Hello Kitty flavored lip balm.

Remember the Hello Kitty lip gloss review? Well I'm back with another one. What possessed 18 year old me to buy these terrible lip balms? Sure they're Hello Kitty, they were cheap and colorful. But I have an unlimited collection of Bonne Bell Lip Smackers. The Cadillac of lip balms! Why on earth would I need these HK balms that are basically Carmex with flavor? 

Well at least I can say they beat the HK lip glosses by a long shot. But that's not saying much either. These balms came in a set of 6... 

-Cherry Cheesecake

-Blueberry Muffin

-Orange Sorbet

-Whipped Cream

-Strawberry Ice Cream

-Vanilla Birthday Cake

So let's get into the flavors. Pretty much none of these smell like they're namesake. Blueberry muffin and Orange sorbet have hints but not much. Cherry cheesecake smells more chocolate than anything. Plus the label is brown so maybe they were going for chocolate cherry and thought "screw it. These suck anyway. Let's just do whatever we want." Whipped cream is actually not that bad of a smell. It doesn't smell like whipped cream at all but it's decent. Although absolutly none of these taste in your lips like they smell. They all have a wax taste that reminds me of hair grease. NOT that I know what hair grease tastes like. I should say they taste like the smell of hair grease. 

In addition to my "screw it. These are these suck anyway" theory...why do none of the caps match their flavor? Here's the rundown..

-vanilla birthday cake...cherry cap?

-orange sorbet...ice cream cone cap?

-blueberry muffin...donut cap?

-whipped cream...pie cap?

-cherry cheesecake...strawberry cake cap?

So granted strawberry ice cream does have a strawberry cap...wouldn't the ice cream cap be more appropriate? This adds to my theory that the company, Added Extras, has no clue what they're doing. Please leave the cosmetic game now. I wouldn't give these to anyone, much less the children they're intended for.

Okay so yes I did buy this one years after the others. I know I know I should have learned by then. BUT...this lip balm came with a Gumball scented lotion and hair spray. Now those totally rocked. I wish I still have some left but it was too good. The mystery is...with a Gumball scented lotion and hairspray, why a cotton candy lip balm? It came attached to the lotion via keychain. Why not a Gumball flavor balm? Any why is Hello Kitty sitting on a mountain of gumballs for a cotton candy balm?!?! Added Extras has to be the worst flavor/marketing/design company to distribute within Target (yes these are only at Target). Anyway the cotton candy balm doesn't smell too awful bad. It has a cotton candy scent but with a brown sugar after smell.

Overall I am 100% confident that Added Extras put little to no effort in their recipes. I can only imagine the poor little girl (or boy) who got these. It's a waste of hard earned allowance cash.....the sad thing is...I actually have another set floating around my house 0.0. Yes I bought into a Christmas set hoping it would somehow rival Bonne Bell....no. No it didn't.

Minajesty box set.

Minajesty is the second fragrance produced by Nicki Minaj. It's a fruitier partner to the previous scent, Pink Friday.  

At first smell, this fragrance smell very similar to its predecessor. However, Minajesty features a few different notes that differs from Pink Friday. Minajesty opens with red berries, lemon and peach. It features floral middle notes which help make it a bit different. To me, Minajesty doesn't have that musk undertone that Pink Friday heavily features. Even though both contain musk, Minajesty masks it with the fruits and florals. After settling on the skin, Minajesty does have a musk under tone.

The bottle is of coarse a bust of Miss Minaj. Like a mini ghetto Roman statue! Minajesty, in all its glory, dawns a fuschia puffy wig, deep coral lips and a red bustier bedazzled with rhinestones. Now contrary to Pink Friday Deluxe Edition, I bought this for the fragrance AND the bottle. I can honestly say that I actually favor the scent over the bust. But both are very well worth the price.

I seemed to have misplaced the body wash. However both the lotion and wash are the same scent. I do think the wash has a stronger resemblance to the fragrance though. I do want to note that the lotion is a shocking pink tube and the wash is more reddish. Just me being super accurate with colors haha. Trust me I'm a color buff so I note those small differences :).

This is the box it all came in! For $67 you get the full sized bottle, full sized lotion and body wash, the box (worth keeping!) and a free gift...most of the time. I received the Minajesty air freshener. I opened it but never hung it up. After nearly 2 years, it still smells good. I have it in a keepsake box with my letters, cards, pictures and stuff. It's keeping the box smelling really good. So that's a plus. 

The box is shiny...ooOOooOoOooo shiny! I'm not really sure what it's going for. It's sort of tacky-fancy esq. There are spots of glitter on the windows. I'm guessing it's supposed to be snow? Anyway it's a sturdy box that I believe is worth keeping. So $67 honesty is a great deal.

