Bath & Body Works Fall PocketBac Hand Sanitizers

If there's one store I need to be kept away from, it's Bath and Body Works. Every time I walk in there just to look around, I end up walking out with bags of new products! And of course, with the fall scents finally on display, there was no way I could pass up a tiny purchase.

These PocketBac Sanitizers are $1.75 each, or 5 for $5 in the "We Love Fall" set on the Bath & Body Works website. Last time I was at the mall, I picked up three of the set - Crisp Morning Air, Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin, and A Walk in the Woods.

All three scents are really lovely, and are available both as a hand sanitizer and a foaming soap! I have a huge collection of these little PocketBacs and I love to swap them out for the different seasons, but fall is definitely my favorite!

Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin: This one is pretty straightforward - really sweet and cinnamony!

Crisp Morning Air: This scent is very fresh, a combination of earthiness and fruit!

A Walk in the Woods: Possibly my favorite of the bunch! Very spicy and musky, like the perfect autumn afternoon in the forest!

These guys are so little and cheap - they're the perfect way to get into the fall spirit! Plus, who doesn't love having clean hands on the go?

Fans of Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods will especially appreciate one of these sanitizers' names!

XOXO,

Ally

Look of the Day: Summery Lips!

Summer is almost over, but there are still a few days left to break out those bright & fun summer lip colors! For today's look, I went with dewy, flawless skin, light and shimmery eye makeup, and bold lips!

One of the keys to this look starts before you even apply a touch of makeup - it's all in the skincare! Before applying my foundation, I used an exfoliating cleanser to scrub my face and then slathered on some moisturizer. I also made sure to apply plenty of balm to my lips. That way, both my face makeup and my lipstick would apply smoothly later on, without accentuating any patches of rough skin.

For my face I just went about my typical routine, but I finished everything off with a hydrating spray. I used the e.l.f. Studio Makeup Mist & Set Spray, which doesn't do too much for me in terms of setting my makeup, but does a really nice job of keeping my face dewy and stopping it from getting powdery. For the eyes I just used a light sweep of shimmery nude shadow, followed by a touch of a darker matte shade in the outer corner and crease, just to give it a hint of depth. Then I applied liquid eyeliner very thinly across the top, and used a shimmery champagne eye pencil on the bottom waterline.

For the lips, any bright lipstick will do - I used one of the Wet n Wild Megalast Lip Colors, which are extremely matte, and paired it with a tiny bit of shimmery gloss in the center of the lip, to give some dimension to my lips. If your lips are less smooth, you might want to use a vibrant gloss or a less matte lipstick instead, to achieve the same effect.

Of course, you can always ramp up the eyes a little more if something this subtle isn't your style, but I love downplaying the eyes when I wear a bright lip - it puts all of the attention onto my lipstick, right where I want it!

XOXO,
Ally

Drugstore Back-to-School Lip Products for Middle School, High School, and College

It's that time of year again - school is almost back in session! Parents everywhere are rejoicing, while kids are savoring their last day or two of summer. You may have already stocked up on the coolest notebooks, pencils, and folders - but don't forget the lip products! Here are some of my back-to-school favorites, from moisturizing to colorful, so you can find the right lip product for you and your grade level! I've picked out 3 lip products each for middle school, high school, and college - and the best thing is that they're all from the drugstore!

Middle School:
If you're in middle school, you may have started wearing light makeup already, or you may be rocking the natural, bare-faced look. Either way, I'd recommend keeping the lip products light. Not only will products like balms and glosses look more natural, but they are also easier to apply and require less precision, which means you won't be stuck in the bathroom trying to apply perfect lipstick!

