Beauty Box 5 April 2014

Earlier this month Beauty Box 5 had a buy one get one free promotion so I thought I was a good time to try out their subscription box. I've been eyeing it for awhile and I just can't resist a buy one get one free deal.

I wanted to share with you guys what came in my box for April!

 I'll go left to right:
Blum Naturals All-Purpose Cleansing Wipes in Fresh Scent: First of all I love the plastic container the wipes are in. It seems very convenient for travel and once the wipes are gone I'll probably reuse the container. I also love that these wipes are cruelty free. They say they are made with natural and certified organics ingredients and are paraben-free, which I know is important to a lot of people. Just to let you know the Fresh Scent has a light peppermint smell, so if you don't like peppermint you should pick another scent. Now one thing I'm a little confused about is the purpose of these wipes. I thought they might be for make up removal since it's a beauty subscription box, but no where on the container does it say 'make up removal.' I think I'll be using them to take swatches off my hands after blog posts or I'll stick them in my lunch box. Either way I'm happy with them.

NickaK Lipstick in Daring: This lipstick looks very red in the tube, but when I swatched it I noticed it had more of a pink undertone than I was expecting. I'm not really a red lipstick girl, but I'll try it out. (By the way it is the bottom swatch in the photo.)

BH Cosmetics California Collection Sampler: This sampler has one shade from each of the California palettes by BH Cosmetics. There is a matte purple, a shimmery light brown, and a shimmery gold. I already have one of the BH California palettes so only two of these colors are new to me. I'll probably still use it though.

Jergen's Natural Glow: Really BB5? Foil packs? Every girl that buys subscription boxes hates foil packs. There usually isn't very much product in them. That being said these feel quite full and there are three of them. Jergen's Natural Glow is a self tanner that says it takes '3 Days to Glow,' hence the three packets. I'm a very pale girl, so I will definitely get use out of this.

Bonnebell Lip Definer in Apple Cider: If you refer back to the swatch photo, this is the top color shown. It is less brown than it looks like in the photo. I've never used a lip liner so I'm not sure what I think about this yet. It's a decent color, so I'll try it. Sorry I don't have more to say about this.


Overall I'm fairly happy I know I'll use at least three of the items for sure and the other two things I'm open to trying. I can't wait to see what next May's box is like!

BzzAgent Bic Soleil Glow Review

Guess what?! I got my first BzzAgent campaign! 

In case you don't know what BzzAgent is let me explain...BzzAgent is a website that partners with different companies to find people to test their products. So by being a BzzAgent member you have the opportunity to test products for free. The only requirement is that you tell people if you liked the products. And they send lots of coupons for you to give to your friends. It's awesome. If you want to sign up just click here: https://www.bzzagent.com/signup/NewAgentSignup.do

My very first campaign from BzzAgent is Bic Soleil Glow razors. The package came with 3 tripe blade razors and about six $3 off coupons for me to hand out. I was so happy when I found out I qualified for this! First of all it's almost summer, so it's about that time that I actually shave my legs on a regular basis. (Not gonna lie it only happens about once a month in the winter, and I'm sure it's the same for the rest of you ladies.) Second I've used some of the Bic Soleil razors in the past and really liked them, so I was definitely happy to try them again!

I just tested this out this morning and they were just as great as I expected, if not better. 

On the back of my thighs, at the top, I have very fine blond hairs. They aren't noticeable if you're looking at my leg, but if you touch it, you can really feel how many are there. I tell you this because usually I have the hardest time shaving that area. The hairs are so soft and fine it seems like the razor just passes over them without taking them off. Well guess what? These razors did the job. There were a few hairs left, but for the most part it was gone. I was so so happy! I have the hardest time finding razors that get close enough to get those fine hairs on the back of my thigh, but these got so close that my thighs feel incredibly smooth now. 

I would definitely recommend these razors to every woman. They are around $8 for the three pack which seems a little steep to me, but I do see sales for Bic all the time. Plus they're quality razors that will last quite a while if you take care of them.

Don't forget to check out BzzAgent if you're interested in trying products for free! 

Birchbox vs Ipsy April 2014

This month I decided to put Birchbox and Ipsy in a post together to compare the two. They are both $10 per month and send beauty products. While they are similar in many ways, I personally think they're more different. So this post is to help anyone who can't decide which would be a better fit for them.


First up: Birchbox:
Kind Granola Bar: This was the first thing I noticed in the box because it was the biggest thing. The flavor was Maple Pumpkin Seeds. Does that sound good to anyone? It sure didn't to me, but I thought I should give it a chance because I've heard great things about Kind Bars. Personally I did not like it at all, but I know lots of others did. I think it was the maple part I didn't like, which I expected because I don't like maple flavored things.

Beauty Protector, Protect & Detangle: I was so so excited to see this in my box! I got this same sample in a swap from someone on edivv.com a couple months ago and I love it! I have really long hair that is always getting snarled up and this stuff works wonders. I am so happy to have more of it!

Color Club Nail Polish: This is a mini nail polish in Aquamarine Azulino, which is a gorgeous light blue with a pearl-like finish. I think this seems really nice, but I have a few other polishes that are similar to this color. I'm going to give this to my mom for Mother's Day.