The fragrance itself is great. The bottle is very cute. The box is pretty. The lotion and wash is yummy and the air freshener is super cool. It's a nice memento of the entire Minajesty promotion. I HIGHLY suggest this box set for anyone looking for a fragrance as good, if not better than, Pink Friday.

Avon Pennsylvania Dutch foaming bath oil.

I am a huge vintage cosmetic/knick knack buff. So it was a no brainer when I found this at a local thrift store. I love the gimmicky array of things Avon whipped up in the 1970s. 

So I did some brief research before I even started this entry. Apparently, Pennsylvania Dutch is a culture of early German settlers that rested in Pennsylvania. I don't know if this was a popular decor in the disco era or what. I mean to a vintage geek like me, the design is delicious! It's...it's...groovy man!

So I had a tad hesitation on this $0.82 purchase. I had to test the smell of the product. Seeing as how it is verging on over 40 years old. It's a...strong smell needless to say. It's actually not bad though! I don't know how to explain it really. Maybe a bit musky and woodsy. It defiantly opens up the sinuses!

As you can see, this is a "foaming" bath oil. Please someone correct me if I am wrong, foaming means it well..foams! 

My skin is very sensitive. I break out relatively easily, especially on the forehead. So you can imagine my resistance to actually using this ancient gem. But one night I wanted a little scent to my bath. So I dabbed a bit into my water. It didn't foam, it didn't do much to the water at all actually. It smelled a bit but not much. After all I didn't use too much in caution of my face. I guess I was expecting some bubbles or foam but it is vintage. So I guess maybe some of the properties of "foam" have broken down over the years. Seeing as how this Avon relic has seen the Regan years, the entire run of Little House on the Prairie, several Cher comebacks and the Clinton scandal. I guess I can give it a break.

Needless to say, I do enjoy this item. I really love the old Avon stuff. Especially when there is still product in it. Not that I'm eager to use any of it. But owning something from a generation I never saw is the epitome of nostalgia. 

Dandy bow tie.

Who doesn't love American Horror Story? Thanks to AHS, many of us have formed unhealthy love obsessions with deranged but sexy serial killers. Who doesn't love a man with gorgeous eyes, a sexy body and a killer mind....pun intended. Who is cuter than AHS Freakshow's psychopath, Dandy Mott? Sure he killed his mother, his maid and Precious. He also had a five year olds temper, but cmon! Finn Wittrock's portrayal of Dandy Mott was beyond convincing. It makes you wonder if any of your sexy crushes just may bathe in the blood of the innocent. It also makes you wonder about yourself. Like "gee murders are hot...do I need therapy?" Let me schedule an appointment with Dr. Melfie. 

Back to my point. I became familiar with an etsy shop owner named The Hatbox Ghost. Her name is Niki and she is based out of Texas. She is talented, gorgeous and super sweet. She makes hats, necklaces, rings, bows....all unique. Miss Niki takes requests in addition to her stock on etsy. 

That's how I got this gem! I custom ordered a bow (which I use as a clip on bow tie) of Sir Shoots 'me Up, Dandy Mott. Miss Niki gave me an unlimited option of colors for the material. My choice, shocking pink! All I had to do was send her an image. She gave me a date of when she would be finished. No even 12 hours later, she was done. I swear this lady is The Flash!

The bow was I believe $8 total with shipping. It was shipped on a Monday and I got it on a Wednesday. 

I can't even tell you how much I love it! It's a big bow and the image is perfect. The material is so bright and vibrant. I can't thank her enough for the amazing work she did :).

I've added a link to her etsy show below. The prices are super reasonable for the work she puts in. Shipping is lightening quick and affordable. I just love ordering from the Hatbox Ghost!!

https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheHatboxGhost?ref=s2-header-shopname

Pink Friday Deluxe Edition.

Here we have the spinoff scent of Nicki Minaj's debut fragrance, Pink Friday. 

The deluxe edition is a pure perfume which is vastly different from an eau de toilette. The difference is mainly in the volume of the essential fragrances used to create the spray. Pink Friday Deluxe Edition uses the same scents as its successor, only intensified! This is NOT a good thing!

First off, I was super excited to pick this puppy up! Even if I did have to spend $100. But, with a sale price, I got the Deluxe Edition for $75. I thought this was a steal...I was wrong. I found out exactly why a lot of us prefer eau de toilettes per "eau de parfum." This fragrance is supposed to have the same scents as Pink Friday. Basically they have a higher concentration so they fade off at a slower rate on your skin. But all I smell in this is the musk and woodsy scents. I don't smell any of the starfruit or mango which are my favorites of Pink Friday.

