Brain Dump! I'm BAAAACK, so let's catch up!

Whoa whoa whoa now, it's been many a month since I blogged regularly- I was really in the swing of things in December when I was constantly posting about my experience being on a college campus on crutches / in a wheelchair, and my daily experiences in physical therapy (which, as it later turned out, is quite the place to meet people you later end up dating...) And although it's a blessing to be up and walking again, in a weird way, I kind of miss certain things about that chunk of my life! Then I figured that I was probably just missing blogging, so I thought I'd make a mini comeback.

With my super crazy summer work schedule, I make no promises about keeping up with posts, but I'll see what I can do (;

I thought I'd start with a weird combo of Tuesday Thoughts/ What I'm Loving Wednesday / the other types of posts I used to do on here, but let's just call it a brain dump because I have no idea what's going to come out...the only rule as far as I'm concerned is that it should relate to the topics I used to blog about and ones I hope to blog about in the coming weeks!

1) First off, can I just talk about how bummed I am that although I qualified for the Influenster Spring Voxbox, I never got it because I guess it got lost in the mail?! They keep sending me emails about it, and it looks like it was jam packed with the kind of beauty goodies I'd be overjoyed to receive, and each email just bums me out more and more. Not fair!!! There go a bunch of blog post and video ideas I was thinking of....

2) Random, but the Spotify playlist I'm listening to while posting this is called "Strangers" by RAC. It came out in 2014 and apparently it's an album, but it looks like a compilation of a bunch of different artists. It's very mellow and cheery and perfect for writing! Take note, you creative, hipster souls looking for coffee shop playlists to accompany your poetry!

3) Speaking of Spotify playlists I'm loving, as I've been doing the past few months, I made a June 2014 Favorite Songs playlist (although to be honest, I've been listening to my May Favorites more than the ones for this month! Ha!) that I need to share in my June 2014 Faves video for my beauty channel, if I ever get a chance to film it! I suppose I could do it today, but my room is still in shambles from putting in my air conditioner, and I've yet to gather all of my favorites together. These favorites videos are quite a process, as I'm sure my fellow beauty gurus empathize with!

4) I left my coffee downstairs. It was only half a cup because that's all that was left in the carafe :/ I guess my parents really hit it hard this morning! Like mother/father, like daughter, I guess....

5) Pssst, let me let you in on a little secret- I filmed a College Dorm Room Tour video the day before I moved out (sooooo over a month ago now) that I haven't had the chance to edit yet, so if you're subscribed to my beauty channel on Youtube (which I really hope you are because I kind of, you know, pour my heart and soul into - you can go straight to it by typing MissGlamBam.com into your browser) you can look forward to that in the coming weeks! I've never done any type of room tour on my channel before, although they're highly requested, so this is a first for us all :)

6) I've been trying to redo and redecorate my room this summer, so if you have any good room cleaning or decorating tips or inspiration, or even a good Youtube video on it (I know I've used The 'Tube as a major source so far in my process), please send it my way, either as a comment to this post or through some other kind of social media: my Twitter is @photoholicgurli, my YT email is everything.elle@yahoo.com, and my Instagram is elleohelle86.

Let me know if you like this kind of post- I figured conversational updates on my life are the way most bloggers run their blogs, so we'll catch up little bits and pieces at a time. This post was long enough, so I'll continue with all of the news in my beauty guru / new planner enthusiast life in another post on another day! I have most of tomorrow off, so I could be back sooner than you think!

Thanks for reading!
xox, Elle
MissGlamBam.com

Monday Night Musings

AAAACKCKK! Sorry this is up so late guys - I almost completely forgot to do it, and then I started thinking about the little tidbits I wanted to put in tomorrow's post, and then I realized- I still have to blog them tonight!

Anyways, here are tonight's Monday Night Musings....

~I'm in such a mom/grandma mood today. All I want to do is clean and organize my room, and my body hurts. I'm so excited for the new year to begin that it's ridiculous- and I'm only excited because that means I get to finally start my new planner from Target that *isn't* 20 pounds and falling apart like my current one that I've had for way over a year now.

