Herbal Salvation - Green Malay (Kratom)

So what the hell is this stuff? I didn't have any idea and still don't at the moment really. This afternoon my dad hands me this packet and says have you seen this before look it up(google) and take some. So me being semi irritated about being nagged to do something in the middle of watching a supernatural episode take my time before looking it up(my laptop is sitting next to me on the couch).

I then decided to look at the back of the packet and see in a bigger print "pure kratom leaf powder all natural & organic. 50 states legal" and now i am thinking like ughhh is this some kind of stupid natural energy supplement thing.

so i bring up google on my laptop and search "herbal salvation green malay kratom" because my dad wants to know what it is(i am still wondering if he knew beforehand) and i click the first link that seems relevant. and it gives me some boring history about kratom about it being tropical tree leaves from some places in southeast asia. i then keep skimming the page and its about how its used today as a powder, crushed leaves, capsules and mixing it with your favorite drinks.

i continue to skim the page and all the sudden i read this sentence and i am like wait a second, rewind, what?! okay it was something like "effects of kratom are an opiate like pain relieving effect, stimulant effect giving you energy and light euphoria" so im now thinking, wait are we still talking about these pill things i am currently holding. i read this aloud to my dad and he just starts laughing and tells me again to take some. so i ask him where did you get this? he told me they gave them to him at work(he works at a tobacco outlet store).

okay so my interest is completely absorbed by this now, i really want to know what the hell this stuff is. after looking it up for awhile i deducted that this is the lowest "dosage" of this particular kind(being 10 pcs). also that the other kratom pills called "maeng da" from this brand "herbal salvation" is apparently the preferred/better one. beyond that i have searched and came up with practically nothing. except some random things from some junkie forum but they were talking about the powder or leaves in tea and irrelevant things.

honestly i am skeptical about these pill things. i feel like they are most likely a bunch of random completely harmless herbs put into a pill capsule and then sold to make money....aka a scam.

so i have therefore decided i should do the sensible thing and take them myself. i will be the judge of this....

when i find out what i think of these(meaning after i take them) and come to a conclusion about them(not expecting much or anything really). i will either make a new post or just edit this one and make it longer.


EDIT: so its days later, but basically it was all i expected from it really. all i noticed was that it made my stomach hurt badly. not into it.
(how many times, did i write "it" there jeez!)

Collective Haul (Ulta, Rite Aid, Ebay, Target, & More)

over the past month and a half i have acquired quite a bit of new products from many trips to different stores or multiple trips to the same store. so i thought i would do a haul on the items i have picked up. but of course i am now remembering another item i completely forgot until right now, so no picture of that one.



anyways where to start, i think i will start with one of my multiple trips i have to take to rite aid each month. so hence being there so often i inevitably end up buying way too much...

so the first time i went to rite aid i bought my necessary beverage(s).

the picture above are the total zero red bulls, which i grabbed on accident. they are actually my least favorite i meant to grab the sugar free....but it's okay i survived.

the last few items i got on this trip were, 2 of the Carmex lip balms they were BOGO FREE....SCORE! i picked up 1 in lime, and 1 in pomegranate. i have had them a few weeks and am loving them! i hadn't seen these before until recently. are they new?

the other 2 items i picked up were 2 of the coveted Revlon kissable balm stains. the 2 i purchased were honey, and cherish. they were BOGO 1/2 off and if you spent over $10 you received $4 revlon up rewards.

the next stores items i picked up were from Marshalls. i LOVE the philosophy 3-in-1's and while browsing i saw a few that caught my eye. okay, let me put this out there so this makes sense. its FREEZING where i live, so me being me am particularly attracted to to "summery scents" right now. i'm assuming its like i think if i smell those types of scents it will lift my mood, but then again that could also really backfire as well...

anyways i bought 1 cabana girl 3-in-1(guava coconut type scent), 1 beach party 3-in-1(island colada scent), lastly i noticed they had a cabana girl body lotion. which made me extremely curious because i haven't tried their body lotions before.

