Mini Beauty/Hair Haul

Hi Guys & Dolls!

Just a quick post on some hair and beauty products that I picked up in the last few days :)

 

(L-R)

YSL Rouge Pur Couture Lipstick in No.6 Rose Bergamasque (Satin finish)

Rimmel London Lasting Finish by Kate Moss Lipstick in 08

Sleek True Colour Lipstick in 790 Cherry (sheen finish)

MAC Mattene Lipstick in Unknown Pleasures (semi-mat finish, I think this is limited edition)

Nars Laguna Bronzer

Decided to finally purchase the full size rather than use the one in my travel palette (there's a dip in the pan already, oops).

Boots Botanics Soothing Eye Make Up Remover

This is a staple in my beauty regime. I think this would be bottle number 5 or 6? It's really effective in removing my eye makeup, including waterproof mascara and false eyelash glue, and the best part is that it's really inexpensive! £3.05 inexpensive! I'd highly recommend to grab one of these if you have the chance!

 

Macadamia Natural Oil Rejuvenating Shampoo, 60ml

Macadamia Natural Oil Moisturizing Rinse, 60ml

Macadamia Natural Oil Deep Repair Masque, 30ml

Had my hair cut last Monday at my regular hair salon and noticed that they now stocked a small range of Macadamia Natural Oil. I absolutely LOVE their Healing Treatment Oil and have been thinking about purchasing more from the range. So I brought these travel/sample sizes to test before I purchase the full size products. You can shop the range here.

BaByliss Porcelain Curling Wand

I been meaning to buy this curling wand and saw on the Boots website that it was currently being sold for £20.49. So yesterday, I walked to my local branch and brought one. I haven't tried it yet but have heard positive reviews, hopefully it will give me those beach wave curls :)

Sarah xoxo

Mini Beauty/Makeup Haul: Topshop and Nars

Hi Dolls!

Whilst vacation shopping, I picked up a few small makeup/beauty products and thought I'd share them with you.

I've never actually brought any beauty products from Topshop ever since their makeup line launched a year or 2 ago. But whilst purchasing a maxi dress, I wondered over to the in-store makeup counter out of curiosity. The eyeshadows, blushes, etc didn't interest me and when I saw the girl next to me directly apply the tester lippies on to her lips, that put me off swatching the testers! I never apply testers on to my face - it's something about the sanitary purposes of it all, so I always just swatch on the back of my hand.

However, I did find two nail varnishes that interested me....

The coral polish is called War Paint and the lilac polish is called Vegas Madness. Both were priced at £5 each but on the day, TS was offering 20% off for students. so I paid £4 each. I also picked up their Kohl Liner in Coal, which was priced at £4 + 20% off - Bargain!

So far, I've been really impressed by the quality of these products - their pigmentation, applicability, etc =D The Kohl Liner has replaced my Urban Decay Zero in my everyday makeup bag and I've been using the coral polish for the last 2 weeks now (a clear indication of my enjoyment over the products!).

I received a 'freebie' due to purchasing 3 makeup items and these were: face wipes, colourful bobby pins and a liquid eyeliner in black - all in a drawstring bag. No complaint for receiving freebies there! :)

I've been wanting to purchase the Nars Blush/Bronzer Trio Set for quite some time now but didn't have the time during my uni deadlines to buy it. Now that I am free from uni and have more time on my hands, I decided to pop by to my local Space N.K, where I knew the set was being sold at.

I'm in LOVE with this set! It has Orgasm Blush, Albatross Highlighting Blush and Laguna Bronzing Powder, and was priced at £39. I already own Orgasm Blush but have never tried the two other products. I can't believe I held off purchasing Laguna Bronzer, and I absolutely love it!! (I'm now thinking of purchasing the full size, so the travel set will not hit pan before the others do). The bronzer doesn't make me look 'dirty' and the slight shimmers do not show up on the face (if they do, then it just adds a subtle glow to the skin - perfect for healthy looking skin). Albatross Highlighting Blush is a really nice, golden shimmer - kind of reminds me of Mac's Vanilla pigment.

So that's it! Just a small and quick haul =D

What beauty treats have you brought recently? Any Topshop makeup products that you would recommend?

Love, Sarah xoxo

Vacation Clothing Haul: H&M, Topshop, Primark

Hi Dolls!

I've been doing a spot of shopping lately, now that I have finished uni :) I've been looking to purchase some clothing items for a few holidays that I'm going on this year, so summer essentials were mainly on the list and not makeup. Here's what I got....

Primark, £10

I went into Primark and found this gorgeous coral shirt for £10! I have been really into coral shades lately (without consciously knowing until after I came home and saw all the coral pieces that I'd brought). I brought a UK size 8 (US 4) and think this shirt would go really well tucked into white/black/camel coloured shorts, you can dress it up or down and it compliments my dark hair and medium tan skin tone. At £10 -  bargain!

