February Birchbox and Ipsy Bag Reviews

March 13, 2013August 25, 20162 Comments

I wouldn’t consider myself a make up expert by any means. I’m definitely a newbie when it comes to these things, but I do like to try new products, which is why I subscribed to Birchbox and, later, Ipsy. If it weren’t for Birchbox and Ipsy, I’d have missed out on products I truly love and use every day so I try to share my findings on these products with the people in my life which now includes all of you. {Disclaimer: My nose doesn’t work very well so if fragrance reviews were what you are hoping to find, I likely won’t be reviewing them.}

Birchbox

February Birchbox

I honestly have to admit, I haven’ been thrilled with Birchbox lately. Their boxes have been sort of blah lately. I don’t hate the products, but they certainly don’t have the “Oh YAY!” factor lately like they used to. So let’s get started {I’m going left to right top, top to bottom.}:

Bi-Facil Eye Make Up Remover – Curiously Birchbox is not selling this on their site. I wasn’t super impressed with this product. Definitely not worth the $28 dollars Lancome is selling the 4.2 oz size for. It will definitely make a great addition to my travel bag though, and I will likely save the bottle because it really is just the perfect size.
Skin & Co Roma Sicilian Body Gel – This is yet another product unavailable for purchase on Birchbox’s site. In fact, I wasn’t even able to find it on the manufacturers site, which is probably not a bad thing. I didn’t dislike this product, it just didn’t do anything for me. This will again go into my ever growing selection of travel toiletries.
Color Club Nail Polish in Wild Cactus – I’m not sure what the “wild cactus” thing is about. It’s certainly not very cactus-colored, maybe a more Christmas colored polish. I’m typically not a fan of Color Club polishes because they don’t dry well on my nails, but this one faired okay. It’s a very deep emerald green. I used it on all of my fingers, with my Nailtini Millionare polish on the ring fingers as an accent nail. It was very St. Patty’s Day themed.
The Ghirardelli chocolate square was admittedly the first thing to disappear from the box. It was a cute touch to get some chocolate in a Valentine’s Day box, but I was a bit let down. I like trying new and exciting products I might not otherwise know about, not things I can buy at any nearby store or find in my cabinet already.
Last but not least, a headband by Twistband – I’m not typically a headband person, but this style of headband changed all of that. I found myself wearing this all the time just to keep the little hairs out of my face. I’ve used Twistband hair ties before. One came in my very first Birchbox, but it quickly frayed. I received another one recently as well, but I seem to have misplaced it. Needless to say I’m big fan of these elasticized ribbon hair products, but I’ve found the ones from Mane Message stay in my hair better.

Ipsy

February Ipsy Bag

I have to hand it to Ipsy. Unlike Birchbox, Ipsy’s been sending out fantastic bags chocked full of goodies lately. {Again, I’m going to try to go from left to right, top to bottom.}

First up is the Flawless & Poreless primer from Pixi – I mentioned this in my February Favorites post. If you read that post, I was coming to the end of a tube of my go to Too Faced Primed & Poreless primer and was debating on which of these two to purchase. I like this primer. I think it’s really similar to the Too Faced primer, but in the end it came down to convenience for me. Both are about the same price. The Pixi primer is even available at Target, but I was already placing an order online at Sephora. Should I need a primer in a pinch though, I like knowing this is available.
Coastal Scents Eyeshadows – This is my second set of coastal scents shadows from Ipsy. This set was a little more out there in terms of color, but they are my university’s colors, so I guess it’s a good game day shadow set. They come off as more orange on here, but they are really yellows, golds, and blacks.
Lash Cards – Truthfully, I didn’t try this product. Maybe it’s just me but I find the concept silly and slightly odd. I’ll save these for a boring day when I plan on experimenting with things or possibly a special occasion, but truthfully, I’m usually pretty careful with my eye makeup.
Gel Eyeliner by MicaBeauty – I also included this in my February Favorites post. I had never tried a gel liner before, but I was pleasantly surprised by this. It was quite easy to apply and gave a ton of drama to my eyes. I see this sample going a long way.
Smokey Lash Kapow Mascara by Pop – I wasn’t exactly sure what the mysterious black flowery tube was when I pulled it out of the bag, but I assumed correctly that it must have been mascara. I’m a big fan of Sephora’s Full Action Mascara, but I honestly switch mascaras every day. I probably have about 8 in my makeup drawer right now, and this one was one of my favorites. It did a good job at separating my lashes but didn’t give me quite the “Kapow” I was hoping for, but it was nice on the days I didn’t want want to look like I was wearing a lot of eye makeup. It’s more expensive than my Sephora fave so wouldn’t repurchase it. It wasn’t a bad mascara, but for the price, I don’t think it’s any better than others.

