Find out how my #Travel Wanderlust could mean a trip to #Paris for YOU! #trafalgarinsider

This post is sponsored by:

I have battled both Snowmageddon 2015 and the Flu this brutal winter here in the North East and the only thing they have both stirred up in me is my never-ending battle with Travel Wander Lust! I want to escape, and I want to escape BAD! Having worked in the airline industry in the past my passion for travel has never waned.

With my birthday coming up in April I really want to go big, but quite frankly I'm not sure I am up for the planning involved in an Epic adventure you know - that 'once-in-a-lifetime' trip that you never forget! (My first trip to Vegas was one of those Epic trips that's for sure! Thankfully what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas!) The only thing I'm sure of at this point is that I want it to be an international trip, Europe, Asia or somewhere Down Under are my top choices right now.

While stuck at home with the flu I have done some preliminary research, and come across some real contenders both in terms of destination AND who should plan it - with the same attention to detail that I would if I did it myself.  One of the forerunners is a family owned company who is one of the innovators in "Insider Experiences' - allowing travelers to dine with locals in their homes and more! I have always been an 'off-the-beaten-path' type of traveler, and like me, the folks at Trafalgar share a passion for all things travel.

I need a personal travel director/concierge for this upcoming birthday trip and with Trafalgar they arrange for every detail - think luxury coach transportation, hand-picked four-star accommodations, all baggage, hotel and restaurant gratuties! Now that's what I'm talking about!

I personally was snowed in with the Flu on Valentine's Day, but my research for one thing (my upcoming birthday trip) led to another that I just couldn't keep to myself and just had to share! How does an eight-night romantic trip to France - you know THE CITY OF LOVE - sound to you?

Photo Credit: Mayors & Cities - The Worldwide Municipalities Magazine

Not yet sold? The Wonderful France Trip Includes:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Visiting famous landmarks including: Eiffel Tower, Champs-Elysees, Palace of Versailles

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - St. Tropez and Monaco - the playground of the rich and famous

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Pristine Cote d'Azur Coastline

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Trafalgar unique insider experiences including a Be My Guest dinner in Provence cooked in a wood-fired oven in a family run restaurant

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Visit the world-renowned vineyards of Cote du Rhone and Burgundy Wine Regions

But HURRY! The contest runs until February 26th, that is also the deadline date for the Early Payment Discount allowing couples to save up to $1,200 on trips to Europe! Enter HERE for the contest, and if you can't wait to find out if you won and want to lock in that discount, call Trafalgar Travel Experts at 866-544-4434!

MY TAKE: 

You know just how much brands that give back mean to me and I am happy to share that Trafalgar is a founder and active supporter of The TreadRight Foundation, a not-for-profit that works to ensure the environment and communities we visit remain vibrant and well preserved, TreadRight has donated $2.5 million to sustainable tourism projects worldwide!

If you are like me and like to 'lurk' a bit and get to know a brand before you commit, you can hang out with Trafalgar on Facebook and Twitter! And as a blogger I am literally bursting at the seams to share that if you fill out the form HERE and share your best photo taken during a Trafalgar Vacation, they will PAY YOU for it! And it is easy as one, two, three - (1) Enter your Details, (2) Upload your images and (3) Submit, note they will only accept hi-res images 710 x 710 pixels or larger!

Where is your next adventure? Where would you like Trafalgar to help you plan an epic adventure for? Did you enter the Wonderful France Competition Butterflies?

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FTC Disclosure: This is a sponsored post, however all opinions are 100% my own!  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 16 CFR, Part 255 - Guides Concerning the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising, you may check our Giveaway and Disclosure Page for additional information regarding Ascending Butterfly Disclosure.

This #FridayThe13th let's talk what's new on #Television! These Shows are on my radar!

