Sixteen92 You Who Swallowed A Falling Star perfume oil - Review

It's been a looooong time since I reviewed any indie perfume oils, and I have a backlog of them. I'm going to start with something from one of my favorite brands - Sixteen92! This was a limited edition scent, but bottles are always floating around on destash lists - hopefully this helps anyone who is undecided on if they want to try it!

Holiday Anti-Haul

It feels like holiday releases start earlier and earlier each year, and there are more and more products to salivate over. However, I've tried to become more conscious of my makeup collection, not to mention my makeup spending. I know Anti-Hauls are super popular, but I still wanted to do my own. The fall sale season has mostly passed, but there are still a few Sephora and Ulta coupons around, so this list isn't too too late!

November 2017 Favorites!

As the year comes to an end, I find myself in a serious makeup rut. I've been doing the same look over and over - winged liner, rosewood lip, and a mostly nude blush. It's my go-to look, and it works for me, but not being inspired sucks. November's favorites are a few of the staples that I've been using while I try and work myself back into doing more varied makeup. These are all great products, and a couple are even new! (To me, at least, they've been out for a little bit.)

Recent Repurchases

I love new product hauls, but I also love seeing what products people come back to time and time again. This is a bunch of products I've repurchased recently (thanks, Ulta points!) and a little bit about why I love each one.

October Empties

Another month, more empties! I'm really happy that I'm sticking to getting a monthly empties post in, instead of hoarding trash for months at a time. As always, lots and lots of skincare. This month has a decent amount of hair and body care as well. I go through makeup less frequently, but there's a couple of items that I finished up in October. Read on if you're interested in some quick thoughts on the products I finished.

October 2017 Favorites!

October has come and gone far too quickly (isn't that always the case?) and November is here and there is a chill in the air.  Most of this month's favorites have been showcased either on previous posts, or on my Instagram - but that's what makes them favorites, right?

September Empties

True to my word in my August empties post, I'm back with September's empties! It makes me happy to get rid of my literal bag of garbage aka empties underneath my vanity more than 3 times a year. As you can see, I go through skincare items much more frequently than makeup items thanks to single use sheet masks. I haven't been sheet masking as often as I'd like...I need to get back into the habit! (...because I have an entire drawer stuffed with masks!)

September 2017 Favorites!

Every month I try to focus on the products I enjoyed using the most, whether they be new acquisitions or old standbys. I don't like the idea of featuring products released that month and that are never heard about again - it doesn't feel like a true "favorite" to me. This month I have a few newer items, but I've really grown to like them - and I still find myself reaching for them even now (at the end of October when this post should have been done weeks ago, shhhh!)

Recent Repuchases

There's always an emphasis on the new new in the beauty community - I fall victim to it as well. I love new items, but I also like hearing about staples that are bought time and time again. Here are my recently repurchased products - still technically a "haul," but a haul of tried and true products.

Recent Purchases

Since I happen to pick up one or two new items frequently, it would be really annoying to have constant "haul" posts. Instead, I like to have a Recent Purchases post every once in a while to show off all my new goodies! I've purchased these things over the past couple of months, and have some first impressions to share.

August Empties

Every time I tell myself I'm going to do an empties post, I hoard a bunch of garbage and then I forget. When I have way too much garbage, I get fed up and toss it out instead of doing a quick post. Thankfully, I caught myself at the beginning of this month! Took a photo, tossed everything out, and started a new bag for empties. Here's all the stuff I finished up in August!

August 2017 Favorites!

It's not the end of September, so I'm not THAT late in posting this! The end of summer (or rather, all of summer...) is hard for me in terms of makeup (I hate humidity), so my favorites this month are light, easy items from my makeup, skincare, and haircare stashes.

Wishlist Wednesday!

It's been awhile since my last wishlist post, and with all of the holiday and fall releases coming out, I felt like it was as good a time as any to update my wishlist!

Please enjoy my Photoshop skills. Product shots courtesy of Sephora, Stila, and BeautySesh

July 2017 Favorites!

Another summer month has past, and I managed to not melt in the process. This month's favorite's have a bunch of warm weather staples, and some warm weather colors.

Beautibi Haul & First Impressions

After seeing many Beautbi packages come across Fifty Shades of Snails' Instagram feed, I finally succumbed to temptation and placed an order myself! Beautibi's About page describes the shop as "A boutique Asian skincare + lifestyle destination, created with the intention of introducing innovative products and brands from Taiwan and South Korea." I've been intrigued by the shop after Fiddy's posts (she is very, very good at influencing!) and following the shop itself on Instagram, so I was excited to pick out some masks!

Sephora Play! - The Iconic Edition

In mid-June, Sephora released a VIB Rouge exclusive Play! box. The description of the box promised a set of all luxury brand minis for the price of $20. In general, I like my Sephora boxes, so I decided to go for it - $20 for some high end goodies sounded like a good deal to me! Of course, the package arrived while I was on vacation, so I had to wait to rip into it. However, I'm super pleased with my purchase!

