Nighshade and Company Review!

I am always drawn to things with a darker aesthetic. And I try to search Etsy for beauty items that have a well...darker edge. Sorry but I do not want butterflies or pink dancing around. Nope not for me. I want skulls and human hearts. So I found this shop NightShade and Company.  Everything is priced excellent and everything has a certain darkness to it that I love.

Onward to the review!


Shipping was super fast. I ordered everything the 18th and received it the 24th. The estimated TAT was 2-4 days and it was shipped on the 23rd...woah. Everything was wrapped in silver or black paper and secured in bubble wrap. There was even a little thank you note and some free samples to try! I love when indie companies do this. To me it shows that they care about their customers. I got the following:

The Heroines of Horror Sugared Lip Scrub in Wendy Torrence's Winter Lodge Mint.

Source: NightshadeandCompany shop

First of all...RUDRUM! REDRUM! This is described as an edible and functional sugar scrub for exfoliating lips. My lips tend to get chapped very easily. This does have a pleasant and sweet mint taste. I must remind myself that this is not for eating. Do not eat this...use this on your lips...must resist.


The Woman in White Perfume Oil

Source:NightshadeandCompany shop

"The Woman in White ~ a hauntingly beautiful blend of sweet champa flowers shrouded in sacred resins, rose petals and lavender blossom."

This in itself was a gamble for me. Normally I do not like floral perfumes. On me rose scents morph into well...old lady perfume. But I think I hit the Holy Grail of florals. This smells like jasmine incense on me. The flowers are slight but the resins really give it depth. This smells so very similar to an incense I burn. Yes!

The Scream Queen perfume oil

"It starts off with a rush of sexysweet cherry, followed by a hint of spicy clove. Middle notes of Pink Lotus Flower (pure essential oil), vanilla bean and other tantalizing secret ingredients round out this innocent yet formidable perfume oil."

At first this is pure cherry. Well..more like cherry flavored clove cigarettes. It then dies down to a a soft and sweet musk. This me thinks would make a great summer/spring scent. Love!




A Sample of The Dark Heroine cream

"The Dark Heroine is a curious combination of violet flowers blended with patchouli and tobacco leaf. Add a touch of vanilla bean and a few bits of this and that...and you'll be ready to kick ass on any malodorous creature that crosses your path."

The description of this tempted me so. Oh the temptations! It smells like a head shop...it smells like a perfume adult Wednesday Addams would wear. Dark yet sweet. I am definitely getting a full sized oil of this one. 

A Sample of The Sisters Grimm perfume oil

"The Sisters Grimm...made with poison apple, cedarwood (from the dark forest), labdanum and a hint of burnt sugar (straight from the witch's cottage in Hansel and Gretel) is likely one of our most tragic and misunderstood fragrances."

At first application I get..apple and something reminding me of dusty books. Interesting. I am not really getting the labdanum but it does dry down to a soft apple and burnt sugar scent. I am on the fence about this one. Must be the apple...not my favorite scent but it is nice. Just not for me.


My next purchase from this shop (That I just added to my cart on Etsy.) Is the Nightshade and Company Simply astounding smelling salts, Clarice Starling's FBI black coffee sugar scrub, and of course a full size of The Dark Heroine. I thing the smelling salts will be great for a pick me up at work since one can only drink so much coffee without becoming a jittery fool. I have too much access to espresso.

 

About my beliefs!

 I decided I do a post about my religion and my beliefs. But let us remember that I do not condemn a person if they have a different religion than me. I do not "hate" those that spread lies about my religion. Well actually I do not really "hate" in general. It is very polluting. If you disagree with my beliefs so be it. But do not try to say "I am right and you are wrong!" because nobody has time for that nonsense.

I will try to break this down into a sort of question and answer type thing. Just for better read-ability. Onward!


What do you believe?
Theistic satanists recognize Lucifer as a god-form or a deity. Those that follow the teachings of Anton Lavey believe that Lucifer is merely a symbol to encourage their faith. I also practice meditation, tarot card reading, and various forms of magic. Lucifer in my belief is not the same Lucifer portrayed in Christian beliefs. He provides for me and he in times is often a father figure to me. (As in teaching me ways to become a better person.)

