August Box Blender and Scent

My last offerings from the August box are by famous names. One, Kat Von D, we've discussed before. The other is beautyblender, a tool product that many people swear by.

My beautyblender beautyblender® micro.mini is the first tool I've received in my box. I was pretty thrilled when I got it because it's tiny and adorable. The full purchase price is 18$ for a set of two. I've used blenders before, but they were full-sized and knockoffs. Working with sponges while doing makeup is tricky at first. It's certainly something that requires practice. If you learn to work them well, it can do amazing things for anyone who hates the feel of having makeup on because sponges can put it on so light it feels like nothing.

My microblender did its job. It's less porous than my knockoffs and handles water/creams better. They don't do a bad job, but the beautyblender is certainly a better texture for application. Having said that, I don't think I would bother to pay full price. The knockoffs do well enough and eventually, they're going to all fall apart. You have to keep in mind that while this is a tool you can use quite a few times, you're still going to be tossing it in the trash after a while. And as the microblender is a little tough to clean, I'm betting I'll be tossing it away sooner than later.

The scent this month was a double scent. Kat Von D's Sinner and Saint perfumes. Separately, they run 65$ for 1.6 oz. Apparently, she stopped making these for a while and just started production again. I liked Saint more than Sinner because it's lighter and floral, but even it was too heavy of a scent for me to be totally in love with it. Had it just been the vanilla and jasmine, I would have been fine, but she also adds notes of mandarin, caramel, Mirabelle plum, sandalwood, and creamy musk. It's just A LOT. She said she created it a scent that reminded her of falling in love for the first time....and....well, as I said. It's A LOT.

Sinner seemed out of place as a summer scent. It has the jasmine, mandarin, vanilla, and plum in common with Saint, but adds orange blossom, but adds cinnamon, vetiver, patchouli, and wood. Which . . . patchouli . . . though I do admit she masks the patchouli well. Then again, with all this other stuff in there, how could she not? She said this was her more edgy side, which, yes, I get, but it's still A LOT. The problem with scents this complicated is that nothing really stands out. On some people that may work, but on me, it just comes off as someone spraying jasmine Fabreeze in the room where people had an orgy.

Over all, I was pleased with this month's box. My exploration of makeup and myself continues to yield some valuable discoveries.

August Box Skin and Hair

It occurs to me that if you don't know I'm talking about beauty products, my various monthly titles might sound a little sinister.

The skin item is GLAMGLOW VOLCASMIC™ Matte Glow Moisturizer and to own 1.7 oz of it, you must pay 54$. I have to say that is way out there far more than I would feel comfortable paying for a moisturizer. And yet, I would seriously be tempted by this product. It's fabulous. As it also acts as a primer, I will admit my makeup never felt as good as it did when I had this on my skin. Not only did it glide on smooth and light, but it held during very hot weather.

Apparently, the volcanic sand acts as little tiny sponges that absorb oil. For anyone who has oily skin, this product would make you happy. When the oil is being handled, pores feel tiny and skin feels tighter. When I was reading the description, it talked about how Glamglow keeps the skin 'calm.' I snarked at this, at first.  I used the product and now I get it. My makeup has never been so uneventful. No sliding. No melting. No long streaks of sweat and disruption. Glorious.

My hair item for this month is ALTERNA Haircare CAVIAR Anti-Aging Miracle Multiplying Volume Mist and it costs 30$. Now, this product is supposed to help people regain volume and look fuller, like how it looked when you were younger. They note in the product description this is best done with the shampoo and conditioner related to this product. I don't have those so I can't attest to its thickening abilities.

I can say I love the way it smells. It smells like grape soda and that makes me happy. I also like its holding power. When I put it on, it did what I wished without feeling clumpy or stiff. I would go so far as to say it made my hair feel BETTER than it does with no product in it at all.

Would I pay 30$ for it? No. It's a nice product and I would go so far as to say it does feel very lux, but I can't justify that amount of money for hair spray. Mind you, if it really does, over the course of the month, make me feel like my hair is thicker and better, I might change my mind. It would have to be drastic though because my guess is the shampoo and conditioner are equally expensive.

Tomorrow we're talking about two scents I received and my baby beauty blender. That should be fun.