Supergoop CC Cream (in light/medium): Ok first of all, 3ml is a teeny tiny sample. Supergoop needs to up the size of their samples a bit because how am I supposed to know if I like this without using it a few times. I used a bit on the back of my hand and was pretty happy with it, but I don't think I'll get many uses out of this sample.

Sumita Eyeliner Pencil: This eyeliner is in the shade Jamun, which is a deep plum color. I tested this on the back of my hand and instantly fell in love. I know that a swatch isn't the best way to know if you like a product, but it went on so smooth that I know it will work great! Also it is the perfect purple for eyeliner. It's a deep rich color that will look fantastic with a smokey eye.

Overall for Birchbox this month I am incredibly happy. There was only one thing I didn't like. I know all the rest will be put to use and probably on a regular basis.

If Birchbox looks like something you would like to try please use my referral link: https://www.birchbox.com/invite/hb61l Thanks!



On to Ipsy:
Benefit Lollitint: This is a cheek and lip tint in an orchid-like color. I've never tried anything like this before. I would like to try it, but I'm not very fond of the color so I'll be trading this.

Urban Decay 24/7 Black Velvet Eyeliner: First of all I'm glad I got a different color eyeliner than I got in my Birchbox! I will always have a need for black eyeliner. Also, I've never tried this brand before, so I'm very excited to try this. Although I have to say I'm a little disappointed too. I joined ipsy to try new things, I already know that I like black eyeliner. I think they could have chose something better, but I know that I'll use it so I'm not too upset about it.

Cailyn Tinted Lip Balm: This tinted lip balm comes in the color acid pink. Can you see how bright it is?! Yeah....again not a color I was excited about. I'll be trading this too.

City Color White Gold Mousse: I'm so excited about this! The packaging says it can be used for a highlighter or an eyeshadow. I really like multi-use items, and am excited to see how this product works!

Kiss Looks So Natural Lashes: I've never tried false lashes before and am pretty excited about it. And I'm happy the lash glue was included!

Overall for Ipsy I'm happy. I'm going to keep and use 3 of the items and I'll trade the other two for other things I will use.

If Ipsy looks like something you would like please use my referral link: http://www.ipsy.com/r/7x6q. Thanks!

Let me know what you thought of this month's products!

Influenster #univoxbox

Woot! I got another Influenster voxbox! 

For those of you who don't know, Influenster is a website that provides people with full-sized products to test and review. They don't send them to everyone though. You earn the boxes by doing surveys on their website and if you're active on the site and fit the demographics of their current program you'll get a voxbox full of items to test!

The theme of this box was #univoxbox; it was filled with things they thought college girls would like. And let me tell you I definitely do! There were six items included which I'll tell you a little about in this post and later I'll be doing individual reviews on most of the products.

The first item in the box was Playtex Sport Fresh Balance tampons. The box contains 16 scented tampons for regular flow. The info card says these retail for $4-$5. I've only ever used U by Kotex tampons, so they'll definitely get a first impression review from me, but I have to say I'm a little unsettled by the fact that they're scented. When my mom gave me the period talk when I was younger she told me not to use scented lotions or that type of thing on your nether regions because it could mess up your pH balance..or something like that. I just remember she said not to put scented stuff in that area, so I never have. On the other hand I don't think they would make the product if it was unsafe. So I will give them a try in a couple weeks.

The next item was an Acroball Pure White pen from Pilot.The info card says this product retails fir $4.50 for a three pack and they included a $1.50 off coupon. I'm not sure what's so special about this particular pen, but I'll give it a try. I use pens at least 6 days a week, so this will definitely come in handy.

The third item was Red Rose Black Tea drops. This product retails for around $5. These are like the Mio drops that got really popular last summer (or the year before?), but they're just plain tea. I really like that I got plain black tea because I know some people got flavored versions. I just feel like with the plain back tea I can dress it up to be lots of different flavors. I also like that it says you can use in hot or cold water. I like both hot and iced tea so I know I'll be trying it out both ways.
At first I thought $5 for this little container was a bit steep, but when I realized it has 24 servings it seemed more reasonable. It makes it around 20 cents per serving which is much more cost effective than buying premade bottles of tea.









The last three item in the box were makeup related. There was a package of imPRESS press on nails. This is a product I have used before. I actually did a review of these around Valentine's Day. They retail for $6.99 for the plain single color ones and the prints retail for $8.99. I think it is a very reasonable price because of how long they last. Also they don't damage your nails like a salon manicure. I'm really glad they included these because they are definitely one of my favorite nail products.











The second make up item included was Rimmel Stay Matte foundation. I got the color light ivory. This retails for around $5. The funny thing is I bought this about two weeks before I got the box so I've been using it already. I'm glad it came in the box though because I've been liking it so far and it's nice to have another one. I have to say when they say matte they mean it. My face hasn't been getting shiny until almost twelve hours later and even then the shine is barely noticeable. I don't have incredibly oil skin though so I'm not sure how this would work for every one. But if you have combo skin like me I would recommend it.

And the final item in my UniVoxBox was NYC Expert Last Lip Color. This retails for around $2. Ok first of all who picked the color to send us? It's Barbie pink. I have recently been trying out lipsticks more and I have never tried this brand before, but I just can't get past the color. I want to try this out, but I know I will probably never use it because of the shade.

