imissmymarcjacobs

This tumblr is an extension of my blog (imissmymarcjacobs.com) & my Instagram (@imissmymarcjacobs), which are the primary places I post & create content for. So if you're unsatisfied with the frequency of posting here on this tumblr, definitely go check me out there!

[imissmymarcjacobs]

Olive & June The Studio Box Review

Olive & June’s “The Studio Box” Contents: What’s Inside the Box?

Screenshotted from the official Olive & June website, here is a list of everything included with your purchase of The Studio Box, which currently retails for $50 USD:

Since the screenshotted list above contains kind of a lot of additional, unnecessary “fluff,” I thought I’d make my own, simpler, cut-to-the-chase list in case that makes it easier for anyone:

More Simple List of What’s Included in the Olive & June - The Studio Box:

The actual box, which is only really worth mentioning because it’s supposed to be able to be used to assist with “nail selfies,” i.e. you’re able to put your phone in a lil slot at the top of the box and use the box itself as a nice, convenient lil backdrop for photos of your mani.

A cute lil mess-resistant pouch, which fits all of the remaining products inside it except for the nail polish remover. You can also, obviously, empty the products out of the pouch and use the pouch for anything else you feel like using it for, and I feel like it would be easy to find a use for this pouch since it’s made of a nice slick, mess-proof type of material.

A teeny-tiny nail brush that you can use to help easily clean up nail polish accidents or mess-ups without getting nail polish everywhere or messing up another nail, because that just always freaking seems to happen, right?!

Nail File, which is super cute and definitely embodies the whole Olive & June aesthetic, I mean as much as you can really expect from a nail file tbh. The actual, physical nail file has the Olive & June logo printed on one side, and “#OLIVEYOURMANI” printed on the other side. The whole file has a cute baby pink allover background color, and the printed logo and text are white.

Nail Buffer Block, which - like the nail file - is about as cute as you can really ask for in something like a nail buffer block. The actual buffer block is completely white except for a printed, baby pink Olive & June logo on one of the sides.

Flat-Edge Nail Clipper, which looks pretty much exactly like any other traditional pair of nail clippers except that it has a flat-edge instead of a curved one, and it also has “Olive & June” printed on the top in cute pink text.

Cuticle Serum that happens to be one of the things (iirc) that Olive & June have really become known for, and a quick look at the ingredients will tell you why! I’ll show a screenshot of the Cuticle Serum’s ingredient list as we delve a lil deeper into this review.

“The Top Coat” is, of course, a nail polish top coat. It’s clear, the bottle and cap are silver, and that’s about all there is to say at this point!

“7-Free” Nail Polish (color of your choice) - I chose the color CHM, which is described like so on the Olive & June official website: “A sheer tan that flatters everyone, can be worn anywhere, and looks good every single time.”

Acetone-Free Nail Polish Remover Pot - yes, the kind you actually stick your finger into, not the kind where you dump the liquid out onto a cotton ball or something like that. This nail polish remover appears to be quite small, and the amount of product included is 70mL or 2 fl oz.

“The Poppy” - Olive & June’s Universal Polish Bottle Handle that I was honestly very confused by at first, lol. Basically, it’s a big ol’ rubbery, kinda circular… handle, I guess is the best way to describe it haha, but it’s essentially, to my understanding, supposed to make painting your nails much more ergonomically-friendly, since holding this big soft rubbery thing is - I guess? - better than painting your nails the normal way where you just hold the not-so-uncomfortable-to-me-personally-at-least actual top of the nail polish bottle.

And that’s everything that comes in Olive & June’s “The Studio Box!” I know that was sort of a long-winded start, and we’ve only just gotten through the freaking “included products” list, lol, but I’ll try to keep the rest brief, concise, and to-the-point.

My Thoughts on the Actual Olive & June Nail Polish in the shade CHM, as well as Olive & June’s “The Top Coat”

As for the shade of the nail polish, and just the shade itself, I absolutely adore it and am so glad I chose it out of all the shades available, cause I admit it was quite overwhelming having to choose a shade off of the internet without being able to see anything in person, and with so many available options to choose from! The shade CHM is basically, for me, the epitome of a “My Nails But Better” shade. So, don’t opt for this color if you’re wanting something bold or basically something that’s even visible at all on the nails haha. I actually had someone ask me if I was just wearing a clear coat while I was wearing this! It was a clueless-to-all-things-beauty boy tho, so take that with a grain of salt haha, because you can definitely (imo) tell that it’s slightly more than just a clear coat; for example, you can’t really see the whites of your nails with this color on, but you can see through it a tiiiiiiny bit if you’re really looking closely, so it’s not quite opaque.

Now let’s talk about the actual formula of the Olive & June Nail Polish. During the first few seconds of trying this out for the first time, I remember thinking that I was so glad I had gotten the entire box of Olive & June stuff, because if I had just gotten this nail polish and it ended up being a fail, I’d have been so disappointed! However, as I applied the second coat, things started to come together and I was willing to abandon my negative first impression, lol. With one coat only, at least with this particular shade (CHM), it seems to go on extremely streaky and uneven, goopy in some spots and barely there in others. Two coats, though, works wonders to even everything out and makes it look like someone who actually knows what they’re doing was the person that did your nails hahaha. I painted one hand with two coats of CHM only, and left that to dry, and the other hand with two coats of CHM and then one layer of “The Top Coat” before letting that side dry.

