Author: Junior Reviewer
Colorful Lips on a Budget
Sometimes it is hard being addicted to cosmetics on a budget – but then again, sometimes it’s not. With Revlon’s Super Lustrous lipstick, I can have all the colors of the rainbow without breaking the bank.
Like most lipsticks, I always put on a base balm to ensure the best coverage as well as length duration. But as we all know, it’s hard being a lipstick addict when there are great things such as food and drinks around.
This lipstick holds up better than some of the $20+ tubes I have bought in the past while allowing me to purchase all the colors I need to match with my mood, outfit, or season. You can find this lipstick at just about any major retailer, drug store, or beauty shop. Colors for all skin tones and preferences. I just switched over from reds to red-brownish.
Let’s just say, I own over half the collection.
Fullest Coverage Around
I have looked high and low for something that matches my skin, let alone successfully hides whatever I’m looking to keep from the world. No matter what I tried, nothing was exactly what I was looking for; there was always some type of flaw on my skin, whether it was me or the makeup.
But I have found it – I have found my skin’s savior, and it’s Dermablend.
I had heard from some friends that this stuff was the real deal – the industrial concealer made to cover tattoos. It got me thinking that if this brand can cover ink, what can it not do?
Thanks to help from some friendly folks at Ulta, we went through the different Dermablend products and shades and found which one was the best for me. Due to me rockin’ on a budget as well, I went with the concealer stick. One year later – and I still have a little under half of it left.
The real secret is that this product needs to be used with a makeup sponge. Not only does that save you over-using your concealer, but it ensures that you get the best coverage possible with the best product currently on the shelves.
I have tried everything from powders to liquids to mattes, and I can safely say that I will never own another concealer that does not bear the trademark of Dermablend.
If my word isn’t enough, check out the Dermablend confessions for yourself.
Smooth to the Touch
We’re all on a search for the right lotion – one that doesn’t leave a greasy residue once, even after spending 10 minutes trying to work it into your skin. While I still haven’t found the right lotion for the rest of my skin, I have found that nothing is quite like AVEDA’s hand relief lotion.
Last year, I was gifted a three pack of this amazing hand moisturizer, and it’s been all I can do to keep people from swiping it in the office or at home. One dab of this miracle moisturizer, as I like to call it, is all you need to make your hands feel renewed and soft. Best of all, it doesn’t leave an annoying grease residue on my hands as well as my things.
While the price to size ratio is a bit out of my budget, its healing powers have justified the money spent. I’ll cross my fingers that I’ll receive it as another present this year, but if not – it will be in my medicine cabinet, office space, and purse all the same.
Let’s Go to the Beach
There’s nothing quite like having those wavy locks after spending the day in the sun and sand – and there are few ways to successfully get the beach look without actually going to the beach. While Sun-In is a popular way to make your hair lighter, like you’ve been in the sun and at the beach all summer – nothing quite compares to the waves you get from Not Your Mother’s Beach Babe Texturizing Sea Salt Spray.
To preface this post, my hair is naturally wavy – but not in the ways I would like. It poofs. It frizzes. And it’s anything but the waves I would get when I used to live by the beach. So, in my mission to regain those salty locks that I love so dearly, I have been on a mission to find the best texturizing spray possible – and I believe I have found it.
Spraying the sea salt spray into damp hair on it’s own will naturally give you those waves like you’ve just come from the ocean, if you’re naturally wavy like me that is. If your hair is of a more straight nature, you will have to work the product in more in a crimping like fashion. Regardless, this spray will take your hair from winter to full blown beach-tastic summer.
I Like My Eyes in the Nude
This is yet another product of Urban Decay Cosmetics that I will not leave my home without – the Naked2 Eyeshadow Palette.
This palette offers everything that I need to take my look from day to night and everything in between. Want something simple? Done. Want a more complex, smokey-eye? Done. All of this in a compact case, equipped with a double-sided brush and wide mirror.
While I could do without the palette being so wide, making it more easily concealable for night out touch-ups (hint hint, Urban Decay), it has become a staple in my routine for every-day makeup routine.
The Naked3 palette has been released, as well, and is flying off shelves. Since I have not had this product for more than three months, I can not review it to the fullest extent – but all I can say is in nine more months I will have even more praise for this knock-out company.
A New Years Resolution
Now that I have officially had this for a year, I can firmly say that this product is one of the biggest reasons I have gotten myself back in shape and my health back on track.
We have all had that moment of doubt when the elliptical has tracked the amount of calories burned and the only thought had is “there’s no way that can be right.” Or for those, like me, trying to get back in shape and unsure of how much energy was spent running up and down those stairs. The Fuel Band replaces all of that doubt with reassurance.
I first heard of this product through a friend who was pairing its data with the phone app “MyFitnessPal” while she was trying to lose optimal weight before her wedding. My initial reaction was an eye-roll, thinking there’s no way a little bracelet could help you lose weight – let alone tell you how many calories you’ve burned.
I could not have been more wrong.
