LUSH Bar Soap First Impression Review - Alkmaar

I purchased this soap on my very first vist to Lush this week.  I fell in love with the scent of the Twilight Bath Bomb and when I asked the sales associates what other products they had that were of a similar scent, they recommended this soap.  I really didn't want to purchase a bar of soap because honestly, they seemed a little pricey in my opinion, and I am perfectly content with your typical Dove bar soap or whatever.  But the lady insisted that it was a very moisturizing lather and she personally had a bar of her own, so I decided I'd give it a try.

PERFORMANCE:  3.5/5
I wouldn't call this soap particularly moisturizing, it still rinses off leaving your skin slightly tight or dry, like a typical bar of soap does.  It's creamy and it does lather up pretty well like the woman told me it would.  It doesn't make like a bubble bath on your skin or anything, but I think it was more lathery than a typical bar of soap. 

SCENT:  4/5
For me personally, the scent lingered on my skin for about 5-6 hours, which is good if you're buying a soap because you like the scent and would like to smell like that scent after your shower, which I'm sure most people are when shopping for soap at LUSH!

The scent is decribed as "saucy jasmine & honeysuckle... with smoky vetivert undertones" (from a google search, I learned vetivert is a woodsy/earthy sweet scent).  You can definitely sense some sort of spice in it once it's on your skin and your shower is over.  I think the spice comes out the most, but some scents react differently on different skin.
LUSH says: Not your Granny’s floral: Jasmine and honeysuckle flirt with the senses in a rather saucy way.
I do enjoy floral scents, but sometimes they do come off too "old lady-like" but this one is a really nice blend of spice and floral.  I don't find it to be a "to die for" scent, but it is nice.  I just found many of the other soaps to smell too much like hippies.  Don't get me wrong, I like the scent of patchouli and I don't have anything against the hippie types, I used to be on the bandwagon in my middle school days, but I have since grown out of the love for hippie scents on an everyday basis.

MY OVERALL OPINION: 
Not crazy awesome, but not crap either.  I don't particularly think it's worth the price, but I also don't think it was a total waste of money. I won't be repurchasing their soaps unless I were to come across one scent that totally blew me away.

On this visit I also picked up the Ultrabland Facial Cleanser and the Twilight Bath Bomb. 
Here is my review on the Twilight Bath Bomb. http://lainamarie91.blogspot.com/2013/06/lush-twilight-bath-bomb-review.html
Keep an eye out for the Ultrabland review to come!
What are some of your favorite LUSH products?   

For more Lush soaps...
Handmade Natural Soaps

Thanks for reading!
Love,
Lainamarie91

New York Color - In a New York Minute - Quick Dry Nail Polish - 203 - Precious Peacock

Forumla - 3/5 - This stuff is a runny, almost watery consistency which makes it super thin and streaky and sometimes a real pain in the butt to apply.
One coat will not do for this polish. After 2 coats it's alright, but 3 really makes the color deep and it totally stands out.  When you do the first coat, you think it's going to be the crappiest polish ever, but it gets WAY better after the second lol.  It's a big difference between the first and second coats.

Dry Time - 3/5 - I would not consider this a "quick dry" polish, even though it states it in the name.  It doesn't take way too long, but it's just not an awesome dry time.  If you do really thin coats and wait about 2 minutes between each one, you might be able to get away with calling it "quick dry" lol.

Wear - 1/5 - Every color I've ever had has chipped before day 4 of wear, even with a base and/or topcoat such as Sinful Colros Basecoat or Sally Hansen Insta Dri Top Coat.

I've been using these polishes since my middle school days and honestly, they just aren't worth it.  Even with a good base and top coat, they will chip after just 2-3 days.  I loved them when I was young because they are some of the cheapest at the drugstore, however, since I've gotten older I've realized, it's just a better deal to spend the extra $2-3 and get a polish that actually lasts more than 2 days.  If you'd like to see some reviews on other polishes please check them out here... I would definitely recommend the New Flower Beauty polishes, they are terrific and still inexpensive.

Flower...http://lainamarie91.blogspot.com/2013/03/flower-beauty-nail-polish-review.html
Revlon...http://lainamarie91.blogspot.com/2013/04/revlon-nail-enamel-sunshine-sparkle-089.html
Loreal...http://lainamarie91.blogspot.com/2013/04/loreal-nail-color-greycian-goddess-560.html
Sinful Colors...http://lainamarie91.blogspot.com/2013/04/sinful-colors-professional-nail-polish.html
Sinful Shine...http://lainamarie91.blogspot.com/2013/06/sinful-colors-sinful-shine-wisp-review.html
Zoya...http://lainamarie91.blogspot.com/2013/06/zoya-nail-polish-blu-review.html

Thanks for reading!
Love,
Lainamarie91

LUSH Twilight Bath Bomb Review

 Let me begin by saying this thing was pretty awesome.  And also, this was my very first bath bomb from Lush.