~Happy Veteran's Day! I really appreciate the work that you have done, if you've ever served, are currently serving, or know someone who falls into either of those categories and have had to wait for them to come home. It is really the bravest act I can think of, and it's crazy to think that thousands of people are doing it at any given time. I hope you got the day off, wherever you all are.

~My Varsity Voxbox program from Influenster is almost coming to an end! I did all, and I really mean all of my bonus and Brand Challenge tasks today that I didn't already have done- reviews, picture posts, you name it, I've done it for every single product I received. Here's the unboxing video that explains what I'm talking about, if you have no idea:

~I was really on a roll today- I edited a bunch of videos, uploaded this one:

and put up 3 blogpost/reviews besides this one. It would mean the world to me if you could read them and then follow my blog!
Revlon Colorburst Matte Balm Swatches
NYC Big Bold Plumping Gloss Review
Clearasil SuperFruit Wash Review

~I don't have much else to mumble about tonight....I'm so exhausted and have been craving a nap, so after I organize my little fold-up bathroom caddy into things I'm currently using and things I haven't used since the last time I used that caddy (the mom part of me is talking again), I might just treat myself to a good night's sleep. After I elevate and ice my foot first, of course!

~I'm actually super-duper looking forward to physical therapy tomorrow. I feel like I've been sliding backwards over the weekend, so I can't wait to make some more progress! Yes, I'm a grandma. I've accepted it. I now call Z "Old Man" so we have matching old-person names. Hehe.

What are you musing about this Monday night? ACK hopefully not all the snow we're supposed to have tomorrow! Yuck, kill me now!!!!

Thanks for reading!
xox, Elle
MissGlamBam.com
Youtube Beauty Guru & Blogger

Review: Clearasil Daily Clear Refreshing Superfruit Wash

Usually I wouldn't do so many reviews of products from my current Influenster box on one day, but I'm on a roll! One of my tasks for the program (I'm so close to qualifying for the next Voxbox!) is to write a review about this product on the Clearasil page, so I figured why not post it here as well? Here's the unboxing video:

I received three 3mL samples of this face wash in my Influenster Varsity Voxbox, along with 3 $1 off coupons for anything in the Daily Clear Refreshing Superfruit line (there are also exfoliating pads and a scrub), although I gave one sample and one coupon to my roommate, Miranda, to try. 

There's really not enough product here for my skin to really react to it fully, so this is more of a first impressions post!

I just washed my face with this for the first time, and when I first opened the package, it smelled AMAZING! Since it's made with cranberries and raspberries, it smells like straight up cran-raz juice, if you've ever had it- it's one of my favorites! There was also a lot of product in this packet that squeezed out into my hand, and you really don't need that much to wash your face!

It definitely wiped out all of the oil that was on my face, yet when I was done washing, my face still had a sheen to it, but that's normal with any face wash I use. It doesn't mean there's oil, it just means it's clean. The lather wasn't too over the top sudsy, and did the job. The smell was amazing throughout the whole process, and now that my hands are all dried off, I can still smell it on me!

For the first 5 minutes after I washed my face, my skin wasn't dried out in the least bit and I wasn't running to my bottle of moisturizer like I usually have to do after I cleanse. However, after the 5 minutes, my skin is now stretching and dry and getting uncomfortable. I got a little on my mouth by accident, so now my lips are super dried out too! Wah :/ However, this happens with every face wash I try, so I'm not surprised.

My face overall just feels really clean and fresh, because of the lovely scent. The packaging for this line is pink, so of course I'm super happy about that (: My forehead does appear to be a little red with irritation after using this though. But other than that, it's something I would definitely want to try more of! If I had a 1 oz. sample it would be easier to judge whether the acne medication in it will actually help my skin over time. So far I like it! If anything changes after using my last sample packet, I'll update this post!

As always, thank you for reading! Check out the other two posts/reviews I've put up today!

Revlon ColorBurst Matte Balm Swatches

NYC Big Bold Plumping Lip Gloss Review

xox, Elle

MissGlamBam.com

Youtube Beauty Guru & Blogger

Review: NYC Big Bold Plumping Lip Gloss!

