Birchbox: All Wrapped Up

          I hope everyone had a fabulous Christmas, happy holidays, and just a great time of merriment in general. We had a very laid back holiday season, which I am beyond totally fine with, as the holidays for the past 2 years have been a little difficult without my dad. But New Year's is around the corner (an especially hard time for me), and I want to embrace all the goodness and possibility that this time of year means. So, doing my best to put my pessimistic tendencies aside and moving forward. Birchbox!! December's BB was a nice little holiday treat, so let's just go ahead and talk about that shall we!!

The Contents:
*Juice Beauty Stem Cellular Repair CC Cream...so by now we all know about BB creams, but this is a newer product seen about, the CC cream. This one by Juice Beauty, a fave brand of mine now, improves skin tone with Vitamin C and grape-derived resveratrol. The CC stands for Color Control, and the full size product runs about $40.
*ModelCo SHINE Ultra Lip Gloss...I have heard about ModelCo before, but had never tried it before; so to get a full size gloss, in the berry shade, in my box was pretty sweet. I immediately tried it on, and not only does it look really pretty by itself, it looks really pretty paired with your favorite lipcolor. It's also not a highly sticky gloss, which is always a plus for me.
*Nick Chavez Beverly Hills Advanced Volume Shampoo...As a stylist I love to try to new hair products so I can help out with recommendations and whatnot to clients, but at the same time I'm also skeptical of new products, go figure. This volume shampoo by Nick Chavez uses hyaluronic acid and keratin to build body and add shine. Now, keratin is amaze for your hair, I can't say enough good things about it...as for the hyaluronic acid, yeah, I don't know much about that, so perhaps a little investigation is in order. I also do not believe this is a color-safe shampoo, so fact checking is certainly in order.
*Nicole Richie Fragrances: Nicole by Nicole Richie...Now I have an abundance of perfume/fragrance samples, it's almost a little ridiculous. To be honest, most of them get thrown into a box and never see the light of day. But I went ahead and tried this one as soon as I opened it since one of the fragrance notes was amber, which I love in a fragrance I wear. The perfume itself is a blend of amber, rose and vanilla. I loved it. I would actually buy the full size bottle, they retail between $20-$69...potential birthday gift, **hint hint**
*La Fresh Eco-Beauty Healthy Hand Sanitizer...these are actually sanitizer wipes that contain aloe and vitamin E to help moisturize while they sanitize. I like the idea of sanitizer wipes like this because you can throw them in your purse and not worry about them potentially leaking like the little bottles sometimes do. A pack of 30 wipes is just $6.99.

There you have it! There were definitely some little gems this month...products I'm both interested in buying and trying. If you got a buzz-worthy product/item as a gift this Christmas share in the comments below!!

XO,
J.



Birchbox: Natural Wonders

SO, definitely leave it to me to put something like this off, but I felt lack lustre about writing this month's (and yes I know it's the last day of April) Birchbox review...pretty much because I saw the box as a little bit of a disappointment, so much so I didn't even take my usual pictures to show off the wondrous gems inside. ::sigh:: I love you Birchbox, so here's to hoping May's box is bangin.
Anyway...the theme this month was Natural Wonders and I'll just be brief and list the contents and say a little something something where I see necessary.

1. amika Obliphica Nourishing Mask...well, it's a mask, obvious from it's name, for your hair, and it's said to contain rare omega acids and Vitamin C that boosts shine and helps repair split ends.
2. Juice Beauty Oil-free Moisturizer...now, I actually love Juice Beauty so this little guy will probably be getting thrown into my in-purse makeup bag. It's a skin hydrator made with an organic fruit-based formula that won't clog your pores.
3. Wonderstruck by Taylor Swift...besides from the packaging making it's best attempt at looking super pretty, I'm sorry T. Swift, I don't see what is so standout about this fragrance other than the fact that it's marketing face is that of the notoriously blond curly headed country princess (using the word princess loosely) that has potentially dated Jake Gyllenhaal. Yeah, no. The description of the product says "scent is as catchy as her lyrics". Ok. There ya go then.
4. Zoya True Spring Collection in Lotus...can't go wrong with nail polish. I got the shade lotus which is like a shimmery deep lilac color, which looks promising for rocking out on the toes.
5. dropps Laundry Detergent...this threw me off when I saw them in the box. They look like the little finish/jet dry pods, etc, that you put in your dishwasher but they are for your laundry. They are little eco-friendly detergent packs, single-use, that are supposed to add that extra bit of convenience to your laundry doing. Well, I use All free and clear because of it not making my skin itch, soooo prob won't be trying these. They are adorable though, I will give them that.