I've been thinking about going to buy another color to try though because it seems like a nice product and $2 is a reasonable price.

Overall I'm very happy with my VoxBox! I received about $25 worth of products to try and I got it all for free. If you haven't made an Influenster account yet I suggest you do because it is a great opportunity to test out products before you buy them and have your opinions heard by the companies.

Contest Winnings (Feb&Mar) + Tips

I just want to start off by saying what a lucky couple of months I've had! But on the other hand I don't want you guys to think this is a bragging post; I'm going to include some tips at the end on how all of you can find cool giveaways like these.


Broadway Nails: imPRESS press-on  manicures
6 packs ($8.50 each=$51)
I won the entire new glitter line from a contest on Facebook! Shortly after I went to my local Walgreens to find out how much these cost. In case you're wondering they're $8.50 a piece (may vary in your area)! I think its crazy they gave me such a huge prize! I'm super thankful though because I had so much fun trying these out and now I know that they're worth the price. They are cheaper that a manicure at a salon, granted they don't last as long (max 10 day wear), but they don't damage your natural nails like acrylics do. Check out my full review of them HERE!



The Crazy House Girlfriend: Montagne Jeunesse face mask 3 pack ($2.50 each=$7.50)
I won some face masks from a blog giveaway! These are fabric masks, which I've never tried, but am very excited to! I recently tried a peel off mask from this brand and loved it, so I have high hopes for these! You can check out the peel off face mask review HERE! Also you should go check out Jackie at The Crazy House Girlfriend! She writes about the same kinds of things I do: good deals she's scored, her favorite products, etc.




The Mind of a Makeup Addict: theBalm Balm Voyage palette ($42.50 on theBalm's website)
The Mind of a Makeup Addict had a giveaway when she reached 100 followers on Facebook and the prize was this gorgeous theBalm palette. This is probably the prize that I was the most excited about because I would probably never splurge on this myself. (She also included a sample of TimeBalm for me to try.)

I think the shadow colors in the palette are beautiful and I'm excited to try the cream lip/cheek products because I've never used them before. Veronica did a review of this palette on The Mind of a Makeup Addict if you'd like to know more about it or see swatches: click HERE! Also you should go like her on Facebook because she's going to be doing more giveaways soon! (The Mind of a Makeup Addict on Facebook). And HERE is the link to her more recent blog posts! I hope you all go check her out because she writes some great reviews. Also she's pretty new at this blogging thing, like me, and I think she deserves some encouragement!





Tips for finding giveaways!

1. Go like your favorite brands on Facebook: That's how I found out about the imPRESS nails giveaway and I've entered tons of other giveaways that companies do through Facebook. Plus some companies also give out samples through Facebook.

2. Find a couple blogs about things you like: I read a few different beauty blogs and those ladies do giveaways all the time! If you like the things they're posting about chances are sooner or later they will have a giveaway with things you like!

Honestly just those two things will help you find a ton of giveaways. And if you want to enter one now click HERE where you'll be brought to The Mind of a Makeup Addict's latest giveaway!



Let me know in the comments some cool things you've won in the past!
(and P.S. I'm planning a back to school giveaway at the end of summer with some college essentials! Let me know what is on your list of college must haves!)

Birchbox March 2014

Ok so I know I said I wasn't going to get Birchbox this month because I wanted to try out Ipsy, but I found a promo code for 100 bonus points with a new subscription so I had to sign up for another month! 100 points is $10 to spend in their online shop and since the box for the month only costs $10 I felt like I was getting a free box. I think the code is still valid so if you want to try Birchbox use code BB100 and I would really appreciate if you could use my referral link since I gave you the code: https://www.birchbox.com/invite/hb61l Thanks!

Anyways...On to this month's goodies! This month I got four samples plus a bonus Birchbox finds item (which is "always in addition to your usual samples, not in place of them").

Jergens BB Body Cream: I also got this in my Target Beauty Box, but I'm ok with that because I like it so far. It says its a perfecting skin cream- honestly I haven't been using it regularly enough to see the perfecting results, but it is super hydrating which I love. Plus they sent a coupon with it and I am definitely more inclined to repurchase with a coupon.

Havvn Night Cream: This is an overnight face cream. I am always happy to get new lotions and creams, but I hated the scent of this, so its going in my Edivv shop.

Agave Healing Oil Treatment: this product says its good for frizzy hair, which I usually have but I got a hair oil sample last month that I'm still working on so this will have to wait. But I do love products that fight frizz.

theBalm How 'Bout Them Apples Cheek and Lip Cream: I haven't decided yet whether or not I'm happy about this one. I have never tried this brand (heard great things about it) so I am interested, but the idea of a cream blush scares me haha.

Keims Peppermint and Macadamia Shampoo: Again hair products are something I don't mind getting in my box and I'm especially happy about the size of this sample (almost 2oz). I haven't tried it out yet, but it smells fantastic.

Overall I am very satisfied with my box; I liked 3 out of the 5 items and I got the 100 bonus points so even if I decide not to try theBalm sample I think I got my money's worth.

Like I said try the BB100 code if you're interested in getting a Birchbox (I'm not guaranteeing it is still valid). It is really easy to cancel if you're not happy. You can sign up here: https://www.birchbox.com/invite/hb61l.

