Dishwasher update and Julep Maven Box...

So, I submitted a new service request online via Samsung's website.  The confirmation page said you will be contacted by phone or e-mail within 24 hours.  That call or e-mail never came.  Interestingly enough, I did get a phone call from a Service Quick rep wanting to know how my experience was with my repair.  I let him know that it worked once and then stopped, then told him that I talked to the manager at Lowe's and he said bring it on back and we will refund your money. The rep was so shocked that Lowe's would take it back, he literally was stuttering and had nothing to say but have a nice day.

I love Lowe's.  All of my major appliances along with countless other things around the house (and outside too) have come from there.  I've never had to return anything, but I found that the process was so smooth - even without having my receipt.  All they needed was the date of purchase and their item number (which you can find on their website).  They took back the P.O.S. Samsung, no questions asked and helped me pick out a different brand with all the bells and whistles.

The new dishwasher is a Whirlpool Gold and it is Amazing! Our refrigerator is also a Whirlpool Gold, and our washer and dryer are the Whirlpool Cabrio Platinums.  They are all at least 2 years old and are still going strong (with no service needed), so I felt really comfortable purchasing this brand.

It matches my microwave and refrigerator (we still have a black and white stove, but hopefully a new one is in the future!).  It has top controls, which I am not crazy about since the way it sits under my counter makes them impossible to use once the door is closed, but I will deal with it and figure out a way to make it work.  It has a bunch of different cycle options, a sanitize cycle, and even a top rack only wash cycle - what the what??  

I (Me, All By Myself) installed this.  We already had the rough in with the water line, drain hook-up and power line, but I connected the wires, hooked up the drain hose and water line and put it in it's place all by myself!!  Hubby came home and was a little shocked and really happy that he didn't have to install a dishwasher for the 3rd time in just as many months.  My kitchen is now completely clean again, no more paper plates, plastic utensils or solo cups.  The dishwasher has ran more times in the past 3 days than the Samsung did the whole 2 weeks that I had it. Moral of the story:  Samsung is good for phones but not so much for dishwashers.......

On a totally different subject - I have a new Julep Maven box coming soon!  I am super excited for this months box.  The colors in my style are so pretty and I chose a few add on colors including a mystery bombshell color.  Here's what I'm getting this month:

This is the Boho Glam box this month - how Gorgeous are these colors??

This is Kayla: An Electric Iris Sheer with with Violet Sheen

This is Phoebe:  A Vibrant Jungle Metallic

I. Can. Not. Wait. to get this box and try out all of these colors!  I will probably use the two from the Boho Glam Box together and Kayla and Phoebe together, one all over with the other as an accent nail.  I'm super excited to see what my mystery color will be.  Can it be in my mailbox tomorrow please?

If you want to subscribe to the Julep Maven Box, click here.   They just started a new "Pick Your Own Box" subscription that ranges from 24.99 to 39.99 per month ($5.00 cheaper each month if you purchase a 3 month subscription).  Check out their blog to learn all about this exciting new service!

What a let down.....

As you may have read before, we have been having dishwasher troubles.  The old one flooded the kitchen.  The new one worked 3 times then gave us an error, it was under warranty and they always say call the company before you return it, so I did (we also didn't want to have to go through the hassle of un-installing it and carrying it and loading it etc...).  I called on a Friday and was asked to unplug it and wait one full minute then try it (cause that always works??).  Of course, it did not fix the problem.  They said a rep from the service company will contact you in 24 hours.

Got my first phone call from a rep at Service Quick (Samsung's contracted service co.) on Monday at around 2pm -ish.  I was in class and called back literally 2 minutes later and got their voice mail.  I tried the main number and got a general voice mail.  So I called the rep's number again and left a message.  Never heard back.  I called the main number again on Tuesday.  I was either on hold for over 10 minutes THEN transferred to general voice mail or went straight to voice mail.  I e-mailed through their website, which is a joke by the way, seriously, look at it www.servicequick.com  

By some miracle, I got a call back Tuesday afternoon at 2:40 and of course, I missed the call again.  The voice mail that was left was rude, to say the least.  The rep said: This is my second message I have left for you regarding your service ticket.  If we do not hear back from you, your service request will be cancelled.  I have the call logs to prove that this person only called once and that I tried calling them over 10 different times, and they have the nerve to tell me that my service request on a one week old dishwasher that worked only 3 times and is under warranty is going to be cancelled if I don't call back? UGHHH!!

