Rant or Rave ✿ Flower Beauty by Drew Barrymore ✿

ALOOOOOOHAAAAAAA!
Man oh man, this one is a hoot. If you don't already know, Drew Barrymore has her own cosmetics line now. WHAAAATT? yeah, that's what I said. I'm SO slow and SO behind, but y'know, better late than never.

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I had originally thought that this was just a new brand and she was the face of it, so I didn't really think anything of it, but I don't know, out of nowhere I became infatuated with this brand. Maybe it was the packaging, maybe it was the chick at target (see the video for the story haha), I don't know, all I know is that I needed to try this stuff out, and I needed it NOW haha

If you're unaware of this brand, it's exclusively sold at WalMart, but not all WalMart stores have the full collection, bummer right? The one that's wicked close to my house pretty much just has lip and eye products, both of which I wasn't interested in at the moment, so off to the next town I went. It's about 25 minutes away, but it was well worth the trip.

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I wanted so many things (everything was SO PRETTY), but I had to stick to my list. If i'm trying out a new product I don't like to get a lot of stuff from it, just in case I don't like the brand or their formulas, so pretty much I stick to foundation, concealer, and/or powder. In this instance, I bought all three haha.

I had very, VERY little faith in this brand...so the whole time I was skeptical. I have issues with celebrity endorsed products, so I contemplated for a few minutes, walked around WalMart for about half an hour before deciding to just go for it.

The first thing I grabbed was the foundation in the shade LF6 (aka liquid foundation shade 6, creative right? hhaha) I'm a NC25 in Mac's foundations, so that's what I used as my guide. I also had pictures of my existing foundation on my phone, and thank god I did, cause phew this was confusing. They have a huge range of shades, 14 to be exact, & they have foundation for both cool and warm skin tones, but they're like...intertwined in the display so I was confused haha Like L1 would be a cool tone, then L2 would be a warm tone...and it would just alternate, it was a little strange.  BUT ANYWAY, this actually turned out really well. I worked up a little pro and con list....check it:

PROS:

• It has a pump, like really I was sold once I saw that
• It blends in almost effortlessly 
• The coverage is medium, but very build-able
• It's fragrance free 
• It's not cakey
• Satin-ish finish 
• Long lasting 

CONS:

• The pump is kind of hard, you gotta push it down a lot for the product to come out 
• It's only sold at WalMart haha 
• Packaging is a little bulky

Literally those are the only three pitfalls for me, I love this foundation, and I'm pretty sure this is gonna be my go-to product for a while. In accordance to their website, Flower claims that it has built in primer, which it does, you can kind of feel it....it's very hydrating. BUT I would still recommend wearing it with a primer of your choice. I wore it with my rimmel primer, and it lasted pretty much all day and I wore it from 10 am - midnight haha two thumbs up

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Obvi, I had to get the concealer...it had the word brightening in it. I have massive dark circles under my eyes, so any glimmer of hope for getting those bad boys lightened, I'll try it haha Maybelline's dream lumi one has been my all time fave for quite some time.....and let me tell you, this one gives it a run for its money. 

I got the shade BC1, which is the lightest shade, and it's pretty pale....but that's okay cause it's extra illuminating that way hehe. I literally have nothing bad to say about this, except it's a little thick at first, but nothing a little tapered brush and a little bending can't take care of :) 

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& lastly, the loose powder.....Not even gonna lie, I heard a lot of mixed reviews about this...but once I saw it in person and I saw how pretty the container was, I didn't care... I needed it ahah. It comes in 3 shades, light, medium, and dark....which sucks, there's no in-between -.-

The container is H•U•G•E but that's okay cause I like it haha I thought it was going to be packed with powder, but when I opened it to investigate...it was barely 1/3 of the way full, but that's okay. It comes with a puff, but I HATE those, so I just keep it on there so when I open the top the powder doesn't fly everywhere...this powder is okay...there's just one little thing....

The shades are way off. The shade 01, which is the lightest, is actually way too dark. To be honest, it looks like it could be a bronzer....ahah So I just had to experiment and picked up shade 02 and it's way way way lighter than 01, so just keep that in mind if you're going to get that.

