It has been a while since I have posted anything on here. Can't say that I'm officially back- but I would try and post more often.

Today, I'm coming to you all with a product review. These products are  sponsored by Influenster. I received my #dazzlevoxbox a while back and finally getting around to reviewing it. It came with some products by Clairol and Gold Bond.

I never used the dye because I am on a loc journey (which I will share soon). However, I have used the Keratin Rescue Split End Repair and the Gold Bond lotion.

I used the Keratin Rescue Split End and Repair a few times and its decent. Felt a little sticky at times on your hands. But, I did enjoy how light the product was. I focused mostly on my ends since they are loose and I have color on them. It felt nice on my hair and I didn't notice and reverse reactions with my premature locs.

As for the Gold Bond lotion, I fairly enjoyed it. I do feel like its slight too thick but my skin felt amazing when I used it. I even bought a bottle as my boyfriend loved it too. I am not the biggest fan of the scent, but I can overlook that. I also must admit that I find the price point for the bottle size is a little expensive compared to their versions.

Influenster #BloomVoxBox

I am always excited when I am notified that I was selected to receive the next Influenster VoxBox. I mean who doesn't like trying new and free stuff? This particular box came in just in time for a little much needed pampering session.


So what do I get in my box and my thought?


Cutex Advance Revival Nail Polish Remover Pads Retail $1.49- $3.99

Not Your Mother's Plump for Joy Retail $7.00

NUXE Huile Prodigieuse Multi-Purpose Dry Oil Retail $29.00 (50ml) $45.00 (100ml)

Sunbelt Bakery Granola Bars: Chocolate Chip Retail  $2.69 (multi-pack box)
I have never heard of this particular granola bars, but it was delicious. Would have to find a pack in stores.

Secret Outlast Xtend Invisible Solid Retail $4.29
I typically use Degree deodorants, however, I like to switch it up from time to time. I tested this product out while I was at work to see how well it works. My job keeps me pretty active and it was an excellent time to test how well it worked. I was presently happy that by the end of a 10hr shift, that I still smelled fresh and dry. Would buy a full size.

SinfulColors Nail Polish Retail $2.99
I received 1 polish from the new Kylie Jenner's Denim and Bling collection in the color Teal Midnight. My first impression was that the color was really nice. Although, I am not a huge fan of glittered nails, I do love an accent nail with it. Once I started to paint my nails with it, I was slightly disappointed with the color pay off. I used so many layers that I lost count! I know I used at least 5-8 layers to get the true color that you see in the bottle. Is it worth right? I would say yes, only because you cannot go wrong at the price point.

Did you receive the Bloom VoxBox or are you familiar with any of these products? Which is your favorite?

Not part of Influenster? Join here today so you can start receiving future VoxBox shipments.

All items included in Influenster VoxBox shipments are complimentary for review purposes.

My Skincare Routine

Happy weekend everyone! With spring time coming, I decided that I should share with you all what I use on my face to aid in keeping it clean and minimizes breakouts and oiliness. My skincare routine is very simple. Most of the items have been things I used for years, like the St. Ive's Blemish Control, or picked up a few months ago, Formula 10.0.6 Pores Be Pure.

 

A typical skincare day consist of me washing my face once a day, followed by masking for about 15-30mins and then a light layer of moisturizer. On days that I don't mask, I just follow up with  my moisturizer. I have founded that washing my face once a day (at night), helps to keep my face slightly less oily. I have yet to notice if the Pores Be Pure has helped any in the reduction of my pores or oiliness; but it does help prevent any breakout that I may be getting and aid in getting rid of the ones I may have.

What is your typical skincare routine? Do you have a product that

you cannot live without? If so, I would love to hear about them.

Review: Luxurious Loc Malaysian Kinky Curly

Clique Pore Refining Solutions in Pecan; MUF Full Cover Concealer in Chocolate 18; Ben Nye Powder in Coca Tan; Maybelline Define a Brow Pencil in Dark Brown; NYX Nude Matte Shadows in Haywire, Maybe Later, Dance the Tide; NYX Retractable Eye Liner in Gypsy Blue; NYX Blush in Cinnamon; Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter in Brown Sugar.

