I Love NYC's Park Avenue!

I have a confession to make...    my favorite city in the whole wide world, hands down, is New York City. This is where eclectic diversity and passion for life and art and history can be found. The buildings you will see there are full of the past and have amazing stories to tell. They are massive and ornate, the kind of architechure and detail that we do not see being created in our modern day. Because I love NYC so very much (I have been there twice, but it's still not enough!) I am a sucker for buying anything that proclaims a love for this famous city, it brings back memories and is so very nostalgic...


Well, everybody knows the brand from the drugstore called NYC...Well, it is not my favorite brand out there, I will confess. I think their blushes and lipsticks are decent but that is about it.When it comes to nail polish, I can be very picky about the brand because I want affordable polish that will last and not chip the same day I apply it. So, when Rite Aid had a 40% off NYC sale, I thought that I would try out one of their polishes to see if it was any good. 

I believe this polish is less that $2.00 at your local drugstore.
But prices do vary and look for a good deal!

This is from their In A New York Minute Quick Dry formula in the shade, "Park Avenue". This is a gorgeous taupe-grey color and the shade in the bottle is what you get on your nails. As for the drying time, it does dry quickly and is opaque with two coats. Now, this polish does chip easily, which is a huge bummer. The day after I had polished my nails is when I noticed it was not holding up well. But, I applied a top coat on the nail polish for protection the second time I used this polish, and I found that it did extend the life of the wear by a few days.


Overall, for a drugstore nail polish, it is not as bad as I thought. I have seen worse nail polishes from certain drugstore brands that chip fiercely (Wet 'n' Wild) and others that nicely last for days (Sally Hansen). Will I repurchase this brand of nail polish? Now that I know how to work with it, I will definitely be trying out another bottle to truly see if this could be a new favorite drugstore brand!

Your Perfect Red Lips!

I have a confession to make...    a confession of the retro glamorous kind. Really, is there any confession more seductive? Who doesn't get tingles of nostalgia when they think of the 1930's and 1940's when red lips became fashionable, everyone who was hip enough wore this on their lips, preferably in matte.


Well, I am here to let you all know that I am embracing my red lip for here on out! There is no reason to be shy wearing this bright color on your lip because there are various shades of red out there to flatter every skin tone you can imagine. And, they not only come in matte, but many different finishes. Let me take a moment to share a few reds from my collection that I personally enjoy wearing.


Lets start off with Revlon, my all time favorite drugstore lipsticks. This past weekend I bought this gorgeous shade from their Super Lustrous line called, "Certainly Red". As this is a creme finish, it saturates the lips so well as it applies smoothly and creamy.

Revlon's "Certainly Red"

This red is more of a deep berry red, not bright. It looks like a true blood red in the tube, but once applied to the lips and swatched on the skin, it shows it's true berry red color, almost a deep magenta. This color would look pretty on every skin tone, in my opinion and is definitely for the glamorous night out.


The next red that I am loving is by Avon and it is from their Glazewear line called, "Rosebud". Avon says that this is a liquid lip color and I can stand up for that and agree, because while this is a lipgloss, it almost is like a liquid lipstick. The color is very well pigmented and feels lightweight on the lip, not sticky at all.

Avon Glazewear in "Rosebud"

This red leans more brown than berry so it can be worn during the day since it is not overwhelmingly bright and 'in-your-face'. There is a classy vibe to this lippie, in my humble opinion. Even though it leans on the red-brown side of the spectrum, almost copper, I find even people with light skin tones could get away with wearing this one. 


Then there is the oh-so- famous Revon Lip Butters that are flying high at this moment in history. I was not overly thrilled with these lip butters since they slide all over, but I will say that Revlon did come up with an amazing red called, "Candy Apple". This is not a lipstick, nor a gloss, but somewhere in the middle of the two. These are not at all long lasting, but more for a quick shine of color to the lips. And, yes, they are pigmented!

Revlon Lip Butter in, "Candy Apple"

This is an orange-red lip color that would definitely flatter light skin ones, but in my opinion, this orange-red color looks a little too brassy for me as I have yellow undertones to my skin. I do wear this occasionally, but I blot the color after application to mute it out somewhat. Still, it is an easy wearable color for most.


The last lip color I have to share with you is from everyone's favorite brand, on some level, Wet 'n' Wild! Wow, have they stepped it up lately, right? And, I happen to adore their lipsticks and even have a full blog review on the ones I do have, so check it out! But, "Just Garnet" (number 552A) is a deep berry wine color. The texture of this lipstick is creamy and smooth, on par with the feel of the Revlon Super Lustrous Lipsticks. Yes, the packaging is tacky and cheap, but the product makes up for it completely!

Wet 'n' Wild "Just Garnet"

This pretty lip color would be amazing on everybody's skin tone, even the fair skinned girl's out there. It is bright, but if you wear this out at night for a special occasion, no one would look twice; well, yes they would, it is so gorgeous! And, even if you do wear it out during the day, I applaud you, because I would do the same!

