Adventures in Polishland

Subscription Sunday | September PopSugar MustHave Box

Posted on September 22, 2013September 20, 2013 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy Subscription Sunday! It’s time for what has easily become my favorite subscription service, PopSugar MustHave! Yes, this box is a whopping $35 per month, but I honestly believe it is so worth it. This month I happily received some items that I’ve been wanting to purchase, but just hadn’t got around to it yet. It was so great to get those items in my box, plus some more goodies. Let me show you what was in my September PopSugar MustHave Box!

First up is a book entitled P.S. You’re Invited… by Erica Domesk that features over 40 do-it-yourself projects. I am so excited to receive this book! I love DIY projects, and this book has some really unique ideas. Plus, it is a smart book, which means there are corresponding videos to watch online. I can’t wait to try out some of the projects! This book retails for $26 (but try Amazon for $17!).

Next up is the Botanical Coaster Set from Rifle Paper Co. I was desperately on the hunt for a cute but affordable set of coasters, but I couldn’t find any that I liked. I’m absolutely loving this floral pattern, and now I can stop using napkins as coasters! This set of eight retails for $16.00.

I was also looking for a great diffuser for my room! Imagine my surprise when this amazing, $46 diffuser from Barr-Co was in my box! This scent is a mix of milk, oatmeal, vanilla, and velvetier, and is so amazing. It’s light enough that it’s not overpowering, yet strong enough that my room smells perfect. This diffuser is definitely a Must Have product for the home!

The next item is a set Kitsch Headbands. These are basically yoga-style hair ties in headband form! A set retails for about $11.99, and I think this is a great item for the box. I also got a $25 gift card to Shoptiques, an online store. I can’t wait to spend it!

Last but not least, we have the food items! Yum! First is a pack of Sharkies, organic energy sports chews. Basically, these are like fruit snacks that give you a burst of natural energy. They were delicious, but so sticky. Be careful when eating them! I also got a bar of That’s it. This was so good, and just an apple and pear bar. I would definitely buy more of these. The retail prices for these items are $1.48 and $1.67 respectively.

All in all, my September PopSugar MustHave box has a total retail value of $128.14! Not only did I get two items that I was looking to buy, but I got yummy snacks that I’ve already enjoyed, and some bonus goodies as well. This box is the best! I highly recommend it. If you’d like to join, simply click HERE and enter code REFERFRIEND at checkout to get $5 off your first month. You will love it just as much as I do!

This post contains affiliate links. Box purchased by me. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

Ipsy & Benefit Lash Bash | Thank You and Giveaway!

Posted on September 21, 2013September 28, 2013 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy Saturday! I was recently selected by Ipsy and Benefit Cosmetics to host a Lash Bash party. You may have heard of Benefit’s REALvolution featuring the brand’s famous they’re real! mascara. This Lash Bash event encourages makeup lovers everywhere to put away the false lashes, and enhance your natural lashes with they’re real!

As a lucky Lash Bash hostess, I was sent a box of goodies to share with my friends. Because you, my blog followers, are the reason I even know about Ipsy and Benefit Cosmetics, I wanted to share the goodies with you. I am saving one of the goodie bags from my Lash Bash party for a follower.

I can never thank my followers enough for your loyal support! The reason I am able to partner with brands and review their products is because I have people reading my blog. With that said, you may know that in July I had to move from a WordPress.com site to my own, self-hosted domain. When I moved, I lost all of my followers and website statistics, and had to start over from scratch. I really appreciate those of you who made the move with me, but I am still very far away from where I once was. With that said, I am hosting this giveaway solely for those who follow Adventures in Polishland. Please see all the giveaway details below.

Giveaway Rules

Follow Adventures in Polishland! Simply enter your email in that box on the right where it says “Follow Adventures in Polishland”. Only email followers qualify for this giveaway.
Prize is the goodie bag pictured above, and includes sample sizes of Benefit Cosmetics’ they’re real!, benetint, and sugarbomb.
Giveaway will run until midnight on Saturday, September 27th, giving new readers one week to follow.
Winner will be chosen via random.org and emailed.
Winner will have 48 hours to claim her prize, or a new winner will be chosen.
If you have questions, email me at adventuresinpolishland@gmail.com

I hope you will join me on my Adventures in Polishland!

Giveaway is CLOSED! Congrats, Gabriela! (She has claimed her prize.)

This prize is part of a package I received from Ipsy and Benefit. This post contains affiliate links. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

3D Bow Rhinestones from Born Pretty Store

Posted on September 19, 2013August 12, 2015 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy Thursday! I usually keep my manicures pretty simple, but every once in a while I like to dress up my nails. I was so excited when I received some bow rhinestones in the mail from Born Pretty Store. I think bows are so cute and girly, and couldn’t wait to add some flair to my manicure. Let me show you my fancy nails!

