Circa Beauty First Impressions - Eyeshadow Trio & Lipsticks!

I have another Walgreens exclusive first impressions post for y'all! Circa Beauty is another "masstige" brand, sold only at Walgreens, similar to the Colour Prevails range (I posted about a couple nail polishes here). It's a pretty complete range for being so new; consisting of a decent selection of face, eyes, and lip products.

I opted to pick up three things because this brand is on the pricier side of drugstore; the shadow trio is $12 and the lipsticks are $10 each. This is not a full review; I've only had these for about three day now, but I will be posting an update and more comprehensive review after I've had a chance to fully play with these products!

FTC Disclaimer: I purchased these products with my own money. I am not affiliated with this company, nor am I being sponsored or compensated for this post. My opinions are, as always, my own.

Colour Prevails First Impressions - Nail Polish!

I want to start out this post by stating that I am a total nail polish amateur; I love the stuff and I buy it frequently BUT I am horrible at upkeep and application. So apologies in advance for my sloppy swatches! That being said I love trying out new lines, especially at drugstores. This range is upper level drugstore or masstige; prices are on the higher end of affordable. These polishes are $8 per bottle, which puts them at an Essie or OPI level, when you consider these bottles hold less product.

I always feel guilty when I buy brands that aren't sold at Ulta; I can justify my makeup hoarding by saying it's "product education" but I can't do that when we don't sell the brand!! :D That being said, my curiosity got the better of me and I splurged. I actually intended on only purchasing the cream polish in "All Nighter" but I love glitters and I loved the name of the second one; "Mr. Wrong", and I couldn't hold myself back! The Colour Prevails range is pretty substantial, featuring face, eyes, and lip products, along with the nail polishes, but as of right now I've only tried the polishes.

FTC Disclaimer: I purchased these products myself. I'm not affiliated with this company, nor am I sponsored nor being compensated in any form for this post. My opinions are, as always, my own.

Lipstick Queen Frog Prince First Impressions/Review

Lipstick Queen is a brand that I haven't delved too deeply in. I was so excited when my Ulta store first got it in store, bought six or seven things, and then promptly forgot about it for over a year. Which, in retrospect, is crazy because Medieval is one of my favorite casual red lippies ever. Sure, I joked about buying the $50 Velvet Rope lipsticks, but I've never bit the bullet.

However, when we got the Frog Prince display in, I was intrigued. Then my GM was telling about how, when she received it as gratis, it stained for 48 hours and didn't budge. Okay. I was sold. I am going to be typing this up in review format even though it is a first impressions post because if I continue to like it over the next couple of weeks I don't intend on editing this post. If, however, something crazy happens and I actually end up disliking this product, I will edit this post, add an ETA to the title, and update you. As of right now I really like this product.

FTC Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with this company, nor am I being sponsored nor compensated for this post. All opinions are my own and do not reflect those of my employer.

J.Cat Beauty First Impressions - Eyeshadow & Liner

Recently, while processing shipment, we found an exciting endcap display - looks like Ulta is going to start carrying J.Cat Beauty. You might know them as the brand that does the cheaper OCC Lip Tar dupes; I've heard of this brand for a while on YT and I was super excited to find out we would be carrying at least a few pieces from the line.

Hopefully we can expand the product range in the future because there are some other products that I plan on picking up (like the blushes...hello, I'm a crazy cat lady and those blush/bronzers are cute as hell) and it's definitely convenient to pick them up while at work.

This is not a full-on review. I've only had these products in my possession for around a week and I do plan on picking up more products from this brand.

FTC Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with this brand, nor am I being sponsored nor compensated for this post. My opinions are entirely my own and also do not reflect my employer. This post is entirely mine.

Best of BECCA Kit - FIRST IMPRESSIONS

Okay, so this post should have been up on Friday when I first got this kit but I was slacking. This kit is, sadly, no longer available on Ulta's website, but I'm still going to post this first impressions because all of the products in this kit are permanent products, first off, and secondly, this kit might still be available in stores and if you see it, I highly suggest that you snatch it up, if blush and highlight products are your jam. BECCA is a brand that I've wanted to try since we first got it, but I just couldn't convince myself to take the plunge, since a lot of their best selling products are rather expensive.

This set is a great value; for $34.50, you get to try four best selling products from the BECCA line, all of which are well-coordinated and work well together. You also get two full size products, both of which add up to a $52 value. The two highlighting products are minis but they're so frosty and potent that I can't imagine blowing through them too fast. Combined, it's about another $16 value. For $68 you can try out four products, two of which are full size! Also, there is a free GWP right now; a deluxe sample Ever-Matte Primer with any $30 Becca purchase (offer valid 3/15/15-4/4/15 or while supplies last), which is a ten dollar value!

FTC Disclaimer: All of the products mentioned in this post were purchased by me, with my own money. I am not affiliated with BECCA and all opinions are my own, as always! I am not being sponsored nor compensated for this post.

Eye Heart Tarte Eye Essentials - FIRST IMPRESSIONS

The 21 Days of Beauty is going on at Ulta right now, and they always bring out some great kits from a lot of the prestige brands. I don't know if I plan on picking any more up, but I did get my hands on the two I had really wanted (this Tarte one being one of them!) and I wanted to get this post up ASAP! This is not an in-depth review. If you're interested in a full review on these products (the liners and mascara; this quad is only available in this kit I believe) then let me know! I've tried Tarte shadows and the Lights, Camera, Lashes! mascara before, but the liners are new to me.

