Five Broke Girls

Home » Archives for May 2013

On Repeat #5

Posted by Tessa Friday, May 17, 2013 0 comments

TESSA
I Love It (I Don't Care) - Icona Pop
This song is going to be the anthem of my summer, I'm declaring it now. This song has essentially summed up my feelings this week as I took my last finals and prepared to move back home, because really nothing else mattered except for the fact that I was getting ready to be reunited with my other Broke Girls. Anytime this song comes on I can't help but turn it up and sing along (rather badly, I might add). Anyway, great song. A+ Icona Pop. And after seeing Charli XCX last night, I'm even more obsessed with this song, and her. So much so I downloaded her whole album earlier.

KAYLEY
Homewrecker-Marina and the Diamonds
Okay, Okay. So I know I've already done a song by Marina on a post, but, I can't help it. She's a great singer/song writer. I also happened to see her live and meet her last night, so needless to say, I'm in a lovin' Marina kind of mood. Though, I am not or have never been a "homewrecker" this song is extremely catchy and I love the line " and I don't belong, to any one". If you haven't already LISTEN TO MARINA.

RACHEL
Shuffle - Bombay Bicycle Club
So, I've known about this band for a while now but never really gotten into them. However these four dudes from London have caught my attention this week. I'm not usually one for anything particularly upbeat, but I cannot get this song out of my head this week. I guess I'm just a lil' ecstatic that finals are over, woooo. The rest of their album A Different Kind of Fix is growing on me as well. The beat is almost infectious (totally not a cliche at all), so go feast your ears on this lovely piece of music!

JEN
Sabotage - Beastie Boys
Well I had a different song on here before us five broke girls started watching Star Trek. And then Sabotage started playing... and I immediately wanted to change it. I've been listening to some more throwback music (70s and 90s specifically) and this is one of the greatest. Always. There's not much more to say than if you haven't heard this song, you need to. Right. Now.

TORI
Sixpack- Jeff the Brotherhood
"Sixpack" from their newest album Hypnotic Nights is the first song I listened to after my last final. It was just the song I needed to get my summer started the right way. Jake and Jamin are both super chill guys and their live shows just make me love them more. Their sound is so unique due to Jake's approach on only playing three strings on his guitar. I love this entire album, produced by Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys.

A Pre-Finals Week Drugstore Haul

Posted by Tessa Saturday, May 11, 2013 0 comments

So much like my fellow Broke Girl, Rachel, I somehow found myself inside the wonderful world that is Target. And less than 24 hours found myself inside Wal-Mart. Though I went in for a purpose, I came out with way more than what I came for. But obviously buying new beauty products is crucial to my success during finals week.

TARGET

Boots Expert Anti-Blemish Concealer Duo, $6.29
I picked this up because I needed a new spot concealer. Though I love my Covergirl Fresh Complexion Under Eye Concealer, it was not made for covering up spots, as the name suggests (but hey it never hurts to try right?!). Anyway, I saw this and decided to try it out since it's a two-step process with a treatment and concealer. My biggest concern about this product was that it didn't come in shades, but luckily with some blending it works for my skin, so be warned, if you're more than 2 shades darker than me, this product might not work well for you! I quite like the blemish treatment as it is a light liquid in roller ball form (though the smell could use a little work). I have only used the concealer one time, and it is extremely thick, so I'm not sure how well this product and I will get along but I will keep you updated as I continue to use it!

Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Fast Dry Nail Color in Snappy Sorbet & Clearly Quick, on sale for $2.98
While getting lost in the cosmetic section, I stumbled upon an end cap display of two packs of the Sally Hansen Insta-Dri line that was on sale. I've been on the hunt for a good orange nail polish as I feel like it will be a summer staple for me. I haven't tried it on my nails yet, but the color in the bottle is a gorgeous sorbet orange. I also quite like the brushes on these polishes as they remind me of the Wet 'N Wild Mega Last polishes, which is one of my favorite polish lines with a low price tag!

