Urban Decay Vice 2 Palette

Hey everyone! So a little while back Urban Decay had a friends and family 20% off sale so I took advantage of it and got the Vice 2 palette. Last year I got the Vice palette and I love it so when I saw the colors in the Vice 2 I knew I wanted it. Now my Vice palette has a friend lol! I haven't used it yet but lately I haven't been in the mood to wear makeup. Let's get onto the swatches!

 I got this sample of the 24/7 pencil in Zero. I was really excited to get this because I have never tried their pencils before and I am still on the search for the perfect black eyeliner.

 I have worn this a few times and so far so good. Still not perfect but I like it a lot better than other black eyeliners I have tried. This is the first high end liner I've tried.

 I got the vintage 24/7 liner in Elderado to make my total over $50 so I could get free shipping. I am really happy I got this. It is so pretty! I'm really hoping I can get the Ocho Loco 2 set now that I know I really like their eye liners.

 Elderado is such a pretty metallic gold color. I used it and Zero and did an eye look a few days ago and it was really pretty.

 I have never tried a look like this before but I think it is so pretty!

The box is nice. I like the pattern and the purple UD.

The back talks about the palette a little and shows the shades you get.

 I really like the packaging for the Vice 2 palette. Purple is my favorite color. I was watching a review on YouTube and I remember someone saying that every case is different. I thought that was really cool. The only thing I don't like is how smooth it is. It slips around when I open my eyeshadow drawer but I can get over that.

 The palette comes with 20 brand new shades that range from shimmer, glitter, satin, and matte. I wish they would have included a few more matte shades. I went to urbandecay.com to get the descriptions for the shadows.

 

Smokeout is described as "dark taupey-black satin." It also has some copper shimmer.
Lovesick is described as "matte black with iridescent micro-glitter." It seems more like pink/purple and silver glitter instead of iridescent.
Prank is described as "deep navy matte with turquoise floating pearl." I don't have any shadows in my collection that looks like this.
Madness is described as "bright metallic blue shimmer with blue micro-glitter."

Shellshock is described as "bright metallic silver." This is the best silver I own. It is so bright, shiny, and metallic!
Coax is described as "medium metallic pink with golden iridescent micro-sparkle."
X-Rated is described as "baby pink satin."
Strike is described as "antique gold shimmer with silver micro-glitter."
Stash is described as "deep olive green shimmer with iridescent micro-sparkle." This is one of my favorites.
Poison is described as "charcoal satin with iridescent micro-sparkle." I think they should have put a different shadow in place of this one. It is too similar to Smokeout.

Radar is described as "metallic brown shimmer with iridescent micro-glitter."
Damaged is described as "bright metallic emerald shimmer." Another one of my favorites.
Dope is described as "warm champagne satin."
Toxic is described as "metallic copper-pink shimmer with tonal micro-glitter."

Voodoo is described as "metallic purple shimmer with iridescent purple micro-glitter." Another favorite.
Betrayal is described as "bright purple satin with blue shift."
Derailed is described as "medium metallic taupey-brown shimmer." Another favorite.
Habit is described as "light nude matte." I'm happy they included this shade for a brow bone highlight.
Ambush is described as "metallic brown satin."
Rewind is described as "medium brown matte." I really like this shadow. It makes a great transition shade or crease color for a natural eye.

I am so happy I bought this palette. I really love Urban Decay eyeshadows. I haven't tried very many higher end eyeshadows though. I ma excited to do some eye looks using this palette. What do you think about the Vice 2 palette? Thanks for taking the time to stop by and read. Have a great day!

November 2013 Ipsy Bag - Glam It Up

Hi everyone! I got my Ipsy bag a few days ago and it was only an okay month for me. It's okay though, not every month can be amazing (like last month!) I'm sure there are people who loved this month and didn't like last month, you know? Let's go ahead and get into the bag!

 The first product I received was an extra bonus item this month from em cosmetics. It is the Lash Gallery Dramatic Volume Mascara in black. I wasn't too excited when I found out I was getting the mascara. I haven't heard good reviews on it. I haven't tried it yet but when I do I will have to update. At least it's full size!

I have never tried a mascara wand like this.

It's actually a pretty big wand.

The second product I received was a BH Cosmetics Galaxy Chic eyeshadow. I got the color Neptune which is a shimmery medium blue color. The only other BH Cosmetics eyeshadows I have tried are the ones we got a few months back from Ipsy and they weren't great at all. I think BH Cosmetics does baked shadows way better than normal ones.

 I was actually hoping for a more wearable color but I can make this work.

Left: wet swatch         Right: dry swatch

 The third product I received was Pixi bronzer in Subtly Suntouched. I wasn't happy when I found out we'd be getting a bronzer this month but this is actually more of a highlight color. I did apply it and it was a really pretty highlight color.

Left: concentrated                   Right: blended out

The fourth product I received was the Be A Bombshell lip crayon in Shameless. Definitely not my kind of color at all. Unfortunately I don't know anyone who would wear it either. The one major problem with this product is the huge silver glitter it leaves on your lips. I'm going to have to find a way to make it work.

 The fifth product I received was the Starlooks Gem Pencil in Topaz. It is a pretty silver color with just a hint of blue. I am not a fan of Starlooks as a whole but I will use this pencil. When I swatch it the pencil seems creamy enough to not tug on the eyes but I haven't applied it to my eye yet. A few months back I got a black Starlooks pencil and it seemed creamy when I swatched it but applied awful to my eyes.

