Wednesday, September 13, 2023

Wedding Guest Dress






My husband, and I attended the wedding of an old friend of our’s over the weekend. This dress was so comfortable. I wore it all night, and into the very early morning. The only complaint I have with it is the tulle material makes zipping it up difficult. The zipper sometimes sticks on the waist line seam. However, I would still definitely recommend this dress especially if you are large chested. 

Important disclaimer if you decide want to purchase this dress. All of the reviews on the ASOS site say this dress runs very small, and recommend sizing up two whole sizes. I did that, and it was definitely too big almost everywhere aside from the bust. It worked out, however, because I was then able to take the dress to a seamstress, and have it fitted properly. So just a FYI before you buy!  

Also, I absolutely swear by this lipstick. I do not use any other red lipstick or liquid lipstick at this point. This literally stays on my lips all night,  and through eating dinner. Everyone there was asking what lipstick I was wearing. The only thing that stops people from buying it is the fact that it does not come with a lid. You have to purchase it separately. That said, while it is more on the expensive side you can see where your money is going. The lid of the case has a mirror that flips open when you take it off to apply it. It’s so convenient when reapplying on the go. I highly recommend it! 

Links below are affiliate links, and I receive a small commission if you use them. 

Lipstick: Guerlain bullet lipstick

Dress: ASOS

Shoes: Francesca’s

Purse: Givenchy 

Wednesday, August 9, 2023

The Fall of Influencer Brands

We have been so inundated with influencer brands over the years, but it’s starting to look like they are finally getting the hint.. we are not interested. The makeup and skincare industries are so over saturated with influencer and celebrities product lines it’s ridiculous. Thankfully, Sephora has been removing these influencer lines from their stores over the past year. These celebrities have no involvement in the actual development of the products, just put their name on it, and show up for the launch photoshoot. That is not how you create a successful brand, it’s just sad. 

In my opinion, the reason they are not involved in the development process is they don’t have a genuine interest in the industry. It’s no secret that makeup can be extremely lucrative; the profit margins are significant. You can make a product for only a few dollars, and sell it for upwards of $50-$60. The success of Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty, and Jeffree Star Cosmetics were, in my opinion, what kickstarted the cash grab trend we see now. The difference is, those brands filled a void in the market, and genuinely provided something unique to their customers. Now, however that is definitely not the case. 

One of the many problems with these celebrity/influencer makeup and skincare companies is, it takes away from the people who have devoted their lives to working in this industry. Let’s look at the Jaclyn Hill situation as a prime example. 

Jaclyn Hill was (and to some still is) one of the most influential, and followed people in the beauty community. No one was surprised when she came out with her own makeup line, it was on brand for her, and something she aspired to for years. The problems with began when she started to become known as Jaclyn Shill,  and only made content promoting her brand and collabs. However, at the time it was pretty much brushed off because she was a beauty influencer and that is what they do, she just seemed to only do that. It’s one thing to promote the products you use, but when you consistently only promote low quality products you start to lose credibility. Can you really trust a review if you know the person is getting a serious kickback? 

Fast forward to launch of Jaclyn Hill Roxanne which was her new jewelry line that no one seemed to like. Reviews were terrible, and she was accused of copying design from other companies. Then, Jaclyn launched her loungewear called Koze, and the internet went nuts. 

Koze was an existing loungewear company, established in 2017 by fellow content creator, Kayln. She has a substantial following of over 220k on YouTube, but of course that number pales in comparison to Jaclyn. So, as you can imagine from the launch of Jaclyn’s line Kayln was forced to shut down her company. Punches were thrown by Jaclyn making videos showing that she owns the trademark for the name. There are plenty of articles, and videos devoted to this specific situation I recommend a quick Youtube search if you’re interested in a more detailed explanation. 

This brings us to a few days ago when Jaclyn dropped a YouTube video declaring she is not passionate about her companies, and will be closing her brands. *insert record scratch sound* So after all of the drama, completely ignoring Kayln who reached out many times asking Jacyln to just change the name of her company, and parading around her trademark she is closing the company. I cannot imagine how Kayln must feel after hearing that news. What was the point Jaclyn? 

Again, that is just an example of how these influencers and celebrities don’t actually care about the products they are putting out there. Please do your research before purchasing from anyone.  Chances are you can find the same product, with better quality, from an actual reputable brand. 


Until next time, 


Sammy 


Sunday, July 23, 2023

Honest Product Review: 100% Pure Super Fruit Balm

It has been an extremely long time since I have tried a new product that was this unique within its own category of skincare. Introducing, 100% Pure Super Fruit Balm.

What makes this moisturizer stand out, in my opinion, is the texture. It has an almost waxy consistency, and needs to be warmed in the hand before application. 


It definitely leaves a sticky texture on the skin after application, but there is only so much you can do about that given the waxiness of the product itself. 

At first, I was kind of confused why that was all it said, but I figured, I’d oblige. Applying it is kind of tricky. You need to pat it into the skin rather than glide. Once it’s on your face, you can literally feel it just healing your skin. I love this for now, but it has only been about a week.  I need to try this out for at least a month or two, though, to see if I still feel this way. 

[Update: I realized, despite reading the directions I wasn’t using it as directed. I was using much much less, about a pea sized amount at most and applying it to my most dehydrated areas. (This was used in conjunction with my hydrating serum by Bioloque Researcher). I used as directed tonight, and I don’t like it.

I had to quickly clarify my review because, this is important to know when deciding if this product is for you. Anyway, when I used the quarter sized amount, as directed, I really don’t seem myself ever using it like this again. 

If you have oily-normal skin you will not like this at all. This is for dry and or dehydrated skin. Now because I have combination skin I don’t need to apply this all over my face. Skincare can be applied like makeup. You wouldn’t put concealer all over your face would you? So, I think when applied to those areas on the skin for a boost of hydration it’s great. All over the skin though, I’m not a fan. 

Also, if you have acne prone skin this has the potential to break you out. I’m not 100% sure as I am not a dermatologist, but I can imagine this feeling like it clogs pores.

All of that said, when used solely on problem areas it works great!]



I will definitely provide an update as soon as I have one!

Have you tried this moisturizer? What’s your favorite 100% Pure product?


Disclaimer: this is not a sponsored post. However, the links included are affiliate links meaning if you decide you would like to purchase this product using my link I will receive a small commission. Thank you for your support!