Beauty Box 5

We’re feeling this month’s MerMayd Box vibes so strong that we had to make some wallpapers for your (shell) phone. 

Erin at Team BB5 here! A dramatic highlight has become the newest makeup trend that all the ladies want to follow and I’m not an exception. I’ve always loved the idea of golden glow underneath my foundation. Even when I was first learning about makeup I was obsessed with the idea of glam and gold. So, now that your makeup cannot be on fleek without a highlighter covering your cheekbones, I have decided to write a post on my three favorite highlights. Reminder: everyone has different skin tones and types, but these brands are great for everyone and the prices aren’t too bad either.  

Manna Kadar 3-in-1 Pigment in Fantasy $19

I first came in contact with Manna Kadar through February’s box! This little beauty is a pigment that can be used as highlight, blush, or eyeshadow. It’s a little too sparkly for blush, in my opinion, especially since I usually have sparkle in my eyeshadow, but for a highlight, it is so perfect! I would use this as a blush if you are wearing a minimal look on the eyes. When I was testing this product, my coworkers asked me repeatedly what highlight I was using and they all know about Manna Kadar! This pigment catches the light with a rosy gold hue and, I think, is good for all skin tones. My tip for this solid pigment is to use a fan brush like Pro Fan Brush #65 from Sephora or #184 Duo Fibre Fan Brush from MAC Cosmetics and light sweep the color on the tops of your cheeks.

 Sephora Radiant Luminizing Drops  in Ultra Light $14

Say hello to my new everyday essential. Like I said earlier, your makeup cannot be on fleek without a badass sheen, and this is my go-to choice for a highlight. The color is perfect for my skin tone and leaves the MOST luminizing, golden glow. Like a glow that can be seen from space, which I love. During SXSW I had some random person yell to me, “Makeup on fleek!” and I’m fairly certain it was because of this highlight on my cheekbones. This is a liquid highlight and a little goes a long way, so the price of $14 is a steal to me. My advice is to use your fingers or your beauty blender to ensure the highlight is blended on your skin. Sephora created three different shades of these drops, so make sure to pick the best color for your skin tone.

 NYX Born to Glow Liquid Illuminator $7.50

This is the highlight I wear when I’m rocking a less dramatic makeup look. Despite the shiny look of this liquid, when blended in, it has a very subtle glow on my skin tone. An everyday highlight, I would call it: something you quickly put on while running out of the door at the last minute to get to work, but at a price of $7.50, what do you really expect? For this price, I love this highlight and I think it’s a great highlight for beginners. NYX has four shades of this particular illuminator. These two are named Sun Goddess and Gleam. The two others (not pictured) are named Sunbeam and Pure Gold. I like that NYX took into consideration that everyone doesn’t have fair skin or dark skin and created shades for every makeup user. My darker skinned ladies should stick to Sun Goddess and Pure Gold, while fair skinned ladies should go for Sunbeam and Gleam.

Happy Highlighting,

E

Allow me to come clean: (and not just literally with the body wash pictured below) the rush that I get when I find a new product to obsess over is a stupidly addictive feeling. It’s not that I’d classify myself as a shopaholic, but I just adore when the stylish stars of the beauty universe align and send me a sign via a new perfect addition to makeup and skincare routine. Of course, this means that I tend to try out a few dozen trends and welcome new brands and formulas for all sorts of reasons, but no matter what, my top criteria is that they actually WORK (like that new Rihanna song) and that they keep performing amazingly (like Rihanna with each live version of her new song that I keep watching on Youtube).

While not every single product meets my high standards, I’m extremely loyal to the ones that do, and so when the products I buy over and over actually make a difference beyond my own makeup bag, too, it’s like a haute homerun! Sure, there’s a warm fuzzy feeling that comes with supporting a giving organization each time you beautify, but if the product itself doesn’t wow you, no amount of charity is going to make you repurchase it. That being said, allow me to introduce a swoon-worthy world-changing brand: Soapbox!

April’s Beauty Box 5 featured a deluxe sample of SoapBox Sea Minerals body wash, and I’ll be honest: I was excited that the brightly colored bottle told me that for each bottle bought, SoapBox donates a bar of soap to someone in need, but I was also curious about how the suds would satisfy my sensitive skin. A few scrubs in and I was completely obsessed. Not only does this body wash smell like I borrowed it from an expensive spa, (like, one that’s priced way beyond my usual treat-your-self weekly budget of a few Netflix rentals and a face mask) but it also actually moisturized my skin with rich shea butter and washed away with no clingy feeling. As if my product crush couldn’t grow any more: it’s made in the USA, cruelty-free, vegan, paraben-free, so easy to find at my local Target, and the bottle is made with 100% recyclable materials, meaning that I’ll be able to do good by giving back with each purchase while feeling good each time I lather up.

