All posts for the month August, 2019

The Tag Quadrant: The Boujee Beauty Youtuber/Blogger Tag!

Hello to all of my beautiful nerds and welcome back from traveling the vast universe! Since Hurricane Dorian is out in the Atlantic I figured I should post this before he gets close.

The Boujee Beauty YouTuber/Blogger Tag!

Disclaimer: What I am about to talk about in this tag is based on my opinion! I don’t have the same thoughts and opinions as everyone else so please respect!

Well, time for another tag! I saw this on Spooky Lips and Fat Hips’ channel through my subscription feed. I learned about her through Angelica Nyquist and thought I would check her out and even Karen Harris also mentioned her. She is a gothic YouTuber that loves makeup and when I watched her video since other people did it too she tagged everyone who was watching. I figured it would be fun to do a post since I am not only on YouTube but also here on Word Press! So enjoy what I have to say!

Would you rather buy one expensive/luxury or a group of items for the same kind of money? Hmmm! I would say there are times where I do get one expensive item and then get a lower priced item unless I have a coupon while other times I do buy one or two or maybe many items for a certain amount since I do love my drugstore items more than a luxury or expensive item. I do pay my bills so I do think about what I will be spending even with the upcoming 21 Days of Beauty where I am just focusing on three items at the moment.
When you’re buying products do you believe in the phrase “You get what you paid for?” Sometimes yes while other times no. There are the everyday YouTuber that reviews items honestly and that makes me think about purchasing the item since that’s important because if you buy something that is extremely expensive and it turns out crappy then it’s not worth it. Plus, there are items I have gotten that either aren’t reviewed really high that work out for me and times where that product was not that great in the end. It can be a win type situation depending on what you get. Plus, there are times when I do buy items I really love and continue purchasing because it did work out in the end.
What’s the most expensive item you have purchased with your own money? I would say my Jeffree Starr Blue Blood Bundle! As you know that I love the color blue and it is our color aesthetic for this blog and this past spring Jeffree Starr released his Blue Blood pallet and it became the Hunger Games over on his site, Beautylish, and Beauty Bay! I got the bundle with the pallet and the mini liquid lipsticks for $100 because I wanted to try his lipstick formula and oh man it was worth it! I wore Abused to my friends’ birthday party this year and they thought it looked amazing on me and I do love the root beer scent that Jeffree puts in his lipsticks and they are more moisturizing than others. While the pallet, on the other hand, I have to keep it from being used so much because the colors are so amazing in pigmentation! I wished I tried his stuff earlier but glad to do it now!
Are you willing to buy products at full price or at a discount? Both! Because there are times that a product is really new and I must have my paws on it that I wait for the release like for instance the Urban Decay Naked Honey pallet coming out in September since I do love the Naked series and have been collecting the pallets and do use them time to time. While other times they do go on sale and I do love the coupons and the discounts places give out like E. L. F., Colour Pop and even Ulta! I love Ulta’s point system and even their sales like 21 Days of Beauty where they do a day for certain products from 25% off to half price. I can’t wait for this coming one since I have my eye on Tarte’s blushes, the Dose of Colors lipsticks, and the Urban Decay eye pencils. And I did love my birthday discount which as Platinum I get $10 off and since I am close to Diamond I think I get something different. I will see how that goes. I do save my points like I did this past birthday so I am saving my points for the Naked Honey.
Where do you shop beauty products the most? I would say both Ulta and Target! Reason being is that Target tends to have their beauty items cheaper than most places like CVS, Walgreens, even Walmart when they say they have the lowest prices but I am asking again, do you guys feel like Walmart is raising their prices? I feel it. Anyways, I do use Shipt and Target is my number one place for food and beauty products when I need them in a pinch especially skin care. I am loving the Up & Up brand since I am trying their moisturizer which I am going to say is that it’s better get drugstore items for skin care since they are stepping up. While Ulta, like everyone else, they have an amazing points system which you can save them for money off a higher end to luxury item. Remembered when I mentioned my birthday? I saved up to $20 in points to buy myself my new flat iron, the new Urban Decay foundation, and a bottle of my favorite Wet N Wild foundation and added my birthday coupon. Plus, there are times where they do really good sales on different departments like around Christmas they do a certain percentage on hair tools, they do that 21 Days of Beauty sale twice a year, even 20% off at random times with the different tiers of membership where you can also use it on prestige brands. Not only is that BoGO also good too! For instance, I got half off on one Maybelline mascara recently when I bought another tube of the Angel Falsies mascara.
How often do you get your nails and/or hair done? Normally I do those things at home! I remembered getting a French manicure and it broke on me in two days because my nails get abused due to my typing and also washing dishes. I also rather buy my own nail polish, top coat, and base coat, and of course nail polish remover which would cost you the same as a manicure at a salon or beauty school. While hair, the last time I had it done professionally was highlights at a beauty school in town which I may not go to again since they made my hair go twiggy after blow drying it and putting hair spray. That is a bad thing and I had to put so much of my R&B to get it back to normal, oh right Shine So Bright too! I am not sure who teaches the hair coloring department but hair spray and hair drying after getting it done is bad since you hair can get damaged after chemicals touch it or it’s depending on the type of hair you do it on. Besides, when I get my hair flat ironed it is my own flat iron which I did get a new one from Con Air and using the Marc Anthony Hair Dryer cream as my protectant. I also rather trust my tools over the professional ones and plus sometimes you are paying a lot for a hair stylist to do it too. I think the next time I will have my hair done professionally is my wedding.
Do you prefer long or short nails? Short! I do love the ease of long nails for scratching that annoying itch but I hate it when they break so often so I clip them and plus I do read Braille so one false scratch there it goes!
Which makeup brush brand is your favorite? Like Lacey in her video I get my brushes from so many brands it is not even funny. I mainly get them through my boxes every month like Ipsy, Glam Bag Plus, heck BoxyCharm got some during July, and I think I got one or two in Allure so far. Plus, I do buy them on special from Ipsy and of course from Amazon because you can get really good brush sets for good prices. Oh right, even Coastal Scents have good brushes and you hardly hear about them on YouTube anymore.
High end or drugstore mascara? I admit both! I tend to have my mascaras last more than three months. I know it’s a hygiene issue but if it’s still liquidy then I am good or if my eyes hurt slightly or water then it has to go! My all-time favorite high end mascara has to be the Urban Decay Perversion mascara because of how great it curls my lashes and even lengthens them. I remembered getting my first sample of it in my Ipsy bag and then more samples followed suit until Ulta put it on sale for the 21 Days of Beauty and this mascara stays liquidy even past its expiration date and it took me so long to finish it before it dried too. While my favorite drugstore one goes to Rimmel London because the Super Curl is better than the Roller Lash from Benefit in my opinion because it does the same as that one! And of course I do enjoy the ones from Maybelline like the Colossal Cat Eye, the Angel Push Up, and now added Lash Discovery which is holding up pretty well so far.
Think of your favorite makeup brand, is it drugstore, high end, luxury, or indie? I would say my favorite drugstore brands are of course Wet N Wild and NYX Professional Makeup because those two were my starts in makeup. I still remember how my first lip gloss came from Wet N Wild and it was from a Kmart that used to be open up the street from my parents’ place which is now an Ulta. While NYX had more of the items I liked to use and even with the packaging since I prefer using concealers in jars over wands, even have eye primers in jars, heck I prefer the Hydro Touch primer the most since my skin is so dry. When it comes to high end, Urban Decay was my gateway into that side since my first item from them, full size by the way, was their Naked Basics pallet. I have grown a lot when it came to my makeup choices.
Considering your answers do you think you’re boujee? Nope! The thing is you don’t have to spend a lot to love makeup. Yes, I do like getting some of the higher end stuff but I do love going back to my drugstore roots when it comes to skin care, hair care, and of course the makeup staples. It’s not like I spend a lot on Chanel clothes and always buy Natasha Denona makeup pallets, you mainly see me using a BH Cosmetics pallet or a Wet N Wild trio time to time when most of my other high end stuff come from subscriptions or just get them from sales if I can. One good example is the Sephora birthday gift a few years ago when I got the Marc Jacobs gift. It was not worth it because the lipstick felt like I was wearing Cream Cup from Mac when their Spooky Lips and Fat Hips aka Lacey’s Channellipsticks around $17 each while Marc Jacobs is up in the $50 range. I even remembered how Gondras’ mom got mad at a seasonal worker at Lush who treated me badly and even caused my skin rash had a schpeel about how I could just go into Sephora for my skin care needs when I just go to Target instead and plus with Lush I can get way more than just shopping from Sephora, just saying.