randomly on a trip grocery shopping i happened to notice they had aussie products on sale. i picked up 2 of the 3 minute miracle deeeep conditioners, i think they were like $2.35 or something really close to that each and i happened to have a aussie manufacturers coupon that was buy 2 get $1 off. so i of course needed to get them.....

i keep meaning to do a review on the 3 minute miracle. i never got around to doing it on my former blog, i am going to make sure i do one here in the near future!

next i will go through a few recent ebay purchases. after a lot of browsing and looking into sellers and what not, i found a few items that i really wanted.

the first being the skin 79 super + blemish balm triple function (BB cream) the hot pink one. i haven't gotten a chance to try it yet, but am really excited to. after seeing all these americanized versions of bb creams being made, its really made me want to try the real thing even more.

before i talk about the last 2 items i got from ebay can we just take a moment and just say awwwwwwwwwwww! so cute!!! anyways i had been eyeing these for awhile they're the tony moly petite bunny gloss bars. the 1st one is #5 juicy peach, and the 2nd is #1 juicy strawberry.

i think i might end up needing to review both the tony moly bunny gloss bars and probably the bb cream as well.

one of the other places i visited recently was ulta and i bought entirely too muh stuff. i finally bought the benefit lemon aid color correcting eyelid primer, which i had been eyeing forever. i also picked up 2 of the smashbox lipglosses. i love their lip enhancing glosses, i already have a few to i decided to treat myself to another its one sheer color ones in the color "afterglow". i also picked up one of their limitless  long wear lip glosses in boundless. i hadn't tried this particular type of lip gloss from smashbox before, but it didn't let me down and i am really like it!

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i am going to switch over to another trip to rite aid real fast before i finish my ulta items. so after i yet again bought my necessary beverage(s)....

i noticed that all the revlon was 40% off i almost lost control...but it was starting to really snow out so i had to be quick so i knew i needed to get the revlon colorburst lipgloss in bellini that i had heard so much about, but could never seem to get my hands on. it was the last one....fate maybe?

well seeing as i had the $4 up rewards for revlon and the products being 40% off, get ready for this........i spent a total of .49 cents for it.....SCORE!!

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the last 2 items i bought from ulta(minus the one i forgot to picture) are 2 cans of batiste dry shampoo in the fresh scent, they were BOGO FREE, so i of course needed them! i actually did need more dry shampoo for real anyways...

the item i forgot to picture was a maybelline color tattoo metal cream shadows in silver strike. its gorgeous, i can't believe i forgot about it!

the last place i picked up anything as far as i can remember was at target, its one sonia kashuk brushes. the small multi purpose powder brush and its actually one of my all time favorite brushes. i already own one. but i found it on clearance and it was the last one for $7.55. which is great to get it for a lower price, but makes me worry that it might be getting discontinued! it is seriously the most amazing brush to apply under eye concealer, trust me.

so thats all i bought recently cosmetic/haircare wise that i can think of. i might do a collective clothing haul soon as well. but only time will see on that one.

Schick - Hydro Silk Razor

i have always been a loyal user of the gillette venus razors. i have never even owned any other razors!! i always bought another "newer" version of the venus razor when mine i was previously using became old and unusable or lost. trying a different brand honestly NEVER crossed my mind! which is really strange cause god knows i love to try new things and am always looking for the newest/prettiest/best working product of everything under the sun....

the reason i think i never strayed away from the venus razors is that when i started shaving(10 or 11-ish? hey, i was a swimmer and hairy legs aren't cute! ya get me?) and literally everyone i knew was using the venus razors. by everyone i mean, family(mom, cousins, and then a few years later my lil sis), all of my friends at the time and all my friends in the years to follow. plus there was a zillion commercials for them back them. it wasn't a choice really everyone i knew used that brand and i needed to use it as well.

anyways now that i have given you some background history on my experience with shaving razors, i will get on with the point for this post.





awhile back i got a campaign invite from bzzagent to try the Schick Hydro Silk razor. which immediately caught my attention because it finally alerted me to the fact that i had never tried or even considered trying a different razor than the gillette venus and i had also remembered hearing good things about the schick hydro silk razor. so i was very excited to be part of this campaign and try out the hydro silk razor and you know broaden my horizons, well as far as razors go.

so when mu bzzkit arrived it included a hydro silk razor(which comes with 2 refills in it!), my bzzguide, and 8 coupons for $5 off a schick hydro silk razor!

