September 2015 Favorites

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September 2015 Favorites

September 2015 Favorites
1. Turbie Twist, $12.50 for 2 / 2. China Glaze Gelaze Recycle, $11
3. Ponds Luminous Finish BB+ Cream, $11 / 4.  L’Oreal Infalliable Shadow in Amber Rush, $6

My September 2015 Favorites are all inexpensive drugstore products! Aside from one being discontinued (jerks – but you can still find it on Amazon), they’re all accessible!

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Exasperated with my local Ulta

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It’s no secret that I do most of my beauty shopping online. With the exception of things that require matching (foundation), I prefer to shop online.

Sometimes, I’ll get perks that I can only redeem in store, so I take the time to go – my Ulta is within 3 minutes of my office, so it isn’t a terrible hassle (plus, they carry my holy grail dry shampoo). In the order in which I received my Philosophy Fresh Cream perfume, I received a voucher to get a Benefit Air Patrol BB Cream Eyelid Primer. “Cool,” I thought. “I can run it through the primer gauntlet and hopefully write a fruitful post.”

Exasperated with my local Ulta - unable to redeem voucher for Benefit Air Patrol

The voucher states:

“Beauty Bonus! Visit your nearest Benefit Brow Bar inside Ulta to receive a complimentary Air Patrol makeupper. Plus, enjoy a Free* deluxe mini with your Benefit product purchase!”

Pretty fair – that means it is a true freebie, no purchase necessary, and that there is another deluxe mini you can get if you spend whatever Benefit’s minimum is. I went in, the Benefit employee was busy doing some brows. Neither wishing to interrupt her nor wishing to wait 20 minutes, I did the rest of my shopping and headed to the register. I presented the cashier with the voucher, thinking that they’d have those up front just like every other GWP/freebie. She glances at it for half a moment and says, “You didn’t spend enough with Benefit…” and hands it back to me.

I take it from her, hold it up and read the entirety slowly to her, out loud. This isn’t the first time I’ve had something like this happen at Ulta. “Ohhhh…” she says, followed with a cluck of her tongue. “I don’t think we have that yet.”

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2015 Holiday Sets

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Now that we’re nearly in October (tomorrow!), most (if not all) of the 2015 Holiday Sets have been announced.

I’m not impressed, unfortunately.

Actually, that’s not true – the Kat von D Mi Vida Loca Remix palette ($59) is so awe-inspiring that it is about beyond words, actually. Pretty sure it’s been out of stock since it hit the shelves and site though. Just look at it, though. It is colorful, but not jarring like UD Electric can be – and it. has. neutrals. to help balance out the brights. Santa?

2015 Holiday Sets - KvD Mi Vida Loca

Otherwise, though – not impressed. No one is killing it this year!

Too Faced always goes cutesy, but Jarrod’s vision this year is just weird. French-inspired cutesy. With sets like Le Grand Palais at Sephora for $59 (that looks oddly familiar)…

2015 Holiday Sets - Le Grand Palais

and La Petite Maison at Ulta ($39; actually has many of the same shades as Everything Nice; pretty sure none of them are unique to this palette)… meh.

2015 Holiday Sets - Too Faced La Petite Maison

I’ve already talked about Vice-however-many, $59. I’ve been over it. No need to go into it more, here.

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Do Your Research

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I feel like I’ve been extra-cynical and/or critical on the blog lately. It’s weird, because I don’t feel any more of either in my daily life; usually those things tend to coincide.

A vlogger I follow published a comparison video between the Clarisonic Mia and the Foreo Luna (made by the people who make the Issa and the Moda). I was interested, because I hadn’t really seen much in the way of a comparison between the two (but I also hadn’t really looked).

So I watch, and by the end of the video, I’m facepalming. The video was sponsored (which is fine, in and of itself) and the personality was clearly in favor of the Luna (again, fine). What wasn’t fine? Her utter lack of any kind of knowledge about one of the two products she was, “comparing.”

