Etude House Bubble Hair Coloring: No.4 Wine Red

I recently reviewed Etude House's No.7 Mocha Pink Bubble Hair Color. That time the dyeing experience was wonderful, but the color was less than wonderful. This time, the dyeing experience was puzzling, but the color is tolerable.

The way the Mocha Pink was fading was very unattractive. There were strange streaks in my hair and the back had a darker patch. I decided to try the Wine Red out. As Tabitha says on Tabitha's Salon Takeover- Color removes color. Hopefully this does something for my hair color.

Last time I said the bottle doesn't fit in the hole that the box has. This is an illustration of what I meant.

The color is a bit darker than last time (I'm scared!).

The dye turned purple! A promising color.

I must have done something wrong mixing the color this time. The bubbles were very runny- barely any bubbles. Last time I said I had the best application yet. This time was the messiest application yet. Dye was splashed all over my bathroom. I was thinking "Good thing it didn't get on the white towels", looked closer and yep, saw dye on the towels -___-. If you wash it off quickly, it comes off.

Don't be fooled, the dye stains very orange. My floor can attest to that.

The results? Well I didn't put the dye on too long this time. Maybe 15-20 minutes? Then I tried my best to get as much dye out as possible. I even shampooed this time. Huh. The shampoo made my hair silkier immediately. The hair must have been so damaged that anything added makes your hair feel nicer. Then I used the Sebatian conditioner which stripped out more color. Finally, I finished with the silk treatment in the box. Wow, it really makes it so much silkier. 

Haha, oops, guess I didn't cover everything well (no bubbles, couldn't really treat it like shampooing experience), because some areas along my part (~.5cm) are undyed.

Before:

After Dyeing:

At least it's not so dark this time =), and there is a reddish sheen. If I left it on longer, there would probably been a more intense red color.

'Til next time!

Review: Zoya Limited Edition Gilty Pleasures Set

It finally arrived today!! Along with a cute little bottle of Remover+. This is perfect because I've always wanted to try it, but since I buy when there's promos, this is never included.

The set comes in a plastic sealed box. It looks like how you would see it in a store or something, lol.

After you take off the outer paper box, the gift box is inside. Mine has a few scratches, but I'm not too upset. They'd be there sooner or later anyways.

The box closes via magnet, which is quite nifty. The set comes with a little pamphlet on the set and what other colors you can pair it with. Truthfully, I wish they would let you pick which other two colors you wanted to put in the set. There is a swatch of Purity, Frida, and Gilty that I thought would be cute for Easter.

Apologies for the messy swatches, had to do them with non-dominate hand since hangnails have resulted in me being declawed. >_<

Raven: A black with silver shimmer. I was afraid there would be too much silver, making this a more gray color, but that isn't the case at all. The silver shimmers are barely noticeable.

Purity: It reminds me of heavy cream. That's the first thing I thought of when I opened this. It is pretty opaque, but there are some bare spots which can be concealed with a second coat.

Both Raven and Purity are actually quite thick formula wise for some reason. I put Zoya's Gaia on top of Purity (long been saying that I needed an opaque basecoat under Gaia), but the effect is barely noticeable.

Below (left to right): Raven, Purity, Purity+ Gaia

Below: Closeup of Raven.

Below: Closeup of Purity + Gaia

Gilty on top of Raven doesn't look that impressive in the photo, but in real life it is quite stunning. This is one of the cases where photos don't do the swatch justice. The effect is elegant and ornate. It works as a more chic version of Halloween colors too. White looks good on some people, I am not one of those people, lol.

Remover+ works pretty well. It smells slightly of lavender? I used it to clean up after making a mess with superglue (broke camera and had to fix it T-T).

What other colors would be good under Gilty? Drop some ideas below!

Slice of My Life: Awesome Day!

Thank you so much Birchbox for an awesome day!

     For starters I used the Liqwd Silk conditioner in the October Birchbox, and my damaged, tangled, frizzy hair became completely smooth and silky. There were only minimal stray hairs, and no excess volume. I honestly believe this was what formed the basis of my great day. For the few weeks prior, I've been struggling with my hair which suddenly became extremely frizzy and unmanageable. Today, I strutted around like I owned the world- not having to worry about such things.

