Julep New Years Mystery Box: For a Glittery & Colorful Celebration

This week has been full of surprises in my mail box.

First, my December Glossybox arrived and now I have my Julep New Years Mystery Box.


Julep advertised their mystery box like this:

 

Of course, when I opened up my box, I was hoping that ipad mini was included. Unfortunately, I was not the lucky winner. However, I still received a little over $100 (retail value) of product, which made the box definitely worth the $19.99 that it cost.

The colors that I received from left to right are Eloise, Courteney, Mystery Glitter, Sandra and Matte Top Coat.

Now the only problem of getting these mystery boxes is the possibility of a dupe. Unfortunately, I have three of these colors already (Eloise, Sandra, and Matte Top Coat). No Worries! I'll just have to swap for other colors I have been coveting.

The other products I received was a Julep bag, Age Defying Hand Brightener, a silver glitter pot, 3 one step polish remover pads and 2 hand scrub samples.

This is only the second mystery box I ever purchased, but I'm happy with what I received.

Has anyone else recived their box? Did you receive something similar or were you the big winner?

December Glossybox: Glamour All The Way

Today I was so excited to find my Glossybox in the mail. According to their tracking number, it still wasn't even close to where I live, but their tracking number is always way off.


For those of you who don't know what Glossybox is, it's a beauty sample subscription box service. Every month, you get samples from a variety of different companies that include products for skincare, hair care, perfumes, etc. If you would like to check it out or join, you can click HERE

Anyway, back to the Awesomeness  that is December's GlossyBox. This box's theme was Glamour,  Glitz, and Gloss.


I believe December was my favorite Glossybox that I have received so far.

 The Christmas themed tissue paper with the red ribbon was very cute and a nice touch for the holidays.

These were all of the products that came inside. It included :

- .03 fl. oz sample of Ecru New York Cosmetic Hair Care- Acacia Protein Oil 

- 3.38 fl oz  sample of Forest Essentials Luxurious Ayurveda: Madurai Jasmine & Mogra Bath and Shower Oil

- 5.5 oz sample of Heartland Fragrance Co. - Bath Salts

- .75 oz sample of Oscar Blandi- Pronto Dry Heat Protect Spray

-.03 fl oz sample of Pleats Please Perfume by Issey Miyake

-Full Bottle of Zoya's Storm nail polish

- A beautiful, long necklace from Jewelmint called the Opera Pearl Necklace

I'm the most excited for the necklace because it is so beautiful. Even my mom loved it.

Here is a picture of it:

To take a look at better pictures, here is a link to the Jewelmint's website that has this close-ups of this gorgeous necklace - http://www.jewelmint.com/jewelry/opera-pearl-necklace


I'm also excited about Zoya's Storm nail polish because I've been wanting a dark glittery nail polish. I was even looking into Julep's Patti, but I didn't really like the swatches, so I was excited to find this color in my box. It was exactly what I was looking for,  black but with colorful glitters.

Because I've been on a relaxing, long bath type of mood lately, I also can't wait to try the bath oils and bath salts.

All in all, this box is amazing and I think I will use every product, except for the perfume because it is a little but too strong for me.

Makeup Organization with Mrs Claus' Help

I got an early Christmas present today from my favorite Mrs Claus, my mom.

She knew how much I wanted a makeup case to organize all of my makeup, so she purchased the one I had been eyeing, which was Pandora's Beauty Box from Justfab.com ($39.95)

I had my makeup in a couple of different makeup bags. I was completely disorganized and never knew where my favorite gloss was or where my face powder had gone off too.

When the case came in the mail, I knew I had to get my makeup out and start putting it neatly in the case.

These are the pictures of JustFab's Pandora's Box before I started filling it up with all of my colorful goodies:

 

This is after I put all of my ELF, Mark., Bare Minerals,  etc makeup products in my case.

 

I love my new Christmas present.

Now I just need to figure out a way to organize all of my nail polishes. Hmmmm.....

Julep December's Glitter Goodness!

What is glittery, shimmery , and pretty all over? The Julep December Christmas collection.

Julep did a really great job this month. It was one of my favorite months and I was soooo tempted to upgrade and get the entire wardrobe, but I stayed strong and got the It Girl Box.

Warning- All of these colors are so much more prettier in person then in pictures. 

My favorite polishes are Ivy and Harper.


Julep's Ivy is a beautiful blue with purple shimmer. It's really pretty in the sunlight. 