Revlon Super Lustrous Lip Gloss in Nude Lustre, on sale for $1.79
As I was perusing the Revlon stand, I spotted the second to last tube of this left, and when Revlon lip glosses typically retail for $7-$9, I had to pick up this color simply for the deal! I'm a big fan of nude lips, so it was a good thing I liked the color. I tried on the color after buying it and I quite enjoy it, though I'm not a lip gloss girl by any means so we'll see how often it gets worn!

WALMART

Maybelline Color Sensational Vivids in 890 Neon Red & 860 Pink Pop, $5.50 each

In a late-night YouTube watching session last night, I watched Jaclyn Hill's giant Chicago haul video (by the way, if you don't watch her channel, you should! She's super sweet, entragetic and down-to-earth and has great tutorials! Find her channel here) I was inspired to run out and buy a couple of these as soon as I could. I had heard other YouTubers rave about these (namely Estee from Essiebutton) and decided to break down and try out a few colors. I picked up Neon Red & Pink Pop. Neon Red is a gorgeous red color, that Jaclyn was wearing in her video, and I decided I needed it. Pink Pop kind of reminds me of MAC's Candy Yum-Yum which I have had my eye on for months but haven't had the guts to drop $15 on. I also really wanted to pick up Shocking Coral, but it was too similar to my Rimmel London by Kate Moss in shade 06, to justify buying.

NYC Smooth Skin Bronzing Face Powder in 720A Sunny, $2.88
This is a one of those products that you hear everyone in the beauty community rave about and I finally cracked and bought it for myself. Though I have a bronzer in my E.L.F. duo, it's a shimmer bronzer which I didn't want to use all over my face, so I grabbed this knowing it was matte and that everyone loves it. I swatched it on my wrist after purchasing and it seems like it will be a good all over bronzer for the summer before I get darker from my self-tan (which I will post/make a video about sometime soon!) so I'm super excited to try this product out!

Revlon Nail Enamel in 280 Bubbly, $3.97
If you don't know, I love my Revlon polishes! With the exception of course of their top coat line (read about that here). As I was looking through the display, I was originally going to grab Zealous, a gorgeous, neon green/yellow with shimmer. But then I saw Bubbly and couldn't resist. It's a beautiful bubble-gum pink that's a perfect transition color for spring to summer!

Revlon Nail Enamel in 571 Posh, $3.97
My fellow Broke Girls know I have had my eye on this color ever since it came out in Revlon's new release months ago. I FINALLY GOT IT GUYS. This color is a fantastic green. I'm not even sure what words to use to describe it, but I have a feeling it will be living on my nails for quite a while, especially in the fall semester!

On Repeat #4

Posted by Tessa 0 comments

RACHEL
Dark Doo Wop - MS MR
Another duo has caught my attention this week, and along with them, another tale of dark love. Just trying to keep things light and upbeat for the onset of summer, yeah? Anyhow, MS MR are quite a recent find for me but I foresee them becoming a favorite of mine. I catch hints of Florence Welch and even a wee bit of Lana Del Rey in their singles. Not to mention, Lizzy Plapinger has some badass hair. Dark Doo Wop is definitely my favorite track on the EP (Though all the songs are pretty kewwwl). Maybe because "This world is gonna burn / burn, burn, burn" is how I feel during finals. But I digress. I'm fo sho looking forward to their full album release (Secondhand Rapture) on the 14th of this month, and you should too!

TESSA
Pirate Flag - Kenny Chesney
Well, it's almost summer time and while I've been downing in deadlines and studying for finals (which is to blame for the lack of posts lately, so sorry!) I've been daydreaming about summer. Which means it's time for another country song to be my pick for On Repeat this week. I don't even care if you don't like country music, if you listen to this song and it doesn't make you instantly want to be on a beach somewhere with some sort of tropical drink in your hand you're so wrong it's not even funny. That also happens to be exactly why I love this song. Because even though I'm sitting at a cluttered desk designing ads or studying for my dreaded math final or watching lectures for my online class, I can at least feel like I'm that much closer to getting to a beach and having nothing to worry about. And I traded it in for a whole other world, a pirate flag and an island girl.

