Next Step Fit N Full Review

This is my review of the Vitamin Shoppe Next Step Fit N Full Protein shakes.

 I received three flavors for review: Swiss Chocolate, French Vanilla, and Fresh Berries. I also received the Next Step mixing cup. 

**The first flavor I tried was Swiss Chocolate and I followed the instructions to mix with 8oz of water and mixed in the Next Step cup. I have to be honest, I really did not care for this flavor mixed this way. The cup did a great job mixing though! The drink was not chalky or tasting of vitamins, I just didn't like the particular flavor or smell of it. 

Next I tried Fresh Berries and mixed it differently. This time in the blender with soy milk, ice cubes, and fresh strawberries. It was delicious!! I thoroughly enjoyed this one and would be happy to have more!! 

The French Vanilla I prepared the same way and it was also very good! 

I felt alert (but not jittery) and full for about 3 hours. 

I definitely recommend this product, prepared as (or similar to) instructed. 

Don't just take my word for it, read other Influensters opinions here!

Sephora By O.P.I. Nail Polish (4 colors) - Product Review

This is a product review for the Sephora by OPI line of nail polishes which can be purchased for $9.50 (sometimes less, if they go on sale) at Sephora, Sephora inside JCPenny or at www.sephora.com. Sometimes you can find these polishes at TJ Maxx for $3.99 but the selection is very limited, if they even have them at all. The Sephora by OPI nail polishes are, for the most part, more expensive than the regular line of OPI nail polishes, which start at $8 and can be found in various stores and salons. They are also more than the Nicole by OPI nail polish line, which can usually be found for around $7 and are more readily available than the others.

The polishes this review is based on are "Violet's Just Get Married", "Studs & Stilettos", "Leaf Him at the Altar", and "Never Enough Shoes". All of the polishes took about two coats to get an opaque look and the coverage I desired. The polishes do not have very much smell at all and I didn't feel as if I was inhaling a lot of fumes or anything when using these. The coverage was very good with all of them and all of the brushes were sort of wide, excluding "Leaf Him at the Altar", which had a smaller brush. The wider brushes made coverage much more easier and I could easily coat my entire nail in one or two strokes. The dry time for all of these polishes was very quick and didn't have any smudges or other mishaps due to them being wet. Now onto the individual colors:

 "Violet's Just Get Married" is a light purple-ish color that seems to be metallic, but is almost like a pink to purple duochrome. It is the most sheer of them all, but still only took roughly two coats to get the opacity that I desired. I think this color would look better over another color, perhaps a purple. It came out very light and was a bit difficult to photograph.

"Studs & Stilettos" is a gorgeous, creamy brown. It's rich and chocolate-y looking. It covered amazingly well and I barely needed two coats. It also went on kind of thick, but that was a personal preference, I could have used less had I desired to. I really like this color and didn't want to take it off for the next one.

"Leaf Him at the Altar" is a sparkling glittery green! It is really beautiful and covers nicely, but the brush on it was smaller than the other brushes so it didn't go on as quickly. It still only took two coats for the desired opacity. This doesn't look nearly as beautiful in the bottle as it did on my nails!

"Never Enough Shoes" is the last polish I tried. I honestly bought it for the name, but it looks wonderful on. The pictures do not do it justice AT ALL! It is a glossy black with tiny glitters of all different colors in it. I couldn't believe how glossy it is! And this is without a top coat! The glitters may be barely noticeable, but they ARE noticeable and they are gorgeous. This polish reminds me of outer space. This is two coats.

So those are all of the Sephora by OPI nail polishes I have tried so far, and I love them all! Each one is unique and beautiful and perfect for different occasions. I definitely recommend this polish brand, although it is on the pricey side. I will stick to sales and hoping I get lucky at TJ Maxx mostly, but if there is a color I see that I want, knowing the brushes and formula, I would certainly pay full price.

Thank you for reading, I hope this helps you out and if you have any questions please ask!

Review - Schwarzkopf Professional OSiS+ Dust It

In my Spring Vox Box that I received from Influenster, I got to try an amazing product made by Schwarzkopf Professional called OSiS+ Dust It! I received this product complimentary for reviewing purposes. I absolutely LOVE this product! OSiS+ Dust It is a "multi purpose mattifying powder that adds incredible root lift, texture, and control. Perfect for creating thicker, fuller looking hair." You can purchase this at Ulta, Ulta.com, and your local salon for $23.50.

At first I wasn't quite sure how to use it and watched several videos showing different ways to use it. It is in a powder form, and while you can simply sprinkle it directly onto your scalp, I found the easiest and most effective way to use it was to pour a small amount into my hands and rub them together and then sort of massage it onto my scalp. After I got as much product as I wanted, (you really only need a tiny bit), I 'scrunched' my hair with my fingers and it was instantly full of body and volume! The more I scrunched the more and more volume I had. After I was happy with the my volume I ran a comb lightly through my hair to smooth it and that was it! It's incredibly easy to use and does wonders! I found that it is best to put a little bit of tape over some of the holes on the bottle to keep from getting too much powder at once, this is especially useful if you are sprinkling the product directly onto your scalp! I did not find the product to be itchy or bothersome and it did not make my hair tangled or damaged. This is a wonderful product and I highly recommend it whether you are looking for a little volume or a lot - it works both ways and is very light and does not weigh my hair down or make my hair feel unhealthy. I do think that if you use a lot of this product you might want to use a clarifying shampoo or just scrub your head well to get all of it off when you wash your hair. This product also LASTS! You can style your hair in the morning and sleep in it and just scrunch and brush the next morning and it will last you through that evening. I've added a picture of the product and also one of my hair styled with it. I did not use a whole lot of it in the photo because I was pleased with how it looked just using one to two sprinkles. It could definitely have made my hair much fuller and thicker had I wanted that effect.

