The Clunkster

The Clunkster

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my ride or die haircare products

Beauty, Beauty Review, Cruelty-FreeKristenComment

I’ve always loved taking care of my hair. Part of my fascination is figuring out which products work for me, and which just don’t. My hair is pretty thick and tends to get wavy and frizzy. I know there are soooo many different types of hair out there, so these products may not work for you, but here are the products I couldn’t live without!

Not Your Mother’s All Eyes On Me 10-in-1 Hair Perfector, $7

I got this product in an Influenster VoxBox two years ago and I’ve been obsessed ever since! It claims to add body, strengthen, detangle, moisturize, add shine, control frizz, repair dry hair, act as a heat protectant, mend split ends, and seal cuticles, which all sounds way too good to be true, but I’m telling you, this is a miracle product.

I usually towel dry my hair when I get out of the shower, brush it out, spray some of this in my hair, brush it through, then towel dry some more. I’ve noticed a serious difference in my hair since I started using it. It makes my hair so ridiculously soft. I even got my mom to start using it!

Check out my full review here!

Buy here

T3 Micro Singlepass Compact Straightener, $89

I straighten my hair quite a bit, so when a couple years ago I learned that ceramic straighteners are better for your hair, I did my research and T3 came very highly recommended. So, I jumped on the bandwagon, and never turned back! This is the best straightener I’ve ever used. Ever. 

The first time I used it, I was legitimately in shock. My hair looked amazing. I was upset I hadn’t bought it sooner! For years, it would take me at least an hour and a half to straighten my hair. Now it takes maybe fifteen minutes. I don’t need to pull my hair or keep running over parts because it gets the job done perfectly. I recommend this straightener to literally everyone. All of T3’s products are great, but this one right here is magic. 

Buy here

R+Co Death Valley Dry Shampoo, $32

I’ve been using different dry shampoos for years, but I haven’t been able to find one that’s perfect for me, until now! I had heard of R+Co before, but learned a lot more about it when we started selling them at Naked Retail. Since everyone was raving about their products, I decided to give the dry shampoo a try, and I’m so happy I did!

Other dry shampoos I’ve used have left a weird powder film on my hair. I even tried a tinted dry shampoo spray, which was just horrible. Death Valley sprays on clear and leaves no residue at all. It also smells so yummy! Not all of your hair products have to smell like chemicals, I promise. 

R+Co is also cruelty-free, vegan, color-safe, sulfate-free, paraben-free, phthalate-free… I could go on. Basically full of the good stuff and none of the bad. 

Buy here

What are your ride or die hair products? Let me know in the comments!

biovène barcelona's boob and butt masks

Beauty, Beauty Review, Cruelty-Free, Sponsored, WellnessKristenComment

Once upon a time, I received a package from Biovène Barcelona that was full of skincare goodies, like a Glow Ampoule, a Retinol Youth Night Repair Mask, and… boob and butt masks?! Are you as surprised as I was? Great, we’re on the same page. I knew Biovène made so many products to help you and your skin feel healthy and beautiful, but to be honest, the thought of a boob or butt mask had never crossed my mind. 

Cut to me reading the directions and ingredients, doing lots of Googling, and sending Snapchats to my friends (“yes, they actually sent me an ASS MASK!”). Dear reader, I was very pleasantly surprised. So, we’re gonna have some TnA time on The Clunkster today. 


But(t) Why?

Think about it for a second: we put so many serums, creams, toners, patches, masks, cleansers, oils, etc. on our faces to keep our skin looking good and feeling healthy. But what happens to the rest of our body? I love my boobs and butt as much as (if not more than) I love my face, so why am I not paying the same attention to them? While I was typing this, I thought about my poor butt, which I’m sitting on right now. I sit on it all the time in so many different places, I lay on it when I sleep, she’s got a lot going on. If you were face-planting into various surfaces all day, wouldn’t you wanna show your face some love? So why not your butt? Only I’ll get you feeling bad for a butt, I swear. 


Baby Got Back Booty Mask

Let’s start from the bottom. The Baby Got Back Booty Mask has more of a scrub-like consistency. It’s meant to exfoliate, restore, and invigorate the skin on your booty. Ingredients like Australian Pink Clay, Carrot Seed Oil, Rose Petals, and Jojoba Oil cleanse and shrink your pores, so nothing gross makes its home on your beautiful bum. Like I said before, we sit in a lot of weird places. We all know the sensation of the occasional butt zit. It’s not fun! The only thing I want on my butt is a nice handprint. KIDDING! 

But speaking of hands on my butt, my favorite part of this mask was applying it in the shower! After you wash with your body wash (to quote Rocio Cervantes, wash your ass!), lather up your booty with the mask and rub in circular motions. Honestly, this made me feel so relaxed and in touch with my body. As I mentioned, please wash your butt, whether you’re using a mask or not. But have you ever spent some serious time showing your butt some love while giving it some nice, healthy ingredients? It’s a nice feeling, and your behind will thank you. 



