Category: Product Review

L’Oreal Elvive Damage Erasing Balm Review

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Howdy doo!

Today I bring you a review of a recent product from Influenster. If you haven’t already signed up for Influenster, you should! It is free, really easy to use and best of all – they send you free things. Sign up here!

This time it was the new L’Oreal Elvive Total Repair 5 Damage Erasing Balm.

I have zero complaints about the packaging, smell and consistency. This product smells nice, has a nice weight to it and comes in large tub making it easy to scoop.

After showering and using the Melu Shampoo from Davines, I busted out the balm and coated the ends of my hair. I let it sit (per the directions) for 3 minutes and then rinsed out with hot water.

I immediately noticed how soft my hair felt as I rinsed the product away. MUCH softer than the Melu and Oi Conditioners I’ve been using. However, I didn’t let that fool me! SO many drugstore conditioners use ingredients that create a silky soft feeling when rinsed out (…PANTENE…) but actually just coat the hair in wax. Then the product just builds up on itself but is really doing nothing for the hair.

I also am not an idiot. I know that a split end is not repairable by any product, no matter how expensive. The only way to effectively get rid of split ends and damage is to CUT THEM OFF.

For reference, here is the ingredient list and as you can see, the fourth ingredient is wax. I did a bit of research on this particular one and it isn’t necessarily “bad” but I discovered it is typically “added for increased lubricity and to keep liquids and oils from separating”.

So how did it work?

Meh. Being a somewhat educated woman in the realm of haircare has taught me that (as with lots of things in life) you absolutely get what you pay for. And this product costs $6.99 for 8.5 ounces. Although I do not think it did any further damage to my already damaged hair, I do not think it lives up to it’s “damage erasing” claims.

See evidence:

Still some damage there, me thinks.

All in all, it was fun to try out and my hair kinda smells like marzipan so #winning.

*I received this product complimentary for testing.

My New Warby Parker Glasses

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Hi guys!

I got Warbys!

I know you are all thrilled for my and TBH I am thrilled for myself.

I feel like it is a Portland rite of passage or something. It’s like another item I can check off the ol’ “Am I Portland Enough?” list. I mean, I did eat a massaged kale salad the other day and high-five my pals after the Doug Jones win in ‘bama but the glasses just put me over the top.

So,  I decided to write about my experience here today.

Initially, I was intrigued by Warby Parker after my pal Kelly told me about the website. Apparently it’s as easy as selecting 5 frames for try-on that they will ship to you, selecting one pair, shipping them all back and receiving your selected pair 7-10 business days later. So easy. So I google Warby Parker and low and behold – there is an actual retail location in NW Portland!

David and I went in last Sunday and I the store was just absolutely bustling with hipsters. I felt a little out of place in my Abercrombie jeans circa ’06 and bright turquoise Nike but whatevs. Better that than a top hat and monocle.

After I started trying-on glasses I realized I would never have been able to find a good pair from selecting 5 frames online. All the ones I thought I loved online ended up looking just terrible on me. I looked like an angry librarian mole in most of them and as much as I love the look of the transparent pink-tinted ones on the shelf, they did not suit me at all.

I initially picked out these two as my top contenders:

Barnett in Quail-Egg Grey

Laurel in Tea Rose Fade

David wasn’t crazy about the Laurels, which I personally kinda liked at first. Then, I consulted sisters Meg and Rach and I ended up going back and fourth between some pretty basic styles in a tortoise shell frame.

I think these ones are the Louise style.

Preston in Whiskey Tortoise

Becker in Amber Tortoise

Jennings in Whiskey Tortoise

SO which ones do you think I went with?  I know they’re all SO different….jk.

I went with Jennings!

Once I picked out the frames, I brought them to one of the MANY associates. She took my prescription, measured my pupils, and $95 and 5 minutes later I was outta there. My glasses arrived exactly 5 days later which is NUTS!

On top of the easiest glasses-buying process ever, the store had video games, free stickers and big apothecary jars full of free CANDY. This place definitely speaks my language!

*This is not sponsored by Warby Parker. They do not even know I exist.

Mont Bleu Nail Care Review

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Hello left Twixes!

Also, have y’all tried these?

OMG they are to die. Just buy them, trust me ;).

But now for the reason you’re all here! Let’s dive into some nail curr !

