I know the B. Pure Glow Up line is quite divisive of either being a smell-good with actives low on the list or incredibly helpful that also happens to smell good, and have actives, although low on the list but not a deal breaker for the price.

I have many products I use, but I use each serum to hold in moisture in layers, the Glow Up Illuminating eye cream after application of my other DT eye creams (I have a migraine so my words may be sloppy today) with the GBC Collagen & Lift Eye Cream now being my favorite for long last hydrating with the B. Pure Lifting Eye Serum being the second, since I noticed it’ll plump and tighten to a point, but not to its full ability since it doesn’t have enough to grip to?? If it understand what I’m saying.

Also, the serums before makeup holds my under eye powders really well without cracking, and has a blurring effect overall.

I use 1 pump of the B. Pure Strawberry Smoothing Serum, 2 of the Watermelon Serum, both spread evenly on my face and 1 of the Glow Up eye cream after full application of my eye creams.

What are your most used skincare products?

One of the stores I went to actually had these, I was curious about it because a poster on this side of the interwebs was so excited to come across them!

Con? I can’t open it, I keep spinning and twirling it, I’m afraid it’s going to pop up like a jack in the box! The ingredient lists are fascinating for $1.25!

Have you seen these before? These were at my closest store, stock untouched. I’m not sure what brand they’re meant to be inspired by if that, but they’re going into my golden era DIY pour le bain bath essence.

I’ve had this weird thingamabob for a minute, I picked up GBC Jade Gel-Cream Moisturizer because it has allantoin in it but when I opened it… what in the green goo. It smells like cucumber aloe play-doh along with the generic play dough, and it has the nerve to glitter.

Maybe I’m late to the party and haven’t came across other’s experiences with it, but I gawk at it when I need a tiny amount of serotonin since I find it so ridiculous.

My first 16” corset, Mystic City Corset in MCC-20 16”, purchased early December 2025, but maxed out on my iliac crest in later December, which is why it started flexing at the top. I wore 9-12 hours a day while at work, slept it in sometimes.

I began waist training March 3rd 2025 with Amazon corsets that would warp easy, then bought my first MCC in September 2025 which was a MCC-20 in 22”. Current is MCC-139 in 16” with 4” expandable hip ties (haven’t taken pics recently) that’s a lot more forgiving.

I found the other part of the equation of the B. Pure Olay dupes, although it has retinol in it, and use it on my elbows, feet and other areas that don’t get sun on it.

I was very excited to see the Spathecary Turmeric Glow line although the In Shower Mask was the only one left, but disappointed that Turmeric (Curcuma Longa Root Extract) is at the bottom of the ingredient list.

I smelled the mask to see if it could be used on the face too, but it has that weird squeezy smell?? along with Playdoh and a slight spice smell, so I may try it, but it smells overly juvenile & generic unlike the packaging.

I used the LA Colors Beauty Pots in Love Triangle and Trifecta today as the main characters, and the darkest shade from Marie Claire Eyebrow & Hairline powder in the crease as well black shade from LA Colors Smokey palette in “Supernatural”.

I didn’t show yesterday’s look because the gray shade in the LA Colors 4 Color Baked Eyeshadow “Nightlife” created a HAWT mess, and not in a good way. It migrated everywhere and wasn’t up to par to share.

I’ll elaborate as soon as I can, but today’s eyeshadow is a great improvement from yesterday’s!

I figured it would be easier to lay out what I exactly did than be caught up in my explanations. I was overthinking when I’d say I’ll write up the steps, so I hope this is clearer.

What do you think?

WHAT HAD HAPPENED WAS I was opening up the blush to swatch tomorrow, and since my nails are long, I usually open it up with tweezers but since I didn’t have tweezers nearby, I used my teeth and I didn’t expect for it to be so WELL FILLED where the product went SPLAT!!! inside my mouth, on my palm, so it’s as dusty as dusty pink in 2012-2014! This is a golden era Tumblr pink!

I wasn’t even squeezing the damn tube yet a 5th of it ended up on my teeth! Pro or con??

I don’t know.

Well filled, shimmer underneath as you blend (hard to see, I’ll try to photograph better tomorrow) and I’ll have to find out how I’d use something so dusty.

I was so confuzzled leaving work today, because it’s usually tumbleweeds on the way there and in the parking lot, and I’m like, “WHAT is going on?? It’s like Monday traffic here,” then I see cards and balloons and feel silly I forgot what the day was.

Sundays I usually have no traffic, free time to browse without shoulder bumping and a wide selection, but no, it looks like a tornado went through there and most things were gone since this was no normal Sunday.

Before I went to checkout, I went BACK to the basics that weren’t empty since I try new things to see if it helps with skin or burns my face off, since I rather have a hard time at Dollar Tree with everyone else grabbing in bulk than buying something more mainstream, and same results of helping or burning my face.

