Monthly Favorites: August 2013

Hey, friends! It's time for my monthly favorites! Should continue to call them my "Monthly Favorites"? I feel like when I say "Monthly Favorites," it's as if I'm including things I only used this month. Most of my favorites continue from month to month, but if I discover a new way to use a product or rediscover something hanging out in the back of my cabinet, I always like to share that piece of information with all of you. I might start referring to these posts as "My Favorite Things," since it reminds me of that song from The Sound of Music. And it sounds more inclusive of miscellaneous things, like music and such. What do you think?

Skincare: 

Seventh Generation Soothing Skin Serum ($15 ~ 1.5oz)

I did a whole post on this product last week, and I still can't stop talking about it. This serum has a whole slew of antioxidants, which can help fight off the appearance of old age (sold exclusively at walgreens), is paraben-free, and contains only all-natural ingredients. What's not to love? I find this serum incredibly hydrating, preventing any tightness in my dry areas, but not overly moisturizing in my oily T-zone. I use this every night, and it has actually allowed me to switch to a lighter moisturizer because of how moisturizing it is. After using this for a few weeks, I have also noticed that the redness around my nose has died down. I'm obsessed with this, and when I finish this bottle up (which takes a long time, at one pump a night), I'll definitely go out and get another. 

Ipsy Glam Bag: August 2013 Review

Hi, friends! Today I have quite a lot to tell you about this month's Ipsy bag. It's caused me a lot of grief, but in the end, it's here, and I'm very pleased with the products I received. But I'll get into all of that in just a second.

Ipsy? What's That? - For those who don't know, Ipsy is a monthly beauty subscription service that provides you with 4-5 products (mostly makeup, but sometimes hair/skincare as well) for $10/month that are either deluxe sample-sized or full-sized. I really loved this month's bag, and if you decide to sign up, I would greatly appreciate it if you did so via my referral link. If you wanted to be a meanie about it, you could also Google Ipsy's website and sign up that way, but then you wouldn't be very nice.

Ingredient Controversy: Oxybenzone (Plus a Healthy Alternative!)

Hey, friends! I bring good news! College Beauty Buff is officially on a posting schedule! From now on, you can expect a new post every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. How exciting! Now, on to today's post:

Author's Note, 9/20/14 - New research is always coming out, and I'm always learning new things, so I don't feel so strongly about this anymore. I will post an update on my feelings for oxybenzone in the future, but in the meantime, if you're going to be out in the sun for an extended period of time please wear a traditional sunscreen. Thank you. 

Review: Seventh Generation Boosts Soothing Skin Serum

Hey, friends! I'm here today to share with you my review of the Seventh Generation Soothing Skin Serum, as well as some of my #AllNaturalStyleSecrets. I was accepted to do this challenge by Lucky Magazine. Their online community hosts a number of different fun challenges that you can check out on their website. Lucky Magazine also posted my review to their website! If you want, you can look at it here (and maybe give me an upvote if you liked it; I'll get a prize if I get the most!) 

Disclaimer: I received a free sample of this product from Lucky and Seventh Generation for use in connection with this blog.

Tips & Tricks: Dying Your Hair (and My Personal Experience)

Hi, everyone! Yesterday, after much deliberation, I finally went a little "crazy" with my hair. I'm pretty reserved with my hair; I've never dyed it before, so this was a big step for me. I'm so happy with the way it turned out! Thank you, Nicole, for the wonderful job!

She used hair lightener (aka bleach, which is essentially peroxide) to give me some highlights, since my hair is blonde to begin with. I feel like it brightened up my hair color as a whole, and made my hair look a bit more summery. You can get a big tub of hair lightener powder and a large bottle of activator (the creamy liquid used to activate the chemicals in the hair lightener) for very cheap at Sally's Beauty Supply, or any other beauty supply store. The activator basically turns the powder into a paste, making the hair lightener easier to work with and activates the bleach in your hair. There are varying degrees of strength in activators, and the one she used was level 20. Anything higher than 20 has the power to lift or deposit color. It's crazy what simple chemicals can do, isn't it?

Both the hair lightening powder and the activator last a long time, since you only really need a scoop or two of powder and a little activator per highlight job. Though, bleaching your hair can be quite drying (and also make your hair more tangly), so I wouldn't do it very often.

