Birthday Freebies for Novembers

Over the years I've learned a very important lesson regarding picking up my free birthday gifts...do it before Thanksgiving! Aside from when I worked in a mall I generally try to avoid them during the holiday season.  Thank goodness for online shopping.

I've gotten them though from both Sephora and ULTA.  All about the lips this year.  

Must say that I'm pretty happy with the lip gloss from ULTA which is an $18 value and in a pretty pink shade...you can never really have too many lip glosses if you ask me.  I never did receive my birthday e-mail from ULTA and went ahead and used their "Contact Us" info on their website.  Based off some comments I read on FB I'm not the only one who did not receive the e-mail.  

The nice thing about Sephora is that you don't need to have an e-mail redemption code, you just visit the store give them your phone number (or Beauty Insider card...but who carries that around?) and they give you your treat.  This year it was a set of 2 Nars lip pencils.  I'm a little more fond of the lighter shade.  In general Nars is a little out of my price range, but something I do like to splurge on from time to time.  

The super bonus about these is that they are calorie free.  I feel like the majority of birthday clubs come from various restaurants for burgers and desserts.  I'll take the make up every time it lasts longer anyway. 

Cheers to you (& happy birthday to me).

product reviews: deodorants

Cruelty free skin care? Yes.
Cruelty free makeup? Yes.
Cruelty free deodorant? Now that seems a bit trickier.

I've tried the Crystal route...does this one work for anyone? I've never met a single person.  I'm wet and stinky by the end of a normal day (let alone a work out day!?! Eep!) If you're curious it retails for about $5.00 and is available all over the place.

I tried Lavanila.  The 100% healthy deodorant.  Alright, light scent.  Occasionally by the very end of the day, I may feel a little questionable. My fragrance of choice was Vanilla Lavander...side note: must be a fan of Vanilla.  I purchased from Sephora initially, but it's also available on Amazon; retails for $14.00.


Trader Joe's unscented with cotton fibers.  Affordable and ok...it works, but maybe I just prefer the scented route.  Available at Trader Joe's.

In the end I went back to my tried and true deodorant of choice.  It's Donna Karan's Cashmere Mist, and while I sincerely doubt that it is cruelty free (never managed to find a straight up yes/no) and it is on the expensive side ($24.00 a pop) it has never let me down.  Available at Sephora, ULTA, and assorted department stores (in the fragrance section).

I'm still searching for a good cruelty free alternative...if anyone out there has any suggestions please let me know!

Cheers!

foundation factors

At Sephora today, my friend and I were perusing foundations.  I'm pretty evenly running out of 3 different BB creams and one Bobbi Brown foundation.

While I've been online and seen how many brands are cruelty free, it still feels like a very small collection once you are actually standing in the store streaking your hand with makeup.  We reviewed the list as we entered: Tarte, Urban Decay, and Too Faced...there are a few more brands (but it's not like they have blinking lights in the shape of a bunny beckoning you over...how nice would that be?).

Not all brands that are cruelty free carry a bunny logo, so unless you know before you go or carry a list of animal friendly companies with you at all times, you may not know to check them out.  There is also the "parent company" to consider.  Estee Lauder and L'Oreal own a lot of companies out there and the "parents" choose to sell in China (who requires animal testing).  Here I thought the hard part was choosing the right shade in bad lighting!

I didn't end up with anything from Sephora today, but I've got an Ulta coupon all cut out and waiting for me to forget so I'll be heading over there soon.  Maybe I'll bring a list!

Cheers!

good hair days

My hair is not my favorite thing...even on it's best days it's super fine, doesn't really hold a curl and is currently in the growing out phase of bangs.  So when another blogger shared her reviews of some bun helpers, I opted to give it a try.  I chose to try out the Bunette in Brunette from Sephora and it totally worked for me!  It's easy to use and definitely gave my fine hair a boost in the volume department (on my own, my hair in a bun is about the size of a super bouncy ball, one of the small ones).  I may add, that I've only used it once in the privacy of my own home though, because it does take some maneuvering to get it just right and I tend to hit the snooze button instead of getting out of bed and being any kind of productive.

I also put a trial size set from Bumble and Bumble, with their sea spray and shampoo and conditioner. I do like it, I feel like my hair has more volume after use...although it doesn't seem like something I could use every day. Bumble and Bumble does seem a bit out of my budget, as my hair budget is somewhat nonexistent.

How long does it take to have a good hair day?  Are expensive products worth it do you think?  What are your go to hair care products?

I'd love it if you'd take a moment to share!

Cheers~tam

art as makeup/make up as art

I'm a fan of Andy Warhol, his art and his very quotable quotes.  I'm also a fan of Nars cosmetics, although generally it's a little more than I want to spend.  Combine the two and suddenly I'm smitten. I present to you the Andy Warhol collection from Nars brought to you by Sephora:

So awesome, I don't think I could actually bring myself to use it. It would just be a little piece of art just for me.

This though, I checked out at Sephora. The colors are nice and the can is totally useable.  It makes me smile, so much so that even the girl at Sephora mentioned to me that I seemed happy.

They've got additional eye shadow palettes and another set as well, but these are my two favorites from the collection.  :)