Powdery and shiny things

Hello! I have a few new things, so here's the first of a few things I'll be talking about in the upcoming days. I'm completely done exams/my second year of college! You can expect to hear from me more often as I have more time to spare and hopefully more money to spend as I work through the summer months. 

Anyways, first up is Jessica Iridescent Eye. I picked this up randomly and thought it looked kind of nice (reminded me of the shiny rainbow you see in gasoline), but I wasn't crazy about it. I just can't leave a store without a new nail polish, so mine it was. Turns out I am absolutely in LOVE with this and I never want to wear anything else. I can't think of another nail colour I've ever liked this much. I've spent the last day just staring at my fingers and moving them in the light. It's kind of insane. 

This is two coats, but I definitely think I could have done with one. It's definitely one you want to use a top coat on. Some polishes can get away without one on me, but not Iridescent Eye. Some bloggers have compared it to Chanel Peridot and deemed it a dupe, while some others disagree. I don't think it's a question that they're very, very close. I say grab it if you don't want to spend the dough on Chanel.

Next are Mark glowdacious illuminating powder in Shimmed Up and Avon Smooth Minerals Pressed Foundation in Soft Ivory. I've never used a powder foundation before (I stick to liquid and cream-to-powder), so I thought I'd give it a shot. I seem to be collecting blushes and bronzers and various things, so I ordered Shimmied Up just to see what it was like. 

It looks like it's stark white in the picture, but I don't feel like it's that light in person. I admit I was surprised at first, though. The old Smooth Minerals liquid foundation I had was their lightest shade and it was borderline orange-ish in some lighting. I didn't imagine their lightest of anything would actually be this pale. I'm happy, though. It blends well, it's really soft, and as far as I can tell it's matte. There may be some shimmer, but it isn't noticeable. I used this today and loved it!

I like this. It's really shimmery and glowy, which I love. I'm worried it's a little too bronze/dark for me, but maybe I'm crazy. It doesn't look bad in pictures, so sometimes I think it's just the lighting of my apartment. There are two other shades, and I actually don't even know how I decided which one to get. I think I read one of the blurbs about, "what this model is wearing," and she was pale and blonde and had on this powder so I went with that. Loads of people complain about the shimmer, but like I said, I'm a fan of it. The compact comes with a weird little flat brush, but it seems kind of useless so I just use a different brush of my own.

So far with new things, it's been a success. I also bought the new Mark "Borrowed from the Boys" watch (I need to take links out and adjust it, it's huge), another nail colour, and an eyeliner. There's also more new Avon things I've ordered that I don't have quite yet, but I'm very excited for!

caution

I promise I'm not dead.

I haven't had much to say and I haven't been doing a whole lot new with myself beauty-wise, but I wanted to share a couple quick things! I finally got myself a black shatter/crackle polish - I ordered it from Avon ($3.99 in C7-9) with a new, bright blue (Blue Escape), but that one was backordered. I envisioned the blue under the black and was really excited for that to be the first thing I tried it with, but that didn't work out. I first tried it out over China Glaze Ahoy!, which I unfortunately didn't snap any pictures of. I personally think bright/light colours look best under the black for the contrast, because Ahoy! was a little too deep of a pink for the cracks to really be noticeable. Keeping that in mind, I decided to try this:

Avon Sunshine, Revlon Guava, and Avon Mosaic Top Coat in black. Neon love! The yellow and black reminds me of caution tape. My other hand has no Quava, just all Sunshine.

The next thing I wanted to say was I decided to whip up a hair mask in the middle of the night last night when I couldn't sleep. I spent a while Googling and seeing what others like and decided to go with this recipe:

• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tablespoon mayo
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 tablespoons honey 

I slapped it on, wrapped a plastic bag around my head, and rinsed off in cold water after about 30 minutes. I went to bed with my hair wet and I didn't put any mousse in it, so it was a bit of a disaster this morning.. but so soft and shiny! I want to try some other things that have been suggested around the blogosphere.. has anyone else ever made their own hair mask? Tell me what you did! 

a successful shopping trip

Yesterday I was surprised with an invitation to go shopping with my future mother and sister in law. We went to a little boutique in Paris, ON called Suzanne's of Paris. I'll admit that when I walked in, I didn't think I would buy anything or even like the store. It's kind of.. well, old, for me. The clothing is just not really something I could imagine too many young people wearing. Some dresses and boots were nice, but I didn't find anything I wanted to buy. What I think they had going for them was their selection of scarves and bags. Seriously, I should have taken a picture of this wall of scarves. I had the hardest time deciding. Anyways, I went with a red/leopard pattern one. It's sort of slinky and light. They had the same pattern in a bunch of different colours and I almost bought a black/grey one, but I've been a bit obsessed with red lately.  I apologize for the awkward photo.

