Black and White Abstract Geometric Shapes

This manicure is for the 25th week of the /r/RedditLaqueristas 52-week challenge. I can't believe we are almost halfway through! The theme for this week was "Black and White". I was somewhat inspired by this post from awhile ago that I had saved as inspiration. I really like how this design came out, and I think I will return to it in the future.

Birchbox October 2015

This review is for the Birchbox from October 2015. Birchbox is a very popular subscription box. It is $10/month for 4-5 beauty and lifestyle samples, which are personalized based on a quiz you take. It also has a great rewards points system. It is the only monthly subscription box that I still have, because I have found it to be especially worth it for the samples and the additional full-sized products I can get with my reward points.

Birchbox September 2015

This review is for the Birchbox from September 2015. Birchbox is a very popular subscription box. It is $10/month for 4-5 beauty and lifestyle samples, which are personalized based on a quiz you take. It also has a great rewards points system. It is the only monthly subscription box that I still have, because I have found it to be especially worth it for the samples and the additional full-sized products I can get with my reward points.

Birchbox June 2015

This review is for the Birchbox from June 2015. Birchbox is a very popular subscription box. It is $10/month for 4-5 beauty and lifestyle samples, which are personalized based on a quiz you take. It also has a great rewards points system. It is the only monthly subscription box that I still have, because I have found it to be especially worth it for the samples and the additional full-sized products I can get with my reward points.

Influenster: Weight Watchers Ice Cream Review

As an Influenster blogger, I am eligible to receive products free to review. For my second Influenster product to review, I got two coupons for free Weight Watchers Ice Cream of my choice. One of the ice creams I picked out were the Giant Chocolate Fudge bars. There are only 6 bars in this package, but they are each a good size and very filling. They are surprisingly flavorful and rich for a "healthy" ice cream choice. I will probably buy these for myself in the future. The second ice creams I chose were the Dark Chocolate Raspberry bars. These are about half the size of the fudge bars, and understandably, there are twice as many in the package. The chocolate coating is thin, but very tasty, and the raspberry is refreshing. I didn't like these as much as the fudge bars because they left me wanting more, but for someone watching their weight, it's a nice little treat. I would give the Giant Chocolate Fudge bars 5/5 start and the Dark Chocolate Raspberry bars 4/5 stars.

Note: I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.

Zoya Brittany Swatch

As you may have realized by now, I really love Zoya nail polishes. So, when I saw the new Zoya Naturel Satins Collection, I knew I had to try the formula out. I ordered the color Brittany, which is described as a "rose mauve cream" because I thought it would look nice with my skin tone.

Leopard Print Nail Wraps

In the rush before leaving for my trip, I didn't have time to do any complicated nail art, so I decided to try out these nail wraps I had lying around. They are Sephora Formula X brand and cost $7 on sale, but I found them at TJ Maxx for only $1. I am not usually a fan of animal print, but I am willing to try it out for that price!

Zoya Vespa Swatch

I didn't have time to do any intricate nail art during this week, so I decided to swatch one of my newer Zoya polishes. This is Vespa, described as "a mint kiss with a sugared sparkle" on the Zoya website. It's one of their special textured PixieDust polishes, which are being discontinued.

Birchbox April 2015

This review is for the Birchbox from April 2015. Birchbox is a very popular subscription box. It is $10/month for 4-5 beauty and lifestyle samples, which are personalized based on a quiz you take. It also has a great rewards points system. It is the only monthly subscription box that I still have, because I have found it to be especially worth it for the samples and the additional full-sized products I can get with my reward points.

Influenster: Carefree Liners Review

I've received my first product to review as an Influenster blogger! Influenster is an online community designed to expose consumers to new products and get reviews and social media exposure. As a member, I got sent a package of Carefree liners to sample. I like pantiliners in general for days of just spotting and to wear with tampons for extra protection. These were very nice: the adhesive is a lot stronger than others I have tried, they are very thin without sacrificing absorbency, and they aren't fragranced, which can be irritating. The only downside is that they are a little short in length, though that did not present a problem for me. Overall, I would give these a 5/5 rating.

Note: I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.

Walmart Beauty Box Spring 2015

This review is for the Spring 2015 Beauty Box from Walmart. It is a quarterly box that you receive once every season and it costs $5 per box. This is the third box, both for me and for Walmart, and so far I am fairly satisfied. It's a mix of make up, skin care, hair care, and miscellaneous samples. There are usually 5-6 "deluxe" sized samples and a 2-3 foil packets with some coupons. Here is the site to get more info and sign up.

Blue-Green Flakie Nails

So, I was attempting to do a St. Patrick's Day themed manicure to be festive, but that was apparently not in the cards. I tried out a new flakie glitter polish that I picked up the other day which looks very convincingly green in the bottle, but is not so much on the nails. Maybe with a different base color it would turn out more green.

Birchbox March 2015

This review is for the Birchbox from March 2015. Birchbox is a very popular subscription box. It is $10/month for 4-5 beauty and lifestyle samples, which are personalized based on a quiz you take. It also has a great rewards points system. It is the only monthly subscription box that I still have, because I have found it to be especially worth it for the samples and the additional full-sized products I can get with my reward points.

Zoya Bar Swatch

I have definitely been neglecting my blog lately, but with good reason! I am thiiiis close to finishing up a paper for submission, and once it's done, I will celebrate will all the nail art! ...and then get back to finishing up a paper on a totally different project. So, I just went with a simple swatch to save time. I have a bunch of new Zoya polishes that I got around the holidays with all the deals, so I decided to try one of them out - a Pixie Dust nail polish (which are apparently being discontinued??).

Note: Please excuse my dead-looking hands! It's winter and I am cold!!

Birchbox February 2015

 

This review is for the Birchbox from February 2015. Birchbox is a very popular subscription box. It is $10/month for 4-5 beauty and lifestyle samples, which are personalized based on a quiz you take. It also has a great rewards points system. It is the only monthly subscription box that I still have, because I have found it to be especially worth it for the samples and the additional full-sized products I can get with my reward points.

Rainbow Burst Nails

As a reward to myself for getting through another crazy week, I took some time to do a more complicated nail art design. I am so glad I did, because it turned out super well, and I can't stop staring at my nails! I was inspired by a tutorial I found while browsing the internet, and I knew I had to try it out myself.

Classic Red Nails with Heart Accents

It has been so long since I have had the time to sit down and do my nails! I decided that I at least wanted to do something simple for the graduate student Winter Formal that my boyfriend and I attended last weekend, so this is what I came up with! I wore a black dress, and I wanted to accent with some red.

Ipsy January 2015

This is a review for the Ipsy bag from January 2015. Ipsy is a monthly subscription box that focuses on makeup with some skincare, hair care, and nail polish products. It's $10/month (+ $.75 for tax (?)) for a small makeup bag plus 5 samples that are influenced by a quiz you take. You can earn Ipsy points for reviewing products, posting things to your facebook, and inviting friends. These points can be redeemed for additional full-sized products.

Birchbox January 2015

This review is for the Birchbox from January 2015. Birchbox is a very popular subscription box. It is $10/month for 4-5 beauty and lifestyle samples, which are personalized based on a quiz you take. They seem to stick to the quiz fairly well, though they do state that even if you "dislike" a particular product, you may still get it once a year or so. The great thing about Birchbox is its reward system. You get 10 points for every item you review from your box, as well as a point for every dollar you spend in the Birchbox shop (which includes the purchase of your actual box). You can also get points for referring friends. Every 100 points you accumulate is $10 toward a purchase from the shop, which contains full-sized items, some of which are exclusive to Birchbox. So, it's a pretty inexpensive way to try out products and then use your rewards towards buying the ones you ended up liking or something else entirely.

Sample Society January 2015

This review is for the January 2015 Sample Society Box.  I was generously gifted a 3 month subscription to the allure Sample Society Box for my birthday (in October). The box costs $15/month + tax and is curated by allure magazine. The box includes 5 deluxe samples of makeup, skincare, hair care, and fragrance items. You also receive a $10 off of $50 coupon each month to use at BeautyBar.com, which is the umbrella company. This is my final box of the subscription.