And if you're interested in the Havvn night cream send me a trade request in my Edivv shop HERE.

If you subscribe already let me know what you thought of this month's box!

Update on Target Beauty Box

Remember the Target Beauty box I told you about last Thursday? (if you missed that post you can read it HERE). Well one of the items I got in it was a dud...

I went to try the Herbal Essences Naked Dry Shampoo and the darn thing wouldn't spray at all. I emailed Target and Herbal Essences and guess what happened?!

Target didn't have any replacements to send out, so they refunded me for the whole box! Plus Herbal Essences is sending me a coupon for a free one so that I get to try it! I am so overjoyed! I thought it was incredible customer service and it makes me want to continue to interact with both companies.

Montagne Juenesse Review

If you’re a regular reader then you know I love getting to try new products for free. Honestly I don’t know any girl who would want to turn down free beauty supplies. If you’re interested in getting to try out some free stuff you should check out PINCHme It’s a website that gives out free products in return for honest reviews. And it’s where I got my latest product to try out.

That product was Montagne Juenesse’s Green Tea Peel Off Masque. This might be one of the best products I’ve ever gotten to sample; I absolutely love face masks! And the best part is this was a full sized item.

The instructions were very simple for this product. There was even pictures to help you out. First, I cleansed with my Epice sample I told you about earlier this week.







Then I opened the package to be greeted with a lovely smell. The scent of this face mask was light and refreshing (like green tea, funny huh?). It went on smoothly, but I felt like there was a little too much in the package. I had some leftover even after applying a thick layer.

Then I had to wait 20 minutes for it to dry. The sample came with a brochure about the company so I wasn’t too bored. I got to learn about how the company is cruelty free and vegetarian society approved. Although I don’t know what the vegetarian society is… The brochure told about the company’s eco-friendly practices. It was nice to have something to read while I was waiting for the mask to dry and when a product is eco-friendly and cruelty free I’m always more likely to buy it in the future.

After it had dried I peeled the mask off, which wasn’t the most enjoyable thing. It hurt a little, but too bad. It was like taking off a band aid. It won’t deter me from buying it.

My face felt pretty great after taking the mask off. I felt like it got a lot of dirt and grime out of my skin and helped get rid of dead skin. I do have to say my face felt kind of dry though. Again, it wasn’t the end of the world for me. I just used the Epice moisturizer I told you about earlier this week and then all was well.

I did a little investigation to find out how much these masks cost and was happy to see that on this website (from pinchme) they are only $2. Although I’m not sure how much shipping would be. They are also available at Walmart and Walgreens. But I thought it was cool that the website had sets that you could buy. I am definitely ok with this price. The mask did a wonderful job and I will most likely buy these in the future. They have lots of other varieties that I would love to try.

The Montagne Juenesse Green Tea Peel Off Masque gets an A from me. They quality and cost combined make this product a great deal. It is something that I can afford while I’m in college to pamper myself.

Bath and Body Works Freebies

Some things I really love about Bath and Body Works (BBW) is that they have good sales quite often, they give out coupons every time you shop, and they send great email coupons. One thing I learned recently is that the more times you give them your email, the better coupons you get; so be sure to tell them at the checkout-don't brush it off when they ask!

Yesterday was National Fragrance Day so BBW had a Facebook deal to get a free fragrance with any purchase (minimum) and I also got a coupon in my email for any free product (up to $12.50, no purchase necessary).

Here's what I got!

This is $28.25 worth of products that I got for $1.75! I only had to buy the hand sanitizer!

I've never tried any of these scents before; I'm so excited to try them!

Target Beauty Box

A few weeks ago I learned something new about Target. They do beauty boxes! The bummer is they don't do them monthly and you never know when they're coming. I was lucky to get one and I'm so glad I did! It was only $5 and had free shipping!

I opened it up and got a huge smile on my face; no other beauty box has greeted me like that! Inside the card was a $3 off a $15 beauty purchase at Target. I think I could get a great beauty deal if I round up my coupons and head to Target! (psst the coupon doesn't exclude clearance.)

Sorry for the bad picture, I was just so excited to play with my new stuff! The box had Herbal Essences Naked Dry Shampoo travel size, Jergens BB body Cream, Covergirl Smoochies lip gloss, L'Oreal Voluminous Butterfly Mascara, and Toni & Guy Sea Salt Texturising Spray.

Look at everything I got for $5! I am so so happy with the box, although the gloss will go up in my shop on edivv.com I still think $5 was worth the 4 items I'm keeping. (The sizes are better than what I got in Birchbox in February.) I don't know what the total value of the box is (I could probably figure it out), but the mascara alone is $7 so I don't even care the value of everything else. I think I got more than my money's worth. 

The next time one of these boxes is out I'll let you guys know sooner so you can get one yourself (they're usually a one day thing because they sell out so quickly). But if you're interested in the gloss check out my shop on edivv.com so we can trade!

Epice Review

I want to tell you guys about my first experience with the brand Epice. (Sorry I don’t know how to do the things over the e’s.) A few weeks ago they had a promotion on their website offering free samples and the makeup lover/ bargain hunter in me didn't want to miss out on the opportunity to test this brand.

As you can in the photo see Epice sent me samples of their purifying exfoliant and therapeutic moisturizer. The top photo on the left is of the exfoliant and the bottom picture is the moisturizer.

