Beauty Review: My December 2019 Ipsy Bag

Sometimes, I’m afraid that people think my love of beauty products makes me seem air headed or flighty.

I think that’s a message we all absorb, right? In one way or another, we’re taught that “dumb girls” are the ones who are interested in their appearance, who like beauty products. When I was young, I remember feeling like I needed to keep the fact that I wore foundation a secret (even though it was pretty obvious). Girls might talk privately about make up, but to do so too loud was to admit that you cared what other people thought of you. As I’ve gotten older and society has shifted, that’s changed a lot—but you still see tweets about taking girls swimming on the first date, as if the only reason women use make up to make themselves beautiful in the eyes of others (and that somehow make up changes our entire face to the point of a very good disguise).

In recent months, I moved away from writing about beauty and skincare, not because I don’t like it anymore—but just because in terms of my headspace, I just wasn’t there. I couldn’t. All my energy, both mentally and physically, has gone into starting my freelance business, networking, and taking care of my home and family.

I feel like I finally have the mental energy to focus on myself, and my beauty products, again—but there is still that niggling little fear. What if people think I’m vapid because this is what I like writing about? How can I fully combine the idea that you can be a mom who gets shit done but also is very invested in double cleansing? The truth is we all contain multitudes and the attitudes and ideas we’ve absorbed from society about beauty standards are basically 100% bullshit. You can be an entrepreneur, a high level employee, a badass mom, a very dedicated college student… and still care about the new eyeshadow palette you just bought, or the skincare routine you perform every single day. We all deserve to feel good about the things we like and none of them are vapid, empty, or meaningless.

So this is my way to say: if you want to get Ipsy, but are worried about collecting too many products, or being “too invested” in beauty products, or if you’ve worried about those things and have never really let yourself indulge in a really good, expensive moisturizer… here’s your permission. I’m handing it to you. Go to Ulta, buy the moisturizer, subscribe to Ipsy, luxuriate in your oils to your hearts content. It doesn’t make you less of anything to care about those things if they make you feel good.

Whew! Now that that is out of the way, let’s talk Ipsy, shall we? You can read my past Ipsy reviews here. If you want to try Ipsy, you can sign up using my referral link here.

This month’s bag is sparkly, silver realness. Ipsy has slightly changed since my last review (in October). It now costs $12 a month and you get to choose one product in your bag every month—if you remember to log in and choose it in time. There is only a 24-hour window to do so, so if you, like me, are kind of busy and see the email and think, “I’ll do that later!” it will probably be too late by the time you log in the next day. As a warning.

That’s something I think Ipsy needs to readjust or change; not many of us have time right upon receiving an email to act on it. I try to spend less than 10 minutes in my email inbox at a time, just so I actually work on my to do list instead of, say, constantly reply to emails and click links.

That being said, even though I didn’t get to choose an item this month, I still like everything in my bag. Plus, I got 3 bonus items (which I haven’t included in this review) because they were having a buy-2-get-1-free deal on Black Friday. i love the monthly option to add on items for $3 a sample. I almost always choose one or two just so I have something new to try. I’ll actually be reviewing one of my add-ons at the beginning of January, so stay tuned for that!

Let’s walk through everything I got this month, shall we?

1. Hanhoo Watermelon Illuminator Daytime Facial Oil, $8 value

I love a facial oil! You probably know that by now. This facial oil contains watermelon extract and niacinamide; here’s what niacinamide promises: “niacinamide has been getting lots of love lately—and it’s a star ingredient in this face oil. It helps to refine pores, even skin tone and texture, treat acne-prone skin, and get you glowing.” That sounds… pretty good, right?

This facial oil reminds me a lot of the bliss drench moisturizer; it’s more of a cream-to-oil texture instead of a straight oil and has quite a bit of water in it, according to the ingredients list. I really like how it feels on my skin, but it doesn’t feel like a facial oil at all. That’s not necessarily a problem. It’s a good moisturizer! It just doesn’t contain any actual oil; it contains cyclopentasiloxane, which is a common ingredient to act as a lubricant in things like anti-aging creams and conditioner.

Facial oil is a popular term these days and this strikes me as an example of marketing versus what the products actually is. That being said, I don’t hate the product; I actually really like it! It’s just… not a facial oil.