TORI
Hibernate- Pretty & Nice

"Hibernate", featured on their EP US YOU ALL WE (2012), is one of my favorite tracks from this jumpy, light-hearted band (weird, I know. Not really my style). When Rachel and I went to see Jukebox the Ghost awhile back, Pretty & Nice happened to be their openers. Their stage presence is amazing, and I was hooked from the first song. If you follow their twitter, it's quite obvious that their new full length album is out, Golden Rules for Golden People; featuring some of my constantly repeated tracks, "Stallion & Mare," "Mummy Jets," "New Czar," and their new single (which now has a new video!) "Q_Q." Seriously, I have listened to nothing else but these foxes this week.

KAYLEY
Settle Down - Kimbra
So, when Somebody That I Use To Know came out I became astounded by the amazing "Girl" voice in the song. I then found out that voice was Kimbra. Until about a week ago I forgot I had this song on my phone. The sweet tone and sort of, interesting, lyrical topic has been stuck in my head for the past few days. I suggest listening to it, if you loved her as much as I did in Gotye's song.

JEN
Kiss a Girl - Keith Urban
I almost hate myself for putting up a country song, but that's just been my mojo. I have absolute NO desire to study for finals (which start tomorrow, oops) so I've been more focused on my summer that starts Wednesday. Does anybody else feel like it's not summer yet? What's going on? Anyway, this song is summer to a T for me. Not sure why. Guess I'm planning on kissing some girls.... er, guys. Whichever floats your boat. I'm rambling. It's 2am. Too much information on reaction-coordinate diagrams in my brain. CHECK IT OUT.

Haul | Mini Target Haul

Posted by Unknown Friday, May 10, 2013 0 comments

So, seeing as it is finals week, I clearly needed a stress-induced Target run. I think it’s been firmly established that Target is a magical realm where all your troubles fade away (along with your bank balance). That glowing red sign and all those fluorescent lights are strangely comforting. Now before I get too emotional, I should probably talk about these “necessities” I picked up the other day.

Boots Expert Anti-Blemish Night Moisturizer ($5.19)

Who knew that when you turned 20 all of your blemishes didn’t just suddenly disappear? I was completely unaware. Unfortunately, even though I’ve graduated from being a teenager (or nearly have anyway...) I still get blemishes. Shocker. Lately, I’ve been trying to go a bit more natural with my skincare. I use tea tree oil as a spot treatment, and in the past few years have weaned myself off the harsh, stripping cleansers targeted at blemish-prone skin. However as of late, this just hasn't been cutting it for me. My breakouts are sporadic, and not too terrible, but I’ve had it up to here with their shit. So, cue some new products entering my routine. This product boasts clarifying and soothing properties, all thanks to aloe and willow bark. Being prone to redness, I was all for anything that would calm my skin dafuq down and still fight spots. I’ve used this once after cleansing and gently exfoliating, and it’s quite nice. For a night moisturizer, it isn’t incredibly thick – it’s more of a gel texture. Coming up on summer though, that's fine by me. The aloe also makes it fairly tacky on the skin, but I found as time went on it sunk in and became less sticky. I can’t attest to its ability to control breakouts just yet, but I shall keep you updated.

Up & Up Maximum Strength Acne Medication ($3.74)

This stuff is pretty self-explanatory. If you’ve ever had a breakout, it’s likely one of the first products you went to was benzoyl peroxide. This is a 10% concentration formula, which will transform your skin into the god damn Sahara if you aren’t careful. It can also make you more sensitive to the sun, so keep that shit in check. Applied sparingly, it’s mostly just a life saver. I bought the knockoff brand of the Clearasil version, which was a few dollars cheaper. Props to Target for ripping off other brands and calling them out on their overpriced shit. Exactly the same product, mo money in my pocket.