Not only has the Nike Fuel Band helped me on my way to reaching my desired weight, but it has also brought to life of how active I really am during the day. Tracking my successes as well as my failures, pushing me to go out and do more than just sit on the couch and watch reality television.
It’s waterproof, so it can track your activity while swimming laps. It has bluetooth, making tracking your daily fitness as easy as opening an app on your phone. The pedometer feature lets you know how much you’ve walked in a day and it even has a watch. This little band is not just a calorie counter – it’s a lifestyle tracker.
Honestly, there’s a lot I owe to this band that I constantly sport around my wrist, but all I can give back to it is praise. If you’re looking to light your motivational fire, stop perusing “Thinspo” boards on Pinterest and invest in a Fuel Band. I promise you won’t regret it.
Look Like a Superstar
I had spent months – nay, years – looking for the perfect leave-in conditioner for my hair. Some left too much of a residue while others made my hair even heavier than it is normally. But then, one Christmas, my mother gave me arguably one of the best stocking-stuffers I have ever received: Bed Head’s Superstar.
There are a multitude of reasons why I love this product. First off, it comes in a spray form, so there’s no getting any excess product on your hands – leaving you with that sticky feeling. Second, it not only protects my hair, but de-tangles it. As someone who likes to keep their hair long but is also burdened by thickness, I cannot overstate how great it is just to spray this product and not worry about chunks of hair coming out when I brush.
This product leaves nothing behind and protects your hair the way a conditioner should, leaving you with nothing but a silky smooth feeling and confidences that you look like a Superstar.
A Liner for Any Occasion
My biggest gripe with eyeliner pencils? Stabbing my eye out because some eyeliners are about functional as using a colored pencil on your eyelid. Thanks, but no thanks.
That was until one of my good friends introduced me to Urban Decay’s 24/7 Glide on Pencils.
While the price point per pencil is a bit more than my budget will allow on a consistent basis, Urban Decay must have heard my cries because they now have double ended pencils of their fabulous liner for a more understandable price.
These liners not only glide on with the ease of a liquid liner, but they give you the control of a true pencil. Not to mention their colors are fabulous. While my favorite color is Corrupt – a mix of purple and brown tones – Urban Decay also features the classics of brown, black, and white. If a bright, vibrant vibe is what you’re looking for, then pick up one of their blues, pinks, or yellows.
I can say for certain that I do not plan on using any other type of eyeliner pencil for the rest of my life. Unless someone can one-up Urban, that is. But I don’t see that happening any time soon.
Diced, Not Puréed
Out of all of my kitchen toys, Williams-Sonoma’s Chef’n VeggiChop Vegetable Chopper has to be my favorite. This little chopping device was given to me as a birthday present just over a year ago, and it’s safe to say I don’t know how I lived without it.
The best part of this chopper is that you can put just about anything in it and it will slice it to bits. My favorite tactic is throwing in eggs, celery, miracle whip, and mustard – chopping and mixing it all to bits until it leaves me with my favorite egg salad. The first time I tried this I was not fully prepared for the power this little chopper provided, and I ended up with a purée. But then again, that’s one of the best features of this device. It’s all done by you. You pull the chord and decide when you’ve chopped enough. Whether it be half-pulls or full-pulls, the chopping is easily in your hands.
While blenders and motorized choppers are the recent phase in the world of chopping up fruits, vegetables, salads, or what have you – I believe that some cooking needs more of the chefs touch, not a machines.
Pro-tip: invest in the Cupcake Mini Spatula & Spoonula set. They are the perfect size for this chopper and are pretty adorable.
Colorful Nails for Days
Ever since I was a little girl, sleepovers were spent by painting nails, watching Mary Kate & Ashley films, and raiding my mother’s makeup. Now that I’m older, girls nights in are spent a little differently. Wine has replaced my mother’s makeup drawer and gossip has taken over the loveable Olsen twins. Yet one thing has stayed the same – my friends and I still do our nails.
And nine times out of ten my polish of choice will be Sinful Colors.
While cheaper polish brands struggle with producing a product that has poor consistency and duration compared to expensive brands, such as Essie or OPI, one thing will always remain true: they all chip eventually.
So why spend eight dollars for a polish when you can get the same color and quality for two?
My nail polish collection ranges from dollar finds to the more expensive brands, but for the past two years I have given my loyalty to Sinful Colors. While their assortment of colors isn’t that of more prominent brands, each season brings a new array of hues accompanied with the classics.
As a person who isn’t able to go get manicures on a weekly basis, I rely on Sinful Colors to help me look as polished and vibrant as I feel. While I do like color selection the expensive brands have to offer, I would rather use that eight dollars to buy myself some variety. I’m just not a one-color-polish type of personality.
So if you’re looking for quality and variety in your polish collection, give Sinful Colors a try. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Tip: No nail polish, which ever you choose to buy, will stay well if you do not invest in a good top coat. My favorite? Sally Hansen’s Hard As Nails Strengthening Top Coat.