I hesitate to even call it a comparison because to suggest that it was would imply that she actually knew the properties of the Clarisonic. What the content creator shows and suggests is a Clarisonic Mia is in fact a Clarisonic Plus; she did not seem to have much experience with the device itself. While she knew that the Clarisonic she was holding (again, Clarisonic PLUS) used a charging cradle (which could be inconvenient), she insisted it had only one speed. Well yes, the actual Clarisonic Mia only features one speed…but she did not have a Mia. Her device ought to have three speeds, in fact – so did she never use the device she’s decrying? Did she just search Google for, “Clarisonic Mia,” and read (some of) a chart of its features?

Do Your Research - Clarisonic Plus, left; Clarisonic Mia, right.

For your reference, good reader – on the left is a Clarisonic Plus, and the right is a classic Clarisonic Mia. I own a Clarisonic Mia 2.

Among other things, she seemed convinced that it spun.

Not a single device made by Clarisonic spins.

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Worth it? beautyblender blotterazzi

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I love my beautyblender sponge. What it does for the application of face products (foundation, concealer, cream blush, etc) for me is outstanding. The revolutionary sponge created a class of tools and inspired a legion of pretenders. They have expanded recently with a few new products like the bodyblender and the blotterazzi. The beautyblender blotterazzi is marketed as an alternative to those little blotting papers many of us purchase to keep our shine at bay without caking on additional product.

beautyblender blotterazzi

The blotterazzi should feel familiar to any beautyblender owner – the thin, pliable sponges are made of the same material the namesake sponge. The $20 product comes with a mirrored, vented compact and two of these sponges. As someone who is trying to minimize waste, I like the idea of the blotterazzi as a reusable oil-blotting solution. That said, if you’re combination or oily, these small, thin sponges may not be enough.

Unfortunately, the reviews that are out indicate that the product does not perform as hoped; many people say it does little to nothing for their oil, and others indicate that it compromises their makeup. Maybe it’s all a big misunderstanding like the beauty world had when the beautyblender started getting big (people didn’t realize it was intended to be used wet) but nothing has come out yet suggesting that is the case.

The Bottom Line

I’m a fan of the original beautyblender, but the blotterazzi is not something I can see myself spending money on – especially since my oil-control needs are inconsistent. They are reusable, but considering the surface area and how oily some of us can get, they would almost require daily washing to keep from recirculating oil and product, leading to breakouts – I know few people who would have time for that. More frequent washing that it would need plus the thinner, less robust (compared to the beautyblender) design would result in swifter breakdown, too. I’ll either blot with a tissue or blotting paper when I need it.

Even someone wanting to cut down on waste wouldn’t really be – they’d just be converting one flavor of waste (disposing of used blotting papers) for another (water, soap, eventually replacing these).

Discuss: How Much is Too Much?

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In the past several years, the online beauty world has exploded. Brands, blogs, vloggers, Instagram sensations – what-have-you. Even though I wasn’t really aware of it until three years ago, it has been impressive. Personally, I’d love to see revenue comparisons on the brands alone for current day versus five years ago.

On  YouTube, Vanity Tour videos are insanely popular. Some of these men and women are professionals, actual artists sharing their at-home setup; others are just people who enjoy makeup and happen to like getting on camera. Regardless, their viewers and readers want to see what their favorite personality has in their stash, how their vanity is laid out, and how they decorate.

So many three-wick Bath and Body Works candles, girl.
So many IKEA Alex drawers.

How Much is Too Much?

I can appreciate getting inspiration for organizing efficiently, and for decor (I am exceptionally decor-impaired). The work these people put in to present an organized (usually..), visually appealing setup is hard to ignore. I haven’t really pinned anything to that effect in ages, but their willingness to share has helped so many people get inspired to create their own little beauty zen space.

It is hard not to notice, however, the size of (some of) these collections – they border on madness. For a professional artist who is actively working as an artist (not an artist-turned-YouTube sensation who hasn’t worked on a client in three years), it’s one thing to have two full drawers devoted to foundations and concealers. For a, “guru,” though – does it really make sense? How many of those bottles and tubes even match you throughout the four seasons? How many are expired?

I realize that might come off as hate-y or judge-y; I don’t intend it to be that way, but even as someone who has come to find makeup so fun, I can’t relate. I can’t relate to an overflowing vanity with stuffed-to-the-brim, stacked MUJI drawers and overflowing IKEA Alex sets. I’d love to get some perspective on this – so I’d love to know what you think (update: added the following to clarify) about your own collection:

How much is too much when it comes to owning makeup?

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