Frank Cacao Body Scrub

Okay, so ever since I started this blog (a whopping two months ago), I have had my eye on a few products that I really wanted to try. One of the first items that sparked my interest was an all-natural vegan body scrub made from coffee and other great-for-skin (and great smelling) stuff. So, once payday took its sweet time rolling around, I went and purchased my very first body scrub. And that, my precious readers, is how Frank entered my life.

Frank Cacao Scrub with nails and lip to match the purple and white label

Let me just say I think I've probably read through the entire website about four times. I wanted to make sure that I knew as much about this product and brand as possible. The website (here is a link to their site) is set up very nicely, which I always like when a site is not only easy to use, but unique and aesthetically pleasing. As you can see, Frank did a great job with both. The FAQ answered all of my inquiries about this, as well as the feedback account I saw on Instagram (there's one account solely for consumer's reviews/feedback pictures and WOW the results are good). After a lot of reading and rereading, I decided to see if it lived up to the hype. Frank did not disappoint.

There are three different types of Frank that you can buy. There's the original (orange label), which has sweet almond and orange. Then there's the coconut & grapeseed (mint label), and their newest one, the cacao scrub (purple label). I was torn between purchasing the coconut and and cacao scrub– the only reason I vetoed the original is because I, for some unknown reason, feel indifferent towards orange-flavored or orange-scented products. That's not to say I'm against trying it ever, but I wanted to pick a different one for my first Frank purchase.

Frank is supposed to do a lot of great things for your skin, besides just exfoliating and smoothing. He (yes, I will keep referring to an inanimate object as a person because the brand does and I adore it) also targets cellulite, stretch marks, psoriasis, varicose veins, eczema and acne. Now, I don't have anything majorly wrong with my skin, although I do have some 'shapely' thighs (as my mother says. "They're not big, they're shapely!" Love you, mom.) that could use a bit of improvement, skin-wise – as well as muscle-wise, but Frank is unfortunately not a workout routine/scrub combination. I'm solving that issue on my own. Anyways, I figured trying out a body scrub couldn't possibly hurt, seeing as though I'm not allergic to any of the ingredients. Frank is from Australia, so it took a bit longer to receive him in the mail, but it wasn't anything unbearable. Plus, shipping is free in the US, which is always music to my ears. I'd say I got my Frank about ten days after I purchased him, though mind you I ordered him towards the weekend so he probably wasn't shipped until the following Monday.

When I did receive Frank, I was elated. Finally I would get to try this bad boy (haha, get it? Because his name is Frank... sorry) out for myself. The steps are easy: "Get Naked", "Get Dirty", "Get Rough", and "Get Clean". They're rather self explanatory, so I'm not going to be redundant by repeating them. If you would like further explanation on the steps, go check the site linked above!

Back to my own Frank, though: I just tried my Cacao Frank scrub and WOW. My skin has not felt this smooth since I was a baby. Not that I remember, but I'm pretty certain this is the closest I've been to baby-smooth since I was an actual infant. And the smell of coffee is surrounding me without suffocating me. I know this scent won't last when I wake up tomorrow morning but at least I know that my dreams will be beautifully blissful and include LOTS of coffee. I'm not kidding you when I say that I just took a small break from typing this out so I could smell my shoulder and smile.

Because I have only tried Frank out once, and that one time was about an hour ago, I don't have any review or opinion on whether or not this product really works. I will say that my skin is super smooth and incredibly delicious-smelling, and I am already eager to hang out with Frank again in two days–Frank recommends that you use him 2 to 3 times a week, which I'm perfectly fine with. I will be sure to publish another post in about a week or two and give another review on the oh-so-charming Frank! Until then, cheek out this picture of me and Frank spending some quality time together on the right!



That's all for now! Stay Resplendent!

Delicious Macaron Lippies form NYX!

I have always loved fun lip colors; however it wasn't until recently that I began to divulge in the idea of having bright and fun lip colors for myself. Being the incredibly fair-skinned redhead that I am, I often stuck myself in the box of only being able to use soft pinks and neutrals, telling myself "I could never pull that off." Well you know what? Screw that mindset. ANYONE can pull off ANYTHING they want if they do it right and wear it with confidence. (Side note: this theory can also be applied to dietary restrictions, fashion styles, Iron Man phone case purchases, you know- things that happen in your daily life)

I own several different bright reds, nude pinks, corals, berries, etc. now, and just a few weeks ago I decided to take it to the next step: blues, purples, oranges, anything and everything. Why not, right? So when I saw NYX released a line of "Macaron Lippies", twelve brightly-colored opaque lipsticks, I just had to try some.  My box just came in the mail yesterday form Ulta (my favorite makeup store at the moment!), and I have been dying to try these four out! The shades I decided to try first are shown below.

