April Birchbox!!

Hey guys!  I got my April Birchbox on Saturday!  It wasn't my favorite box but I'm still pretty happy with it! 

In my box I have: 

• Juice Beauty Oil-Free Moisturizer
• Zoya True Spring Collection - Lotus
• Wonderstruck Taylor Swift
• Amika Obliphica Nourishing Hair Mask
• Dropps Laundry Detergent 

I so far have only tried the Zoya and the Wonderstruck.  I love love love the Zoya!!

 The color Lotus is kind of a greyish purple with subtle fuchsia sparkles.  I LOVE it! 

I also know that a lot of people were kind of upset about getting Laundry Detergent as a "Lifestyle Extra" but I honestly thought it was pretty cool.  Free laundry detergent?  Heck yah I'll take it.  In my opinion it's definitely better than getting some tea bags as a lifestyle extra like someone people did. 

Interested in joining Birchbox?  It's a monthly subscription service delivered right to your door for only $10 a month.  You can sign up for it here at this link:  https://www.birchbox.com?raf=1hfxg

Freebie Alert! Target Spring Beauty Bag

Thought I'd pass this along in case you haven't seen it.  Target Style on Facebook is currently offering a free spring beauty bag for anyone who "likes" their Facebook page. 

Who doesn't like a free bag??  Go claim yours before it's too late!  https://www.facebook.com/TargetStyle

E.L.F. Haul

Hi everyone my name is Jenna and I am an E.L.F.aholic.  Seriously I am obsessed!!  I want EVERYTHING!!  So, I forget if I mentioned this or not but I'm catholic and this year for lent one of the things I gave up was buying unnecessary cosmetics.  Well I decided that I did infact need a concealer brush.  I thought that I'd just get one from E.L.F. b/c the one I wanted from there was only $3!  Can't beat that!  Well.......   I went onto eyeslipsface.com to look at their brushes when I discovered they had a promotion that I could get the whole 11-Piece Studio Brush Set that retails for $30 for just $3!!!!!   WHAT!?!  I couldn't pass that up!  However, there was a catch and you had to spend $25 first before you could get the deal.  So long story short my one concealer brush that I needed turned into this...

I was BAD!  REALLY BAD!  
Sigh... Hopefully God forgives me.  Anyways here's what all I got:

• 11-Piece Studio Brush Set (Normally $30 - I got it for $3)
• Studio 32 Piece Eyeshadow Palette (Normally $10 - I got it for $5)
• Essential Travel Mirror ($1)
• Essential Shine Eraser Blotting Papers 50 pk ($1)
• Essential Dramatic Lash Kit - Black ($1)
• Duo Eyeshadow Cream ($1 each)
• Eggplant (green and purple)
• Mocha Swirl (light pink and dark brown)
• Conditioning Lip Balm SPF 15 ($3 each)
• Mellow Melon
• Blissful Berry
• Romantic Rouge
• Blush and Bronzer Set - Blush, Bronzer and Mini Kabuki Brush ($3)
• Eyelash kit - Eyelashes, tweezers, glue, and eyelash curler ($3)
• Dramatic Lash kit - Eyelashes and glue ($1)

 Blush & Bronzer Set

 Swatches of the Blush & Bronzer Set

 Duo Eye Shadow Cream

From the left:  Eggplant & Mocha Swirl

 Conditioning Lip Balm SPF 15

From the left:  Mellow Melon, Blissful Berry, Romantic Rouge

Swatches of Conditioning Lip Balm SPF 15

From the Left:  Mellow Melon, Blissful Berry, Romantic Rouge

 

 Studio 32 Piece Eyeshadow Palette - Cool 

I was so so so happy with this order until I saw the condition of my 11-Piece Studio Brush Set bag...

I mean is it just me or does that bag looked used??  It resembles other bags that I have that have been handled repeatedly by people that have makeup on their hands...  I don't know.  The inside is in perfect condition, the brushes are fabulous but the bag.. ugh.. I emailed costumer service at eyeslipsface.com to let them know my disappointment in it.  I'm not TOO upset b/c I only spent $3 for it but I just find it weird that a brand new bag came in that condition. 

If you haven't checked out eyeslipsface.com you need to!  I know they also sell their products at Target and KMart but I enjoy getting them on their actual website b/c if you sign up for their newsletters they have SOOOO many great deals like the brush set.  Also don't be afraid of the quality with their low prices.  I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with just how fab their products really are! 

Have a great week everyone!

March Birchbox (Teen Vogue Special Edition)

This month Birchbox gave its members the choice to choose between their regular monthly Birchbox or to receive a special edition Teen Vogue box.  When I first heard about it I wasn't interested since I'm 26 and obviously no longer a teen.  THEN I got an email and it mentioned Essie and I was sold lol.  I'm a sucker for nail polish!  I am so glad I didn't pass up this box b/c seriously IT IS AMAZING!