**looking through the bzzguide i immediately noticed that they claim that woman prefer the hydro silk over the venus embrace razor, which was actually the razor i was using at the time!



Facts & Claims:
so i will paraphrase the things i think are most relevant, and later in this post give my own thoughts and experiences. to help anyone who might read this out with deciding if this razor is a fit for them, if they've heard of it before or a just stumbling upon this post.

-each of the cartridges is filled with water-activated moisturizing serum, that's infused with marine extracts and shea butter and hydrates better than any other razor.

-has 5 curve sensing blades that move independently from each other to get a very smooth shave, with efficient shave and blade guards to help protect your skin from getting irritation(having to use fewer strokes helps reduce irritation!).

-the contoured oval shape of the razor cartridges allow you to get a closer shave around the harder to reach places, like ankles, knees and underarms.

-has an erogonmic, soft touch handle with rubber grips to give you the ultimate control while shaving.

-says for best results, use with your favorite shaving cream/gel/foam, although you can use it just on its own.

-claims to moisturize for up to 2 hours after shaving.




Awards:
so some awards this razor has won(may not interest everyone, but i always like to know these type of things).

-won best razor in the 2012 Cosmo Beauty Awards.

- named best hair remover in the 2012 beauty awards for Fitness Magazine, Prevention Magazine, and Ladies's Home Journal.


Pricing: (the Schick Hydro Silk razors are sold at grocery stores, drug stores, and mass retailers(meaning, target, walmart, kmart, bed bath and beyond, ect.)

-starter kits sell for averaging price of about $9.50.

-4 pack refill cartridges retail for about $15.11

***hint, hint!: the best/cheapest places to buy razors in general are drugstores. they always have store rewards programs, weekly sales, then add coupons to boot!

My Thoughts/Verdict:
honestly i was skeptical about the whole water activated moisturizing serum, i was like yeah sure.....cause the venus embrace is supposedly its rival and i was using that before getting the opportunity to try the hydro silk and the embrace was just like any other razor i had from the venus line. so when i first used this razor, i held it under the water for a bit to activate the alleged moisturizing serum it was supposed to contain. i swear to you i would not lie about this, but i used it without shaving cream(or shower gel like i typically use) and it shaved so nicely easily. the moisture serum i am assuming doubles as a sort of shaving cream as well. it gave me an very gentle close shave, and was a easy smooth shave as well, the combination of the razor itself and the cartridge worked amazingly together and it was true about their claim that it makes shaving the harder-to-reach places a close shave and plus no cuts! i occasionally used to get some nicks in harder-to-reach spots partially my ankles.

now heres the real kicker, never did i expect this to actually be true....the whole moisturizing serum aspect like i said a bit ago i was skeptical about. so it really caught me by surprise, when toweling off how nice and moisturized my legs felt. they stayed very nicely moisturized for a few hours afterwards. i was honestly surprised or more than that shocked cause as far as i have seen products never seem to come through with all these types of claims they make. i always chalked it up to embellished product advertisements!

ohhh, i almost forgot to mention! the starter kit for the hydro schick also comes with a handy suction razor holder to stick to your shower wall, to hold the razor.

since the hydro silk razor and embrace razor are supposedly comparable, i can say flat out they are NOTHING alike. the embrace just seems like any other razor i had ever had in the venus line and i never expected it to be anything but that. no wonder woman prefer the hydro silk to the embrace!

overall i am honestly 100% converted to the schick hydro silk razor from now on! i am completely wowed by it, i mean i expected to like it...but i honestly wasn't expecting it to be this great. i guess it got all those awards for a reason........