My nails have never looked that stellar for a myriad of reasons.

  1. Due to probably not eating enough protein or leafy greens (yech) my nails are thin and brittle
  2. I pick at my hang nails and knuckle skin #selfmutilation
  3. I buy like one new nail file a year

SO! The lovely folks at Mont Bleu sent me some things to try out and review for you all but this post is not spons’d.

I was just tickled to peruse their website as lots of items are beautifully crystallized in a huge array of colors. Another thing I thought to be curious was that many of their nail care products are made of  glass! On top of that, they use SWAROVSKI (aka the super sparkly stones) to adorn their files with which is super bougie and fun.

Here are the items I chose: *cue the nature shots!

Set of 3 Glass Nail Files w/Swarovski Crystals in Fuchsia/Light Rose

These files are sturdy, beautiful works of art right!? And also they’re nail files! But srsly, I used the large one that night and it performed beautifully at shaping my nails. Also, you don’t really see the scratch marks on the file after using.

All-in-One Original Foot Scraper & Callus Remover  in Pink

This puppy is a work horse. I took the above picture for a size reference and as you can see, it is quite large. The cool glass feels really amazing on my tired feet and the file smooths my gross heels out very nicely. The file itself is quite heavy, but also very durable.

Cuticle Nippers 5 mm

I’ve never owned a pair of cuticle scissors and I can now so I don’t know how I went for so long without some. This pair is heavy, sturdy and also very precise and quite sharp. They worked like a charm on both my fingernails and toenails!

Dual-end glass cuticle pusher

You can’t really tell from this picture, but this glass cuticle stick is in a gorgeous shade of nude/baby pink. It is dual-ended and comes with a classic, flat cuticle-pusher as well as a pointed end. I used this again, on both my fingers and toes and it was a pleasure to use. I could do the majority of the work with the pusher side and I enjoyed getting into those tiny crevasses with the pointy side. It gets the job done and is super bougie at the same time!

Overall, I love these products. I like having nail care that is actually beautiful to display! I am so used to hiding files and things away in a drawer because they’re unsightly. These items are lovely, work well and make you feel like you’re at a swanky nail salon right in your own home! I think they’d make an excellent gift for anyone who loves their nails or enjoys at-home nail care.

You can also find Mont Bleu on Amazon!

For partnering opportunities, click here!

Use the code “BLOG” for 20% off anything on the site!

Stila Magnificent Metals in Diamond Dust

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Hello flowerbombz!

I’ve come to realize as of late that I probably should just go ahead and own ALL of the Stila Magnificent Metals. I mean…they’re super glittery, stay put with the help of a glitter glue AND are just gorgeous. Either that, or I am just being extra and can’t get over the fact that glitter is apropos on the eyes for a hot minute.

I already have the shade Smoldering Satin, so I thought I’d pick up the next shade I’ve been dying to try…Diamond Dust!

FEAST YOUR EYES!

Apologies for my weird hobbit feet in the background of this pic, but the twinkle. AH LAWD the twinkle!

I also swatched it inside to get another perspective for y’all because I care.

If you do not own one of these colors, RUN don’t walk to Ulta and pick one up. Each one is gorgeous, neutral and adds that little bit-o pizzazz on the ol’ eye real estate. I just ca’t say enough good things about these!

So what do YOU think? How many of you own one of these pups?

Covergirl Total Tease Mascara Review

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Hey tootsies!

Before I dive into this mascara, I thought I would remind you all of my two tried-and-true overall mascara tips guaranteed to work with ANY mascara.

  1. NEVER “pump” your mascara. This incorporates air into the bottle and will dry-out the product faster.
  2. Treat a new mascara like a fine wine. Open it, let it breathe. Obviously don’t leave the wand out or anything but give mascara like a week or two until you start judging it. I find that a newly opened mascara is never at it’s best right off the bat. It needs some time to ripen up and blossom.

Now back to the Covergirl Total Tease.

 

PACKAGING

I Gotta love the baby pink and black color combo. It reminds me alot of the Benefit Roller Lash in that regard!

WAND

The wand on this is pretty damn weird. The bristles are rubber, fairly short and spaced out. The bristles do not wrap all the way around the wand, either. On the side where there aren’t bristles, they put in a tiny bump at the tip of the brush with two little lash combs. I think the idea is the comb allows you to get into tiny places, like the inner and outer most lashes.