     I had overslept (stayed up til 3 am trying to alter a pair of pants. Didn't hear my alarm), so the morning was filled with rushing. Didn't even have to worry about the hair. Put together an outfit (just finished altering the cowl? neck to be higher and less scandalous last night X_X).

     Harvey Prince's Eau Flirt (also from October BB) was barely on before I was out the door. For some reason this scent just jives with me. It says it's supposed to flirt for you and attract men and all, but it's me that's constantly sniffing instead, haha. I'm quite manly sometimes, so maybe it appeals to my mannish side >.>  As the day progressed, I just found myself feeling quite fabulous and powerful. It must be this perfume. There is no other explanation. There was no particular event that made this an awesome day, I was just feeling confident and fabulous in general.

     Of course little things did go wrong, like they always do in life, but it was like I couldn't be phased (just because of some conditioner and perfume, ha!). Because I was running late, I missed the Sunday school class on Ecclesiastes for the second week in a row. That was particularly upsetting since it's a class I look forward to, but what can you do.

     Later we went out to eat pho and when we got back to church a friend and I stood outside chatting for a little long while. This is where my little joke about the Harvey Prince Eau Flirt perfume comes in. As we are chatting, someone meanders over from far away and comes to introduce himself. Hey hey! You never know, it could be that little bits of the perfume wafted over in that direction XD. Perhaps it's my overabundance of charm? *strokes imaginary beard* muahahaha! Just kidding. This one has no charm, lol. (pst, it's nice shaking hands with some else who has a firm handshake. Most people just present the old lady or limp fish hand, and that is an awkward shaking experience). He asked if I had been to the church before since he had seen me around a couple times before. Lol, I've pretty much been going almost every single week for 10 years- if you haven't seen me around then it's strange.

     We then all migrated over to another small group. As we were walking, he complimented my friend and me on our shoes. I don't know about you all, but that just immediately seems strange to me. There's something about that that just isn't normal for everyday life, haha. Anyways, I could feel that my eyeliner was about at the end of its life, so I asked my friend if it had smudged yet. She told me no. When I got back in my car, it was like a Halloween monster was staring back. The eyeliner had smudged down into some scary form X_X. When you ask people if your eyeliner's smudged, make sure it's someone that's not afraid to tell it like it is. Not only that, but I had a small booger in my nostril X_X. Total embarrassment and shame. True, I am kind of sick, so my nose was running the whole day, but please let me know ahead of time so I don't embarrass myself.

     Or maybe you would rather not have people comment if you have something embarrassing going on? If you had a booger sticking out, toilet paper on your shoe, clothes inside out, or something else going on, would you want someone to tell you (discreetly of course) or would your rather they pretend they don't see it? My thing is, if you don't tell me beforehand as a friend, then I end up looking like a fool in front of random other people.

     Anyone have any good recommendations for good eyeliners that stay put? Pretty much no pencil eyeliner works for me, gel is what has stuck on the longest. Unfortunately my eyes adjust and become even oilier = smudged liner. I've tried coastal scents, Tony Moly, L'oreal HiP, and Inglot. Right now I'm using Inglot. Inglot and L'oreal HiP have been what I find to stay on longest.

Still, even with all the above going on it feels like a pretty nice day =D.
I also took off the youthful Nova and replaced it with Zoya's more grown up Marina. Which I'm wearing for the very first time. Yay!

And a pic. It looks better in real life (or maybe just in my head =P). I'm not photogenic, and there is random stuff on my mirror.

'Til next time!

Birchbox: October 2012

Considering that lavender is my favorite color and I love Essie, you can understand my disappointment in not getting an email to opt- in for the Supergoop box. Ah well, read a lot of unhappy comments about the Goop boxes. I was a bit meh when I found out what was in my box, but it turns out this is a pretty great box! Even if the box image was literally just the box. Are they becoming lazy now?

And to top it off, this box lead me to having one of the best days in a long time! Keep reading to find out more =D.

This time the names of the products are direct links to their page on BB, so you can click for more info =).

Harvey Prince Eau Flirt - Lavender Pumpkin- It combines pumpkin and lavender, two seemingly ill-matched notes that have been clinically proven to spur passionate reactions in men. Olfactory theory aside, we love the combination of seductive jasmine and freesia with sumptuous nutmeg, cinnamon, and amber.