I called her back and went through the hoops to set up a service appointment for Friday (today) between 1 and 5 pm.  Luckily, the tech called at 12:30 and said he would be here in a half hour.  He arrived on time, I showed him the problem and he took pictures of it acting up.  He was confident that it was some kind of water fill circuit inside the tub and even had the part to fix it.  An hour later, he plugged it in, turned the water back on and it was working!!    I said my many thanks and he was on his way.

By this time, we needed to leave to pick up our son from school.  I loaded the dishwasher up and let her rip.  When we came home, the damn lights were flashing AGAIN!  I was in shock.  I turned it off, and started it again.  It ran all the way through the cycle this time, I thought maybe something needed reset before it could run again, and it was good to go now.  How WRONG was I?  I unloaded the clean dishes, loaded it all back up and pressed start.  4 minutes later, it's beeping, draining and flashing.   I am so fed up with this damn thing, I think we might actually consider returning it to the store.  I have NEVER had this much of a problem with an appliance, EVER!!  How can it work then not work, then work again once after repair then stop AGAIN?

I am fed up with Samsung and Service Quick.  Their customer service is horrible at both places, they do not care if the customer is inconvenienced.  What a waste of money!

The BIG Move

No, I'm not moving to a new house....

We live in an older home, it was built in the late 1940's.  It has a tiny tiny tiny kitchen, a large-ish living room, a small rec room in the basement, 2 bedrooms on the main floor and 2 bedrooms upstairs.  Currently, my son occupies one bedroom on the main floor and we occupy the other.  The 2 upstairs bedrooms are used for storage (as are the stairs that lead up to them.......)   One contains my great grandma's dining room set (oddly enough, we don't have a dining room, we have around "kitchen" table in the corner of our living room....) along with all of my sewing and craft supplies.  The other contains a futon, my antique makeup vanity, an old TV and all of the stuff you accumulate from being on this earth for 31 (35 for my husband) years.

Lately, I have been lusting for my sons room...I want it to be mine.  I have a desk in the living room that I use to put on my makeup (our bathroom is really tiny too), I have a couple sewing machines and a serger, I have a lot of clothes, I basically want it to be my dressing room/office/craft room.  I have broached the idea of giving him his very own "man cave" upstairs and he is all for it.  My husband is kind of worried because he does have a tendency to get out of bed and sleep walk, but I think he will be ok. I mean, he is 8?

The only thing standing in my way is.....all of the stuff on the steps and in the 2 bedrooms.  I have FINALLY decided that I am going to start to tackle the mess.  I am throwing away almost everything, I just need hubs to back up his pick-up truck below a window so I can start chucking!  The biggest hurdle is the steps.  They are closed off from the world by a door that is in my living room. So anytime I clean and don't actually feel like taking something to it's "home" (or someone is coming over for a short noticed visit), it goes on the steps, the door closes and it is never heard from or seen again.  I feel like a hoarder when I open that door.

I am trying to motivate myself by picturing the cluttered desk, my antique vanity, my craft supplies, all in a nice room that is allllllll mine.  I even go to TJ Maxx and look online at amazon and etsy at all of the cute organizing things I could get.  The only thing I'm missing is time!

Also, want to give a quick update on the dishwasher repair.  I FINALLY got a hold of someone at Service Quick, the company contracted by Samsung ( I will have a separate post on this company after I see how the service call goes).  They are sending someone out on Friday 5/16 between 1 and 5.  The repairman (or woman) will call 30 minutes prior to coming....what a vague window.  I am to the point where I do not care if they come at midnight!!  I just want my darn dishwasher to work.  My cuticles look ragged and my hands are dry constantly from having to wash dishes by hand.

I'll let you know how it goes with the clean out and the dishwasher repair.

Good Night Loves!

 

Happy Mothers Day! and a rant.......

Real quick...wanted to wish all the moms and the dads who have to be a mom to Happy Mothers Day!  

