Free Beauty Events for February

I'm excited to share with you the Free Beauty Events for this month, even though it's a little bit late, because their prize package this month features some great companies!

Free Beauty Events is a website that houses tons of information about beauty events all over.  You can search your zip code on the site to see if any makeover, gift with purchase, spa open houses, and sampling events are available in your area.  For example, there's a Rite Aid Grand Opening Event coming up on March 2nd where customers can get a free makeover with CoverGirl, Maybelline, and Almay products (not cruelty-free companies, if that matters to you).  In February and March Ulta is hosting their "Yes To" event, where demonstrators will be giving out coupons and sampling Yes To Blueberries Eye Firming Treatment, Yes To Tomatoes Daily Balance Moisturizer, Yes To Cucumbers Body Butter, and Yes To Cucumbers Towelettes.  You can even post beauty events you know of at their submit page.

Free Beauty Events also holds monthly and weekly giveaways.  This month, their prize package consists of:

• Seventh Generation Moisturizing Lotion in Lavender
• Mustela Ultimate Hydration
• Dr. LeWinn by Kinerase Lift & Resculpt Serum XK

I know that Seventh Generation is definitely cruelty free.  I couldn't find a definitive answer on either the Mustela or Kinerase sites, but a Google search led me to this post at Vegetarian Beauty Products that lists Kinerase as such.  Mustela's "Our Commitments" page states that their products are paraben-free and lists their environmental commitments, so although they do not clearly state that they are cruelty-free I would be surprised if they weren't.  However, it's up to you about whether you want to win any of these products!

You can obviously learn more about Free Beauty Events at their website, but you can also follow them on Facebook, Google+, Pinterest, Tumblr, and Twitter.

*Disclaimer: I received products to try in exchange for this post.  I was not monetarily compensated and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.

February Daily Dose of Green Review

Oops, it took me a little longer than I would normally to get this post written up, but I've been having some minor computer issues.  Anyway, my February Daily Dose of Green box review is finally here!

This month's box stressed quality over quantity, with seven items total worth $64.  At first I was a little bummed when I picked up my box because it felt so light, but once I realized the value of what was inside I felt better.  I didn't end up filming an unboxing video because I ate the chocolates that were included before I had time to sit down to film!

I liked this month's array of items because there were a lot of beauty products and edible yummies, my two favorite things.  Here's what was inside:

• Essence of Vali Passion Massage and Bath Oil - This oil contains natural essences of orange zest, ylang ylang, ginger root, and patchouli.  The notes I pick up on the most are of the patchouli, with a little bit of the orange zest as well.  It also contains jojoba, which is nice and moisturizing for a bath or massage.
• Sjakk's Organic Chocolates Hearts of Cherry - These were amazing!  They're the three pink foil-wrapped hearts in the photo above.  I devoured them pretty quickly; the dark chocolate and cherry were perfectly blended.
• Poppy's Naturally Clean Tub Teas - The idea behind this product is pretty new to me: it's a therapeutic soaking tea that you add to your bath.  I don't really take baths, but I'm probably going to be moving into my own place soon and maybe I'll have a tub that's more fit for baths so I can give this a try.  I received the peppermint variety.
• Original Sprout Island Bliss Shampoo - This shampoo sounds really nice and I bet it smells great, I just wish that it was in a bottle and not a packet.  There's a lot in there (which is good), but that means I'm not going to use it all in one shot so I'll have to seal up the packet with tape.  Kind of annoying, but oh well.
• Nicobella Organics Truffle Box - The other chocolates included were these vegan truffles and they were also incredibly delicious!  Nicobella has six flavors, and I was really hoping for Pumpkin Chai, and I did have it in my box!  The other flavor I got was Blueberry Almond.  Both were fantastic and I definitely will be buying more.  These truffles are especially good because they're made with Fair Trade for Life Theo Chocolate and oat milk and coconut oil.
• Eve Organics Liquid Lip Stick in Neutral - Love this!  It applies very smoothly and gives a nice sheen.  In the pot it looks like a dark berry color, but on my lips it's nice and neutral.  I really like it.
• Nardos Natural Organic Age-Defying Serum - Last but not least, this serum was the big-ticket item in the box.  It's a full-sized jar (.5 oz) that retails for $49.99.  The reason we all received them in our boxes is because Nardos Natural is redoing their packaging--a great perk for us subscribers!  I haven't tried this yet, but it's a heavily concentrated cream so the .5 oz will last a long time.

Bottom Line: I enjoyed my February box, especially the truffles.  For only $15 a month (shipping included), you really can't go wrong.  I'm excited to see what March brings!

• Learn more about Daily Dose of Green and sign up for a subscription
• Connect with them on Facebook and Twitter

See more photos of my items after the "read more."

Jane Goodrich Photography Giveaway!

Myself and nine other bloggers have teamed up with Jane Goodrich Photography to bring you a super-special giveaway! One lucky reader will win an at-your-home professional photography session package worth $2850!  Visit http://www.janegoodrich.com to see more of her work.