The next thing I saw that I knew I couldn't leave with was this little leather purse. It was right beside a black one with grey trim and a forest green one with dark grey trim. It has a zipper section on the back and the inside has a pocket which will likely fit a cellphone. The strap is also removable, so it can be used a clutch!

My only complaint now is that the strap looks adjustable, but it only makes the whole thing go smaller. There is a bit of leather stitched around the metal slider that doesn't allow it to slide any further. I prefer long straps so I can wear bags off the side (especially small ones like this), but I'll have to make do with it being a tad short. 

Virginia bought a tan one with dark trim and I saw a red one with black trim on my way to pay.. but I didn't want to have a red meltdown (my winter coat is red)! I'll probably use this in the spring and summer, anyways.

The rest of our trip wasn't too exciting.. I hit Walmart and Winners in the mall because I wanted to buy some beauty products:

♥ E.V.A. Unbreakable Hair Oil Therapy ($15)
♥ Sally Hansen Gem Crush Nail Polish, Big Money & Razzle Dazzler ($6 each)
♥ Revlon Nail Polish, Radiant/Blue Mosaic ($5)
♥ Vitamin C (?) Anti-aging Day Cream ($9)
♥ China Glaze No-Chip Top Coat ($7)
♥ Avon Super Extend Extreme Mascara (free, gift)

I don't know anything about what is supposed to be in these popular oils that people have been using lately, because Virginia warned me against other stuff being added. She said this one looked pretty good, so I trust that. I included ingredients in case someone else sees something I don't know about. I've just used it once, so more on this as I use it more. 

Again, included ingredients because I'm not certain what's good and what isn't. It sounded good enough with the sea salt and different fruits and shea butter. I can never decided what to buy with moisturizers.


I put Big Money (the gold one) on my fingers and Radiant (blue) on my toes. Two coats for each, though Radiant could have used a third. I love both of them and I'm guessing Razzle Dazzler is going to be the same. ♥


Then when I was home, my mom gifted me the new Avon mascara. It's supposed to have some special magnetic fiber formula that I don't really know the details of or really care about because I hate this mascara. It's very rare that I don't like a mascara, but this one is just so weird. The brush is very wide and plastic and looks like a weird comb. It's so big that I found it awkward to use on my lashes. I made a mess under my eye trying to coat my lashes the first time. The comb thing is so hard and plasticy that it almost seems to catch when you're trying to pull it out of the tube, resulting in this crunchy suction noise.  I did just two coats and it was clumpy. There was no separation of my lashes at all. The photo ended up making my lashes look better than they actually did.. but don't be fooled! 

I don't know if I'll use it up anyways or toss it. I might give it another chance, but I definitely prefer the Maybelline Illegal Lengths I've been using.

fiber/glitter.

I went out to Walmart to grab some thing before my Ottawa trip and I couldn't pass the cosmetics section without taking a look. There I found several new mascaras from various drugstore brands and decided I would pick one out to try. I did a toss up between Maybelline Illegal Length with Fiber Extensions and Revlon Photoready 3D Volume and went with the Illegal Length. It's my first "fiber" mascara and I heard horror stories about getting fibers in eyes and whatnot, but I decided to risk it. 

I like the packaging and brush. The lid twists a lot and actually clicks when it's closed, so you know it's not going to open in your purse or anything. The brush has all these little bristles poking every which way, which I'm pretty sure is to help with lengthening and coverage. I found that it covered everything; even the outermost lashes. 

I don't have a single complaint about the lash fibers. I think they're helpful for lengthening and I want to try more mascaras like this one. 

