Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Look Gorgeous, Love Green


If you've never tried EcoTools products and want to try them, or if you already love their amazing brushes, they're holding an incredible campaign right now.

Through Look Gorgeous, Love Green, you can send in old items you don't use like makeup brushes, body washes and scrubs, body lotions and butters, hand creams, body mists, and bath sponges. In return, EcoTools will send you coupons worth up to $7.99—only two per person, per household—so that you can replace them with new EcoTools products.

EcoTools is famous for producing environmentally friendly bath and beauty items. I have the retractable kabuki and a set of face brushes, and I use them constantly. The quality is great, the synthetic bristles are amazingly soft and dense. On top of that, they're cruelty free and made of recycled material.

I haven't tried the rest of their products yet, but one day, I really hope to! I've yet to be disappointed by them, and I'm hoping to round out my collection as soon as my coupons get here. :)

The campaign runs until the end of September. Get your swaps in when you can!

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Cheap and Cute: Wholesale-Dress.Net Giveaway!

Hey, guys! This is the special post I was talking about! :D A site I've shopped at before is holding a contest, and this is my entry. It's part review and part shopping guide. There's a giveaway attached, so please take a look!


Way back in March, a friend of mine IMed me this link. "Look at this site!" she said. "Let's buy something!"

I clicked, and whooooooa. The prices! The variety! Immediately, I was entranced.

Wholesale-Dress.net is a wholesale clothing dealership based in Hangzhou, China, but the cool thing? They sell individual pieces as well at rock bottom prices. The styles they feature are constantly changing and are either self-designed or based on Japanese and Korean fashion magazines.

Basically, if you've ever been to Asia and seen tiny clothing stalls at night markets or whatever, this is probably one of the places they get their stock.

That said, the quality is a little hit or miss. For stuff that's so cheap, though, I think this should be expected. It's clothing, after all, and nicer fabrics are much more expensive. However, if you like trendy things and are a fan of fast fashion, Wholesale is an excellent alternative to teen-oriented stores like Forever 21 or Charlotte Russe.

The thing I really love about Wholesale is that they offer a table of information of the products, including concrete measurements. If you know your bust, waist, hip, and shoulder measurements, picking items out should be a breeze. If you don't like manmade fabrics? That's all labeled, too. There's also a handy comment feature through which you can ask the staff about the product, such as how much stretch the fabric has, and also read reviews from fellow shoppers. If you need more info, Wholesale operates several chat options in addition to an email service. Replies are very quick, but sometimes, the English can be a little garbled, hahaha. But they do their best, and it's really nice that they provide the service!

Another thing I like is that Wholesale offers clear pictures of the items. However, even though the models are all photographed in the actual clothing, it's difficult to judge the size from just the fashion shots. Just because something hangs off of the tiny model doesn't mean it'll look quite the same on you, LOL... [learned this the hard way]

Also, as a general caveat, Wholesale sizes are geared towards Asian standards. What this means is that the items with separate sizes tend towards the smaller end. If you wear an M in America, you might end up being an L or even XL on Wholesale. This is another reason why it's really important to know your measurements (in cm)! Especially since you're ordering online from somewhere far away, you want to be as safe as possible. From personal experience, I'd say that the most important numbers to keep in mind are shoulder, bust, and waist. A lot of the items are made from chiffon, which doesn't hold up very well if they're not wide enough across the shoulder, and I'm sure you all know what it feels like to wear something that's too tight across the bust or waist. Try to leave about two centimeters of room for yourself, just in case.

The killer for shopping on the site is, of course, the expensive shipping. There are no shipping discounts for spending a lot. However, once in awhile, the site does offer free shipping codes to specific countries, so keep an eye out for those. If you don't want to wait or if you think something's going to go out of stock fast (and believe me, it happens; there's a shirt I've been wanting that sells out in a day), I suggest taking a careful look at the shipping chart posted on the site. You'll notice that shipping is calculated by weight; therefore, the best way to maximize your money is to buy enough to come in right at or just under the next highest 500 g or 1000 g mark. Usually, this means that you can get a good number of items in. If you divvy up the shipping, the prices are still pretty cheap, with $5-6 items usually averaging around $8 total.

Since we discovered Wholesale, my friend and I have made three separate purchases. The cheapest shipping options for Americans are UPS and Fedex, and on that end, everything went pretty well. However, we've encountered issues while waiting for the company itself to gather stock and send the packages out. Just because all of your items are in stock, don't expect it to ship out immediately. So, you know, if you're going to go on vacation soon or move or something, don't try to jam an order in, because it could easily take much longer than you expect.

But if you're not going anywhere, and you want to try something for cheap, Wholesale is definitely worth checking out! :)


And now for the giveaway~

A Flounce Collar Lace Dress! Click on pictures to enlarge.




Item no. F10043005

This is free size, meaning that it's one-size fits all. Of course, this doesn't necessarily work out... XD I'd say that the dress is equivalent to an American S/M or 2/4/6, possibly an 8. Except that it's kind of short, so it might make a better shirt instead. :)


RULES:

1. This giveaway will end on September 12th, 2010.

2. Open only to readers from the U.S. and Canada.

3. In order to enter, leave your email and a comment below! Only one comment will be valid.

For an additional entry, make a post about this giveaway, and leave me the link!

4. The winner will be chosen randomly. I will email you about it, so it's very important that you leave me contact info! If I don't hear back within 2 days, a new winner will be chosen.


You don't need to follow me or anything, but of course you are welcome to do so! :)

Good luck, everyone, and thanks for participating!

