Physician's Formula Sexy Booster Sexy Glow Blush Swatch and Review

Again with the huge names! Yer killing me, Physician's Formula! But you make up for it with the cutest packaging ever, so all is forgiven.

Let's get down to business. I have this blush in Blush Rose, which looks like this:

Back view with mirror and brush.

Front view

The heel in the middle is coated with a silver overspray, which goes away after the first use. It's unfortunate that they didn't just go with another shade of pink for the heel that goes through to the pan, because with the current design you unavoidably ruin the heel design the moment you use the product. Not a deal breaker for most, but it was a bit of a bummer for me.

Sorry it's so blurry! You still get the idea though.

And finally, a swatch:

The above swatch was applied with a blush brush on bare skin. No primers or foundations were used. It was also applied with a very heavy hand and I'm pretty fair-skinned, if that gives you any indication as to how pigmented the product is.

Physician's Formula site description:

Irresistibly Sexy Blushing Glow: Wear this perfect blend of shimmery blushing tones like lingerie for your face for an instant sexy boost with an alluring blushing glow.

Sexy Boosting Formula: infused with the scent of warm vanilla, "afterglow" illumination and pheromone-mimicking ingredients including clinically tested Androstadienone, Cocoa Extract (aka "the Love Chemical") and ancient aphrodisiac Horny Goatweed to enhance your sexy side.

My overall thoughts:
The blush applied smoothly, but was very sheer and shimmery. Like the Sexy Glow Glossy Stain, it has a sweet, odd sort of floral scent that I have trouble describing. I've seen some bloggers pin down vanilla notes, but for me it's a scent I don't recall smelling anywhere else. Unfortunately, it's not a smell I really liked and it lingered on my face and on my brush. Shame on me for not cleaning my brush immediately, because it lingered for days. I also didn't get much wear time out of this product, which I suspect is because of its sheer nature. Personally, I prefer a bit more pigmentation and less shimmer on my cheeks.

You can find this and other Sexy Booster products at most drugstores, Target, Walmart, K-mart, and some grocery stores for $11.95.

The Balm Haul and Swatches

I'm playing catch up with some swatches and reviews, so prepare for a lot of information to come your way! This time around I have a haul from The Balm that I got from Hautelook.com: Mary-Lou Manizer, What's Your Type (Bodybuilder) Mascara, and The Balm Girls lipsticks in Mai Billsbepaid and Foxxy Pout.

Haulage

Mary-Lou Manizer:

Adorable packaging!

And a swatch:

Back of packaging

Mary-Lou Manizer is a pretty popular highlighting product, and in my opinion it's worth the hype. It has a smooth application, blends easily, and definitely adds illumination to the skin. However, if you're looking for a very subtle sheen, this product is not for you; this baby packs some serious shine.


The Balm Girls lipsticks:

More adorable packaging. Don't you just love The Balm?

Swatches:

Left: Foxxy Pout   Right: Mai Billsbepaid

Mai Billsbepaid is a nice nude color while Foxxy Pout is a shimmery bronze. Both had average application and wear time for me.

I haven't pictured the mascara in detail here and I won't go into a lot of detail because mascara is so subjective from one person to the next. I got The Bodybuilder as a sample in a Glam Bag and loved the wand and formula. For me it really pumps up the volume in my lashes and works well when I layer a lengthening mascara on top of it. Your mileage may vary, of course. Mascara is a fickle beast!

Overall, I'm loving everything I got in this haul. I haven't found a dud from this brand yet and the packaging is right up my alley! Everything has a lot of personality. The Balm Girls lipsticks are obviously based on James Bond and the sleek silver tubes remind me of bullets, which is apropos. 

If you're reading this today, The Balm is revamping their site and they're having a 50% off sale on everything for today (April 1st) only.  Go get you some goodies!  