Hi all!

I received this lip gloss in my Varsity Voxbox from Influenster, and being a lippie kind of girl, I was obviously most excited about this product (I have it in the shade Pleasantly Plump Pink, btw). If you want to watch the unboxing video, here ya go! (The story about this lip gloss is actually kind of funny, looking back on it....)

This box was great, so I don't know if I can say that it was my favorite item in the box, but it's definitely up there! Therefore, I thought I would do a little review for you guys! I wrote about it briefly in my What I'm Loving Wednesday post, so if you'd like a quicker review, go check that out!

First of all, let's talk packaging: the wand and tube are HUGE! Hence "Big Bold," I guess. There's definitely a lot of product on the wand when you take it out of the tube, so you'll never have to double dip- I usually only use half of what's on the wand, and sometimes I have to wipe it off on the tube because there's TOO much. If you put too much on, it stings your lips a whole lot, and just feels too thick. Other than that, I really like the big size of the packaging- it's easy to find in your purse!

Now let's talk price: according to my info card from Influenster, and the Walgreens website, this product is supposed to run for $3.99, but when I picked it up at CVS prior to receiving it in my box, I'm positive that I paid $4.99 for it, so let's just say it's a regional thing. NYC prices are always on the cheaper end, although for them, 5 bucks is a little high! Still, for a good plumping gloss that actually works and is a universally flattering color (these are a must, in my opinion), it's totally worth it and I don't mind forking that over.

Now let's talk texture and feel, which of course you can't judge without a swatch....

(I apologize for the terrible swatch by the way, I'd usually use my HD camera instead of my front-facing phone camera, but I didn't think of it). 

Anyways, I really do like the feel of this product. It totally feels like Sephora quality, not a cheapest-of-the-cheap drugstore lip gloss! It does tingle a little when you first put it on and for maybe 5-10 minutes following, but then it kind of fades away, and it's not a painful tingle (like the Sally Hansen Lip Inflations....uck). It's in between being really thin (those glosses usually wear off really fast), and thick (where you feel like your lips are stuck together). It's a good, in-between consistency that makes you feel almost as if you're not wearing anything. Plus, it might be just me, but when I put this on I instantly feel like I have fresh breath! It's an almost-but-not-quite cinnamony taste, but I can't quite put my finger on it. 

This gloss is really shiny, and in the shade I have, there was a fair amount of shimmer that adds to the plumping effect of the lip gloss. I don't know if the formula itself makes your lips grow, but the shimmer definitely makes them look bigger, so it is an effective plumper. I liked my color a lot (Pleasantly Plump Pink), because it was an almost-clear pink that added just the right amount of pinky glow to my face. If you have pale skin like me, with pinky undertones, I'm betting it would look great on you as well! (Probably other skin tones too, but I can't say for sure). It definitely makes me feel more confident the second I put it on (: and it could just be my new toothpaste, but I'm pretty sure this stuff makes my teeth look whiter! That's a huge plus for a serial coffee drinker like myself!

Overall, this lip gloss does what it says it does, and has a ridiculously large container that's so crazy, it's cute and lovable. As for plumping, it does work, just not to the degree that I'm spoiled with when I wear my holy grail Sexy Motherpucker lip gloss by Soap & Glory. I'm seriously in love with that stuff, so it's really not fair to other glosses to even compare. This gloss would be a good drugstore dupe if you're in the market for a plumping gloss that tingles and has beautiful shimmer, although it's not a perfect dupe. If price is your main concern, then this would be a perfect fit if you want shimmer, slight color (if you pick it up in this shade, although there are plenty of others), plumping, and don't mind a tingling sensation. 

I do like this product, and I'll continue to use it somewhat religiously as I have been since I opened it up on Halloween. Let's just say that if this product were a student in school, it would be a B kind of student. It's the best of the drugstore plumping lip glosses that I've tried, but not better than a Sephora-grade plumper. 

Do you have this product? If so, how do you like it? What shade do you have it in? (I feel like this in purple would be really fun!)

I just posted swatches and photos of the Revlon Matte Balms, so go check out that post too!