Left to Right: Revlon, "Certainly Red"; Avon, "Rosebud";
Revlon Lip Butter, "Candy Apple" and Wet 'n' Wild, "Just Garnet"

Glamour and Glitz, this is one sure way to add retro-glam to your look. So, think of the beautiful stars of the 1940's and how they made the red lip what it is today: Glamourous!

Scented Nail Polish? What Will They Come Up With Next?

I have a confession to make...    I was lured into buying Revlon's scented nail polish in Ocean Breeze, a beautiful dark blue-green color. The deep blue-green color is complimented by a grey, almost but not quite, black, giving it that subtle duo-chrome. When I laid my eyes on this color, I knew that this was right up my alley!

It took two coats to reach the opacity that I wanted, giving me the exact color shade that was in the bottle, which I loved! 
Now, it says that when the polish is dry is when you will be able to smell the perfume in the nail polish. First off, let me tell you just how unnecessary it is for nails to have their own scent. I thought that this concept was a little gimmicky, but I really wanted the color and thought that it would be neat to test this product out and see if it really does give off a pleasant odor. 
Now, I wish that somewhere on the bottle it would tell us what the scent is supposed to smell like, but since it does not, I was more or less expecting the smell to coincide with the name of the polish, "Ocean Breeze". 
But, I what I was smelling was nothing that reminded me off the ocean. When I think of the ocean I think of how the air is salty and there is always that subtle fishy smell in the air; at least where I live, because it is cold on the coast since I don't live near the sunny beaches of California! So, my interpretation of the Ocean is not what I want to smell on my finger tips all day.
The smell was unidentifiable, but it did come off almost like a cool scent, mixed in with a faint smell of paint. Nothing like an Ocean Breeze. I personally was not fond of the scent, but it did fade as the day wore on leaving just a trace of the smell.
One other thing that I was not too keen on, and I have had trouble with Revlon nail polish doing this to me occasionally, is that it bubbled on my nails after drying. I promise that I do not shake the bottle to mix the polish before applying it; instead I turn in upside down and roll it between my hands to avoid the bubbles. 
What am I doing wrong!?!?
Another word of caution: This polish did not last long on my nails before chipping and I even used a top coat. By the end of the day I noticed chipping and I could stand to wear this polish for two days before the chipping was overwhelming and painful to look at.
Would I re-purchase a scented nail polish again? I would give it another try, but not for the scent. If I found a color I loved and it happened to be scented, yes I would buy it. Truthfully, I just think that this is just another way to get people to buy their products, in a way, revamping them selves and trying to make them stand out as a little bit different than other polishes. 
But, scented nail polish, really?

Revlon's New Colorburst Lip Butters

I have a confession to make...     I have been watching every single YouTube video and scanning every single blog that features this new product by Revlon, my ultimate favorite drugstore makeup brand. I have heard nothing but great things about these new lip butters and I love the colors that I was seeing, they are beautiful!

Left to right: Candy Apple and Pink Truffle

I made out a wish list of every single color that I wanted to try out and made my way to the stores to see if I could hunt them down. Finally, at my third stop, Target, I found a small display of these. They did not have all of them, just a handful. I picked up two that I wanted to try out and made my way home with Candy Apple and Pink Truffle.
I have been trying these for a couple of days now and I am ready to give you my full report and honest feelings on these. 
These apply so smooth, they glide onto the lips effortlessly. Your lips are left with a lot of color and a gorgeous shine. I would not classify these as a lipstick nor a lipgloss, but somewhere in between. 
The product is very soft and I would caution anybody to be careful because given the softness of this product, I am not sure how these will hold up. In other words, these may be very breakable, I just do not want to test that theory on my own.

Left to right: Pink Truffle and Candy Apple

Pink Truffle is a light mauve-brown color but shows up darker in this picture.
Candy Apple is a subtle red color that can be worn about town during the day since it is not dramatic!

Left to right: Pink Truffle and Candy Apple
The color payoff is fantastic and yet it is still build able

Now, while these colors are gorgeous and they apply beautifully and come in a vast range of colors for everybody, I did find some down falls to this product that I must share with you because this could be a deciding factor for you.
When wearing these, the color does not last long at all. Just like a gloss, you must reapply it every once in awhile through out the day. And, I do find that these slide a lot. Not just a bit, but a lot. I have never had issues with my lipgloss or even lipstick rubbing off on my teeth, but both of these did. Thankfully, it was my hubby who had to warn me when we were out in public about to hang out with friends. YIKES!
Another thing I noticed that surprised me, because everybody was saying that these are just like tinted moisturizers but better, is that after wearing one that day, my lips felt dry. Now, I am a lip balm addict and  I always have Chapstick or something to that effect on hand to moisturize my lips, plus, I exfoliate my lips once a week or so. I think I take decent care of my lips, but I was still left with a nagging dry feeling after wearing these lip butters. 
Needless to say, I was not pleased. 
Honestly, I wanted to love these just like everyone else was loving them, but because of the facts that they rub off on my teeth and dry out my lips, I will not be repurchasing anymore of these lip butters. 
Sorry, Revlon, but these are no-go for this girl.
These lip butters don't melt on these lips, they just  slide right off. Maybe you'll have better luck with these than I did.