Julep's Harper (index finger) is a green glitter polish that looks exactly like a mermaid's tail.

 

Since Julep was having Christmas sales, I decided to purchase Julia and Barbara as well.

Julia is a purple base with gold shimmer and Barbara (index finger)  is a bright pink glitter. 

Julia is my favorite of the two. Just like Ivy, it looks great in the sunlight.

 

I'm in Love with these polishes. I can't wait until tomorrow to find out how their January collection will look like. (^_^)

A Few of My Favorite Things: December Edition

I'm sorry I haven't been here in awhile. I actually was on vacation. Nothing better than a Caribbean vacation to give some color to my face and get me rejuvenated.

Although I ended up with a cold a couple of days after returning. (>_<)

Well, the pictures of the vacation cheered me up while I was feeling crumby.

Yup, that's me in St Lucia after I climbed Gros Piton, which took over two hours to climb. I was super excited until I realized I had to take the same journey back down, which was a bit scary at times.


I'm in such a great mood that I want to write about 3 of my favorite things this past couple of months. They are in no specific order .

For hair care, my new favorite line of products is Ouidad. I have wavy, curly hair and sometimes it becomes a very frizzy and unruly mess.

I have been using Ouidad's Climate Control Heat and Humidity Gel for awhile now and it gets my hair more under control. However, I only noticed greater dramatic changes recently after I purchased the Climate Control Shampoo and Conditioner during Cyber Monday. It was 25 percent off with free shipping, so how could I say no.

After only a couple of washes, my hair already looks so much shinier and the Frizz....What Frizz? I asked my boyfriend what he thought about my hair (I didn't tell him I had changed shampoos) and he said that he had noticed that my hair looked nicer. My mother and other relatives have also complemented me on my hair recently.

Another big improvement was the fall out of my hair. Before using the Ouidad shampoo, I would finish taking a shower and when I combed my hair, a bunch of my hair would come off on the comb and my fingers. Now only very few strands fall out.

I'm super pleased with these products and when I get the chance, I'll be wanting to try out more products by them.


You can find Ouidad products at Ulta, Sephora website and select Sephora stores, and at Ouidad's website. 

Another line of products that made it to my favorites list recently is AHAVA. This is another product I purchased during Black Friday/ Cyber Monday Sales. They were having an amazing 40 percent off sale with free shipping.

I purchased their Bath Salts (Euclaptus),gentle eye cream and mud mask.

I've used FAB and Benefits eye cream, but I think this one tops both of them. Although the cream feels very light, it does a great job in hydrating the skin under your eyes.

The mud mask is amazing. You only need to have it on for 2 minutes. It makes me skin feel very clean without any irritation.

The bath salts I used once and it did relax me. I told my mom to use it one day when her muscles were hurting. I asked her for her opinion and she told me that she did feel much better afterwards.

After using these products, now I definitely want to try their cleanser, moisturizers, etc. I'm hoping that they have another great deal coming up so that I can snatch more products.

You can find Ahava on their website and at Ulta

My third favorite thing this week is  bags. More specifically, it's two bags I recently purchased.

The first bag is from Justfab.com and it is called the Law Bag. Here is a picture from their website:

 

This tote is big, beautiful, sturdy and just plain fabulous! You can put in your books, tablet, last night's leftovers, a change of clothes...you get the point. It's also really good quality for the price. I use it for work, but it is also great for school and for traveling.

 

You can find this tote at Just Fab's website. New members now get 2 items for $39.95.

Shameless plug Invite to Site : You can register for the site here:

 http://www.justfab.com/invite/9393584/

Warning- Justfab is a monthly subscription Service, such as Julep, Little Black Box, or any shoe of the month type of monthly service. You can purchase an item every month for $39.95. However, if you do not want them to charge you $39.95 for a certain month or you just don't want to purchase anything for that month, you MUST SKIP before the 5th of that month. If you do not skip, you will be charged, but you can use that credit whenever you find something you would like to purchase. 

The other bag I'm currently in love with is by Mark. and it's called the Cross Over Bag.

 You can find this cross body bag at my E-boutique: http://sbernardes.mymarkstore.com/ and here is the picture from the website:

 However, this bag is so much more beautiful and detailed in real life. 

 

It's a gorgeous navy color. I love to use it on casual days with jeans and a t-shirt or sweater. However, it's detailed enough that I can wear it with a cute red dress as well, like Alicia from Help Licia Blog did here :

This bag is $34 and if you purchase it through my Eboutique : http://sbernardes.mymarkstore.com/
you can use the Promo Code WELCOME at checkout for free shipping for first time customers.



