Chella Ivory Lace Highlighter Pencil

November 16, 2013

@Birchbox unboxing and reviews November 2013 #moregood

Posted in Beauty & Skin, Hair, Makeup / Cosmetics, Nail Polish, Subscription boxes

Mox Botanicals Bath Milk in Vanilla and Coconut – “All Mox Botanicals products contain no parabens, sulfates, chemical preservatives, synthetic fragrances or dyes.” YES!!! So excited. I’ll list out the ingredients for the Bath Milk for those who have strange allergies, since I couldn’t find that info online but the company’s philosophy rocks! Ok … not on the product packaging either so I’ll have to email the company… More than likely these would rate a 1 … but that’s just guessing! 🙂

Ahmad Teas Assorted Teas – ok it’s tea, I’m good, not wowed but I suspect the quality will be good on these (though coffee would win though if you pit in a fight to the death against each other.) English Tea No. 1, Raspberry Indulgence, and Jasmine Romance. Probably not going to review these here late. 🙂

Chella Highlighter Pencil in Ivory Lace – I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE this. I got this in one of my ipsy bags back in June and I’m actually running low on this and needed to reorder. It’s a great multitasker. It’s a concealer, it’s a light highlighter, it blends well AND it’s super healthy!!! When I saw this was a possible product in this month’s box I got super excited … not only at the possibility of getting one in my box but I was hoping that at the very least I could snap a few more up with the free shipping that typically accompanies products included in a specific month. It has lasted about 4 months which is not bad for a multitasking product I use a LOT. I’ll be ordering more of these!! See my Chella Highlighter Pencil Ivory Lace swatch and review here as well as the EWGEWG Environmental Working Group - an organization focused on research to make informed choices and live a healthy life in a healthy environment. cosmetics database review (it’s a 2!)

Miss Jessie’s® Original Leave-In Condish – the only major negative with this is the fragrance… pretty good on the ingredient list otherwise. It still ends up a 4 with the cosmetic database … synthetic frangrance really takes it’s toll folks! (And I’m not just going on what I’m told, reducing the number of synthetic fragrances in my life has been one of MANY factors in reducing my allergies.) I may give this a try still as long as it doesn’t make my nose immediately rebel (there are some that are more intolerable than others… heck I don’t even do well personally with some natural florals.)

Nope nope – Miss Jessie, the scent killed this one for me. Tim gaged and coughed when I walked into the room and said I smelled like an old lady and I thought it smelled like VERY strong laundry. I started to feel like I wanted to get away from the scent after about 15 minutes but I couldn’t because it was ON my head so there was no getting away. I ended up drying my hair just to see if heat would help remove some of the scent and it didn’t. It felt like if I had let it air dry I would have had amazing curls though. But the overpowering scent led to me washing my hair three times and still smelled like it but at least it was more tolerable. If they got rid of the scent I would try it again.

Allergies and synthetic fragrance toxicity aside, if I wanted to wear a perfume of my choosing, this product would obliterate that as well. Why do companies feel the need to so much scent in everything? I know that scent is tied to emotion and can make some products more desirable but there’s really a limit how far you should take that.

And please please please … if you’re going to tout natural, paraben free etc. maybe think about the scent being natural as well please! SO close on this product!

Color Club® Harlem Lights Collection in Baldwin Blues – I don’t think I’ve met any Color Club nail polish that I didn’t like. This collection has a few standout colors. The Baldwin Blues is one that was my top pick and Sugar Rays is an interesting subtle holographic shade that looks like it will change based on the angle you look at it (I might go back and buy this one.) The Baldwin Blues looks a little bit more blue online but in person it’s a little more teal. Like a perfect deep deep creamy teal perfect for fall and winter. I’m already in love with this one! Swatch video coming soon.

So my top pics from the November 2013 Birchbox are …

the Chella Highlighter Pencil in Ivory Lace and the Color Club nail polish in Baldwin Blues. I think I may like the bath milk as well but I’m not big on taking a lot of baths.