It's okay. Just.....mehhh. I wish there were more colors to choose from, or at least they would fix the shading issue. But y'know, it's not too bad. I'm thinking, if after a few days I wind up hating it, I'll just dump it out and I'll de-pot my rimmel powder and dump that bad boy in the container. It's WAY too cute to just toss out haha 

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All in all, I would say this brand most certainly surprised me. Drew Barrymore did a fabulous job with this collection. While it is a little pricier than other drugstore brands, that's okay because the quality is AMAZING. Not only with the packaging, but with the actual products themselves. I also love that it's cruelty free :) that's always a nice little bonus.

So what would I rate it?

4.75

Here's why! ONLY because the products are rather bulky, so it makes it a little tough to lug around, and the shades are a bit odd, but none-the-less I LOVE this brand.

So begs the same question, is it rant or rave worthy?
RAVE RAVE RAVE RAVE RAVE. I think the fact that this brand isn't really hyped up all that much, makes it all the better. I love it, and I'm so so glad I took the leap of faith with this company

If you're indecisive, just do it. It's only at WalMart and as long as you keep your receipt you'll be able to return it if you absolutely hate it, so just do it. Take a leap of faith, trust me you'll love it :)

What about you? Have you tried this brand?

What do you like? What do you hate? I wanna know! 

xx,

Angela


Buy these products:
•http://www.walmart.com/ip/Flower-About-Face-Foundation-with-Primer-LF11-Shade-11/22228308
•http://www.walmart.com/ip/Flower-Lighten-Up-Brightening-Concealer-Click-Pen-BC3-Shade-3/22228416

Haircare • Luscious Summer Locks • Mini " Not Your Mother's " Review

Aloha! (I don't think I've actually ever said that out loud......so touristy haha) HI HELLO HOLA, WUDDUP?

So, I kind of wanted to drift away from makeup for 2.5 seconds, and talk about hair. Now, I'm no expert, I'm not a cosmetologist.....but through many....many trials and errors I've picked up a few tips and tricks to keep my hair as healthy as possible....especially after I destroyed it, haha.
Last year I had the in genius idea to ombre my hair....worse decision ever. I never really dyed my hair until I moved away for college....cause....well, my mom didn't want me to damage my hair, ladies, listen to your mama, she knows what's up.

Now, I'm a junkie...a product junkie that is. As soon as someone is like "This made my hair smooth!" I have to try it, I get suckered in so easily...but then I remind myself that I don't have the same hair type as they do....haha so what kind of hair type do I have? I have THICKKKKKK, dead-ended hair. I know, I know...I should probably just cut off my dead ends completely and start fresh, but girl, I'm not fixin' to have a bob.

These babies are what I use in the shower. Yes, I use two conditioners, haha. I use not your mother's for the root area of my hair, till about half way down, and then I put the ion conditioner on the lower half of my hair. Then I put it up and let it sit for about 10-15 minutes

Buy these products!

• Ion Keratin Smoothing Shampoo
• Ion Keratin Smoothing Conditioner

Once I come out of the shower, I usually alternate between these two. One cycle I'll use the Tresemme one and the next cycle I'll use not your mother's. They are very different, and I honestly prefer the Not Your Mother's anyway, even if they don't the same thing for several reasons. Tresemme' is really greasy and when it dries (air or with a blow dryer) it turns really hard, not a fan. It also doesn't do anything for split ends, it's more like a chinsy oil type treatment. NYM's is an oil treatment with argon & macadamia oil in it, and my oh my it's amazing. It smells like heaven and whether you towel, air, or blow dry your hair, it makes your hair so soft and ugh, I love it! 

This is by far my favorite dry shampoo, it smells so good and it doesn't leave your hair crunchy or white and powdery & this heat protecting spray is THE BEST one I've ever used, better than anything I got from the salon, that's for sure. I use the dry shampoo between hair washes, I only wash my hair every other day, because my hair is wicked thick and if I wash it everyday, it's no bueno haha.

Buy these products!