PERFORMANCE:
It took more than five minutes for the bomb to fizzle out from its show.  It started off pink, then the blue and sparkles began pouring out and it eventually left the water a gorgeous shade of pinky-purple.  It smelled absolutely wonderful but I will admit once the bomb was mostly dissolved, the scent was much fainter.  However, the scent lingered on my skin for awhile which is great and would be lovely if I were going straight to bed, very relaxing. Love this scent!

Some sparkles did stick to my skin even after towel-drying, but they aren't particularly bothersome in my opinion.  You can always rinse off in the shower once your bath is over if it really bothers you that much.  Honestly, it's like a sparkle here, a sparkle there, maybe 2 or 3 on each arm, if that gives you an idea, it's not like I was covered in sparkles lol.

While in the bath my skin felt like it was covered in moisture, just absolute the softest it's ever felt, but I am sorry to say that feeling didn't stick around once I finished my bath.  My skin still felt smoother than before, but not particularly more hydrated than when I have used any other bath bomb type products.

SCENT:
This stuff smells like awesome, and since I'm not too great at describing scents, especially ones I really really like, here is what the LUSH website has to say about this scent, all I really have to say about it is it's freaking wonderful and as soon as I smelled it, I knew I must have it...

• Herbal tonic: Lavender acts as nature’s melatonin to relax your mind for a more restful sleep.
• Bedtime story: Take the bitter edge off of sleeplessness with sweet tonka absolute, vanilla’s saucier cousin.
• Comforting and relaxing: Twilight has a slow-paced froth, it bobs about in the tub releasing its sweet scent.

Peaceful lavender bathing under the stars: Recreate the magic of a starry night in your bath water with clouds of lavender and tonka absolute to fight the demons of insomnia and soothe your stressed out body and mind. Our most relaxing Bath Bomb yet, Twilight is our gentle, reassuring hug for the bath to transform you from worn out to warm and fuzzy. It changes color like the sky at dusk, from pinks to purples and darker still. Lay back in the comforting herbal waters to soak your troubles far, far away.

MY FINAL OPINION:
Is it worth $7? - YES
(but it's not like you need one everyday, it's great for the occasional bath when you finally get an evening to yourself)
Will I repurchase? - YES definitely, maybe even based strictly on the scent :-p If you haven't noticed, I LOVE this scent and I wish with all my little heart that they made many more items that smelled exactly like it.

I also picked up the Ultrabland Facial Cleanser & Alkmaar bar soap as well.  (the sales associates recommended the Alkmaar bar soap to me when I asked what scents were similar to this Twilight bath bomb, just fyi in case you're interested) Here is the review:
http://lainamarie91.blogspot.com/2013/06/lush-bar-soap-first-impression-review.html
Ultrabland Diary Review:
http://lainamarie91.blogspot.com/2013/07/diary-review-lush-ultrabland-cleanser.html

Check out more bath bombs here...
Lush Bath Bombs

Thanks for reading!
Love,
Lainamarie91

Sinful Colors - Sinful Shine "Wisp" Review

   While at Walgreens the other day, I decided to try out these new Sinful Shine polishes by choosing a simple color - white.  I enjoy reviewing nail polishes because they are inexpensive and there are some basic aspects about them that make it very straight-forward for reviewing.  I believe opacity and wear time are the two most important parts of judging a good polish.

Let's begin by saying I used Sinful Colors Base Coat & Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Top Coat with this polish.
  

PROS    
Two coats and it's totally opaque.
No major chipping.

CONS
The thin, liquidy formula coupled with the funky brush that can leave uneven edges, can really make it difficult to get a nice crisp line around the nail edges.
Shiny but not crazy shine like you would think from its name.
Not quick drying.

WEAR TIME:
DAY 1: Minor chipping on 3/10 fingers (teeny tiny)

DAY 2: Chipping didn't worsen.

DAY 3: Slightly more chipping around edges.  (see picture taken on day 4)
DAY 4: Chipping from Day 3 hasn't worsened, which is good, but just by pushing on the tips of my nails, I can tell the polish is starting to peel.  If I did anything other than office work, I don't think this would hold up very well.  I am ready to take it off.
DAY 5: Took this polish off because it began peeling.  The edges were starting to wear down pretty bad and it was time to take it off.