Revlon Colorstay Concealer; 01 Fair ($8.49)

I’ve been using the same janky mineral concealer trio for waaaay too long now, so I thought it was time for an upgrade. I’ve heard a lot about the Colorstay foundation, and I’ve always been impressed with Revlon as a brand. My makeup usually has to last a fair amount of time, so longevity is priority. I opted for this over my various other options because it looks like a grayish neutral shade that could double up for blemishes and under eyes, though I'll probably use it primarily for spots.Upon using it, it’s a bit warmer than I anticipated. I haven’t nailed down the best way to apply it yet or its staying power but again, I will let you know in the future how it has measured up.

Essie Nail Color; Ladylike ($7.79)

For a long while I had a complete aversion to Essie. Yeah, I marveled at their packaging and pretty hues, but I thought nearly $8 for a nail polish was preposterous. Especially when there is a good deal of dupes out there. One day (probably when I was tired, angry, stressed out, or all three) I cracked and bought one. It’s been downhill ever since. Each trip to the drugstore, I justify purchasing another one. I’ve had my eye on Ladylike for a while now, and I can’t wait to have my nails look super classy (to contrast my personality) in the dusky mauve shade.

Maybelline Expert Eyes; Smoked Neutrals ($6.49)

As I was perusing the eyeshadows, as you do, I came across the Sonia Kashuk duo “Down to Earth”. I fell in love with the warm, smoky green shade and just had to have it (the other shadow reminds me of Toasted from my Naked palette). Instead of mindlessly buying the duo, I looked around to make sure I couldn’t find a cheaper alternative. Lo and behold, I found this Maybelline palette which has six more shadows and still cost less than the Sonia Kashuk duo - bottom right was the almost dupe for the green shade. The shadows are velvety soft, and I can see myself using all eight. This product will be a great space saver this summer when I inevitably start to over pack for my various excursions.

Rachel

On Repeat #3

Posted by Unknown Sunday, May 5, 2013 0 comments

RACHEL

Fineshrine - Purity Ring

Yet again, I find myself marveling at Canada this week. Firstly, for producing Ryan Gosling. Duh. Secondly (and slightly more relevant to this post) for putting out my recent obsession – electronic duo Purity Ring. I finally replaced the piece of shit tape converter in my car, and I’ve played essentially nothing else for two weeks. Cue me being a douchebag and turning it up way too loud in traffic. The lyrics read a little more than creepy at times, and Fineshrine is no exception. But hey, I appreciate that. We can’t all sing about dancing like we’re 22. Besides, who doesn’t want someone to build a metaphorical shrine of love for them? I’m down. They’ve even covered Soulja Boy, so this lady and gentleman tick all the boxes for me. Really, what I’m trying to say is, check out deez beatz!

TESSA
Fame Is For Assholes [F.I.F.A] - Hoodie Allen feat. Chiddy Bang

This week I have found myself listening to nothing but Hoodie Allen, Kendrick Lamar and A$AP Rocky. So one of them had to be chosen for this weeks on repeat but I found myself hitting play on Hoodie Allen's Crew Cuts just a little bit more than the others. His music is fantastic, and he isn't bad eye candy either [think Sam Adams, but better music]. I chose FIFA because it's probably one of his more well-known songs off the mix tape, and I also love me some Chiddy. Plus, how could you not love this song? But in all honesty there's not a bad song on this mix tape, or on any of his albums. So if you haven't checked him out before I highly suggest you do so... like now.

TORI
Never Heal Myself- Cults
To be quite honest, I haven't listened to much else from Cults. However, that hasn't stopped this song from being played nonstop this week. Located in a playlist I made on Spotify (ohhh, playlist, how creative), this song plays out angst as well as invoking some self confidence. In the same respect as Blood Orange's Dinner, this upbeat song catches you and tricks you into not feeling so bad about wanting a certain someone to die unhappy. Starting out a bit passive aggressively, the tune and especially the ending lyrics leave you crazy sassy for hours.

KAYLEY
Totally Fucked - Spring Awakening
So, this is a bit of a change from my past two on repeats. I've told you about Marina and Best Coast. This time I am going to tell you about more of my love for broadway. One of my favorite shows is Spring Awakening (any gleeks would be happy to know this is where Lea Michele really got her name). It's sort of an "edgier" musical. Yet, one of my favorite songs from it is "Totally Fucked". It's a song that is super easy to listen to if you're feeling, well, Fucked. One of my favorite lines from it is"There's a moment you know You're fucked Not an inch more room To self destruct" I think we all can understand that feeling.

JEN

Crown on the Ground - Sleigh Bells
So I first heard this song on the trailer for The Bling Ring, a film coming out directed by Sofia Coppola which I could NOT be more excited for. This song is so catchy I can't even handle it. To most people it may just sound like noise but I think it's sassy and makes me want to come home and hang out with my Broke Girls and do crazy college things. Check it out, you'll understand what I mean!

Review | Revlon Extra Life No Chip Top Coat

Posted by Tessa Friday, May 3, 2013 0 comments

When I was on the hunt for a new, cheap top coat, I checked out Revlon's line (per the suggestion of fellow Broke Girl, Rachel). I usually love Revlon's nail polish line, as it's reasonably priced and typically pretty good quality, but I could not have been more disappointed in this top coat.

Revlon Extra Life No Chip Top Coat, $4.97 at Walmart Stores

It does deliver a stunning finish that I'm quite the fan of, but the staying power isn't anything I would have expected. My work is pretty rough on my hands since I have to wash them all the time, so some chipping is acceptable in that case. I was fairly upset when I started noticing that if I painted my nails and later took a shower, I would come out with chips on them, which is not acceptable, especially when most of the time it was less than 24 hours after I painted them (as I'm typing this I'm waiting for touch up polish on three nails to dry).

Overall, I'm very disappointed in this product, and in Revlon for putting it out as I expected more. This is not a product that I will be repurchasing, so it looks like I'm back on the market for a new top coat!

Let me know in the comments below if you have any suggestions for a good top coat, or your opinions on this product if you've used it before!

xx
Tessa

Clean and Clear vs. Neutrogena

Posted by Unknown Wednesday, May 1, 2013 0 comments

     As long as I can remember I have struggled with acne, not only acne but horribly obvious oily skin. Even if there's a week or two where my skin is pretty clear, oil is the main thing that ruins it. So to my rejoice, as of lately acne cleansing companies have been paying more attention to "Shine Control".

(My skin is usually noticeable due to shine. as you can see in the picture. That also features Tessa and Rachel, two of the other broke girls).

     There are two shine control cleansers/masks that I have bought to try to tone down my shiny face. Neutrogena's "Deep Clean Shine Control Cleanser/Mask" and Clean and Clear's "Advantage Oil Absorbing Cream Cleanser".

Clean and Clear- I really like this one, it uses powder to keep away unwanted oil, without completely drying your face out. It has a pretty good smell to it. But, I have noticed it sometimes leaves a powdery residue left on your face. On the downside, after a few hours my skin would start to become shiny again. I would really recommend it for people with semi-oily skin.
$7.99 at CVS pharmacies

Neutrogena- I also enjoy this product because it's not only a cleanser, but if I really need to get rid of the oil there's a built in mask. Just like the other product this uses powders to get rid of and absorb the oils in your pores. However, it can really dry out your skin. I would recommend this for people with very oily skin.
$7.99 at CVS pharmacies

Out of the two, I would have to say the Neutrogena Deep Clean works the best for my skin - as I have very oily and shiny skin daily. It keeps the oil away all day.

-Broke girl no.5, Kayson.