tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51030944970260626682024-03-05T01:58:30.339-08:00The Plum EyelinerLeihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.comBlogger265125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-29476731713533340372016-07-19T18:10:00.000-07:002018-08-30T10:37:53.959-07:00Essence Beauty Box: July 2016<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">I was on the fence about writing a post about this box mostly because... well, does anyone read blog posts that much anymore? It seems like most people prefer video reviews which I'm not about ready to do anytime soon. Anyhow, I have a love/hate relationship with beauty boxes lately -- they are great for trying out new products, but makeup boxes are notoriously difficult for getting makeup that matches or works well with my skin tone. Last year I subbed to Ipsy and Birchbox to build out my bridesmaids bags and while that worked out wonderfully for them, I would think to myself, "This would suck if this were just a box for me or just one of the girls, but it's great to split up amongst four of them." So when Essence offered a first box for $1, I figured that's a deal.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitAT6U2YBA6Z1Gzy37suxwwpZmKMavt1NJQ0sUpD2zRzfJNqBYwEAUXFRtGw4W_B4QYFsCQlTDyYYXbMCCG6ziX2FToy2Kwhqk-YnuinfWQBi1Ixha5NOX9YY6Gpk9vrwwth6bJ6zuMoM/s1600/IMG_2198+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitAT6U2YBA6Z1Gzy37suxwwpZmKMavt1NJQ0sUpD2zRzfJNqBYwEAUXFRtGw4W_B4QYFsCQlTDyYYXbMCCG6ziX2FToy2Kwhqk-YnuinfWQBi1Ixha5NOX9YY6Gpk9vrwwth6bJ6zuMoM/s320/IMG_2198+copy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjorD9uSwuDgAJsFyzcWtUhjiqeYW3HnF26izY7BZICnxpCZUNnHFoBCZa4pQwHrW2zAJX0EAiaskNKnBHXHF6FkRBFL7MykUSvxwhiIjKN9EVLi-Y-umPjTRLh3oD4WJ2N16KtPKgId58/s1600/IMG_2199+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjorD9uSwuDgAJsFyzcWtUhjiqeYW3HnF26izY7BZICnxpCZUNnHFoBCZa4pQwHrW2zAJX0EAiaskNKnBHXHF6FkRBFL7MykUSvxwhiIjKN9EVLi-Y-umPjTRLh3oD4WJ2N16KtPKgId58/s320/IMG_2199+copy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I'm slowly working my way through each of the samples, but this is seriously the first box I've ever gotten whereby I actually might use everything in it. I want to take a moment to appreciate the awesomeness of this. Yes, there is no "true" makeup inside, but come on, this is amazing. In this month's box I received:<br /><ul><li>Ciaté London Mini Paint Pot in Pillow Talk</li><li>Completely Bare Shave Serum</li><li>Dickinson's Witch Hazel Towelettes</li><li>Ouidad Curl Immersion Triple Treat Conditioner</li><li>Pop Beauty Kajal Pen in Inky Purple</li><li>Pur~Lisse Blue Lotus Essential Daily Moisturizer</li></ul><div><br /></div><div><b>The Nail Polish:</b> At first I was a little bit sad that the colour I got was more of a "pebble gray." I tried it on anyway and got really annoyed at how gummy it got as I was painting my nails. After it dried though, it was wonderfully smooth and held up without any chips for quite a few days. The colour itself grew on me so I'm actually quite happy to have gotten this.<br /><br /><b>The Shaving Serum: </b>Admittedly, I didn't realize it was a serum till I started using it. I figured that it was similar to Whish Shaving Cream that I got a few months ago. Not quite. My skin felt so moisturized during the shave and afterwards which is a great feeling for dry skin. I love this serum and I'm thrilled to now know that there are awesome things out there for shaving.<br /><br /><b>The Hair Conditioner:</b> I saw "kinky" curls on the label and was a little bit afraid. My hair is curly (or swurly) so I knew either my hair would freak out and get all dry like it does after I use coconut oil or it would be happy. It chose to be happy! My hair was much curlier and felt bouncier after using it. Once again, I'm thrilled to have this in a box because ordinarily, I would shy away from a product like this.<br /><br />I have yet to try the other products however I will say that I've liked how well Dickinson's and Pur~Lisse has worked for me in the past. So I definitely am glad they were in the box and look forward to using them next. I have heard of Pop Beauty before but I never used their products, so once again, I'm glad to be exposed to a line that I haven't used before.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaBaj9a0P9gOn5eXtMqklgQY9dJ8eKAC1dGsWS3oK4KmdhojJQXXL1-vInnQnDktBHJrBg78qxd6v6bKZPsQrXPfdF4Y3QRxecRowSggpMjxi3I5PjEb2pKjLipF1fbSwvqwai6KMBZE4/s1600/IMG_2200+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaBaj9a0P9gOn5eXtMqklgQY9dJ8eKAC1dGsWS3oK4KmdhojJQXXL1-vInnQnDktBHJrBg78qxd6v6bKZPsQrXPfdF4Y3QRxecRowSggpMjxi3I5PjEb2pKjLipF1fbSwvqwai6KMBZE4/s320/IMG_2200+copy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />Overall, this was a fantastic start to the <a href="https://essencebeautybox.com/">Essence Beauty Box</a> and I'm excited to see what comes through in next month's box. Although I was able to snag the first box with a code for $1, subsequent boxes cost $15 a month. </div></div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-66904848179314303092016-02-28T12:14:00.000-08:002018-08-30T10:37:54.238-07:00Being Guyanese & Wedding Planning<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: justify;">When you're planning a wedding, there's a lot of things you have to consider. From etiquette, cultural norms and expectations, your family's vision, your vision, your fiancé's vision, and of course, your partner's families vision, expectations, their cultural norms and traditions, and so on. Wedding planning is taking all of those threads and tying them together. If you luck out, you'll plan and execute a wedding that makes everyone happy or most of them, anyway. Either way, you're bound to do something different, wrong, or get a few disapprovals, especially when you're taking different cultures and trying to get them to mesh. Even if you think they are similar.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div>So, let's start with me. Hi, I'm what you could consider to be as Indo-Caribbean but if you want to get granular, I'm West Indian, specifically Guyanese-American, who was born in New York. This is not a lesson how to be Guyanese, by the way, there's lots of people who are better at it than I am. Growing up, I lived in a Indian & West Indian community and like anyone else in search of a sense of belonging, it was tough. I'm mentioning this as a way of setting up your expectations, when approaching a wedding, I had an idea of what cultural expectations there were, I just don't know what they mean exactly or how to go about them properly.<br /><br />Here's what I thought we had to do:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li style="text-align: justify;">Early or mid-week, the bride gets her mehendi done with her side of the family, but mostly the females. The females would leave little notes or messages in the patterns. </li><li style="text-align: justify;">On Thursday, manticore is held, which is the religious blessing for the marriage. I think that it's at this time that the bride and groom goes through the wedding turmeric ceremony (Byaha Haath). The details on this one is hazy for me. </li><li style="text-align: justify;">On Friday, the families of the wedding couple will come together to finish preparations. Whether that is completing the favour bag that is filled with <a href="http://www.inner-gourmet.com/2010/11/happy-diwali-my-grandmothers-mithai.html">mithai</a>, <a href="http://shantiramkhalawan.blogspot.com/2014/10/guyana-puri.html">puri</a>, <a href="http://www.inner-gourmet.com/2012/11/the-parsad-duo.html">parsad</a>, or filling boxes with <a href="http://www.jehancancook.com/2011/12/finally-black-cake/">black cake</a>. </li><li style="text-align: justify;">On Saturday during the day, the groom's family and selected friends goes to the bride's house for the wedding. This is where the religious ceremony takes place and either shortly before (or after) the official documents are signed. </li><li style="text-align: justify;">Saturday night the bride and groom get into Western wedding clothes (cue the big fluffy white dress), and party at the reception with their families present. </li><li style="text-align: justify;">Come Sunday, the families of the bride and groom meet up once more whether for lunch or dinner. The wedding festivities are finalized and the happy couple are off to their honeymoon.</li></ul><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHHPx1jQkuE5d5N6tVokCeVJAFYF4lQtg-rBP2dxldH0LrbNDCVZMJa9giuai8uFjjCdx2Y5oGrLa-E21BNMl6GvL3Xy689Y3RWQmXxXEYVlbFH0386iToY5VXdtU_AyJoBLk29byE1ME/s1600/weddingplanningistheultimate0aaccessionintoadulthood0ayoumustpacify2c0aargue2cstandyourground2c0abef-default.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHHPx1jQkuE5d5N6tVokCeVJAFYF4lQtg-rBP2dxldH0LrbNDCVZMJa9giuai8uFjjCdx2Y5oGrLa-E21BNMl6GvL3Xy689Y3RWQmXxXEYVlbFH0386iToY5VXdtU_AyJoBLk29byE1ME/s320/weddingplanningistheultimate0aaccessionintoadulthood0ayoumustpacify2c0aargue2cstandyourground2c0abef-default.png" width="320" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Wait... Did I miss something? Yeah, I did. I missed a lot but you can sort that out for yourself by taking the customs of an <a href="https://reshirish.wordpress.com/2009/10/21/indo-caribbean-hindu-wedding/">Indo-Caribbean Hindu Wedding</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindu_wedding">Hindu Wedding</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marriage_in_Pakistan">Pakistan Wedding</a> (which is closest to the rituals that we adhere to), and then tie it together with a bit of German traditions. Can you tell that I had no idea what I was doing? </div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">I sat with my fiancé and we roughly discussed what we wanted out of the wedding and reception. I read <a href="http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/0738215155">A Practical Wedding</a> and <a href="http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/1594200882">One Perfect Day</a> and I frequented wedding forums but here's the thing, when we sorted out what we wanted, we realized that none of these etiquette manuals could cover what we were going through.<br /><br />Here's the thing that I've realized though -- wedding planning is like it's own elite group. Perhaps not elite exactly, but brides (and grooms) are exposed to a new set of rules that they were probably not aware of prior. That unless they were actively researching it beforehand. Things like, "You should never throw your own engagement party and the the bride's parents are responsible for that," or "the groom's parents pay for the flowers," or "wedding gifts should not be expected but you as the guest should look to cover your seat." But wait, that last one is regional. Also I don't live in the same state as my parents (as the bride), and the groom's parents are planning to move so we didn't want to bother them with flowers. Oh and let's not forget that in a West Indian wedding, it's all hands on deck, everyone helps where they can because the idea is that it's a community event.<br /><br />It's been a learning lesson and the way we see it, it's been a like skill set gained. There's a small part of me that chuckles that both he and I have a background in customer service as account managers so in some ways, we've been able to stay ahead of our wedding checklist. Not just that, but we've been able to be at peace with things that just aren't going to quite go our way.<br /><br />But here's the thing. By doing everything wrong by everyone else's standards, and not quite following one tradition or the other, in some ways, we're left out of the conversation. There aren't really people that I can talk to about my red saree, how over the top our parents are going with different traditions, or trying to tie it all together. </div></div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-61744003155500198672016-02-24T16:17:00.000-08:002018-08-30T10:37:54.400-07:00I did it for the Medals<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">Back in December... Of 2014, I wrote about getting into running. Then life happened and even though I did finish the C25k program, well, let's just say that today I ran 15 minutes. I am also extremely proud of myself, but let's go back a bit.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In February 2015, I ran my first organized 5K at the <a href="http://getfitkpsf.com/">Annual Kaiser Permanente San Francisco 5K</a> through Golden Gate Park and it was wonderful. It was well organized, a great path through the park, and the atmosphere was energetic. Not to mention that the cool breeze through the park and the shaded path made it for a soothing run. Yes, I said a "soothing run." By the end of it, I knew which other organized 5K's I wanted to run and since I had that under my belt, I quickly signed up for the 5K's for <a href="http://thesuperrun.com/">Super Run</a> and <a href="http://www.runlikeadiva.com/Events/Divas__Half_Marathon___5K_-_San_Francisco_Bay__CA.htm">Run Like a Diva</a>. My stretch goal was to run the 10k <a href="http://www.mermaidseries.com/#!__san-francisco">Sirena</a> later in 2015. Within a week after the Kaiser run and right after signing up for the Super and Diva run, I started experiencing pains in my shins and my knees. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">By the time the Super Run rolled around in March, I hadn't run in about two months because I could not. I managed to run about 2 miles before my knees and ankles started to give way. When Divas came up in May, I walked it instead and beat myself up mentally the entire way. Sometimes you really just can't; you try but it's just not meant for you. I tried to pick up running here and there, but after a while it longer became that I couldn't physically do it, but I just didn't have the time anymore. After sustaining another weird injury in October whereby I couldn't move for a few weeks (I'm fine now, but don't let anyone tell you that you can't throw your shoulder out during CPR.Mostly because they, nor will any of your doctors believe you). When I regained movement, I decided it was time to donate one of my running shoes. I still held on to the pair that my brother gave me for Christmas though.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">A few days ago, while chatting with a friend about running, we talked about Divas. I think that that was her first run and she asked if I'd be up for doing it again for 2016. Honestly, without training and just coming off of two injuries, I doubted my ability to do it. I still doubt my ability to do it. So a few days after, I pulled on my ridiculous tights, my Divas shirt from last year, and my new Merells, and ran on the treadmill. I discovered that I really do hate the treadmill. Walking or running on the treadmill feels like an eternity. I tried listening to a book or music and I was exasperated to see and feel each second go by. On the first day I ran 11 minutes and then my knee and hip started hurting so I stopped. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Two days later I geared up again with my ridiculous tights (why do I own running leggings, I don't even like them. I prefer exercise pants), my FlipBelt, and the C25k app loaded on my phone. I made it all of 16 minutes before I told myself that maybe this was good enough for now. See there are some benefits for starting over though! </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><ol><li style="text-align: justify;">I have all the gear and the clothes. I know that seems like a minor thing, but it's really nice to already have a series of running outfits set and not have to go out of my way to find what works. </li><li style="text-align: justify;">Speaking of which, I where all the braces go, the compression sleeves, and the kinesthetic tape goes. There's so much less guess work and that makes me so happy.</li><li style="text-align: justify;">I know what pace I ought to be running at. I know what's too quick and too slow so I can adjust accordingly, instead of having to find my pace again. As a note, it took me about 6 weeks the first time to find my pace. </li><li style="text-align: justify;">I know which apps to use. Sure, it might be silly, but it's really nice to already know that the iHeartRadio app works well with the C25k program. It's also good to know for myself that I do prefer the radio over my own music. Before, I used to play my favourite songs, but as it turns out, I knew exactly how long they were so I'd count the minutes of the run. It turns out, I really didn't like running back then. Not sure if I do now though...</li><li style="text-align: justify;">I've done it before and I can do it again. This is what powers me through and even though I might not be able to run at the same pace or finish with the same times, I can do it. I just have to try.</li></ol><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzPi_X9H2_C9lhpZnyscLZXflSzvYY39_gAJSnkPQZ_9_NF0fHbx_XD_CTo-xmwBg1GfvUE_0KP8UjsdGb4eZtuewFQoIAFuoKtu5dqtkbd63YqafyAUfAnCqhSAAkGwCqlwIk1y9mXec/s1600/diditforthemedals.