Talk about a life-changing shower.

Want to add some more empowerment to your bathroom cabinet? Here’s a few more of our favorite brands that give back!

1. Your love for Soapbox doesn’t just have to stop at Sea Minerals! They also make shampoo, conditioner, hand soap, lotion, bar soap, and body wash in all different scents- like this refreshingly delicious Bataua Fruit. Don’t forget to copy the Hope Code printed on the back of each full-size bottle and type it in their website to see exactly where your donation goes!

2. While we were already here for the pretty packaging and gorgeous organic lipstick shades from Axiology, we flipped over how they give back: including recycled boxes sourced sustainably in Bali and a portion of their proceeds going to animal welfare organizations. That’s one major muah! 

3. We featured Lasting Smiles Organic Lip Balm in our beauty boxes last year, after hearing their amazing promise: for each 1,000 lip balms sold, one child receives life-changing cleft lip or cleft palate surgery. They work globally to provide jobs in sourcing their materials and make their tasty sticks (like this yummy Passionfruit Mango!) with good-for-you ingredients.

4. Girl power looks SO good. Make Beauty’s stunningly designed skincare and cosmetics already blow us away, but hearing that 10% of their sales go toward the We See Beauty Foundation that supports women entrepreneurs with cooperative businesses? That just makes us want to buy the glowy Universal Stick in bulk now.

5. These pretty bottles by Afterfeather Refillables are much less boring than your regular travel vessels, and they fly high when packed aboard your suitcase and with their charitable efforts. Each set is made in the USA with 25% post-consumer plastic, and 10% of their proceeds go to charities that have a direct impact on their employees!

What give-back brands did we miss? Let us know in the comments, babes!

Xoxo,

Kelsey

It may be springing up flowers outside, but Team BB5 is still trying to treat our just-outta-winter skin inside, and the one thing we want to soft, smooth, and ready to be Instagrammed holding cute things all year round? Our hands, of course!

Since your digits go through a lot- texting, driving, high-fiving, manicures, and just generally, LIFE- it’s important to keep them happy and hydrated. The skin on your hands shows aging quicker than many other parts of your body, so take matters into your own hands- literally!- and treat them to some of our favorite applause-worthy remedies.

Our current favorite soothing lineup includes:

1. Josie Maran Whipped Argan Oil Intensive Hand Cream in Vanilla Apricot

If you’re scarred from ever moisturizing in public and having someone turn up their nose at the smell of your lotion, this rose gold tube is your new savior. Not only is the fragrance absolutely divine, but it contains miracle-status argan oil to hydrate deeply.

2. Skinclinical’s Extreme Healing Repair Concentrate

Rough hand patches are no match for this amazing intensive treatment that heals chapped skin without ever feeling greasy. Bonus: use it all over - elbows, knees, arms - as its formulated for all skin types, from dry to sensitive to eczema and psoriasis-prone complexions, too!

3. Jaqua’s Buttercream Frosting Luscious Hand & Body Lotion

Have a sweet tooth? Beware: this rich lotion smells good enough to eat! Enriched with Vitamins A & E, it’ll soothe your dry skin while giving a seriously just-like-frosting aroma. (No, really…you’ll be convinced there’s a cupcake at the bottom of the tube.)

4. Red Carpet Manicure’s Cuticle Elixir

Forget Murphy’s Law- it’s Mani’s Law: you’re never near a salon when your nails start chipping or looking less-than-perfect. Luckily, this magical oil goes to work quicker than an appointment at softening cuticles and the sensitive skin around your nailbeds to keep your fingers fresh.

5. BODIPURE’s Keratin Gloves

These little lifesavers were a hit in our January Beauty Box, and we have the soft results to prove it! Just slip them on for 20 minutes (they’re touchscreen friendly, so you don’t even have to stop tweeting during use!), massage the solution in, and treat yourself to major moisture for your hands and nails.

6. Elite Therapeutics Rosemary Eucalyptus Body Crème

Organic rosemary and eucalyptus oils make this lotion smell so fresh while helping improve circulation and cellular regeneration wherever applied, too! Added to the fact that it’s paraben-free with no artificial flavors or colors, and it’s a real all-around all-natural winner.

7. L’Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream

If you’ve read any beauty blogs in the past, then you may be rolling your eyes, but hear us out! This silver tube is a cult classic for a reason! The silky texture, 20% rich shea butter formula, and superfast “soak-in” time make it a must-have in your purse.

