October Sephora Play! Review

I put myself on the Sephora Play! waiting list earlier this summer and then forgot about it. I finally got the email that there was an opening, so I thought I would give it a try!

I like this sheet they send you that tells you all about the products and how to use them. I wish Ipsy did this!

Yves Saint Laurent Mon Paris Perfume: I'm pretty picky about scents and fragrances, but I liked this perfume. It's kind of a fruity/floral/musky scent. I don't know how to describe perfume. Haha. I thought it was nice though. I probably wouldn't go out and buy it, but it was nice for a sample.

Christophe Robin Regenerating Mask with Rare Prickly Pear Seed Oil: First off I really didn't care for the scent of this. I can't think of how to describe it, maybe like baby powder? Just not a real pleasant scent. Other reviews I've read compared the scent to old lady perfume or a retirement home. So definitely not the most flattering of smells!
I would say that it kind of worked. It did leave my hair feeling soft, but not any more than usual. My $2.97 Aussie deep conditioner does a better job. And considering this runs $71 for an 8oz jar(!), it is certainly not something I ever buy! 

Smashbox Always On Matte Liquid Lipstick in Driver's Seat: I didn't like this lipstick. First off, it's somewhere between a lipstick and a gloss. Since it's not technically in an actual lipstick form, but it's not glossy like a lip gloss. The color had more of a brown tone to it that I didn't really care for. It wasn't bad when it was still wet after applying, but once it dried it looked kind of weird. It just looked caked on and made my lips feel really dried out. 

Farmacy Skin Dew Hydrating Essence Mist & Setting Spray: I didn't really care for the minty scent of this. And the sprayer did not work very well! It sprayed in every direction, leaving large drops of spray all over my face. And after it dried you could faintly see shiny splotches all over. Definitely not to be used as a setting spray!

Erborian Bamboo Crème Frappée Skin Reviving Fresh Gel: This creme was fine. It left my skin feeling soft and had a nice light scent to it. Not anything spectacular, but it was okay.

The Estée Edit Flash Photo Gloss: I don't typically wear lip gloss, so it's not a product I would actually buy. It's too sticky for my liking and was hard to wipe off because it was so sticky. It's shiny without being over the top glossy looking. Overall just an okay product.

I honestly wasn't thrilled with the stuff I got in my Sephora bag. I set the stuff on the shelf and it took me a few weeks to actually try any of it. Usually I'm somewhat excited to try new products, but this stuff wasn't anything I was interested in.

So overall this wasn't a great first bag. I didn't really like any of the products. Which I guess is just as well since if I were to purchase any of these, the cheapest item was $20, the rest of the products ran well over that (more in the $40 and up range). 

As much as I have kind of complained about Ipsy in the beginning, I think I much prefer that over Sephora Play. The Ipsy products are more affordable, or at least they offer a wide price range. 

Have you tried a Sephora Play bag? What did you think?

Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Weekend Recap

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! Ours was pretty quiet. It was just my parents, my brother, sister, and I. It was nice that we were all together, since with my dad's job that doesn't always happen!

Thursday morning my dad and I watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. It was kind of boring, but we've watched it every year since I was little, so why stop now? Haha. 

My mom and I spent most of the day in and out of the kitchen cooking. My dad helped out when he could, but our kitchen is small and there isn't really enough room for three people. 

We ended up eating in the late afternoon. We then spent the evening watching TV. While not super exciting, it was definitely nice to relax after all the cooking! 

On Friday, I hadn't planned on going shopping, but my mom wanted to go, so we left at like 10:30 or 11 to head to the mall. 

I ended up only getting one thing. We found some nice flannel shirts for $10 at Macy's (full price they were $35!), so I got one for my dad. Coincidentally, that morning we realized my dad doesn't really have any nice going to town type shirts, and my dad was the only person left on my Christmas list I needed to buy something for, so it worked out. 

With that purchase for my dad, I only need one more thing for him, and something else for my mom and I'm done with my Christmas shopping!

After the mall, we headed over to Costco for a few things. I was worried it was going to be really busy, but it was actually pretty empty! Which was shocking because Costco is almost always crazy busy around here!

We dropped our Costco stuff off at home, then headed out to get a Christmas tree. When we lived in Washington, we always went to a tree farm and cut a tree down, so it is still weird going to a lot and getting one. It's just not the same! 

The first lot we went to didn't have anything. All of their trees were either really short or really tall. (Like around 4' or around 8'. We were looking for something in the middle.) And their prices were really high. 

I thought there was a lot closer to our house, so we drove over to that one and fortunately they had a ton of trees of all different sizes. And their prices were lower than the first place.

We found a nice, tall tree with sturdy branches. We have lots of Hallmark ornaments, which are heavy, so we always have to get a tree with sturdy branches.

I did some online shopping that evening, since I never did really find anything at the mall. I ordered this top from H&M. It's plum colored, so I couldn't pass it up. 

And I also ordered these jogger pants in black from Target, as well as this burgundy boyfriend cardigan. I really like the boyfriend cardigans, and the one I have needs to be replaced.

On Saturday, my brother and I went out to lunch and then stopped by Target. While I was trying on some other stuff, someone had left a pair of the jogger pants I ordered the night before in the fitting room (although in a different color), so I tried them on real quick and they fit perfectly and were really soft! So if you're looking for some comfortable pants, I'd recommend those!

I didn't really find anything at Target, just some eyeliner and another little Christmas bird. They don't have them listed individually online, but I got the one on the far right.

And then on Sunday we just kind of relaxed and I pulled out some of my Christmas decorations and decorated a bit.

How was your Thanksgiving? Did you do any Black Friday shopping? Score any great deals?

Camelsback Park Hike

Last week, my sister and I drove out to Camelsback park for a hike. The weather was unusually warm for November, and it was (obviously!) very sunny!

There was almost no one on the trails, which was nice. And also just the way I like it. It's super annoying dodging lots of people! 

Anyways, Hannah and I had noticed that it looked like part of the trail up the hill was blocked off, but we weren't sure if the trail itself was still open or just parts around it, so we hiked up the hill anyways. We only made it about halfway before the trail was closed. So we hiked back down and wandered around on some trails back behind the hill.

We had never been on these trails before, so it was neat to be able to explore there. There was also lots of trees with some colorful leaves everywhere.