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzPi_X9H2_C9lhpZnyscLZXflSzvYY39_gAJSnkPQZ_9_NF0fHbx_XD_CTo-xmwBg1GfvUE_0KP8UjsdGb4eZtuewFQoIAFuoKtu5dqtkbd63YqafyAUfAnCqhSAAkGwCqlwIk1y9mXec/s320/diditforthemedals.gif" width="289" /></a></div><div><br /></div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-26968966625005407522016-01-27T16:24:00.000-08:002018-08-30T10:37:54.593-07:00Influenster: Vaseline Intensive Care Advanced Repair Lotion<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: right;"><i>Items were received by Influenster VoxBox complimentary.</i></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIS7c9qKLD35Jz-bP9kqavszVvTIsXHsp1UkuAUbvLcVt5P3fgbIPu9ulfMU-H-FlPxFjYFIUk5L_1TCtKsWPPtDfYKwLOrAjVu1atSdR1ZJX-desPVoAQ0lJ-B88kddrd3h7udvUHK9I/s1600/vaselinelotion.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIS7c9qKLD35Jz-bP9kqavszVvTIsXHsp1UkuAUbvLcVt5P3fgbIPu9ulfMU-H-FlPxFjYFIUk5L_1TCtKsWPPtDfYKwLOrAjVu1atSdR1ZJX-desPVoAQ0lJ-B88kddrd3h7udvUHK9I/s320/vaselinelotion.gif" width="179" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I was excited to qualify for this box -- simply because I've been a huge fan of Vaseline lotions since I was a child. The only lotion that worked for me was the cocoa butter one which is now called Intensive Care Cocoa Radiant Lotion. In fact, the Cocoa Radiant is what I was using before the Intensive Care Advanced Repair Lotion arrived in the mail. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">So upon receiving Advanced Repair, I realized that this is supposed to be richer than the cocoa butter version which is happily welcomed here because my skin gets so dry. This version is unique to me because it actually contains Vaseline jelly -- which strangely enough doesn't come off as being to heavy and is absorbed quickly by the skin.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">After a few days of trying it out, I have to admit that this is better than the Cocoa Radiant (though I do like the scent of Cocoa Radiant). My skin remains thoroughly moisturized and happier due to the switch. The only time I even realized the difference in the texture was one day when I was out in the rain and the Vaseline jelly became a bit more noticeable. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Overall, I'm really happy that I got to try this one because it might have earned a permanent spot on my shelf. Dry skin rejoice! </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><hr /><br />Disclaimer: I received these products complimentary through the VoxBox product testing program.<br /><br />Vaseline Intensive Care Advanced Repair Lotion currently retails for <a href="http://www.target.com/p/vaseline-intensive-care-advanced-repair-fragrance-free-lotion-32-oz/-/A-13345370">$8.07 at Target</a>. </div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-58124964369223860492016-01-17T12:53:00.000-08:002018-08-30T10:37:54.767-07:00Infuenster: Target Dry Spray VoxBox<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: right;"><i>Items were received by Influenster VoxBox complimentary.</i></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQw8XqvspiMkm6a_OZtXtF_5dnwJ284kFxsGgamfi3ZDt-7dcmuafKAAq3L_Nzlujdv35A6xi6SyLqnzD9i_o9yuIXDCL4j2u-TjhITNZpqOEvFsMmBnGrY5rFCJDOxRGb9ITV4hYqNa4/s1600/dryspray.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQw8XqvspiMkm6a_OZtXtF_5dnwJ284kFxsGgamfi3ZDt-7dcmuafKAAq3L_Nzlujdv35A6xi6SyLqnzD9i_o9yuIXDCL4j2u-TjhITNZpqOEvFsMmBnGrY5rFCJDOxRGb9ITV4hYqNa4/s320/dryspray.gif" width="206" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> It's the start of a new year and what better way to kick it off than to receive a box that you forgot about! If you haven't tried Influenster just yet, I'd highly recommend that you do so. It's a great way to try new products. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Moving along, I remembered qualifying for a box but as it turned out, I qualified for two. So during that email mix up of mine, I was surprised to see this in the mail. For years now, I've been solely using deodorants (not antiperspirants) so my experience might differ a bit from those who typically use antiperspirants. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Off the bat, I was a bit hesitant to use it merely because it is in aerosol form. If you're not prone to paying attention to where you're spraying and instead singing along to your playlist, chances are you could miss. I've managed to avoid most aerosols for this reason. This will make sense later.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">On the first day of using it, even though it's easy to use and yes, if you're paying attention you aren't bound to spray it anywhere else but that scent was a bit off. Not the actual scent of the antiperspirant itself but the aerosol goodness that lingered in the air. Seriously, I felt like I was choking on it. This is also very likely my fault so to any other people who are looking to use something similar, step out of small areas and go into areas that air freely flows because otherwise you're choking on the aerosol air even though your antiperspirant itself smells good. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Overall, it stayed on and kept those pits protected which is exactly what it should do (and what you're looking for in an antiperspirant). The next day that I tried it, while singing along to what I assume would be the Artic Monkeys, I accidentally sprayed my neck first. I told you it would make sense later. The lesson that you've learned here it to check the nozzle and back sure it's pointed in the right direction. On the bright side, I guess, my neck was protected with this light cucumber scent. The aerosol like scent wafted in the air and while I ran out of the bathroom to avoid the headache, I can say that it does it still does what it needs to do. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">So now that you've read my journey with the aerosol antiperspirant, I'd recommend it to those that are looking for an antiperspirant of that type. Although I'd say the Dove stick and gel antiperspirant would likely be on par, if not better. As for me, I'm switching back to my deodorants merely because they were serving me well in the first place. Nonetheless, it is still good to have especially for heavy duty activities like exercising. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><hr /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Disclaimer: I received these products complimentary through the VoxBox product testing program.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="http://www.target.com/p/dove-cool-essentials-dry-spray-antiperspirant-3-8-oz/-/A-16638951"><br /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="http://www.target.com/p/dove-cool-essentials-dry-spray-antiperspirant-3-8-oz/-/A-16638951">Dove Cool Essentials Dry Spray Antiperspirant</a> (3.8 oz) currently retails for $5.49 at Target. </div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-56443999664482693872014-12-12T15:00:00.000-08:002018-08-30T10:37:54.929-07:00I'm Not a Runner<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">I originally wrote the majority of this for a friend but considering that it has a fair amount of information that could actually be useful to anyone else, I decided to share some of it. Please keep in mind that I started the program back in October so I have some other notes about the program and gear intended for another post).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">To start with, I've had bad knees since I was a teenager. I don't really know what brought it about, but the pain would arrive in waves so I never really got into sports much. I remembered that I really liked running when I was younger, but my knees and ankles gave out really quickly. It wasn't a matter of strength because the pain was different. Sure, I could walk through the pain, but I couldn't "run" past it. I couldn't do much except for put on a brace and keep going. So when I decided to try to start running, this wasn't a decision made lightly nor could I view it as a real commitment. After all, at any point my knees could give out and create a resting state for a while. I could always pick it up again, but committing was different. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Making the leap to running or even jogging was a long stretch for me. For the longest time I eyed <a href="http://www.rundisney.com/">runDisney</a> from afar. For a while I tried running with my boyfriend and our housemate but my knee acted up so I had to stop. That doesn't mean I can't dream. Anyhow, in my attempts to find another activity in between yoga (I use Hulu, Chromecast to project from <a href="http://www.doyogawithme.com/">Do Yoga With Me</a>, <a href="http://www.42yogis.com/videos">42 Yogis</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCX32D3gKXENrhOXdZjWWtMA">Yoga with Adrienne</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFKE7WVJfvaHW5q283SxchA">Yoga with Adriene</a>, and the hopes that one day I'll be disciplined enough to make it into a studio), I needed something else. I had been taking the dog for extra walks throughout the day, but I still needed something. After checking a few subreddits, that led me to the Couch to 5K (or C25K, for short) program.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/running">http://www.reddit.com/r/running</a></li><li><a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/C25K/">http://www.reddit.com/r/C25K</a></li><li><a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/xxfitness">http://www.reddit.com/r/xxfitness</a></li></ul></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />I did as much research as I could which included checking with others about how they manage pain with running, specifically focusing on knee issues. Preparing is a weird kind of beast because I wasn't just preparing for running. I was preparing for the inevitable bad feelings that would surface when I started running. I get really depressed when I do any kind of exercise (yes, weird, I know, but not unlike me either). I was hesitant about the first run but the first week seems pretty short (<a href="http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml">here's the training schedule</a> and <a href="http://tombenninger.com/files/2011/09/VisualC25K.v1_0b.png">visual of the schedule</a>). </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The next step was sneakers (or running shoes) so I checked around on Groupon and Woot for deals. Sadly most of them that were available didn't quite suite my tastes. You might able be snag a pair that you like on either site so I encourage you to check there. As for myself, I ended up getting the <a href="http://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00D1PI42W/?colid=2CVY6XKEQ5XBR&_encoding=UTF8&coliid=I1Z9LCPJLO41TL">Merrell Women's All Out Fuse Trail Running Shoe</a> which came out to just under $70. While I waited for those to arrive, I started looking into the C25K apps. There are a lot out there and I'm picky about apps. So I downloaded a few, ran them for a bit, but settled on <a href="http://c25kfree.com/">C25K - 5K Trainer FREE</a> for my first two runs (I ended up getting the Pro version shortly after). I had the headphones already along with my mp3 player, my phone with the app, and then when I went out for my first run (without my mp3 player), I realized how clunky it was all going to be. I decided to get this <a href="http://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00INKBU3K/?ref=cm_sw_r_pi_dp_2E9yub1KA2KCK">sports armband</a>, nix the mp3 player and just use my phone with the Spotify and C25K app. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I still get knee pains so a friend of mine suggested that I run with my cloth brace on those days that I think it will hurt. So far that has only happened on one day and it worked out okay. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">So I guess the last thing to mention is running clothes. Because apparently running clothes isn't quite the same as yoga clothes which has more flexibility. I have a few pieces from Nike (a running tank, mesh shirt, and pants), but I got a few more items from Old Navy. I don't know why but Old Navy's sports bras have been way better to me than Nike's. I ended up picking out a few more things from ON.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">About the depression while I run (and not my regular old depression), the program is in such short intervals that it forces me to pay attention at this point so my mind can't drift which is great. Week 5 and onward worries me though. When the stretches of running become longer and my mind will inevitably drift. But I'll worry about that then. Does it mean I'll see Week 9? I don't know, but at least I tried and that's what matters. So if you're on the fence about giving it a shot, no matter what the reason is, I'd say that you should try, even if that's all you can tell yourself. But the attempt is worth it. </div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-47173226368059425562014-10-28T08:41:00.000-07:002018-08-30T10:37:55.110-07:00Storing Makeup<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">Somewhere in between my Hello Waffle and Darling Girl Halloween shopping binge, I realized that I hadn't gone through my stash and tried to organize it in a cohesive manner in a while. As of now, a lot of my makeup is scattered between a few bags so there wasn't an easy way to assess it all quickly. Now a month ago I had assessed the way I stored my makeup and figured it would come down to two options:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><ol><li style="text-align: justify;">I convert a space into a vanity of some sort and use a drawer system. The best thing I could find to emulate this would be a <a href="http://smile.amazon.com/dp/B003P0XRH0/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=2CVY6XKEQ5XBR&coliid=I1B9B3WLCLKYJ7">hardware storage for parts</a> and then I could figure out how the other pieces (such as brushes or other tools) would fit in. </li><li style="text-align: justify;">Get a new <a href="http://smile.amazon.com/dp/B005JRTDLQ/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=2CVY6XKEQ5XBR&coliid=I1Y467IVRW76S9">train kit</a> to store everything I had.</li></ol><div><div style="text-align: justify;">Both have their limitations -- the first option is limited on space and the other was out of my price range. I shelved the idea for a bit till the binge occurred because I quickly realized that if I can't access my makeup to make purchasing decisions, then there would be a problem. So the quickest solution was to look around the house and sure enough, I found a decent solution.</div></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;">A while ago when my boyfriend and I visited Disney World, he purchased the Disney Wonderland Tea Boxed Assortment for me because we both love tea and the box is beautiful. The only problem was that the dividers took up a fair amount of space so if I left them in, they couldn't all fit. If I took them out, then items would slide around. The solution was adorable but not practical for storage. </div></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn52wsyhyphenhyphenZZ00sf5t_PTJUPjYVA4p0yXU_QxLRVS4VYDUcCGTMK3tNYWA44AtRbrq4vj4QWyAGZclITgCfMtE0Bo94B203HmRyQTW8Ar_ZS46QOMxWD7wuWbjWCpLQqnGZUwbWKMr85ks/s1600/teabox.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn52wsyhyphenhyphenZZ00sf5t_PTJUPjYVA4p0yXU_QxLRVS4VYDUcCGTMK3tNYWA44AtRbrq4vj4QWyAGZclITgCfMtE0Bo94B203HmRyQTW8Ar_ZS46QOMxWD7wuWbjWCpLQqnGZUwbWKMr85ks/s1600/teabox.gif" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1GvuKvmxNXUOjRX4ZeHfuy5CtG0Swi0g2fY3lMUwDS7PlG3vPVhTuFyZ9Q1h5CaMlxXiiZxeVS1nhpnmOtfpzTJ2o4iY0iq9siaYigYheM9iOf1GYCVqN2b5FalPv75eU_5sHYKL73VI/s1600/IMG_2072+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1GvuKvmxNXUOjRX4ZeHfuy5CtG0Swi0g2fY3lMUwDS7PlG3vPVhTuFyZ9Q1h5CaMlxXiiZxeVS1nhpnmOtfpzTJ2o4iY0iq9siaYigYheM9iOf1GYCVqN2b5FalPv75eU_5sHYKL73VI/s1600/IMG_2072+copy.gif" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>I checked around for alternative solutions that could knock around a bit were it in storage. After seeing a few pictures of storage alternatives on <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/Indiemakeupandmore">/r/indiemakeupandmore</a>, I figured I could give those photograph storage bins a shot. If not, we have plenty of Legos that could be put in there instead. I decided to go with a small version to see if it would actually work so I got the <a href="http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B000VFDZWO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1">IRIS Photo and Craft Keeper</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG4_mxZB1KAuEREArxIlw6k9nCiswSnITfnfdRGRldzWI_xYz89ps7vOKBT5DFeDzFzE_GyfxuVOeiBzDZ-2p_1Tsot081V04VcHzieIuKhFuKAiCEGkHKF55hl40Sibkmyzu3WKa4P6g/s1600/IMG_2102+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG4_mxZB1KAuEREArxIlw6k9nCiswSnITfnfdRGRldzWI_xYz89ps7vOKBT5DFeDzFzE_GyfxuVOeiBzDZ-2p_1Tsot081V04VcHzieIuKhFuKAiCEGkHKF55hl40Sibkmyzu3WKa4P6g/s1600/IMG_2102+copy.gif" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The bin comes with six 4" x 6" cases inside. Unfortunately, for a lot of the eyeshadow pots I have, I can't store them on their side so that I can see their colour so that means I needed to split up each of them by colour. I opted to put them in upside down since I'm storing the larger container on it's end (pictured below).