NCLA Nail Wraps

Watch out Sally Hansen: there is a beauty company in town that is looking for a piece of the nail sticker market. Meet your new frenemy, NCLA.

I was lucky enough to win a few pairs of NCLA nail wraps from a fellow fashion blogger and was thrilled to give them a try. You guys know I love Sally Hansen’s nail stickers so I’ve been interested in seeing if NCLA could top them. The short story: the patterns are edgier but I prefer the feel and application of Sally Hansen. Let’s break it down:

Pros
The look = insanely hip. I love this ikat print. It’s fashion-forward, a bit edgy, and so colorful. NCLA has a ton of other fun patterns here.

Cost = $16 for 2 sheets of 22 wraps. That’ll get you 3-4 applications for $16 — not bad at all.

Cons
Time commitment = high. NCLA instructs you to paint a clear coat, let it dry, apply the nail wrap, and then add another clear coat. For comparison, Sally Hansen nail stickers don’t require any polish at all, thus cutting down on the application time considerably.

The feel = so-so. It’s tricky to get a super smooth edge on the tips. You’ll need to keep a nail file handy for the first day or so to smooth the edges of the wraps.

Overall Verdict
Fun for a special occasion but the feel could definitely be improved!

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Birchbox: Beauty Samples at Your Door

Sure, we may live in a digital world, but I still love receiving good, old-fashioned snail mail. Peeking into the mailbox and seeing a People mag or wedding invitation inside is a lovely little pick-me-up at the end of the day. But the most exciting day of the month is when my monthly Birchbox arrives!

Makeup in my mailbox!! Yeehaw!

Have you ladies heard of this fantastic company? For $10 a month, Birchbox sends it’s members 4-5 beauty samples from luxury brands. Mascara, shampoo, perfume, nail polish, lip balm, the list goes on. Every month it’s a different mix of samples. And every month, I squeal like a little girl when I open the package.

You can fill out a beauty profile online to specify what products you like and work well for your skin/hair. Birchbox assembles your samples and ships them out in a cute, hot pink box. It’s an easy way to try new and different brands (you can buy full-size products on their web site). And if you’re cheap like me, it’s easy to stretch out the lifespan of a sample. I’m still using my Blinc tube mascara from October’s box!

Two huge thumbs up to Birchbox. Hint: this would make an awesome present for a friend! Subscriptions are available in 3, 6 and 12-month plans. Click to sign up!

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Maybelline Mania

Style Me Thrifty has been busy dishing out a lot of fashion advice lately. It’s time for a makeup-inspired post! I wanted to shake things up a bit and turn to my blogger friend, Lindsay, to write a guest post for us.

Lindsay is the beauty and brains behind Belle Belle Beauty — a blog focused on cosmetic reviews, from drugstore to luxury. Check out her fab blog, you won’t be disappointed! Since we’re more drugstore gals here at Style Me Thrifty, Lindsay reviewed some of her current fav Maybelline products for us.

Take it away, Lindsay…

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Hey there! Some of the best drugstore finds these days are by Maybelline. Not only are they a great bargain, but are serious performance powerhouses. These four favorites have earned a permanent place on my vanity:

1. Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circles Treatment Concealers for $9.99 (nothing refreshes my face like covering those dark circles and this is SO easy to use)
2. BabyLips SPF 20 Moisturizing Balm for $3.99 – such adorable packaging and it really heals dry winter, lips
3. Eye Studio Master drama for $7.99 – creamy, high intensity liner perfect for the evening cat eye (and comes in fun colors like Sapphire)
4. Colorsensational LipColor for $7.49 (incredibly rich colors that don’t dry out
   

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I’m loving Lindsay’s picks so much that I’m planning a Maybelline giveaway in the next week. Stay tuned!!

(Thanks, Lindsay!)

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You might also like:
The Buzz on Burt’s Bees Tinted Lip Balm
The Best Drug Store Beauty Products

The Best Drug Store Beauty Products

CVS. Walgreens. Target. These are my happy places. I love the endless aisles of affordable makeup, rows of lotions, potions, and cheap hair products!

Every once in awhile on my lunch break, I wander into CVS and pick up a new beauty product to try. It’s amazing what a fresh bottle of nail polish or tube lipstick can do to brighten up the day. And with such low prices, you never have to feel guilty if that new lipstick is not a perfect match! Life is one big experiment anyway.

The next time you’re having a blah day, why not hit up your local drug store for a thrifty treat? Here are a few of Style Me Thrifty’s go-to drug stores beauty products, in no particular order.

1) St. Ives Whipped Silk Lotion – $6.75
The light scent of this lotion makes it great for daily use (it doesn’t interfere with your perfume!). It delivers just as much moisture as a pricier brand and soaks into your skin nicely, with no greasy feeling afterwards.

2) Sonia Kashuk Double Duty Brush Set – $21.99 for 8 brushes
Sephora tried to sell me a $40 powder brush once. You know what I did? Marched my thrifty butt to Target and bought 8 brushes for $22. Winning!

3) Oil Absorbing Sheets – CVS brand for $4.79
I don’t sweat, I “glisten” (ha). For those particularly shinny days, I use these sheets to soak up a the shine from my face without ruining my makeup. Great to have on hand at a wedding. Clean & Clear sells these sheets, too, but I find CVS brand works just as well.

4) Goody Spin Pin – $6.29
I’ve been raving (and blogging!) about Goody’s Spin Pin for months now. Have you picked this clever product up yet?  With a few quick twists, these sturdy pins deliver a cute, secure bun. Goody now makes Mini Spin Pins for thinner hair. Love that!

5) Burt’s Beeswax Lip Balm – $2.99
I cannot leave the house without a tube of chaptstick in my purse. God forbid! Burts Bees is my fav. The tingly mint feeling is refreshing and I like the feel of it on my lips: smooth, light, and moisturizing.

6) Goody Ouchless Ponytail Holders – $3.99
In the past, I used to wear 2 elastics to my Body Combat class just to keep my mane in place and out of my eyes. Then I bought these hair elastics and I’m consistently surprised how 3 twists around my pony leads to such a secure ‘do. A must have for gym goers.

7) Maybelline Great Lash Mascara – $4.02
I see this mascara on so many best seller lists and it’s for a good reason — not only is the mascara insanely affordable, it gives amazing coverage, doesn’t clump, and the small wand is perfect for the hard-to-reach lashes.

8) Nivea Gradual Tan Moisturizer – $9.99
Best tinted moisturizer out there. It’s very easy to apply, doesn’t streak, and it’s light enough for daily use. I like the scent, too, which I can’t say for other brands.

Do you have any drug store beauty products you love? Sound off in the comments below!

I Brake for Free Sh!t

Writing a blog called Style Me Thrifty clearly demonstrates my love of affordable items. Let’s face it: I’m cheap.

And so, you can imagine how jazzed I get over FREE things. Perfume samples in magazines, cheese cubes at Whole Foods, t-shirts at 5K’s… if it’s free, I want it. Even shit I don’t need! Case and point, this ginormous umbrella that Victoria’s Secret gave me for buying a few things:

Will I ever use it? Probably not! (seriously, it’s SO huge). But it was free and I am excited.

And so it’s only fair that I share my free discoveries with you all. My talented friend, Sarah, is a writer for Allure magazine and tipped me off to an article she just wrote on this exact topic.

Sarah rounded up a cheat sheet of free samples that makeup counters are giving out this April. So plan a trip to your local mall and pick up some free foundation, lotion, eye cream, and more.

Enjoy the freebies, my friends!