A full size bottle of this products is 1 fluid oz and costs $16; this sample is 0.5 fluid oz and therefore has a value of $8. Pretty good!

2. Jolii Cosmetics Luxe Creme Matte in Lavanda, $18

I love a liquid lip and this one has a great, creamy texture. I received the color Lavanda, which is described as “a vibrant violet shade that’s surprisingly versatile and flatters every skin tone.” Violet is close to how I would describe it; it’s pretty bright in person, and almost grey-beige (greige). It’s really pretty, but there is something about a grey-toned purple lipstick that makes my teeth look yellow as all hell. So I will not be wearing this shade until I get my teeth whitened to roughly the shade of snow.

This is a full size product, though, and I love when I get a full size product in my bag!

3. Cela Black Gold Supreme Coffee Scrub, $3.70 value

I’m not a huge fan of coffee scrubs; I find them messy and slightly useless, as you never receive enough in a sample to really get the job done. That being said, I like this one. It smells good (like coffee, of course). And the packaging is gorgeous. If body scrubs are your thing, this one is a great option.

A full size tube of this product contains 200 grams and costs $37. This sample tube is 0.7 oz or 20 ml. It’s hard to convert between mls and grams as they are two different types of measurement, but in this case, it’s most likely a 1-to-1 ratio. Therefore, this sample tube, at 20ml or 20g, has a value of $3.70.

4. Space Case Cosmetics Blush in It’s Not Me, It’s My Sign, $9

I love blush! It’s my favorite thing to receive in my Ipsy bag because it’s my favorite step of my make up. The funny thing about make up, for me, is that I spend a lot of time taking all the color out of my skin via foundation, then I have to put a little bit of color back so I don’t look like a corpse. Hence why I love blush so much.

This blush is in the color It’s Not Me, It’s My Sign, which is a cute name. The shade is described as “an orchid pink with a semi-matte finish.” However, I would call it closer to a true pink—not necessarily floral or natural. I have a lot of rosey blushes like it, but I do quite like this one. It’s a bit more sheer than the average blush.

This is another full size product. It is sold out on the Space Case website, but the other blushes are also valued at $9 each and look just as lovely.

5. Tarte Amazonian Clay Waterproof Bronzer in Park Avenue Princess, $3.33 value

This is the funniest little product. I don’t wear bronzer and no matter how many times i tell Ipsy not to send me bronzer, they tend to lump it in with blushes. To them, they’re the same sort of product, so why wouldn’t I want both? This one is from the Amazonian Clay line, but comes in a package totally different from other sample blushes I’ve received from the same line. It’s tiny! It clocks in at 1 gram; a full size is 9 grams! The packaging is a cheap plastic and the unit of bronzer itself is pretty small, more of an eyeshadow size really! In terms of color, it’s quite yellow for a bronzer and very light.

I can’t imagine being someone with a darker skin tone receiving this product. It doesn’t look like this bronzer is offered in any other shade, at least on Sephora; it’s just one shade of bronzer and maybe 20% of the population can wear it. It’s so light! This is probably the biggest disappointment of the bag because I just won’t use it.

A full size clocks in at 9 grams for $30. (WHEW!)

Final Thoughts

The total value of this bag is $42.03. In terms of value, that’s one of the lowest valued bags I’ve ever received, but I do like 4 out of the 5 products! I can’t complain too much, but for $13, I feel like I do expect a slightly higher value.

Did you receive an Ipsy bag this month? What did you think?

Beauty Review: Ipsy Glam Bag Plus, July 2019

Ipsy, Ipsy, Ipsy… what am I going to do with Ipsy?

I was so excited for the Glam Bag Plus—in fact, I was so excited, I kind of threw myself into it without really thinking about it. I mainly just wanted that sparkly glamour of 5 new products every month without fretting about the sizes.

But it’s not really all it’s cracked up to be, is it? Sure, I get the thrill of trying new things without spending an arm and a leg. But at what cost? To my sanity that is.

That’s a bit of an exaggeration, but I wasn’t sure how else to start this blog post. I swear, I will write a life update soon. Just not now. I have a lot to look forward to in the next month: I’m heading on a vacation (somehow the worst AND the best timing at once) next week, then I’ll be hopefully working on some fun, exciting projects and not sitting at home watching Queer Eye and wishing Jonathan Van Ness would come and just hold me and tell me I’m pretty and it’ll be ok.