I know this isn't normally the type of giveaway I have here, but when the opportunity was presented to me I knew it was something I wanted to share with my readers.  The prize package sounds amazing and Jane's photography is beautiful.

Jane Goodrich is a New-York based newborn and children’s photographer with an artful eye and a modern edge whose talent lies in her ability to capture a moment in time – no matter how quickly it passes.

This prize is one that you and your loved ones will treasure forever. Here’s what the lucky winner will receive as part of their ‘A Day In The Life Package’:  

A Day in the Life Package - $2,850

Want to freeze this moment in time forever? From waking up, getting dressed, eating breakfast, going on a play-date or school, having lunch, naptime, seeing friends, taking a bath, reading stories. This package captures all of this along with laughs, giggles, funny faces, and tears. Don’t miss a second!

-        One Full Day Session (From Wake-up to Bedtime)

-        Portraits of Your Child, Family, and Friends

-        $500 Worth of Professional Prints

-        Image Wrapped Album of Best Images

-        Cosmetic Retouching, Editing, Post production

-        Online gallery

-        A Fully Edited High-Resolution Disk - with a minimum of 150 images in at least 3 tones

Although anyone in the U.S. and Canada can enter to win this prize – Jane Goodrich Photography only services three states – New York, New Jersey and Conn. If you are not in the tri-state area you can still enter to win and then give the giveaway prize as a gift to a relative or friend who lives in the tri-state area (NY, NJ, CT). You must schedule your photo session before April 1, 2013.

This giveaway ends February 25th and is open to anyone in the US and Canada. Use the Rafflecopter form below to enter. You can complete as many entries as you like to increase your chances, but all entries are optional.  Jane Goodrich Photography is responsible for prize fulfillment.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Square Hue Review (February's Box)

I recently found Square Hue in my wanderings around the world of subscription services, and I'm in love!  I am a nail polish addict (even though I don't post swatches that often), and I change my nail color at least twice a week.  My cuticles don't like it, but I just love buying up new colors.  I've tried the one main nail polish subscription that you're probably thinking of and I didn't care for it at all.  I have been hoping for one with high-quality polishes to make its debut, and it's finally here: Square Hue!

Square Hue kindly sent me their February collection to review, and I can't gush enough about it.  Most importantly, the formula is amazing.  The polishes glided on so smoothly and were sufficiently opaque in three coats.  The brush is a good size, not too long like that other service (sorry to keep bringing them up, but Square Hue is just so much better than them), and the colors themselves are beautiful.

February's collection is titled Vintage Love, obviously for Valentine's Day.  They could have just stopped there, since the shades are pinks and reds and that makes sense, but I am really loving how much they tied the names into the theme, too.  Maybe it's the former English major in me, but the way they really tied the theme through is just fantastic.  The names tell a story, as do the colors--"High School Crush" is an innocent pink cream, "Wartime Romance" is a bit darker fuschia/pink cream, and "Dear John" is a vampy, dark red shimmer.  The colors progress in maturity, and the fact that it ends with "Dear John" instead of a happy ending is really clever.  If you don't know what Dear John letter is, it was when a soldier would receive a letter (especially during the WWII era) that their girl back home was leaving them.

I already mentioned how great the formula was, but I also really like the design of the bottles.  They're .5 ounces, so the standard size for most polishes.  I think they would look really pretty on display; I like the simple but bold "hue" logo.

Bottom Line: I am in. love. with Square Hue!  Here is everything you need to know about the service, aside from what I've written above:

• The service costs $21/month, including shipping.  They currently only ship to the continental U.S.
• You can cancel at any time, and also suspend your account (skip a month).
• Each collection is only sent out that month--they currently do not have a shop where you can purchase past colors.  So each polish you get is a limited edition!
• Cruelty-free, Big 3 Free (DBP, Formaldehyde, Toluene), and camphor-free
• Made in the USA
• Connect with them on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Tumblr

Check out my swatches after the "read-more!"

January Little Black Bag #2

As I said in my last January LBB post, I caved and bought a second bag at the end of the month.  But they were both $29.95 bags, so it was still only a little bit more expensive than if I had gotten only $49.95 bag (and I was able to get a high value of items in both bags, too).

I got three items in this bag for a total retail value of $148.  I was pretty happy with it all for the price, but I can't say I would have gone out and paid full retail price for any of these items.

• Street Level Basic Satchel, $88
• Mocha Swirl Embellished Earrings, $28
• Cejon Aztec Neckwrap, $32

Check out my unboxing video below for my review of the items.  One thing I'd like to mention that I forgot to add in the video was that I paid a little extra this time to get the 2-5 day shipping, and it wasn't any faster (so I won't be doing that again).  It still took a week because they ship it through UPS Standard, as opposed to Economy with USPS.  Since UPS doesn't doesn't ship on Saturdays like USPS does, my wait was still just as long as if I had picked Economy.

I skipped my bag for February since I bought two in January, and I may or may not purchase one in March.  LBB is a lot of fun, but unless they release a purse that I absolutely must have I'm going to try to hold off on buying them just because I want to focus my money elsewhere for a little while.

More photos of my items after the "read more."