Birchbox Unveiling!

Hola amigos,

     Are any of you receivers of the Birchbox?  I love getting things in the mail, and I love makeup so this was a must for me. :)  And I love surprises!

I thought I would do a little unveiling and exlaination of each item and then tomorrow or the next day I will give a little review of the items in the box.

Here it is!

This month's theme is Power Play.  The ladies from the show Suits

helped to choose the items inside! 

On the back of this card is the list of the items in the box and

the prices of the full sized items. I didn't look at this until after though

because I wanted to be surprised!

On the back of this Benefit card were two scratch offs in which I "won" a free 

chacha tint or sunbeam highlighter with a $25 purchase. I'm interested in 

the highlighter because it gives a "golden glow"!

This sheet is a list of more things that the two ladies from Suits chose,

Donna Paulsen and Rachel Zane. I don't watch the show but I've heard it's good!

Here are the ladies

Items!

I'm excited for this! It's a leave-in conditioner from N4 High Performance

Hair Care that also features a detangling power.  It provides color protection as

well as sunscreen power for hair.

I don't have colored hair but I know that items for colored hair

are always more gentle and softer.

Next is this Coola moisturizing sunscreen in Cucumber. It's SPF 30

and is specifically for the face.  It's also organic!

I am a horrible person and I never wear sunscreen because

I am too brown...I never burn! One of the perks

of being half Mexican half Portuguese. :)

Next is the Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow foundation from Benefit

Unfortunately it is not in my shade :( I have received samples

of the foundation before and I am Beige/Toasted Beige

while this sample is Champagne!

Inside the little Birchbox envelope were these amazingly cute bobby pins

As well as this perfume...er Not a Perfume by Juliette Has a Gun

(super cute name!)

It has only cetalox in it which is a base ingredient for perfumes.

The designer thought it needed it's own spotlight!

I can't wait to try these products!  I'll let you know what I think about them. :)

Thanks for reading

~NomiGirl~

XOXO

Ways to be Frugal

Hola amigos,
       I thought you guys might like to hear about some different ways in which I save money, mostly so that I can just go out and buy even more! :)

*Find a consignment shop near you!
          I go to Plato's Closet and Runway Exchange and in my area we just got a new one called IsaBailey's, which I haven't tried to sell to yet.  Wash all of the clothes that you don't want anymore, put it all into a trash bag and they will sort through it and give you quite a few $$ for your old things!  They might even give you more if you choose store credit over cash.

*Re-make your clothes!
          I did this here with my bleach and dip-dye shorts.  I had bought some thrift store jeans and had also been given a few pairs by my friend.  I decided I was bored of them and instead of buying brand new shorts, I simply found some inspiration online and started dyeing!

*Have a yard sale!
          This is actually what inspired this post, I am sitting in my front yard in the 104 degree heat trying to sell my stuff!  It is quite hot but I've made a bit of money. :)  I'll be doing it again tomorrow!

*Trade with friends!
          When I was in college my friends and I would put together a pile of clothes that we no longer wanted and we would get together and trade.  You can factor in brand, style, etc. but we usually just did item for item.  It's super fun and because the item you traded for wasn't your friend's favorite, no one has probably seen them in it (not that it matters anyway!)

These are just a few ideas!  Do you have any of your own?
Thanks for reading,
~NomiGirl~
XOXO

Macadamia Deep Repair Masque for Hair Review

Hola amigos,

      Today I'll be reviewing something that has to do with life or death: the life or death of my split ends that is!

The Macadamia Natural Oil Deep Repair Masque!

The directions are to comb the masque through clean damp hair and leave in for at least 7 minutes.  I washed my hair then got out of the shower to comb this through while I shaved my legs. (TMI?) I got kind of impatient though and barely made the 7 minutes! I had wanted to leave it in for a little longer but anyone that knows me can tell you that I can't wait for anything.  Oops :)

Results:

I didn't get a picture of my split ends before! RRRRG.  But here is what they look like now:

At first I wasn't impressed with this masque because while my hair felt veeeery soft in the shower, I didn't notice too much of a difference after I blew my hair dry afterwards. 

 But I looked at my split ends and while they are not healed, they are SO much less noticeable!  Also, I noticed that in pictures, my hair is shinier than I have ever seen it:

Before my hair was dead and lifeless, and the ends of my hair felt like a bad wig.  Seriously.  But it has been revitalized!

I rate this product a 4.5 out of 5.  I'm tempted to go out and buy a big pot of it!

Thanks for reading,

~NomiGirl~

XOXO

Clothing Haul: Dillards, Forever 21, Ross, Rue 21, and Plato's Closet!

Hola amigos,
      Just going to do a quick clothing haul for you guys!  No I'm not a super rich megastar, but I have a bit of money to spend at the moment, and you can't tear me away from great deals!

Let's start at Forever 21!

Spiderman is my absolute FAVORITE superhero as you might

already know. I had to get this! ($12.99)

I had tried this dress on before but they only had a medium which was

a bit tight on me. I found this large for only $11.99 on sale.

It needs a couple darts in the back so that it can really show off my

figure but those are easy to do.

On to Dillard's!

Amazingly bright neon yellow/green dress for only $15.99 on sale! 

This one is also a bit large so I will put some darts into the back.

I've never thought about this kind of "flowy" short before

but they were only $10 and I think they will also go well with

my Spiderman top!

Next is Rue 21! 

I only got one thing here, this sparkly mint sweater dress for only $3!

Next up: Ross!

Super cute top with cheetahs (leopards?) on the front and spotty print

on the back!  Only $10.  I think it will look awesome with a

bandeau and black shorts or tights in winter.

Rose pink maxi skirt with a more opaque shorter skirt inside ($10).

This is what I'll be wearing today! I'll do an OOTD on it.

