A little bit of snark, and a lot of makeup
I have to admit I’m feeling a bit of blogging ennui lately. If you haven’t noticed, the frequency of my posts have slowed down a bit. I just seem to have lost a ton of my motivation lately. Hopefully I’ll come out of this rut soon enough! That being said, there is my ipsy May bag!
What’s inside?!
This is a super late review. I bought this in early March, along with my first OCC Lip Tar. Well, actually my boyfriend bought it for me. But either way, I’ve sat on this for a looong time now. This is the Sephora Disney Jasmine Collection The Palace Jewel Compact Mirror. Whew. What a mouthful.
Sephora Disney Jasmine The Palace Jewel Compact Mirror
Here’s a just-because sale if you’ve been lemming some Sugarpill! Take 20% off your purchase of pressed and loose shadows today, Wednesday May 8th. No code required; the discount is automatically applied on the site. I checked and it doesn’t seem that palettes/sets are included, just singles.
Are you getting anything?
Recently I’ve heard a lot of good things about ipsy, the beauty subscription service started by Michelle Phan. I was also attracted to the price ($10 as opposed to the standard $20, with free shipping, plus you get a makeup bag) so a few months ago, I joined their waitlist. It opened in early March for me, and I received my first bag in mid April. Let’s take a look at my ipsy April Bag!
What’s inside?!
I purchased the products featured in this post. All opinions are my own. This post contains an affiliate/referral link at the end.
I’ve got a bit of the blogging blahs. I’m in my final quarter of grad school, so it’s true I’m a bit busier than normal, but even so I’ve been forgoing blogging for lazing about or playing video games. I’ve already roundly broken my New Year’s resolution of 3 posts a week, and I guess that just made me feel like I’ve already failed so why keep going? D: That’s a horrible philosophy. Anyway! I joked that I might not get this box up in time before my Julep May box, and I was right. I got my May Maven box yesterday so I was like, “Oops. Better put up my Julep Maven April box…”
April’s theme was Turn on the Brights. I honestly didn’t like any of the color combinations offered -that- much, but I finally settled on the Bombshell box which came with Ally, Janel and the Mighty Nail & Cuticle Serum. The “free” gift was a stick of rock candy. Cute, but rock candy is pretty gross after the initial novelty factor. I mean, it’s literally just sugar. 
Descriptions are taken from the Julep website.
Left: Janel
Right: Ally
Janel is described as a “pink raspberry frost.” This is a little more fuchsia than raspberry to me, but lovely nonetheless.
Ally is described as “electric blueberry frost.”
The formulas on these were the best of all the Julep shades I’ve tried so far. They flowed nicely and self-leveled well. They were not goopy, thicky or hard to work with at all.
Left: Janel
Right: Ally
The Mighty Nail & Cuticle Serum claims that its peptide-infused formula helps nails rebuild keratin and collagen. It comes in a click-pen applicator, much like YSL’s Touche Eclat or Stila’s Lip & Cheek Stains. The serum is very light and quick absorbing, making it ideal for on-the-go application but even after continued use for a week, I saw no visible improvement in my cuticles. I left it in my desk at work for quick touch-ups.
Overall, this month’s box was a bit of a dud for me. I have cuticle creams and oils and serums out the wazoo, and the shades offered were not that unique, in my opinion. Still, the formulas of the polishes were great, the best of the ones I’ve tried so far.
I’m very excited about the Julep Maven May box, which I’ve already got in my grubby paws. I need to photograph it asap so I can try to get it up… well, hopefully before my Julep June box!
What do you think of the shades in this month’s box?
If you’re interested in becoming a Julep Maven, please consider using my referral link here; I’ll receive Jules, their version of points if you sign up. Otherwise, feel free to ignore this!
So, I’ve been a big fan of Dove’s Real Beauty ads. I won’t get into a cynical tear-down of how this is a clever marketing strategy ironically engineered by a giant global conglomerate which, in the same breath, puts out the very same ads which play off men and women’s self-image and body esteem issues. (For reference, Dove is owned by Unilever which, among a myriad of other brands, owns Axe/Lynx deodorant and White Beauty, a brand which gained some international attention for implying that white, fair skin was more beautiful than dark skin.)
OK, so I said I wasn’t going to get into it, but I totally did.