Onto the bottle. Basically the main reason I bought it. Deluxe Edition is a glossier take on its big sister. Nicki's bust is gold with a glosses black wig. The only bad thing about the bottle? It's not see through like the previous scent or the other Minaj fragrances. Therefor you can't tell how much you have left. Now my Pink Friday and Minajesty are half empty. However this edition will most likely forever remain full. I've used it 3 times. Not even kidding. It's so bad I can even recount when I used it! Not a good sign in my fragrance collection. 

My mother suggested I resell it seeing as how I still have the box. I never throw the boxes away...but I am a completist. I mainly wanted it for the collection. So Pink Friday Deluxe Edition stays put!

So here is the final grade. I didn't expect this to be so overbearing. It reminds me too much of a cologne. The scent gets a 3/10 from me. After it settles (like hours later) it's bearable. I can't give it that much.

The price gets a 1/10. If you aren't looking to just collect the bottle, it's not worth it. Don't buy it as a gift, don't buy it just for something to wear. Take your money and invest in Pink Friday or Minajesty.

The bottle, it's saving grace, is 10/10. And the box, which I will post pics of soon, is cool as well. So pretty much the bottle makes up for the entire mistake of buying this.

Lane Bryant filigree locket necklace.

So back in January, I purchased this locket from Lane Bryant. It was only sale for $5.00! Good deal right? Uh duh! The sales lady was VERY persuasive. She talked super fast too. In the blur she said "this used to be $50." I was like "oh yeah I'm sure. Sales pitch!" 

Upon inspection when I got home, the tag did in fact originally read $49.99! Really? Is this Lane Bryant or Macy's? I mean yeah it's a sexy necklace but damn. It was marked down to $39.99 then all the way down to an even $5.00. I'm assuming it just sat around a lot. Although the Lane Bryant website is sold out. So I'm assuming some ladies actually did venture to spend $50 on this.

This is a super quality necklace though. It's metal based with a black finish. U like cheap necklaces, I have had very few issues with flaking. It does have a bit of wear, nothing like I expected though. It's got a heavy, long chain as well. Adjustable, although it's long enough as is, and sturdy.

The detail is flawless. There's a black gem in the middle and little gems arranged around the design. You can make out stars and hearts in the detail. As well as a small key attached. The key is very attracted to the magnet inside. So it tends to stick to the locket.

While very gorgeous and unique. I don't find this piece worthy of $30 much less $50. I'd put a tag of $25 on it myself. But the $5 was wayyyy too good to pass up. I'm especially glad I snagged it since it was the last one. And since the website is sold out. Overall it's a good little piece while on sale. 

Betsey Johnson Too Too gift set.

Betsey Johnson is super exotic. You have to love her personality. And it reflects perfectly in her fragrance, Too Too. Too Too is based off of Betsey's ballet background. It combines the innocence of the dance with the wild side. The bottle reminds me so much of something Cyndi Lauper would wear! Plus a cute little lightening bolt tattoo completes the wild look.

The fragrance opens with passion fruit, mandarin oranges and strawberry. It's fruity and very bold. I honestly didn't expect it to be so strong. It's overbearing to some actually. However it does lighten on your skin over time. Give it an hour and it settles down. 

Can we just talk about the bottle again? Like the main reason I got this?!? So it looks like a super cute tutu. The perfume is held in a round bottle which is also laced in black tulle. There are even gorgeous sequins adorning the pink tutu. My only gripe, the frilly tulle gets in the way sometimes. Sometimes I spray the tutu and not my skin. It's also delicate so I watch how I cap it off. This is one of those perfumes that our grandchildren will love! I guarantee you, hold onto the bottle even if it's empty. It's a sexy trinket!

So the shower gel and lotion have different lables. Told you Betsey is wild! The shower gel isn't as strong as the lotion. But it smells wonderful and does not stick to your skin. So you can use this and top it off with a light spray of the perfume. I NEVER recommend using all three of any gift set! That's when you start gagging people. And not in a good way ;). The shower gel has cute pink roses that bring out the sweet side of Too Too.

Here is the lotion. It's very much stronger than the body wash. I don't really suggest using this AND the perfume itself. Maybe a small dab. But the perfume itself is bold enough. The lotion has some sparkle to it as well! The label is hot pink and light pink cheetah print. It represents the wild side of Too Too. Betsey and her crew did a wonderful job bringing this perfume gimmick full circle. Going from the innocence of childhood ballet, to those wild years in your twenties and beyond. This is the perfect clubbing scent. This scent is as free and crazy as it wants to be. 

