December Faves

Some of my newest obsessions - - -

 

 

1 - The Body Shop Beautifying Oil in Olive. This stuff is a-mazing! It's a dry oil for face, body and hair but so far I've only used it on my body. I apply it after I get out of the shower and it seriously keeps my skin super soft all day with a scent that lasts for a few hours after. I have been trying out different body oils since lotion can sometimes clog your pores but I either hate the scent or don't find them moisturizing enough. This may finally be the oil that converts me from being a die-hard lotion user. Purchased from The Body Shop for $14 and comes in eleven scents.

 

 

2 - Macadamia Healing Oil Treatment. I have been a loyal Moroccan Oil user for many years and I'm not saying that I'm cheating on my beloved M.O. but maybe just having a fling on the side with Macadamia Healing Oil. I feel so guilty but this stuff just makes my hair beyond gorgeous. For me, this works best when applied to damp hair before blowdrying and straightening. It leaves my tresses super shiny and more tame after just blowdrying than anything else I've ever used. I purchased this .34 fl oz bottle from Ulta for $6.99 but a little goes a long way.

 

 

3 - Lush Mask of Magnaminty Face and Body Mask. This mask smells just like Thin Mint cookies so really that's enough to justify me buying it! But seriously, this mask is deep cleansing, tones, exfoliates and brightens all while making your face feel refreshingly tingly. Just apply, let dry, and remove with water in circular motions to take advantage of the exfoliating grit. Purchased from Lush for $12.95.

 

 

4 - Carol's Daughter Moisturizing Leave-in Conditioner in Tui. This leave-in restores moisture and adds strength without silicones, parabens, petroleum, mineral oil or artificial colors, plus this scent smells like sweet candy or fruit that lasts for hours. Sometimes throughout the day when I need a pick-me-up I spray this both in my hair and décolleté. Purchased from Ulta for $1 4.00.

 

 

5 - Ojon Restorative Hair Treatment. Once I finally found the best way to use this for my hair, it has been a miracle worker. In the container this is a solid, but once you scoop some out and rub it between your hands, it becomes an oil. Because several years ago I had trouble with Ojon  products leaving behind too much residue and just being a pain to wash out, I was hesitant to use this and was actually using too little and not seeing any real improvement in my hair. I've since discovered that, for my hair, I need to put a lot in and really saturate all of my hair except near the roots. The directions say to leave in for 20 minutes but I always keep it in for an hour since I have thick, dry hair. I purchased this in a sample pack from Ulta but you can buy it separately for $19.50 for 1.5 oz. I know this sounds really small for the money but considering that it transforms into an oil, you really end up getting a lot of product.

 

 

6 - Essie nail polish in Mint Candy Apple.  I always love wearing bright and unexpected colors during the more dreary months and this is what I'm currently wearing. To me, this is more of a cross between mint and robin's egg blue and I just love the way it pops against my winter wardrobe. Purchased from Ulta for $8.00.

 

 

7 - Clinique Almost Lipstick in Flirty Honey.  These are my newest lip product obsession! I now own three colors and am looking to add to that collection. I don't really like my lips so I don't feel comfortable wearing bold and bright colors but still want to wear something. For best results, I apply these directly to my lips without chapstick. They are so moisturizing that I can go hours without needing to apply anything and although the colors look bright, once applied they give the most natural color. You can find these at Macy's for $15 each.

 

 



butter London review

Okay, I finally had to cave and see what this butter London nail polish craze was all about. I picked up two colors from my local Ulta when they were having a buy one get one free deal (awesome, I know) but normally they are $14 each. This brand is big in Europe and is quickly gaining popularity here in the States.

A good thing to know is that they are toxic free. Polishes that are not toxic free contain chemicals like Formaldehyde and Carcinogens which aren't really things you want being absorbed into your body (90% of what you do put onto your skin is absorbed. Scary!).

I didn't know what to expect quality-wise and was a bit surprised by how thin the polish was but it went on smoothly and evenly and dried incredibly quickly. For both colors I applied a base coat and two coats of the color. They have very unique colors and I would re-purchase from this brand again.

