Kat Von D Star Kissed Lipstick Set

This set retails from Sephora for $28.50.  I received mine as a Christmas gift. I'm excited to try these out because these are my first lipsticks from this line. It contains six shades of lipstick weighing 0.042 oz. There are three shades from the Painted Love formula and three from the Foiled Love. The full size versions retail for $19 and contain .11 oz of product. That seems a tad bit pricey to me. So this set is definitely the economical route to go.

The exuberant, high-pigment formulas paint lips with brilliant color and finish with a matte or metallic effect. Natural moisturizers and anti-aging properties keep lips healthy and promise comfortable, long-lasting wear. “A shade for every occasion.” —Kat Von D

Looks like foam but it's black velour

L to R : Rosary, Lolita, Underage Red, Beranice, Forever & Never, and Valentine

Rosary & Lolita

Rosary is a dark berry/burgundy red. Lolita is a peachy/pink color. They describe it as "dusty rose."

Rosary & Lolita Swatched

Underage Love & Bernaice

 Underage Red is a true red. It photographed very orange for some reason. It is pretty similar to MAC's Ruby Woo but is creamy. Beranice is a dark shimmery pink. They describe it as "metallic poppy red." It looks more pink to me. I'll have to see how it wears.

Underage Love & Beranice Swatched

Forever & Never and Valentine

Forever & Never is a shimmery nude. It's described as a metallic peach which seems pretty accurate to me. Valentine is a shimmery pink. These two are the most sheer out of the six. I had to swipe Valentine four times for the swatch below. Forever & Never I swiped twice. Everything else I swatched in one go.

Forever & Never and Valentine Swatched

Star Kissed Lipstick Set Swatched: Rosary, Lolita, Underage Red, Beranice, Forever & Never, and Valentine

 I have to agree that there is a shade for every occasion! Have you tried any of the Kat Von D lipsticks? What's your favorite?

January Sample Society

Normally I don't look at any spoilers for Sample Society but now that there are different box variations, I decided to peek this month. One of the things I used to love about Sample Society was that everyone got the same contents. This month I got Kit C. I was a little bummed about it. I was hoping for the box with the Snowberry Day & Night creams. So when I got my box I wasn't really all that jazzed about it. 

• Sue Devitt Lip Enhancing Gloss in Coral Sands Full Size .15 oz (Retail $22) Fine lines and wrinkles are smoothed out as collagen production picks up the pace. This gloss is formulated to leave lips hydrated, with a flattering shine and sheer wash of color. This gloss is definitely moisturizing and very glossy. It has a good texture and is fairly long lasting. The color is actually pretty flattering on me.
• Nicole Richie Fragrance Eau de Parfum Perfume Vial (Full Size Retail 3.4 oz $69) Blackberry, Seville Orange, Moroccan Rose, Lily of the Valley, Golden Amber, Papyrus, Cashmere Woods, Australian Sandalwood, Sugared Patchouli, Vanilla Absolute. I don't hate this perfume but I don't love it either. I like it better than some of the other perfumes I've gotten in previous boxes but I don't think I'll be wearing it.
• By Terry Clarte De Rose Firming Radiant-Lift Eye Serum  Deluxe Sample 4 ml (Full Size Retail 15ml $81)  Combat fine lines and puffiness with 46 potent ingredients, including black rose concentrate and extra-smooth rose bio-cells. Minimize and erase signs of fatigue. I don't mind eye creams because I'm still on the search for my HG eye cream. I also noticed I'm starting to get some very fine lines in the eye area. I haven't been using this long enough to see any improvement. I might be able to get a few more uses out of the tube.
• StriVectin SD Instant Retexturizing Scrub Deluxe Sample 1 oz (Full Size Retail 5 fl oz. $49)  This effective exfoliator removes dry skin cells, smooths rough areas and improves skin texture and tone to promote skin health and luminosity. Polishes and primes skin for optimal performance of treatment products. Free of parabens, synthetic fragrances, synthetic dyes, petrochemicals. I love StriVectin products but since I got my Clarisonic I don't really use scrubs and the like for exfoliation  It works well enough though.
• Lord & Berry Silk Kajal Eye Pencil in Black Full Size? (Retail Value $15) Just like the traditional Kohl, but with modern ease and control of a pencil. Giving a semi-matte finish that is also smudgeable, SILK KAJAL KOHL's soft tip is ophthalmologically-tested and gentle enough to be used on the inner eye. Suitable for the most sensitive eyes, extremely comfortable. I couldn't find a description of the full size version to know if this truly full size. If it's not, it's darn close. I'm actually excited about this even though it's another black eyeliner. I don't have a kohl liner. There's a look in Making Faces where Kevyn Aucion used kohl and I'd like to try to duplicate it.
• Pantene AgeDefy Advanced Thickening Treatment bonus item 50ml Thickens existing hair, so it's as if you have up to 6.500 more hair strands.  I believe this was an Allure beauty breakthrough for the year. I naturally have lots of thick hair (don't hate my nails don't grow well see everything has a balance) and spend a hefty chunk of change getting it layered so it doesn't weigh me down and cause headaches. So this is going straight to my trade pile. I appreciate the extra item though.

