August 2014 Favorites!

So! August is over!?! How did that happen? It was unseasonably cool in Boston this month, so it didn't really feel like August, but I saved some money on cooling bills so, I'll take it! Anyway, here are the things I've been absolutely loving all month long.

Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara: $23 Cosmetics Specialty Retail. The name of this mascara is just...*sigh*. It's not better than sex, but it's my new favorite, FAVORITE mascara. If they are going to say this is better than sex, it should come with a winning powerball ticket. I digress...

It is the blackest, most dramatic formula I've ever used. I have already ordered a replacement from Sephora. My new holy grail mascara for my nothing lashes (sorry lashes, but you are wispy).

Tip: Looks like if you buy this directly from Too Faced, they will include a travel size for free right now. Bonus Jonas.

Gel Eyeliner (in general): Price Varies, Drugstore and Cosmetic Specialty. I discovered my love for this backwards, I guess. I am a fan of some eyeliner, let me tell you. I love eyeliner! It makes your eyes look bigger, more dramatic and it comes in fun colors, although I only ever use black. I got a navy one in a beauty box, but I've only used it twice maybe (although it's beautiful and soft). When I first started wearing makeup, I only knew of pencil liner. Then I discovered the joys of liquid liner. Loved it. Earlier this year (yes, I'm behind the curve), I discovered gel eyeliner. I honestly had never even heard of this until a few months ago. A pot and a brush?! NO. WAY. NOT GONNA TRY THAT.

Then I got an email from Sephora saying that Benefit was coming out with a new gel eyeliner in a pen form. I purchased it before its release as a VIB benefit (Benefit as a benefit!??!) and I loved the formula, even though I found the application a bit challenging (full review forthcoming). I used it for about a month and liked it, but I found that it was difficult to use it and I had to get in to a mood to use it, like I had to get psyched up to apply it. Not good. Then, one day, I purchased a pot and brush "old school" type gel eyeliner from the drugstore. HOLY MOLY! Where has this been all my life!?!? It doesn't sound like a brush and a pot is an easy application regarding eyeliner, but I found this delivery system very simple. I got the most control from the brush and ultimately, I found it much easier than the pen form. Sorry, Benefit. I love you, but...

Nest Amazon Lily Perfume: $25 Roller Ball Specialty Cosmetics Retail. OMG. I got a sample of this with a Sephora order. I tried all the other perfume samples and when I sprayed this one, I thought: "Hm...weird. Smells kinda weird." However, I liked it. I tried it again and again and the more I tried it, the more I liked it. Then, I became obsessed and I had to order a larger size. It has a floral, yet citrusy and spicy fragrance. It's totally weird, but it hooked me like caffeine.

Well played, Sephora. Well played.

Rimmel Stay Matte Primer: $6-7 Drugstore Retail. I have issues with Rimmel products. Every YouTuber talks so much hype about this brand's Stay Matte Powder, but, they don't really make darker shades. Are they translucent?

I did come across this product at the drugstore and I gave it a try. I had been trying the Benefit Porefessional which was okay. It didn't keep me matte no matter how much I prayed on it. This stuff is a white cream, which looks like a moisturizer. You can put it on under makeup or wear it alone. It is supposed to blur your pores and keep your face from getting shiny. I wear this in the T zones and I hate to admit that it works really well. This stuff is the bomb dot com if you have oily T-zones. It kept me matte and looking nice most of the day. If you have darker skin, you DO have to be careful not to get this stuff in the drier areas of your face or you will look like a mime. Bottom line, for $7, this is a steal. Anyway, Rimmel...you get one.

Merrel Evera Shift Sandals: I seriously lucked out with these. I have a black and a tan pair. I happened to come by them at Marshall's and I paid so little for them that I feel like I stole them. They are so cute...so comfortable. I love the little heel. These are the sandals of the summer. Period. So much shoe love for these.

Garnier Sleek & Shine Moroccan Sleek Oil Treatment: $5.99 Drugstore Retail. A late entry, but I'm totally obsessed! Being a curly girl, I love me some hair oil. I had been using Kendi Oil but I mistakenly left it at home when I went on vacation. Kendi Oil smells amazing and works wonderfully, but my hair soaks up and eats product like The Greedy from the Raggedy Ann & Andy Movie (I am dating myself). Kendi Oil is $25 a pop. I went out to get some hair oil while I was in Hilton Head because I was going to be shampooing from the chlorine in the pool and salt in the ocean. This stuff is amazing! I applied it to my damp hair after I conditioned and shampooed and it made my curls soft and shiny and lessened the frizz (you can't be 100% frizz free if you're a curly girl. Let's just be honest). I like Kendi Oil, but I can be more generous with the Garnier since the price point is much lower and it works a little better too! Once again, a win for Garnier. I have used (and liked) their products in the past, so I'm anxious to try more products from their Sleek & Shine line. Recommendations anyone?

