Introduction to the Sigma Beauty F80 Brush

Happy Friday, friends! I bet that everyone is out and about doing something really exciting. Not me! I’m just lounging around the house in my workout clothes not working out, waiting for my Thai food to be delivered. I’ve never tried this place before but I’ll let you know if it’s any good. I really don’t mind staying home on Fridays. As a matter of fact, if I had gone out today I would have missed the arrival of this magnificent beauty…

This Sigma F80 Flat Kabuki was a prize from Sigma Beauty’s #AskSigma Twitter Party. Tweeters had the opportunity to ask Sigma Beauty’s head makeup artist, Amanda, any questions that they had about Sigma brushes and anything else pertaining to beauty. Those who participated were entered to win their very own F80. I’ve actually had the pleasure of owning this brush before. It applied my mineral makeup perfectly. I lost it last year so I was absolutely thrilled to have won a new one to replace my old one. By the way, their shipping is lighting fast. The Twitter party was only 2 days ago!

Here are the questions that I asked Amanda 😀

Sigma Beauty announced that there would be another party like this sometime in the future so follow @SigmaBeauty on Twitter and keep an eye out! They are always tweeting sneak peaks of new products and promotions. I’ve been following them for about 5 years. That makes me sound like a stalker, doesn’t it? 😅

You can follow me as well if you like! My Twitter handle is @tiffanimated.

Sigma Beauty is currently offering free shipping to anywhere in the U.S. for orders of $50 and up. This promotion is valid for the entire month of August so this is one of the best times to try some of their brushes. The F80 is definitely a good start. I would love to try the rest of the brushes that Amanda recommended (The Perfect Blend Kit, the Extreme Color Payoff Kit, the F35, and the F15). I’m also crazy about their copper ferruled brushes so the Complete Kit in Copper from the Extravaganza Collection is something I’ve been secretly dreaming of owning 😍

Which brushes do you have and which brushes would you like to add to your collection? Tell me all about it in the comments!

P.S. The code AUG2014 will give you an extra 10% off your order 😀

Disclaimer: I am not an affiliate, I just love Sigma!
Here’s a direct link to their website: www.sigmabeauty.com

Introduction to the Sonia Kashuk 15th Anniversary Brush Set

Hello, everyone! Long time no blog! My boyfriend and I just got back from Florida. FYI, the flight was awful because I flew through Spirit Airlines. I’ve flown with them before so I already knew that it was going to suck. Check out www.hatethousandmiles.com if you hate Spirit, too, or if you share similar feelings for another airline. Spirit will give you 8,000 Spirit Miles for venting your 140-character frustrations. I recommend that you use your miles on magazines, they actually have a pretty good selection.

Because Spirit is so cheap I only brought an overnight bag so I didn’t return with many souvenirs. I did, however, bring this baby back.

Feast your eyes on Sonia Kashuk’s 15th Anniversary Brush Set!

I believe this is the largest brush set that has been offered by Miss Kashuk. At $2.67 (pre-tax) per brush, this collection is an incredible deal. The eggplant colored handles with the gold accent tips add a touch of elegance to the exotic radiant orchid colored bristles. Most of the bristles are made with luxuriously soft [cruelty-free] goat hair. Even after washing the brushes with baby shampoo, all of the brushes had retained their original softness. Personally, I hardly experienced any shedding.

Sonia Kashuk’s brushes are known for professional quality at drugstore prices. Having a retailer like a Target cuts costs for both Sonia and the consumer. Everybody wins!

*This set is limited edition and will only be sold until October so if you want it and you see it, grab it and buy it!

Have you tried any products by Sonia Kashuk? Share your experiences in the comments! Also, let me know if you would like a more detailed review on this brush set.

Biggest Party of the Year!

7-Eleven turned 87 today and this year their birthday party is going to be a little more extravagant. Traditionally, 7-Eleven shares a free 12oz Slurpee with their customers to celebrate their special day. This year, the celebration will last 9 days.

Anyone and everyone can crash the party today. Come in and grab your slurpee! However, in order to be invited to the after-party, you need to download the 7-Eleven app on your phone. The app is completely free as with the treats you will receive for downloading it.

Here is a list of free goodies that the convenience store will be offering for the next nine days:

Everyone is welcome to come in today for this one:

• Friday, July 11: Small Slurpee

Those who have downloaded 7-Eleven’s app are eligible to receive the following:

• July 12: Big Gulp soft drink
• July 13: M&M’s Birthday Cake Flavor candies
• July 14: Grandma’s Cookies
• July 15: Hostess Twinkies
• July 16 Snickers or Twix brand ice cream bar
• July 17: Quaker Chewy Yogurt snack bar
• July 18: Pillsbury cookie
• July 19: Small Slurpee

If you are reading this on a smart phone, I suggest that you download the app right now so you don’t forget. If you are on a tablet or computer, you need to get up and get your slurpee!

“If you have haters, you must be doing something right.”

Unfortunately this is not the case for Spirit Airlines. I’ve actually had the unpleasure of flying this airline in April. My flight was overbooked so my boyfriend and I volunteered our seats. In return we were both compensated with “two free round trip tickets each.” These were supposed to be valid for two months but they expired after a week. With a lot of patience and time wasted through the automated customer service (you have to begin booking a flight just to speak to someone), they issued us new vouchers. I was told that these vouchers were worth $500 each but it only applied about $200 at checkout. Their customer service is terrible. When I finally got through to speak to an actual person, I was placed on hold for the majority of the phone call and while they continually apologized for the wait, the woman I was speaking to had such a frustrated tone with me. Come on! She gets paid to be on the phone with me! I, on the other hand didn’t get paid to talk to her but I still had the civility to keep some composure.

