SNEAK PEEK! Space NK Spring Beauty Edit Gift with Purchase!

You all know my love for Space NK, so I am excited to share a sneak peek of their upcoming gift with purchase in the US. 

With a $250 purchase online or in store on 2/19/14, you will receive the following gift bag valued at over $350!  

  • Space NK Cosmetics Bag (exclusive for the Spring Beauty Edit event)
  • African Botanics Neroli Infused Marula Oil (17 ml)
  • Antica Farmacista Prosecco Room Fragrance (25 ml)
  • Bakel THIO-C Revitalizing Glowing Serum (3 ml)
  • Bumble & bumble Thickening Hairspray (1 oz)
  • Caudalie Vinoperfect Serum (10 ml)
  • Darphin Hydraskin Light (15 ml)
  • Diptyque Volutes Eau de Toilette (12 ml)
  • Goldfaden MD Bright Eyes (5 ml)
  • Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer (5 ml)
  • Kevyn Aucoin Essential Mascara (.13 fl oz)
  • Life NK Daily Fix Body Lotion (50 ml)
  • Mio Skincare The Activist (30 ml)
  • Natura Bissé The Cure Sheer Eye (2 ml) 
  • NIA24 Gentle Cleansing Cream (1 oz)
  • Oribe Masque for Beautiful Color (1.7 oz)
  • Philip B African Shea Butter Shampoo or Peppermint Shampoo (2 fl oz)
  • Radical Skincare Youth Infusion Serum (8 ml)
  • Rahua Conditioner (2 oz)
  • Ren Glycol Lactic Radiance Mask (15 ml)
  • Rococo Nail Apparel Nail Polish Remover Tissues (full size)
  • Rodial Super Food Day Cream (5 ml)
  • Sai-Sei Mineral Loofah Body Polish Soap (full size)
  • Sunday Riley Artemis Hydro-Active Face Oil (3 ml)
  • Wei Dragon Blood Eye Lifting Pad (single use)
  • Zelens Transformer Instant Renewal Mask (5 ml)

If you have a Space NK store near you, you can book an appointment for a makeover or consultation on February 19th. Otherwise, online shoppers can indulge too. (When I ordered online during the fall event, I got even more samples than what was listed, which was a happy surprise!) 

Will you be indulging in the Space NK Spring Beauty Edit event? I'd love to know what is on your wishlist! :)

Products That Didn't Work For Me, #7

I've always been a bit obsessed with trying new things, and inevitably that means some products don't end up working for me. For the most part, these disappointing products are good ones, but they're just not quite right for me. Check out my previous posts in this category here.

*Affiliate Links

Chanel Rouge Double Intensite in Pink Twist
This shade was in the Spring collection and did not arrive at counters with the rest of the collection. I ordered it sight unseen, and the color was just appalling on me. This pale peachy pink is full of glitter, and it just looked terrible on my dryness prone lips. Back to the store it goes!

Burberry Eye Definer in Midnight Black
Gummy gifted me this and I want to love it so badly. I love the liner's unique shape (it's rectangular!) and how precise a point it comes to. It is a very natural black, but unfortunately my Asian eyes are no match for it. It is smudgy & creasy on me, which is sad. However, if you don't have monolids/hooded eyes this may work very well for you. The precise point allows me to get a very fine line and I can get this liner very nicely in between my lashes - it may work great for you!

L'Oreal Infallible Silkissime Eyeliner in Carbon
I randomly bought this during a visit to Ulta, and while it goes on very smoothly and appears glossy and nice, I didn't love this in the end. I've been having a problem with migrating shimmers in some of my eye makeup, and the fine silver shimmers in this black liner just got on my lashes and all around my eye. The liner does crease some on me, but at it doesn't smudge! I think this is another liner that may be great for others too. 

