butter LONDON Boho Rock Lacquer Collection (Spring 2014)

I decided to purchase the Complete Boho Rock Lacquer Collection from butter LONDON.  This purchase not only came with their 6 spring shades, but it also came with a Boho Rock Wristlet (shown at the end of this post).

Here are some pictures and swatches of the collection (warning - very shiny bottle didn't photograph well):

The order of the colors in these pictures is:

• Trifle
• Lushington
• Lucy in the Sky
• Keen
• Trallop
• Goss

Before I decided to use them, I ended up swatching all of them to see what they looked like outside of the bottle.  I found that they were even better looking than in the bottle.  It is really a great set.

Mixed lighting:

Natural light, partly overcast:

The third one, Lucy in the Sky, could have used another coat, but my swatching standard is 2 coats on these nail cards.  I think 2 coats would work fine on my nails since these nail cards have very long nails that I find are more difficult to paint than my natural nails (but less cleanup afterwards ;)).


More pictures showing appearance of bottles:

The glare on the glass of the first bottle doesn't show how brown the copper color is, but the swatch shows it will.

The bottles were difficult to photograph because they were so shiny.

And the wristlet that I got free with the collection:

I threw the Goss bottle on the wristlet to show the size a little better:

The material is smooth and lightly padded.  The wristlet holds all six bottles of lacquer.

Julep Speckled for Spring Mystery Box with Kimberly

Speckled for Spring Mystery Box with Kimberly (Boho Glam)

March 2014

Since speckled polish has been all the rage for this spring, I ordered one of the Speckled for Spring Mystery Boxes from Julep.  I ordered the one that contained Kimberly, a purple speckled nail polish.  The box was $24.99.

Felicity (green speckled) came out that month for Mavens as an add-on, but disappeared pretty quickly.  This was an opportunity to try a speckled color from Julep so I was pretty excited to get it.  Here is what was in my mystery box:

The box contained the usual paper packing material (easy to recycle!) in gray.

The box came with 6 colors and a mascara:

The mascara is my second Julep mascara.  The brush was different the first time I got the mascara so I kind of blew it off.  After trying it again last week, I am actually really liking the mascara now - especially when I get it in one of these mystery boxes!  The color of the mascara is brown.

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Julep Maven Referral Link, Tips & Promo Code:  http://smartwomanbeauty.blogspot.com/2014/03/julep-maven-promo-code-referral.html

Julep Maven - April 2014 - Vivid Collection Ultimate Upgrade

I loved everything about the April 2014 Julep Maven collection, and my purchase of the (+$55) ultimate upgrade definitely reflects that!  I also added on one color (Brigitte) for $4.99.

The Vivid Collection:

 

Collection with Brigitte added:

The Bronzer & Blush:

With the brushes:

Entire Collection plus Brigitte:

My new colors for my collection:

Colors shown above:

• Brigitte
• Tatum
• Caitlin
• Mariska
• Kayla
• Sunny
• Phoebe
• Flora
• Bailey
• Maren

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Julep Maven Referral Link, Tips & Promo Code:  http://smartwomanbeauty.blogspot.com/2014/03/julep-maven-promo-code-referral.html

 

e.l.f. Beauty Bundle: Pre-Summer Survival Kit (May 2014)

I received my new elf beauty bundle!  This box's theme is Your Pre-Summer Survival Kit!

The box arrived in the usual black box with pink tissue paper, and all but one of the contents (a pink signature bag) was in the e.l.f. beauty bundle drawstring bag.

Here is what the Pre-Summer Survival Kit contained:

• 28-Piece Beach Beauty Palette in Night, $6
• Waterproof Lengthening & Volumizing Mascara in Black, $3
• Baked Highlighter in Moonlight Pearls, $3
• Waterproof Eyeliner Pen in Black, $2
• Mineral Moisturizing Lip Tint in Guava, $3
• High Definition Powder in Shimmer, $6
• Makeup Mist & Set, $3
• SPF 45 Sunscreen UVA/UVB Protection, $6
• Signature Bag in Pink, $8

As advertised and expected, the items total up to $40 in value.

Here is what the inside of the Beauty Book looks like:

 

These last three remain unopened.  I have some mist & set already that I don't use too often but probably should more.  I also have lots of mascara and eyeliner options.  Both of these are waterproof so they will wait until a time when I need some water-resistant makeup.

 

As I was unboxing this kit, I was also packing for a trip to Miami.  What a great place to try it out!  I packed the Suncreen powder and Beauty Book in the Signature Bag with the lip tint and highlighter.  The bag as a section for brushes so I packed some in there and also my eye primer.

The signature bag is much better than I expected.  I had seen it on the website before, but wasn't very interested.  I loved taking it on my trip to Miami - perfect for storing everything you need.  I ended up adding mascara, eyeliner, tweezers, and other odds & ends to this travel set.  I used the SPF powder every day in addition to the beauty book.  I wore neutral colors during the day and put on some of the more fun ones at night.  I also added some of the highlighter although I haven't quite figured out how the baked highlighters will best work for me yet.  I used the lip tint, too, for some added color.

I also tried the shimmer powder (but didn't take it on my trip) and like it a lot!  It is smoothing with the slightest hint of shimmer. 

Overall, a great beauty bundle.  No regrets on this one!

Here are the inside & back of the description paper that came with it to see more details on what everything in the kit is.