Unboxing my March Birchbox

I've had this for over a week, but I've been super busy and haven't gotten around to posting about it.  When I saw what items I was getting in my box, I'll be honest, I wasn't too thrilled.  Once I got my box and was able to see the items up close, my mind quickly changed!  I actually really like this box.

Here's all that I got:

 

 These are too cute and something I will probably need while traveling at some point.  These are Eco-Friendly Acetone-Free Nail Polish Remover pads from La Fresh.  I like that they are scented too!  I used to have this other scented nail polish remover I loved, but now I can't find it anywhere.  Hopefully I like this too!

This is Marcelle's BB Cream in Golden Glow.  I have recieved a BB cream from Birchbox before and I really liked it, but I only got a couple uses out of it.  This is a good amount of product and I tested it on my hand and I really like it.  With Spring and Summer approaching, I like the idea of a BB cream over a foundation.

This is Vasanti's Brighten Up! Enzymatic Face Rejuvenator.  It is basically a facial scrub.  I LOVE scrubs, so no doubt that I like this one too.  :)  The crystals are really small, so you won't feel like you just scraped your face off after you use it.

Let me introduce you to Whish's Shave Crave Shave Cream in a Birchbox exclusive scent of blueberry.  When I first opened my Birchbox, something smelled divine, and it was this little guy.  I seriously cannot stop smelling it.  It smells like blueberry oatmeal.  It is more like a lotion, so I feel like it will clog a razor pretty quickly, but if it is moisturizing and helps with shaving, I'm all for it (epecially with the smell).  Seriously, it smells amazing.  I'm excited to try this out and see if the smell stays on the skin.

My Birchbox extra this month is a nail file from Madewell.  Considering I have a nail polish blog...  I use nail files quite a bit, so this was a nice addition to my box.  I like the design of it too.  Very girly.  

I was glad to have a box I like after a couple months of downers.  Hopefully they continue this uprise and have great boxes through the Spring and Summer.

If you are interested in signing up for Birchbox.  It is $10 a month and very worthwhile.  Here's a link if you are interested:  https://www.birchbox.com?raf=gafkf

-polish. impress. repeat.

Lime Scented Nail Polish!

So first off, props to my friend Andrew that got my this polish.  I tell you, I have some amazing friends.  One of my other friends got me some nail polish that I will be posting about in the near future.  I am so blessed by their friendships!

Take a look at this nail polish, it is incredibly bright!  It is the Love & Beauty Lime scented nail polish from Forever 21.  It is a lime jelly polish, so I painted two coats of it over OPI's Alpine Snow so the color would pop a bit more, and it definitely did!  It is like a neon green.  IT SMELLS LIKE LIME CANDY!  It is really subtle, but it's just enough.  I like that it has that 'fun factor' to it.

Have you tried any scented polishes?  What is your experience with them?

-polish. impress. repeat.

Unboxing my February 2013 Birchbox

There were a few Birchboxes that were delayed due to weather in New York, and mine was one of them, but Birchbox sent out an email alerting us that our boxes might be a little later than usual.  While I liked the products I got, I'm not sure I feel like it was well worth the $10 I payed for it.  I do like the items I received, I really do.

This months theme is "Red Carpet Ready".  Since there are so many award shows this month, they included items that are red carpet worthy.  I'm not quite sure I would wear the headband on the red carpet, but the rest of the items seem to fit the theme pretty well.

 First up is Juicy Coutures' Couture La La.  I love all the Juicy Couture perfumes and am happy with this sample.  It has a spray top which all the Juicy Couture samples I've gotten have had.  Love love love.  I own a lot of this brands perfumes and I'm excited to try this new one.

This is Secret Agent Beauty's Secret Lip Affair lip gloss.  It is a lip plumper infused with Vitamin E.  It smells like cherry, but it has that tingly feeling that plumers usually have.  It is a gorgeous color too.  Pocket size.  :)  Like it.

I've always been curious about TIGI's products and now I get to try the Rockaholic Fun Times Flexible Hairspray.  I'm hoping it truly is 'flexible' like it says because that is my one thing I look for in a hairspray!  Excited for this product.

I've received two of the twistband hair ties in previous boxes, but in this one I got a headband.  I don't really use headbands, but it might be useful while working out.  We'll see.  I like the color!

This month's extra treat was a Ghiradelli chocolate carmel square.  I do like chocolate, so this was a nice addition.


Like I said, I like the products, but I'm not sure it was worth the $10.  What did you all get in your boxes?

-polish. impress. repeat.

Holographic Teal Combo

I recently got Butter London's Henley Regatta in a gift set and I've wanted to use it, but never found the right time.  I picked out Zoya's Zuza to paint my nails with and as I got done with my second coat, I quickly grabbed Henley Regatta.  I was just going to use it for an accent nail, but I loved it so much, I used it all all 10.  :)  I used two coats of Zoya's Zuza which is an silvery/pearly iridescent teal and two coats of Henley Regatta which is a teal/green/blue glitter by Butter London.  I LOVE the way this sparkles in the sun.  It reminds me of a mermaid's tail.  I can't wait to wear this combo more in the Spring!

What are your favorite combos?

-polish. impress. repeat.

OPI - Cuckoo For This Color

I want to start off my apologizing for these photos.  I painted my nails a couple days ago, but never got around to taking pictures until now.  You can see a little fading on the tips, so these don't look as good as they did a couple days ago.

Anyways...  This is OPI's Cuckoo For This Color.  It is a dark teal/turquoise color with shimmer.  I like that the shimmer gives it a swirly looking effect on your nails.  This is from their Fall 2010 Swiss collection.  I painted two coats and aside from the little bit of fading at the tips, this polish always has a good wear time for me.

It's almost spring and so I'm trying to enjoy my little bit of time left to wear darker colored polishes.

What is your favorite darker colored polish?

-polish. impress. repeat.

My first attempt at ombre nails

I did this last weekend and only took two pictures before I had to leave with my family for something.  Super bummed I forgot to take more pictures.  I have always wanted to try the ombre effect and finally gave it a go with China Glaze's Refresh-Mint and Zoya's Jules.  I like the antiqued look it has.  I used a sponge eyeshadow applicator to get the effect.  I'll try some more of this.  I'm kind of curious to use three colors.  Daring, I know.

What colors have you used that look good with an ombre effect?  What technique do you use (sponge)?

-polish. impress. repeat.

January 2013 Birchbox

Well, I'm super disappointed with this month's box.  I guess this one out-weighs some of the awesome boxes I've gotten from Birchbox in the past.  You can't win them all I guess...

This month's theme was about having a great start to the new year and making this year 'awesome'.  Ironically, this box was not a good start to the year.

Here's what I got:

This was the only really awesome thing in the box.  This is nail polish by Alessandro in the shade Blue Lagoon  I'm not sure if I like this color, but I've really liked quite a few blue colors this year, so I'm hoping this is another good one.  I've never heard of this brand before, but that's the beauty of Birchbox, discovering new brands and products.

I've only found about three perfumes that I've actually liked from the 20 or so perfume samples I've gotten from Birchbox over the years.  This one, Skinny Chic by Harvey Prince is actually okay.  I'll use the sample, but I don't think I'm going to go out and get the full sized bottle.  It does have a spray top which is a plus.

This is Instant Restorative Hair Serum by Ojon.  "Instant" huh?  We'll have to see.  I've gotten two hair serums in previous Birchboxes that I've loved!  One by Orofluido and the other my Amika.  They both worked wonders and smelled delicious.  This one is in a little tiny vile and doesn't smell that great.  Not impressed by those, so hopefully the actual product works well.

I've gotten a product from The Balm in my last couple boxes.  This is an eyelid primer.  I just use my Nyx Jumbo Eye Pencils for a primer, so I don't know what I'll do with this.  It's a pretty good sized sample for an eyelid primer.

I got two of these cards with foil packaged samples in them for my 'extra' of the month.  I guess that's nice that these weren't put in as my regular items because that would have been even more disappointing.  This is face cream from Fresh.  I'll probably take these when I have to travel some time.

I'm a huge proponent of Birchbox and am usually happy with my box even if it isn't 'amazing' because I still feel like I'm getting $10 worth of products.  This month is the first month in 2 years of being a subscriber that I feel that this box was worthless.  I know there is a lot of competition out there with beauty sample box subscriptions and this one didn't score any points for Birchbox.  I hope they can step it back up.  :)  I have full confidence that they can.

What other subscription services are you subscribed to?
Did you like your Birchbox this month?

-polish. impress. repeat.