Lust Have It! June 2014

Let’s try this again. WordPress updated and all of a sudden I have no idea how to post things. I feel like I’m just starting out again! I’m realising that I need to start having a stockpile of draft posts that I can post when life gets away from me, because this week time has gotten away from me and I just have not had any time to post! Even though I have photos for at least three posts, ready and waiting to be written.

I received my Lust Have It! June box yesterday… the 3rd of July. Late, again. My first thought when I took the package out of my mail box (you know it’s on the small side when it fits in your mail box) I wasn’t even sure what it was but I wasn’t expecting anything else, so I figured it had to be it.
When Anthony gets home from work and I’ve received a box that day I always love telling him about it (I get excited about these ok!) and when I was showing him the contents even he was saying “wait… that was it!?” I feel like that says something all by itself.

This is what it looked like as soon as I took it out of the post bag.

 

And here is the details card. At first glance I have to say, the whole thing looks a little ‘meh’, but maybe that’s just me. Click the image for a larger version that you can read!

 

Teez Trendy Cosmetics Nail Polish $18 (full size)
The colour is a red/brown that I’m not the hugest fan of. It’s not horrible, but it’s not great, it kind of goes with my overall feelings of the box… ‘meh’.
I have to note though, the packaging is super cute. Potentially unnecessary, but super cute.
It claims that it won’t chip for three days. I put on two coats (it probably needed three, but I was low on time) yesterday when I received the box and can already see some small signs of wear and very small chips on the tips of my nails and it’s only been a day. So I’m not sure about it not chipping… maybe if I’d put on the extra coat I’d have a better chance. What I did really love about the polish, and what would make me buy it if it weren’t a whopping $18, is that it dried super fast. I have a real problem with impatience when it comes to painting my nails. I love them to look pretty, but I hate waiting for them to dry because I find they take a long time to fully dry properly, so that I don’t smudge them. This polish was amazing for this. I put on two coats almost one after the other about half an hour before I left the house and was totally fine to go about my business and bump and knock my nails to my hearts content! So if you have that problem, this may be a polish worth looking into.

John Plunkett Glyco Peel $29.95 (full size)
This says it’s ‘clinical strength’ and contains ‘25% glycolic acid’. It’s meant to keep your skin looking ‘young and refreshed’ but I don’t think I’ll be trying this product. I mean I have absolutely no idea what glycolic acid is, but it sounds intense. The fact that it’s ‘clinical strength’ also makes me wary. I mean I’m sure that for some people that’s exactly what they need, but my skin isn’t really bad enough that it needs something this intense right now. I’m a huge fan of the natural as you’ll notice on previous posts!

 

 

La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo $27.95
I received this in the June Bellabox which arrived two weeks ago and was definitely my preferred box this month. I won’t rant on about this again, but the size of the sample bothers me, as well as the brand. I’ve had a few samples from this brand and find they just generally don’t do a lot.

Orly Mini Nail Files $1.95 & Toe Separators $4.95 (full size) (not available where the card lists them)
This product… just seems like a bit of a pointless filler product. I have a packet of mini nail files like this that are just a random advertising product and while they’re handy if you’re absolutely desperate, they’re not great. They’re not hard like others, they’re quite spongy which I find makes them hard to use to file your nails. They do look pretty cute, there’s a few of them in the packet that you ‘tear’ off, so there is that. The toe separators… why!? I don’t know a single person who actually uses toe separators. I personally find them terribly uncomfortable, but maybe that’s just me. Please let me know if you love these because I’d love to think there’s someone out there that doesn’t find them as pointless as I do.

 

Nuxe Cream Nirvanesque $49.95 & Cream Nirvanesque Eye Contour $44.95
Even Anthony knows by now that I hate samples in sachets. They just irritate me. I like to be able to use a product at least twice to know if it actually works, and works for me, or not. So I feel a little bad, but this product was dismissed slightly as soon as I opened the package and saw them. They’re meant to help with lines and dark circles, which is another reason why my care factor for these is pretty low because as a 20-something year old I can’t say that I have a lot of lines yet! I might give the Eye Contour a shot though, because I do have some pretty mean dark circles right now because I have not been sleeping this week!