The first thing I do when I try out new skin care is to smell it. Surprisingly neither of these has a scent at all. I actually really love that! My skin is fairly sensitive and some fragranced products irritate my skin. Also if it had a scent that I didn't like I would be less likely to use it.  

I tried out the exfoliant first. If you look back to the photo I used about twice the amount on my fingers, which may have been a bit too much. The instructions say to moisten your face with lukewarm water first and then apply with your fingertips in a small circular motion. Right away I noticed the gritty texture of the exfoliant. Honestly I wasn't expecting that texture. Other exfoliating face washes I’ve used have those little beads to help clean you face, but as you can see in the picture this doesn’t. I actually liked the gritty feel a lot better than products with the little beads. I felt like it was cleaning better. I don’t know if that’s true, but that’s what it felt like. The instructions also said to leave it on for a few minutes before rinsing. After I rinsed it off I felt pretty satisfied. I felt like it got all my makeup off and some dead skin too.

One thing I should mention about the exfoliant is that it’s not an everyday face wash. The package says to use it once or twice weekly. I feel like that is a good recommendation. It was a very deep cleaning product which I loved, but I think everyday use might irritate the skin. I only say that because it helped remove some dry dead skin from my face and I think if you used it every day there wouldn't be enough dead skin to take off.

On to the moisturizer. The package says that the moisturizer contains “aloe, shea butter, and cocoa butter to heal and rebuild your dry, sensitive skin.” I was pretty excited to try this out because this winter has been rough on my skin. My face has been very dry and sometimes even flaky (I know, ew.).

If you look back at the photo, the amount on my fingers was enough moisturizer for my whole face. After applying I was a little disappointed. It felt kind of greasy on my skin. I've never used shea butter products before, so I thought that might be the reason for the greasy feeling (?). After a few minutes the initial greasy feeling went away, so I felt a lot better about the product.

By the way I did this all before bed. And when I woke up the next morning my skin felt really hydrated. I didn't see any of those gross flaky patches I was telling you about. With the other moisturizer I had been using I applied it after the shower and in the morning when I woke up. I didn't feel the need to apply any more Epice moisturizer when I woke up. That was really great to me because it’s obviously doing its job and it will last me longer.

As with any other sample I've received I did some investigation to find out how much this product costs. You know I want to make the most of my budget while in college. So I found out on the Epice website that the full size of these products are kinda pricey. The exfoliant is $32 and the moisturizer is $15. I'm having a rough time deciding if I would repurchase. Normally I wouldn't spend that kind of money on a face wash and moisturizer, but I absolutely love these items! It is the best moisturizer I have ever used and the exfoliant is so wonderful! Maybe I'll buy them, maybe not; I guess I'll wait and see how I feel when the samples are gone.

Overall I give this product an A+. Like I said they are some of the best products I have used.

If you want to check out their website here is the link: http://www.epiceinternational.com/. If you click on the skin care bar at the top it looks like they still are offering free samples, I suggest you try them!

Ruby Wing Color Changing Nail Polish Review

I recently won a contest through Birchbox and one of the products I received was Ruby Wing Color Changing Nail Polish in Ride 'Em Cowboy. If you want to know more about Birchbox HERE is a review of a monthly box I received from them and how to sign up.

I thought this nail polish was too great not to share! I only had to apply two coats to get full coverage and the polish changed to bright red in the sunlight. Also after 4 days there was no chipping! I feel like it would have lasted longer without chipping, but by then I was ready to change my nails.

If you click HERE Birchbox offers alot more color choices. This is something I will probably get when I have enough Birchbox points.

Ipsy March 2014

Last month I tried out Birchbox for the first time and told you guys that this month I would be trying out a different service to compare the two and decide which I like better. You can see my Birchbox post HERE. 

This month I tried out Ipsy. Ipsy costs $10 per month, just like Birchbox, which was why I decided to compare them. Before I tell you which one I decided to stay with I think I should show you what was in my Ipsy bag this month!

Something a little bit different about Ipsy is that they send you all of your items in a makeup bag. So in addition to all the goodies you're getting a bag every single month. I love this! Honestly I already have a ton of makeup bags, but they are so useful that I don't mind getting more. 

This months bag was designed by Klari Reis, an artist from San Francisco, CA. You can find more of her art work on her website www.klariart.com. Personally I didn't like the design of the bag very much, but I can save it for a gift. 

Every month Ipsy sends you 4-5 items, some samples and some full sized products. I received 4 items and 2 of them were full sized! 

(from the left of the photo)

Be a Bombshell eye shadow palette in Bora Bora. This is one of the full sized items, which retails for $16. Swatches to the right. This came with a 40% off coupon code for their website.

Nicole by OPI Roughles nail polish in On What Grounds? This was the second full sized item, which sells for $8.

Pixi Flawless Beauty Primer sample. This came with a 25% off coupon code for their website. 

BareMinerals Moxie Lipstick sample in Get Ready. This sample came with a coupon code for free shipping and a free sample on their website. I thought it was a decent offer to check out since I've never tried any of their products. Right now they are also giving away a different sample with every order and because it was my first purchase with them I got a free eyeshadow! I got 2 products and 2 deluxe sized samples for only $6.50!