Have A Cupcake And Wear One, Too!

I have a confession to make...    I have a sick obsession with anything that has a cupcake on it! I feel like I am fourteen years old all over again when I freak out over a pencil set that has sweet little cupcakes with cherries and sprinkles wrapped all around it. And what about those cute cupcake erasers that out there! Don't worry I did refrain from buying those things because seriously, what would a girl my age do with things like that? (I'm sure I could figure it out!)
I recently bought a cupcake piggy bank at Target and that is when I realized I have an illness. What am I going to do with a cupcake piggybank? I'm serious! I resorted to using it for my two year olds change that he finds, because I have a perfectly good coin purse I use for my change I hoard.
So, when I saw those adorable pajama bottoms at Ross yesterday, I knew I had to buy them. They are perfect for winter, especially since the cold weather has finally started to kick in and snow has decided to intermix with our rain here. The material is so fuzzy and soft, I feel like I am wearing my favorite comfortable blanket. 

And guess what? It was only $8.99!!!

Now I can wear cupcakes and eat them, too! Someone please tell me, can life get any sweeter than this?  Not by much!

Revlon's Gold Coin Nail Polish

I have a confession to make...    I was at Walmart just yesterday buying a few items that I needed for the pantry and of course,  had to go and check out the makeup isle! I was actually on a mission to seek out a specific hard to find product that just hit stores a few weeks ago but is not readily available in everyones area yet (that would be my area!).
So, instead I settled on looking at nail polishes, another love of mine. I was drawn towards the selection that Revlon had and seriously, I could have bought more than I did that day. But, I was good and I only bought two. One of them I was just dying to try for myself when I got home. 
It is called "Gold Coin", and I cannot tell you just how long this nail polish has been available from Revlon, but I have to let you guys know that it is so pretty!
It is a metallic finish, just as the bottle says and WOW does this polish shine! To me, it almost looks like it has extremely small barely there glitters in the polish. Maybe it does, but whatever it is, it sure does reflect gorgeously! And it dries super fast, which for me is always a plus because I am constantly doing something and honestly, I hate to sit around and wait half an hour for my polish to dry. 
Another plus, this is the second day that I have this polish on and it has not chipped in the slightest. So, great lasting wear so far!

Revlon seems to be coming out with some nice colors lately and not bad for the price. I paid under four dollars for this bottle. Because of that I bought two nail polishes since I have always been a fan of their polish, so I knew I would not be disappointed.
This is definitely a fall color, so hurry out and get your "Gold Coin" before they run out!

Eggnogg'n Tea! Don't 'Nog' It Til Ya Try It!

I have a confession to make...   When the weather outside turns into cold and blustery days, I love getting comfy and cozy on my couch and wrapping myself up in my Snuzzle. Yes, I said Snuzzle. It's a knock off of the Snuggle that my hubby found at Ross and I laughed at him for buying it. Long story short, I fell in love with the Snuzzle and have become very territorial over it. That is another subject....
Any-who, I adore a nice hot cup of tea during the cold weather when I am snuggling up and getting cozy on the couch. I have a variety of teas in my pantry ranging from peppermint to orange-spice to peach etc...But one tea that comes out only once a year right after Halloween when the stores set up for their Christmas rush, is Eggnogg'n tea from Bigelow. My mom got me hooked on this tea two years ago when she bought it and thereafter I have searched many stores for this box and came up empty handed. Let me tell you, it is a very popular drink and it goes FAST. 
I happened to be at grocery shopping two weeks ago and had it down on my list. I was planning on buying two or three of these to stalk up on for this winter. Well, guess where I happened to find it? On the same display as the Pumpkin Spice tea by Bigelow (that I had already purchased weeks ago) and this was the only one among the dozens of Pumpkin Spice! So yeah, I snatched it up and I did search through the other boxes to make sure it wasn't buried under the Pumpkin teas. 
I searched the tea isle and the other displays in the store and this was the only one I found. Wow, these suckers go quick. I am glad that I was able to get my hands on this one and hopefully when I go back they will have more on display. 
Why is the such a coveted tea, you may ask? Well, besides the fact that it only comes out once a year, it is such a unique flavor. Now, I hate with a passion eggnog in general. My husband, he loves the stuff and always has to buy a jug of it at the store when it comes out. What I do love about eggnog is the smell. To me, it smells just like buttercream frosting for some reason. Yummy! 
This is what this tea delivers on. It has that subtle scent and taste of frosting and it tastes great with a little bit of sugar mixed into your cup. Seriously, you cannot go wrong with this tea. It is the go-to tea that you will want every night after your day is done and it is time to unwind before bed with your favorite book or TV show.
So, what's your favorite drink that makes you feel all peaceful and warm during these cold months ahead? I know what I'm snuggling up with tonight!