March 31, 2014

Sweet Delight Spring 2014 Divalicious Sample Box Unboxing & Review

Hello readers,
Today my Sweet Delight sample box showed up in the mail.  I've heard of this company before but this is the first time I've purchased a box.  These boxes usually sell out super quickly (this time around they sold out in 24 minutes) so I figured I'd give one a shot.  Boxes cost $27CAD for Canadians or $37CAD for Americans including shipping.  The Spring box theme was "Bath. Beauty. Style." and "Each Divalicious Sample Box contains 10-15 samples (or more). Each sample box is a little different and contains a Divalicious mix from various contributors. Always a surprise. Always Delightfully-Divalicious."


The packaging was quite nice.  The first sample you can see on top is Just a Drop. According to the Sweet Delight inside the box sneak peek: Just'a Drop is known as "The Personal Odour Eliminator". It is the fresh-smelling answer for those embarrassing personal bathroom odours. "One drop BEFORE you go eliminates odours every time!".  I'm not a fan of this sample.  I really don't think it fits the theme of the box at all.  What does this have to do with bath, beauty and style or being divalivious? 


Next up is a Scentsy wickless candle sample.  Luckily I do own a candle warmer already (for arts&crafts purposes).  Is it fair to send a sample that requires extra equipment to use?  I don't know.  Candles aren't something I really use but I will use this just for the sake of using it up.  I also can't find any label about what scent it is.


Next up we have a pair of earrings from Pine Branch Designs.  These are really pretty and as a jewelry maker myself I can see the quality of the work that went into these.


Pine Branch Designs also included this cute stamped wood slice.  I plan on turning it into a fridge magnet.


Finally, some beauty products!  This is a good size mineral lip color in Romance from key botanicals.  This colour looks really pretty.  Shimmery pinks are my favorite so I am really happy with this sample.


I also got Emma's Blush from Sappho Organics.  The colour of this blush is really pretty.  What I didn't like is it is just a pan, no case.  This means that it will be very difficult to transport or put in a makeup bag.


ROCKin Green laundry soap was a surprise.  I also don't think this one fits very well with the theme of the box but everyone does laundry, so it will definitely get used.


A cupcake soap from Pure Natural Luxuries along with a teeny sample of Pink Grapefruit soap.  I'm not really a bar soap person but this is really cute.  I will likely end up using it as an alternative to shaving gel.  I'll just have to get over the lavender smell (ugh, lavender).


Tea tree! I love tea tree products.  This is a full size Tea Tree Facial Toner from Tarrah Essentials.  I'm really excited to try this product.  I find tea tree stuff is the only thing that helps with pimples without drying out my skin.


From Rodan+Fields Dermatologists I got single use capsules of their Redefine Night Renewing Serum and their Redefine Lip Renewing Serum.  I think these samples were pretty minimal.  It's really difficult to determine if these kind of products are right for you after only one use.  I'll probably get more use of the little plastic jar they came in :P.


Lemon Cuticle Balm from Meows the Time.  I am really looking forward to trying this.  My cuticles can use all the help they can get to fight the  remnants of winter dryness.  I also love citrus smells so lemon is a great fit for me.


Seven Lip Balm's Exceptional Lip Balm.  I can always use more lip balm so I'm happy with this product.  I just wish it were a stick instead of a pot, but I'll get over it.


Skiin Instant Skin Tightener & Line Filler.  I don't really have a use for this product since I'm at a stage in my life were I'm trying to prevent wrinkles, not fight them.  This will be going on my swap board.


Vegan Lavender Mint Hand Cleanser from Escential.  I'm not sure if this is supposed to be a hand sanitizer or a soap and water style of cleanser.  I'm also not a fan of lavender so this will likely also be going on the swap board.


Vanilla walnut solid lotion bar from Apricot Hills.  I've never tried a solid lotion bar before so I'm looking forward to trying this one.  I also love the smell of vanilla so this is a good fragrance fit for me.


Champagne Shower Gel from Kootenay Bath Products.  This will be good for traveling.


More bar soap.  This is Apple Pie scented from Presque Isle Soap Company.  Honestly, it doesn't smell like much.  This will end up being used as shaving lather.


As a person who doesn't use bar soap... I wasn't that happy to see even more bar soap.  It looks like it's got lots of nice natural ingredients in it so hopefully it will be moisturizing.  I won't have to buy shave gel for a while :P.


A one time use foil packet of skiin Soothing & Smoothing Eye Cream.  I'll use it but I'm unlikely to buy a product like eye cream after only using it one time.

Conclusion

I was expecting 10-15 samples and ended up with 17.  I do wish there were a few more beauty products in there though and less products that had nothing to do with the theme.  Did I get my $27 worth?  I'd say yes.  Was I blown away by what I got? Not really.  Would I buy again? I'm really not sure.  I think it would be highly dependent on the variety of company's who were participating.  If you want to find out more check out https://www.sweetdelight.ca.  The next box is their summer box and will be available sometime in May or June.

