Saturday, January 11, 2014

Sephora haul!

This is going to be a long one. Let me start by saying that I did not get all of this in one trip. It was over the course of a month-ish and I had a gift card and also that $20 off coupon and also I'm a very bad person. Let's continue.

Here's a quick rundown of what I bought and my first impressions of it:

(I swear, I'm working on my photo-taking skills.)

NARS Crystal Translucent Pressed Powder
Best powder I have ever used, bar none (though keep in mind I haven't used that many). Like those Guerlain pearls -- something I have to remind myself to use -- but BETTER. And cheaper. My only question is: what do you do with the sponge? I've just been using a brush to apply it since my weird OCD tendencies can't imagine getting that pretty white sponge all stained with makeup.



Origins Charcoal Mask
Repurchase. I love this as an end or beginning of the week reboot for my face. Clears my pores from all of their gunk without drying or purging my skin. Potential HG for me.

NARS Sheer Glow foundation in Mont Blanc
Such an impulse purchase! I have read so many good reviews about it, and I was in Sephora in the NARS section and asked for a quick color match and boom, it was in my basket. I thought I was going to be matched to Deauville, but there's one more color right above it that Sephora doesn't have on their website called Mont Blanc. It's PERFECT. As for the formula itself -- I really like it but I need more time to play around with it.

Armani Acqua di Gioia perfume
I've smelled this so many times at a Sephora store and really liked it, so I ordered a bottle. A full spray on me really sticks around, but not in an offensive way? I don't know, I'm a little 'eh' about it. Time will tell but I'll probably return it (and put that money toward a Jo Malone, oops).

Josie Maran Coconut Watercolor Cheek Gelee in Poppy Paradise
I've never used a cream blush. Go ahead and throw the tomatoes. (I kid.) With oily skin, I've always preferred the matte finish my favorite powder blushes bring to the table. But now I'm more combination leaning toward dry, especially in my cheeks. These have fascinated me since they popped up in everyone's blogs last summer (p.s. Ashley's review is so good). And? Amazing! Cooling and sheer but buildable with the best bright fruity color options. I'm definitely going back for another color in the summer, but this one is making my dry winter face feel so much more hydrated and I couldn't be happier.



Beauty Blender
Why did I wait so long to spring for one of these hot pink babies? They remind me of those dinosaur sponges I used to play with in the bath as a kid: small, and then they hit water and EXPLODE into big dinosaurs! Yeah! This one is (unfortunately) not dinosaur shaped but I love it just as much. Get it damp and it triples in size before applying your makeup like a champ. I've also used it to apply that Josie Maran cheek gelee with promising results.

Kat Von D Palette in Ladybird
I almost got the Urban Decay Naked Basics palette instead but LOOK AT THESE WARM COLORS. The brown/taupe neutrals will look amazing with the orange! The purple! The navy! I swoon. I can wear the UD Naked Basics all summer, but the time for these KvD colors is NOW. (Once I wear them and swatch them I'll put up a post. Maybe with multiple looks?)



Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer & deluxe sample of Tarte Flawless Brightening Primer
I wimped out and only got the small size of the Hourglass. It was still $18, but that's a lot easier to swallow than the fifty-dollar-and-change bigger size. Sigh. If only it wasn't so dreamy. As for the Tarte, I haven't tried it yet because when it arrived it was frozen completely solid and has only recently defrosted. Good ol' Wisconsin.



VIB Rouge Welcome Packet + Bite Lipstick in VIB Rouge
Yeah, yeah, here's a cardboard envelope to celebrate your spending gobs of money at Sephora! Yeah! (Honestly, the best perk is the free shipping on any order. I'm going to get so many free samples they're going to need their own closet.) But I do really appreciate the special mini lip shade from Bite, a brand I've been chomping at the bit (ha....see....chomping....Bite....never mind) to try. It's pretty small, but a creamy rich perfect neutral red. Thanks Sephora!


Now someone, anyone, please put handcuffs on the door of my local Sephora so I can't go there anymore. I'll give you some samples!

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