Birchbox Haul March 2014

I had some Birchbox points that were expiring this month, so I decided to put in an order at the Birchbox shop. 

First Look!

Enbryolisse lait-créme concentré This is a refill for my current bottle. I originally tried this from a sample box and loved it. I use this as a nighttime moisturizer. 

Stila stay all day liquid lipstick in "Patina" I received another sample of this product in my Birchbox August 2013 box in the color "beso" I really liked how long this stayed on my lips and decided to try out another color since I had the points to use. This lipstick is slightly drying, but it lasts most of the day.

I also picked out the Mystery Sample Pack which came for free with a $35.00 purchase. 

Omni Potent Duosity double whipped repairing treatment 

Beauty Protector  Protect and Detangle leave in conditioner. I really like this product and will probably repurchase from the Birchbox shop. This is the only place to buy this brand.

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Black Friday Beauty Haul 2013

Black Friday 2013 has come and is on it's way out.  This is the first year that I didn't have to work on Black Friday in a while so I decided to take advantage of having the day off and went out shopping at 12:00am.

I decided to go to the mall and stopped by Sephora first.  Sephora usually has $10.00 deal sets that they offer on Black Friday and I wanted to check them out.

Clean Sweep set from Ole Henriksen. This set included a 1.5 fl.oz.  'African Red Tea Foaming Cleanser' and a set of 10 'Truth to Go' facial wipes. 

Next I got the 'Draw the Line' Eyeliner sampler.  This set was $30.00 and has a retail value of $79.00. I am currently on a mission to find the perfect eyeliner.  Included in this set were some eyeliners that I was going to purchase full sized and full priced to try out but seeing this set made that easier and cheaper for me. Some of the eyeliners in the set were full sized. 

 FULL SIZED Eyeko 'Skinny Liquid Eyeliner' in Black.

FULL SIZED? Sephora 'Long-Lasting 12 HR Wear Eye Liner' in Glitter Black.

0.01oz Double ended Urban Decay '24/7 Glide on Eye Pencil' in Perversion (black) and Demolition (dark espresso brown).

0.01 fl. oz. Stila 'Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner' in Intense Black.

FULL SIZED? Stila 'Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner' in stingray (black).

0.025 oz. Make Up For Ever 'Aqua Eyes' waterproof eyeliner pencil in Black. 

 I received this sample from Yu Be  of their Moisturizing Skin cream. I have a big bottle of this and I use it regularly as a hand cream. I was actually going to pick up a small size of this as I was going through the checkout line to put in my purse, but stopped at the $16.00 price tag.  

Next I picked up some items from Bath and Body Works.  They were having their three wick candle sale (2 for $22) and their Wallflower two packs were $5.00 each as part of the Black Friday deals. 

 Cranberry Pear Bellini Wallflowers 

Peach Bellini 3 Wick Candle

'Tis the Season 3 Wick Candle

Red Velvet Cupcake 3 Wick Candle

Leaves 3 Wick Candle

Caribbean Escape Wallflowers

Bath and Body Works usually does a gift bag that you can purchase on black friday that contains some of their most popular products and scents in it for a discounted price with a minimum purchase. This years 2013 Holiday VIP Tote was $20.00 with a minimum $40.00 purchase.

FULL SIZED Forever Midnight Body Cream 

0.25 fl. oz. Forever Red fragrance

FULL SIZED Japanese Cherry Blossom Body Lotion

FULL SIZED Eucalyptus Spearmint Body Wash and Foam Bath 

Mini Champagne Toast Scented Candle

FULL SIZED Fresh Sparking Snow Anti-Bacterial Gentle Foaming Hand Soap

FULL SIZED Cream White Body Poof

That was it for the beauty items that I picked up this Black Friday. I think I found some really good deals and it wasn't too hectic shopping at 12:00am. The line at Sephora was really short and I didn't have to wait long.  The line at Bath and Body Works was really long. It wove from the back of the store where the registers were to the entrance of the store. The line wasn't too bad to wait in and it moved along.  There were a lot of Bath and Body Works employees directing the line  and they placed large red dots on the floor to help guide the line along.  Normally the overly happy, giddy BBW employees that are in every store are often a little too much for me. But I think that attitude helped BBW with the often stressful BlackFriday shopping.  The employees made everyone feel like we were in it together and would get out alive. I think this was a successful Black Friday Haul and I am happy with what I got. 

Birchbox August 2013

I received my August Birchbox!

First Look!

This month's theme is 'Finishing School'

2 fl. oz. EVOLVh 'Ultra Shine' Moisture Conditioner This organic conditioner is specifically made for color treated hair. 

2 fl. oz. DermaE 'Hydrating Mist with Hyaluronic Acid'  This is supposed to be used as a facial mist or a makeup setting spray.  I'm mostly interested to see how this compares to my Urban Decay 'Up all Night' setting spray.  DermaE also included a special offer with the sample.  Use code BIRCH2013 to save $5.00 off any full sized product. Offer expires September 30, 2013.

 One packet of Whish 'Deodorant Swipe'. This also claims to be a hair inhibitor. This sample is a perfect thing to place in a gym bag or my purse, for when I'm feeling a little stinky. This was my Beauty  extra for the month. I wish they had given me something different as a beauty extra since I received another Whish product in this month's box and I have received a shave cream in a previous Birchbox. At least it's not the same product or the same type of product...

.75 fl. oz. Whish 'Exfoliating Body Wash in 'Coconut Milk' I really like the scent of this body wash. I'm really into coconut smelling things right now. 

0.03 fl. oz. Stila 'Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick' in Beso I saw this on the Birchbox Facebook page as an option that could be in this month's box. I was really hoping that I got this sample, so I was happy to see that I received it. I wasn't too excited to see another red color. It seems like all the sample boxes always send red lip products. I decided to try it out anyways and was pleasantly surprised with the product. It is a blue based red, which I don't currently have. I put this on at night and when I woke up in the morning the lipstick was still on my lips as if I just applied it.  The only evidence that I had slept in it was the streaks of red running down my lips as if I was a sparkly vampire that just went out to eat. I touched up my lips with a lip brush and went to work with the red. It stayed all day at work without any touchups. As for the bad things about this product: I didn't like the applicator. It picked up a lot of product and was messy to apply. With a red lipstick there isn't much room for mistakes so the applicator didn't make for an easy application. Since this is a sample I can't really hold the applicator against this product, not knowing what the full sized product's applicator is like. The second thing I did not like I can hold against the product.  As the lipstick started to fade at the end of the day it faded from the inside out. Which left me with what looked like a bright red lipliner on bare lips. The product was hard to wipe off, so I ended up looking ridiculous at the end of the day because I didn't have the lipstick with me to reapply. Needless to say I am thinking of purchasing a full sized product of this lipstick in different colors. It wasn't drying and really had some lasting power. It did have some transfer throughout the day, but it didn't show on my lips. 

Swatch of Beso. This swatch really doesn't do the color justice. The red is so much more vibrant and beautiful on my lips.

This month Birchbox partnered up with Ann Taylor to make special offers for Birchbox subscribers. They included this brochure with different Birchbox store beauty products and Ann Taylor accessories. 

They also included this special offer on the back.  I used to work at Ann Taylor  and know the quality of the products is excellent.  The prices for the products are a bit high for my non profit paychecks, but I'll keep this coupon in my purse in case I find some more Perfect Pumps that I have to get.  These heels are so comfortable and the only pair of heels that I have found that I can wear all day comfortably.  I have two pairs of these heels and could always use more, because they really are PERFECT!   

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