Busy Busy Busy!

Been away for awhile, my apologies to those who look for my posts.  Work, school, kids and a blog keep me overwhelmed and underpaid.  I have much to talk about and much to share, I just have to find the time to put it into words.  But don't worry, I'll be sharing my beauty joys and goofs soon.  Thanks for your patience while I learn time management skills!  :-)

MAC Glitter and Ice Holiday 2011 Collection

I’m super excited about this holiday collection from MAC because there’s such a variety of new LIMITED EDITION products and the colors are so beautiful.  The expectation is that this will be released sometime in late October but possibly early November.  This is all preliminary information and photos so things may change.  The photos came from MAC Cosmetics.  Once the line is set to be released I’ll update pricing and dates for you.

Mineralized Eye Shadows

 

Frozen Blue – silver blue

Snow Season – soft brown

Winterized – silver and indigo mix

Shimmermint – pale green 

Fresh Ice – silver white

Hold That Pose! – pale lilac

 

Paint Pots

For Effect – black with soft pearl

Morning Frost – pearl brown

Let’s Skate – pearl pale pink

 

Technakohl Liner

Fancy Moves – pearled purple

Practice Makes Perfect – pearled blue

Silver Skates – silver pearl

Seasonally Spicy – pearled brown

Going for Gold – gold pearl

Smooth Manoeuvre – pearled black

 

Beauty Powder

How Beautiful – neutral brown with pearl

Snowglobe – pink beige with soft pearl

 

Lipsticks

Such Flare – matte finish bright red

What Joy! – satin finish deep berry

Whirls & Twirls – glaze finish pink with pearl pink

Double Spin – cremesheen finish lilac

Eloquent Air – silver glaze finish

Soft Sable – frost finish brown with pearl

Dazzleglass

She-Zam – silver

Pleasure Principle – silver with white pearl

Dressed to Dazzle – pink with gold pearl

Glitter & Ice – nude with gold pearl

Love Alert – jewel tone red

Spanking Rich – red with gold pearl

Nail Laquer

Get Noticed – bright red

Unconditionally Fabulous – white pink glitter

Festive Finery – purple

Bellezza’s October Wish List

Every month or so I'm going to list 5 or 6 things that caught my attention and are on my radar for the next month's shopping trip.  THIS month I have a nice variety of things that I really really really would LOVE to have.

1.  Wonderstruck – Taylor Swift ($59.50 3.4oz.)

I got really excited about this when I saw the bottle.  I think it’s so pretty and according to the description, this “…charming and sparkling surprise of vibrant fruits kisses a bouquet of soft petals and a touch of sweet indulgance.”  Sounds yummy.  The notes are:  Freesia, Green Tea, Apple Blossom, Raspberry and Dewberry. I think I’m going to use my Ulta points for this one in November.

2.  Bumble & Bumble Straight Blow Dry ($28 5 oz.)

So this one caught my attention because I love Bumble & Bumble products and I recently had my hair styled into a more straight ‘do.  I have naturally curly (FRIZZY) hair and the products my stylist use are not necessarily my favorite.  This seems intriguing because it’s LIGHTWEIGHT and heat activated so I expect it will help me to blowdry my style with minimal product goopage.  We shall see.

3.  Nails Inc. Magnetic Nail Polish in Trafalgar Square ($16 .33 oz.)

Ok so there’s no rhyme or reason as to why I want this…it’s just COOL.  This is available at Sephora and here’s the video you can watch to see how it works!

4.  Benefit I’m Glam…Therefore I Am ($36 Sephora)

This set looks super fun and Benefit is one of my favorite lines that I collect.  Included in this kit:

• 0.25 oz Girl Meets Pearl (pearly golden pink)
• 0.18 oz Eyeshadow Palette in Pink Fancy (pale pink), Icy Lilac (silvery light mauve), Posh Amethyst (soft plum), Precious Pewter (steel gray)
• Double-Ended Sponge Applicator
• 0.07 oz Glamming Face Powder with Brush (soft rose/ peachy pink sheen)
• 0.14 oz A Little Bit BADgal Lash Mascara in black
• 0.18 oz Lip Gloss in Life On The A List (bubble gum pink)
• Makeup Lesson

This would make a GREAT Christmas present!

5.  Sultra: The Bombshell in Pink BCA 1” Curling Wand ($130 at Sephora)

I have been wanting a good curling wand for a while and this brand came recommended by a good friend of mine.  I like this one partly because it’s pink which is of course my favorite color, but also because it’s for a great cause:

Sultra will donate a portion of the proceeds in the USA to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Sultra will donate a portion of the proceeds in Canada to the Breast Cancer Society of Canada.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and I’m always looking for ways to help the cause.  I’ve had many friends survive (thank God) breast cancer and I’m blessed that I have not experienced it first hand.  We NEED a cure for this and we need to support organizations that graciously donate to these causes.  Plus we end up with a great product! 
If any of you own any of the items listed I’d love to hear your thoughts.  Please comment and don’t forget to subscribe.
Ciao Bellas!

Urban Decay 15 Year Anniversary Eyeshadow Collection PLUS SWATCHES!

I have been a fan of Urban Decay cosmetics for YEARS and every time they have a Limited Edition palette I check it out.  My only issue with Urban Decay is that they often include repeat eyeshadows in their palettes which I HATE.  I have about four palettes that have Sin in them.  But all that aside, their eyeshadows are AMAZING.  The color payoff is perfect, and they give you nice large sizes in the palettes so you feel like you're getting a great value (as in the Naked Palette my absolute favorite). Today I'm talking about my new 15 Year Anniversary palette that I picked up at Ulta recently.  It's a perfect variety of neutrals, brights and dark shades.  MOST if not all of the shadows are either shimmer or glitter shadows but I have enough matte shadows in other collections to make it work.  Here's a rundown of what you get for $55.