Overall, I liked both of these bags, but Ipsy won hands down. I’ve just received my March Birchbox and Ipsy bag, and from first glance, I think Birchbox may have redeemed themselves. I’m excited to try some new products, check back next month for the March review.

March 2013 Goals

March 5, 2013February 21, 2016Leave a comment

Can you believe it’s March already?! I know I can’t. February flew by. So how did I do on my goals and what are my goals for March? Keep reading to find out.

A recap on February’s projects and goals:

~~I want to finish reading Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking~~ – Finished. Great book. I highly recommend it to anyone feeling bit lost in an extroverted world. If you don’t feel like reading the book, Susan Cain sums up the book quite well in her Ted Talk.

Another goal is to finish patching the walls in my bedroom and bathroom – I didn’t do so well on this one. Most of the holes are patched in my bedroom, but I still have sanding to do. I also have to take a few things (light fixtures, shelves, etc.) and patch those holes.

I’m participating in FMS’s February photo challenge as part of my resolution to take more picture -This was a total bust, but you can see my February recap here.

I’m going to work on remembering how grateful I am to have such an incredible boyfriend. – This was also a total bust given that we broke up 4 days into the month. In the past month, I’ve learned a lot though. Mainly that our relationship was not at all as strong as I thought it was.

I’m going to work on hopefully repairing some friendships that I royally messed up. – I tried, I really did, but some people are unwilling to forgive people. I went out and bought cute little gifts and included apology letters, but when I went to deliver them, the response was a wonderful, “You really thought that was a good idea?”

and I have some cute little projects for Valentine’s Day that I’d like to complete. – Another bust, Valentine’s day just wasn’t my day this year.

So 1/6… Ouch. Let’s hope March is better.

Now for March’s goals and projects.

My focus this month will be paying attention to my budget. I’m blessed to not have any sort of college debt thanks to my mother working for the University I attended for my undergraduate degree. Now that I work there, they’re paying for my graduate degree as well. I have a well-paying job with awesome perks (like the brand new MacBook Pro they gave me to replace my old dying one.) It’s really allowed me to do some great things like help out my mother financially. However, I’m not immune to unnecessary purchases, and I always feel like I could do better even if I’m not doing badly.

I already save $315 dollars from every pay check. I also have around $60 dollars that I put aside every paycheck for a few things on my wish list.
New this month is that I’m also setting aside $25 dollars from every paycheck so that I have Christmas money. I worked it out and it should add up to about $500 dollars by November plus interest. {Thank you Smartypig. You have been amazing in terms of helping me save.}
I have a few credit cards for various stores that I pay off immediately after buying something. I also have a main card that usually carries a balance, so this month is dedicated to paying that off and keeping it paid off like the other cards.
I’m actively trying to ask myself, “Is this something I really need?” Sometimes it works. Other times, like when I decide to get a few items from Sephora that turns into “Well let’s try this just once, and maybe this too,” and before I know it I have a $160 dollar order. I’ve been tracking my spending more closely with Mint so hopefully I’m on to the right track with that.

Other projects for March

Reading – I’m working on reading both Blogging for Dummies and Blog Inc.
Making progress on my room renovations – I really need to get the painting tackled in my room. March 9th is a Bring your Friends and Family event at IKEA so hopefully I can pick up a few things to get the ball rolling and get my inspiration sparked again.
Completing FMS’s March Photo Challenge.

What are your plans for March? Did you set goals for February? Hopefully you did better than my 1 for 6 tally. Here’s to a great month!

February Photo-a-Day Challenge Recap

February 28, 2013February 21, 2016Leave a comment

In an effort to keep up with my resolution to take more pictures, I decided participating in a photo challenge each month would be a good goal for 2013.

I stumbled across this challenge which seems to be quite popular on Instagram, and I was fairly excited. However, I wish I could say I fully completed the challenge. This month was a massive fail for me in terms of this photo challenge. In fact, I only managed to get to day 10, and I was incredibly shocked when I got my notification that today was the day to post this recap.

In any event, out of the measly 10 photos I have, these are my favorites.

Day 2. Pattern #fmsphotoaday

Day 3. Something beginning with “E” #fmsphotoaday

Day 5. Something you smelled. #fmsphotoaday

Tomorrow begins March’s photo challenge. Visit FatMumSlim to view the March Photo Challenge list and all the lovely information on how to play along.