I hope you find my review helpful and informative! If you have any questions or comments please feel free to leave them on this post! Thank you for reading and I hope you try Schwarzkopf OSiS+ Dust It for yourself and love it just as much as I do!!

Review - TastyKakes Kandy Bar Kakes

I received a complimentary TastyKakes Kandy Bar Kake in the flavor S'mores from Influenster.com in my Spring Fever Vox Box. I was a little scared of it at first because of the high fat and calories, but I suppose it is not much different from Little Debbie, considering the serving size and the quality was much higher than your average snack bar. They are even made with real Hershey's Cocoa. The bar didn't taste extremely 'Smore-y' to me but also wasn't incredibly sweet or rich, just the right amount of sweetness it seemed. The consistency was a little gooey and melty from going through the mail I assume, but was still delicious! I do recommend these bars, but maybe not for everyday as the previously mentioned nutrition facts. They are perfect for special occasions or dessert without being overpoweringly sweet!

My KNails Manicure - Product Review

I have been using KNails' products for a while now and am pleased with everything I have tried and anxiously await new products from her! She has very high quality, well-made, natural products for body, hands, and especially nails. I gave myself a manicure today using the Sweet Honey And Molasses Exfoliator and the Rose Almond Hand Butter (which doubles as an excellent cuticle balm). The Exfoliator smooths your hands and preps your cuticles for trimming and grooming. It makes my hands feel so soft, as if they just came out of a paraffin wax bath to be honest! It exfoliates the cuticles and loosens them up for easy trimming/pushing. It also removes any dead skin from the hands and softens finger tips (I have rough finger tips from working with wire). After exfoliating, I used the Rose Almond Hand Butter to further prepare my dry cuticles for removal. This stuff smells AMAZINGLY! If you've ever used 'Roses' lotion by Yardley - it smells almost identical! My grandmother loved that lotion so this brings back many good childhood memories! I then used a cuticle remover to take off my cuticles very easily. They were loose from the Exfoliator and soft from the butter. I then shaped my nails with a file and applied even more hand butter to get rid of the nail shavings. I'm very pleased with these products made by KNails and I highly recommend them! You can purchase or view these products by clicking here!

My new indie polish store is now live!

Visit my new indie polish store now! I just opened it and supplies are incredibly limited!! There are 5 colors to choose from all are size 5.5mL. All products are three free and cruelty free! Thank you all!! Also, I can currently only ship to the US! I'm sorry about this!

Makeup Of The Day - Sunday

My makeup for today is pictured on this page along with the products I used to achieve the look.

Step 1: prep
I use these products every morning! First I start with Lancôme Genefique 'Youth Activating Concentrate', next I apply a generous amount of Lancôme Visionnaire Advanced Skin Corrector for Wrinkles, Pores, & Evenness, after that I use Lancôme High Resolution Refill-3X -Triple Action Renewal Anti-Wrinkle Cream SPF 15, and my last step to prepare for my day is to gently dab on Lancôme High Resolution Eye Refill-3X -Triple Action Renewal Anti-Wrinkle Eye Cream.

Step 2: eyes
Next I do my eye makeup. The first thing I do is apply an eyeshadow primer. I like to use different ones on for different shades and looks. Today I used Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion in original. Next I applied my highlighter color to my inner eye and brow bone. Today I used a color from the Lancôme Color Design Eye Brightening All-In-One 5 Shadow & Liner Palette in Teal Fury. Next I applied the purple color to my inner eyelid and half way across my eyelid. This color is Lancôme Color Design in Trendy and is classified as 'intense'. After that I used the teal in the palette and in the single shade which is Lancôme Color Design in Best Dressed and is classified as 'sheen'. This is on the corner of my eyelid and under my eye. I used three gel liners by Lancôme in the shades 'Violet Stylista', 'Dress Up Teal', and 'Black Fishnets'. Finally I used my mascara primer - Lancôme Cils Booster XL and the mascara I used today is Estée Lauded Sumptuous Two Tone Eye-Opening Mascara in 'Sumtt' which is 'Bold Black' on top lashes and 'Rich Blue' on bottom lashes. To finish my eyes I applied Lancôme brow definer in a reddish brown.

Step 3: face
For my face today I used Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer Luminizing as my base. I used my favorite foundation, which is Lancôme Teint Miracle Lit-From-Within Makeup in buff 5. Next I sparsely used Lancôme Dual Finish Versatile Powder Makeup in Buff II. For a slightly sun-kissed look I used a tiny bit of Lancôme Star Bronzer Natural Glow in Riche. I finished with my favorite contouring blush - Lancôme Blush Subtil Palette in Rose Flush!

Step 4: finish
To complete my look I lined my lips with Lorac Lip Pencil in #18 Nude. I applied NARS Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil in New Lover and then used a generous amount of Victoria's Secret Very Voluptuous Lip Plumper in Extreme. I finished my makeup with Urban Decay All Nighter Makeup Setting Spray!!

I hope you like my look today and enjoyed learning about what products I used!