All in all I'd say it's WELL WORTH the money.  I love all of the shadows and expect to create bunches of amazing looks with this palette.  Enjoy!

Butter London: Ulta Gift Set

During one of my recent trips to Ulta, I found this gift set by Butter London for only $30.  I don't think that the set is available any longer but the individual polishes are so I wanted to share them with you.  I absolutely LOVE the formula of these polishes.  No streaking, no lines, just perfect coverage in only two coats.  Even the pale pinky shade came out creamy and beautiful.  I was playing around with these over the weekend and while I don't have pictures (yet) I promise I'll get some uploaded.  My FAVORITE look was taking the Pink Ribbon (pale pink) all over my nails, and then painting a "french" tip in the Royal Navy.  I didn't do a traditional thick french tip, instead I painted a very thin half moon shaped tip on my rounded nails.  Looks VERY Chanel and definitely modern.  So here's a closeup of the shades:

All Hail the Queen - Taupe with pearly sparkle

Pink Ribbon - Pale creamy pink (Moderately Opaque)

Royal Navy - Creamy royal blue (LOVE)

If you can find this set, it's really a great value.  Otherwise I know they sell these shades individually at Ulta.  Each bottle runs about $14 so they're a little pricey but worth it.  Enjoy!

Lush Haul and Review

Over the past few months I've been adding new products to my collection, but because I've been AWOL from blogging I haven't talked about them.  So the next few posts will be my hauls and reviews and a few little fun extras in between.  Today I'm talking about my new addiction....LUSH Fresh Handmade Cosmetics.  I found a Lush store in the Florida Mall in Orlando and had an absolute blast in there shopping.  The girl was very helpful and sweet and tried some of the products on me based on what I was looking for which was a good hair treatment for my frizzball hair and some fun shower gels.  I ended up purchasing three products.

Whoosh Shower Jelly ($10.95 for an 8.4 oz container)

 I LOVE this stuff.  It takes some getting used to because it's a jelly and not a gel, so after wasting about a quarter size of it I realized that you're supposed to grab the whole thing and rub it into your loofah or onto your skin directly, NOT break off chunks (they just slide off your skin).  What I ended up doing was putting half in the freezer per my salesgirl's instructions because that will help it last longer AND will add a different texture and dynamic to the experience.  If you use it right out of the freezer on a hot day it feels WONDERFUL!  It smells very clean and lemony but not like household cleaner, and it's not overpowering so it won't compete with perfume.  This will definitely be repurchased.



Jasmine and Henna Fluff Ease Hair Treatment ($21.95 for a 7.8oz tub)

Ok so I was a little skeptical when the sales girl told me about this.  She said that my hair will absolutely be so soft and manageable after 1 use that I'll never use anything else.  The first thing I noticed is the fragrance.  While lovely it's quite a strong scent of jasmine, so if you're sensitive to florals you may want to beware.  It contains Jojoba oil, olive oil, Red Henna infusion, wheatgerm oil, Jasmine Absolute, and Ylang Ylang oil.   Your supposed to apply half the jar for medium hair or the whole pot for long hair but I found I didn't need that much.  I have long hair and only needed about a quarter size amount which worked great.  Leave it on for 20-30 minutes and then shampoo out.  My hair was so soft and shiny after that one treatment and the strong jasmine scent was washed away and left behind a more soft, feminine aroma on my hair.  I suppose if I would've followed directions (yeah right, ME?) my hair would be even more amazing.  But I just can't justify spending that much for a one time treatment and I was happy with the results from a quarter size dollop.  This would possibly be a repurchase unless I find something with a more fruity scent.


Buffy Body Butter ($11.95 for a 3.3oz block)

This body butter has so many yummy things in it I could almost eat it...but of course I won't.  I'm just going to go ahead and say this is a repurchase.  This is an AWESOME product.  Made with ground almonds, shea butter, cocoa butter, and rice this body butter is a skin softening and moisturizing dream.  It smells like almonds and cocoa butter but it's not a strong cocoa butter smell.  It's soft and feminine and feels great in the shower.  When you rinse it off, the water beads on your skin and you can feel the moisture being locked in.  I also purchased the tin for $3.95 which is a MUST because it protects the bar from the water and helps it to last longer.  The girl told me that my 3.3 oz bar should last a good 3 months.  I've used it several times in the last week and you could hardly tell by looking at it.  One VERY important tip though...don't use it under RUNNING WATER...it melts.  

So that's my LUSH haul and review!  I know it sounds like I love everything and I do.  I was nervous because it IS pricey, but I feel it's worth the money.  The products seem to hold up and they really do what they say they're supposed to do.  I hope this helps someone out there!  If you enjoyed...don't forget to follow this blog. 
 

Hello and Welcome!!!

Hi everyone and welcome to my new and improved beauty blog.  For those of you who don't know, I hosted a beauty blog called My Lipgloss Addiction and unfortunately deleted the entire account when I became overwhelmed with school.  I went back to reactivate my account and low and behold, it was GONE!  So now I'm back with a new mission and a new outlook (and some better time management skills) and I'm looking forward to sharing my beauty joys with all of you!  I have many, many new purchases and new favorites so I can't wait to get started.  For those of you who followed me on "My Lipgloss Addiction", I hope that you follow my new blog and look forward to our renewed friendships.  Thanks for stopping by!

Jennifer