how to make lashes long |

Happy Thursday! After a huuuge snowstorm yesterday, I was able to work from home. I thought what a great day to relax, I can even get a blog post up. That was not the case. I was basically glued to my computer all day, only to get up to get myself more pizza haha! ;). I have been meaning to do a review on the Sephora Play! monthly subscription box since February (my first month!). As you know, I have tried Birchbox before as well as Ricky’s, both which I loved. Since I spend a majority of my time (and paycheck) at Sephora, and their box is only $10/month, I decided to give it a go. I was certainly not let down!

What I love most about it is how personal it is compared to other ones. You answer a few questions to create your own personal profile. From the products they are going to include in the boxes, from makeup to hair care to skincare to fragrances, they use your answers to curate your own personalized box.

Each box includes:

Five samples AND a bonus! The samples range from makeup, skincare, and hair care.
A collectible makeup bag
PLAY! Book that gives you tips and tricks and how-tos for each sample
PLAY! Pass to redeem in store when you buy something full-size – worth 50 beauty insider points! ❤
Access to video tutorials for the items in the box
PLAY! Date – subscriber only even that allows you and a friend to come in the store and sample products and meet with beauty experts

Here is what the February box looked like! I am SO excited for March! Stay tuned 🙂

LOVE this little makeup bag. Adorable!

50 Bonus Points! #swoon

I have sensitive skin so this is right in line with my profile that I filled out 🙂

I put a lot of skincare in my profile so I am so glad they sent me top notch sample products!

LOVE this gloss. It reminds me of a NARS one I had way back when!

I have *no* idea how to apply eyeliner, so I am hoping this can help me a bit.

The BONUS! It smelled like summer in a bottle. Nice and light 🙂

Dope postcard that came with the perfume.

15/10 would recommend the PLAY! boxes. For only $10 you’re getting some top notch samples, and nice sizes. Plus extra bonus points at one of my favorite stores makes it all the more worth it. Go get yours!

Happy Tuesday lovelies!

So one of the perks of my job is that I get to work with a lot of brands and PR firms in a variety of verticals – so cosmetics, hair, fashion, fitness, electronics, etc. And sometimes I’m lucky enough to score some product! It’s always a good day in the office when new product arrives.

I don’t know if you’ve heard of IT Cosmetics, but if you haven’t, then I seriously recommend you check them out immediately. Like stop reading this for a second and go click on the link right above this. They constantly receive a ton of social success with top beauty influencers and makeup artists from all over the world using their products in their daily beauty/skin regiments. And you’re about to see why.

superhero mascara

First things first, IT stands for Innovative Technology since it is developed by plastics surgeons and dermatologists…so you know the product is going to be top notch. All of their products are 100% cruelty free, filled with skin-loving, high performance ingredients. So basically their products are cutting edge, clinically proven, safe, highly effective, and most importantly – work phenomenally! If this were a beauty class poll, they would certainly win best all-around.

I digress. Ok, so I was first introduced to this cosmetic line a few months back, after one of my coworkers attended a beauty conference and brought back a ton of product. Since I’ve been using them ever since, I am pretty well-versed in their makeup and skincare lines. I’ll save the review of all of those products for another week 😉

Since I am always open to trying new products (especially makeup!), when I received their new Superhero mascara, I couldn’t wait to try it out. Now I normally have very long lashes and people often ask me what falsies I wear (none!), so I was definitely interested in seeing if this would accentuate them even more. Spoiler alert: it did.

Here are my three very basic steps for mascara application. I am in NO way, shape, or form a beauty know-it-all or MUA. I practically just got contouring down.

Curl eyelashes (about 5 seconds on each lash – and don’t clench the curler too tight! Love your lashes hahah!)
Use primer! I use the Estee Lauder Lash Primer Plus and have been using it for over a year now. It is dermatologist and ophthalmologist-tested.
Mascara time! I usually just do one application, but two would not do any harm (just try to avoid many applications because you definitely get that clumpy look – I like a more wispy, fuller look).

So when I first put this first application I was like WOAH. Do you know how hard it is to find a mascara that thickens, lengthens, and still get mega volume all at once?! Some people use multiple mascaras to achieve this, and for those of you who do – look no further! This will be your saving grace.

This is just one application: