Starbox Review - September

Starbox time!  

Just in case you don’t know, Starbox is a monthly beauty box that is $15 a month (plus a few dollars S&H) and comes with 3-4 FULL SIZED products each time.  No tiny lotion samples!

The website says the makeup line is comparable to MAC, Chanel, Sephora and other department store lines.  It also says that the value of each monthly box ranges from $35.00 to $99.00.

This is the third time I have had to call Starlooks (who produces Starbox) because of a missing box.  Their computer system is honestly terrible.  This time it had completely dropped my subscription, though I hadn’t done anything different or even been on the website. Thankfully, they have great customer service and they sent out a box immediately and refunded my money for this month.

The theme of this box is “Here Comes the Bride.”   I can say as a September bride this year, used one product similar to these, but I could see how a few may be considered bridal as well.

Here it is….the September Starbox!  

      1)     Starlooks Lip Liner in “Roseate” -  .14 oz  (FULL SIZE)

Here we go again with another nude/rose colored lip liner.  I am not a fan of lip liners so this is useless to me. This one claims to be so versatile that “it can stand as a lipstick alone, or be paired with any neutral or bold lip color you desire.”  All I can say is that is quite a claim!  I highly doubt it is true though. 
Full Size: $12.00 My Value: $12.00

      2)    Starlooks Kohl Eye Pencil in “Oracle”  - .14 oz. (FULL SIZE)

I think this is definitely the main product I received that I would NOT have used          

on my wedding day. I went for classic black liner, as I assume many other brides do  

as well! I just do look right with anything other than black, so though this is pretty, it 

will not be getting any use from me.

Full Size: $12.00 My Value: $12.00

      3)    Starlooks Eye Shadow in “Tan Glow” - .11 oz. (FULL SIZE)

Contrary to a lot of brides, I went with golden and brown hues and even added some sage green (one of my wedding colors) to my eye shadow.  This color would have worked perfectly for me.  I can’t see many other brides using though, as most tend to choose “natural” or light “smokey eye.”  I don’t think this bronze color would work for them.  It really is a beautiful color though, I can’t wait to use it!

Full Size: $12.00 My Value: $12.00

      4)    Starlooks False Lash Set #FL9 - (FULL SIZE)

Before my wedding I got eyelash extensions so I didn’t need to use falsies that day.  Had I needed them though, this would have been a great pair to use.  They are definitely bride worthy!  I will be hanging on to these for future special events for sure.

Full Size: $13.00 My Value: $13.00

Final Cost: $17.58

Final Value: $49.00

As I was a September bride this year, I love that this was the theme.  Too bad it came a few weeks AFTER my wedding!  I am happy with half the items in this box, which I guess would be a win.  If I were a fan of lip liners and eye liners, I would probably like these as well. The colors are perfect, I just don’t use those specific products.

What do you think?

If you’d like to try Starbox you can sign up here!

(Also, I swear I’m not a review blog….I just like sharing these fun things! I have not been compensated for this review.)

On Marriage

Good news!  Our wedding photos are finally being attended to by our photographer!

Bad news....we still have to wait until October 18th to get them.  Womp womp.

Why must this process take so long?!

We've been married for a month already, which I just can't believe.  We sat down last night and watched a rough cut video of the day that my friend and her father recorded.  I still cried just watching it.

I can honestly say that marriage does not feel a single bit different that being engaged or even dating.  It's kind of weird actually. I was expecting some being change, maybe because thats what we are lead to believe by TV and media these days? So much of what we hear these days on marriage is negative.  Men are lead to believe that it is basically a miserable "trap", which I think is terrible. Why is that?

Yes, I am sure our changes were less striking because we had already been living together, but I still expected something to feel different.  Anything.  We looked at each other multiple times on our honeymoon and exclaim that we were now married, now labeled a husband and wife.  Then we would discuss how it didn't feel any different!

You know what though?  I am thankful that there wasn't a change.  Just because we now have a piece of paper that says we are officially one and I am in the process of changing my name, doesn't mean that things have to be different.  Things were great before and they are going to continue to stay great!

What about you?  Did life drastically change after you were married? Did it feel different?

Currently

You guys I am so tired these days. Wait, scratch that, I am exhausted. I have been working all day and then coming home to try and organize our new home.  Yes, we moved in over a month ago, but then we have a wedding and a honeymoon and everything is still just an utter mess!  There just aren’t enough hours in the day and so blogging has kind of taken a back seat.

That being said, I thought I’d let you know what we are currently up to!

House

While we are on the subject, I thought I’d show you what is really holding us up in the whole “settling in” process.  That would be our kitchen cabinets. We decided when we moved in we were going to stain or paint them before moving anything into the kitchen.

It was a terrible idea. 

We purchased the Rustoleum cabinet transformations kit from Lowes and got to work.  The kit itself is amazing….but it takes soooooo much work.  Like hours and hours. And hours. They were an ugly brown-ish orange color and we are turning them into a beautiful chocolate brown, which is the only thing that makes us push forward.

This gives you a good idea of the process.  Thankfully, that whole side is now almost complete.

Bad news is….now we have to do this whole side!

Here's a closer look at the two side by side:

I seriously can’t wait until these are done.  I think they look amazing and the color looks beautiful with our countertops, but time consuming would be a serious understatement!

C

Well now through February is considered “off-season” for C.  Good news is that while I am sad I don’t get to watch my hubby play football, there is still plenty of football to be viewing!  Football year round is a glorious thing.

