Balms of the Week 6.30.13

Happy Sunday, everyone! I hope you're all having a wonderful day! Rob and I are headed to the Pride parade here in SF today so we're pretty excited about that. I'm also taking Rob to his first ever Bikram Yoga class today, so we're a bit nervous and excited about that as well. He's never done yoga before and the last time I had him try a new fitness class (CrossFit) he ended up fainting and I had to catch him! (That's right, this girl's got some muscle on her.) Anyway, I've been using a ton of balm this week because I've been walking out and about and I've needed to wear tons for Bikram because for some reason my lips get really dry while I'm doing it. Here are the lovely balms I've kept by my side this week:

Vintage Sister's Pina Colada

The Pina Colada balm is amazing, it lasts through eating and drinking and through a good deal of sweating too!

Upstate Herb Works' Porch Party

Porch Party is such a lovely balm for summer, it smells incredible and goes on nice and thick for some added protection.

Long Winter Farm's Watermelon

I've been obsessed with eating watermelon lately, and when I'm not eating it, I'm using this balm!

Long Winter Farm's Blood Cherry

Still one of the best balms I've ever used, it's just so amazing!

Okay, I guess I wasn't using a TON of balm, but I was using a bunch of different flavors!

What balms have you been using this week?

I hope you enjoy your Sunday!

Balms I've Got My Eye On 6.28.13

Happy Friday, everyone! I couldn't wait for this week to be over, I know I'm not working or anything, so everyday should feel like a weekend, but it doesn't. I get so exhausted and I'm just looking forward to sleeping in maybe tomorrow and taking it somewhat easy this weekend with Rob as we try to finalize things before we move in about 3 weeks. Anyway, we've been trying to save money lately because we're paying two rents this next month, so I haven't been able to buy as much balm as I usually would, but that doesn't mean I don't have my eye on a few this week!

Vintage Sister's Bahama Mama Trio

(via)

This trio comes with Blue Hawaii (orange, coconut, pineapple), Island Delight (pineapple and tangerine), and Mango Tango (mango, peach, and papaya). Each balm sounds seriously amazing!

Petite Threla's Pineapple Mint

(via)

I'm not sure if I've already posted this balm before, but oh well! I still haven't gotten my hands on this balm and it sounds perfect for summer. Tropical pineapple and refreshing mint? How can you go wrong with that?!

Ripe Shop's Tangerine Currant

(via)

This balm sounds absolutely wonderful and you guys know that I can't stay away from Ripe Shop balms!

What balms have you been eyeing this week?

Have a wonderful weekend!

Vintage Sister's Lip Lickers

I had been recommended balms from Vintage Sister for a super long time before I finally decided to take the plunge and try them. I don't know why it always takes me so long to try balms from a new shop, but I'm always so glad I did! I've never had balms in a slider tin before, so there was definitely a novelty effect going on (I couldn't stop opening and closing them).

Company: Vintage Sister

Flavors: Flirtini, Pina Colada, and Shangri-La Shea Butter Relief with Lemon Essential Oil. The Flirtini has such a lovely light fruity scent. It's hard to pick out the individual fruity scents, but this balm is seriously wonderful without having an overpowering scent. The Pina Colada is perfect for summer! This balm is so tropical and wonderful, it's a combination of warm, tropical coconut and sweet, ripe pineapple. The Shangri-La Shea Butter Relief with Lemon Essential Oil has an incredible bright, refreshing lemon scent. It's just like I cut up a lemon and took a whiff, it's awesome!

Wear: The balms in the slider tins have a wonderful consistency, you apply them with your finger and a little goes a long way! They're creamy and make my lips feel smooth. The Shangi-La balm (in the tube) goes on beautifully as well! It's so smooth and creamy, it just melts right in to my lips and just like the slider tins, a little goes a long way!

Packaging: As I've mentioned, the Flirtini and Pina Colada come in little slider tins which are seriously cute and different from usual lip balm pots or lip balm tubes. The Shangri-La balm comes in an oval twist-up tube. All of the labels have a cartoony image on it and are brightly colored, I think it really keeps the design cute and fun!

Price: $3.95 for the slider tins and $4 for the Shangri-La balm, both are fairly priced, they're wonderful!

Overall
Pros: Flavors, Wear, Packaging, Price
Cons:

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 twists. I'm so glad I finally tried some balms from Vintage Sister, I need to stop waiting so long to try balms from shops that are recommended to me! I'd definitely recommend trying some Vintage Sister balms.

