Travel Europe with me!

Hey everyone! I just wanted to share some exciting news with you - in two days I leave to study abroad in Bath, England for a few months! I'm really excited, and I set up a second blog to share all of my experiences with the world!

Check it out by clicking on the banner below!

XOXO,
Ally

CoverGirl Liquiline Blast Eyeliner - Violet Voltage Swatches

Hey guys! Today I have a quick swatch of the CoverGirl Liquiline Blast Eyeliner in Violet Voltage!

This eyeliner pencil promises "liquid-like intensity" from a pencil liner, and comes with a smudger tip on one end.

In the second picture, I used the smudger tip to smudge out the end of the line. Personally, I found the tip to be a little too stiff, and I could see it being a little harsh to use on the eyes. I also felt like when I smudged the liner, it lost a lot of its intensity. I don't normally use the smudgey tips on liners, but I wanted to at least see how it would perform in a swatch for you guys. I like the color of this liner and when I swatched it, it was definitely pigmented and creamy. I don't know if I would call it "liquid-like intensity," but the color payoff was still good.

Until next time!

XOXO,
Ally

My last haul of 2012!

Dude, it's 2013 already! I seriously can't believe how 2012 flew by...it feels like just yesterday that I was getting 2011 and 2012 confused, and now we have 2013 to throw into the mix!

I wanted to share my last haul of 2012 with you guys - I picked up some things from CVS before visiting some friends for New Years, mostly travel-sized stuff and some CoverGirl products because I had a coupon.

CVS cleansing and makeup removing wipes (travel size, pack of 5) - these worked really well! I love using makeup removing wipes especially for traveling, but I didn't have any at the time so I figured a tiny pack would be perfect for me!

Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion - I don't know if this is technically a face moisturizer, but it was the only travel sized lotion that they had...it was definitely too thick for my face, so I'm guessing it's more of a body cream. It was nice, just not for my face.

CoverGirl Liquiline Blast in Violet Voltage - I haven't tried this out yet, but I have swatches coming up!

An exciting toothbrush case in red. Functional and necessary.

CoverGirl LashBlast Clump Crusher Mascara - I haven't tried this either, but I love LashBlast so I have high hopes for this mascara!

And that's all! I hope everyone had a great New Years and I wish you all a happy and healthy 2013!

XOXO, Ally

Wet 'n' Wild Shimmer the Night Away (Holiday Limited Edition) - Review & Swatches

Wet 'n' Wild has stolen my heart with their incredible eyeshadows and super low prices, and they're always at the top of my list when I'm checking out drugstores. So of course, I was going out of my way to search for these limited edition holiday palettes when I first heard about them online. The collection is called Where's the Party? and features three palettes: Drinking a Glass of Shine, which is a re-release of the I <3 Matte palette, Sparkle 'til Morning, which is mostly neutral shades with a pop of blue, and Shimmer the Night Away, the one that I picked up, which is blacks and silvers along with purple and blue shades. Shimmer the Night Away seems similar to Petal Pusher, but the two are definitely not identical. Shimmer the Night Away had more black, silver, and blue shades, while Petal Pusher has more light purples and pinks in it.

Each shade in this palette is marked with the area of the eye that it should be used in - each side contains a browbone, lid, crease, and definer color. Of course, this doesn't mean that you have to use these colors in the way that they specify, but if you're just starting out with makeup it may help you learn where to apply certain shades.

The left side of the palette contains a shimmery white highlight shade, a silver lid shade, a shimmery black color for the crease, and a black shadow with glitter for the definer shade. All four of these colors swatched really vibrantly on bare skin, and were super pigmented. The two blacks were rather similar so I don't quite understand why they both needed to be included in here; the crease shade is a little lighter and more shimmery than the definer shade, but I would have liked to see a gray or another type of color instead of two blacks.

On the right side, the highlighter shade is a light dusty pink color, the lid shade is a gorgeous magenta with purple shimmer, the crease color is a lilac shade with a slight shimmer, and the definer shade is a really pretty rich blue shade. The highlighter shade seemed to be the least pigmented, although that might not be a problem if you're looking for a light browbone application. I really liked the bright pink/purple lid shade - it reminded me of MAC's Stars 'n' Rockets or Urban Decay's Fishnet.

I used a few of the shadows to do a smokey purple and blue eye look - the colors blend really well and last a long time, and were super smooth as well. I honestly didn't have an issue with any of the shades, and for only a few bucks at the drugstore, this palette (like most of the other Wet 'n' Wild eyeshadow palettes) is definitely worth a shot. Makeup beginners in particular may appreciate this palette because you're getting nice quality shadows for a bargain price.

If you like purples, blues, and smokey eye looks, this is a must-have! You can create an endless amount of looks from this one palette, or you could use the pigmented black shade to darken up any eye look, or the bright blue to add a pop of color to a more neutral look. This one was definitely a hit for Wet 'n' Wild!