This kit retails for $34 through Ulta. It should also be available in stores! The total value is $71, so you save $37! Plus, through April 4th (WHILE SUPPLIES LAST AT YOUR ULTA LOCATION), there is a GWP going on with Tarte; spend $30 and receive a free deluxe Brazilliance Face Towelette and deluxe Lipsurgence Lip Gloss in Flush, which is a $20 value, which means you can potentially get $91 worth of Tarte products for $34+ tax!

FTC Disclaimer: All of the products mentioned in this post were purchased by me, with my own money. I am not affiliated with Tarte and all opinions are my own, as always! I am not being sponsored nor compensated for this post.

Covergirl Ready, Set, Gorgeous Summer 2014 FIRST IMPRESSIONS/REVIEW

Okay, so a few days ago I had posted a new CG products haul post (you can find that here if you're interested) and three of the new products were new face products. Now, unfortunately, I don't have good news, personally. I've heard horror stories about CG's Clean makeup, which can break people out like crazy. I've also read that some people have bad reactions to ALL Covergirl makeup. One of my favorite foundations is the Outlast Stay Fabulous liquid foundation. I wore it six days a week for three months, with no wonky reactions.

I do not have acne-prone skin. I get a pimple every couple of months, maybe. There has only been one other product that has ever had this bad of an effect on my non-sensitive skin, and that was a serum-moisturizer from Garnier. I mentioned in the haul post that I thought I was having a reaction to the concealer, because I developed six pimples only on my undereye area...yeah, no.

The way these products work is similar to Maybelline's Fit Me line; you select your liquid foundation shade and from there you can pick out the corresponding powder and concealer. My shade in the foundation is "215 Warm Beige" and my shade in both the powder and concealer is "Medium", which is for shades 215 and 220.

Okay, let's get this party started. WARNING: this post is photo-heavy and there is A LOT of text. And contains a lot of pics of my derpy-ass face. I apologize in advance. (I'm adding page anchors, so you can skip to whichever part you're interested in.) And, yeah, I will never switch to contacts. Just...no.

FTC Disclaimer: Everything mentioned in this post was purchased by me, with my own money. I am not compensated for this review, I am not affiliated with Covergirl or Proctor & Gamble, and all opinions are, as always, my own.

INFLUENSTER Uni Vox Box 2014! UNBOXING & FIRST IMPRESSIONS

Guess what I got in the mail yesterday?! If you guessed my Influenster Uni VoxBox, you are correct! :) I didn't read or watch any spoilers for this box, although I knew about one thing we were going to receive, and I'll get to that later in the post. Three of these products I've already tried and own. The other three are products that are either new or products that I haven't tried yet, so this box was a bit...eh to me, but you really can't complain about free stuff, haha.

FTC Disclaimer: I was sent these products for testing purposes by the Influenster program, which is open to anyone in the United States and Canada.I am not affliated with any of the companies who have sent products, I am not being sponsored or compensated in any way for these reviews. I have done a couple of posts on Influenster: general info, first two boxes I received, and the Holiday 2012 VB. Influenster is a completely free program and anyone is free to sign up! :)

March 2014 Ipsy Bag! First Impressions

So, this was the first month I received the Ipsy subscription. I signed up for Ipsy, Birchbbox, AND Glossy Box because...well, the concept is pretty cool. This is a monthly subscription service that is $10 a month, and consists of 4-5 deluxe samples that can be haircare, skincare, makeup items, or fragrance. Ipsy typically has better sample sizes than Birchbox, but will also have more drugstore/mid-range level products in it. I've read mixed reviews on Ipsy; some people love it, and others have issues with products they've been receiving, so I wasn't sure what to expect.

Join Ipsy! (Referral link.)

FTC Disclaimer: This product was received by me through my monthly Ipsy subscription service. This service is $10 a month (you receive 4-5 full size and/or deluxe samples per bag based on your responses to the survey you fill out upon sign up) and I purchase it with my own funds. I am not affliated with Ipsy or Nicole by OPI and receive no compensation for this post through these companies. All opinions are my own.

Also, I've created a second blog. I know, I know, I rarely update THIS one, right? The second blog is on Tumblr and you can reach it right here. This will have small little reviews, less on products, and more on specific colors and such. Also, first impressions (including the ones for these subscription services), along with FOTD posts and such, will go there. So if you have a Tumblr, feel free to follow me there! It's a sideblog so I can't follow you back, unfortunately. :(

e.l.f. Studio Lip Exfoliator PRODUCT RAVE/FIRST IMPRESSIONS

I'm not sure if it's just in Michigan, but everyone I know, including me, has been suffering from SUPER CHRONIC DRY SKIN. My hands are absolutely disgusting; my fingers are cracked and scabby. My arms and legs feel practically like sand paper. And my lips...oh, my lips. I tend towards more of a matte finish lip and there is no way in HELL that I can pull off matte lips right now without looking like a hot mess!

So when e.l.f. had a huge sale (50% off EVERYTHING plus free shipping!), I snagged two of the lip exfoliators. I just got my order in today, but I'm making this post the same night because I am actually in love with this product. This is probably the best lip scrub I've used and it's only $3! The Bliss scrubs and Lush scrubs are at least $10 each, plus they come in pots, and this product blows them out of the dang water!

I'll put it this way; I just placed an order for eight more backups because I love this product that much. Since I've literally only had this for one day, that's why I'm titling this blog post "first impressions" and not an actual review. If my opinions do a 180, I will definitely make an updated post. But it's a lip scrub, ya know? I doubt my opinions are going to change drastically, haha.

FTC Disclaimer: I purchased this product for myself, with my own money. I am not sponsored or affliated with the e.l.f. brand, nor am I being compensated for this review. As always, my opinions are my own! :)