Primark, £12, Topshop Maxi Dress £18

The second item is a sleeveless, stone-washed, cropped denim jacket. At first I was skeptical about it on the hanger but when I tried it on, it was the perfect fit for my petite frame. The jacket stops at my waist and fits perfectly on my back. I thought it's look great teamed up with maxi dresses during the summer. Perfect for that laid back, casual outfit w/ layered jewellery! This one was priced at £12 (expensive for Primark?) and I brought a UK size 8. Underneath, is a plain black, Topshop maxi-dress that I also brought :)

H&M, £12.99

Recently, I've been loving shopping at H&M whilst simultaneously been going through a shorts craze. I found these 'smart' camel shorts and just had to buy them. I got a size up (UK10/US6) because I didn't want 'a really fitted' look and these were priced at £12.99. The shorts are such a classic design and can be worn year-round - so many outfit choices can be made with these.

H&M, £12.99

Now these are the complete opposite, they're very casual, loosely-fitted and ORANGE/CORAL! They really do not look appealing on the hanger but once tried on, they really embody summer. I don't think the pic shows the stitching detail but it reminds me of those tiered tops that came out during the past 2 summers and these have pockets too. I think these would be fantastic for colour blocking outfits during the daytime. There was a navy version but I don't own a pair of orange/coral shorts so chose these ones instead. They cost £12.99 and I got them in my regular size 8.

H&M, £7.99

I also brought these casual turn-up shorts, both in coral and white for £7.99 each. Yes, I know I brought the same kind but they're in two different colours! Hehe. I consider these the 'lazy summer day' short - perfect for relaxed days and I wouldn't be fussed if they were to get ruined. Both were brought in UK8/US4.

H&M, £12.99

I got this sheer, purple/pink-ish vest-top. It has a racer back and a small (discreet) pocket detailing on the front. The print is of palm trees and I absolutely love the colours on this top! This would be perfect for those hot, sunny days on vacation for a casual daytime look to the beach or sightseeing. I got this in a UK size 10 because I wanted the top to be more loose and longer. Lastly......

H&M, £14.99

I got these bright babies!! I absolutely LOVE them! Perfect for summertime colour-blocking :) One thing that I'll make sure is that my feet will be in tip-top condition - unmaintained feet is a no-no!

And that's it!

What recent clothing purchases/trends have you been in to?

Sarah xoxo

Review: Nars Mekong Single Eyeshadow

I brought this last weekend whilst browsing through a department store. I hadn't planned on purchasing it but had heard so many rave reviews and I don't own any Nars eyeshadows, so it was a spontaneous buy. The colour is a very deep, dark chocolate brown with micro-fine gold shimmers.. I've been wearing this eyeshadow everyday since I brought it and absolutely LOVE it! I would happily just have this single brown shadow in my collection if I had to choose from the ones that I already own!

PROS

• The pigmentation and the quality of the shadow is phenomenal - you only need to dip (ever so slightly) your brush into the pan and already you have enough to apply on your lid/outer corner. I dip the brush in a few times after blending to intensify the colour, as initially, I don't want to apply too much. The colour lasts all day on my lids (I do use UDPP as a base too) and even throughout the evening.
• Blend-ability is superb! I blend the shadow with my MAC 217 brush and the pigmentation doesn't fade away. It's amazing how such a tiny amount of this shadow can actually go a long way. I don't find that I have to blend for a long time to get the effect that I want so it helps save on time when I'm rushing in the morning =)
• The pan contains 2.2g of product and I paid £16.50. In comparison, MAC eyeshadows have 1.5g of product and costs £11.50. I find that with some MAC eyeshadows e.g. Mulch and Embark, I have to heavy-handedly dip my brushes into the pan repeatedly to build up the colour on my lids. However with the Nars Mekong, I do not need to do that....if I were to then there would be absolutely TOO much on my lids! So, the Nars Mekong is absolutely worth every penny as I don't use much and it still looks new in the pan after a week! I do love 90% of my MAC e/s but to reflect on the Nars Mekong, I do not see myself finishing the pan in less than a year and a half with everyday use. Bargain for my buck!
• Like most powder products from Nars, the eyeshadow comes with a mirror, which is very convenient for on the go. Obviously, the mirror is smaller than the ones found in the blusher pans but I like the fact that there is a 'spare' mirror at hand just in case I forget my regular compact mirror.
• I haven't used the eyeshadow wet yet but I'm extremely intrigued to see how the shadow would be used as a liner. I do not see how the shadow would fail as a liner considering the quality that I have mentioned =)

CON

• The only flaw that I can give about this product is the packaging like most Nars products. The 'rubbery' finish of the case does make the packaging look dirty/messy, even after the first use. However, the packaging of all the Nars products that I own doesn't make me sway away from purchasing more from the brand, as the quality of the products themselves makes me overlook the messy packaging results that lay after. After all, don't we look for the quality in a product as a major purchasing factor? Besides from the messiness, I still think that the Nars Mekong looks sleek in design.

The eyeshadow combinations that I have used so far with my Nars Mekong are:

NEUTRAL EYES
Urban Decay - Virgin, Naked and Buck (from their Naked Palatte)
MAC - Brule, Sable, Patina, Soft Brown, Wedge and Vanila. Painterly paintpot.
Revlon - Nude Slip

xoxo

What Nars eyeshadows do you own? What did you think of them?