Anyways, that is it for this post! I know it was a lot and I feel like it was easy for me to say this stuff in blog format. I will link you guys to Lacey’s channel since she is a really good YouTuber and I enjoyed what she had to say in her video. I will have the next book review up since I am re-reading The Librarian’s Vampire Assistant Book 3. Stay tuned!

Leave a comment
by moonleopard85 on August 30, 2019  •  Link  •  Permalink
Posted in beauty, Tags

Posted by moonleopard85 on August 30, 2019

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2019/08/30/the-tag-quadrant-the-boujee-beauty-youtuber-blogger-tag/

The Favorites Quadrant: July & August 2019

Hello to all of my beautiful nerds and welcome back from traveling the vast universe! I am back with another post!

July and August 2019 Favorites!

August is ending and you know what that means! It is time for another bi-monthly favorites. This year has gone by fast and soon I will be celebrating a year moving away on my own from Orlando. I still remember how I was looking for places, packing, and so on. Even though that may happen again but now I am still at my place. Anyways, I do have a quite a few favorites but let’s start with my subscription review!

Subscriptions: BoxyCharm was great last month but not so great this month. I felt like that July had better products since I felt more at ease using what I got in there. I love the Butter London pallet because the colors are up my alley and they are so pigmented and easy to blend. I did use this in my No Brand Tag video due to how easy it is to navigate. I do use my Appeal pencil for work whenever I have a green eye look and did like the brushes but the foundation brush got gunked up easily after blending my foundation in. I do still have the other two where I sometimes use the smaller one to use on my under eyes and the crease one as a blending brush. I did finish the lip gloss because I felt that it was not much in the container but it did feel good on my lips and the mask was okay, not my cup of tea since I prefer the ones from Lush in Rosy Cheeks, Cup O Coffee, and Oat Fix. While August, I didn’t like it as much as July’s. I was happy to get a Becca product since that is the setting powder. I am using my NYX Translucent Pressed all over my face since I want to finish that up before I use my Wet N Wild one and the Becca one and I saw that Allure sneak peeked one from Laura Mercie in September so can’t wait for that one. I am glad to get powders in boxes because it saves me money at the store. I am using the Wonder Beauty Glow Ahead Oil every night to help with moisture and it’s not bad of a product either. The Tarte Big Ego Mascara is pretty good so far, I don’t have bad flakes like most other ones out there and did not touch my Pur Cosmetics mask due to the one I got from July. I did not use the false lashes since I don’t use them ever since I am using mascara and my lashes look fine on their own. I am hoping September is better since the sneak peeks have not revealed much so hoping it will be better.

