Returning It: Redken Body Full Instant Bodifier & Requested: IRL Pics of the CR Boots

Redken Body Full Instant Bodifier.  Oh do I have things to say about this product.  Usually I post product raves, but sadly (and I wanted to love this) this gets a big thumbs-down from me.  It's from their new Body Full line and I thought I'd pick it up when I was at Ulta over the weekend since it was so highly recommended by MakeupByAlli (love her blog and YouTube channel BTW!)

Before I get into this rant, I must say that I LOVE most Redken products, this one just wasn't for me. It literally had no "PROS" aside from the fact that it does smell nice.

I used this product on the roots of my hair for my Monday blowout, and what happen can only be described as sticky.  When I ran my fingers through my roots as a blow-dried, it felt like I had sprayed a dry glue into my hair. It was just really dry, rough and sticky. I could hardly work with my round brush.  My hair felt like it was being overpowered by the product instead of working with the product in harmony to create a soft, voluminous blowout.

This product is made for "baby fine" hair...I do have fine hair but I have a lot of it, so maybe it's just not meant for my hair type. It makes hair feel stiff and sticky and the results of my blowout were not as good because it sort of prevents your hair from getting that "bounce" most women covet (at least for me that was the case.)

When I use Redken GUTS 10 Volume Spray Foam, it's a whole new story. That product is an HG for me and gives a ton of volume without the undesired stiffness and stickiness. You might experience a tiny bit of stickyness when you're first drying your hair, but it goes away as you dry your hair and hair is still soft and bouncy. I also love Redken's Full Frame Mousse.

I will be retuning this to Ulta ASAP. It retails for $16.99. My advice: stick with the GUTS 10 foam.

On another note, one of my lovely readers asked me to take a picture of my CR boots ON.  I was somewhat horrified when I put them on after work today because they um...kind of hurt. Like immediately as I put them on. That concerns me since they are supposed to be my main walking shoe in Paris.  So I'm going to try them on again at different times and see how they feel.  If they continue to hurt that's definitely going to be an issue and I'll have to (sadly) return them.  I hate that because I thought my search was finally over. I hate that I have to look for the seemingly impossible perfect cognac boot again (and if I get new ones they will probably cost a heck of a lot more. ugh.)

Ok, here they are:

*Sigh*  I really don't want to return them :(  Ladies, if you can find flat, cognac boots (not the Steve Madden Intyce ones--- they've already been eliminated) for under $200, please post the link below! I'm desperate! I didn't see these in the store when I went---but they are also from CR and might be a good option for me (link).

Thank you for reading.  I have my trainer tonight so I'm looking forward to a nice tough workout!

xoxo,

Veronika.

Contest: Big Hair, Big Lashes- 350 Plus Subscribers!!!!!!!

I finally made it out to Ulta today to purchase some goodies for a blog contest. Right now I am at just over 350 followers and I am so grateful for your readership and for contributing so much to this blog.

I made the theme of this contest "Big Hair, Big Lashes" because I am obsessed with volume. Big hair, thick lashes, ruffles and all kinds of voluminous texture in my clothes...you get the picture.

The contest prize is the following:

1. Redken "Guts 10" mini, which is a volumizing spray (Elle- AllThatGlitters21 on YouTube) recently recommended it, so I picked one up for the contest (and one for myself too!)

2. Redken "Satinwear 02" mini, which is a smoothing blowdry lotion (gotta do the blow dry to get the volume!)

3. Redken Extreme "Anti Snap" mini, which is a leave-in protein hair repair treatment. I have been using this product for awhile now and I like it. I am not sure how much of a difference it makes, but I do like it.

4. L'Oreal Volume Collagen Mascara (waterproof) in "Blackest Black." This is my favorite mascara right now, so I decided to spread the love so someone else can full, thick, luscious lashes. See my rave about this mascara here.

Here are the rules for this contest:

1. You must be a subscriber/blog follower, (please enter once only)

2. You must enter your comment with a valid name/login. No anonymous entries will be accepted. A simple "enter me" is all it takes :) or you can write a longer comment, whatever you desire!

3. You must provide your email address in your comment so I can contact you should you win. You can write it like this: veronabrit at gmail dot com (less chance of spam this way.)

4. The contest closes on Friday, February 26th at midnight CST. No entries will be accepted after that time.

5. I will announce the winner next Saturday, February 27th. UPDATE: as with my last contest, I will choose the winning comment using RANDOM.ORG. Sorry I forgot to include that!

6. You must provide me with your mailing address if you win so I can mail the package to you.

I hope you will enter this contest :) I bought the same products for myself, so hopefully we will both enjoy them/explore them. I also got myself a mini of the volumizing mousse, because I am always looking for something to out-do my Garnier Fructis XXL volume mousse.

While at Ulta, I also picked up some Seche Vite topcoat, which Tiffany D raves about. I just used it on my nails and it really does work. I like it better than the OPI brand topcoat. I did 3 layers of nail polish and used this topcoat, and I notice my nails did dry faster.

The color I painted my nails with is from OPI's new Hong Kong collection. It's called "Lucky Lucky Lavender." I really like it. I haven't had a chance to clean up the sides yet, but this is a pic of the color. It actually reminds me of the color of these pretty J.Crew pumps.

The color is a bit darker than the pumps (I used 3 coats) but I absolutely love it. I am seeing a lot of lilac everywhere for spring. I love the soft pastels and brights that come along with spring. It inspires me to add some color to my usual black ensembles.

Speaking of awesome shoes with bows, I just ordered these gorgeous Paris Hilton pumps. I just couldn't resist the amazing bow. I got them in black and they have hot pink underneath (no doubt a nod to Mr. Louboutin.) They are called Paris Hilton- Senorita Peep Toe Pumps and I got them from Macys.com.

I have been looking for shoes like this for a long time. I saw some at Ann Taylor a couple of weeks ago, but the bow just wasn't bold enough. I love that the bow on these is more dramatic. I can't wait until they come in. I loved them in gold too, but black just seemed more versatile. I can see these becoming my favorite pumps. A lot of people have said that these are a replica of the Valentino pumps. I can't afford Valentino, but give me a black pump with a huge bow by any brand I can afford, and I'll take it! They were $89.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Thank you so much for reading, and if you're interested in the products above, please do enter the contest.

xoxo,

Veronika.