Sephora Lust List

Just a quick little celebratory post, I start my new job today and what better way to celebrate then to visualize yourself  buying pretty things with your new found wealth. So if you haven't heard Sephora is now allowing shipping overseas and here are some of the things i dream of picking up.

1) Tarte Amazonian Clay 12 Hour Blush is Dollface  - I'm very curious to see how this compares to my hg blush Illamasqua Katie as it's also a matte baby pink. I have read some amazing things about this brand and I'm very interested to find out for myself.

2) Illamasqua Blush up Brush - I've been lusting after this since it was released but I've never spent so much money on a brush, it just feels wrong. But I do really want it.

3) Josie Maran Coconut Gelee in Pink Escape - I'm a  blush person I guess, I'm totally intrigued by the consistency of these blushes and think they would be amazing for a fresh faced look.

4)Benefit Cosmwtics Blush in Hervana - A fan product if there ever was one, an yet another blush that at the moment exists only in my dreams.

5) Urban Decay Naked 3 - rose golds! Do I need to say more?! Out of everything on this list, this is the one that haunts me the most and maybe it will just be that one that pushes me over the line.

6) Kat Von D True Romance - While I'm buying eye shadows this one looks so pretty and like a great one for travelling with!

So let me know in the comments if what your lust items are, or of you have tried any of the above do you think they are worth the splurge?

Review: L'Oreal Nude Magique Eau De Teint

Holy Crap I love this foundation, I'm not buying any other drugstore foundation ever again so long as this is on sale, and there after I will go on the black market  and sell illegal goods to get more of it. 

Okay, now in perspective this is a amazing foundation, BUT it's not going to be for everyone; if you have skin that needs heavier coverage due to acne or similar, or very oily skin then this is not the way to go and you will probably really hate it. However if you have relatively good skin, and dislike heavy foundation then this is the greatest foundation.

I usually like using bb creams or tinted moisturizers rather then foundation because I hate my face feeling heavy or cake like, this is such a thin and light foundation is feels like your just putting some water on your face - it's a foundation that feels refreshing!

The frosted glass bottle is gorgeous and adds to the lightweight feel of the product, the bottle is smaller then average but you honestly need such a tiny amount to cover your face that it's almost ridiculous. Basically just imagine the amount of water you would need to cover your face and you'll have a good estimate of the the amount.

I think some people will dislike the fact that it doesn't have a pump but I'm not sure how well that would work with such an incredibly thin formula but it's not a huge turn of for me.

I was so shocked at how good the coverage on this foundation is, I honestly expected it to be a sheer coverage but it does a fantastic job of evening out skin tone and getting rid of redness. It doesn't looks great over bumps or pimples but it does cover discoloration and any odd pigmentation.

It feels great too, it's a slightly powdery finish, velvet like would be the best description. It stays on for hours, I got 8 hours at least every day that I have worn it. It is important to remember to shake up the bottle before using it and then I have tried many way of applying it and although fingers are probably the best, i have had great success with the RT Stippling brush and to a slightly lesser extent with the RT Expert Face brush.

Seriously this is my new favorite foundation and I ain't going back.

Review: Revlon Colorburst Matte Balm in Sultry

I've been checking my local Priceline for these for the past three weeks since their stand appeared, and yet still it sits empty, but that's okay my local Target got them in first (sadly at a low point in my pay cycle hence i only got one to start with). I picked up the color I thought would be the most wearable for me - a slightly dark pink with slightly brown tones which goes by the name "Sultry".

Having tried it a few times now I'm quite pleased with this purchase as I was a big fan of the balm stains which have very similar packaging to these, but keep in mind these are not stains and will just fade away leaving you with bare lips.

The formula is amazing, it is actually still a balm meaning your lips do not dry out like the majority of matte lip products, my lips are left feeling as if i was wearing a thin but hydrating lip balm and the color stays around for upwards of 6 hrs and fades beautifully leaving no dry patches and no cracked lips at the end of the day. I will certainly be picking up more of these next pay. (Wish they were a little cheaper though).