Rating: 5/5

XOXO, Ally

MAC Viva Glam Nicki Minaj - Review & Swatches

I'm not even gonna try and build up the suspense here guys - I am IN LOVE with this lipstick! If I were designing a shade of lipstick it would be exactly this color, and as soon as I saw pictures online I knew I had to have it. And there's also the fact that I love Nicki Minaj...

This lipstick is $14.50 from MAC, and 100% of the proceeds go to the company's AIDS fund - so you can buy makeup and feel good about raising HIV/AIDS awareness, too! Plus, how awesome is it that MAC actually donates 100% of the sales to charity - so often you see brands donating 5% or 10% from the sale of a certain item to charity, and while a donation is always good, no matter the amount, it's nice to see brands donating more...I mean, they definitely can afford it!

Viva Glam Nicki

Viva Glam Nicki

Anyway, Nicki's lipstick shade is a bright pink with a slight yellow undertone - it's definitely a warmer-toned pink, which is part of the reason I love it. It's a satin finish and feels really smooth and creamy on the lips; the only issue I can think of with this lipstick is that you made need several layers if you have very pigmented lips, but that's probably the case with most lipsticks (I have pretty pigmented natural lips, so I always have to be careful with my lipstick application)!

Viva Glam Nicki

This shade is definitely a hit for me, and the fact that I'm contributing to a good cause by buying it basically makes it irresistible!


Rating: 10/10 - yup, I adore this lipstick!

XOXO, Ally

Review & Swatches - New CoverGirl Eye Enhancers 4 Kit Shadows

Hello hello again! Have you guys seen these new quads from CoverGirl? The packaging has been totally revamped, and I think the new gray packaging looks so much sleeker than the old blue packaging. I only have one CoverGirl quad in the old packaging, and I've had it for ages - I bought it back in high school when I first started wearing makeup and as obsessed with bright shadows. I like it, but I never felt like the pigmentation or texture was anything impressive.

Super old and super dirty!

 CoverGirl Eye Enhancers 4 Kit Shadows in Tropical Fusion - old packaging

Shiny and new!

CoverGirl Eye Enhancers 4 Kit Shadows in Sugar Coated - cool new packaging!

I saw this quad in Sugar Coated and the deep, peacocky colors just called to me! I like the combination of neutral and more colorful shades, and I like that you get a quad that consists of mostly darker shades - it seems that palettes these days seem to lean towards the "full eye look," where you get a lid, crease, and brow shade, but I actually like palettes with shades that don't always work together. I feel like it forces me to be more creative with my makeup. Anyway...

Shiny and new!

CoverGirl Eye Enhancers 4 Kit Shadows in Prima Donna

This quad has some gorgeous neutral colors in it, and I think you could definitely use all four shades to do a complete look. Prima Donna is probably a little more "wearable," if you will, than Sugar Coated, although personally I'd use both these quads in an everyday look.

Sugar Coated

Prima Donna

I swatched these shadows on bare skin without primer, and I wasn't necessarily blown away. I never actually wear shadows without primer but in order for me to consider an eye shadow outstanding, I think it does need to be able to perform spectacularly on its own, and these just don't. They're not bad shadows by any means, especially in terms of pigmentation, and considering the fact that they're at a drugstore price, there's no reason not to pick up one or two if you happen to fall in love with certain shades. But I wouldn't say that the gold is the best gold I've ever used, or that the blue is the best blue I've ever used.

I think these shadows would work best as a wash of color over the whole lid - some of the shades are actually pretty shimmery and mulch-dimensional, so they give you a nice look without needing to use a ton of different colors. When I blended these shadows out with other shades they lost a little bit of their pigmentation and became a little too blended, to the point where it was hard to distinguish individual shades. So keep in mind that you'll need to pack on a lot of color with these, or you'll risk blending them away completely.

My consensus on these is that they're nice, but nothing spectacular. The new packaging is probably the most exciting part of these new CoverGirl quads, the rest of the quality is just average.

Rating: 7/10 - pretty average all around.

Until next time!

XOXO, Ally

Influenster - Summer Beauty VoxBox

Hey girls and guys! Sorry I've been MIA for a while, I've been busy with finals, moving home from college, and moving into a new house with my family! But I got a really exciting package in the mail today, so I thought I'd share it with you guys and hopefully kick-start this blog again!

My Summer Beauty VoxBox from Influenster finally arrived! For those of you who don't know, Influenster is a free service that sends "VoxBoxes" filled with samples to people who have the most "influence" - from what I've experienced it's pretty easy to earn VoxBoxes if you're active on the site, and you get a lot of cool samples in each box. I'd definitely suggest signing up just to check it out, since it's totally free and you have nothing to lose - give it a try here!

I've received one VoxBox before, the February Love VoxBox, which I really liked (and my birthday is in February, so it felt like an Influenster birthday gift!), but I was really pumped to finally get one that featured beauty products. I was actually really impressed with the products in this box, and a few of them I've actually tried already! I also like how generous the sample sizes are - no little packets here!

