Urban Decay's Build Your Own Palette!

I'm so happy that Urban Decay FINALLY came out with the Build Your Own Palette. It's nice to have a completely customizable palette filled with your favorite shadows! I have both of the Naked Palettes, and I love them, but this is so awesome. I'm really excited to start filling up my very own palette with shades that I chose myself. 

Urban Decay has recently re-vamped their entire eyeshadow collection! The shadows now include purple chrome packaging that can be easily de-potted. The formula has changed too! Now all of the shades are even smoother and more pigmented than ever before. They're almost creamy to the touch and are even easier to blend. I never would've thought that Urban Decay eyeshadows could get any better..

Look at the pretty box! I wonder what took Urban Decay so long to come out with a customizable palette.

The Outside:

This is what the tin itself looks like, brushed metal with the Urban Decay logo. This packaging reminds me of the Naked 2 Palette. I feel like the tin case is going to last me a long time, and I won't have to worry about it getting dinged up. 

The Inside:

What sealed the deal for me was this full-sized limited edition eyeshadow, "Walk of Shame", that comes in the palette for free! This palette pays for itself when you think about it. An Urban Decay eyeshadow alone costs $18 (without tax) and this palette was $18, so it's kind of like getting a free eyeshadow and mini brush. 

"Walk of Shame" is a matte peachy shade, described as "the perfect nude". It would make a great matte highlight, or could even be a great base shade to swipe on all over the lid. If it doesn't quite match your skin tone, you could use it to mix with other shades to lighten them. 

It would've been really cool if they let people actually pick their first shade, because I know this shade isn't going to work for everyone. It works nicely on my skin tone though, yay! Whenever packages automatically come with pre-selected shades, they are almost always never a perfect match. 

Likes:

• durable packaging
• customizable
• comes with a limited edition shade
• the palette pays for itself! 
• comes with a brush
• full-sized mirror

Dislikes:

• The shade it comes with might not work for everyone

Overall Thoughts:

The bottom line is, if you're an Urban decay eyeshadow lover, you're going to want to pick this palette up. Since all of shadows pop out anyway, it would be handy to keep them all in the same place. The fact that the palette pays for itself and comes with a brush, it's definitely worth the money. Urban Decay eyeshadows are some of the best quality shadows available on the market, so if you haven't tried them, you should! Haha 

June Beauty Box Five

As you may have read in my last post, I seriously can't stand the horrible service of Beauty Box Five. I only wanted to try out one month, and they ended up charging me for this month as well, so I had to go through all of this trouble to cancel the order, etc. In the end, my money was refunded and they just said keep the box. 

This month's was better than last month, but it's still not enough to become a subscriber. I truly believe that companies should take customer service seriously. Beauty Box Five makes you leave a message, and they don't even call you back! I had to e-mail them and call back a second time before I was even contacted. They don't handle with customers in a timely manner, which makes me feel that they could care less. 

Contents:

•  Blinc Eyeliner
• The All Natural Face -Vegan Mineral Eyeshadow
• Blum Naturals Oil Absorbing Facial Tissues
• Everyday Minerals -Girl Friday Blush
• Comodynes -Easy Peeling Mask

 I swear that I've seen the same eye picture on sigma beauty before, for an eyeliner brush. I honestly don't understand why anybody would want an eyeliner that "slides off like a second skin". I'll be testing this one out for sure, because the claims are a little contradicting and confusing. I'd like to see it "last all day" and then "slide off".  

Yay, another packet size product! I wonder how much that will cover, my nose? Haha 

 

I tried this yesterday and I actually really like this color. It's a dusty rose pink shade, and a little goes a long way. It blends out nicely and does have some shimmer in it, but I enjoy that around summer time. 

 The name of the blush is "Girl Friday".  This was my favorite thing in the box! 

 Then there was a bit of ghetto shameless advertising. Look at how they crossed out the date at the bottom!This is not what I expect from a "professional" subscription company. Just ghetto. 