• Stand aside while I profess my love for BB. THANK YOU SO MUCH for introducing this product to me!
• Sample is twice the size of normal vials, maybe 2 ml?
• Both me and a friend agree, it doesn't smell anything like pumpkins, and I don't really smell the lavender.
• It has a slightly sweet fragrance reminding me strangely of bubble gum, but it's not overly sweet, just enough. Then I'm hit with a potpourri scent. It's so strange, these really don't seem like scents that should work together, and yet somehow they do. The cranberry toner I got in Sample Society's box a couple months back smelled of potpourri too, but not the kind that I would want to put on my face. This one's sweet overlying scent makes me want to eat it. It could just be the jasmine that's making me go crazy. Jasmine is one of those scents I find extremely addicting and alluring.
• Now, let's talk about the scent's theme. It claims to make you feel flirty and fabulous. UH, did they put some kind of pheromones in here?? I went around the whole day on cloud 9, feeling absolutely fantabulous! It wasn't even because of anything that happened; I just felt great for no reason. And no, I'm not susceptible to marketing placebo brainwashing effect (unless it's pictures of food...)
• A perfume that flirts for you? that is clinically proven to attract men with its wickedly irresistible fragrance? Well I don't know about all that, but out of the blue, I managed to hook someone from over 100 feet away. Haha maybe it's not just the perfume. More on this in my next Slice of Life post ;P. 
• The scent wears thin towards the end of 10 hours, but that's pretty good.
• The whole "Irresistibly wicked" thing is so perfect for October. Just for kicks, I'll wear this scent when we go pumpkin picking. It's totally the jasmine that's carrying this together. Jasmine is one of those scents with a twist and mystery. Great job this month BB!
• Too bad it's so expensive >.<, BB couldn't you give a bigger sample? ahhh need more BB points. People help me! Use my referral link please >.<

• Full size 100 ml $98, sample size? (~2 ml?) worth ~$2

theBalm® cosmetics Mary-Lou Manizer- this versatile luminizer imparts a soft-focus glow wherever we choose to apply it. Light-reflecting silica particles conceal blemishes and fine lines, while the honey color leaves a sheer wash of shimmer.

• For the longest time, my focus was on the "Manizer" part. I couldn't figure out why they would send us a product that would make us more manly.
• It's pretty tiny looking, eyeshadow size. The back is so cute and says "Free sample- not for sale".
• Cover closes via magnet, how neat.
• Mine had a fingerprint in it... can you see? Uh... I really hope that's just from a worker pushing the pan in, and not from someone sampling my sample. ~_~
• The product is very smooth, and goes on nicely. It gives off a golden shimmer effect. The microglitters (shimmers?) are visible, so if that's not your thing, well. This would make a great shimmer eyeshadow as well. My other highlighters are pink in tone, so it's nice to have something different if I wanted to go for more of that "bronze" look.
• Really like this product overall!
• Full size 8.5g $24, sample size 1g worth $2.82

Mox Botanicals Lip Butter

• A harder balm, so it took some rubbing to get enough product to use. This would be ok to put in your car during summer months, I think.
• Smells familiar, maybe like Welch's gummies?
• Does help my chapped lips a bit, not bad =)
• Full size .2 oz $16, sample size.1 oz worth $8

LiQWd The Perfect Wave

• My hair is not wavy, and therefore this was not a necessarily welcomed product. However, as I have appreciated the other items in this box so far, I will wait and give this a fair shot before judging further. Expect a review sometime this week.
• Full size 150ml $22, sample size 7 ml worth $1.02

LiQWd SiLK Professional Deep Conditioning Treatment

• Another excellent product this month!!
• I've tried a lot of conditioners recently from subscription boxes and whatnot, and each has fallen short.  To be honest, I didn't have high hopes for this one, but I was proved brutally wrong.
• My hair is pretty damaged from dying, and less than stellar shampoos. As soon as I applied this product, my hair completely smoothed out. It became so silky. Not only that, but after it was dry, there was minimal frizz. For the past couple weeks, I've been trying so hard to tame this suddenly unmanageable hair, and this conditioner just handled everything perfectly. I literally woke up, brushed my hair quickly, and was out the door.
• This product is definitely what I attribute my great day too. I just felt so free and awesome that I didn't have to worry about my hair. More on how it made my day day in the next Slice of Life post. ^^
• People complain about these packet samples. I don't really see the difference between having this in a foil packet and a little squeeze tube. Except the squeeze tube might be easier to open in the shower.
• Full size 120 ml $24, sample size 7 ml worth $1.40

