Boxycharm Opening: March 2014

Hey there friends!

I recently received the March 2014 Boxycharm subscription box & I thought I'd do a quick unboxing and first thoughts post for you guys :]

Here's the unopened box! I really like Boxycharm's packaging.  It's simple and cute!

The theme for this month is "lucky charm"!  I think this is just adorable! It's got a really cute poem on it, but it implies the box will have gold and green items, which it definitely does not.  It's more of a orangey-pink box!

I love that Boxycharm does a breakdown of the items with information on how to use the products and the prices.  It really is super helpful!

The items in this box total to $112! The box only costs $21 a month, so this is $91 extra!

First item! Tarte Lipsurgence Natural Lip Tint in the color Charmed!

I have tons of these little guys thanks to my mom and a Sephora Christmas bundle! ;] They are some of my favorite things to wear on my lips.  Ultra hydrating and a bit of a stain that lasts all day!

This is what it looks like on a girl wearing no makeup and suffering from allergies! LOL >.< 

It's a nice subtle pinky color that makes me look a little less pale and a lot healthier!

[If any of you are wondering, I just got eyelash extensions!]

Guess I could've opened it for you guys.....-_-

Anyways, this is the Previse Nurtify Skin Type 1-6 Universal Tonic!  I probably needed one of these guys thanks to how dry my skin is!

This next product is the Oscar Blandi Hair Lift Thickening & Strengthening Mousse!

I've been getting more and more into big hair, so I can't wait to try this out!

OFRA Eyeliner in Coffee Bean!

I actually REALLY needed a brown eyeliner, so I cannot wait to use this!

It goes on really smooth! I have an OFRA eyebrow pencil that I ADORE so I'm sure this will just be the bee's knees!

Last but not least is this LVX Nail Lacquer, which I believe is in the color Deco.  What I love about this color is that it's perfect for spring, but I would've never bought it for myself!  

This is after two coats!  It's really vivid in person and it loses that in pictures.  I love this color! I usually am not a salmon girl but I'm going to rock this all spring!!

All in all this was an awesome box! It ranged over all kinds of beauty, nails to eyes, lips to hair! I'm actually really excited to try these and there's nothing I just feel so-so about!

Great job Boxycharm!

♥Riley

P.S. Thinking about joining  Boxycharm? ;]

My New Erin Condren Obsession!

Hey there friends!

So.....

I have a new addiction.

How I prevented myself before from falling into the never ending shopping spree that comes with owning an Erin Condren planner is beyond me....

But I've caught the bug! 

A couple weeks ago my water spilled all over my bag.  It ruined my old planner.  This was a travesty.  But! I thought that this had to be a sign from God herself [All Hail Martha!] to break down and finally buy a real Erin Condren planner.  

I chose to buy the classic sea life planner in navy. & I LOVE IT.  I had it personalized to have my name written on it!  I cannot wait for it to get here! But it takes sooo long.  I also ordered a carry all clutch in scales.  Because these two items cost so much, I was able to get the Sun kind of wonderful tank for free!  I ordered them the 13th and they still haven't shipped but I think they will ship later this week!

Anyways, my friend is getting married in November and she asked me to be one of her bridesmaids! I decided to get her a wedding planner from Erin Condren, since we both are obsessed.  Neither of us have ever had a planner so fancy & I cannot wait to give her hers! She doesn't know that I bought it for her & it's going to be such a surprise.

I'll post pictures of my planner and case as soon as I receive them in the mail! 

I made an unboxing video for when I received the wedding planner :]  It's the first one I've ever made, so I hope it isn't too bad :)

I go into detail about opening the items I received that would just take too long to type!  

I'll post another video like this when I get my own planner!

I have also started collecting loads of items from Michael's, Joann's & Walmart, and am hoping to do a haul for it soon!

♥Riley

P.S.  If you're interested in getting your own Erin Condren planner, click the link! :]

https://www.erincondren.com/referral/invite/rileyliebel1014

Influenster's Dessange Vox Box

Hello All! 

