REVIEW: Smashbox Full Exposure Travel Palette

I recently purchased the travel-size Smashbox Full Exposure palette. I was VERY excited to receive this. It had a decent price tag of $22 which I felt was fair for being a seemingly perfect portable neutrals palette. I expected to be able to build day and night looks however the mood strikes.

The first thing I notice when I open it is that it is TINY. I could carry it in a pocket if I wanted. (I wouldn't, but I COULD.) It's very slim which excites me because in a few days I'm taking a loooong international flight and packing as light as possible is always my focus.

At first glance, it seems pretty nice. From left to right you see warm to cool colors, sparkly shades on top and matte on the bottom.

I thought the matte shades were decent. Nothing special, they didn't have that buttery texture I expected from Smashbox. The shimmer shades, though... I do not like them. With the exception of the third from the left (light tan with gold/silver pearl), they are AWFUL. I can't even call them eyeshadows, they're like crappy glitter with ridiculous fallout. I tried them wet and dry, didn't matter. They suck. I'm not returning it because I really did need a portable little neutrals palette but if I could go back in time, I wouldn't buy it again.

Positives: mattes are okay, soooo portable, not too expensive

Negatives: not high quality powders, shimmer shades are crappy glitter and not pigmented, case flimsy

0/10 would buy again.

I will use it begrudgingly. I'm not likely to use most of the shimmer shades. What a waste! Also, if you were wondering, they're not the same size pans as in the full-size. They're smaller, which is okay with me, I wanted something tiny. But for the price tag and the quality, I expected SOMETHING better than what I got.

BOOOOO Smashbox! You can do better!

NINJA EDIT: Okay, I'm returning this. This is a travesty. I expect much higher quality from Smashbox. I will be returning it and possibly going for an Urban Decay or Too Faced neutrals palette to replace it. I say again, BOO SMASHBOX.

Subscription Box Nonsense!

It's no secret that I'm a fan of subscription boxes. Fitness, food, fashion.. you name it and I WANT it!

WANTABLE
I've tried all of the Wantable collections. They have Intimates, Makeup, and Accessories. (Coming soon they also have a Fitness collection but the set-up just doesn't appeal to me. You pay $20 up front and get 5 items based on your quiz. The $20 comes out of the price of items if you keep them. Keep 1 item-pay an additional $45, 2 items- $110, 3 items-$136, 4 items-$188, 5 items-$201. And the brands they listed were all brands I've never heard of, so not worth the money to me.) I have been very happy with the Intimates collections. The accessories have been just okay, but I'm incredibly hopeful because I've seen some great reviews. I think I just need to better tweak my customization quiz. And the makeup wasn't for me. If I'm going to get surprise products from lesser-known brands, I don't want to spend $40 a box. Now if they were sending MAC brushes, Urban Decay primers, Smashbox eyeshadows, Dior mascaras...okay then $40 a box is a great deal. But for stuff that looks like it came from a dollar store or someone's garage sale? No. No way.

JULEP MAVEN
I got one box from the Julep Maven subscription. I really disliked the nail colors I got. did love the Body Milk lotion I got, full size! I have seen some great products (not nail color) but I didn't care enough to stay subscribed in case I get them. I am very simple with my nails since I can't usually wear nail color at work anyways. And typically when I want my nails to look pretty I pay someone else to do them. So it's a popular box but not for me. Also Julep was a HEADACHE to unsubscribe from! They don't have a simple button to click online, you have to actually call and speak with someone.

LOVE WITH FOOD
I've gone through a couple of months with Love With Food. This is a cute box, and with a great cause behind it. I'm not in love with it and won't stay subscribed, but not because I don't like it. It's just not something I love so I'm funneling funds elsewhere.

COMING SOON
I have a couple of boxes en route and I'm excited to see them. Bulu Box is a fitness sample box. I don't have high hopes for this one based on reviews, but I like samples and fitness-related ones are right up my alley! And PopSugar Must Have... um, my expectations are SKY HIGH for this one. I am SO DAMN EXCITED for this box!

UP NEXT
My next subscription adventures will come from this list:
Elizabeth & Clarke
StrideBox
PrettyFit

I'm currently debating whether I want to keep trying with Wantable accessories. I'm just so blase about everything I've gotten. I want to LOVE the things I get like I do with the intimates, or like I see in other people's collections. I'm a little jelly :P

Sephora Haul!!!

Ahem..