     Although these polishes are $1 more than the original Sinful Colors line, I do not find them to be any better than the originals.  The formula is very similar as far as the consistency, dry time, etc, except these are all glossy/shiny.  They don't wear any better than the originals either, which is somewhat disappointing.  I know they are still inexpensive, for a dollar more I was honestly expecting at least a slight improvement in the wear time.
     (also, I just wanted to note that this is such a stand out color that any imperfections show up more easily, so that could also contribute to the look of the chipping)
    Overall, this polish did hold up alright, at least the chipping was very minor and not noticable from a distance, you really have to be inspecting the nails to see it.  However, this particular manicure did not last me all week.  For $2.99, this is a pretty decent polish, but I don't really find it to be exceptionally better than the original $1.99 Sinful Colors line.
 
  I really hope this was helpful, let me know if you have any other review requests!

Thanks for reading!
Love,
Lainamarie91

GRWM - Dramatic Eyeliner & Urban Decay Ammo Shadow Box

Products Used:
EYES...
Maybelline Color Tattoo - Barely Branded
Hard Candy All Lid Up Cream Eyeshadow - Stepping Stones
Urban Decay Ammo Shadow Box
-Maui Wowie
-Mildew
-Smog
-Sin
NYX Bohemian Chic Palette
Mica Beauty Cosmetics Gel Liner
Flower Beauty Ultimate Zoom In Mascara
FACE...
NYX Blush - Taupe
NYX Bohemian Chic Palette Blush
LIPS...
Maybelline Color Whisper - Oh La Lilac

Items Worn:
Flip Flips - Gordmans
Skirt - Kohls
Shirt - JC Penney
Earrings & Necklace - made by my mom :)

What’s on my nails?

Flower Beauty – I Lavendare You

Andreas Choice - Reverso

Zoya - Blu 

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Lainamarie91

Tangerine/Coral/Orange Lookbook

Outfit #1
Shoes - Payless
Skirt - Body Central
Tank Top - Old Navy
Blazer - Body Central
Necklace - Body Central
Earrings - Body Central
Ring - a hand-me-down from a friend

Watch the video here!










Blog post on this makeup...
http://lainamarie91.blogspot.com/2013/06/monarch-butterfly-makeup-tutorial.html

Video makeup tutorial on this look...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRf9Ewhaf_Q

Outfit #2
Shoes - Payless
Pants - Target
Tank Top - Body Central
Blazer - Body Central
Necklace & Earrings - Body Central

Outfit #3
Shoes - Payless
Shorts - Gordmans
Top - Target
Necklace & Earrings - Body Central

What's on my nails?
New York Color - Times Square
with Wet n Wild - The Gold & The Beautiful on the tips

Thanks for reading!
Love,
Lainamarie91

Zoya Nail Polish "Blu" Review

 Let's begin by saying this polish takes two coats to get a perfect, opaque finish.  It looked wonderful after two coats and I'm usually a three-coater.

I did use Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Top Coat on this polish, but honestly, I have found that this particular top coat really doesn't help out those polishes that are crappy anyway, so I can faithfully say that the wear on this polish is great with or without this top coat.

DAY 1:
Looking good! No signs of wear.
DAY 2:
Still looking amazing! Maybe the tiniest bit of wear right on the tips of a couple nails, but not noticeable.

I wore this polish for four days and it looked wonderful the entire time. (four days is usually my typical length of time I'll keep the same polish on)  But I have total confidence that this polish would have lasted a couple more days because it was still flawless on day 4.

Hope this was helpful, let me know if you have any review suggestions!

Thanks for reading!
Love,
Lainamarie91

GRWM: OOTD + FOTD - ft. Urban Decay Mariposa Palette

Watch the video here!

