Man Repeller Glossybox January 2013

Are you ready to repel? 

This month Glossybox teamed up with the always sassy Leandra Medine to bring us one of the best Glossyboxes to date. Even better than the box with Ellis Faas and Ole Henricksen? You're asking yourself that right now, aren't you? Maybe. I don't know. You might be thinking about ice cream for all I know. Great, now I am. One Scoop of Rocky Road, please! 

Anyways, to answer the question you may or may not have been asking yourself, yes. It is better than any of the past boxes I've seen. And I've been with Glossybox since day one (customer number 284 here folks!) I've been with them during the good, the bad and the ugly. And regardless of this box being late it was one storm I was willing to weather with them because it was worth it. 

So, let me just start by saying I guess the spoiled brat in me was satisfied when I got this box because it's the box I wanted. Everything down to the tiny packet of goop we were promised. Alright, here it go.

First up is the Estee Lauder Sumptuous Extreme Lash Multiplying Volume Mascara. Wooo! That's a mouth full and a wallet full because at $25 it's a little steep for something I'm just going to coat the tiny hairs around my eyes with. While it is a beautiful and smooth formula, it's just not in this girls budget. I'm sure if I batted my eyelashes smeared with this my husband MIGHT cave and let me have it. But since he brings home the bacon I won't do that. 

Next is the Fresh Umbrian Clay Mattifying Serum. This little number costs $35 for 1 oz. Uhhhh.... I'm pretty sure I have shoes that cost less than that and those go on my feet. But for something I put on my face I could see this. But unfortuntely I don't think it's any match for my super, mega, ultra oily skin. It's been on for 4 hours and already it's time to blot. Markita's face- 1 Umbrian clay- 0.

Living Proof's Prime Style Extender is one of those product names that makes you roll your eyes and mutter condescendingly to yourself, "Yeah, ok." But I have to say it passed my greasy hair test when I woke up this morning. And not much does. I am one of those girls that has to wash her hair everyday, regardless of if I worked out that day or not. So, needless to say, when I woke up and felt like I could have gone out without washing it that day, I was impressed. I'd definitely buy this and let the smelly little kid in me out for a day. 

Everytime I get a perfume sample in a beauty box I want to just toss it. Why? Because most of them are usually just Eau De Funks, I can't stand to look at it much less use it. So, I was pleasantly surprised when I got this months sample of Narciso Rodgriguez Eau De Toilette. I tried it but it still wasn't my cup of tea. But I wouldn't have slapped the crumpet out of it's hand if it was at my tea party. It would have been allowed to at least have a cup of tea and be on it's way. Which is my way of saying, didn't hate it, didn't love it. The scent boasts notes of musc and floral and something about velvet.

I'm pretty sure any beauty box company could just throw a nail polish in to a box and give it to people and they'd use it. But I was really surprised when I got this one and kind of fell in love. OPI's Liquid Sand in Can't Let Go (Mariah Carey Collection) sort of swept me off my feet in a way that only a nail polish can. It's fun and funky. It goes on smooth like regular nail polish and dries with an awesome sandy texture. The color is a vivid, violet blue and is wearable on long or short nails without looking too overly manicured receptionisty.

Finally, the last thing in this box is the Vincent Longo Lipstain Lipstick with SPF 15. This little lip product is quite the little trickster. It looks so dark and mysterious, kinda what I tried to pull off in high school and failed at. But when you get all up close and personal with it it's actually light and refreshing. It's not sticky, gloppy, matte or crepey. It stays on your lips as a nice silky smooth lip stick. It sort of reminds me of the Lip Mist by Burberry we got in the first box. Very light and airy and moveable on the lips. 

So that's all folks! Now I'm going to tear into this box and play with all my makeup like the smelly little kid in me wants to. Hopefully my husband won't come home to me in a ball on the floor with makeup all around me. Not again at least. 

Markita

OCC Lip Tar Review

So I'm not sure what's better, having a brother in law as smart as mine or having a brother in law as generous as mine. Fortunately for me, I have both. For Christmas this year my BIL did the amazing and checked my Amazon wishlist for gift ideas and picked out this lovely Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Lip Tar set. Smart on his part because I REALLY wanted this. Probably more than a mattress made of Sprinkles cupcakes. (Don't deny that wouldn't be awesome!) 

And while, this isn't exactly a cheap set coming in at $49 USD it's definitely a great value if you like this brand. Mostly because each tube of tar is $16 bucks a pop. With 5 tubes in this set that's an $80 value. So you really can't beat the price. But, unfortunately, this set was part of a holiday set at Sephora. And I don't think it's available at the present time. 

The colors include, Grandma, Melange, Stalker, Vintage and Pretty Boy and are all very versatile and pretty. The best part is you can mix these together, add shimmers from the metallic line or just wear them as they are.

Grandma is a pretty not your grandma's coral. Well, not my grandma's coral. I don't know about yours.  Melange is a nice terra cotta that sort of reminds me of the ground in west Texas. Sort of makes me miss home. Stalker is, awkwardly enough, a true blood red.  Finally we have Vintage, which is a deep wine burgundy and Pretty Boy is a brilliant fushia which is right off the runway. 

And if you have never used an OCC Lip Tar, you don't know that the color pay out is ah-MAY-zing! You only need a tiny dot of the stuff that you work from the inside of your lip to the edge. Color is amazing and it stays on for hours without the need for reapplication. 

Finally, OCC Lip Tar's are 100% vegan and cruelty free which is fantastical if you're an animal loving herbivore.

So the final verdict for these are that they are great! I love that you don't need a glop it on to get a good color, it's non sticky, long lasting and highly pigmented. Of course as I previously stated, it's great that they are vegan and animal friendly. The only bad thing about these is the taste. It's pretty awful but that's not enough to keep me from using them. All in all? I'm down with OCC.

So go out and get your tar on!

Beauty Buddies: Nail Polish Edition

Alright so, I'm back! The holidays REALLY took their toll on me. I am just now able to sit down, breathe and write this. It's been a hectic 2 weeks with the hubster being off work and having family visiting. I felt like I haven't had a minute to myself. So thankfully, I'm back and able to share with you some things I found whilst I've been away.

Now, as someone completely familiar with the term 'uncoordinated' I get way too excited when I buy two products from two completely different brands and somehow magically they work together. I like to call these "Beauty Buddies". Why? Because even though they're two different brands, I can wear them alone or together and they still look great. Todays Beauty Buddies are Butter London in No More Waity Katie and Zoya in Kelly.

I'll be honest, I was actually looking for the Zoya color Caitlin but I couldn't find it. I wanted a smokey lilac purple but as you know Caitlin was a color in a collection last year. So while crusing the nail polish sale aisle at Ulta, I was torn between Kelly and Tru. I ended up picking Kelly and when I got home I was pleasantly surprised to see that it was the same color as my Butter London in No More Waity Katie.

Butter London and Zoya (Center)

By itself No More Waity Katie is a pretty lilac glitter polish. A little translucent but still very pretty anytime of year. Kelly is the same way, a little more smokey than NMWK but I swatched it on a nail wheel and they really surprised me. Apart they are great but together they are wonderful. I love finding things that work together even if they're not meant to. It's like finding that 20 dollar bill in your coat pocket from last winter. What are some beauty buddies you've found that you love together?

M