What do you guys think about my top favorites this month? Have you used any of these products or have been wanting to use any of them?

Must Haves: Mark., Lace & Freebies

Hey Everyone!

Today was my day off, which means no uniform, so this was my outfit of the day:

I'm wearing Mark. by Avon from top to bottom.

Let me first just say that lace is my new favorite thing this year. For some reason, I can't seem to get enough of it. That is why I was super excited when I saw this new lace top.

This is how Mark. has advertised its I'm Going Lacy Top ($28):

It's a bit of a box cut, so I found that wearing black underneath makes it more flattering. I really love the lace and the color leans more towards cream than white, which I really like as well.

I paired this top with Mark. Great Details Pants ($36) and Mark. Gimme the Boot ($50).

My earrings are Smoke and Mirrors Earrings ($20), which I have been wearing daily & getting compliments on. (^_^)


If you like any of these items, you can purchase them at my E-boutique http://sbernardes.mymarkstore.com/


By the way, would you like to get some Mark. Freebies? Of course you would!

Mark. has awesome presents for the holidays and it also has great fashion pieces and makeup that you will need to look amazing at all of your holiday parties. Why not score some freebies along the way?

The way to do is to host a party. You might be thinking about those old school tuberware or candle parties. Don't worry, you don't have to go clean the house and purchase snacks and wines for your friends, although if you like that, we can always accomodate for those parties as well. (^_-)
You can earn freebies from the comfort of your home in your pajames by hosting an online party.

You can invite anyone you want and you can advertise your party through multiple social media channels, including facebook, twitter, tumblr, your blog, etc. You can earn up to $200 of Mark products for free. The more your friends and followers purchase, the more you earn. You also get a gorgeous hostess necklace for yourself.

 

If you want to host a party, email me at markitgirlsteph@yahoo.com or leave your email address in the comments and I will get you more information.

In the meantime, check out my Eboutique at http://sbernardes.mymarkstore.com/ so you can pick out all your favorite items that can become your freebies.

Remember, if you like any of these Mark. products and want to check them out, go to my E-boutique-  http://sbernardes.mymarkstore.com/
Use Promo Code WELCOME at checkout for free shipping on your first order. 
If you have any questions, concerns, want your own awesome magalog and/ or samples, etc , e-mail me at markitgirlsteph@yahoo.com

Be the first to know about great offers by registering with my Mark. Eboutique and liking my facebook page

Ghoulish Glowing Green

I know I'm super late at posting my Halloween nails. I had actually done my nails a few days before Halloween, but before I was able to post them on my blog, Sandy hit and I lost power from Monday to Friday night. Luckily, I have power back and my family and I are fine.


So, back to my Halloween post. I decided to have glow in the dark nails this year and used Julep's Sofia. The only problem with Sofia is that it leans more towards being sheer, so I decided to use it as a topcoat to a more opaque color.

I decided to first use my favorite Julep green color- Leah.

This is a picture of Leah by itself:

Leah is bright, fun and pretty. I Love this color! Not only is it one of my favorite greens, it's also one of my favorite Julep colors.


This is with Sofia on top of Leah:

If I put my fingers under a lamp for a bit and then turn off the lights, it did glow in the dark.
I tried to take a picture, but none of them came out well, so I don't have any to show.

However, most importantly, it also looks great throughout the day, not only at night:

Playing Dress Up: Which Outfit of the Day to Choose?

As I've mentioned before, I wear a uniform to work every day. This means that on my days off, I have tons of fun putting outfits together, choosing accessories to go with them and so on. This is especially true when I go out with my boyfriend or friends.

Today I have two great new outfits that I purchased recently and I love.


 The first is an abstract pattern lace dress from Forever 21 that I saw online and instantly fell in love.

This is the picture from the Forever 21 website:

 This is how I looked in it:

The shoes are  Steve Madden's Realize shoes in Black Suede, which are actually 40 % off right now on their website and in stores. There are so many great things I can say about this shoes. They are cute, versatile and the heel is the perfect height.

My ring is is the Vintage Violet Stretch Ring by Mark. , which can be found in my eboutique

My dog, Mia, was trying to get in all of my pictures, so I gave her the spotlight that she wanted and took only a picture of her. She, however, gave me her unamused (-_-) face. lol

Anyway, moving on to the last accessory. The headband is also from Forever 21 and it is super cute and comfortable. 