As always, thanks for reading!

xox, Elle

MissGlamBam.com

Youtube Beauty Guru & Blogger

Disclaimer: This product was sent to me free of charge from Influenster for review purposes. However, that does not influence or change my snarky and picky (as always) opinions on the product, although I am grateful to have the opportunity to review it! I'm not being paid or sponsored to write this post. 

~Influenster Varsity Voxbox 2013 Unboxing~

My new beauty video is live! I unboxed my new program from Influenster, the Varsity Voxbox, on camera! I love everything in it and they're all things I would and have use! So useful! Keep your eye open for blog reviews on some of these!

Tuesday Tidbits

I just got back to my room a few minutes ago- I have been go go go all day! Class, then showing up super early for physical therapy and having an appointment for almost an hour, and then another class!

This week I seem to be starting all of my weekly post series- last night was Monday Night Musings, which you can read here. Today is Tuesday Tidbits, instead of Tuesday Troubles like my blogging idol, RamblingsofASuburbanMom.com, did today, since last night's post was kind of more complain-y, and two in a row of those would just be obnoxious.

So here are my tidbits for so far this Tuesday! Enjoy!

~I posted about how my friend group and I went out to dinner for Miranda's birthday last night, and here's an artsy picture I took when we were at the bus stop, waiting in the freezing cold (I quite liked it): 

~I did super well in physical therapy today. It was my first time going to the on-campus office, and can I just point out how disturbing it was that they have a "Wall of Pain" with pictures of bruises that look like galaxies, and something that looked like a gunshot wound?!!?

Anyways, they had me putting weight on my bum foot, and by the time I left, I could almost walk on it without my Aircast boot, and walk with the help of my crutches and the boot. When I got to my room, I could actually limp a little on my heel when I was wearing the boot. This is super exciting, because all I want is to be able to walk again! Being so co-dependent and helpless is driving me crazy!!!

~On another note....I'm pretty sure that all of the Public Safety officers that drive me to all of my classes think my name is Ella...not Elle. Awk. I thought they all just had weird accents and said my name weird, but now when I call to ask for a ride they're like "oh, this must be Ella!" So I just say yes because it's just too late to correct them now without me looking really dumb. Whoops. Cringe.

~I have so many videos to film, and it will probably only be light for another two hours! I should probably get ready or something, or just edit some older video files I have just hanging out in my iMovie to make up for the upload gap. BTW I'll be uploading my newest Voxbox unboxing video in about an hour, so I'll post it RIGHT HERE when it's up so you can all check it out! It's one of my favorites to date- and then I'll have all of the products to blog about, because my posts won't be spoilers anymore (: I'll also have to update my post with my complete list of Influenster programs- so much to do, so much to do!

~I haven't had any caffeine so far today, and didn't have any yesterday (which eventually resulted in a mild headache, but I couldn't take anything for it because I had already taken Ibuprofen for my foot/ankle! arghh >:( ) I should really get on that...but half the battle is always choosing what to drink, since I have such a hoard of K-cups and coffee grounds and tea bags by now. I'm not complaining at all though, this is like heaven for a caffeine lover like myself <3 I have lots to do in real life and on the Internet today, so I'd better get that coffee pumpin' in me! 

~I always forget about eBates! Miranda was just about to order things online from Sephora, and then I told her to check out eBates first! I can do another post kind of explaining it sometime, but basically you get a percentage of cash back when you shop online, and a lot of times they have coupon codes or codes for free products, in Sephora's case. You can check it out here.

I hope you guys enjoyed - if you want to do this post too and put your link in the comments, I would be more than happy to check it out! It can be like a mini link-up until I figure out the technology to do a real bull blown one!

Thank you all for reading! What kind of post should I do next? I've really got the bloggin' bug this week!

xox, Elle
MissGlamBam.com
Youtube Beauty Guru & Blogger

FTC: This post includes a referral link. This is not sponsored post and I'm not being paid or told to talk about the website.