Allure Beauty Box: I feel like I am enjoying this one as time goes on despite one month being a meh month so far which Gondras did make a good point that these boxes are like Loot Boxes since you don’t know what you’re getting or what everyone is getting. July’s was pretty good since it was a collaboration with Huda Katan who owns Huda Beauty. I love the liquid lipstick as always and still using the hair product to this day. I remembered the hair product samples running out so quickly but not this one and that’s a good thing. I will still give the lashes away. I did try using the Tony Moley mask but it was hard to get out of the packaging so I threw it out and just used a snail mask I already had and did put the eye pencil from Urban Decay into my liner bag. While this month’s box, I am enjoying the water cream since I do love using moisturizers. I am also using the eye cream before I put down any concealer and enjoying the Cargo lipstick. I think I lost the topaz glitter and did put my Benefit mascara in my big Caboodle. I can’t wait for September’s box to see how the products will go for me.

Ipsy: July and August were pretty good because I was able to get another eyeliner pen for work and of course enjoyed the curl cream from Twisted Sister. I did get a full size tube. I find it better than the Marc Anthony one and my curls just become more bouncy with this one. The Benefit Mascara is in my big Caboodle and did wear the Balm eye shadow with my Space Case shadow that is also lavender. I do like how they blended together. I may have to try out the full on Tea pallets from the Balm. I did put the Ciate London highlight I got in my Z Pallet with a magnet since I have one pallet for any face products I get. This did blend like a dream and very easy to apply. While August was also pretty good with the selection. I got two lip products, one which is a lip balm from Inc.redible and Adesse. I found the lip balm okay wished it was in a pot since it says “Jelly Shot” and I think an item in a pot over a stick. While the lip item from Adesse I need to try out still. I am enjoying the Coco Cabana cream which I’m using it on my hands since the soap at work is very drying and it helps with the moisture out. It does smell like coconut which is a good thing.

Glam Bag Plus: Glam Bag Plus for July and August was amazing and these two months I was able to get something I wanted and that was the Purlisse Green Tea Moisturizer which I have not opened yet since I still have primers to use and of course getting to try out more Wonder Beauty items, got the Mauve Obsessions pallet from Huda, and so much more. I was happy the most when it came to another Suva Beauty item which is the Hydrating Drops which I am planning to try out soon. I am also excited with the Balm pallet that I got this month due to it containing major hit products. I am going to be super excited about getting makeup bags with this subscription starting in October since Ipsy is growing and glad to be back with them since last year.

Favorite Pallet: Tarte Be Naturally You: I did get this item in a BoxyCharm but it seems like I am reaching it a lot more than usual. I feel as though that Tarte doesn’t get out of their neutral comfort zone but at the same time they have amazing eye shadows with the Amazonian Clay formula. I did get the Clay Play Vol. 2 recently since Ulta had a sale this month and since I am getting back into Tarte they seem to grab my money the most with pallets. I tend to use this pallet more for work related looks for any clothing that may have brown in the color mix or something that would match and yes there are the shimmer shadows but not everyone that is able to see at work notices. They are very blendable and glad to get this and will keep on using it.
Butter London Natural Goddess Pallet: Another favorite pallet is the Butter London Natural Goddess and also got this in BoxyCharm. This is my first Butter London item and glad to try them out this way and it is a pretty summery pallet due to the green and the teal in this pallet. I do use this for work if I need a pop of green and brown mix and a neutral teal look without going crazy for work. I did use this in my No Brand Tag video which is on YouTube and used the teal side for it. This is a pretty to use pallet where the shadows just line up who they are supposed to and glad to get some use out of this. I think I have dents already in these. Way to go Butter London!

Fave Hair Product: Twisted Sister Curl Activator Cream: Next is fave hair products and I have to give it to the Twisted Sister Curl Activator since this is better than the Marc Anthony Curl Cream that I tried from Ipsy. This was up for grabs as an Ipsy Shopper item and decided to get it after loving the sample I received. This does not make my curls feel sticky at all and the smell is good and glad it is not in a squeezy packet like the Marc Anthony. I prefer a squeeze tube so I can control it and for sanitation as well as product control. This was not even that expensive which I was worried about since it is a UK based brand. I am glad it is a drugstore priced brand and will be buying this.
Marc Anthony Bye Bye Frizz Hair Dryer Cream: I use this item as a heat protectant even with my straightening iron and it does help from damaging my hair even further. I am glad to use this more as a heat protectant since that one heat protectant cream I tried is a spray which I wish they kept it as a cream since you have more control with a cream over a spray. I do love the scent of this product and it does help keep my hair smooth.

Fave Lip Product: Maybelline Lip Ink Color: Next is a drugstore lip stick and that is the Maybelline Lip Ink Lip Colors. I got into these all thanks to Allure mentioning the one in Pioneer and had to get it. I picked it up through Shipt and worn it around work and got compliments. I do have one in Inspirer but this one is more drying. I think the City line is more drying or it’s just this one? I have to keep using it to see how well it goes but I think Pioneer is my favorite one.
Dose of Colors Liquid Lipsticks: I am enjoying the liquid lipsticks from Dose of Colors which I remembered starting getting one through BoxyCharm and then got it in their Charm Shop and now got one of the minis from Ulta. It looks like I will be getting more of these since they will be an item in the 21 Days of Beauty this time around and the reason why I like these is that they aren’t too heavy, smooth in application, and they smell great! I can’t wait to see what shades I can get my paws on this time!

Fave Blush: E. L. F. Primer Infused Blush in Always Rosy: Next is a blush since it’s been forever ago I have mentioned one and I give it to the E. L. F. Primer Infused Blush in Always Rosy. I heard so many good things about these blushes and had to try them out and found a Free Shipping sale and got one of them. I decided to go with Always Rosy since it is my go to blush shade and man this is such an easy to apply shade and you don’t have to go wild on it either for pigmentation. I know E. L. F. can be hit or miss but this product is a hit in my book!
Alomar Blush Pallet: I got one of these in BoxyCharm and there are times it’s hard to resist grabbing it to use. This is a great product for the price if you bought it for retail price since it is around $13 for three shades. You can mix and match but I like to use the middle shade in Perdicio I think that it’s called. Glad to enjoy this item.

