may birchbox

hey loves!

so i know this is a bit late but here goes.

this month's birchbox was my first and most likely only one. for those who don't know birchbox is a monthly subscription that cost $10 a month where you get a box of samples of the latest beauty products. this month's box was 'gossip girl' themed.

here is the list of the may box items:

arquiste perfume (very small sample size)

caudalie (hand and nail cream)

fusionbeauty (lipfusion balm)

ojon (damage reverse restorative conditioner)

notecards (birchbox extra, not pitcured)

there were only two items that i have used and those are the lipbalm and the hand & nail cream. everything was very small in size, a lot smaller than i expected. the box itself was much smaller than i expected as well. i wasn't expecting it to fit in my mailbox but it did, i was completely surprised when i checked my mail that day and saw the box in there.

in my humble opinion, it's not worth it. i know it's only $10 a month but what's the point if i'm not even using the items i'm receiving?

i'm going to try one of the other monthly beauty boxes and see what they are about. which ones do you guys like the best?

stay beautiful!

jana <3

pink cream

 

 

  

hey loves!

so as i nurse my nails back to health i've been changing the polish almost everyday and i've gotten them out of 'weak and extremely thin' status to just a 'weak' status.

i recently purchased the sally hansen 'hard as nails' polish from cvs, the seche 'ultra-v' top coat polish from sally's and the red carpet portable curing light from ulta.

i painted my nails today with this lovely pastel pink polish. i am a very big supporter of the breast cancer foundation and i am in love with the color light pink. i actually purchased this n.y.c. color 'polyester pink creme' from cvs over 6 months ago but i'm just now getting the chance to use it and it is adorable!

i started out with a base coat using the hard as nails, then two coats of color, then one coat of the 'out the door' and i finished it off with the 'ultra-v.'  they dried within 10 minutes (5 minutes under the light with each hand) and are glisening. it immedietaly felt like the strength had improved a bit

so far i'm liking the combination off them all. i've been filing and clipping my nails each day as well with hopes of keeping them growing but also slowly cutting/filing away all the weakness. in hopes the re-growth will be stronger.

i hope all of you had a lovely day today!

stay beautiful!

jana <3

quick sand - OOTD

dress - pinky (ross)

shoes - gianni bini (dillards)

clutch - lulu (tj maxx)

 watch - juicy couture

necklace - vintage

hey loves!

i hope all of you had a wonderful weekend! went to a party with the ba last night and had a blast. memorial day is next week so here's to a speedy week and a long 3-day weekend!

stay beautiful!

jana <3

riding coach

hey loves!

a couple of weeks ago i was in dillards and saw the cutest pair of coach loafers but they were not available in my size, sad face.

the bf works out of town in west texas and he ran into a coach store. fully knowing of my want for the loafers he decided to pull a trick out of his sleeve. he told me he found me a pair of basic black vans and they were being shipped to the house. now i've been searching for the perfect pair of old school flat, ked-like sneakers in all colors to wear this summer with no success locally.

by the way, if any of you have any suggestions on where i can get some please let me know! i'm looking for the really cheaply made kind that are so flimsy they feel/wear like a pair of ballerina flats. i'm not a fan of tennis shoes and i hate walking in/on thick soles of any kind.

the box arrived in the mail the other day and to my complete surprise i open it and this is what i find! love, love, love him and love, love, love the shoes!

will do an OOTD post later when i find the perfect outfit to wear with them!

i'll be doing a complete review on the e.l.f. products i bought last week this coming up weekend! stay tuned!

stay beautiful!

jana <3

shine eraser

hey loves!

i just wanted to check-in with a quick midday savior tip. these oil blotting sheets from e.l.f. are a lunch time refresher! as lunchtime hits and you pull out your mirror for a quick oil check (it's a must in my line of duty because my face produces enough oil in 4 hours to run a car engine!) it's so easy to pull one of these out and blot away the shine! i don't have to touch my brush or powder at all! now these are the plain ones that contain no shimmer, they do make them with shimmer but since that's not really my style i stick with these. they are only $1 for 50 sheets!

also as i pulled out my makeup bag i noticed my daily collection has grown and i believe it's time for a new/slighly bigger one.

stay beautiful!

jana <3

ruby red

hey loves!

yesterday a friend and i went to target and i discovered their e.l.f. collection! i was in heaven! i literally had no idea they had that many e.l.f. products! i very rarely shop at target because in my area they are one of the higher priced stores but i will now be going there a lot more often!

i ended up having a huge haul, unexpected of course.

e.l.f. products i purchased:

flawless finish foundation

clarifying pressed powder

makeup mist & set

wet gloss lash & brow clear mascara

lip primer & plumper

matte lip color (ruby red)

ultimate eyeshadow palette (actually purchased black friday 2011)

my current reaction of all the e.l.f. products is i love them all. since i was changing foundation i decided to change everything as well. my entire routine has been re-vamped and it's got me really excited. e.l.f. products are extremely affordable and can fit into anyone's budget, i strongly recommend them!

also from ulta i bought a new nyx soft matte cream ('addis ababa), love the color not so much the actual product. i got a real techniques stippling brush by pixiwoo, love the brush but not with the new foundation, will save it for another time.

i'd stopped by cvs the other day and got the magic perfecting base, now this is my first time ever using any kind of primer because i never really understood the point of using it but i am in love with it now. it immediately mattifies your face and i am a huge fan of matte! i do not like shine at all, not even on my lips. it smooths out your face which allows easier application of foundation. it also has a very light feel, my old foundation/make-up routine left my face feeling very heavy and i could actually feel the make-up on my face, not anymore!

i'm still in the process of strengthening my nails and i can tell this is going to be a very trying process! i've stripped all heavy color polish off and applied strengthener and a very light coat of glitter for at least a lil pop of color. fingers crossed it doesn't take long because i hate the sight of my nails with no polish.

stay beautiful!

jana <3

electric charge

hey loves!

so i think i'm becoming a bit of a nail polish addict! i cannot walk into a store without going to the nail polish section. for the last three days i've come home each evening after work and changed my nail polish. it's just so exciting to get a new color and try it out.

these colors are called 'electric charge' by l.a. colors and 'pearly white teeth" by spoiled. this is my first time purchasing the spoiled brand, they are usually about $1.99 at cvs but they are on sale for .99 right now so i went ahead and picked out to colors. i also picked up a new n.y.c. lip stain in 'rock on ruby' and some more e.l.f. remover pads.

i had a small plastic container i stored all my polish's in but it filled up pretty quickly so i bought a much bigger one and now i've got plenty of room to grow!

i bought some new foundation today and i'll have a complete review on it tomorrow.

jana <3

pink sizzle

hey loves!

so yesterday i decided to stop wearing artificial nails and get my natural nails back to a decent strength. i stopped by sally's beauty supply and picked up a few items. 'the rock' is a nail hardener and 'out the door' is a fast drying top coat, this is my first time using these two products so i'll give them both an official review in a few weeks.

this color from l.a. colors is called pink sizzle and it is soooooo cute! i loved it in the bottle and i love it even more on my nails! i find that even though l.a. colors is one of the cheaper nail polish brands it chips a lot less than some of my more expensive ones!

jana <3