Here’s to another month down, and a new beginning. See you all tomorrow.

{Sunday Social} Week #2

February 20, 2013January 20, 2015Leave a comment

It’s Sunday Social Time again and this week’s post is all about school. Get ready for a lot of pictures! {And I apologize in advanced, should any of you girls find I posted these pictures… I just had to!}

Biggest Middle school fashion mistake? Oh boy, in middle school, I was obsessed with Limited Too! I had a pair of light blue, glittery, velour flared pants I wore everywhere, including a trip to Hershey Park. Light-blue {almost white} pants and water rides are never a good idea.
Who were your best friends in hs? Pics? I went to a private all-girl high school. Most of my friends good friends in high school were girls I had known since elementary school. We did add a few new people, but for the first two years of high school, everyone from my middle school was very close and we hung out a lot. We even called ourselves the “crew” {as if that was cool or something…}.
8th Grade Graduation – ’04

Year Day – ’06

Senior Prom – ’08

High School Graduation – ’08

First Day of College – ’08

Girls Night Dinner – ’10

College Graduation – ’12
What was a typical weekend like for you in hs? It changed a bit over the years. The first two years were spent mainly with the girls you see above and the rest of the “crew,” but as the years passed, we all started hanging out with boyfriends more on the weekends.
Did you have any boyfriends/girlfriends? Tell us about that. I did. We actually dated off and on for 8 years. There were good times and bad, but overall mainly good memories.
Did you have any secret codes with your friends? Spill your secrets! Ha! My friends and I did have some secret things {at least we thought they were…}. If we didn’t like someone we came up with a “secret” name that wasn’t actually so secret. One of my best friends {she’s in all the pictures above}, who I’ve known since I was 6, and I attempted to come up with a secret code, but it didn’t actually work. Inside jokes… we had a lot of those.
New York Trip Throwback
If you could relive one day/moment/experience from middle school or high school, what would it be? I can’t really pick one day, which is actually surprising. Over the years I’ve grown to love every memory of high school and middle school. Something I never thought I’d do. One memory that was utterly insane was our Senior Year Day. My high school had a competition between classes every year. You got points for participation at events throughout the year and it culminated in “Year Day” which had usual field day games plus some random ones like putting together puzzles. It also had some big point earners focused around a theme: T-Shirt design, Hallway design {We had to design an elaborate walk through display in a hallway of the school}, Skit, Cheer, Songs, and Dance. The key was incorporating all the class mascots {ours was the Pink Panther}, all the class colors {we were red} AND that years theme. Seniors usually won, but my class was notoriously bad, and we usually came in last or close to it. Senior year though, our theme was Disney Movies and we picked Aladdin. By some miraculous event, we came together, and we actually won! The energy in the room as they announced it over the intercom was explosive. Seniors were in tears out of shock and happiness, and of course, the other classes hated us {at least until the next day of school}.

What are your best memories of school? Link up here.

Until next week…

Living a Healthier Lifestyle

February 20, 2013August 25, 2016Leave a comment

One of my overall resolutions is to live a healthier lifestyle. I’ve been one of those lucky ones who have been blessed with a good metabolism, so I’ve never really had to worry about what I eat or exercising for that matter. I’ve also never been the active type, but more of the “sit in front of a computer all day, and watch TV all night” type. But somehow, over the years, I’ve shrunk rather than getting larger. {As shocking as this sounds} most of my clothes from elementary school that I still have {but would never wear} still fit. My clothes from my high school years are actually a few sizes too big now. While I’m thankful for that, I have begun to realize it will likely not last forever, and now that I’m working full time and spend 40 hours or more sitting at a desk in front of a massive 27″ computer screen, I figured now is probably a good time to start making some changes.

The first change I made was cutting the majority of the caffeine out of my life.

Backstory: When I was in high school, I only drank soda. Soda for breakfast, soda for lunch, soda before bed. I would actually have panic attacks if I didn’t have soda. That’s when I realized it was really bad and decided to give up soda. For 2 years, I drank flavored water and teas {and an occasional Sprite}. In college, I developed an unhealthy obsession with Monster energy drinks and was actually buying them by the case. If I wasn’t drinking Monster, it was Mountain Dew. I decided that probably wasn’t great, so I, again, went back to teas and water. Fast forward to the past year or so, I kept up with mainly drinking tea and water, and then my mother bought a Keurig. She was the only coffee drinker in the house so it made sense to her, but the Keurig made it easy to quickly make a cup of coffee and soon everyone in the house was drinking coffee. I would bring a 20oz. travel mug to work each day and on the weekends I’d have at least 2 cups a day.