This airline sucks. You have to pay for a carry on. You have to pay to choose a seat (I didn’t and I ended up all the way in the back with absolutely no leg room. I’m quite petite so I’m sure that it was worse for my boyfriend.) Bad customer service. Last but not least, their “free flight vouchers” do not even cover the total cost of the flight. I used two $500 vouchers on a $600 flight and still ended up paying $200. How is that even possible!?!

What’s even worse is that they know that they are the worst airline ever. Sprit Airlines is currently accepting hate mail and in return they are giving out 8,000 Free Spirit miles. The catch is that they only give you 140 characters to explain how much you hate them.

Free Summer School

Depending on how you choose to see it, Sunday may be the first day or the last day of your week but school almost always starts on a Monday. If you’re interested in spending this Summer learning, there are wonderful resource centers called “libraries” that the public can use for research 😛

There are 91 LA County libraries and fortunately for me, I live fairly close to one. If this particular library doesn’t carry the book I need, I can have the book shipped over to this library from one of the other 90. No extra travel required!

A smaller library from a different county actually ordered a brand new book for me because the title was not available.

Develop the leader within you. Learn a new language in 7 days. Think and grow rich. Master the art of French cooking. Start a blog. Go to the library!

I have been gaining more knowledge about skincare and makeup artistry.

What skills do you plan to polish this summer? Share your aspirations in the comments!

“Honest Fizz honestly sucks.”

Says the boyfriend.

A stevia-sweetened drink is a taste to be acquired. These 12oz cans were marked down to $0.33 at my local Big Lots so I thought I’d give it a shot. After taking a sip of my Lemon Limey Honest Fizz, I wasn’t exactly eager to take another one. I would have enjoyed it more without the sweetener. If you haven’t acquired a taste for stevia nor the skill to tolerate it, save your change and buy a conchita next door.

“Thanks, but no thanks.”

Photos taken by Hank.

It was 99 cents!

Happy hump day, everyone!

Today, I’d like to share a snapshot of some cool finds from my local 99 Cents Only Stores. I’d like to point out that the Bee Naturals Lip Moisturizer came in a twin pack and that this USA made product only contains Beeswax, Coconut Oil, Sunflower Seed Oil, Lanolin, Peppermint Oil, Comfrey Leaf Oil, Rosemary Oil, and Vitamin E. Hooray for no petroleum! 😀 Also, the E.L.F Smudge Eye Sponge and Bronzing Brush are from my local Big Lots but still reasonably priced at $0.95.

I also find great things like pie crusts, cookie dough, canned biscuits, cinnamon rolls, and crescents from The Immaculate Baking Company and gelato from Ciao Bella.

Have you found any treasures at your local 99 Cents Only Stores, Big Lots or other discount stores? Share your finds in the comments!

Review: E.L.F. Eyelid Primer

The bad news is Sunday funday is coming to an end, the good news is my eyeshadow held up pretty good this weekend.

As I mentioned in my last post, I picked up E.L.F.’s Eyelid Primer for a buck and tax at Target.

This is what you want to look out for if you find yourself interested in purchasing this product.

A closer look at the doe foot applicator.

Get to know Tiff: I like to read all the information on a product’s packaging before I purchase it.

I have previously used Urban Decay’s Primer Potion, Too Faced Shadow Insurance, and most recently Mary Kay’s Signature Eye Primer.

Urban Decay & Too Faced are both very reliable brands for eyeshadow primer. As for the eyeshadow primer from Mary Kay… Let’s just say that immediately following application, my eyeshadow was pretty. When I saw myself in the mirror a few hours later, my eyeshadow was NOT pretty… or at least what was left of it (not much). Both the NYX Natural Palette and the Urban Decay Naked Palette refused to adhere to the Mary Kay eye primer.

Summary:
While the E.L.F Eyelid Primer does not quite match the staying power of higher-end brands, I was very impressed to see that my eyeshadow was almost perfectly intact with very minimal creasing. This creamy eyelid primer creates a smooth canvas for eyeshadow. Not only are colors easier to blend, they stay on longer, too. It just may be the ideal eyelid primer for those that find their current eyelid primer too drying. For the price and performance, I can definitely recommend this product.

Review: Lovely Candy Co. Chewy Original Caramels

Happy third Thursday, everyone! Third Thursday? What? What’s so special about third Thursdays!?!

Oh! Where do I begin!

My very sweet and wonderful boyfriend and I celebrate our relationship with all-day festivities every third Thursday. He liked me enough to make me his girlfriend on a third Thursday and still likes me enough to never let me forget it!

Third Thursdays are also the days that the farmer’s market extends their hours. Hooray for organic fruits and veggies!

Anywho, on to the review!

I picked up these caramels for about a buck-fifty from Target today along with an E.L.F. Eyelid Primer [to be reviewed].

As you can see, I was very excited to try them. I had my boyfriend rip through the packaging before I could even think about taking a perfect pretty picture.

[which is funny because the fancy orange packaging was incredibly difficult to open so I had more than a few minutes to think about it.]

The caramels are elegantly dressed in sheer white wax paper. Eight of these beauties came in my bag but I believe the count varies.

No high fructose corn syrup. No trans fats. No artificial ingredients or colors. Made in the good ol’ U.S.A. with 7 ingredients that a child could easily read.

Personal thoughts and feelings about the product:
These caramels have a very desirable texture. Chewing them is almost effortless. It takes some time to get through a piece, but it is a very pleasant time, indeed. They are the most creamy and delicious caramel I have ever tasted, and best of all, these babies are au naturel!

I will never go back to eating those “caramel” squares of high fructose corn syrup. Never again will accidentally ingest that cheap clear plastic.

Never. Again.