My Influenster Programs: Up-To-Date List

Hey guys!
It has occurred to me that I do a lot of Influenster programs, and every time I do a video or blogpost about a new one, I always have a million links of all my previous programs to go collect and post. Instead, I thought I would just post them all in chronological order, putting all the related videos and blogposts together for each program, and update it every time I'm in a new one (I'll put a "last updated" date at the bottom so you'll know how recent this was re-done).

I explain Influenster in a lot of my videos, but it's basically a company that sends out free boxes to people that are active on social media to test out and review- kind of like a rewarding subscription box that you don't have to pay for.

I've enjoyed every program I've been in, and I hope you enjoy testing out and reviewing all of the products in them with me! Let's start my journey~

1. Love Voxbox 2012
This one came out in March 2012 and was my first ever box. It took me so long to edit the unboxing video that I never uploaded it, but I might in the future. If I do, I'll update this and sneak it in here, because it was truly a great box and probably one of my favorites to date. However, I did do a review on one product that was in this box:

And here's a follow up blogpost that I made after I took them off- be careful ladies!

2. Summer Beauty Voxbox 2012
This one came out in July of 2012 I believe, and was another great box. I discovered my current favorite shampoo and conditioner from the brand Clear through this box, and purchase them to this day. I did edit this video, but for some reason never wanted to upload it either. I want to in the future, just so you guys can refer to it, plus unboxings are always fun, right? *I finally uploaded it as a Throwback Thursday! Here it is:

3. Beauty Blogger Voxbox
This box was sent out in fall of 2012 (I uploaded my video in October). There was a lot of competition for it, so I was super honored to get into this program! The products were truly great and very diverse. Watch my unboxing here:

Here are all of the reviews I did on the products in this box on my blog:
Kinky Moves
Bath & Body Works Candle
Goody Spin Pin
NYC Custom Eyes Eyeshadow Palette
Kiss Ever Pro Lashes

4. Palmolive Fresh Infusions
This was a non-beauty box, and here's my unboxing video:

And here's the review on the product that I did on my blog! 

5. Aveeno Active Naturals
Back to doing beauty boxes! This one had just 1 product in it, and here's my review video!

And here's the follow up review I did on my blog! 

6. Choose Sargento Cheese
I got chosen for this box right after I signed up for a food badge on the Influenster website- dang they are quick! I'm also a cheese-aholic, so I wouldn't mind doing another one of these....here's my video about it!  (just click)

(Blogger never lets me embed that specific video for some reason)
It came out in September 2013 and was a fun time!
Click here to go to my blog review about the product.

7. Varsity Voxbox
They did one of these last year, but I'm super excited to be on board for this one! It came out in mid October 2013, and is the program I'm currently enrolled in. I'll post my blog reviews soon!
Unboxing video:

Last updated: 11/5/13

Review: Sargento Cheese Snacks (Influenster Voxbox item)

Hi everyone! 

Recently I signed up for the Chowhound badge on their site, and soon after, Influenster sent me a voucher for a free Sargento cheese snack pack, and a $1 off coupon for another one. Watch my unboxing haul, that I uploaded to my second channel (where I always upload videos about my Influenster Voxboxes unless they're beauty related, in which case they'll be on my main beauty channel!). You can watch it here so you know what the heck I'm talking about for this review! (I couldn't get it to embed, wahh :/ )

It took me forever to get to a grocery store (sigh, #collegeprobs), but when I finally did, I picked up the Reduced Fat Sharp Cheddar snacks. You get 12 sticks, that are 60 calories each, in a pack that was about $4.50 at my grocery store, which is kind of pricey, but I'd been reading good reviews on the Influenster site, so I was pumped to try them nonetheless.

Now, I'm a little weird with my cheese- I only recently have really gotten to like it, and the only types I really like enough to buy sticks of it are sharp cheddar, so I was in luck that these were still there! My grocery store didn't have that great a selection- Sargento snacks also come in Thins now, which are thin sandwich slices, and all sorts of other shapes including string cheese, but I only saw these and the mozzarella ones at my Stop & Shop. Oh well, I was still happy. 

Anyways, I've been trying these sticks in about a billion different types of snacks- above, I just melted some into some Tostitos Scoops for perfect little bite-size nachos. I also melted some onto some Clubhouse crackers last night after cutting the snacks into little strips, popped it in the microwave for about 30 seconds, and they were soooo good I went back and made seconds!

