Zoya - Aurora

Say hello to my new favorite nail polish! Long have I been lusting over Zoya's Aurora, and a couple months back I snagged it and (true to form) I let it sit in my "untrieds" pile for way too long! This color is absolutely amazing, which you might have guessed I would say, as it's jam-packed with holographic glitter - MY FAVORITE!

Aurora is a gorgeous plum color that is really out of this world. It looks like there are neverending layers of glitter on my nails. Beware, once your nails hit the sunlight - you will not be able to look away! Aurora definitely lives up to the hype, and I'm so glad I snagged a couple polishes from this line (Zoya's Ornate collection). I can't wait to try this on my toes for summer! 

Have a great Monday!!

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April Birchbox

Today I've got a different sort of post for you. Typically, I write only about various nail polishes that I use; however, while I love nail polish, and reviewing it for you, my love of the beauty industry spans more than the nail polish sector. I try out so many products and have an opinion on most of the items in the cosmetics aisles, and I want to share that with you as well. So, from today on out, I've decided to expand the scope of my blog to include more than just nail polish. Yay!

I figured, what better way to kick this off than to show you my April Birchbox. Let's back up for a second - for those of you who are unfamiliar with Birchbox, it's a monthly subscription service for beauty products. Each month, you get a box filled with 5 or 6 sample products to try out. Full sizes of the products are available on Birchbox.com if you like what you've tried! It's an awesome way to "test-drive" often expensive products before you shell the money out on them. For only $10 a month, you can't beat it! I've been a subscriber since October of 2010, and I've been really happy with it so far.

 If you're interested in signing up, click this link to join: www.birchbox.com?raf=owwcv

This month Birchbox teamed up with Women's Health to create a box designed by their wellness experts, filled with a collection of their favorite products. It came like this: 

Inside my Birchbox are the following items:

Caudalie Divine Oil | Full-size: $9-49

This is a 0.1 oz sample of Caudalie's Divine Oil. This can be used in a number of ways: on the skin, hair, or nails, adding a glow where you need it. It has a floral scent that, in my opinion, is a bit overwhelming. I will most likely use this just as a cuticle oil. The packaging notes that the Divine Oil is ideal for the face, but there is no way I'm putting this oil on my acne-prone skin!

Nexxus Youth Renewal Rejuvenating Elixir | Full-size: $20.99

I was really excited to see this sample, as I love Nexxus products and I'm pretty sure this is a new one! This is an anti-aging elixir that boots shine and cures dry ends, while reducing the odds of age-related breakage. It smells wonderful, and is a nice 0.14 oz sample. 

StriVectin-SD Eye Concentrate for Wrinkles | Full-size: $65

This is the product I am most excited about from this month's Birchbox. This is an anti-aging cream designed to diminish fine lines and reverse puffy circles. This is also a pretty decent sample size at 0.25 oz. It doesn't have any detectable smell, which is nice. I'm all about preventative anti-aging skin care, so I will certainly be using this sample until it's gone.

Youngblood Mineral Cosmetics Anti-Shine Mattifier | Full-size: $36

This is an interesting sample. This mattifier zaps shine when you apply it to your T-zone (prior to applying foundation). This little pot is a 0.05 oz sample, and really I'm not a fan of this packaging. I'm not sure if I'll get much use out of this (I'm a little skeptical), but I'll certainly give it a shot. It feels sort of oily on the skin, which is odd for a "mattifying" product.

Weleda Body Lotion | Full-size: $16.50

I always enjoy lotion samples; it's kind of fun to try out something different than the lotions sitting on my vanity every day. These are 0.13 oz samples by Weleda in three distinct fragrances: Wild Rose, Pomegranate, and Sea Buckthorn. I have yet to try these out, but a friend of mine who is also a Birchbox subscriber mentioned that one of these smells like pickle juice - yuck!  I'm certainly not going to spend $16.50 on a pickle-juice scented lotion!

Women's Health One-Year Subscription

A cool little perk in this month's box is a free one-year subscription to Women's Health magazine. Being that I'm a big magazine junkie, I'll gladly take a free subscription! I almost looked past this little goodie, until I watched Eleventh Gorgeous' video for their Birchbox and Ipsy unboxing where they mentioned it - so I have to say a big thanks to them for cluing me in! 

Stay tuned! I'll be doing these Birchbox unboxings monthly and I've got lots of new, fun things up my sleeve! 

** This post contains my referral link. If you click on the link and sign up, I will earn credit towards Birchbox products.

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Orly - Peaceful Opposition

Wow, wow, WOW! This is such a fun, unique polish that I'm so glad I picked up. Today I'm rockin' two coats of Orly's Peaceful Opposition, which is part of Orly's 2013 Spring Hope and Freedom collection. This polish is a sheer milky white packed with silver and white square and hex glitters. This is such a cool polish; the glitter gets sandwiched between layers and makes a really nice effect on the nails. 

The application was a little tricky, as it got kind of chunky from the glitter, but I think if I would have been more patient and waited longer between coats, it would have been a total non-issue. I hope Orly comes out with more polishes like this, because this is just so pretty!