I am so so happy with everything I received! I will definitely use all of these products. I don't know the value of the sample sized items, but the two full size products are worth $24, so I got a great deal for only $10!

If you think this is a service you would like to subscribe to click HERE. That is my referral link which I think gets us both bonus points.

So if I had to choose between Ipsy and Birchbox based on the one month I received of each, I would pick Ipsy. I chose Ipsy because it seems to be more makeup based (Birchbox has a wider variety of things) and personally I am more interested in a makeup subscription. But if you want to check out  Birchbox click HERE. That is another referral link which I think gets us both some points.

If you're an Ipsy subscriber let me know what you thought of this month!

Sorry for my Absence

Last week was my spring break which was why I totally neglected posting. Sorry about that, but it wasn't complete neglect. I spent part of this week testing out items to review for you guys. I also have been brainstorming like crazy, so there is lots of good stuff to come this week!

Coglate Optic White Review

As promised today I'm going to tell you about my experience with the Colgate Optic White Toothbrush/ Whitening Pen that I received from Influenster to test.       **So just as a reminder the claim I put to the test was "whiter teeth in two days."*

If you didn't read my unboxing post you can read it HERE. But the photo on the right shows everything I got. There is a travel sized toothpaste, a toothbrush/whitening pen, and some coupons. I got these free to test out but I was pretty curious how expensive this would be to buy and how it compared to other whitening systems.







I went to the CVS website to look at prices. Boy, was I shocked. This toothbrush is $18. That seemed absolutely crazy to me for a toothbrush until I remembered that there was a whitening pen built in. I've never bought any whitening systems before so I looked at prices for those to see how they compared to the toothbrush combo I  got. Most of them seemed to be $30 or more. So if you're looking for a whitening system this is definitely one of the cheapest.









I feel like I'm boring you with background stuff; let's get on to how I think it worked.
The toothbrush is really nice quality. I really felt like it was getting my teeth clean, and it even has a tongue scrubber on the back. The only thing that I didn't like about the toothbrush was how big the head was. I have a small mouth and usually buy smaller toothbrushes, so it was kind of annoying to use such a large toothbrush. Although it didn't bother me enough to want to stop using it.

I love the toothpaste! It is super minty and has a slight burn like mouthwash. I know some people don't like the mouthwash burn, but I do because it feels like my mouth is getting extra clean. The toothpaste also suds up really well so I don't have to use very much to get my teeth clean.

Now the whitening pen was a weird experience. I've used toothbrushes and toothpaste in the past, so I knew what to expect with those. I honestly had no idea what to expect with the whitening pen. The first thought I had was that I love how the pen fits into the toothbrush handle. It's a very convenient place to keep it and I never forget about it there. The whitening paste comes out of the pen by twisting up the bottom, which I like so that I don't accidentally squeeze too much out. It has a gluey texture which is kind of weird and a little difficult to spread the first time, but I think that was because I wasn't used to it yet. Once it's spread and you close your mouth the gluey texture goes away because of your saliva. Not to say that it immediately comes off when you close your mouth- it just feels nicer, if that makes any sense at all. I really like that I didn't have to wait a specific amount of time and rinse- you don't have to rinse it off at all. I didn't have anything to eat or drink for an hour after I applied the paste. It doesn't say anything about that in the directions, I just used my best judgement. I could feel the paste for about a half an hour before I'm assuming my saliva washed it away. And after that I just thought it was best to wait a little longer before eating because I wanted to get the best results possible.


Here's the before and after pictures:

Overall I'm mildly happy. I think that my teeth are beginning to get a bit whiter, but there isn't a huge difference. I think that by the end of the week my teeth will probably be where I thought they would be today. I don't know why I expected a huge change after two days, it's kind of my own fault that I thought my teeth would be whiter. I think that the process does work well enough to have the claim, but don't expect super drastic results after two days. I have a feeling that after a week you will have the results you want. And there is definitely enough whitening paste to last a week (or even more).

My grade for this would be a A- , mostly because the toothbrush head is too large for my mouth. I do think it is the most affordable option for whitening and it has been working for me. If I were to buy a whitening system I would probably get this one because it would be the best for my college budget. (Especially since they sent me coupons!)

Influenster VoxBox: Colgate Optic White

I got a great package in the mail today! A VoxBox from Influenster! If you don't know what Influenster is the short and sweet version is that it's a site that allows people to test products for free in exchange for honest opinions. There's more involved than that, but I should probably give Influenster it's own whole post. I'll get that up in the next day or so for you guys.

So enough with that, on to the fun stuff...what was in my box!



I got the Colgate Optic White VoxBox! Inside was a mini toothpaste, a toothbrush, and a whitening pen. Plus like 6 coupons (you know how I love coupons)!

The claim that I am putting to the test is "whiter teeth in 2 days." That means on Sunday I will put up a post about how well I think it works!

Limited Edition: Birchbox Finds

I was so excited to get my birthday present from my parents yesterday! My birthday isn't for a month, but what I wanted was only available for a limited time, so my mom let me get it early! :) I got the Limited Edition: Birchbox Drugstore Finds box. (PS this isn't one of their monthly boxes, just in case the 'limited edition' part didn't clue you in).

This box was valued at $55, but you can still get it HERE for only $18. Are you ready to see what was inside?!