**disclaimer** i received this product for free from bzzagent for testing, reviewing, & sharing purposes. all opinions are always 100% my own.

Knot Genie - Detangling Brush

i have seen and heard alot of hype about the "knot genie" and "tangle teezer", which basically are extremely similar but made by different companies. you know how that goes...

i actually had looked both of them up on amazon probably about 6 months ago maybe longer and saw that they both were going for atleast $20....hell no. so i kind of put them in the back of my mind for awhile.

i am a compulsive groupon checker/stalker on my iphone app in particular, i like to look daily and see what's on there. plus literally everyone i know uses the site, whether it be for local things like golfing deals(if that correctly worded? i dunno i don't play), spa deals, or local food deals.

so the 1st time i saw the knot genie on groupon in the "goods" section, i hesitated and the event ended. but maybe a month later it was on there again. this time i knew i needed to to get one. it was i believe $9, but with $2 shipping because the total was less than $15. my memory is awful but for some reason i keep thinking the retail price being listed as $22, but i could be wrong.

they had a bunch of color options, i think there was pink, blue, green, purple, and silver. i think there was another color option that i can't think of. but me being attracted to shiney things was immediately attracted to the silver.

okay, so i guess i should explain what this thing actually is for anyone who might not know. its a hair brush designed to gently comb your hair free of knots and tangles. it can be used for people who have naturally knotty hair, but most often used for detangling wet/damp hair. 

i'm not going to go on a tangent about how bad it is for you to use a regular hair brush on wet hair and all the damage it does. i have always used a comb on my wet/damp hair which works good but is somewhat time consuming and you do still have to use slight force to brush through your hair.

(in relation to my picture above, i am unsure why i took the picture using my black kindle case when i could have taken it on the couch which would have made more sense)

anyways on to my thoughts on this product, overall i am very very impressed with its ability to quickly and easy brush through my damp hair and remove any knots and get done in literally 30 seconds or less. its also extremely gentle, which caught me by surprise because even with a comb you still need to do a tiny bit of tugging to brush through your hair. i didn't have to do that at all with the "knot genie".

the knot genie itself, is about the size of my hand and is very light(as in weight). its easy to hold or grasp. i haven't noticed it pulling out many hairs when i have used it, but by looking at it i can say it would be really easy to clean any off if they did. so i guess i could say "easy to clean". as for my particular "knot genie" in tinseltown silver(being the color name) is very shiney and metallic.

the only negative thing i can say is more of a personal issue, is probably wouldn't be relevant to 99% of the population. but i am going to share anyways, the "knot genie" itself in my mind resembles a jelly fish. i had an awful manowar jellyfish sting experience when i was a child, i won't get into that story. but the point being i am unsure where to store it. i don't want it sitting out on my vanity in plain sight. so i am thinking i will find somewhere in my bathroom to keep it, because i am loving it and its an amazing detangling brush. definitely the best i have ever come across.

if you were curious about or looking into a good place to find a reasonably priced "knot genie" or "tangle teezer" type brush or had never heard of any such product at all, but now are. i would HIGHLY recommend this one and also HIGHLY recommend checking groupon from time to time to see if you can find it on there and get this great deal!

Vintage Mini Perfume Bottles: Some History & Insights

i love to go antiquing to look at and collect vintage items. today i want to talk about my current collection of vintage mini perfume/cologne bottles. i am really intrigued by not only the bottles themselves but the history behind them.

i will share what history or random insights i have been able to gather about each of mini bottles, although some of them i still know very little about.

not that this is all that surprising, but it seems like 99% of these fragrances have been or tried to be re-released and of course reformulated.....and i am seeing a pattern that its always horrible and insulting to the original.

(left to right)

Ebene de Balmain Cologne for Men (released 1983)

Ebene by Pierre Balmain is described as a masculine aroma.