I didn't get a flu shot this year and I have spent the past two weeks doing the flu 'cha cha' a few hours of lucidity where I try to get everything done and then totally wiped out again. In fact the other day I took a shower thinking I was doing great, and my fever spiked so high I thought surely I would pass out. Then the thought of  the EMT's finding me butt naked in my bathroom made me muster my energy to get my PJ's on and get back to bed.

The only great thing about the Flu is TV. Whether it's Cheese TV, Binge Watching, or catching new shows, the flu makes you a captive audience.

Two new shows on my radar are Empire and The Slap.

EMPIRE:

This show centers around a hip hop music and entertainment company called Empire Enterprises, and the drama amidst the members of the founding family of the company who are fighting for control, and stars Taraji P. Henson as Cookie Lyon and Terrence Howard as Lucious Lyon. Lucious is a former drug dealer turned hip hop mogul and CEO of Empire Entertainment who has been diagnosed with ALS and now needs to figure out who his successor will be. Cookie, is Lucious' ex-wife, mother of his three sons and she took a 17 year stretch in prison instead of Lucious for drug dealing. So far this one is keeping me riveted, and I haven't been able to say that about a non cable series in AGES. I can't wait to see this story unfold and it is one of the best TV gifts that has come out of me having the flu and forcing myself to rest! Empire airs Wednesday's at 9pm on Fox! Taraji is truly tearing it up as Cookie!

The Slap

"The Slap" is a miniseries based on the book by Christos Tsiolkas and Australian Television Series and centers on what occurs during the 40th birthday party of Hector played by Peter Sarsaard. His wife Aisha played by Thandie Newton plans a birthday barbecue for Hector that includes his boisterous Greek family. The party comes to a screeching halt when his cousin slaps another couple's mis-behaving child. The series stars Peter Sarsaard, Thandie Newton, Zachary Quinto, Uma Thurman, Melissa George, Thomas Sadoski and Brian Cox. It airs Thursdays at 8pm on NBC.

My Take:

I am normally a fan of cable series shows like Game of Thrones, American Horror Story, Nurse Jackie, Boardwalk Empire and the little time I even allot for TV would normally go to a cable series, however these two network series do hold potential and I have greatly enjoyed what I am seeing so far!

Have you seen Empire or The Slap yet butterflies? If so what do you think of them? If not, what is your favorite Television series right now?

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FTC Disclosure: This is NOT a sponsored post, no monetary compensation has been exchanged and all opinions are 100% my own!  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 16 CFR, Part 255 - Guides Concerning the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising, you may check our Giveaway and Disclosure Page for additional information regarding Ascending Butterfly Disclosure.

{#WordlessWednesday} My #Beauty Care Haul - See what I won from @mirta_deperales

I love entering contests and I can't help entering Beauty Contests, here is a gift bag I won from Mirta de Perales, on the outside is skincare, and inside the bag was a ton of haircare! 

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FTC Disclosure: This is NOT a sponsored post, I won this gift bag and was under no obligation to write anything about it!

{#FashionFriday} High Fashion AND Washable? Oh yes you can! #PGFutureFabricsNYC

Are those three dreaded words 'Dry Clean Only' going to become a thing of the past? I can only hope so!

With cars out that can now drive themselves, it's about time fabric and fashion took a leap forward and gave us more choices. Like the choice to enjoy designer label fashion that is completely washable and having the fabric retain both it's feel AND color!

P&G hosted a Future Fabrics Event in New York City hosted by Fashion Stylist/Expert, Author and Television host George Kotsiopoulos focusing in on the science of the beauty and care of clothes and the advancements in fabric and technology that included a Fashion Show of looks by Giles Deacon that are completely washable! (see photo of all the looks below:)

Women wear only 20% of their clothes 80% of the time, and according to Cognitive Psychologist, Dr. Lawrence Rosenblum there are 'a myriad of cross-sensory influences on your experience - what you see, how it feels to the touch, what your nose smells, it is the look, feel and scent of your clothes that combine to impact the relationship that you have with them and your final decision on 'what to wear today'.