This box came all scratched up like someone tried to run it through a paper shredder. I can put these to use though, but what a boring product to receive in a beauty box! I hate how they only send a few actual makeup products. 

I haven't tried this eyeshadow yet, but I can't wait! The packaging is hideous, but whatever, hopefully the color isn't! I will be doing a separate post with swatches on this.



Overall thoughts: 

This company is completely unprofessional. Especially since this subscription service is $12, I expect  higher quality products. They didn't even give me this box because of the inconvenience I had to go through of cancelling my subscription. They just wanted me to keep it since they already mailed it already. Beauty Box Five is ran under a company called "Bulk X" that is based in Texas. I feel that their representatives are unprofessional as well. Just horrible all around!


Beauty Box Five just isn't worth the money, simple as that.

Tresemmé Nourishing Rituals Rejuvenating Mud Masque

I decided that it was about time to try a new deep conditioning treatment for my hair. I usually use Aussie's "3 Minute Miracle Deeeeep Conditioner " and yes, that's the actual name of the product. There's nothing wrong with what I normally use, but I just had to try this as soon as I saw it on the shelf, and a change is always nice.

What caught my eye about this product was that I had never seen Tresemmé release a "Mud Masque" before.  I've never even tried a mud masque on my hair! Plus, it was on sale for about the same price as what I spend on the Aussie conditioner, so I thought, why not? 

Price:  

$4.79 at Target

Claims: 

This masque restores moisture to dry, damaged hair. After just one use your hair will be up to 10x stronger* and have a bright, healthy glow after just one use. 

Instructions:

1.Begin with your favorite Tresemmé shampoo (of course)

2.Apply the masque evenly to damp hair, concentrating on mid-shaft to ends of hair

3. Leave conditioning treatment on hair for 3-5 minutes 

4. Rinse thoroughly

Warnings:

Avoid contact with eyes.

Ingredients: see photo 

Unique Ingredients: 

Wild flower honey, dead sea minerals

This product is not tested on animals

Add caption

Results:
This dramatically changed the texture of my hair! I have thick, color-treated hair, that tends to dry on the ends. This masque definitely made my hair silky soft, a bit shiny, and replenished moisture into my dry areas. I was surprised that there wasn't any major color wash out after using this. It was really hard not to eat this stuff, it smells absolutely amazing.

Likes:

• is only $4.80 
• creates softness
• adds some shine, not too much 
• moisturized hair surprisingly well
• makes hair smell amazing!
• easy to apply
• only needs to be left in for 3-5 minutes
• no color wash out (for me, at least
• doesn't weigh the hair down

Dislikes:

• The packaging is quite bulky, I prefer a squeeze tube (like the Aussie one) 

Overall:

I feel that this is a great drugstore buy for anyone who wants or needs a deep conditioner. It completely revived the dullness and dry patches that I had in my hair, by making it soft and slightly shiny. The masque created a silky softness, while staying light in texture. The smell is soooo refreshing! It's hard to describe, but I would say that it's a light floral scent, like honey suckles. It smells exactly like honey suckles! It really improved the texture overall, and I highly recommend this!

Let me know in the comments if you have any favorite hair masks/conditioners!

Maybelline Mega Plush Mascara!

 I was so excited to try this mascara! I first read about it on one of my favorite blogs, Beauty Junkies Unite. There weren't very many reviews on this mascara at the time, so I really just wanted to try it for myself. I bought mine at Target for $7 with tax.

Claims: "Massive yet supple lashes"

Instructions: "For best results, apply the Flexor brush against the lashes and sweep from root to tip until a full plush look is achieved"

Ingredients: see photo

Application: This would be a great mascara for a beginner because it's so user-friendly. What I mean is, the tapered bristle allows every lash to be coated effortlessly. There is no fussing with this mascara.

Wand: "Our patented Flexor brush coats every lash with supple volume" Everything about this wand is unique. The wand itself is very flexible. I'm not sure why they made it that way, because I don't really feel that having a flexible wand is necessary. The bristles are made of nylon and taper on both ends. This middle is thick, and grabs every lash. I feel that it makes application fairly smooth and easy.