Top notes are aldehydes, artemisia, juniper berries, mint, basil, caraway, anise, bergamot, lemon and thyme; middle notes are carnation, patchouli, cinnamon, jasmine, rose, geranium and pine; base notes are labdanum, leather, tonka bean, amber, musk, oakmoss and patchouli. 

Givenchy III eau de toilette (released 1970)

A classic by the house Givenchy, was introduced to mark the opening of a prestigious store by the brand. Located on 3 Avenue George V, in Paris.

The perfume opens with aldehydes with bergamot, mandarin, galbanum, peach and gardenia. The heart includes lily of the valley, hyacinth, rose, jasmine and iris root, while the base carries patchouli, oakmoss, amber and sandalwood.

Tzigane by Corday Parfum ( 1947) 

Tzigane(the gypsy violin) -gypsies were highly fashionable during this time in Paris. Inspired by the fields and the nomadic life of gypsies.

"The French have a sense of humor. They name their perfume companies for dead dandies (d'Orsay) and female assassins.

Founder Blanche Arvoy named Corday after Charlotte Corday (1769-1793) who is best known for curing Jean-Paul Marat's painful skin condition with a knife. Marat's death in his bathtub became the subject of a famous painting by Jacques Louis David. Corday's humanitarian gesture led her trial and execution.

Refusing the last rites at the guillotine, Corday asked, instead, if she might have her picture painted by a National Guard officer named Hauer. The artist obliged and was rewarded with a lock of her hair. Her head, now free from her body, was, apparently, preserved as a memorial and Lady Dorothy Stanley's (as in Stanley meets Livingstone in Africa) mother reported that she had seen it at a social outing some time later.

On a more serious note, Charlotte Corday's patriotic act of murder was aimed at ending the French Revolution's Reign of Terror. Unfortunately, her deed helped turn Marat into a hero and gave his supporters an excuse to execute more dissidents. They became particularly suspicious of women."Source

^SWAG!!

Top notes of the perfume is very aromatic with bergamot, orange flower, lavender, clary sage. Middle notes are geranium, carnation, gardenia, rose and orris. Base notes are soft cedar, patchouli, sandalwood, hay like coumarine, a dry jasmine-chypre accord, soft amber, musk, clover notes and a very light leather.

Galanos for Women by Galanos (released 1979)

Premier designer and personal couturier to Nancy Reagan, James G. Galanos’s signature perfume, aptly named Galanos was launched in 1979. It is classified as a Floral-Oriental fragrance for women.

The original vintage perfume is composed with top notes of lemon, orange, mandarin and chamomile, coriander, clove, bay leaf and cypress, heart notes of orange flower, jasmine, gardenia, ylang-ylang, muguet, rose, geranium and carnation on base notes of musk, amber, vanilla, Tonka bean, vetiver, cedar wood, oak moss, sandalwood and patchouli.

O de Lancome eau de toilette (released 1969)

O de Lancome is appropriate for summer and summer mood during whole year(i want this mood right about now, its freezing!). Its full of "sunbeams and refreshing notes".

Notes of citrusy aromas of lemon, tangerine, bergamot and petit grain blends with fresh flowers, such as honeysuckle, lily of the valley and jasmine. The Middle is bitter and aromatic, composed of rosemary and basil. The sharp base note consists of moss, vetiver, ambergris and musk. 

Fendi by Fendi (released 1985)

Was the 1st perfume for women by Fendi. Its described as a chypre floral fragrance with spicy and woody notes.

Top notes of intoxicating flowers, fresh spices, soothing woody notes and gentle musk. The base notes are: ylang-ylang, rose, jasmine, iris, carnation, nutmeg, patchouli, vetiver, sandalwood, cedar, amber, oak moss and musk.