I got another Influenster VoxBox!  This time the products sent to me for testing purposes were from Dessange Paris!

They sent me the California Blonde collection, which included a shampoo, a conditioner, and a CC cream, which was meant to help with color correction.

To be honest when I first got this box I had doubts.  I've gotten hair care product samples in boxes like these before and they are pretty hit or miss.

Also, since I've started coloring my hair again, I don't want to mistreat it anymore than I already am.  Just because a product is "color safe" doesn't mean it's actually good for the hair.  

The outside of the box wasn't too special, but this is what the inside looked like!

Here are the products I received!  Illuminating Shampoo, Illuminating Conditioner, and Brass Color Correction Creme.

The bottle for the shampoo reads, "This brightening shampoo gently cleanses and nourishes hair to enhance shine, color radiance and softness."

"This ultra-nourishing conditioner wraps hair with moisture from root to tip, smoothing and taming dry, unruly strands."

"A weekly in-shower treatment formulated with Linseed oil and blue pigments to neutralize brassiness and nourish the hair."

This is the CC creme out of the box.  The bottle is super odd, but I quite like it!  I think the opening of mine might be broken but it still works fine, it just doesn't seem like that's how they would want it to work.  

I have never seen a blue color corrector before.  It's kinda fun to use in the shower though! It makes everything blue which is really interesting.  I don't usually use color correctors.  My hairdresser tells me that I'm lucky because my hair doesn't get brassy, so this is a product I wouldn't usually buy.

I've had products before with passion flower extracts and really liked them, so I hoped that I would like these!

The first time I used these products, I was really unsure about the smell.  I didn't really care for it and thought it was strange.  The second time I used it I actually liked the smell quite a bit.

I like the feeling of these products in my hair! After my showers my hair is very clean feeling and I really like the color of my blonde.  I am actually really happy that I received these products for testing purposes.  They make my hair feel really nice and I like the smell.  The bottles are pretty as well!

I would rate this voxbox 5/5!  I loved the products I received and would recommend them to others!

I do have one concern however.  The insert in the box makes it sound like I should have received 4 products instead of 3.  I did not receive the "Illuminating Elixir".  This is fine, but it just seems like it should have been in there.

This was before I went to NASCAR!

I don't know if I'll repurchase these in the future yet, as I haven't been using them very long, but for the time being they are my preferred hair regimen!

♥Riley

P.S. Interested in joining Influenster?  You should! I receive products for testing at not cost to me, all of the time! Send me your email and I'll invite you! :]

New Etsy Items!

Hello Lovelies!

I have some new Etsy items posted!  I am getting into making keychains! 

I love making plushies but I've found that keychains are a bit more functional!

So far I have some based on the Gameboy Color, but will have some Pokemon themed keychains up very soon!

Please go visit my Etsy page and check them out!  

Also, feel free to leave your opinions here, I'd love to hear your view point!

♥Riley

P.S. Do you have any ideas of felty keychains I should make? Which Pokemon would you like to see? :] 

P.P.S. Have a great day!

Marimo Love: Housing!

Hello Lovelies!

I've decided to just make this an ongoing thing, since it's easiest to write about stuff you care about!

[If you want to read my earlier post where I went into detail about these marimos click here.]

My Marimos are being shipped to me now! I was way too excited to wait for them to be here, and made a quick trip to Michael's to get their housing situated!

I bought everything I could think of to make my own version of the cute little Marimo tanks I had seen on Etsy, YouTube, and other websites.  

Here's what I bought:

• "Stone granules", which is basically just sand only slightly thicker, in a light tan color
• Seashells
• A Wreath made of sticks
• Two spools of ribbon
• Four glass jars

 In total it was about $13, but could have been a lot less if I had used items I already have around my house.

Here is a picture of the "Stone Granules".  It came with way more than I needed.  I made four little dwellings and only used about half.

Here are the seashells and the little wreath.  To be honest I do not know what it is made of.