How awesome are these bows?! I knew I wanted a really feminine look, so I chose one of my favorite pinks of all time for the base color – L’Oreal’s Check Me Out. Then I let my nail polish dry a little bit before applying the rhinestones because I wanted the polish to be tacky, but at the same time I didn’t want to smudge my manicure. Once I was sure the polish was partly dry, I carefully placed the bows on my nails and pressed them down. And it was as simple as that! The rhinestones stayed secure and I love the result!

One of the reasons I love these bows so much is because they come in an arched design that fits the nails perfectly. This is something new for me, as other nail rhinestones I’ve tried have always been flat on the bottom, and thus didn’t fit my nails properly. It is so great that these bows are designed this way, I can’t stress that enough!

All in all, I am loving these bow rhinestones from Born Pretty Store! If you are looking to glam up your manicure, I highly suggest these. Plus, you can grab a pack of 10 bows for just $5.99 HERE. These rhinestones can easily be reused, so this is definitely a great value. For those who may not be as adventurous in nail art, these bow are a great option. As always, you can get an extra 10% off with coupon code FZL91 and there is free international shipping with every order. Happy Shopping!

The products in this post were provided for unbiased review. This post contains affiliate links. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

Indie Spotlight: Oh Teally? and Fancy Schmancy from Amy’s Nail Boutique

Posted on September 17, 2013September 14, 2013 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy Tuesday! Early this year I purchased a couple polishes from Amy’s Nail Boutique, and they have just been sitting in my collection waiting to be used. I finally tried them out, and I am super impressed! I wish I tried these out so much sooner. Let me show you these gorgeous glitters!

First up is Oh Teally?, a glitter top coat full of circles, squares, hexagonal glitters all in the color teal! I also spy a bit of a darker blue mixed throughout to add a bit more dimension. I layered two coats over Covergirl’s Mint Mojito, and I’m loving the result! Oh Teally? has a great formula, but I do wish more glitters applied with one coat. Thankfully, the polish isn’t thick, and two coats are the perfect finish! Oh Teally? is a must for all teal fans!

Fancy Schmancy is the other polish I purchased, and it is a mix of turquoise, gold, purple, blue and fuchsia glitters in all shapes and sizes! I layered one coat over butter LONDON’s Queen Vic, and I think it makes a great manicure! The colors remind me of fall, especially with the gold glitters mixed in. Plus, the formula was great and the glitters applied really easily. Fancy Schmancy is a winner!

All in all, I’m quite impressed with these polishes from Amy’s Nail Boutique. If you are looking for some beautiful glitters and more, head on over to the shop on Etsy HERE. I definitely look forward to checking out more of these polishes in the future.

This post contains affiliate links. Polishes purchased by me. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

Subscription Sunday | August Love With Food Box

Posted on September 15, 2013September 14, 2013 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy Subscription Sunday! Today I am reviewing the August Love With Food Box. While it is a bit late, I really wanted to tell all of you what happened with my August box. When I first received it at the beginning of the month, it unfortunately was a disaster! A cup of salsa had leaked everywhere, ruining some of the box. I snapped a photo and emailed customer service. Not only did they send me a replacement box, but they refunded my money for the month of August as well! It did take a while for the replacement to show up, which is why this post is so late. I think it’s really important that Love With Food’s amazing customer service was shared!

Here is a sneak peek of what the August Box looked like. It was Backyard BBQ themed!

Sahale Snacks Fruit & Almond Crunchers – I actually haven’t tried these yet, but it’s a mix that you can pour in yogurt or enjoy on its own. Sounds like it will be yummy!
Project 7 Save Mints – I got mints from this brand in a PopSugar box and loved them! The packaging is so cute, and the mints taste really good. I was happy to get another tube.
Aunt Sally’s Creamy Original Pralines – Oh my! This is so delicious! I am thinking I need more of these because it was that good.

Rip van Wafels Caramel Filled Amsterdam Wafel – Yum! These little wafels can be placed over a hot beverage like tea so it gets soft to eat. I loved this so much!
Dizzy Pig Dizzy Dust – Unfortunately this is the one product that is not for me since I don’t eat meat and this is a dry rub. It says you can use it as a spice packet in general, but it’s not really my thing.
Harvest Snaps Snapea Crips – I love these as well! I’ve tried them before, and I already repurchased two bags of these. I highly recommend them.

Last but least is a bag of BOPS Sea Salt Crisps. These were good, too, but I don’t think I would repurchase them. I prefer other chips better!

All in all, I did enjoy this box and the great customer service I received from Love With Food. I never got to try the salsa after all, because that wasn’t included in my replacement. While I do love this program, and think it’s fun to get these goodies every month, as of right now I did cancel my subscription for financial reasons. If you can afford the $10-12 per month, I do highly recommend the service. I will definitely consider joining again when I have the money! If you’d like to join, use code FBGIFT at checkout and your first month will be just $2! You can join Love With Food HERE.