• Psssssst Instant Spray Shampoo
• TRESemme Heat Protective Spray

These are more of a once in a while type of thing, just because I go through phases of wanting my hair straight and curly....but when I use these, I fall in love all over again haha How I use them, is when my hair is damp (not soaking wet, it won't work out well), braid your hair into like....two braided piggy tails basically. Go to sleep. When you wake up the next morning take them braids out, run your fingers through them a little then start spraying! haha Don't over do it though, because a little goes a long way. After you spray it in, just run your fingers through it again :) Between the two, I prefer the Charlotte Ronson one, ONLY because it smells like sunscreen and it's a little softer than the NYM Beach Babe, but i L O V E that Beach Babe has sea salt in it :') 

Buy these products!

• Charlotte Ronson A Perfect Mess Beach Hair

I used to use ConAir and Goody brushes everyday, well duh, You gotta brush your hair everyday ahha. But it ALWAYS yanked my hair hardcore, I thought it was just cause my hair was impossible....until I learned that it was the brush. The brushes that have those little black balls on the end are like some form of barbaric torture. They cling to your hair and pull...and pull and pull. If you have long hair, you know it's a nightmare. So, when I discovered this Tangle Teezer brush, I thought I had found gold. I love this brush so much and it really does make a difference! 

Buy These Products!

• Tangle Teezer - Purple

I always heard of these products, but I never really thought anything of them....until I got a coupon code and down hill it went. Well, down hill for my wallet, up hill for my hair. These really do make a difference and they really do work. I intend on expanding my collection reallllll soon, there's a lot more I wanna try and I wanna find the Way to Grow Shampoo, it's ALWAYS sold out when I go to search for it :( There's SO many different products though, seriously, for straight hair, curly hair, long hair, short hair, bald hair, you name it, they've got everything. I oogle and melt every time I see their stuff online haha You can get these babies at Ulta, CVS, or just visit their lovely site! All their products are lightweight (I know I personally only have a few, but my friend Shauna uses these and I've tested them...and holy smokes!) and they don't weigh your hair down, like most conditioners tend to do. Trust me, these are worth every penny, and they're SO SO SO affordable. I LOVE Not Your Mother's, to pluto and back! 

Buy these products!

• Not Your Mother's Beach Babe
• Not Your Mother's Way To Grow Long and Strong Conditioner
• AH, I can't find a link for the Lock Luster, but I KNOW Ulta sells it 

I know what your thinking, AIN'T NO BODY GOT TIME FOR ALL OF THAT, but really, if you're like me and you have destroyed dyed/ombre hair, you know how dead ends can get. The only way to re-hydrate your hair is to develop a routine. Trial and error my friends! 

Well, I hope this helped out a least a little! What hair products do YOU swear by? Let me know! I love trying out new products! 

Until next time

xx

Angela 

What's in my Makeup Bag • Day-to-Day

This is something that I only started to do really recently, partially because it's summer and I'm always in need of a touch-up, and partially because this bag was way too cute when I got it to not lug it around everywhere I go haha 

This is basically what I bring with me every single day, the only thing that changes is the foundation. I obvi bring whichever foundation I'm wearing that day. Today, I went with the Maybelline Stick foundation, I really am trying to find a way to make this foundation work...once tip, fit+ does wonders. Just sprtiz it on after touch-ups, and bam, it's magic...can't even tell. I also like to keep my fix+ with me, because it takes the chemical smell out of any makeup AND on a warm day, this cool mist feels great.

My FAVORITE foundation brush, the Oh gee domed buffing brush, Mac Fix+ (baby size), Maybelline FitMe stick foundation, and my Mac blot powder, I use this more than anything, it's like an oil blotting sheet....in powder form aha

This also has a tendency to change frequently, usually on the week to week basis...haha We've got my perfume usually is always 'Very sexy' by Victoria Secret, but sometimes I'll alternate between this and a few other of my faves. Chapstick, cause you know, crusty lips ain't cute girlfriend; and a brush, cause knotted & nappy hair ain't so cute either haha

It may seem ridic to bring a makeup bag with you everywhere you go, but during the summer when you're hot and sweating, it's basically a necessity, and plus how are you gonna swoop up that hottie at the beach if your make up is melting off of your face? 

Haha talk to you soon!

xx

Angela