Boxycharm: March 2017

March was great, as far as my makeup subscriptions go. I received some amazing products, including five items from Boxycharm. The March box theme was "Creepy Cute," even though they probably should have used that in October for Halloween. The artwork on their Instagram and the card in the box included ghosts, skeletons, spider webs, you name it! It was cute. But it just didn't seem to make sense for the first month of Spring. 

See what I mean?? The colors and the theme itself are so adorable, but this just doesn't add up for a March box. But anyway, on to what really matters: the products.

Left to right: Naked Cosmetics eyeshadow trio, RealHer Makeup lip liner and liquid lipstick, Smashbox Cosmetics Photo Finish Primer, Crown Brushes Kabuki Fan brush

 

 

I was overall impressed with the products in the box. The Urban Rustic eyeshadow trio from Naked Cosmetics is stunning. The shadows swatch and apply so easily with generous amounts of pigmentation. Again, I feel like this trio would have been perfect for a fall box, because these colors just scream "autumn" to me. However, I can't complain about quality, and I can always wait a few months before I use this. The lip liner and lipstick are also very beautiful. I'm all about those plum shades! The lipstick is nice, but I was most impressed with the liner, gliding on the lips as smoothly as one from Kylie Cosmetics or Urban Decay. My liner matched with the lipstick, but I read in some Instagram comments that this was not consistent with all of the boxes. I must have gotten lucky. 

Surprisingly, my favorite thing in the box was the item I was looking forward to the least! I LOVE the Jumbo Kabuki Fan brush from Crown Brushes so much! This is perfect for achieving an all-over glow with your favorite highlight. Sometimes those precision highlights look a little too fake for me, and the kabuki fan applies product to a larger area of the cheek bone. I think it's beautiful. I haven't tried this, but it would also be perfect for a softer contour around the cheekbones. And if you don't like to highlight or contour, it can also be used to sweep setting powder from the face.

I have one big no-no for the box. I have burned through a few bottles of the Smashbox Photo Finish Primer, and I love it like just about everyone else. So of course, I was thrilled when Boxycharm announced it would be featuring the OG of Smashbox primers. I was quickly turned off when a watery fluid came out of the bottle upon removing the cap. Maybe Smashbox had a bunch of extra, nearing expiration samples of this primer that they needed to get rid of, because after reading some other comments, I was not the only one who witnessed the gross fluid. Whether to heat, age, or manufacturer error, some of the primers had denatured in the bottle. Luckily after the initial drippage (eww), the formula came out correctly. Still, three or four faces worth of primer went down my bathroom sink. 

So there you have it, my thoughts on the March Boxycharm. Despite the issue with the primer, I highly recommend this subscription to all of my readers and followers. It really is a goodie.

Thanks for reading 💕

REVIEW: Kylie Cosmetics Valentine's Collection

Anything that Kylie Cosmetics releases manages to blow the entire universe away. I wrote an initial reaction to the collection before it was released, and I decided to order the Valentine's minis, the lipkit in the shade Valentine, and Kylie's Dairy palette. Now that I've had a chance to play around with the products, I can tell you what you missed from these limited releases.

Look how beautiful these are! I practically fainted when I opened the box. Say whatever you want about Kylie Jenner, but the girl knows how to package some makeup! I ADORE the pink details in place of the usual black on the lipsticks. And that glitter on the lipkits and the palette? Girl. Now of course, packaging isn't everything, so let's get down to the nitty gritty. 

I have two things that are a miss for me: the mini Maliboo and the blushes. My issue with Maliboo has always been the color: I'm not a fan of brown nudes at all. The quality of the lipstick is the same as the others, so this is strictly over color preference. That being said, let's move along to the blushes, the most highly anticipated releases.

Left to right: First Date, Virginity

Girl what? I am not here for these at all. The colors are nice, don't get me wrong, but the formula... Honey, the formula. First, I had to really dig into these blushes to get any kind of swatch. These things are packed in the pan tighter than a wet swimsuit, making them extremely difficult to work with. Also, do they look a little patchy to you? They definitely appeared to be that way in person. Lastly, there were orange flecks packed into my pink blush, and I haven't decided if they're supposed to be there or not. Judging by pictures of other palettes, I don't think the orange spots are intentional. If you have this palette, did you notice anything like this on your Virginity shade?

Moving on to eye shadows! I was very impressed by selection of colors. I think this is a unique palette, and it makes a wonderful addition to my collection. Here are the swatches:

Left to right: Bae, Heart Breaker, Make Me Blush, Sweet Like Candy, Love Potion, Be Mine, Heart Eyes, Romance, Loves Me Not

My favorite colors are Sweet Like Candy and Romance, both shimmer shades. The top row kicks up a lot of product, but they're beautiful shadows. The mattes are ok: they're slightly patchy, but they're workable. Overall, this is a beautiful palette. I didn't have any shades that disappointed me. Do I think you missed out if you didn't buy it? No. You could assemble some better quality singles and build a similar palette for around the same price.

Last but not least, we have the stunning liquid lipsticks. The mini sizes are perfect for me, and I was upset when I couldn't get them on the initial release date. Thank goodness she restocked, because these little tubes are so cute and include three brand new shades.

Left to right: Apricot (new shade), Maliboo, High Maintenance, Posie K, Head Over Heels, Mary Jo K, Valentine liner and lipstick

!!!!!! I could just end today's post with that. We've already touched on why Maliboo is a no for me, but the rest of these colors are to die for. We probably won't see Valentine again, but Kylie has hinted that the other new shades may become regular releases. If they do, I highly recommend picking those up. As for Maliboo, Posie K, and Mary Jo K, those are already part of the regular color selection, so grab them if you like the shades! Just a reminder, the full size lipkits also come with a liner. 

What are your thoughts on Kylie's Valentine's Collection? Leave me a comment!

Thanks for reading 💕 

Kylie Cosmetics: The Valetine's Collection

Kylie wearing "High Maintenance"

 

Who else is excited about Kylie's Valentine's Collection? I love the campaign, and I'm pumped about the addition of so many pink shades. 

We have 3 pink (or close to pink) permanent shades out of the 23 matte lip kits available: Koko K, Posie K, and Kristen. She's teased us with limited edition shades, like Angel from the Holiday Collection, Okurrr from the Koko Kollection, and let's not forget Smile. Now, not only is she releasing 4 new lipsticks, but we're also getting a huge palette with eye shadows and blushes, and 3 "Valentines" that include two eye shadows and two lip products. 

 

I will have to wait for reviews on the eye products, especially after the bad reviews on the King Peach palette. But I will be after the lip sticks!

 

The miniatures were a huge hit in her Holiday Collection, and I'm so glad she's included them for Valentine's Day. Here are the colors:

• Apricot (new shade)
• Maliboo
• High Maintenance (new shade)
• Posie K
• Head Over Heels (new shade)
• Mary Jo

Let's not forget those two new lipkits! Head Over Heels from the minis will be released as a full size, and so will a gorgeous true pink shade called Valentine. All of these come out at 3pm PST on February 2nd, perfect for shipping in time for the holiday.

Kylie wearing "Head Over Heels"

What do you guys think of the new releases? Will you buy into the hype?