Above: 'The Look' of a garment plays a huge part in whether or not we will select it to wear, no one wants a white shirt that is now beige or yellow! (as you can tell the whitest of the shirts is the one washed in Tide Laundry Detergent, where as the same garment washed in competitor brand detergents did not yield the same results and did not preserve the 'whiteness' of the garments)

Above: 'The Feel' of a garment is part of the multi-sensory perception that goes into whether or not we will pick a particular garment out of the closet that day.

Above: 'The Scent' While that may seem like an obvious one, I had no idea that invisible stains also cause odor. Tide formulas are helping to protect the 'like new' feel of clothes via Fiber Preservation Technologies that prevent hard water minerals from compromising fiber integrity and The new Tide 4-in-1 Pods with Febreze help take this process a bit further by aligning and polishing the fibers to remove soil and invisible stains and binding the parts that actually cause fiber damage and that also lead to premature degradation.

There was a bit of focus on 'Scent' (which was to be expected!) and I was very surprised to learn that proctor & gamble (P&G) employs the most perfumers in the world!

Six of the 'main' notes that go into Downy include:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Green Notes

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Apple

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Rose

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - White Floral

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Vanilla

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Musk

There were even demos that explained the science behind what goes on in our washing machine (this butterfly is thinking it is really time to invest in a High Efficiency washing machine and get out of the 'dark ages' when it comes to washers!)

Green and Floral Notes of Downy #PGFutureFabricsNYC

New products to look for on your next trip to the supermarket include:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Tide Pods Plus Febreze

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Tide HE (high-efficiency) Turbo

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Downy Fresh Protect in-wash odor shield in the 'active fresh' scent

MY TAKE:

Tide and Downy have always been my laundry 'go-to' products, and getting this inside look into the science and technology of washable fashion was certainy fun and definitely made me think. I want to re-evaluate my wardrobe and get rid of that 80% that is not being worn and focus more into the 20% that I tend to wear more often, this way I can never say 'I have nothing to wear' and I can really say I love everything that I am currently rocking!

And as events always come with cool swag, with my online nickname being The Official Twitter Party DJ, I have to share that part of the swag was a pair of MARC by Marc Jacobs Humlan Oil Edition UrbanEars headphones! (you can toss the  removable headband and the ear cushions in the wash!) SUH WEET

Do you think more designers will embrace the 'washable fashion' trend?

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FTC Disclosure: This is an event recap, no monetary compensation has been exchanged however Ascending Butterfly was provided with Product Samples for Editorial Consideration and there was a 'swag bag'. This however did NOT influence my opinion. All opinions are 100% my own!  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 16 CFR, Part 255 - Guides Concerning the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising, you may check our Giveaway and Disclosure Page for additional information regarding Ascending Butterfly Disclosure.

Sharing my #RapidResults with @neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Night Moisturizer thanks @Allure_magazine! #SPONSORED #BBloggers

I couldn't possibly succeed at being more entertaining on this particular topic than this buzzfeed article called "22 Things That Only Happen To People Who Have Resting Bitchface" by Lara Parker and Candace Lowry, this collection of GIF's are simply hilarious, but something that anyone accussed of this shall we call it 'condition' can relate to. (For those in the know '2's' always follow me, so I find it interesting this particular article on Resting Bitch Face most caught my eye!)

As a freelance writer, blogger, social media consultant and life coach, reading my emails on a daily basis, give me this face:

See those forehead wrinkles? That's exactly what happens every time I open another email asking me to do something for free! It sounds sort of like this "You want me to craft content for you with how many words, and on a deadline and you want me to do it for free because if I won't invariably someone will' - Then I scream profanity at my email and go grab an energy drink because I know it's going to be a long day!