Soap & Glory Hand Food
I picked up this hand cream on a whim to try something new and it is a decently moisturizing hand cream. It has a floral and sweet scent that I attribute to the marshmallow oil, but unfortunately I find the scent to stick around and bother me. I'm very particular about scents, and this one is just a bit too artificial for my liking. If you're on the hunt for a hand cream though, it wouldn't hurt to give this a try! 

In the end, I plan to take all of these products back and save my pennies for something else. Have you tried any of these products? How did they fare for you? Did any products disappoint you these last few weeks? I'd love to know!

Instead of Roses... Beauty Gifts for Valentine's Day ♥

I've never been one for flowers - yes, they are pretty and I do like getting them, but I'm one of those girls who can't even manage to properly put them in a vase. And even if I manage to put them in a vase before it is too late, flowers don't last forever. Products do! (Sort of.) 

I'm all for a beauty gift that I can use everyday, so I've put together this collection of pink and rose themed items that have been on my radar lately. I think they're the perfect Valentine's Day gift(s) to brighten your favorite gal pal's day, or perhaps you just have to leave this list around for your significant other to see...

L-R: Diptyque Rosamundi Candle, Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush in Radiant Magenta, Dior Addict Lip Gloss in Exquise, Boscia Tsubaki Deep Hydration Sleeping Mask, Nars Velvet Gloss Pencil in Mexican Rose, Nars Satin Lip Pencil in Luxembourg, Lush L…

L-R: Diptyque Rosamundi Candle, Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush in Radiant Magenta, Dior Addict Lip Gloss in Exquise, Boscia Tsubaki Deep Hydration Sleeping Mask, Nars Velvet Gloss Pencil in Mexican Rose, Nars Satin Lip Pencil in Luxembourg, Lush Love Locket Bath Bomb*, Givenchy Le Rouge Lipstick in Fuschia Irresistible, Lush The Kiss Lip Gloss*, Balenciaga Rosabotanica

*PR Samples, Affiliate Links

Diptyque Rosamundi Candle
Diptyque's limited edition re-release for Valentine's Day is seriously dreamy. Blended to smell like my favorite Diptyque Eau Rose perfume, Rosamundi is a seriously pretty candle that I'm going to savor to the last drop.

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush in Radiant Magenta
Any fan of new beauty releases will be excited to find this new Hourglass offering in her Valentine's gift. Radiant Magenta isn't quite as magenta as I hoped, and while my first impressions aren't out of this world, it IS a nice blush. (Full review of this and Diffused Heat coming soon.)  

Dior Addict Lip Gloss in Exquise
For the girl that loves pink, you can't go wrong with this pretty pink gloss from Dior's spring collection. Click here to read my review! 

Boscia Tsubaki Deep Hydration Sleeping Mask
I was drawn in by the packaging but I am just loving this overnight hydration mask from Boscia. Everyone needs a little extra hydration with that cold weather we've been having!

Nars Velvet Gloss Pencil in Mexican Rose & Satin Lip Pencil in Luxembourg
These little pencils have been siting in my stash a while until I discovered how gorgeous they are worn together! Mexican Rose brings a bit of gloss and moisture to the satiny Luxembourg. And that they're close in color make it the perfect pair! But if you can't have both and you want fully opaque fucshia-red, go for the Satin Lip Pencil in Luxembourg! 

Lush Love Locket Bath Bomb*
This huge Lush bath bomb smells a whole lot like classic Lush scents to me - full of jasmine, neroli and vanilla. Break it up for use in up to 3 baths! This bomb has paper hearts in the outer layer and red hearts in the center, and its luxurious oils make this bath quite comforting!  

Givenchy Le Rouge Lipstick in Fuschia Irresistible
I've been eyeing the Le Rouge lineup for quite some time and could never settle on the shade. Right around the time that Tiffany posted about her love for this lipstick, I decided to make up my mind already and go with this one! I think it may just be the perfect fuschia red (and surprisingly not terribly different from the limited edition Tom Ford Aphrodisiac) that is creamy, long-wearing, and just perfectly lovely. Plus, I can't get enough of the leather embossed packaging and that cute little accent stud! 