From left-right: Blue Velvet, Lavender, Coconut, Chambord

NYX Macaron Lippies swatched

First off, let me just say I really enjoy NYX cosmetics, and it was an amazing coincidence/miracle that their Macaron Lippies came out around the same time I wanted to try bright lipsticks, because it's better quality than drugstore makeup (in my opinion), but around the same price. It's a perfect brand to play around with if you're unsure of something. That way, at least if you don't like what you bought, you're not out an arm and a leg for it. These lipsticks are about $6 both in store and online, and Ulta sometimes has a BOGO 1/2 off deal for NYX cosmetics, so it makes it even better– and even harder to pass up! I started with these four because I know for a fact I have nothing else like these four colors, and before I splurged on a high-end lipstick in any of these hues I wanted to make sure I liked the color itself on my lips.

Blue Velvet

Blue Velvet
To be honest, shortly after I purchased this lot of lipsticks, I wished that I had bought NYX's "Earl Grey" in the stead of this one, because it's a lighter blue-grey and it appealed to me a bit more, but I wasn't rueful enough to cancel my purchase and do it all over again. So I did my best to keep an open mind. Putting it on was certainly shocking for me, but the more I looked at my lips the more Blue Velvet began to grow on me. Not my favorite of the four, but definitely a good thing to have if you enjoy doing crazy lip art.

Lavender

Lavender

I was super excited to get this one, because I have been dying to try a purple to clash with my ginger locks. This looks like the perfect pastel purple, as far as lip colors go; though I will admit, when I swatched in on the back of my palm, it seemed a bit more sheer than I had hoped, as you can see on the second picture to the top. However, once I tried it out on my lips, the color was as opaque as I originally thought! Really love the softness of the color; so much so that I could actually see myself wearing this one for a fun night out.

Coconut

Coconut
This one was a big risk for me. Seeing as though it's probably closer to my skin tone than a normal human being's nude lipstick (ba-dum tsss), I wasn't sure if I should go for it. Then I realized I was putting myself into that 'no fun' box once again, and so I shook my head, flipped my hair and added it to my cart. This one, although probably my least favorite of the pack for my own personal style, was still really good! I had to put on a few layers just so it looked completely opaque, but after that it was shockingly white and very interesting. Same thing for Blue Velvet: not a favorite, but definitely good for some crazy lip art down the road (I have some ideas in store that both this one and Blue Velvet will come in handy for).

Chambord

Chambord

Not going to lie, this and Lavender were the two main reasons I decided to go onto Ulta's website. Black is definitely back, and I think it's safe to say we've finally gotten past the whole "any black means goth" phase. I, for one, adore wearing black. Wearing all black is its own style, in my mind, and I love it, live it, encourage it, etc. So this was the first one in my shopping cart– actually, if we're being honest, it collected dust in my shopping cart while I deliberated on what other three to get. Lavender joined it in the cart not too long after, however. The moment I put this one on, my eyes widened with delight. I love it! It's the perfect black, it applies a lot better than I imagined, you don't need too much for it to look good, and frankly it's just really cool and intense. Against my pale skin and red hair, it's definitely a statement to wear such a color, and I adored it. Not something I would wear to a family event, if we're being honest, but I cannot wait to wear this one out for a night with the girls. I am wearing Chambord as I type this out, actually, because I want to see how long this will last before I need to blot, take off, redo, etc. So far I'm three hours in and we're good!

All in all, I'm pleasantly surprised with this line of brightly-colored lipsticks, all of which applied very smoothly and have a nice satin finish. My favorites are (clearly) Chambord and Lavender by a long shot, though I will be using Coconut and Blue Velvet for lip art sooner or later. I can't wait to get my hands on a few more from this line (the next on my list for the Macaron Lippes are 'Pistachio' and 'Earl Grey'!), as well as trying other brand's bright colors.

If you have any suggestions as to what beauty items I should try out next, feel free to comment below!

Stay Resplendent!