I also wanted to rant a little about my new dishwasher....and my old one too!  So, we have a tiny kitchen and it didn't have a dishwasher when we moved in, I hate, hate, hate doing dishes by hand but have been for the past 8 years in this house. I finally convinced hubby that I can live without some cabinets, and for valentines day he bought me a built-in dishwasher!  Fast forward to about a week ago when I was cooking dinner and I hear and see water leaking from underneath it :/  I was heartbroken!  

So, we went out to lowes and I picked out a new one, a samsung with top of the door controls......so cool! Well, it ran 3 full cycles and now it is throwing an error code that means over water fill or something. I tried everything...turned off breaker, put a fan to finish drying floor underneath it (I read online there is a "flood" sensor underneath it that can detect moisture and shut it off).  Nothing worked so I finally broke down and called customer service, who asked me to turn off the breaker for 1 minute then try to run it again.....of course that didn't work. 

 This was Friday, and he said within 24 hrs someone from a repair service will call to schedule a visit......it's been 48 hrs and nothing.  I know it was wishful thinking to hope for a Saturday phone call, but I was really trying to put off doing the dishes in the sink.  

Hopefully, I will get a call on Monday and they can come out sometime this week....

On a brighter note, I won't have to wash any of my actual dishes (I mean I will eventually, but not because we need them!) because I ordered 4 place settings of Fiesta Ware from macys....they where Buy One Get One Free and they had a 15% off coupon!!  I am so excited, I have wanted some Fiesta Ware for a looonnnngggg time, but it is just so expensive.  So grand total shipped to my door was 106.70..for 4 place settings.....that normally cost 56 each....Go Me!  I ordered turquoise because I love that color.....it makes me happy.  

I think that's about all......have a great day and a Great Week! I go back to school for my LAST SEMESTER OF NURSING SCHOOL tomorrow...can you tell I'm excited?

Face of the Day - Ulta Gel Eyeliners and Real Techniques Sponge

I hauled a ton of Ulta Gel Eyeliners yesterday and a pretty cool Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge and I wanted to play!  I already told you how afraid of color I am.....I love my Naked palate to death.  I dipped my toe into the color world and came up with this.  I'll give you my impressions of the eyeliners I used and the sponge as I go and a list of all the products with more pictures at the end...Lets get started! Here is the Final Look...Keep reading for impressions and step by steps!

Here is my face with NO makeup... ALSO - please excuse the hair....tomorrow is my day to wash it and I worked out and cleaned the house before I played with makeup.......

I normally use my fingers to put on my foundation.  I have a few foundation brushes from Real Techniques and Elf, but I can never seem to blend the foundation in enough and it looks streaky.  I have also used those little triangle sponges that you buy in bulk.  I always reverted to my fingers - but I think this new sponge is a keeper!

Here's my face with foundation only, applied with the Real Techniques Sponge (damp)...

I really like this sponge.  It can apply a light layer of foundation and you can build up the coverage where you need it and keep it light where you don't.  It's also nice for concealer, you can build up that coverage too without making a cake on your face.  I used the flat side for my foundation and the pointed tip for concealer around my nose and eyes.  

Here I am with concealer, powder and bronzer....

Now for the finished look.......

I primed my lids with the elf 1.00 primer then applied Rimmel ScandalEyes pencil in Nude to the inner 1/3rd of my lid, I covered that with Virgin from the Naked Palate.  Then I applied the Ulta Gel Eyeliner in Golden Egg to the middle 1/3rd of my lid and covered that with Half Baked.  Next, Penny went on the outer 1/3rd and was covered with Smog from the Naked Palate.  I blended each color into the next when I applied them.  I applied Darkhorse from the Naked Palate to the crease and blended it out and used the lightest color from the Louise Young Palate for my brow bone. The inner corner has Elizabeth Mott Smooth Shadow in Pearl.  I also used a little bit of Bronzer to transition the colors.  These liners make an awesome base and the colors are such a close match the the Original Naked Palate.  After 3 hours, with a little bit of sweating there is no creasing.....

I lined my upper water line with Ulta Gel Eyeliner in Blackout and Lined my upper lash line with the Matte Black  from the Louise Young Palate and an Elf small angle brush.  