I got this polish at Sally Beauty, so go snatch up a bottle for yourself while you can!

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Nicole by OPI - Di-Vine is Divine

Today I've got an oldie but a goodie, a polish that has been sitting on my untried shelf for far too long. For some reason it just never caught my eye as I looked for something new to wear, but not any longer! Today I'm sporting Di-Vine is Divine from Nicole by OPI. 

This is two coats topped off with one coat of Seche Vite. The color is very pretty, a deep berry purple with a bit of shimmer. True to OPI fashion, application was very easy and smooth.

Funny enough, a couple years ago I wouldn't even wear dark purple polish like this. I just didn't like the deep, blue-ish hue. Nowadays, I've come around and actually enjoy purple nails every now and then. While this color is very pretty, there isn't anything too special about it. I'm not in love with it, although I don't dislike it. I probably won't reach for it again, unless it fits with a theme or certain outfit. There's just not much else to say! 

Color Club - Blue Heaven

Today I have a polish I've been very excited to wear since receiving it for Christmas; it's a polish from Color Club called Blue Heaven. This polish is from the Halo Hues collection (a collection entirely of holographic colors), and if you've spent any time reading my blog you know my ultimate favorite polishes are holographics!

This is two coats of Blue Heaven, topped off with OPI's Start to Finish top coat (which I am NOT a fan of, but I left my Seche Vite at home). Because of the junk top coat I used, my nails chipped rather quickly, but I can't bring myself to remove it quite yet. It's just too pretty!

The application was pretty good, although I'm curious to know if it would chip as fast even with Seche Vite as a top coat. I got two others from the collection, and I can't wait to show you if they're as pretty as this polish!

What is your favorite style of polish?

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Color Club - Insta-This

I'm not one to gravitate towards a blue polish if I'm presented with lots of other color choices, but this blue is one I'd definitely recommend picking up. However this color, Color Club's Insta-This, is a Birchbox exclusive - so if you want to sign up for an awesome monthly subscription box that comes filled with beauty samples, leave me a comment below and I'll send you a referral link! I think I'll actually do a review on my next Birchbox so you guys can see how awesome they really are!

Insta-This is a bright true blue cream. There is no shimmer or glitter or anything of the sort, but I think this color is loud and fun enough without it. I got this polish back in my September or October Birchbox and just didn't feel inclined to try it out until this week, and I do not know what I was waiting for - it's absolutely gorgeous! I'm wearing two coats, as one coat was not quite opaque and a little streaky. 

Unfortunately, I've been wearing this polish for just a couple days and it has already turned in to chip-city on my nails, even with a good coating of Seche Vite top coat to seal it off. Like I said, it would probably be a good pedi color (I don't know about you, but my toenail polish takes about a month to chip), and I think it would be especially pretty in summer!

Happy Friday, everyone! Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Julep - Cupid's Mystery Box

I mentioned in my previous post that I ordered the Cupid's Mystery Box from Julep and had been anxiously anticipating adding more Julep polishes to my ever-growing stash. The ad for the Cupid's Mystery Box said that you would definitely get: 4 Valentine's Day colors, a mystery holographic polish (or a code to pick one online), and different colors in each box purchased (which doesn't really apply here since I only ordered one). There was also a chance to receive a box with a $1,000 Visa gift card, or jewelry from Baublebar. These mystery boxes were valued between $70-$2,000. 

And here is my Cupid's Mystery Box:

This definitely was not as good as the New Year's mystery box I got, which included a pedicure cream and some lotion samples, along with 3-4 polishes - but I'm definitely not disappointed with this box either. So let's take a closer look...

Julep - Evangeline

The holographic polish I got is Evangeline, which is sort of a coppery orange holographic. From the swatches I've seen, it looks gorgeous, but maybe more for fall than Valentine's Day. I'm excited to try it out because holographic polishes are my weakness!

Julep - Lynn

Lynn is a pearly nude shade which looks so pretty in the pictures I've seen. I love a good nude polish - it's a simple way to feel elegant and classy, especially after lots of bright, crazy manicures! I'm positive I'll get lots of use out of this polish.

Julep - Lucy

Lucy is a fun, vampy burgundy creme polish. It's not often I feel like I can sport these kind of colors and pull them off, but every now and then I feel sort of vampy. When that time comes, I'm definitely going to reach for Lucy!

Julep - Demi

Demi is probably the most Valentine-y color in this box, being it's a dark red creme polish. I really don't have anything like this color, and I can't wait to try it out. It's different and fun, but still professional enough for work. I like!

Julep - Maya

Maya is probably my least favorite polish in this box. This is a nude pink pearly polish. I don't like my nude polishes to have a sheen to them like this, but I know I'll still give it a shot anyway. 

Julep - Camellia Lip Gloss

This was a pleasant surprise to find in my mystery box, as I am a lover of lip products. It doesn't have much color, but it will work great over a lip stick or even alone for a bit of shine. It smells amazing, and isn't sticky at ALL which is awesome! This might just be my favorite product from the Cupid's Mystery Box!

Did any of you get a Cupid's Mystery Box? How does yours compare?