It’s today people! Sephora Friends and Family starts today with a whopping 20% off your entire order! I always look forward to this time of year since it’s a fab time to try out new makeup, stock up on staple items, purchase gifts for friends and family, and of course indulge my own sweet tooth for more makeup! After all we all know the Muse can never have too much makeup!

For a while there I was worried about whether Sephora Friends and Family was going to actually happen but thankfully soon after we got good news and today we are ready to shop till we drop hopefully!

I can’t speak for this year but I did use the code three times last year when I forgot to purchase various items that didn’t end up on my wish list, or I seen something else that caught my interest, or I ended up grabbing a few items for friends, and so on and so forth! This year I’m hopeful I can do the same thing just in case I forget an item or want to go back for second helpings however I’ve prepared myself just in case I can’t and I thought I’d share some of the items I think you should be considering or things that you may already have on your wish list or things you might want to quickly write down since your Muse loves ’em and we all know what the Muse loves is probably awesome…right? Am I putting too much importance on how uber fabulous I am there? Probably but my ego knows no bounds!

I took a few pictures and I’ve included links to reviews if I already reviewed an item here on Musings. If you need help or have a question about any of the items I mention here do shout it in my comment box as I’d love to be of service! I’d also love to hear what you’re hauling so share, share, share! Please? The Muse loves hearing about hauling as much as she loves to haul herself!

Considering Sephora is busy stocking up on palettes and gift sets the Muse thinks it’s a great time to stock up on these items considering the discount! Some of the ones she thinks you should keep your eye on are below!

Bare Escentuals Rocker Eye Kit
Urban Decay Book of Shadows
Urban Decay Sustainable Shadow Box
Vincent Longo Diamante Quad
Bare Escentuals Ruby Collection
Laura Mercier Flawless Face Kit
Urban Decay Essentials
Too Faced Glamor 2 Go Palette
Too Faced Pink Diamond Jewelry Box Palette
Pop Rose Belle Blush Palette
Too Faced Smoky Eye Palette

Now you might not even be thinking about staple products at the moment because you’re so excited about getting new makeup but don’t forget that now is such a great time to grab some staple items that you use daily and may be running low on or better yet to have a back up handy when you are! At 20% off it’s a great time to nab concealers, skincare, foundations, primers, etc….Some the ones the Muse thinks you should have on your list are below.

Philosophy When Hope is Not Enough
Philosophy Microdelivery Wash
Cargo Blu_Ray Concealer
Benefit Lemon-Aid
Benefit Powderflage
Benefit Boi-ing
Dior Radiance Booster Pen
YSL Touche Eclat
Laura Mercier Concealer
Make Up For Ever Lift Concealer
DERMADoctor Wrinkle Revenge Eye Balm

Of course, we’re all hyper about makeup! We want as much makeup out of this deal as we can get! Right? Glosses, shadows, blushes, the more, the merrier!

The Muse has selected some of her personal favorites that she thinks you might like too! Check it out:

Urban Decay Deluxe Eyeshadow
Urban Decay Eyeshadow
Bare Escentuals Glimmer
theBalm Overshadow

Mascara, mascara, mascara! Now is a rather great time to grab some mascaras you’ve been dying to try out but not wanting to splurge on! The Muse picked out a few that she thinks you might love:

Lorac Visual Effects Mascara
Dior Diorshow Iconic Mascara
Bare Escentuals Big Tease Mascara
Bare Escentuals Brushless Mascara
Givenchy Phenomen’ Eyes Mascara

Nothing can begin without foundation! The Muse knows of some she thinks you’ll want to nab at a discount!

Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer
Keyvn Aucoin The Sensual Skin Enhancer
Too Faced Illuminating Magic Wand Foundation
Benefit Play Sticks

Primers can be costly so now is a great time to stock up on old favorites or try out a new primer at a discounted price!

Tricia Sawyer Skin Balancing Water Primer
Philosophy Never Let Them See You Shine
Clarins Instant Smooth Perfecting Touch
Make Up For Ever HD Primer
Urban Decay Primer Potion

There are so many powders and blushes that the Muse absolutely loves but some are rather costly! Now is a great time to update your blush wardrobe with some new shades! Check below for ones that the Muse loves!

NARS Blush
Bare Escentuals Blush
Stila Convertible Color

Can’t forget lipsticks and glosses can we? Many have run across the Muse’s path this year and some of her favorites are on her list to stock up on during Sephora Friends and Family!

Urban Decay Lipstick
NARS Lipgloss
Too Faced Mirror Mirror Gloss
Stila Lipglaze
Shu Uemura Rouge Unlimited
Dior Addict Ultra Reflect Lipgloss

Finish up your greatest eye look with an equally fab liner! The Muse choose a few she loves below!

NARS Eyeliner
Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeliner
Urban Decay Heavy Metal Glitter Liner

Last minute bits and bobs can quickly be added to your cart! Some items the Muse suggests nabbing are Benefit’s powders such as Dandelion and Dallas! Don’t forget stains! The Muse swears by a good stain and listed a few favorites below!

Benefit Face Powders
Stila Cherry Crush
Vincent Longo Lip and Cheek Stain

Well I think that’s all for now guys! Plenty more awaits you I’m sure and your lists must be as long as mine! Better check ’em twice and make sure you have all the yummie goodies in place and start shopping!

Happy Days!

Don’t forget to stop back here and tell the Muse all the deets on YOUR order!

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It was a dark and stormy night….

So the Muse decided to take out her Bath and Body Works Lambie Blanket, curl up on the couch, and watch Fringe episodes that have been on her Tivo for the last three weeks!

As the Muse sat and pondered (and fast forwarded through commercials while wondering if she should forgo Fringe and settle for backed up Graham Norton episodes instead!) she realized how much nicer this year’s Lambie Blanket was from last year’s version. Softer, cuddlier, and with a cute little lamb face embroidered into it!

The Muse realized that this indeed was another fabulous purchase that she scored for a real steal at Bath and Body Works last week! Normally it retails for $35 USD (which is well worth it!) but the Muse happened upon lovely coupons from Bath and Body Works and ended up paying merely $25 USD! Bless be!

The Muse was slowly realizng that after filling her tummy with Korean BBQ tonight that she might not be up for Fringe at all but more along the lines of a long Winters nap thanks to her very comfy blanket……!

The moral of the story is hurry out to your nearest Bath and Body Works and grab yourself the Lambie Blanket and other Lambie goodies before they sell out! The Muse Approves ’em for purchase! The Muse loves Lambie and thinks you will too!

Bath and Body Works Lambie Collection

Bath and Body Works Shea Cashmere Lotion Review featuring Lambie Socks

Bath and Body Works Holiday Collection 2008

Bath and Body Works Liplicious Review

23 Comments

The Muse was feeling like blue was the order of day so she pulled out her Estee Lauder Eyeshadow Duo in Sapphire from the Estee Lauder Vintage Jewels Collection and proceeded to go to work!

Estee Lauder released three “gem” inspired duos with it’s new Holiday Collection and I happen to love every single one of the color combinations. I fear the Pokemon epidemic may hit the Muse soon and she’ll be collecting all three to stash away in her beauty vault for the upcoming Holidays!

The duo I tried out this morning was Sapphire which is made up of a navy blue and a lighter blue based gray. The colors bounce off each other and contrast nicely when applied together. These are actually the shades used in the promo image for Vintage Jewels which is why I got Sapphire as I wanted to dupe the look. To create the look it’s a rather simple matter of applying the grayish blue shade to the entire lid and crease. Finish your look by blending the darker blue into the lid and slightly upwards into the crease. Done! Instant sophisticated smoked out blue look!

Estee Lauder Signature Silky Eyeshadow Duo in Sapphire as seen on the model in the promo image!

This is my first time using these duos and I was pretty satisfied with the silky texture and they blend quite nicely. I’m unsure what I’d called the finish as they do not contain a shimmer but they aren’t quite matte or frosty either. The look I created was quite simple yet had a nice pop of color for a Holiday look. I do think I messed up with the lipstick I used as I think a more flattering shade of maroon would have done nicely but I went with a louder true red.

The duo contains a dual sided applicator which has a sponge tip on one side and a brush on the other so you have pretty much all you need within the compact to create a quick look on the fly. If you’re not willing to wear blue to work and have an evening planned out for after you can slip this easily into your purse to create a really simple look that’s both beautiful and elegant.

For my look I used the following items:

Face
MAC Blush in Pink Swoon
Estee Lauder Shimming Jewel Powder

Lips
MAC Lipstick in Port Red
Too Faced Mirror Mirror Lipgloss

Eyes
Estee Lauder Signature Silky Eyeshadow Duo in Sapphire
Estee Lauder Smoked Eye Eye Pencil in Sapphire
Estee Lauder Sumptuous Mascara

Overall, I think the entire Estee Lauder Vintage Collection is well worth checking out at your local counter as it has some fine pieces! I’m rather fond of the duo I got and I absolutely love the Shimming Jewel Powder as you probably already known from reading my previous review! Do have a peek at the Estee Lauder website for more details, face charts for application, and information about the entire Vintage Jewel Collection!