Jean Desprez Bal a Versailles eau de toilette (released 1962)

Bal a Versailles, meaning "ball at Versailles" which is grand french palace of mirrors. The fragrance is supposed to recall decadent, candlelit ballroom dances from the past at the Versailles palace. Which allegedly they assumed would smell of powdered ladies exuding aristocratic perspiration aka a combination of flowers and musk. Known as one of the world's longest cherished and classically sensuous scents.

Notes of rosemary, orange blossoms, Cassia, Jasmine, Rose, Neroli, Bergamot, Bulgarian Rose, Lemon, Sandalwood, Patchouli, Lilac, Orris Root, Vetiver, Yiang-Yiang, Lily, Tolu Balsam, Musk, Benjoin, Civet, Vanilla, Cedar, Resins.

Omar Sharif Pour Femme eau de parfum (released 1990)

Omar Sharif who was an Egyptian actor, had this perfume produced under his name. This is one of several fragrances to which he lent his name. So i guess that makes this technically a "celebrity fragrance". Pour Femme is an oriental floral fragrance, created by Francoise Caron.

Top notes are bergamot, orange blossom, palisander rosewood and green notes. Middle notes are jasmine, orris, rose, tuberose, ylang-ylang and narcissus. Base notes are sandalwood, amber, and musk.

Misha by Mikhail Baryshnikov (released 1980)

Mikhail Baryshnikov is a russian contemporary dancer, choreographer, and actor. He has a daughter from a relationship with Jessica Lange (love her!). This fragrance is named after Mikhail's nickname and is described as rich chypre-floral.

Opening notes of bergamot, peach and lemon. Jasmine, rose, raspberry, carnation and cinnamon form the heart of the composition, followed by the base of vetiver, oak moss, patchouli and amber.

Beverly Hills by Gale Hayman (released 1991)

"Beverly Hills represents a softer woman "who doesn't have to apologize for being strong and also is very aware of maintaining her femininity. She can run a company wearing pink, if she wants."-Hayman

A beautiful, dazzling, feminine scent with jasmine, gardenia, amber, powder.

Garnier Gel Cream vs. Clinique Moisturizing Gel - Comparison

for the sake of the worlds longest post title i have shortened the full names of the products.

their actual full names are "garnier moisture renew refreshing gel cream" and "clinique dramatically different moisturizing gel".

i am now going to try to compare these products in depth the best i can, in a way thats understandable and hopefully not confusing. so if you have been interested in either of these gel moisturizers, hopefully this will help you out with your decision, and my verdict may turn out to be quite the shocker to you as well....

i will start by saying i adore both of these gel moisturizers.

i have been using the garnier one for about a year and am 3/4 through my third jar.

i bought my clinique gel moisturizer at a CCO, although you can buy it anywhere clinique products are sold.

similarities:

-they both only require a minimal amount of product to cover your entire face and neck(although the garnier typically requires using slightly more product).

-they both sink into your skin and set very quickly.

-they both feel very light-weight on your face and not at all heavy(meaning you don't feel like you have product on your face).

-they both are very moisturizing as well(although i do find the clinique to be a bit more moisturizing).

-they both feel really nice and refreshing when you apply them on your face.

differences:

-the scents each of these have are VERY different, the garnier has a very clean freshing smelling scent to it. but it is a light scent. on the other hand the clinique has a stronger scent. its somewhat hard to explain its its more of that lotion-y scent with the slightest floral mixed in. but once its on my face i can no longer smell it.

-the packaging differences are pretty evident and self explanatory(especially from the pictures). the garnier comes in a glass tub, while the clinique is in a bottle with a pump.

-MAJOR DIFFERENCE  (see picture above) the garnier gel moisturizer has 1.7oz. of product, while the clinique has 4.2 oz.

-PRICE POINT DIFFERENCE the garnier gel cream typically costs around $7.99, while the clinique typically costs $24.50.