 The sixth, and final, product I received was the Nailtini nail polish in Champagne. It's a pretty color in the bottle but it is pretty sheer on the nail. I am just not a fan of the Nailtini brand. I have received two polishes from them so far and both are duds in my opinion.

 The swatch is three coats and even then it's still not up to my liking. I think Ipsy should try to stick with better brands like Zoya.

So like I said before, this month was only okay for me. There wasn't anything that really blew me away. Here's to hoping for a great bag in December! What did you get in your Ipsy bag this month? Were you happy with the products? Thanks for taking the time to read. Have a great day!

November 2013 Birchbox - More Good

Hey everyone! So I got my Birchbox yesterday. I had no idea what was going to be inside so I was kind of going crazy waiting for it to arrive. I always know what's coming in my ipsy bag so it's a change to not know what's in my Birchbox. I was okay with this months box. Nothing crazy exciting but it was definitely worth the $10.

 The first product I received is the Eyeko Black Magic Mascara. It claims to "create drama, volume and curl to visibly transform and intensify lashes." I tried it yesterday and it was only okay by itself. It actually made the curl fall in my lashes. I am going to try it as a layering mascara and see how that goes. It's always nice to try a mascara though because you just never know when you will find your holy grail (or one to beat your current HG.)

Pretty nice brush.

 The second product I received is the Folle de Joie eau de parfum. It is a blend of mandarin, rose, and sandalwood. I really like the smell of this perfume and so does my husband. Will I buy the full size? Most likely not. Will I use and enjoy the sample? Yes I will.

 The third product I received is the WEI Pomegranate Buffing Beads. The instructions say to mix a full packet into a quarter size amount of cleanser. I don't use that much cleanser so I am going to try to use half a packet. I will try it tonight and update.

 The fourth product I received is the WEI Golden Root Purifying Mud Mask. You are supposed to get 1 use out of this container but I have heard that you can really get 2. I will have to try this tonight too and update on how it worked.

 It's supposed to be nondrying and deep clean and get rid of dullness.

 The fifth product I received is the Ayres Midnight Tango Body Butter. It is made with essential oils of orange blossom and vanilla. I like the smell of this and I intend to use it as a hand moisturizer just so I can make the product last longer.

 This smells exactly like another lotion I got in a gift bag from the hospital when I had my twins. That lotion also has orange blossom in it so I know that's why they smell the same. My husband also enjoys this scent.

 The sixth, and final, product I received is the lifestyle extra. I got the favor smooth mint and it was delicious! It had crushed up Andes mints on it! I LOVE Andes mints, they are my favorite chocolate candy.

 I am planning on making some of these for the holidays to give as gifts to family. I am going to try a few other variations too.

 So that was all for my November Birchbox. It wasn't a bad month. This is only my second box though so I'll be going to a few more months and I may or may not keep it. What all did you get in your box? Was this a good month for you? Thanks for taking the time to stop by and read. Have a great day!

October 2013 Birchbox - Beauty Buzz (Extremely Late)

Hello everyone! So I decided to sign up for Birchbox and give it a go. This is my first box and since I signed up later in the month I got a bit of a weird box. It was only an okay box but I am going to get it for a couple more months and see how I feel. I already knew it wouldn't be as good as Ipsy because my bag was amazing! Ok, now onto the box!

 The first product I received was the pop beauty aqua lacquer in Flowering Fuchsia. I have never tried a lip gloss that had a spatula type applicator. I don't really like any of the products I have tried from pop beauty and this is no exception. I will probably be giving this to a friend.

 The second product I received was Benefit Fake Up concealer in the shade light. I wasn't too excited to try this product once I saw a couple videos showing how tiny the sample is. I don't know why Benefit couldn't just do a mini like they did the Watts Up for the Sephora birthday gift.

 When I opened it up you can see the product was down in the tube. I couldn't get the concealer to twist up no matter how hard I tried. I even had my husband mess with it and he couldn't figure it out. I contacted Birchbox and they gave me 100 Birchbox points since they didn't have any replacements. I really appreciate the great customer service they have. A few days ago I decided to play around with it and used my pinky to get to the product to try it out. It was alright. Then I started trying to twist it up again and nothing happened. So I started banging the product upside down on my table and it came to the top and I was able to twist it up! That was crazy! Then I applied the product how it is intended and it's not too bad.

 The third product I received was the evologie stay clear cream. I haven't tried this yet and I am actually unsure what its purpose is.

 The fourth product I received was the Ruffian nail lacquer in Hedge Fund. This is such a pretty color and it swatched very well. I haven't worn it yet. I would never purchase from this brand though because the amount of polish you get for the price is awful.

Really pretty color!

 The fifth, and final, product I received was the Chap Stick hydration lock and it was a Birchbox find. I actually really like the way this feels on my lips and I have been keeping it by my chair in the living room to use whenever I need it.

So that's it for my October 2013 Birchbox. Which products did you get? Did you like your box? I am okay with this box. I do understand that since I joined later in the month that I got a weird box but I understand. I am curious to see what will be in my November box. It will be here tomorrow! Thanks for taking the time to stop by and read. Have a great day!