Happy Saturday everyone! Sometimes you just need a break from your hair and experiment with different looks without the actual commit to it-- that is where I am at in this point of my journey to healthy hair. I get bored of throwing my hair into a bun or rocking a twist out here and there. I was craving something different than your average straight weaves so I opted for something more natural and similar to my hair type. I have been rocking this hair for a month now and I just wanted to share with you all my thoughts.

I made this on a u part, along with a closure. I failed to mention that despite of the issue that I am having, I do like the hair.

Are you taking a break from your hair? If so, what is your protective style that you are wearing?

Ben Nye Powder + Tips

Hey everyone! Hope your week is going well. I just wanted to come really quickly and share with you all my little starter collection of the Ben Nye powders. Yes, I too, have jumped on the bandwagon and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

 

I picked up both powers from a local costume shop in my area.  I use Coco Tan to set my concealer highlight for under my eyes and anywhere else that I wanted to highlight. I have used it a few time and really love it. It's not too dramatic and blends in really well with my skin tone. As for the Chestnut powder I have not used it yet. I actually picked it up today since they didn't have any in stock. I'm not sure if this is with all places that sell the Ben Nye powders, but the price has increase. I paid about two dollar more than I did for the Coco Tan (which I purchased about a week ago).

 

Tip: We all know how mess it can be using these powders; one way that I found to be extremely helpful is to simply reuse empty powder/blush containers! I used both a powder (NYC) and blush (Wet n Wild Minerals) container. I have found this way is a lot easier than using the cap on the powder bottle and it keeps me from wasting any of the unused product.

Have you used the Ben Nye powders? If so, which one do you love.

Do you feel it is worth the hype and the increasing price?

Organix

About two weeks ago I was at Walgreens in search of a good conditioner to use for cowashing my kinky curly wig that I made. Since I have noticed that a lot of people used Organix's products on their weaves, I decided to see what all the fuss was about; so I grabbed the Hydrating Macadamia oil Conditioner and headed to the register. To my surprise it rung up about $4 and some change (regular price 8.49)! I was happy and thought I just happened to catch an unadvertised sale or something. Same thing happened with the Cherry Blossom Ginseng Shampoo and Conditioner that I just happened to found on clearance at a local grocery store for $3.99 each.

Yesterday when I went back to Walgreens I decided to pick up some more Organix's products, Moroccan Curling Perfecting and Moroccan Argan Oil, because I knew that they were having a buy one and get the other 50% off sale. To my surprise, I walked out of the store with two products for the price of one!

I don't know if having the Walgreen's rewards card has anything to do with the savings, but who doesn't love a bargaining.

Do you have Walgreen's rewards card? If so, have you been surprise with your savings?

Unofficial Length Check

It is almost about that time for a yearly length update. As you all may notice, I don't post much about my hair journey; mainly because of pure laziness. I have numerous of half done posts that for some reason, no matter how much I would like to share them with you all, I lose interest midway through the post. Nonetheless I would like to improve in this area.

My goals for 2012 was to retain length and reach bra strap length (BSL), as well as, thickness. So did I meet my goal? We will have to wait and see. In the meantime here is an unofficial length check on semi straighten hair. This was taking about two weeks ago and I had no intentions on straighten my hair so everything was done really fast and in big sections.

To view last year's length check, click here.

Are you on a healthy hair journey? If so, how often do you perform length checks?

 Did you mean your goal?

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My Christmas

Hey everyone!! I know, long time no update from me (I'm sorry). Work has been kicking my butt lately. Working 10-12 hours shifts doesn't leave much free time but I wanted to come in real quick and take advantage of my off day and do something productive instead of sleeping the day away.