Booby Berries Hydration Boob Mask

This mask is all about hydration, hydration, hydration! Again, how often do you make sure your chest area is doing well? Hydration is so important for every part of your body, especially coming out of cold and dry months like these. Lather on this mask when you come out of the shower, while your pores are nice and open. While this one is a bit more creamy, it smells like a dream and glides right onto the skin. Liquorice, Blueberry, Strawberry, and Chamomile work their hydrating magic to keep your chest squeaky clean and blemish-free, because tit zits are not the vibe either. 

Since my boobs are on the front of my body, I was able to see its effects more than the Booty Mask. In fact, my skin felt much tighter and firmer, which was a beautiful feeling I didn’t know existed. Though I love both of these products so much, if you’re only in the market for one, the Booby Berries are your best bet. 

I know this isn’t my typical review, but I’m so happy I took a chance on these masks! Thanks so much to Biovène for sending me their amazing products. Make sure to check them out on their website and Amazon. Use the code ITSMYBIO20 for 20% off your order!

spooky scary skeleton

BeautyKristenComment

Happy Almost Halloween! Since I had so much fun creating my Teenage Frankenstein look, I decided to try the glam skeleton makeup I’ve been seeing all over my Pinterest feed. I’m SO proud of how it turned out! I looooove skeletons and skulls, so it was pretty cool to turn myself into one. 

I would highly recommend trying this if you still don’t know what you’re doing for Halloween! It’s all about contouring and blending, two things I’m not necessarily good at but can get away with for a spooky look :) Here’s the tutorial I followed. I’m so happy with this, you guys have no idea.

Renpure's Keratin and Argan Restorative Shampoo

Cruelty-Free, Beauty, Beauty ReviewKristenComment

Hello, my angels! I’m coming at you live from Long Island, New York, where I’m surrounded by boxes and piles of my belongings. Things are coming together slowly but surely, but I’m still overwhelmed! 

Today, I’m writing about Renpure’s Keratin and Argan Restorative Shampoo. I found it in Target earlier this year and decided to buy it because it had great ingredients and my hair needed some serious restoring at the time. Since then, I’ve chopped a chunk of my mane off (which you’d know if you were following me on Instagram ;) ). My hair feels so happy and healthy!

Anyway, I’ve been trying to use more natural, clean beauty products lately. Renpure stood out to me in the beauty aisle because of this shampoo’s two main ingredients: argan and keratin. I knew that keratin makes hair straighter and smoother, and that argan oil has a ton of healing properties. I’ve learned from Renpure’s website that argan has lots of vitamin E, antioxidants, and fatty acids, which hydrate and refresh your hair. This shampoo was made with berries, apples, and desert lily, so it smells super yummy, which is really important to me all the time, but especially in the shower. 

All of Renpure’s products are free of sulfates, phthalates, dyes, parabens, gluten, propylene glycol, and, my favorite, “bad vibes” :) Renpure donates personal care products to homeless shelters and people affected by natural disasters as well. 

As much as I love Renpure’s mission and practices, I wasn’t the biggest fan of this shampoo. There was nothing wrong with it, but it definitely fell short of my expectations. I’ve been using it for a while, and I saw no difference in the smoothness of my hair or in my split ends, which I had lots of before I chopped them off. With such great ingredients and mission, I really expected more. I wouldn’t be against trying them in the future, but I probably wouldn’t go nuts to buy them again.

Have you tried Renpure’s products? Let me know what you think in the comments!

Manicure Monday

BeautyKristenComment

I have been obsessed with nails ever since I was little. It may be because my mom always got her nails done, but also, who doesn’t love the fact that you can make your fingers different colors?! I’ll never forget my first trip to the nail salon. I got Essie’s Ballet Slippers on my nails. It’s still one of my favorites today!

My nail obsession has never faded. I used to be a wiz with designs, but as school has picked up I just haven’t had the time/energy anymore. I still am very passionate about manicures, however. So, I figured I’d start a little Manicure Monday thread here on The Clunkster.

Today, I’ll be talking about powder gel. Since I’m older now, I usually get gel manicures, which last for two weeks without chipping, for the most part. They also dry instantly. It’s the best! The only thing I didn’t like was that I had to put my hands under UV lights for the nail polish to dry. Even though I put sunscreen on before my manicure, I was still a bit iffy.

Last week, my mom tried a powder gel manicure, and she loved it, so I decided to try it too. It starts off as a normal gel manicure: cut, file, etc. After that, you get a clear coat on your nail, which is then dipped into a small jar of colored powder. Your nail is lightly dusted by a small brush and another clear coat is applied on top. This happens a few times, and then the polish is filed to lock it in. Another clear coat, and you’re all set. After that, you get your usual massage, hot towel, etc.

I absolutely loved this! I plan on getting this from now on instead of the UV gel. It looks and feels just like regular gel polish. It’s been almost a week and still no chips! My accent nail also looks flawless since I literally dipped my nail into a jar of straight sparkles. I love that I didn’t feel like I was harming my nails, and I love that I got the same awesome results.

There is one risk, however. My aunt got this done and she got a small fragment of powder in her eye somehow. She had a reaction, and her optometrist suspected that the powder may be made with some sort of wheat, and she is allergic to gluten. I’m not allergic to anything, but if you are, definitely check out the ingredients before you give powder gel a try!

Like I said, though there are risks with every beauty thing you try, I would definitely recommend powder gel if your nail salon offers it. Let me know how it worked in the comments!