IMATS London 2013 - The Haul

Heya lovelies!

If you've seen my previous post you will know i attended IMATS London this weekend and this little lot is what i have to show from it! If you've not seen my last post, go have a looky because there really was some amazing talent on show. I was savvy enough to arrive early and managed to get the majority of my shopping done before the place got manic. The queue for NYX by 11am was absolutely huge so I was really thankful i nipped there as one of my first stops! The Nars booth was hectic due to a combination of around 60% off a selection of products (obviously i couldn't resist those) and the booth was really badly set out so it made grabbing the bargains extremely difficult!

I managed to get the majority of what i wanted on the day and a few little extras, of course. But this year was less about the shopping for me and more about the experience, i even came home with a little bit of money left over... Madness! I'll try and remember prices as best i can and silly me forgot to add my Parian Spirit to my haul pictures, but expect a review of that little beauty soon because it smells absolutely amazing!

I'd wanted to replace my Embryolisse for the longest time but had specifically waited for IMATS to grab it with a little discount, its my go-to moisturiser for any type of sore skin. I was a little disappointed with OCC as they didn't have their airbrush foundation or polishes with them this year, so i opted for some Kett foundation for my airbrush and Guru Makeup Emporium had a decent discount on all their products. I did however manage to snag the OCC concealer I'd been lusting over forever.

Embryolisse - £15

Kett Hydro Foundation - £18

OCC Conceal - £10

As i mentioned earlier Nars had a whopping discount of around 60% off selected products and were not selling their full range (sad face), but i jumped at the chance to snag a few bargains! I wish I'd grabbed a few more things to try out but as the booth was so crammed it was hard to see and grab what you wanted.

New Order Highlighter - £8.50

Never Say Never Matte Pencil - £7

Sin / Albatross Duo - £12.50

Ben Nye Banana Powder is ridiculously famous in the beauty world, but even in a shopping frenzy i was smart enough to know that it really wouldn't work on my super fair complexion, so i opted for their fair translucent powder. It has a gigantic 85 grams of product! I then grabbed a Nyx Taupe blush for contouring and a couple of lip liners to add to my collection too. Oh Velvetine, you are mine now. I'm a real whore for matte red lips so this was my first purchase for the day since they were bound to sell out. And my beloved Smoky Lash, we meet again! MUFE Smoky Lash is my all time favourite mascara, so snagging it with a discount is wonderful.

Ben Nye Translucent Powder - £6.10

Nyx Taupe Blush - £4

Nyx Lip Liners - £2.50

Lime Crime Velvetine - £9.20

MUFE Smoky Lash Mascara - £12

And last but not least, the brushes! I think i was very well behaved when it came to brushes this year. I knew what i wanted and stuck to my list for once. The amount of brushes Crown Brush UK stock is incredible but i was restrained and picked up two of my favourite angled brushes, I've been using them to create sharp lip lines as well as my brows lately so i needed a few more. The Pro Blending Crease has quickly become one of my all time favourite brushes, i picked a couple up online a few months ago and have been using them religiously ever since. I also couldn't resist grabbing another 217 style blending brush from Bdellium Tools.

Crown Angled Brow - £2

Crown Pro Blending Crease - £4

Bdellium Tools 776 - £5

So not the biggest of hauls but I'm mighty chuffed with what i managed to get my paws on. Such a shame IMATS is only once a year! 

Did you go to IMATS this year?

Feel free to share your posts!

xox

USA Haul: Sephora!

Ello lovelies!

Its taking me a long time to get through these hauls! This is the second to last, i promise! I was like a kid in a candy shop in Sephora, i spent quite a long time just looking around at what they had, and they have an awful lot! As you can see i went a little Tarte crazy, i SO wish we could get hold of this brand in the UK because there was SO much more i wanted to get, but my damn luggage allowance wouldn't allow it!

I wasn't lying when i said i went crazy on Tarte! I actually had a little makeover done in store and i am gutted i didn't pick up their Amazonian Clay Foundation as my sample is getting low and i bloody love it! September was an awesome time to visit Sephora as they were just starting to get in their Christmas gift sets. I was also lucky enough to have some birthday money to spend which is my way of justifying the ridiculous amount of blush i purchased! I've added prices for all the products listed, and if you want to find out more about them they are all on the Sephora US website.

I'm planning to review the majority of these at some point, but if theres something in particular you'd like to see one on, let me know!

Tarte - Amazonian Clay Blush - $25

As you can see i picked up four of these, i wanted to try a range of colours because blush has been, until now, the smallest part of my collection. There are 16 shades, so choosing wasn't an easy task. But i settled on: Exposed, Glisten, Flush and the infamous Tipsy. 

 Tarte - Blush & Bronze On The Go - $15

I spotted this duo after i had chosen the first four and thought, why not? It contains a mini Dollface blush and a mini Park Ave Princess, and at only $15 i thought that was quite a steal. The blush contains 3.4g of product which is over half the size of the regular ones, fantastic!