8. Rachel’s Plan Bee’s Original Bee Cream

We’ve expressed our love for RPB before, and our crush keeps on growing! This amazing balm-like consistency of this cream melts into your skin- a little bit goes a long way! A hint of vanilla combined with organic beeswax and essential oils lock in moisture while smelling oh-so-nice.

What holy grail hand treatments did we miss, babes? Let us know in the comments!

Our last February face makeup look is here! 

Felicity used 4/5 items in this month’s box to create this simple mauve makeup look, plus, some of our other new discoveries and old standbys!

Here’s the product breakdown:

• Elizabeth Mott’s Thank Me Later Eye Shadow Primer (February Box fave!)
  
• Manna Kadar Cosmetics’ Day-Dream Palette 
  
• Manna Kadar Cosmetics’ 3-in-1 Blush, Highlighter and Eyeshadow in Fantasy (February Box fave!)
  
• Starlooks’ Luxe Longwear Eyeliner Pen in Plum (featured in our August 2015 box!)
  
• Geri G’s Ultra Plush Mascara (Spoiler Alert: it’s featured in our Indie Makeup Limited Edition Box!)
  
• Starlooks’ Longwear Mechanical Lip Pencil in Sultry Sangria (February Box fave!)
  
• Epic Blend Hemp Lip Balm in Coconut (February Box fave!)
  

What looks do you want to see next, babes?

The Beauty Box 5 shop is having a major sale just in time for spring! All of our lovely Bellapierre Eye Kits are half-price! That really is a major steal and with the upcoming season change it’s definitely time for some new additions to that makeup collection. 

In this video, Elisa at Team BB5 is modeling a fun, gorgeous look created with Bellapierre eye and lip products - and we couldn’t forget to prime her eyes with Elizabeth Mott “Thank Me Later” primer from February’s beauty box to prevent creasing. Here’s what we used: 

Eyes: 

Elizabeth Mott “Thank Me Later” Eye Primer

Bellapierre Eye Candy in Champagne

Total Intensity Eyeliner in Deepest Black

Styli-Style Line & Seal Twist Mechanical Eye Liner in Lapis

Bellapierre Shimmer Powder in Cocoa

Bellapierre Shimmer Powder in Snowflake 

Bellapierre Shimmer Powder in Haha 

Geri G. Mascara in Black - Found in BB5′s Indie Makeup Box (spoiler alert!)

Cheeks and Lips:

Bellapierre Cheek and Lip Stain in Coral 

Babes, we have a confession to make: we’re kind of absolutely obsessed with being exclusive. You know, like, giving you products you can’t find just anywhere. So, that being said, we went a little liner crazy this month, but we think you’ll love the outcome. 😋

With February being our birthday month, we couldn’t resist celebrating in every way possible- and customizing is one of our favorite things to do! Any time we can making a one-of-a-kind beauty fave for you, babes, we jump at the chance and this time around, Starlooks made our lip pencil dreams come true!

We picked a mauve shade to feature in every February box because, well, Kylie was onto something with her mauve obsession, no? It’s the shade of the moment, while serving as the perfect color for transitioning from winter to spring and looking oh-so flattering on every skin tone. 

Of course, naming is everything, so while we’re celebrating our 4 years of existing (all thanks to you, by the way!), we thought we’d pop a bottle (responsibly, of course) and call it Sultry Sangria. And, while we were naming, we thought it only appropriate to share a fave sangria recipe to share and pair with this lovely liner, because, well, duh, right?

So, if you’re feeling festive, here’s our own spin on (drinkable) Sultry Sangria!

BB5′s Sultry Sangria 

• 1 lime
• 1 cup strawberries
• ½ cup raspberries
• 2 cups watermelon juice
• A bottle of your fave Rosé wine
• Ginger Ale to taste
• 1 Starlooks Sultry Sangria Longwear Mechanical Lip Pencil, of course!

Gather all your materials, photograph them cutely, and maybe give a good hairflip for some extra sass because you are about to become a Sangria master. Proceed.

Core and slice your strawberries in half. Place them and the raspberries in a pretty pitcher and then muddle the berries in the bottom of the pitcher. (’Muddling’ is just a fancy word for ‘smooshing’, by the way.) We left a few pieces intact for presentation.

Next, add your watermelon juice. If you’d like, you can substitute really any fruit juice that suits your fancy- we just went with watermelon to make the best mauve-matching shade of sangria. ;)

Pour in Rosé to your liking. Not a wine gal? No problem! You can sub in another fruit juice (pineapple or cranberry would be divine!) or just add in more of that A+ watermelon juice, too.

