Oh. Right. This blog...

As you may have noticed, I really struggled to keep this blog up and running on a regular basis over the summer. Since the school year has started, I actually intend to post more frequently. So keep reading if you want to know what is going on!

I am trying to make videos on YouTube. I tried posting every other day in July, but that fell through. As I planned Glam July, I planned it as if I would not end up getting a summer job. That changed at the end of June when I finally did have a summer job.

I worked at CVS. Yeah, working at CVS was pretty amazing. I'm not sure if I will work there again next summer, but I am happy that I ended up with a job that I generally liked.

I kind of also failed at Project Minimize. The only problem with working at CVS is that I felt like I needed to try new products and earn Extrabucks so I can try even more products. Did my makeup collection double? Not at all. But I probably did exceed the 12 item limit I set for the year. Now that I am at college again, I won't be near any beauty products other than my own.

I transferred to a different university. I liked the school I started out at, but I didn't love it. I had a group of friends that I was content with, but I knew my degree wouldn't be worth as much as I wanted it to be. I decided to transfer sometime between the end of March and the beginning of April. I like my new school so far, but since I am such an introvert, it is difficult to open up to all of these new people.

I believe I have covered everything I wanted to. I have quite a few ideas for upcoming posts. An unintended hiatus can be a good thing!

More Posts: Coming Soon!

I've got to be honest... I have hardly looked at my blog in the past week. I've gained some followers (thank you so much!) and I haven't lost inspiration to write my posts, but I have been busy taking my final exams and just wrapping up the fall semester. In a few short days I will be back home and posting more consistently.

Until then, have a great week!

(PS- sorry this post was so short)

Follow-up: My Makeup Setup at College!

So I will apologize in advance for the quality of the picture. My bed is lofted and my makeup is stored at my desk, so finding proper lighting proved to be a bit of a challenge for me. I ended up buying a second unit for medicine, skin care products (backup cleanser and samples), and my perfume rollers and EcoTools kabuki brushes (since they aren't tall enough to fit in my brush holder). 

As you can see, there is still a bit of room for more products. Having the separate holder for stick or tube-based eye products helped with space. I also have my Sonia Kashuk brush cleanser (in the corner behind the black makeup bag) and the makeup bag is full of nail polish. 

I brought all of my OPI mini nail polishes that came in sets (Pirates of the Caribbean, Nicki Minaj, Spiderman, and the Germany collection).

Overall I think I organized my makeup quite well. It doesn't take up too much space (I still have room to do homework and have space for books) and I know where everything is. In comparison to other beauty bloggers, I know I don't have a ton of things, but I know I have more than enough for my needs.

How do you organize your makeup?

Personal: Random Update

Alright, so I believe I have only written one or two blog posts since moving back to school. It's bad, I know... but things have been a little hectic. I have been working on a couple of blog posts, though! At the end of September I'll be posting an "empties" blog because I've already finished a few things since coming back to school.

Strangely enough, now that I'm officially allowed to buy makeup in a couple of days, I don't actually have much that I feel like I need to buy. In order to finish things up, I've been using pretty much the same products every day and I'm using them until they are finished. For special occasions I do change things up, but generally I am wearing the same thing every day.

So this is a short update, but I figured I would post something.

Beauty Purchase Restriction Update (Final?)

This may or may not be my final update to the (failure of a) project I began in June. I've honestly finished so many hair, bath, and body products that would have been impossible to keep track of if I hadn't kept them all in a bag. It seems that I will not be able to finish anything else until August 1, but I figured I would include pictures of what I have finished since my last post.

Heading into this project, I did not realize how many half-empty (or less) bottles of products I actually had. The only thing I finished in this group of products that I have repurchased is the Stridex, but after I finish the bottle I am currently using, I will not be purchasing them again because I'm interested in trying Lush Tea Tree Water.

I replaced my Bellaboo mask with the Yes to Tomatoes Skin Clearing Facial mask (I still love homemade honey-based masks, but I had heard about this mask and decided it was worth a shot since honey masks can be very sticky) and I replaced the Clean & Clear Drying Paste with the Mario Badescu Drying Cream (it's too soon to give a full review of this, but so far I am impressed).