C surprised me after the Arena Bowl in August by telling me he had signed for another year which is really exciting.  Next up are contract negotiations, which should hopefully happen in the next week or two.  It will be nice to know what to plan for next season.

Currently he is working at Crate and Barrel (hello discount!) while he studies to pass the insurance exam. I know right? Insurance?  Ew.  It just sounds terrible to me, but it’s something he really wants to do!  And it’s something he can definitely do during the season with flexible hours, which is awesome.

Books

As you’ve seen on the blog, since the last update I finished InCold Blood by Truman Capote, Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness by Susannah Calahan and Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell. You can click on the links to read my reviews.

Two other books I read while on my honeymoon were I Didn’t ComeHere to Make Friends: Confessions of a Reality Show Villain by Cortney Robertson (from the Bachelor) and Still Missing by Chevy Stevens.  Both were great books!

If you have ever watched the Bachelor or Bachelorette TV show I would highly recommend I Didn’t Come Here to Make Friends. It was absolutely fantastic.  It was a very easy read (I think I finished it in two days while on my honeymoon) but that didn’t make it any less exciting.  I had watched Cortney’s season and it was very interesting to hear about the show in general from someone’s point of view.  I have to say, even though she was portrayed as a villain, hearing it from her side almost makes me feel sympathetic towards her! There were tons of behind the scene details about the show which I really found interesting; I couldn’t put the book down.

Still Missing was very good as well; I would put it in the same category as Gone Girl.  A crazy story to start with and then lots of twists as you get deeper into it.  It was a bit uncomfortable when I was reading it because it is about a Real Estate Agent that gets abducted while showing a house.  If you have paid attention to the news at all lately….there was just a Real Estate Agent that was abducted while showing a house in real life.  Creepy! 

TV

Ok, I love fall!  Soooo many new TV shows!

I’m pretty sure we recorded 15-20 new shows.  Is that sad? I mean, that’s a lot of TV!  We decided though we will give each show that sounded slightly interesting a chance and weed the bad ones after after watching an episode or two.

One that I instantly connected to was How to Get Away With Murder.  I hope that this show is able to keep it up.  A lot of new shows have a few awesome episodes and then have nowhere to go.

Another show that I forgot to mention that’s almost over (sad face) is 4^th and Loud.  This show is on AMC and it follows the new Arena Football team the LA KISS in their first season.  The team is owned by Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons (of the rock band KISS) and the show is really interesting.  If you’ve ever been interested in what goes on behind the scenes in football, I recommend this show.   C and his team have made several appearances and I even had like a 10 second cameo. Woot!  I’m famous now guys!

Well that’s all for now.  I am really hoping to have some wedding pictures soon for you….why must photographers take so long?!?

Any book recommendations or awesome fall TV shows you think I should check out!?

Lip Factory Review - September

It’s time for a Lip Factory review!

To me, this box is like Ispy, but with more full sized products. 5-7 full sized products to be exact! If you have the money ($22), this is a good one to spring for! They aim for a “full face” of makeup, but their main focus is…lips of course!   This box comes a little later in the month too which I like because it really spaces out the awesome mail that I get!

Sometimes this box has a theme and sometimes it doesn’t. This month the theme is “Autumn Arrives.” I have to say maybe only one of the products feels Autumn-like to me.

So here it is….the September Lip Factory box!  

           1)     girlactik Pout shine in “Pretty” – .42 oz. (FULL SIZE)

I am really bummed about the color of this.  Its just way too light pink for me, I think I would look really weird wearing it.  The price is kinda crazy too, I rather purchase something similar from a well known brand like MAC!

Full Size: $19.00  My Value: $19.00

           2)    J.Cat Jar Eye Liner in “Jet Black” – .09 oz. (FULL SIZE)

J. Cat seems to be lagging behind everyone on its various products. I’ve seen this type of liner before, now a year later J. Cat comes out with the cheap version of it. The brush included is thoughtful if its your first time purchasing it, but if you buy it multiple times it seems like a waste of money.

Full Size: $5.99 My Value: $5.99

           3)    OFRA Lip Gloss in “Orchid” – 8 g. (FULL SIZE)

I feel like I have gotten this exact gloss before, but looking back I guess I was wrong.  Either way its too shiny for me.  I love the underlying color, but I just don’t look good with that much sparkle on my lips!

Full Size: $12.95 My Value: $12.95

            4)    Model Co. Eyeshadow Trio in “Naturally Neutral” – .08 oz. (FULL SIZE)

             I don’t really find anything too exciting about this, but I don’t hate it either.  I guess 

             it is because the colors are nothing new.  I have way too many “neutral” brown 

             shadows. Either way, this would probably be a nice travel set.

Full Size: $26.00 My Value: $26.00

5)  None? Angle Eyeliner Brush – (FULL SIZE)

I find it very odd that there isn’t a brand listed on this brush or even on the insert that provides more detail about each of the products included.  I highly doubt that this brandless brush is worth $9.50!  I already have a favorite angle brush for my liners though so I won’t be using this. Plus, the liner that came in the box already comes with a brush, why would I need two?!

Full Size: $9.50 My Value: $9.50

Final Cost: $22.00

Final Value: $73.44

I’m pretty neutral on this box, maybe leaning towards a little let down.  First of all, I feel like “autumn” means browns and corals and such….not pinks. I’m hoping I can get use out of the gloss (maybe over another color) as well as the shadow and liner.   I know I won’t be using the Pout shine or the brush!

What do you think?

If you’d like to sign up…..use my referral number? Pretty please?  It’s 385223.

(Also, I swear I’m not a review blog….I just like sharing these fun things! I have not been compensated for this review.)