(I'll start from the left side of the photo). 

Covergirl Bombshell ShineShadow in Ice Queen: a shimmery cream eye shadow. 

Nivea A Kiss of Care and Color in Sheer Coral: a colored lip balm.

John Frieda Frizz Ease: pretty self explanatory, a frizz reducing hair oil.

Sally Hanson Complete Salon Manicure in Pink a Card: a base, polish, and topcoat all in one, says that it resists chipping up to 10 days.

Rimmel Stay Glossy 3D in Back Row Smooch: "up to 6hr shine in a 3D effect lip gloss."

Covergirl Bombshell Volume Mascara in very black: a 2 step volumizing mascara.

Biore Self Heating One Minute Masks: 4 pack.

I'm super excited to try all of these products and I'll probably do reviews of most of them since I've never tried any before. 

Did you get this box too? Let me know what you thought of it!

Edivv.com

If you're anything like me somewhere in your house/ apartment/ dorm you have a drawer or basket full of beauty products that you don't use. They could be samples that you got that you already had too much of or didn't like. Or full sized items you bought, tried once, and decided weren't for you. No matter what is in that basket its all useless to you. But I have a solution that you're going to love!

I found a website recently called edivv.com. It's a site where people can trade their unwanted beauty products for things they actually want! The site started around the idea of unwanted samples from beauty subscription boxes, but I've seen lots of full sized products on it too. And you can even trade your gently used products (those tried it once and hated it products you have). 

After you sign up you write a quick blurb about the kinds of items you're looking for and then you add photos and descriptions of all the items you want to get rid of. When you see an item that you like you send a divvy request (a trade request) and wait to see if the other person likes your offer. Only after a successful divvy will your address be made available to others on the site. And ten days after your successful divvy you get to rate the person you traded with. The rating system helps keep all the phonies off the site. And if you never receive your product in the mail you get to contact the administrators, who will look into it for you. (But I haven't had this problem).

I love the fact that everything on the site is organized by category. There's make up, skin care, hair care, body, nails, tools, and even a recently added section! There are so many great products available on the site; there's definitely something for everyone!

So far I have had three successful divvys and I am absolutely loving the site! It's at least worth checking out. If this sounds like something you want to try click here to visit edivv.com.

Awesome Savings at BBW and Walgreens

I had such a great shopping trip today! I can't wait to show you everything I got for $24.

One place I went today was Bath and Body Works. BBW always has something on sale and in addition to that I'm on their email subscription list, so they email me coupons sometimes. I usually wait until their semi annual sales to shop because that's when you get the best deals, but I had a coupon for a free item when you spent $10 and the free item could be anything up to $14. One of the sales they had going on was 3 mini candles for $10. This was the sale I took advantage of along with my coupon because I am a huge candle lover! These candles would normally be $13.50 for 3.  For my free item I got stress relief lotion from their Aromatherapy line. This usually sells for $13.

So overall the cost for these four items should have been $26.50 and I only paid $10. That's a 62% savings!


The other store I went to today was Walgreen's. I know this blog is fairly new, but if you saw my post a few days ago about Walgreen's you might be coming to the conclusion that I like that store. You would be absolutely right. Walgreen's is such a great place to get big deals. They fairly regularly have buy one get one free sales and I've even seen some buy one get two free! Combining these sales with coupons can get you huge savings. Another thing that I love about Walgreen's is that you can use a manufacturers coupon in combination with a store coupon. I've never managed to hit the jackpot and combine all of these deals, but I usually get 2 of them.

So anyways back to my haul of the day. I found two buy one get one free deals that I took advantage of. The first was Pond's products and the second was Caress shower gel. I got two packages of Pond's face wipes. I've never used these before but I also had a Pond's coupon and it was an offer I couldn't pass up because I had been thinking about buying them anyway. Each of these wipes sells for $6.49, so two would normally cost $13. By combining the sale with a coupon I got both for $5.49. The Caress shower gels are my favorite! I always use these because they don't irritate my skin. Buy one get one free was something that I couldn't miss. They had my favorite scent in a larger size for the same price as the other scents so of course I was going to get the bigger size. I also had a coupon for Caress. Normally buying 2 Caress shower gels would cost $10, but with the sale and coupon I paid $4.49 for both! The last thing I got was Clear shampoo. This is another product I haven't tried. It was on sale for $1 off plus I had a coupon, so I paid $2.50 for $6 shampoo!

Overall the cost for my Walgreen's trip should have been $28.95, but I only paid $12.47. That's a 57% savings!

I know that there are other blogs that are strictly about couponing and that they may get better deals than me, but I'm not interested in going crazy like they do. I respect that they take all the time to do it and write their blogs, but I don't have the time for it. I'm happy cutting down my spending the way I am. It's easy to do and really helps my college budget.

If you want anymore tips let me know in the comments, or if you want me to do a review of any of these products. Have a great night!

Wet n Wild Matte Top Coat Review

Today I tried out Wet n Wild's Matte Top Coat for the first time. I've never tried any matte nail polish before so I was pretty excited!

First of all it was just a top coat, so I had to find a color to go underneath. I chose another Wet n Wild product, from their Fergie line, called Miami Heat.

In the top right of the photo is the two polishes. The bottom right is a comparison of with and without the matte top coat (left is with, right is without). And the photo on the left is the final result.