SoftLips Tinted Lip Conditioner - Rose: This lip balm is probably a little too frosty for most adults, but for younger girls it's lovely! I've always found SoftLips balms to be extremely moisturizing, and the SPF 15 will help protect lips from damaging sun rays.
Bath & Body Works Liplicious Gloss: The particular shade that I'm wearing isn't being sold in Bath & Body Works stores anymore, but you can still find similar clear and lightly tinted glosses - and the best part is that they come in a bunch of fun flavors! These glosses add just a hint of shine and shimmer, and the tube packaging makes it super easy to swipe them on in between classes.
Maybelline Baby Lips Balm - Pink Punch: The most pigmented lip product in the bunch, this balm gives a beautiful pink tint to the lips, feels smooth and moisturizing, and has SPF 20! If the pink is too bright for you, these balms come in a variety of other tints, and there are several clear options as well!

High School:
Whether you've started wearing a fuller face of makeup and want the perfect lip product to compliment the rest of your look, or you want to keep the face natural and just accentuate your lips, these lip products range from glossy to matte and from bright to subtle. They all look great alone, so no need to pack a ton of lip products to take to school!

e.l.f. Studio Matte Lip Color - Tea Rose: This lip color is extremely matte, so it may not work if you have dry or chapped lips. But if you keep your lips moisturized and smooth, this lip color is a beautiful pale shade with a bit of a purple undertone. Since it's matte, it won't move around on your lips throughout the day, and it won't compete with your eye makeup!
CoverGirl Jumbo Gloss Balm - Ballet Twist (205): This jumbo lip pencil is a pale peachy shade with a touch of shimmer. It goes on very sheer, but you can also build up the pigment by applying a few layers. It's really easy to apply without a mirror, and feels very lightweight on the lips!
NYX Butter Gloss - Peaches and Cream: This has been one of my favorite summer glosses, and I definitely plan on wearing it into the fall as well! It's a gorgeous peachy pink color, and true to the name, it's extremely smooth and buttery on the lips! It gives the lips exactly the right touch of color.

College:
Let's be real - anything goes in college! For these lip products, I picked out something nude, something bright, and something with super versatile packaging, for those busy days where you're going from the dining hall to class to practice to clubs and finally, to the library for an all-nighter!

Revlon Lip Butter - Peach Parfait: This shade is the perfect peachy-nude color with a bit of shimmer and a TON of shine! One of my favorite things about the Revlon Lip Butters is that I never feel like I need a gloss with them, because they're incredibly shiny already!
Rimmel London Show Off Lip Lacquer - Stellar: In reality, this shade is a bit more pink than it looks in my selfies, but either way - this one is bright! Since this product stains my lips, I don't have to worry about reapplying it right away when I feel it wearing off! (Note: I purchased mine in England where they're called "Apocalips," thus the different name on the packaging.)
Physicians Formula pH Matchmaker Gloss - Pink: I've never found these pH products to really change color on anyone, but I can't dispute the fact that this gloss is a gorgeous, vibrant pink shade that gives a ton of color just by itself! The packaging on this gloss is also so cool - there's a mirror on the tube and the wand lights up, so you can reapply in any situation and don't need to carry a separate mirror with you all day!


And....that's it! Hopefully you'll get some back-to-school inspiration from these lip products, and find one that's perfect for you! And of course, to everyone who's starting school again - lots of luck! <3

XOXO,
Ally

Rimmel London Apocalips are here...?

So a while back I reviewed the Rimmel London Apocalips lip lacquer that I picked up while I was studying in England - well just the other day, I spotted these babies in CVS, except something seemed a little different...

Looks like these have been renamed from Apocalips to Show Off for the US market! The shades are all the same and I'm sure the formula is exactly the same as well, but I think it's interesting that the changed the name...I personally loved 'Apocalips' as the name! Regardless, the product is seriously awesome, so if you find these at a drugstore near you, they'll make a great stocking-stuffer!

XOXO, Ally

Maybelline Baby Lips Electro - Swatches

I walked into Walmart the other day, and there it was - a huge display housing all of these beauties. I was able to grab one in each of the six shades, and for under $3 each as well!