Review: Hourglass Ethereal Glow Blush

After all the buzz about these Hourglass recently I decided to treat myself to one of their new hybrid highlighter/ blushes, I wanted one that was similar in coloring to my favorite blush of all time (Illamasqua's Katie) so I picked their most pale pink which is Ethereal Glow. These blushes are also mixed about 40/60 with Hourglass's previous white whale the ambient powders, in this case Ethereal Light.

This color is very picky about who it's going to look good on as it is super pale, and I mean probably the palest pink blush I have ever seen so if your not super pale or super dark yourself you will have a lot of trouble even making this color show up, so keep that in mind if you go looking for this.

Unlike a "traditional" lush the idea is that these are much more dimensional using Photoluminescent tech to get a more vivid and deeper experience. The powder itself is very light and you certainly don't feel any heaviness when it is applied. I'm quite impressed with the what Hourglass calls the "moonlight glow" effect provided by this particular blush which i feel is a very apt description as it really shines but without a "my face is glitter" effect.

I'm a big fan of this blush but I wish it smelled a little nicer, I'm used to my Katie blush being a wholesome sweet experience that putting this on instead makes me miss that scent and it's almost a little disappointing because of that. These are lovely blushes but I think you can probably live without them unless you really like your highlighters too, it's a great treat if your looking for a special blush for those special occasions though.

Review: Models Prefer Essential Brow Kit

I feel like brow care is really come into the fore front of makeup in the past year or two as before I never saw things like brow specific products except for in quirky or high end brands but these days full and well groomed brows are all the rage and this product can do quite a bit to help in the area. 

After I finished my Models Prefer brow pencil  and went to pick up a new one but they were sold out so I decided to try  a new brow product from them, the Essential Brow  Kit. The shade I bought (light to medium) suits my hair and skin color perfectly and my brows stay put and shaped throughout most of the day. The best thing about this kit is that it includes everything - a powder, a tinted brow gel/wax, a set teeny tiny tweezers and a angled small angled brush and a mirror so if you feel like it you can use it on the go.

This kit does take more effort then my brow pencil but I think the overall effect is a bit more polished and professional, I like using the wax as it's a perfect color match and then using the powder to just fill any gaps and take the shine out of the wax, surprisingly the colors are actually quite dark considering this is the light to medium kit.

I usually hate included brushes but this one actually works quite well as it's quite stiff but angled so it does a god job of mimicking the look of eyebrow hairs. However if you loose it any angled brush will do the job just as well. The tweezers are handy but I don't really use them as this is in my at home make up kit and doesn't travel so I tend to use my regular tweezers unless I'm in a big hurry.

Overall I would repurchase this, probably along with a regular brow pencil because some days you just can't be bothered with a whole set up like this and brow pencils do a pretty damn good job. This however is nice if your looking to spend a bit more time and get a really perfect brown look going.

Powder on the left, wax on the right

Here you can see the difference; the left brown is done up using the kit while the right is left untouched.

Base Compare

Well, first things first. I have too many makeup bases. I didn't used to, in fact i'm not quite sure what happened.. I used to use one up then go buy another but now I hear something or see something talking about a shiny new foundation or a cult fav and somehow here it is... Well in  attempt to stop this I thought I would take the time to compare some of these for you and also try to control my own base-addiction so I won't be buying anymore until I finish at least 6 of these. I'll note how much has already been used in the post below too.

Foundations

So my collection of Foundations includes; Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum (bought start of this year), Bourjois Flower Perfection Foundation, Illamasqua Skin Base, L'Oreal Eau De Teint, NYX Matte but not Flat Foundation, Korres Vitamin Foundation, and Rimmel Stay Mate Foundation.

Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum - This have been my everyday foundation since the start of the year when I found it on special, it's a great match for me once it's buffed out even though on the swatch below it looks quite dark. I would repurchase this but probably wait till there was a sale again as it was good but not the amazing foundation that people had raved about.

