It has been a serious minute since I did my last haul post, hasn't it? I didn't buy a whole lot in December and January, just a few bits and bobs here and there, so I thought I'd wait and do a cumulative winter haul... and I ended up shopping way more than expected in the last month. (And this is on top of all the new releases I've reviewed over the past two months, including the Urban Decay and Gwen Stefani collaboration, MAC Flamingo Park, and MAC Zac Posen.) As usual, it was Sephora that lured me in first.
Dior Diorskin Nude Air Glowing Gardens Illuminating Powder in 002 Glowing Nude, Dior Addict Lip Glow Color Reviver Balm in 005 Lilac, and Dior Vernis Couture Colour Nail Lacquer in 301 Bleuette
Both my friends Chelsea and Marina decided to quit their jobs at Sephora to pursue other opportunities, and asked me if I wanted to get anything with their discount while they could still get it. So I made them both lists, and ended up with quite a lot of goodies. I mean, it was like an early VIB sale. I couldn't resist. It started with Dior's new Spring collection, arguably one of their most coveted releases over the last two years. Of course, the first thing on my radar was the new highlighting powders. The pink one was super hyped-up by beauty bloggers and YouTubers alike, but it was the nude one that I really had my eye on. Though the pink one is pretty, I just knew I wouldn't use it as much as the gold one, and at $63 a pop, I really needed to take cost per use into consideration, discounted or not. So I got the highlighter in Glowing Nude; the Lip Glow in the new Lilac shade for spring, which feels amazing on the lips and imparts the most lovely soft petal pink flush; and a nail polish in the new and limited edition light aqua blue shade, which is everything I wanted Chanel Riva (e.g. one of the most hyped up and disappointing Chanel polishes to date) to be.
Hourglass Ambient Strobe Lighting Powder in Brilliant Strobe Light and Euphoric Strobe Light
Urban Decay Perversion Mascara, Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Complete Coverage Concealer in Medium Neutral, NARS Pro-Prime Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base, and Fresh Sugar Advanced Therapy Lip Treatment
Marc Jacobs Velvet Noir Major Volume Mascara (x 2)
I decided to get two of the new Hourglass Ambient Strobe Lighting Powders, which I was totally going to ignore until I swatched them in person. These are squarely in the highlighter category, whereas the original Ambient Lighting Powders are considered soft focus face powders (and are generally not as interesting to me). Basically, this finish is what I was looking for when I got my Ambient Lighting Palette; the shade I use the most in that palette is Incandescent, which is now a solo shade in the Ambient Strobe Lighting Powder range. Since Incandescent is in the palette and Iridescent seemed way too similar to Incandescent to be worth buying, I snatched up Brilliant (a gorgeous champagne gold) and Euphoric (a pearlized peachy beige). I also got a few of my staple holy grail products, including Urban Decay Perversion Mascara, Urban Decay Naked Skin Concealer, and NARS Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base, plus two tubes of Marc Jacobs' new Velvet Noir Mascara which I tried a sample of and totally fell in love with (we'll see if it overtakes UD's Perversion as my holy grail). And because she's super sweet, Chelsea gave me a brand new tube of Fresh Sugar Advanced Therapy Lip Treatment that she got as gratis 'cause she knew I wanted to try it but also didn't want to shell out $31 for it.
Kate Somerville ExfoliKate Cleanser Daily Foaming Wash, Kate Somerville Quench Oil Free Hydrating Face Serum, Kate Somerville Goat Milk Cream, and Philosophy Renewed Hope in a Jar Refreshing & Refining Moisturizer
Verb Hydrating Shampoo (x 2) and Hydrating Conditioner
Of course, having two friends offering me their discount just wasn't enough because I have a serious Sephora addiction. During a late-night online shopping session, I saw that Ebates was having a one-day 12% cash back promotion for Sephora. There was also a 10% off promo code for VIB Rouge members. So I obviously had to use them together, and bought myself a whole slew of skincare. One of my colleagues raved about Kate Somerville's new ExfoliKate Cleanser for two weeks straight saying that her skin has never looked better since using it, so I finally decided to get it. I've been curious about Kate Somerville's skincare for a few years now, so as my current skincare is dwindling, I took the plunge and got her Quench Oil Free Hydrating Serum, plus her Goat Milk Cream to use as my night cream (my skin has been acting a bit funny this winter and despite having an oil slick of a T-zone, I was getting flaky patches and tightness on my cheeks so I needed to change up my skincare, which had always been geared towards oily skin). I also got a jar of Philosophy's new Renewed Hope in a Jar as my day cream since the original Hope in a Jar worked wonders for my skin years ago (I didn't re-purchase it because it felt too thick and smelled horrible, but the new version is more whipped and seems to absorb better and smells delightful). And though I don't usually buy a lot of haircare from Sephora, I just heard so many great things about Verb (arguably the most affordable salon brand out there) that I picked up two bottles of their Hydrating Shampoo and the massive super-size bottle of their Hydrating Conditioner as well.