The card with all the information on the products - let's get started!

Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration Lotion Sunscreen SPF 30 ($8.99 for 6 oz, available in SPF 12, 30, and 50. Sample size is 2 oz.)

I was really excited when I saw this lotion in my box - I've been seeing it all over drugstores and it looks amazing. The lotion has this really cool swirl effect in the bottle, and it probably has no extra benefit but it looks really neat. It's a combination of a sunscreen and a lotion, so it's supposed to protect you from the sun while ago being moisturizing and non-greasy. I tried applying this when I first saw it and it definitely felt moisturizing, although I'm still going to reach for an actual body lotion if my skin needs hydration. It smells nice - a combination of a fruity, tropical scent and the normal sunscreen scent. I kinda like the sunscreen smell, it reminds me of the beach, but if you don't then this may not be the product for you.

 Sally Hansen Nails and Cuticles Hand Creme ($5.99 for a full size bottle, sample size is 1 oz.)

 

I'm really awful at taking care of my nails and cuticles, so a cuticle cream doesn't really appeal to me, but this does make a really nice hand cream. The product is made with shea butter claims to give "24 hour moisture," which I do kinda doubt, but I applied it on my hands when I first opened the box and they do still feel relatively smooth. The cream has an interesting scent - kinda lemon/citrus-y, which I like. All in all, although I may not use this product on my cuticles a lot, I do like it as a hand cream.

Sally Hansen Magnetic Nail Color in Red-y Response ($9.99, full size.)

 

I haven't used this yet so I can't say too much about it but I've been wanting to try these polishes for a while, so I love that we got one in the VoxBoxes! I have one of the nails inc. magnetic polishes, and I really like it, so I can't wait to see how this one works in comparison. The magnetic polish trend is so cool...it's like nail art with minimal effort!

(If you haven't used this type of nail polish before, basically it's a polish with metal particles in it, and you apply a thick coat and then hover the included magnet over your nail to create a neat 3-D pattern effect.)

 

Clear Scalp & Hair Beauty Therapy Shampoo and Conditioner ($4.99 - $5.99 for 12.7 oz and 12.9 oz bottles, sample size is 3 oz.)

 

Again, I haven't tested these yet but I've been hearing a lot about the new Clear brand so I'm excited to see how these work in my hair! The sample size is very generous, although the information says "stronger hair is just 7 days" and I don't think I have enough for 7 days - but if it works well, I guess I'll have to spring for the full-size product!

 

Tampax and Always - Radiant Collection

 

This sample is another one that really impressed me - it came with a really cute little pouch, two tampons, a pad, and three panty liners. Obviously I haven't been able to test these out yet (it's not exactly something I can use any time I feel like it!), but so far I really like what I've seen. The actual packaging of the products is colorful and fun, although I don't really buy pads of tampons based off of what the packaging looks like. It may attract some people, but it honestly seems a little useless to me. Cute, though. The tampons have plastic applicators, which I know aren't good for the environment but I still prefer them to the cardboard ones - ladies, do you agree? ;] The tampons also have a little resealable flap on them; at first I thought it was to reseal the package if you open but don't use the tampon, which seemed a little unsanitary, but I realized it was actually used to hold waste if you don't have a place to dispose of your waste right away. I love this idea - I've been in countless bathrooms without places to throw out pads or tampons, and no one wants to walk out of the stall carrying an old tampon! Gross! This way you can discretely carry out your waste and throw it out in the garbage can without having to dangle it around. Brilliant!

 

I was just super impressed with the presentation of the Tampax/Always sample...they included enough samples that you can feel like you really tested everything thoroughly, and the pouch was so cute (I may just use it as a tampon case in my bag!). They also included two $.50 off coupons, and had tons of information and instructions, which I think is really great for any younger girls who may receive this box and not have any experience with using tampons.

The box also came with a snack - the Quaker Soft Baked Bar in Banana Nut Bread ($3.29 for a package of bars). I absolutely hate anything that has to do with bananas...I think their smell, taste, and texture is disgusting. Sooo I didn't eat the bar, but I gave it to my little sister who likes banana, and she was super excited to help me test out products from my VoxBox! The bars have 5 grams of fiber and 6 grams of protein, so they're definitely a great option for a quick breakfast or a filling snack.

That's all for my Summer Beauty VoxBox - I love that I got the chance to try all of these products, and I think it's really amazing that Influenster sent out so many new products - maybe that's the point, but I still appreciate the thought. Definitely check out Influenster and sign up if you haven't already, and hopefully their future boxes will be just as great!

XOXO, Ally

 

(Disclaimer - in case it isn't obvious already, Influenster sent me these products to test. I am not getting paid or compensated whatsoever to post about these products and all opinions expressed are 100% my own.)