Texture: Liquid 

Finish : Dewy

Opacity: Sheer, buildable

Wear: 6- 8 Hrs

Rebuy: Only on sale

Why I haven't finished it:  It's nearing on empty, maybe a month use left

Bourjois Flower Perfection Foundation - I got a sample of this once and it was so god damn amazing I went and bought the full product full price and then tried it at home and was...deeply disappointed, it was not the smooth flawless coverage from the sample. it was thick, heavy and cake-y and I hated it but never threw it away because I still hoped one day I would find that one thing that could make it work. I would take it out every few months and try again and no luck, until last week! I finally found the one way this can be applied and look amazing - a damp beauty blender! With it you can get a very covered look but it won't feel heavy or look like you have a face full of foundation on. Success!

Texture: Liquid 

Finish: Matte

Opacity: Very Heavy

Wear: 8- 12 Hrs

Rebuy: No, too difficult to work with

Why I haven't finished it: Stopped using it due to difficulty of use.

Illamasqua Skin Base - shade SB02 - I love this foundation, it's amazingly pigmented for very little product. It's very pale and a little hard to use  if i get a but of sunlight but that's not usually a concern. But the biggest problem is the packaging which is so hard that it's very difficult to actually get any product out as it's more cream then liquid. 

Texture: Cream 

Finish: Satin

Opacity: Medium

Wear: 5- 8 Hrs 

Rebuy: Yes, if the packaging was changed

Why I haven't finished it: I save it for special occasions and the packaging is hard to use on a daily basis

L'Oreal Eau De Teint - shade 120 Pure Ivory - I've been keeping an eye on the advertised space in Priceline for weeks and lucky me it showed up just the Priceline 40% off sale came around so I snatched it up. Been using it everyday since then and I'm very much in love, it's so light and feels like there is nothing on my face. It's so effortlessly easy to blend and feels lovley, soft , and smooth to the touch.

Texture: Super Liquid

Finish: Satin

Opacity: Sheer, buildable

Wear: 6-8 Hrs , wears away well

Rebuy: yes

Why I haven't finished it: I just bought it

NYX Matte but not Flat Foundation - 04 Creamy Neutral , I picked this up last November when NYX first arrived at my local Target. I wanted to like this as the color match for me was quite spectacular however it did something no other foundation or bb or cc or any other kind of base ever has - it found dry patches on my normal/oily skin. Madness!

Texture: Cream/Mousse

Finish: Matte

Opacity: Medium

Wear: 4- 6 Hrs 

Rebuy: No

Why I haven't finished it: It's the first and onyl foundation to ever cling to supposed dry bits on my screen so it doesn't look good. Might try the beauty blender on this.

Korres Vitamin Foundation - I got this is a special package along with a few Korres lip balms which are also awesome and for most of last year this was my go-to-foundation and was the one I picked to take with me to Melbourne. It's very good and long lasting foundation that is great at controlling shine and it's too bad that it's been discontinued as I do feel that it made my skin look better.

Texture: Cream 

Finish: Dewy

Opacity: Medium

Wear: 6- 8 Hrs 

Rebuy: Yes, but discontinued

Why I haven't finished it: I got new foundation (Illamasqua) that I was eager to try and this fell to the back of the drawer.

Rimmel Stay Mate Foundation - I picked this one up at the Priceline 40% off last November and it was probably a mistake since it's quite similar to the NYX Stay matte but not flat, it feels heavy and although the coverage is great I don't really feel comfortable in it. This one however does not stick to apparent dry patches like the NYX.

Texture: Mousse

Finish: Matte

Opacity: Medium/Heavy

Wear: 4 - 8 Hrs 

Rebuy: No

Why I haven't finished it: It turned out to be si thick and heavy it didn't feel comfortable on the skin, another one for the beauty blender.

BB & CC Creams 

This collection of Foundations includes; Bourjois 123 Perfect CC Cream, Ponds Flawless Whitening BB Cream, Nivea BB Cream, Garnier Oil Free BB Cream, Revlon Photoready BB Cream and the Watsons Collagen BB Cream.

Bourjois 123 Perfect CC Cream - I saw on this some blogs and various youtube channels and it seemed to get a lot of love, I got shade 33 which is a smidgen too dark and I have worn this twice since purchase because I fell in love with the L'Oreal Eau De Taint.

Texture: Liquid

Finish: Dewy

Opacity: Medium

Wear:  4-6 Hrs

Rebuy: probably not, it's nice but I still like my Ponds BB cream better.

Why I haven't finished it: Just bought it

Ponds Flawless Whitening BB Cream- This is my favorite bb cream as it's a great match, it's a little thicker and ashy like an asian bb cream but is so much more easily available. I've gone through 2 of these and will almost certainly repurchase it again and again.

Texture: Liquid/Cream 

Finish: Satin

Opacity: Medium, buildable

Wear: 8- 12 Hrs 

Rebuy: Yes, have before

Why I haven't finished it: This one has been in rotation between the Bourjois health mix and is almost finished, maybe a week or two left.

Nivea BB Cream - A gift from mum when she went to Poland hence the crazy unreadable text, and i love the smell of it as it has that comforting Nivea smell but oh gosh the color is so wrong, it might as well be bright orange!  I tried it on a stay at home day to see how it lasted and it did okay, the texture reminds me of the Dove tinted moisturizer I used to use as a teenager.

Texture: Cream 

Finish: Matte

Opacity: Medium

Wear: 4-6 Hrs

Rebuy: No

Why I haven't finished it: It's the wrong color, probably going to give this away.

Garnier Oil Free BB Cream - This was my first ever brand of bb creams, I used the regular before the oil control version came out and then switched over, it's cheap and works quite well. There is really nothing wrong with this bb cream but for my skin the Ponds bb cream is much better for basically the same price.

Texture: Liquid 

Finish: Dewy

Opacity: Sheer, buildable

Wear: 6- 8 Hrs 

Rebuy: No, have found better matches since but I have re bought it in the past and gone through at least 3.

Why I haven't finished it: Found better color matches and better lasting products.

Revlon Photoready BB Cream - This was largely a purchase made at the spur of the moment due to excitement at seeing a new BB cream (when i bought this there was maybe 3-4 or the maker, not like 30 that there are now) and I probably didn't need it but id recently finished another bb cream and obviously felt that there a gap of some sort. It's not horrible but it;s very sheer and doesn't control oil at all, so this would be amazing on someone with dry or normal skin and a good complexion. While my complexion is much improved since I was a teen my forehead can get a bit oily especially on hot summer days.

Texture: Cream 

Finish: Dewy

Opacity: Sheer

Wear: 4- 6 Hrs 

Rebuy: No

Why I haven't finished it: It's so sheer and hardly build-able and terrible at oil control so it fell to the back of the drawer.

Watsons Collagen BB Cream - Another present from mum, this one from Singapore and it;s amazing. Probably better then my Ponds bb cream but it is almost impossible for me to get, it's a better texture and coverage but does harden a little in cold weather and needs some heating in your hands but is perfect in summer. If it was easily available I would get this BB cream and no others.

Texture: Cream 

Finish: Satin

Opacity: Medium

Wear: 8- 12 Hrs 

Rebuy: Yes

Why I haven't finished it: I'm so close to finishing it, if i do it will be gone and I will never find it again. That makes me sad. Has maybe a month or so left in it.

Priceline 40% off Haul (2)

Not really a haul since I only got 2 items but two were closer to the more expensive side of things so I did limit myself and also I have a lot of stuff and didn't feel like I really needed anything, and honestly I didn't really need these but have been curious to try them so i figured this was a good opportunity to do so.

Bourjois 123 Perfect CC Cream (Beige Rose)
I was inspired to pick this up after seeing on Lisa Eldridge's Youtube channel as a very natural looking coverage with amazing lasting power. Supposedly it contains three color correcting pigments (anti-fatigue apricot, anti-redness Vert (green) and anti-darkness Blanc (white). If this turns out to be one I like I will go back and probably try the matching eye cream. I've also not tried a CC cream before so I'm curious to see if there is any noticeable difference between this an my many BB creams and foundation.

L'Oreal Nude Magique Eay De Teint (Pure Ivory)
This one has been on my radar for a little while now but i'm not sure where I first saw it, and admittedly a big draw was the super cute little matte glass bottle. It looks luxe. It's a sheer but build-able foundation that claims to be lighter then water and various youtube videos show this to be the honest truth. I picked up shade 120 which is apparently lighter then 110 but 100 and 110 were not available in my Priceline, but it seems to work just as good. It has spf 18 and from the small play around I had when i got home it's super light and very liquid.

Australis Make-up Finishing Spray
Finishing sprays have not cough on here in Australia but seem to be a standard on most American and UK bloggers and youtubers and I admit I was curious, but I wasn't going to fork out $15 for something that as far I knew might just be the same as water or be completely pointless. I tried it when i got home and so far it smells nice we will see if it does anything more then that.

So how did you do?

Priceline 40% Cosmetics sale

Just wanted to let anyone who wasn't already aware that Tuesday and Wednesday are 40% off all cosmetics in Priceline, in store and on line. I will be taking advantage and post the haul a day or so after. Best of luck and tell your friends!

Cream Eyeshadow Comparison - Bourjois, e.l.f, Maybelline, Essence

Since the release of the Maybelline Eye Tattoos I have become a huge fan of cream eyeshadows and it seems so have a lot of people have too since almost every company seems to be getting on the bandwagon.

Whilst shopping today I popped into Priceline and spotted something new and shiny in the Bourjois section - the 24H Color Edition Cream Eyeshadows and was immediately drawn to one of the colors, when I got home with it I was reminded of how similar it was to the Maybelline Eye Tattoo (packaging wise) and I thought a comparison post was in order so I dug up my other cream eyeshadow and took some photos for you.

So, the contenders are;

Essence Ballerina Backstage Edition in "pas des copper", Essence stay all day  in "for fairies", Bourjois "

Pétale de Glace",  e.l.f "Soiree", and Maybelline Eye Tattoo in "Pomegranate Punk". I tried to stay in a similar color palette to give a better comparison between them. I also gave Essence two spots as their formula for cream eyeshadow is so variable it's best to judge them by collections rather then as a company standard.

Here they all are swatched side by side, no primer, photo taken a few seconds after application.

Essence Ballerina Backstage Edition in "pas des copper" 

I've talked about this one a lot before, and this was the first cream eyeshadow I ever owned, it cost about $3.50 and I feel it can hold it's own against almost any competition. Essence struck gold with this one.

Texture: soft, creamy and very slightly powdery. Non drying (I've had it for two years and it looks like like i could have picked it up yesterday). Almost mousse like.

Opacity: Very opaque

Wear: 6-8 hours

2.8g

Essence stay all day  in "for fairies"

As amazing as pas des copper is, sadly Essence's regular range does not reach the same hights, this one is the same formula that has appeared in at least their last three collections (Breaking Dawn, Circus, Paradise). It was also in their permanent line for a long time but I'm not 100% if it still as as they changed it up a few months ago and I haven't looked at these since then. It's sadly quite terrible, patchy, drying, please go back to the soufflé formula!

Texture: hard, dry. Very difficult to blend without taking color off. With the shimmery shades sometimes the color with get wiped off or fade away and leave big chinks of glitter.

Opacity:  Medium, when it works. 

Wear: 2-4 hours

5.5g

Bourjois "Pétale de Glace"

Brand new collection here is Australia but it's been out for a little while in the UK now, I only saw three colors available at my local Priceline - the pink/beige (which i came home with), a silver and a dark blue. However I know overseas has at least three more colors, though I'm not sure if Australia will get them.

Owning Chanel you might also see some similarities between these and the Chanel Illusion d’Ombre Long-Wear .

Texture: Fluffy and soft. It's a cream to powder and blends very smoothly.

Opacity: Medium but can be built up.

Wear: 4-6 hours

5g

e.l.f "Soiree"

If you haven't heard yet e.l.f cosmetics are now available in Kmart (who is redoing all their beauty sections to be less nasty) and i picked this up the same day as the Bourjois for two reasons 1) for this comparison 2) I have never tried a e.l.f product before. It's smaller then the rest but packs quite a punch, I was expecting something closer to the Essence stay all day but it's probably closer to being somewhere between the Maybelline and the Backstage Ballerina.

Texture: Thick, and very fluffy. Whipped really is the best description.

Opacity: Medium/Heavy with more shimmer then the others

Wear: 4-6 hours

3g

Maybelline Eye Tattoo in "Pomegranate Punk"

These have been out for a while and most people probably have at least one with Bad to the Bronze being the standout shade (I personally love Bad to the Bronze, Tough as Taupe and Pomegranate Punk). There are many more colors overseas and a new nude collection which i really hope makes it to our shores! These are hefty little jars of awesome, they make great bases and the huge color range makes them much more accessible then the rest.

Texture: Average leaning toward hard, best applied with fingertips to warm it up a little.

Opacity: Heavy, some colors much less so.

Wear: 6 - 10 hours

4g

Photo of the same swatches 5 hours later

Review: L'Oreal Glam Bronze

As I mentioned in my last favorites post I came across this after striking out at buying the honey bronzer from body shop, I wondered over to the makeup section at Target while my boyfriend was trying on pants (as you do) and spotted what is possibly the most pale bronzer I have ever seen. Being as pale as snow makes it hard to wear most drugstore level bronzer because I end up with orange mud face which isn't all that attractive to be honest with you. So I swatched it on my hand and it was love at first swatch!

The shade is Blond Harmony and it's a duo bronzer/highlighter, this seems to be a re brand from L'Oreal as when I tried to look up what others thought of the darker shades i got a whole bunch of sun embossed bronzers sporting the same name and shade just different packaging. I have no idea if it's just a repackage or a formula change as that info seems quite scare. But the old version seemed pretty well loved but I will judge this on it's own merits. (But if you have used the older version I would love to hear from you!)

It's a double layered product which hides a useless brush similar to Physician's formula products, I wish they would just ditch this and just save the customer a bit of money, as I have never known anyone to use these brushes or applicators. Moving on, as you can see there is more bronzer then highlighter which might suck if you love the highlighter shader ore but it's perfectly ok with me as i bought it for the bronzer and the highlighter is just a nice little extra. Though despite not being the star of the show it has some bling.

So far this is the best bronzer I have found for my skin, and the highlighter is shimmery but on my skin tone largely without color which actually works quite well. If you have trouble matching to a light skin tone this might be the one for you, also Priceline is having a 30% of L'Oreal this week so now is a good time to try it out.

February Favorites

It's been a pretty good month for me makeup wise as I found quite a few products and grew to love a couple that were already in my stash. Let's start with the new items this month:

L'Oreal  Studio Secrets Professional Eye Shadow Quad in Desert Sands - I'm loving this color combination, it's perfectly neutral but also a little bit special. The colors are pigmented enough that I don't feel bad using this over something else and the small size makes it easy to travel with and store. Since my place is tiny I can only keep a few things near my mirror and this is a bit easier then my beloved Naked 2.

L'Oreal Glam Bronze in Blond Harmony - Finally a bronzer I can actually use, I've never been a huge fan of bronzer because it's so hard to find one for pale girls, I originally wanted to pick one up from Body Shop but it was sold out and the next day I saw this at 30% off and snatched it up. I like the little highlighter part as well, another great one for travel!

Revlon Scented Perfumerie Nail Polishes - in Apricot Nectar, Spun Sugar, Autumn Spice, and Watermint

I got two and then couldn't resist getting more, I love them for their amazing color application and surprisingly not terrible and overwhelming scents. Their subtle so your not smelling it every time your hand goes past your face but it's there if you stick your nails near your nose. Also these are the only polishes in a long time that have lasted more then 3 days on me (without top coat!). I only wish they were a tad less expensive!

