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. 

HERBAL ESSENCES Long-Term Relationship Shampoo ($4.29 for 10.1oz)

This was my in my June Favorites, but it's back (and better than ever! Not really, it's the same, though I hear Herbal Essences did actually reformulate everything a few years back. Fun facts for everyone). This shampoo smells like pomegranate, which matches my pomegranate-scented conditioner, which fills my bathroom with wonderfulness. I'm pretty much convinced that all sulfate-shampoos work pretty much the same way, so I basically go by scent nowadays when purchasing a new one (Doesn't everyone else sneak a whiff of the shampoos in the drugstore before buying? No? Just me, okay then.) 

MAYBELLINE Dream Lumi Touch Highlighting Concealer in Ivory ($8 for .05 fl oz)

This was a 2013 Makeup Favorite, and somehow this little tube has lasted me this long! I think this does a great job of brightening under the eyes and concealing slight dark circles. If your undereye circles are particularly dark or blue, I would personally use a  concealer underneath this, but this brightens nicely. And it's affordable! I tried a sample of the YSL Touche Eclat (which is what many people consider this a dupe for) and although I think they're very similar, I don't think they're identical. I can't tell which one I like better yet, but for the price, I would just go with this one.

NYX Color Lip Balm in Thank You ($3.75 for .14oz)

I received this in the Total Beauty Mystery Collection for June 2013 (no longer the "Total Crapbox" after much deliberation) and this was probably my favorite find out of the whole box. This is a tinted lip balm with some real color payoff, which I don't see very often. This was basically the color of my summer, lip-wise, so if you saw me outside (highly unlikely, because I live in your computer) I was probably wearing this. I believe this line was discontinued with the release of the Butter Lip Balms/Glosses/Lipsticks, but you can still find these on Cherry Culture. And they're even on sale! Double win!

These are the "wilted roses" of the bunch (you know "raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens"?) These are the antithesis of my favorite things--my "unfavorite" things, if you will. These are the products that essentially made me a sad panda, and I will tell you why.

Unfavorite: EQUATE Night Firming Cream ($4.67 for 2oz)

This also earned the Wilted Rose (the Razzie of College Beauty Buff, a high dishonor, obviously) in my June Favorites. This is the generic Walmart version of the Olay Night of Olay Firming Cream, which I have used at least three jars of, but doesn't work the same way. It does not smooth, soften, or firm anything--especially not my face. It doesn't hydrate my face enough over night, and I'm 99.9% sure it's been the culprit clogging the pores in my T-zone. In short, this makes me a very sad panda. 

Song: Kinda Out of Luck (Lana Del Rey)




I can't stop listening to this song! This is old Lana, before she released her first official, signed album. The lyrics are weird, but it's so catchy and it's still so Lana that it's amazing anyway. This was a very "summer" song to me, although I don't know why.

TV: Orange is the New Black (Season 2)

CAN WE TALK ABOUT THIS? Sure, season 1 had some great things (John and Daya's romance was way cuter in season 1, let's be real), but this season was great too! The introduction of the new characters, and the new subplots, were a great addition to the show. And who saw that ending coming?! I watch TV shows slowly and so everyone was finished way before I was, so I need someone to freak out with! 

Game: Brave Frontier


I've described this app to my friends as a mix between Pokemon, Final Fantasy, and Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories (and Ayakashi: Ghost Guild, for those who have seen my last few Favorites posts). I know it's definitely available on the Google Play Store, but I don't know if it's on the Apple App Store, for you iPhone/Pad/Shiny Thing users. It's a really fun and addicting RPG. My Player ID is 7691229339. If you enter my ID under Social/Special when you sign up, we both get fun goodies! And then if you friend me, our characters can battle together and it'll be cool. So go do it. You know you want a new way to procrastinate.
Well, that's everything! What were your favorite things (or unfavorite) things this month?

Disclaimer: I bought everything myself. Not sponsored or affiliated with any mentioned brands. Not good enough for free stuff. yolo inc.

Let's be friends! 

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