Hope you all have a wonderful and blessed time with loved ones on Christmas. Christmas for my household was pretty laid back. For some reason, neither my mom and I was really into the Christmas spirit this year' however, it still was a great day. We enjoyed each others company and stuffed our faces with baked ribs, cornish hen, rice and cheese covered broccoli.

I also spent most of my time creating my kinky curly u-part wig with a closure. I ordered two closures a few weeks ago (tight curly and bodywavy) and will be sharing with you all updates on it soon, as well as with the kinky curly hair. For the meantime, here is a few pictures of how I rocked the wig today.

Luxurious Loc's Malaysian Kinky Curly and Queen Weave Beauty Ltd Malaysian Curly Closure

Until next time, happy holidays everyone! Wishing you and your loved ones a warm and blessed holiday filled with joy and unforgettable memories!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Source

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. May your day be rich with love and gratefulness,

not only today but every day of your life.

What I'm Loving

1. Leopard print shoes, similar here. | 2. Gap Ankle Zip Legging Jeans, here.  | 3. Essie Fall Collection. | 4. Estelle Shine, here. | 5. Gap Suede Loafers, here.

This is a new feature that I am considering adding to the blog. If you think I should keep it or toss it, let me know. What are a few things that you are loving as of lately?

Until next time, have a wonderful weekend!!

Breast Cancer Awareness and My Story

As you all know October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and I wanted to take a moment to remind you all how important it is to to pay special attention to your breast, and generally your health period. Far too many times, Breast Cancer goes without being detected until its too late.

A few months ago, I had a scare with Breast Cancer and although it turned out not to be cancerous, I was scared out of my mind. Yes, I'm 25 (at the time I was 24) and these things are not suppose to happen to young ladies as myself, but it does! Breast Cancer knows no age nor sex nor race. Imagine walking around with a lump in your breast that you knew about and your doctor at the time felt during an annual check up and did nor said anything about it, to see a new doctor that raised a red flag about it. So much so, that less than a week later, you was in a room getting ready to have a mammogram and a biopsy. My lump turned out to be a Granular Cell Tumor. Although these types of tumors are not harmful nor cancerous, it was removed a few days later.

I said all of this because you never know. Listen to your body and if your doctor doesn't seem phased about something, get a second or even a third opinion. You only have one life and one body, and you should take care of it as best as you can.

To find out more about Breast Cancer, visit Cancer.org's Breast Cancer page and to find out more about Granular Cell Tumors, visit here.

Ways in which you can join the fight and show your support to help find a cure Breast Cancer is by:

•  Saving pink Yoplait lids and/or General Mill's products and submit the codes to Savelidstosavelives.com.
• Participate in a Susan G. Komen for the Cure Race near where you live, here.
• Or donate directly to your local Susan G. Komen for the Cure Affiliate, here.

Quick Update: Facelift!!

I finally got around to updating the look and feel of the blog. I have been wanting to do this for the longest now and I finally got it done (yay!!). I grew tired of the old look and I didn't feel like it represented me too well. Oh well, hope you all like the new look. I will be updating a few more things, hopefully, by the end of this week if laziness doesn't settle in (again). I love to design websites and such things but I have noticed that since I graduated, the thrill of creating something has sightly...well dwindled. Hopefully something will spark my love for it once again.

Until next time, have a wonderful evening!

Hair Growth Infograph

Ran across this lovely infograph via Naturally Curly and thought I should share it with you all. Hope it is encouraging for someone.

Which brings me to ask, do love free stuff? I know I do! Have you entered Naturally Curly's 31 days Contest, Embrace Your Beauty?  Today's contest is sponsored by Hair Rules! There are about 21 more days left to their month long contest so what are you waiting for?!

Happy Tuesday everyone! Hope you have a blessed week!

Be Back Soon!

It has been a while since I have updated the blog but I promise that I will be back soon. I'm in the process of making some changes and adding more features so be on the look out for that.

Until then enjoy your Monday and have a great week!!

