Nourish & Regenerate: Yogi Surprise Jewelry Subscription for May

Disclaimer:  I purchased this.

May's Yogi Surprise jewelry subscription box is focused on how we renew, nourish and regenerate ourselves:

The sandalwood, pearl, and amazonite mala necklace is gorgeous!  I love how the wood looks with the soft white and green beads and it definitely evokes spring for me. 

Sandalwood is a traditionally used wood for mala necklaces and is supposed to attract positive subtle vibrations, clear perceptions, promote tranquility and a positive frame of mind.  Sandalwood is also purported to be an antidepressant, antiseptic, insecticidal, and sedative wood and is therefore used to assist the immune system in the healing process and prevention of illness (source).  It also smells good :-) 

Pearls symbolize purity and stimulate the mind in clarity and wisdom.  Amazonite is thought to dispel worries, fears, anger, and irritation and also helps to balance mood swings. 

This month's bracelet features 6 labradorite beads paired with white jade.  Labradorite is known as a protector stone and is thought to bring natural intuitive abilities to light.  I'm a believer in intuition and have had occasional premonitory dreams since I was a child.  They are not usually anything of great significance, but I'm no longer surprised when I dream of someone I haven't seen or talked to in years and then run into them the next day or they shoot me an email.  White jade is supposed to block distractions and aid in decision making and protect you from negative energies.

I've been enjoying stacking my Yogi Surprise bracelets and love how this new addition looks in the mix. 

May's chocolate offering is from Lovely Candy Co. and is reminiscent of Tootsie Rolls but with more natural ingredients.  They taste great and do not stick to your teeth, so count me a fan.

Great month!  So now I should have plenty of protection, peace and tranquility all while making good decisions fueled by my sharpened intuition and laser-like perceptions.  Bring it on.

Dovima Brow Enhance Palette by Le Metier de Beaute: April VIP

 Disclaimer:  I purchased this.

April's VIP subscription offering by Le Metier de Beaute is a quad palette of matte brow powders.  After receiving it I set it aside to take pictures and almost forgot about it.  I'm happy I finally got the time to take some pictures and try it out, because this is lovely!

The pigmentation on these is fierce!  Not only that, but they apply smoothly and can be buffed out if you want to use them as an eye shadow or contour shade. I've been using the bottom and left side shades as contour powders and a light hand is needed - basically just tapping the brush on the pan to pick up a touch powder.  Seriously, great formula.

I've used the lighter right side shade and the bottom taupe as brow powders, both to good effect. The tip card highlights using them for a multi-dimensional brow look by using more than one color, so I'll be playing with that as well.

Dovima's one weak spot is the packaging, which features a loose and rather cheap feeling brow brush rattling around in it's plastic dungeon. My tip to LMdB (as if they are listening) is to either ditch the brush and rethink the packaging, or secure the brush in it's compartment. 

I'm speculating that this could be a pre-launch type of product and therefore it may not be quite ready for prime time packaging wise, or alternatively it will only see the light of day in the VIP subscription program and LMdB was cutting costs on the packaging.  Regardless, the brow powders themselves are stellar.  Here I'm wearing the right side golden tan shade as my transition crease color.  I also used as a brow powder with a darker brown grow gel over it for more definition.

Below is the bottom taupe shade as a brow shade and also to line my lash lines and as a crease transition color.  Versatile indeed.

LMdB has opened the 2016-2017 VIP subscription for new members.  I've subscribed for 3 years now and have discovered more than a few products that I really love, however I've decided not to subscribe again this year.  I'm swimming in makeup and really need to dial it back for a while.  Also, the VIP subscription has evolved in it's 3 year lifespan and this past year was only so so for me.  While the last few months have been great, there were also several months that just did not seem up to LMdB's usual curation/formula standards.  Regardless, here are the VIP program details in case you are interested, and who knows, the 4th year could be the best:

• One Time Annual Fee of $348 ($29/month for 12 months)
• Shipping is included
• First shipment is August 1, 2016
• One full-sized item or an assortment of items shipped to you at the beginning of each month
• Curated mix of color, skincare, pre-release sneak peaks, lab previews and exclusives

Empties! A Plethora of Products I Used Up or Tossed in April

I've got more empties from April than I can shake a stick at, so let's get started. I'm not going to give a description of each item, but will highlight those that stood out, either for good or bad.