Jo Malone Nectarine Blossom & Honey Cologne
My friend Austin had given me a Holt Renfrew gift card for my birthday last year that I had yet to use. I don't live anywhere near a Holt Renfrew, so when I perused their website and discovered that they sell cosmetics online, I decided that I would finally splurge on Jo Malone's Nectarine Blossom & Honey Cologne, which I had received a sample of when I bought Blackberry & Bay last year in NYC. I've actually been layering the two scents together for the past couple weeks which creates a lovely fresh, sweet, and slightly tart scent. I think this combo is gonna be my go-to spring fragrance.
Urban Decay Matte Revolution Lipstick in Carnal and Backtalk, Revolution Lipstick in Strip and Protest, and Sheer Revolution Lipstick in Sheer Beso and Sheer Bittersweet
Anastasia Beverly Hills Eyeshadow Singles
Top: Amber, Intense Gaze, Henna, and Cognac
Bottom: Belize, Plum Smoke, Labyrinth, and Aubergine
Anastasia Beverly Hills Eyeshadow Singles
Top: Chiffon, Brownie, Peacock, and Prussian Blue
Bottom: Belize, Chocolate Crumble, Not Today, and Star Cobalt
When I was ordering all my Urban Decay & Gwen Stefani goodies from UD's website, I also decided to get some of their online-exclusive lipsticks — which, in my opinion, are some of the nicest, most flattering shades in their range. They're an assortment of nudes and MLBBs in various finishes (matte, cream, shine), and it's a shame that you can't get them in stores because I honestly think they'd become bestsellers (especially Backtalk and Strip). Their Revolution and Matte Revolution are two of my favourite lipstick formulas of all time, and I'm a total sucker for nudes, so I knew I was gonna like them without having to try them on (also, thank god for online lip swatches, am I right?). I hadn't tried the Sheer Revolution yet, but I figured if I was gonna make an online order, anyway, I might as well pick up the online exclusive shades in that formula as well (I'll have a review up on these soon). My brother also finally shipped out my Anastasia Beverly Hills eyeshadows that I had ordered last December. I had ordered 16 shades because ABH finally brought back their bundle deals (get eight shadows for $70 USD and get a free eight-pan eyeshadow palette). I shipped them to his apartment in NYC knowing that he was coming back to Toronto for Christmas so he could just bring them up with him and I wouldn't have to pay duties. Except that he forgot to bring them with him. So he had them shipped to me two months later.
Too Faced Peanut Butter and Jelly Eyeshadow Collection
MAC Mellow Moderns Eyeshadow x 15 Palette
Too Faced released their Peanut Butter and Jelly eyeshadow palette a couple weeks ago on their website after previously only being available on Ulta, and Chelsea and I were hellbent on getting it because it is too fucking cute to resist, the colours are totally up our alley, and it smells like peanut butter, so I ordered two for us (Ulta doesn't ship to Canada). What pisses me off, however, is that Too Faced's Canadian site isn't really Canadian; they list their prices in Canadian dollars but they are still shipping out of California, so you have to pay taxes and duties (Too Faced uses Borderfree, though, so you know exactly how much you're paying before you receive it — no surprise fees upon arrival). Basically, this $52 palette ended up costing $78. I really, truly love the palette so I don't really regret buying it (also because it's not otherwise available in Canada so I really had no other choice), but I won't be ordering from Too Faced's website again. On another note, I did pick up the new Mellow Moderns 15-pan eyeshadow palette from MAC (which was previously a Nordstrom exclusive), and — best news! — all PRO discounts are applicable. MAC previously didn't allow discounts on their pre-made 15-pan palettes because they were already at a value price, but not only did they lower the retail prices on them from $99 to $85, they've also allowed discounts to be applied. Basically, I got this palette for dirt fucking cheap and it's beautiful.