</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFtVzcdswrHhKxnM2-GCVcuz4HALe7kuTX0UeUak6gaPRnTrEKTNEvXUEaeigB7AqokszlrjeGmyg-f0AJIWNWMgzU5dZnzkS_lwaDuUJvPUGJ8xlpd1lVpnlkkn5E8YYqcfqgByfNm-Y/s1600/IMG_2104+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFtVzcdswrHhKxnM2-GCVcuz4HALe7kuTX0UeUak6gaPRnTrEKTNEvXUEaeigB7AqokszlrjeGmyg-f0AJIWNWMgzU5dZnzkS_lwaDuUJvPUGJ8xlpd1lVpnlkkn5E8YYqcfqgByfNm-Y/s1600/IMG_2104+copy.gif" width="237" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioX9z0stYFZudM0hPGTn3MHoc84MXrzX4agdpErH1oBF4JM-aumas450_3nocWS5GiwiQLnuQgvq8nHy3S7aS1YpDa5WLyq5i3tIacn6QugQEejAPbdDBe0dRvJMzFJ7K501YkaDAe_CA/s1600/IMG_2106+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioX9z0stYFZudM0hPGTn3MHoc84MXrzX4agdpErH1oBF4JM-aumas450_3nocWS5GiwiQLnuQgvq8nHy3S7aS1YpDa5WLyq5i3tIacn6QugQEejAPbdDBe0dRvJMzFJ7K501YkaDAe_CA/s1600/IMG_2106+copy.gif" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTTvdPhpSV7bYVuUjPeOcvnP-ZgtWP-PKNeYVH4oLumiHU3FtY00CVi7IOXf5kwOSrLTys7jrKty5n1j4MYcr9gosZ51Y88qyAy0fk4o5uf28j3InwtyrpArYEmlEoXpA_l6BAiYaLFoo/s1600/Untitled-1.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTTvdPhpSV7bYVuUjPeOcvnP-ZgtWP-PKNeYVH4oLumiHU3FtY00CVi7IOXf5kwOSrLTys7jrKty5n1j4MYcr9gosZ51Y88qyAy0fk4o5uf28j3InwtyrpArYEmlEoXpA_l6BAiYaLFoo/s1600/Untitled-1.gif" width="233" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Above is my collection of the reds, pinks, and oranges. Of the ones that are in there, only the small Darling Girl pots and Hello Waffle eyeshadows can be stored on their side which means that there isn't too much room to spare. On the bright side, which this seems naturally limiting, there are 5 more containers to sort it all out. If you have a larger collection then going up in size may be the best option. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">I definitely did wish that I could go back to just using my tea box but for now this method would be best since it's sturdy for storage whereas the tea box would be best for display and everyday use. But hey, who knows how my collection will evolve. Especially since there's always more makeup to be had. </div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-72224091793547190532014-10-27T15:45:00.000-07:002018-08-30T10:37:55.292-07:00Darling Girl Cosmetics, Part 1<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">A little over a week ago, I received my large <a href="http://www.darlinggirlcosmetics.com/">Darling Girl Cosmetics</a> order. Unfortunately due to a variety of things, I wasn't able to get to swatching but I started today! The last time I ordered from Darling Girl was about a year ago and I ended up giving away most of my makeup to a close friend who wanted to get into cosmetology. As a result, I ended up splurging a bit to rebuild my collection. In doing so, I had to analyze how I was going to store them all which I'll get into a bit later. I forgot to take pictures when I first unwrapped them so here's a quick look of what is in store. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVvAum6L6gyTIdLrfvcWLEVyPq3M9zQ0mJi3dNOmjTUH_JPXem5vBdCuoUUIvI04PoXhyphenhyphenMx1GrEFxL4AkNRsoiOCC7i07T1a4YBKd-EOAVCtVPrBPl10BLDCun5GKDvKXQKyjo7zhj_FI/s1600/IMG_2070+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVvAum6L6gyTIdLrfvcWLEVyPq3M9zQ0mJi3dNOmjTUH_JPXem5vBdCuoUUIvI04PoXhyphenhyphenMx1GrEFxL4AkNRsoiOCC7i07T1a4YBKd-EOAVCtVPrBPl10BLDCun5GKDvKXQKyjo7zhj_FI/s1600/IMG_2070+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_46gl_-PDqZ_Pp00aJ7YRoBjS_2zjL9CBgu9R2Rhxy8hSrvVmF-jtvq8wlzT7cj3I7YRVtkImKhxwrhZCHUc9OEuAFarlx0g_QHM7_kbIxhRR39JlaK9U7iHqzQYsUn4q_J1dFjCiAnk/s1600/IMG_2072+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_46gl_-PDqZ_Pp00aJ7YRoBjS_2zjL9CBgu9R2Rhxy8hSrvVmF-jtvq8wlzT7cj3I7YRVtkImKhxwrhZCHUc9OEuAFarlx0g_QHM7_kbIxhRR39JlaK9U7iHqzQYsUn4q_J1dFjCiAnk/s1600/IMG_2072+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All of the white caps are from Darling Girl. Yep, a lot.</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">For the first set of swatches, I grabbed the reds, pinks, oranges, golds, and silvers. I guess in my frenzy I forgot to purchase anything yellow. :) As we go through all the swatches, I will be using Dreamworld Hermetica Eye of Ra Eye as the primer. Please remember that you can click to enlarge the photos. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDC1RMYpH1dzZ-aGWN3WObWlTLv63aGvamn5PXYy-kwFPudzssLrLo_eSRY-FoGVX1SGEgF2J-WSb6Vqm84QleQw1ocN2JacncoBfWlNfudXWTATP9K0LhWrUV00DftR6zoaj_YlzVn3o/s1600/IMG_2116+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDC1RMYpH1dzZ-aGWN3WObWlTLv63aGvamn5PXYy-kwFPudzssLrLo_eSRY-FoGVX1SGEgF2J-WSb6Vqm84QleQw1ocN2JacncoBfWlNfudXWTATP9K0LhWrUV00DftR6zoaj_YlzVn3o/s1600/IMG_2116+copy.gif" height="139" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outdoor Light</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz7_mrE6b5XrHPBOoHAhyphenhyphenBBdB6OfmpMOP3nKix0JIoYKC1udNOsf9ZdKDNfghad66Ke-2KWiU1tmzIXdhTgbtv9tl889lSOtZlU6xrCDRFPSK8OqQFUX0e9S0BOD8uLRZPeNK9zXR7cx4/s1600/IMG_2110+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz7_mrE6b5XrHPBOoHAhyphenhyphenBBdB6OfmpMOP3nKix0JIoYKC1udNOsf9ZdKDNfghad66Ke-2KWiU1tmzIXdhTgbtv9tl889lSOtZlU6xrCDRFPSK8OqQFUX0e9S0BOD8uLRZPeNK9zXR7cx4/s1600/IMG_2110+copy.gif" height="123" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Indoor Light</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">I grabbed the eyeshadows from different collections so some of these also include The Black Collection and Who Ya Gonna Call. Also note that Hello Fall was the gift with purchase for the week that I ordered. Now while I was swatching these, the last 4 didn't look like they were very much present when I was in a dimly lit area. They really stood out once I got into natural light which you can see set them apart. As I was swatching, I really liked The Safety Dance, but looking back on the swatches, I'm pretty impressed by Obviously a Wig, Sex on Fire, and Hello Fall. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Moving on to what I thought were the golds and silvers, I ran into issues rather quickly due to how glittery they were. In general a lot of these were pretty difficult to swatch without trying to pack as much pigment into the area as best I could. They just didn't want to stick to my skin, even with the primer. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0NkAWv5BlRl1jC5w-eOY5HKBeOgC0jwYdtO1oNT3gtZ3iph2IjG8SC0xDg3R04z7mE9JnKVFpGIKoDRTa6mTRHR6yGHZh8HYfaNGRFDi0M8VpFH8LADneTh_yxCgAkTF57RjGEWXFLwE/s1600/IMG_2125+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0NkAWv5BlRl1jC5w-eOY5HKBeOgC0jwYdtO1oNT3gtZ3iph2IjG8SC0xDg3R04z7mE9JnKVFpGIKoDRTa6mTRHR6yGHZh8HYfaNGRFDi0M8VpFH8LADneTh_yxCgAkTF57RjGEWXFLwE/s1600/IMG_2125+copy.gif" height="126" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outdoor Light</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixhkuoy-KiMYepicekQVe3KgQC0ilw2vIW_e52i0aRRxxAVgQyFbKZSHGrEVeSYpJqsrtisvrn1JZTw221e_F20ix28BRDsky7ANwGhKSTpE_7yD1drWBi9bvLiGt1CQAvnizNEjDdDpg/s1600/IMG_2129+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixhkuoy-KiMYepicekQVe3KgQC0ilw2vIW_e52i0aRRxxAVgQyFbKZSHGrEVeSYpJqsrtisvrn1JZTw221e_F20ix28BRDsky7ANwGhKSTpE_7yD1drWBi9bvLiGt1CQAvnizNEjDdDpg/s1600/IMG_2129+copy.gif" height="176" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Indoor Light</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">A lot of these hail from the Who Ya Gonna Call collection and Impervious at the end was a sample that was included. I had high hopes for That's a Big Twinkie, There is No Dana, and Tragic Death of Mr. Stay Puft. Overall I like them but they were very hard to brush on so you might even be able to see each brush stroke. Again, this may be do the the glittery nature and perhaps a different type of primer would be better with this set. Nonetheless, the colours that really impressed me was The Apocalypse There is No Dana. I rather like Impervious but I will admit, I wasn't sure what colour it was supposed to be till it was on my skin because in the bag it looked like blue and brown. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I've still got the blues, greens, and purples to finish swatching so hopefully I'll get to that soon. <a href="http://www.darlinggirlcosmetics.com/">Darling Girl Cosmetics</a> are available for purchase for $2.50-$5.90 depending on the size. Seeing as this is my second <i style="font-weight: bold;">huge</i> order and the first was happily donated to a budding cosmetologist, you can imagine that I really enjoy these products. I do think that if you're going to go down the rabbit hole of duochrome or glitter eyeshadows, you do need to have the right primer though. Luckily, Darling Girl carries 3 types. :)</div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-92078438635080630402014-10-22T13:20:00.000-07:002018-08-30T10:37:55.450-07:00The Powers of a Primer<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: right;">Items used were purchased or received complimentary.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Last week when I swatched a few eyeshadows, I was amazed at how far the Dreamworld Hermetica Eye of Ra Eye Dew took the eyeshadows. Now it's not that I hadn't tried eyeshadow primers in the past -- I tried the Urban Decay Primer Potion and it didn't seem to help the eyeshadows much. Actually if memory served correct, it worked similarly to a regular facial primer so for a while I was just disappointed with eyeshadows and primers altogether because I felt as though my combination of skin tone and undertones had a way of undoing the colour. Not one to give up hope entirely, I heard that Fyrinnae's Pixie Epoxy and Darling Girl's Glitter Glue were the Holy Grails of glittery eyeshadow. So I sprang for Darling Girl's Glitter Glue and while preparing for it's arrival I figured I should go through my stash to sort out all my makeup. Go figure, in my stash was another primer from Dreamworld Hermetica and so I started swatching with that.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">If you're wondering why I went into this elongated explanation of my discovery of how I got around to finally realizing what everyone else realized, keep in mind that there was a part of me that resigned myself to never pulling off one of those amazing smoking eye looks. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">To test the powers of a good primer I decided to reswatch my Sugarpill eyeshadows because I use them more often. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaoRJU9L2Hti57Xl2yg4SbzrwIMpR-CJ2kBQr6Yu9223qwCcPhwb777IsF65E8GGkTpRA_Gq864yEGafx-GuWQzkoNFXAExt5cXERCgRM2VHb18TH7e1rR4-DUDl5hn0P_ph2m71Nop5U/s1600/DSCF7554_left.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaoRJU9L2Hti57Xl2yg4SbzrwIMpR-CJ2kBQr6Yu9223qwCcPhwb777IsF65E8GGkTpRA_Gq864yEGafx-GuWQzkoNFXAExt5cXERCgRM2VHb18TH7e1rR4-DUDl5hn0P_ph2m71Nop5U/s1600/DSCF7554_left.gif" height="320" width="311" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From left to right: Stella, Love+, Tako, and <br />Bulletproof with no primer.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVtrcGsuKOR7ahqzhVVdcACzjdrUN9ew2jiitRtI9_N_d8935BjQ_dRQonxt_EjRXpL8yQq36VrI5ETzO-I0PGoik10ubsxlYh3EDbQnKhqPpVqmJex1JebDXcsfGuKvR-Hf1vS43mw1Y/s1600/DSCF7558_right.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVtrcGsuKOR7ahqzhVVdcACzjdrUN9ew2jiitRtI9_N_d8935BjQ_dRQonxt_EjRXpL8yQq36VrI5ETzO-I0PGoik10ubsxlYh3EDbQnKhqPpVqmJex1JebDXcsfGuKvR-Hf1vS43mw1Y/s1600/DSCF7558_right.gif" height="247" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From left to right: Stella, Love+, Tako, and <br />Bulletproof over a regular primer.</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid09ViQniJAjvOFLe7m7AfOoJGtDDiA2x9SQdzYyvlmNMkwA9tSe9bK803F6CNQAZ3uc4r1AKngIsfDytRGDWCY6ZdN-i-kqiQ1H50Vv2fyz4sibMpLTzr1VWLlyCsc6Znif7cXklwlJQ/s1600/IMG_2099.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid09ViQniJAjvOFLe7m7AfOoJGtDDiA2x9SQdzYyvlmNMkwA9tSe9bK803F6CNQAZ3uc4r1AKngIsfDytRGDWCY6ZdN-i-kqiQ1H50Vv2fyz4sibMpLTzr1VWLlyCsc6Znif7cXklwlJQ/s1600/IMG_2099.gif" height="115" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From left to right: Bulletproof, Love+, and Tako <br />over the Eye of Ra Eye Dew </td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I sort of mixed up the colours when I swatched them again -- I no longer have Stella because I gave that to a friend. However you can see the difference immediately. The colours pop SO MUCH and really have better coverage overall with the help of the primer. So if you're like me and have a really hard time with getting eyeshadows to show, I'd highly recommend looking into different primers specific to eyeshadows or glittery eyeshadows in particular.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I haven't gotten around to trying out Fyrinnae's Pixie Epoxy and Darling Girl's Glitter Glue just yet but they are on my radar. You can purchase each of these through the brand's website.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><ul><li><a href="http://www.darlinggirlcosmetics.com/item_13/Glitter-Glue.htm">Darling Girl's Glitter Glue</a>, $6.75</li><li><a href="http://dreamworldminerals.net/eyeprimer.html">Dreamworld Hermetica Eye of Ra Eye Dew</a>, $5.39</li><li><a href="http://www.fyrinnae.com/index.php?_a=viewProd&productId=412">Fyrinnae's Pixie Epoxy</a>, $7</li></ul></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-18187625025355489702014-10-17T14:53:00.000-07:002018-08-30T10:37:55.608-07:00Thoughts about Wisdom Panel<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">On July 19, 2014, my boyfriend and I adopted a very adorable, quiet, and shy dog from Animal Care and Control. She was around 6 months old at the time and while we waited for her to be spayed, we picked out the name Cinders for her. Now on Cinders' paperwork she was listed as a mix of Labrador Retriever and Australian Kelpie. After her surgery was completed and were told that we could come pick her up, we asked the ACC for all their notes on her. In her notes, someone wrote down that they suspected that she was actually a Taiwanese Mountain dog (alternatively Formosan dog). </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggkYADfNLyFa8KZES4jDOvjPONHtF8ZnBZdrOAWytamtDAHG6ULiWii0efPoNio6z5H0ACStZZocL1L1KvCjGF8EIn7GUV8g6H6TJYuhzSYVBjzcm1NKsp8s20Pu9PJdVd1AiisrpBKwA/s1600/cinders.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggkYADfNLyFa8KZES4jDOvjPONHtF8ZnBZdrOAWytamtDAHG6ULiWii0efPoNio6z5H0ACStZZocL1L1KvCjGF8EIn7GUV8g6H6TJYuhzSYVBjzcm1NKsp8s20Pu9PJdVd1AiisrpBKwA/s1600/cinders.gif" height="320" width="254" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Upon getting her home we realized that not knowing her background might be a problem just for logistics purposes. What type of dog she is didn't really matter much to us, but knowing her predisposition, temperament, and potential growth was important for planning for her future. On heels of my boyfriend and I both taking 23andMe DNA tests, we figured that we should give Cinders a DNA test too.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">There was a big problem though. If in fact Cinders was a Formosan, it wasn't part of any DNA test available on the market. So we figured it would still be worth the plunge if we could find out anything at all about her background. My boyfriend went ahead and ordered the <a href="http://www.wisdompanel.com/">Wisdom Panel 2.0</a> test. I wish I had taken pictures of the tests but I hadn't expected that I would be writing about it at the time so I did. The test is very simply two long swabs which you rub against their gumline, you then let them air dry, and then package and mail it off. It was fairly simple and we had it in the mailbox that night. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQZpaVq5jU6rTmsqLtcII5xnNnHN1cs3LD6JvcA7v52fbnknm8smdz4t6R7ungtXCES2u_neBO55HiakvmGo6omLImrKQzPS5OYM5QHD7DTQLt88WDaNCvHekWRXWTZ-WDWBmTOc6jI5o/s1600/cinders2.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQZpaVq5jU6rTmsqLtcII5xnNnHN1cs3LD6JvcA7v52fbnknm8smdz4t6R7ungtXCES2u_neBO55HiakvmGo6omLImrKQzPS5OYM5QHD7DTQLt88WDaNCvHekWRXWTZ-WDWBmTOc6jI5o/s1600/cinders2.gif" height="320" width="257" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It was a long anxious wait to find out what her results were. The lab did let us know when they received it and when they were processing it however I spent everyday checking the website for results. Finally the results came in and we were so happy to have pieces of her history. There are large chunks that are missing which are assuming has to do with an unidentified breed (perhaps Formosan?) but knowing the rest does help to project Cinder's growth especially because she was only about 7 or 8 months old at the time that we did the test with her. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><u>The Report</u></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The report comes in at a whopping 10 pages but filled with lots of diagrams and information that is useful. Right off the first page we have a snapshot of our results and it turns out of the identified breeds that they do test against, Cinders is a mix of Staffordshire Bull Terrier and Rottweiler!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijoxSHLPLujgGs4o3pQC_5TtOdBZidGP5Vcs6dELTNssYms95amsx4ephwKXs5c2i_cS9cnQj0wOStZ4MaLWW3CK759BSip2rXaLxUTsPdvBkQCQZFUxy-ABCdAQ61G-6yO2k38Ry7YKI/s1600/cinders3.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijoxSHLPLujgGs4o3pQC_5TtOdBZidGP5Vcs6dELTNssYms95amsx4ephwKXs5c2i_cS9cnQj0wOStZ4MaLWW3CK759BSip2rXaLxUTsPdvBkQCQZFUxy-ABCdAQ61G-6yO2k38Ry7YKI/s1600/cinders3.gif" height="280" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-cjTsSrzT3lc-BoVDzS0-WqahVjRE5cdTONXE6ae0RhTOSzL_Mi2zMkyQMv8ecprGnlQA0jJtycEmsZ-aFoXVkRxdRUDL5IXHQAtTIq8OVjZGIeol9KE4qwHvkYrM5hQFdgNJS42gsgQ/s1600/cinders4.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-cjTsSrzT3lc-BoVDzS0-WqahVjRE5cdTONXE6ae0RhTOSzL_Mi2zMkyQMv8ecprGnlQA0jJtycEmsZ-aFoXVkRxdRUDL5IXHQAtTIq8OVjZGIeol9KE4qwHvkYrM5hQFdgNJS42gsgQ/s1600/cinders4.gif" height="295" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The following pages thereafter explain traits of Staffordshire Bull Terrier and Rottweiler separately and points out key traits that we might see Cinders exhibiting. One of my other favourite pages is "Other Possible Mixed Breed Signatures," which I've included below. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie5yFV4RlPAQI73zL-vx-j-Fv6Hu7eR4SKgNQIo08qIg_f6BuWFktKH8UNwrFHhByJ6lnk2p6rJnCpgTl72qP15K78RKCAYY2_h4yuw_HXDR8QjOoPZT8MbaAYkw-iDLHrdx7UJe4lRiI/s1600/cinders5.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie5yFV4RlPAQI73zL-vx-j-Fv6Hu7eR4SKgNQIo08qIg_f6BuWFktKH8UNwrFHhByJ6lnk2p6rJnCpgTl72qP15K78RKCAYY2_h4yuw_HXDR8QjOoPZT8MbaAYkw-iDLHrdx7UJe4lRiI/s1600/cinders5.gif" height="243" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Armed with the information regarding her background, we knew what we could expect in terms of temperament and disposition. It wasn't too dissimilar from what we already knew. What did throw us for a loop was her projected weight because a Staffordshire Bull Terrier is estimated at a height of 13 - 16 inches and weight of 23 - 46 pounds. Compare that to a Rottweiler which has a height of 23 - 27 inches and a weight of 72 - 132 pounds which is a huge variance. Luckily page seven of this document clearly states that her adult weight is predicted to be between 45 - 70 pounds. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Wisdom Panel 2.0 test was definitely worth it even at about $70. Sure, it would be nice to find out for sure if she's a Formosan dog and what that means for her future but having even a slight bit of details helps us understand her at times. If you find yourself in the situation that you adopt a dog and don't have much information about their background, I would definitely recommend opting for a DNA test if you can. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcVhYM9p6RJpj0SpryJG1MnVzme7kyDXxBTSGUnyBKzOhqlv-yAS8jlqcjkdwZH3HU4TP4XWS8USEKQQM4zUkTpuRSfqAnZWELaLMaAjwdVO-f4PtsFXzW12mRZgsU53GA5370BefcoVo/s1600/cinders6.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcVhYM9p6RJpj0SpryJG1MnVzme7kyDXxBTSGUnyBKzOhqlv-yAS8jlqcjkdwZH3HU4TP4XWS8USEKQQM4zUkTpuRSfqAnZWELaLMaAjwdVO-f4PtsFXzW12mRZgsU53GA5370BefcoVo/s1600/cinders6.gif" height="179" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQstPIqA9X2b2uO1kc3TWeq-dciTtJYoV3OXwb4l3SGb1SniZiTZEqWIvJ0AHFh40S6B8xcZ1WEBIgTVC1z4emNZMMFBtnjRgIZ0ZqhHKYQHGEZsh9ufSoo5Q_K1lLTJ549sweT7LMVt8/s1600/cinders7.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQstPIqA9X2b2uO1kc3TWeq-dciTtJYoV3OXwb4l3SGb1SniZiTZEqWIvJ0AHFh40S6B8xcZ1WEBIgTVC1z4emNZMMFBtnjRgIZ0ZqhHKYQHGEZsh9ufSoo5Q_K1lLTJ549sweT7LMVt8/s1600/cinders7.gif" height="319" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-33044077256210579252014-10-16T20:35:00.000-07:002018-08-30T10:37:55.759-07:00Anastasia Beverly Hills Tamanna Palette<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: right;"><i>Items used were gifts or received complimentary. </i></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">My experience with Anastasia Beverly Hills prior to this palette had been somewhat limited. A few months ago I got myself the <a href="http://anastasiabeverlyhills.com/brows/stencils.html">stencils</a> which have been an amazing addition to my collection. I had no idea that the line included makeup so the first time I heard about the Tamanna and Maya Mia palettes piqued my attention. After much internal debate, I told myself that once my no-buy was over, I would probably treat myself to the Tamanna palette. Fast forward to a few weeks later and my friend Laura surprised me with a gift -- the Tamanna palette. She read the reviews and knew my struggles with eyeshadow and figured it would be a great fit for me. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3u_Mou8g3akWcw7Yp3bvUURX-s_4NCatxtxZPJ6Anev1hdWVWuLAbjC0Whu3uomEY1cwlnqP5uKQesy7rdpIIiT3_l0Y8JkteAxu3wXSRZg5X6-DA2vybzBM-F-tvoGU6j41uAM7jW0E/s1600/IMG_2056+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3u_Mou8g3akWcw7Yp3bvUURX-s_4NCatxtxZPJ6Anev1hdWVWuLAbjC0Whu3uomEY1cwlnqP5uKQesy7rdpIIiT3_l0Y8JkteAxu3wXSRZg5X6-DA2vybzBM-F-tvoGU6j41uAM7jW0E/s1600/IMG_2056+copy.gif" height="206" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjndqUwT6PAf1RvbD6h-qwq1idmDRrb4a46ywZ6OOAL-X3ES09kURMCtMOlXRvPVlqxIrh6KO7J9np2w_4TYPI8gd_MnG_Qv5cq_DwjwJhrvVJTDdHpezXuPH5VSgehaWTlC_-XkFuLnLc/s1600/IMG_2060+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjndqUwT6PAf1RvbD6h-qwq1idmDRrb4a46ywZ6OOAL-X3ES09kURMCtMOlXRvPVlqxIrh6KO7J9np2w_4TYPI8gd_MnG_Qv5cq_DwjwJhrvVJTDdHpezXuPH5VSgehaWTlC_-XkFuLnLc/s1600/IMG_2060+copy.gif" height="276" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5q-rCUb-LNWzNMfojQ6BRKSpzcN1LDPQQDMjD8GFRCULaKb2yrpEwLR6gvHZ8QFJIfPNepckcgVMWF9PFXYETOLO1rzp5B_xTDRzFIMJaGKt6R3leuFaOy8ger7K4F3VduKHx6uCjI3s/s1600/IMG_2061+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5q-rCUb-LNWzNMfojQ6BRKSpzcN1LDPQQDMjD8GFRCULaKb2yrpEwLR6gvHZ8QFJIfPNepckcgVMWF9PFXYETOLO1rzp5B_xTDRzFIMJaGKt6R3leuFaOy8ger7K4F3VduKHx6uCjI3s/s1600/IMG_2061+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />From the moment I received, I loved the packaging. Upon inspecting each shade of the eyeshadow, I figured that the problematic ones would most likely be Fresh, Gilded, and Custom but that was before I started swatching.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHyVgr-b5WI1JT_02PB5TnyNEGhSTdlCaULs2hujVsQ-kLx6R6XvtO1f0psZJrASl18_Dvm1TaccVLtymuYEHUrNkcwOpmpfYV6_sobbr6oahkMrLo5OzUmMvX7PAfC5-nBOgRkHWY404/s1600/IMG_2063.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHyVgr-b5WI1JT_02PB5TnyNEGhSTdlCaULs2hujVsQ-kLx6R6XvtO1f0psZJrASl18_Dvm1TaccVLtymuYEHUrNkcwOpmpfYV6_sobbr6oahkMrLo5OzUmMvX7PAfC5-nBOgRkHWY404/s1600/IMG_2063.gif" height="133" width="320" /></a></div><br />My initial swatches weren't great since I did them but you can easily draw some conclusions for yourself. Each of the colours directly align to how you see them in the palette. This first attempt to swatch was over CoverFX SPF 30 Protection Primer which is my standard primer. To confirm my suspicions, all the ones that I thought would be difficult on my skin held true (translation: I was right about Fresh, Gilded, and Custom not showing up well on my skin.<br /><br />I wasn't quite content with how the images turned out and furthermore I figured that I should try to actually use an eyeshadow primer instead. So today I went back and tried each eyeshadow over Dreamworld Hermetica Eye of Ra Eye Dew.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiZT6TrvwSHqFRpfPwUiy1JBanfZtKkMdFlvakPDD5jALJc1fIZX8HicvM4XE5AmZJLuYreLQEBawYJ3xsamnz0QQml1bbjMdJ9RbZVmos40-pNY1j8efnt3hc8rsoPPZa8Ae5sZSbsSk/s1600/IMG_2081+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiZT6TrvwSHqFRpfPwUiy1JBanfZtKkMdFlvakPDD5jALJc1fIZX8HicvM4XE5AmZJLuYreLQEBawYJ3xsamnz0QQml1bbjMdJ9RbZVmos40-pNY1j8efnt3hc8rsoPPZa8Ae5sZSbsSk/s1600/IMG_2081+copy.gif" height="110" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5bhXn-VuDcO2zfNON6bDoH8nhKp1uTXeux2Ca3Nxo4v09o_IncNnjBfGxxtaK7q4wZlmgrcuU5gSYS7WQjoAUcr93X44BGG8G8Mlys1PRNmb_KGDYFfjXwDVZuhs_WxWs9_eelUNvjRE/s1600/IMG_2086+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5bhXn-VuDcO2zfNON6bDoH8nhKp1uTXeux2Ca3Nxo4v09o_IncNnjBfGxxtaK7q4wZlmgrcuU5gSYS7WQjoAUcr93X44BGG8G8Mlys1PRNmb_KGDYFfjXwDVZuhs_WxWs9_eelUNvjRE/s1600/IMG_2086+copy.gif" height="192" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Taking a look at the top row, which is Fresh, Blush, Venezia, Gilded, and Custom and you'll notice that now with an appropriate eyeshadow primer, those colours pop giving them a whole new dimension that a regular primer just can't do. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQR9aYOlrLcQoOH37uthPAGgDkxSna4GK3sHpBiHEUojhn6fMcy51rU5ZIAvb93xIlhYaGR5FTdxvvlqJRmbBGUlbBXx1cx2KjXjSh5pAgQMTkwf51biyxzhpAN6TDzw-t-ojtdNiqGmY/s1600/IMG_2091+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQR9aYOlrLcQoOH37uthPAGgDkxSna4GK3sHpBiHEUojhn6fMcy51rU5ZIAvb93xIlhYaGR5FTdxvvlqJRmbBGUlbBXx1cx2KjXjSh5pAgQMTkwf51biyxzhpAN6TDzw-t-ojtdNiqGmY/s1600/IMG_2091+copy.gif" height="249" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibphNKcRj-gJTTjJpsR4E7zaTje8BpF6DJWMUattdCKcnbny1Hc11wAm-TAkishFwTlgYtdw5BHhjzO7w62YHyzHvAYY1EOzFRjYGIZPZnF7V2TQ3imygNwEVYdbz4fE_HEcBZjknzh4Y/s1600/Untitled-1.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibphNKcRj-gJTTjJpsR4E7zaTje8BpF6DJWMUattdCKcnbny1Hc11wAm-TAkishFwTlgYtdw5BHhjzO7w62YHyzHvAYY1EOzFRjYGIZPZnF7V2TQ3imygNwEVYdbz4fE_HEcBZjknzh4Y/s1600/Untitled-1.gif" height="94" width="320" /></a></div><br />In the second set we're seeing Sangria, Bengal, Chocolate, China Rose, and Noir. Again, another amazing performance for getting these colours to really stand out. What absolutely amazes me is Noir because that is the shade of black that I have long coveted. When Laura gifted this palette to me, she mentioned that Noir is perfect for using as an eyeliner and I can definitely see that.<br /><br />I knew I wanted this palette but being able to swatch it made me love it even more. I will highly recommend that you have an eyeshadow primer to go along with this palette to get those colours to really shine.<br /><br />The Tamanna Palette is available for purchase from Ulta, <a href="http://www.sephora.com/tamanna-palette-P388742?skuId=1654862">Sephora</a>, and <a href="http://anastasiabeverlyhills.com/tamanna-palette.html">Anastasia Beverly Hills</a> for $29. </div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-16278191959073641462014-10-15T14:56:00.000-07:002018-08-30T10:37:55.910-07:00MAC Colour 4 Eyeshadow Quad <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: right;"><i>Items used were gifts or received complimentary.</i></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Have I mentioned how awesome my family is? Well, if not, they are. Earlier this year on a trip to Florida to visit some relatives, my cousin gifted me the MAC Colour 4 Eyeshadow Quad. Now I will admit that I'm not that familiar with MAC makeup in general since I started using indie products, but I was definitely in love with the selection in this palette. Imagine my surprise when I realized that this new and never touched before quad was circa 2010 and it seems to work well with me. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0ydSrcJ97U7CV0Oiw0g3ur8sUhHJ_KPUxyuKbTSg-NIhm0ySxZDYx6p8KQF4zTKZbz5ITIoGmxVRcpvDiCsokowBkVr9d9wmp5q4Yi5knpOZNRpMWlO2tePVNv0gDdCkehLU19S0ztFM/s1600/IMG_2073+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0ydSrcJ97U7CV0Oiw0g3ur8sUhHJ_KPUxyuKbTSg-NIhm0ySxZDYx6p8KQF4zTKZbz5ITIoGmxVRcpvDiCsokowBkVr9d9wmp5q4Yi5knpOZNRpMWlO2tePVNv0gDdCkehLU19S0ztFM/s1600/IMG_2073+copy.gif" height="271" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTxxpDDIzCxmPg7v-Yp6-_6l5CijfXGrB7hW7G_Yazn3Iy41kVX7H1CEMgmmVq580DPUhTMaZ1luf0yxm78uYW3bXPcEZ0SSxeiHNyj3bsJk-yv-BHq6tVRXOAyCUJG6wwSD3SP_U961g/s1600/IMG_2074+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTxxpDDIzCxmPg7v-Yp6-_6l5CijfXGrB7hW7G_Yazn3Iy41kVX7H1CEMgmmVq580DPUhTMaZ1luf0yxm78uYW3bXPcEZ0SSxeiHNyj3bsJk-yv-BHq6tVRXOAyCUJG6wwSD3SP_U961g/s1600/IMG_2074+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixGdBgEMV8C4AyrVRErQ4CsLQh0lMoL-5mgq4E0AZgS2iExmRGQPJcmTazKgb-84Qs7ovLYR5DI41SuOpMOYDWwYab70DuipDQQN4dh6PiYHzEfWfqkIMMk_F2sP2rLmLe3QJIWeufOHg/s1600/IMG_2079+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixGdBgEMV8C4AyrVRErQ4CsLQh0lMoL-5mgq4E0AZgS2iExmRGQPJcmTazKgb-84Qs7ovLYR5DI41SuOpMOYDWwYab70DuipDQQN4dh6PiYHzEfWfqkIMMk_F2sP2rLmLe3QJIWeufOHg/s1600/IMG_2079+copy.gif" height="218" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In this quad we'll be looking at Manila Paper, Flip, Aztec Brick, and Creole Beauty. I used the <a href="http://dreamworldminerals.net/eyeprimer.html">Dreamworld Hermetica Eye of Ra Eye Dew</a> which is tacky and is available for purchase for $5.39. Ellie did send me this primer a while ago but due to some issues I experienced at the time, I hadn't gotten around to really putting it to use. With that being said, this is actually my first time giving this eye primer a whirl but I am pretty impressed with it. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">About the eye shadows, I did have a hard time getting the colour to pack in and I'm not sure if that's because of the primer or the eyeshadows themselves. With that being said, the colour was magnificent as you'll see below. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDY-ZiVTEvWymUWEb0qJx7XsUtTSMzidjLpbwgG7j0CUgz5qfQtq23et5Vzg79moT0_uNbbHFzY6YNV1fYLIgX_HyZOU2JMY5EZvHjvwJgkP5hokxSKcLe1KAbU-dUwT6ODxZnHyB0R7c/s1600/IMG_2076+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDY-ZiVTEvWymUWEb0qJx7XsUtTSMzidjLpbwgG7j0CUgz5qfQtq23et5Vzg79moT0_uNbbHFzY6YNV1fYLIgX_HyZOU2JMY5EZvHjvwJgkP5hokxSKcLe1KAbU-dUwT6ODxZnHyB0R7c/s1600/IMG_2076+copy.gif" height="119" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4ylpCiwmYfb52TerjzE18UU66at8HDFt9MBiWrOl6SfqGFVACytKU91vpagYVsr6InYBJlF7Rr3_q_OzCiuOGsbavJHzYvx3aCop-CLam38tnoFiiSh0Q2QIWaUcwdGEetMnyCWlqwDk/s1600/IMG_2077.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4ylpCiwmYfb52TerjzE18UU66at8HDFt9MBiWrOl6SfqGFVACytKU91vpagYVsr6InYBJlF7Rr3_q_OzCiuOGsbavJHzYvx3aCop-CLam38tnoFiiSh0Q2QIWaUcwdGEetMnyCWlqwDk/s1600/IMG_2077.gif" height="75" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">I was pretty impressed with how all the colours came out. Creole Beauty was a bit too light and hard to capture on me but overall, 3 out of 4 isn't too bad. Plus I imagine that I can find other ways of really accentuating the last colour. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyFlxI8sHd3cXQLBSK6-A7fQmnRmIOqCJrQtkita5ypdO3HtV82Alc_yFJURv_3n-EkxwIiBME5B8y-3pzlaCfz6czU4a8C2s1zULtwbmKjHHSccqqSLnfYerJmQIH3_QPA33Sj_7BofY/s1600/IMG_2075+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyFlxI8sHd3cXQLBSK6-A7fQmnRmIOqCJrQtkita5ypdO3HtV82Alc_yFJURv_3n-EkxwIiBME5B8y-3pzlaCfz6czU4a8C2s1zULtwbmKjHHSccqqSLnfYerJmQIH3_QPA33Sj_7BofY/s1600/IMG_2075+copy.gif" height="320" width="280" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The takeaway is that this is great palette overall. The problem is that yes, it was in an older run and attempts to actually find it has been slim (which I didn't realize till after I started writing this). So thank you to Alisha for providing this very awesome quad from MAC and to Ellie of Dreamworld Hermetica for the primer.</div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-68050955570870053902014-10-12T16:00:00.000-07:002018-08-30T10:37:56.063-07:00e.l.f. & Disney Good vs. Evil Brush Collection<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">I've been axiously awaiting my orders from Notoriously Morbid Cosmetics and Darling Girl Cosmetics while trying to sustain my no-buy mode. The Autumn collections are usually my favourite, especially Halloween collections, so this has been trying for me.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Nonetheless, during a frozen yogurt run turned "let's get ice cream sandwiches" from a new local shop, my boyfriend and I decided to stop into Walgreens. While there, go figure that they had the brush collection in stock. E.l.f. and Disney seemed to have teamed up quite a bit this year releasing their Ariel and Snow White collections. Joining the lineup is Aurora and Maleficent in the "Good vs. Evil" collection. (Supposedly there might be a return of the villains which is in time for Halloween and purportedly Jasmine is thereafter). </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Anyhow, though I've found items here and there from each collection, this was definitely <i>the one</i> for me. If you're familiar with e.l.f. brushes, then you might have heard that their Studio line of brushes are highly rated. I myself have the <a href="http://www.eyeslipsface.com/studio/tools/brush-sets/11_piece_brush_collection">e.l.f. Studio 11 Piece Brush Collection</a> along with a few EcoTools and I find it hard to stray from either. When I saw these, I figured I had to give them a shot.