I actually hate being in pictures. I don't do selfies, and I try to avoid being in front of the camera as much as possible. Taking pictures goes something like this for me:

Allure Magazine asked their Beauty Enthusiasts to test out Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Night Moisturizer

ABOUT:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Accelerated Retinol SA

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Fades the look of stubborn wrinkles

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Brightens Skin Tone

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Smooth fine lines and texture

MY TAKE:

While it claims to boast visible results in just one week, I found it took closer to just under 3 weeks to show visible results for me. But then again I do test a lot of products and tend to have to ease my skin into it a bit. The first week I had to start it one day on and one day off which is the norm when I'm testing anything with Retinol. It takes my skin a bit to ease into products with Retinol. so technically the first week may not count since I didn't use it every single night. I found by the beginning of week 3 that I began to notice a fade in the most stubborn wrinkles which for me are forehead and parenthesis (or more like a semi colon than parenthesis because one side is more pronounced than the other!). It did work well on both fine lines and stubborn wrinkles but I didn't notice a marked difference in terms of brightening, I would have liked to see more especially since I am using the Pink Grapefruit Cleanser by Neutrogena during the day as a face wash since my skin is acne and oil prone/combination.

Overall at a price of $20.99 per 1 fl. oz I found it to be effective and budget friendly and wouldn't hesitate to recommend it. It did deliver the promised results, just in a bit more time than one week!

What is YOUR favorite Neutrogena Skin Care Product Butterfly?

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FTC Disclosure: Allure and Neutrogena provided product to Ascending Butterfly free of charge for Editorial Consideration. All opinions are 100% my own!  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 16 CFR, Part 255 - Guides Concerning the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising, you may check our Giveaway and Disclosure Page for additional information regarding Ascending Butterfly Disclosure.

Junior High School Graduation #ThrowbackThursday

I have already shared High School before so I thought I would share a Junior High School Graduation Photo for Throwback Thursday this week!

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FTC Disclosure: This is NOT a sponsored post and all opinions are 100% my own!  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 16 CFR, Part 255 - Guides Concerning the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising, you may check our Giveaway and Disclosure Page for additional information regarding Ascending Butterfly Disclosure.

{#WordlessWednesday} How a #Foodie survives #Snowmageddon2015

While it didn't come down in New York City nearly as bad as was predicted, the MTA Public Transportation System as well as local airports did shut down. Supermarkets and Super Stores in general sold out of food and essentials very quickly and I spent my time making comfort food like this hearty seafood bisque pictured above (I normally don't but I added fresh organic mushrooms to this one because I love mushrooms and didn't want them to go to waste!)

Did you get snow where you are butterfly?

Happy Wordless Wednesday, bloggers feel free to link us to your photos today, leave a comment here, just no giveaway links please!

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FTC Disclosure: This is NOT a sponsored post and all opinions are 100% my own!  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 16 CFR, Part 255 - Guides Concerning the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising, you may check our Giveaway and Disclosure Page for additional information regarding Ascending Butterfly Disclosure.

Wine & chocolate! @romanticwine paired with Brookside Dark Chocolate Crunchy Clusters! #DISCOVERBROOKSIDE #SPON

The folks at Crowdtap recently challenged a few of their members/digital influencers to pair Brookside Dark Chocolate Crunchy Clusters with another thing they love and post the results of our pairing, so here is mine:

I chose to pair IceWine Exclusives TMRW Vidal IceWine with my Brookside Dark Chocolate Crunchy Clusters and it was the perfect combo!

Don't get me wrong, wine and cheese is still aces in my book, but I have been attending tastings that are dedicated to pairing wines with chocolate and I have enjoyed them and wanted to re-create the experience at home.

TMRW - The most Romantic Wine are carefully selected handcrafted Icewines from Canada which I have featured on Ascending Butterfly before (see our coverage of the NY Wine Festivals for more info or their website), are such an exception to my palate rule. I tend to lean toward dry and less sweet wines, but TMRW wines offer such 'balanced complexity' that they are 'sweet and refreshing' in my book, not cloying or annoyingly sweet, but just that perfect sweetness that doesn't overshadow.

