Profound Words

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I heart you Darphin Age-Defying Dermabrasion <3

What's in My Bag

This is a teaser because I want to take the time to actually make this look legit, but I always find myself mesmerized by the "What's in My Bag" feature of USWeekly.  I love scoping out the "must have" beauty products that the celebs use and love when they have some down to earth products like drugstore chapstick.

Well, after my recent purchases at Ulta, I did a little cosmetic bag reno (complete with a purchase of a cute little Vera Bradley cosmetic case- seriously those bags never go out of style!).

Well here is the teaser photo and if I can get my act together, I'll edit so it's magazine ready- USWeekly, call my people and we will schedule a photo shoot!!  

Oh and I am definitely doing this for my purse.  It will be far less sexy- right now I'm rocking Boogie Wipes and a crushed NutriGrain bar.  The glam life of motherhood!!

Shopping at Ulta- My First Experience

Simply walking through the doors gave me a thrill even though I had no idea what to expect!

Initial thoughts- Sephora meets Walgreens.  And I think I like that...

There was a wall of high end skincare products (Philosophy, Murad, Bare Minerals, etc) on one side paralleled by drugstore beauty brands on the other- driving home their current tag of "All things beauty.  All in one place."

It's always fun to take a lap and look around but very quickly I became overwhelmed and unsure about what I wanted needed.  I needed an expert in the latest beauty buys....STAT.

Unfortunately, the store fell a little short in the client experience category.  I asked for help and admitted that I wanted to give my makeup case a full renovation.  Essentially I was opening up my purse strings to the salesperson and even went so far as to say, "If I love it, I'll buy it."  

You would have thought she'd take that and run but instead, she only showed me a quick lesson in contouring which left me unimpressed.  I reluctantly added the contour kit to my bag only to put it back after taking a lap around the store and filling my bag with products I was eager to try.

Despite the subpar sales person experience, I did end up spending over $200 (ok, but how does that happen?!?  And, now that I think of it, maybe the sales person was doing me a financial favor!).

My purchases:

Becca Radiant Glow Collection

Maybelline Eraser Concealer

L'Oreal Superstar Mascara

Benefit Porefessional Pore Minimizer

Mario Badescu Moisture Magnet

Mario Badescu Vitamin C Serum

Laura Geller Spackle Primer

Chloe Perfume Pen Spray (which I've been wanting for forever!).

Ok, so I guess the above list explains how I made it to $200+.  Oops!  Stay tuned for reviews on some of the products listed!  And click here for their current promotion- 25% for first time visitors to their salon. 

First Ulta Experience!

I've recently started seeing promotions for Ulta Beauty.  I vaguely recognized the brand but couldn't get a sense of the caliber of beauty products that the store sold.


A recent commercial that highlighted well-respected brands convinced me that it might be worth a visit and lucky for me (!) a brand new store opened up in the next town.

I'm not even in the door but felt the need to post my enthusiasm for all of the beauty and skincare potential!!!  Woohoo!

Update- Check out my review on the store here!