Small Ulta Haul

Six items make for a minuscule purchase, particularly when compared to the insane amount I usually pick up at Ulta.  Some of this was from the NYX bogo sale, the polish is one I've been lusting after for a while, and the rest is a result of my powerlessness against the last second check-out line displays.  On to what I purchased (clockwise from top): NYX Eye Shadow in Blue Marine, NYX Mega Shine Lip Gloss in Beige and Nude Peach, Orly Nail Lacquer in Mysterious Curse, Benefit Realness of Concealness Mini "Fake-It" Kit, and EOS Lip Balm in Sweet Mint.

What do you think of my haul?  Do you have/want any of these items?  Did you pick anything up during the NYX bogo sale?

XOXO, T

Weekly Giveaway Roundup

1. Pammy Blogs Beauty's Birchbox Giveaway

2. Emani's iPad 3 Giveaway

3. Makobi Scribe's Kelly Moore Bag Giveaway

4. Shaelynn's Faerie Shoppe is giving away this cute, leafy Slender Elven Jewelry Set.

5. Coupon for Five is giving away a Nikon D3100 DSLR:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Collective Drugstore Haul

In the past two days, I've spent a disgusting amount of money at Walgreens and CVS.  I think what gets me in so much trouble when drugstore shopping is that no one item is very expensive.  This leads to my dropping a million pretty, little sticks and bottles into my basket.  Next thing I know, the cashier is asking for every last penny in my purse, and I don't even understand what happened.  A few of these things I actually needed, but the vast majority of my purchases were completely frivolous nonsense.

From left to right, I got: a Soho Crease Brush, patriotic Glow Bracelets & Necklaces (8 sticks + connectors), a 3 pack of Large Mesh Bath Sponges, a Plan Ahead Journal, Essence of Beauty Facial Cleansing Sponges, a $15 iTunes gift card, 0.7 mm lead, Sinful Colors Professional nail polish in Snow Me White, RevlonRevlon Scented Nail Enamel in Strawberry Cream, Kiss Nail Dress in 2B (leopard), Milani Shadow Eyez Eyeshadow Pencil in Aquatic Style, Revlon ColorBurst Lipgloss in Peony, Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Cherish, and Revlon PhotoReady Cream Blush in Coral Reef.

A close up of the fun stuff.

What do you think about my haul?

I can't be the only one who compulsively buys tons of drugstore crap.  Can you empathize with my plight?

XOXO, T

Spotted: Sinful Colors' Summer 2012 Nail Polish Collection

Liberty Belle & Make Some Noise Collections

First and foremost, I'm a huge fan of dirt cheap nail polish brands like Sinful Colors, Wet n Wild and Confetti when it comes to super trendy shades, the same way I look to Forever 21 for trendy clothing and accessories, but am willing to spend a bit more on a classic nail polish color or a timeless wear-with-everything handbag. It all comes down to cost per wear, y'all.  (If I spend $1.99 on an insane Sinful Colors neon that I only wear four times or $8 on a wearable OPI greige that I wear sixteen times, both these polishes cost 50¢ per wear.  Get it?)

Wow Pop Collection

Sinful Colors released three separate collections for this summer: Liberty Belle, Make Some Noise and Wow Pop.  I actually Spotted these displays about a week ago in a local Walgreens.  So far, I've only picked up two shades: Snow Me White from the Wow Pop Collection, which I intend to use as a base to make neons really pop, and, speaking of neons, 24/7, an electric flamingo pink.  I definitely have my eyes on the highlighter yellow and purple glitter below.

Make Some Noise Collection

Do you like Sinful Colors nail polish?  Have you picked up any polishes from this collection?  Do any of these shades appeal to you?

XOXO, T

Wordy Wednesday

I promised this blog would include posts about my personal life and my interests outside of makeup and fashion, so I've decided to share some of my creative writing. (I'm actually even more passionate about writing than I am about like floral tank tops and freaking mascara.) Here's a free verse poem I wrote last semester and am actually pretty pleased with:

To My CR-V

by Taryn R. Martin

Cleaning out my totaled car

was opening the time capsule

I wasn’t ready to see yet.

The burn mark on the arm rest

from her vanilla Black & Mild.

The steering wheel I squeezed tight when

he finally said, “I love you,”

and I couldn’t say it back

on the drive home in that storm.

My aviators air-bag bent

in that third and final crash.

One last glance at the trunk where

we would sit or lie, door open,

as he peeled labels off countless

green bottles in parking lots when

life was easy and love made sense.

The spool of lucky robin’s egg

ribbon I’d tied to all their wrists,

Which now lay forgotten atop

My driver’s registration

In the cold glove compartment.

