Sephora VIB Beauty Insider 20% off sale Nov 8-12

As many of you know, the Sephora Friends and Family event this year ended up in disappointment. Sephora decided to truly make their F&F sale exclusive to friends and family. This meant that the only way for one to get the discount was directly through a Sephora employee. The nerve, right? Lol.

But now until November 12 Sephora is giving 20 off to VIBs. In addition, VIBs are given a one time code to share with a friend. I received mine via mail a few days ago. If you are not a VIB, get a code from a friend.  I've already seen some friendly code swapping on a well known beauty forum.  Everyone is sharing the love

I'd hoped to get some shopping done while visiting NYC this weekend. But I stopped by a Sephora location today and couldn't concentrate. It was super crowded and when I go to Sephora it's a swatching and testing event. My fellow make-up junkies know what I mean.  When I walk out with swatches all over the back of my hand and nail polish on several fingers, it's been a good day.

Anyway, I've decided to do my shopping online. Although some of the OCC lip tars that I wanted have sold out. Hopefully the other items that I want are still in stock.

Soooooo what's on your list this time around?

Rescue Beauty Lounge: Bangin'

As a red nail polish lover I'm suprised that I did'nt purchase this years ago when I first discovered RBL. Love it!!

This mani immediately put me in a good mood and left me staring at my nails constantly.  I cannot remember what top coat I used with this mani because this pic was taken over a month ago.  But as far as the formula of the polish it was superior.  Rescue Beauty Lounge is known for their smooth formula and this one did not disappoint. 

Bangin is described as a hot red coral.  This description is quite accurate because it leans more red than coral.  It's a creme formula with no hints of shimmer which I quite like

Normally I lean towards blue based reds but this was a nice change.  This was a one coater for me and opaque enough not to need a second.  I'm sure some prefer 2 coats but I like to do one if I can get away with it. I tend to apply polish pretty thick

Unfortunately this color is now discontinued with no talk of a BIB (short for Bring it Back in Rescue Beauty Lounge slang). But I've read that Poppy from the GOMM collection is a more amped up version. It's on my wishlist to buy

Have you tried Rescue Beauty Lounge colors before?  What are some that are on your wishlist to try?


 Rescue Beauty Lounge polishes retail between $18-$20

Sephora Friends and Family Sale starts OCTOBER 18th!!!

I was relieved to read on another blog that the Sephora Friends and Family sale is coming up on October 18th through the 31st.  Back flips would be in order if I were a cartoon character celebrating a victory.

I missed out on the Urban Decay sale last week and also a beauty.com promo the week prior. Missing the Urban Decay sale was particularly hurtful for me because I just recently remembered that they use paypal.  I like to use paypal whenever possible because the funds in my paypal account are like "play" money for me and I'm not dipping into my personal account.  Whenever I sell things online I tend to keep a little money in my paypal to splurge on random purchases.  This is why I call it play money.  But I digress.

I plan to make my list and take FULL advantage of the Sephora sale. The only downside is that things sell out so quickly (popular items that is) so I am going to try and act fast.

I don't have details on how it will work this year as far as if it will be in store only or online.  I'm sure these details will surface over the coming days and I will update here for those who want to know. I hope it's in store because then you don't have to worry about meeting the $50 minimum for free shipping.  But on the plus side if it ends up being online there's always ebates and other rebate sites that you can use. Every penny helps, right? 

A few NARS and Urban Decay items come to mind immediately. What are you planning for this time around?

Chanel Mail!! Chanel Le Vernis Nail Colour

I received this amazing package in the mail and had to share.  And the best part about it....I didn't spend a DIME!   How is this so?  Trade Trade Trade!

I absolutely love swapping and trading online.  It's the best way to get new stuff without putting a hurtin' on your pocketbook.  Luckily for me I had something that an online buddy of mine wanted and she had these lovely Chanel polishes that I absolutely wanted.  A swap transaction made in heaven!

I love Chanel polishes and have been making it a point to grow my collection over the past few years. I love collecting them just as much as I love wearing them. Who would have thought that I would become a collector after once declaring that I would never spend that much money on a polish again.  But I forgive myself for that statement because at the time I didn't appreciate magnifigence of Chanel.  Ha ha.  Maybe one day I will write about my first Chanel polish.