Lush The Kiss Lip Gloss*
This vegan lip gloss is full of moisturizing ingredients - agave syrup, mandarin oil, and almond oil - that create a creamy almost whipped texture. It isn't too high shine, and even has a natural lip plumper in it! Now I can't say if the lip plumper works (I didn't even realize that was a feature until just now!) but I love how this lip gloss is a much better version of cherry Chapstick! 

Balenciaga Rosabotanica (deluxe sample)
When I saw this, I snatched up this mini of Rosabotanica (thanks to Gummy!) in a newly released Sephora 500 point perk which is currently available online at Sephora. I am loving this new scent, a more rosy Florabotanica with such a fresh and clean drydown that I can't get enough of.

What do you guys think about this selection of pink and rose themed products? Are any of these on your wish list? I'd love to know! :) 

Bite Beauty Lip Lab: Custom Lipstick Experience

When I was in NYC, I was itching to visit the Bite Beauty Lip Lab in Soho. I was desperate to custom blend my own lipstick, even if I wasn't sure what color I even wanted! 

They don't take appointments, so going on a weekend might be kind of iffy. I first visited the shop on a Sunday afternoon an hour before they closed, and I wasn't able to sit down for a custom lipstick. However, when I visited around 3pm on a Wednesday, the shop was empty and we were able to get to work! 

Bite Custom Lipstick Options: Matte, Luminous Creme, Sheer, & Creme Deluxe

Bite Custom Lipstick Options: Matte, Luminous Creme, Sheer, & Creme Deluxe

First, the friendly SA and I discussed what sort of color I was looking for (an everyday pink) and then she showed me the lipstick formulas that were available. In the photo above, you can see the same shade in the four different options available. Matte, Luminous Creme (which is the formula sold at Sephora), Sheer, and Creme Deluxe. The first three formulas are $36, while the Creme Deluxe formula is $48. I chose Creme Deluxe because I loved how thick and smooth it felt going on, and it seemed to be the most moisturizing. The SA confirmed that it was their most moisturizing and long wearing formula! 

Once I decided on my formula, it was time to get mixing! The SA and I both picked out some shade options to play with, which you can see opened and lined up in the photos above. (Click to enlarge)

I have to say that the outcome really depends on how well you can describe what you want. The SA first mixed up a peachy pink nude, and I quite liked the shade. I wanted to try on something with a bit more pink, so the middle mixture was born. In the end, "the one" was a shade in between the two mixtures. 

This whole decision process took about 15-20 minutes for us to complete, though I can imagine if you had a lot of questions or were very unsure about your shade it could take longer. (During my first visit, there was a group of women who seemed very uncertain about what shades they wanted.) I have to say the SA I worked with seemed very knowledgeable about mixing shades even based on my poor descriptions. :) 

Then it was time to choose a flavor! There were so many varieties to choose from, but I tried to make a quick decision and landed on Mint. The other choices I was deciding on were Wild Berry and Citrus Mango, and there were options like Mango, Violet, Vanilla and Cherry. 

Ingredients on display at Bite Beauty Lip Lab

Naming lipstick & choosing a lid shape!

As the SA was making my lipstick, which took just under 10 minutes, I was given the option to name my new lipstick and pick a fun design for the lid! I thought it was cute that the lid options were various lipstick shapes - I once read a fun article about what your lipstick shade says about you - and I picked the shape that most of my lipsticks seem to end up in! (Click to enlarge)

Here's a shot of what I ended up with! You may have seen this photo in my recent post about my NYC beauty purchases, but I thought I'd share again. I love how they write out your lipstick recipe so you can have it made again! Plus the SA ended up making extra by accident, so she put it in a little pot for me and threw in some cool little samples too!

All in all, I think it was a lot of fun - I wish my friends were able to come with me! I think if I lived there, I would be making colors all the time! What do you think about my Bite Beauty custom lipstick experience? Is this something that you would want to do? :)