And of course I looked at nail polish.. it's my weakness. I found Revlon "Whimsical" sitting on a shelf beside Blue Lagoon, completely out of their regular place. It was like somebody else had the idea to buy them together to layer, but changed their mind and dumped them off where they were. I thought about getting Blue Lagoon, too, but I remembered all the complaints about the formula and passed. I put two coats of Whimsical over Sally Hansen Complete Salon "Shell We Dance?"and liked the way it looked. I tried to use Whimsical on its own, but I didn't like it at all. It needs SOMETHING else to it, in my opinion. 

I'm a big fan of all the hex glitters that have popped up in the past few months. I almost have all of the Revlon ones except Blue Mosaic. I'm still kicking myself for not buying it when I first saw it.

I think I'm going to go buy more nail polish I don't need tomorrow. Yeeaah.

I FINALLY HAVE A LIP BUTTER

And it has lived up to all my expectations. I love it. I want more! I have become a monster that hoards all things Revlon and of the lip butter variety.

I bought Candy Apple because it was one of the first ones I saw and liked, and I had an event I was attended that suggested "wearing a bright lip," so why not? It's a really pretty orange-red colour, and can be built up. You can wear this as cheer or as close to opaque as you'd like, which makes it really versatile for the brighter and darker colours. I found it to be even a little bit staining, which I don't mind for reds. When it starts to fade and you feel like you need to apply more, you don't look so horrible because your lips are still a tiny bit red.

It doesn't feel dry on my lips and it's easy to apply. I seriously love the formula and I want to try some more of these. They are $7.49 at the Walmart in my city.

Next, I decided to indulge and buy myself one new OPI polish. I never, EVER buy OPI because it is so expensive and hard to find. I can't justify $10-12 on one polish. But I have been lusting over Excuse Moi! from the Muppet Collection for a while now and decided to just go for it. No complaints on the colour AT ALL: it's perfect. I am so in love with the glitter. I notice the green and silver bits the most and it makes it so unique. My problem is the formula. I tried it twice. The first time was with base coat, two coats, and no topcoat. It chipped on the very tips of my nails maybe the second day. I fixed up little spots over the course of that week because I loved it so much and didn't want to take it off yet. The second time, I tried base coat, two coats, and a topcoat. It chipped just hours after I did it and the second day, it peeled off in chunks off my nails! I seriously wanted to cry. I paid so much for a polish I love that won't even stay on. I read some more reviews on blogs and stuff and everybody has said they noticed it chips easier with the glitter. I wish I could find a miracle product that will make this stay for at least five days!

After the second time it came off, I decided to just go with glitterless polish. I picked out Revlon Blackberry, and let me tell you, this bottle is OLD. It think it has to be at least 14 years old. I remember stealing it from my mom when I lived in my old, old, old house. I looked it up and I guess this colour is still around. 

It is darker in real life and looks copper/brown/gold/dark red, depends on the lighting. It reminds me of Maybelline Autumn Leaves! 

What are your favourite lip butter colours? What is the last thing you bought that has disappointed you?

On The Prowl, good food, + a friend

I think this blog will be infinitely boring if I leave out the rest of my life besides buying and using cosmetics. I used to have another blogger site where I posted everything and anything, but it has since been destroyed a little. Some photos and posts are missing in places, so it's a mess. I created this because I thought I wanted to only use it for a beauty blog, but I think I would blog a lot more if I posted other things. Anyways.

I came back to school from my fall semester reading week on Saturday night, and guess what was hanging on my door!? Two roses! I had no idea who they were from (and my boyfriend got a little upset and thought it was another boy ;-b), but I quickly found out my friend across the hall had put them there. They're so pretty! No one has ever given me flowers before.

So after I got settled and started unpacking, I decided I needed a really good meal. I made grilled salmon and teriyaki rice. Observe:

Seriously, it was so good.

The most important thing I wanted to post about, though, was the other three Wet N' Wild On The Prowl nail polishes I found after I picked up Cougar Attack. I loved it so much, but unfortunately it peeled off the next day. I didn't have a base coat or anything, so I'm hoping next time I try it things will work out better.

Now I have (L-R): Cougar Attack, Correction Tape, Behind Closed Doors, and Tangled In My Web.

 

 

Today I tried Behind Closed Doors (two coats) over Avon Matte Black As Night. It isn't a very good photo, but you can see the glitter pieces sharp on my pinky and ring finger! I love it. It's identical to Revlon's Facets of Fuchsia, except red instead of purple.