---MY VERDICT---

okay honestly i was with majority of people with my initial thoughts when first seeing the clinique dramatically different moisturizing gel in think woah thats expensive.....but is it really??

so now seeing that i own both, i am re-thinking that. if you look at the amount of product you get in each of the moisturizers. you will notice that with the clinique you get slightly more than 2.5x the amount of product than you get with the garnier.

i am not going to do the exact math, but basically its around $20-21 worth of garnier gel moisturizer to get the amount you get with one bottle of the clinique.

so think about it, honestly is there really a major price difference between the two??

honestly i will say, while i love them both i definitely love the clinique more. i not only find it more moisturizing, and the product will last longer between having to repurchase. plus i also use less of the product with the clinique than with the garnier. not to mention it has a pump(so much more sanitary than the tub) and overall better packaging. i would also consider it a better value for you money!

MAC Archie's Girls Haul

i have been avoiding all the collections MAC has been putting out for the last couple of months partly because they didn't interest me and partly because i own entirely too much makeup already. but after seeing the promos for this archie's girls collection i knew i needed to pick up a few items.

i narrowed down the items i wanted to only 4.....only 4?! i say that like im being deprived or something. feel free to slap me, cause i know, i know, and of course it was the more expensive items in the collection that caught my interest too.

the items i picked up were both the eyeshadow quads(caramel sundae, spoiled rich), a lipglass(summer sweetheart), and a pearlmatte face powder(veronica's blush). i also got this random MAC archie's girls pin with the order.

i haven't gotten a chance to actually play around with any of these items yet, except the lipglass which i just applied. so i have no idea what the pigmentation is like or how they perform yet. but i can say this i am loving the LE packaging, it makes me very happy.

as for the lip products, i am definitely more of a betty. the lots of pink and girly-ness is definitely more me.

the "summer sweetheart" lipglass is basically a light peachy pink with a few micro shimmers. its nothing life changing or unique. but if you like the lipglass formulation, typically go for light peachy pink glosses, and love LE packaging. which i do to all of the above, i say go for it.

i am still kind of wishing i had gotten the cream soda blush as well, which was the betty powder blush and is a light coral color. but i don't need it, i don't need it. i don't need it. i don't need it. or so i need to keep telling myself.

Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeliners - Zero vs. Perversion

i am a huge fan of the urban decay 24/7 eyeliners. they have been my favorite pencil eyeliners for years now.

so awhile ago when urban decay added some new shades into their permanent collection, one of them being "perversion" which they describe as being "matte blackest black". so i was immediately curious to get a look at it to see how it compares to my beloved "zero" eyeliner which they just describe as "black".

can we just say WOAHHH! they really weren't joking with the whole "blackest black" description for the "perversion" liner. i always thought "zero" was a great true black eyeliner.

as you can see from my swatches, the perversion liner blows zero out of the water by a long shot!(zero on left, perversion on right).

they both apply amazingly smooth, are easy to work with and last all day like all the other 24/7 liners i have owned and loved. but the pigmentation of the "perversion" is just way darker and it truly is a darker black.

while i still do love the "zero" liner, i think i will be getting the "perversion" from now on.

New - Palmolive Fresh Infusions

Palmolive is currently releasing a new line of dish liquids. Called Fresh Infusions, they have released 3 fragrances in the line(lemon thyme, ginger white tea, and lime basil). Which were created to be more naturally and inviting inspired fragrances taking cues and notes from nature into their scents, as opposed to the typical grandma-ish scents all dish liquids have always had. They also designed the packaging and bottle to be more simplistic and elegant looking and overall i would say more cute and appealing to look at.

i was sent 3 of the full sized bottles from influenster to test and to share 2 of the scents with someone else. i chose to share the ginger white tea, and the lemon thyme with 2 of my neighbors and keep the lime basil for myself. My 2 neighbors that i shared the fresh infusions dish liquids with both commented on how nice and refreshing the scent of the dish liquids were.

i was very impressed with the scents of all 3 of these dish liquids. they all smelled really nice, which was a very refreshing change. of the 3 i received i liked the lime basil scent the most, hence why it was the one i decided to keep for myself.