I was hoping the eclos Cleansing Oil would be a less expensive option for my holy grail DHC Deep Cleansing oil (review here), but it didn't quite live up that standard.  While not a bad product by any means, I found it did not always remove my mascara and I just wasn't feeling it.  Subjective, I know, but DHC still reigns supreme for me.

Halleluhiah, I finally finished one of the many hair heat protection sprays I've got crowding my bathroom shelves.  I blame Birchbox, who sends out quite the variety of hair products from multiple brands.  I especially like the colorful label art, which probably was as responsible for me reaching for this, but fortunately the quality is right up there as well.  If I didn't have a glut of hair products I'd consider purchasing, for sure.

This is the second bottle of the Clarin's Radiance-Plus Golden Glow Booster that I've finished, and I've got a third waiting to be put in action.  I'm not even tempted to try anything else, that's how much I like this facial tanner.  You can see my original review here.  A bottle lasts me a good 9 months, which really means I purchase one a year.  Love.

The Loving Care Body Balm by le Couvent des Minimes manages to do a good job of leaving my skin moisturized, soft, and pleasantly scented, so consider me a fan.  There is something about le Couvent des Minimes products that really draw me in, much more so than parent company L’Occitane's offerings, for some reason.

Some items either didn't get completely used up or were tossed right after opening because they were smelling a bit off, sigh.

The TokoMilk Smoked Salt Lip Elixir did get a fair amount of use until I got tired of wrestling with the container, but it's gone bad.  The color is now a neon yellow, which is not how it started out (see review here). Change the packaging and I would consider repurchasing!

The SheaTerra Argan & Green Coffee Around-Eye Beauty Serum is actually a blend of argan oil, rose hips oil, coffee been oil and shea nilotica for use around your eyes.  I used it at night but could not tell it really did much of anything.  It's a large bottle and I see no reason why you couldn't also use it on your face, but I lost interest and it's been sitting in my bathroom forever, so I'm tossing what's left (a good 3/4 of the bottle).

The little bits floating in it are probably bits of shea nilotica and it still smells fine, but......

Unfortunatley, the deluxe travel sized Glycolic Mask by Andalou naturals smelled off as soon as I opened it, so I'm guessing this is a case of a natural ingredients based product that surpassed it's limited shelf life even though I had just purchased it.  It happens.

Same with this Sunday Riley Good Genes sample.  This may have been sitting unused in my sample pile for a while, so bad on me.

I've been trying to use more of my facial sheet masks, although I'm still probably only averaging one a week.  Need to step up my game because I just got a huge box of masks from Memebox.  Of the Bon Vivant Botanical Mask Packs, I enjoyed the mint + tea tree version the most.  It's supposed to be a pore tightening and sebum controlling mask, but the appeal for me were the cooling peppermint and tea tree oils.  

The Innisfree It's Real Squeeze mask in Lime was probably my favorite of the bunch. It's supposed to brighten your skin but I just liked how how refreshing it felt and smelled.  All of the It's Real Squeeze masks contain the Jeju green complex, which consists of green tea, tangerine, cactus, camellia leaves, and orchids.  I bought a variety pack off of Amazon and I've enjoyed them all, but the lime version is standing out for me.

When's the last time you finished a full-sized perfume?  I don't even buy them anymore, as travel or sample sizes suit me just fine.

This bottle of Marc Jacobs goes back many years, and what little juice left in it had started to darken so I tossed it.  I wore this lush gardenia scent for many years and even now have a full bottle languishing on my perfume shelf. I still enjoy the fragrance but somewhere along the line the concept of a signature scent became quite foreign to me, and wearing the same scent once a month is even a bit strange.

So, I stick to samples now.  All of the Black Phoenix Alchemy lab samples were burned in my oil burner, but the PHI Une Rose de Kandahar by Tauer Perfumes did manage to get used as a perfume.

It contains a rare and difficult to source rose oil from Afghanistan, along with notes of apricot, cinnamon, bergamot, rose, tobacco, patchouli, vetiver, vanilla, tonka, musk, and ambergris.  Sounds complex and rich, no?  My skin amped the cinnamon above all all so many of the nuances did not register for me, so I'd say this was a like but not a love.

Whew, lot's used up in April, including a few foil samples above.  I've got no more words left in me, so happy Friday and have a great weekend!

Blingin' in the Spring with a Rose Gold FOTD

Disclaimer:  Products purchased by me except as noted.

