Quickie Review - Goody Skinny Bobby Pins

Hey there!

Not sure if this is a quickie review or a rant! I thought that I did a good thing by purchasing these Goody Skinny Bobby Pins. I thought that they would work super well at creating perfect updos for my hair.

I was wrong.

I have baby hairs at the back of my hair and I have a side bang that is subject to curl fall-age. When I put my hair in a ponytail, we sometimes have runaway hair pieces. When I curl my hair on humid days, we have hair fall-age. I make sure that I have bobby pins to take care of those areas. I'm currently using brown regular bobby pins and brown small bobby pins. Neither works that well. The regular ones are sometimes too thick and totally visible to others and the short ones snag and pull my hair. These skinny ones looked to be a life saver.

They are a great idea, in theory (wait...is that the same thing?). They are thin so you can supposedly swoop up some hair and then hide the bobby pin. The reality is that they are so thin, they bend and twist and they get snagged in your hair. Because the bend, you can't put them all the way in your hair.

These ended up sitting in the bathroom with all the other misfit hair toys. If I had an island to send them to, I would.

Have you tried these? Do you want to? Why don't you just send me your money instead.

It's a wiser investment.

What I Drank This Month

Hey there!

It's coffee time! I love coffee. I have a cup every morning and then another one when I get to work.

It's a shame that we always start the same way, right? But, my love is my Tully's Decaffeinated French Roast (12.99 /18 pods). I won't go into it too much this month. I'll just say I have this EVERY month. It's my jam.

I placed an order for the Gloria Jean's Caramel Almond Torte ($11.99 / 12 pods) because I had tried Gloria Jean coffees before and loved them. This is my third Gloria Jean coffee and it is heavenly! I think the Gloria Jean people put extra caramel in their coffees or something. They are fantastic. The only thing I can hope for is that they begin making decaf coffee and then me and Gloria Jean will be a couple.

Archer Farms Decaf Caramel Macchiato is a regular in my pantry as well. This is the Target brand and it is so good. I do have to brew it on the smallest cup because it's a light roast but that's ok. The flavor packs a punch so I'll deal with making two cups when I have to.

Can we talk about this monstrosity? The Original Donut Shop Coffee, Sweet & Creamy has to be THE NASTIEST coffee I have ever had in my life! Who in the hell came up with this? The smell is ridiculous. The "creamy" part tastes more artificial than regular powdered creamers. It isn't sweet or creamy (I had to add sugar and half and half). And, there is a disgusting after taste that I had to chug a soda to get rid of. It's horrible. My first thought was to take it to work and then I decided I didn't want my coworkers to hate me.

I don't know how much branching out I'm going to do folks! Three out of four for the month is pretty good but dumping ten bucks each month on nasty coffee isn't the way I want to live! I want good coffee everytime!

But then the post wouldn't be as exciting huh?

Well, as exciting as decaf coffee can be.

Stay tuned my friends!

Lippie Love - Dynamic Duos

Photocredit: internet clip art

Hey there!

I have been loving the sheerness and the airiness of the summer. I've been wearing light clothing, using lighter nail polishes and going with simpler hair styles. This summer has just been very chill for me and my lippie dynamic duos have followed suit.

I've been going to the same lippie duos almost every day. It's easy to do this when you love the lipsticks and glosses.

When I want a little bit of color, I go with Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter in Lollipop and Black Opal ColorSplurge in Mahvelous. They are a smooth, lollipop pink duo. They are shimmery lippies that bring a bit of strawberry pink lips to the party.

Maybelline Matte lipstick in Lust for Blush has been partying with NYC Liquid Lipshine in Rivington Rose for a beautiful pink nude lip. It's so practical, so classic nude. I really can't get enough of this combo. These two can mix and match with other colors but they always come back home to each other.

Oh, I have been absolutely in love with my Rimmel London Kate Moss Collection lippie in 08 and my Buxom Full On Lip Cream in Dolly. Let's just give it a minute people. Go back and look at that deliciousness! I fell in love with Buxom's Dolly when I saw it. There is a formula with more sparkle than this one but this lip cream took my breath away. I knew when I swatched it in Sephora it had to come home with me. And the Rimmel London 08 color? What do you want me to say? It's perfect. If you are looking for a Dynamic Duo, this is it!

These three pairings have stayed in my bathroom. I haven't really reached for anything else. I haven't really tried anything else. I had to go ahead and wrap up this post so that I could allow myself to put these away and try other lippies! That's just how dynamic these lippies have been!

What have you been wearing this summer? We only have 1 more good month left. What's on your lips?

Making a House a Home - Method Brand Fabric Softener

Hey there!

I got a $3 off coupon for Method Home products. I've been interested in their laundry products for a while, so I used this as the opportunity to try something new. I've tried their hand soap in the regular and foaming (it was fine) and I've tried their dish liquid (it was fine as well). I hadn't tried their laundry products at all.

The normal price for the Method fabric softener at Target was $6.99 and I got 10% off using my Cartwheel app, so I only paid $3.29 for this 50 load bottle. Score! I like a good discount. I got the Fresh Air scent. The scent is pleasant enough. It's light and fresh, just as the name suggests.

Unfortunately, the scent does not carry. The method (ha! get it?!) of delivery is a pump system and you are supposed to use 4 pumps for each load. Well, 4 pumps makes the clothes kinda soft but it doesn't leave a smell. I mean, your towels don't stink but they don't smell good. I changed the amount we use and that made a bit of a difference.

I also changed the method of delivery because the pump broke about halfway through. I wasn't doing anything weird, just using it as directed and it just broke. Rather than just try to fix it, I decided to pour it into another fabric softener container.

So, at $3.29, this product wasn't bad. I have to almost double what they suggest I use in order for it to work for me. At $6.99, HAIL NO! My Suavitel is $3.29 at the most (I normally only pay $2.99). There is no way I'm gonna pay twice the price for half the product!

No, this was a fail for me. I don't think I'll be making this purchase again.

NEW BLOG! - It Was Bound To Happen!

Hey there!

I am soooo excited! I just started my second blog! It Was Bound To Happen! It's my book blog (and that's the title of it)!

I know! Enough already with the exclamation marks! I'm just so excited about my latest baby!

I love this blog, don't get me wrong. Makeup and skin care and home decor is a big love of mine. I enjoy trying new things and sharing them with you. But, my first love is reading.

I love books so hard y'all, it's not even funny. I read 3 - 4, sometimes even 5 or 6, books a week. I spend my free time going to new places within the pages of books. I read other folks book blogs and watch booktube videos (which, I found out, are book related videos on YouTube). The reason that I decided I needed to start my own book blog is because it seems that one of the last books that I read is a book that only I like.

I'm a member of 3 book clubs (don't judge me) and one of the clubs had to read this book (I'll review it on my other blog, at a later date). I really enjoyed it and when I went to Goodreads to chat about my enjoyment, I saw that everyone in my book club hated the book! I was floored! I wanted to shout out how good it was and everyone else was freaked out about the book content. So, rather than press the issue, I kept quiet.

But now, I can use my blog as my platform to talk about all of the books that I read, good and bad. Yes, there will be some folks that I won't like the same books that I do and they can certainly feel free to tell me all about their thoughts. And, folks can recommend books to me! Tell me what they are reading and what they liked about it.

I thought about reviewing books here but this is just not the space for it. And, I really want to review quite a few books and it would take over this space and this space is a painted, powdered, puffed and perfumed space only.

I can't wait to get started. So far there is only one post and it's about beginning the blog. I don't have a post plan. I'll post several times a week but not sure how often or when. It won't be quite like this one, where I write almost every day. Instead, it will just be a random space for my love of books.

You ready? You want to come to a new place with me? Come on!

It Was Bound To Happen!

Laneige Basic & New Water Bank Moisture Kit

Hey there!

I mentioned in my Laneige Brightening Sparkling Water Pop Essence blog post that the nice people at the store gave me a Basic & New Water Bank Moisture Kit. A couple of folks wanted to know more about what was in the actual kit. I haven't used the kit yet because I have some samples from Derma e. Once I've finished my Derma e samples, I'll begin using this kit.