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1LRxHVYVKX5rs0q5eWMGzFIE5uXdvKV6cqcAV_bKX_LCv5ZSUDt_zFU66_9oNOgHszDs-8GBo3egyd4SMScjLuffGNtxvG9-3rGgH1XGskSBgCo3UjNdhN1kY-9Mc0T0VmrwA2HKPlAg/s1600/IMG_2030+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1LRxHVYVKX5rs0q5eWMGzFIE5uXdvKV6cqcAV_bKX_LCv5ZSUDt_zFU66_9oNOgHszDs-8GBo3egyd4SMScjLuffGNtxvG9-3rGgH1XGskSBgCo3UjNdhN1kY-9Mc0T0VmrwA2HKPlAg/s1600/IMG_2030+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmANYGO2Giw6zBs9XLx0lUesgh6Sxr42rRD8EcIMZikoGr0N22XTO3Xy1YjjWqKHLhCzopPNFaTqkeGKzDDML2SWB8lGOAEbO8Z-N47fEo4o5CtkyRJgo8gWhK-N7ygV_o2yTAcB5Yo5k/s1600/IMG_2031+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmANYGO2Giw6zBs9XLx0lUesgh6Sxr42rRD8EcIMZikoGr0N22XTO3Xy1YjjWqKHLhCzopPNFaTqkeGKzDDML2SWB8lGOAEbO8Z-N47fEo4o5CtkyRJgo8gWhK-N7ygV_o2yTAcB5Yo5k/s1600/IMG_2031+copy.gif" height="293" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">When I first looked at them, I did note that they were much smaller than others I had seen. Luckily, I am specifically look for medium sized brushes to fill a specific niche that is lacking in my current collection. The case itself seems somewhat flimsy but I don't care that much. It's cute enough and serves it's purpose. The brushes are all incredibly soft which makes them seem similar in nature to the regular Studio line. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA3yTl8aiDs6ylDpv88cTD4iwBn-V0LF1I7TWYIAXI19G4lc4QUJf9pDKsK7apoySPljze93dBvX68mWCds6KU7eDk-tPakbjVkkbdc7Vu88yhyphenhyphenYbeyBipd6XI9anXrfhRoblVr3Egsq8/s1600/IMG_2032+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA3yTl8aiDs6ylDpv88cTD4iwBn-V0LF1I7TWYIAXI19G4lc4QUJf9pDKsK7apoySPljze93dBvX68mWCds6KU7eDk-tPakbjVkkbdc7Vu88yhyphenhyphenYbeyBipd6XI9anXrfhRoblVr3Egsq8/s1600/IMG_2032+copy.gif" height="209" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqf6MPIL1VXvDYo1U_2B_73FmZ0DNm4e2o9MPxpwiDw3xoeeez5-p9MRknlrnJhjJgShU_54hE1bzb0Cxis6k4zREdYJ7bI9hS4qBhNV9kVbMBULFCCniKKQ8BKbGnnhkpsz_mDwbFblc/s1600/IMG_2036+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqf6MPIL1VXvDYo1U_2B_73FmZ0DNm4e2o9MPxpwiDw3xoeeez5-p9MRknlrnJhjJgShU_54hE1bzb0Cxis6k4zREdYJ7bI9hS4qBhNV9kVbMBULFCCniKKQ8BKbGnnhkpsz_mDwbFblc/s1600/IMG_2036+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">In this collection you get the following brushes: Blush, Powder, Foundation, and Eyeshadow. What I figured I do is find the corresponding brush in the Studio line for comparison purposes. The reason for this was to figure out whether this would be in addition to my current lineup of brushes or if they were a direct replacement for some brushes.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><table><tbody><tr><td><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4ztHSKGsXsZipIEFjXQ5_spqb0yN8rxuWl-59xemMSqjKspZbmqU-IwG-ab_3F_pdnACyYIK0iSY4fI9eGKFM77v4ePUW-4Y89w84LVS-a-Y3Tv50d8Laq6u0AxxntC2PhPJmNbyzNhI/s1600/IMG_2039+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4ztHSKGsXsZipIEFjXQ5_spqb0yN8rxuWl-59xemMSqjKspZbmqU-IwG-ab_3F_pdnACyYIK0iSY4fI9eGKFM77v4ePUW-4Y89w84LVS-a-Y3Tv50d8Laq6u0AxxntC2PhPJmNbyzNhI/s1600/IMG_2039+copy.gif" height="320" width="142" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blush Brush</td></tr></tbody></table></td><td><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirHqb_Tr2vloTuVjUNA3rY3_0IDXJgQOfirz3LxvWTotHbQhSfZk64x4w4twrPWACKvaF4xqn11uWK6KFVhAR8V5Es0YD_wIYMx6f3qHIq6lViqbQWd2fZKzACQ8DiKnU-aK9ws0XRzIg/s1600/IMG_2042+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirHqb_Tr2vloTuVjUNA3rY3_0IDXJgQOfirz3LxvWTotHbQhSfZk64x4w4twrPWACKvaF4xqn11uWK6KFVhAR8V5Es0YD_wIYMx6f3qHIq6lViqbQWd2fZKzACQ8DiKnU-aK9ws0XRzIg/s1600/IMG_2042+copy.gif" height="320" width="147" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Powder Brush</td></tr></tbody></table></td><td><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQAzF8h0FkivX4tTE6Fs3mpCPezHWPmvdXL39E-Q9cWdOOECJD1TDoYVokUw2eXd5oE-C5ud6phSZZ8Tcou_0U5T_lV3QQLjm8KVRonUGZXMBmqWvnCx3zwWZibIhwr2WyphFjYZbIfuQ/s1600/IMG_2048+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQAzF8h0FkivX4tTE6Fs3mpCPezHWPmvdXL39E-Q9cWdOOECJD1TDoYVokUw2eXd5oE-C5ud6phSZZ8Tcou_0U5T_lV3QQLjm8KVRonUGZXMBmqWvnCx3zwWZibIhwr2WyphFjYZbIfuQ/s1600/IMG_2048+copy.gif" height="320" width="136" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Foundation Brush</td></tr></tbody></table></td><td><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_H8GmBM1sH1pbWG0uXT4l8S5Za49iLrErM_tOoNCHEmDugGj-ZqOFfYZicFa3PRmZkk2zGhP-0i9fFYiXrZEB23Kk9BGOLS0yA_Sdpuq2-OuXvShzofxo6dfKKNxioAVdH7zlaLA79XM/s1600/IMG_2045+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_H8GmBM1sH1pbWG0uXT4l8S5Za49iLrErM_tOoNCHEmDugGj-ZqOFfYZicFa3PRmZkk2zGhP-0i9fFYiXrZEB23Kk9BGOLS0yA_Sdpuq2-OuXvShzofxo6dfKKNxioAVdH7zlaLA79XM/s1600/IMG_2045+copy.gif" height="320" width="91" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eyeshadow Brush</td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />The <b>Blush Brush</b> with the Studio version on the left and the Good vs. Evil version on the right. As you can see, they actually have different shapes altogether. This worked out perfectly for me because my angled Blush Brush from a different company started falling apart which only left me with my e.l.f. version which is more of a dome.<br /><br />The <b>Powder Brush</b> with the Studio version on left and the Good vs. Evil version on the right. Totally different brushes so they can be put to completely different use.<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The <b>Foundation Brush</b> with the Good vs. Evil version on the left and a Studio variant on the right. In the Studio version, there isn't a direct Foundation equivalent so the Studio version is labelled as "Angled" so there are obvious differences.<br /><br />Finally the <b>Eyeshadow Brush</b> with the Studio version variant on the left and the Good vs. Evil version on the right. The Studio line brush is labelled and as a "C" brush however they are both pretty similar. This seems to be the only brushes that directly overlap and quite frankly, it's not too shabby to have a similar one in the eyeshadow category. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"></div>This collection is available at Walgreens for $9.99 or <a href="http://www.drugstore.com/e-l-f-disney-good-vs-evil-let-the-drama-begin-brush-collection/qxp532360?catid=183638">Drugstore.com</a> for $10. Worth it? Totally. Well, unless it's not your thing. </div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-78960157643023121512014-09-23T20:17:00.000-07:002018-08-30T10:37:56.223-07:00FizzButter Haul<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">Over at the Plum Eyeliner, I've probably mentioned my love of bath items. Just in case I haven't, consider yourself as notified. The problem that I face is that I do have skin that can be rather dry so finding products that won't exacerbate that can be difficult at times. Back in 2012, I tried a bath bomb from FizzButter and now they are preferred online retailer to stock up on bath items. From my last batch, these are the last survivors.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinNWxgqum7W1Ap_VN5KCd21ibH_xGMjZXtpkbQaFBCFRsKMe39OzwyGkW_T7DKYWn6VN6lYFIL3hnQfaLIp0gqIBswiJqTv7NOcv1i3wXp3IrOwyGYxaRN-hfvepiZIoe7A84YjpFOgeU/s1600/IMG_2021+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinNWxgqum7W1Ap_VN5KCd21ibH_xGMjZXtpkbQaFBCFRsKMe39OzwyGkW_T7DKYWn6VN6lYFIL3hnQfaLIp0gqIBswiJqTv7NOcv1i3wXp3IrOwyGYxaRN-hfvepiZIoe7A84YjpFOgeU/s1600/IMG_2021+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sandalwood Vanilla and Vanilla Butter & Pineapple</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">I always save my favourites for last! Unfortunately the last time I ordered I had missed the seasonal scents boat but I made sure to grab them this time.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6TEfCT4JsquMQdnzpYXijoNtf2EaHHy34G3rDD55ga4ThE-a2G6YNXj64XNkf6UtQsJbtGJvjAn5YKklqRMmIsdkcvii0fEWNCds_3gqWJlmQ_L2HXBty1Hm2tFKPhegDUozD9Sbzbx0/s1600/IMG_2015+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6TEfCT4JsquMQdnzpYXijoNtf2EaHHy34G3rDD55ga4ThE-a2G6YNXj64XNkf6UtQsJbtGJvjAn5YKklqRMmIsdkcvii0fEWNCds_3gqWJlmQ_L2HXBty1Hm2tFKPhegDUozD9Sbzbx0/s1600/IMG_2015+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The unboxing! FizzButter is really good about the packaging of these bath bombs. At the top of the box was a note stating that they slipped in some extra goodies due to the delayed shipping.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLTyAuGfbdSABxKfYF5KlMMu42_DRc-K3KcID-RhRt9_VfiLNVu-AnmHs7PJnHYAGfizP-YT9w5o7-qFnFPilCebPDAyJsGxLnxI2MUCYkHUF8PM6ui9aYCfEOZm_KpFObUVHEfU9IsKY/s1600/IMG_2016+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLTyAuGfbdSABxKfYF5KlMMu42_DRc-K3KcID-RhRt9_VfiLNVu-AnmHs7PJnHYAGfizP-YT9w5o7-qFnFPilCebPDAyJsGxLnxI2MUCYkHUF8PM6ui9aYCfEOZm_KpFObUVHEfU9IsKY/s1600/IMG_2016+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfUvVkkXHE7A_5xmU27CJNELL3JnItR0Jj8AI7q1DgGwNUz5MMRWE4fk0s6Pr9LESfRfqP3E9W_7cWWlF5TWKCeqW9nVb01vm5pZUkK_3XUFEw19R4yHFjFGXTC4Gs3V8NaRJmFtXdmtk/s1600/IMG_2017+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfUvVkkXHE7A_5xmU27CJNELL3JnItR0Jj8AI7q1DgGwNUz5MMRWE4fk0s6Pr9LESfRfqP3E9W_7cWWlF5TWKCeqW9nVb01vm5pZUkK_3XUFEw19R4yHFjFGXTC4Gs3V8NaRJmFtXdmtk/s1600/IMG_2017+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">In total I ordered 16 bath bombs and 2 of their Cupcake Bath Bombs which are the ones in the bag at the back. The extra goodies that they slipped in was a sample size of the bubble cake and their body frosting. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV2GAHlBOHRzNt40_1Fbvq6J-yYxRPsxmoQaI2vd25gdnJf-gLhNhR8ZDOmkP397Xlalxdd-i7Dgrpz6roJg3Rvv5mybXpPtP11wtC2iAVraYPbC4lOE9kABb-yOmj-4KDy2rGTfgejzs/s1600/IMG_2018+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV2GAHlBOHRzNt40_1Fbvq6J-yYxRPsxmoQaI2vd25gdnJf-gLhNhR8ZDOmkP397Xlalxdd-i7Dgrpz6roJg3Rvv5mybXpPtP11wtC2iAVraYPbC4lOE9kABb-yOmj-4KDy2rGTfgejzs/s1600/IMG_2018+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Since I tend to hoard bath bombs, I thnk it goes without saying that I do love these. If you're a fan of seasonal scents, I'd highly recommend picking up a few now. Their seasonal scents are: Pecan Pie Assault, Pumpkin Spice, Pumpkin Latte, Spicy Cider, and Vanilla Butter & Pineapple. <a href="http://fizzbutter.com/">FizzButter</a> sells their bath bombs at $3.99 each. The Cupcake Bath Bomb, which yes, isn't fully pictured here but is gorgeous costs $3.79 each. </div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-23918429201339884872014-09-22T19:28:00.000-07:002018-08-30T10:37:56.382-07:00Quarterly: NYE03<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">The Quarterly box by Bill Nye was the first Quarterly box that I felt compelled to subscribe to. As a result, even though it does seem a bit geared toward the younger crowd, I still continue to indulge in each box that I've received. Back in August, I received a notification from Quarterly stating that they were working to "secure the final (and exclusive) item for Bill’s box and it is expected to ship early September" so it ended up arriving not too long after the MSA01 box. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Bill Nye boxes are science oriented with the mission of helping you to change the world. This particular box focuses on putting a "different spin on climate awareness" which resulted in curated items that show you how to harness nature.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The paper work for the Nye boxes usually come with a link that leads to a video in which he explains each item of the box. This particular version seems to be missing that but that's not to say you can't understand each item in relation to the theme.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjplf1oulNIHHa3iKiZ7vk6VaKKpg5ShMflxnXGWQ8rg1RKMqXl-gJT6GDBIgDylS9YDQmFdTp9eV89T2C6yB6oGsPzrgatu3VxAyur-5FUJP5qJHJwkm-WhWAegblmcggDtV8Vwja91Ag/s1600/IMG_2022+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjplf1oulNIHHa3iKiZ7vk6VaKKpg5ShMflxnXGWQ8rg1RKMqXl-gJT6GDBIgDylS9YDQmFdTp9eV89T2C6yB6oGsPzrgatu3VxAyur-5FUJP5qJHJwkm-WhWAegblmcggDtV8Vwja91Ag/s1600/IMG_2022+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz6YtbMUiap38Exm2Wx6_CiDt9Zbt776yQj7jSTJrf8CWp0aG91uzJ2ng2qBMoLN5kPsIzIK9Ior1qhXz-JoR8siG6ZC_1_9X54Z6Xnuh0qRWVaqbUJZ4nxzE2aiz6DGmvUusxo7ZuH1M/s1600/IMG_2023+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz6YtbMUiap38Exm2Wx6_CiDt9Zbt776yQj7jSTJrf8CWp0aG91uzJ2ng2qBMoLN5kPsIzIK9Ior1qhXz-JoR8siG6ZC_1_9X54Z6Xnuh0qRWVaqbUJZ4nxzE2aiz6DGmvUusxo7ZuH1M/s1600/IMG_2023+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Enclosed in the box is a Windmill Generator which is a project, a solar LED lamp from Little Sun, and a custom coaster drawn by Bill Nye which is themed "United States through the years." In the paperwork, they explain that there are 3 more coasters in this series that will be in the subsequent mailings. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih75InLwnuSto1vW9N21RwVHcVU2fxWUTB9XthmddBHGaT_KPPBl-F9FrUd9NFisWxQ_hT6_M__Y_XR-j_rrp-aT1C5GbmZ0o2ixRJbU-L9gedFA0uAhaqtrclji26Puah6gdy_JLXfrY/s1600/IMG_2024+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih75InLwnuSto1vW9N21RwVHcVU2fxWUTB9XthmddBHGaT_KPPBl-F9FrUd9NFisWxQ_hT6_M__Y_XR-j_rrp-aT1C5GbmZ0o2ixRJbU-L9gedFA0uAhaqtrclji26Puah6gdy_JLXfrY/s1600/IMG_2024+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBll-ascbg5a85XrSdKoMPoC04ozIu-zyhnsVDXXtxvOlmKORuocna8bv0JiD-t4rOyv2sZU4vhHFuym9i2Zo9_Jr2Q2p8KMSi4BxB9K5DdGGCYePBcsTl9QyXMq6Bwx1jkvOEghWIMHg/s1600/IMG_2025+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBll-ascbg5a85XrSdKoMPoC04ozIu-zyhnsVDXXtxvOlmKORuocna8bv0JiD-t4rOyv2sZU4vhHFuym9i2Zo9_Jr2Q2p8KMSi4BxB9K5DdGGCYePBcsTl9QyXMq6Bwx1jkvOEghWIMHg/s1600/IMG_2025+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0iJFkduBOSwS-xGCvIUbwUJTIEBXJHXsH7-O4kaJ7V8BRZP7H4i7OUDF0taqx4ffR9KIuGVB8HDK1vtFu2bPe190cvIc9zrO1ET-mgwgoY0-8Iy-9kuUu3wtCUJIaBKbGZAF0f-DAaFs/s1600/IMG_2026+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0iJFkduBOSwS-xGCvIUbwUJTIEBXJHXsH7-O4kaJ7V8BRZP7H4i7OUDF0taqx4ffR9KIuGVB8HDK1vtFu2bPe190cvIc9zrO1ET-mgwgoY0-8Iy-9kuUu3wtCUJIaBKbGZAF0f-DAaFs/s1600/IMG_2026+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Of course, the Little Sun is currently sitting on my window sill waiting to charge and the coaster is right on my desk already. I'm intrigued to know what the rest of the coasters in the series look like especially since it will take 3 more boxes to complete the set. Bill Nye's curated boxes are available for purchase at <a href="https://quarterly.co/products/bill-nye">Quarterly</a> for $50. </div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-44413542876785816502014-09-19T12:04:00.000-07:002018-08-30T10:37:56.529-07:00Quarterly: MSA01<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">I've been a subscriber of the Ben Nye Quarterly box for a while now so when My Subscription Addiction became a curator, I had to give it a shot. I have been anxiously awaiting this box since June so I was incredibly anxious when the shipping notification went out on September 17th. Go figure it was waiting for me when I got home the following day, neatly placed near my computer, ready for the unboxing. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHj8aoByH565Dh4vMdB-ya7MswOeaADb7gWpUwb6hR_FLnLomz3M6jkgMNiy2QR6s2_jSEOr92LuIAbLF3ItEDgUAjmz5yKkoh2_Kte0vFDWLdwDfRXsbYmZwtczwuPWqy2YLjN3KMe9Y/s1600/IMG_2006+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHj8aoByH565Dh4vMdB-ya7MswOeaADb7gWpUwb6hR_FLnLomz3M6jkgMNiy2QR6s2_jSEOr92LuIAbLF3ItEDgUAjmz5yKkoh2_Kte0vFDWLdwDfRXsbYmZwtczwuPWqy2YLjN3KMe9Y/s1600/IMG_2006+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">In this box I received a Raw Naturals Candle in Chai Latte, Fig+Yarrow Cardamom and Coffee body scrub, Tatcha Polished Classic Rice Enzyme Powder, Juice Beauty Reflecting Gloss in Guava, and the Simonetta Infinity Knit Scarf. The curator (Liz) included a printout of what was provided in the box along with her reasoning for it.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">What I really liked about this box (and I know this will be shocking) is that there wasn't any makeup. Sorry everyone, but surprise makeup is fun, but also somewhat sad if it doesn't match. In this box, everything just struck me as being incredibly useful.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjARPY6-G1sfiqEhmkXwqAfdxKmdDuhMltht9DLfl2kQjUf5simVhkSVwHoiMeoAgN2OsP9Vm-37jVKkZU0oQlAkAn8foTiK8enDw4d2olZgAx-_ypmBKcVwCxTb9xRDWLj-F5PifMQqv4/s1600/IMG_2007+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjARPY6-G1sfiqEhmkXwqAfdxKmdDuhMltht9DLfl2kQjUf5simVhkSVwHoiMeoAgN2OsP9Vm-37jVKkZU0oQlAkAn8foTiK8enDw4d2olZgAx-_ypmBKcVwCxTb9xRDWLj-F5PifMQqv4/s1600/IMG_2007+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Within a few minutes of my taking this picture, my boyfriend (who has been on a major candle kick lately) and I lit the <a href="http://raw-naturals.com/">candle</a>. It smells amazing and we adore it. We have been drawn to wooden wicks as of late, so it was great to see that variety in the box. The scent is lovely and the candle itself retails for $24. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">This morning I gave the body scrub a whirl and it smells amazing. To be fair, it does smell exactly like coffee so that helps (I love coffee). It is incredibly moisturizing -- so much so that when I stepped out of the shower, I felt like I already had lotion on. And yes, totally forgot that I hadn't put on lotion and I'm still going about my day without my skin feeling dry. The scrub costs $22 and is available through <a href="http://figandyarrow.com/">Fig+Yarrow</a>. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The infinity scarf I had mixed feelings about. It is so lightweight and soft, but I was a bit unsure about the colours. It did strike me as more of a Christmas feel (which isn't bad at all!) but it has kind of grown on me. That isn't the fault of the scarf or the selection, I just don't have anything to match it in my closet. Yet. This totally means I get to go shopping to colour coordinate with it. The scarf retails for $25.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAIMZWyO0ryUniBZy0GzyjuG3I6PscMKZj6BU2eqb1ml3YlL2M6dKQZ7v-k8jtZHpxL3OFDOQg_tkT12SwOGS-u8YAjb4hFWH6GjXxW3fbcscPMyoFzE8KzsZ1CKgd9V_j5owQfIuQgBg/s1600/IMG_2009+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAIMZWyO0ryUniBZy0GzyjuG3I6PscMKZj6BU2eqb1ml3YlL2M6dKQZ7v-k8jtZHpxL3OFDOQg_tkT12SwOGS-u8YAjb4hFWH6GjXxW3fbcscPMyoFzE8KzsZ1CKgd9V_j5owQfIuQgBg/s1600/IMG_2009+copy.gif" height="223" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The <a href="http://www.tatcha.com/">Tatcha</a> powder I was also on the fence about. I recognized the brand and was immediately like "Oh no, I better not like this because I know it's pricey but I will love it." At a $65 price tag, sure, it's hard to want to fall in love with a facial cleanser especially when you've been sitting pretty with Noxzema. I haven't tried it yet because I'm actually testing out another facial cleanser, but I am excited about it. What intrigued me was that this cleanser is a powder that you'd add water to and then proceed to clean with. So not too dissimilar in nature to how you'd use the Aztec Cleansing Clay Mark except, it's not a mask. I bring this mask up though because if you do keep those tools nearby (a small mixing container and a scoop), you should be fine transitioning over to such a cleanser. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Last, but certainly not least is the lip gloss. I haven't tried it out yet because when it comes to lip glosses and lip balms, I'm a completionist and I will have to continue using it till it's done. I do like the colour so perhaps in the near future I'll be posting an update on how it actually feels and lasts. The lip gloss is available for purchase at <a href="http://www.juicebeauty.com/">Juice Beauty</a> for $15.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4CHGGJ2dlBOGh-GLIjyTaofjgeaLW3hFcTqImb3ysJQGfn_iQZaq_D8ZC9Vj9IeDTxOvoOkgst8ni3A9jkOWp8h8Tem_tkeZhIsU_Vlw-h1DPXzZK5CUDAgQXSKEzO7Qeus8khURvV0g/s1600/IMG_2013+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4CHGGJ2dlBOGh-GLIjyTaofjgeaLW3hFcTqImb3ysJQGfn_iQZaq_D8ZC9Vj9IeDTxOvoOkgst8ni3A9jkOWp8h8Tem_tkeZhIsU_Vlw-h1DPXzZK5CUDAgQXSKEzO7Qeus8khURvV0g/s1600/IMG_2013+copy.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Overall, I really like <a href="https://quarterly.co/products/mysubscriptionaddiction">My Subscription Addiction's Quarterly</a> box. In terms of value, the box costs $50 and retail value alone puts it at $151 which is an amazing savings. What really made me happy about this box was simply the items themselves since all of them seem to be high quality and is a great blend that is on the practical side. I love it and I look forward to MSA02.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-36523737987037671292014-09-06T23:41:00.005-07:002018-08-30T10:40:56.833-07:00Pumpkin Pause<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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NOTE: I did move for a bit however I decided to recombine the blogs so you'll find all the posts here and previous links removed.<br />
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Hey Everyone,</div>
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In previous post I mentioned that I'd be switching gears. Well, by switching gears, I've decided to mosey on to a new blog called >Pumpkin Pause, so you can find my latest writings there. While I will continue to focus on makeup, I'll be writing about a variety of other things as well.</div>
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Hope to see you there!</div>
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Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-35290342732425234372014-09-06T23:31:00.000-07:002018-08-30T10:37:56.673-07:00Hello Waffle Eyeshadows<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">On Thursday I received my order from <a href="http://www.hellowafflecosmetics.com/">Hello Waffle</a> which is an indie company that operates in Canada. For months I had gone back and forth about what exactly I wanted from the shop till finally I decided to take the plunge. I placed my order on August 23rd so in terms of shipping from Canada, the wait wasn't that bad. I wish I had taken a picture of the packaging however I was so excited that I forgot -- I will say that the shipping packaging was great for getting these eyeshadows through the mail. Each eyeshadow for the full size cost $6.00 (US) and according to my receipt shipping to the States was $6.00. Onward!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWYUah2TPoA2ntaruzm9fTv1F9CixeKAVNrTQ-Hrzj0CJ4MPtbK8VgC_0g2NuqbuPnciYQhRAL16KvQIdM99FS3pqLhmgVpMqXuRwzT6HvxXkPEBBz9-Jak96Gv7D1gJO3OkD_V0mLLg0/s1600/IMG_1983+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWYUah2TPoA2ntaruzm9fTv1F9CixeKAVNrTQ-Hrzj0CJ4MPtbK8VgC_0g2NuqbuPnciYQhRAL16KvQIdM99FS3pqLhmgVpMqXuRwzT6HvxXkPEBBz9-Jak96Gv7D1gJO3OkD_V0mLLg0/s1600/IMG_1983+copy.gif" height="199" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVVv0yLf3_G0GXkEt8QZ4iSWuxOecF-U82foQMf4C8OCy-if3QsZgTytKmWw-uW7goEEa79ppiMxSeN_f3_MZJpw4Tre35V4ugEHYxnqeFLc-0oX5EXbz0DjdpSX52dVUv8PpQdYDKn3M/s1600/IMG_1985+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVVv0yLf3_G0GXkEt8QZ4iSWuxOecF-U82foQMf4C8OCy-if3QsZgTytKmWw-uW7goEEa79ppiMxSeN_f3_MZJpw4Tre35V4ugEHYxnqeFLc-0oX5EXbz0DjdpSX52dVUv8PpQdYDKn3M/s1600/IMG_1985+copy.gif" height="300" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE3K1gDYpg7NPRclGQnzpToRhcZ45pfXnYjw2-UR42mAncBBTFO3o9bdN5tRhM-jUhsdedtLQlAM12oGHNQDLfy5qwJY_PLU0M8PXCzG3OukODLGVwflJBV_Rv7hVmCx6puxxb5vkYk5I/s1600/IMG_1986.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE3K1gDYpg7NPRclGQnzpToRhcZ45pfXnYjw2-UR42mAncBBTFO3o9bdN5tRhM-jUhsdedtLQlAM12oGHNQDLfy5qwJY_PLU0M8PXCzG3OukODLGVwflJBV_Rv7hVmCx6puxxb5vkYk5I/s1600/IMG_1986.gif" height="202" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">When I first finally decided on what I was going to get, I knew that there was a risk that many of these might not show up on my skin. It happens a lot so I didn't get my hopes up. That wasn't to say that I wasn't going to be incredibly excited if they did work out. Please note that along the top of each swatch is the Smashbox primer. These eyeshadows seemed to not care about the primer at all so perhaps I'll revise the swatches when I have a primer that is appropriate for eyeshadows. Also, while I did purchase the majority of these, the owner kindly tossed in Fusion and Cat Fluff as freebies. The descriptions of each shade is directly from the Hello Waffle website. Enjoy!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9RJTvxxJuHTyD4Qh4pAoNbUorLB_DoUUEol0BBjWlOG7UmBkMAXA_1iHHs8Q14rQd3pulz2wvN87x3zJRRKQVmIGhFSc2mboPt-X6cFbsuD370ANppULTQyXF-0eV7-bSbhe2fFg9Ugc/s1600/IMG_1991.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9RJTvxxJuHTyD4Qh4pAoNbUorLB_DoUUEol0BBjWlOG7UmBkMAXA_1iHHs8Q14rQd3pulz2wvN87x3zJRRKQVmIGhFSc2mboPt-X6cFbsuD370ANppULTQyXF-0eV7-bSbhe2fFg9Ugc/s1600/IMG_1991.gif" height="218" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Indoor Lighting</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi813ZjZJuG2Ht6WQrecahxJqnIoqICBf-MAV6uzDvUxhkO8lvSjWg53ySOBp5i1hk9z9kOcBw7OVGgYhiKPFsSkNaw_2i4Pssx_9AP6le0DjQ2tZ6-Q_aN6rB-_J8p62aBtlm6G7V1OCQ/s1600/IMG_1992+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi813ZjZJuG2Ht6WQrecahxJqnIoqICBf-MAV6uzDvUxhkO8lvSjWg53ySOBp5i1hk9z9kOcBw7OVGgYhiKPFsSkNaw_2i4Pssx_9AP6le0DjQ2tZ6-Q_aN6rB-_J8p62aBtlm6G7V1OCQ/s1600/IMG_1992+copy.gif" height="70" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From Left to Right: Fusion, Galaxy Dust, Hobgoblin, Hot Cross Bunnies, <br />Thorns, Whale Hello There, Rainforest, and Cravings.</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd3L2Oex7-q018JCu6OnVvxeSOOjotxxq-_FBBLtCOL-dQJRI5NeaQqZ_KJW2KFDZGIh7gfSfaz26Ny571Nv0aHCrqFekpBp7oQWHh7iJspsHky9h9jbS86tg-MioUWsvmHo3Wz3m6pmk/s1600/IMG_1994.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd3L2Oex7-q018JCu6OnVvxeSOOjotxxq-_FBBLtCOL-dQJRI5NeaQqZ_KJW2KFDZGIh7gfSfaz26Ny571Nv0aHCrqFekpBp7oQWHh7iJspsHky9h9jbS86tg-MioUWsvmHo3Wz3m6pmk/s1600/IMG_1994.gif" height="146" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trying to capture the shimmer outdoors.</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><ul><li><b>Fusion:</b> Reddened purple shimmer.</li><li><b>Galaxy Dust:</b> Dark teal with subtle purple shift.</li><li><b>Hobgoblin</b> Lively olive green with silver and green sparkle.</li><li><b>Hot Cross Bunnies:</b> Light purple with golden sheen </li><li><b>Thorns:</b> Black with darkened gold shimmer</li><li><b>Whale Hello There:</b> Pale shimmery lilac, leans blue.</li><li><b>Rainforest:</b> Vibrant green-blue with sparkles.</li><li><b>Cravings:</b> Dark purple shimmer with gold sparkle.</li></ul><br />Of this grouping, I knew that the darker colours would be just fine against my skin. The ones I was taking a risk with were Hot Cross Bunnies and Whale Hello There but they both took me by surprised. As you can see in the swatches above, they are quite clear and distinct. The one that I felt the most ambivalent about was Thorns however I figured that if I layered it over a black eyeshadow or even over a dark gray one, that should get it to pop a bit more.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihP8E20pJE7Qiq34DWJlCs7sR-B17c4nSSEXgPwgtsroqYSRG2IKeJ5bCpJgnFfDnePvES1uPUKh1FZHPP_ofwgGzKWJ5X-Q3iNbzPkayYy2KxnAZvD7_cPUD3rxz9BQTJI5WqmzWunaQ/s1600/IMG_1997.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihP8E20pJE7Qiq34DWJlCs7sR-B17c4nSSEXgPwgtsroqYSRG2IKeJ5bCpJgnFfDnePvES1uPUKh1FZHPP_ofwgGzKWJ5X-Q3iNbzPkayYy2KxnAZvD7_cPUD3rxz9BQTJI5WqmzWunaQ/s1600/IMG_1997.gif" height="186" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Indoor Lighting</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWosqWvKiF2BbKpZC1LjIQ42S-nbTrvW0kAgFudH3J2IU9vPAEldEoa1v5_HAVgHn7wrmt3mEkgI5hTUu_xUAx7om7ER9AG1i5g3tAiHPXrq2KaxSPYyDDZmnNo4xXsoqHp7fYXCtsFf4/s1600/IMG_1999.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWosqWvKiF2BbKpZC1LjIQ42S-nbTrvW0kAgFudH3J2IU9vPAEldEoa1v5_HAVgHn7wrmt3mEkgI5hTUu_xUAx7om7ER9AG1i5g3tAiHPXrq2KaxSPYyDDZmnNo4xXsoqHp7fYXCtsFf4/s1600/IMG_1999.gif" height="113" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From Left to Right: Cat Fluff, Mendelssohn, Pachelbel, Vivaldi, Chopin,<br />Tchaikovsky, Lust, and Wrath.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqyx0gKvwcJG-416skQTCFr7rnKiL3nmMWdU7k9KbOzV9XktCoRxH6Nl152Psq7qDB3hlPWfJvV5R4fMq2geMpuO_mEyqJZb2-wWxklixsOjUkqjBaT-FOYxnXbFDUCZyTEVnvDGbNBOw/s1600/IMG_2001.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqyx0gKvwcJG-416skQTCFr7rnKiL3nmMWdU7k9KbOzV9XktCoRxH6Nl152Psq7qDB3hlPWfJvV5R4fMq2geMpuO_mEyqJZb2-wWxklixsOjUkqjBaT-FOYxnXbFDUCZyTEVnvDGbNBOw/s1600/IMG_2001.gif" height="137" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outdoor Lighting</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><ul><li><b>Cat Fluff: </b>Dark grey, leans green with green and gold sparkles.</li><li><b>Mendelssohn:</b> Light pink with golden sheen.</li><li><b>Pachelbel:</b> Sparkly white-gold, wedding-like.</li><li><b>Vivaldi: </b>Copper red with silver sparkles. </li><li><b>Chopin: </b>Romantic soft gray-purple duochrome.</li><li><b>Tchaikovsky:</b> Vibrant gold with red, silver, and blue sparks.</li><li><b>Lust: </b>Dark berry with purple and blue shifts.</li><li><b>Wrath:</b> Muted dark gray-green with silver sparks.</li></ul><br /><br />This group definitely had more of the eyeshadows whose pigmentation I was worried about. I've been on a bit of a rose gold quest lately so in that pursuit, I've been looking into a lot of pinks, peaches, and gold. I haven't had much luck but I keep trying anyway.<br /><br />Moving along, while Mendelssohn didn't seem to show up much in the natural light photos, it did in the indoor photograph which is the first one. It is a bit demure which is fine especially if it's blended with another colour. Taking note of that, I was surprised that Pachelbel and Tchaikovsky had such great pigmentation to them. Of this group, I was pleasantly surprised by all of them and got exactly what I expected.<br /><br />I am glad that I finally took the leap and ordered from Hello Waffle. All of the eyeshadows seem to be highly pigmented and have that added bonus of looking almost a bit different in outdoor and in door lighting. These are a great addition to my collection and I'll be sure to keep my eye on their collections (especially since I'm hoping that there will be a Halloween collection). </div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-18823265518526438462014-08-31T18:24:00.000-07:002018-08-30T10:37:56.820-07:00PetBox: LE iHeartRadio Box<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">A few weeks ago when I was researching pet subscription boxes, I finally had it narrowed down to two boxes when I saw a rogue LE box in the wild. This box offered by PetBox was available as a one time purchase and you pay shipping on it. The grand total of this LE box ends up being $7.99 and it looks as though it's still available via <a href="https://getpetbox.com/#iheart:0">this link</a>. A very important thing to note about this box seems to be most similar to their Deluxe box offering (they have 3 other versions) so I myself will take it as a grain of salt that this box isn't necessarily indicative of what other boxes will look like should we actually subscribe to this box.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnVVIcdtv3fx_bltsRSzbQcExjqKlVnZrFBDjVfG-wcVn7DqYLH7ZcY0Qy9_xK7GaPJpU5hDCD0ibnGoYMX_uSuqrVzG66dNZ4eNOz5lapXi6hPEcxE4_Q-t5Sqhy8rp0GlMQk75s7fvs/s1600/10409005_10100158653374323_293863967433220272_n.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnVVIcdtv3fx_bltsRSzbQcExjqKlVnZrFBDjVfG-wcVn7DqYLH7ZcY0Qy9_xK7GaPJpU5hDCD0ibnGoYMX_uSuqrVzG66dNZ4eNOz5lapXi6hPEcxE4_Q-t5Sqhy8rp0GlMQk75s7fvs/s1600/10409005_10100158653374323_293863967433220272_n.gif" height="225" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">This is our judge, Cinders Shamin who we adopted her back in July of this year. Much like her feline counterparts in this family, she is quite picky about her foods. We figured that ~$8 for this box was worth the experiment if we could get a toy out of it. <b>Spoiler: </b>There were no toys but there were a lot of treats.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHuOPWhX9b7iqJ-iMnu0nV1jcXVJsMp0SiIp8bpEe93Y4g-hrrzXxqT47E2DLnYocS8hGmZQlgjmyQARr6SKv-oIj5QehvmuL3bmBtESAXCdXI61FJCNmoY5VIL1ngZehdldISd5tlHNw/s1600/IMG_1967.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHuOPWhX9b7iqJ-iMnu0nV1jcXVJsMp0SiIp8bpEe93Y4g-hrrzXxqT47E2DLnYocS8hGmZQlgjmyQARr6SKv-oIj5QehvmuL3bmBtESAXCdXI61FJCNmoY5VIL1ngZehdldISd5tlHNw/s1600/IMG_1967.gif" height="313" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><u>First Impression</u></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><u><br /></u></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><i>Cinders:</i></b> Oh my goodness, it's all mine and this is amazing. Give me it all. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><i>Me: </i></b>Oh no. She doesn't like some of these items. It is cute to see that the box helped to feed a rescue pet because Cinders herself is from a shelter. Let's see how this goes.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg00JuknMHgD-AX3Q2yM0DJHQQbRMx55PQS7RxSIWuliBDUm7TVLSDblLkP7CUHf5nayd99eIw2VMmD-FPMB7I9ULNc3JbG8iY2yCkRgkNlMlqu75aAuUPo549xWXLph5UeaHZCZ7oUcFg/s1600/IMG_1969.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg00JuknMHgD-AX3Q2yM0DJHQQbRMx55PQS7RxSIWuliBDUm7TVLSDblLkP7CUHf5nayd99eIw2VMmD-FPMB7I9ULNc3JbG8iY2yCkRgkNlMlqu75aAuUPo549xWXLph5UeaHZCZ7oUcFg/s1600/IMG_1969.gif" height="240" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The infamous ear type chews. This <a href="http://aussienaturals.org/">Aussie Natural Water Buffalo Ear</a> was at the top of the box which is why I was a bit discouraged. Cinders in the last few weeks has decided that ear type chews are toys and not food which means that while she will carry them to and from her crate, she won't actually eat them. So while she does love her new water buffalo ear, she loves it like she loves the rest of her stuffed toys.