Influenster Violet VoxBox

Helloooo people! I was selected to participate in the Influenster Violet VoxBox a while back. For those of you who don't know what Influenster is, this is what they say on the website, "Influenster is a free-to-join community of trendsetters, social media masterminds, and educated consumers who live to give opinions of products and experiences." This is what they say a VoxBox is, "VoxBoxes are boxes filled with complimentary products from your favorite (or soon-to-be-favorite) brands. Not all Voxboxes are created equal: some programs feature an assortment of products while others will spotlight one awesome brand. But make no mistake: All VoxBoxes are created awesome!" You qualify for boxes by earning badges and increasing your score on the website by reviewing products and completing surveys. I actually received my box a few weeks back but I am just now getting around to posting about it. This is the third box I have received since I signed up back in March 2012. So let's get into what was in the box!

It came in a pretty purple box.

 The box came with five different products for me to try and review. I haven't tried any of these before so that was exciting.

The first thing I pulled out of the box is a paper clay mask by Montagne Jeunesse. I have never tried anything like this before. I'm not fond of paper masks but with the clay in it I may like it. I haven't tried it yet so I can't say how well it worked.

 The next thing I received is a Goody Athletique headband. I am not very excited about this only because I don't like headbands like this. I have tried this and when my hair is down it doesn't stay on my head at all. I haven't tried it with my hair in a ponytail, but wouldn't that defeat it's purpose?

 The third item is Not Your Mother's Clean Freak dry shampoo. I haven't hears anything about this before and I haven't tried it yet. I am definitely up for trying a new dry shampoo though.

 The fourth item is a Sally Hansen Triple Shine nail polish. I was really excited when I found out this was going to be one of the items in the box. I love nail polish! The color I got is not so great though. I have heard good things about this formula though.

 The last item that came in the box is a SoyJoy bar in dark chocolate cherry. I knew I wouldn't like this so I gave it to my husband and he said it was dry and not that great. The first time I received an Influenster box it came with a blueberry SoyJoy and he did like that.

So that's it for my Influenster Violet VoxBox. I really like the Influenster program. It's awesome being able to try different products out and review them. Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

Go (here) if you want to check Influenster out.

December 2013 Birchbox - Holiday (Late)

Yay for another late Birchbox post! I have been way off my game lately. I just started getting back into blogging. There was a while there I didn't blog and I forgot to mention another main reason is because I needed to make my new light box. I was just too lazy to get around to it lol but thankfully I finally did. Let's go ahead and get into my December Birchbox!

Fancy new box for the Holidays.

 

The first thing I got was this duo of whipped body creme and bath salts by Salt of the Earth. I wasn't too excited by these and I still haven't tried them yet so I can't say anything about the scents or how well they work. I rarely take baths so I'm not sure if I'll ever use the salts or not. I will have to try the body creme after my shower. (Approx. value: ? There are no sizes on the packs so I have no idea how to configure the price. But for the sake of it I will just guess and say $5, a nice round number.)

 I wasn't too excited to get a shampoo but I like that it has argan oil in it and it's also sulfate and paraben free which is a bonus. The only bad thing about it is that it contains silicone (dimethicone) which isn't too great for your hair (in my opinion) but I noticed that a holy grail hair product of mine contains silicone as well so maybe my hair likes it. I do however love the smell of this! (Approx. value: $2.75)

 Oh look, moisturizer. I feel like I get a moisturizer every month. I guess I should have no excuse for having a dry face. I haven't tried this and I actually have no idea what it looks or smells like either. I will have to update you when I use it. (Approx. value: $13.33)

 Oh yay Color Club! I actually only have 2 full size Color Club polishes so I was happy to get this. Even though it's kind of a boring color in my opinion it's still pretty. I will always be happy with a Color Club polish. (Approx. value: $4)

 Chocolate! I wasn't sure what to think at first when I saw popcorn but I tried it with my husband the other night and we both loved it! It has a caramel corn flavor when you are chewing it and there are little bits of puffed amaranth in it and it's just like pop rocks in your mouth. It was so delicious we are contemplating buying full sized bars! (Approx. value: $1)

So, that was it for my December Birchbox! (Total approx. value: $26) It overall wasn't horrible and honestly the chocolate made up for it. It was so darn good. I'm actually kind of interested in seeing what else has puffed amaranth in it now. Side note: My husband is deathly allergic to rice and it saddens me that he can't enjoy rice crispies and I have been trying to find something we could use as an alternative to puffed rice. I think if I could get my hand on some puffed amaranth it would be worth a try. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this and I hope you have a great day! Thanks for stopping by!

December 2013 Ipsy Bag - Celebration! (Late)

Long time no see! I have just not felt like blogging during the holidays. Sorry for the absence. Let's just go ahead and get into the Ipsy bag!

 I really love the bag! It is my favorite bag that I have gotten from Ipsy! I usually don't like the patent leather kind of look but since it's quilted it is so much better looking.

 I'm not a fan of pop beauty but I was happy I at least got the neutral shadows. I never would have used the gray/silver ones. I am actually planning on seeing if my friend wants this because they are nice shadows but I have so many neutral shadows and she doesn't have as big of a collection as me so why not help her out? (Approx. value: $6)

 

I was happy to get a NYX lipstick because I have one already and it is a nice formula. Unfortunately I received a horrible (for me) color. =\ I am not a fan of red lips on myself. This one also has a gold frosty shimmer. Eeek! (Approx. value: $4)

 Can you see the gold shimmer? It really shows up on the lips too and it just not flattering on me. I am also going to see if my friend wants this. I'm pretty sure she only has one red lipstick and she looks nice with red lips.

 I was so bummed to get this polish and not the Starrily one. I have never tried and indie brand of polish. =\ Also I already have about 3 other polishes that are extremely similar to this color. It is really nice though and is opaque in 2 coats. (Approx. value: $5)

 Again with the be a bombshell. Am I the only one that doesn't like this brand? It is too expensive for makeup that feels cheap. The packaging seems cheap and the products smell bad and cheap too. (Approx. value: $16)

 This color doesn't show up very well either which stinks. That is a pretty heavy swatch (blended out some) below. Not sure I will get much use out of this and I really don't think it would be good on the eyes or lips.

 Oh...yay...lashes. I was so bummed to get these. I literally never wear lashes anywhere. I didn't even wear them on my wedding day. I can't stand the way they feel on my eyes. (Approx. value: $4)

 I did a quick minimal look just to try the lashes on one eye and they are huge. They almost touch my eyebrow when I have my eye open normal and they almost touch my glasses when I blink lol. Definitely not a fan of lashes at all.

Welp, overall December was a fail month for me. (Total approx. value: $35) Ipsy really has been slacking for me lately. I'm hoping they will branch out to more known brands here in the new year. I am also not too excited for the January bag. The sneak peeks are pretty much all skin and hair care. There are a couple products I would love to get but I'm not getting my hopes up just in case. Let me know what you thought of your ipsy bag! Thanks for stopping by, have a great day!

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!