Well technically it is tomorrow but I will be busy doing my boyfriend's makeup as well as my own for a Halloween party Saturday so I won't be getting a post up that day. Look forward to our costume looks though! I'm going to be a vampire and him Darth Maul.
Anyway what I do have for you today are my Halloween nails!
I have been waiting to break out these babies for weeks!!
Jamberry currently has some limited edition Halloween themed wraps. Many of them I would wear year round so I'm bummed they only last until January. Oh well.
Here is Eerie Nights.
Unfortunately the finish makes these difficult to get a good picture of but I really love the art on these wraps. It is a nice mix of eerie and beautiful. The graveyard scene is really lovely and quite unique in my opinion. These are also in a new finish: satin. So the good thing about these wraps is definitely the art work. I got quite a few compliments on my nails from my students today. Like how many other people are going to have a graveyard scene on their nails? Not many, so it really is a creepy and interesting design. The bad would definitely be the satin finish. First of all I had a lot of trouble getting these on. They are so thin they wrinkle so much as soon as heat is applied. I never have any bubbles on the tips of my nails but 24 hours after applying these I had one on almost every finger. Also I would not consider these satin. I thought satin meant a mix of matte and glossy however I feel like these are even more shiny than usual. The extreme shine unfortunately detracts from the design. It makes it hard to see the details of the art when most angles the wrap is just a glare. I think it would have worked out much better to make this a mixed finish wrap with the headstones being matte and the sky being satin. That way the black would have stood out a lot better from the yellowish blue sky.
Besides my little quip with the finish I think these nails are really awesome and I can't wait to wear my other two Halloween wraps!
I already own a few other shades of J Cat's lip paint so when I got a discount from their online store through Ipsy I decided to place another order for 3 more!
These lip paints are a long lasting and affordable lip tar dupe. They are obviously not near as high quality as OCC's lip tars but are a good alternative if you don't have the money for the high end version.
I decided on Spoke Fancy, Talking Flowers, and Splashed.
Spoke Fancy is an absolutely gorgeous deep almost metallic berry. This shade goes on like a dream. After blotting it is even and provides a pigmented opaque color. It also lasts all day for me with only minor fading in the center if I eat a particularly greasy meal. I reach for this shade the most out of these three.
Splashed is a mid toned blue that I picked up mostly for mixing purposes. When added to pinks and reds it helps give them a more purple hue. Unfortunately this lip paint really doesn't work on its own. Unlike the others I own it fades quickly and easily. I'm not sure what makes this formula so different but it only looks like the above picture for about an hour regardless of eating or drinking.
The finaly shade I bought is Talking Flowers. This is a pinkish purple that looks really great with dark clothing and eye makeup. It adds a gorgeous pop of color that is wearable yet still unique. It also lasts all day except for fading in the middle after some meals.
As a side note these lip paints NEED to be blotted after applying as they tend to go on way to thick, at least for me.
I am still a fan of J Cat's lip paints, even if they aren't as long lasting as lip tars. They are so so so affordable and last pretty long for the price, especially compared to drugstore brand lipsticks at similar prices.
If you want to try out a liquid lipstick for the first time to see if its for you or if you really want a color mixing purposes but can't see spending a fortune on an odd color like yellow or blue, then I would definitely recommend giving these a try!
These Jams have a glitter finish and I decided to purchase them because they contain two of my favorite things...black and flowers! Flapper has a gorgeous silver glitter base with a black and white flower pattern over top.
I ended up choosing these Jams to go with my Ren Faire costume because unfortunately we were rained out when I was wearing Berry Sparkler. I think they still went well with my overall fairy/elf aesthetic.
If you like black, silver, and glitter, these Jams are definitely for you!
So my boyfriend and I have been planning a Renaissance Faire trip since early August but it just did not happen until October. We were supposed to go two weeks ago but we got rained out, forcing us to reschedule and go towards the end of October. The theme for the weekend that we went was a spooky Halloween theme so a lot of people were there in all kinds of costumes, not just time period relevant costumes. Which meant I fit in a lot better than I would have going any other weekend.
I was orginally going to go as a fairy but since it became much too cold for my original costume my wings no longer worked out and I had to wear a lot of layers to prevent myself from freezing to death. Therefore I've been referring to my costume as an elf instead of a fairy because of the lack of wings....