This box is seriously so fantastic!!  It came with not one but TWO full sized products!! 

In my box I got:
Tarte natural lip stain in the color Amused. (hot pink) Full-size
Essie Luxeffects Nail Polish in Set in Stones (silver chunky glitter)  Full -size
Kate Spade New York Twirl
Twistband Hair Tie (yellow)
Kerastase Elixir Ultime

I'm pretty much tickled to death about everything in this box!  I'll honestly use every single thing which makes me soooo happy b/c I was sooo disappointed in my box last month! 

Here are some close-ups of the Tarte and Essie:

Interested in receiving your very own birchbox?  It's only $10 a month and you can sign up using this link:

http://www.birchbox.com?raf=1hfxg

E.L.F. Conditioning Lip Balm

In my last post I mentioned a new to me brand MAD Skincare, well today I have another new to me brand to brag about and it is E.L.F. which stands for EyesLipsFace.  I've heard many bloggers going on and on about ELF products lately so I knew it was something that I would have to check out. 

Last week E.L.F. was running a special on their website.  I believe the special was buy $14.50 worth of products and get free shipping.   What's great about that is that most of ELF's products are priced at $1, $3, or $5!  You cannot beat that!  So I thought this would be a great time to buy a few things, test them out and see how I like them. 

Most of the things I've tried so far have been great and well worth the money that I spent.  Today I'm going to brag about just one of them tho that I feel really went above and beyond what I could have imagined.

E.L.F. Conditioning Lip Balm SPF 15 in the color Nice & Natural

The picture is really true to color.  Its really nicely pigmented and give just a slight touch of pink to your lips for that nice natural look.  (Hence the name Nice & Natural lol).  I love love love love love this lip balm!  Seriously it is fantastic!  You know what else is fantastic?  This bad boy only cost me $3!!  

I put myself on a no buy for the duration on lent b/c I just have far too many cosmetics at the moment and am spending far too much money overall but as soon as lent is up I'm going to be buying the rest of the shades of this lip balm b/c its just a must have in my opinion!  

Seriously you guys have got to buy this stuff pronto!   It can be purchased online at eyeslipsface.com or I believe they are also sold at Target and Kmart! 

Have you heard of M.A.D. Skincare?

I hadn't until very recently! 

I frequently participate on a Makeup Forum site known as makeuptalk.com.  I heard some of the ladies on their talking about them and how you could go to www.mad-skincare.com, hit the contact button, fill out your info and request some free samples!  Who doesn't love free samples!?  So I did this and yesterday I got some samples in the mail!

I got the:
Anti-Aging Eye Transformation Serum
Brightening Illuminating Daily Moisturizer
Environmental Wrinkle Repellant Environmental Protection Serum

I just got them yesterday so I've only used each product 1 time but they smell amazing and they feel great on!  I have pretty sensitive skin and haven't noticed any adverse reactions yet! 

I've been in the market for a good eye serum so I'm hoping this one will work out great for me! 

L'Oreal Professionnel Mythic Oil Nourishing Oil

Oh man.. I CANNOT say enough good things about this product! 

I first received a sample of Mythic Oil in my December Birchbox.  I was skeptical of it at first and actually set it aside for a couple of weeks before I tried it out.  The second I tried it I knew it was love.  I have curly thick frizzy hair.  I've tried several hair serums in my time.  With most serums I find if you accidentally put too much on it can leave your hair looking greasy, this is not this case with this product.  I put this on and it immediately made my hair SO soft and shiny!  I seriously could not believe it!

I style my hair often with a Chi Curling Wand.  I put a few drops of this in my hair after I'm done styling to calm down any flyaways and add some extra shine.  I also add a couple of pumps to my damp hair before blow drying. 

What I also love about this product is that a little bit goes a long way!  I had a teeny tiny vile in my Birchbox as a sample and it lasted me approximately a month.  This bottle is over 4 oz and I'm confident it'll last me quite a while!  It was $20 on Amazon.com which is a little more than I like to spend on hair products but I could not live w/o this product! 

Seriously you guys gotta try this!

February Birchbox

Hey guys!

Haven't posted in a while but I've got at least one more post after this to make!

Today I opened my mailbox to discover my February Birchbox had arrived!!  Woot!  Sadly I'm a wee bit disappointed in this months box..

This month I received:

1. Benta Berry - G-1 Moisturizing Face Cream 
2. colorescience pro - glow and go Travel Puff
3. Eye Rock - Designer Liner
4. La Fresh - Eco-Beauty Waterproof Makeup Remover
5. Lifestyle Extra - Heart Shaped Nail File
6. Birchbox Digital Download - Six free tunes from Green River

So far I've tried the moisturizer, the colorescience, and the la fresh makeup remover.

The Benta Berry moisurizer in my opinion was thick and kind of sticky.  It was kind of difficult to blend into my skin.  Also full size is $110 so I won't be purchasing it.

