Reader Review: Sonia Kashuk Blink Of An Eye set (now on clearance at Target!)

Yesterday I posted about some Sonia Kashuk products that are currently on clearance at Target. Well, my lovely reader aly7 actually owns the Blink Of An Eye set and, after I posted about it, she took it upon herself to write a review (with pictures!) and send it my way!

This was so sweet of her, and I hope you find it helpful in determining whether you might want to pick this set up if you spot it at your Target. Oh, and by the way, some readers have reported that they've seen this kit for 75% off now, as opposed to 50%, which is what aly7 paid ($6.48) and what I saw at my Target. So you may luck out and be able to snag this for 75% off at your Target--you never know!

Sonia Kashuk Blink Of An Eye Eye Pencil Set

(retail: $12.99,  now on clearance at Target for $6.48 or less)

Take it away, aly7:

image credit: aly7 for Nouveau Cheap

This set comes with 2 Shimmering Creme Eyeshadow Sticks. The color names are just "Silver" and Gold" but I would say the silver is a very light silver, while the gold is a medium yellow gold. They are both creamy, but the gold has the most "creamy" texute of the two.

This set also comes with an Eye Definer in Metallic which is a shimmery, metallic chocolate brown. I like it a lot for my waterlines- and it lasts all day.

image credit: aly7 for Nouveau Cheap

 

The eye liner is on the far left, while the silver creme eyeshadow in the middle, and the gold creme eyeshadow is on the far right. 

For only $6.48- I  really reccomend this set. The colors are all very vibrant and they stay all day! I have been using the eyeshadows as bases, and they keep my powder shadows crease free!

Thanks so much, aly7, for the review and swatches! Do any of you already have this kit? How do you like it?

Dollar Tree news!

Fellow Dollar Tree shoppers, I want you to be aware of something I personally just discovered:

Dollar Tree will ship products from their website to YOUR nearest Dollar Tree location FOR FREE. In other words, you can order from their site, have it shipped to your local Dollar Tree store for free, and pick it up yourself!

I just took a look at their beauty section and you must order these products by the case, but if you REALLY like certain products from e.l.f. or L.A. Colors, it might be worth your while to order in bulk (with free shipping!):

Click here to see what beauty products they have to offer.

And in case you're wondering, I checked to see if they had the black stackable crates that I use to store my nail polish, but sadly they don't. Guess I have to keep buying those whenever I spot them at my local Dollar Tree. Too bad, because I would love to order them in bulk since my polish collection keeps expanding (hum, I wonder how that keeps happening?).

New L'Oreal coupons!

Before I get into the L'Oreal coupons, I want you to be aware that CVS is emailing various beauty coupons to Extra Care members this week. You can click here to see what coupons you may receive.

Now for coupons and match-ups!

There's a new $1 off L'Oreal Studio or Vive styling product coupon which you can match up with any of the following sales this week (7/10 - 7/16):

• Walgreens: all Studio and Vive stylers $2.99 each
• CVS: BOGO1/2OFF all Studio and Vive
• Rite Aid: L'Oreal Studio Stylers 2/$7

There's a new $1 off any L'Oreal skincare item coupon, which you can pair with either of the following sales this week:

• Walgreens: all L'Oreal moisturizers $4 off and all cleansers $2 off
• CVS: L'Oreal Age Perfect Moisturizer and Advanced Revitalift $12.99 each

There's a new $2 off any shade L'Oreal Preference coupon, which you can pair with this sale going on this week:

• CVS: L'Oreal Preference $7.99

Hope this helps some of you L'Oreal fans!

Spotted at the drugstore: tons of new products

NEWS FLASH: While I was in the middle of writing this post, my wonderful Twitter pal @somecrazedlady told me that when she went to Rite Aid yesterday, she took some of the polishes I mentioned in my post yesterday (the LE polishes that I spotted for 50% off) to the register and had the cashier scan them. GUESS WHAT? Even though they were NOT marked on clearance at her Rite Aid, they came up as 50% off in the system! So I guess this is like the CVS clearance sale! So if you don't spot the clearance stickers on these products at your Rite Aid, ask them to scan them for you and see if they come up 50% off! Thanks so much, @somecrazedlady for the scoop!!

Dear readers, I apologize for the fact that I'm about to bombard you with new product posts. This is just one in a list of many to come. I have received so many wonderful pics from readers over the past few weeks, but I've fallen behind on my email and I'm just now sorting through them.

So for this first post, I've assembled new products that I've personally spotted at CVS, Rite Aid, and also my local grocery store. Hopefully you'll all be able to find these in your area soon (if you haven't spotted them already).

