Sunday, June 30, 2013

Would You Rather Tag: Makeup Edition!

One of my absolute favorite beauty bloggers, emilynoel83, posted this tag on her blog, and I thought it would be a great way to get to know a little about me and my makeup habits!

1. Would you rather lose all of your mascaras, eyeliners, lipsticks, and lip glosses or lose all of your palettes and eyeshadows?
This is very hard for me, given I have developed a love for mascara. However, I feel like "palette" is pretty open ended, and I have invested so much more into my eye shadow, I guess I would have to say lose the first set, keep the second.

2. Would you rather chop off all your hair or never be able to cut it again?
Chop it all off- it will grow back! I couldn't imagine not ever being able to cut my hair again. I'm going to assume this also means trim... so I'll chop it all, and let it grow back. 

3. Would you rather have a coral cheek or a pink cheek?
Pink.I feel like it goes with more.

4. If you had $1,000 to spend, would you rather buy clothes or makeup?
Clothes. I do love my makeup, but $1000.00 is a lot of makeup at once!

5. Would you rather apply lipstick as eyeliner or eyeliner as lipstick?
Lipstick as an eyeliner. It doesn't say what color of lipstick. 

6. Would you rather only shop at MAC or Sephora?
Sephora, I only own one thing from MAC, and it is a foundation powder my sister-in-law bought me for my wedding. As much as I do love looking at their stuff, I feel like it's pretty easily duped. 

7. Would you rather only use one eyeshadow color or one lip color for the rest of your life?
Lip color. I usually rock a neutral/slightly glossy lip anyway, and I love variety in my eye makeup.
 
8. Would you rather wear winter clothes in the summer or summer clothes in the winter?
This is really hard for me because where I live, it gets to be over 100 degrees in the summer, but pretty chilly in the winter. However, I find it's much easier for me to warm up than to cool off, so summer clothes in the winter, it is! 

9. Would you rather have dark nails or bright nails all year round?
As much as I love a good bright nail, I'm going to have to go with dark nails. 

10. Would you rather give up your favorite lip product or your favorite eye product?
Lip product. 

11. Would you rather only be able to wear your hair in a ponytail or a messy bun?
Ponytail. More versatile.

12. Would you rather never be able to paint your nails again or never use lip gloss?
Never use lip gloss. I don't know what I'd do without my nail polish! 

13. Would you rather shave your eyebrows and have none at all or Sharpie them in everyday?
Sharpie those babies in! They have really fine-tip sharpies, and it would look way better than not having them. Just thinking about myself without eyebrows is horrible!

14. Would you rather live without makeup or nail polish?
This is a nightmare of a question. I have quite a bit of both. I guess I could live without nail polish, if I absolutely had to. But it would be really, really hard.

Friday, June 28, 2013

QVC New Beauty Test Tube Summer 2013 Review (and my thoughts on beauty boxes, in general)

I have a slight obsession with Subscription Boxes. Now, let me clarify this a bit: I had a Birch Box for two months, and cancelled, and I have never had another. But I love watching the box openings on YouTube, reading reviews online, and researching the crap out of them (check out my favorite site, subscription boxes, to research the one for you!) trying to figure out what I should invest my money in.
The reason I got rid of my Birch Box is that I loved my first box, but was not a fan of my second box, so I ultimately decided I would rather spend that $10.00 on something I know I would like, then a bunch of foil packets I would probably get with a purchase from Sephora. I haven't had much of an interest in ordering a Birch Box since.

I have heavily researched the POPSUGAR Must Have Box, but given my current living situation (with the in-laws) and the amount of "lifestyle" items, it doesn't seem like the best choice for now. But, watch out when the husband and I get a house, because that will be coming to my door every month. This may even pop on on a Weekly Weakness post, so I can tell you all more about it, in case you might like it.

There are more I researched (Ipsy and Glossy Box being two other examples), but I am getting way off track of what will already most likely be a long post.

Ultimately, I went with the QVC New Beauty Test Tube. I had diligently watched every single video I could find on every one that came out (people think different things about them, so it's nice to get several different opinions), and saw what was in the newest one I would get, and ultimately decided to just enter my credit card information and get one of my own!
Now let me clarify something that confused me slightly- New Beauty releases their own Test Tube through their website and it has different items than the QVC One. I did research on both, and figured the QVC one would be the best choice for me.


Okay, now that that's all said... on with the review!

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(All I have is this crappy Instagram pic. I promise I will have better pictures for my blog taken with my actual camera soon!)