I lined my lower water line with Ulta Gel Eyeliner in Starry Night and smudged it into the lashes.  I topped it with the light blue from the Sleek Original i-Divine palate. The eye shadow really popped over the liner.  The liners (Blackout and Starry Night) seem to wear like a usual gel liner on the water line and would probably need reapplied/touched up after a few hours. I finished it up with 2 coats of L'Oreal Carbon Black Mascara.

Here's a close-up of the eye look:

 

Overall, I am happy with how the look turned out. Normally, the upper lid colors would have been smudged on the lower lash line and both water lines would be lined with a black liner.  The pop of color makes it fun and (as lame as it may sound...) I would totally start matching it to my outfits! Or mood...does that sound better?

Full List of Products

Face: 

• Foundation: Maybelline Fit Me in 125
• Concealer: NYX HD Photogenic Concealer in CW03 Light
• Bare Minerals Well Rested to top off the undereye area
• Powder: NYX stay matte but not flat powder foundation in SMP02 Nude
• Bronzer: Revlon Photoready Bronzer in 100 Bronzed and Chic
• Highlight: Philosophy the color of grace amazing graze shimmering face powder
• Blush: City Color Be Matte Blush  in Fresh Melon

Eyes:

• Elf Eyelid Primer (1.00) in Sheer
• Rimmel Scandal Eyes in 005 Nude
• Ulta Gel Eyeliner in Golden Egg
• Ulta Gel Eyeliner in Penny
• Ulta Gel Eyeliner in Blackout
• Ulta Gel Eyeliner in Starry Night
• Elizabeth Mott Smooth Shadow in Pearl
• Naked Palate (Original)
• Louise Young Palate
• Sleek Makeup i-Divine in 594 The Original
• L'Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black Mascara

Lips:

• Revlon Colorburst Lacquer Balm in 105 Demure

One is never enough.....ULTA HAUL!!

So, I was in bed relaxing on my heating pad (I pulled a muscle in my neck and upper back), all hopped up on muscle relaxers to stop the spasms and I stumbled upon Ulta's website.  I realllyyyyy did NOT need any makeup/body/hair products, but being in my relaxed state I decided to browse.....just in case.  Well, my browsing turned into a purchase when I saw the Ulta brand of Gel Eyeliner Pencils on sale for $1.00, yes $1.00 a piece.  These are normally $8.00, so this was a crazy good deal!  There are 24 shades, I bought...20 of them,  (21 total because I bought 2 black).  So then they had their typical 3.50 off of 10.00, and free shipping on $25.00 purchase. so I had to add $8.50 worth of products to the cart to get that free shipping (makes sense right???).  I needed bobby pins, so I added those....still a couple of bucks short, hey I always wanted to try the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion sponge, so I added that too!  There, I was over 25.00, got my 3.50 off and got free shipping (and my samples of course!).

I'll start with the big boy...the Eyeliners.  There are 24 total shades, I did not get 4 of them (Night Sky - a Black matte with silver glitter, Clay - a blue grey metallic shimmer, Silver Dust - silver metallic shimmer and Halo - white metallic shimmer).  I already have a shimmery white and a silver metallic, the other two didn't sound appealing to me.  Here's a pic of all of the liners that I got.......

Left to right: Blackout, Smoke, Dove Gray, Black Brown, Mink, Chocolate, Golden Egg, Penny, Copper, Bronze, Peacock, Olive Oil, Moss, Aqua, Denim, Majesty, Storm, Indigo, Starry Night and Plum

On with the Swatches!!!  I used my inner forearm, and did a longer line with a couple of strokes back and forth and then the shorter is just one swipe.  I did apply a lotion this morning.  At the time I am typing this, they have been there for about an hour and a half.  I'll let you know how they are wearing with each picture.....and I will TRY to describe the colors, I will probably fail miserably - I will include a link to Ulta's page here so that you can read their descriptions, by the way - THEY ARE STILL $1!

Black and Gray....

Bottom to top: Black Out, Smoke, Dove Gray

Left to Right: Black out, Smoke, Dove Gray

                                     
As I sit here and look at the current state of these swatches, I am the most disappointed in these colors. All of them faded significantly without being touched.  All three will still smudge when I run my finger over them (excuse me while I re-swatch my arm to try to describe these).  Black out is - wait for it - Black, but not extremely pigmented compared to all of my other black liners.  Smoke is a dark gray.  Dove Gray is a metallic gunmetal gray color.