New Garnier Skin Renew Dark Spot Corrector

 New Suave Black Raspberry + White Tea shampoo and conditioner

I've been waiting and waiting for this new Suave line to hit store shelves! In case you missed the press release I posted a while back about all of the new 2011 releases from Suave, here's the info on this line:

NEW! Suave Professionals® Black Raspberry + White Tea Conditioner

Nourishes hair and replenishes moisture to lock in shine.

• Salon-quality shampoo and conditioner system is salon proven to protect hair as well as Aveda® Color Conserve shampoo and conditioner⁶
• Formulated with 100% natural black raspberry and white tea, ingredients known for their nourishing antioxidant properties
• Packaged with 25% post-consumer recycled materials

$1.92 – $2.49 (14.5 oz.)

NEW! Suave Professionals® Black Raspberry + White Tea Leave In Conditioner

Replenishes moisture and locks in color and shine.

• Salon proven to protect hair as well as Aveda® Sun Care Protective Hair Veil⁶
• Formulated with a UV complex

$1.92 – $2.49 (6.7 oz.)

 The new Bonne Bell makeup collection

I posted about this a while back, but this is the first time I've spotted it at Rite Aid. Also, note that there's a $1 off 2 products tear-pad coupon on the display:

 

New polish and Color Sensational lipstick shades from Maybelline

I think I might be the last person to finally spot this display in stores, but I was SO excited to see it after so many of you raved about it. If you like browns and nudes, you're going to love these new Color Sensational lipstick shades!

(I apologize that the names of the lipsticks are unreadable--I thought they would be more clear but I can't make them any sharper.)

 

 Beige Glace, Taupeward

 Autumn Leaves, On the Rum

 (FYI, Autumn Leaves has a beautiful gold shimmer running through it.)

 Hedy's Ma.nish.ma Rainbow Lip Shines

Remember the Hedy's oki doki products (Sephora Tokidoki dupes) that I posted about a while back? Well they just released these new layered glosses at Rite Aid and I have to admit, they're super cute.

They're flavored, too.

And finally, I spotted this new Essie display at Rite Aid

I believe these are repromotes, because the dipslay contains the shade Wicked, which I know is not new. Anyway, as you can see, the colors are all dessert-type shades.

That's it for this drugstore sightings post--please check back soon for MUCH more!

The Burt's Bees Grab Bag is Back!

I've posted about the Burt's Bees Grab Bag twice in the past, and every time I do, I receive feedback from those of you who were very happy with what you got, and some of you  who weren't so happy. I have not personally ordered a Grab Bag before, but I have seen blog posts from others who have, and I think it can be a very great deal if you're a Burt's Bees fan and you'd like to try lots of products for one low price. 

So that said, I wanted to let you know that this special opportunity is back for a limited time:

Click here for more info on the Burt's Bees Summer Grab Bag, and if you have ordered a Grab Bag in the past, I'd love to hear what you thought of it!

Beauty News You Can Use

Here's a collection of beauty news tidbits I've collected over the past few days that I thought you'd find interesting!

Thanks to Walgreens and Duane Reade, the drugstore of the future is now upon us (and it includes automatic fragrance samplers, 130 varieties of Coca-Cola, fresh sushi, and a nail salon)

Speaking of drugstores of the future, take a peek at Rite Aid's new Wellness concept store in Pennsylvania

Your CVS Extra Bucks receipts are about to get a new look

Sephora to offer same-day delivery in NYC via...Mini Coopers!

It's official: Rite Aid's bringing back the Glam Camp Bag 

The popular UK brand, I Love Cosmetics, is coming to America

Braun debuts new Satin Hair Brush

Palmer's to release a new line of skincare products for men

Prada's newest fragrance: Prada Candy

Estee Lauder's newest fragrance is called Sensuous Nude

Speaking of Estee Lauder, the cosmetics giant has officially joined Twitter

CND has rolled out six new Shellac shades

A new 100% bio-based sun protection line has hit the market

L'Oreal USA relaunches Makeup.com

Are you excited about any of these bits of info? Thoughts?

Nouveau Cheap readers have spoken and here's what you want to see!