BROOKSIDE Chocolates combine exotic fruit juices and clusters of crispy multi-grains with soft fruit flavored centers with sweetened cranberry bits covered in smooth dark chocolate. I love that they offer a 'crispy, fruity' taste with a dark chocolate. 

Together they made the perfect combo. The chocolates are not super sweet, so pairing them with a sweet wine gives all your senses a little rush!

What pairing will you try today on #TryMeTuesday Butterflies? Have you ever paired Wine with Chocolate?

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FTC Disclosure: This is a sponsored post and all opinions are 100% my own!  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 16 CFR, Part 255 - Guides Concerning the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising, you may check our Giveaway and Disclosure Page for additional information regarding Ascending Butterfly Disclosure.

{#WordlessWednesday} Male AND Female #Butterfly #Photo - Lexias Pardais - WOW!

The right wings of this preserved Lexias pardais are characteristic of the female of the species and the left wings are typical of the male. (This is called 'gynandromorphism'). The body's coloration is exactly split down the middle lengthwise! You can read more about it, and where you can see it on display HERE!

Happy Wordless Wednesday Butterflies! Bloggers you are always welcome to post the link to your WW photos as a comment, and we will go visit you too! (No Giveaway Links, Wordless Wednesday Only Please!) Happy Humpday, and remember in nature there are NO accidents!

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FTC Disclosure: This is NOT a Sponsored Post! I am a lifelong butterfly enthusiast and when I find out something this fascinating about butterflies I just HAVE to share!

Wanna wish Stephen Hawking a Happy Birthday? Then Go See @FocusFeatures #TheTheoryOfEverything

On January 8, 1942 (73 years ago) Stephen Hawking was born, and with it being the famed physicist's birthday, I thought it would be the perfect day to post about Focus Feature's The Theory of Everything which is a British Biographical Romantic Drama directed by James Marsh and adapted by Anthony McCarten from the memoir Travelling to Infinity: My Life with Stephen by Jane Wilde Hawking.

The movie stars Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones (who portray Stephen and Jane), the movie outlines how the two met at Cambridge University in the 60's and chronicles their relationship and lives.

Eddie and Felicity offer a spot on performance and it is uncanny just how much they resemble the real Stephen and Jane, take a look at this photo:

Left: The Real Stephen and Jane Hawking, Right: Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones!

I got to attend a fun Advanced Screening with Q&A that was hosted by The Moms that was followed by a question and answer with Felicity Jones!

Now I am the first to tell you guys that I am normally not a big romance movie person, but this one is compelling, well cast, and the performances couldn't have been more spot on! I understand that it took almost 3 years to convince Jane Hawking to agree to a film adaptation, and I hope she agrees that the performances did her memoir justice. The sheer difficulty of the physicality of the role should certainly win Redmayne some kind of award in my book! The voice you hear in the latter part of the movie is Stephen's real voice.

Here is a video of the Q&A:

My Take:

This is as real life as it gets, life gets messy, it has it's ups and downs and this is a romantic drama that really hit the mark for me.

Have you already seen The Theory of Everything? What did you think of it?

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FTC Disclosure: This is NOT a compensated post, it is an event recap. This is NOT a sponsored post and all opinions are 100% my own!  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 16 CFR, Part 255 - Guides Concerning the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising, you may check our Giveaway and Disclosure Page for additional information regarding Ascending Butterfly Disclosure.

Stuck in a #beauty rut? @beautypress #SpotlightDay offers up great ideas for 2015 for both men & women! #bbloggers

Don't get stuck in a rut for 2015, just like you set professional goals, set some new personal ones too! Single and ready to mingle? Maybe a switch up in appearance is what you need to help cupid along while you are waiting to get hit by the love arrow!

I have been on a sort of 'personal renaissance' myself, I chopped off over 13 inches of hair last year to donate to women with Cancer (read up on my experience if you missed it HERE), next up for me a color change for my hair which I have never actually done but really want to try (and NO there are no grey hairs on my head yet, this is just for FUN), and I started the first week of the new year by shopping my closet, tossing stuff I have entirely outgrown and getting ready to make some wardrobe changes. Starting with new foundation, because you can buy great clothes but if the undergarments aren't holding what they should hold, the clothes won't look right!