I will be posting "empties" blogs periodically and if I go on another no-buy I will be a little more strict with the rules. Thankfully my collection didn't explode even though I cheated quite a few times (hence why my little mission/project was a big failure). I would say the best thing is that I can go into a store, see something I might like, and just walk away - although it is a bit of a challenge when the products are limited edition. I'm quite happy with what I have and I will be even happier once I can fit everything into a smaller space.

Beauty Purchase Restriction Update

In exactly one month (September 1) I will officially allow myself to buy makeup and beauty products again. I've already admitted that this project has been a bit of a fail because of the date I set to finish it and the rules were a bit too lax, but I figured I would make a post showing everything I have finished because the bag I picked to store everything I have finished is getting quite full and I'd like to make room for more finished products.

Most of what I have finished falls under the body or hair category (and many of those items were actually travel sized), so I think I will take a different approach the next time I try to use up my beauty products. I will probably take the basics (foundation, concealer, powder, etc) and just use the same ones day until they are empty. When I move back to school I will also only be taking what fits into the little container I have (I'll post a back-to-school series in the next few weeks).

Everything I have finished is below. Of everything I have finished, the only thing I really have a desire to repurchase is the Neutrogena Oil Free Acne Wash Redness Soothing Cleanser. It doesn't dry my face out and it has improved my skin (only by a little, but it has still helped). I am almost finished with some other skin care products, many of which I will not be repurchasing. I have also given some items away, but I never remember to take note of it.

Anyway, this is what I've finished so far and since I will be recycling as much as I can, these will not be in the final post. Wish me luck on the last month! :)

That Time I Cheated on the Beauty Purchase Restriction Thing...

Alright, so in my last update on my beauty product restriction, I mention that I had a few slip-ups... I figured I might as well show you what I've purchased! Before I do that, I have to mention that it is pretty difficult for me to not buy anything because as a beauty blogger, I always see new things and want to try them out and write about them, but I have a budget and I honestly have no desire to let my makeup collection get out of control. But as always, I am beginning to digress.

So the BB cream craze has hit the US drugstores hard this summer. L'Oreal released two, Maybelline released one, and Covergirl repackaged their tinted moisturizer and called it a BB cream (yeah, that one made me mad... I'm honestly debating if I ever want to buy another Covergirl product again because of it, which may be an extreme reaction, but it makes me question their overall credibility). 

When I first heard about the Maybelline Dream Fresh BB Cream, I was intrigued. I shouldn't have been because aside from the Fit Me line, there is no such thing as a Maybelline foundation that isn't just plain orange on my fair skin (for reference, I would say my skin tone is probably a mix between N1 and W1 in the L'Oreal True Match line - W1 is too pale, W2 is too dark and yellow, and N1 is close to the right tone, but it is too dark). I'll admit that I have seen very mixed reviews on the Maybelline BB cream, but I had to at least swatch it for myself since every blog I have read reported that the drugstore displays had testers for each shade. From what I had seen in blog posts, I had a potential dupe for my Too Faced BB cream. I haven't formally worn this for more than a few hours because I truly am trying to finish what I have, but I am going on a mini-vacation soon and I figured that the weekend I am gone will be the perfect weekend to really test it out.

I am honestly not sure why I even bought the L'Oreal Magic Skin Beautifier BB cream... despite all the negative reviews, I still thought the idea was intriguing even though it is not a true BB cream. Back in the day (and by that I mean spring 2008) I tried the Almay Smart Shade makeup and it was a disaster. I have seen some Youtube videos saying that the L'Oreal BB cream has a similar concept, but is better. Color-wise, I tend to have great luck with L'Oreal products. I can almost always find a close match and I generally don't break out. My problem with L'Oreal products is really just lasting power. Just as it is with the Maybelline BB cream, I have not formally tried the L'Oreal BB cream, but I can say that this is a close match.