Beautifully Disney Collection

I don't have detailed information on this brand-new line by Disney, but this new makeup line was in my email today and I just had to share! A few months back Disney was promoting all their Villains and they had some makeup out at their store. It looked promising and had great packaging, but I didn't grab it and it was gone in a flash. I couldn't even find anything about it on the internet! It was a sad, sad day for little ol' me. So as you can imagine, I'm super excited about this line!

Click here for the Beautifully Disney Collection page.

Being a big Disney fan with an equal soft spot for the villains and the princesses, I'm hopeful that this line will continue to grow to include a lot of variety.

Did anyone grab up on the Villains collection while it was available? I'd love to hear your thoughts on the products!

Deal Alert: Walgreens Nail Polish Clearance!

All the Walgreens stores in my area have a small clearance sale going on right now! I've mostly seen nail polishes, but there was also a small handful of makeup mixed in. The stores I went to either had a bin on the cosmetics service counter or a bin on the endcap where the clearance miscellaneous usually goes. Prices seem to vary from store to store: At one store I paid no more than $1.25 for each polish, but at another the same polishes were twice that amount.

Some haulage, in case you were wondering what I grabbed. :D

Click to enlarge

Top row, left to right:

Milani in Black Cherry (x2 -- oops*) $1.27 each

Milani in Tropical Fiesta $1.27

Sinful Colors in Beau Khaki $0.49

Revlon Top Speed in After Party $1.24

Sally Hanson Insta-Dri in Heat Flash $1.25

Sally Hanson Insta-Dri in Orange Impulse $1.25

Sally Hanson Insta-Dri in Blue By! $1.25

Bottom Row: Fantasy Makers liquid eyeliner in Fantastical $0.74

Revlon Matte Lipstick in Wine Not $1.99

To sweeten the deal I also got 1/2 off the Revlon polish with the current BOGO 1/2 off Revlon deal, which brought the Revlon polish down to $0.62. For all of this I spent $12.08. Not too shabby for 8 polishes, a lipstick, and an eyeliner! 

Hurry if you want to catch this sale -- everything is going really fast! 

*I didn't even notice they were the exact same color until I was typing out the color names. In the store they looked a bit different. Whoops!

Mail Time: February 2013 Beauty Boxes

Is there anything better than finding your mailbox stuffed full of  goodies? No, I think not. Today I received two subscription boxes and a Hautelook order. All fun stuff and not a bill or junk mail in sight? It must be my lucky day!

I'll have a review on the Hautelook order later, but for now I wanted to focus on the three beauty boxes I subscribe to and received this month: Ipsy (formerly MyGlam), Birchbox, and my very first Julep Maven box. I'm sure most of you know what these services are all about, but if not be sure to click on the links and check them out for detailed explanations and ordering info.

On to the boxes!

First up, Ipsy. And can I just add that I absolutely love the metallic hot pink mailer these come in? They instantly brighten up my day when I see them gleaming in my mailbox.

From left to right:

MICA Beauty Cosmetics gel liner 

Lash Card -- 4 individually wrapped mascara guards

Pixi Flawless and Poreless primer

pop beauty mascara in Smoky Black

Coastal Scents eyeshadow in Glitz &Glamour (Candlelight, Gunmetal, Incognito, and Ashen)

I haven't tested everything out, but the eyeshadows are pretty pigmented. They're the same quality as you would get with the 88 Palettes (and the like). I've used the Pixi primer once. I'll have a more thorough review on it later, once I've had a chance to really give it a spin.

I'm generally pretty satisfied with all of the Glam Bags I get from Ipsy. They've been pretty good about sending deluxe sized samples with products I actually get use out of, from brands I wouldn't normally try. In my opinion this service is worth the $10 per month. 

Birchbox:

Left to right:

SKIN & Co Roma Cleansing Body Gel with Olive and Sicilian Orange Extracts

Dr. Lipp Original Nipple Balm for Lips (Yep, really!)