I'm on the hunt for a dark-medium blue now. TARDIS blue.

Unexpected shopping

I stopped in a Superstore in my hometown tonight to see if coffee was on sale and decided it might be worthwhile to check out their beauty/cosmetics department. I have been in the store a million times and never thought about looking at shampoo or makeup or whathaveyou because.. well, it's a grocery store. I don't think about makeup when I'm buying food. But I'm really glad I went because I found some of the On The Prowl Wet N' Wild polishes I've been looking for!

My tiny haul: Nivea Smooth Replenishing hand cream, Wet N' Wild Cougar Attack, Maybelline Great Lash (BIG) mascara (Brownish Black).

























I don't know about anyone else, but this Nivea hand cream has been the only thing I've used besides The Body Shop Body Butters all year. They're usually about $5 in any drugstore. It's not greasy and it SAVED my hands last winter when I used it for the first time. I'm prone to dry skin and rashes during the winter since I always work in drive thrus and have my hands stuck out in the wind and cold and snow. I'd recommend it since it's cheap and works for me!

Cougar Attack has bee on my wishlist for a couple weeks now. It wasn't sitting on a shelf or in any display, just on its own in a random section, so I snatched it up. I think they also had Ready To Pounce, Tangled In My Web, and Behind Closed Doors. I didn't really think of grabbing anything else at the time because I was so happy to find this one, but I'm going back to double check and buy some more tomorrow.

Ugh, it's so perfect. The colour is a medium, sheer brown and the glitter is small and copper/orange. This was two coats, no base and no top coat. My nail polishes and stuff are at school right now and I'm only home for the week and didn't bring anything along. It's really bumpy without a top coat; I'd recommend one. It dried really quickly. I just love it so much! I apologize for my sad, chewed up fingers. I'm still trying to ditch the nibbling habit.

I just bought the mascara because I needed a new one. I didn't really choose it for any particular reason. I'm not picky with my mascaras. I like the colours of the tube and my "regular" old Great Lash worked good enough last time I bought one. I know, those are probably junky reasons. Oh, well.

Well, that was what I did before coming home for a boring night of pizza and Tumblr. I want to buy more thingssssSs. I really hope I can get Tangled In My Web, because I came up with an awesome idea. I'm not sure if it's been done (it should be, because the theory/mental image in my head looks so cute), but I want to do a half moon manicure with the bottom green and the rest of the nail pink, with TIMB over the pink part. Boom - watermelons.

Brisk Blue

I only get to paint my nails really once a week. I used to be obsessed with polishes and I do have a huge collection back at home.. except my job doesn't allow polish. I wore it to work the first week and simply received a slap on the wrist and a warning, but the next time, they made me go and buy remover and remove my polish and come back to finish working. Kind of ridiculous for a coffee shop, but that rule is absolutely serious business. I try to paint my nails Monday and remove it by Friday night; I get the best of both worlds.

Anyways, recently I've decided I'm really in love with blue. I don't wear blue, I don't even normally like blue.. but for some reason, blue nails have won my heart over. I'm really picky with colours, though. I won't just wear any blue. I went out looking for one to buy, but nothing was THE colour I was imagining. I borrowed this Sally Hansen polish in Brisk Blue from a friend and it satisfied my craving for the week. 

I think it chipped the second or third day, but I didn't use any base or top coat at all. It actually does dry fast and I used two coats. I don't know, it's not bad or amazing.. simply average. I'm glad I borrowed it and didn't buy it myself.

Here are the polishes I brought with me (and have bought since) to school.
L-R: Sally Hansen Crackle overcoat Fractured Foil, unnamed or since rubbed off LA colors (my favourite red), Avon Speed Dry Floraluscious, Mark Trend Mini nail lacquer Mode, Revlon Craving Coral, Revlon Top Speed Guava.

L-R: another unnamed LA colours polish, Sally Hansen Salon Maniure Shell We Dance?, Avon Nailwear Pro Venus, OPI You Don't Know Jacques, Sally Hansen Brisk Blue, Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Nude.

I don't have a ton of places to shop and buy the expensive, brand name polishes that a lot of bloggers use.. I have a hard enough time finding OPI. On my nail wishlist right now:

All I want for Christmas..