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Did you get one of the Color Club nail polishes?
Do you like the color? Have a photo to share?

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November 15, 2013

Chella Highlighter Pencil ivory lace swatch & review

Posted by By Hilary Baumann

Posted in Makeup / Cosmetics, Subscription boxes

The Chella Highlighter Pencil, swatch photos in “ivory lace” below, is the epitome of an incredibly useful multitasker and now a makeup staple for me.

Chella says that there are over 10 different uses for their Highlighter Pencil but summarized, the 3 main basics of what the Chella Highlighter Pencil can do are:

highlight and brighten
contour
light concealer

The Chella Highlighter Pencil comes in only three shades: ivory lace, latte and cinnamon – cinnamon is not sold on Birchbox’s site at the moment. With the limitations on shades, it may not double as a concealer for everyone but it is an excellent highlighter and contouring tool that blends well and will absolutely be a great addition to most people’s makeup collection. The fact that it blends well makes it very natural looking.

Watch the video below to see a better swatch and how the it blends:

I received my first Chella Highlighter Pencil in Ivory Lace back in my June 2013 Ipsy Glambag and have been using it daily ever since. When I found out I was receiving another in my Birchbox for November, it just made me realize that it was now a staple for me. One that I had already been thinking about re-purchasing before I received this latest sample and will probably be ordering a backup of. Oh and 1.4grams is the sample that they sent which IS a full size product.

It rates a healthy 2 with EWG’s Cosmetic Database. There are no added fragrances, no parabens, no cones. Basically there’s nothing not to love here! And if you’re a member with Birchbox, you can get free shipping on this product right now. And if you’re not a Birchbox subscriber and are interested in subscribing, please help out this blog by signing up below! 😉

Sign up for Birchbox and shop for this product
(with free shipping and earn birchbox points)!
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Or you can buy it from Chella directly here
(but you’ll pay about $7 shipping and don’t earn Birchbox points.)
http://chella.com/products/item/lace_highlighter_pencil
🙂 choices, choices

June 13, 2013

June 2013 Birchbox vs Ipsy Glambag

Posted by By Hilary Baumann

Posted in Hair, Makeup / Cosmetics, Nail Polish, Skin Care, Subscription boxes

My Birchbox unboxing AND my Ipsy unbagging in the video below along with some swatches and commentary. AKA June 2013 Birchbox vs Ipsy Glambag:

My June 2013 Birchbox:

Davines 3-Step System – Davines Love Smoothing Shampoo, Davines Love Smoothing Conditioner, Davines OI/ OIL. dimethicone… 0/5 stars
Mirenesse Glossy Kiss in “Quick Kiss” – the color was growing on me and at first glance I thought that the ingredient list looked ok. Not super healthy but not super toxic. What I missed was that they include fragrance AND dimethicone. The dimethicone is a deal breaker for me personally. And it’s a gorgeous color.Argh. Cosmetics database custom report has it about a 4. Since I had already swatched on my hand, I tried on my lips just because I was curious about the color. I think it might be a little hard to wear but I do think it might have certain occassions that it would be nice to have that extra pop. Then I washed my face intensely and I’m hoping that a limited test isn’t going to cause cystic pimples anywhere near my mouth. I was thinking of the Laqa & Co Lil’ Lip Duo when I was doing the video so I’m frustrated I didn’t get this product. 0/5 stars for the Mirenesse (would have been a 5 star if it had been without dimethicone and fragrance … or if it had been the other product.)
Color Club Wanderlust Collection – I received “Pardon My French” which is a nice lavendar but I was hoping for “Reign in Spain” because I have a thing for corals. My problem with this isn’t that I have to buy the nail polish color I want, it’s that they don’t have full size bottles and you can only buy the set. Since you already have one of the colors, then you’re buying a second of that color no matter what you got in your box. The purple is a good enough color to have as a mini but I don’t need two and I really wish that they offered these as full sized individual bottles instead of the collection. I will probably buy the collection though at $8 and free shipping, so whatever. 3/5 stars (I’m just not a big purple fan plus my comments about the collection above and no full size products even available. For purple it’s an excellent shade and always love the Color Club polishes.)
Oscar de la Renta Something Blue – synthetic fragrance. They now have a new check box for “don’t send me more than 6 fragrances a year” but I really wish I could make that setting “don’t ever send me fragrances” …. maybe with the additional of “I’m allergic to half of them and I don’t want to use the other half and this is such a waste. One even gave me a headache just from opening the box so please stop sending perfume already.” Sigh. Just know, unless it’s natural / organic and it doesn’t give me a headache (which does exist, just rare) I’m not going to give a fragrance a positive review. 0/5 stars