Products Used:

EYES…

Maybelline Metal Color Tattoo – Barely Branded

Urban Decay Mariposa Eyeshadow Palette

-Skimp

-Wreckage

-Infamous

-Rockstar

NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil – Milk

NYX Bohemian Chic Palette – Matte White

Maybelline Unstoppable Eyeliner – Onyx

Rimmel Scandaleyes Pencil – Nude

Kat Von D Beethoven Palette – Lucifer

Flower Beauty Zoom-In Ultimate Mascara

FACE…

Physicians Formula Mineral Glow Pearls – Beige Pearl

NYX Powder Blush – Taupe

NYX Powder Blush – Pinched

LIPS…

Wet n Wild Megalast Lipstick – Dollhouse Pink

Items Worn:

Shoes – Payless

Bermuda shorts – Ross

Top – Body Central

Blazer – Forever 21

Necklace – gift from Justin :)

What's on my nails?
New York Color - Times Square
with Wet n Wild - The Gold & The Beautiful on the tips

Thanks for watching!
Love,
Lainamarie91

Maybelline Baby Lips vs. Covergirl Natureluxe

      Here is a review/comparison of Maybelline Baby Lips in 70 Coral Crush & Covergirl Natureluxe Gloss Balm in 230 Coral.  I have been using the Baby Lips for many months now and I was content with their performance overall.  However, I was at Walgreens the other day and they had the Covergirl Natureluxe Gloss Balms on clearance for about half price, so I decided to try it out.  At first, judging by the pigmentation in the tube of the Covergirl, I really expected it to perform more like a lipstick, with very opaque color, not the sheerness it actually turned out to be, but it immediately reminded me of the Baby Lips in Coral Crush once I swatched it.

     The Baby Lips are significantly less expensive than the Natureluxe, around $3-4, however, I prefer the Covergirl over the Maybelline in this particular color combination.  I picked up the Covergirl Natureluxe for $3.79 but the original price was $7.49 at Walgreens.  Now don't get me wrong, the Maybelline is a wonderful product and I truly truly love the one in Pink Punch, what a great product!  However, with the Covergirl in this case, I feel that the color has more of a pop, with less glossiness, so you can actually see the color better.  Also, in a side by side test where I wore one product on one half of my lips and the other product on the other half, I noticed the Covergirl stayed moisturizing much longer than the Maybelline.  After about 2 hours, I wanted to reapply on the Maybelline side, but only after 5 hours and after having lunch did I feel the need to reapply the Covergirl.  That's one thing that I did notice about the Maybelline (even in my favorite color Pink Punch), that I reapplied quite often, using up the product in a relatively short amount of time.  With the Covergirl I feel like I won't be using it up as quickly because it keeps my lips moisturized for a longer period of time compared to the Maybelline.

Other Info...  
      The Covergirl Natureluxe has a funky smell, it kind of reminds me of a crayon. lol.  The Maybelline Baby Lips has a citrus-y scent (and all of the colors I have have different scents).  The Covergirl Natureluxe doesn't melt onto your lips like the Maybelline Baby Lips do.  The Baby Lips really warm up on the lips which also can attribute to it feeling like you're using the product up more quickly.

     Overall, I would recommend the Covergirl if you find it on sale somewhere, I don't think I would pay $7.49 for it.  The Maybelline Baby Lips are nice products as well and even though this wasn't really a review on the color Pink Punch, if you come across it, you should give it a go, I love it.

    I just thought this was an interesting comparison and hopefully it gave a little bit of insight into one or both of these products for somebody out there.  I hope this was helpful or interesting to you.

Thanks for reading!
Love,
Lainamarie91

3 Easy 5 Minute Summer Hair Bun Updos

Watch the video here!

With the heat of summer just around the corner, it's always nice to know how to get your hair up to keep you cool and also cute at the same time.  Here are three easy and quick ways I like to do my hair in the summer.  It's just nice to switch things up from the basic pony tail every once in awhile.

 Bun #1 : This one does require a sock bun.  All you have to do to make one is take a sock that is pretty close to your natural hair color (just in case it shows through) and cut the toe out.  Then roll the sock in on itself until you get a donut shape.  Use a bigger or flufflier sock for an even bigger bun.

Then just place the donut over your ponytail and wrap your hair on top of it on all sides to cover the sock donut.  Secure the ends with bobby pins by wrapping them around the bun.  If you take smaller sections, you can make the bun a little neater, but I just took three big sections and the bun is somewhat messy.

You can also use a sock bun to roll your hair in so you don't have any stray ends wrapping around and it looks much sleeker.

Bun #2 : This is the easiest of the three and it also looks more put together.  This bun also works even better when your hair is damp or even straight out of the shower, super wet.

Once your hair is up in a ponytail, divide the hair into two equal sections and starts twisting them around in one direction (I like to twist mine clockwise).  Once you get as far along as you can, twist the entire hair around the ponytail center in the same direction as before (clockwise in my case).  Twist it as tight as it will go and then secure the ends by wrapping a hair tie around the base of the ponytail.

