General, Sephora

Waiting Room

My Sephora Friends & Family order is out for delivery today and I am EXCITED.

After my sad lament that the sale was only for VIB status cardholders, I was thrilled to open my email and find out my friend, Click, had sent me a code for the event. The note on the email said, “BAM” and yeah, BAM!!

Now, I don’t want to be gross and, like, “women be shoppin,” but, sometimes, ladiez be shoppin! Can I get an amen?!

I shopped for days trying to figure out the best way to get the best bang for my buck. It’s kind of tough because where I used to just cosmetics shop for me, now I cosmetics shop for this site. For the world, really.

You’re welcome, world.

So, this lady be shopping, and I end up torn between buying a blush that’s been out for three years because I want to try the color, or, buying a blush that’s new and hot right now. It’s the story of my life, do what I want or be trendy. Can I tell you how many times I’ve picked trendy over do what I want? No times. Well, hardly ever any times. Would you like to see the shoes I picked for myself in grade school?

gold sneaks

JAZZ FEET

Blazing that glitzy trail! Pretty far ahead of the times, right? Do you know where I found a bunch of pictures of these shoes? Etsy and Ebay. Some hipster girl with a handlebar mustache is likely bidding on my childhood mistakes right this second. She’s like, “Oh. These shoes will look great with my sunflower print overall shorts!” Which is probably the exact thing I thought. And the cycle continues…

Back to the blush! I ended up buying the newer blush. I’m weak. But, I’m still excited for it! It’s a berry color, so I thought that would be pretty for winter. I don’t have any blush that color, all my blushes are pink or coral. My hope is that it will make me look like I’ve been out, tussling in the icy air, but, there’s a chance it will make me look ghoulish – that’s cool too, though. If it does, I’m going to make sexy winter ghost a thing. Sexy winter fog ghost. I’m going to make that one up as I go along because my winter experience is not extensive. I live in Southern California. We don’t really have winter. I wore a tank top to Thanksgiving last year.

Once, it snowed here in the middle of the night, and when I woke up and looked out the window, I thought something had gone wrong with my vision! Nobody could go to work that day because it was too dangerous, but we were all able to drive around and look at the snow. Literally thousands of pictures of snowcapped palm trees were taken that day. We still talk about it – The Great Snowstorm of ’99. The snow only lasted for one day, but, that was long enough to pull together some dingy looking snowmen. It was also long enough for me to learn I never want to live somewhere that gets snow on the reg. It’s far more preferable to be able to wear sandals all year. My aversion to inclement weather is so great, I don’t even know if we have an umbrella! I think we have a travel umbrella around here somewhere. One travel umbrella for two people; that’s our emergency rain plan. I fall apart in the cold, but if you ever need someone to endure multiple 103 degree days in a a row, I’m your girl. The sun makes me strong. *MUSCLE ARMS EMOJI*

I’ve been tracking my delivery like it’s a kidney. I just want it to show up! It’s bad enough I have to set up and photograph everything before I can use any of it. Must I endure this horrendous wait as well?! *BLERG! EMOJI (YOU KNOW THE ONE. IT LOOKS FRUSTRATED AND IT HAS AN UPSIDE DOWN OPEN MOUTHED SMILE)* I’m wearing headphones while I type right now, and I still keep thinking I hear UPS outside. I need to step away from the window and go do something with my life. I’d like to go wash all my makeup brushes, but the sink is full of dishes and I would *not* like to wash all of those. Unless, doing a good deed will make my order get here faster? Like, the universe will reward me for clearing out the sink with my Marc Jacobs lipstick? Is doing your own dishes a good deed? Tis the season for good deeds, right? You know? Good deeds? Something like, looking at your grandma’s pills, but not taking any. Or, blocking a family member’s idiot updates from Facebook before you lose your mind and never talk to them again. I’ve done both these things, so I’m an angel come to earth, you guys.

I’m going to wrap this up and try to be patient and wise about the whole thing. Like the old adage says, “A watched pot never boils, and an anticipated UPS truck takes fucking forever to get to your house even if the last tracking update says it was out for delivery at 5:00 AM.”