OOTD: Birthday Glam

Last Thursday I celebrated my 25th birthday and since my birthday was somewhat in the middle of the week, I ended up celebrating it that week. I was meaning to get a few pictures of my outfit but with all the rushing and being extremely tired once I made it home, I couldn't bring myself to do so. So here is a snapshot of my outfit and makeup, minus me.

MUFE Concealer sample in #18 and MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Deep Dark (face),

Wet n Wild Comfort Palette (eyes), Sugar Kisses in Rose (lips)

The Big 25!

 I can't believe today I turned the big 2-5! Although my birthday didn't go as I planned, I am thankful to see a new day and to be a year older.

Hope you all are enjoying the rest of your week and looking forward to the weekend.

Review: Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration Lotion Sunscreen

Being of an African American decent, most people wouldn't think sun protection is really important for us, however, skin cancer/diseases doesn't discriminate and it is highly important that we too, important our skin. Since I haven't found a skin screen that I absolutely love, I was a little nervous but excited when I received this one in my Influenster Summer VoxBox. Here are my thoughts...

 

Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration™ Lotion Sunscreen SPF 30
Also available in SPF 12, 30, 50!

Claims: With its ultra-luxurious hydrating silk ribbons, Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration™ lotion sunscreen nourishes and pampers skin while providing broad spectrum UVA and UVB protection, and 12-hour moisturization when out in the sun.

Where to Buy
You can find Hawaiian Tropic products at most major retailers.
Suggested retail price: $8.99 for a 6oz bottle

My Thoughts
The first thing I noticed when I opened the bottle was the scent! Although I can't quite put my finger on what it smells like, it was really refreshing and summery. Granted the scent can tend to be heavy when you first put it on (think perfume lotion), it doesn't bother me. It really calm down and leaves a light scent throughout the day. I love that this sunscreen isn't like other popular brands out there. It goes on creamy like lotion and feels great on your skin. It isn't greasy and doesn't leave a cast on your skin. Very lightweight without sacrificing coverage and moisturizing! Leaves your skin soft all day.

Bottom line: Is it worth the money? Yes. Will you buy it again? Definitely! 

Rating: 5 out of 5!

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Disclaimer: I received these products to test for free through the Influenster VoxBox program. To find out how you can be apart of this program, visit their website at Influenster.com

Room Makeover feat. Istagram

So I have been biting by the diy (do it yourself) bug and have went crazy making over my room. Here are some of the things I have been working on from the past week or so.

1. Sunbrust Mirror. Plan on making 3 more for my room. This one is in the dinning room.
2. Plush inspired headboard...this picture does not do the headboard justice! It looks so good, if I must say so myself!!
3. Wall panels
4. Stained night stand and drawers
5. More stained drawers
6. Canopy
7. Headboard and canopy with special guest
8. Me and my best friend, my drill :)

Influenster Summer Beauty VoxBox 2012

Hey everyone! Hope you're weekend is going well. Just wanted to come in real quickly and share with you all my second Influenster VoxBox. I'll be back with reviews on the items once I have a chance to test them out.

What was included in the box?
1. Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration Lotion Sunscreen SPF 30
2. Tampax and Always Radiant Collection
3. Quaker Soft Baked Bar in Banana Nut Bread
4. Sally Hansen Magnetic Nail Color
5. Sally Hansen Nails and Cuticles Hand Creme

Disclaimer: I received these products to test for free through the Influenster VoxBox program. To find out how you can be apart of this program, visit their website at Influenster.com

Revisit: No. 7 No Shine Primer

It has been a while since I last made a post and boy has a lot of things happened since I have been gone. Maybe I will write a post about it later. Hope things is going well for you all.

For the past few weeks, I have been giving the No. 7 No Shine Primer another try and I can honestly say that I actually like it now. Although I haven't used it with foundation since the review, the primer has cut down the shine that I would normally would have when I decide to wear blush and has worked well with my eye shadow primer. I have visible pores on my cheeks and without the primer my cheeks would be so oily within a hour or so. Maybe the purchase of this primer was worth it after all.

What are some of the things that you use to reduce shine and control oily skin?