Estee Lauder Shimming Jewel Powder Review & Swatches

Estee Lauder Vintage Jewels Collection

Estee Lauder TurboLash All Effects Motion Mascara Review

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Remember I was telling you about Love Clover’s PopChu Gloss a few weeks ago? CLICK! The Muse couldn’t resist it’s evil lure for long and she ended up purchasing a Lover Clover PopChu Gloss in Strawberry Pink for herself.

Honestly, who can resist lipgloss that looks and supposedly tastes like a lollipop? Come on! What sort of willpower do you think I possess?

The Muse is here to say that she simply ADORES Love Clover PopChu Gloss but doubts that many others will. As great as the gloss is it probably won’t be too popular with those who do NOT love Sony CP lipgloss as the formulas are pretty similiar. If you love thick, sticky, and tacky glosses you’ll fall right into love with Love Clover Popchu however if you’re not a big lover of glosses with such a formula you might wish to avoid it.

Although I normally have no tolerance for sticky, thick glosses I actually really love the formula of this gloss. It’s thick, it’s tacky, and it’s sticky but it stays in place and manages to make my lips look fuller for 4 to 5 hours straight without touching up. You might be excited by the fact that finally Japanese lipgloss has a flavor! Wahooo! You may know already or know from reading my past reviews that many Japanese brands do not flavor glosses however this actually does have a flavor however it’s possibly not as pleasant as think. Lollipops? No. Strawberry? Kinda but not really. Sweet? Mmm sorta….honestly it kinda tastes like strawberry plastic if the Muse knew what strawberry flavored plastic tasted like that is! I don’t find the taste particularly thrilling but I don’t hate it either! It is what it is and I’m not particularly delighted or disappointed in the long run! The gloss is pink however that doesn’t make it pigmented enough to show through on lips. It applies rather sheer and gives just a tiny hint of the pink shade the gloss sports but that’s fine by me as it makes for ease of use over darker lipsticks! The applicator is the standard spatula style which 80% of Japanese glosses sport. I love this style of applicator as it allows for easy glide of the gloss across the lips and builds gloss up easily!

All in all I think it’s a rather nice little gloss and I imagine I will repurchase it when I run low. It’s a tad bit expensive at $13 USD or so which is the retail cost in Japan however I’m unsure if it’s really worth picking up if you find it online marked up. I do like it very much but the price is iffy for it’s size. If you can nab it at retail or cheaper the Muse thinks it’s worth checking out, especially if you’re a big lover of Sony CP lipgloss as the formulas and texture are quite similiar!

The Muse sporting Love Clover PopChu Gloss (Do excuse my lack of sleep and makeup! A tired Muse is not a pretty Muse!)

Latest Japanese Haul 2007

Japanese Fall Haul

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Etude House Plumping Lip Tint Review

NP Set Lipgloss Compact Review & Swatches

Darphin Lipgloss Review

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Ahh the Winter! Crisp, cold air….light, fluffy snowflakes…..Mmmm just thinking about it makes the Muse quite excited for it to begin!

Unfortunately, it’s still very Fall outside my office window today and Winter seems ages away but I can prepare myself for the colder weather by indulging in my new favorite fragrance from Clean entitled Clean Winter!

I love that Clean has recently extended it’s line up by adding a brand new scent every few months. It’s so fabulous that a brand I love so much has taken the initiative to extend it’s line up by adding on brand new fabulous scents to appease the fan base that know and love Clean!

Clean Winter has taken everything you love about the winter and created a fresh, crisp fragrance that’s sure to appeal to those who love a “clean” scent! Clean Winter is a cocktail of clean, soft florals, a hint of spice, and plenty of crisp Winter air. The scent is impossible to explain as it’s, like all Clean perfumes, a unique, complex blend. The scent is beyond a doubt very crisp and clean with hints of a sparkling base that gives the perfume that extra complexity.

Although it’s name may hint at it being a “seasonal” fragrance, the Muse felt it was more of a fresh scent that associates itself with Winter but can just as easily be passed off as an everyday scent that’s fresh, crisp, and simply Clean.

I really loved this one and highly recommend trying it out for yourself. Clean Winter can be found on HSN in a gift set with matching body cream for $48.95 USD or purchased on it’s own for the same price!

The Muse Approves it for purchase as she adores blends that are comforting, cool, and Winter fresh!

Clean Summer Review

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