Tip: Buy yourself a detangler. It'll make the process of blow-drying and combing through your hair (both during the process and from then on) so much easier. No one likes scalp pain! I like to use the WEN Replenishing Mist  but you can use whatever you like.

Sample Society Box: July 2013 Review

Hi, everyone! Here's another subscription box review from July. Do you hate me yet? This time, we're looking at Beauty Bar's Sample Society box.

Beauty Bar? Sample Society? What's that? - Sample Society is a monthly beauty subscription service by Beauty Bar (partnering with Allure magazine) that will send you 4 to 5 deluxe and full-sized samples of beauty products. It costs $15/month, a little more than the typical $10, but they promise to be from luxury brands. It also comes with a $15 gift card to use towards a $50 purchase in the Beauty Bar shop, so essentially it's free (if you spend $35 more...I'll never be using that gift card)

When there was a code going around for a free box (which I'm pretty sure was only for a limited time--sorry, guys!), I decided to test it out. My disposable income isn't so great, so I normally wouldn't be able to subscribe to more than one beauty box per month, so getting a free box was a wonderful way to see if I would watch to switch from Ipsy to this one. If you would like to sign up, please put in my referral code (MXXN9002) at checkout! Thank you! 

Ipsy Glam Bag: July 2013 Review

Hey, friends! I've been so backed up with posts, since I received a whole bunch of stuff when I came back from my internship at the end of last month, so this is my review for last month's Ipsy bag. My August bag has already shipped out, however, and I'll be reviewing that one soon! Sorry for the holdup!

Ipsy? What's That? - For those who don't know, Ipsy is a monthly beauty subscription service that provides you with 4-5 products (mostly makeup, but sometimes hair/skincare as well) for $10/month that are either deluxe sample-sized or full-sized. I really loved July's bag, and if you decide to sign up, I would greatly appreciate it if you did so via my referral link.

Anyway, on to the bag! This month's theme was "Beach Beauty," which sounded like a lot of fun. I don't get to go to the beach as often as I would like, but I'd love to look like I go a lot!

10 Random Facts About Me

Hey, friends! Today is a fun get-to-know-the-girl-behind-the-laptop post: the 10 Random Facts About Me tag. I was tagged to do this by Kriselle over at Through the Eyes of a Cali Girl, so go check out her blog! The design is adorable and she has a lot of fun things on there, from nail designs and Outfit of the Days, to other posts about her life and school. If you visit, be sure to tell her I say hello, as she's a fellow Her Campus blogger. :)

1) I am a little grossed out by feet in general, so in order to deal with the fact that I have feet, I always keep mine nice. I make sure to use a foot scrub to keep them soft and 99% of the time they are painted--the other 1% of the time, I am removing nail polish to paint them again. Maybe I have a problem. Oh well.

Currently Coveting: Amika Hair Tools & Products

Hey, everyone! Today I'm writing a different kind of post, almost like a review without actually owning the actual product. I wanted to share with you the glory that is Amika Curling Wands and hair products.

Disclaimer: This post isn't sponsored and I'm not affiliated with Amika. I'm just a poor college girl who wants to have pretty hair all the time. 

Stunner of the Month: July 2013 Review

Hey, friends! Today I wanted to share with you what I received in last month's Stunner of the Month box.

Stunner of the Month? What's that? Stunner is a monthly subscription service that, for $9 a month, will send you a new pair of sunglasses. You can sign up and get more information here (I don't receive anything for you signing up).

I found a code on Facebook for a free first pair (TRYSTUNNER), so I decided to give it a shot. Let's see what I got, shall we?

Outfit of the Day: 8/2/13

Hey, everyone! Today I thought I would share another Outfit of the Day with you. If you didn't see my last one, basically it's kind of like an outfit show-and-tell. Since I work in theatre, I don't get to dress up very often. I'm usually taping out the stage floor or carrying out tables or doing something that requires me to get dirty, so dressing up isn't exactly an option. Plus, theatre is one of those careers where no one really cares what you dress like, as long as you do a good job. So, now that my show is over, I took the opportunity to take my time getting ready. It was a lot of fun, and it made me feel really good. And I thought I would share my outfit with you! I'll be sure to include links on products I've previously written about if you want more information.