Julep Nail Color in Janie, Tali, and Celeste
Julep Nail Color in Calla, Cora, Shayla, Kirby, Joelle, and Jamie
Julep Nail Color in Andrea, Dawnelle, Yumi, Sylvie, Everly, and Aviva
Hello Kitty by OPI Nail Lacquer in Starry-Eyed for Dear Daniel, Super Cute in Pink, My Pal Joey, and Never Have Too Many Friends!
I got a shit ton of nail polish. Long time followers of this blog will know that I was heavily into Julep's Maven program, which is the only beauty box program that I am still subscribed to, and I kept ordering for a few years until I got bored and then I started skipping months at a time. I had skipped for over a year until this past January, when I realized that I had enough Maven points to get a free monthly box. So I redeemed my points for the January Box (which included three nail polishes), and then noticed that they were offering their "Jem Collection" (a total of 12 glitter polishes) for $40. And as you know, glitter's my kryptonite. So I got those, too. And then I also got four shades from the Hello Kitty by OPI collection. I thought the pink shades would be cute for spring. And the blue and black creams are staples (also I realized I didn't actually own a black cream nail polish, which is just unacceptable). And, hi, it's Hello Kitty! I couldn't resist.
Bath & Body Works Ultra Shea Body Cream in Moonlight Path and Japanese Cherry Blossom, and Fine Fragrance Mist in Japanese Cherry Blossom
White Barn 3-Wick Candles in Lavender Vanilla and Bergamot Waters and Medium Candle in Eucalyptus Mint
Bath & Body Works Shea Infused Lounge Socks in It's a Shore Thing and You're One in a Melon
Do you know about Bath & Body Works' "Love It or Bring It Back" guarantee? Essentially, if you don't like a B&BW product, you can bring it back at any time, regardless of how old it is or whether you have a receipt. Before, this policy meant that you could exchange a product for the lowest selling price at the time of the exchange. So if you decided you didn't want a candle from two years ago, and it showed up as being $2.99 in their system, you could deduct that amount on another product. Now, their policy is a one-to-one exchange, so you can exchange any product for another of the same type of product. So if you brought back an old 3-wick candle, you could exchange it for a new 3-wick candle, regardless of price. I didn't know this until I was seeing if I could exchange some items I received in a Secret Santa at work this past Christmas. When I found out about their new exchange policy, I brought back a bunch of older products from up to two years ago that I had never used and never intended on using. Hence, I got two new body creams, a new body spray, and three new candles just by exchanging old unused products. But because I'm not a total asshole like that, I also added a few hand sanitizers and a couple pairs of my favourite shea infused lounge socks.
It's Skin Mini Bebe Hand Cream in Fresh Lime, and Classic Hand Cream in Intense & Rich and Soft & Fresh
It's Skin Citron Cleansing Foam and The Face Shop Chia Seed Fresh Cleansing Foam
Bliss Grapefruit + Aloe Body Butter Maximum Moisture Cream and Dr. Bronner's 15-in-1 Pure Castile Soap in Citrus
NYX Powder Blush in Intuition, Summer, and Beach Babe
On a trip to Pacific Mall with Chelsea, I picked up some new hand creams and a tube of Citron Cleansing Foam (to clarify, exfoliate, and relieve inflammation) from Korean beauty brand It's Skin, plus a tube of Chia Seed Fresh Cleansing Foam (to absorb excessive sebum and deep cleanse pores) from The Face Shop, along with some Japanese candy and some cute pens and a Sonix pineapple phone case. Chelsea also gave me a tube of the Bliss Grapefruit + Aloe Body Butter that she had gotten for gratis from Sephora because she knows I love all the Bliss Body Butters, and then on a trip to Whole Foods, we each picked up some Dr. Bronner's Pure Castile Soap (I like using it as hand soap, body wash, and brush cleanser). On a trip to Shoppers Drug Mart, I saw that they were finally carrying NYX, and decided to look through some of the products. NYX was previously only available at indie retailers and Rexall, so I'm glad SDM finally got the rights to carry the whole range because they're just a lot more accessible (SDM carried a few NYX products about a decade ago, but they weren't successful so I guess they were relegated to Rexall and, later, Target). I only bought three blushes while I was there, but it's good to know that I can get my NYX fix closer to home now.