Let me just say that, in the same way the second coat of CHM worked absolute wonders, so did the act of letting my nails completely dry! Both hands, so with and without the top coat, dried super fast compared to how fast I’ve experienced with other nail polishes. This is SUPER important to me because this is essentially the main reason I completely stopped painting my nails for a while: I’d carefully take my time painting them to be as perfect as I could muster, and then when it came time to let them dry, I’d stay as still as I possibly could for a could 45 mins - 1 hr, but every damn time I went to “check” on my nails after that amount of time, they seemingly hadn’t gotten one bit more dry than they were the second I stopped painting, and I’d end up completely ruining my labored-over nail polish work every time, without fail. This Olive & June stuff, though… it’s good, it’s different. It actually dries down quickly and dries down HARD. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had nail polish that feels like it’s completely dry, but as soon as I accidentally squish it on something in just the right way, which I always inevitably do, everything goes to shit and once again, my nails end up ruined. So, yeah, I will totally start painting my nails a lot more often now that I have some polish that is actually, you know, not shitty! Lollllll

Unfortunately, I can’t say too much about Olive & June’s “The Top Coat” yet because I’ve only tried it once and, like, it’s a top coat, so I can’t tell much on the first try. What I can tell you is that it definitely didn’t ruin anything or make anything worse or prolong dry time by any significant amount. So, things are looking promising when it comes to this top coat, but I’ll be sure to update you either here on the blog or on my Instagram when I have more concrete thoughts to share!

The Rest of the Items Included in “The Studio Box” by Olive & June

As I mentioned when talking about the top coat, I don’t have too much to say about the rest of the products in the box except that I really like and am enjoying everything so far and have not had a single problem with anything as of yet. The quality of literally everything (including the box itself lol, which I was honestly not expecting!) is SO good tbh, and I can see why this box is priced how it is. If you have any specific questions on any of the products that I mentioned in this post, or want to see a future post with updates on how I feel on these products in the future, please let me know!!! I will be sure to get back to everyone with any sort of question or comment! 😋

Overall, the price of the box (at the time of writing this post, $50 USD) does seem quite high for a lil assortment of nail care and nail polish-related items, but honestly, the quality of each and everything included with the purchase goes way above and beyond my expectations and I will absolutely be placing more Olive & June orders in the future to try out more of their colors since I adored the one I tried, CHM, so very much! In my opinion, The Studio Box by Olive & June is completely worth how much they are charging for it because the quality of everything is absolutely superb, not to mention how adorable and sooo freaking cute everything is! The lil details are always the most important, and Olive & June really did a great job on this. I can’t wait to try even more of their stuff!

Thank you so much for reading, and, like I said above, be sure to comment or msg me letting me know if you’d like to see any sort of follow-up post related to these products I talked about here! If you enjoyed this comprehensive review on The Studio Box by Olive & June, please please please leave a comment letting me know! It means so much to me when I know someone, somewhere is enjoying something I put time and effort into creating. I love you guys so very much!!!

[imissmymarcjacobs]

Black Lives Matter.

Just a post with some Instagram stories I’ve made and/or shared within the past few days regarding Anti-Racism. No actual tangible resources are provided here because it’s easy to google that yourself or find even more all around social media right now. I am not black (I am white - 1/4 Japanese but definitely white-passing), I am privileged, but I’m still trying to do what I can. Are you?

[imissmymarcjacobs]

Pressed Powder Favorites

I know a lot of people who are into beauty totally swear by loose powders as the “best” method of setting your face makeup and ensuring maximum staying power. However, I just cannot seem to understand how anyone manages to apply their loose powder without getting the powder absolutely everywhere - on your clothes, your vanity, your floor, etc. I always knew that pressed powder was an option, but I’d watched so many beauty gurus swear by loose powder and pretty much exclusively talk about it over pressed that I never really considered it a “real” option until recently.

But now that I’ve begun to delve into the magical (and much less messy) world of pressed powder, I have some thoughts on the couple of products I’ve tried:

Urban Outfitters ohii Beauty Glass Powder

The ohii Beauty Glass Powder was the very first pressed powder product I’ve tried, unless I maybe tried one a suuuuuper long time ago before I was really into makeup at all, but I don’t remember lol. Anyway, I was really, really happy and satisfied with this particular pressed powder - it’s super lightweight and not at all heavy or even really “powdery” considering it is, in fact, a powder product lol. I’d consider the color to be pretty translucent/universal but I obviously can only really speak to how it works on my own skin tone. This powder solved all my issues and complaints about using loose powder, but there’s only one (big) problem: shortly after I purchased two of these compacts while they were suuuuuper on sale, Urban Outfitters/ohii Beauty discontinued this product completely and I doubt it’s ever going to make a comeback. 😭 If it does, though, or you can get your hands on it another way somehow, I highly recommend giving it a try because it really is a great pressed powder! Also, I forgot to mention, the amount of product in each compact is veryyyyy small. I went through the first compact extremely quickly, especially compared to how long it typically takes me to go through an entire loose powder. However, I honestly can’t even really complain about the amount of product because I got such a deal on these - I’m talking like $2 each, if I remember correctly! Anyway, if anyone knows if or when this might possibly make a comeback, or if you know of somewhere besides UO to get it, pleaseeee let me know!!!!

Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish Setting Powder

When I found out the ohii Beauty Glass Powder had been discontinued, I knew I needed to begin searching for another pressed powder that I could rely on to use when I ran out of both of the compacts I was able to get my hands on before it was gone forever. The Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish Setting Powder is one of the only pressed powders I’ve actually heard anyone even talk about or mention, and I’ve only ever heard really good, positive things about it and how everyone seems to love it. However, I held back on purchasing it for quite a while because it just seemed so unnecessarily pricey for such a small amount of actual product. But eventually, I caved and splurged on it. I purchased the shade 1 Fair after contemplating between getting that and the shade 2 Medium for a while, but I ultimately decided on the lightest shade because I’d much rather my complexion products be a little too light than a little too dark, you know? Anyway, now that I’ve had the chance to give it a few tries, I will say that I have some mixed feelings about this guy. First of all, there’s no denying that it’s a really good pressed powder. It does what it needs to do and it does it well, leaving a bit of a powdery finish, but that’s easily taken care of with a little setting spray to melt everything together. However, what I’m conflicted about is whether it’s actually worth its price. This retails for $45 USD at Sephora, and I guess compared to a lot of other products at Sephora, it’s really not too absurdly priced. But I don’t know, it just seems like such a small compact and I’m not sure if I feel like it’s actually worth the $45 I spent on it. Honestly, I think I just really need to give some other pressed powder products a try, ones at several different price points, and see what I think of this one after being exposed to more options. It’s definitely a great product in it’s own right, but would I repurchase this? Only time will tell, lol. 😋 But I’ll be sure to keep you updated, either here on the blog or over on my Instagram! Thank you for reading!

[imissmymarcjacobs]

Ritual Vitamins Review After Trying the 'Essential for Women' Multivitamin for a Month

My Experience and Noticeable Effects After Taking Ritual Vitamins for One Month

Ritual Vitamins and Nausea

Ritual Vitamins are designed not to cause any nausea symptoms even when taking the vitamins on an empty stomach, and as far as I noticed, they definitely lived up to that claim, and that’s coming from someone who typically frequently experiences nausea and other stomach-related issues. As far as the minty tab included in the bottle of Ritual Vitamins, I absolutely did notice that it positively affected the overall smell/taste of the vitamins and made them super easy to take. I did, however, notice a slight fishy taste in the back of my mouth some days a few hours after taking the vitamins, I assume from the omega-3 component of the pills. It wasn’t too strong or unbearable though, just something to note.

Ritual Vitamins: My Results

The part you've all been waiting for: my actual, noticeable, significant results and/or changes I've experienced after taking Ritual Vitamins consistently (everyday) for the past month. Well, I hate to disappoint you, but to be perfectly honest: I didn't actually experience, well, any changes. And while this might sound, I don't know, disappointing or at the very least, anticlimactic, this is actually exactly the "result" I was hoping for. The changes I want to see aren't the kind that are noticeable, really, in daily life or anything; rather, what I wanted most from the Ritual Vitamins was to 1. easily and effectively reach and maintain a healthy amount of essential nutrients in my body, and 2. specifically to one component of the vitamins, iron: hopefully reduce or possibly eliminate my existing anemia that I'm guessing comes from a lack of meat in my diet (I'm a vegetarian and was completely vegan before that). It's because of these two main reasons that I was able to rationalize the idea of choosing Ritual Vitamins over other, cheaper, more convenient options - I feel confident in putting my full trust in the fact that Ritual Vitamins actually contain each nutrient they contain in a form that's super accessible for my body to access and break down and use.

Why I Chose Ritual

I'll be honest, I first became aware of the brand's existence through influencers on Instagram raving about the vitamins and posting pretty, aesthetically-pleasing photos of the bottle the vitamins come in. However, I did make sure to do more research on what Ritual stands for and what standards they have for their vitamins before making the choice to subscribe to their monthly vitamin service. What I really like about Ritual is that they acknowledge... well, a lot of stuff that other brands just don't. For example, they acknowledge the fact that clinical trials/research studies are NOT a requirement for companies that want to sell a vitamin or supplement-type product. Yet, Ritual carries out this research anyway which is one of the reasons I can see that likely drives up the cost of their products. Here are some screenshots from the 'Our Clinical Trial Results' page on Ritual's website:

Ritual Vitamins Review Conclusion

Since I have not gotten my blood levels tested recently, I can't comment on the state of my anemia or whether or not the Ritual Vitamins have helped me improve or resolve it. However, I am very happy with the Ritual Vitamins so far and have continued my subscription so, yes, I will be able to update you with even more details in the future. For now, though, I hope you found this review helpful and if you did, I'd absolutely love it if you subscribe to the imissmymarcjacobs newsletter! Thank you so much for reading - I adore you and appreciate every one of you!

