Kiss Lashes Review and a Mini Makeover

It’s another post! I know, not really that exciting, but I like reviewing products from Influenster, so it’s exciting for me. And let’s face it…I have a habit of making it all about me. This post is going to do triple duty: a review of Kiss Lashes, a mention of John Frieda Three Day Straight, and a tale of girly shenanigans on a Friday night. The two products were received complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes. All opinions…and shenanigans…are my own.

I enlisted the help of my friend to help me try out some of my products and she was on board (she’s moving away next week, so girly things kept me from getting emotional and crying all over her and begging her to stay). The wine may have also helped with avoiding being weepy. I’m actually really happy for her, but good-byes are always sad.

The first thing we did was use the John Frieda Three Day Straight Spray and her flat iron to straighten my hair.

I haven’t had straight hair in a really long time, and I wasn’t sure if I’d actually like it, but the end result was actually cute…and more dramatic than I was expecting.

Before..and my regular look (no hair products, no curling…my hair just does this)

The left half has been flat ironed. The right half has been washed and sprayed, but not ironed yet.

After. All straight! And kind of cool looking!

I really liked the straight look, but I honestly don’t know if I’d have the time to flat iron it consistently. Also, I don’t have a flat iron, so that poses a problem. I’m tempted to look into a more permanent means of keeping it straight, but I don’t know if I’m ready to part with the curl…even temporarily (because even a permanent method would grow out eventually, right?). Still, it’s something to think about for a new look.

Next, we tried out the Kiss Lashes. I was originally going to let my friend try these. I have sensitive eyes, and I was afraid the glue would bother them. However, in the end, curiosity got the best of me, and I wanted to see how I’d look with eye falsies.

In hindsight, it would have been fun to take a video of the process of applying these, as I have a feeling we looked ridiculous. My friend did the application, and I focused on keeping my eyes from freaking out. Once they were on, they felt heavy and strange. It took us a couple tries to get them on so that they didn’t look super uneven, but once we did, the results were kind of cool.

Still a little uneven. Had a tough time getting them to adhere to the curve of my eyelid.

Good lash angle and a show off of the straight hair.

Getting a little goofy. Blame it on the moscato!

As much fun as we had with them, I’m not sure if they’re for me, at least not all the time. Maybe for a special occasion now and then if I can get them to stay on. The glue didn’t bother my eyes nearly as bad as I thought it would, but anytime something gets around my eye I tear up.

Also, they didn’t work so well with my glasses. They weren’t horrible, but they definitely felt a bit crowded behind the lenses.

Trying out the Kiss lashes made me want to try some things with mascara and possibly even give contacts a try again. The mascara might happen soon. I’m thinking of making a makeup run to Walgreens soon. The contacts? That will all depend on Jon’s work situation. But with my cafeteria plan, it’s definitely something I’m considering. It will take some practice, though, re: my eyes tear up when weird things come in contact with them.

I rarely end my posts with a question, but if anyone feels inclined to answer, does anyone out there use false lashes on a regular basis? If so, do they get easier and more natural to use with time?

A.

 

Product Review: Boots Botanics Ionic Clay Mask #powerofplants

Things are still quiet, though they’ve started to perk up a little bit. Which was what happened last March if I remember correctly. Maybe January and February are the slow months of the year? Either way, I’m planning on doing a regular update this weekend, but right now I’m hitting you with another product review from my Influenster J’Adore VoxBox (still getting some mileage out of this one). Disclaimer: I received this product complimentary for testing purposes. All opinions are my own. 

Before testing this product, the last time I used a face mask was back in high school. It was an apricot one that peeled off after it stiffened up on my face. It seemed like a lot of work, but I may have been even lazier in high school than I am now.

While I probably wouldn’t have bought a facial mask on my own, the sample reminded me that masks really are another viable skin care option. I was bad about skin care when I was young, so even though I try to keep it up now that I’m older, it’s hard to get into a regular routine. Since I’ve been sprucing things up a little bit lately (makeup, pierced ears, etc), I thought this might be another step in my quest to pamper myself a bit more. 

The first time I tried the mask, I wasn’t prepared for the texture, the consistency, or how fast it was going to come out of the bottle. I ended up with a dark gray mess on the floor. Once I finally started applying it, I really wasn’t sure how much to use, or how thick it needed to be to do the trick. I tried to apply liberally, but it didn’t feel like enough, and my application was pretty elementary.

This is my swamp thing face.

As you can see, I left a lot of areas blank, but I was nervous about eating it or getting it in my eyes. The first time was a little iffy, but the next few uses got easier. There seems to be a learning curve for facial mask application.

1. Apply over the sink and be prepared to rinse the sink after use. It comes out of the bottle quickly.

2. What feels like a thin layer is actually a lot of clay. A thin layer seems to do things just as well as a thick layer.

3. It definitely dries and tightens in the ten minutes you leave it on. It might also make sensitive skin tingle.

4. Pair the mask experience with a good cleaner and moisturizer. I need to use face lotion after each application, but the combination makes for clean, smooth skin.

The burn I felt the first time I used it made me nervous, so I would definitely recommend spot testing this before just slathering it on. The burn/tingle went away after a few minutes, but I still used the lotion and have been pretty careful with each subsequent use.