The cheese, because it's low fat, is a harder consistency than what you would expect- most other cheeses are soft and more gooey (says my dad, who I had taste test one of these so I would have more opinions to blog about. He really liked them...I'm a little nervous for the rest of my population of these, while he's around and they're in the fridge!) They melt as well as other cheeses though, and the packaging, although a little tricky to open at times, makes it totally portable and perfect for on-the-go protein. They're really high in calcium and protein, and are promoted as being a healthy snack. 

About, if not more than, half of my bag is already gone because I've been trying them out like crazy. They're not very salty, so in some combinations they're a little hard to taste, but they definitely have a sharpness to them. I really do like them, even though I'm SUPER picky with the sharpness of my cheeses. Here's another combo I tried the other day- 

I melted just one stick onto already half-toasted wheat bread, after I cut it up into cubes. After it was melted, I just spread it all over the bread like it was butter, and had it for breakfast with some sliced apples. I've been posting a lot of these snack ideas on my new Pinterest board, called Nutrition, and have been really inspired by it and a few other things lately to start snacking and eating more healthy. Check it out, and feel free to follow, repin, and like my posts, since I've been posting on there often: http://www.pinterest.com/elleohelle88/nutrition/

Overall, these have a great flavor, the packaging and sizes are a really great idea, and I like them a lot for making snacks! They're pretty good for you too, which makes them a snack that rests lightly on your conscience. I love my cheese, and I think these are really good, which is saying a lot! They're kind of pricey, but worth it overall. I really do #ChooseSargentoCheese! These are a great product and *surprisingly* I'll probably continue to buy them when I get the chance in the future! (I just wish they were sold at CVS so I have access to them on campus, and not just when I come home! Bottom line: get these for sale in more places, Sargento!)

Hope you guys enjoyed this post! Here are some other Influenster videos, in case you're interested as to what the whole thing is about! Hmm...I'll have to do a blog post all about it in the future, now that I'm getting back into the habit of using my blog! Let me know in the comments or on Twitter if you'd be interested in that, and let me know if you'd like an invite! I believe I have 3 left...?

 

Thank you all so much for reading! I'm really glad that you found my blog and took the time to read my review. Have you tried Sargento snacks? Do you use Influenster? Let me know!

xox Elle

Disclaimer: This was product was sent to me for review purposes from Influenster. All opinions are honest and my own. I was not otherwise compensated for this review. 

Influenster Voxbox: Palmolive Fresh Infusions Review!

Hi beauties! 

Influenster contacted me a few weeks ago with another Voxbox I had qualified for- this time it was something completely non-beauty related, but that's okay with me! This voxbox included a brand new product from Palmolive- their entire Fresh Infusions dish soap collection! That's right- I got not one bottle, but all three: Ginger White Tea, Lemon Thyme, and Lime Basil! Influenster also sent 5 $1.50 off coupons for these puppies, some of which I've been giving out to friends, and I might send some in the prize boxes for my giveaway winners. The idea behind sending all three was that I would keep two, and give one away to a friend (which I did- both my mom and I didn't care for the scent of the Lime Basil dish soap, but as I look at other reviews and videos done by gurus who also got this box, that one seems to be the popular favorite! Weird! She was very excited to get such a cute bottle, but I haven't heard back about how she's liked it so far.)

If you want to see what these gorgeous dish soaps look like, then watch my First Impressions/ Unboxing video I just uploaded to my second channel! 

Anyways, onto the review!

These smell amazing, as I could tell from right out of the box. I'm not a huge citrus-scent person at ALL, but I really do like the Lemon Thyme one. It smells fresh and clean, and these dish soaps could get you out of a winter funk in seconds. What a great way to experience aromatherapy AND get your dishes clean!

 I do have to say that the Ginger White Tea, in the pink bottle (well, naturally!) is my favorite of them all. The bottle on our kitchen sink is already 2/3 of the way gone because my mom and I have been hitting it up so often! The bottles contain 16 ounces and will last through a lot of loads.