[imissmymarcjacobs]

Showcasing & Reviewing the New Ilia Super Serum Skin Tint

Ilia Super Serum Skin Tint on Real, Unfiltered Skin

In the photos above, you can see that the Ilia Serum Skin Tint doesn’t provide much coverage at all - you can still see pretty much all of my redness peeking through. However, it does give a beautiful dewy finish to the skin and provides a subtle evening of skin tone. In these photos, I did not set the Ilia Serum Skin Tint with powder, but I did apply a concealer (Josie Maran Vibrancy Concealer in the shade Light) where I felt like I needed some additional coverage, as well as bronzer (Marc Jacobs O!Mega Bronzer in the shade Tan-Tastic) to the cheekbones, jawline, and perimeter of my face. The only other makeup I’m wearing in these photos is elf Wow Brow brow gel in the shade Brunette, Bite Beauty Power Move Creamy Matte Lip Crayon in the shade Calvados, and Ilia Limitless Lash Mascara (on both top & bottom lashes).

Ilia Super Serum Skin Tint Review

My overall thoughts on the Ilia Super Serum Skin Tint can be summed up by saying that I wouldn’t want to recommend this product without being super sure of what you (or whoever) are looking for in a base product. If you’re on the search for something full coverage that will mask all your imperfections, this really ain’t it, sorry! However, if you typically find most base products to be too full-coverage for your taste and want something super minimal that allows your skin to shine through while perhaps providing some skincare benefits as well, this might be right up your alley. I do want to note - since I haven’t seen anyone else mention this at all - that this product does have a rather weird scent, in my opinion… I don’t know if that’s because of the sunscreen in it or what, but it’s not really a scent I’d call ‘pleasant',’ so if smells bother you, you might want to take a whiff of this at Sephora before actually purchasing it. Anyway, once I got over the strange smell, I was able to really appreciate the unique consistency of this product and the beautiful, subtle coverage and just-right dewiness and glow it gave to the skin when applied. That said, I did find myself needing to go in with significantly more concealer than I normally do with my everyday makeup looks, but I don’t really mind that at all. One last thing I want to mention is that you really only need a few drops of this stuff to adequately cover your entire face - aka, you’ll find that this particular product will last you quite a bit longer than other liquid foundations, despite it being the standard 1 fluid ounce.

I really hope you found this lil review helpful, and as always, if you have any questions whatsoever, please please please don’t hesitate to let me know, either by contacting me directly or by leaving a comment below! Thank you for reading! 😘

[imissmymarcjacobs]

Bronzer Mini-Reviews

Powder Bronzers

NARS Bronzer in the shade Laguna - If I had to choose a number one, all-time absolute favorite bronzer, I think it would be a tie between this Laguna Bronzer by NARS and Tan-Tastic by Marc Jacobs. Laguna is just the perfect shade to add a lil much-needed warmth to my skin, always looking natural and never making me look orange or overdone. Also, I just have to shoutout the gorgeous packaging of this bronzer and all NARS products - so classic, so chic, so beautiful.

BECCA Cosmetics Bronzer in the shade Bronzed Bondi - This bronzer is the ONLY bronzer my mom has ever really ‘approved of',’ and by that I mean that she typically asks me why my face ‘looks dirty’ when I wear any kind of bronzing or contouring product, but when I wear this particular BECCA Cosmetics Bronzer in the shade Bronzed Bondi, she actually goes out of her way to compliment my makeup - might not mean a lot to you, but to me: it speaks volumes. This is always the bronzer I turn to when I’m in a kinda fishing-for-compliments kind of mood haha - don’t lie, we all have those days!

(Not Pictured) Marc Jacobs O!Mega Bronzer in the shade Tan-Tastic & Tantalize - When I first purchased this Marc Jacobs O!Mega Bronzer (the one that comes in the white packaging, not the black), I was in the Sephora at Ponce City Market in Atlanta, Georgia with my then-boyfriend, and we both thought that Tan-Tastic would be too light for me (which is sad, because if I needed the dark shade, me and my white-ass self, what options would POC get? None, that’s what… Just saying.) so I ended up purchasing this bronzer in the shade Tantalize. Well, I had it and used it occasionally for months (aka I was way past the return deadline) before I finally admitted to myself that this shade was simply too dark/not my correct shade. I ended up giving that one away to someone whose skin was better suited to the shade, and subsequently ordering the exact same bronzer but in the shade Tan-Tastic, which proved to be a much better fit. I love everything about this bronzer: the formula is impeccable, the packaging is luxe and lovely, and even the way the bronzer is pressed in the pan is simply stunning - this is by far the most photogenic bronzer (and maybe even beauty product in general) that I own, and that says a lot considering my large collection!

Cream Bronzers

Milk Makeup Cream Bronzer (Mini) in the shade Baked - This bronzer is my second cream bronzer purchase ever, and I opted for the mini size of this Milk Makeup Cream Bronzer in the shade Baked over the full size simply because I’ve seen countless youtubers and other influencers say that they will never finish the full size, especially before it expires, because there is so much more than enough product in each one. So I am glad that I got the mini to save money and be less wasteful, but tbh the mini is quite small and I feel as though it might be easier to use in the full size version - but I might be wrong. This shade is the perfect medium between a true contour and true bronzer shade and I love using it for days where I want to have as minimal of a makeup routine as possible while still looking snatched af.