The packaging on these is too cute - I love the black tube with the neon writing. I think they could easily fit in with the rest of your Baby Lips collection as well, but they look especially nice all on their own.

For a tinted lip balm, I feel like these have a pretty decent color payoff. You're not gonna get full, lipstick-style color coverage with these guys, but you will get a noticeable hint of color and I really think that's perfect for when you don't want to look too done-up or you just want to swipe something quick on the lips. It doesn't take much precision to apply since the pigmentation is so sheer, so these are really nice for on-the-go use. If regular lipstick can get dry and uncomfortable on you, tinted lip balms are probably perfect for you!

In terms of the actual moisturizing effect, I find that these are no better than any other lip balm, really - but I would gladly choose these Baby Lips over a normal lip balm when I'm running out the door and want some extra lip moisturization, simply because of the pretty tinted effect. These do not contain any SPF, however, so beware if you're going to be spending lots of time outside!

I think tinted lip balms are a fantastic product in general - they look nice on the lips, are easy to apply, and feel wonderful while you're wearing them. So far, these new Electro Baby Lips have definitely been a hit for me - a perfect combination of beautiful packing, a super-cool theme, and a product that works great!

XOXO, Ally

Rimmel London Apocalips - review and swatches

I almost missed these suckers on the way out of Superdrug, and what a tragedy that would be!

I believe these aren't out in the states yet, but lucky for me, I was able to snag them while abroad in the UK! And trust me, I am definitely glad that I did. These are described as "lip lacquers" by Rimmel and combine the pigment of a lipstick with the shine of a lip gloss - or at least, that's what Rimmel claims.

Do they live up to the hype?

The swatches say yes! The two shades that I picked up are Luna, a bright pinky-peach shade, and Stellar, a neon red-pink that's much brighter than it appears in the swatch! I only need a little dab to cover my whole lips, similar to the OCC Lip Tars. They're actually so pigmented that it can be hard to apply them using the wand - I normally dab a little onto my lips and then use my fingers or a lip brush to fill in my lips. Because these stay glossy instead of drying down like a matte lip product would, they don't feel drying on my lips, and the color lasts for several hours on me before I have to reapply. And they smell amazing - like watermelon Jolly Ranchers!

Here's a swatch of Stellar on my lips - it's gonna be a fabulous color for summer! The one negative that I've found about these products is that they may settle into your lip lines, so be sure to moisturize with lip balm before applying!

Rating: 4.5/5 - these are a fantastic product and I'm already itching to go back out and buy more colors!

XOXO,

Ally

(Yet Another) Superdrug Haul!

I stopped by Superdrug this afternoon for some retail therapy, and I definitely got what I was looking for!

First off, something that I have been DYING to purchase - Sleek eyeshadow palettes! The two that I have here are in Oh So Special, which has some gorgeous neutral shades as well as some peachy, coral pink shades, and Au Naturel, which is obviously a neutral palette. I haven't played with them yet, but I can't wait to swatch them for you guys!

I also got two Sleek blushes, in Rose Gold and Life's a Peach. I plan on reviewing these two once I test them out so I'll put up some swatches and close-up shots of the shades when I do that!

Really excited about this too - I had heard about the new Rimmel Apocalips lip products, and I was pumped to see that they had them in! I got the shades Stellar and Luna, and I plan on reviewing these ASAP! I also got the Rimmel Scandleyes Mascara for FREE since I spent over £10 on Rimmel products....score!

Superdrug was also doing a buy one, get one 1/2 off on their makeup brushes, and the Barry M brushes just looked too cute and colorful not to try out! I've never tried the Barry M brushes before, so I'm excited to see if they work as well as they look! I picked out an eyeshadow brush and a concealer brush, although I may just use the concealer brush for eyeshadow as well, since it looks like it would pack color on quite nicely.

That's all for now - next up, a review of those Apocalips! I'm wearing one right now, and I can't wait to let you guys know my thoughts on it!

XOXO,

Ally