Special Meal Salad: Inspired by a salad I saw in Real Simple. It's farro underneath salad greens, snap peas, sauteed mushrooms (instead of chicken), fat-free feta, avocado and a lemon vinaigrette dressing. Grind a crap ton of fresh pepper on it. BAM. Lunch or dinner. Guilt-free, tasty as heck, easy, addictive. This was winning for me all month. Fiance is obsessed too.

That's what I've been loving as we slide into September. It's going to be autumn soon and that means I get to pick up and move in with my handsome fiance! Moving sucks but I can't wait to move in with the love of my life!

Vacation Luxuries for your inner Princess

Sometimes, there are crazy things you by from Sephora and you don't know why you spent that much on a single product. It doesn't make sense, it's probably not worth it and you probably didn't need it. But when I am on vacation, I like to have crazy, unreasonably-priced luxuries to make me feel like I'm royalty at my home away from home. Here are some of the crazy things I've brought with me on my beach vacation.

Caudalie Beauty Elixir: My friend Sara turned me on to this stuff and I'm not even sure what this does. On the Caudalie Website, it says it gives you a glow, minimizes your pores and sets your makeup. I'm not sure I believe all of that nonsense, but you know what it DOES do? It smells amazing and it feels amazing on your face when you spray it. It's got a rosemary, floral sort of smell and a slight tingle when you spray it on your face (eyes closed of course). This stuff is $49 for the full-size and I'm not even sure what it is. But you can buy a small little tiny size at Sephora for $18, which is just as stupid, but less of a sting on the wallet and was a perfect size for my purse. It's steamy and humid at the beach here and this has been so amazing in the middle of the day when my face is kind of feeling gross and hot. If you have money burning a hole in your pocket and you're vacationing somewhere hot, pick it up and treat yourself.

Ole Hendriksen Grease Relief Cleansing Cloths: I am super into cleansing cloths. Maybe because I'm lazy. My current favorite are the Yes to Cucumbers wipes for sensitive skin. I don't have sensitive skin necessarily, but for some reason, I love these wipes. They smell faintly of cucumber and they get your makeup off mostly. I had heard a lot of buzz in the beauty community about these (Ole Hendriksen) brand of cleansing wipes. I couldn't imagine that a stupid face wipe could be so amazing. I saw the little 10-count sample at the checkout at Sephora for $8. So it's $0.80 for each of these stupid face wipes, which is INSANE. But...

They are amazing. They feel amazing on your skin, they smell fantastic and they have a cool side with bumps on it that exfoliates your skin. I have oily skin and I enjoy anything that reduces the amount of grease and crap on my face and the fact that these wipes have AHA's in them is a huge plus for me. They leave my skin feeling clean, refreshed and smelling fantastic. The 30-count is a $15 which is a little more reasonable at $0.50 a wipe. I think I will definitely be going back for the big size, but maybe I can't buy them all the time. I don't use these to remove eye makeup (I use Clinique Take the Day Off Remover), it just takes off my blush and face powder and primer.

SUPERGOOP! Sun-Defying Sunscreen Oil: Sunscreen Oil, eh? Sure. I was attracted to this product initially because as a darker-skinned person, I didn't enjoy the blue-ish white cast that creamy sunscreens leave on my skin. Maybe I'm vain, but I think it looks really terrible. This product seemed like a good alternative because it was an oil. I initially didn't think an oil could really protect you from the sun because I believed that white-cast was coming from whatever chemical was keeping you from getting sunburned, but I took a chance on it anyway. It's $10 for a 1-ounce spray of this. That CRAZY. But I was going on vacation and this was a chance to be luxurious and treat myself like a princess. Well, I really love this product. It's waterproof up to 80 minutes and it feels really good going on your skin. Not greasy, but silky. I was out playing golf on a hot, sunny day and I did not get burned.

Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment SPF 15: This is the most ridiculously expensive lip balm ever. It's $22.50 for a full-size, which is nuts because you only get 0.15oz worth of product. However, this is the best lip balm I've ever used. It goes on remarkably smooth and is incredibly moisturizing and the colors are usually very pretty. I have this balm in at least 5 colors but my favorite is the newest shade, Tulip. It's a pretty, bright pink and it's the perfect MYBB (my lips but better) color. Big ups to Fresh for compelling me to buy an insanely over-priced product in almost every color that they offer.

So, that's it for my ridiculously over-priced vacation luxuries! Are there expensive guilty pleasures that you enjoy? 

August Boxycharm Review!

For those of you who don't know, Boxycharm is a beauty subscription service similar to Birchbox and Ipsy Bag. Once a month for $21, they send you (free shipping!) 4-5 full-sized beauty products. It's a mix of high-end and drugstore, but this is my 4th box and I've only gotten one drugstore item (it was a mascara, which is great.) Boxycharm is my one and only beauty box subscription right now. What initially attracted me to the service is that they are sending full-sized items every time instead of samples. Not that I hate samples, I just think Boxycharm is the best bang for your buck right now. I have been waiting for it with great anticipation this week and now I'll let you know what's in my box! Disclaimer: This post is NOT sponsored by Boxycharm and I do pay for this box and chose to review it on my own for the benefit of my readers only!

Here is the box in upon opening. It's the Beach Babe Box! This is very exciting because in exactly seven days, I will be on the beach! YES. ALL of the products in this box are full-sized.

The first thing I noticed was a Tarina Tarantino lip color in Floriculture which was a really pretty berry color. I was very thrilled to see this in this month's box because in my June box, I also received a product from this line (which was a highlighter). I loved the highlighter, so I was very excited about this lipstick. The packaging is exquisite. It feels very heavy, high quality and has these adorable little crystals on the side. The color is absolutely gorgeous and it felt really soft on my lips and the color was perfect for me. It was a cute berry shade that goes perfect with my complexion and is exactly the shade of lipcolor I usually like to buy.

Verdict: AWESOME. I am not a lipstick girl, but I will be using this! (Retail price: $22)

Next, I saw this Enter Pronoun Blowtorch Bronzer. Enter Pronoun? What the heck? Well, turns out this is a unisex makeup line. Ok, cool. I also noticed that they don't really have a lot going on in terms of amount of products on their website. It looks like right now they are offering some concealers, this bronzer and an eyeliner. It looks like they are a startup or maybe just being cool by only selling 3 products? Who knows. But this bronzer retails for $35. Imagine me doing a Z-snapping motion after I say THIRTY-FIVE DOLLARS. That is like a YSL or Chanel pricepoint, baby!

That being said, the packaging is STUNNING. It's as beautiful as the Tarina Taratino product is and the bronzer seems nice. That being said...I'm not really a user of bronzer. Honestly, I have never even considered using it, especially since I don't see that many women of color reaching for it. But, I'm sure it's great and I'm going to hold on to it and give it a shot.

Verdict: STAY TUNED. I might use this, I might give it to a friend. Who knows. (Retail price: Once again with feeling...$35)

Next was this ModelCo Cheek and Lip Tint in Rosy Red. I've never tried a ModelCo product before. Is it just for models? Is it made by models? In general, I'm a little suspicious of products that are supposed to be for my lips AND cheeks. My first impression is that when I swatched it on my hand, it wasn't just a tint, it was a STAIN. It had a pretty good staining quality and I couldn't wait to try it on my lips. When you rub it it has a strange brick red color and it felt VERY sticky on my lips. When it dried, it felt okay, but in the 10 minutes that it was wet, it was sticky, sticky, sticky! I didn't try it on my cheeks since I was already wearing Tarte cheek stain.

Verdict: NEUTRAL. It's okay. It's a VERY SUBTLE color payoff (which is what it's marketed to be) for a no-makeup, makeup look. I'll use it and see how it goes. (Retail price $22)

Then there was the Ofra Cosmetics Lip liner in Silk. I watched a few YouTubers open their boxes and I appear to be one of the unfortunate ones who got a lip liner instead of a black eyeliner from this company. I got a stupid lip liner in July's box too. This was extremely disappointing.

Verdict: MEH. Who wears lip liner? I'll probably never use this. If anyone wants this, I'd be HAPPY to send it to you. Disclaimer: I did swatch it on my hand once. (Retail price: $13)

Lastly, I got this powder brush from Morphe Brushes. Here it is...

VERDICT: AWESOME. This brush rules! It's as soft as a bunny, feels really high quality and is a nice large size. I'll be using this to try my new bronzer or whatever. I would buy more brushes from this line. (Retail price: $19.99)

Overall, I was extremely pleased with this box! I was rather disappointed by my July box (which also came late), but this box is far more impressive and an extra bonus for including a Tarina Tarantino product! I can't wait until September's box! If you want to subscribe to Boxycharm, please use this link! This is my referral link and if you sign up, I get boxy "charms" which are points to buy full-sized products. 

Update

Oh hey, blog, HEEEEYYYY! I have been away for a while and BOY have I been busy! In the few months that I've been away from my blog, I've...

• Become a reasonably successful entrepreneur
• Made my Boston Jordan Hall soloist debut! (W00t!)
• Gotten my first solo reviews in Boston Music Publications
• Explored Voice Acting
• Been on AM Radio heard in 38 States! (OMG!)

and finally...

• gotten engaged to the man of my dreams!

So, when you ask yourself..."Where has Kay been?", you can now answer that question with confidence! I have missed my blog, but I have done SO MUCH! I just wanted to give a quick update as to where I've been! I'll be moving again in a couple of months so the mayhem continues!