So here is a close up of the makeup I did for my costume. I wore false lashes for the first time in over a year so it was pretty interesting trying to remember how to use them. I unfortunately bought these a long time ago and do not remember the brand name, but I really wish I did as they are so pretty with a mix of black and purple lashes. \
On my lid is Colourpop in Liberty, which I then gently covered with Shiro Cosmetic's Maiden Queen to create a beautiful shimmery metallic teal. Next I lightly applied a matte black NYX eyeshadow from a palette I have to my crease. Under my eye I smudged boxom's VIP under my eyes to bring in some purple to match my dress. Next I took my trusy Jesse's Girl liquid liner and drew a thin wing and also added a swirly under eye accent and dots on my brow bone. I finished up my eys with a line of glitter from a retired Urban Decay heavy metal glitter liner.
On my lips is MAC Rebel, one of my favorite lipsticks. I put this on before the faire and it was still there after eating dinner!
My ear cuffs and high elf ears are from Aradani Costumes. I added the leaf charm myself and I painted the ears with my foundation and makeup. However because our faire trip was delayed two weeks I think my foundation turned more orange the longer it sat on the ears, resulting in them not matching as well. My necklace is from an Etsy shop called Pegasus22.
Here is a full body shot of my costume taken right before we left. Excuse the messy background as we were running about an hour late and were throwing everything everywhere trying to get ready quickly. My dress is the same dress I wore to my high school prom, so I was glad to get at least one more use out of it. I originally wasn't planning on wearing the sweater, leggings, or boots, and was instead going to wear just the dress with wings tucked in the back and sandles adorned with fake flowers. My costume couldn't be exactly as I envisioned it but I still had a ton of fun and got tons of compliments on my ears and dress.
I was originally supposed to go with my boyfriend, his brother and his brother's girlfriend but they had to cancel last minute because of illness so my boyfriend and I went just the two of us. It was his first time ever at the Ren Faire and I hope that I was able to show him a good time. There is so much to see, so many shops to visit, and so many shows to watch that it was impossible to be everywhere. Therefore we are definitely looking forward to going again next year! :)
Surprise! One of my very best friends was also at the Faire! Here we are hugging it out in front of the human chess board after the show. I'm sure you can see just how bundled up she is....yeah this was later in the day and the temperature was dropping quickly. You can't tell from the photo but I was perpetually shivering after about 4pm.
Even though it was cold, the people we were supposed to go with canceled, and my costume wasn't as I imagined I still had a really great day enjoying the faire with my boyfriend. Next year we plan to go when its a bit warmer.
Today I will be reviewing a subscription box much different than any I have reviewed before. Introducing....Black Box Subscriptions! This is a gothic themed box that is shipped once a month for $20, or $40 for the deluxe coffin shaped box. I'm poor so I am receiving the standard. This subscription service is owned by Vixx Secundus who not only owns and operates this service but is also in a band called Axis! I first found out about this subscription service from randomly browsing Youtube unboxing videos. I watched a few and instantly fell in love and subscribed the very next day. The current months box ships out late in the month usually between the 20th and the 30th so you generally only get it during the month after being billed. I think this is a bit strange but as long as I get a box every time I pay $20, I can't really complain!
According to the website this is what every standard box contains
Black Nail Polish
1 piece of makeup
1-2 accessories
2 pieces of jewelry
Goodies-pencils, stickers, candy
Mystery gift
And here is my box! As you can see you get a wide variety of goodies including jewelry, makeup, candy (which I accidentally ate before taking these pictures), bath and body products, and random goodies. The variety this box offered is a major reason as to why I subscribed. I'm kind of tired of getting only makeup so I think this box is a great way for me to get more than makeup in style that I love! Before receiving your box Vixx will send you a survey that you fill out explaining what you like so she can make the box match your personal tastes a much as possible. As a result these boxes are often vastly different for every person, which was another selling point for me.
Let's take a closer look at what I received!!
Wet n Wild Nail Polish in Black Creme
A black nail polish is included in every single box as a kind of staple. I was happy to get this as my only other black nail polish is pretty crappy. I know Wet n Wild is just a drug store brand but in my experience they have some amazing products despite the low price tag. However because I use Jamberry more than nail polish now I can see these accumulating very quickly.
Obviously the first thing I did was paint my nails with it. Then I stupidly realized I hadn't put my rats away so I had to do that with semi wet nails, so that's why they seem a bit scratched up. Oops!
Where to buy: drugstores, Amazon, Walmart
Price: $1
Color Mates Lipstick in Black Orchid with Clear Lip Liner
I also received a lipstick and lipliner combo in a really pretty deep red shade. I have never heard of Color Mates before but judging by the packaging quality and overall feel of the lipstick this is more than likely a drugstore brand. Even if it is cheap I can't deny getting a lip liner and lipstick in one go is a pretty awesome deal! Additionally I didn't sign up for this subscription box for the makeup, as I already have a ton, I signed up for the accessories, so getting cheap makeup products doesn't bother me if the rest of the value is going towards the other items.