This first color is called Slapper which has been causing quite a stir lately due to its unique color which makes it hard to accurately photograph. You wouldn't think that this is a unique color but in one light it can look teal and then in another more of an aqua. Not a huge difference but apparently a big deal to some people. These photos were taken near natural light and I feel are a fairly accurate representation of the color. Of course, we were all born with our own opinions and I invite you to listen to your own :)

I know I might have gone a little crazy with the pics for this color but I wanted to make sure I was thorough. This is a bright and vivid color and even though I don't normally wear shades like this, I think it's really fun and have gotten a lot of compliments on it. 

This second color is called Wallis. I have worn this several times since purchasing and I'm still undecided. butter London describes it as "A tarnished, metallic olive gold nail lacquer, as mysterious and regal as its namesake." Uh, that's for sure. I do like it because it's different and I do use gold as a neutral polish...ugh I don't know, maybe it is that 'olive' element that doesn't have me loving it. Any thoughts?

NYX lip product mini haul

I've really only recently discovered NYX, which I've only ever found at Ulta, but so far I like what I have tried. I'm a lip product junkie and the ones from this brand are reasonably priced which makes them a double threat! Ulta recently had this brand on sale for 40% off so these are the lip products I picked up - - -

From left to right:

- Mega Shine Lip Gloss in Pink Rose #163, Ulta $5.49

- Xtreme Lip Cream in Natural #10, Ulta $5.99

- Xtreme Lip Cream in Skin Tone #08, Ulta $5.99

- Xtreme Lip Cream in Buttery Nude #04, Ulta $5.99

- Round Case Lipstick in Strawberry Milk # 595, Ulta $3.99

- Soft Matte Lip Cream in Milan #11, Ulta $5.99

- Soft Matte Lip Cream in Tokyo #03, Ulta $5.99

I really like this lip gloss; this shade is incredibly wearable and great for when you want some color but nothing over the top. It's a soft rose pink with a touch of shimmer and is buildable. In the swatch I did a couple passes so you can see that it is fairly pigmented. It has a great soft applicator and a nice fruity smell to it (I refuse to wear glosses that smell bad; I've tried and failed miserably). This is also fairly long lasting and moisturizing. I already have my eye on some more shades!

These Xtreme Lip Creams are unlike any product I've ever tried before. The packaging says "It's not a lipstick, nor is it gloss. It's like nothing you've experienced before. It's a liquid lipstick that goes on with full xtreme color and intense shine." This is a really good description of exactly what it is! 

Because these are literally liquid lipsticks and not lipglosses, I find them a bit drying so I apply them to bare lips first, let it dry, and then apply a little bit of potted gloss or lipgloss over. They don't have a fruity smell like the lipgloss but instead have a sweet plastic smell that I don't find unpleasant enough for me not to wear.

I purchased three neutral colors and in the swatches I applied several coats. The first photo I took near a window for natural light and the second is an indoor lighting shot. 

Overall, I like the unique idea of these but find them too drying and needing too much 'babysitting' (always checking in the mirror to make sure my lips don't look too dry or needing re-touching) to become one of my go-to items. 

It's hard for me to really speak to this lipstick because I think the problem may be that I just picked the wrong shade. Ulta says that this is NYX's best selling lipstick and has a velvety texture with high shine and I have to say I agree with those points but I just don't like this particular shade. Because I like the texture, I would be willing to purchase this in another color. 

Strawberry Milk is a light baby pink that looks somewhat frosty when applied; something I also don't like for myself. This lipstick also has an odd smell to it. I can't describe it as anything else but what white mushrooms smell like lol. Luckily, the smell goes away after it's applied. 

So I know the whole matte look is pretty much over, but I hemmed and hawed for so long about jumping on that bandwagon that I basically ended up missing it lol. So at 40% off I figured I would finally cave and try it!

Despite the fact that I am obsessed with keeping my lips moisturized, I thought I would hate these because matte tends to look and feel drying but I actually found that I was able to tolerate these better than I thought I would. 

The color on top is the lighter color, Tokyo, which I am still playing around with and not as comfortable wearing just because it is such a light color; I worry that it makes my lips look cracked and dry. The bottom color, Milan, is far more wearable for me and I actually love the shade. On my lips it ends up looking like a medium hued rose pink. Once it starts feeling a little too dry, I can apply a gloss or even just chapstick and it looks like a pretty colored rose gloss.