I bought two spools of ribbon because they were only 50 cents a piece!

My four little glass jars.

Step two, after acquiring everything, would be to wash EVERYTHING.  Something is going to be living with this stuff, so you want it clean!

Washing the glass and shells...

Step 3:  Add the sand or stone, or whatever you have for the base of your "tank".  If you don't have a base, skip this step! :]

Adding some stone granules to more of my jars...

Step 4:  Add the shells and any other decorations you may have!

I'm still not sure if this stuff is safe but I only added a bit to each tank.  I cut the twine holding it together and started to unravel it.

This is what the unraveling looked like.

This is my set up for another tank!

View from the top.

This is the first one I set up.  I LOVE how this one turned out!

This one is going to be a present for my cousin! I love the little jar it is in!

This is what my finished jar looks like, with the exception of water :]

The heart present jar!

The largest jar :]

I love the ribbon on this one....it reminds me of the bows my grandma used to tie into my pig tails when I was a little girl!

My favorite one! 

I love love love how doing these myself turned out.  I'm so excited for the little marimos to get here!

I put water in these tanks, but chose to use bottled water.  I've read that you can use tap water, but that it's a lot better to use filtered water!

♥Riley

P.S.  Show me your marimo tanks! I'd love to see them!

MTG Dragon Deck Box!

Hey Everyone!♥

Here's a quick post with pictures of a present I gave to my boyfriend for Christmas this year.

He loves Magic the Gathering and nice deck boxes, as well as dragons, so I COMBINED THEM!

I took a black Ultra Pro Satin box and began painting it with acrylic paint.  It might have been smart to put a coat of mod podge or something down before I started painting, but I didn't have the patience for it.

Like I said, this is just a quick post of the paintings.  It isn't a tutorial, but I could do one if you want!

All of the paintings I did are my interpretations of cards already out there.  For instance, side "B" was influenced by Skithiryx and Nicol Bolas.

This side was particularly hard for me.  The egg started off as an awkward blob, but through playing with it, it's become one of my favorite sides!

This is a dragon hatchling!

You can tell by this point that I really did not care about numbering my sides! :p It was about 2 in the morning but I knew that I had to finish all the sides!  That's how I am with my art projects....I want to finish them in one sitting, not come back to them.

Anyways, thanks for reading this short non-tutorial blog, lovelies!

♥Riley

P.S. Are you into MTG? I am but not nearly as much as my boyfriend!

Marimo Love: Adoption

Hello All! 

Welcome to the first post of the New Year! ♥

I played hooky today and stayed home to hang out with my cousin!  We went to a bookstore and drank tea and had a great time! While we were there she told me she had been considering getting a Marimo.

What is a Marimo, you ask? 

It's a little ball of algae typically found in lakes in Japan and Iceland.  It is spherical in shape thanks to the water flow of the river.  Putting the marimos in aquariums has become quite popular.  They are very low maintenance "pets" that require water, a little indirect sunlight, and some cleaning. & they look like this! 

Also, in Japan they're thought to bring good luck!

I was instantly hooked.

It wasn't until I got home, however, that I realized the extent of my obsession.  I bought 10.  I bought the "nano" size, which are less than a centimeter in diameter!  I figured I would give a couple to my cousin, keep the majority, and give one to my friend as a desk pet.  My cousin ended up buying one when I was with her, as well.  She bought a pre-made aquarium kit with one little Marimo in it, and it's absolutely adorable.  I have opted to buy the marimo on their own and make them a little aquarium, because of my indecisive nature. 

I'm putting in some links to some marimo shops I've found, below:

• My cousin bought her adorable kit from here.
• I bought my 10 marimo from here.
• Here is a youtuber and Etsy seller who knows a TON about marimos!

I'm really excited for them to get here! I have a really bad track record when it comes to small pets, but I know I can help to make my marimo flourish! 

I'll add another post when I've received them and what kind of home I've put them in!

♥Riley

P.S. Do you or anyone you know have marimos? I'd love to hear your experiences!