Even with professional goals the first foot you put forward counts, so I am also looking to give my Beauty Routine a swift kick in the mascara so to speak and my favorite New York City event, Beauty Press (a network for Beauty Editors and Bloggers to connect with Beauty Brands) put some new products on my radar, and I just had to share them with YOU, here they are in alphabetical order:

Brand Exhibitors Include:

Absolutment Parfumeur, Absolument Homme

My little 'scent secret'? I tend to wear Men's Cologne's over women's perfumes. I like the notes in cologne better and find that they smell better on me (and I guess men feel the same way, because when I go out and wear cologne I get more of those 'what scent are you wearing'? from men than I do when I try wearing women's perfume! With 3 notable exceptions, my three 'girlie' fave scents are Dolce & Gabanna Light Blue, Doux Amour by Spadaro, and Midnight Promise by Bellegance Perfumes!) Absolutment Parfumeur, (Press on the British Flag to read the site in English!) founded by Pascal Rolland (the person who re-introduced Absinthe Liquor in France in 1999 after an 84 year ban!) decided to create his first perfume Absolutment Absinthe - making him the first liquor-maker perfumer! I did like Absinthe, but I LOVE Absolment Homme, I mean like obsessively love it! I am waiting on full size units on both of them and I think they would be amazing as gifts for Valentine's Day! (and if you want to bring over a bottle of Absinthe while you are it....#justsaying)

Biomega Freeze Baby Mega-Hold Hairspray by aquage (Photo credit @beautypress)

While I love my new shorter 'do', keeping those layers looking 'styled' definitely requires a good hair spray, but I don't want sticky helmet head, so I'm digging the new Biomega Freeze Baby Mega-Hold Hairspray by aquage to keep those layers in place on these cold, windy and inclement winter days on the East Coast!

Baiser ROSE Candle

I love the smell of FRESH Roses. And yes I meant to capitalize the word Fresh, one of the reasons I tend to not be attracted to many perfumes is that the rose scent used is highly 'synthetic' or overly concentrated and over-bearing, at least to my nose. I was surprised to find myself taken with the Baiser ROSE Candle, I'm rarely such a frilly, girly girl type, but this very pink, rose-scented candle was a delight to the senses and I really like it! Definitely another Score as a Valentine's Day Gift Idea!

Breakups to Makeup

Breakups to Makeup is the creation of makeup artist Angelique Velez (pictured above) as a staple of self-expression for the person whose heart was broken and buried themselves in the darkest of places, to the cancer patient who has lost all her hair yet finds comfort in that perfect shade of lipstick, a brand for those with a genuine love of makeup, their fashion and accessories are just plain spot on! See the t-shirt next to her? It reads "I would cry but my mascara is designer' - I know I am not the only one yelling YAS! and YES! or the makeup bag that reads "I May Not Be Perfect But My Makeup Is' - If you plan to 'give good face' this year, then this is EXACTLY the brand you want to do that with! I wish one of their T-Shirts or Cosmetics bag were in the Swag bags, but sadly they weren't or you would see a picture of me wearing it!

Huile des Princesses aromatherapy utilizing precious oils

If a trip to Paris is on your bucket or New Year's resolutions list but for whatever reason you don't think this is going to be your year either, try Huile des Princesses a new aromatherapy line with all-natural precious oils for face, body, hair and massage on for size. A little bit of Paris luxury for your home spa. Maybe not a trip to Paris, but your skin will think it has been there at least!

Intelligent Skin Sense

Founded by a multi-spa owner, Intelligent Skin Sense uses a very holistic approach utilizing botanical herbs and clinically tested ingredients to make beauty products and tools that help you bring the spa experience home. Sense a theme? Why not make pampering yourself one of your top priorities for this new year butterflies? I would love to try out the Micro-Current Home Facial Device, I have never tried one of these before and have often wondered about their efficacy. If any of you have tried them please let us know what you think!

