every couple months.

CVS Cocoa Butter Deep Conditioning Moisturizer: Cocoa Butter is the only moisturizer that I use for my body. I go back and fourth between the CVS brand and Vaseline brand Cocoa Butter. They both do a great job at keeping my skin soft and moisturized.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Clarins Water Purify One Step Cleanser with Mint Essential Water: I use this cleanser every morning. I have been using it since 2006 and love it. Its a bit expensive but worth it for me. 

Would I repurchase? Yes, I already have.

Montagne Jeunesse Pure Oils Sleep Spa Mask: This is a paper mask that you use before bed. Once you take off the mask you let the product soak into your skin. You don't wash it off. I think paper masks are hard to keep on. This one specifically burned my eyes so bad. I don't know if I touched my eye after putting on the mask or if it was just from the mask being close to my eyes.  

Would I repurchase? No.

Lush Mask of Magnaminty: I really loved this mask! You can read my review HERE. Would I repurchase? Yes.

Philosophy Take a Deep Breath Gel Cream Moisturizer: This is my current moisturizer. I just reviewed it not too long ago. You can read my review HERE. 

Would I repurchase? Yes, I already have.

Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion Skin Exfoliant: I got this sample in my Ipsy bag. You can read my review HERE. I really liked it and thought that it worked well. My felt super clean after using it. However, it is super expensive. I know there are much cheaper exfoliants out there that are less money. 

Would I repurchase? No.

I hope that you enjoyed my long empties post!

Have you tried any of these products? What are your thoughts? Post your comments below!

-Tanya xoxo

Review: Wantable Makeup Box November 2014

 Hi Ladies!
Today I'm going to share with you my November Wantable Makeup Box! For those of you unfamiliar with Wantable, it is a beauty subscription box that you can sign up for monthly (or whenever you would like). It is $36.00 a month or $40.00 for a one time box. You get 4-5 full size products that are tailored to your beauty profile that you fill out when signing up. If you are not happy with your box, you can send the whole box back and get a refund. They also have  Jewelry Subscription Box and an Intimates Subscription Box as well. 

The featured cosmetic brands for the month of November are Surratt Beauty,  Surrealiste Skin, yourMinerals, and PLA Beauty.

On to the products that I recieved!

Holiday Outfit Ideas

Hi Ladies!
Who else is super excited for the holidays?! I know that everyone is busy with holiday parties, nights out with friends, and family gatherings. I don't know about you but I use these events as a reason to buy a new outfit! Below are some outfits that I think would be really cute for holiday parties and other outings.

Casual

Plaid Gathered V Neck Blouse $59.90 at Express

Layered Box Chain Necklace $11.80 at Forever21

Treggings $34.95 at H&M

Treggings $24.95 at H&M

Pointed Toe Platform Pumps $16.49 at Charlotte Russe

Oversized Plaid Tunic Sweater $69.90 at Express


Two Tone Chain Necklace $8.80 at Forever21

Super Low Super Low Jeans $19.95 at H&M

Sam and Libby Liam Chain Boots $44.99 at Target

Pattern Knit Sweater$49.95 at H&M

Solid Knit Leggings $3.80 at Forever21

Double Trouble Buckled Chunky Boots $27.57 at GoJane.com

Rhinestone Embellished Crew Neck Sweater $59.90 at Express

High Waisted Skinny Jeans $15.90 at Forever21

Journee Collection Wrap Buckle Detail Combat Boots $39.99 at Target

Dressy

Floral Lace Long Sleeved Crop Tee $59.90 at Express

Pencil Skirt $34.95 at H&M

Point of Contact Faux Patent Heels $23.97 at GoJane.com

Long Sleeved Metallic Tee $39.90 at Express

Lace Skirt $29.95 at H&M

That Special Sparkle Ankle Cuff Heels $23.07 at GoJane.com

V-Neck Knit Top $5.80 at Forever21

Easy Mock Turtleneck Top $7.80 at Forever21


Luxe Lover Faux Pearl Necklace $14.80

High Waist Houndstooth Full Skirt $59.90 at Express

Lace Up Wedge Booties $27.90 at Forever21

Zippered Fit and Flare Dress $17.80 at Forever21

Point Well Taken Almond Toe Heels $18.37

Classic Long Sleeved Tee $7.90 at Forever21

Edge of Glam Bib Necklace $10.80 at Forever21

Zippered Plaid Skirt $19.80 at Forever21

Wrapped Faux Suede Booties $34.90 at Forever21

Formal

Sequined Abstract Pattern Dress $37.90 at Forever21

Lace Sequin Dressy Crop Tee $59.90 at Express

Lace Sequin Midi Pencil Skirt $69.90 at Express

Journee Collection Stilettos $63.99

Peplum Top $34.95 at H&M

Metallic Skirt $39.95 at H&M


Faux Gemstone Necklace $13.80 at Forever21

Multi Color Statement Necklace $10.00 at Walmart

Merona Melanie High Heel Pump $23.99 at Target

Wrap Front Dress $39.95 at H&M

Tevolio Telyn Heel Sandal $14.00 at Express

Sequin Halter Dress $32.90 at Forever21




(12/3-12/5) Take $90 Off Your $225 Purchase, $60 Off Your $150 Purchase, $30 Off Your $75 Purchase or $10 Off Your $30 Purchase with Code 1848 In-store or Online at Express.com! 

  (12/6-12/7) Take $80 Off Your $200 Purchase, $40 Off Your $100 Purchase or $20 Off Your $50 Purchase with Code 1018 In-store or Online at Express.com! 

 

Which holiday outfits were your favorite from above? Post you comments below!

-Tanya xoxo