ricky's nyc valentine's haul.

warning: cuteness overload.

seriously...how cute are these?

well...what are they, you ask?

who cares, lol! the moment i saw these, i knew they would make great valentine's gifts, regardless of what they were. they were just too cute.

after i got past the cuteness, i clicked thru to Ricky's NYC to find that these were actually facial sprays and lip glosses. i've been looking for a hydrating spray to use throughout the day, so i was excited to try the tony moly pocket bunny moist mist. the lip glosses come in nine flavors, each with a different bunny face. 

(straight out of the package)

first off, i was sent the wrong mist AND the sticker seals on two of the lip glosses were broken. not only broken, but misaligned...meaning the caps were twisted. they were on pretty tight, so i don't think it shifted during shipping. i randomly opened #5 which looked new and untouched, so i figured i'd let it go. i emailed them about the wrong product and within a few days, the correct product showed up in the mail. great quick response.

(does it look used?)

then, about a week later, i was getting ready to wrap up these cuties and my gut told me to check the gloss, and sure enough i wasn't so lucky with #4. i don't know if it was used or tested, but it definitely looked tampered with. how embarrassing would that have been if i gave that to someone?!

if you are physically packing orders, wouldn't you want to give your customers the best? if the seal was broken, give them one that wasn't? at minimum check the product?

but...by the way they responded to my wrong order, i have no doubt that they would have remedied the situation. it's just a hassle, and i wouldn't have received another one in time for valentine's day.

(received: #2, #4, #5)

i did not try these since they were gifts, but reviews were pretty consistent in that they aren't very pigmented and there isn't much of a color difference between the different flavors. as i was typing this, i realized that i had again received the wrong product. you order these by flavors on the website, but the actual product is labelled with numbers. i ordered peach (#5), orange (#6), and grape (#2), but received cherry (#4) instead.

aside from that, the cute packaging is still worth its affordable price and if not for a colored gloss, something that you could use on top of another lipstick for a little shine.

(nude: mid-toned peach; forbidden: peach toned nude)

nudes are just like reds...you keep buying until you have the right shade. i had a bunch of nude shades in my cart, and when it was time to whittle down the choices, i unknowingly (based on the names, not descriptions) ended up with these two very similar shades. hate when that happens, haha!

tony moly moist mist description from website: Formulated with peach, raspberry and apple! Promotes skin elasticity with a sweet and lovely scent! Great for summer! Keep it in your purse to cool off on hot days!

tony moly has a moist mist and a sleek mist. the descriptions on the website are pretty vague, but i gathered [from other reviews] that the moist mist was for dry skin, while the sleek mist was for oily skin. the scent was sweet, not overwhelming. it's not a fine mist, so hold it away from your face to avoid getting too wet. my skin actually felt tight. this might work better on oily/combination skin.

again...i did initially get this for the cuteness factor, and these bottles are refillable. so you can refill them with some of your other favorite products or a DIY face mist.

overall, the products i ordered didn't have any wow factor, but the packaging is cute and still makes for cute gifts. you can find tony moly products at Ricky's NYC and Urban Outfitters.

*     *     *

still need a valentine's gift? here's a quick and affordable gift for your loved ones: valentine's candy-gram

express yourself.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Revlon.

All opinions are 100% mine.

Revlon wants you to express yourselves!

for years, Revlon has been providing tools that empower women. it's time to use these tools to your advantage. we normally think of wearing makeup to hide our flaws...a pimple, dark spots, bags under our eyes...but what if we used makeup to enhance our best features? step outside of the box and try something new like a bold red lip, daring color on your nails, bright shadows on your eyes, or simply give yourself a perfect canvas to start with using primers. all of these 'challenges' are part of the Revlon Expression Experiment and are meant to inspire women to get expressive. our clothing choices

change day-to-day based on our moods,

shouldn't our makeup be just as reflective?

scroll down to see which of the challenges i tried.

  

 the red lip challenge

before.

what i wore: revlon super lustrous lipstick in fire & ice

how it made me feel: of all days, i was taking my daughter to tour a new school. at first, i felt intimidated by the bold color. what would the other parents think? i tried to blot, but the color wouldn't come off (that's a good thing...it has staying power!). so i held my head up high, smiled at everyone, and i didn't get those stares i thought i would get,

and it felt great. i did feel empowered and confident.

the bright eyes challenge

what i wore: revlon colorstay 16-hour eye shadow in inspired

how it made me feel: i don't think i'm alone when i say i'm afraid to look like a clown. i usually stick to neutral colors, especially because of my single asian eyelids. not having that fold really makes application challenging for me. i applied the quad as suggested on the back with the creme under my brows, the light blue on the upper eyelid, the darker blue in the "crease" area just above my liner, and the green at the outer corners...then i blended. i also went darker on my brows and threw on my lashes just to play up my eyes. up close i was worried it was too bright, but stepping back from the mirror and also looking at the photos, i liked the depth it added compared to my before picture above.

check out my facebook page for more photos and

to see the products i received up close.

are you ready to feel empowered?

check out Revlon's facebook application. break out of your normal beauty routines and try something different.

take the challenge and share your experiences with me!