There you have it. April showers bring May flowers, and all that good stuff. I've been busy finishing up school, and I graduate next month. Already had a very promising interview, have to go back in for a second practical interview, so fingers crossed and say your prayers. I have still been doing makeup, had an amazing session this past Saturday, and next Saturday I have gifted hair and makeup to a local Prom goer who won a facebook contest, so yeah, rockin. If you haven't already, head over to facebook and LIKE my page, MUAH by Jacqueline Clark. As usual, leave comments and suggestions below and have a great week guys!!

Birchbox #3: Spotlight

I never thought I would say it (ok, maybe I did), but right now I'm too tan. Yesterday I went to the tanning bed AND I mystic-ed on top of that. And if that wasn't enough I PaulyD-ed it up. So, needless to say when I got up this morning I was a little on the, umm, "tanner" side of things. Someone told me lemon juice can help with this situation, any truth to that before I go into my kitchen and start scrubbing my body with a lemon?? I will google fact-check that, since google is so legit when it comes to that sort of thing. Anyway, Jersey Shore tan status aside, my third Birchbox came in the other day and I'm actually not waiting a whole month to post about it, haha. It was another good one, so I hope they just keep getting better. This month the "theme" was SPOTLIGHT. So let's talk about it...



Look at all these little gems inside!!



Let's talk about what's inside. SN: I know when I've done these box reviews previously I more or less just list the contents and say a few things here and there without a lot of detail or review, and that's because most of these products are things I'm just seeing or hearing about for the first time. I like to share what's in the box to maybe encourage you to want to sign up as well, and to offer my opinions here and there. When I find something I really love, then I'll do a little review post on that particular product (and there are a few of those coming up).

CONTENTS THIS MONTH:

*colorscience pro glow and go travel puff...this little things seems amazing and I think it's going to be a real winner. It's a little puff that's already pre-filled with powder so you can de-shine your face and still look all glowy without having to reapply a full face of makeup and make a big deal out of things. They come in a couple of different shades from what I understand, and I think this is a more rad alternative to the oil absorbing sheets (although they are pretty handy little guys too).

*Eye Rock designer liner...Okay, these look like the coolest things ever! I wish I would've tried them out already, but I'm waiting for a special occasion (this weekend). They are single-use stick on liner strips, so you don't have to mess with busting out the liquid liner if you don't feel like it. If these are as amazing as I'm thinking I will definitely stock up...for 2 packs of 4 it's only $13! Check out the pic below!

*Kiehl's Clearly Corrective Dark Spot Solution...first of all, who doesn't love Kiehl's?! This is basically a brightening serum thats purpose is to even out your skin tone with Vitamin C and white birch extracts. Personally, I don't have a lot of issues right now with dark spots and noticeably uneven skin tone, so I might swing this one my mom's way to try out!

Juice Beauty Green Apple Peel (Sensitive)... Honestly, I've never heard of the Juice Beauty brand before so yay Birchbox for showing me something new yet again. This is an organic facial peel that contains vitamins and fruit acids to leave your skin glowing. Who doesn't want that perfect glowy complexion?! I like this especially because it is organic and meant for sensitive skin. I have had problems in the past with some masques and facial treatments leaving me red and irritated so hopefully this one works a little magic...I want that glow!

And of course there's always a few non-beauty items thrown in the mix. There was a digital download for the band Green River Ordinance (indie rock) and then a Chuao Chocolatier Spicy Maya Chocopod, which is a dark chocolate mixed with chile and cayenne pepper. Now, I am by no means a spicy food kind of gal, but my husband can take the heat so I gave him this. He said it was "pretty good", which in my husband's terminology means it was delicious. If you dig the whole spicy chocolate thing you might love these. A full size bar is $6.

Well, it's a rainy day here and knowing that I have to run out to Target and Wal-Mart in a few makes me say "mehhhh". It's a hair-up cardigan on kind of day. Hope everyone is well and I am thinking of adding a few different types of blog posts. I try to keep things "beauty" centered but as my husband and I grow together as a couple, our lives, and all the whimsy therein, may spur a few interesting posts I have a feeling, so we shall see!!

Do you have a favorite Birchbox find, or a product you want to see a review on?? I entertain ideas!

XOXO,

J.