So inside this kit are 5 very nice sized samples of Laneige New Water Bank Moisture items. My sales lady labeled them for me and told what to use with what else and what shouldn't be used together. Now that I am pulling everything out, all that knowledge seems for naught.

The first item is the Power Essential Skin Refiner (6.7 fl. oz $23.75, Target). It's to be used after you cleanse your face so it acts as a toner. It removes the things that your cleanser leaves behind. The sample is for dry to normal skin.

My next item is the Water Bank Essence (2 oz, $38.89, Amazon.com). It's like a super moisturizer. I don't know if that means it will be too think for me or not. If so, I might have to wait until winter to use it.

The next item is the Balancing Emulsion (4.0 fl. oz, $28.49, Target). I think that this is a lighter moisturizing lotion for normal to dry skin. Perhaps that's what I'll use for the summer.

There is an eye gel included. It's the Water Bank Eye Gel (50 ml, $32.49, Target). I might try it out and see if it works. My eye area is dry right now but because of my Blepharitis I have to be very careful with eye products. But, I do need to try something.

And last but not least is the Moisture Bank Moisture Cream (50 ml container, $32, Target). It's another moisturizer. This one is for normal to dry skin. Well, my face will be nice and plump! I think out of 3 moisturizers, I should be able to find one that I like, right?

Even thought this kit seems a bit weird (and more like a moisturizer "try me" set) I'm glad that I got it. It's good to try new face products if you aren't happy with what you are currently using, and I'm not.

I plan on giving this one a good testing.

Quickie Review - TRESemme extra firm control hair spray

Hey there!

The humidity here in Georgia, has been crazy! I never complain about the heat but my hair certainly complains about the humidity. It doesn't matter how many pretty, fluffy, beautiful curls that I put in my hair before I leave for work, by the time I get to work my hair is straight with a hint of a curl. Not loving it! So, I thought I'd pick up a trial sized can of hair spray and see if I could keep a curl or two.

I purchased a trial size can of TRESemmé Extra Firm Control Hairspray. I got the one with 4 circles out of 5 (don't judge my words!). I was hoping the super hold would help me keep three or four curls. I have course, relaxed hair with about 1/2" of new growth that I flat iron and not everyone's hair spray will work on my hair. Well, this one didn't either.

I was soooo disappointed. I wanted to find a hair spray that worked. I've heard good things about this one and hoped it would help. But, I didn't really put 100% faith into it cause I'd have paid more than $1.49 for it if I did.

I'm sure that on some hair this spray works wonderfully but for brown girl hair, it's not so good. I'll pass it to a friend.

Do you know any brown girl friendly hair spray?  How do you keep your hair bouncy and curly in really humid cities? Should I just move?

Laneige Brightening Sparkling Water Pop Essence

Hey there!

I didn't plan to pick this up. I couldn't even find the products. I know that many YouTubers have found the Laneige products at Target but I didn't find them at my Target or any Target that I've been to. I knew that they were touted as good products but I didn't find them so I didn't worry about it.

But on my travels, I found a humongous Asian grocery store. I like all grocery stores. They are like museums and malls all rolled into one. Inside this grocery store I happened upon a very fancy makeup store (am I out of line by saying it's perhaps an Asian mini Sephora?) and inside was a fantastic Laneige display.

I got super excited! I knew that this was a pricey product line (in drugstore and big box store terms) but I heard such rave reviews I was ready to dive in. My beloved Caudalíe Beauty Elixir is coming to an end and before I just repurchase it on autopilot, I thought I'd see if there were other products out there that do the same thing.

I was actually looking at a different product in the Laneige line, but the nice lady at the counter assured me that what I wanted was the Brightening Sparkling Water Pop Essence ($35). It's a "High performance brightening essence that provides clear and radiant skin". It's been said (by the Laneige people) that it has carbon air bubbles mixed with sparkling water that make the best skin refresher ever. The Caudalíe Beauty Elixir is the only skin refresher that I have ever used. It's not cheap and as I have said of one or two other products, I may not see the results but I feel great when I use it so it's totally worth it.

Along with my purchase I got a sample pack of the Basic & New Water Bank Moisture as well as 185 points for my purchase (I did say like a mini Sephora, didn't I?). The sales clerk  numbered the products for me and told me how I should use them. A gift with purchase is always "a ok" in my book.