Empties - Bath, Body, & Hair

Some of the most beat up looking empties...bath and hair stuff! I guess because they live in the shower, they get wrecked looking. These are from January-April of this year. I think I'm missing a few, as the bathroom garbage can is just right there.

June 2017 Favorites!

Summer has started, and therefore my makeup has changed to be lighter to try and keep up with the humidity. My favorites from the last month have all been about getting the most out of the smallest amount of product, so I don't have as much makeup melting off of my face! (I don't do well in heat.)

Glossier Haul & First Impressions

Glossier is a brand that has been making more and more waves in the beauty community lately - new releases all lining up with the barely-there makeup "cool girl" aesthetic caught my eye. I'm not one to skimp on makeup, but since my dedication to skincare has really paid off, I can see the appeal of a hint of coverage and color. After seeing friends pick up some products, and getting a recommendation for their skin tint to help bring some life into a bb cream formula I really like, I decided to place an order. I was super excited to play with these items and write about my first impressions.

June Sephora Play! Box

It's been a while since I discussed the monthly Sephora Play! box, so I decided to jump back in with June's box. The theme for this month was Summer Starters - all products to help keep your face and hair in check as the weather heats up (and where I am, gets bogged down with humidity.) Let's take a look at what I got this month!

Skincare Empties!

I'm still writing up mini reviews on my empties from January through the end of April...which has convinced me that four month periods are too long for racking up empties! However, it does let me see that I actually use up a lot of products! Here is all the skincare that I finished up in those four months, along with my thoughts!

Wishlist Wednesday!

Happy Wednesday! I wanted to try and organize my wishlist into something other than a nebulous list in my head, so why not make it a blog post? There's a bunch of stuff I'm always wanting, and then I forget about it...until I buy something different or see someone with the thing I wanted!  Hopefully, in a couple of months I can have some of these crossed off, or maybe the "need" of having them will have passed.

May 2017 Favorites!

Another month = more favorites! I went pretty crazy during the April VIB Rouge sale, and I fell in love with some of those products, and they've made this month's list.

Empties - Sheet Masks

More empties from January-April - sheet masks! It looks like a lot, but I still have a ton more hanging around in my drawers...sometimes after work and the gym, I'm too tired to deal with a mask. Which doesn't make too much sense, I know, but if I sit down with the mask on, I'm not likely to get back up to finish the rest of my skincare! But here is a quick review of all of the masks I used in the beginning of the year.

Empties - Mini Madness

I really need to do empties posts more often! These are all my mini and deluxe sample empties from January through April. I get a lot of minis from Sephora Play!, promo codes, coupons, and point perks. I love minis, and I go through a lot of them!

This is not the nicest photo, I am sorry.

March 2017 Favorites!

Getting back into the swing of things - only a month late typing this up! (I've had the photo for ages though...) Let's just get to it!

Epically Epic Spring Lip Balms - Review

Even though I still haven't finished up my fall balms from Epically Epic, I could not resist when the shop re-opened and put out new balms for spring! Some of these have an island theme, but I got a few additional balms as well.

March Sephora Play! Box

March's theme is The Gleam Team, focusing on products that highlight and shimmer. It's finally starting to warm up, so it's nice to see some lighter, springier products to try! Unfortunately, i was kinda meh on this month's box, only because a lot of the product don't work for me. The value is good though - I definitely prefer the Sephora box over other subscription boxes due to the brands that are given out each month. But let's take a look at March's offerings!

Recent Repurchases

As much as I love buying a ton of NEW stuff, I get a lot of satisfaction from repurchasing items. It means I've finished something, and I don't have to think about finding a new product to fill a hole in my stash. A lot of my staples are skincare, as I go through that much more than I do any makeup products. Here's a few of my recent repurchases!

Haus of Gloi Fig & Pear Perfume Oil - Review

It's been a while since I've had a new indie perfume! Fig & Pear was apart of Haus of Gloi's Valentine's Day collection this year. This was the only new scent I bought, the rest of my order was all First Blush scented!

Fig & Pear is described as fig with juicy ripe pear. Opening the bottle, the scent is fruity and slightly spicy. The fig note is definitely more prominent, there's a sweetness underneath, but no strong pear note. On the skin, the fig is very prominent, with a slightly peppery scent. As it dries, the fig is still the star of the show - on me, I never got much of a pear scent.

The scent itself hung around on my skin for 4-5 hours, and had a nice throw - nothing too overwhelming. Unfortunately, I had been hoping for more of a pear scent. Overall, I wasn't too much of a fan. I even let this sit for another few weeks to see if the scent would change after resting more, which was not the case.

Pros:

• Decent longevity
• Non overwhelming throw

Cons:

• Not enough pear!

Haus of Gloi Fig and Pear perfume oil (limited edition) - $15 for 5mL

Review - 2.5/5

February Sephora Play! Box

February's theme for Sephora's subscription box was The Soft Side. The products came in a dusty rose colored satin bag. I was super excited to get the NARS mini, as I'd been eyeing the product for a while. Other than that, the products this month were somewhat lackluster.