The other items I have bought that almost count as cheating, but have a reasonable explanation attached to them include:

• Bed Head Styleshots Epic Volume Shampoo and Conditioner: Ulta had the jumbo sized shampoos on sale, I knew I wanted to try a new shampoo when I went back to college in the fall (even though it will be over a month before I return), and the two products seemed to have promising reviews. I won't be opening these until I'm back at school and when I started this challenge I forgot to account for the money I would be spending on back-to-school personal care items (because to me it doesn't make sense to start off a new year at school with a half-full bottle of shampoo, especially if there's a chance I'll be coming home on a random weekend).
• Maybelline Great Lash Lots of Lashes: as you may have seen in my June Favorites post, I had luck with one mascara and another mascara I owned was basically a flop. I haven't tried the original Great Lash in a few years and although it makes absolutely no sense to have several mascaras, I think it is fine to have two because I don't always want the same effect for my lashes. The Maybelline Mega Plush mascara gave me a natural look and my ELF 3-in-1 mascara gave me such a natural look that it did nothing. I heard great things about the brush for the Maybelline Great Lash Lots of Lashes so I figured for $4.44 at Target it would be worth a shot (and for now, I would say it was!)
• Neutrogena Oil Free Acne Wash Redness Soothing Cleanser: this is the gel version and it is far less drying than the original or grapefruit versions. I needed something with salicylic acid for a few reasons. The first is that something in the Bellaboo line did not agree with my skin and I had enough clogged pores that my skin looked frightening. The second is that my dermatologist has recommended that I use "any" salicylic acid cleanser I want in addition to the prescriptions I am on. The third is that if I use benzoyl peroxide, it will have an unpleasant reaction to one of my topical acne treatments (my dermatologist has me using Aczone and if benzoyl peroxide is used in conjunction with Aczone my skin could turn orange, which is not a pretty look for me). Honestly, I think I have been using this cleanser for about a month, so it has taken me too long to post about it. I've also gone back to some of the skin care products I was using before I switched to Bellaboo. But as a mini-review I will say that I am very happy with this cleanser and I plan to write a proper review soon.
• (Edit: later on 7/15): I forgot to mention that I also purchased the ELF Mineral Blemish Kit from Target the other day because I'm nearly out of my spot treatment and I wanted something I could wear day and night.

So there you have it. I think the problem with this challenge is that I set the bar too high. I probably should have gone for one month instead of two and a half. I also probably should have checked my calendar. Despite all the slip-ups I have made, I still plan to keep track of what I've finished and I will also do my best not to buy any beauty products I do not need, but it's pretty challenging when companies keep releasing products that intrigue me. I also think it's good that I posted this because I don't want to make my post in September and tell you I succeeded at the challenge when I didn't. After this challenge is over, I'll probably do it again soon, but I'll change up the rules so I can't get around them so easily ;)

Update #2: Beauty Purchase Restriction!

On September 1 I will officially be allowed to buy beauty products again (with the exception of products I run out of... and I've technically already cheated... oops!)

I have already finished six items and I am extremely close to finishing a few other items. The things I have finished so far are: L'Oreal EverStrong Shampoo (1) and Conditioner (2), Urban Decay Travel Sized All-Nighter Spray (3), Urban Decay Travel Sized De-Slick Spray (4), Softsoap Nutri Serum Body Wash (5), and CVS Night-Time Makeup Remover Cleansing Cloths (6).

Now, some products I'm close to finishing include:

L'Oreal EverCreme Cleansing Conditioner: I think I have two or three uses left. I still find the scent to be too strong, but the product itself works pretty well on my hair. I won't repurchase because of the scent.

CHI 44 Iron Guard: I have the travel sized version (I purchased it at Ulta a year ago). I probably have one use left in this. Overall I don't find this product to be particularly special.

Benefit Stay Don't Stray: I've used this nearly every day since my last post and it still seems like I am not incredibly close to finishing it.

E.L.F. Makeup Mist & Set: I actually have half of this left, but I might dump it because it is beginning to smell like dirty socks. Not something I want near my face!

Josie Maran Argan Oil Hair Serum (.5 oz): I got this in a set and it's a nice product. I've used about half of the bottle, but I can't repurchase immediately because I have a ton of other hair serums and leave-in conditioners I need to use up.

Clean & Clear Advantage Popped Pimple Relief Drying Paste: this doesn't really do anything for me so I am glad it is nearly empty.

Once I am finally allowing myself to buy makeup again, I actually don't plan on buying any face products until I am closer to finishing them (foundation, concealer, powder, etc). I have a lot of face products (especially foundations, tinted moisturizers, and BB creams) and I've spent so much money on those that I have really ignored the items that are more fun. Hopefully as I finish some items I can pinpoint a few holy grail items so I don't feel as tempted to go out and buy more than I need and can use. I know my collection is tiny in comparison to that of most beauty bloggers/vloggers and I would like to keep it that way because I would hate to waste money.