Beauty Buy Spotlight: Tarte Pin Up Girl Blush Palette

They've done it again. Tarte released a new blush palette for the holiday season and I HAD TO HAVE IT. Last year, I actually bought the Off The Cuff palette and in a moment of insanity returned it. I spent the rest of the year trying to find it on eBay for a decent price and I couldn't. That's why when I heard they were coming out with a new edition, Pin Up Girl, I needed to be among the first to go buy it.

Last year's palette included 4 blushes and a bronzer, but this year we get five blushes. I can't complain because they are all beautiful. From left to right, the colors are Breathless (pinky beige), Embraced (plummy rose), Whimsy (light pink), Bashful (rosy peach), Irreplaceable (mauve rose).

This palette retails for $42, which is an AMAZING deal considering each of the Amazonian Clay blushes retail for $26. The blushes are not quite full size (a full size is 0.2 oz and each of these are .15 oz), but it's pretty close. The Sephora website lists the value of this palette at $110. Basically, you end up paying about $8 per blush, which is less than most drugstore blushes these days (plus, it includes to really pretty hair pins (picture below). 

Now, I'm not gonna lie, compared to last year's pretty cuff, two hair pins aren't that impressive and I must say they didn't really add any extra incentive for me to go buy the palette. They're pretty and I'll use them, but nothing to go crazy about.

The packaging is another thing I really dislike. It's bulky and generally ugly. In fact, I'll probably remove that gold and purple strap pretty soon. I wasn't crazy about last year's packaging either. However, this one is very sturdy, which means your precious blushes are safe. Overall, it's not the kind of packaging that makes me love the product even more (c'mon, we all know a good packaging can make all the difference). This is not it.

Now, I haven't tried these on my face because I couldn't wait five days to post this, but they swatch amazingly, are very pigmented and smooth. I am familiar with the Amazonian Clay formula, so it's a given they will be long-wearing. By far my favorite thing in this palette is the variety of colors in it. I feel like I could throw out every other blush in my collection and still have a blush for nearly every look just using this palette. 

This is a really great palette for a really good value. I am SO happy I have this in my life. This would make an amazing gift for any makeup lover. I can tell you these will run out fast. My Sephora had received them, but they didn't have it on display so I encourage you to check on the website for availability (or order it online) and get it before they start flying off the shelves. If you wait until the last minute, you won't get one. 

Caliente VoxBox Review

Hi! I received another VoxBox last month, but before I gave my verdict on these products, I wanted to try them out for several weeks. 

1. Rice Krispies Treats Blasted S'mores: Of course, this was the first thing I tried. It was delicious. I actually ended up buying a box of these, but they disappeared so fast that now I'm scared to bring them home. They are super tasty and I definitely recommend them.

2.Hawaiian Tropic Sheer Touch Sunscreen SPF 30: I liked this. It was lightweight and smelled really good. However, I have many other sunscreens with higher SPF and that are easier to apply (spray). I do recommend the product, it's just that it isn't the best out there in the market.

3.Kiss Gel Fantasy: They're not really my style (I found them quite tacky) and I struggled finding the right size for every fingernail. However, they were quite easy to apply and my manicure lasted a lot longer than just painting them. I might try to find another style that better suits my taste.

4.Dove Pure Care Dry Oil: I usually don't enjoy oils, but I enjoyed using this one. You need the tiniest amount, so this will last me a long time. Not sure I would repurchase because I have so many hair products to go through, but this is worth checking out if you're in the market for a new hair oil.

5. Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting BHA Liquid: This is the product that held me back from reviewing this box earlier. It claims to shrink enlarged pores and unclog them in addition to increasing its radiance. It also has a 2% salicylic acid. To be honest, I didn't see any immediate results from this. I've been using it once a day for the past 2 weeks and I still haven't seen a noticeable difference. I guess we'll see if my opinion changes, but so far I wouldn't recommend it.



Stay on the look out for a new post next week! I've been terrible at keeping up with this blog, but I have been posting my favorites over at my Luvocracy page. Check it out!

Viva VoxBox

Ok I got my second VoxBox ever last month and now it's time to review these puppies.

1. Cetaphil Cleansing Cloths: These are pretty good and remove most of my makeup. The packaging is very convenient because they don't dry out easily. I have to use a cleanser after these cloths, so don't assume this will substitute your cleanser (unless you wear no makeup at all)

2. Montagne Jeunesse Peel Off mask (Manuka-Honey): This was not pleasant to put on... I know it says it on the packaging, but it was like putting straight up honey on my face. I felt like a honey biscuit from Church's.  The smell was super strong and offputting. However, it did made my face feel smoother and more radiant, but I have many masks that do that and make for a more pleasurable experience. 

3. Vaseline Spray & Go: My favorite of the bunch. Super convenient to put on when you're in a rush in the morning. It isn't the most moisturizing product ever, but it's great for daytime wear. It absorbs super quickly. 

4. Shell Fuel Rewards Network: I don't have a car so after I activated it, I found no use for it. Seems like a cool concept, though

5. Pure Ice nail polishes: The pink color is pretty, but the glitter is not pretty at all.  The colors are not streaky, but they chip SO quickly...

6. NYC City Proof Twistable Intense Lip Color: I did not expect full-on color from this. This is not a sheer chubby stick. It's super comfortable on the lips and smells sweet. Although it wears off pretty quickly, it does so evenly so you never really look that bad. I prefer less intense lip colors, but if I ever needed a strong punch of color, I'd definitely give this one another go.