Tarte - Baby It's Bold Outside - $35

Contains four new (i believe) limited edition shades, again in just over half size. This was on my second trip to Sephora, i just couldn't help myself. Its such a steal at that price and i rarely go through an entire blush. I can see these getting a ton of wear! 

Tarte - High Definition Eyebrow Pencil - $19

This was used on me during the little makeover i received. I am shocked to just stumble over a nice, taupey brow pencil! I find it SO difficult to find brow products that aren't too dark or too warm toned, this is perfect!

Random bits and bobs...

Makeup Forever - Aqua Cream #2 - $23

Apart from the Mascara i picked up at IMATS earlier in the year i don't actually own and MUFE so thought it was time i rectified that. Steel is described as a "Grey Silver Shimmer", but i think it'd work really well under taupey smokey eyes!

Josie Maran - Argan Color Stick - $22 

The sales assistant got an easy sale with this one. Had an "ooooooh its soooo prettttyyyy" magpie moment. I've not had a chance to try this out yet, but it is an extremely pretty pink cream blush. Josie Maran products contain a whole host of skin loving ingredients and im really looking forward to giving this a bash.

 Urban Decay - Good Karma Brush - $24

My new favourite foundation brush. You NEED this in your life. Review coming very soon!

Laura Mercier - Brightening Powder - $22  
I'd wanted this for SO long, but i wasn't going to pay nearly £20 for an under eye setting powder here in the UK. Well, i may have to when this runs out! Again, I'll post a full review of it soon. 

Anastasia - Brow Powder Duo - $22

Another product I'd lusted over for a long time. Full review up soon! 

  

Fresh - Sugar Kisses Mini Lip Duo

It was my birthday while i was away and i was a little cheeky and signed up for a Sephora Beauty Insider card... oops! So on top of collecting points for a few 100 point perks i also received this super cute lip duo. One of their lip balms actually retails for over $20, madness! They are damn good balms though.  

Jack Black - Lip Balm - $7.50

I'm a lip balm whore. I adore this, it smells so fresh and being a "mens" product doesn't leave too much of a sheen on the lip, perfect! 

Urban Decay - Naked 2 - £30

I eventually caved. I was set on not buying any expensive eyeshadow palettes while i was away, in fear of smashing them travelling home. This little beauty appeared on the duty free book on the plane home and i just couldn't resist any longer! Only a £6 saving on buying it in the UK, but an excuse to get rid of all my extra dollars. 

Point perks! I was a little bit bummed they had finished their MUFE Lipstick perk by the time i got there, but these are very decent sized samples. I'm also only a few points away from another perk when i next go, bonus!

Phew, that's it!

This was a MUCH longer post than i expect, so sorry for whittling on. You'll be pleased to know that i only have one more haul to share with you, hurrah! And i think i saved the best till last, my Drugstore haul! And just a quick warning, its going to be a whopper!

Do you live by a Sephora? Whats your favourite product? 

Or are you like us UK girls, longing for them to open up shop here again?!

xox

Current Favourites & My Everyday Face

 Heya lovelies! My favourites posts are few and far between, but as I've been loving a whole load of new and rediscovered products i thought I'd share the best of the bunch with you lot! I'm never going to be a monthly favourites kinda gal, i just don't change up my routine enough so those posts would be pretty samey, but from time to time i love to show off the bits and bobs in my collection that have been getting a lot of love recently...

Royal and Langnickel - Flat Top Kabuki Brush
I picked this little beauty up at IMATS. Now if you've watched a lot of IMATS videos you'll have seen these pop up quite a lot over the years, normally to be never seen in a video or post again but lately i have been LOVING it. This had been sat on my shelf for a good few months without use, so after cleaning all my brushes i hooked it out and was determined to give it a fair ol' use. I've been using it to apply my Dream Matte powder, its perfect for setting foundation by just pushing the powder in to the skin. Its ridiculously soft and only cost me around £6 with the IMATS discount, but can be found on the Royal and Langnickel website for about £12.

Natural Collection - Apple and Lime Body Spray

I was introduced to this one a month or so ago by the bestie and I've got to say other than being a teenager and drowning myself in the vanilla version I'd been a bit of a snob about these. After a girly night i could smell DKNY Green Apple, so being nearly out of mine (and about four other favourite perfumes, sob) i asked her if i could have a squirt of hers, turns out it wasn't DKNY at all, but this little beauty. Now on further inspection it isn't an exact dupe as it has a lime element to it that the DKNY doesn't have and it isn't quite a sharp, but its pretty damn close. At £2, its a real bargain if you're not in the position to splash out on the real deal, and if you have an unsophisticated nose like me, you may not even be able to tell the difference! It obviously doesn't last as long on the skin, but for the price difference, who cares?!

Revlon - Kissable Balm Stains

I want more of these and i want them now! Near enough the only thing on my lips for the past month, i just wish they had more shades! For someone who isn't a fan of creamy lipsticks, this is perfect for me. It adds gorgeous colour without me feeling conscious of smearing it across my face, win! The stain lasts a good few hours for me and the chubby stick like packaging makes it ridiculously easy to apply. I'm planning to get my paws on a whole bunch of these while I'm in the USA next month.