Color Club mini in Wild Cactus

Ghirardelli Milk and Caramel Square

twistband hairband

First, I think it's interesting that both Ipsy and Birchbox went with the "Red Carpet Ready" theme, but considering all the award shows this month it's really not that hard to understand the reasoning.

So. The products themselves. I haven't had a chance to review the products thoroughly (except the chocolate, which was yummy, of course!), but my initial impressions is that this box is kind of underwhelming. I guess this month just felt kind of chintzy compared to past months; there are no "wow" products included and I'm not impressed with the tiny sample of lip balm. The Dr. Lipp's looks like an okay size for a balm sample, but tube is only filled from the bottom pink line down. I will say that I have it on my lips right now and it is very soothing to my dry lips. If you've ever breastfed before then you know the texture and scent breast balms have. This one is no different. Who'da thought about putting that on your lips? It makes a lot of sense. 

The shower gel has a very unisex scent and contains about two to three shower's worth of gel. You're mileage may vary, of course. The twistband headband works better for me and my super thick hair than the twistband ties. I think the item I'm most excited about is the Color Club polish. It's a color I somehow don't already own! As a bonus, the Pantone color of the 2013 is emerald green, so I suspect we'll be seeing as much of that color as we did tangerine last year. 

Okay, onto the the newbie of the bunch!

My very first Julep Maven box (Classic with a Twist):

Left to right:

Julep Nail Color in Meryl

Julep Nail Color in Barbara

Julep Facial for Hands Glycolic Hand Scrub

Julep Essential Cuticle Oil

Can't wait to give these a whirl! 

NYX Box Sets at TJ Maxx and Ross!

When I spotted this set mixed in with Profusion and other low-grade sets at my local Ross, I had to do a mental double-take. Until now I'd only had experience with their Extra Creamy Round Lipsticks, so I was really excited to find this nice mix of products. All this for $14.99!

I apologize for not having the name and # of this kit -- I have an over-exuberant husband who burned the paper packaging in the fire pit before I thought to jot it down. Bad husband. No cookie!

This kit includes:

Fabulous Lashes & Glue in EL 120 (no name on pkg.)

Single shadow in Cork 

Single shadow in Hot Yellow

Jumbo Lip Pencil in Gold

Brush On Gloss in Silver Plum

Brush On Gloss in Burgundy

Mega Shine Lip Gloss in Plum

Extra Creamy Round Lipstick in Raisin

Extra Creamy Round Lipstick in Protus

Trio Eyeshadow in Frosted Flake/Slate/Iced Mocha

Liquid Eye Liner in Black

Unfortunately, I looked at the NYX website and it seems as though all of these colors are now discontinued and the lashes and liner are gone as well. The upside is you have one last chance to grab these items before they're gone forever. I've heard there are at least three variations (possibly more) on this set, so I'm on the hunt for more!

Note: Due to all of these items being discontinued, I haven't photographed any swatches. However, if anyone is interested I'd be happy to swatch them for you. Just let me know!

Happy hunting!

~Carrie

Well hello!

First, thanks so much for stopping by! I'm Carrie and among other things I am a complete beauty fanatic. Like most people, I don't have a ton of disposable income to indulge in my makeup and beauty cravings, so I depend on reviews from bloggers and Youtubers to help me make more informed decisions before dropping my hard-earned cash on the latest gimmick. Still, temptation gets the better of all of us once in a while. So many times I've been dazzled by a product in the store, brought it home, and wanted to rant or rave about it -- only to realize my husband will probably never be as enthused about a miracle concealer or outraged by a horrible eyeshadow as I am. "But wait!" my inner (wannabe) guru whines, "I need to share my experiences!"

So here we are!

I'm not a mega-guru or a professional makeup artist (hopefully someday), but I am a regular girl with a love of makeup and beauty who is eager to learn and share experiences about both. If you're a newbie or mid-level wannabe artist like me, we'll learn together! If you're a pro, please feel free to share your tricks of the trade!

Welcome to my blog. :D

~Carrie