My June 2013 Ipsy Glambag:

Starlooks Lip Pencil in “Bare” – I had high hopes for this one. However the color made me unsure if it was meant to be a lip liner or a light eyeliner (though lip liner makes more sense …) Nothing jumped out as obviously bad ingredients that I could identify. No dimethicone, no frangrance, no parabens. But the custom report, it ended up a 6. (pdf linked on this one.) 0/5 stars
J.Cat Beauty Eyelash + Eyelash Glue – even the glue on this isn’t bad for you. I may cut these apart into individual lashes instead of trying to use the full strip but I’m happy enough with these. Until you get into some really specific eyelashes, those in the under $8 price point are all fairly decent and your biggest factor is lash style / cut. Latex free glue. And these are human hair … ok so a little higher quality than your average drugstore lashes but also a little creepy in that sense. Cruelty free (not tested on animals.) I don’t wear false lashes maybe more than … once every three years but I will be using these for an upcoming special event probably fairly soon. 5/5 stars
Chella Ivory Lace Highlighter Pencil – AWESOME no cones. Turns up a 3 in a custom report. Talc is the worst ingredient and in this case I’ll forgive it since it’s not going to go on my eyelids (where talc tends to crease) and it’s not filler reducing impact of some other pigment. I love this in the inside corner of my eye and this looks perfect and natural. No shimmer so it can be used easily and I wonder if it might make a good concealing pencil as a result as well. 5/5 stars
J.Cat Beauty Sparkling Cream Palette – this is categorized under “body glitter” instead of eyeshadow. It’s a chunky glitter so this makes more sense. No, just no for so many reasons. Plus there are the ingredients which aren’t good as well. Kind of on par with petroleum jelly mixed with glitter. It even says “This product should be used on the body and not on the eye area.” I’m not sure what they were thinking. Halloween? Rave? 8 year old girls? I don’t know and this just really doesn’t seem like a great fit for an ipsy bag even ignoring the ingredients for a minute. Yes it’s wild but… Might have made more sense it to be sent out in October just for the Halloween reason. 0/5 stars
NYX Blush in “Pecan” – awesome bronzer shade but there’s dimethicone and talc so I won’t be using it. I haven’t swatched this but I suspect the color is excellent for a beachy summer look. 0/5 stars

I also just realized that people were commenting below the products on ipsy (linked to in the glamroom) if they wanted to trade. OR there’s also http://mygl.am/glammieswapforum (though the other seems more efficient… or makeupalley would also work better than the facebook page.)

And I’m happy with the leopard bag with the neon zipper. I’ve been leaving the chevron bag in my swim bag recently just to throw my jewelry in so it’s not lost at the bottom of the bigger bag. I’ll probably find a use for this one too.

So there you have it … another mildly disappointing month with Birchbox and a good month with Ipsy. I think I wouldn’t even be saying this if I had received the Reign in Spain polish and the other lip gloss Birchbox had promoted on facebook. Actually I’d probably have been happy with just the other shade of nail polish just because the swatches I saw of it looked like a nice bright fun summer color. The creamy shade is one that I already own something similar and the green … meh, not as versatile. Actually the purple I already own something similar to as well just the that Color Club purple is just a hint better actually.

Swatches of some of the products from these boxes: