Sunday, May 12, 2013

A High End Haul: Breaking Project 10 Pan

I'm a bad girl guys. A really bad girl.

So I'm trying to do a Project 10 Pan, right? Well I got a once-in-a-lifetime chance last weekend. One moment while I flog myself.

I got the opportunity to shop a high end cosmetics department half-off. I don't want to go into details (privacy and such), but OH. EMM. GHEEE. I'm sorry, but my Project 10 Pan had to be put on hold. If you can find fault in my decision making, clearly you are a more rational (and less makeup addicted) person than yours truly. I've actually really enjoyed doing the Project 10 Pan, and I'm going to continue it. Just think of this as a giant speed bump on the road to buying less makeup, no?

Before I jump into the haul, I do want to remind y'all that this was ALL at a half-priced discount. I love me some makeup, but I could have never afforded all of this at one time otherwise. I did repurchase some backup stuff that I'm not out of yet because it was such a good deal and they are things I buy multiple times a year anyways, so why not spend upfront and get half off? RIGHT??

MAC Baking Beauties Pearlmatte Face Powders in Pink Buttercream and In For a Treat
I haven't been really excited about a MAC collection in a while, but I was literally dreaming about these two powders. They are so beautiful both in the pan and on the skin. I'm sure you guys will be hearing lots about these from me!
In For a Treat
Pink Buttercream (Used once... sorry, I just couldn't wait!)
MAC Brushes 130, 239, 228
I really didn't need or want any makeup from MAC besides the aforementioned Pearlmatte Powders, but I've been craving expanding my brush collection. 130 is to apply cream blush and highlighter, 239 is a basic brush that I can't believe I've never bought, and 228 is the cutest little brush that's great for applying shadow to the lower lash line and smoking out or softening eyeliner.

From top to bottom: MAC 130, MAC 239, MAC 228
Chanel Emerveille Illusion D'Ombre Eyeshadow 
This is something that has been on my wishlist for a long time, and I finally purchased it. Let it suffice to say that it is gorgeous and that I'll be doing a full review of it later.

Chanel Emerveille Eyeshadow

Chanel Lip Gloss in Jalousie 
This is such a beautiful lip gloss. I honestly feel like I'm getting what I paid for with this: the pigmentation is amazing; the staying power is hours longer than any of the drugstore or high end glosses I own; it doesn't feel sticky, tacky, or have slippage on my lips.

Chanel Lip Gloss in Jalousie
Chanel Nail Polish in Ballerina
This is a repurchase for me. I recently used my existing bottle for my glitter French manicure. My old bottle is probably 2-3 years old and the color has definitely turned a bit odd. This is probably the 4th or 5th bottle of it I've owned and it used to be one of only 2 nail polishes I'd ever wear before I started getting more adventurous. I know there are other pale pinks like this for less money, but it holds a special place in my heart. Plus the formula is dreamy and it wears like a polish that costs this much should.
Chanel Nail Polish in Ballerina
YSL Rouge Volupte 27 - Rose Paris
I knew I wanted to get a YSL lip product, but I went in with an open mind. I played with a bunch of different colors but ended up walking out with this. Again, I can totally tell the difference between this and lower end products. It's super creamy, highly pigmented, and wears well. I have worn this almost every day this week and I am in love. Siiiiigh.

YSL Rouge Volupte Lipstick 27 - Rose Paris

The Repurchases
I stocked up on another bottle of my MAC brush cleaner, which I mainly use for spot cleaning eye brushes and really getting my foundation brushes clean. I also bought my umpteenth tube of DiorShow Blackout - this is hands down my favorite mascara of all time and as much as I've been trying to love drugstore mascaras, nothing quite works for me like this does. I picked up a backup of both my Bobbi Brown corrector and creamy concealer since I burn through these pretty quickly. I mentioned the Chanel polish above.


What I'm Burning: B&BW Lilac Blossom
This is so spot-on to actual lilacs that it's scary. I'm usually not one for floral candles, but this is very simple and not overwhelming at all. A nice mix-up from the fruity candles I've been burning the past couple months!


I hope you are all enjoying your weekend and I'll talk to you guys soon!

XOXO Samantha


Saturday, May 11, 2013

Ridiculously Late April Favorites!!

I am a huge failure. I actually took the pictures for this on March 31st and then proceeded to never have time to write any posts, ever.

I actually had a ton of April favorites, and that is why I'm going to post this quickly now because I found some goodies I can't help but want to share.

My April Favorites!!!

I'll start with hair. I've absolutely been loving my MoroccanOil the past month. It makes my hair so soft and shiny, and I don't know why I stopped using it daily. I can be pretty lazy about hair products, which makes it weird that there are two this month. I've also been loving Alterna's volumizing mousse. I don't even think they make this anymore, but I've loved the huge difference it makes in the volume/look of my blowouts. Even if I let my hair airdry, I get so much more body at my roots, which I love.

For body, I found this sample of a Victoria's Secret body lotion in Vanilla Coconut Passion in my linen closet and decided to use it up. It smells so good, and it has this super fine shimmer/gleam to it that I love on my skin in the sunlight.

Now let's jump into makeup. This month I pretty much just threw my Cover Girl Jumbo Gloss Balm in Watermelon Twist and my Baby Lips in Cherry in my purse and used them 80% of the time. Both give nice, sheer color that pretty much can go with any neutral makeup look. I also found myself reaching for my Naked palette almost every day. I go through phases where I favor one Naked palette over the other, and this month I was all about the first one. I used naked or buck through my crease with a 224 brush almost every day, and Sidecar was on my lid a lot.

Apparently this month was the month of cheek color, because I was all about my blush. I love MAC's Well Dressed blush, a light cool pink that I've raved about on here before. I love that I don't have to be super careful about where I place this blush since it's not so dark, which is awesome for mornings where I am rushing to get my makeup done. I've also been ravenously attacking my deluxe sample of the Benefit Bella Bamba blush. It's no secret that I dislike NARS Orgasm, and I feel like this blush is what I wanted Orgasm to be. It's a pinky-coral with some shimmer and it just looks awesome on my skin. Plus it smells really good. What's not to like? Last, but certainly not least, I've been OBSESSED with my NARS Albatross highlighter this month. I've used it almost every day along the tops of my cheekbones. I don't know why it took me so long to love it, but now I'm hooked.

It'll come as no surprise to you that I finished my Market Peach candle. I've never burned through a candle so quickly, and I'm still not sick of this stuff. I actually bought another one because the thought of going a really long time without it made me super sad.

I promise that there are more posts coming soon - check back soon!

XOXO Samantha

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Glitter French Manicure!!!

I was craving doing something different with my nails, and the fancy struck me to finally try a glitter French manicure... it was a total success!! It looks so pretty and girly, and a nice mix-up from the stark white lines of normal French manicures.


I used Chanel Ballerina as a base, but any light pink would do. The tips are OPI Goldeneye from the James Bond collection. What makes this perfect? It was sooooo easy - with glitter, the line is much more forgiving, and mistakes don't show up as much. I'm definitely going to be trying out some different color combos of this for summer!

What are you guys wearing on your nails right now? Let me know in the comments below! :)

XOXO Samantha