This post contains affiliate links. Subscription box purchased by me. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

Beautiful NYC | Birchbox Local

Posted on September 13, 2013 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy Friday! Today I am very excited to launch a brand new series here at Adventures in Polishland called Beautiful NYC. I’ve been a New York City resident for just over a year now, and I sometimes find it difficult locating unique places to shop for nail polish and all things beauty. I thought it would be fun to highlight shops and events around the city and share them with all of you! To kick things off, I headed to the first ever Birchbox Local shop.

Birchbox Local is located at Chelsea Market, a super hip, indoor market with food, shopping, and more. I’ve never been there before, so I loved being able to visit a new part of the city on this Birchbox adventure! I planned on taking lots of photos of the shop once I got there, but it was so busy inside I couldn’t get any good pictures! Let’s just say this shop is super cool. In the front is the bar where you can build your own box (pictured below), and then the rest of the space is dedicated to more beauty products, and even a section for hair and makeup services. The Birchbox online shop literally came to life!

Of course, the main reason I wanted to head to Birchbox Local was to build my own Birchbox! For $15, you can customize your own box with a total of five samples. I couldn’t wait to pick out some goodies! There are literally 45 different samples to choose from!

Benefit Cosmetics Gimme Brow – $22 – Gimme Brow is a brow-volumizing fiber gel to fill in eyebrows while keeping them groomed at the same time. I got the shade light/medium, and imagine my surprise when I discovered that this is the full size product! This one item alone is already worth more than I paid for the box!
Color Club in Savoy Nights – $2 – I couldn’t leave without putting a nail polish in my box! I grabbed this gorgeous silver glitter from the soon-to-be-released Winter 2013 collection from Color Club. Yes, this nail polish isn’t even released yet! I estimated the price compared to other Color Club minis.
Macadamia Healing Oil Treatment – $3.23 – This oil is now one of my go-to hair products! I am running low on the 1oz bottle I got in an Ipsy bag, so I grabbed this sample size to last me even longer. I know I’ll love this product! It’s amazing!
Smashbox Photo Finish Primer in Light – $10 – I’ve heard so many great things about Smashbox primers that I knew I had to grab one! The shop had every variety, but I decided to get the oil free one because my skin gets oily throughout the day. I can’t wait to try it!
beautyblender – $19.95 – I almost fell on the floor when I saw that we could add beautyblenders to our box! Plus, when I checked out the sales girl gave me a sample size of the blendercleaser to go with it! I absolutely love my beautyblender, and I could not pass up the opportunity to grab another at such an amazing value.

TOTAL RETAIL VALUE: $57.18

Wow! What an amazing value for just $15 + tax! Not only did I get some amazing products, but I had a great time, too. All of the sales girls at Birchbox Local were really nice, and I honestly wish this shop was open all the time! If you live in or are planning to visit New York City this weekend, I highly recommend stopping by Birchbox Local. All the information you need to know is located on the Birchbox website HERE. Keep in mind they only take cards (no cash).

I hope you enjoyed this post, and stay tuned for more Beautiful NYC reviews! Let me know in the comments if there is a specific place you would like me to visit and write about.

Candy Color Nail Polish from Born Pretty Store

Posted on September 9, 2013August 12, 2015 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy Monday! I hope you all enjoyed your weekend and didn’t mind that I took a few days off from blogging. Today I’m back with a review of a nail polish from Born Pretty Store, my favorite online retailer for all things nail art (and so much more!). Recently Born Pretty came out with a line of nail polishes that remind me of indies, and I couldn’t wait to try them! While I love supporting small businesses, sometimes my bank account would be much happier with an indie dupe. Let me show you a polish I tried out from Born Pretty’s Candy Color line!

Here is Candy Color Polish in Number 17 (Born Pretty doesn’t have polish names, just numbers!). The first thing I noticed was that the bottle I received looks nothing like the picture on the website — it is a different shape and brand name. Yet the polish color looks the same and that’s all that matters!

This polish is a milky yellow base filled with red and gold hexagonal glitters and fine gold glitters. It applied very well, with glitters easily laying flat on the nail without any special effort. I applied three coats to achieve opacity, but this could be layered over another color as well. I was rather impressed with the formula, and I actually like the color combination. This is a really unique polish!

All in all, I am really liking the Candy Color Nail Polish from Born Pretty Store. This line contains 10 polishes, each of which is just like an indie nail polish. The best part is, these polishes retail for just $4.36 each, or $38.80 for the entire, 10-piece collection. You can purchase this fabulous and affordable polish HERE and don’t forget to use coupon code FZL91 to get an additional 10% off your purchase. As always, Born Pretty Store offers free international shipping. Let me know if you have tried any Candy Color shades!

