Sephora Black Friday Haul!

A bit delayed, for that I apologize, but here's what I hauled from Sephora's Black Friday sale!

Deborah Lippmann Party Mix Set L to R: Fashion, Whatever Lola Wants, Let's Go Crazy, Between the Sheets, Good Girl Gone Bad, 99 Luftballons, It's Raining Men, Through the Fire, Boom Boom Pow

For freebies I received my Sephora birthday gift, the Pampered Party Prep Code, as well as the usual 3 free samples. There were so many freebies that I had to take 2 pictures!

L to R: Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb, MUFE Rouge Artist Natural in N9, MUFE Smoky Extravagant Mascara, Benefit Stay Flawless Primer, CoverFX Calming Primer, Glamglow Powermud Dual Cleanse Treatment, Lancome Advanced Genefique Youth Activating Concentrate, Dermadoctor KP Duty Exfoliating Body Scrub, BECCA Ultimate Coverage Complexion Creme in Fair and Light

L to R: Living proof Satin Hair Serum, Laura Mercier Flawless Skin Face Polish, Fresh Seaberry Moisturizing Face Oil, NUDE Perfect Cleanse Omega Cleansing Jelly

I also picked up some gifts for friends and family for Christmas! I'm definitely excited for expanding my DL nail polish collection, and actually like all of the shades! I'm also excited to have a new lippie to play with as well as a few more primers to try!

Which sample should I focus on using up first?

Thanks for reading!

September Empties

Another month, more empties! I think I did quite well for September!

 

 

Neutrogena All-in-One Make-Up Removing Cleansing Wipes: Same review as April Empties. Can't get much easier than these!

 

 

L to R: Live Clean Argan Oil Restorative Conditioner, Korres Volcanic Minerals Volumizing Mascara

 

Live Clean Argan Oil Restorative Conditioner: I picked this up on sale at Shoppers due to the brand's promise of environmental friendliness and the promise of argan oil. I loved the French vanilla scent this had (reminds me of the old St. Ives French Vanilla Conditioner I used to love, that I can't seem to find anywhere now). This made my hair feel soft and somewhat managed my frizz. I generally flit from conditioner to conditioner, but I like this enough to consider repurchasing.

 

Korres Volcanic Minerals Volumizing Mascara: from this haul. This mascara works really well for me! Not only does it add a lot of volume (without clumps!) it also lengthens and adds the perfect hint of a curl for my lashes! I loved this sooo much I snatched up the full-size version at Sephora that was on sale for $12! This could be my HG mascara!

 

 

L to R: KIT Quilted Square Cosmetic Pads, Dr.'s REMEDY Non-Acetone Enriched Nail Polish Remover

 

KIT Quilted Square Cosmetic Pads: Average, run-of-the-mill cotton pads, however I found these snagged on everything and left behind wisps of cotton. Will not repurchase.

 

Dr.'s REMEDY Non-Acetone Enriched Nail Polish Remover: from this haul. This nail polish remover has a garlicky scent (think garlic-based alcohol) but does the job. Maybe not the fastest to use, but gets even the toughest glitters off eventually. I like that my nails seemed stronger after using this remover, and if the bottle weren't so small I'd consider repurchasing.

 

 

L to R: Secret Clinical Strength Invisible Solid Anti-Perspirant in Completely Clean, Ducray Squanorm Shampoo, Benefit BADgal Lash Mascara

 

Secret Clinical Strength Invisible Solid: I found this anti-perspirant as effective as the gel formula, but it didn't stain my t-shirts! That's always a plus, this is less of a mess to apply as well and I have already purchased a replacement!

 

Ducray Squanorm Shampoo: see review here. Repurchased and will continue to repurchase.

