Pond's BB+ Luminous Finish Review & Swatches

 Pond's BB+ is a brand new BB cream, and I'm really excited about this one because other American BB creams I've tried have been too greasy for me and not a good match for my skin tone.  As you can see from the swatches below on my hand, this product has a matte finish & the medium shade is a pretty close match to my skin (it's the one on the right that's barely visible against my skin).  On the left is the light shade, which will work well for fair skin.  As of right now these are the only two shades, hopefully they will add more as time goes on because this is a great BB cream!

Ponds is holding a video competition, and the winners have an opportunity to appear on Entertainment Tonight which is pretty amazing.  Here is my entry, if you like it I hope you'll vote for me at the Ponds Facebook Page.  If you sort the videos alphabetically, I'm in the middle of the 3rd row. :)  Or, of course, vote for your favorite! Thanks!

Glossybox USA Unboxing - July 2013 - and PROMO CODE!

This is the second Glossybox I've received (the first one was the January box) and again I am pleased with the variety of products and the sizes.  I guess that's not surprising since the box does cost $21 which is significantly more than Birchbox or Beauty Army.  Glossybox is like Birchbox in that you can earn points from writing reviews and referring others to sign up for the box.

This month they are running a promo for 15% off your first box, which makes the box a pretty reasonable price considering the size of the products & the box itself is nice and reusable as well.

The promo code is:  JULYMAG
Glossybox Website


Here's my unboxing video:

Products from this month's box:

1. Brazilian Blowout Acai Deep Conditioning Masque
2. Dr Brandt Signature ShinErase BB Matte 
3. Figs & Rouge Cherry Blossom Lip Balm
4. Bvlgari Eau Perfumee Au The Blanc Shampoo & Shower Gel
5. Absolute! Make-up cleansing tissues
6. Nails Inc. Baker Street Nail Polish

Beauty Army July 2013

So in May, I skipped the box and received one anyway, and now in July somehow I managed to forget to either pick my samples OR skip the box, so I received another surprise box.  I liked my May surprise box better than this one.  The samples here are ok and I'll definitely get use out of some of them, but two are foil packets and I'm actually not sure what the little silver pot of lip (?) product is.  It's really my own fault for not picking samples or skipping, so I can't really complain. 

Unboxing:

Birchbox July 2013

This month was a pretty good one despite the foil packets and the bobby pins (I have thick hair and the pins are very tight so they don't really work for me).  I was happy to receive two nice sized skincare items as well as the Instain sample.  And although the foil packets aren't enough product to really decide if the product is for me or not, I'll still get a good hair wash out of them!

Here's my unboxing video:

Products received:

1. Kérastase Bain Chroma Riche - Cleanse
2. BENTA BERRY G-1 Moisturizing Face Cream
3. theBalm InStain Long-Wearing Powder Staining Blush
4. Pür Minerals CC Cream Broad Spectrum SPF 40
5. Birchbox Bobby Pins

Birchbox May 2013

Receiving these boxes in the mail is always such a treat, and I like the fact that often these subscription boxes come right into your regular mailbox.  It's great to see your little pink Birchbox sandwiched between a pile of bills and Forbes magazine.  

 My only complaint is that I've started getting a little tired of the perfume samples.  However, one of my awesome subscribers on youtube pointed out to me that you can request to receive no more than 6 perfume samples per year! So just one in every other box, instead of one in every box.  Sounds like a decent improvement to me.  I went ahead and selected that setting in my profile, so we'll see how many perfume samples I receive after this one.  My favorites this month are the Coola cucumber scented lotion with SPF 30 (it's about time someone made some sunblock that doesn't smell like sunblock) and the beauty protect detangler.

Items from my May 2013 Birchbox:

1. Sumita Color Contrast Eyeliner
2. Beauty Protector Protect & Detangle
3. Folle de Joie eau de parfum
4. COOLA Classic SPF 30 Cucumber Moisturizer for Face
5. Pilot Corporation of America Acroball PureWhite®

Unboxing video HERE!

Beauty Army Unboxing (surprise box!) May 2013

I've been putting these Beauty Army boxes to good use, they're more useful than Julep boxes (just a mailing box) or Birchboxes (not as easy to open and close). These boxes are cute black boxes with a lid that swings open and a pink camouflage design on the inside.

This month's box was actually a surprise, I chose to "skip" the month but for some reason my order went through anyway.  No big deal, Beauty Army refunded my payment when I contacted them.  I thought I might as well share the box anyway!  Pretty nice for samples I didn't choose myself.  The mark scanda-lash hook up mascara and the gel nail polish are so cute and will definitely be used.  The lash cards are an interesting idea, but I don't think I'd pay for them so nice to get a sample in this box.  The skincare products will be fun to try out as well.

Unboxing video HERE!