And the McDonald’s happy meal

monkey that watched it all, and

silently judged our actions.

What do you think? (Please be kind.)

XOXO, T

P.S. Sorry the font's all weird where I copy pasted.

Weekly Giveaway Roundup

The lovely ladies over at Beauty Crazed in Canada are giving away a hell of a lot of bronzers.  (Two winners will be receiving 8 bronzers each.)

Lipstick Fridays is giving away £50 of Nars in her 800 Follower Giveaway.
Giveaway Scoop is giving away a 3rd Generation iPad and tons of other great prizes.

Adjectives Market: Vintage, Antiques & More

Adjectives Market is a rad new store in my area that sells handmade accessories and art in addition to antiques.  It's located in Altamonte on 436 in the building that used to be Skip's Western Outfitters (RIP).  Adjectives is comprised of fifty individual booths filled with goodies from various vendors.  Adjectives is wholly well-merchandised and organized.  The staff is very friendly and accommodating.  I'll definitely be returning when I have more time for carefully examining every little treasure and, hopefully, more money for such necessities as the antique wrought iron bed frame and the charming yellow desk I fell in love with.

Carefully Wrapped Goodies

I ended up purchasing a set of two embellished bobby pins, for $6, as well as a ceramic ring holder, also $6.  How do you like the items I picked up?  Cute, right?

XOXO, T

P.S. Check out Adjectives' website and Facebook.

June It Girl Julep Maven Box Unboxing

I received Julep's Daylight Defense SPF 15 Lip Balm along with three bottles of their Nail Vernis in the following shades, as described by Julep:
Sasha- fresh cantaloupe melon creme
Sandra- friendly, frosted magenta
Morgan- frosty grape purple

Sasha, Sandra, Morgan, extra brushes, Daylight Defense Lip Balm

Julep Nail Vernis are three free, which means they do not contain formaldehyde, toulene or DBP.  I'd be lying if I acted like I know what most of that means, but it's supposedly yucky stuff that's bad to put on your fingernails.
Also, I'm happy to announce that Julep has reintroduced their introductory penny offer but with a new coupon code.  If you've never purchased from Julep, simply click here, take the style quiz to receive your personalized shade selections, and enter the code COLOR2012 at checkout to bring your total down to $0.01 (for realsies).

Cute, summery packaging, complete with a couple Pixy Stix

I didn't even know Pixy Stix (Seriously with the spelling?) were still in production, but I devoured them both almost immediately. #ihavezeroselfcontrol

Super secure bubble wrapping action

XOXO, T

FTC: In the spirit of full disclosure, I should let y'all know that if even two people sign up for their penny Maven Box via my referral link, I'll receive next month's polishes for free.

I'm on Bloglovin'

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/3773716/taryn-rose?claim=kfmm4g36fxs">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

Sweet, now you can follow me on Bloglovin' if you prefer it to GFC (which I don't).

Skin Care Sunday #1: Schick Hydro Silk Review and Free Sample Offer

I know my Skin Care Sundays have traditionally been about facial skin care, but doesn't shaving fall under the skin care category as well?
About a month ago, I posted about this offer to receive a free Schick Hydro Silk Razor.  My free razor arrived shortly after, and I've been using/loving it ever since.

I'm always a bit wary to try any razor with tons of blades and/or some kind of moisture strip/bar thingy (Schick Intuition, anyone?), but thankfully the Hydro Silk cartridge remains compact enough that it's perfectly armpit and, um, bikini area friendly, unlike the ginormous Intuition which stood no chance of maneuvering around these smaller, more sensitive areas.

Schick was also nice enough to attach a few coupons to the back: 55¢ off any Skintimate Shave Gel and $4.00 off any Schick Hydro Silk Refill because yes, this is an actual permanent razor handle and not a crappy disposable.

Five epic curve-sensing blades and hydrating water-activated moisturizing serum awesomeness

I'm not sure if Schick is still giving out free razors, but you should definitely go see if this offer is still available because, come on, free stuff rules and so does this razor.

XOXO, T

Welcome to Taryn Rose

Firstly, the creation of this blog certainly doesn't indicate any kind of rift between Bre and myself.  We're still best friends and continue to support one another's ventures  in the blogging world.  Speaking of which, you should go follow Bre's new fittness blog (Skinny) Arm Wars, immediately.
I'm not entirely sure what Taryn Rose is going to be about yet, but having my own separate blog should allow me the freedom to post more about my personal life as well as share some of my other interests outside of fashion and beauty, in addition to continuing to blog about fashion and beauty.  Thank you for your interest in my new project.

XOXO, T
(Do I need a new sendoff for the new blog?)