The products I got this month from Ipsy feel like a hodgepodge—and not necessarily based on anything I’ve shared with Ipsy. (More on that…) Sometimes, I get this feeling there isn’t a lot of personalization here, but more grabbing and shoving and sending. But that’s just a suspicion, I have nothing to back that up, please don’t send me an email Ipsy. (Did I mention a brand sent me an email refuting a review of mine? Yeah. That happened.)

If you’d like to try Ipsy Glam Bag, you can sign up here. Without further ado, let’s talk this month’s picks.

1. Huda Beauty 3D Highlighter Palette in Pink Sands, $45

When I finally got my Ipsy product sneak peek (it took until the day before the thing shipped), I was on the edge of my seat. Would I get one of the Huda Beauty eyeshadow palettes I’ve been lusting after? I was so hopeful I would. After all, I’ve said repeatedly for Ipsy not to send me highlighters, I have it marked on my quiz and everything.

Imagine the punch to the gut it was to see that I got the highlighter palette.

Yeah. Ipsy did that. I swear they do it on purpose.

It’s a perfectly fine highlighter palette. It’s pretty! I won’t use it, except for maybe Ibiza. I don’t wear highlight. I’m not interested in it. I’m so tired. I feels so lame to say it, but I was so genuinely crushed by this being in my Ipsy box, I almost canceled the entire thing. I’m giving them one more month and then I’m done.

2. IT Cosmetics Superhero Elastic Stretch Volumizing Mascara, $24

A few years ago, Ulta did a birthday give for the July-September birthdays (since the gifts change quarterly) that was an entire eyeshadow palette. They got an ENTIRE EYESHADOW PALETTE. When I went to get my gift in October, I thought, “Gosh, I bet we’ll get a different palette.” No! It was a mini tube of mascara. Even the associate looked embarrassed as she handed it to me; she knew they’d just been handing out 12-shadow eyeshadow palettes and here she was tossing me a tube of old mascara.

That mascara was IT Cosmetics Superhero Elastic Stretch Volumizing Mascara. I hated it then too.

3. Purlisse Watermelon Energizing Aqua Balm, $24

I’m not a total cynic. I love this product! I love a good moisturizer and this balm smells like watermelon, so I immediately love it. It is a great moisturizer for summer when you need a little moisture, but also don’t want anything heavy on your skin. Forrest keeps trying to steal it off my bathroom counter, saying, “It’s watermelon flavor!” Not really.

4. Pixi by Petra Glow Mist, $20

I love a good mist and I love Pixi products, so this was the perfect thing I needed in this box to keep me from throwing in the towel. It is essentially an oil mist with a lot of nourishing ingredients. It recommends using to set makeup, but I’m oily enough, thank you. I use it before bed to cool down and for an extra amount of moisture.

5. Feel Balanced Moisture Balancing Cream, $28

I was initially so annoyed by the highlighter palette, that I was ready to say, “a BODY lotion!? They sent me a body lotion!” I have so much body lotion, I didn’t need another… but this one is so, so nice. I gave myself a blister on my elbow a few weeks ago doing embroidery (stitched too hard, I guess) and so I’ve had a big dry patch on my elbow ever since. This fixed it up in just one use, so honestly, that’s pretty great. It’s also been helping my raggedy cuticles from washing my hands too much and too hot. All-in-all, a 10/10.

Final Thoughts

This box has a $141 total value. Whew! That’s pretty good. It’d be nice if I didn’t get two absolute dud products that I will never use in my life. On the plus side, I know I will use all of the Glow Mist, Watermelon Balm, and Balancing Cream, so that’s a plus.

Beauty Review: Prana Dry Brush*

About 7 years ago (yes, 7 years ago), when Google Reader was still alive, I read a blog post from someone I followed about dry brushing. I can’t remember her name, or her blog’s name, but that memory of her raving about dry brushing stuck with me. Whenever I heard it mentioned, I’d think of that blog post and think, maybe I should try that?

But then I never actually did anything about it. I stayed curious about dry brushing, but in the chaos of my life (getting married, buying a house, working on my career, working on this blog, having a baby, successfully raising that baby into a toddler), I never got around to. I mean, I just bought a jade roller, guys. When trends pop up, I try my best to get on the train, but often, I’m running behind the train in two different shoes and my hair in a messy bun.