Ingredients:
Slider Tins-Soybean Oil, Beeswax, Sunflower Seed Oil, Cocoa Seed butter, Shea Butter, Vitamin E, Natural Additive (as sweetener), Color, Flavor
Shangri-La-Shea Butter, Apricot Kernel, Yellow Beeswax, Lemon Peel Oil

Have you tried Vintage Sister balms before? What are your favorite flavors?

Live Beautifully Whipped Lip Butters Part II

It's been a while since my last Live Beautifully Whipped Lip Butter review, so I thought it was about time I posted one! What I love most about Live Beautifully is that they have such a wide variety of lip products to choose from (lip balms, lip balm pots, lip jellies, and whipped lip butters) and that each lip product line has some pretty amazing and really unique scents.

Company: Live Beautifully

Flavors: Pineapple & Vanilla and Butterscotch & Vanilla. The Pineapple & Vanilla has a light pineapple scent combined with the creamy scent of vanilla. The Butterscotch & Vanilla has a rich butterscotch scent combined with creamy vanilla, it's really wonderful!

Wear: These have such a lovely consistency to them! They're whipped and creamy and go on just beautifully. They make my lips feel soft and protected. They go on wonderfully!

Packaging: These whipped lip butters come in little pots with screw top lids. I love the way Aaron and Nicole designed their labels, they're just so simple and polished looking. Each pot has a different colored label according to the flavor of the balm.

Price: $6 per pot which is kind of steep for me (since my upper limit on most products is $4), but you do get twice as much product so it's worth it.

Overall
Pros: Flavors, Wear, Packaging, Price
Cons:

Rating: 5 out of 5 twists. These Whipped Lip Butters were pretty wonderful, although I do have to admit, my Lime & Vanilla Whipped Lip Butter is still my absolute favorite!

Ingredients: Shea Butter, Cocoa Butter, Grapeseed Oil, Essential Oils, Natural Flavor Oils

Have you tried these Live Beautifully Whipped Lip Butters before? What did you think of them? Which flavors are your favorite?

Epically Epic Part XI

Since my haul this week is so short and I didn't have posts for you on Monday or Tuesday, I thought that I'd include a review in today's line up! I hope that's okay with all of you =). It hasn't been too long since my last Epically Epic review, so I hope you enjoy looking at some more of Allison's wonderful balms!

Company: Epically Epic

Flavors: Banana Split and Shamrock Shake. The Banana Split smells absolutely incredible! You can definitely tell that there's banana and ice cream in this balm! It's just wonderful! I'll be honest, I've never had a Shamrock Shake before, I don't know why but they seem kind of weird and gross to me (probably because I don't really eat fast food, so a trip to McDonald's usually isn't on my list of places I like to grab something to eat). But, if Shamrock Shakes are anything like this balm, I may be missing out on something pretty tasty! This balm is super minty combined with creamy vanilla, it smells absolutely wonderful!

Wear: These balms go on sooo smooth and slick. One swipe on top and one on bottom is all I need to get proper coverage. These balms aren't as creamy as my usual balms, they're a little more on the oily side but it's definitely not a problem. These balms have a wonderful consistency and go on beautifully without being too thick or too thin.

Packaging: These come in your average sized lip balm tubes with labels that are colored to match the flavor of the balm. The shop name and the flavor of the balm is placed right on front of the tube which makes it super easy to identify which balm you're reaching for.

Price: $3.75 per tube which is totally worth it for one of Allison's wonderful balms!

Overall
Pros: Flavors, Wear, Packaging, Price
Cons:

Rating: 5 out of 5 twists. Okay, seriously, this is my 11th review on Epically Epic balms, obviously I love them. If you haven't tried them yet, you're missing out! Allison has so many amazing flavors, you really can't go wrong with any of them!

Ingredients: Pistachio Butter, Jojoba, Sweet Almond Oil, Castor Oil, Vitamin E, Candelilla Wax, Flavor, Natural Sweetener

Have you tried these balms from Epically Epic yet? What did you think of them?

Haul of the Week 6.26.13

Hi all! I'm so sorry I've been absent the last two days, I was just so busy doing things with my friend who came into town to visit us that I didn't have time to get on the computer at all. Then I was stressing out about all this stuff that's coming up with our move in less than a month and I wasn't sleeping well and I ended up just being so exhausted the last two days. I'm hoping to be back to my normal self by the end of the week! Anyway, my haul this week is super small, but the balms are just wonderful!

Aqua Blossom

I also just ordered the five new balms Ashley posted and I can't wait to try them! Seriously, she's been on such a roll with these new flavors, I can't get enough of them!

What balms did you receive this week? Did you get anything that totally blew your mind?

Happy Wednesday!