I haven't tried this yet but I am excited to feel the fizzy goodness on my face and yes, I'll report back!

My Influenster Sunshine Box

Hey there!

It came in the mail! My Influenster Sunshine box is here! And can I just tell you that I peeked inside and fell in love? Yes I did. I fell head over heels in love with this box!

Let me start off with what Influenster is. Just to copy straight from the website (so that I get it right!) "Influenster.com is a product discovery platform and review site that helps members find new products to try and get advice so they can make informed purchases".  What it is to me, is a place that I can go and see what my peers think of products before I purchase them and where I can tell the masses what I think of a product.

What Influenster will do every now and then is send out special Vox Boxes of goodies for their Influenster folks to try. And the goodies are spectacular! Like I mentioned, I got my box and couldn't wait to peek inside! So, I didn't wait.

And the inside of this bright yellow box made me soooo happy! 

The first thing that caught my eye were the Dickinson's Refreshingly Clean Cleansing Cloths. They are supposed to gently cleanse, tone & refresh  while removing dirt, oil and makeup. It's soap and fragrance free so it should do this without over dying your skin. I am down to my last makeup removing cloths and was looking toward more organic, natural, "better for your skin in general" face cloths. I'm excited to try this out and if I like it, they included a $3 off coupon! No, I take that back. They gave me THREE coupons. I don't know if that was a mistake or not but how fantastic is that?!

The second thing was a SinfulColors nail polish! You know that I love my SinfulColors polishes! The shade is called Southern Belle and it's a gorgeous grape color. I think I'm going to dip my toes in it this weekend! I don't know why I'm using so many exclamation marks for a nail polish but I am!

There is also a full sized Vaseline Intensive Care Spray Moisturizer in aloe. Look, you good people know that I am lazy as all get out when it comes to lotion. This could be the answer to all of my questions! It could save my legs from ashy embarrassment. I'm glad that they put this in my Vox Box. And, a little scared that perhaps they've been monitoring me. Hmmmm....

I'm going to get to play with a bottle of Infusium23 Hair Leave In Conditioner Cream with Avocado & Olive Oil. I've been dealing with some hair things and this looks like something that might work out for me. My hair has some damage (some breakage and split ends) but other than that, it's pretty healthy (and is that healthy lady, I mean really?!). I've heard great things about this product so my fingers are crossed in the hopes that it can help me.

And last but not least I have a package of Blue Diamond Almonds in Bold Sriracha. I like roasted almonds but I'm not a hot food girl. I think I'll have a coworker taste test these for me.

And coupons!! One for a FREE bag of barkThins! I have wanted to try these for quite a while and now I can for free! Sweet!

And now you are sold on this Influenster thing, aren't you? You want your own free box o' goodies, huh? Yep. Go click on my link (I don't make any money off of it. I don't think I get anything other than a big ole' thank you and some Influenster street cred). And of course, I'll get back with you good people and let you know what I think of all of these things.

(My Link) <---- You don't have to use my link but I'd love it and appreciate it if you did!

And, of course, disclaimer, I don't get any money and extra anything for a positive review. I only give my honest review because I can't do anything other than that!

Maybelline Baby Lips Moisturizing Lip Gloss

Photo credit; maybelline.com

Hey there!

I need someone to show me how to take pictures in stores and not give a rats butt about who's around me. I stood in front of the very colorful Maybelline display for a good 5 minutes before deciding I didn't have the guts to stage and then snap a picture or two. So, I can write a post for you good people, but I have to use a picture from the website.

There are 12 shades of this new Maybelline Baby Lips Moisturizing Lip Gloss ($4.49 SRP). They all appear to varying shades of pinky red in the tubes. From the swatches that I've seen online, they don't show up much. But, that can make way for the lipstick that you put them over or it can give you a light, sheer, summer look. So, when I say they seem to be sheer, I'm not saying that in a bad way.