Julep Maven May 2013 Unboxing, Swatches & Giveaway

Yet again I was mesmerized by a Julep Maven collection and had to go for the whole thing!  HOWEVER, there are three items from the collection missing from the photo above.  Why? Because those three items are now tucked away safely for a giveaway winner! Watch the video below to see what the items are, and enter the giveaway if you like them. :)

SeasonsBox May 2013

SeasonsBox went all out with a beauty theme for this month's box.  Maybe they've been watching a lot of beauty videos on youtube lately. ;)  I can't complain, who doesn't want bath products, nail polish and eye shadow showing up at their door?  The nail polish is a gorgeous coral color, and the eye shadow is neutral, I think both are perfect for spring and summer.  The deep steep body wash is lavender scented, and lavender is my favorite natural remedy for sleeplessness!  Try it out if you have any minor sleep issues.  Just make sure the lavender product you try has real lavender in it like this one.

Unboxing video HERE!

Birchbox April 2013

This box had an interesting mix of products.  The tea samples were pretty cute, and they went straight to my husband since I'm not a big tea drinker (unfortunately I'm more of a hot chocolate person, unluckily for my teeth but luckily for my dentist).  I like the Super Goop eye cream since it has SPF 37, but when I saw the price of the full size I don't think I'll be going for it.  I did highly appreciate the full sized mirenesse glossy kiss!

Items from April's box:

Atelier Cologne Orange Sanguine Cologne Absolue 
Kusmi Tea Paris - Wellness Miniature Assortment
Mirenesse Glossy Kiss
Ojon rare blend™ oil Total Hair Therapy
Supergoop!® Advanced SPF 37 Anti-Aging Eye Cream

Unboxing video!

Jordana Sweet N' Smooth Nourishing lip balms: Review & Swatches

These fun new balms are $1.49 each, so they are an affordable addition to the tinted lip balm bandwagon!  I found the color to be long lasting and the balms to be moisturizing.  Some of them are pretty pigmented, so if you don't want much color I would go with Yummy Strawberry or Vanilla Cake (not pictured).

Swatches below from top to bottom:  Tasty Watermelon, Yummy Strawberry, Juicy Raspberry, Sweet Mango, and Delicious Tangerine.

Birchbox March 2013

This months box was a really nice box, the sizes of the samples were generous considering the $10 price of the box.  After taking the five mini surveys about the products in exchange for Birchbox Points, the box is only $5 and just the nail appliques alone are worth that price!

In the March box I received:

1. Caldrea Body Lotion
2. Incoco® Design Nail Polish Appliques
3. Madewell for Birchbox Nail Emery Board
4. Serge Normant Meta Revive Dry Shampoo
5. Whish Shave Crave Shaving Cream

My husband unboxed this one just for fun and a little change of pace! I think he did a great job, no? :)

Birchbox February 2013

My favorite items from this month's box were the Color Club nail polish, the Dr. Jart Black Label Detox BB Cream (why does the name sound like an illegal underground sweat lodge?), and of course the Ghirardelli Caramel square.  I was excited to discover the BB cream, I have tried a few of the new American drugstore BB creams and haven't been too happy with them.  Dr. Jart is a bit more pricey but I think the quality just might be worth it!

Unboxing:

SeasonsBox February 2013

I loved this month's SeasonsBox.  Every item is something I NEEDED and just didn't know it! ;)  The maple crunch chocolate was delicious, it took a lot of self control to split it up and eat it over several days instead of eating the whole bar in one sitting.  And the juicy bamboo wipes are perfect facial wipes for travel.  The bambu bath scrub smells incredible-- I decided to give it to my sister, only fair to spread around the goodies a little!  The last item is a rosewater spray and it has a really nice, low-key, natural scent-- just what I like, I don't usually go for heavy perfumes.  Thanks to SeasonsBox for sending me these boxes for review.  They're trying to get the word out since they're new and I think they have a great product!

Here's my unboxing video:

Julep Maven February 2013

Sooo... yeah. I kind of had to have all of the polish colors in the February 2013 Julep Maven collection! Every month you have the option of going with one of the regular monthly boxes or snagging the entire collection, and I loved a bunch of the colors.  The full collection also came with this pretty jewelry box you see the polishes in here!  The two sitting at the top there are the oxygen treatment and the freedom top coat.

See my unboxing video here:

SeasonsBox ☼ First Unboxing January 2013

My first SeasonsBox!  These are monthly boxes with a seasonal theme, so this one had a fun winter theme complete with a scarf.  This month I received:

A Cathedral Candle
Hand Woven Scarf from Kitira Boutique
Unearth Malee Thai Herbal Steam Bath Tea
Perfumessence Organic Breathe Shower and Bathbomb
Whispering Willow Whipped Shea Butter in Tea Tree

Unboxing video:

Birchbox ● January 2013

I am subscribed to Birchbox for the year, so I'll be posting a photo of my box here as well as a video unboxing on my channel each month.  Some of the samples can be small, but with the points system the boxes are pretty cheap and I think it's a fun way to try new products!  I'm pretty happy with all of the samples with the exception of the perfume.  I'd rather just test perfumes out at the department store.

This month I received five samples:

DDF® Wrinkle Resist Plus Pore Minimizer Moisturizing Serum
Kérastase Elixir Ultime - Protect
Juicy Couture - Viva La Juicy - 3.4 oz
theBalm® cosmetics Hot Mama Shadow & Blush All-in-One
Kérastase Nutritive Nectar Thermique - Protect

See my unboxing!!