Fave Brow Product: Mellow Brow Pencil in Dark Brown: I know it sounds weird but all thanks to getting this in BoxyCharm I have been loving it! I have been using this to set my brows after using my Control Freak brow gel and my Tame & Frame in Chocolate on the weekends. I like how the tip makes the product go on smoothly and it is not too hard nor pull the brows. I hope to try more items since I did get an eyeliner pen by these guys in Ipsy I believe?

Fave Sponge: Juno & Co.: I heard about these guys through Hot Mess Mama MD on YouTube and when Ipsy das doing an Ipsy Offer with a set of sponges and a cleaner I had to try this out and man tried and using a sponge from them currently and oh man! It was not a regret! This blends my foundation so well and even the solid cleanser is pretty good too! This sponge is very well made and porous and easy to make the foundation glide with the flat side, the butt side and now using the opposite side from the flat one to blend my shadow more. I have to keep on using this one and also try the other two.

Fave Book: Break the Day by. Lara Adrian: Yes, Lara Adrian finally released book 16 of the Midnight Breed series! I was waiting for this one and even happier since it was following Rafe this time due to the end of the last one, Claimed in Shadows, shown how he got hurt and almost cost the lives of the Breed and their mates alongside the new baby that Rinata and Nikolai brought into the world. Not only that we get to see another Breed female by the name of Devani and I find her pretty awesome since she wanted to go for music but a tragedy caused her to go after Opus Nostrim to avenge her family’s death. I think I prefer how the Breed Males and Females work with each other like this like how Chase and Tavia did adoring the final book of the first ten books and wishing they keep bringing more Breed females since of course Tavia is looking for more of them. Who knows what they will uncover next. Apparently 17 is coming out next year and can’t wait for that one either. I may read the Dark Hunters since that expands on the Hunter Breed where Hunter came from and we already had two novellas that dealt with two of them and of course we did get how Hunter hooked up with Corinne in Book 9.

Well, that’s it for now guys! I will have another book review up for you next1
Until next time!

Leave a comment
by moonleopard85 on August 30, 2019  •  Permalink
Posted in beauty, Books, Favorites

Posted by moonleopard85 on August 30, 2019

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2019/08/30/the-favorites-quadrant-july-august-2019/

The Beauty Quadrant: Ipsy August 2019!

Hello to all of my beautiful nerds and welcome back from traveling the vast universe! Time for my last subscription for August!

Ipsy Glam Bag August 2019!

It’s finally here guys and glad to get it! It was in Transport Limbo at FedEx until it finally shipped out recently. I understand that add-ons can cause it to delay except it sucks that it’s close to the twenty-fifth. Enough of that! This subscription is $10 until October because it’s going up by $12 due to some new perks like picking one item and getting five add-ons. I can’t wait for October! Watch, September will fly before I know it. Anyways, let’s get into the bag!

Add-Ons: I didn’t mean to buy any but Ipsy would not shut up even when you press the VO+Spacebar on No Thanks! Anyways, I did get a few items from the add-ons and they are two brushes and a shadow. First is the Royal & Langnickle Cheek Blush Brush in Rose Gold. You all know I love me some rose gold and this brush caught my ears. This is a nice fluffy brush and meant for blush. I will be trying this out! I also got a brush from SL Miss Glam and it’s their E66 Angled Eye Brush! I want these brushes in my Glam Bag since they are amazing even with eh quality. I have some sets and man they are so soft. Glad to find this item along with the Suva Beauty eye shadow in Barbecue. It’s weird to hear shadows named after condiments but hey it’s their idea so not complaining. It claims to be water-resistant and very opaque. This is also supposed to be easy to apply which Madison Miller said that it’s best to apply these with your fingers. I think I will apply with a brush which you can. This is a plum foil color so can’t wait to try it!

Items:

Sol de Janiero Coco Cabana Cream: First is an item I was a curious kitten about ever since BoxyCharm had it and that’s the Coco Cabana Cream from Sol de Janiero. This brand is famous for the Bum Bum Cream and glad to try their newer cream. It’s been a while since I got anything lotion related in my bag and glad to get this. This smells like coconut cream pie! People say it smells like popcorn but I smell coconut. This cream contains coconut oil and acai oil alongside ceven coconut sugar and one ingredient that is hard to spell to help with hydration even for dry skin types over time. I am glad to get this!
Inc.redible Jelly Shot Lip Quencher in X Revenge: Next is another item from Inc.redible and that is their Jelly Shot Lip Quencher which is a lip balm. I thought it was going to be in a pot but it’s a stick. This lip balm contains avocado oil, rice bran oil, and Vitamin E to help with moisture. I did run this across my lips and didn’t feel it so I have to try it further. Glad to get a lip balm again.
Adesse All Day Lip Crayon in Beverly Boulevard: Next is a product by Adesse and glad it’s full-size. This is also a lip moisturizing product that has Vitamin E and many other oils blended to keep the lips moisturized from work to night with a high impact color. The shade is a deep rose and glad to try this out!
Luxie Beauty 237 Dream Catcher Blending Brush: Next is a brush from Luxie Beauty. I love this brand oh so much! I am glad to get another brush but surprised by how small it is! I think this is more of a detailed blending brush for your crease. Wait, it is meant for the crease! Okay, makes sense! I did get the highlighter brush from this same line in an Ipsy bundle from Offers and love how it feels. I can’t wait to use this on my eyes. Keep the Luxie brushes coming guys!
Nails Inc. Nail Polish in Weekend Super Heroes: Finally is another nail polish from Nails Inc. This time it’s a green color! I remembered redoing my quiz and it asked about nail colors and I checked off green so that is how I got green in both boxes. This is a cool khaki color which I can’t wait to try. I wished I had it earlier because it could have gone well with my khaki pants this week. Anyways, it is supposed to be glossy and long lasting so I will see how that goes. I am so glad for nail polishes appearing in both this bag and my Glam Bag Plus!