Photo credit; maybelline.com

The website says that they are not sticky and vitamin E enriched. They claim that "caring oils" are added to provide 4 hour moisture. I looked at the ingredients and I am assuming that those oils are alumina argania spinosa oil, argania spinosa kernel oil and rose canina fruit oil. The first two appear to be argan oils and the last is rosehip oil. Everyone seems to be jumping on the band wagon with argan and rosehip oil. I guess that's ok.

I probably won't be purchasing these. I love my Maybelline Baby Lip Balm in Quenched. I love it because it smell like Fruity Pebbles. I have a ton of lip glosses and don't think I need to add any ones that are super duper special.

Has anyone seen these? What do you think? Are you going to try it out?

Sunday Funday - Foreign Candies

Hey there!

I thought I'd make my Sunday Funday a sweet treat! The kiddo and I did our Saturday stroll through the Buford Highway Farmer's Market and we HAD to get some candy snacks. We try everything that we can while we're in that place. But we wanted candy to take home and we had QUITE a selection to choose from.

The BHFM has a lot of goodies and snacks to choose from (well duh! - you keep talking about them!). The kiddo and I had a tough choice choosing what we wanted. She and I looked at fruit chews and candies. I can't even try to pretend that we were looking for candies with 100% juice or any juice added because most of the packages were in other languages. I have no idea what they have in them.

We did pick 2 specific candies but I had to show you this brand of fruit candies. The packages really made me want to try them! The fruit on the front makes it looks so delicious and refreshing. I'm already a sucker for packaging so it was hard to not to try them all.

But, the kiddo and I had to compromise. We had to both want to try the candy in order to buy them. The pretty packaging candy was a hard candy and while I like hard candy, I prefer chews or soft candies. I try really hard not to chomp down on hard candy. I paid for these teeth! I want to take care of them.

Anywho, the kiddo and I settled on these Hello Kitty Strawberry Marshmallow candies and some Hi-Chew candies in Green Apple, Strawberry and Grape. I've seen Hi-Chew is quite a few London YouTube blogs (my obsession!) and I had to pick them up.

Let's start with the cutest item. The kiddo wanted the Hello Kitty Strawberry Marshmallow candies. I have to be honest -- I don't like marshmallow type foods. This one actually has strawberry jelly inside. Fortunately, it's not a lot of jelly so it doesn't squirt in your mouth or anything.

I don't plan on fighting the kiddo for this. They are fresh and that's pretty good. I was concerned that because they are obviously shipped in but they must have been shipped in and put right on the shelf. Like I mentioned, the jelly inside is just a drop so not over powering and it doesn't taste horrible. It's not a super artificial taste. The kiddo will certainly like them even though I don't.

Now the Hi-Chews are on point! They remind me of softer Now and Laters but with better flavor. All of the flavors were good but the grape was my favorite. They were true to flavor. Like I said, I only got the 3 flavors but when researching Hi-Chew, there are several other flavors that I'll have to try out. They have mango, strawberry, lychee, cola and melon. Because I'm pretty sure it's not 100% fruit, I can try the mango and lychee without worrying about allergy issues.

There are several isle dedicated to candy. The kiddo and I will be braver next time and perhaps try something really different. Maybe we will try some of the pretty packaging candy!

WTW - Johnson & Johnson Baby Cologne

Photo credit: johnsonsbaby.com

Hey there!

The kiddo and I have been going to the Buford Highway Farmer's Market every week. I am so in love with that place. I spend, at minimum, 2 hours inside every time. There are so many things to see. It smells fantastic and the samples are wonderful and I feel like I'm in a specialty shop every Saturday morning. The kiddo and I almost dance through the place. It's just that great.

So this morning we twirled and wobbled our way through and on one of the isles of joy, we ran across small bottles of Johnson & Johnson baby cologne.

Yes, that's what I said. Baby cologne.

I didn't take a picture because some BHFM workers were nearby (and I do not want to get kicked out of the magical place). I did find them online pretty easily. The johnsonsbaby.com website has the information on it.

The website says that you "pour a small amount of Johnson's baby cologne in the palm of your hand and gently apply to your baby's skin". I'm not 100% sure why babies need to smell like perfume. I like that pure baby smell (not during the poo-poo time). But, what do I know? My baby is about to turn 19.