The colorescience travel puff is really a nice color.  It was kind of gold and shimmery and would be great for the summer.  However again full size is $50 and that is way more than I'm willing to spend on foundation/powder.

The La Fresh makeup removers are horrible.  They remove makeup but holy moly they are GREASY!  After I used it I felt like I had wiped oil all over my face.  Definitely won't be purchasing.

I felt slightly cheated this month by Birchbox.  There were several really nice products that were given out this month in large sample sizes.  None of those items made it into my Birchbox.  However I must give props to the Birchbox team.  I complained on twitter about being cheated, I was immediately sent a private message from Birchbox asking me what they could do to help.  I explained why I felt cheated and they took down my email address and told me that they would be in contact.  Well this afternoon I received an email from them apologizing and asking for more information.  So even though I was not happy with my box I am extremely happy with Birchbox.  It is nice to know that they really are concerned and interested in what their subscribers have to say.  

So this is my February Birchbox.  Not my favorite but it's worth more than $10 so I can't complain to much.  What all did you guys get this month?

CVS Haul!

Something you don't know about me yet is that I'm a couponer!  I live on a tight budget so when I can I enjoy getting stuff as cheap as possible and sometimes even free!  CVS is my absolute favorite place to go for a good deal on cosmetics.  You may be saying "What?!  CVS for a good deal!?"  As crazy as it sounds CVS has some killer deals but you just have to be patient and wait for them! 

Here's what I got on my trip this week!

• CVS Apricot Scrub (compares to St. Ives) - Retails for $2.79
• Almay Intense i-color smoky-i for hazel eyes -  Retails for $5.99, however this had an ExtraBucks deal on it so I got $3 ECB plus I had a $2/1 Almay product coupon for a final price of just $.99!  Can't beat that deal!
• Freeman Facial Clay Mask Avocado & Oatmeal - Retails for $3.99, however this had a mail in rebate on it to get it for FREE

So final cost of my haul today was $3.78! 

First Post & Birchbox January 2012!

Hi everyone! 

Welcome to my first post at Blushing Sooner! 

A little about me and what I hope this blog will become:
My name is Jenna and I'm fastly approaching 26 and I live in Oklahoma (hence the Sooner).  I've loved makeup for many years now but have recently kind of become obsessed with it.  In this blog I'm mainly just going to show you different products that I buy and give reviews on them.  I'm going to aim to atleast post twice a month but hopefully more often! 

So the first thing I'm going to discuss is Birchbox!  For those of you that aren't familiar with Birchbox it is a monthly subscription for $10/month and each month you get a cute little box in the mail that includes 4-5 deluxe samples and sometimes even full sized products!  You can read more about it at http://www.birchbox.com/.  I've been subscriped to it for 2 months now.  December was just ok in my opinion but I'm pretty happy with my January box! 

In my box I recieved:
1)  Stila Smudge Stick (full-sized!) in Purple Tang
2)  Jouer Body Butter
3)  Borghese Moisture Applifier
4)  Juicy Couture Viva La Juicy
5)  Larabar in Peanut Butter Cookie

I was really happy with this box.  The Stila Smudge Stick alone, which was a full-sized product, retails for $20.  I only paid $10 for this box and got that plus some other awesome samples! 

I used the Stila eyeliner this morning and absolutely adored it!  I'd never tried this before but I think it may be my go to eyeliner from now on just because it went on so easy and the color is so vivid!  LOVE IT!! 

The Jouer Body butter smells great but it is a very tiny sample in my opinion.  If you were to use this once over your entire body it would probably only last for one use.  So I have it sitting on my desk at work to just use here and there on my hands and such as needed.  I like it but I don't see myself purchasing this product.

I used the Borghese moisture amplifier for the first time this morning and it feels AMAZING on!  The full sized product of this tho runs at I believe $67.  Which is a little high in my opinion, but I'm going to continue to use this until the sample runs out.  If my skin is noticeably different after using it I may find a way to come up with the cash for it.  A little bit goes a long way so I imagine the full-sized product would last for a while. 

Viva La Juicy is definitely a pretty awesome scent!  However I have TONS of perfume already so I doubt I'll dish out the money for this product either. 

Each month in your Birchbox they also give you a "lifestyle extra".  This month I recieved the Larabar.  Its essentially an all natural granola bar thing.  It was good and a nice little snack but I wasn't a HUGE fan of them and probably won't buy them in the future.  It was fun to try tho!

Well this is my review for my January Birchbox for 2012!  Like what you see?  You can go to this link to sign up:

http://www.birchbox.com?raf=1hfxg

If you follow that link to sign up it will give me 50 pts for referring you which I would greatly appreciate! :)

I'll try to take more individual pictures for my next post!  Until then I hope you all have a wonderful day!  Thanks for reading!