 

Benefit BADgal Lash Mascara: from this haul. This is the middle of the road of the 3 mascaras I finished up in September. This gives the volume and slight hint of curl similar to Korres, but unfortunately by the end of most days, I do have a bit of smudging under my eyes that I don't get with other mascaras. If only Benefit fixed this issue, this could be HG mascara contender! I still have another sample of this mascara, but at this point I will not be repurchasing.

 

 

 

L to R: Yves St. Laurent Glossy Stain in No. 9 Rouge Laque, Tarte Clean Slate Flawless 12-hr Brightening Primer, Buxom Lash Mascara

 

Yves St. Laurent Glossy Stain in No. 9 Rouge Laque: from this haul. This is a bright, orangey-toned red. Similar to No 7 Corail Aquatique (reviewed last month) this is pretty long lasting and lacks the stickiness that most people hate about glosses. I used up the applicator brush last month so used my lip brush to apply it, I definitely found this method much more difficult than the spongey applicator and got some clumping / unevenness. I also hated this colour on me, it was too orangey and bright and I felt a bit clownish wearing this out in public (especially since I couldn't get it as even as I'd have liked). I couldn't even use up all of this sample, and will definitely not purchase in this colour.

 

Tarte Clean Slate Flawless 12-hr Brightening Primer: I got this deluxe size in a kit of minis sold at Sephora two Christmases ago. I find this primer okay, but not the best (I like Too Faced's version much better as it blurs imperfections more). It has a light citrusy scent to it which is pleasant, and feels moisturizing on the skin.

 

Buxom Lash Mascara: from this haul. Of the 3 mascaras I used up this month this was my least favourite. But was by no means a bad mascara. No clumping or raccoon eyes, and definitely elongated my lashes. However, I prefer mascaras that both volumize and lengthen my lashes. I still have another sample of this to get through, but I don't think I'll be buying this again.

 

All in all a pretty successful month of empties for me! 6 full-size items, 4 deluxe-size items, and one sample!

 

What products did you use up in September?

Sephora 20% off Haul

Sephora recently had a promotion going on where VIBs got 20% off their purchase. Here's what I picked up!

Back row L to R: NARS Nail Polish in Disco Inferno, Tarte Stop & Stare 6 piece Eyeliner & Lash Set, Stila Portrait of a Perfect Blush
Front row L to R (freebies): DKNY Be Delicious Skin, Tata Harper Resurfacing Mask, WEI Golden Root Purifying Mask, Benefit Happy Birthday Gift

This is NARS in Disco Inferno, it's described as an iridescent silver green, but when I used it had purple in there too. Almost a duochrome.

Tarte Stop & Stare Set L side Top to Bottom: Skinny SmolderEYES Amazonian Clay Waterproof liners in Onyx, Azurite Green, Purple Garnet, SmolderEYES Amazonian Clay Waterproof liners in Taupe and Rose Gold
R side: lights, camera, flashes Statement Mascara

I have been loving this set! The skinny eye liner pencils are smooth and creamy and very pigmented, basically on par with Urban Decay's 24/7 liners. The bigger pencils are great for all over lid shading and perfect neutral colours!

Stila Portrait of a Perfect Blush L to R: Golden, Illume, Pretty Pink, Precious Pink, Rose

At $12 this is a steal! Love the variety of colours and finishes in this palette! Great for someone like me just getting into blush!

Last year's birthday gift was from Benefit and included a mini They're Real! mascara and Watt's Up!

 

 

Did you pick up anything during the 20% off event?

Thanks for reading!

 

November 18, 2013 Haul



Not another haul! Uggh, why must Sephora call to me so often?

The main reason for the haul: the Tarte Pure Delights 8 Piece Lip Surgence Set

I had already received a Tarte Matte Lip Surgence in last year's Sephora Favourites Give Me Some Lip Set, and I loved it, so I quickly purchased another one (this time Tarte Lip Surgence Lip Crème) and knew that I would definitely purchase whichever Christmas set from Tarte had the most Lip Surgence (this was before the Collector's Set was released...and I don't think I'll take the plunge with that one, but who knows?)!