Hello Fresh $30 Gift Card
I got one of these in another box (I don’t remember which) and I lost it and was kind of bummed because it sounded good… so I’m excited to have another. I am worried there’s going to be a catch though when I get on the website and order. Scratch that, I just jumped on the website and had a click around… the catch is that every box ends up costing you at least $60… Bummer! If only I knew where my other card was…

And of course, there’s the cosmetic bag that we also received last month. One or two is great (I mean they’re plastic so they could potentially break pretty easily) but after that… not so much. I’ll probably be keeping it for my future giveaway (I need to get to 150 facebook likes first!) so look out for that!

 

I hope you guys have had a splendid week! Congratulations, you’ve officially reached another Friday night! Let me know what you have planned for the weekend! I’ve got a 21st and then an interstate friend coming to stay, hooray!

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Bellabox June 2014

No video for this one today because I’m sick as a dog! However, this Bellabox (my first in almost a year) turned up on the perfect day because it was a lovely little pick-me-up on a sick day.

After the weirdness with Lust Have It recently (boxes being late, and lots of repeat products seeing as I’ve been getting it for a year) I decided to try out Bellabox again because the reviews I’ve seen have been really great! And as a bonus, it’s $5 cheaper than Lust Have It, so we’ll see how it goes. I’m still waiting on my May box because I stuffed up my address – but it’s a great testament to the customer service of Bellabox! It was partly my fault that it got lost and yet they’re sending me a replacement box! Such lovely service, makes me feel really comfortable with my decison.

Anyway, onto the box!

 

This month’s box came with an issue of InStyle magazine (a bonus product – $9.95)! A hilarious coincidence considering the first box I EVER got came with an issue of Cleo. It’s not really my kind of magazine, but it was nice to have a different magazine for once. I absolutely love the boxes. Much more than the Lust Have It boxes that they used to do, purely because the lid and box actually separate! It means I can use them exactly for what I want to use them for – make-up storage in my make-up drawers! I love having separated sections for my products.

 

How cute does everything look in the box!? Perfect little present to myself, seriously. The box instantly looks pretty good to me. I see Herbal Essences so I’m already happy!

 

 

This is the card for the month. Hopefully you can read the card! The only complaint I have is that the Vo5 Hot Oil doesn’t have ANY instructions really, just that it’s for before shampoo. Oh well! Google will help I’m sure.

Onto the products!

 

Plants for People Aloe, Grapefruit Foaming Gel Cleanser RRP $24.95
I’ve never heard of People for Plants Australian Organics, but I’m loving the name and the packaging. Normally I’m a little hesitant about big tubes of cleanser because they always always end up doing nothing for my skin, but I love organic and natural products so much that I decided to keep this (my first thought was to give it away) and try it! The tube says it’s 74.5% organic ingredients so it sounds promising. It also says it’s for normal to combination skin and my skin is so combination it’s insane, so again… sounds promising!
From what I can smell (stupid blocked nose!) it smells really refreshing. The InStyle magazine also mentions this product.
I tried it out and I’m not wowed but I don’t hate it. It didn’t excessively dry out my skin or anything, and my skin does feel clean so that’s a plus!

 

Herbal Essences Naked Shine Shampoo & Conditioner RRP $6.99 each (Though I found it for $1 less here)

I was SO excited to see this. I’ve started to see it advertised and really wanted to try it but I’m not quite out of shampoo yet so I was waiting semi-patiently. This smells so so good. I am so excited to use it. It’s free of silicone, parabens and dyes, so I’m thinking it’ll be great for my hair.

 

La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo RRP $27.99
I’ve received various products from this brand a few times in the Lust Have It boxes and I’ve never been impressed. They’re meant to be all fancy and stuff, but they just don’t seem to DO anything. And the sizes of the samples never impress me because how can you see if a product has a long-lasting effect, especially a skin product, if it’s such a small size.
The product boasts 24-hour hydration and apparently removes ‘excess oils and any blockages’ and ‘this cream unclogs sebum-blocked pores in 30 days, with one application per day’. Which is impossible to prove because hellooooo, tiny tube.