Do you have philosophies or morals?
I try to make the most out of life. I try to avoid self-hatred and hatred towards others. Because like I said hate is so prevalent and hate is polluting. If you always hate you can never grow as a person. You become stagnant. I do not seek harm on others unless I have to for me protection. Self defense you could say. There is a wide belief that Satanists use only destructive black magic. This is wrong and an old stereotype. I do follow some rules of Lavey such as: Do not harm children and do not kill and animal unless attacked or for food. I try to better myself as a person and expand my mind.


Do you sacrifice animals or encourage violence?
This is just hog wash. No satanic ritual involves animal sacrifice. This is just a form of propaganda used to "prove" to others how "wicked and corrupt" Satanists are. In my branch of Satanism violence is NEVER the answer. This is why I have never gotten in any sort of physical confrontation. I try to use my wit and words to fight. Media likes to hype "violent satanists" and it is exactly that...hype.

Do you hate Christians?
No. In satanism individuality is celebrated. You should not be shamed of who you are or what your interests are and you should not persecute others for no agreeing with you. Disliking someone is natural but just because you do not have the same interests I do does not mean I hate you. Just like I said in the beginning, I try not to "hate" anyone.

Do you burn churches?
NO! There is a rite of blasphemy in satanism, but this is just a representation of breaking yourself away from the Christian faith. Never does anyone need to defile any place for their personal gain or enjoyment. There has been church burnings before in the name of Satan. But the people that do things such as this are looked as pariahs in the community. They are just giving us a bad name!


Do you believe in God?
I do not believe in the Christian "God". But I do believe in an opposing force. There must always be light and dark in this world. It is the balance of things. You cannot have bad without good.


If I was to go into depth my religion..well, this would be a very long post. So here are some links that explain more about Spiritual Satanism.

http://www.spiritualsatanist.com/

Diary of a Satanist

Satan's Den

Source: Google Images

My Resolution!

So normally I never make New Years Resolutions...because well, I do not stick to them. But this resolution i really want to stick to. My resolution is to drink less soda. I normally drink around three (at the least) cans of Coca cola a day. That is about twenty eight and a half sugar cubes a day! I am drinking 117 grams of sugar per day. I am in love with sodas and when I lived with my mother sodas were a treat. (We never had them in the house.) I also rarely drink water.

Times are a changing! I NEED to get healthier. I realized if I continue drinking sodas and eating the way I do I will gain a lot of weight. Because my metabolism is not going to be great for the rest of my life. Also sing my love is planning on working first shift (6a.m to 2p.m I believe.) we will be spending more time together. He also has made the plan to exercise and work out. I decided to support him by promising to go work out with him. (Everyone needs a support system!)

My friend who works out told me that I will grow to love seeing my body change for the better and I will start feeling more energized. This is a new year. I have a better job, a great partner, and promises of a great education. Time to do something for ME for once!

Holika Holika BB cream review!

The mail lady brought goodies! I finally joined the BB cream craze. But after reading many negative reviews about American BB creams I decided to risk ordering an Asian BB cream from the brand Holika Holika.

Source: Google images

This one is part of three others and is the clearing type. It contains tea tree oil and is supposed to control an oily face. I do not really have the oil problem but tea tree oil is a holy grail product for acne. And this has an SPF of 30 so that is a plus. At first this stuff smells like flowers. I can get over that but I am hesitant about facial products that have a sort of perfume like smell. (Extra chemicals to aggravate acne!) And I did a little test size on my palm and realized this stuff looks really dark. I took a risk and applied it to my face with a makeup sponge and blended like nobodies business. Hmm...it is getting lighter. I also did a test in the sun to see if I looked darker but nope!

I applied some translucent powder to set it in. This makes me skin really smooth and softens my pores. It also takes away some redness and gives my skin an airbrushed quality. I am so glad I got this stuff!( And much apologies about lack of pictures. My cord for my camera has disappeared into the oblivion.) I think this would be more suitable for warm weather or just a low maintenance foundation.