Happy polishing,

- Michelle

March 28, 2014

The Lacquer Legion March Challenge: Lucky

Hello readers,
It's time again for another Lacquer Legion challenge mani.  I will admit, when I saw this month's them I wasn't thrilled.  Lucky instantly translated to thoughts of four leaf clovers and St.Patrick's Day green.  I wasn't feeling two inspired by either of those.  Then, a couple days ago I went a completely different route.  What's lucky to me?  I landed on my lucky number, the number 13.  My choice of number is mathematically based on the following assumptions:
  • There is a fixed amount of luck per number, and the amount of luck is equal for all numbers.
  • The amount of luck per number is equally divided between all those who choose that number as their lucky number.
  • Since 13 is an 'unlucky' number less people choose it as their lucky number.
  • Thus the amount of luck per person for those who choose 13 will be higher since there are less people for the luck to be divided between.
So, I took my lucky number and chose some polish based on it.  Of course they had to be shades from Lucky 13 Lacquer!  I used two simple customs: You're Such A Nimbus with Silver Lining as a topper.  I then did a black french tip with the roman numerals for 13, XIII.  Not too bad for a last minute idea. :P



By the way, You're Such A Nimbus is just Mist and Shadow, Cloud and Shade with tiny midnight blue hexes added.  Hopefully I'll be able to come up with ideas for next month's challenge a little more easily.

Happy polishing,

- Michelle

March 26, 2014

1st Unblogaversary Giveaway Winners!

Hello readers!
My 1st Unblogaversary Giveaway has officially come to end and you know what that means... winners!


And the winners are...

Alexandra Catherine - Lucky 13 Lacquer
Kay Spriggs - Gothic Gala Lacquers
Amanda Cassidy Wampler - Northern Star Polish
Bar Eldar - Model City Polish
Debbie Spence - My prize pack
Gina Spero - Darling Diva Polish
Stacy McKeever - Girly Bits

All the winners we emailed earlier today.  You have 48 hours from the time of the email to respond and claim your prize.  In the event that a winner doesn't respond I will redraw for that prize.  Thank you for entering everyone! This was a lot of fun and a great way to celebrate my first year of blogging.

Happy polishing!

- Michelle

March 23, 2014

Lucky 13 Lacquer Double, Double, Teal and Trouble and Silver Lining Swatches & Review

Hello readers!
Today I have two more of the simple customs I ordered from Lucky 13 Lacquer last fall.  I admit, I went a little overboard with ideas and ended up with a giant pile of one of a kind polishes.


Double, Double, Teal and Trouble


Double, Double, Teal and Trouble features the dark teal jelly base from Now wrath, now ruin, now red dawn mixed with the gold shimmer and glitter from Golden Snitch.  I think this one is one of my favorites.  Though the formula was a tad thick it still dried quickly.  I just love how squishy it looks and the glitters look like they're floating.  Photos show three coats of Double, Double, Teal and Trouble with one coat of Nubar Diamont top coat in natural lighting.




Silver Lining


But wait... what if you want even more shimmer??  That's where silver lining comes in.  This super shimmery topper is amazing.  It adds tons of extra shimmer without greying out the base colour.  The formula was fantastic, easy to apply and not streaky or patchy.  Pictures show one coat of silver linings over the previous manicure with one coat of Nubar Diamont top coat in natural lighting.



Conclusion

I am just loving these customs.  They were so much fun to make and since they're simple customs, super affordable too!  If you haven't entered my 1st Unblogaversary giveaway go do it now.  Lucky 13 Lacquer is one of my amazing prize sponsors.  If you can't wait to see if you won you can find Lucky 13 Lacquer at:


 Happy polishing!

- Michelle

March 20, 2014

Emerald & Ash Moonlit Snow Swatches & Review

Hello readers,
Today was technically the first day of spring but nature doesn't seem to agree.  There's still lots of snow to be seen when I look outside.  I figured since it *hopefully* won't be around for much longer I better show you a snow inspired polish before it's too late.  Today I have Emerald & Ash Moonlit Snow, an awesome shimmery topper, to show you.
 

Moonlit Snow is packed with shimmery microflakes that have flashes of silver, blue and purple. The formula was great and one coat gave great coverage.  I used it as a topper but based on the coverage from one coat I think this polish would layer up really nicely too.  Photos show one coat of Moonlit Snow over SOPI Go My Own Way with one coat of CND Super Shiney in natural sunlight.




After a day of wearing this I thought to myself "I wonder what this would look like matte" and so I decided to find out.  Here is the same mani with an added coat of Julep matte top coat.  The resulting look really reminds me of denim.



So what do you think?  This polish definitely reflects the look of fresh shimmering snow on a clear winter night.  I really want to see what this look likes by itself now too.  The microflakes are dense enough that I think it could come close to being opaque with a non-ridiculous number of coats.  You can find Emerald & Ash at:

Happy polishing!

- Michelle
y