I am loving this set and definitely recommend it to all Tarte Lip Surgence fans! I'm loving most of the colours (but been a bit shy around the 2 browner shades (Generous and Grateful) and the bright red (Enamored)). So glad I picked it up, it definitely will help me step out of my comfort zone!

And then, since the Tarte set didn't give me enough lippies (lol, I'm such an addict), I picked this Stila Color Me Glossy set of 9 lip glazes.  To be fair, I'm giving 6 of these away as gifts, since they come packaged in cute gift wrap in sets of 3.  I also couldn't resist some of these flavours/colours: Persimmon, Passionfruit, Melon, Amaretto, they all sound so yummy!

My freebie for the order was this adorable trio of deluxe size Benefit products! I'm not sure if this code is still in stock, but it's VIBSPREE (only available to those with VIB status at Sephora). Definitely a great freebie, although I've yet to test these out.

This freebie is a trial of 3 colours of YSL's Glossy Stain, it even came with a sample applicator!

I have been LOVING this perfume from Escada, although it is definitely more appropriate for Spring/Summer since it's so fresh and fruity!

And my last sample was the Hourglass Oil-free Mineral Primer, which I hope to test out, since it gets rave reviews!

That's my Sephora haul (although I have 2 more in the works...). What have you hauled recently from Sephora?

Thanks for reading!

End of May Sephora Haul!

From L to R: VIB Stila set, Sephora Collection Colorful Blush in Pink Flush, REN Glycol Lactic Radiance Renewal Mask, Sephora Collection Waterproof Contour Eye Pencil in 24 Surfer Babe, Sephora Favorites Lash Stash, Dolce & Gabbana Pour Femme, OCC Lip Tar & Nail Lacquer Set in Grandma, and Amazing Cosmetics Concealer

 

 

So I'd been eyeing the OCC Lip Tar & Nail Lacquer Set for sometime, having wanted to try out a Lip Tar, but being unable to justify the price of a single Lip Tar, so this set was perfect to try out a Lip Tar and basically get a $3 OCC nail polish. The Lip Tar was a bit more orange than I expected, but I love the brush and the feel of the Lip Tar, not as drying as other lip stain products. Also, you can definitely increase or decrease the intensity of the colour by adding more product or using less.

 

 

 

The Sephora Collection Colorful Blush were in the sale section for $7 each, so I decided to pick up Pink Flush, since the price couldn't be beat & I think blush would be a great addition to an everyday or special occasion makeup look. Surprisingly this is the first blush I've bought!

I also found Sephora's eye pencils cost only $11 and the variety of shades was awesome! Reviews online compared these pencils to Urban Decay, so I decided for $11 I'd give this one in Surfer Babe, a peacock blue, a shot. The pencil arrived broken so I'll have to sharpen it before using, the color looks amazing though! Unlike anything I currently own.

For my online code, I decided to go with VIBSTILA which included Stila's waterproof mascara and 2 lip glazes (which I already knew I loved). The 3 items came packaged in a pretty sheer pink bag that can be reused for gifts. Since this was free this was awesome!

 

 

 Having passed on the Sephora Favorites Lash Stash at Christmas, I decided to shill out the $30 for this set of 5 mini mascaras with a voucher to purchase the full-size of your favourite mascara of this set instore.  I have a few mascaras to finish up before starting on these, but I still think this was a good deal!

 



The 3 free samples I received with this order were: REN Glycol Lactic Radiance Renewal Mask (0.17 oz, very generous for a free sample), Dolce & Gabbana Pour Femme, and Amazing Cosmetics Concealer in Medium Beige.

I requested the Amazing Cosmetics Foundation in Medium Beige, so I'm guessing the concealer will be too dark for my skin tone, so this might be given away to someone who can use it.

 

Have you done any big hauls recently? Do you like Sephora's brand of cosmetics?

 

Thanks for reading!