I give this gift set a 10/10. It only cost me $25. The smell is 8/10, strong but gorgeous enough to be strong. The design is 1000/1000! I really want the full sized bottle. I suggest this to anyone who wants a fun perfume. Just make sure to test it first if you can. 

Backwoods Nails: Summer Nights.

So for the past few months I've been on an etsy kick. I've also been on a nail polish kick. Who doesn't love homemade nail polish. Especially ones that are almost one of a kind. So I embarked on a mission to find some cute, one of a kind nail polishes. And I found one of the best!

Backwoods Nails is an etsy shop run by a sweet gal named Tiffany. She hand makes these super fun, super gorgeous polishes. They're all named and swatched on her etsy shop. They are very inexpensive also! I got a deal, 2 for $10! 

This polish is named Summer Nights. It's a clear base with hot pink and yellow glitter, blue chips, lime stars and hot pink squares. So much glitter! I've swatched this polish on both black and white backgrounds. While I'm wearing it on black atm, it really pops on white nails. 

It only takes about 2 or 3 coats to get the full effect. She uses glitter suspension gel so the glitter floats around. It doesn't just sink to the bottom. It's a little tricky to get some of the stars and chips at first. But I got a little pattern down so I get the good stuff :).

The star looks a little gold but it's actually lime green. I don't know where she got lime green stars! But they're flippin cute!

100% Barrel approved!

Like I said, the polishes are regularly $6 each. But Backwoods Nails have a 2 for $10 deal which I highly suggest you take advantage of. She carries many adorable polishes. I give this a huge 👍, 10/10!

Paint 'n Shake: Hot Pink

Who else is obsessed with nail polish? ✋

 Who is obsessed with cheaply priced nail polish? ✋ 

Well here is a little gem that was tucked away in Hot Topic's clearance basket. I saw this Tuesday but tossed it aside. After much thought, I had to go back and get it. After all, it was only $2.00 along with their buy one get one half off deal.

I have no idea what company made this. It's by far the best hot pink nail polish I've seen. I'm super picky on my neon colors. This hits it on the nose. 

I have a white base so it pops even more. The polish is super sleek and easy to apply. 

The cap on top even has glitter to apply! While I didn't use it, it's still super cute. This is like one of those obscure items that isn't a name brand. They're completely sold out on Hot Topic's website. So I have no idea if they can be found anywhere else. Who else agrees that once Hot Topic sells out, it's gone! Hot Topic has this curse of having amazing items that are only exclusive to them and then poof. I firmly believe they either have a warehouse of retires HT items or they burn the extras. I will get into that theory with later Hot Topic items.

So as for the Paint 'n Shake hot pink nail polish. Color, wearability, price is a 10/10. Even the bottle and label are a 10/10. I'd recommend searching the clearance bins at your local Hot Topic! Plus getting that BOGO deal. I got this and another Paint 'n Shake polish for $3.00 ($4.00 after donating to some music fund.) Well worth the $2.00 it was marked down to (originally $6.00 which is a tad pricey)

Rue 21 Electric Eye palette.

Another treasure from my Rue 21 haul. So like I said, I went to the mall twice this week. Tuesday was when I first saw this palette. I was being ultra picky that day. I do this thing where if I'm indecisive on an item, I nit pick. So let's get to why I was picky first.

Sorry I haven't swatched the palette for you. I will soon. Anyway, as you can see, 95% of the Electric Eye palette is glitter based. The only matte eyeshadow is the hot pink. Why? I opened this kit and immediately spotted the matte shadow. Don't get me wrong, I prefer matte over glitter. But I just really found that odd. It's just randomly plopped in.

The colors however are gorgeous. Even if they are glitter based eyeshadows. I did swatch them a bit the night I got them. The turquoise, hot pink and lemon are my favorites. I'm not a big fan of the silver or hunter green. I'm just not a silver eyeshadow person. 

The palette itself is really big. There's a generous amount of each color. Plus a nice mirror, sturdy case and brush. All for $6.99!!! You really can't beat that. My local Rue 21 (Dayton Mall. Miamisburg-Centerville rd) has 2 or 3 left. I highly recommend this item. I mean you really can't beat a cheap palette. Even if it's just to add to the collection!

The colors are bold but I do suggest a primer base. I'd give this palette a solid 8/10. Can I give the price a 100%? Lol. 

 Just gonna add a selfie I took on the Tuesday trip to the mall. This is my boo Mallory and I at Hot Topic. We most certainly had a blast :*

Hello Kitty flavored lipgloss.

