Amazing Eyeshadow Palette Under $5

I don't know why on earth it took me so long to spend all of $5 on the Wet n Wild Color Icon Eyeshadow Palette in Comfort Zone.  Maybe it's because I have too much eyeshadow as it is, but when I finally tried this palette, I was blown away.  I can totally see what all the hype is about. 

This is what you get for $5:

 

 The eight shades that come in the palette are all stunning.  They allow you to create a more natural, everyday look but also give you the option to do a more intense smokey eye.  The colors are labeled "browbone," "eyelid," "crease," and "definer."  If you're a beginner or just have no idea what to do, use those labels as a guide.  The four colors on the left can be used for a more natural look, and the right side can be your dramatic shades.  While the labels can be helpful, don't feel obligated to use the colors just for those purposes.  You could really do ANYTHING with these colors.  I just love how the possibilities are endless, and this palette really allows you to access your creative side. 

Ok, now let's talk about the quality of these shadows.  Considering how this costs $5 for eight eyeshadows, you might just walk right by it at the drugstore and assume it's no good.  Wrong!!  Even though I've heard a lot of people talk about this, I was seriously blown away when I swatched these.  They are SO soft and so pigmented.  A little bit goes a long way with these.  If I didn't know what I was swatching, I'd think it was high-end eyeshadow.  Here's what the colors look like swatched:

 

I used the colors on the left of the palette (on the top of my hand here) for an easy, running errands on the weekend look last Saturday.  Here's what I got:

 

I achieved a very natural look.  If I wanted it to kick it up just slightly, I could have used more of that dark "definer" shade in my outer corner.  Here, I only used a tiny bit.  I focused more on the lid and the crease.  I also used the nice taupe crease color on an angled eyeliner brush on my lower lash line as my eyeliner (I used an eyeliner pencil on my top lashline).

So basically, the point of this post is to let everyone know about this amazing find!  I think everyone should own this product.  It's that good.  This is my first Wet n Wild product, but I would like to try some of their blushes, lipsticks, and bronzers eventually.  Oh and obviously, I'd be interested in trying some of their other eyeshadows. 

Stay tuned for part 2 of this post where I show you how you can use the colors on the right for a smokey look!  And as always, thanks so much for taking a few minutes out of your day to read this.

xoxo,

CC

Beauty Product Samples

October has been an exciting month as far as beauty product samples go.  I would like to thank my Aunt Lynn for signing me up for the QVC Beauty 8-Piece Test Tube and my friend Julie for encouraging me to sign up for Birchbox.  I'll discuss both subscriptions in more detail below.

QVC Beauty Test Tube

The Beauty Test Tube from QVC includes high-end samples for $29.96.  They have new packages every season, and you can sign up for auto delivery.  If you want to check it out on QVC's website, click here.  Mine looked like this:

 

The products shown above include:

• 0.85-fl oz Alterna Bamboo Dry Oil Mist
• 0.16-fl oz Bliss Triple Oxygen Energizing Mask
• 0.07-fl oz philosophy miracle worker retinoid eye repair
• 0.5-fl oz Perricone MD Face Finishing Moisturizer
• 0.34-fl oz Peter Thomas Roth Oilless Oil
• 4-fl oz WEN by Chaz Dean Pomegranate Finishing Treatment Creme

It also came with a NewBeauty Magazine (not pictured) along with a catalog that describes each product and provides instructions on how to use them.

I'm really excited to try these products, especially the Philosophy eye cream and the Bliss face mask.  All these products are high-end, so this subscription is an affordable way to try multiple high-end products before you take a gamble and shell out a bunch of money for the full-sized ones without knowing whether or not you even like them.  The samples are a pretty good size as well--I don't even think the Wen cream is sample-sized--it's huge!