Nudestix Nudies Matte All Over Face Color in the shade Bondi Bae - Nudestix Nudies Matte All Over Face Color in the shade Bondi Bae is such a cult-favorite bronzer that I hardly feel like I even need to talk about it here, but I will anyway. This cream bronzer is just lovely for providing a subtle warmth and bronzed effect to any makeup look - it blends soooo beautifully and seamlessly and takes all the work out of ‘strategically placing’ bronzer because it honestly looks flawless with almost no effort during application required!

I hope you enjoyed these bronzer mini-reviews and found them helpful! Let me know if there are any specific products or category of products that you’d like to see me review next! Thank you for reading!!! 😊

[imissmymarcjacobs]

Youth to the People Kombucha + AHA Power Toner

⮑ YTTP Kombucha + 11% AHA Exfoliation Power Toner ⮑ 4 oz (118mL) ⮑ exfoliating Toner with 8% lactic acid and 3% Glycolic acid ⮑ used several times; about 3/4 is left

I just added this listing on Poshmark: Youth to the People Kombucha + AHA Power Toner.

[imissmymarcjacobs]

Natasha Denona Bloom Blush & Glow Palette

⮑ Natasha Denona Bloom Blush & Glow Palette ⮑ Contains: glow cream base in Peach, cream blush in Fuschia, glow extreme in Light Rose, and Duo Glow in Vibrant, Golden Coral ⮑ 0.48oz (13.7g) ⮑ used a few times, usage shown in second picture where you can see the open palette/the actual products. No visible dips in product despite gentle use.

I just added this listing on Poshmark: Natasha Denona Bloom Blush & Glow Palette.

[imissmymarcjacobs]

High Beauty High Expectations Cannabis Facial Oil

⇾ High Skincare High Expectations Cannabis Facial Oil ‎⇾ 32% Cannabis Sativa Seed Oil ⇾ Intensive Repair & Protection ⇾ UNUSED/BRAND NEW IN BOX

I just added this listing on Poshmark: High Beauty High Expectations Cannabis Facial Oil.

[imissmymarcjacobs]

Ritual Vitamins Comprehensive Review

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by china frost (@olivecreativeco) on Feb 23, 2020 at 7:48am PST

Why I Was So Hesitant to Give Ritual Vitamins a Try

Honestly, my main issue with Ritual (versus other brands of supplements/vitamins/multivitamins) was undoubtedly the price. $30 USD for just one month of something that really only “works” invisibly is just not a really “fun” kind of purchase, if we’re being real here haha. I’d much rather spend that money each month on some nice skincare or makeup products that I can actually see working when I use them. However, I finally got serious about actually purchasing a Ritual Multivitamin subscription when 1. my doctor said I was anemic (likely because of my vegetarian diet that I’ve been following for the past few years) and that I should start taking an iron supplement, and 2. I found a Ritual promo code shared by someone I follow on Instagram for $15 off your first month. So, since an iron supplement was actually medically necessary for me (the regular Ritual multivitamins contain Iron as one of the ingredients, plus several more good things which I will talk more about later), and since $15 for a month’s worth of pills isn’t too much worse (I think) than what I’d pay for a decent iron supplement or multivitamin from a drugstore or something, I decided it finally made sense to at least give Ritual a try!!!

The Price

Is it Justified Solely by the Ritual’s Cute Packaging & Overall Brand Aesthetic? Or Actual Solid Reasoning Based on Quality and/or Performance?

Now let’s take a quick look at Amazon to see what some of their women’s multivitamin options are and what range of prices we’re dealing with there. Below is a pretty standard, seemingly decent (4.5 out of 5 stars with almost 300 total ratings) women’s multivitamin I found on Amazon. So, in comparison, yes, you can find a standard women’s multivitamin on Amazon (and likely at your local drugstores, as well) for a much more affordable price than what you would pay if you opted for a Ritual subscription, since the Amazon one (the one below that I’m using as an example) is about one-third of the price of the Ritual vitamins, and it comes with double the amount of product compared to the Ritual vitamins. (They both come with 60 pills, but you’re supposed to consume two Ritual vitamins daily whereas you’re only directed to take one pill daily when using the supplement pictured/linked below).

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by ⋒ gabrielle ⋒ (@35mmskin) on Apr 1, 2020 at 8:11am PDT

***Note for the rest of this post: From this point forward (in this post only, obvs), when I talk about the Ritual Multivitamins, I will be referring to the Ritual Essential for Women Multivitamin 18+ (Not the other two current options - Multivitamin 50+, Prenatal Multivitamin) unless otherwise stated. This is only because the two options I’m not really talking about in this post aren’t really relevant to me, personally, right now, and I don’t know much about the needs of the average 50+ person or the average pregnant or soon-to-be pregnant person, so I’m choosing not to speak on those things that I really don’t know much about, at least at this point of my life! However, if you have any specific questions that this post doesn’t answer and you think the 50+ Multivitamin or the Prenatal Multivitamin might be better-suited to your needs, please feel free to contact me with any questions or comments and I’ll do my best to share everything I do know! Thank you for understanding!!! 😇😇😇😇

So, is a subscription to Ritual Multivitamins actually worth it?

“Is it worth giving a try? Is it worth my money at the full monthly price? Is it worth it if I have a discount/promo code?” I’ll do my best to answer all of these questions in the paragraphs below (to the best of my ability, of course!)