K6 Skincare (Photo Credit: @beautypress)

K6 Skin Care, founded by Dallas based naturopath Sharon Krahn, her combination of enzymes, herbs, essential oils and nutrition led to an organic skin care line that is safe for ALL skin types especially those with hypersensitive skin.

Manicure by Primp and Polish

This Gel Manicure with Nail Art courtesy of Primp and Polish (linking you guys to their twitter handle as the website was down when I sat down to write this!) is just plain EVERYTHING! Looking back at it just makes me happy. Look at that vibrant nail polish and that 'deco-inspired' Nail Art! This lasted well over a week for me and while Gel is a bit harder to remove than traditional Nail Polish, the long lasting brilliant look is worth the extra time and steps in my opinion. They have 3 locations in Brooklyn, New York!

What happens when a group of cosmetics-crazed science geeks from MIT join forces? Wink Natural Cosmetics an all-natural solution to help promote eyelash and eyebrow growth in dormant hair follicles. While some growth serums, can boast giving you longer eyelashes, they can still be sparse, just longer and sparse, what Wink does is make your lashes AND brows thicker and fuller too!

In addition to the brands above who provided samples, there was a swag bag and the Editor Review Bag Sponsors included:

Nordic Beauty (photo credit: @beautypress)

Nordic Beauty is a natural and organic skin care line that utilizes Marine Collagen Peptides from Norway, it is a combination of Science, Marine Collagen Peptides and cold Norwegian Sea Water. 

Nurse Jamie (photo credit: @beautypress)

Jamie Sherrill, R.N., "Nurse Jamie" is the owner of Park Medical Spa in Los Angeles and Abu Dhabi, she is a registered nurse and global skincare expert with quite a list of celebrity clientele who love her healthy skin solutions, cutting-edge products and medical devices. She also offers skincare regimens for MEN, not just women! That's right my male butterflies, this is the year to kick your grooming habits up a notch too!

I actually got to meet the Zotos 180PRO  team at the summer Beauty Press (held on a Luxury Yacht in Manhattan, if you missed that recap click HERE), the anchor in the line (oops no pun intended after the yacht reference I swear!) is the Miracle Repair Damage Eliminator Treatment which uses a patent pending cross-linking ingredient to attract the reparative benefits of 180PRO products to the damaged areas of your hair like a magnet, to repair up to two years of hair abuse and safeguard your tresses against future damage. I tend to blow out and flat iron my hair often, so this is literally made for me!

My Take:

I was stoked that Beauty Press was actually able to squeeze in another event just before the holidays! I loved to see that 180PRO returned as my hair is really responding their products, and there were a ton of new to me products, and as I go along road testing them I will provide individual reviews. (I only test one system at a time so I know what is actually working for me, takes me a bit longer, but I test systems individually and finish them completely/empty the tube so I can give you an accurate review and pinpoint exactly which product is giving me results. I fell in nail love with my mani with nail art so I will be doing more Gel Manicures on these pages this year that's for sure! Although I will say that KISS Products pop on and pop off nails are still a particular fave of mine for speed, ease and convenience. 

Wonder if it's too much to ask of Cupid to be sure that the man that comes trying to sweep me off my feet is wearing Absolutment Homme?

Butterflies which brand resonates most with you? Which one would you most like to try? Let them know you saw them featured on Ascending Butterfly so we can hopefully come back with something fun for YOU too!

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FTC Disclosure: I am a member of the Beauty Press Network. This is NOT a compensated post, it is an event recap. This is NOT a sponsored post and all opinions are 100% my own!  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 16 CFR, Part 255 - Guides Concerning the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising, you may check our Giveaway and Disclosure Page for additional information regarding Ascending Butterfly Disclosure.