Birchbox

Birchbox is another subscription service that sends high-end samples.  This one is $10/month (you can join on a month-to-month basis or for a year at a discount).  Click here for more info or to sign up.  You'll fill out a questionnaire to personalize your subscription, and not all Birchboxes are the same.  Here was mine for October:

 

Similar to the QVC pamphlet, this subscription includes a card that describes the products and how to use them.  The products I received were:

A ChapStick Hydration Lock lip balm was not listed on this card but was included in my box (and a $1 off coupon!).  I was pleasantly surprised to find no foil packaged samples, as some of the YouTube beauty gurus have mentioned the presence of foil packages in their boxes.  They are all pretty decent-sized samples.  I'm most excited about the lip and cheek stain from the Balm (I've heard so much about that brand), the microdermabrasion treatment by Dr. Brandt, and the nail polish from Ruffian (great color for fall!).  I doubt I'll get much use out of the half-up thing.  Overall, I'm satisfied with my box.

If you have any questions, feel free to leave them below.  Let me know if you try either of these subscriptions (or any others!).

xoxo,

CC

Natural Eye Makeup Remover: Coconut Oil

Recently, I revisited something from which I took a long hiatus: waterproof mascara.  I used to wear waterproof mascara every day.  My lashes are naturally long but very straight, and I found that waterproof mascara did better than normal mascara at holding my curl and making my lashes look amazing all day.  Along with rediscovering my mascara love, I also rediscovered how difficult it is to remove, which is pretty much why I stopped wearing it for so long in the first place.  I did some research and found an interesting solution: coconut oil.

I found my coconut oil at King Soopers for a little under $8.  There were two varieties--extra virgin and regular.  I don't know if one is better than the other, but I opted for the regular one, which was also $2 cheaper. 

 It was more expensive than my eye makeup remover for normal mascara-- Equate Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover (Walmart version of the Neutrogena kind), but I figured it would last forever and that if it didn't work, I could use it for cooking.

One thing you'll notice about this oil is that it's solid at room temperature.  I expected it to have a strong coconut scent, but it really didn't smell like anything.  When I first opened it, it was completely solid with absolutely no liquid in sight.  The directions on the back of the jar say to run the jar under warm water to liquify the product if you're using it for hair or body care.  I didn't run it under water but noticed that the second time I opened the jar (which was right before I used it to remove my eye makeup), a tiny bit of the product on top had melted and turned to liquid. 

I removed my contact lenses prior to attempting to remove my waterproof mascara with this stuff.  I then dipped both of my ring fingers into the product (the more liquidy part, although if yours is solid, the warmth of your fingers should melt it).  I closed my eyes and used my ring fingers to gently rub my eyes in circular motions (the skin around your eyes is very delicate--be careful not to rub too hard!).  Within about 10 seconds, the oil started to break down my eye makeup, and there was soon a large ring of black residue around my eyes.  It was working!  I did open my eyes to check this out, and I didn't experience any stinging or irritation (and I do have sensitive eyes).  I then kept gently rubbing until I felt like most of the eye makeup was removed, then I wiped off the residue with my makeup removing towelettes (I use the Neutrogena Makeup Removing Towelettes). For regular mascara, this is all it should take to completely remove it.  I was testing it with waterproof mascara and noticed that most but not all of my mascara had been removed.  I dipped back into the oil and repeated the process again, and my makeup was completely gone!  I followed up by using the clean part of the makeup wipe to remove my face makeup then by washing my face and doing the rest of the steps in my nighttime skincare routine. 

I was happy with how well this worked.  Even though you may have to repeat the process an extra time for waterproof mascara, it's still faster than it would be with an eye makeup remover.  I felt like it also moisturized the area around my eyes, and it definitely made my lashes look super healthy and conditioned.  I loved the fact that it was so gentle on my eyes--in fact, it's the only eye makeup remover I've ever tried that doesn't sting them at all.  Another benefit is that it's a natural product, and you can use it for different things.  Though I've only used it for removing makeup, I've read that you can use it in your hair as a leave-in conditioner, as a shaving cream, or even as a cheek highlight.  You could probably also use it to moisturize your lips and dry cuticles.

All in all, I give this natural makeup remover two thumbs up!  I think I'll continue to use it on a daily basis, even when I'm wearing non-waterproof mascara.  If you try this, let me know how it goes!