Features/Perks of Ritual Multivitamins

‘No-Nausea Capsule Design’ - I absolutely love the fact that Ritual vitamins are specifically made/formulated/designed to be anti-nausea. I’m someone who struggles a LOT (I really mean a lotttttt!!!) with seemingly chronic stomach issues. I’ve been to a million doctors appointments about my stomach issues, but none have been able to figure out a cause or cure for me - yet! I try to remain hopeful but that doesn’t change the fact that this is something I’ve been struggling with for years. That said, a lot of foods, drinks, and medication (anything, really, that goes down my throat and into my stomach) upset my extremely sensitive and picky stomach, making me nauseous fairly frequently. Basically, this is just a long-winded way of saying that I’m already super happy with this claim by itself, because I haven’t noticed… honestly I don’t think I’ve noticed ANY other brand of vitamins/supplements that are specifically supposed to be anti-nausea. And I think it’s really great that Ritual actually thought about this as a concern for many people and made this anti-nausea multivitamin a reality!

‘Vegan Certified’ - Having been a vegetarian for the past 4 years, and a vegan the year before that, I can safely say that, in at least one area of my life, I intentionally go out of my way to avoid most animal products - and since almost 100% of those intentions are because of ethical reasons (factory farming = BAD, SCARY, HORRIBLE, TERRIFYING, DISGUSTING, AHFSDILJLFSD don’t get me started lol but look it up - not anything made by PETA tho tbh - and you’ll find a bunch of stuff that you’ll wish you never had to find out but you still should educate yourself because it’s what’s actually going on in soooo many places “behind the scenes” and it’s NOT okay!!!!), I’m loving the fact that Ritual vitamins are completely vegan! It can sometimes be difficult to find certain types of supplements or vitamins that are actually 100% vegan, especially gummies (don’t forget that gelatin is an animal product and therefore not vegetarian and therefore I try my best to avoid these), so this fact/feature is actually one of the big reasons I’d be alright with paying a higher price - in my head, I’m justifying it to myself by thinking, “It’s okay, the extra money isn’t going towards cute, fancy packaging that’ll end up just being thrown in the trash, but it’s also - at least somewhat - going towards the sourcing of all-vegan ingredients, which aren’t as common and likely harder or just plain ol’ more expensive to get for the company.

‘Gluten and Allergen Free’ - I don’t have any real food allergies (I suspect that I might be slightly lactose-intolerant, but it’s definitely nothing severe and I don’t think that even counts as an allergy haha), but I do really appreciate the fact that Ritual took this feature into consideration and was able to implement it without sacrificing the quality of the vitamins or anything like that. Just because it doesn’t necessarily apply to or affect me, personally, doesn’t mean I don’t wholeheartedly appreciate the intentions behind this and what it means for others who do struggle with these issues.

‘Non-GMO’ - To be blatantly honest with you, I actually don’t really know much about GMOs and wasn’t really taught much about them while I was in school at all - and if they did even mention it in school, you can bet your ass I don’t remember even a lil bit of it lol… 😬😭 So, for that reason only, I’m not going to really comment on this particular feature, but I still wanted to mention it in case you’re someone who does know a lot about this topic and is either strongly ‘pro-’ or ‘anti-’ GMO!

‘No Colorants or Synthetic Fillers’ - The fact that Ritual doesn’t use colorants or artificial fillers in their multivitamins is one of the other main reasons why I can better understand and justify (to myself and my wallet, lol) the higher cost of Ritual Vitamins compared to other brands who add random colorants and weird synthetic fillers all over the place while formulating the product, without regard to how this may affect the efficacy and/or absorption of the vitamins even when taken as directed. Since Ritual’s formula is backed by so much science and isn’t formulated with simply price in mind (“What can we do to make this formula as cheap for us - the company - to actually make, without making the product so absolutely terrible and ineffective that our customers won’t want to keep buying it?” - I feel like SOOOO many brands and companies ARE like this, without considering the quality of their product or the consumer’s needs/preferences at ALL, and it’s so refreshing to see a company like Ritual Vitamins doing pretty much the exact opposite and actually taking into account scientific research studies + their accompanying results, the preferences and needs of the consumer, and the quality, branding, and high standards of everything from their products they sell, to the quality + design of both their physical product packaging as well as their digital website and newsletter emails.), I feel so much more confident in the product I’m purchasing and have less guilt and remorse as a consumer (like I might experience if I were to purchase from a ‘cheap,’ almost ‘fast-fashion’ type of brand or company.

Delivered monthly - Ritual is, in fact, a subscription-only program/service - aka, you’ll either like that if you tend to enjoy subscriptions and paying a lil bit of money on a regular, ongoing basis; or, you’ll hate this fact if you’ve had bad experiences with subscription plans in the past - i.e. not being able to easily/conveniently cancel your plan, getting charged each month despite being told your subscription had been canceled, or if you just prefer paying a larger amount all at once rather than making smaller payments continuously over time. This one is all about preference! I, for one, typically prefer most things to not be in subscription-only format, but if the claim (below - #4 in this list) that Ritual offers ‘free, easy cancellation’ is true, then I wouldn’t necessarily be mad at the fact that it’s subscription only.