tell me in the comments which challenge you would like to try:

 the red lip challenge

the bright eyes challenge

 the daring nail polish challenge

 the perfect canvas challenge

 if you take the challenge, tell me how it made you feel and share your posts on facebook (#Revlon) or twitter (@Revlon).

an [oomph] review. see and be seen.

just wanted to give you guys a peek into the see and be seen kit from Anastasia Beverly Hills. it is a four-piece limited edition set for the eyes and face and contains the following:

 - HydraFull gloss in plastic

- HydraFull gloss in heiress

- Illumin8 Eyeshadow Duo in on set

- Tinted Brow Gel in caramel

the kit provides shadows and glosses in colors that create my perfect day look...a natural eye with bright pink lips. however, the shadow pigment is rich enough to create a dramatic look as well. paired with the red gloss, you could create a nice

evening look.

there are also benefits to using these products. clinical studies showed an increase in skin hydration after one hour of wearing Illumin8 shadows. after four weeks of use,

skin appeared firmer and smoother.

after four weeks of using the HydraFull gloss, people saw an improvement in the texture of their lips and reported that their lips were hydrated. click here for more details.

  

the see and be seen kit is only available for a few more weeks and can be yours for only $44. ($80 value)

(buy)

on set duo (champagne shimmer/gold shimmer)

wearing champagne shimmer from liner to brows, gold on the lids.

lightly dusted for subtle color here, but keep layering

for a more dramatic look!

plastic is straight-up pink while heiress leans toward red.

the glosses are thick, but worked well on my dry lips.

 hydrafull gloss in plastic.

the glosses are true to color...what you see is what you get.

as it should be!

in case you missed it:

see my review and giveaway of Lash Genius,

also by Anastasia Beverly Hills.

*i was provided one kit in exchange for my honest review.

fluorescent lights.

thanks to jan, i realized that my camera's white balance was set to fluorescent lights. i did notice a strange icon on the screen, but didn't have time to dig up the manual until now. i'm hoping that was the reason for the bluish tinge i was getting on my photos. so, i have a week's worth of photos to sort thru...maybe some will be salvageable. my apologies for the inconsistent posts this week. for real-time updates, you can catch me mini-blogging on instagram @rockoomph.

i am loving this Covergirl LipPerfection Lipcolor. i have super dry lips that make it difficult to wear any lipstick, but my lips haven't peeled at all today. plus, i've had it on since 8am this morning and haven't had to re-apply at all...

even after lunch and two cups of coffee.

and some edible easter grass.

and some chocolates.

i'm off to color some eggs, hide some eggs, eat some eggs...

have a hoppy easter!

everyday, i've been having some combo

of these trader joe's chocolates...

pareils, cherries, acai berries, and mints.

(top, old navy; skirt, eight sixty (similar)(similar);

shoes, victoria's secret (similar))

what are your plans for the weekend?

any easter traditions?

mini fun + mini haul.

mauka to makai.

(towards the mountains / towards the sea)

last summer, a classmate kept us updated, via facebook photos, on his mauka to makai themed summer in which he took his kids hiking one day, to the beach the next. i thought it was a great idea because it's taking advantage of the two best places here. on sunday, i had a quick meet up at the beach where my friend was renting a beach house. it was perfectly overcast and mini-he had fun playing in the water and sand. monday, i hiked with the gang. if i can go mauka to makai at least once a week,

i'm a happy girl.

where are the best places to be where you live?

one of my favorite [striped] weekend dresses by fighting eel.

my friend's son built this teepee for mini-he.

tons of great driftwood for building forts.

mini drugstore haul.

my two favorites, lovelorn & up the amp, running low.

i hit the drugstore to get some new lashes at 25% off. they turned out to be a steal at $0.63 each...i stocked up. everything revlon was on sale, too, so i decided to try the revlon lip butters in hopes that they might replace my current mac favorites. i also wanted a lilac polish, and revlon's #325 in gum drop was the exact color i wanted.

have you tried these lip butters? and for those who use lashes, can you tell the difference between cheap and expensive ones?

do they last longer?

don't call me sweetie.

i used to wear too-dark browns.

could never find the perfect red.

and finally found comfort in pink.

sweetie pie from mark. has become my new favorite.

it's the prettiest shade of pink that can be dabbed on for a barely there hint of pink or layered on to achieve

a fun shade of bubble gum.

plus, it has a delicious, subtle mint smell that

just makes me smile.

(mark lipclick in 'sweetie pie', c/o jackie's mark. eboutique)

buy it here,

or

enter the blogaversary giveaway to win one.

sponsor love. jackie's mark. eboutique.

"i love beauty & fashion, and i love sharing the latest trends.

that's why i became a mark. representative."

jackie is one of many young women who sells exclusive products - a stylish mix of makeup, skin and body care,

unique fragrances, and trend-setting accessories through mark.

just browse her eboutique and you'll find yourself overwhelmed (in a good way) with an array of goodies to choose from. from eye shadows, to acne-fighting products, to body creams and even clothing, mark. really is a one-stop shop. check out her blog, living after midnight, where she puts together beauty looks made up exclusively of mark. makeup products.

 like these?

[mark lipclick full color lipstick.]

[mark gloss gorgeous stay on lip stain.]

you could win one of these in the [oomph.] blogaversary giveaway.

stay tuned!