The results of my latest Reader Poll are in, and I hear you loud and clear! After running this poll for one month and receiving 933 votes, here's what YOU would like to see more of on this blog:

Dollar store finds 351 (37%)
 Drugstore hauls (using coupons, store rewards, etc.) 451 (48%)
 Drugstore dupes 605 (64%)
 Drugstore sightings 335 (35%)
 Coupon alerts 378 (40%)
 Sale alerts 450 (48%)
 Giveaways 192 (20%)
 Product reviews - bath, body, fragrance 110 (11%)
 Product reviews - haircare 210 (22%)
 Product reviews - makeup 569 (60%)
 Product reviews - nail products 339 (36%)
 Product reviews - skincare 258 (27%)
 Product reviews - tools 196 (21%)
 Follow-up reviews (of previously reviewed products) 328 (35%)
 Vintage Vault 262 (28%)
 Beauty news 191 (20%)
 What I'm loving right now... 388 (41%)
 Etsy/etailer reviews 138 (14%)

 Reader reviews 85 (9%)
 other 21 (2%)

In first place with a whopping 605 votes, you'd like to see more Drugstore Dupes

In second place with 569 votes, you would like to see more Makeup Reviews

In third place with 451 votes, you would like to see more Drugstore Hauls

Also earning a respectable number of votes: 

Sale alerts (450 votes)

What I'm loving right now... (388 votes)

Coupon alerts (378 votes)

Rounding out the bottom were:

Bath, Body and Fragrance Reviews (110 votes)

Reader Reviews (85 votes)

Other (21 votes)

What I learned from this poll? A TON OF THINGS, but most importantly I learned that you all LOVE your makeup and want to see more makeup-oriented posts! Ask and you shall receive, my lovelies. 

I also learned that even though I'm extremely passionate about bath, body and fragrance products, many of you don't quite seem to share that passion with me. This doesn't mean I'll stop reviewing those types products completely (I could never do that) but I will try to be mindful of your interests and keep them to a minimum.

Thank you all so VERY much for giving me your input on this poll, and if you voted "Other" I would LOVE to hear what other types of things you would like me to cover on this blog.

And while I've got your attention, I would LOVE it if you'd take a minute to vote on my new poll (see right-hand sidebar). We're tackling "best brands" again, and this time I'd love to know what you favorite drugstore mascara brand is, so please vote! This time around I narrowed the options down to the major brands that manufacture the most popular drugstore mascaras, just to make it easier (although you can always vote "other" if your fave isn't represented on the list, and you'll have an option to rave about that brand when I post the results). 

Thank you SO much!

Review: New Wet n Wild Juicy Lip Balms SPF 15

If you missed the press release I posted a little while back, Wet n Wild has released a new collection of Juicy Lip Balms (not to be confused with previous versions) and these four new balms are exclusive to CVS. Today I'd like to give you a closer look at them now that I've had some time to test out all four flavors.

From Wet n Wild:

Wet n Wild NEW ITEM INTRODUCTION
On Shelf Mid-July
CVS-Exclusive

JUICY LIP BALM SPF 15

Price Point: $2.99

 

Delectably juicy SPF 15 lip balms keep lips moisturized all day. Enriched with Aloe Vera and Vitamin E to soothe and condition. Contains SPF 15 to protect lips from harmful UVB rays. Available in 4 delicious flavors.

280C Cherry

281C Raspberry

282C Watermelon

283C Strawberry 

As you can see, these are what you'd consider "jumbo" lip balms, and they're about as tall as a standard tube of drugstore lipstick but much more wide.

These balms apply very smoothly--no tugging or pulling whatsoever. The consistency is more slick than it is creamy, and the staying power for me personally isn't quite as long as other lip balms I own, but closer to the staying power of one of my standard lipsticks (2-3 hours). 

I LOVE the fragrance of these balms--each one smells true to its name (although I detect a slight creaminess to the Cherry flavor--it almost smells like cherries and whipped cream to me). 

I really enjoy that instead of the usual saccharin-sweet flavor you usually get with flavored drugstore balms, there's very little sweetness to the flavor of these. Instead, I just taste the "fruit" flavor. I find that kind of unique and unexpected.

But here's the REAL surprise: these balms are also TINTED!

I had no idea these were going to be tinted lip balms! I just assumed that they'd go on clear, much like other balms of this nature. But noooo! Looking at the pic above, the top two shades (Cherry and Raspberry) deposit the most color on my lips, whicle Strawberry and Watermelon only deposit a tiny hint of color on my lips (my lips are of medium pigmentation, so if you have less pigmented lips those two shades might be more apparent). But wow, what a pleasant surprise!!

FINAL VERDICT: For $2.99 each at CVS, I think these are super fun new lip balms, and I love that not only do they smell and taste good, but they also contain SPF15 and they're tinted. It's a win-win! I find them to be light in texture and more slick than creamy. They do feel moisturizing on my lips, but if you are in need of intense moisturization, I'd suggest using something medicated or more heavy-duty. These are a lighter and more "fun" option as far as lip balms go, but not something I would reach for if my lips needed serious hydration or healing.