As you can see it really is a lovely deep red. This is a very nice color for fall and I'll definitely be wearing it. As far as the wear goes, it is very creamy and seems as though it would be moisturizing however from my experience the creamier the lipstick the lower the wear time. I haven't had a chance to wear this out yet but hopefully it performs well.
Where to buy: Amazon, Dollartree
Price: $1
Gold Moon Hair Accessory
I received one accessory this month and it was a gold moon hair clip. This thing is seriously so freaking adorable but unfortunately I'm not sure if I'll be keeping it. First of all its gold and I really don't like gold jewelry in any form because it clashes with my skin tone. Also the clip is just a metal snap in kind of thing which means it slides right out of my short hair.
Here it is in my hair but I definitely will not be able to wear it as such. I'm either thinking of turning it into a necklace and giving it as a gift to someone who can wear gold jewelry or trying to find a way to fasten it to my bookbag because I do think it would look really nice contrasting with my dark purple bag.
However I decide to use it I'm glad I got this because it will either become a decoration or a Christmas gift!
Where to buy: Aliexpress.com
Price: $1
Bronze Cameo Black Velvet Choker
My first piece of jewelry is this elegant black velvet choker featuring a bronze framed cameo. I asked for a black velvet choker in my survey but once again this is unfortunately not silver. however I feel like I could pull this off a bit better than the bright gold hair clip as it is an antiqued bronze kind of metal and is a bit more muted.
Here is a close up of the cameo. The design and detail is so spot on and I love literally everything about it except the bronze.
Here it is on. Maybe its because I'm not used to chokers but I was unable to get this clipped tight enough on my first try. Maybe with some practice I'll get better. I can't wait to wear this out!
Where to buy: Aliexpress.com
Price: $2.50
Silver Moon Necklace
My second piece of jewelry is this amazingly perfect silver rhinestone moon necklace. This is without a doubt my favorite thing from the box this month. It is dainty and cute and sparkly...and just everything I love. I put on my survey that I love anything to do with nature, especially the moon so she definitely fulfilled my moon request! It is a bummer I can't wear the hair clip because these two pieces would work really well together.
Here is the necklace on. I will probably have to adjust the length as it is a bit too long for me. I tend to prefer my necklaces to sit just below my collar bone as I made it do here. I honestly don't mind having to make small alterations to jewelry as I already do it to most of the things I buy. I'm fairly picky about length and clasps so I can't expect everything to be perfectly tailored for me.
Where to buy: Aliexpress.com
Price: $1.50
Orange Halloween Fortune Cookie
Oops....so I accidentally devoured the fortune cookie before taking pictures for this review. If you want to see it, it is in the unboxing video I'll post below. I love fortune cookies so for me this was a really awesome treat! Pictured here is the fortune that was inside!
Where to buy: ?
Price: I'd guess about $1
Random Halloween Goodies
The random goodies I received included 4 Halloween stickers, a cute ghosty notepad, and a spooky skull pencil. I will probably be giving the notepad and stickers to my boyfriends sister as a Halloween present but the pencil is definitely mine. I love pencils.
Where to buy: ?
Price: Maybe $1.50 for all three?
Rose and Lavender Bath Salt
My mystery item this month is a bath salt! This item was actually made by Vixx herself. I had to ask on Facebook to actually obtain this information however, I definitely wish she had a little sticker or card with some info so I could have known without asking what this was. Anyway I asked on Facebook about this item and her reply was as follows: "They are Rose & Lavender scented bath salts made with Epsom and Sea Salts with rose petals."
Awesome! I happen to love the rose and lavender combo so I can't wait to use these next time I take a relaxing bath! :)
Where to buy: ?
Price: $2-3 perhaps?
While I was a bit bummed by the bronze and gold pieces I really liked everything else that I received, especially the silver moon necklace. By doing some quick Google searching it seems she gets a lot of her inventory from Aliexpress. I personally don't have a problem with this as I have made purchases from Wish.com, a similar kind of store. Also all my jewelry items feel sturdy and of high quality, so even if the price is low as long as the items seem like they will last I am happy. Because I always do a box total tally with all my subscription boxes, this one comes out to an estimated $10-13 not including the cost to ship the items or the final box. Generally the value of each individual item totals up to more than thesubscription box price, but the more mainstream boxes are getting the items at a very cheap price, while I doubt Vixx, running the small business that she is, has that same luxury. I really don't mind paying a little more for these items as they are being hand selected for me, and the element of surprise is also really fun.