Now onto items I finished:

I Am Trash Perfume: I am not going to write in French since it can be butchered so I am using the English name here. This was the smallest sample I have ever gotten and it did smell good but faded too quickly. When I wore it to work it faded by lunch time and that sucked. I also notice that it is pretty pricey for what you get even in a set which Ipsy had as an offer but it was over $100. Sorry but I get perfumes cheaper than that and last longer, one good example is my Harley Quin perfume from Hot Topic. It is a nice and musky smell that lasts all day!

So, that is it for this month’s bag! All I have to say this was pretty good for what I got. I can’t wait for the new updated bag in October where I can pick one item on both sides which will be fun. I did get to pick one item in this bag once and it was great. I can’t wait for what September may bring and crossing my fingers that no hurricanes take place since it’s the peak of the season. So, until next time stay beautiful while traveling the universe!

Leave a comment
by moonleopard85 on August 24, 2019  •  Permalink
Posted in beauty

Posted by moonleopard85 on August 24, 2019

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2019/08/24/the-beauty-quadrant-ipsy-august-2019/

The Book Quadrant: THe Riddle of the Sphinx by. Alexander Montague

Hello to all of my beautiful nerds and welcome back from traveling the vast universe! I am back with a new book review!

The Riddle of the Sphinx by. Alexander Montague

Disclaimer: This review is based on thoughts of the lead writer of this blog. Please respect her thoughts and opinions on this literary work.

Synopsis: This book gives off three perspectives with one boy escaping Tyran on horseback to a student in Princeton going through a love affair that leads to trouble, and finally ends a lawyer trying to find out about himself at his job and how he fits in.

Thoughts: I know that was a short description of the book but it was pretty much written like that on the NetGalley page for it. This book was an interesting read. Even though it says it’s a psychological drama but I didn’t see much in the first part of the book since it deals with a shah losing power in 1970s Tiran and yes it does lead with the seeing how a boy kind of has a sexual relationship with a boy and then ends with a so-called death and goes to Princeton. Apparently this book follows a boy named Kavan in the beginning and I think his name gets changed to Eric from what I’m seeing and it shows how he has a thing for men since we see it early on in the book with a friend that ended up going missing and was tricked in going with a teacher to be in a radical group. Then we go to many years later where Eric is a college student and meets a guy named Mark who ends up dating each other and this causes some complications when he meets up with the shah prince Ali and somehow they were seen to be connected and an article kind of makes things more complicated. This book was pretty complicated even though when it got to Princeton I felt the story was more cohesive due to how it is a young man exploring his gay side and able to love himself and his partner. I wished the Princeton stuff was the entire story since the older Eric was him in the start of the book where he has a wife and two daughters. I wonder if this book is supposed to do three stories with different possibilities.

I did find it strange is that I was wondering why did this book had the title The Riddle of the Sphinx and it did get revealed towards the end where Eric has a dream seeing himself in Princeton and him as a boy and he wonders why is he seeing these two versions of himself where the Princeton one fell ill with AIDS while the kid him was trying to head home when he remembered being brought to Paris. I just wondered is that did he get found with the group of boys in the desert somehow and was rescued with the rest of them? I would like to know. I have a feeling the riddle deals with how different lives can be experienced by the same person but the outcome is always survival since the boy version was that he survived the desert trying to find his friend but got tricked, his Princeton version was in a great relationship until a guy he spent a night with screwed it up and causes a break up and leading to his contraction with AIDS with a stranger even though he thought it wasn’t real but survived potential suicide, and now his adult version where he wonders if being a lawyer was what he really wants and his daily life is his survival? That is what I can tell from what I read.

Rating: 3 Star Paw Prints Out of 5! I found that this book should have just stuck with Princeton instead of having the other two parts to it. I found it more intriguing since it did show the drama of college life and how someone can get into a homosexual relationship depending on who you are with easily. Well, love is love and can’t judge it. I did find it funny that the wife in the end of the book did figure out that Eric was into men but didn’t want to leave him because it would look bad since they are a couple that is seen out in public a lot. Even though this was an interesting read but it was kind of confusing and the title for it was hard to fit in my mind. Doesn’t mean I can’t leave the link in case you guys want to read.

Well guys that is it for this post! I hope I won’t take too long with any of the other books since I have so many to read. Now hoping my Ipsy does come soon since I still need to post that! So stay tuned!
The Riddle of the Sphinx Book Link

Leave a comment
by moonleopard85 on August 22, 2019  •  Link  •  Permalink
Posted in Books, LGBTQ, Reviews

Posted by moonleopard85 on August 22, 2019

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2019/08/22/the-book-quadrant-the-riddle-of-the-sphinx-by-alexander-montague/

The Beauty Quadrant: Glam Bag Plus August 2019!

Hello to all of my beautiful nerds and welcome back from traveling the vast nerd universe! I am back with another box post!

Ipsy Glam Bag Plus August 2019!

It’s that time of the month where I get my Glam Bag Plus! This is the upgraded version of the regular Glam Bag but you get full size items and it is only $25 a month. A new bit of news that starting in October there will be a makeup bag included. Wasn’t there one in every other box when they started? At least it will be showing up again. I will talk about the changes to the regular Glam Bag when I get it in a few days. Let’s see what I got!

Murad AHA/BHA Exfoliating Face Cleanser: First product is from Murad and it’s an exfoliator. I wanted to try this brand for a long time now ever since Bunny has mentioned them but the price got me. This cleanser helps refine the skin to help with it to absorb other skin care and it contains glycolic and lactic acids that help with breaking down any dead skin cells to improve turnover. It also has salicylic acid to help clean the pores of any excess sebum and the hahoba beads are able to help with cleaning the skin. When I found out I was getting this in my box this month I was happy about it since I am going through a too much skin care phase at the moment and my Three Times Sublime is helping me with that. When I run out I am going to use this and man it’s a huge tube of cleanser! I think it will last me a good while!
The Balm of Your Hand Greatest Hits Vol. 2 Pallet: Man that’s a long title but I did get a full on The Balm pallet this month! I love this brand and what I have tried in the fun size form whehther its lip items or face items, I loved it! This pallet contains shadows, blushes, a bronzer, and highlighter for an all-in-one travel friendly pallet. This also includes crowd pleasing shades that mix and match very well. I can’t wait to use this pallet since I have loved the shadows I have tried from the pallets they have released, heck I finally got the Nude Beach Pallet in a bundle last month. If you haven’t tried these guys I suggest doing so!
Suva Beauty Liquid Illuminating Drops in Trust Fund: Yay! Another Suva product! I loved the Hydro Liner from these guys after getting it in my first Glam Bag Plus and glad to try out another item. These drops are a face highlighter which are supposed to be waterproof, which is a good thing since it does rain a lot here in Florida, it also contains pomegranate extract, Vitamin E, and natural emollients to give that everlasting glow. I can’t wait to give these ago since they are supposed to be waterproof and of course having friends visit this weekend and the weather says rain then I will put these to the test!
F. A. R. A. H. Show Me Now Brush Set: Next is a five brush set from F. A. R. A. H. Brushes! I love this brand among the others when it comes to brushes! Some people have complained these brushes feel cheap but I think they feel lightweight and great since it’s better to have that than a heavy handled brush even if it’s $50 for the set. Not kidding guys, that is how much it retails for. I remembered getting a similar set in a similar size as an add-on before I joined this side of Ipsy and have gotten other brushes in the Glam Bag as well, I think the last one from these guys was a double ended brush and that was great! I would say give these guys a chance!
Sundays Nail Polish in #44: Last product is a nail polish by Sundays! I never got to try these guys in the regular Glam Bag since for months I didn’t get any nail polishes until a few months ago. These polishes are supposed to be very pigmented, very shiny, and claim to be long lasting which that will be put to the test on my nails since I do wash my hands and type at the speed of light. Also, this brand has polishes that are 10-Free which means they are free from the harmful chemicals that are found in other nail polishes. The shade with this one is a cool, minty green which excited me since I do love wearing green polishes. I will so wear this one next!

Well guys that is it for this post! Wait! I do have to mention one thing I did finish from my Glam Bag Plus!

Sunday Riley C. E. O. Moisturizer: Yes, I finally finished this this past week and glad I did. I normally don’t do Vitamin C moisturizers but wanted to see how this went. It didn’t irritate my skin at first but when I added the Pixie Glow Tonic and the facial pads I picked up from Ipsy’s Offers page that was when it started irritating a bit. I think it’s due to the ingredients not meshing well and trying to finish up the Pixie stuff since I am now using a Target Up & Up Moisturizer for sensitive skin of course! It did smell good and it did last me two to three months with how big the jar was. I won’t purchase this product even though they do carry sensitive skin friendly items but they are so overpriced! This item is $65 alone! I can buy three to four containers of Celestial from Lush for that price and one container lasts me even longer despite it being a smaller size than this product. Sorry Sunday Riley I prefer my drugstore moisturizers and if I wanted to go back, Celestial is also my favorite.

Now that completes this post! I am glad that Ipsy is getting a major upgrade and glad to hear that new makeup bags will come with this box. I am so happy with what I got this month and can’t wait to try everything out! Next will be a book review so stay tuned!

Leave a comment
by moonleopard85 on August 21, 2019  •  Permalink
Posted in beauty

Posted by moonleopard85 on August 21, 2019

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2019/08/21/the-beauty-quadrant-glam-bag-plus-august-2019/

The Beauty Quadrant: Allure Beauty Box August 2019!

Hello to all of my beautiful nerds and welcome back from traveling the vast universe! I am back with a new post!

Allure Beauty Box August 2019!

It’s that time again and that is my Allure Beauty Box! This box is created by Allure Magazine and its $15 a month while new subscribers get it for $10 for their first month and some gifts on top of it. You get from five to seven items ranging from skin care to tools and even hair care items that have been mentioned in articles in their magazine or if you read it online through emails like I do. Last month was a collaboration with Huda Katan and man I loved that lipstick but let’s see what this month had in its pouch.

Benefit They’re Real Mascara: First up is a mascara from Benefit. I have tried their Roller Lash and I find it is okay since the Rimmel Super Curl is an exact dupe and glad to see what other mascaras Benefit has and that is the they’re Real Mascara. The claims are that they take the lashes and make them longer without using false lashes and that it doesn’t smudge even on a hot summer day. I will definitely put this to the test since we are really in a heat wave at the moment with a mix of rain since we are heading into the peak of Hurricane Season. This is a deluxe size which is a decent size for one and it values for $10.
Nuria Triple Defend Eye Cream: Next is another eye cream which is pretty interesting in packaging and it’s a full-size item this month. This has a disk applicator and it doesn’t give a lot of pressure so it won’t hurt the under eyes and also it doesn’t crease concealer when worn under makeup which I will try this out since I do put on my concealer before foundation. The last eye cream I tried was pretty good and did help with application so hoping this will also help. This values for $40.
Erno Lazlo Multi-Task Serum Eye Mask: Next is an eye mask from Erno Lazlo and you get one set in this box. These patches contain allantoine which is a moisturizing agent that helps under eyes look more awake even when you have long days. I think these will be handy since being a teacher and always waking up SUPER EARLY for my rides every day I do look exhausted by the end of the day once the final bell rings. I was surprised that is a drugstore valued product and I wonder how these will work since they do fit the under eyes. This values at $6.
The Makeup Eraser Mini in Black: Next is a product from Makeup Eraser and well it is just a towel. I know I am not that surprised by it since I do love my makeup wipes. This claims that you wet this and you wipe it all over your face and it takes off everything even waterproof mascara. I doubt it since I have seen Bunny’s video on it too and I am a little skeptical since I have been using coconut oil and that gets a lot of stuff off but my lashes still feel oily while my Formula 10.06 takes off a lot of stuff but this is a little skeptical and not sure if I will use it myself. This values for $12.
Primera Alpine Berry Water Cream: Next is a water cream from Primera. When I opened this it reminded me of the Belief moisturizer I got in a Ipsy skin care bag but this smells a lot more woodsy than that and it reminds of the scent Juniper Breeze from Bath & Body Works. Jenny Bailey, the Executive Beauty Director, visited the Primera shop while in Sol, Korea which this is a Korean Beauty brand and Korean beauty has been on the rise for many years and found that the shop had plants and a lot of products. This cream is made with not only seeds but also Glycerin and Cocoa Seed Butter. It does absorb very fast so I will have to see how this goes and hoping it doesn’t irritate my sensitive skin. Also, this product is now available here in the U. S. and it does value for $4.Cargo Cosmetics Essential Lip Color: I am familiar with the brand Cargo since I remembered many years ago with Ipsy I got a lip item from them and never got them again. I know they sell at Ulta and this is supposed to be a lip color that stays all day and makes your lips look plump. We do get a full size item and shades may vary. I am not sure which one I got but I can’t wait to use it since I do love trying new lip products. This values for $22.
Laritzy Liquid Beam in Topaz: Final item is another product from Laritzy and if you’re wondering, yes I got my lip gloss finally that was missing and enjoying it! This item is a highlighting eye shadow in a bronze shade. This can be worn all over the lid or just in the inner corners. It did go on pretty well since I am wearing the Tarte Clay Play Vo. 2 on my face right now. This product values for $22.

Well guys that is it for this month’s box! I am very excited about the items since it does make up for the getting false lashes last month as an item in it and glad to get to try another Cargo lip item. I have to see how the Primera Cream works out since I have tried other Korean products and even have a few in my collection of sheet masks and glad you can get Korean products in the states since Asian Beauty has been a big subject. I will also have to give those eye patches a try since I do wake up really early in the morning during the week and the Benefit Mascara will be fun to use!

Leave a comment
by moonleopard85 on August 18, 2019  •  Permalink
Posted in beauty

Posted by moonleopard85 on August 18, 2019

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2019/08/18/the-beauty-quadrant-allure-beauty-box-august-2019/

The Beauty Quadrant: BoxyCharm August 2019!

Hello to all of my beautiful nerds and welcome back from traveling the vast universe! I am back with a new post and it is…

BoxyCharm August 2019!

I got my BoxyCharm pretty early this month and it is in time for my birthday and well this felt kind of a bust. I will tell you now! Yay! I heard so many people rave about this brand, especially their highlighter in Champagne Pop, but I never bought anything from them. This is a nice way of getting into these guys for me since I am new to the brand. This setting powder is Becca Hydromist and Refresh Powder: First is my official Becca product! This product is basically a powder made with water as part of the powder which I did feel it and it does. I did get the light shade from what I could see and I can’t wait to try this out since my Wet N Wild powders are hitting pan this time and I have been wanting to use more of translucent powders. I still have my NYX one and did get the Wet N Wild translucent powder from the Photo Focus line. Let’s see what happens!
Wonder Beauty Glow Ahead Oil: Next is a product from Wonder again and it’s an oil this time. This is an oil that restores the complexion with whatever skin type you have which I did watch a sneak peek video saying it is only for dry and other skin types except sensitive. Here is the thing though if this is meant for all skin types then do the research into it first because I do like this brand so far and they haven’t really broken me out from what I’ve tried nor irritate my eyes either. I will try this item since I do have dry and sensitive skin and will have to see.
Tarte Big Ego Mascara: Next is a full-size Tarte mascara and that is their Big Ego mascara. I am glad to try a full size Tarte mascara especially this one. Apparently it has an hourglass shape and supposed to help with make lashes longer and bigger so hoping it does follow through.
Pur Complexion Authority Pink Glitter Mask: Next product is from Pur and apparently they have skin care. This is one of the other products you could get and it sounds interesting. This $26 mask is supposed to give an everlasting glow and hoping it does. I hope my skin doesn’t break out due to the glitter since my arms can’t handle it.
False Lashes: Don’t know the name but as you know I am not into wearing false lashes so I will give these to one of my friends.

Yes, you can see this was a bit of a bust this month. I was hoping to get the shadow duo from Ace but didn’t and or course the Steve Lorent lip liner which I am sad. I did not put false lashes on my profile because I don’t wear them due to wanting to keep my natural lashes thank you very much! I hope with September it will be better since I do love this subscription but I am glad to try out something from Becca and another skin product from Wonder Beauty. Let’s see how it goes next month!

Leave a comment
by moonleopard85 on August 9, 2019  •  Permalink
Posted in beauty

Posted by moonleopard85 on August 9, 2019

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2019/08/09/the-beauty-quadrant-boxycharm-august-2019/

The Blind Tech Quadrant: Review On Tap!

Hello to all of my beautiful nerds and welcome back from traveling the vast universe! I am back with something I have not done in a while.

Review on the Tap!

It’s time to review another blind tech item which I have not done since May. I have reviewed OrCam which you can find in the May 2019 Archive alongside in the Related Posts area down below. Let’s get to the review shall we?

Disclaimer: This review is based on opinion and experience of the lead writer of this blog. Please respect her thoughts and opinion and her experiences since not everyone has the same issues and successes with a product. You have been warned.

What Is It? The Tap is a wearable device that kind of looks like brass knuckles and you wear it on your hand. There are censors that go on your knuckles and it is connected through Bluetooth and can be used as a way to text by tapping your fingers in different formations to form letters and words. This device was introduced at the 2018 NFB National Convention and I got to see it in action and try it out at the A. T. I. A. this past January and picked up one myself. Let’s get into it.

My Experience: I received a discount coupon for this through going to A. T. I. A. where it was demonstrated. I was so excited about it since I had heard about this device through the Blind Abilities podcast. I had to check this device out and glad I did and man it was a hard one to learn. This device made my motor skills give a major exercise and my arm a workout with how much I had to move to make the taps work. I did have my IPad Mini 2 at the time before I got my new one which I will explain later and downloaded the Tap Manager, Genius, and Aloud apps at the time. I didn’t know Aloud was more the learning the alphabet app when trying out Genius which that was a hard one to do since I didn’t really know the navigation and trying to know which buttons are which at the time were hard enough. The Tap Aloud app was the place where I learned everything and glad it is the better app due to not only giving you the hand motions to do the letters but also the practice rounds to do the letters first then do words and punctuation along the way, which I will talk about now!

Struggles and Issues: Not all devices are perfect and this one is no exception. I had issues where the Tap Aloud app kept on kicking me out after learning new punctuation and even did it when I re-installed this app and Manager, also got Academy just in case and re-connecting my Tap after a while. I did find the device had an update and glad to get it. I did contact Tap Team about it and yes we did have a bit of a back and forth because I think this app and the others should get updates, heck Academy is not letting me do anything since it is still at allowing notifications. And to tell you the truth, I have an IPad Mini 5 and I have the latest I.OS updates but seeing that this is still an issue is no excuse. Updates are meant to fix bugs and when they asked me to do a screen recording which good thing I was able to do and find instructions on it I did provide them a recording and they were glad it gave them what is going on, which I used the lesson on Y & W as an example to learn the semicolon which is using C, fingers 1, 3, 4, and 5 which are your thumb, middle, ring, and pinky and you tap them together three times for this punctuation. Heck, it happened with comma, which are fingers two and four, index and ring, which I did mention the team that they should look at the other lessons since it happened with some of the others too and fix the issues there and they told me that it tends to crash. What were my feelings? Well, as an instructor and a tech user myself seeing Tap on Amazonthese issues can be bothersome and being able to bring it up to the company is important for them to know in order fix it. For example, when I first got into Discord I noticed how the app was not accessible where the buttons aren’t labeled for the voice software is able to read it and I brought it up to them over Twitter. I was thanked and was told that they will fix it to make it more accessible which makes me feel better that they gave me a great response.

Now to the struggle with it, I have motor issues due to my visual impairment and that usually is the first sign with it as well and even though this device made that stronger in the end but also it did hurt trying to do some of the letters. Some of them included Z, J, V, and sometimes W due to how the finger placement was kind of difficult. I think they should crate later models with wristbands to help not only with comfort but also help people with motor issues get the finger placement when first learning this device.

And one more thing, even though I just restarted this use of the product, I noticed after learning the different letters and numbers that after getting out of the app and trying to type in text messages and even Pages that the letters were not responding to their positions which I had different letters show up instead. Like instead of the letter I I got M and so on. After getting the new update that was fixed! But I noticed that using it to do the basic functions like double tapping to select an item and trying to swipe on a surface with this to perform the IPad tasks aren’t happening even after the device update. I did get the email about how with the new I.OS coming in September with Tap is supposed to have mouse movements and since also IPad OS is being released in September too for anyone who has the Apple tablets I am hoping there is another update for this device to handle both systems and their new features that are coming. If not, well that’s going to be a major issue there. I did read how some people did struggle texting after learning it too so I was not the only one either after seeing reviews after its release on the internet when I notice the not being able to swipe or double tap and so on.

Final Thoughts: This device is pretty innovative for what is. It is also not that expensive either which is $199 or if you were to attend any events where it is you will get discount codes and coupons through their website also by joining the mailing list any sales throughout the year. I would say buy it after some of the improvements I have mentioned that are needed are made. I feel like even though this is a great device as a substitute for Dictation with Siri which as you know that I have issues with that a lot but it does have its bugs and should have them fixed by updating the software more often which a lot of apps and devices do and of course do the same with the apps too since I have told what had happened with me. And of course you have the latest and greatest device to support this item but there will be issues so I would say wait a little bit until after I.OS 13 and IPad OS 1 are released and if I noticed the improvements I will do another post on this down the road.

Well guys that is it for this post. I hope you enjoy reading about this device and if you want to learn more, I will also include a link when you want to purchase this for yourself or your blind buddies. So, stay tuned for more posts and stay beautiful while traveling the vast universe!

Leave a comment
by moonleopard85 on August 4, 2019  •  Link  •  Permalink
Posted in Uncategorized

Posted by moonleopard85 on August 4, 2019

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2019/08/04/the-blind-tech-quadrant-review-on-tap/