Mighty Leaf Tea - Tea Pouches

• Everytime I get tea samples, I do a mental groan. Not that I don't drink tea, I do occasionally  but c'mon. Since I was so pleased with the rest of the box, I decided to try the tea out anyways. 
• The first is Organic African Nectar because I tend to dislike Earl Grey, and I already know what green tea tastes like. The bag is so elegant looking o_O. It's supposed to be mango/ vanilla. It smells kinda like funky herbs and cough syrup. Barely perceptible sweetness (maybe just the water =X). This one's not for me.

• The rest I shall try out during the week. Expect this post to be updated by next week.
• 15 pouches $9.95, sample size 3 pouches worth $1.99

Overall box value: ~$17.23

Very pleased this month and feeling like $10 well spent ^^.

******************

In other news, made my first order from Birchbox.com. I figured it'd be best to use up my points before the first 30 expire. They were having a 20% off promo too~ I got the Shu Uemura Shampoo Oil that I've been wanting. I also googled all over the place trying to see if the unused amounts are lost. Turns out they are. What does that mean? It means I had $50 to spend, but only had $47 worth of product. Since there isn't anything $3, or less, I didn't add any other items. Thus, that $3 was lost. $3 = 30 points. Lol, I needn't have worried about trying to save the points in the first place. It wasn't meant to be.

Zoya Nova!

Hihi,

     This isn't a major post. I just wanted to share a photo with you all. I looked down and noticed that my skirt matched my toes =). 'Tis Zoya's Nova. More photos and review of Nova HERE.

Sample Society: October 2012

Back on the regular delivery schedule, yes! This is going to be a more brief post.

1. Oscar Blandi Pronto Wet Shampoo

• Sizeable, smells of lemons/ citrus, transparent orange.
• Many volumizing shampoos work by stripping your hair of most things so that it is lighter, and gives more "volume". That's exactly how this one works. Hair was stripped within a millimeter of its life. It went back to the super damaged feeling that I got right after rinsing hair dye out. This is supposed to help protect color? I don't think so. A good amount of hair dye was stripped out. In this case, it's ok because I've been saying this time it was dyed too dark.
• Even with heavy conditioning, the next morning my hair wasn't as healthy, and was super frizzy. Even an hour of fiddling with it couldn't tame it. I was going to use the Shu Uemura Shampoo Oil I just got (thanks Birchbox!), but thought to use this and review instead. BIG MISTAKE. Ended up going to my interview with the most dreadful hair! >.<
• HATE THIS.

2. Erno Laszlo Phormula 3-9 Balm- Rich Repairative Moisturizer Smooth scars, wounds, burns, and dry skin with this intensive nourishing balm. Dryness, redness and puffiness are effectively treated beneath the balm's protective Health Dome. Skin is strengthened while irritation is reduced.

• Thick texture, unscented, maybe a little less dryer? It's hard to test the long term effects with so little.

3. Jane Iredale Tantasia Self Tanner

• Smells lightly of lemons. I have no desire to tan, so maybe one of you can tell us how it is. It seems like a product many will use in the winter to keep their color.

4. Kate Somerville ExfoliKate Intensive 

• Green, minty, lots of particles for exfoliation, and something that I have reviewed previously (I think? Somewhere?). You only need a little bit. I really liked the product and am happy to have a larger amount ^^

5. Aromachology Clean & Fresh Eau De Parfum

• O.M.G, my nose is in pain X_X, Smells like laundry/ Febreeze. If you like the stuff, then this is the product for you. To me, it seems like something that should be sprayed on clothes instead. I personally hate Febreeze, so I'll pass. VERY STRONGLY SCENTED.

6. Herban Essentials Lavender Towelette

• Will throw in bag and let you know how it is after I use it =D

And that's it for this month. Given a choice I might have passed on this box, but they can't all be superstar boxes ;)