Craziest Weekend!

What a Whirlwind!

Hi everyone!  I just thought I would do this little post to update you guys on what's going on in my life right now and why I'm so excited about the next couple of weeks!  As you may or may not know, I just did a big move to my parents' house for the summer to work a job that I am really excited about!  This meant that I had to leave my fiance and my apartment and my cat and our roommate on Friday to drive four hours away to my hometown.  Moving is a daunting task in general, but this weekend was also the weekend of my bridal shower and bachelorette party.  It is Sunday, and I feel like a just now have been able to sit down and relax for a little while.  I made myself a nice lunch and decided to let you guys know what I've been up to!  

I am super excited about some of the things I received at my shower because I have a few new products to try out and review for you all!  Best of all, I received one of the items on my Wedding Makeup Wishlist (YAY!).  I'm really looking forward to the next few weeks as I settle into my job and continue finalizing things for my wedding, which is now less than a month and a half away.  

I hope you all are having a wonderful weekend and I look forward to sharing some new and exciting things with you over the next few weeks!  :D

-Hill

Review: Real Techniques Core Collection

Real Techniques by Samantha Chapman

Core Collection

Hello everyone!  Today I wanted to bring to you a review of one of my Real Techniques brush sets.  This past Christmas, I was lusting for the Real Techniques brushes created by YouTube makeup guru, Samantha Chapman.  I have always seen these brushes used in videos and just knew that I had to have them!  In the US, you can find Real Techniques brushes at both Ulta and now Walmart!

The particular collection I am reviewing today is the Core Collection which includes (from left to right) a buffing brush, contour brush, pointed foundation brush, and detailer brush.

First of all, I must say excuse my dirty brushes, I wash them often (especially the buffing brush) but this particular day I had already used them and didn't wash them before taking these pictures.  SORRY!  My two favorite brushes out of the collection are the buffing brush and the contour brush.  The buffing brush ROCKS for applying foundation!  It is super soft and dense, allowing me to buff in my foundation to a flawless finish.  The contour brush is my daily blush brush.  It is less dense than the buffing brush, so it's good about not picking up too much product and leaving me looking like a clown.  It's super soft and applies blush effortlessly.  I have been using both of the brushes almost daily for over three months now and they haven't lost a hair or frayed a bit.  

The pointed foundation brush and the detailer brush don't get as much use from me as they should.  I have never been a fan of applying foundation with a flat brush and have been looking for other ways to use it.  Any suggestions?  The detailer brush is great for blending in concealer in areas that my fingers don't work so well, such as the tear duct area.

A great thing about the Real Techniques brushes that I really enjoy that they are very lightweight.  I believe the handles are made of aluminum because they are very sturdy, yet super light to hold.

I am definitely a HUGE fan on these brushes.  They are super affordable at an average of $20 per collection and are of great quality!  I would definitely recommend them if you haven't tried them!

What brushes do you love?  Have you tried the Real Techniques brushes?

Thanks always for reading!

Hill

Review: Maybelline Baby Lips

Please tell me I'm not the only one...

Somebody please tell me that I'm not the only one that doesn't understand the hype behind these lip balms.  

Today I'm bringing to you a review of the Maybelline Baby Lips Lip Balm.  I just needed to get my opinion out there on these because frankly, I don't like them.  I had super high hopes for these little babies (no pun intended, ha) because it seems that everyone in the beauty community just raves about them!  Unfortunately, these really do nothing for my lips and in fact, I feel that they actually make my lips drier than they were before.

I picked up my first Baby Lips in Peach Kiss (left) last year when they were first released and everyone was going nuts over them!  It's a really nice, nude peachy color with a little shimmer in it.  It also smells AMAZING.  I was so excited to get it that I put it on immediately when I got in the car.  I loved the color on my lips, loved the formula, and especially loved the peachy scent.  But I noticed that after just a little while (not even half an hour), that my lips were starting to feel not only like the balm was wearing off, but that they felt drier than they were before I put it on!  I tried it over and over again over the next few weeks and realized that I was just starting to push it aside and go for other products instead.

Looks like I may have switched the swatches...Coral Crush is on the left, Peach Kiss on the right

Peach Kiss remained in my makeup storage for the next year or so.  Then, recently Maybelline released another collection of these guys!  I decided to go ahead and grab another one, just in case that maybe the formulation was better.  I grabbed Coral Crush just a few weeks ago.  I made sure to grab one without shimmer this time, because I know that sometimes shimmery lip products can tend to be drying and I thought I should give Baby Lips another go.  No.  Didn't help.  Not a bit.  My new Baby Lips is just as drying on my lips, and although it smells nice and gives a nice wash of color to my lips, I just can't understand what the fuss is about.  I really wish that I liked this product because I think to packaging is adorable and they smell awesome.  They are definitely not for me although I have heard great things about them!

So tell me, have you tried Baby Lips?  Do you like them?  Have you had an experience like mine?  I am very curious to see what you all think!

Thanks always for reading.  :D

Hill

March 2013 Empties Video

I made a new video!

Hey everyone!  So back in December/January, I made a few YouTube videos and posted them.  It was really fun to do but as I got caught up in everything else going on, I subsequently let blogging and making videos fall to the wayside.  The past couple of days I have really been itching to film again!  I thoroughly enjoy it, especially when it's nice outside!  Yesterday I sat down and filmed two videos.  This is the first of the two I filmed!  I hope you enjoy!  I always enjoy watching empties videos and had a great time putting this together and filming it.  

Hill

March 2013 Empties - FlipOverBuggie

Review: Vaseline Body Lotion

Vaseline Total Moisture

&

Vaseline Intensive Rescue

I am very excited to share these products with you today!  My sister-in-law shared recently with me a website that I had never heard of before, BzzAgent.com!  The website is free to join and gives you the opportunity to join "campaigns" with companies through their service to try out a product for free!  I was lucky enough to be invited to join the Vaseline campaign!

BzzAgent sent me two bottles (I'm pretty sure they are full-sized) of Vaseline body lotions!  I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of product I received!  The two lotions I was sent are the Total Moisture Clean Feeling Lotion and the Intensive Rescue Repairing Lotion.  

The Total Moisture lotion is an everyday type of lotion that is lightweight and can be used all over the body.  It claims to absorb into the skin quickly for a "clean feeling".  I can say that the lotion absorbs fairly quickly into the skin, however it is slightly sticky for a few minutes right after I apply it.  It definitely doesn't feel greasy, but the sticky feeling lingers for a few minutes so I still have to wait a bit before dressing.  The scent is quite nice.  It is a heavy scent, but it is a nice fresh floral smell.  Overall, I like this lotion but I'm not sure that I would purchase it.

The Intensive Rescue lotion is quite nice.  It is definitely a little bit thicker than the other lotion, but it absorbs at a reasonable rate and doesn't leave a sticky feeling at all.  This one is great for extra dry areas and I've been enjoying the extra moisture it gives to my elbows and knee caps.  It claims that it is unscented and while it doesn't give off a perfumey smell, it does have a very slight scent to it.  I would recommend it to someone who doesn't like strong scents though, as it is not overpowering at all.  I believe I would purchase this when I am in the market for a lotion with a little extra moisture and no strong scent.

Overall, I like these two products.  I have used Vaseline products in the past and am usually pleased with them.  I am definitely going to be using up the rest of these lotions and I think they will be quite useful for those humid summer days when I need a lightweight moisturizer that will absorb quickly.

I hope you enjoyed this!  Thanks again to BzzAgent for sending me these products!

-Hill