FORMULA

Sorry about the RBF

This is a wetter formula for sure and it does not dry super shiny. In fact it dries fairly matte and leaves the lashes feeling pretty soft. The product itself goes on the lashes fairly thick and goopy but because the wand is so separating, it works.

APPLICATION

I don’t find myself using the little comb on the end too much when I apply this product. I mostly use the other side and enjoy the separation it gives. I definitely like to wiggle this one back and forth between the lashes to ensure an even coat.

WEAR

Here’s what this mascara looked like at the end of the day:

It looked pretty nice throughout the day, albeit a bit scraggly at the tips of my lashes. It also doesn’t hold a curl wonderfully, but it definitely wasn’t the worst in that department.

OVERALL

I really like this mascara. It isn’t my absolute favorite but I am always hard-pressed to find a mascara that looks nice on it’s own. Most of the time, I have to use two different mascaras to achieve the length, separation and fullness that I want but this one does a pretty good job on it’s own. It is a bit more “gloppy” then I like on a day-to-day basis but sometimes I need those ka-pow lashes and this stuff delivers on that front.

Deborah Lippman Nail Polish Review

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Hi there summer-time spritzers!

Today I thought I’d review the Deborah Lippman nail polish in the shade “Shape of my Heart”. I received the above pictured duo in my recent FabFitFun box, which turned out to be kindof a major letdown.

Seeing as a regular sized Deborah Lippman polish retails for $18, I figured I owed it to y’all to let you know how I liked the stuff.

Or more accurately, how I didn’t like the stuff.

The shade is really beautiful to start. I love pale pinks and this one is a really gorgeous cool-pink.

The wand on the polish was also a very nice shape and made it easy to apply. But that’s just about it for this product’s positive attributes.

It took me three coats to achieve moderate opacity. THREE. I felt like I was painting my nails forever. As in, I could have iced a wedding cake in the time it took me to apply this.

The end result was aight.

Apologies for the horrendous cutes, but you get the picture.

The next day after washing my hands ONE TIME, this stuff chipped on me. on THE SECOND DAY.

Definitely not a fan of the opacity or wear-time of this polish. I realllllly don’t understand how they charge $18 for this stuff. Sinful Colors boast some amazing shades that last on me at least 3 days with no chips and they cost $1.99. It’s a no-brainer guys.

FabFitFun Spring 2017 Box Review

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Hi little darlings!

Today I bring you a post I never thought I’d have to write. Its true, y’all…I bought a FabFitFun box.

I know. I’m embarrassed.

Just the name alone makes me cringe.

But then sister Megan pointed out that you get a$80 Dr.Brandt microdermabrasion in the spring box…and I was like ok I see you FabFitFun. I also really like the pastel-colored round beach blanket. So I shelled out the $39 and had my box a week later. The box itself is quite cute. TWSS.

When I opened it however…JUST NO. NO FabFitFun. NO!

I got this beach blanket:

BLUE!???!??!?!?!! No. NOOOOOOOO.

I thought I was getting this one:

What am I going to do with a dumb blue tie-dye blanket? Can I get a re-gift?!

Then I pulled out  the lip-kit which again, I THOUGHT I was a pinky/nude shade.

NO. I got bright ass red.

boooooooooo

THEN, I pulled out these earrings…when I thought I was getting a cuff bracelet.

These look like the contents of the bottom of an H&M dollar bin. AND this is discriminatory to people with only one earring whole. AND it was missing an earring anyway.

NO FABFITFUN. no.

The rest of the contents included:

These Deborah Lippman mini polishes

I Used the pinky shade the other night and it took THREE streaky coats to achieve this:

(STILL NOT TOTALLY OPAQUE)

These Karuna sheet masks

They was aight. Nothing special.

This Briogeo Rosaro Milk.

This stuff is decent. I also just learned Sephora is selling it online. It retails for like $20 I think.

And the Dr. Brandt product I came for!

I haven’t used this product yet, but I know it’s going to be a good one!

OVERALL – This was SUCH a huge disappointment for me. I didn’t know there were options for some of the products and that is on me. But still, I can be mad. I tweeted the company about the lack-lusterness of the box and they are sending me the cuff as an I’m Sorry present and they offered me $5 off my next box which I will not be continuing unless they can figure out how to package up a real unicorn in the next one.