 

Vo5 Hot Oil RRP $6.99
I’m really hopeful for this product. I love hair treatments, but I’m wary for this because my hair is SUPER oily (I have to wash it every day on average, occasionally I can stretch it to two days) so I’m going to have to make sure it really gets washed out.
What does bug me is that neither the tube nor the product card tell you how to use it! Google to the rescue! Thankfully the Vo5 website have directions on their site.
USE BEFORE SHAMPOOING. 1. Place unopened tube in a cup of warm water to heat. 2. Wet hair. Massage contents of tube into hair. Leave on up to one minute. VO5 HOT OIL THERAPY works best when rinsed within one minute of application. 3. RINSE HAIR, scalp and skin thoroughly. Shampoo as usual. 4. STYLE. Use weekly or more often as needed.

 

Innoxa Lip Liner RRP $17.95
I didn’t realise until I opened it that this product isn’t a pencil! It’s a twisty tube and I love that fact because I never have a pencil sharpener around. I like this colour because I think it’ll go with a lipstick I have which is awesome. I tried it on my hand and wiped it off really quickly and it still took a couple of swipes to get off, and I hadn’t given it a change to set yet so that speaks well for how well it’ll stay on. Apparently it’s waterproof.

 

Nutrimetics Nutri-Rich Nourishing Masque RRP $39.00
This is meant as a ‘bonus’ product. I hardly ever end up using samples that are this small, but it’s a nice afterthought. There’s not much else to say.

There you have it, the June Bellabox! I’m not hating it!  Getting the May box in the next day or two will be a telling point as well. Let’s hope it’s good!

What’s your favourite product of this bunch? Have you had any experiences with Lust Have It or Bellabox?

Lust Have It! April 2014

  It’s the 5th of May and I finally got my Lust Have It! box… or make up purse! I’ve been on the edge of my seat waiting for this baby to turn up! No video this month, partly because I’m a little bit unwell and partly because I didn’t receive an information card! So I’m kind of flying blind with this month’s collection. I do know that this first product is a full sized product because there’s been a lot about it on the lust have it social networks, we were even offered a choice between two products from the same brand!   This is the Glamourflage Sultry Sophie Lip/Cheek Stain. It retails at $21.95 and it feels like it! The packaging is absolutely delightful! The tube is glass, the box is adorable… I can’t complain! (Not that I do very often when it comes to Lust Have It!). I’m yet to try the product but I’m excited! I’ve wanted to try a lip stain (I doubt I’ll be using it on my cheeks as I like how subtle blushes are) for a really long time, but haven’t gotten around to purchasing one, so when we got the choice between this product and a face primer I dived on the tint! I’m so excited to try it!       This is the Claytime Australia Mineral Bronzer. It says on their website that it retails for $29.95, however when I was hunting down a purchase link for you guys, I found it here for $26.95. I have to say, I’m not normally one to complain about Lust Have It! boxes because I generally use at least a few of the products, I find the sample sizes quite handy for travel sometimes, and it doesn’t really bother me if it doesn’t come in super fancy packaging because hey, $20 including postage is not a bad deal. But this… I am not impressed. Mainly because this was advertised as a full sized product, from what I’ve heard from other people it was marked as a full sized product on the info card (which I didn’t get) but it’s not. You can see through clicking the above links that those products look different to the one pictured above, and the size of those products is 7g, whereas this one is only 3g. As I said, I’ve been really trying to keep an open mind with Lust Have It! and I still really like this box, but if something’s not full sized, don’t call it so. Deluxe sized sample would have sufficed.   This is the Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion. I’ve been using Aveeno for a little while now, and I don’t mind it all that much! They’re not a brand I would rave about, but at the same time I can’t help but say they’re not too bad at all. I’ve used their cleanser and their daily facial moisturizer and I can’t complain. I’ve found better and I’ve found worse products, however they’re very affordable which is the main reason I’m using their facial moisturizer right now. I like the size of this sample though, it’s not absolutely tiny, it has enough for a decent few uses and it’ll be great for travelling!     This is the Bioderma Atoderm Creme.  I haven’t used their products much so I can’t say I have too much to say about them, but I do look forward to trying this product. I have combination skin (my goodness do I) and some areas are exceptionally dry, so I hope this cream can make a difference.

Last but not least, Wot Not Facial Wipes. We’ve gotten these a few times in Lust Have It! boxes and they do the job fine! They have an odd smell about them, but they’re organic so it makes sense. I’m always a fan of these small packets of wipes because as I mentioned earlier, they’re just so good for travelling!