So onto the goodies.  All of the polishes that I picked up in this trade were LE.  More often than not if it's a LE and I can get my hands on it, slam dunk.  One of these will be a backup for me and the rest are welcome newbies.  Actually as I type this I just rememered that Fire may not be LE.  I think it is still available outside of the US.

(Left to Right)   Rivera, Pulsion, Splendeur, Melrose, Steel and Fire

Until these arrived I didn't realize how many pinks I had selected or how close in color they were.  But they are different enough for me and since they are all limited edition I feel like I need them all.  LOL. Melrose is the lightest of group, followed by Riviera, then Pulsion and Splendeur.  My apologies for the blurry image below

Chanel Melrose (Rodeo Drive Collection), Riviera (2010) , Pulsion  (Holiday 2010), Splendeur (?)

So which should I wear first? 

China Glaze Encouragement Nail Polish

Encouragement was released as a part of China Glaze's Fight Like a Woman for breast cancer awareness. This polish was a part of a trio, released with 2 other colors in the Fall of 2010. 

The color is a soft white with subtle silver flaky shimmer.  It's a pretty pink in the bottle but honestly didn't wow me when I tried it on.  Can't really say why, as it's not a bad color and did not clash with my skin tone.  But it just did not wow me personally. 

China Glaze Encouragement INDOOR lighting, NO FLASH

It is a very pretty and subtle pink that is very soft and leans towards white. The formula was pretty thick and I only used one coat.  I didn't have any problems with chipping but I only wore it for about 2 days so I can't really speak to it's long term wear

Close up, INDOOR lighting NO FLASH

WITH FLASH

Day 2 -Outside no flash


Overall I think this is a lovely soft pink for those that are into soft colors. What makes it unique from any other soft pink polish are the subtle flaky shimmers.  They were hard to capture but they are there.  It changes the texture to a sightly bumpy consistency. When I ran my fingers over my nails it was not a completely smooth surface.  Perhaps a really thick top coat would fix this if its a concern

 

What do you think of this Encouragement?  Do you own it or anything similar?

Catching Up

Hey there!!  I'm alive and well for those who are wondering. If anyone is wondering why I may randomly featuring older nail polishes it's because I'm attempting to work through my untrieds.  For those of you who are not beauty collectors, hoarders, lovers or what ever your term of endearment for yourself may be, let me explain.
Untrieds in the world of beauty/cosmetics is what we collectors call our untried products.  Simple, right?  Due to the low price point of (most) polishes one will find that nail polish collectors are often guilty of having a sea of untried polishes.  I may do the same and feature some older cosmetics or beauty products. 

At the same time I will do my best to stay current as well.  Please feel free to contact me with requests

I'm not going to make an commitments on how often I will be posting because I don't want to break any promises. But I am really going to attempt to stay active.  Although I've been away from this blog for a while, I am still active on reading up on other beauty/polish blogs and forums.   I have a lot to talk about!

Looking forward to it!  Please join me on my beauty escapades.....

$80 worth of NARS products for $50!

I am so excited about this deal!

 Gilt City has an offer for an $80 voucher towards NARS cosmetics online for $50.  But that's not all!........ They have a special right now where if you refer someone you get 20% off your first purchase and so does the person that you refer!!!  So if you make your first purchase through someone that referred you the total comes to $40!!!  Double deal!

Hurry before it sells out.  I just ordered mine.  The voucher for future online purchase can be redeemed until February

My referral link is below for those who need it.  If you already have a friend who is a Gilt City member run and tell them to refer you asap!  This ends up coming up to 50% off NARS ($80 of merchandise for $40 after discount)

And you can't beat that with a BAT!   haha

http://www.giltcity.com/invite/impulsivebeautyescap


**TIP: When you register click on Washington DC deals.  For some reason the NARS deal didnt show up when I selected my actual city.  You can always change your city later to view your local deals

HAPPY SHOPPING EVERYONE!!!!  I'm excited, I love a good deal