What have you splurged on lately? Any good deals or sales? What spring collections are you most looking forward to? Have you needed to change your skincare this winter, and if so, what's been your favourite products?
Both my friends Chelsea and Marina decided to quit their jobs at Sephora to pursue other opportunities, and asked me if I wanted to get anything with their discount while they could still get it. So I made them both lists, and ended up with quite a lot of goodies. I mean, it was like an early VIB sale. I couldn't resist. It started with Dior's new Spring collection, arguably one of their most coveted releases over the last two years. Of course, the first thing on my radar was the new highlighting powders. The pink one was super hyped-up by beauty bloggers and YouTubers alike, but it was the nude one that I really had my eye on. Though the pink one is pretty, I just knew I wouldn't use it as much as the gold one, and at $63 a pop, I really needed to take cost per use into consideration, discounted or not. So I got the highlighter in Glowing Nude; the Lip Glow in the new Lilac shade for spring, which feels amazing on the lips and imparts the most lovely soft petal pink flush; and a nail polish in the new and limited edition light aqua blue shade, which is everything I wanted Chanel Riva (e.g. one of the most hyped up and disappointing Chanel polishes to date) to be.
I decided to get two of the new Hourglass Ambient Strobe Lighting Powders, which I was totally going to ignore until I swatched them in person. These are squarely in the highlighter category, whereas the original Ambient Lighting Powders are considered soft focus face powders (and are generally not as interesting to me). Basically, this finish is what I was looking for when I got my Ambient Lighting Palette; the shade I use the most in that palette is Incandescent, which is now a solo shade in the Ambient Strobe Lighting Powder range. Since Incandescent is in the palette and Iridescent seemed way too similar to Incandescent to be worth buying, I snatched up Brilliant (a gorgeous champagne gold) and Euphoric (a pearlized peachy beige). I also got a few of my staple holy grail products, including Urban Decay Perversion Mascara, Urban Decay Naked Skin Concealer, and NARS Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base, plus two tubes of Marc Jacobs' new Velvet Noir Mascara which I tried a sample of and totally fell in love with (we'll see if it overtakes UD's Perversion as my holy grail). And because she's super sweet, Chelsea gave me a brand new tube of Fresh Sugar Advanced Therapy Lip Treatment that she got as gratis 'cause she knew I wanted to try it but also didn't want to shell out $31 for it.
Of course, having two friends offering me their discount just wasn't enough because I have a serious Sephora addiction. During a late-night online shopping session, I saw that Ebates was having a one-day 12% cash back promotion for Sephora. There was also a 10% off promo code for VIB Rouge members. So I obviously had to use them together, and bought myself a whole slew of skincare. One of my colleagues raved about Kate Somerville's new ExfoliKate Cleanser for two weeks straight saying that her skin has never looked better since using it, so I finally decided to get it. I've been curious about Kate Somerville's skincare for a few years now, so as my current skincare is dwindling, I took the plunge and got her Quench Oil Free Hydrating Serum, plus her Goat Milk Cream to use as my night cream (my skin has been acting a bit funny this winter and despite having an oil slick of a T-zone, I was getting flaky patches and tightness on my cheeks so I needed to change up my skincare, which had always been geared towards oily skin). I also got a jar of Philosophy's new Renewed Hope in a Jar as my day cream since the original Hope in a Jar worked wonders for my skin years ago (I didn't re-purchase it because it felt too thick and smelled horrible, but the new version is more whipped and seems to absorb better and smells delightful). And though I don't usually buy a lot of haircare from Sephora, I just heard so many great things about Verb (arguably the most affordable salon brand out there) that I picked up two bottles of their Hydrating Shampoo and the massive super-size bottle of their Hydrating Conditioner as well.
