Birchbox - July 2012; Collab with Glamour

{In this month's box}:
Gloss Moderene High Gloss Masque
Ada Cosmetics Bronzer in Golden
stila It's Go Time Lip Glaze, in Camera
Harvey Prince Hello
Birchbox headphones
LARABAR uber, Bananas Foster

GLOSS Moderne High Gloss Masque

I have yet to use this, because I had a bit of a hair dye fiasco and I'm trying not to take any more chances before my sister's wedding next month. The masque smells lovely, very coconutty and I can't wait to use it.

Ada Cosmetics Bronzer in Golden

As someone who's never used pigment products, I was a bit perplexed as to how to use this. I ended up asking my sister, who uses Bare Escentuals and the like. For those of you who are as clueless about this as I was, you simply:

• take the bronzer (or pigment)
• flip it over (lid facedown)
• tap it
• then use the product that's on the lid

The bronzer was, surprisingly, not too shimmery. I found it a bit light to be used as a contour product (which is what I was hoping for), but it's a beautiful copper-bronze enhancing shade for my dark beige skin tone. It can also be used as eyeshadow or mixed into foundation for a subtle all-over glow.

stila It's Go Time Lip Glaze, in Camera

I've never tried any of stila's products, but I do constantly play with them at Sephora, so I was pretty excited to receive this in this month's box. I'm not a big fan of sticky glosses and this one is definitely that. This was another item that surprised me. I saw the glitter in the tube and was instantly turned off, but once applied, it looks much more natural. Very similar to my lip tone, but with a subdued amount of glitter. 

Harvey Prince Hello

As always, here's your non-perfuming lover review on perfume. The scent was a bit too strong for me. It was very sweet smelling and had it been more toned down, would have definitely been something I would wear. I'm sure a lot of you girls will love this scent, if you prefer a sweet but more strong smelling scent.

Birchbox headphones

I was super excited to receive this in my box, as my personal headphones had recently konked out. They are a super cute pattern. As far as sound quality goes, I didn't expect them to be knockout quality and they weren't. They aren't BAD quality, but just don't have a lot of sound depth. Definitely headphones that will last for daily use.

LARABAR uber, Bananas Foster

There's a reason why it's not pictured and that's because...I ate it! I've read reviews on the inclusion of snack items in the past, so I was a bit wary about this and expecting to hate it. Boy was I wrong! I absolutely loved this snack bar and welcome the possibility of receiving it in the future, haha. 

I really enjoyed this month's box, not only because of the fun concept (see it, hear it, feel it, smell it, taste it), but because I genuinely loved the box.

You can subscribe to Birchbox through my referral link {here} or Birchbox.com

What did you think of this month's Birchbox? What was in your box?

-Claudia

FOTD - Summer Princess

Friday was "Prince and Princess Day" at my preschool. Yes. This is a thing. 

I was told on thursday to dress up Princess-like, but seeing as how I don't have very many princess-y dresses (and I don't exactly want to wear my best in the infant room) I decided instead to come up with some Princess makeup.

Sometimes my job is awesome. 

Here's my makeup for the day:

 

FACE

Maybelline Dream Fresh beauty balm in Medium/Deep

Revolution Organics Freedom Glow beauty balm in Sunkissed

Laura Mercier Shimmerbrick in Golden Mosaic

NARS blush in Orgasm

MAC blush in Sweet as Cocoa

Benefit Highbeam

MAC Brun for eyebrows

EYES

Maybelline Dream Fresh beauty balm in Medium/Deep
Urban Decay primer potion in Original
NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk
Maybelline Color Tattoo in Painted Purple
Urban Decay: Ecstacy, Omen, Junkshow, Chase, Chopper, SWF, Sin
Too Faced blush from Glamour To Go, Fairy Edition palette
MAC Expensive Pink
Wet n Wild Petal Pusher palette, Purple crease and definer
Sephora 5-in-1 Palette (mix of one dark, one vibrant purple and a dark brown)
Urban Decay eyeliner in Burbon
Bare Escentuals Buxom mascara

LIPS

MAC Velvet Teddy + Kinda Sexy

I'm not quite sure why I'm making such a sexy pose here, haha, but alright. This is the dress I wore. I had a lot of fun creating this look! Hope you guys liked! :) 

-Claudia

ipsy (formerly MyGlam) - July 2012

{What was in this month's bag}:
NUME Hydropunch hydrating conditioner
Kiehl's Ultra Facial Oil-free Lotion
Yes to Cucumbers On-the-Go Facial Towlettes
Josie Maran Magic Marker Lip and Cheek Stain
Circus by Andrea's Choice nail polish

Subscription purchased by me, affiliate links within post

NuMe HydroPunch hydrating conditioner

I have yet to try this conditioner, but look forward to trying it out. It doesn't have the most pleasant smell--it smells a little too similar to hair dye--but it may end up working out.

Kiehl's Ultra Facial Oil-free Lotion

My skin is pretty dry, so I stay away from products that are meant for oilier skin types. I have heard good things about this brand, so I was a bit disappointed to receive an item I couldn't use. I ended up giving this away to one of my friends.

Yes to Cucumbers On-the-Go Facial Towlettes

I LOVE towelettes. I use these guys for everything. I'd never used the Yes to Cucumbers towelettes and I ended up loving them. 

Josie Maran Magic Marker Lip and Cheek Stain

This stain applies smoothly and lasts for hours. I use this at work when I want to wear a bit more color, but nothing too dramatic, and have it last throughout the work day. 

Circus by Andrea's Choice nail polish

This polish was developed by one of the ipsy 'gurus,' Andrea from Andrea's Choice. I got the shade Somersault, which is a beautiful yellow unlike anything I own. 

I'm excited to see what next month's bag will hold. It seems like ipsy just keeps getting better and better. I also enjoy how the subscribers receive the same items and hope that doesn't change in the future! Also, this month's bag was super cute! I loved the rainbow stripes! Keep it up, ipsy!

You can purchase an ipsy subscription {here}.

What did you think of July's ipsy bag?

-Claudia

Summer Makeup Tips

Hello all!

This has been a really tough Summer, weatherwise. Here in Chicago, it's been upwards of 90ish/80ish and at times over 100 degrees throughout these past few months. I've had a serious case of melty-face when it comes to my makeup and that has not been fun! I've since been looking into different techniques and products to try and come up with something that'll last more than a couple of hours.

Hair Dye Madness!

Phew! We finally got some weather relief this week, after it'd been near or 100-ish degrees here in Chicago. My car sure picked a bad time to have a failing A/C!

Anywho, here's an outfit and makeup look I did on one of these such days. I was actually trying to showcase my new hairdo (courtesy of me and some help from the hubby!), but the pictures didn't quite catch it. I get tired of my hair pretty easily and I've been wanting to change it up for a while, but didn't want to go to a salon so...I decided to do it myself!

I had a moment of crazyness where I decided to drive down to Sally's beauty supply and buy some bleach + other essentials. I have dyed my hair with box dyes before, but have never bleached it. I should've taken some during the process pictures, but I was so worried about timing and getting it done right that I didn't think about it till afterward.

 

I actually really like how it turned out (honestly, it could have been much worse haha) and I promise there will be better pictures to come later. Look out for another post on a lightbox I just made this week, as well! :)

Here's the requisite bathroom picture! Have a great weekend!

Makeup used here:

FACE

Garnier Skin Renew BB Cream in Medium/Deep
Revolution Organics Freedom Glow Beauty Balm in Sunkissed

EYES

Wet n Wild I (heart) Matte Palette
MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack

LIPS

Sonia Kashuk lipstick in Sheer Bronzey Nude

Job Update - Infant Room!

Hello there! Phew! This week, I was temporarily moved into the infant room at the preschool I work for. I went in thinking it would be a break from the age group I normally work with 3-4, but I was so wrong. It's a lot of hard work and it's rewarding in a completely different way. I've never worked with infants before, so it's definitely been a challenge not only to get comfortable with a new set of kids, but also get used to a different rhythm, tools, and environment. I think the biggest reward so far happened today when I finally got to see a smile out of one of our more difficult kids. I wish I could post some pictures of these cutie pies, but that is a huge no-no.

I also wanted to bring up my next project: a light box! I've been really struggling with the quality of my pictures and I think a light box will be very beneficial. Look out for that, coming up within the next week!