This HOT pink sweater (my favorite color!) was only $3

I've been looking for a mint maxi everywhere (yes it's mint not blue) and this 

one was only $10, couldn't pass it up! Plus it makes my bum look quite nice ;)

Next up is Plato's Closet, a store that buys used name brand items and resells them! 

I brought in some of my clothes to sell to them and so I got the following items ALL for only $6! :)

Bought this for tucking into skirts

This as well

With my new mint maxi? :)

White shorts and gold jewelry!

Reminded me of a sailor.

And finally a gold chain which I have been looking for! (And it wasn't an arm and a leg!)

I hope you enjoyed this haul post, thanks for reading!

~NomiGirl~

XOXO

Tarte Amazonian Clay Concealer Review

Hola amigos,
       Like many many people all over the world, I am a naughty girl when it comes to acne.  I poke and prod the spots on my face until they retaliate in defiance and turn the ugliest red you've ever seen.  Then they scar!  I then suffer from hyperpigmentation that up until now I have been unable to cover or conceal.  I took a trip to Ulta (which I posted about here) and the lovely Ulta lady gave me two concealers to try.  Today I'll be reviewing Tarte Amazonian Clay concealer in the color Tan.

Here is my horribly marked skin

It's actually much worse than can be shown with my awful camera!

I moisturized with my Lubriderm lotion (the only thing that doesn't break me out!), then applied the POREfessional primer from Benefit (which I have yet to review), added a little Hello Flawless benefit foundation in Beige mixed with Toasted Beige (I am unmatcheable with one color it seems), smoothed on a little Tarte concealer where I needed it and powdered my skin so it would all stay in place!  And here is the result:

Marks all gone!

      I was so impressed with this concealer!  It is super smooth and feels amazing on my skin.  I used my finger to apply it (maybe not the best of practices) but it reminds me of incredibly healthy clay, a very interesting texture.  It covered all of my blemishes with just one or two pats and feels light on my face.  

      While I was in Ulta they also tried Dermablend on my face, both the heavy and medium concealers and they just felt so heavy..like I had to use a knife to scrape them off my face afterwards.  (Dermablend has been marketed to cover tattoos, so a heavy consistency is a good thing for that!)

      If you remember from my Ulta haul I was also given a little sample of Benefit's Playstick concealer in Jumprope.  I will be reviewing and comparing that soon!

Thanks for reading,

~NomiGirl~

XOXO

Minx #1 Instant Manicure & Pedicure Review

Hola amigos!

       Ready for my first review?  I'll be reviewing something I've wanted to do for a long time: nail stickers! Particularly these Minx #1 Fashion For Your Fingers and Toes.

I picked these Diamond Diabolique holographic silver and black 

stickers to try out. On sale for 99 cents at Ulta!

It includes two sets, one for a pedicure and one for a manicure, as well 

as two alcohol wipes for clean fingernails

Which I used :)

I put the stickers over my fingernails to see which would fit my nail better.

Make sure they are not too big (I'll show you what happens).

Smaller is better!

Peel them off and stick them to your nail. Careful to make it straight!

Cut them to the length of your nail.

File them downwards so you don't lift the sticker.

Tada!  All done.  I did my thumb and pointer finger first...and figured 

out how to do it better with subsequent fingers

(no creases on the ends, smaller as opposed to too big of a sticker)

Overall I would rate these nail stickers a 3.5 out of 5 stars.

*they were easy to apply

*once I figured out to rub the ends to smooth creases it went a lot better

*they are so pretty! I wouldn't be able to do this with polish...maybe some of you could!

*there are extra strips to accommodate ALL sizes of nails which is awesome

HOWEVER

*it is my second day of wearing them and I am already seeing tip wear :(

*I was worried that they would lift last night and during my shower this morning

Try them out for yourself and tell me what you think!

Thanks for reading

~NomiGirl~

XOXO

p.s. sorry for awful cuticles!

Ulta Haul (Finally Some Real Makeup!)

Hola amigos,
       I would like to think that I am a somewhat dedicated makeup enthusiast...I rode my bike all over town in 104 degree weather searching for the cheapest Maybelline Color Tattoo eyeshadows.  My final destination ended up being Ulta and I spent much more than I was planning to! (And I didn't even get the item I went out looking for!)

mini haul

These captured my interest because I have never tried the ready-made sticker-like polishes before.  And these were only 99 cents! I couldn't pass it up. I got the Minx #1 nail stickers in Diamond Diabolique and Triangle Tango.  And they have two sets inside, one for fingers and for toes!

Benefit's Stay Don't Stray primer for concealers and eyeshadows in light/medium

I got this for free because I spent $30 on another benefit product!

I also got this for free, it's a mini creaseless cream eyeshadow from benefit in the color No Pressure

My hair has been feeling lackluster and frizzy at the ends so I bought a mask ($4) I have heard missglamorazzi talking about a lot!

Especially in this summer heat, my makeup has been sweating off like crazy (I have annoyingly oily skin as well which doesn't help!) so I bought the POREfessional face primer from benefit ($30).

I was only going to buy the Revlon Colorstay for combination/oily skin ($11.99) but one of the Ulta ladies offered to match me in L'Oreal true match and it was pretty cheap ($9.99) so I couldn't say no :)

I have horrible hyperpigmentation on my skin from old acne marks and I was trying desperately to find a concealer that would have full coverage but not look cakey and the nicest Ulta lady ever helped me to find two, Jump Rope Concealer Playstick from benefit as well as Tarte Amazonian Clay concealer.  She gave me the biggest samples ever for free!

I think I will be doing reviews on all of these products to show you what they look like and if I was impressed.  First up will be the Minx #1 nail products!

Thanks for reading!

~NomiGirl~

XOXO