Friday, July 23, 2010

Questionable

Laneige N877 Silver Grey; Laneige G767 Gold Khaki;
MAC Greensmoke; Stila Makalu; Stila Champara

I wasn't kidding when I said I've been hauling like a maniac, hahahaha... x.x;; I got to drop by my local CCO recently, and then I came across a Laneige BOGOF sale, and. Well.

...Yeah.

Anyway, if you're looking at this picture and thinking, "Gee, that MAC on the left and that Laneige on the right look really similar," you're not entirely wrong:


MAC Greensmoke; Laneige G767 Gold Khaki

(Sorry about the color discrepancy between the two pics, hahaha, it was hard for my camera to capture. The swatch pic below is much more accurate in terms of what these look like in real life.)

In fact, that's exactly what I thought when I first saw the Laneige. I'd been lemming Greensmoke really hard since I swatched it in May, so when I found three boxes buried behind the flashy LE stuff at the CCO, I didn't hesitate.

...Well, okay, I did for like a second, but come on.

A week later, I was browsing through my local Super H Mart when I pass by the Amore Pacific nook, and what do you know... They actually have point make up on sale! Usually, I don't like Laneige shadows, since a lot of them are a ton of glitter and not much else, but G767 caught my eye immediately. When I went to take a swipe, it was deep and dark and gloriously pigmented.

Of course, since it was awesome, I couldn't help myself (BOGOF Laneige?!?!). So I grabbed pretty gunmetal N877 as my freebie and walked out thinking sadly about my brand new MAC Greensmoke sitting at home, which had apparently cost me twice as much.

Fortunately, I didn't need to worry, because after I tried them on my eyes today? I can say for sure that they are nothing alike.


MAC Greensmoke; Laneige G767 Gold Khaki; Laneige N877 Silver Grey

It's kind of weird because even if you look at the swatches here, which were done by hand, they're not identical, but they are similar. G767 has a much more metallic finish and therefore looks more golden green. Greensmoke, on the other hand, is more subtle and looks kind of brown in comparison. Either way, G767 looks more pigmented here.

Oddly, that isn't the case when I used a brush today. Greensmoke as a shadow is harder, but it built up very easily into the dirty olive color we're so familiar with. G767, on the other hand, is incredibly buttery. It was surprisingly sheer, which is probably due precisely to the soft consistency of the shadow and the metallic finish. If anything, I'd say after today that G767 might be closer to the famous Lancome Erika F. than Greensmoke.

They are definitely in the same color family, though, and look pretty awesome paired together. :)

Either way, I'm glad and amused that my active attempt to buy dupes ended up with a really nice tag-teaming duo instead.

Moving on!

Stila Champara; Stila Makalu


Here are the Stila swatches. I got these from a very generous swap on MUA. I haven't actually worn them yet, but they're both neutral shades, so I'm not too worried. Champara is a nutty nude that pulls a little orange on me, and Makalu is a matte black.

You are my Seoul, Seoul



This is a bit late, but please check out Elli Duvolle's I Have Seoul giveaway! It's pretty awesome!

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Coupons are the best



Made a Rite Aid haul today!! It's really bad... I've been hauling like a maniac this week. ): I think it's because I'm stuck in the house with nothing better to do, so I end up going stircrazy and buying things. x.x Terrible.

Since I've been planning this Rite Aid haul for weeks, though, I figured I'd just go ahead and indulge... Especially since I already had all my coupons printed and cut out and everything.

Speaking of which, if you've never tried Rite Aid Video Values, you are definitely missing out. They have amazing deals every month, and the coupons last forever (by which I mean two months). And the best part? You can STACK THEM.

I never even knew that was possible before Recessionista started posting about it. I'm so glad she did, because buying a bunch of stuff and not paying retail? Is a pretty amazing feeling.

So anyway, the following is a record of my first foray into the thrilling world of mass coupon usage.

I got six things:
- Wet 'n' Wild Mega Eyes Creme Eyeliner in 886 Black
- Wet 'n' Wild Ultimate Brow Kit in 963 Ash Brown
- Wet 'n' Wild Mega Liner in 863 Turquoise
- Wet 'n' Wild coloricon in 254B Lagoon
- Maybelline Dream Matte Powder in Medium 0-1 Sand
- Maybelline Color Sensational Lipcolor in 025 Pink Please

And here are the coupons I used
- $5 off $20 purchase from Rite Aid Video Values (RAVV)
- $1 off $10 cosmetics purchase from RAVV
- $3 off $10 WnW purchase from RAVV
- $1 off any Maybelline Color Sensational lip product from RAVV
- $2 off any Maybelline foundation from the Maybelline Salsa Sun display

In addition to that, there's a BOGO50% sale on all Maybelline products this week.

The retail price of my purchase? $28 (before tax).

What did I spend? $12.40 (also before tax).

Yeeeah, that number definitely looked a lot prettier on the screen than $28!

I'm going to return WnW Lagoon, though, since I mistakenly thought that WnW was BOGO50%... They hadn't removed the sticker from last week yet, haha, and I wanted to make sure I hit $10. I'd keep it if it weren't a bright blue. I really don't need more blues. x.x

Part of me kind of wants to keep it, though, just to try out the new coloricon line. I would've gone for Kitten, actually, except I just got Goddess from the old WnW singles collection last week. They look very similar, (purple base, gold shimmer) so I can't justify it. I'm trying to cut back on buying new things by telling myself to only get colors I don't already have... which is pretty much every cool color by now. XD;;; At least that part of the plan is working, haha.

Anyway, I may have a special-ish post coming up. :) Please be on the look out!