This was me on New Years!

Late birthday post and the power of braids!

On December 29th I turned 22, ate too much shrimp, feasted on ice cream cake (decorated with a bat!) and shopped. I did make pictures of the cake but my cord that hooks up from my camera to my computer vanished into some strange alternate dimension. For New Years I became the official "beer wench" (apparently I can serve beer from a keg with the perfect amount of foam on top.) and ate way too much Cajun crab dip.  

I have discovered recently that I love braids and I have been wearing by hair that way to work for the past few days. Strangely I have been getting more tips in my jar at work...there be power in them braids!

Low braids like these!

And with a new year comes (not resolutions because I will not keep them.) new favorites!
These boots which I bought on sale from amazon and they are hella comfy and look bad ass.

  

 

For my next favorite it is a show...well actually a place. Loved to Death is a store in San Fransisco and is featured on another installment of the show Oddities. I have a small oddity collection (including my personal favorite, a vintage glass syringe.) and this store inspires me to collect more!

Source: lovedtodeath.net

 

 

 

 

 

Next is hair related. A lovely white streak among black hair. I use a clip in since bleaching would destroy my hair. And clip ins are cheap and do not require commitment.

Source: librarything.com

And also I had to purchase a new laptop. My other one had possible motherboard and processor issues. But the guys at my local computer repair shop cut me a deal on a new one. I love those guys. Also I need advice from other bloggers on how to get more subscribers! I have only two...hmm.

Merry Christmas! (And all the goodies I got!)

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! My mom was able to visit and we watched The Nightmare before Christmas together...but she got bored with it and did crossword puzzles in the kitchen. (Hehe) After being woke up very early by the rabbit we opened out gifts and lazed around before heading over to his families house and feasting. I look forward to his grandmothers homemade french onion soup every year. (So tasty!) Here is everything I got:

1. Slytherin Crest Tank top (because Harry Potter!)
2.Books a Million Gift card (from rabbits mother..she also got me a cute skeleton hat and glove set, and a skeleton top.)
 3. Rammstein Made in Germany special edition cd set
4. Tokyomilk Arsenic Gift set (this stuff smells like heaven!)
5. Edward Scissorhands dvd
6. American Horror Story Season 2 dvd

My mother also gave us both money and his grandparents did the same. I am stuffed and I plan on taking a lovely nap. I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday!

December favorites! (And The Temple of Love.)

Oh...it is that time of the year. My birthday is also this month and I have requested an ice cream cake with bats on it. Hehe. I am finally done with my finals and I came to a realization. I have not read a good book in a while and I am always busy with classes or work. So I decided to take this semester off. This will give me time to get more hours and save up for a beach trip and a summer class I need to take. And I do deserve a good break. College is exhausting!

My love gave me a present early since I planned on taking him to get one of his presents. (Imagine trying to wrap a bean bag...ugh!) Speaking of my lovely Rabbit, we have been together for a year and a half! He is the best thing to happen to me! (Prepare for lovey dovey nonsense.) He is my best friend, he always makes me laugh when I need cheering up,he loves me for me,he gets me interested in movies I would never think of watching, and he makes a delicious cucumber salad.

Silly rabbit! And look he plays the drums! *swoon*

Temple of love love love!

So on to my favorites! I have been listening to a lot of Sisters of Mercy lately. (Temple of Love on repeat basically.) And I discovered the magic of Impress press on nails. I only really get the black ones and they last for almost two weeks. This is a miracle because after one day of painting my nails they are chipped as hell. Ain't nobody got time for that. My early gift was a Stanly Kubrick movie set which included The Shining. I have never really seen the movie fully. Only bits and pieces. And recently I have bought lots of books by Poppy Z. Brite. She is such a good writer and very descriptive. I am currently reading Drawing Blood and so far...AMAZING.

Oh and be expecting a Christmas post and a birthday post!

Merry Winter Solstice!