So there you have it, lovelies! The Lust Have It! April 2014 box. If you’d like to try it out for yourself, you can click this link to try the box for 25% off for the first month! Instead of $20, you can pay only $14.95! I definitely recommend trying them out at least once, you can cancel your subscription at any time. Despite hearing some not great things about the boxes on various blogs, I’m sticking with them!

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Hair Products I’m Loving Right Now

I’m pretty crazy protective of my hair, I’m not going to lie. I have previously been pretty nasty to it (lots and lots of at home dye attempts, lots of heat…) and it’s getting pretty long so it needs a trim.

I’m finding that my priority at the moment is to keep my hair as healthy and manageable as possible, and to keep it looking that way.

So, with that in mind I figured I’d share my favourite products (and tools) at the moment, especially because I’m trying to achieve all this on a very small budget. Plus, these are all products I’ve found either at the grocery store or in the case of my hair straightener, just at Priceline.

Here’s the list!

1. Garnier Nutri-Repair Instant Detangler Spray 150mL – $5.99
I am in love with this spray. So much so that I just bought another bottle off the Priceline website and paid about the same amount in postage as the actual product costs because I can’t seem to find it anywhere on shelves at the moment. I’ve always struggled with detangling my hair, especially after sleeping on it for a night. It’s got a bit of fruit oils in it, but I don’t find that it leaves an oily residue if you don’t use an excessive amount (which you shouldn’t need to) which is important to me because I have quite oily hair. Also, it smells absolutely amazing! I love using it purely for the delicious smell. Definitely something I adore putting on the ends of my hair.

2. vo5 Heat Protect Styling Spray 200mL – $7.69
I’ll be honest, I have absolutely no idea if this works. It smells really good though! And if it does work, it certainly doesn’t leave a residue. The only reason you can even tell it’s in your hair is because of the smell. So, if you’re going to go for a heat protecting spray I’d recommend this one.

3. Davroe Hair Wellness Replenish Jojoba Creme Treatment – $23.95
I got this in my Lust Have It! box one month (click the link for $5 off your first box! So worth it!) and it has been one of the best things I have ever gotten out of the box. You leave it in your hair for 5-7 minutes and then rinse out and good Lord your hair is delightfully soft afterwards, again with no residue. It genuinely makes my hair feel healthier, rather than just coating it in product and making it seem healthier.

4. Remington Pro Slimline Ceramic Straightener – $25
I’ve had this straightener for a decent few years, and when I got it I purchased it as an upgraded version of my previous Remington straightener. They last for an exceptionally long time, they glide through your hair and my favourite bit is that they’re no where near as expensive as ‘professional’ tools. I would recommend Remington to anyone, any time. I have always had my Remington products for an exceptionally long time (my hair dryer will not die) and I love that because I don’t have the money to be spending on extra tools. I use this straightener to curl my hair also, and it does a really good job because it’s slimline. I’ve got fairly difficult hair in regards to straightening, mainly because I’ve got naturally curly/wavy hair and it’s hard to keep it straight all day, but this works. I’ve used it on even tougher hair as well, and it’s till held it’s own. It heats up to a lovely 230 degrees celcius (I’d never use a higher temperature on my hair anyway) and I just can’t rave enough about it.

So there you have it! If you have any questions, please feel free to comment below! Even better, if you have any tips you’d like to share that’d be so helpful too!

Happy hair days guys! 🙂

Photos of the Lust Have It! March 2014 box

Details card:

Aaaaand a photo of what I got. Sorry for the bad lighting! Didn’t end up having time to take the photo until night time so that made the lighting a little funky.

 

 

Lust Have It! March 2014 box

I finally got my Lust Have It! box today which is a bit exciting! I’d been getting a little concerned that it wasn’t going to come seeing as it’s April but better late than never!

Although it’s small, I actually really like the contents of this box. There’s nothing too odd or strange that I won’t use, I’ll probably end up using all the products which is awesome.

I’ll post the photos of the contents in a separate post so you guys can see the details a little clearer.

If you’d like to try out Lust Have It! go ahead and click the link below and you’ll get $5 off your first box!!
http://www.lusthaveit.com.au/index.php/womens-box-friend-referral.html/?mw_reward=41067f3d991e5d5e2e89390c5222ea80

As always, thanks for watching!