Besides the smell, which is my favorite part, they also come in adorable bottles. They're kind of crystallized-looking, with an easy to pop off top, and they have gorgeous floral and herbal designs on the front. 

They do more than smell good and look pretty on your shelf though- even though my family typically buys Dawn because we haven't always been super-impressed with the quality of Palmolive dish soaps (although we love how often they go on sale at the local CVS), my mom and I were very happy with the cleaning power these had. They definitely packed a punch and made our usually-cloudy crystal glasses exceptionally shiny. They got off hard-to-remove food marginally well- it takes a lot of scrubbing and rinsing, but they will get the job done. They clean well and if you put them under running water to fill up a dish tub to soak dishes in, they foam and bubble up quickly and nicely. 

Overall, we were very impressed with these, and the under $3 price point is amazing as well. The coupons they gave us are equal to half off, so I'm sure we will be repurchasing these (well, the yellow and pink bottles at least) as soon as we run out. 

The only real downside is that they are only available at Walmart for the time being (as far as I know). I usually like to get my dish soap at the drugstore or another supermarket, since our Walmart is a drive away, but you can also order online. Just to show you the price and the options available, I'll put a link to them on the Walmart website- this is NOT an affiliate link, just an easy access for my readers. http://www.walmart.com/ip/Palmolive-Concentrated-Ginger-White-Tea-Dish-Liquid-16-fl-oz/21637497

Thank you Influenster for letting me and my family test these out, and thank you all for reading! 

xox Elle

Kiss Ever Pro Lashes Starter Kit Review!

Before these lashes, I owned 2 pairs: one had a huge thick band of glitter on it and super-long, curly lashes at the outer corners, and the other pair was trimmed on a diagonal [okay, the 2nd pair I could fool people were natural in my Facebook picture, but never in real life]. As you can tell, I was in desperate need of some more natural-looking lashes, just for tutorials or nights out or future weddings/fancy events.

Some things I really like about these lashes in particular are:

-this doesn't really count but I was so impressed with Kiss' nail stickers that their brand is a new favorite of mine

-they were lush and full-looking, something that is hard to find in drugstore lashes (I'm looking at you, Ardell and NYX)

-the glue had a super strong hold- comparable if not better to Duo, which I own and use 

-in this starter kit, you get three things, and not just the lashes, so it's good value for your money (these are around $5 at drugstores)

Despite all of that, there were only a couple things I wasn't too crazy about:

-it might just be me, or the fact that I'm already clumsy about putting lashes on, but I thought the applicator was more confusing than helpful. I'll just stick to my tweezers to get them up on my lashline, which is what I usually use. If you're subscribed to my Youtube channel, elleoenigma, you can look up my "How to Apply False Lashes" tutorial, where I show how to use tweezers!

-the glue took a whole minute to dry, whereas the same amount of Duo lash glue would probably only take half of that time. I think the hold of this glue was a little stronger than Duo though, so it's a tradeoff

That's about all I have to contribute for now! Overall a great product, and if you have the need for some lashes I would definitely recommend these. Thanks for reading!

xox Elle

P.S. I was sent these for free from Influenster in one of my boxes, but that doesn't affect my opinion! I test out all products unbiased-ly. 

NYC Custom Eyes Individual Eye Compact!

This is just a quick little rundown of the pros and cons of this cute product I was sent for free from Influenster, since my experience with it so far has been limited but there are some things I really do like about it, and for $5 at any drugstore and with a color selection much wider than just the palette I checked out (mine was dark silvers and greys, my fave!), why not scope it out if you want to spice up your makeup collection?

Pros:
-plastic packaging feels sturdy, not cheap
-is cute and compact!
-color selection is perfect for me but also any eye color
-shimmer is gorgeous
-white highlight color is very functional and well-pigmented
-darkest shade showed up SO welll- use a light hand!

Cons:
-primer seemed goopy and thick to me
-the shadows are so pigmented they can get all over the place if you don't tap off your brush!
-middle two shades looked very similar on, but it wasn't too big of a deal

As always, thank you for reading and get in touch with me for any additional info or questions!
xox Elle

My "Genie in a Bottle" - Goody Spin Pin Review!