So when Prana Brush reached out to me about trying their dry brush, I knew I wanted to try it immediately. I jumped on a phone call with Jessica, who told me all the great things about the Prana brush, how it worked, and what it did. And honestly, I was on board. It didn’t take much convincing. I’ve had 7 years to stew on this, I was ready.

What is Dry Brushing?

Dry brushing is exactly what it sounds like: you use a brush to gently “brush” your skin, usually moving towards your heart. You do this dry—not with a loofah in the shower, not by dampening the brush. This helps exfoliate your skin and prepare it to be washed in the bath or shower, as well as improving your lymphatic system’s health, minimizing the appearance of cellulite, and helping circulation. There are tons of other benefits to dry brushing too.

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The Prana dry brush

When I first received my Prana dry brush, I was impressed by how well made it was and how soft the bristles felt—while also being seriously exfoliating. I tried it the first time that day before I jumped in the shower. The number one thing to remember about dry brushing is that you aren’t scraping your skin or going hard on this brush; it’s just a gentle motion. I noticed a huge difference in the dry skin I always have on my ankles and elbows almost immediately!

The Prana dry brush is different from other dry brushes because it has ionic copper bristles in it, as well as standard bristles. You can see them in the picture above. I know “ionic copper bristles” sounds incredibly harsh, but I promise you, they’re really not! The ionic copper bristles “create a natural friction between the ion-charged copper bristles and your skin,” which is incredibly good for your skin.

This brush is designed to be used dry, of course, and doesn’t require cleaning. Copper is naturally antibacterial, so there is no need to wash this dry brush as you would a normal brush. After I used it, I just carefully tapped it on the side of my tub to remove any dry skin that it may have picked up. It came in a beautiful cardboard box that I am using to store it on my windowsill (in the chaos of packing, at least).

You can learn more about dry brushing from Prana Brush here.

Final Thoughts

So, was dry brushing worth the 7 year way?

In short, absolutely! I’ve noticed a huge difference in my skin, especially on my legs, which have often been a “problem area” for me. I have strawberry skin, which means my hair follicles are visible. I’ve always decreased this by using self tanner, or wearing tights as much as possible, but I’ve found since starting to dry brush, I’ve noticed a huge difference in how these spots appear! My skin is also smoother and softer, absorbs lotion better (no slick seal feeling when I get into bed!), and doesn’t have any problem dry spots. Since it’s only 2 weeks, I can’t speak on the other benefits of dry brushing, but I’m excited to see how I feel in a month or two. I’ve definitely struggled with my energy levels in the last 3 years (thank you, postpartum depletion!) and so if this helps me get my body back in fighting order, I’d really love it.

Have you ever tried dry brushing? What did you think?

Beauty Review: Alba Botanica Acne Patches

Back when I was in middle school, Clearasil came out with these acne patches—little clear, round patches that you could put over zits and pimples with the intention to help them heal faster. They definitely worked, because I used them somewhat religiously for at least 2 years. But then they stopped making them, I stopped looking for them, and I never thought of it again.

However, in the past few years, tons of brands have come out with things that are very similar. And as it turns out, you have been able to buy essentially what Clearasil marketed for years in the pharmacy—it just wasn’t marketed to teenagers. Cool!

Sometimes, physically covering a pimple is the best way to keep yourself from picking on it—I know that’s true for me. I really wanted to try some of these “new” (to me) patches, but often found the cost prohibitive on the ones my friends said really worked. I asked tons of beauty groups and they all recommended K-beauty brands—which is fine and good, but so expensive to order sometimes.

Alba Botanica is a drugstore brand—you can find it at Target—and they sell “Acnedote Pimple Patches”. I looked at them in Target, then backed off at the price. $10, for a set of 40 patches. That felt like quite a bit. (I just looked at the Target website and they are $6 on there—but recently Target has made clear that there are things that are more expensive in store than on their website. So make sure to scan everything with the Target app and get price matches done!) I decided to pass.

10 minutes later, I found the exact same thing in TJ Maxx. For $4. Score.

So, here’s the real question: are acne patches worth it? Do they still work as well as I remember them working in middle school?