Too Faced Lip Injection Glossy in Milkshake - I honestly don't know what the box curators were thinking with this one, this shade doesn't look good on ANYONE and it came in everyone's box. I tried it even though I knew I wouldn't like the shade. On me, it was fairly sheer but still put a lighter tone on my lips. The gloss had a light, minty scent. The "injection" part kicked in after about two minutes, and it was pretty intense - definitely not for anyone who hates that tingly feeling. I got a decent "bee stung" lip out of it that lasted for 20-30 minutes. The gloss itself felt heavy on my lips, and was strongly scented. I personally wouldn't go out of my way for this shade, but the plumping wasn't too bad. The mini gloss is 0.03 oz, and a full size is $22 for 0.14 oz

Origins GinZing Refreshing eye cream - I don't mind eye cream minis because it keeps me from having to buy a full size eye cream. This cream from Origins claims to be a brightening cream, and it is brightening due to the face that the cream itself is super shimmery. I didn't like how this looked under eye makeup, and there's no need for a shimmery nighttime eye cream, so I won't be purchasing a full size of this when I'm done with the mini. The mini tube is 0.17 oz, with a full size at $30 for 0.5 oz.

Clinique Pep-Start Hydroblur Moisturizer - This product felt more like a pore blurring primer than a moisturizer. It was very silicone-y, and didn't provide much hydration to my skin. I didn't like how heavy this sat on my skin either. Definitely a miss for me. The sample size is 0.24 oz, and there are two sizes available for purchase - 0.5 oz for $9.50, and 1.7 oz for $29.50.

Sephora Lashcraft mascara - I never mind mascara samples, because they need to be tossed so often for sanitary reasons. This mascara claims to lengthen and add volume, but I found that it did some lengthening, a lot of really good lash separation, but not much volumizing with one coat. I was able to do two coats with minimal clumping, which yielded much nicer results than a single coat.. The brush wasn't a massive pine tree brush, and I was able to navigate my small corner lashes with it. I don't know if I'd go out of my way to purchase, as there are formulas I like more, but I had no complaints about this mascara. The mini tube is 0.094 oz, and there are two sizes available for purchase - travel size at 0.169 oz for $7, and 0.33 oz for $12. (The prices for Sephora products are very good value, as my drugstore mascaras range from $4-$9.)

NARS Velvet Lip Glide in Bound - This was the product I was super excited to get this month! I had been eyeing these for a while, and had heard good things. The Velvet Lip Glide is not quite a gloss, but not a liquid lipstick - it had good color payoff but didn't dry down. I was hoping for a bit more longevity, and this was prone to transfer as it never really dried. I'm not sure if I want a full size, but I'm definitely going to keep wearing this one. I just wish it had blown me out of the water right away! The mini lip glide is 0.07 oz, and a full size is 0.2 oz for $26.

Marc Jacobs Decadence - This month's perfume sample is a bit disappointing, because it was previously available in a promo code from late last year. I don't exactly hate the scent - it's fruity with a bit of spice to it, and not overly floral. I don't need to buy it, because I have two sample vials now! The sample is 0.04 oz, and a rollerball is $29 for 0.33 oz. (There are also 1 oz, 1.7 oz, and 3.4 oz bottles, too!)

Empties - Mini Madness

I get a lot of deluxe samples - from my subscription boxes, promo codes, and from Sephora's rewards program. I've been making a more conscious effort to use them up, both to just cycle through products, and to see if there's anything worth picking up in a full size! Since I'm trying to record my empties throughout the year, I thought it would be fun to keep track of all of the minis I go through as well! These are minis that I finished up at the end of last 2016.

Mini garbage! So cute!

February 2017 Favorites!

I've gotten SO many new things over the past few months, it's been a bit overwhelming. Because I have so many new goodies, I haven't had a chance to really give everything a full test yet. My favorites from February are some past staples, and some new products I haven't mentioned yet.

Bite Beauty Agave Lip Balm - Review

I'm a big fan of Bite Beauty, it's no secret. When they announced their Everyday Agave Lip Collection late last year, I was intrigued. I have and own the Agave Lip Mask, and the idea of a matching lip balm was interesting. I find the lip mask to be a bit goopy, so I wanted to give the lip balm a shot. (Not to mention that it's cheaper than my beloved Fresh Lip Treatment...)

Bite Beauty Agave Lip Balm

Epically Epic Fall Lip Balms - Review

I sang the praises of Epically Epic balms last year when I reviewed some of their summer and permanent flavors. Of course, right after I wrote that review, the shop released their fall offerings. I am a total sucker for fall flavors, especially pumpkin (almost) anything. I ordered three more balms, and they are currently in rotation since the weather is colder.

Sugar Cookie, PSL, and Pumpkin Pie balms!

End of 2016 Empties

I'm trying to track actually using up products, so I began saving some empties from the end of 2016. Throughout the rest of the year I hope to have more items that I've used (there's a distinct lack of sheet masks here!) but I wanted to get started with what I had.

Hoarded trash from last year!