Guest Post: Back to School Checklist: Beauty Edition

Hi, friends! Today I'd like to share with you the guest post I did for Kriselle, a fellow HCBN member, on her blog Livin' and Lovin'. It's a beauty post (wow, shocker) titled, "Back to School Checklist: Beauty Edition." It's kind of the updated version of last year's Back to School Beauty Essentials, because I'm always trying new things and want to give you guys the best of the best from my experiences!

What's on your beauty back-to-school checklist this year?

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Fortune Cookie Soap: "Witch, Please" Fall 2014 Review

Hi, friends! Today I have a different subscription to unbox for you today: The Fortune Cookie Soap Box! I received this box in the middle of August, but I wanted to have the ability to get retail values of the products and do some research on the company before I wrote a post about it. Without further ado, here is my first review of FCS!

Fortune Cookie Soap? What's That?: Fortune Cookie Soap is a bath and body company that also sells a quarterly box of new (seasonal) products for $20 each. The boxes contain 8-9 generously-sized sample products as a preview to the new seasonal line that will launch on their website and in their store. With your box you will also receive a code for $10 off any order on their website, so you can basically score your favorite product in the full-size for free! Their product names and descriptions are often snarky, themed, and/or slightly inappropriate, which brings me way too much joy. Everything smells amazing, and there's something in it for everyone, because who doesn't bathe amirite?

My Favorite Things: August 2014

Hi, friends! It's the end of the month, which means it's time for monthly beauty favorites! I'm back at school, and between packing, unpacking, and getting back into the college routine, I haven't had much time to try many new things. Some of these are old favorites that I've continued recognizing my love for them, while a few others are newly discovered goodies. But enough about that, let's get to the good stuff~

WHISH Coconut Milk CC Body Cream ($38 for 5oz)

I received this in my Birchbox this month and I've really been enjoying it! It has a nice, coconut-y scent, and the iridescent shimmer almost makes your skin sparkle in the sun (in a good way, not the weird Twilight way, I promise it won't turn you into a vampire). I don't think I would purchase the full size--especially since, as a CC Cream, it does no real color correcting for me--but I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts. 

Birchbox: August 2014 Review

Hi, friends! It is time once again for my monthly Birchbox unboxing! Are you excited? I'm excited. Maybe you would be more excited if you got a monthly Birchbox. Do you get one? Because you should.  

Products I've Used Up: August 2014

Hi, friends! It's been a little while since I've done an Empties post, so I figured it was about time we took another look through my trash. Plus, I always find these kinds of post so interesting to read; I don't know why. Without further ado, here is my beauty garbage and what I thought about it!

EDIT: This post was down momentarily and underwent some changes on September 9th because of an error with Blogger.

Adapalene Gel 0.1% 

My skin is already missing this prescription cream! I used this on my t-zone to keep acne at bay, and I found it really effective. I started using this last August. It took a long time to work (around a month and a half to two months), but by the time I went home for Thanksgiving break, my blackheads were gone. And now my nose is already starting to look clogged again. It's a sad, sad day. I'll have to go back to the dermatologist to get more. If you have mildly acne-prone skin and are interested in learning more about it, talk to your dermatologist (as I am not one, nor do I have any sort of medical degree that makes me certified to tell you what prescriptions to get. Disclaimer: over). 

Birchbox: July 2014 Review

Hi, friends! There was some problem with the shipping of my Birchbox last month, so I wound up not getting it until last week. I'm pretty sure it's my fault, since I'm in the process of moving, I might have gotten the zip codes messed up. Granted, people who work at the post office should know which town is what zip code, but apparently Quality Control and that sort of thing was nixed with budget cuts from the government, so I guess no one checks for that anymore. The people at Birchbox customer service were kind enough to send me a replacement box, and it was filled with the same products I was supposed to get in my original box! I'm very pleased that my box made it to me, because I'm really excited about this month's!

Birchbox? What's that? - Birchbox is a monthly beauty and lifestyle subscription service. It sends 4-5 deluxe samples that are curated to your beauty profile. It is $10 a month, and has a wonderful rewards program, in which you can earn points for reviewing products and making purchases in the Birchbox Shop. You can then redeem those points for full-sized products in the Birchbox Shop! It's probably the best rewards program out there, in my opinion, which was one of the big draws in me signing up. If you're interested in subscribing to Birchbox, I would love it if you used my referral link.  Thank you!

Hot Weather Staples

Hi, friends! It's the first of the month, and you know what that means: The Beauty & Fashion Blog Community blog hop! This month, we're sweating up a storm (isn't that a lovely image?) so we're sharing tips on how to keep looking fresh-faced. Let's get started!

I have combination skin, so in the summer months I like to switch to a lighter PM moisturizer (for my T-zone's sake). Right now I've been using EVOLOGIE's Stay Clear Cream ($62 for 1oz) to keep the acne at bay, because blackheads are loving me right now and it's just not cool. This is the sample size from their duo pack. It has 2% salicylic acid, and they don't advertise what the pH level is, but it must be somewhere around the right mark because it seems to be working. I use this everywhere else but my cheeks, since my cheeks have enough trouble staying hydrated and I never have a problem with acne there. My dry cheeks are divas and get a separate night cream. Wow, I never thought I would become the person that uses two separate night creams, but combination skin is a pain in the butt. (Read more: April Favorites, May Favorites)

EVOLOGIE's Stay Clear Cream

Something about the sweltering hot weather makes me incredibly lazy, so I use products like SOLSCENTS Angelica SPF 30 Sunscreen ($14.95 for 8oz) to combine steps in my daily routine. This is not only a sunscreen, but also a lotion and fragrance. It smells great, leaves my body feeling nice and soft, and it has SPF 30! It's affordable, too, so it pretty much fills all requirements on the checklist. (Read more: Full Review, Beach & Pool Bag Essentials)