The answer is, yes and no.

I had two larger pimples on my chin that I wanted gone, so I slapped a patch on them and left it on overnight. In the morning, both pimples had large whiteheads. I remember this happening when I was younger; if nothing else, the patch would make the pimple get a head so you could pop it. However, I’m at an age where i know that’s not a good thing to do. However, when I peeled off the patches, it peeled the thin skin off and popped them for me.

So I was left with two big scabs.

Yeah, not sure that’s an improvement.

The two scabs did heal pretty fast after that, as I babied them. I decided to try these patches with some smaller whiteheads that popped up around my temples (thanks to my glasses rubbing) and they were much better at getting rid of those overnight, without a damaging scab in its place.

Basically, I think there are two really good ways to use these patches:

1. To stop yourself from worrying a large pimple (such as a cyst)

2. To get rid of small comedones

However, my big warning is: these patches do help make zits more “poppable”, which is debatably a good thing. If you have a big cyst, sometimes you just want to be able to pop it so it will stop hurting. In that situation, these are miracle workers; they help drain the inflammation and create a head, so you can get rid of the cyst faster. For comedones, they really do get rid of them overnight.

Are these worth it? Yes. I’m going to keep testing them out throughout the next few months, and try to find other brands to test alongside, but I do like them—even though my first experience was a little negative. I think, as with any beauty product, you have to keep your expectations realistic, especially in terms of what it achievable and what isn’t.

My Top 3 Favorite Liquid Lip Formulas

Liquid lipsticks are here to stay, it seems. Even as we transition to the trend of glossier lips, I still find most beauty gurus and influencers are using liquid lipsticks as a base—them using gloss on top.

I’m still not a fan of lip gloss. I lived through the early 2000s as a teenager, thank you very much, with my hair nearly semi-permanently attached to my lips thanks to thick, sloppy Victoria’s Secret glosses. I’m not ready to revisit that era, just as I will never revisit low-waisted jeans, peasant tops, or skirts over jeans.

I am, as you probably know, a big fan of a liquid lipstick. Liquid lipstick has all the things I love about lipstick (color payoff, looking put together even when I’ve just rolled out of bed) and corrects all the things I don’t like about lipstick (having to reapply 4000 times before and after eating, risking having it all over my face at any moment).

When it comes to formulas, we all have our favorites. Some people hate a really powedery feeling formula and some people love it. Some people don’t like super drying formulas. And if you’re like me, and you’re getting older, and you find liquid lipsticks feather, you start to get incredibly frustrated by the options out there.

I’ve done the legwork, the research, everything. I’ve tried all the liquid lipsticks I can find and I’m here to tell you my 3 absolute favorite formulas.

But first, let’s talk a bit about my criteria for my favorites.

1) I like a quick drying formula. I don’t like waiting around for my lipstick to dry before I move on.

2) I like long lasting formulas. I should be able to drink coffee and 1) not get it everywhere and 2) not have to reapply afterwards.

3) I like somewhat comfortable formulas. That is, it doesn’t feel like I’ve put a clay mask on my lips.

Favorite Formula #1: Wet’n’Wild Liquid Catsuit

If you’ve read my blog before, you know that Wet’n’Wild Liquid Catsuit is one of the best liquid lip formulas… at least in my book. Fast drying? Check. Comfortable? Absolutely. Staying power? Yes. And even better? They cost $5. $5!!! For one of the best liquid lips out there. I’ve written about them a lot before, so I don’t need to say much more except that… if you want the most bang for your buck, get to your nearest Target, Walgreens, or Walmart, and buy at least the shade Rebel Rose.

Favorite Formula #2: Anastasia Beverly Hills

I buy ABH Liquid Lips exclusively at TJ Maxx or Marshalls, because they alway shave a ton. So while I can’t speak to the price range (they’re $20 normally), I can say with confidence that they are one of my favorite formulas. They dry down really fast and are very comfortable. I would actually say the ABH formula is the most comfortable formula of the 3 I’m writing about today. It feels like you don’t even have lipstick on—that’s how comfortable it is. They have great color pay off, of course, and are incredibly long lasting. Plus, the fact that you can often find them for a discount is a huge bonus to me; I’m never one to spend $20 on a lipstick unless it is the holy grail… and these kind of are holy grail liquid lipsticks.