I think we all know what this means. :)

Nars Blush/Bronzer Duo in Orgasm/Laguna

Funny the color comes out better in the mirror than the actual picture. But yeah.. I've been looking at this for awhile. Funny the only version of the well-known Orgasm shade I own is in Super Orgasm. Yeah, go big or go home I always say. :P

Smashbox Full Exposure Travel Palette

I am SO excited about this! Especially since I'm flying in two weeks and trying to learn how not to overpack. This will be the only eyeshadow I bring. Yay!! :)

Briogeo Curl Charisma Conditioner 

Yeah I think it's pretty obvious that I have an obsession with this brand. I LOVE Briogeo!

Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz

Always happy to try out a new brow product. This one caught my eye because a) I don't have to sharpen it (evidently I suck at sharpening pencils) and b) it as a spoolie attached. How handy is that?!

Half the fun is in the sample haul. Woo hoo! :)

Bath & Body Works Mini Haul :D

If you will recall, I recently posted a rave about Bath & Body Works customer service. Well not one week after hearing from them, the package was dropped in the mail and arrived. It's insane how quickly things move once I let them know I was displeased with the wait. I'm impressed.

Here's the contents. A small haul to make my teeny tiny room seem brighter with fragrance. And also a couple of small body washes that I can take on my trip and use with my soon-to-be husband! :)

The packaging is adorable! I love it! :) Nothing broken or leaking. I was worried because the box smelled strongly (yummily) but nope. Everything was intact.

So all the fragrances I ordered were brand-new to me. Scary! But they all smell wonderful. I'm burning Autumn right now and have the Beach Cabana plugged in in the other room. Yay! :)

Sephora Haul, New! BRIOGEO HAIR CARE, Ole Henriksen, Too Faced, Kat Von D, Philosophy, Bliss..

Ooooooohhhh I came home from the gym to a box of treasures! A little Sephora haul just for me! :)

My purchases were from this new (new to me, I'm not sure how new they are) hair care line, Briogeo. My hair is naturally curly and recently, I'd say within the past 1-2 years, I've gotten really into the idea of treating my hair better to make it look better. This is as opposed to the chemical and heat battles I've had to straighten my hair in the past. Now don't get me wrong, I still straighten my hair and sometimes it's the look I want. But I'll never chemically relax my hair again. Part of the 'being nice to Gerogina's hair' bit is getting away from sulfates and silicones. Read up on the Curly Girl Method for some info. And of course we all have different hair so some people do okay with certain chemicals and some are extra sensitive. I don't think my hair is particularly sensitive, but I do think my curls are happier and look healthier when I stay away from the sulfates. So far all I've done is use Wen, which I find super expensive, and some drugstore stuff like VO5 (conditioners only) and Tresemme Naturals, and just recently DevaCurl, which I'm not sure how I feel about. It's not love.

Anyways I'll post when I get to try out all these products. Just to introduce you, read below! :)

The next item was the Briogeo Curl Charisma Leave-In. It smells AWESOME. 

And finally Briogeo Rosarco Oil. Cleverly named for the Rosehip, Argon, and Coconut Oil blend. :)

Other than the hair stuff, I got some deluxe samples and regular samples, as well. I'm really excited about this Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Matte Bronzer deluxe sample and the Ole Henriksen 3 Little Wonders kit.

Kat Von D Unlock-It Makeup Remover Wipes, bliss Micro Magic, Philosophy Miracle Worker, Philosophy Time in a Bottle for Eyes.

I LOVE samples. Nothing makes me make poorly chosen drunken online purchases quite like a perfect sample. Also I make conscious choices due to samples as well. Especially makeup samples, perfume, hair care.... skin care.... food.... omg never mind. I like all samples! GIVE ME ALL THE SAMPLES!

Teni Panosian

So my newest girl crush is Teni Panosian. Subscribe to her YouTube channel HERE. I'll admit to buying a crap ton from Sephora in the past month due to my habit of watching her over and over again.

In my daily life, I tend not to wear all the makeup I want. Sad. But I have to work out a lot for my job, as well as having restrictions at work for my hair and makeup and nails.. blah. So I really don't get to satisfy my cosmetic lusts until the weekend. But! I'm discovering new ways to incorporate what I love into my daily life as well as sneaking in night time adventures after work with a face full of beauty! I'm pretty much perfecting my no makeup-makeup and I will thank Teni Panosian for that! Check her out! :)