My test tube came in that bright pink box. Inside the box was thick brown paper, and this tube. It also came with the New Beauty Magazine, as well as a guide to what was inside the tube. Inside of my tube came the following items: 1-fl oz Algenist Triple-Action Micropolish and Peel; 6-fl oz WEN by Chaz Dean Replenishing Treatment Mist; 0.04-oz tarte Skinny smolderEYES Amazonian Clay Waterproof Eyeliner; 1-fl oz Peter Thomas Roth Antiaging Cleansing Gel; 0.39-fl oz Mally Beauty Volumizing Mascara in Black; 0.4-fl oz philosophy hope in a jar night; 0.17-fl oz Josie Maran Argan Oil; 0.60-fl oz Perfect Formula Manicure Booster; and NewBeauty magazine. (This description taken directly from the QVC website to provide accurate information.)

I have provided information on where to buy and how much for reference. You can tell I easily paid for the price of the box with the size of the samples received! 

Algenist Triple-Action Micropolish and Peel ($58.00 for 2oz from Sephora)
I was nervous about trying this product. I have very sensitive skin, and it smells very medicinal. I associate that smell with pain on my face. However, I have been very pleasantly surprised! This did not irritate my skin at all, and my skin definitely feels smooth after use. I have used this product three times since receiving my tube, all at night, and I can tell a difference the next morning- things just look a little brighter and if I had a breakout, it looks less irritated.
Would I repurchase? I could see myself investing in this after my sample runs out. I feel like it really helps my skin. 

WEN by Chaz Dean Replenishing Treatment Mist ($19.99 for 6oz from Amazon)
This is something I had been wanting to try for awhile, and a huge check in the plus column of me purchasing this box. I've heard a lot about the WEN products, but never have purchased. The smell of my sample was Lavender, which I could take or leave, but it is not at all offensive in this product. My hair is fine, and very long, and tends to get tangled easily, but it seems like it gets less tangled when I spritz a little of this. I also have been using it to "refresh" my hair at night before going out with this on the ends and a little dry shampoo on my roots, and it definitely makes my hair more manageable.
Would I repurchase? This does make my hair more manageable, but I feel like there may be similar products out there, so I will be researching. If I do repurchase, I will probably go for the Fig next time.

tarte Skinny smolderEYES Amazonian Clay Waterproof Eyeliner ($19.00 from Ulta)
Let me start off this review by saying that I am a HUGE fan of Tarte products. Tarte was the first high end anything I ever purchased, and I frequently check out their products to see what's new. HOWEVER, I did not like this product at all. It is very, very soft. I barely touched it to my eye, and it crumbled everywhere- on my face, on my shirt, and IN MY EYE. Not pleasant. I stuck it in the freezer overnight to sharpen it the next day (that is how much was wasted from that one use), and it was still hard to sharpen. I did manage to get a little on my eye one day, and it smudged everywhere. Not in a sexy smudgy way, but in a looks like I have no idea how to do my makeup way. And because it's water proof, it did not want to come off.
Would I repurchase? Absolutely not. I would rather buy one of their EmphasEyes eyeliners.

Peter Thomas Roth Antiaging Cleansing Gel ($35.00 for 8.5 fl oz from Ulta)
My only previous experience with Peter Thomas Roth was some lotion that was available for use at the Hilton hotel my husband and I stayed at for our honeymoon. I have heard good things about the skincare, but had not yet wanted to spend the money to check it out. This stuff. I cannot say enough good things. It has not irritated my skin, it leaves my skin feeling very clean and soft. I don't have a need for an "anti-aging" cleanser- I don't have those issues at this time. But it has also helped with my acne (it has brightening properties and glycolic and salacylic acid). The description for the product indicates it is not ideal for sensitive skin, but I have not had any issues with redness after use.
Would I repurchase? Yes, absolutely. I love the results.

Mally Beauty Volumizing Mascara in Black ($20.00 from Ulta - currently online only)
I wasn't super impressed the first four times I used this mascara. It has a very wet formula, and I wasn't impressed with the results. However, I left it untouched for about a week and now I really like it! It definitely separates and gives me the look of volume, and no longer clumps.
Would I repurchase? Probably not. I have a bareminerals volumizing mascara that is one of my favorites, and I don't feel like this is a better product.

philosophy hope in a jar night ($48.00 for 2 fl oz from Sephora )
I have never tried a philosophy product before trying this. Blasphemy, I know. I have always wanted to give their products a try, but have never been in a situation where I wanted to choose it over something else high end that I wanted. This was another big sell on the box for me. It is a pretty thick cream, and you do not need much. I don't feel like it moisturized my skin right away, but the next morning my skin feels extremely soft. The smell is interesting, and not the best. I can't explain it other than to say I just don't like it.
Would I repurchase? No. I didn't like the results enough to spend this much money. It did make my skin soft, but I have other less expensive night time moisturizers that smell better and do just as good of a job.