Bun #3 : This one is my current favorite, even though this works much better with longer hair than mine).  When tying the ponytail, don't pull the hair all the way through the last twist with the hair tie, leaving a loop of hair on top of the head with the ends loose.  Adjust the loop of hair so that it is big enough to stuff the loose ends into it.  This is when longer hair comes in handy, it makes a bigger loop to put the ends in.  Since my hair is a medium length, I tend to have loose ends poking out at the top.

After stuffing the hair into the loop as best you can, flatten out the bun so that it starts to make a rounded shape.  By pinning just the bottom half of the bun to the rest of the head, it will leave the top part of the bun loose to create a rounded shape.


      So those are three really easy ways to get your hair up and out of the way for the hot summertime weather.  It's a little bit cuter than a basic ponytail, but will still take you less than 5 minutes in your morning routine.  I hope this was helpful!

Thanks for reading!
Love,
Lainamarie91

GRWM ft. Urban Decay Ammo Shadow Box

Check out my review of this palette here!

Check out the GRWM video here!

Products Used:

Neutrogena Anti-Wrinkle Cream

Chapstick

Revlon PhotoReady Perfecting Primer

Urban Decay Primer Potion

Urban Decay Ammo Shadow Box

-Last Call

-Grifter

-Oil Slick

-Polyester Bride

Urban Decay Glide on Pencil – zero

Mica Beauty Cosmetics Gel Liner

NYX Bohemian Chic Palette

Maybelline the Rocket Mascara

Revlon Colorstay Whipped Foundation

SheerCover Concealer

Milani Multitasking Face Powder

Chella Brow Gel

NYX Blush – Taupe

NYX Blush – Spice

ELF Mist & Set Spray

New York Color Liquid Lipshine – Nude York City

OOTD Items Worn:

Earrings - from a friend

T-Shirt – PacSun

Pants – Target

Flip Flops - Gordmans

Lenses...

http://www.pinkyparadise.com/?Click=25260

G&G GBT Blue

Sorry the outfit shot was a little quick and boring, I was getting ready to leave for class so I didn't have a lot of time, plus the other shots I got were in the shade and they just weren't very good shots.  It's so much different filming in the morning because my backyard is mostly in the shade, so the lighting is not good in my typical filming spot. 

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Lainamarie91

Monarch Butterfly Makeup Tutorial

Watch the video here!

     I didn't create this look with monarch butterflies in mind the entire time, but once it was finished, that's exactly what it reminded me of.

Items Used:

EYES…

NYX Eyeshadow Base – White

Kat Von D True Romance Eyeshadow Palette in Beethoven

-Lucifer (matte black)

-Leather (matte brown)

NYX Bohemian Chic Palette

-matte white

Coastal Scents 252 Palette

-electric pineapple (matte yellow)

-marmalade (matte orange)

-vibrant red (matte red)

NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil – Milk

Maybelline Unstoppable Eyeliner – Onyx

Rimmel Scandaleyes Waterproof Eyeliner Pencil – Nude

Mica Beauty Cosmetics Gel Eyeliner – black

Flower Beauty Ultimate Zoom-In Mascara

FACE…

NYX Powder Blush – Taupe

NYC Bronzer – Sunny

Coastal Scents 10 Blush Palette – 1^st row, 2^nd column (peachy)

LIPS…

NYX Auto Lip Liner – Natural

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain – Precious

Lenses...

http://www.pinkyparadise.com/?Click=25260

G&G GBT Blue

What's on my nails?
New York Color - Times Square
with Wet n Wild - The Gold & The Beautiful on the tips

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Lainamarie91

Summer Lookbook ft. Shorts

Watch the video here!

So... we didn't really get much of a spring around here.  A couple days here and there were nice spring weather, but now it's just plain hot and it's time to break out the shorts.  Even though summer doesn't officially start until the end of June, Memorial Day weekend is probably a good indication of the beginning of "summer" for most people.  School is out and everyone just wants to go swimming!

Here are a few outfits that will keep you cool but also cute at the same time.  My biggest tip for making a typical hot summer's day outfit a little nicer is to ditch the flip flops and add some flats or strappy sandals.

 Outfit #1
Items Worn:
Wedges - Payless
Shorts - Walmart
Top - Gordmans
Ring - a hand-me-down from a friend

 Outfit #2
Items Worn:
Shoes - Payless
Shorts - Kohls
Top - Target
Necklace - a strand from the craft store I put a clasp on
Earrings - Target

Outfit #3
Items Worn:
Shoes - Payless
Shorts - Gordmans
Top - Gordmans
Bracelets - JCP & Body Central

Thanks for reading!
Love,
Lainamarie91