Who doesn't love Hello Kitty? She's an icon! She's adorable, spunky and everyone's best friend. Hello Kitty has legit billions of items and memorabilia ranging from plush dolls to clothes, household items to cosmetics. You name it, Hello Kitty has done it.....but some things just don't deserve the official HK seal of approval. 

I purchased these Hello Kitty glosses on a whim. Mostly because I have bought some of her lip balms in the past. This set includes five glosses

-Cherry

-Strawberry

-Blueberry

-Orange

-Apple *not pictured*

I wanted apple mostly because if you know me, you know I love apples! But not even my love for the doctor slaying fruit could save these glosses. First off, they reek. I can't really stomach the smell when I open the cap. I can best describe them as those fruit juices that try too hard  to smell like real fruit. It's an almost over bearing smell. The strawberry actually smells more like hair gel to me.

But here is my biggest gripe with this catastrophe of lip glosses

See that micro glitter? So a lot of companies use glitter to spice up their glosses. I don't know what kind of glitter they use, but you can't feel it at all. It's very light on your lips. But these little abominations have the worst glitter I've ever put on my lips. You can feel it like cutting into your lips a bit. I've even had them get in my mouth and crunched on them. Yes you read that right. I was biting on glitter. I can't imagine how Ke$ha feels when she ingests glitter. I mean we all love it cause it's sparkly and pretty. But it's a most unpleasant feeling in your tongue and teeth. I'm legit cringing right now....

I don't really know how to grade these. Maybe a 3/10? I'll give it points for being a Hello Kitty product. They're decent sized too so...2 points for HK and 1 for size. Quality= 0, wearability= 0. Hello Kitty needs to wave bye bye to the lip gloss game.

Electric Youth by Debbie Gibson

Who doesn't remember Debbie Gibson? While I wasn't around when her bubble gum pop music hit the radio, I do know her. Apparently in the 80s, you were either a Tiffany fan or a Debbie Gibson fan....or you wished sweet death upon both like my mother did. Either way, Tiffany and Debbie were the epitome of pop music in the 80s. Like the Britney and Christina of their time. However only one had a fragrance. Only one of these girls went down in history with the glory of a scent by Revlon. That girl was Debbie Gibson. Or Debrorah Gibson as she prefers now.

Electric Youth was a song and album produced by Debbie in 1988. The perfume, made by Revlon, was a tie in for the teen mega star. This scent was a staple for tween and teen girls of the flashy era. Because smelling like Aquanet and strawberry Lip Smacker just wasn't enough.

So I did some research on the base notes of this scent. I couldn't find a definite answer but it's somewhere along the lines of candy/sweets, musk and other girly things. My first guess was sugar and spice. Mostly because this scent was spicer than I expected. I actually wasn't as big a fan as I had hoped. But it's actually grown on me. 

My initial feeling was "this is so old it's fermented!" Can perfume do that....I'm sure somehow it can. But after a few hours, the musk wears off. It's still spicy but super sweet. 

So nearly 30 years later, Debbie Gibson's Electric Youth still remains a must. At least in my book. I've had several women of various ages comment on the scent. The women my mom's age carry fond memories of EY. The younger ladies go "who is Debbie Gibson? Is she on American Idol?" Sigh......

My hopes for a follow up fragrance may be only in my dreams ;) but not all is lost in my eyes...

#rue for Her review.

Hello everyone!

I'm super stoked to finally get back to blogging. I have acquired a lot of new stuff to review and or possibly rant about. So I figured I'd start off with my mall haul from this week.

Thursday I popped into the mall with the intent on buying a few MAC items. I did, however I also stopped into Rue 21. I'd actually already been by the Dayton Mall Tuesday and scoped out a few things. So naturally I got hooked into buying another fragrance. 

#rue for her is a limited edition scent made specifically for the store. It's a refreshing scent that opens with fresh apple and grapefruit....say no more! All I needed to hear was apple! 

I took a whiff of the tester and loved it. Although the scent was very familiar. It took me a few seconds to recognize it as very similar to Axe Anarchy for Women. A limited edition spray produced by Axe. While #rue isn't as strong and doesn't seem to last as long, it's still bears an uncanny similarity to Axe Anarchy. Seriously test it out for yourself! Although, as I previously stated, Axe Anarchy for Women lingers for a lot longer.

Overall I give #rue a 21 out of 21...sorry I had to do that ;). While its not very strong, it's very fruity and fun. The bottle is freakin adorable! Plus it's only $9.99! It's great for a carry around fragrance or a last minute gift.