Favorite Formula #3: Too Faced Melted Mattes

When I bought the Christmas set of liquid lipsticks from Too Faced, I didn’t have super high hopes for them. I just really liked the theme. However, they have quickly become some of my favorite liquid lipsticks and the shade Sugar Cookie is actually one of my daily go tos. It’s the perfect pale pink nude. Melted Mattes check all the boxes, of course: they are fast drying; they are long lasting; and they feel relatively comfortable. I do have issues with darker shades, like the Cinnamon Bear shade, feathering—so I make sure to use a liner. However, at $21 a pop, they aren’t something I buy a lot of. However, if you can find gift sets, you often get deluxe sample size (which are plenty big) for a pretty affordable price. I always keep my eyes peeled for them!

3 Tips for Using Sulfate-Free Shampoo

Sulfate-free shampoo is all the rage in beauty communities. Jonathan Van Ness, from Queer Eye, advocates using sulfate free shampoos, as sulfates are believed to coat and potentially damage our hair. I’ve written about going sulfate-free before, and a few things you need to know about going sulfate-free.

My perspective on sulfate-free shampoos is that there are going to be some people, and some hair types, that benefit from sulfates and some that don’t. For example. I think my hair actually thrives with shampoo with sulfates; I have pretty manageable, easy hair and I don’t use product very often, so I didn’t have to worry about build up. However, my scalp really hates sulfates because it’s incredibly sensitive, which is why I went sulfate-free about 6 months ago.

However, I don’t think going sulfate-free is right for everybody. If your shampoo works for you, then keep using it, honey!

But if you’re curious about trying sulfate-free shampoos, there is a bit of a learning curve to starting using them. The big difference between shampoos with sulfates and those without is that sulfate-free shampoos don’t foam. It’s more like using a thin conditioner. That first wash can be a little bit confusing if you’re not aware that your new shampoo won’t get sudsy. And for some people, that sudsy, squeaky clean feeling is really important to them! So, here are a few if my tips and advice for using sulfate-free shampoos.

1. You Need A Lot of Water (& Less Product)

We all have our own process for washing our hair. I know for me, I’ve been washing my hair a specific way for years and I rarely deviate from my routine. It’s something I don’t ever really even think about. I know how to rinse shampoo out of my hair, I know how to wash my hair, these are things I know. But once I started using sulfate-free shampoo, it felt like everything changed.

Here’s the thing about sulfate-free shampoo: like I said, it’s like using a thinner conditioner. It doesn’t foam up like soap does. So the process of washing my hair fundamentally changed and I had to change along with it!

One thing I learned, through a lot of trial and error, was that I needed a lot more water in my hair before I started washing it with sulfate-free shampoo. I also learned that I needed to spend a lot more time rinsing my hair, making sure I got all the shampoo out. If I don’t do these two very important steps, I end up having leftover product in my hair—which isn’t a great feeling.

As well, you need significantly less sulfate-free shampoo starting out than a standard shampoo. Just a single pump or dollop to start out, then working through your hair with plenty of water.

2. Growing Pains

The first few washes with sulfate-free shampoo often are what make people think sulfate-free shampoo isn’t for them. I know for a while I definitely thought I’d made a mistake; my hair no longer felt smoothy or silky, or even clean. It felt… weird. Dry, a little frizzy, and generally not as nice looking as I expect my hair to look. However, if you power through and keep on keeping on, eventually your hair will recover from the shock of not having sulfates anymore.

The thing about sulfates, for some hair types, is that they can coat the strands of your hair; when you stop using them, your hair has to shed all that built up product and residue. Some people can switch effortlessly, depending on their hair type, and others have a few days or weeks of growing pains.

So, with sulfate-free shampoos, remember: you’re going to have a period of adjustment.

3. Condition, Condition, Condition

Going sulfate-free means that your hair is more likely to get dry, especially if you use heat styling products or live in a climate that is hot and dry. Conditioning is a huge step. Using a matching conditioner to your shampoo will be important, plus adding a weekly hair mask to help keep your strands looking fresh. I like using the Shea Moisture Manuka Honey mask once a week after shampooing.

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Next week, I’ll be sharing a review of Formulate, a sulfate-free customized shampoo system that I have been loving lately. I’ve shared some details in my Instagram stories and you can watch the highlight here. Until my blog post next week, you can sign up for my giveaway with Formulate here.