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Bargain Beauty, Lips, OCC, Sephora

OCC Lip Tar All-Star Mini x 4 Set: Anime & Black Dahlia

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Sephora, $20

Yesterday, I told you about this exclusive to Sephora set of OCC Lip Tars.  Four of OCC’s amazing Lip Tars in the perfect size, at a great price. Long wearing, deeply pigmented, super sexy, ultra awesome liquid lipstick for only $20!

occ lip tar sampler

I showed you the neutral pink and the primary red yesterday. Let’s finish up the set!

occ lip tar set arm swatch 2

Anime is a hot, blue based fuchsia, so I was in love right away. It’s a vibrant, bubblegum pink that’s eye catching and bright.

occ lip tar set anime

Anime has great coverage, and it doesn’t crease or show lines when you press your lips together. The color was easy to work with, it applied beautifully and left a pretty stain. I loved this color! I definitely see myself wearing it often. A bright lip like this is more wearable than people think. It looks pretty and unobtrusive when you pair it with a light eye.

Black Dahlia is a deep, blackened red. It’s a beautiful wine color that’s great for fall and winter. I was super into this color, and it inspired me to create a whole witchy look.

occ lip tar set black dahlia

DO YOU LOVE IT?! I love it! It looks so much darker in the tube, but on the lip, it was much lighter. Black Dahlia was the most difficult to work with out of the set. The color moves around quite a bit, and it will settle into lines and cracks. A little patience and a steady hand with the little brush will get you through. Remember dark colors will make your lips look smaller. If this is a concern for you, blot the color down and/or use a concealer or highlighter color on your cupid’s bow, above your lips, to make your lips look fuller.

To get the best results out of your Lip Tars, be sure to prep your lips before you wear them. You’ll get a smoother application and better wear time if your lips are lookin’ and feelin’ right.  I try to keep my lips prepped at all times. You never know when you’re going to be in an emergency that calls for your well hydrated and exfoliated lips to look on point! YOU LITERALLY NEVER KNOW.

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I figured out a way to show scale! DUH!

I think this set is a really great buy. Crazy long wearing, you only need a tiny amount, and the price all combine to make an amazing deal. This is an excellent starter set for anyone new to OCC’s Lip Tars. I’m totally thrilled they made it, and I hope they do the entire Lip Tar collection in this size!

Buy the Sephora exclusive OCC Lip Tar All-Star Mini x 4 Set HERE.

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Bargain Beauty, Lips, OCC, Sephora

OCC Lip Tar All-Star Mini x 4 Set: Memento & NSFW

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Sephora, $20

Well, this is freaking brilliant.

This set is proof positive that dreams really do come true! Ever since I bought my first Lip Tar, I’ve wished for a smaller, cheaper tube. The pigment in their formula is so intense, a tiny bit goes a really long way! How was I ever going to finish a tube?

occ lip tar sampler

L-R: Memento, NSFW, Anime, Black Dahlia

The tubes in this set are small, 0.08 oz each, and they’re exactly what I wanted! Large enough to be useful, but small enough to feel like I didn’t pay for a ton of wasted product. I’m trying to show scale here with my little paw, but, you have no idea how big my hands are! Let me just say that the iPhone is almost getting too tall for my hands now. Does that help? The colors are good for a wide range of looks, and I think they show the vibrancy of the OCC Lip Tar formula really well. This set is a Sephora exclusive, and at $20 for four small tubes, when a full size tube is $18, it’s a really great deal.

To me, these four colors seem really accessible – they’re a good choice for anyone new to the line. They might seem really bright, but they can be easily blotted down. Besides, come on! Live a little! Are you going to go your whole life without wearing some insane lipstick? Brother, that ain’t livin’.

We’ll do two colors today, and two colors tomorrow. Starting with, what I think, are the two most useful colors, Memento and NSFW.

occ lip tar set swatch 1

Memento is a neutral, medium pink/plum. It’s bright, and sweet, and it would be a really beautiful day to day color.

occ lip tar sampler 1

You could wear this color with so many looks, in so many different settings. It’s versatile, and the most wearable of the four colors.