The first day back to work this year after the holidays, I was dragging my feet as I got ready {because who really wants to go back to work}. I ended up rushing out the door because I like to be early to work, never late, so I quickly threw my lunch together and decided to skip the coffee. More than a month later, and I haven’t had coffee at work. I do have a cup on the weekends, and I occasionally splurge for Starbucks, but overall, the coffee habit is gone. Some afternoons {when it’s really slow at work or I have somewhere to be later that night} I pick up an energy drink from the vending machine, but gone are the days of multiple sodas, energy drinks, and cups of coffee. They’ve been replaced with bottles of water. I’m trying to track my water consumption, and have been using an app on my iPhone called Habits Pro. I got it for free during a sale, but it looks like the developer created a new version that’s free called Track & Share. It’s not the prettiest app, but it’s the best app I found so far.

That leads me to another change, being more active.

My job requires me to sit in front of a computer all day, and although I love the wonderful Apple products my work has provided me with, I’m quickly realizing it’s damaging effects. Sitting in front of a 27″ display has really messed up my eyes. The good thing about all the water I’m drinking now is I’m forced to take more frequent breaks from the computer to walk to the other side of the building where the bathrooms are – good for my eyes, good for my body, and I’m staying hydrated. It’s still a work in progress though and sometimes I do forget to get up and move around. I’m currently saving for FitBit’s new Flex activity tracker which is supposed to be released in the Spring. Until then, I’m using an app on my phone called Moves to track my steps. {I forget to bring my phone with me a lot though so this isn’t too accurate.} I’m hoping that the Flex, given that it’s always on me, will solve that problem.

My third change – exercise.

If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you may have picked up on my latest obsession with workouts from Tone It Up. I know I’m not going to be tiny forever, so I might as well get in the habit of working out. Not too mention, I’d really love to not be out of breath after climbing one flight of stairs or my 10 minute walk from the parking lot to my office. Being able to fit in a size 0 doesn’t mean you’re healthy. Each week, I get an email from Tone It Up with a workout schedule. I plug the workouts into my Filofax and I generally try to stick to them, but sometimes I do change them up. Yesterday for example, I added the Bikini Sculpt workout from the DVD because I wanted more of a challenge. The hardest part of working out for me is getting the motivation to do it. I love the energy I get from working out. I love the results. I love that I can walk to my office without huffing and puffing like the big bad wolf trying to blow down the three little pigs’ houses, but when I get off of work, after 8 hours in front of a computer, I’m ready to be in sweat pants, eating dinner, and watching a movie. So today was day one of my decision to try waking up earlier to work out before work. Needless to say, I woke up early, only to reset my alarm back to it’s normal time and climb back in bed. Tomorrow we’ll try again I guess.

My last change comes out of necessity of the third change – eat healthier.

I’ve never been one to eat much. I don’t pig out on sweets and snacks {typically}, and I’d rather have an apple over a candy bar {or broccoli over french fries} any day. I love food, don’t get me wrong, I do pig out, and I do eat but I hate preparing it, or going to get it for that matter, so it’s easy for me to not eat much. A typical week day for me would probably consist of a granola bar for breakfast; a sandwich on whole wheat bread, apple sauce or cottage cheese, and some snacky item (gummy snacks, chips, wheat thins) for lunch; and dinner is either whatever my mother decides to cook, or some crappy microwaved burrito type thing. That lifestyle probably worked while I was lying around the house all day, but now I’m actually being more active. I’m not working out to lose weight, but to be healthier in general so I’ve had to pay better attention to what I’m eating, and how much so that I’m not dropping weight. I don’t know that I’ll ever be one to count calories or keep a food journal, but for now I’m just trying to eat better foods and a bit more of them.

Do you have any resolutions to be healthier {I assume most people do}? How’s it going for you? Feel free to ask any questions or share tips. I’d love to hear them.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

February 14, 2013January 20, 2015Leave a comment

I hope everyone has a wonderful day today. I don’t have any new content, but I do have some cute valentines day recipes to pass along.

Check out these adorable strawberry ice cream sandwiches from Missy at Pink Pistachio. {I have to admit, I’m totally jealous of how awesome her blog is. Her pictures and family are adorable.}

And for some healthier alternatives, some Valentine’s day treats from the wonderful Tone It Up Girls.

Let me know if you try any of them, and how they turn out.

According to Andrea

Finding ways to help technology make life easier, not more complicated.

Category: Lifestyle