Top: Amber, Intense Gaze, Henna, and Cognac
Bottom: Belize, Plum Smoke, Labyrinth, and Aubergine
Top: Chiffon, Brownie, Peacock, and Prussian Blue
Bottom: Belize, Chocolate Crumble, Not Today, and Star Cobalt
Too Faced released their Peanut Butter and Jelly eyeshadow palette a couple weeks ago on their website after previously only being available on Ulta, and Chelsea and I were hellbent on getting it because it is too fucking cute to resist, the colours are totally up our alley, and it smells like peanut butter, so I ordered two for us (Ulta doesn't ship to Canada). What pisses me off, however, is that Too Faced's Canadian site isn't really Canadian; they list their prices in Canadian dollars but they are still shipping out of California, so you have to pay taxes and duties (Too Faced uses Borderfree, though, so you know exactly how much you're paying before you receive it — no surprise fees upon arrival). Basically, this $52 palette ended up costing $78. I really, truly love the palette so I don't really regret buying it (also because it's not otherwise available in Canada so I really had no other choice), but I won't be ordering from Too Faced's website again. On another note, I did pick up the new Mellow Moderns 15-pan eyeshadow palette from MAC (which was previously a Nordstrom exclusive), and — best news! — all PRO discounts are applicable. MAC previously didn't allow discounts on their pre-made 15-pan palettes because they were already at a value price, but not only did they lower the retail prices on them from $99 to $85, they've also allowed discounts to be applied. Basically, I got this palette for dirt fucking cheap and it's beautiful.
Do you know about Bath & Body Works' "Love It or Bring It Back" guarantee? Essentially, if you don't like a B&BW product, you can bring it back at any time, regardless of how old it is or whether you have a receipt. Before, this policy meant that you could exchange a product for the lowest selling price at the time of the exchange. So if you decided you didn't want a candle from two years ago, and it showed up as being $2.99 in their system, you could deduct that amount on another product. Now, their policy is a one-to-one exchange, so you can exchange any product for another of the same type of product. So if you brought back an old 3-wick candle, you could exchange it for a new 3-wick candle, regardless of price. I didn't know this until I was seeing if I could exchange some items I received in a Secret Santa at work this past Christmas. When I found out about their new exchange policy, I brought back a bunch of older products from up to two years ago that I had never used and never intended on using. Hence, I got two new body creams, a new body spray, and three new candles just by exchanging old unused products. But because I'm not a total asshole like that, I also added a few hand sanitizers and a couple pairs of my favourite shea infused lounge socks.
OH GIRL, YOU HAULED.
ReplyDeleteI love these posts. It's like I went shopping and totally kills the urge for me, hahaha. So handy! :P
I need to haul some skincare soon, but I don't know what to try because I need something different. I never liked the old Hope in a Jar, but I've had samples of the new one and it's pretty good, so I might try that. Or something else. IT'S SO HARD. Also I just bought more clothes, again, so I'm going to have to wait until Sephora's usual spring sale, which I hope they are having.
LMAO! I never realize how much I shop until I make these posts... I'm always like, "Okay, NO MORE MAKEUP" and then I'm online shopping at like, 2:00 in the morning. :P
DeleteI've heard Tatcha is really good, especially for someone with a drier skin type. But I'm not ready to splurge on their full skincare line just yet. I mean, $180 CAD on a moisturizer is too much, even for me. I've been thoroughly enjoying Kate Somerville, though. Still pricey, but not over-the-top. And I do really like the Renewed Hope in a Jar. I've been having really good skin days over the past few weeks. :)
Sephora should still be having their Spring VIB sale, but if memory serves, their April sale is usually only 15%. I'm just hoping Ebates will be offering a higher cash back rate during that time, lol.
The first picture almost makes me want to haul some Dior. Almost! :)
ReplyDeleteLol, oh those ye olde days of Julep Mavening. That seems like a million years ago.
Lol, I wouldn't say that any of the Dior products are MUST-HAVES but I haven't been this impressed with a Dior collection in a long, long time. No regrets!
DeleteYeah, Julep has gone a long way since then, eh? I remember posting nail photos religiously... And now I'm like, WHO THE FUCK HAS TIME FOR THAT SHIT.