The matte top coat dried quickly and gave the exact results I was hoping for. Another great thing is that it is very affordable (I found it for 93 cents at Walgreen's and got it free after a coupon!). I don't have anything negative to say about this polish. Although I do think it's funny that it is a matte coat and is from their Wild Shine collection.

If I were to give this a grade it would be A+. If you're interested in matte nails I would suggest this instead of individual matte colors because it is really cheap and works great and you can make all of your colors matte.

AcaChips Review

On Wednesday I posted about the upcoming AcaChips performance that I was going to. The show was last night and I wanted to tell you how great it was! Below are photos of the three groups. On the left is Central Harmony. In the middle is On the Rox. And on the right is Fish n Chips. They even did a song together at the end of the show. I have to say I absolutely loved the whole show! I had never seen any of these groups before last night so it was awesome to get to see all of them together. All of the groups mentioned they had upcoming performances and that tickets will be on sale soon (I'll post more about that when I find out dates). So if you missed the show don't worry you'll be able to see them before the semester ends. I think I'm going to go to the Fish n Chips show because they were my favorite of the night. If you went let me know if you enjoyed it in the comments!

                             

Walgreens Deal

Awesome savings today at Walgreen's! They had U by Kotex feminine products buy one get one 50% off. Then I combined the sale savings with a Walgreen's coupon (they had them on the shelf next to the product). Then I had 2 manufacturers coupons to add to my savings. For a total of 49% savings today! P.S. In case you didn't know you can combine a Walgreen's store coupon with a manufacturers coupon for double savings! 

imPRESS Manicure Update

Today was day 7 with the imPRESS nails on. I wanted to try to keep these on as long as possible to test out their durability, but I made it to 7 days and gave up. I ended up taking them off because I have a new nail polish I want to try! By the way the imPRESS nails were super easy to get off. I didn't even need nail polish remover; I just tugged at the edges gently and they came off.

Birchbox

Today I got my very first Birchbox. For those who don't know, Birchbox is a monthly subscription box that costs $10 per month and comes with 4-5 make-up and hair product samples. I will be doing individual reviews of some of the products later, but today I just want to talk about the company overall.

Signing up for Birchbox was really easy. I just went to their website and clicked on the link for the women's box (birchbox.com). I was on the wait-list for about a week, which I thought was very reasonable. When I went to claim my subscription I had some issues. For some reason after I put in my payment info I never got a confirmation. So I emailed the company and they got back to me within the hour and fixed my payment info. They were super friendly and prompt. It was awesome to get my issues resolved so quickly. After I got my payment and shipping info all set I took a quiz to help them determine what kind of products I would like. It was short, quick, and painless.

When my box shipped they sent me a tracking email to help me know when my package would arrive. I was very impressed with this. I checked the tracking code every day because I was so anxious for my box to arrive. It took six days to get here, but that was including the weekend; it was 4 business days. So like I said, it just arrived today and opening it was so exciting (I've never had a subscription box before).

Here's a photo of everything inside:

I haven't tried anything yet, but the box comes with a card that tells a little about each product.

The pink card in the back says Juicy Couture if you can't see it. Inside was a 0.05 fl. oz. sample of "Malibu." Actually this is the only one I've tried so far because it was easy to spritz on perfume. The scent was alright, this definitely isn't one of my new favorites, but I'll use it. And I for sure won't buy it because the info card says it costs $52-$72 and that's just not going to fit into my college budget.

In front of the perfume are three tea bags from Ahmed Tea. I'm actually really excited to try these because I love tea; I just need to buy some honey first haha. :) They gave me three different flavors to try, which are: Mint (green tea), English (black tea), and Blueberry (green tea).

I'm not sure if you can tell but behind the tea is a little glass bottle. It is Protect&Oil from Beauty Protector. The info card says to apply 1-3 drops to damp hair. I am going to try this out for a few days before I let you know how it is, but let me tell you it smells amazing! It's like vanilla heaven in that little bottle.

On the right side of the box you can see that long black stick with gold glitter. That is a Cynthia Rowley liquid eyeliner pen. I think I'm really going to like this. It is a marker style liquid eyeliner and I actually already own one from another brand. Since I love the one I have, I'm sure I will love this as well.

Last is the little blue rectangle in the front; I accidentally cut off the name-sorry. It is an Ayres bar soap. I'm usually not one for bar soap, but I'm going to give it a shot because it smells awesome! The info card says it's an all natural soap and the package says "shea butter soap with jasmine and rosemary."


Since I'm new to the whole subscription box thing I decided to cancel and tryout another company next month to compare. I did not cancel because I didn't like it; I just can't afford to do two subscriptions next month. When my subscription from the other company comes next month I will do a review of that one and let you know which company I decide to stick with.

Overall I was impressed with the service and quality of BirchBox. I only paid $10 for everything I just described and that includes shipping. It seems like a great service based off the first box.

If you're interested in trying it here's a link: https://www.birchbox.com/invite/hb61l (This link will earn us both points for their shop.)

Aca-Chips Tomorrow Night!

Tomorrow night at 7p in Plachta Auditorium all three of CMU's A Capella will be performing! On The Rox, Fish n Chips, and Central Harmony all in one show! And to make it even better, the show is free! I cant wait!