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmURWrBNk3PM1rjB3m7oRMmVl8npWcjyVnDCYSfhsoQQnuVyqH22casABDmeYgwUkRS9o3mKoy6IbCpdWPQ_1qoJSwpu6U6sRstWk95KUBSucufHQSj_FUx_aniEQjNFjnkQUI6Vmkix8/s1600/IMG_1970.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmURWrBNk3PM1rjB3m7oRMmVl8npWcjyVnDCYSfhsoQQnuVyqH22casABDmeYgwUkRS9o3mKoy6IbCpdWPQ_1qoJSwpu6U6sRstWk95KUBSucufHQSj_FUx_aniEQjNFjnkQUI6Vmkix8/s1600/IMG_1970.gif" height="248" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="http://pawsitivelywholesome.com/">Sadie's Sweet Potato Chips</a> was something that we knew had a 50% of her recognizing it as a toy or as food. There were three sweet potato chips in this packet and she ate one. The rest were designated toys. She did seem to enjoy the one that she did eat but was ambivalent about the rest.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEtnqHh_0Ub0O0h4mOMtNb-jUrkc9s7GtoaTl0N9GTAG0Q6LqdwHSV3cFSPlt3orLEiUujsw3eHVhOvHRJVyAZb6eIgRoP0QIumY_Q-Hz9_YIw4qug8n9t3xqkUyVgRAO81bVPFQIWrxE/s1600/IMG_1971.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEtnqHh_0Ub0O0h4mOMtNb-jUrkc9s7GtoaTl0N9GTAG0Q6LqdwHSV3cFSPlt3orLEiUujsw3eHVhOvHRJVyAZb6eIgRoP0QIumY_Q-Hz9_YIw4qug8n9t3xqkUyVgRAO81bVPFQIWrxE/s1600/IMG_1971.gif" height="254" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">We actually haven't gotten to try the <a href="http://www.evangersdogfood.com/">Evanger's Grain-Free Chicken</a> one yet but we figure that she may actually eat this one. Funny thing is that she's still on puppy food so we haven't deviated from that regime but we have been collecting samples of adult food to train her with and also make the transition easier. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3K9jkZchelPkKO2G4OdFhw9GruEF2bi4JuYEJJDpTC4dxhmfcOGHGkP1eh2Q4sMStGIqndn6t7QrsVTTFz-lDb2yLeZ3GpTWqNM3o76sHCpGo4fl4dR1Df2UXddi8Y4-cQ9HsB_9kKZs/s1600/IMG_1972.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3K9jkZchelPkKO2G4OdFhw9GruEF2bi4JuYEJJDpTC4dxhmfcOGHGkP1eh2Q4sMStGIqndn6t7QrsVTTFz-lDb2yLeZ3GpTWqNM3o76sHCpGo4fl4dR1Df2UXddi8Y4-cQ9HsB_9kKZs/s1600/IMG_1972.gif" height="274" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Now we get to the winner of this box which is the pack of <a href="http://lovingpetsproducts.com/">It's Purely Natural Chicken Jerky Bone-Shaped Treats</a>. This seems innocuous enough for her to eat without any issues (as in, she can't possibly think that these little treats are actually toys).</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO3i_AoEFbzdRrVLaUV-xWI1GbwW_m-1dyYIAGD98GpzZD6qL3Wm9exJy-0-534wobFCHNRGsEaqB6uIJ9CJGyH5-YyMHbz6QDtDoSrb8nyW7NINbjSbqD-E0muZfa_8zTUqpdxjhblIw/s1600/IMG_1973.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO3i_AoEFbzdRrVLaUV-xWI1GbwW_m-1dyYIAGD98GpzZD6qL3Wm9exJy-0-534wobFCHNRGsEaqB6uIJ9CJGyH5-YyMHbz6QDtDoSrb8nyW7NINbjSbqD-E0muZfa_8zTUqpdxjhblIw/s1600/IMG_1973.gif" height="320" width="244" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><u>Final Thoughts</u></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">This box was a bit lackluster. Set aside the fact that Cinders only seemed to like one item, it seems to be a bit overvalued for what it is. The corroboration states that this box is worth $15.99 retail value but it isn't. If you do consider it as a $7.99 value which is what you pay for shipping then it's great. As a reminder to anyone reading this, PetBox is still a contender for Cinders in the future because the LE box is not part of the standard offerings which means that the actual Deluxe version of the box which is $19.95 a month does include a toy and more of a variety. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOZjtsbTdi1vQtS4xeDI-3lYLnU8vo-MYYcjztko9XR79EyUcjn5s3JhoQNU6ASOTESZpiGqBtv9LTrpzWZu3xFVOir2C-beAyLmzVUigRo3vcKG4umLUdzLiAZqmVpLiyYJ-gGFzpTTA/s1600/IMG_1974.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOZjtsbTdi1vQtS4xeDI-3lYLnU8vo-MYYcjztko9XR79EyUcjn5s3JhoQNU6ASOTESZpiGqBtv9LTrpzWZu3xFVOir2C-beAyLmzVUigRo3vcKG4umLUdzLiAZqmVpLiyYJ-gGFzpTTA/s1600/IMG_1974.gif" height="158" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These are toys, right?</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt4mUubPIG1NhP4xFziRm9JKlO5QEMI7FrFeVh2Hx1ZAQWtF5hbyi7QpvsHlWMetSvq85XgSisj9k9Tw8bQvzvH0S28UhpPn2pkWDTESqtofha9xJIoLhxLCSHk9kREbCuWw8D8jOkL6A/s1600/20140831_173833+copy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt4mUubPIG1NhP4xFziRm9JKlO5QEMI7FrFeVh2Hx1ZAQWtF5hbyi7QpvsHlWMetSvq85XgSisj9k9Tw8bQvzvH0S28UhpPn2pkWDTESqtofha9xJIoLhxLCSHk9kREbCuWw8D8jOkL6A/s1600/20140831_173833+copy.gif" height="179" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'll just sleep with it anyway</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-58341284940697139972014-08-23T23:18:00.001-07:002014-08-23T23:18:05.515-07:00Focus<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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In the last few months that I've been gone, not much as really occurred and yet, some things have changed. I'm still not sure whether I want to return to blogging just yet, however since I took the time today to combine all of my blogs into one, I may have inadvertently caused a weird surge of posts that were dated between 2011 - 2013 with a variety of watermarks that are not attributed to this blog. So here we go.<br />
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Late last year my goals for this blog (Plum Eyeliner) were somewhat varied in the sense that it started as a fun activity. I'm not good with makeup and I'm better with words, so I figured it would be a good exercise in writing that could eventually lead me to be better at makeup. In that intial quest, I chose the name "Plum Eyeliner" because I was on a purple eyeliner kick at the time and I could not find a decent one. In my search, I found that blogs were lacking for people with my skin tone. So I figured that even if I failed at writing (lol), and failed at the attempt to become better at makeup, that it could still help others with their makeup quests. This is largely why I have never deleted this blog. Along the way here were my ideas of what this could turn into:<br />
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<li>A makeup subscription box -- this was the first idea I came upon back when makeup subscription boxes were gaining traction. I decided that this wasn't the route to go for logistic reason. It's hard to customize makeup for a variety of skin tones and undertones which leads to the problem of either being all over the place, or not being enough. I mean for myself, I still have yet to find a makeup subscription box that works for me so I would I trully be able to create one for others. </li>
<li>A makeup review site that featured more contributors however those that I had lined up dropped out due to other engagements. </li>
<li>A search site that could catalogue makeup by skin tone, undertone, and skin issues. This one was a grandeur attempt that we had figured out the logic for, but hadn't begun building. The problem comes down it having to be user generated and I've got a whole 18 followers... Which isn't enough to generate that much content. </li>
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I know that that sounds like a lot of excuses laced in there but do consider that I have a full time job <b>and</b> this was for fun. Which brings me to the point that writing became a scheduled thing which made it seem to loose it's glamour. Sure, I shouldn't whine about that, but constantly searching the market for new makeup and trying to get my hands on it and then reviewing it? So maybe I got a bit bored. Which leads me to that whole "I reorganized my blogs today, sorry for the SPAM."</div>
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Earlier today I disabled Etcteros and Red Laboratory Lacquers and combined them into this blog. Etceros was my sounding board for nonsense with the occasional linings of something worth reading and the review on subscription boxes that were more for lifestyle and pets, rather than makeup. RLL was disabled because though I still dabble in making my own nail polishes, blushes, and eyeshadows, it really was moreso for experiments which I can easily write about here. </div>
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Which brings me back to this blog. So, I love writing... Sure, I'm still not great at that whole makeup thing. In fact for this whole year, the only cosmetics I've purchased was some new face cream, lots of nail polishes, soap, and an order from Hello Waffle that just went in today. With Halloween coming up, I imagine there's a lot more makeup that I'll be indulging in. The blog will remain but I think I'll be switching gears a bit. Instead of just focusing on makeup and what's new, I'll be throwing in my reviews from different areas such as that Quarterly Bill Nye box coming next month or those experiments that I've been tolling away on. </div>
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I still want to change the name of The Plum Eyeliner though. Still haven't figured out that whole thing but I'll worry about that when I get there.</div>
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TL;DR: Goodbye etceteratech.blogspot.com & redlaboratorylacquers.blogspot.com. We'll see what's next.</div>
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Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-47393155606707691772013-12-14T11:11:00.000-08:002013-12-14T13:43:38.179-08:00Dreamworld Hermetica Avalon Matte Samples<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>Items were received by Dreamworld Hermetica complimentary.</i></div>
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A while ago, <a href="http://dreamworldminerals.net/">Dreamworld Hermetica</a> was looking for testers for their new matte line and volunteered. Unfortunately, life caught up with me and I was unable to provide my feedback in a timely manner. While I did swatch the samples, I have had very little time to experiment much with it. Hopefully later this weekend, I'll have more to show you. For the time being though, here are the swatches!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJuna5sCzJ670GPMCaVP0chXXbgX5MLDIH0oSmhZw-StcrRsvKxiEra7dFyCNiFklT6VA_dr-tQxeqNuBzjnDzAiL3Dj02bSEkH7mDvMTC7Gc1_pOlzIbTnakrfuL5Tm23qukUUj2Ba20/s1600/IMG_1561.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJuna5sCzJ670GPMCaVP0chXXbgX5MLDIH0oSmhZw-StcrRsvKxiEra7dFyCNiFklT6VA_dr-tQxeqNuBzjnDzAiL3Dj02bSEkH7mDvMTC7Gc1_pOlzIbTnakrfuL5Tm23qukUUj2Ba20/s320/IMG_1561.gif" width="320" /></a></div>
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This particular line is the <a href="http://dreamworldminerals.net/eyesavalonmatte.html">Avalon Mattes</a> and each colour is marvellously brilliant. At first I thought I'd be receiving a few samples but definitely not the whole collection which was previously unreleased. In addition to each eyeshadow, the company sent an eye primer, and a jar of both Mistletoe and Grendel's Mother (which are from the <a href="http://dreamworldminerals.net/eyesmedieval.html">Medieval Collection</a>). Below you'll find the entire series along with the swatches. Please remember that you can click on the pictures to enlarge them a bit. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4N4coW2XNxrUkrMJjRnDtJavuorZCDKTWpP3oWMmQeVjyjSZjyNrUt5gj0WKLUpmNiNV3mg0ghV92Ag_NG1Sbu9ZHpePapREni23IK7RY1Gq6wIAPXNIN2eBlBrFT2GUukkEGDFvFE6A/s1600/IMG_1562.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4N4coW2XNxrUkrMJjRnDtJavuorZCDKTWpP3oWMmQeVjyjSZjyNrUt5gj0WKLUpmNiNV3mg0ghV92Ag_NG1Sbu9ZHpePapREni23IK7RY1Gq6wIAPXNIN2eBlBrFT2GUukkEGDFvFE6A/s320/IMG_1562.gif" width="320" /></a></div>
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Apple Island, Avalon Nyght, Laird, Sayge, Small Sea, and The Grove.</div>
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Ygraine, Woad, Noble, Chalice, Blade, and Avalon Sunset.</div>
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Arthur's Shield, Druid's Earth, Into the Myst, Pagan, Round Table, Grendel's Mother, and Mistletoe.</div>
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Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-61547629645032582052013-12-13T21:21:00.001-08:002013-12-13T21:21:06.749-08:00This Absence <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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While I've been absent, I've been trying a variety of things. This variety ranges from a seasonal Trader Joe's Pumpkin Body Butter (which is <b style="font-style: italic;">divine</b> for my dry skin), Bag Balm (does wonders for dry spots), to Shea Moisture hair care (my hair loves it), and everything in between. Sadly, I haven't been taking very many notes but here's what I can share with you as I slowly prepare for the onslaught of posts.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiztTSNZ6EaG8XexMk5IOXgvEYO8l2Kfqwvh8CSJFKKkqDbidhExYQ5XmpSUUWrP9ELNExk08UFa_9-aPNltZwu2Zci78w2zDwN6ENqkdOiUIZ4N-ncPHC6cpIM-cyMg3yv5V4ed2mD98/s1600/IMG_1624.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiztTSNZ6EaG8XexMk5IOXgvEYO8l2Kfqwvh8CSJFKKkqDbidhExYQ5XmpSUUWrP9ELNExk08UFa_9-aPNltZwu2Zci78w2zDwN6ENqkdOiUIZ4N-ncPHC6cpIM-cyMg3yv5V4ed2mD98/s320/IMG_1624.gif" width="320" /></a></div>
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Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-89379447485058570972013-12-13T20:15:00.000-08:002014-08-23T21:44:58.583-07:00Quarterly - Bill Nye (NYE01)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">Forgive me for my lack of updates. While I've mostly kept quiet everywhere (this includes most social media), I've been dealing with a lot personally and haven't really had the chance to sit down and write. During my absence though there's been a lot of things that I've been playing around with so I have a lot to go through. That's going to include both this blog and my makeup blog. For now though, let's review my first ever Quarterly box. This one was specifically curated by Bill Nye.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">How did this discovery come about? Well, even if you didn't care, I'm still going to talk about it, because it's a bit of a fun story. Lately my co-workers and I have been talking about subscription boxes of different types. From Graze, to Wantable, we've been looking up a variety of different kinds and trying out a bunch. When my co-worker found out that there was a Quarterly box curated by Bill Nye, I immediately knew I <a href="https://twitter.com/ahnaliyah/status/380790961904693248">had to get it</a>. I purchased the box immediately (in September) and anxiously awaited the day that it would ship. A few weeks ago I finally received it and it came so quickly, Quarterly hadn't even sent out the shipping notification to me.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I had never subscribed to a <a href="http://quarterly.co/">Quarterly</a> box prior to this so I knew that I really wouldn't know what to expect especially since it varies by curator. I knew that this would have to be awesome because it's Bill Nye... One of the ultimate science guys. So let's take a look at the box. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpaQdo5cbZG5fZOuWUl5dHvSsPv_xhQbLX1DUyFn76C0lC33JugM0wsPsV-eZCXPoRyIpCHGv0rAqLajPOtc0QErjnDMP9MLX0mj2wCyw_JByqilA0Dueyw85cFiVFkpA_tL1M6uxuHI78/s1600/IMG_1555.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpaQdo5cbZG5fZOuWUl5dHvSsPv_xhQbLX1DUyFn76C0lC33JugM0wsPsV-eZCXPoRyIpCHGv0rAqLajPOtc0QErjnDMP9MLX0mj2wCyw_JByqilA0Dueyw85cFiVFkpA_tL1M6uxuHI78/s320/IMG_1555.gif" height="320" width="239" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">When I first got the box, the thing that was missing was a description of the items. The box directs you to a website with a video but sadly each time I tried to check it out the video simply wasn't working. For a few of the items, I was genuinely at a loss as to what I needed to do next with them. I'm happy to say that the <a href="https://quarterly.co/nye01-video">video</a> is working now and that issue of the delayed video doesn't effect how I feel about the box.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaBh8Ercknusq7OSuJ1zfWYd-qhBwqzuvGAMPpyDuBx2u2zPlwjkS45cGbXr1yCd6x_J794yjpoa1GskbLb-PKS8FpJ3pAxJ37_9dbQ1-TXAc42ROVrtsjQZpm8lfH7t1lCXKq-nkbw8bf/s1600/IMG_1556.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaBh8Ercknusq7OSuJ1zfWYd-qhBwqzuvGAMPpyDuBx2u2zPlwjkS45cGbXr1yCd6x_J794yjpoa1GskbLb-PKS8FpJ3pAxJ37_9dbQ1-TXAc42ROVrtsjQZpm8lfH7t1lCXKq-nkbw8bf/s320/IMG_1556.gif" height="320" width="239" /></a>For a cursory glance, the box came with a solar powered grasshopper, a salt water driven car, chalk, a paper plate, a plastic straw, a pen, a bag of beads, and a compass.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">There are directions on how to create a sundial within the Manila</div><div style="text-align: justify;">envelope (so that's what the chalk, paper plate, and straw were for), and since the car and grasshopper were in boxes, that seemed pretty simple to figure out. The only thing that perplexed me for a while was the little bag with beads. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The night we got the box, one of my friends immediately built the grasshopper. Sadly, the little guy never sprang to life. Ultimately we know that with robotics kits that is something that could happen and that's not a reflection of the Quarterly box. After watching the video, I do wish that we built the salt water car with the solar panel from the grasshopper instead of committing the solar panel to living the life of a dead grasshopper.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6lEj0MZB89p4HNcfW09zcD7qpGngcGwBSOlkRBX1GoKpYneF57W-OIkKl6DPZWXDEoTDnhrbmD9992xOxB9c0Ok9I_C1EjW76WjO8NmaIHviCdH9PUYAeYOEkPwmsIvtsg-MzPctnUFF4/s1600/IMG_1558.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6lEj0MZB89p4HNcfW09zcD7qpGngcGwBSOlkRBX1GoKpYneF57W-OIkKl6DPZWXDEoTDnhrbmD9992xOxB9c0Ok9I_C1EjW76WjO8NmaIHviCdH9PUYAeYOEkPwmsIvtsg-MzPctnUFF4/s320/IMG_1558.gif" height="320" width="269" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Defying Life like a true solar <br />powered grasshopper.</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">The pen was amazing because I personally adore having more writing instruments around me. The pen works well but also has a great story behind it. It's made from recycled bottles and Nye mentions that he specifically uses blue because it can't be photocopied. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: justify;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_IrcX_zwGQNzsnQ_mtzp5UY8GO8B6o_Jnm6Iz8RMBS20LK2525KxlJWdo8GjwCkWICxorVr4GFd4UOKsbKxDXbqEc5anHwjiG6oPkNJbbb66qEt2LORz0HaBamZZWTv_A-h3Iu6cDbeXj/s1600/IMG_1559.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_IrcX_zwGQNzsnQ_mtzp5UY8GO8B6o_Jnm6Iz8RMBS20LK2525KxlJWdo8GjwCkWICxorVr4GFd4UOKsbKxDXbqEc5anHwjiG6oPkNJbbb66qEt2LORz0HaBamZZWTv_A-h3Iu6cDbeXj/s320/IMG_1559.gif" height="320" width="191" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our friend mimicking <br />Dr. Frankenstein.</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">Admittedly we never got around to create the sundial but I'm still glad that we have all the pieces. As for the beads, I had no idea what was their deal till I saw the video (which I just checked out tonight). I can't wait till tomorrow when the sun is up to see what different colours they turn.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Overall, I really liked the box. A lot. I can't wait till the next one and I'm glad that I gave it a shot to begin with because there's nothing (to me) quite satisfying as being able to build something. Even if it doesn't work and even if you aren't sure, there's a certain satisfaction about troubleshooting it. And I'll be honest here, even if the items themselves didn't feel worth it (lulz, yeah right, come on... the compass alone is a solid piece), the fact that Nye put in a copy of the "Rules of the Road" which is the single page from which they made the rules (the "roadmap") for the Bill Nye the Science Guy show (which is what is in the yellow envelope) makes it so worth it.</div></div>Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-54669105904871010952013-11-19T20:30:00.000-08:002013-11-19T20:34:59.063-08:00My First Stitch Fix!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I admit that trying out Wantable woke up this urge for me to finally update my closet. I had all these new accessories and nothing to pair it with. So after considering it for a bit, I decided to hold off on Wantable and start focusing on revamping my wardrobe. And by "revamp," I mean "Finally get clothes that fits and isn't over 5 years old." The problem though is that I simply do not have time to shop. Heck, I barely have time to write nowadays. So I did what has been the fashionable thing to do lately... Try to find a box that would alleviate the pressure of having to actually go to stores. </div>
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Through <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/beautyboxes">/r/beautyboxes</a>, I found out about Stitch Fix (<a href="http://stitchfix.com/sign_up?referrer_id=3258720">referral link</a>). It kind of seemed like a huge commitment, so I weighed on it for days. You create a style profile which seems quite in depth and then you spend $20 to pay a stylist to pick out clothes. Upon receiving the box, you have three days to decide what you want to keep -- if there's anything you want to return, you simply toss it back into a bag that they provide that has a label already printed, and drop it into a mailbox. Seems simple enough right? Well, the commitment is in the cost. If you keep anything, that $20 is applied toward your purchase. If you buy all 5 items in your box, then you get 25% off. (Oh and California residents have to pay additional sales tax). If you dislike everything, then you are out $20. Luckily, they try darn hard to make sure that you at least like something in the box (or so it seems). </div>
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Getting a date can be tricky and you do have to check back if you haven't gotten a slot. I didn't realize this at the time so I went back and forth for weeks before finally deciding that I would at least try them out. That was October 22nd and the earliest ship date I could get was "The Week of November 20th." So here's my first ever Stitch Fix!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOKKPtB5u8GSeltL8cERLXEdf87-hP1OMuM84yevKsguD5NX10gMkzdqclMWlIKUqzKsyPC36MbT0gYAYcTDLAelxLYxXdShpwjv7XOpl8CJs1vbaj8vAgGlvVnCOyDMykL-PwUDWnakg/s1600/IMG_1540.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOKKPtB5u8GSeltL8cERLXEdf87-hP1OMuM84yevKsguD5NX10gMkzdqclMWlIKUqzKsyPC36MbT0gYAYcTDLAelxLYxXdShpwjv7XOpl8CJs1vbaj8vAgGlvVnCOyDMykL-PwUDWnakg/s320/IMG_1540.gif" width="320" /></a></div>
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The packaging is actually quite nice and somewhat reminiscent of True & Co. Everything was stacked neatly on top of one another and wrapped in tissue paper. Along the side was an envelope with the information about the items in the box with pairing suggestions, the notation of cost for each items, a Holiday Fix packet (which included recipes), and the return bag.</div>
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There were a total of 5 items and that breaks down to 3 shirts, a blazer, and a pair of jeans. The shirts and the blazer are labelled "41Hawthorn" which leads me to believe that this is their brand. This is fine with me so long as they send pieces that work out for me. Without further ado, let's look at those pieces. </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWCEsbvN3886NU8uSmdHvll8VWLOJS-LHaer-cJO4RNjop3wRThdheyI_IxdW3J09oaWUPobXsHicLOPOCAAdz0auTlta4QUmfivCkwcL2S806S3fuJUiNDMTrHGMsr4Sf3NVi09dUv2Y/s1600/IMG_1543.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWCEsbvN3886NU8uSmdHvll8VWLOJS-LHaer-cJO4RNjop3wRThdheyI_IxdW3J09oaWUPobXsHicLOPOCAAdz0auTlta4QUmfivCkwcL2S806S3fuJUiNDMTrHGMsr4Sf3NVi09dUv2Y/s320/IMG_1543.gif" width="203" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">41Hawthorn: Franklin Solid Side Gathered Knit - $48</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTypadh2v8wAXgYBYscMa8nmtI8boxV36-YrXpBiGkdC4D5DMBFDlUPw7k3a1C3gMI_5dC22uBe3g42rXf38ZnLNYvi-WYC2hPZv-_Wk4Ywb7WVzOAKdgH-OWGvqP26VIs11s_N-Qrd-c/s1600/IMG_1545.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTypadh2v8wAXgYBYscMa8nmtI8boxV36-YrXpBiGkdC4D5DMBFDlUPw7k3a1C3gMI_5dC22uBe3g42rXf38ZnLNYvi-WYC2hPZv-_Wk4Ywb7WVzOAKdgH-OWGvqP26VIs11s_N-Qrd-c/s320/IMG_1545.gif" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">41Hawthorn: Moni Stud Detailed 3/4 Sleeve Blouse - $58</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSJdj-Zhyphenhyphen0c4qtrDPxenqf_dYGXUnrHg2DngsFWt0cg-GrHPLWG0BQK4xjf7jh8OBReRWr5Ha7PM3M-5ZhbfETjoVndoV0WwwpcaIq1Os7221_3aPBqyv4PEOKwlf4-XFAqzl251KETOo/s1600/IMG_1546.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSJdj-Zhyphenhyphen0c4qtrDPxenqf_dYGXUnrHg2DngsFWt0cg-GrHPLWG0BQK4xjf7jh8OBReRWr5Ha7PM3M-5ZhbfETjoVndoV0WwwpcaIq1Os7221_3aPBqyv4PEOKwlf4-XFAqzl251KETOo/s320/IMG_1546.gif" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">41Hawthorn: Queensland Dolman Jersey Top - $48</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOYzhCGn2vVKW9tbeiOnoMAKrhlS5c_l3a0KfKLOEOU7Ma-pkmYHL0CJKoqLomDx4QOC9u-AN6_soTygE5p4PAdYlns_qp_XmmNS4StGSeBq6SKuNbBmWJZsD2vJZ6OHI2CCf4mYfqET0/s1600/IMG_1544.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOYzhCGn2vVKW9tbeiOnoMAKrhlS5c_l3a0KfKLOEOU7Ma-pkmYHL0CJKoqLomDx4QOC9u-AN6_soTygE5p4PAdYlns_qp_XmmNS4StGSeBq6SKuNbBmWJZsD2vJZ6OHI2CCf4mYfqET0/s320/IMG_1544.gif" width="260" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">41Hawthorn: Benson 3/4 Sleeve Blazer - $78</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJr3GcMeapCIOPThklxI-QCpUq2rGU5XY2RaakjzIf2OT3hv36oR0Wwq8mKMDqIlkUGfEamYC19x4mzZevpV_WnMbrs4sYmPdWNdcYWKSC27XEblbScgy9RNenz3EhpJj3TQhhlz-dsDo/s1600/IMG_1547.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJr3GcMeapCIOPThklxI-QCpUq2rGU5XY2RaakjzIf2OT3hv36oR0Wwq8mKMDqIlkUGfEamYC19x4mzZevpV_WnMbrs4sYmPdWNdcYWKSC27XEblbScgy9RNenz3EhpJj3TQhhlz-dsDo/s320/IMG_1547.gif" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kensie Jeans: Johnny Skinny Jeans</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNa2yJvAPDuXmqjbDtD-WUyCxnEs3eG9JPlbGqbki21TXBr4fD7kuMRE0eL5fFD76tTNoQbnnYATuBU5_IQebbxhb7mohSsVRNyI9MEQklzZO9TY8tMUTVP4EwQ2kLxWmdkX_9smBmZEk/s1600/IMG_1548.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="99" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNa2yJvAPDuXmqjbDtD-WUyCxnEs3eG9JPlbGqbki21TXBr4fD7kuMRE0eL5fFD76tTNoQbnnYATuBU5_IQebbxhb7mohSsVRNyI9MEQklzZO9TY8tMUTVP4EwQ2kLxWmdkX_9smBmZEk/s320/IMG_1548.gif" width="320" /></a></div>
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When I first took everything out of the box, I immediately thought "Oh no, not jeans." I have had a long standing problem with jeans and it's very difficult to find jeans that fit correctly. The only jeans that seems to have fit me are Levi's Curve ID's and that's about it. So I tried the jeans on first and to my surprise, they actually fit! Not just that, but they might be flattering!</div>
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The next item I was on the fence about was the blue Moni Stud but seeing it on me changed my mind. It actually reminded me of my first lengha that I ever owned. What's interesting is that after trying everything out, the one that I ended up disliking was the purple Side Gathered Knit because the material felt weird and it just did not flatter my body type at all. I opted to keep it though because I figured that maybe I just didn't pair it correctly and had the perfect dress pants to go with it. </div>
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So the damage? The damage pricey. (There's that commitment thing again). The total coming out to just about $242. Yes. I weeped a bit in the corner when I thought about the damage here. But here's out I logically worked it out <b><i>for myself.</i></b></div>
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<ol>
<li>I hate clothes shopping.</li>
<li>I don't go clothes shopping.</li>
<li>I hate going to stores and having to try on everything.</li>
<li>I hate being disappointed when I go clothes shopping and find <i>nothing</i>.</li>
<li>I shop online for clothes twice a year so that means that I don't have a steady flow of decent clothes in my wardrobe.</li>
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While this is expensive (still crying and still telling myself that it's okay to make this choice), this may work out since I can try on clothes at home and since they know my tastes, it's going to be catered to me. I'm opting to try one more month to see how it works out. With this box from Stitch Fix <a href="http://stitchfix.com/sign_up?referrer_id=3258720">(referral link)</a>, I'm very impressed and very happy to have the new pieces in my closet. </div>
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Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103094497026062668.post-44268028998143188762013-11-19T19:27:00.000-08:002013-11-19T20:37:39.605-08:00My First Graze Box!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>Items were received by Graze complimentary.</i></div>
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Admittedly, I've been slacking on my updates. I signed up for <a href="http://www.graze.com/">Graze</a>'s Nibble Box on Halloween when they offered a free code through their <a href="http://www.facebook.com/grazeusa">Facebook</a> page. On November 4th, the box was prepped and around November 11th I was notified it was shipped. I got the box on November 13th which was right after BlizzCon so I didn't really have much time to think. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcdr2SQyAOaz3n8FN1nMFVDGrtslKQsDoe2MztOaIu5kuVqoX42_ulmtR6i_kOZ_4zuBYhXPN8CNKUjfHOQ2iCkVOCwJJSJA0v_QoqJpLTVeODNOl3S7_su9tzKH8Co1YPdE-0nMXCgXs/s1600/IMG_1530.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcdr2SQyAOaz3n8FN1nMFVDGrtslKQsDoe2MztOaIu5kuVqoX42_ulmtR6i_kOZ_4zuBYhXPN8CNKUjfHOQ2iCkVOCwJJSJA0v_QoqJpLTVeODNOl3S7_su9tzKH8Co1YPdE-0nMXCgXs/s320/IMG_1530.gif" width="320" /></a></div>
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Unlike other boxes that I've come across, this one does not offer a tracking code and actually ship through normal mailing means. This meant that I didn't really know where my box was or why it was taking so long (now I know). Also when it arrived, it had a puncture that went right through the top to the bottom of the box. All that meant to me was that I needed to consume that sample immediately (no harm, no foul).</div>
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Let's take a look at the inside of the box. The box has a great presentation and everything is wonderfully prepped. </div>
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<li>Garden of England <i>(top left)</i>: Strawberries black currants, and apple slices. </li>
<li>J<span style="text-align: left;">alapeno Fiesta </span><i style="text-align: left;">(bottom right):</i><span style="text-align: left;"> J</span>alapeno peanuts, roasted sunflower seeds, salsa almonds and roasted pumpkin seeds.</li>
<li><span style="text-align: left;">Key Lime Pie </span><i style="text-align: left;">(top right)</i><span style="text-align: left;">: Lime infused raisins, sponge pieces, mini meringues and green raisins. </span></li>
<li><span style="text-align: left;">Cracking Black Peppercorn <i>(bottom right)</i>: Bl</span><span style="text-align: justify;">ack pepper rice crackers.</span></li>
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I ended up eating the Garden of England one right away since that was the little tray that was punctured. I loved that one since it's been a while since I've feasted on black currants (currant rolls are my favourite pastry and I haven't had them in a <i style="font-weight: bold;">long</i> time). A few nights later when I split the remainder between my boyfriend and my friend, I ended up having the majority of the Key Lime Pie which was amazingly delicious. It was a surprising blend though I will admit that the mini meringues were a tad bit too sweet.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJciFn-FIK-4a4u6MWdcMb_WJr8efmfoA17oud4dPEVZVh2lp1zGiAVPVxn3K1iVL-LjE6MQA6H0Us_nobVNht3VLhTdjFSupHDnX2teWsH7IkCZBZx7AO9gXLfAzTia0O2gPcj_fX-Vc/s1600/IMG_1532.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJciFn-FIK-4a4u6MWdcMb_WJr8efmfoA17oud4dPEVZVh2lp1zGiAVPVxn3K1iVL-LjE6MQA6H0Us_nobVNht3VLhTdjFSupHDnX2teWsH7IkCZBZx7AO9gXLfAzTia0O2gPcj_fX-Vc/s320/IMG_1532.gif" width="320" /></a></div>
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The other two were devoured by my boyfriend and my friend. My friend happened to love the Cracking Black Peppercorn and is currently trying to devise ways of just getting that in bulk. </div>
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At this point my only true concern was that while this seemed great for a free box, I wasn't entirely sure of the cost and couldn't determine if it was worth it (at the time). After all, the samples are all small, there's no way it seems to properly configure (or rig) a box for your favourites, nor is there an option to buy your favourites. I do suspect this might be something that they have already considered. So when I decided to actually double check the website, I realized... well, shucks, the box is actually only $6. </div>
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So it turns out that yeah, it's actually pretty much worth it. </div>
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Graze is currently still invitation only and they are limiting the amount of "FriendCodes" that each person can give out. I have <strike>four</strike> two more if you'd like to give it a shot -- the first box is free. Leave me a note if you'd like my code!</div>
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Leihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13418592718899046165noreply@blogger.com5