And today I reach in the box...

...and pull out...

Ban Total Refresh Cooling Body Cloths in "Invigorate" scent. These come in a packet of 10, and promise "instant freshness, anytime, anywhere."

I'm not a super fan of these myself. They seem almost like a needless step in my beauty routine. But, I gave these the hardest test I could find to give them - a sweaty eight year old boy. Which, even he pointed out, next to a throwing up eight year old boy, a sweaty one is the worst kind. (He's nothing if not logical, right?!)

So, the following review is my conversation with my eight year old;

"So, what did you think of these wipes?"

They were good.

"Where they easy to use?"

Pretty much. Yeah.

"Could you think of anything that would make them easier to use?"

No.

"If I bought them again, would you want to use them?"

Yeah.

"What did you think of the smell?"

Wasn't too girly.

"Not too strong?"

*shakes head no*

"Did they make your skin feel itchy, or too dry?"

*thinks for a second, rubs arm* It did make it a little itchy.

"Just at first, or all the time?"

All the time. No, just at first.

"Did you feel cooled and refreshed?"

Yeah. Very!

And that is this weeks edition of "Product Reviews with 8 year olds!" His impression was considerably more favorable than mine - and I did have to say, after having a sweaty, hot boy, I did appreciate giving him the ability to clean up on the go. And he liked that he got some control that way, so everybody really won there.

And, pro tip? Ban releases coupons for these ALL. THE. TIME. I basically got these for free, by combining a sale price and a coupon. Don't pay retail if you don't have to!

I've never talked about anything like these wipes before, but I have talked about getting clean before!

A Tale of Two ...Dilemmas?

This post comes with a whole bunch of stuff. Some venting, some reviewing, and an awkward confession. Ready?

Meet the box by my bed:

This enormous box looks like a pile of junk, cause that's kind of what it is. My husband is a very...let's say dramatic, housekeeper, and this is the amount of stuff that he's collected that he didn't want to be bothered to find a place for, that he could reasonably prove belonged to me.

In the spirit of no longer sharing my bedroom with the box, I've decided to go through it, and tell you guys about the good treats, and get rid of the bad ones.

So something good will come out of something bad that my husband did, but please don't tell him, cause he might be encouraged to do it again! ;)

So, I reached my hand in to the great, mythical box this morning, and pulled out...

Nivea Lip Butter!

I remember buying this one actually - it was hard to find. Everybody was so gaga for them, they were impossible to find. Now they're everywhere, and cheap too!

This one has always felt strangely luxurious to me - the tin is like a real metal, I actually have to pull it open with my fingernails. Bonus, of course being, that if you were just going to toss this in your makeup bag, there's a reasonable expectation that it'd stay closed. So packaging, A+!

The scent sounds strange. "Vanilla & Macadamia" isn't a combination you'd put together real readily, right? Fear not, my friends. The scents aren't the perfumey versions - rather than a fake, chemical vanilla, you get a actual, mild sweetness. My first reaction was that it tasted like caramel, not vanilla. Or like a white chocolate mocha maybe. Except no coffee taste. So the scent is good - real, not perfumey and fake. And I have a thing about being able to taste my makeup. Long story short...I don't want to. Unless you're a Dr. Pepper Lipsmacker, I don't care what you taste like. I can't with this one. Real, but not overpowering. A+ for scent!

Usability...probably no giant mysteries there, right? Swirl your finger, and apply? This is also a wide and clear enough surface that if you wanted to use a lip brush of some kind, you totally could as well. This is solid - I've used some lip butters that had a bit too much give for my taste, this one doesn't. This sets up really well. A+ for usability!

Now, for wearability...I swiped this on, and swore to myself I'd take a better picture, and never did. So I cropped this one down to just the lips. Cause that's my prerogative, right?! :D

A slight shine, no other color to speak of. The only thing that I can really speak less than glowingly on, is the longevity. With typical...mouth usage (?), you'll wear this off quick. By the time you have a drink, or kiss your grandmother hello, or kiss your honey, this lip butter is gone. The macadamia is nicely moisturizing, so you're still left with smooth, kissable lips, but if you're after that shiny, freshly applied look...you'll be left having to freshly apply. So, A- for wearability.

So...no mystery here, I'm very pleased with this lip butter, and I feel like it should be in your makeup bag too! When you see this guy (and I feel like I see him on sale at CVS all the time, hinty, hint, hint), make sure to snap one up!

Always on the lookout for some hot lip products! Me too! Check out some other favorites!

Mani Monday: The Hunted Edition!

I looked for this color for a long time.

This week, I'm showing off OPI's "I Eat Mainly Lobster" nail color.

I went to the beauty supply to pick this beauty up, and to my disappointment, they didn't seem to have it. So I went home, and got on the OPI website to see if they still made it at all, and not only DO they, but I was looking for it as a red (as the word "lobster" in the title might suggest that I oughta), but OPI classifies it as an orange.

OOOH! So I tapped my decidedly NOT lobster colored fingernails, waiting for a chance to get back to the beauty supply, and the second I did, I ran my self in there and grabbed this beauty:

Is that not practically summer in a bottle?! A great warm coral, with a fine gold glimmer running through it. A few summers ago when I got married, this was one of my wedding colors, actually. And here, I had my toes painted red! If I'd only known about my lobster friend here! 

Is Mani Monday your jam? I've shown off different mani's before! Check out another!

Mani Monday: Minty Edition!

Rimmel 60 Second nail color in "Mintilicious". These bottles are smaller than most, but they also bear a smaller price tag than most ($1.50, and Rimmel frequently puts out coupons, so you can get it cheaper than that even).

Dries fast and well - I've tried other polishes that were several hours in, and still smudging. I've not timed it, so I don't know if the 60 second promise is true, but you're dry and ready to go, really fast.

The finishes tend to come out really true to the bottle, as you can see here. This is two coats, using a white base coat. No surprises, Rimmel delivers exactly what they promise.

Until next time, beautiful!

Mani Monday Version 2.0!

I was in the mood for something yellow and eye catching, and little did I know, how fantastic this guy is!

Cover Girl Outlast Stay Brilliant Glosstini in "Sulfur Blaze", which was a collection based on the Hunger Games movies. Already bright yellow, this has gold glitter running throughout, just for a little extra sparkle. Dries to a nice, high gloss finish.

My only complaint I suppose, is that the cap and the bottle don't line up right (which you can see in the picture - that bottle is fully closed, I promise...), which makes it irritating to hold. And if I needed all my bottles to line up in a nice, neat row, this one would just about be the death of me. :)

See you next time, beautiful!

Mani Monday!

New Monday, new mani!

First up! Cover Girl Outlast Stay Brilliant Glosstini in "Blue Hawaiian"

This has a really nice formula - it dries to a high gloss finish, and seems to wear pretty well. It's a unique color - blue, with just a pinch of green. It attracts a lot of attention. 

The strange part is the coverage - it's a little uneven. There are several parts that when you closer - which probably no one but me actually is - you can see base coat still.

I mostly like this polish though - high gloss finish, wears well, seems to be long lasting - so even with the uneven problem, I would still recommend!