As you can probably see from the picture my bottle has been well loved. of the 3 scents i would say the lime basil was probably the strongest scent, but not at all overpowering. the scent itself is really divine, its very fresh and reminds me of a lime sherbet almost. which is a very pleasant scent! :)

Currently the easiest place to find the Fresh Infusions dish liquids from Palmolive is at Walmart, but they should be becoming easier to locate everywhere else very soon. If not already.

Palmolive Website

Influenster Palmolive Fresh Infusions Page

Disclaimer: I received these products complimentary from Influenster, for reviewing and sharing purposes. All opinions are my own.

MAC Impassioned Lipstick- A Fun Bold Lip Look

MAC's "impassioned" lipstick is a super gorgeous bright fuchsia color. This is a look i created back in August, using the lipstick.

i think this is a fun and wearable look, using a really bold lipstick and very neutral eye and face makeup.

products used to achieve this look,

face:

-laura mercier oil free tinted moisturizer in "sand"

-bobbi brown corrector in "light bisque"

-MAC MSF natural in "light/medium"

eyes:

-UDPP

-UD naked palette(original) naked on lid, buck in the crease

-NYC loose eyeshadow powder in opal color(i depotted it, i have no idea its actual name) on inner corner

-covergirl liquiline pencil in black

-MAC eye kohl in "i get no kick"(limited edition) on my waterline

-laura mercier mini travel size mascara in black

-NARS coconut grove single eyeshadow to fill in eyebrows

lips:

-MAC impassioned lipstick

cheeks:

-chanel soleil tan de chanel aka bronze universal

-illamasqua cream blush in "lies" as highlight

-too faced "sun bunny" bronzer

ignore my hair in these pictures, it does whatever it wants :/

Review: Bare Minerals "The Truth" Eyeshadow Quad + Swatches

so the pressed eyeshadows from bare minerals have been out for awhile now, like 2 years maybe? i have the worst sense of time ever, but the point being i am honestly loving them! i currently own one of the quads(that im about to review) and 3 of the duos.

the quad which i own is called "the truth". its basically the most neutral (colored) one in their permanent line.

a thing that i really like about these palettes is that not only the palette has a name, but so does each individual eyeshadow AND they are easily identifiable being that they are in a square(ish) box that is roughly the same color as the eyeshadow itself. i know most palettes have individual names for each shadow in them, but some don't and it irks me. plus some that do, are confusing to figure out which shadow is which *cough* MAC quads and don't even get me started with MUFE....numbers, really!? back on topic...

ok, so remember the shadows are always reversed when labeled on the back. this is where the color coded squares really help! 

top left: magnetism (beige-champagne)

top right: serendipitous (cool toned taupe)

bottom left: apropos(medium warm toned brown)

bottom right: fate (very dark cool toned brown)

the texture and color payoff of these eyeshadows is just amazing. they are very smooth and easy to work with. the texture and pigmentation is on par with my beloved chanel mystic eyes quad and thats really saying something...

even though its only a quad i feel like there is a lot of different looks that can be created using this palette. like everything from very simple neutral looks, to dark smokey looks and everywhere inbetween.

initially my thoughts about this palette when i was first buying it was that, it was lacking a matte shade. but the bottom right "fate" shadow, which appears to have very slight flecks of shimmer don't actually transfer over when applied it actually looks almost matte. but it is an extremely pigmented dark brown so i would recommend using a light hand with it, if your not looking to do a smokey eye.

the packaging of these palettes is really nice and simple and has a decently sized mirror. it has sort of rubber-ized texture, kind of like the NARS packaging. although the bare minerals don't seem to pick up nearly as many fingerprints as the NARS does, which is nice.

overall i really can't think of anything negative to say about this palette. i even think the price is very reasonable, which is $30. i got mine at ulta, and i remember using one of their 20% off coupons that they seem to send me in the mail what seems like every other month.

i would say "the truth" quad is a must for anyone who loves neutral shadows.