NSFW is a balanced, true primary red. This color means business and it is GORGEOUS. I have a super special place in my heart for red lipstick, and NSFW is about as straight up red lipstick as it gets.

occ lip tar sampler 2

Red lipstick makes me feel like everyone should look at me. ALL HAIL MY POWER COLOR. Red lipstick is my can of spinach. I put it on, and my beauty muscles pump up! I even commandeered my own attention in the mirror in this color. I’ll tell you this, I was very compelled to take a ton of pictures of myself wearing NSFW.

occ lip tar sampler diptic

ONLY GOD CAN JUDGE ME.

Let she who is without a thousand pictures of her own face in her phone cast the first stone. There’s a reason that self facing camera is there, ok?

As usual, you’ll get hours of wear time from these Lip Tars. They stain like crazy, so if you don’t use a slow and steady hand WITH the recommended tiny bead of product, you could very easily end up looking like some dirty, Kool-Aid mouthed hillbilly child. That’s not a cute look. We want super sexy confidence power mouth, not “nobody cleans my face and I think Kool-Aid is the same as juice” mouth.

Part two tomorrow!

Buy the Sephora exclusive OCC Lip Tar All-Star Mini x 4 Set HERE.

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Bargain Beauty, Links, SALE, Sephora

Sephora Friends & Family Sale UPDATE

The Muse over at Musings of a Muse has all the info on the upcoming sale!

“Every VIB and Rouge members get 20% Off their purchase in store or online at Sephora.com. Cards are in the mail and should arrive by November 4th or some folks don’t get a card via mail but one via e-mail instead so keep checking your inboxes and regular mail boxes this week and next week for your code. They’ll be a code for yourself as well as one you can share with a friend but you must be with your friend for them to redeem it in store along with your VIB membership card. You’ll also be able to get your hands on the traditional Sephora tote bag that is free with your purchase while supplies last. The promo code is VIBTOPIA.”

Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like regular Beauty Insider cardholders are going to get the 20% off coupon. That really eats balls, because I’m only $50 away from VIB status. This one is on me for not buying enough makeup, I guess. But, shit, man! My kid needs shoes! She has four feet, after all! I don’t know if you know this, but that’s double the amount of feet most kids have. Double! Double the school shoes, double the church shoes, double the summer sandals, double the sneakers!

It’s just a good thing she doesn’t eat that much.

Anyways! If you’re a VIB, congratulations! If you’re just a BI, like me, then kick rocks, I guess.

***YET ANOTHER UPDATE***

Sephora tweeted they’re doing something special for regular BI cardholders soon! I’ll keep an eye out, and post the information as soon as I see it.

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Bargain Beauty, Sephora

Sephora Friends & Family 2013 Sale

Lace up dem shopping shoes, babies! The Sephora Friends & Family Sale is coming soon!

If you know a Sephora employee, you can get an early coupon code now. But, for the rest of us, BI and VIB cardholders will be able to access the sale sometime in November. There isn’t an exact date available yet, so keep your eyes on your email! And if you haven’t signed up for Sephora’s Beauty Insider card, I don’t know what you’re doing with your life. It’s the rare store loyalty card that really pays off, and considering it doesn’t cost you anything to sign up for it, you’re really coming out on top! That’s a return of, like, a million percent on your investment of $0. Look at you, business lady! Buy! Sell! Graphs! Changing out of your sneakers into your heels at the office! Shoulder pads! Working hard for the money!

Get your lists together now. I’m working on mine! Don’t get in my way though while I’m shopping with a coupon code. I might be in a frenzy and I can’t be held responsible for the actions of my teeth or fists. I suggest going into this sale with a solid list, your hair in a ponytail, and your earrings off. That way if you have to smack someone over some Marc Jacobs lipstick, you’re all ready for it.

Besides the (hopefully) 20% off F&F discount, it’s almost time for the holiday appreciation gift cards to start showing up in the mail. I LOVE those. $15, $20 off! You can’t beat it! Get yourself signed up for the BI card, watch your email, watch your mailbox, then gets to shopping! By the time the sale starts, all the holiday sets and products will be out, so you can pick up some great stuff! I’M SO EXCITED!!

**UPDATE ON THE F&F 2013 SALE HERE!!!**

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