I couldn't find a site with all of the scents listed so I had to search. What I found was regular mild, Morning Dew, Summer Swing, Powder Mist, Tropical Burst and Heaven. You wanna know what else I found out? There are a LOT of companies that make baby cologne. I haven't heard of most of the companies but I do know about Baby Magic and they have a scent.

The kiddo and I did sniff one of the scents (can't remember which one) and it was a bit much in my opinion. The kiddo didn't like it either. This stuff must be all that and a bag of chips because the reviews are positive and the product seems to move. I'm pretty sure that I wouldn't have tried them.

Have you tried baby cologne? What do you think about it?

Derma e - Preview

Hey there!

I have been so interested in skin care lately. What I’ve been using for the last few months really hasn’t tickled my fancy. I mean, it works but it doesn’t work well. If you remember, I used to use Garnier Nutritionist Moisture Rescue Lightweight UV-Lotion for years. It was my holy grail moisturizer. I was perfectly happy with it but when I went to repurchase it last year, they had changed the formula. They added more sunscreen and my poor little sensitive face can’t handle that! I knew that it was time for a change.

I knew that I wanted to do better than want I had been doing. I wanted a better skin care regimen. While doing my research, I came across derma e. Over the July 4^th holiday, they were having a sale and I noticed that I could order a sampler kit for $4.95. That was right up my alley! Nine product to try plus a $5 off coupon sounded like a great deal to me.

I don’t know about derma e but the little information booklet that I received with my order says that they are "100% vegan, cruelty-free, and paraben-free". I know that they are sold at health food stores and I've seen them at the T.J. Maxx.

They aren't cheap but really, you can't think about cheap when it comes to your face. I play it a bit on the safe side when it comes to my skin. I've had too many issues to just go by price alone. That being said, it appears that they have sales quite a bit so that should help your wallet.

The samples that I received are probably standard in their trial pack. A few types of cleansers, a few eye creams, different moisturizer creams and a charcoal mask. And, the packets look like you might be able to use them more than once so I'm gonna keep a ziplock baggie ready.

I'm excited to try this new line out. I will definitely keep you good folks in the know.

What skin care line are you currently using? Are you using a complete line or just bits and pieces? How is it working for you?

Pinchme Box - June

Hey There!

So my new pinchme box came in! Just so you are in the know, every month pinchme.com has free samples that you can sign up to try. You try your free samples and then tell them what you thought. All you have to do is register, give them your email address and they will send you an email before they are ready to post samples to the website. When they do, you sign in and order your samples (this link is my personal site and this link just tells you what Pinchme is).

This month I was late to the party so I was only eligible for 5 items (when you log in early, you get the cream of the crop). I received 2 Gold Bond mini lotions, a Secret Clinical Strength mini, a Luzianne Sweet Tea squeeze pack and a Nexcare waterproof bandage (or 2).

I am super stoked about the Gold Bond lotions because a girl always needs purse lotions. Gold Bond is a pretty good brand. I’ve had good luck with their lotions.

I’m also excited about the Luzianne Sweet Team packet because it’s made to brew cold tea. I live in the south. We LOVE our tea. No, I say love but what I mean is I will HURT you for messing with my sweet tea. And it must be sweet tea. I do not want to add sugar to my tea. That’s not right.

As far as vouchers and coupons, I got a $3 a Secret Clinical Strength and another $100 wine voucher from wines.com. I probably will never use the Secret Clinical Strength one because it’s really expensive and I’m not spending that kinda money on deodorant. This trial size will last me quite a while because I will only use this one when I wear a tank top. When it’s gone, I’ll purchase another trial size and you can’t use coupons on those.

The wine.com voucher? We get this every time. The voucher is $100 off of a case of wine costing $160 or more. Well, I drink white wines only, mostly Rieslings really. I think wine.com isn’t allowed to ship to my state because EVERY wine was sold out. It’s really ok though because I didn’t have plans to order anything anyway. I like to know what wine I’m getting and I taste test at my local wine shop.

I can already tell you that I’ll enjoy this box. No, it’s not super, duper fantastic but everything inside is usable and that makes for a GREAT box!

Remember, it’s free to sign up!! (my personal link) You can try out stuff before you buy it.

As always, you’re welcome!