Anyway, my point is that, like many other things in this world, it’s easy to lose sight of the positives by trying not to be naive. Sometimes this is necessary. But marketing has always been most successful when it’s about showing you what you’re missing, what you (think you) need. That’s just a fact.
So, it might be a drop in the bucket, but I think despite the intentions, it has a good message.
This is the latest from the Dove Real Beauty campaign, and I think it’s one of the most powerful. Basically, a forensic artist draws a woman based on how she views herself, and how another person sees her.
Click here to watch the video on YouTube
Have you seen this ad yet? What do you think?
I used to keep a separate blog which discussed race and gender relations in the US, but I honestly found it tiring after a while. It’s something which is still very important to me, especially in how I approach my Masters work, but I think I’m just not cut out for activism blogging. To say the least, beauty blogging is my escape.
On that note, my heart has been sick about the tragedy yesterday in Boston. I hope that everyone reading this is safe and sound, and so are their family and friends.
There is a lot to be sad and angry and upset about in this world, but even at the worst of times, we should try to focus on the beautiful things in life. In the end, that’s all you can do.
I purchased the products featured in this post. This post contains an affiliate link at the end.
I’m a sucker for a grab bag. I know that, generally, they’re not always a great value, that they tend to contain old or discontinued stock, and that you might end up paying for a bunch of stuff you don’t want or need anyway. Doesn’t matter – the allure of receiving a package of mysterious goodies is too much for me. So when I got the email for the Julep Spring Mystery box, I couldn’t resist.
This was priced at $24.99, and promised at least $70 worth of product inside. One lucky box would also contain a pair of diamond earrings. Here are the contents of my Julep Spring Mystery Box.
I purchased the products featured in this post. There is an affiliate link at the end of this post.
So, I’m only a month behind on this. Oops. This is the Julep March Maven Box I received, and the theme was “Get Ready to Play.” Although my style profile was the “Classic with a Twist,” I chose the “It Girl” box instead because I liked the colors better. That’s one thing I love about the Julep Maven program — although you get matched up with a style profile, you’re not locked into it, and you can even choose to pass on the month’s box entirely if you wish.
Julep March Maven Box
All products featured in this post were purchased by me.
*taps mic* Hello? Is this thing on? Anyone still listening?
I can’t believe it’s been almost a month since I’ve done an actual, honest-to-Jim post. I’m still trying to catch up with school stuff but I found a bit of time, so consider this a half-post, or a three-quarter-post if you’re feeling particularly generous.
I hung out with my best friend, Maggie, last weekend and we decided to play around with makeup, as girls do. She didn’t have any base on hand with her, and although I have a lot of mismatched foundations (a plethora, some might say…), we’re so different in skintone that none of mine even remotely fit her. (Plus I’ve got golden undertones whereas she has pink.)
I did, however, have a concealer which matched her almost exactly, so I used that to cover up her spots and to even out her tone.
I have nothing to disclose.
Small break from my grad school stupor… I learned about this a few weeks ago, made a mental note to post about it and then of course promptly forgot. Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics (otherwise known as OCC) is releasing a limited edition lip tar named January Rising to help fund the sexual reassignment surgery of one of their staff, January.
Photo: Stella Rose Saint Clair (from the indiegogo page)
The full background and details can be found on the indiegogo page. The lip tar is actually being distributed as a “perk” for donating $25 to the campaign. (Just for reference, a lip tar regularly retails for $18.) This is a flexible funding campaign, which means that even if a campaign does not reach its goal, it will receive all of the funds donated. As of this writing, there are 12 days left (closes midnight Monday, April 08) with $24,997 raised of the $30,000 goal.
The color is honestly not one that I think will suit me, and it certainly won’t be one that I will wear often. However, I’m very devoted to LGBT* causes and with the SCOTUS right now hearing on the constitutionality of gay marriage, I think it’s very appropriate to post about this. I also adore OCC lip tars, with my first one ever being NSFW (I bought it a few weeks ago and haven’t been able to post about it yet!).
I think the ban on gay marriage is very close to being broken down, but I am gearing up for the battles ahead. I foresee trans* issues being the next front that we’ll have to prepare for, so I hope that if you support LGBT* causes that you’ll consider donating to this campaign.
I understand that some of you reading this blog may have differing opinions; I ask that if you comment, please do so with respect and compassion for everyone.
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