Origins - Drink Up Overnight Mask
I'll keep this short and sweet. Gorgeous mask, leaves my skin feeling soft and moisturised without feeling greasy. 100ml for £20, so not bad at all price wise! I've recently reviewed this beauty here.

 China Glaze - I'm Not Lion

I'm Not Lion is an absolutely STUNNING shade. Its a beige, champagney glitter that would work beautifully for both warm and cool toned skin. I've been wearing it for every night out over the last few weeks! Its opaque in two coats and in any form of light sparkles like an absolute dream. Me and my amateur camera skills haven't been able to capture its full beauty yet... But google swatches... Do it NOW! If you don't have this, you need it!

Maybelline - Dream Matte Powder

 Another product that had been sat in my drawer for quite some time, i think i have faaar too many of those! Up until recently I'd preferred quite heavy coverage and had been loyal to setting my foundation with either Elfs HD Powder or Mac Studio Fix, but as HD isn't really travel friendly and Studio Fix is on the heavy side i hooked this out of my collection. Its matte without looking heavy and powdery, its not the longest lasting powder but its easy enough to shove in your handbag and reapply on the go.

Milani - Corallina Baked Blush

 My only coral blush, although I'm still eyeing a few! After seeing these all over American blogs and Youtube channels i caved and eBayed one of the Milani Baked blushes. Its a gorgeous orange coral with quite large silver shimmer. Now at first the silver shimmer REALLY put me off, but it buffs away to be mostly unnoticeable, so i can live with it. I think these cost around $6 but i payed a little over £8 with delivery which isn't too bad. The only downside is that my Mother has taken a shine to this blush, so i am constantly having to steal it back from her!

Mac - Cream Colour Base Pearl

Possibly my favourite highlighter ever! Stunning goldy, pearl, cream highlighter. Gives the face a real radiant glow! I absolutely love it! And taking into account how little product you need to use, I've actually hit pan on this which says it all really!

Wow this post is getting lengthy! I've worn this look for about 75% of the last 4 - 5 weeks, i should really change it up soon but I'm really loving to easy it is to apply in the morning. And as it involves quite a few of my current favourites i thought I'd share it with you!

Eyes:
Makeup Forever - Smoky Lash Mascara
Mac - Omega Eyeshadow (brows)

Lips:
Revlon - Kissable Balm Stain in Rendezvous

Face:
Missha M - Perfect Cover BB Cream
Maybelline - Dream Matte Powder
Mac - Cream Colour Base in Pearl
Milani - Baked Blush in Corallina
Nars - Laguna Bronzer

What are you're current favourites?

xox

Recent Rediscoveries: MUFE HD Foundation

Ello lovelies!
This has got to be one of the top, if not the most hyped about foundation on the Internet and since picking this up at IMATS earlier on in the year has pretty much sat in my collection unloved. I'm a bit of a floozy when it comes to foundations, i love them and having a perfect base is my top priority when it comes to makeup. So needless to say i own a good few, so with my spending ban i decided to hook a few oldies out and give them a fair test.

In the UK Makeup Forever isn't the easiest to get hold of, it is available from Guru Makeup Emporium online but at £29.95 a pop, I'm not sure i would of taken the plunge at that price. So i jumped at the chance to pick this up for a far more reasonable £18 at London IMATS in February. When i first tried this many months ago i couldn't really get on with it, i was into applying foundation with my F80 and i just couldn't, for love nor money, get it right. So when i went back to try this out i went for the good ol' fashioned fingers application, and unsurprisingly it worked much better!

Now from the hype online i was a little disappointed with the coverage, its light - medium at best and if you suffer with uneven skin tone / ache / blemishes you'll probably still have to use concealer. For me, this would be a day time foundation purely because of the coverage, i prefer my Double Wear for nighttime because it covers most things and i KNOW its not going to budge.

Its a very "natural" looking foundation and to me feels lovely and moisturising on the skin. I don't feel the need to set this as its not overly dewy but not completely matte, and it works beautifully with creme blushes and highlighters. I know i always say this, but i really do wish I'd hooked this out my collection sooner. I've worn it every day for the past week (Sorry Nars Sheer Glow!!) to work as i love the very little effort involved in applying it.

Face:
Makeup Forever - HD Foundation - Shade #110
Collection 2000 - Lasting Perfection Concealer
Makeup Forever - Smoky Lash Mascara
Stila Convertible Colour - Petunia
L'occitane - Lip Balm

Overall its a really lovely, light, day foundation. Would i buy it again? At regular price, probably not. But at IMATS price, yes! Now i need to stop being a foundation hoarder and stick to one for more than a couple of weeks. But I've recently discovered they now sell Dr Jart BB Creams in Boots?!! My bank balance hates me...

Whats your "go to" foundation? 

xox