Finally, cut your lime in half. Squeeze in the juice of one half (be careful- those seeds can get away from ya!) and slice the other half to place into the pitcher, too.

Once you’ve added everything, give it all a gentle shake and then place it in your fridge to let all those flavors combine for at least 12 hours. (We left ours in for closer to 26 because we’re rebels like that.)

When you’re ready to serve, add ice to your glasses and fill halfway with the sangria mixture, making sure some of that marinated fruit makes it into each glass! Top each glass off with ginger ale and sip gorgeously, babes!

The best part? Your Sultry Sangria lip pencil will last through a (or 4, who are we to judge?) glass of this concoction without smudging, so cheers, babes!

XOXO,

The BB5 Team

[Oh, and don’t forget, this pretty pencil is custom and limited in run, so snag another for you or a gal pal while supplies last!]

This is Jenny, back to bring you part three of the 2016 Skin Spa!

At this point, we’ve already rid the wrinkles of holiday stress and started correcting our skin tone with a splash of vitamin C just in time for smooth skin season. While my skin is repairing its owner-induced hyper-pigmentation, I decided to give my great cover-up jobs a little boost with Kaleidaskin’s Color Solve Primer in Red, featured in the Indie Makeup Limited Edition Box (spoiler alert!).

Kaleidaskin’s Color Solve corrects different difficult pigments by layering colored minerals on your skin. Certain colors of light then refract off the primer. For instance, I have pale skin, and I often need the reds and pinks corrected in my skin. By using a red-corrector, reds are refracted off my skin to make my pale complexion look luminous and dewy.

Kaleidaskin makes several different primers like the red corrector. They base their product off the color wheel. So a person with yellow skin tones would want to use the violet corrector because they’re opposite of each other on the color wheel.

Now I’ve noticed that my fine lines are getting a bit atrocious with the color correcting primer; it’s a lot thinner than what I’m used to. I consulted our in-house makeup artist about my issues, and she gave me some great insight (as always). She reminded me that it’s ok to mix product, but be careful to leave some setting time before applying makeup. Be sure to use your products from thinnest to thickest. My regiment now looks like this:

1. Juice Beauty Serum
2. Moisturizer
3. Kaleidaskin Color Solve Primer in Red
4. Line Filling Primer
5. Makeup
6. Setting Spray

Another great attribute of this product is that you don’t even have to apply makeup with it; wear it alone for a great natural glow. I would love to try the Dynamic Line Filler and the Color Correcting Primer in Green, as well. I love my glowing pale skin when I use Kaleidaskin; I feel like I’m finally starting to belong to the skin I’m in!

Snag your own Color Solve Correcting Primer in Red as part of our Indie Makeup Limited Edition Box, while supplies last!

Xo,

Jenny

Hello beauty babes, it’s Jenny and I’m back to let you know how my second step in my skincare journey is going. I’ve now been using Juice Beauty’s Stem Cellular Repair Booster Serum for about three weeks, and it’s been a really gratifying jigsaw puzzle to figure out.

My skin was looking pretty clear from my wild spin with Palmetto Derma; my fine lines were hardly noticeable. Although I hadn’t used the entire bottle yet, I was satisfied with the results after a month and moved on to Juice Beauty. Like a kid in a toy store, I was just too thrilled to pass up the shiny new package.

Juice Beauty’s label promptly caught my eye. I already knew it was organic because I ordered it based on that biasedness for my finicky skin. The label says, “decreases DNA damage and improves cellular turnover.” The cellular turnover bit already had me eager to experiment. I’m always wishing for new skin, which I know is impossible, but it seemed like this little bottle had granted me a personal miracle.

At first, I followed the bottle’s instructions: apply night and day to a clean face. I would give it five minutes to absorb and go on about my routine. I began to notice my fine lines weren’t as faded with Juice Beauty as they were with Palmetto Derma. More importantly, I noticed my face seemed red and irritated when I took my makeup off at the end of the day. The reason I ordered this specific serum was because I wanted to reduce redness with Juice Beauty’s high concentration of Vitamin C.

I spoke to our in-house makeup artist about my concerns. She informed me Vitamin C can cause photosensitivity, or inflammation of the skin induced by sunlight. We came up with a solution that works with my skin flawlessly. In the morning, I use Palmetto Derma to plump my fine lines so my makeup won’t crease on my forehead. At night, I apply Juice Beauty to correct my skin tone from acne and eczema scars. I’m typically hesitant to use too many things on my skin for fear of it yelling at me. However, this combination makes me feel like I’m not using as much product, and my face loves my new power couple.

Xo,

Jenny