Have you spotted the new Wet n Wild Juicy Lip Balms at your CVS yet?

A sample of some of the products featured in this post were given to Nouveau Cheap for editorial purposes, either directly from the manufacturer or from the agency that works on behalf of the manufacturer. All reviews on NouveauCheap.blogspot.com are the honest opinion of its author and editorial samples do not, in any way, affect the outcome of product reviews.

Clearance sightings

Recently I've spotted some pretty great clearance deals at Rite Aid and Target, so I thought I'd share them with you. Of course I can't gaurantee that you'll find these on clearance in your area, but I do want to thank several of you for taking the time to let me know that you HAVE spotted these deals in your area, so there's hope that at least some of you might be able to find these!

First, at Target, some limited edition brushes and pencils from Sonia Kashuk on clearance for 50% off:

And then at Rite Aid, MANY of this spring and summer's limited edition polish collection are now 50% off, including the ENTIRE collection of Maybelline The Bright Side LE polishes for $2 each (not pictured):

All Limited Edition NYC Expert Last polishes

($1.24 each)

 The Essie Braziliant collection (including top coats)

($4 each)

The entire Borghese Fantasioso collection

($4 each)

Have you spotted any limited edition products on clearance at your local drugstores lately? I'd love to hear from you!

New products from Aubrey Organics

I just received this press release about some new products from Aubrey Organics so I thought I'd share. For those of you who aren't familiar with this brand, you can read the interesting history of its founder here. All Aubrey Organics products are cruelty-free.

Launching this summer, Aubrey introduces an amazing line of bio-degradable, UVA/UVB protection sunscreens. Using minerals for protection, they have organic ingredients and offer non-comedogenic options for face. The After Sun Lotion is also a powerful anti-aging moisturizer into winter with CoQ10 and pomegranate.

Launched this spring, the Crème de la Shaves in Pomegranate and White Tea and Citrus have proved the most fragrant and luxurious additions to the shaving family yet!

 For lush, healthy and organic strands Aubrey’s USDA certified organic NuStyle line gives hold, anti-frizz, and shine without chemicals. Also, their best selling GPB hair care now comes in fragrant Rosemary and Lavender!

 I've spotted Aubrey Organics at my local CVS, and also at Whole Foods (I think Target might carry some of their products as well?). If you're interested in any of these products, you can also check their store locator here.

Do you use any products from Aubrey Organics? Do you have any favorites?

Keep Calm and Paint Your Nails

With all the stress of the ongoing technical issues surrounding my blog lately, I took some time yesterday to do something that always seems to calm me down: play with nail polish! 

I decided to go through my collection of China Glaze polishes and find two sparkly polishes that I haven't used in a while: Blue Hawaiian and Shooting Stars (note: all of the polishes featured in this post were purchased with personal funds).

China Glaze Blue Hawaiian was impossible for me to capture in photos, but the most accurate representation of this shade is actually in the blurry photos below:

 Blue Hawaiian is a beautiful blue jelly with TONS of iridescent glitter. The above pics were taken after four coats and the pic above is probably the most accurate in terms of the glitter you actually see when this polish is on the nail. It's stunning!

 Next up, we have four coats of Shooting Stars:

 

Naturally, my camera went crazy trying to focus on the scattered holo in this polish. So the best pics I could get to capture the holo effect were the last two blurry pics above. This is just such a fun polish--I don't have the words to describe how happy I get when I look down and see this on my nails.

And now, time to play with my China Glaze Crackle polish in Fault Line:

Here's the deal with this crackle polish: it's unpredictable for me. This is the not first crackle I've owned, but unlike my Barry M. crackle, this one seems to behave differently every time I use it. I ALWAYS apply a thin layer, and I'm ALWAYS careful not to go over my brush strokes more than once. But sometimes this polish cracks the way I want it to and sometimes the results a bit different:

The above pics are close-ups of my thumbs. As you see, when applied over Blue Hawaiian, the cracks are thicker and are mostly in a vertical pattern. On the right, the cracks are thinner, more abundant and they go  both vertically and horizontally. Sometimes I think this has to do with the actual polish used underneath the crackle, but the thing is, I used the same top coat in both of these pics, which I applied BEFORE I used the crackle (then again after the crackle). So..who knows?

Actually, if you look closely at the pics of me wearing Fault Line over Blue Hawaiian (especially my pinky finger) you'll see that it's almost all vertical lines. So weird, huh?

Anyway, I LOVE the purple shade of Fault Line and I'll take it any ol' way I can get it. The unrpedictablity kind of lends to the "excitement" of using a crackle. You never quite know what you're going to get!

Thanks for reading!