Josie Maran Argan Oil   ($48.00 for 1.7oz from Sephora)
The last big sell for me in ordering this tube. I have coveted this the last two times I have gone into Sephora, because I've heard it's AMAZING for split ends. I've also heard good things about it's skin care properties, but I have not used it for this purpose, so I can't speak to that. But the hair. To say my hair is soft is an understatement. If hair could be as soft as a babies butt, mine definitely would be when I use this stuff. I use about 4-5 drops, rub between my hands, and smooth first on the ends of my hair, and then I'll rub whatever's left from about ear-length to the ends again. My hair never tangles on the day I use this. Amazing, amazing stuff.
Would I repurchase? Given the rave above, you would think I would pay any amount for a "miracle" product. But I feel like there may be some alternatives out there that will be just as good (One 'n Only Argan Oil comes immediately to mind), so I will probably try some of those before repurchasing this.

Perfect Formula Manicure Booster ($4.95 from Amazon)
I wanted to LOVE this product. I do my nails about twice a week or more, depending on my mood, and love a good primer and top coat, and this is marketed as both. It did HORRIBLE things to two of my nail polishes. Bubbles everywhere the first time I used it. I figured I probably didn't let this set long enough on my nails, but on my next use, I had the same problem. It also did not dry quick enough for me- over an hour later, I moved slightly and bumped my finger against my bed sheet and got instant wrinkling in the polish. Not cool. I also experienced chipping after my first day of wear both times I used this. I will use this on occasion to see if maybe the past experiences were flukes, which they very well could be. I will definitely keep you all updated.
Would I repurchase? The depends on the outcome of continued use. If I had to choose to repurchase either today or never, it would be never.

NewBeauty magazine ($9.99)
I figured I might as well go ahead and review the magazine while I am reviewing the rest of the tube!
I enjoyed this magazine, but it definitely had too much plastic surgery talk for this girl! However, with that said, I did find out a lot of interesting things. It is probably not something I would choose to pick up on my own (It's $9.99 and I don't feel like there's enough content that I enjoy to spend that kind of money), but it was a nice bonus!

Overall Thoughts: I am really happy with the purchase over all. I got to try things I never would have, and discovered a couple new favorites!
Will I reorder?: Yes! I'm signed up for auto delivery and plan on getting the August and October shipments.

FTC: This product was purchased by me with my own money. All opinions are my own. This post does not contain any affiliate links, the links are for your reference only.

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Welcome!

Welcome to my new blog!


First things first, this is me:


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(gotta love instagram!)

My name is Ashley. I'm 28 as of the date of this post, I'm married to my husband of just over 1 year (we've been together 8 1/2). I love a lot of things. But my main obsessions are reading, television, movies, and beauty.

Which brings me to why I started this blog:

I adore talking about Books and Beauty. Hence, the title of my blog. I thought it was a fun play (okay, and maybe a little dorky, which also says a lot about me!) on this idea of talking about the things I love the most. You can only tweet, instagram, and facebook so much! I want an outlet to talk about the things I love, which is why I created this blog.

My thoughts are that I will mainly talk about books and beauty. However, I may occasionally post about other things. My overall plans for posts include
  • Book Reviews and Recommendations
  • Product Reviews
  • Weekly Wishlist (not something I have yet, but something I'm wanting to add to my collection)
  • Pinspiration (a possible weekly wrap up of all things that are inspiring me on Pinterest)
  • Monthly Favorites (Once a month wrap up of what I've been loving lately)
  • A Little Something Different (Things other than what the blog is mainly about, won't post these very often but every one in awhile to change things up!)
  • Red Carpet Loves and Hates (what I'm loving from the Red Carpet!)
And, of course, others as I come up with them!

My promise to my readers is that I will always be honest. If I put a review out, I will tell you my honest opinions, whether I get something for free (through Influenster, BzzAgent, or a company) or if I buy it with my own money. I will always disclose FTC at the end of every post. The worst thing is reading a blog and not being sure if it is factual or not, and you can always count on me to do so.

Thanks for coming along on this journey with me!