Since the psychology with buying something cheap, if it burns your face it’s because it’s cheaply made and low quality.

The psychology for premium to expensive and burns your face, the actives or ingredients were too strong, so what the F??

That thinking is outdated now.

Happy Sunday (my Monday) and happy Mother’s Day if you’re a mother, and to your mother, whether biological or chosen!

I’ll have to write up how I used the 4 palettes after work as usual (and 2 DT runs) but shimmer palettes by itself aren’t my strong suit since I usually do a solid color + shimmer color, not a shimmer as a base and more shimmer.

My powder is kind of bright today but hopefully the TN heat will melt it in 😂 and I did try the aloe soothing mist as setting spray, but after my normal setting spray in case anything melted off, but it melted in my makeup more, and left a tacky feel.

Talk to you all later!

I’m getting ready for work tomorrow since your Sunday is my Monday so Fridays are my Saturdays 😂😂 the cloth is from drying my makeup brushes.

You may think “BAAWDDY lotion you use on your face??”
Yes, yes I do. The textures are of a thick face lotion, since if they repackaged those same BODY lotions as face lotions in a smaller pump bottle, y’all would still buy it! I spread everything I use downwards anyways.

The rest is upstairs in my bathroom or nightstand. “Whaat?? More?? What about for everyone else?? No one can use all of that, you have 1 body” These aren’t* *scarce, especially the lotions, so you can buy the same.

In case it wasn’t apparent, I’m vain, sorry to spoil it for ya and I decreased my discretionary spending with Dollar Tree products, and you can too!

It really started last year when the car I had for 7 years broke down due to transmission issues, after I spent $150 on 2 new tires for it to go downhill (literally, rolling back in traffic, tires squealing when attempting to accelerate, the transmission knocking back & forth against the frame) and literally the same year my grandma passed unexpectedly, not sick AT ALL.

I understand when people have major events (because 2025 was horrible, on the 23rd day my parent got laid off 2 weeks before her 24th job anniversary and the 24th day grandma passed) and financial setbacks usually mean you have to cut back, stop the fun and wants, full survival mode, compounded by grief and I told myself “no, you’re not going to race to the bottom and give in to a setback.”

I chose even longer, extravagant nails and wore more makeup than before because I didn’t want to associate pleasure and things I did before with scarcity and stress.

I built myself up from the VERY basic, the 1.88 store and improved my makeup skills I never honed because it was based on beauty store sales and if I was going to spend 2 hours of my check on light concealer or setting powders I didn’t know how to use, when there’s others who have looked put together for much less, because it’s based on TECHNIQUE.

The second picture is from last year when I finally caught on to laying my powder and misting.

3rd picture is from last year, 2 months after the 2nd pic, after I learned how to lay my setting powder and powder blushes well for a blurring effect.

I did get distracted telling my backstory.

That’s why I’m so passionate about this sub, because last year it began with cheap makeup, through that I mastered my concealer, bronzer, contour, powders and this year, Dollar Tree having both cheap makeup and skincare.

Just because it’s cheap doesn’t mean you’ll look cheap.

This is not your mother’s Dollar Tree 10 or 20 years ago and I’m sure not even 5.

It’s about the skincare prep, technique, your brushes/applicators, primers (my eyeshadow primer isn’t cheap, my pore blurring face primer is very very cheap) and patience.

If you’re feeling frustrated by DT makeup not laying how you expected, you’re on the right path! I promise.

Y’all know I buy skincare and makeup like it’s going out of style since I think in drag queen, and becoming the best caricature of myself I can be!

It’s not rolling out of bed 1 hour before I leave, a face mist, oil, serum, light face lotion, moisturizer and spf, then makeup. No! I am the whole show and do the works!

My skincare prep takes 45 minutes to an hour because BABY, I’m from Nashville and our 4 seasons change by the day, my car barely blows cold air when it’s HOT outside and work blows dust at me 40 hours a week, yet my MAKEUP LASTS!!! The prep matches what I expect!

I have dry, sensitive skin and I saw this mist the last couple times I went to DT, but I was like, “no, I won’t even spend $1.25 on something that’s going to be scented like aloe vera but filled with alcohol, fragrance and water,” and I was so wrong.

The smell upon first impression was a doozy.. dark cucumber detergent since it has cucumber, liquorice and aloe vera extracts that until now I realize aren’t artificial fragrance (until the bottom of the ingredient list that is fragrance) and the scent lingers for 3-4 minutes.

It sprays in a fine mist, grips and adheres to the skin well, mattifies (ain’t even a word), soothes due to the additional calendula extract and is very hydrating. I’d probably buy 2 every DT visit (I use a heck of a lot of mists)

I was afraid when spraying it on my face, it would react like I kicked an angry beehive but no!