Free shipping, always - I do enjoy the fact that the Ritual website offers free shipping (even if you need to/choose to take a break from your subscription for a lil bit and then come back, and even if you need to/choose to rush your package!). Honestly, I don’t think there’s ANYONE who truly doesn’t like seeing the words ‘FREE SHIPPING’ on a product you’re thinking about ordering, so I think this point is definitely a perk for mostttt people!

Control your delivery date - Love this perk/feature of Ritual’s service as well! I also am a user (and LOVER!) of Curology, which is also subscription based, and I didn’t think I would even use this type of perk at all, but since I knew Curology offered it, I’ve actually used it a couple of times to order my next “monthly” product early (I was a lil over-eager and was applying wayyy too much product each night at first and ran out of my bottle that was supposed to last 2 months in like, a lil less than one month lollll 😂😋). I don’t know how likely it is that I’ll end up finishing my monthly bottle of pills too early like that, cause that doesn’t sound like a healthy use of the vitamins lol, but it’s still a nice perk that’s good to have juuuuust in case you find yourself wanting to needing to get your Ritual package on a different day than what was automatically scheduled for you!

Free, easy cancellation - As stated earlier (#1 in this list), the MOST irritating, frustrating thing about subscriptions of any kind is when there’s no easy or convenient way to cancel. Is there a button on your website that I can simply click on and once I confirm that I actually do need to cancel my subscription plan, it’s done? Simple as that? That’s what I prefer and that’s what I feel like should be the 'norm’ for subscription-based companies/brands/plans, but unfortunately that’s not the case. I haven’t needed to cancel my Ritual subscription yet, obviously, but I’m hopeful that this claim is actually true and not an exaggeration or even a lil white lie.

30-day guarantee - Ritual claims that it will give you a full refund (‘It’s on us.’) if you end up giving the product a try and ultimately being dissatisfied with it or just disliking it for whatever reason. Of course this is a great perk, since it (likely/hopefully) means that they really stand behind their product, service, and brand - they’re basically betting on the fact that you’ll fall in love with it after trying it, since if you do decide to utilize the 30-day guarantee, they obviously end up losing money. So, since they’re still in business and seem to be thriving, I have to assume that there’s at least a majority of people liking being a Ritual customer as opposed to those who were dissatisfied enough to seek out a refund. I might not be the best, or even average lol, at math, but betting on the fact that each customer will end up loving your product is a great way to build trust with your customers - even I feel like I put more trust into the company after reading this perk (and all the others!), so it’s great that they keep the customer in mind.

Build better habits - Ritual offers an Apple Watch app that you can use to help you stay on track with your daily Ritual Multivitamins, as well as to learn new tips and things provided by Ritual - all through their app for the Apple Watch!

Ritual is Created ‘For and By Women’

So, the CEO/Founder of Ritual is a woman, which makes me so happy and even more eager & willing to support the brand, but wait, there’s more! If you scroll down past the blurb from Katerina Schneider, you’ll get a glimpse at some of the rest of the Ritual team (and their credentials). After taking just a quick glance at the people shown on that page, I noticed two awesome things: 1. There’s at least one woman, if not more, in every single one of the career sections featured there. I am a huge supporter, of course, of women’s rights and the issue of equal pay, representation, etc., and knowing that Ritual has a number of women on their team is definitely a step in the right direction and something all brands need to learn from, honestly!

This post is getting… rather long haha so I think I’ll stop here and just make a ‘Part 2’ in addition to this post at a later date. Until then, I hope this provided you with some helpful and/or interesting information about Ritual, vitamins, multivitamins, and different features and/or perks that Ritual offers. I haven’t yet shared my complete final thoughts yet, because I think it would just make more sense to do so at the very end of Part 2, since I’ve decided to split this long post.

If you have any questions, whether they have anything to do with Ritual or not, please aaaalways feel free!!!!!!!!!!!! to contact me!!!!!!!!! either using the contact form linked in the navigation bar on this site, or by commenting using the comment form under this post, or by emailing me directly! All of these methods end up landing right in my email inbox in a few minutes, usually, so none of the methods are any faster or slower than the others. If you liked and/or appreciated this review, this website, or anything else I make/produce/share, pleaseeee please please let me know (again, using either of the methods listed above - your choice/preference!).

P.S. When Ritual Vitamins Comprehensive Review, Part 2 is eventually written, posted, and published for the whole internet to see, I will go ahead and link it here at the bottom of Part 1 of this lil Ritual “series.” 🥰

[imissmymarcjacobs]

My Favorite Brow Products

Benefit Cosmetics ‘Precisely, My Brow’ Pencil & Benefit Cosmetics ‘Brow Contour Pro’

The Benefit ‘Precisely, My Brow’ Pencil is my ultimate favorite brow pencil of all time. I’ve even tried the highly-praised Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz, but wasn’t a fan of that one because it was too hard and not creamy enough for my liking. The Benefit pencil is creamy enough to be easy to apply, but still hard enough to allow for proper precision as well. The Benefit Brow Contour Pro is similar to the ‘Precisely, My Brow’, but just a lil fancier with some highlight shades added and two dark shades instead of one. The actual format, though, is the same type of pencil as the ‘Precisely, My Brow’ and most other standard brow pencils, just in a click-pen format.

elf Cosmetics Wow Brow & Milk Makeup Kush Fiber Brow Gel

I stay pretty loyal to these two brow gels only. I’ve strayed a little in the past, but never found anything quite as good. I like the elf Wow Brow a little bit more than I like the Milk Makeup brow gel, and it’s waaaay more affordable, so I’ll probably only continue to repurchase that one. I like that the elf one dries down really stiff and really holds my thick brow hairs in place, whereas the Milk Makeup one doesn’t really dry down quite as much. Also, the Milk Makeup brow gel is a lil more liquid-y in formula than the thicker elf Wow Brow.