Likes:

• coats every lash
• volumizes
• lashes do feel light and soft 
• doesn't clump
• gives a some length
• wand and bristles allow for easy application
• only $7
• I really like the teal tube! Such a pretty color(:

Dislikes:

• I don't see the point of having a flexible wand , it's like those Barbies with the flexible arms. It's weird!

Results: 

These are my lashes before and after. I applied 2 coats, and curled my lashes beforehand.

Overall:
I thoroughly enjoy using this mascara. I really like the tapered ends and the thick middle of the wand. I feel that it actually is a lighter formula than most mascaras. My lashes were surprisingly soft and volumized. I even saw a little length. This mascara definitely lives up to its claims. I didn't have any clumps during application, and I applied two coats. This mascara is great for a beginner, or anybody who wants all day volume for their lashes. I highly recommend this mascara, especially since it's only $7 and the teal tube is adorable!

May Glossybox USA Edition!

So, when I heard that Glossybox was coming to the USA, I had to sign up.

Glossybox is a monthly beauty subscription service, and is $21 a month. That is quite pricey, when it comes to a "mystery box". If you think about it, you can just put aside $21 a month and buy beauty products that you know you're interested in trying from the drugstore.

This month's box: Beauty Around the World
At GLOSSYBOX, we promised you a world of beauty; and this month, we deliver it. From classic English Roses to the refreshing fields of Provence, France, you will discover beauty in all its universal delights. Immerse yourself in the culture of Italy where even the most utilitarian items can be considered a work of art, or the spirit of South Korea, where tradition and high-technology collide. But of course, it is always the home-grown beauties that continue to fascinate and inspire. So venture forward, explore, discover and enjoy your journey.

What that means in English: Basically there are six products in this box. One from England (Burberry lipstick), France (Phyto dry hair mask), Italy (toothpaste),  South Korea (Amore Pacific moisturizer), and America (Zoya nail polish).


The Contents of my Box: 

ZOYA - Summer 2012 – Beach and Surf Collection

The color I received is "Tracie", a pearl sea foam green with silver undertones. 

This was a full-sized product! This was also my favorite thing in the whole box..

PHYTO - Phytojoba Intense Hydrating Mask for Dry Hair

Ok, this stuff smells like lemon pledge, you know the cleaner? I'm a little skeptical about actually using this in my hair. It doesn't state if it's safe for color-treated hair. I have to look into that. 

MARVIS - Whitening mint toothpaste

Toothpaste in a beauty box? I'm not too happy about this. Oooh, $21 for a little toothpaste.

Why don't beauty boxes understand this? We want beauty products!

BURBERRY BEAUTY - Lip Mist Natural Sheer Lipstick Copper No.202

This was awesome. Even though this is the smallest lipstick I've ever seen, it's a Burberry sample! I love how this lipstick is exactly like the full-size version, with the signature Burberry marks and all. I'm really glad that this small version was exactly the same as the full-size version.  As for the color, I'm not sure if the dark nude is going to work with my skin tone, but It's just so cute!

AMOREPACIFIC - Moisture Bound Refreshing Hydra-Gel

I could care less about this product to be honest. I'm not  a huge skincare product fan.  The directions on this say to "avoid the eye area". I'll also pass on this one.. 

Cheap Glossybox Makeup Brush

Yeah, they gave me a cheap brush. The bristles are hard and crunchy, and smell gross, but they claim it's made from goat's hair, or "finest goat's hair" as they worded it. Seriously, Glossybox? I'd rather have no brush than receiving this cheap one! I don't recommend anyone putting this on their face!

Would I subscribe again? 

No. I'd rather buy $21 worth of things I know I want to buy at the store. Definitely not worth the money. Especially with the toothpaste and the dumb little skincare product. The only cool thing in this whole box was the Zoya nail polish. I also received my box a month late. Yeah, I got my May box in June. Why? They said it's because "I live on the West coast" ..so I guess us people in the West have to wait a month. Not a fan!