As for long term clean, I feel a difference for several days afterwards. My face feels less oily. As far as looking better, I don’t honestly see a difference. Somedays are better than others when it comes to my complexion, and a lot of other factors seem to affect what my face does from day to day. For me, though, a lot of my confidence comes from how I feel, and not how I look.

Overall, I really like this mask, and I plan on continuing to use it. When it’s time to restock, I I may look into some of the other products by Boots. I’m kind of digging all this pampering.

A.

 

Product Review: Vaseline Men Spray Lotion (from Influenster)

If you’re following me on various social media outlets, you’ve already seen my mini-reviews on the Vaseline Men Spray Lotion I received complimentary from Influenster. Besides the fact that I’m not a man, I’m still digging on this lotion, and I wanted to give it the full review it deserves. 

Sure, it says “Men,” but I’m an equal opportunity lotion user.

I currently have a whole basket of lotion (go ahead and make a Silence of the Lambs joke…I’ll wait), but a lot of it is just girly and smelly, and only some of it is actually good at handling dry skin, especially in the winter. I’m a very itchy person, so finding a lotion that smells good and takes care of the itchy skin is kind of a big deal. 

I used this before Jon did, and I was sold right off the bat. The first thing I liked was the even spray. Ever went to spray something and you can’t get anything at first, and then all of a sudden you get way too much? I didn’t have that problem with this one. It sprayed evenly, and though it says it’s “fast absorbing,” I still had time to rub it in to the areas the spray didn’t hit. 

The second thing I liked was the smell. It has a potent cologne smell, which isn’t for everyone, but I enjoyed it. Men’s scents tend to be stronger than women’s scents, and I like both. However, I have a lot of friends who can’t do strong scents, so while I want to recommend this to everyone, I can’t recommend to anyone who has a scent sensitivity. In fact, I always forget that Jon has a sensitivity, and it wasn’t until the second night of applying the Men Spray liberally that he mentioned it gave him a headache. 

Finally, I liked that it did what it promised to do. It moisturized and kept my skin hydrated through the next day. Itchy skin was replaced with soft skin (and the smell mostly wore off overnight) . I’ve been a fan of the Vaseline hand lotion (I keep a big bottle on my desk at work) for awhile now, and I think I would have been surprised if this hadn’t met my standards. 

Influenster also suggested I review Jon’s reaction to the product. I already mentioned that the smell bothered him when the product was over-applied, but when a light spray was used, it wasn’t as bad. He also found that the benefits were delivered as promised. In the future, I think he’ll want to find an unscented version. 

I anticipate having a few more reviews from this VoxBox coming soon. I’ve been trying most of the products, though a few are still waiting for friend assistance. Just to reiterate, I did receive these for testing purposes, but all opinions are my own. 

A. 

Tea and Chocolate from the J’AdoreVoxBox

Based on the lack of posts, you can probably tell that things are at a slow crawl lately. That, and I just haven’t been in the frame of mind for blogging. If I remember correctly though, last year was pretty uneventful until March, so fingers crossed that when spring…and the better weather hits…I’ll have more blogtivity.

The excitement for today was that my J’AdoreVoxBox from Influenster arrived!

It’s like Christmas, but for Valentine’s Day

There is some pretty great stuff in there, and hopefully I’ll have the chance to blog about all the things. Today, I started with two of the items…the consumables. Because how hard is it to tear the package open and get to chomping and drinking, right?

Red Rose Tea sent four tea bag samples for my drinking pleasure. Within ten minutes, I was sipping on a cup of their delightful Creme Caramel.

I love tea, but like other things, I go through phases where I drink a lot of it, then switch to something else, like water or coffee (or soda, but I’m trying to curb that habit). I can drink iced tea all year round, but my hot tea moods come and go. However, after trying the Creme Caramel, I think I might be entering back into a hot tea phase. It’s so good! Only slightly sweet, not too rich, and it’s a taste that just makes me happy. I drink tea plain, no cream or sugar, but I can see how this flavor might taste good with a little dash of something else. Having said that, I’ll probably still enjoy it fresh and unadorned.

In the category of things that I love all the time, no phase needed, is chocolate.

The best thing ever

This bag of Hershey‘s kisses is huge! I usually prefer dark chocolate over milk chocolate, but Hershey’s are a huge exception. Their milk chocolate is the best, in my opinion, likely even better than most of the gourmet chocolate brands. Kisses are great because they’re easily portioned controlled, and one little Kiss packs a punch.

Serious side note: my relationship with food has changed greatly over the past couple years. Nothing is off limits, I don’t berate myself for eating sweets and treats, and I’ve realized that the quickest way to binge on something is to deprive myself of it. I also try not to negative self talk when it comes to food, though sometimes I let things slip (old habits die hard). However, I do know that I tend to feel yucky after consuming too much sugar, but if it’s in front of me, I’ll eat it.

Hence, the Kisses will be shared with Jon, and have been put into a bowl and stuck in the fridge to serve as a sweet treat over time, not all at once. I did, of course, already have a healthy serving size before writing this review. No regrets. They were delicious! If I get to feeling bakey, I can also add them to cookies or use them in a bunch of other recipes. But I think they’ll be most effective for a quick craving killer.

Samples, tea, and chocolate…seriously not a bad way to kick off a Saturday.

All products were received complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes. All opinions are my own. 

A.