They need to make this in a serum, oil, lotion, mask!

IT IS SO HYDRATING! I can’t believe it’s $1.25!!

I don’t use it by itself since it seals in whatever’s underneath it and I rather it not seal in ashiness.

I spray this in my hands to mix in with my other face mists like Dermasil Hydra Mist and (non-DT) rosewater and oils, like Dermasil Oatmilk Restorative Facial Serum AND also Dermasil Face Serum Oil w/ virgin marula + ceramides, then onwards and onwards, I can make a post on my full skincare prep routine if you want (it’s 97% DT products) and would be pretty long!

I bought the B. Pure Fresh Fig Scented Feminine Body Wash yesterday, and tried it last night only on my body.

Last night is the last time I’ll ever use this! It does have the feminine wash scent & base, but it foams like a son.. and my opinion of it is that it’s a bubble bath masquerading as a feminine wash.

I am SO glad I didn’t even try it down south because FIRST I never smelled fig in it and second, as it rinsed down in the shower, certain spots on my body were like “👀👀??? What is you doing??”” And became EXTREMELY itchy!

Like on my ankle, elbow and any parts of my skin that had a scratch or itch, itchier than an MF! I

After I stepped out of the shower, I used the Smart Care Aloe Vera Soothing mist all over, then like 6-10 drops of the Dermasil Oatmilk Restorative Face Serum on damp skin (from someone’s comment yesterday for what they did for their daughter that has eczema, I was like, “yesss queen let me try that,”) on the affected areas, and they stopped itching, and that was that!

I was more frustrated that it didn’t smell like fig and I got hoodwinked 😂😂 Just soapy bubbles and like other feminine washes or wipes watered down!

I used Marie Claire Eyebrow & Hairline Powder Medium-Dark with the lightest on my lid, middle on the crease and darkest also on the crease. I went over it with the metallic Black from L.A. Colors 4 Color Baked Shadow “Nightlife”

On the crease again, I dotted the whitish silver from** Nightlife **in the middle of the crease to the lid! On the lid I went over it with very light passes of the La Mercerie Sunlight Bronzer (it’s very silky yet powdery, light passes) as well as a light dip of every color from L.A. Colors Baked Shadow in “Praline” across the lid.

I then did a moderate pat on the middle of my lids with the powder from L.A. Colors Sculpting Duo.

I was planning on using the metallic black shade from L.A. Colors “Nightlife” palette and the Marie Claire Eyebrow & Hairline Powder Medium-Dark on my lids, but it didn’t lay down (don’t get me wrong, it’s vibrant and shows up, I’d use this palette for a nude look) solidly like I thought since it is very powdery.

Only the darkest shade laid down like a high quality shadow because it’s both a powder and clay-like in texture.

I may try the light-medium Marie Claire Eyebrow & Hairline Powder’s** **darkest shade to replicate the high end finish I thought every color would hold.

I used L.A. Colors Beauty in Bloom collection Highlighter in “Whimsy” on my cheekbones, forehead and chin. I didn’t show the swatch yesterday (last pic), but it’s 2015-17 rose gold in a nutshell! I was too young then to indulge in the beam highlighters in their heyday!

Again, I’d buy the same medium-dark MC palette again and I’d recommend you buy it as well but for my work where it’s dusty and giant fans blasting in your face, I don’t want to look windswept in a bad way or “Who Did It and Why??” when I’m going to Dollar Tree after 😂😂 and I always have editorial finishes.

Happy Saturday!!

I See a High End Look in Your Future!🔮

Ooooo these are going to be so scrumptdiddlyumptious I’m going to use the baked black shadow on the crease!!!

But beware, I did notice one popped out of the pan when I was in the store (5TH picture) 👀 the more you know 🌠

Why pay celebrity MUA brand prices for a sculpting shadow palette when you can pay $1.25??

Choose your skin shade range and voila!

I’m not sure what to say, except it’s surprising it’s $1.25! I’m impressed by the pigmentation and that I wasn’t digging & packing it on!

I’m surprised!

I bought L.A. Colors Beauty Pot Eyeshadows in shades Love Triangle and Trifecta, and they do have an ultra soft texture and finish.

I wouldn’t say they have smooth like butter finish, (they are NOT gritty in the least bit) but more like a dry oil or aged silk satin fabric. These would give a great high end finish if blended with darker shades!

L.A. Colors Eyeshadow palette in Playful is definitely K-Beauty inspired!

I picked it up because it had pink shadows honestly although the packaging looked boring, and once I swatched it, I was like WOW this looks like something I’d pay $23 (and import duties 🫩 + tax) for from a proxy site! Don’t judge a book by its cover!!