Billion Dollar Brows Universal Brow Pencil

I have this guy just as kind of a backup to my Benefit brow products (mentioned above). I prefer both of those over this, but this one is a great affordable one I’d recommend if you’re looking for something that does the job for a lower price. I found this particular one at TJ Maxx for just a couple of dollars! It’s creamier than the Benefit pencils and therefore doesn’t allow for as precise of an application, but if you don’t mind that or if you prefer a creamier pencil, you would likely really enjoy this option by Billion Dollar Brows!

[imissmymarcjacobs]

A Case for Mini Makeup Products

Out of all of the mini makeup products I own, I’ve gone through zero of them and have had them all for years. Unless you really have a history of going through a certain product or type of product especially quickly, I think mini products are smart in terms of both budget and wastefulness, and portability and travel-friendliness too!

I do think this “strategy” is pretty limited to makeup products, however. I tend to go through skincare products rather quickly and I always seem to finish those up rather than ending up having to toss them because they’ve reached their expiration date. So, while I think buying the smallest size you think is reasonable is a great way to go about buying makeup, I don’t think it applies to skincare or other areas of beauty as readily.

You Know Yourself

You know yourself best, so you’ll know better than anyone else which types of products you can afford to buy teeny-tiny versions of, and which you’ll need to stick with the full-size if you want to avoid having to repurchase the same product every week. For example, I tend to go through pressed powder super quickly for some reason (even though I have dry skin - weird), so I definitely would never pick up a mini version of that type of product. Whereas when it comes to products like blushes and highlighters, I know that in the past, I’ve successfully used mini sizes of those products that lasted me seemingly forever, so I’d have no problem opting for another mini blush or highlighter product.

Why Not?

I mean, why not opt for the mini-size version of a certain product, provided you think it’s a reasonable size for you personally? The only reasons I’d say you absolutely shouldn’t go for a mini product over the full-size is if 1. there’s a near-negligible difference in price for a not-at-all negligible difference in size/amount of product, 2. the mini-size - for whatever reason - has different/worse reviews than the full-size product (maybe the packaging is different and less efficient, etc.) or the mini-size is a different formula than the full-size. Other than those things, the mini sizes are typically cuter, much more portable/travel-friendly, and lower in price than their full-size counterparts, so you should have no qualms at all about going for the mini option!

[imissmymarcjacobs]

High Beauty High Expectations Cannabis Facial Oil

⇾ High Skincare High Expectations Cannabis Facial Oil ‎⇾ 32% Cannabis Sativa Seed Oil ⇾ Intensive Repair & Protection ⇾ UNUSED/BRAND NEW IN BOX

I just added this listing on Poshmark: High Beauty High Expectations Cannabis Facial Oil.

[imissmymarcjacobs]

Natasha Denona Bloom Blush & Glow Palette

⮑ Natasha Denona Bloom Blush & Glow Palette ⮑ Contains: glow cream base in Peach, cream blush in Fuschia, glow extreme in Light Rose, and Duo Glow in Vibrant, Golden Coral ⮑ 0.48oz (13.7g) ⮑ used a few times, usage shown in second picture where you can see the open palette/the actual products. No visible dips in product despite gentle use.

I just added this listing on Poshmark: Natasha Denona Bloom Blush & Glow Palette.

[imissmymarcjacobs]

Marc Jacobs O!Mega Bronzer Coconut Perfect Tan

⮑ Marc Jacobs Beauty O!Mega Bronzer Coconut Perfect Tan ⮑ Shade: 106 Tantalize - warm deep bronze ⮑ a universally flattering, seamless matte bronzer in a glossy white compact ⮑ 0.8oz (25g) ⮑ used a few times, but there is no visible dip in the pan. You can see usage in the first picture showing the inside of the compact/the actual bronzer

I just added this listing on Poshmark: Marc Jacobs O!Mega Bronzer Coconut Perfect Tan.

[imissmymarcjacobs]

French Girl Organics Rose Lip Polish Scrub

⮑ French Girl Organics Rose Lip Polish Lip Scrub ⮑ 1oz (30mL) ⮑ infused with Rich, nourishing ingredients like Shea butter and rose Oil ⮑ cruelty-free ⮑ used a few times, the dip in the product is shown in the second picture so you can see how much is left

I just added this listing on Poshmark: French Girl Organics Rose Lip Polish Scrub.

[imissmymarcjacobs]

Youth to the People Kombucha + AHA Power Toner

⮑ YTTP Kombucha + 11% AHA Exfoliation Power Toner ⮑ 4 oz (118mL) ⮑ exfoliating Toner with 8% lactic acid and 3% Glycolic acid ⮑ used several times; about 3/4 is left

I just added this listing on Poshmark: Youth to the People Kombucha + AHA Power Toner.