Browns....

Left To Right:  Black Brown, Mink, Chocolate

Left to Right: Chocolate, Mink, Black Brown

     

These have not faded, but still smudge when my finger runs over them.  Black brown is not very black brown at all.  Mink is darker brown that looks more black brown to me.  Chocolate is a chocolate brown.  

Metallics!!

Top to Bottom: Bronze, Copper, Penny, Golden Egg

Left to Right:  Bronze, Copper, Penny, Golden Egg

These are still wearing very well!  They don't smudge when rubbed and still look as bold as the picture.  Bronze is a shimmery brown.  Copper is, well, copper.  Penny is a Taupe-ish color.  Golden Egg is gold.

Greens!

Top to Bottom: Aqua, Moss, Olive Oil, Peacock

Top to Bottom: Peacock, Olive Oil, Moss, Aqua

 These are also still wearing well!  They did not smudge when rubbed and still look bold.  I love the aqua, it has a metallic quality to it.  Moss  is a army/drab green and seems like a darker version of olive oil (where did they come up with that name??).  Peacock is a deep forest green

Purples!

Top to Bottom: Plum, Storm, Majesty

Left to Right: Plum, Storm, Majesty

These also stayed put!  Not impressed with Storm - a "blurple" to me, not very pigmented at all - the longer line is a couple of back and forths, the short is just one swipe.  Plum is almost a metallic, brownish-purple, and Majesty is a dark true purple.  

Blues!

Top to Bottom: Starry Night, Indigo, Denim

Left to Right: Starry Night, Indigo, Denim

These also set pretty well.  They did not rub off when I ran my finger over them.  Starry night is a bright blue.  Indigo is an almost cornflower/gray blue with a metallic quality. Denim is a dark navy.  

Overall, I can not wait to incorporate these into my daily makeup routine.  Whether I use them as an eyeliner or as a shadow base is yet to be determined.  Most of these are still tacky to the touch, so they might make some really good shadow bases.  I am usually more of a neutral gal, so I will probably start with adding pops of color on my lower lash line.  I am kind of disappointed in the black, but overall I am impressed, especially since they were only a dollar!!!

Here's the rest of what I got, not too much to say - haven't used the sponge yet and it's just bobby pins??  Not really excited about the samples either, already received the benefit face wash and haven't even used the first sample.  For the matrix style cream - probably won't use it either, I usually where my hair natural and "beachy" during the warmer weather since I have a natural sort of wave, and a sea salt spray is all I need (BlowPro: You can find it here..... ). I can do a review on the spray if ya want?  The last sample is a cologne, haven't smelled it yet......

 WHEW - that was long!!!  Hopefully you made it this far....let me know if you will buy any of these or if you already have them....what do you think of the quality, pigmentation, etc.?

Being MIA and Upcoming blogs......

Been MIA for a while, even missed posting about the April Ipsy bag (Which was amaze-balls by the way!). I've been so busy with school this past semester, it was Critical Care/Mental Health and my schedule was crazy packed!  I am happy to say that finals are over, our whole class passed all four of the finals and we are officially 63 days from graduation!!!  The last semester we have is basically a prep for the NCLEX-RN and our preceptorship (aka internship) where we work with a nurse for 2 or 3 of their shifts each week and they will progressively work us up until we are caring for their whole patient load (which can be up to 4 or 5 patients).  Basically we are on our own, without an instructor, working for free as a "Nurse" under an actual nurse.  This semester should be less hectic since the whole schedule will be pretty much planned out.

Anywho...Since I should have a little bit more time to blog, I'm planning to take advantage and put some up!  I'm going to have my usual monthly Ipsy unboxing, Julep unboxing, and a new one I just subscribed to: Bulu Box, weight loss edition.  Hopefully tomorrow or Saturday I will be getting my order from Ulta.  I can't wait to swatch and give everything a try!

I'm also going to try to blog about my nursing school experience....but that might be information overload since there is a lot to talk about there!  I might start those while I am off and schedule them to upload automatically over the next few weeks.........