This box was a little hit and miss for me I like the gloss and eyeliner and two of the items I'll try to trade. I'm indifferent about the StriVectin. I still think that Sample Society is a great sub service though. You actually get samples large enough to test a product. 

Second MUA Haul

When MUA Cosmetics  had their recent 35% off everything with free shipping sale, I jumped at the chance to get my hands a few products from my wishlist. Not quite as big as my last haul from MUA. Everything was still under $20. YAY

• Blush Perfection Cream Blush in Bittersweet I love cream blushes so I had to snag one of the new ones from MUA. I haven't had a chance to try this out yet.
• Shimmer Kiss Blusher in Pink Shimmer Kisses This gives a very sheer amount of color. This would work well for a highlight or layered a little bit more if you want just a bit of a pink glow to the cheeks.
• Bronzed Perfection I don't attempt to contour much because it's so hard to find a good color for those of us that are pale and cool toned. Hannah over at Midnight Violets  posted a review about this awhile ago. It looked like it might actually work for me. This thing is huge too. 
• Lip Liner in Red Drama I really don't like the red lip liner I have now. I like that this has a sharpener in the lid. I believe I read about this on Midnight Violets as well. 
• Brow Kit I've been slightly obsessed with brow kits and brow products lately. I was so excited when MUA released this. It was at the top of my wishlist. This has three colors and a brow gel. It also features a built in mirror and comes with a small pair of tweezers and a double ended angle brush.  
• Heaven and Earth Palette I already have one of these and I LOVE it! I bought this second one for my upcoming giveaway.

Unfortunately you can't get MUA products in the US. So like them on Facebook and look for sales. I got free shipping on this order but I've priced out orders before and they are still fairly reasonable. It just takes a little bit longer to get here but I haven't had any issues with either of my orders. Not sure what to order? I can't recommend  Midnight Violets  enough. She really is my go to for MUA reviews. Did you pick up anything from the last sale?

In 2013 I Want To....

Well 2012 certainly went by fast and I can't really say I'm sad to see it go. I was really not healthy from late 2011 until late 2012. In 2012 I started my blog, had an organ removed, switched jobs, performed three different choreographies (one of which was a solo), and my closest friend moved to another state. So there was a lot going on and at times it felt out of control.

Now that I'm once again feeling well and like my old self it's time to get back on track. I hate to use the word resolution. I prefer making life changes. I don't plan to change my everything over night but I have a better vision of the path to get to where I want to be. I'm embracing the New Year with a positive outlook for sure. This year I want to:

• Dance as much as possible. I'm already doing my best at this. I'm about to start another choreography workshop on Wednesday. Currently rehearsing two different dances and going to class as much as possible. So right now I'm pulling 3-5 hours of dance. I'd like to keep it around that level.
• Get serious about cutting my spending and saving more. Doing pretty good at this as well. I've cut my beauty subs down to one (Sample Society and even that is on probation). I cancelled my DirecTV. When I looked at how much I was spending on TV yearly I was like "That's a trip home and a new costume!" I like TV but not that much. Besides it leaves me more time to take care of the other things on this list. My biggest problem right now is picking up take out.
• Learn Arabic. Yep that's right. Learn Arabic. Just about everything I dance to is in Arabic. I'd like to be able to understand it. Granted I do my research and our teacher is great about explaining what the song is about and when it was written and all that but it's not the same. Besides learning is never a waste. My Mom sent me Your First 100 Words in Arabic from my Amazon wishlist last Christmas and I never got serious about studying. Now I'm devoting time every day to work on it. Right now I'm learning words for things from around the home so I have my flash cards taped up all over the house. Next week I think I'm going to advance to trying to remember what they are just based on the Arabic not the transliteration. Wish me luck! I'd also like to work in some tutoring.

• Lose Weight. I'm sure this is on most lists. After my surgery I gained twenty pounds or so. That has to go! I need to start making a meal plan. I also plan on buying my own elliptical. If I spend money on something, I'll use it because I don't like to be wasteful. This will also remove the "but I don't wanna go to the gym" excuse. I'm thinking I might have to do something pretty drastic for me and that is get up earlier. I'm not a morning person but I have a day job. I still sleep as late as possible but I think I need to start working out in the morning. It's too easy for me to get stuck at the office or just be like "I'm too tired." in the evening. I adhere to my morning routine very strictly. So if I start slowly altering my morning routine to include working out, I believe I can be successful.

I know it's weird that "Blog More" isn't on my list.I never started this blog with the intention of gaining thousands of followers and quitting my day job. It's something I enjoy doing and I'm glad ya'll read it but if I'm going to be honest here, it's not one of my top priorities right now.  I'd like to get more organized about what posts I want to make and try to get more reviews and things done. I do plan on working a new camera into the budget somewhere as well. Mine is seriously ready to put out to pasture. Oh and I'm putting together stuff for my blog's one year birthday which is coming up very soon.  

What are your goals for 2013?

Christmas 2012 Haul

I know people are already posting their New Year's Resolutions and I'm just now getting around to posting my Christmas gifts. I'm a busy girl :) Thanks to my family for these great gifts. I finally decided to try out BeautySets since my camera really is on its last leg and we keep having overcast days.

Christmas 2012 Haul
with Style Eyes, Benefit Cosmetics, Kat Von D