Beauty Review: The Sephora Once Upon a Castle Advent Calendar

A very funny thing happened to me a week ago. It was a typical Monday. Actually, scratch that: it was not a typical Monday. Forrest had slept until well past 6am, which is very weird for him; when I finally woke him up, he was grumpy and just not his normal self. When I dropped him at my mom’s, he didn’t want to eat, he just wanted to lie on my mom’s couch. I arrived at work worried about him and a little flustered. And what did I find at work?

In October, I had tweeted about a dream I had where I received 10 Advent Calendars in PR. It was a silly dream and a silly tweet and I had kind of forgotten about it. Clearly, my coworker had not! This is one of the funniest jokes I’ve ever had played on me. She really committed! It was not what I expected to happen that morning, but alas, it did.

And even better, one of the Advent Calendars she got me was the Sephora Once Upon a Castle advent calendar. Last year, I dutifully reviewed the Ulta Beauty 12 Days of Beauty Advent Calendar to great success, but had passed on getting another one this year; I just wasn’t feeling it and I hadn’t had time to check for sales on beauty advent calendars.

This review, for that reason, is brought to you by my dutiful, lovely coworker who knows how to pull off a good joke!

(And yes, before you ask, I opened everything when I was bored while Forrest was sick. He’s better now, but I am barely able to speak I’m so sick!)

Here’s everything that came in the calendar, as well as the value:

1. Peony Fizzing Cube - $1.44

2. Eye Pencil to Go in Intense Black - $6

3. Universal Brow Freeze - $12 normally (currently $5 on sale)

4. Color High Nail Polish Mini in It Girl - $5

5. Lip Liner to Go in Classic Red - $6

6. Cotton Flower Fizzing Cube - $1.44

7. Cream Lip Stain in 01 Always Red - $14

8. Express Eye Make Up Wipes (2) - $1

9. Blueberry Cream Body Wash - $1

10. Instant Nail Polish Remover Wipes (2) - $1-2

11. Color Hit Nail Polish Mini in Sugar Coated - $5

12. 1 Small Nail File - $1

13. 4 Stickers - $0.50

14. Spiral Hair Tie - $0.50

15. Small Owl Post Its - $0.50

16. Flat Make Up Sponge - $2

17. Charcoal Nose Strip - $3

18. Colorful eyeshadow in Lazy Afternoon - $8

19. Blush in Shame On You - $14

20. Small Mirror - $1

21. Cherry Fizz Cube - $1.44

22. #LIPSTORIES in Labyrinth City - $8

23. Express Eye Make Up Wipes (2) - $1

24. Spiral Hair Tie - $0.50

All in all, not bad! Sephora originally listed the value of this advent calendars as $95; it’s no longer listed on the Sephora website because it’s sold out. When I calculated the value, even with my guesses for the smaller items (which, I’ll admit, are a bit generous), I got a total of $96.32. So, $1.32 off, which feels like a weird amount to be off!

A few items I could not find on the U.S. Sephora website. These include the Fizzing Cubes, which I found on the Australian Sephora website for $2 AUS; that’s about $1.44 US, so it was an easy conversion. This is actually where the extra $1.32 comes from exactly. It feels so weird that I estimated everything else correctly—the stickers, the mirror, the nail polish wipes—but an actual price calculated from one of their websites was wrong! So, they’re putting the value of the Fizzing Cubes at $1 even, even though they sell them for way more than that in Australia. Interesting, huh?

So what are the highlights of this advent calendar? Are there any really good items?

Short answer, yes. There are some duds, but I’ll get to those.

The Universal Brow Freeze, Lip Liner in Classic Red, Cream Lip Stain, Blush, and #LIPSTORIES Lipstick are all absolutely amazing products. I would say those 5 products alone make this calendar worth it. The Cream Lip Stain is in one of the most perfect red shades I’ve ever found; it is both blue-toned and firetruck-y, so it’s nice and bright without being orangey. I’m a little obsessed with it. I also love the #LIPSTORIES lipstick, as it is so smooth to apply and feels wonderful.