The product in this post was provided for my unbiased review. This post contains affiliate links. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

Indie Spotlight: Daphine Polish in Watermelon Taffy & Sick, Sad World

Posted on September 5, 2013September 1, 2013 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy Thursday! Today I’m back with a review of some more polishes from the indie brand Daphine Polish. If you missed my first review of this brand, you can see it HERE. The polishes I’m reviewing today are from different collections, but they are equally as great! Let me show you these beautiful polishes.

First up is Watermelon Taffy, a pink jelly polish with black, green, and holographic glitters. I am amazed at how easily Watermelon Taffy applied to my nails — it glided right on and there is no need to fish for glitters! I layered two coats of this polish to achieve opacity, and then I added a matte top coat for the bottom photo. Not only is Watermelon Taffy a sweet candy, but it’s an awesome polish!

Next up is Sick, Sad World, a metallic green polish with blue, gold, and green square glitters. Sick, Sad World has a great formula, and is opaque in two coats. I love how it shifts from green to gold depending on the light! I couldn’t resist adding a matte top coat to Sick, Sad World as well. Doesn’t it look great?!

All in all, I am loving these polishes from Daphine Polish! I’m so glad I found out about this indie nail polish brand. The quality here is great, and like I said in my previous post, the polishes were packaged so well when they arrived. Make sure you check out the Daphine Polish Etsy shop HERE, and like the Facebook page HERE. Let me know what your favorite indie brands are in the comments!

The products in this post were provided for my unbiased review. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

Try it on Tuesday | Zoya Nail Polish in Wednesday, Lola, & Charisma

Posted on September 3, 2013August 12, 2015 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy Tuesday! I’ve acquired some new Zoya polishes lately, so I thought it would be fun to do a review of my untried Zoyas for this week’s Try it on Tuesday. I can’t believe that it’s been just over a year now that I’ve known about Zoya — it’s become one of my favorite brands! Let me show you some polishes that surely don’t disappoint!

First up is Wednesday, a dusty turquoise creme. While I’ve used Wednesday on my toes a few times, I’ve never tried it out as a manicure. The formula is a bit on the thick side, but easily manageable and opaque in two coats. I love this shade, and think it’s perfect all year long.

Next up is Lola, a bright pink polish with purple duochrome shimmer. Lola is a dream nail polish! Not only does it have an amazing formula that is opaque in two coats, but it is so beautiful. The color is just so unique, and I love how bright it is. Plus, it is multidimensional due to its duochrome effect. Lola is one of my new favorite nail polishes!

Last but not least is Charisma, a vibrant magenta polish that dries to a matte finish. Charisma also has a great formula, but make sure you apply it carefully or streaks will appear when the polish dries. I applied two coats to achieve opacity, and I’m just loving the result. Matte polishes are a favorite of mine, and Charisma’s color is just amazing!

All in all, these three Zoya polishes are just fabulous. I honestly love each of them, and plan on wearing them again and again! If I had to pick one favorite from this bunch, it would be Lola. What about you?! As always, you can purchase Zoya’s polishes online HERE for $8 each.

Subscription Sunday | My September Julep Maven Box

Posted on September 1, 2013 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy Subscription Sunday! As you may know, I love Julep nail polish. Julep was the first subscription service I ever joined, and it is still one of my favorites. One of the program’s best features is being able to skip any month without having to cancel your subscription. I ended up skipping both July and August to make more room in my budget, but I went for the September box, and I was so excited to get it in the mail! Let me show you everything that was inside.

As always, my Julep Maven Box was packaged quite nicely. I did notice there was no informational card like there usually is, but I still got the quote that matches up with this month’s theme, the Cityscape Collection. I went with my signature style, Classic with a Twist, which included two nail polishes and the Bare Face Cleansing Oil. As a little bonus, Julep added a nail polish remover pad.

Julep’s nail polishes also got a new look! I think the new packaging sure is cute, but a little unnecessary in the long run. I’ll be putting these in the recycling bin!

Florence is the first nail polish from my September box, and is a nude creme. The formula was a bit streaky, but Florence is opaque in two coats. This is really the perfect neutral color, especially for my skin tone. If you want to simply look polished and professional, Florence is the way to go!

The other polish I got is Padma, a deep purple creme. Padma is a dream polish! It has a one coat formula and the color is just stunning. This polish is super pigmented, and almost looks black. Padma is just perfect for when you want a dark color. I was surprised how much I loved it!

All in all, I’m really happy with my September Julep Maven Box! I can’t wait to try out the Bare Face Cleansing Oil as well. For $19.95 per month, Julep is a great bargain. Plus, Maven subscribers get special discounts and other goodies, and can skip or cancel at any time. If you’re not a member yet, be sure to join HERE and get your first month for free with code FREEBOX at checkout (you just pay shipping). Be sure to let me know what you think of Julep in the comments below!

This post contains affiliate links. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.