I also fell in love (or more deeply in love?) with a few things that were already in my stash, these were:

Revlon Nearly Naked Mineral Powder in 010 Fair - I love the ease of using this, so much faster then a liquid or mousse foundation, just brush it one, add a bit of powder blush and your good to go! It's a little messy but it's too easy to use for that to be a big problem.

MAC Paint Pot in Rubenesque - My favorite base lately, the L'Oreal quad looks great over this as it really brings out the shimmer and helps it last, plus it's so soft compared to some of my Maybelline Eye Tattoos some of which kind of dried out despite being closed.

Benefit They're Real mini mascara -  I picked this up from a Lust Have It box a few months back and really liked it, this month i started using it again as I got new contact lenses and to begin with was a bit weirded out by the possibly of mascara gunk in my eyes that tends to come of larger brushes. 

Real Techniques Buffing Brush - I've loved this brush since the moment I got it and if I had to give all my brushes away and was only allowed to keep one it would be this one. It's so soft and dense there is very little you can't do with it; I've used it for liquid and powder foundation, blush and recently as a bronzer brush. It's amazing!

February Empties

Lush Rose Jam Shower Gel - This has to be my favorite shower gel of all time, it's a sweet mix of rose and citrus but i don't find it to be too sweet or overly fragrant. It's just sweet enough to be amazing and bubbly and smooth. I have another little bottle of this but I'm tempted to keep it until I know if it will be back again for Christmas or something. But I'm also not sure I can wait that long. I would repurchase this a thousand fold.

Philosophy Cinnamon Buns Shower Gel - I picked this up in Melbourne and am truly sad to see it go, but it;s not soo bad as I was gifted the Cookie Dough version for Christmas so that helps makes the loss a bit more bearable. This was a white and super hydrating shower gel that actually smelled like cinnamon buns, can't ask for a much better way of finishing of the night. I would repurchase this but I like trying different scents first.

Nivea Pure & Natural Cleansing Toner - The big thing for this product was that it was 95% natural ingredients, as well as the inclusion of argan oil and aloe vera. This has been my favorite toner so far and I will go back to it after I use up my current one, this felt so refreshing and hydrating and didn't give my skin that uncomfortable tight feeling that is common from toners. (at least for me) It smells nice too.

Nivea Milk & Honey Lip Balm - A sweet but light smelling thick balm that is probably the only lip balm I have ever finished, why? Because this is the best one I have used and I made sure not to loose it! It's that good. In some ways the reason I like this is the reason I like the Rose Jam shower gel - it's sweet without being cloying and it's fresh without being irritating. Going to repurchase today!

Face of Australia Nail Polish Remover - I took a break from painting my nails for about 2-3 months because they were so horribly wrecked and weak I could do nothing with them. Second time around I'm trying to help minimize the damage by using nail strengthening products and moisturizing or strengthening polish removers. I don't know how that actually works but if nothing else maybe it will work if I believe it does. This remover was pretty good. not stinky and not painful and I do think it made some difference to the quality of my nails. I would repurchase this.

Davore Replenish Hair Treatment - My first hair treatment ever, it seemed to do a nice job of smoothing and re hydrating my hair but was kind of annoying to mess around with since i would have a shower, wash my hair, put on the mask and have to wash it again 10 minutes later. I would perfer a leave in or dry treatment because I just can't be bothered messing around so much. I did an okay job but not enough to not be a bit of pain in the the booty.

Aveda Purifying Gel (sample) - I quite enjoying this cleansing gel and would repurchase except I am a sworn convert of using my Lush Fresh Farmacy cleanser and really don;'t need this, it was good but i still think by FF does a far better job and smells much nicer.

Aveda Hydrating Lotion (sample) - The moisturiser was nice too as far as it goes, it was quite thin and almost gel rather then lotion like. Probably better then the cleansing gel but i still like my Moo Goo moisturser bettter. Sorry Aveda

Swisspers Cotton Pads - A staple, I like these for everything from nail polish remover, to toner to all thing in between. They stay whole and don't tear apart and rarley leave fuzzy bits on me.

Lush Fresh Farmacy (not pictured) - Went through 2 bars of this and have already repurchased this. My HG product.