However, I do think the items need to be divided up a little more evenly: the item for door 24, the last day before Christmas, is a little hair tie! I feel like that should be one of the lipsticks, at least, or a bigger item. The last two items are repeats in general, so again, just a bit disappointing! I think that’s one of the things that makes this calendar feel a big wonky is that there are big stretches where you get a bunch of little things: the first doors open to such great items, then suddenly you get a nail file, stickers, a hair tie, and tiny post its… all in a row!

This is such a lovely calendar though and I’ve already repurposed the box into a toy for Forrest when he’s hanging out in my room. Pop a few small toys behind the doors and bingo, fun for kids!

While at the mall over the weekend (I know, sick and inexplicably at the mall? Sounds fun) I saw that my local Sephora still had a few of these in stock, marked down to a really decent price. So if you’re in need of a treat for yourself (or want to play a last minute joke on your coworker), now is probably the time to grab one!

Beauty Review: Mériance Anti-Aging Skin Care Kit*

When I received an email a few weeks ago from Mériance asking if I would like to review their full anti-aging skin care kit, well, I couldn’t say no.

As you all probably know, I turned 30 in October. And while I’m not showing any signs of aging (at least in my skin), I’m a big believer in taking care of my skin to keep it looking good. For me, that has meant double cleansing, wearing my SPF every single day, and keeping moisturized. I tend to shy away from longer, more complicated routines. The Mériance Anti-Aging Kit seemed right up my alley!

I received my kit a few weeks ago. Here’s everything that’s in it:

• Rejuvenating Serum

• Native Collagen Serum

• Anti-Aging Collagen Cream

• Night Repair Cream

• Eye Contour Cream

And here’s what the kit, and all the products, promises:

“Meriance bio-active collagen derived from marine origin replenishes the skin with properties that enhance the supply of collagen fibers. Meriance collagen is not modified or synthesized! It regenerates the connective tissues that support the skin’s structure. This ingredient helps to deeply hydrate mature and dry skin in order to maintain healthy and resilient cells. ”

My favorite thing about this kit is that you get just about everything you need for a routine. So while the cost upfront might be a little shocking, these are full sizes, you don’t use that much every single day, and you get everything you need. The order to apply everything is really basic too. Here’s what I do:

1. Double cleanse with jojoba oil, then the Body Shop’s Tea Tree facial cleanser.

2. Apply the Rejuvenating Serum, which contains peptides. It helps to enhance the other products in the kit. It has hyaularonic acid, which helps plump skin.

3. Apply the Native Collagen Serum. It has a high concentration of collagen.

4. At this point, I use the Eye Contour Cream mixed with a tiny amount of my favorite vitamin C cream (right now, I’m using Revlon’s). I only use this around my eyes to help with my melasma and moisturize the skin underneath my eyes. I let that sink and dry for about 5 minutes.

5. Apply the Anti-Aging Collagen Cream. This is a thick, lovely moisturizer that smells really good and feels even better! I’ve been struggling with dry patches since Thanksgiving and this really clears them up within a few days.

6. Apply the Repair Night Cream. This is a double dose of moisture that I use after the Collagen Cream. It contains antioxidants that can help adjust repair your skin.

Results

How quickly did I start seeing results? As I said, I struggle with dry patches once late Fall and early Winter hits; usually my nose and cheeks are where I struggle the most, but this year, my under eyes have decided to join in on the dry skin party.

I haven’t used everything enough to speak to the anti-aging effects quite yet, but I have noticed that my skin has been much softer, much less textured, and much more “supple” feeling (for lack of a better word). My dry patches have been much less severe and as long as I’m good about applying both the Collagen Cream and the Night Repair Cream, they are much less noticeable, and even not there at all, throughout the day!

As someone who is acne prone, I’m always really worried about trying new products. However, acne-prone skin is dehydrated skin and these products have been helping so much! I’m getting less oily throughout the day now that my skin is being better moisturized every morning and night.

If you have dry skin or are beginning to worry about aging, this is definitely a kit you want to pick up! I have a special coupon code just for my readers for $100 off your first kit. Just click the image below, or click here, and use code MichelleLocke100 at check out!

Disclaimer: As always, an asterisk (*) in the title of this post indicates that I received this product in exchange for review. However, my views remain my own! Posts like these help me keep the lights on here at Writing Between Pauses. For more information about my disclosure policy, click here.