The first is the Mark. Wrap Star Dress with the Mark. Straight Up Sassy Heals


My second look is the Wrap Star Dress by Mark.

This is Ashley Green wearing the dress, which can be seen in my eboutique

This is how I wore it:

You really can't go wrong with a wrap dress. It's comfortable, fits perfectly and looks very pretty. The Wrap Star Dress is $36.

I wore the dress with shoes by Mark. as well.  They are called Straight Up Sassy heels and they are only $40 and can also be found on my eboutique. They look fabulous!

Which look do you guys like better? Which one should I wear on my next day off?

If you like any of these Mark. products and want to check them out, go to my E-boutique-  http://sbernardes.mymarkstore.com/
Use Promo Code WELCOME at checkout for free shipping on your first order. 
If you have any questions, concerns, want your own awesome magalog and/ or samples, etc , e-mail me at markitgirlsteph@yahoo.com

Be the first to know about great offers by registering with my Mark. Eboutique and liking my facebook page

It's also the perfect time to buy Mark because right now I have a free gift promo on my eboutique.
If you spend $70, you will get a FREE Hit the Deco Necklace. It can be for you or you can gift it to a friend for the holidays.

Shimmer Makes Everything Better

Today I was playing with some of my nail polishes, so I have a couple of Julep swatches for you.

The first is Julep's Mischa. It's a red orange color with shimmer.

I love this color. It's super gorgeous and easy to work with.

I also painted my nails with Julep's Maggie and Julep's Mila.

Julep's Maggie is a dark purple with shimmer. Since it's so dark, I think that the shimmer enhances the look of the polish and makes it prettier.
Julep's Mila is a full coverage glitter polish. Although it's more silvery than anything else, it also has red, green and gold glitter in it.

I used these two colors to do a sort of reverse manicure.

This is how it turned out:

What do you guys think?

I love silvery glittery with purple polishes. I think they go so well together.


By the way, if you like this nail polish and want to know more about the Maven subscription box program, you can do an introductory box for a penny. If you want to do this, just go to the website (Click Here)  take the quiz and put in the code COLORS4ONE during checkout. This is good for only the first month though. However, you can always cancel after that if you aren't satisfied with the polishes.

Out of This World- Nails & Makeup

Last night Refinery29 posted a picture up of a super cute manicure, so of course I wanted to try it out.

This was the original photo that they posted:

Here is my manicure that I did this morning. (Sorry it's a bit fuzzy)

Even my doggie, Mia, can't believe how bad my picture is. hehehehe

Anyway, back to the nails. For the blue, I used Essie's Aruba Blue. For the silver, I used Illamasqua's Glory .

When my mother saw the mani, she told me that it looked like I had on a NASA manicure. 
I think she is completely right. This is now my new NASA Manicure and it is out of this world. 
Yes, that is my actual NASA shirt by the way. I was just like any other kid when I was little. I wanted to work as an astronomer for NASA. Isn't that what every little kid wants to do?

 



For my Out Of This World makeup, I took inspiration from Mark. 's new magalog.

After playing with makeup, this is what I came up with:

For My Face I used:
Mark. Got The Goods Foundation lotion with spf 15 in LIGHT 3
Mark. Touch & Glow Shimmer Cream Cubes All Over Face Palette for a nice bronze glow
On the cheeks, I used Mark. Light Show Illuminating Face Powder

For my Eyes:
I used Mark.  Star Status Eyeshadow Palette in Meteor Showers

From the Palette, I used the white, silverish color in my inner eyes and lids.
I used the green on outer lids and corners
The black , charcoal color I used as a liner for my lower and upper lash line.

The green color on this palette actually shows up on my skin as more of a Moss Color then a green, so I layered the color with I-mark Wet/Dry Eye Shadow in Empress 

For the Lips, I used Mark. Make It Rich Lip Color Crayon in Naturally.  

I love this new Star Status Palette, especially the white color. It's gorgeous! What do you guys think?

If you like any of these Mark. products and want to check them out, go to my E-boutique-  http://sbernardes.mymarkstore.com/
Use Promo Code WELCOME at checkout for free shipping on your first order. 
If you have any questions, concerns, want your own awesome magalog and/ or samples, etc , e-mail me at markitgirlsteph@yahoo.com

Be the first to know about great offers by registering with my Mark. Eboutique and liking my facebook page