Not my picture, cause mine aren't in 'Blonde'!

So I've always adored the cute little commercials for these Spin Pins and always wanted a pair myself, but I didn't quite get the concept & thought they would be really hard to use, plus whenever I looked for them at CVS they were $10, which was a price I wasn't up to spending for something I wasn't sure would work. 

Then Influenster came along and sent me a free set in my Beauty Blogger Voxbox, and I was SO excited! [as you could probably tell from my video] Now, I've only used these once, and I plan on making a tutorial-style video in the future with a more in-depth review of these, but I wanted everyone to know that they're one of my favorites from this box! You literally put one against the bottom of your bun and twist it clockwise (spin counterclockwise to take them out!) and they just go in your hair and hold it in place. I have thin hair so I could probably get away with only using one, since these are powerful little spirals. Then you take the other pin, place it against the top of your bun, and twirl it down towards your scalp, and if you really want it to stay you can make sure the pin grabs some of the hair closer to your head.

My FAVORITE thing about these things is not only how versatile they are [you could do a messy bun, side bun, low bun, or I did a high ballerina bun], but you don't need a hair tie/elastic, AT ALL! So as long as you have two of these puppies in your backpack, but are all out of luck ponytail-holder-wise, you could just whip them out and do a two-second hairstyle just in time for gym, or a test, or whatever else you have going on where you don't want all that hair in your face. Know what that means? No bun bumps on the top of your head! That's my least favorite part about updos, but these don't leave any bumps or lines or weird markings on your hair, so you can just untwist the pins and move on to whatever hairstyle you want for the next day without having to straighten it or anything in between. How easy!

That's all for now, folks. Keep a lookout for my video that will be sorta like an extension on this blogpost!

xox Elle

Bath + Body Works Mini Candle Reviews!

It's FAAAAALL, which means beautiful fall scents are filling my bedroom! With Influenster sending me a free mini B & BW mini candle of Black Pepper Bergamot, and the website giving away mini candles for free w/ a $25 purchase (I was stocking up on hand sanitizers and gifts for friends!), I have lots to talk about!

Not my picture. Thanks Google!

BPB- This is the one I got from Influenster, and let me say- if my future husband wore this scent as a cologne, I would never be unhappy! It smells like a manly, musky scent- my favorite kind (remember how I buy all the B & BW men's scents as hand sanitizers? and how Yankee Candle's Mountain Lodge, another manly musky scent, is my YC favorite?). The color really throws you off but once you ignore it and the strange title that left me a little confused as to what to expect, then you will be thrown into a magical scent-tastic wonderland. I really will love this for fall AND winter- that deep comforting scent doesn't only scream fall to me. The mini size is adorable, and even though the plastic lid makes me a little nervous, the glass container has been holding up well for me.

Not my picture.

Leaves- Okay, okay, I crossed over to the dark side and bought the ever so popular and over-discussed Leaves scent. This is the one I got for free off the website (let me just say that B & BW takes FOREVER in the mail! Granted there was a hurricane going on at the time, but I ordered from Urban Decay.com on the same day and that box came about a week earlier), but I think you can buy them a la carte for about $3, or 2/$5. Well worth it, in my opinion. I burnt this for about half an hour before I went to bed one night, and I was in such a happy place with this smell in my nose. 30 minutes and there was barely a dent in the wax, which shows how long this candle will truly be able to burn for! Even if you just leave the plastic lid off and put it on a dresser somewhere, the scent will fill the room. I've had mine open for at least two weeks now and my whole room still smells like it! 

Don't be misled by the title- I was expecting an earthy scent that would actually smell like, you know, leaves!? Psssst, that would be a great idea for a future scent, B & BW. Anyways, it's actually a sweet smell- kind of a mix of pumpkins and cloves and cinnamon and other seasonal spices, so a more appropriate name in my opinion would be "Autumnal Spice." It's really sweet and will make you feel like a little kid in a log cabin drinking clove spice tea- talk about the ultimate comfort!

Thanks for reading my review. Be sure to get in touch with me with any questions or comment below to join the conversation!

xox Elle