Therefore I will probably keep subscribing to this box for a few more months to see what else I may receive.
I wish that there was a way to change my survey because I definitely want to emphasize that I do not want any gold jewelry at all. Also I wish it came with a card like most subscription boxes that described each item that was being received, especially for the handmade items. Then I wouldn't have to guess whether this is bath powder or some other product, and if I love it I'd know where to get more.
So I may or may not be able to go to the Ren Faire because of all this rain but if I do....these will be my fairy nails! I ordered these on a whim with my hostess rewards and actually ended up liking them way more than I thought!
Normally I take all nail pictures in natural light but I added my flash for these because it really brought out the sparkles and made them look more true to life than regular lighting did.
Berry Sparkler is a super cute glitter finished wrap that starts pink and fades to a sparkly silver. These are just so adorable and I've already received compliments on them. They feel so magical, playful, and elegant all at the same time! I'm really glad I stepped outside my comfort zone and got these wraps!
This summer I plan to go to the Renaissance Faire with my boyfriend and some other friends. This time I really feel like going all out and putting together a costume. I decided to do a fairy because I'm all about that fantasy. Therefore the first item on my list to create my costume was pointed ears! I stumbled upon Aradani very quickly as it was one of the first results when I searched for latex elf ears. I was so surprised by how great their prices were that I placed an order that same day!
I decided on buying the High Elf ears, two ear cuffs, and some spirit gum.
Before I go into how I attached and painted my ears I wanted to briefly talk about the accessories I bought!
Here are the ear cuffs I purchased. This was a necessity as ear cuffs help hide the bottom seam created by the ears. I chose the Elven Cuffs because they were the cheapest and I also really liked the overall look of them. The leaf did not come with, I attached that myself with a leaf bead I found at Michael's. So far I love the color and ease of application of these cuffs. The metal is soft so it opens easily and closes just as easily allowing for them to be taken on and off quickly. The only draw back with these is that it seems from opening and closing them there is already a tiny crack at the top of one of them. I am not sure if the few days I've worn them has caused it or if they came like that as I did not expect them that closely at first. Either way they were only $4 a piece so if they end up breaking, replacing them won't completely kill my wallet.
EDIT: One ended up breaking because I'm an idiot and didn't now how to properly put them on. You slip them on over the small part of your ear at the top and slide them down to the middle, this way you never have to open or close them besides the first time when you fit them properly to your ear.
I also purchased Spirit Gum, a cosmetic adhesive. Aradani said this is their favorite adhesive for their ears and at only $3 for this tiny jar I snatched it up. You only need at tiny bit to apply so this will probably last me longer than my ears.
And now for the ears themselves!
Each ear is handmade and unique, they will not be carbon copies. As you can see one of mine was actually bigger than the other. I knew my brain would not allow this unevenness to go unnoticed so I decided to trim the bigger one down to match. Luckily it was quite easy and I just had to take a sliver off the bottom and make the circle at the top a bit smaller.
Here is the unpainted ear resting on my ear, not glued, with my cuff on. I wanted to show you how different the unpainted version was from my own skin tone. You can buy these ears painted for an extra $5 added to the base $12 but since my skin is so hard to match to anything I decided to just paint them myself.
And paint them I did! Here is a painted ear on the left and an unpainted on the right.
Here are the tools I used to "paint" my ears!
First I put down a coat of Mary Kay Mineral Powder then used my fingers to rub my MAC Matchmaster foundation all over them. Then I took a small shadow brush and applied City Color Cosmetics blush up the edge of the ear. I also took my NYX Taupe and contoured some of the indented spots a bit more just to add some extra depth. I then took more blush and dusted it over the entire ear to make everything a bit more pink. I Finished with another coat of the mineral powder.
Here are both painted ears, they look eerily life like in real life.
And here is what they looked like. Still not pink enough in my opinion. I'm just so red...:(
So I added even more blush dustings to the entire ear. I think I ended up with 3 layers total.
And these are my finished ears! I tried to take a picture from each angle but even my front view wasn't perfectly straight. As you can see my head is barely tilted and you can't see the other ear (its on I promise!). They do not stick out to the side very far at all. Overall I really really like these and can't wait to finally wear them for real! I have a fairy costume planned for the Ren Faire and a vampire costume planned for Halloween.
Where to buy: aradanicostumes.com
price: $12 unpainted
If you've ever wanted to secretly be an elf I think $12 is a small price to pay for these amazingly crafted ears.