Right now spring is landing with a muggy wet thud in Mobile, but hopefully relief is in sight starting Wednesday.  Good thing, as walking outside into air so thick you can feel it is not how I want to celebrate spring and is contributing to a less than cheerful mood.

Regardless of the weather, warming temps and spring flowers always lead me to the color pink. Want proof of my spring pink tendency?  Here's a link to last year's Pretty in Pink FOTD. This year I gravitated towards rose gold and used some new and older products from a variety of brands. I'll try to suggest dupes for items that are no longer available.

For my eyes I used 2 matte shadows from the discontinued stila In the Know palette, which is probably my favorite matte palette EVER.  Clay makes for a great crease transition color, but if you don't have it Urban Decay's Laced is a good alternative.  I find this soft rosy tan type of shade very versatile, albeit low on the excitement scale.  I used Driftwood along my bottom lash line for a bit of soft definition.

Urban Decay's rose gold shimmer Scratch (old formula) added some bling to my lid while Vasanti's gel eye pencil in Rose Gold was great for lining my lower lash line and the inner corner of my eyes.

I used Benefit's Posie Tint as the base for my blush.  I needed two layers to get it to show, but it is a lovely soft pink that does leave a stain behind, or at least it did in my arm swatch.  I used two of the shades from the Gwen Stefani blush palette by Urban Decay: Lo-Fi as a bronzer and Hush as a blush topper and highlighter.  I'm still really enjoying this palette and think it's perfect for someone with fair skin.

I'm guessing it's gone now, since it was limited edition and I saw it on sale a few weeks back.  I don't think I have any dupes for Hush (thinking, thinking, thinking).  Nope, I don't.  As to a comparable bronzer for fair skin, the limited edition Estee Lauder Summer Glow palette has a bronzer that is similar (you can see my review here) but I have to work way to hard to get the color to show up, whereas Lo-Fi is much easier to work with.

Given the soft monochromatic rose gold look on my eyes and face, I decided my lips needed a nice pop of pink to add some oomph, so I used some Lancome samples I've had for a while.  French Sourire Shine Lover Vibrant Shine lipstick is my kind of color and formula, as it's a glossy but light on the lips flamingo pink.

The Gloss in Love in Under the Spotlight packs it's own punch of color with high shine and some glitter thrown in the mix.  Moderately sticky but comfortable to wear, I really liked it as a topper for French Sourire as it amped up the shine and longevity of wear (about 3 hours with sipping iced coffee).

Other makeup used for this look with links to reviews if available:
Face Primer:  BECCA Backlight Priming Filter
Foundation:  Lauren Brooke Creme Foundation in Cool No. 30 (the best natural ingredient foundation I've found to date.  Love and need to finish the full sized jar before it goes bad, considering the lack of preservatives, etc.)
Brows:  unreleased brow gel from a L'Oreal consumer study.  Obviously I really liked it cause I'm still using it, even though the study instructions said not to.  I'm guessing that's due to liability issues but no damage to report here, just thicker looking brow hair.
Mascara:  Maybelline Mega Plush Volum' Express on upper lashes and Clinique Bottom Lash black/brown on lower lashes.
Setting Powder:  Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Dim Light.  Every day, every way.

Hope your spring gives you warm days with cool nights and low humidity, which I will continue to dream about in this muggy mess blanketing Mobile right now.

Light on Your Lips Lipstick in Stepping Out by Julep: Lots to Like Here

Disclaimer:  I purchased this.

I've gotten to where I try not to buy new lipsticks or glosses because I have so many.  It's tough though, because new products are released and I fall victim to that "pretty! new!" dopamine rush.  Example:  ColourPop had a 20% flash sale this past weekend and I was going to buy some of their new lip products. The site crashed, however, which was the brake I needed because the reality is I would buy colors I most likely already have, and I have more than enough. So that's where shopping your stash becomes important, which is what I'll do instead.

For example, spring is the season when I gravitate towards coral pinks and coral reds.  Stepping Out ($22) Light on Your Lips lipstick by Julep falls right in that sweet spot with it's light coral red cream finish.

Plus, I'm really liking the formula with it's plethora of interesting ingredients, such as shea butter, coffee seed oil, rosehip oil, hibiscus extract, sunflower seed oil, and squalane. 

I think Julep's cosmetic offerings tend to fly under the radar, but they are coming out with some strong products. I received Stepping Out as part of a mystery box, which means I paid a fraction of the cost for a really good lipstick. It's glossy with good color and comfortable to wear - pretty much what I look for when it comes to lipstick.