This Weekend Haul - Ulta and Chanel

Last Friday, I stopped by the mall because a friend of mine wanted to see MAC's new collection. Out of curiosity, we ventured into the Chanel beauty counter and although, I wasn't planning to get anything there. The sales associate manage to sell me something, lol.
Yesterday, I decided to stop by Ulta just because I haven't been there in a while, lol. I managed to get a few things I needed and a few things I didn't.

Top row from left to right

• It's a 10 Miracle leave-in product. This is the third time I repurchased this product. It works well and smells freaken amazing. I got the large bottle, which is 10 oz for a whopping $36.00. Hmm yeah, the price made me cringe. This better last me long time.
• TRESemme Dry Shampoo. Not sure if I'm going to need this now that I'm planning to hit the gym everyday but I was curious to try it.
• REDKEN Hot Sets 22. I told the lady at Ulta that I needed a hair product that's going to help me keep my curls stay curly when using a curling iron and she suggested this product so we'll see how it works.
• Physicians Formula Organic Wear Facial Makeup Remover Toilettes. PF was on BOGO sale and since I was running out of my makeup wipes, I decided to give these a try. I'm excited to give these a try.
• Physicians Formula Eye Booster Ultra Black. I bought this as a back up since it was on BOGO. I really love this eyeliner.
• NYX Eyebrow Marker. I probably could've waited till they have a sale so I can get it for cheaper but I didn't want to wait.

Bottow row from left to right

• Free sample of Chanel Hydramax Active.
• Chanel Premiere Lumiere Foundation. Ok, this is probably the most expensive foundation I have ever bought in my life, $55.00.
• Zoya Yara. I love the color and the little flecks of gold was tempting me, lol.
• Orly Fowl Play. OMG flakies and glitters. I'm in love.
• OPI DS Glow. I couldn't put it back on the shelf after I saw how pretty it glowed.

 Orly Fowl Play looks like a glitter and flakies potion. Totally put me under its spell.

Guess what happened to my OPI polish. Some polish hardened underneath the cap so when twist it to open, it cracked! I'm soooo disappointed. My local Ulta is not that close to home so I guess I'll exchange it on my next trip there.

Can I justify this purchase? Probably not. I was going to need a new foundation soon but I could've picked something cheaper like the MUFE Matvelvet, which have been on my list for like forever, lol. So yeah, don't ask me what I was thinking. I wasn't. The sales associate told me that this was supposed to be a long-wearing, full coverage foundation with matte finish.
To sum it all, I spent an arm an a leg this weekend, which is ridiculous I know. On top of that I had to buy other miscellaneous stuff for home and kids. Good thing Friday was payday. Ughhh the price of beauty, is it worth it? Where do you draw the line?

Luuux Shared Link

Essie Polish Swatches - Van D'Go, Pink Lemonade, Marshmallow

Here's part deux of my Essie polishes. I actually don't have a large collection of Essie and I've been eyeing their fall collection and thinking of getting a few. I tend to lean towards shimmers and glitters but definitely want to get more cream finishes.

Van D' Go is a pinkish coral with a cream finish. It looks pretty bright on my nails in real life but I still like it. 2 coats and it looks pretty opaque. I had a bit of uneveness so sometimes the 3rd coat helps.

Pink Lemonade is a shimmery coral. I probably like it a little more than Van D' Go. The formula is easier to apply and the color is not as bright. I did 2 coats on the picture.

I have been pretty pleased with my Essie polishes but Marshmallow has been more of a miss for me. I was hoping it would come out more opaque but instead, it's rather sheer and left a lot of streaking behind, as you can tell from the pictures. I did 3 coats and it still looks sheer and streaky.
I'm still searching for the perfect white polish that doesn't look like I applied white out on my nails. If you have any recommendation, please let me know.

Luuux Shared Link

Essie Polish Swatches - Sew Psyched, Going Incognito, Mint Candy Apple

I'm so behind with my nail polish swatches. I bought these Essie polishes so long ago and realize I didn't post any swatches of them yet. So here they are.

Sew Psyched is a pretty nice military green with a little hint of shimmers. The formula is pretty pigmented and applied quite nicely. I really loved how this looked on my nails. I got an opaque coverage in 2 coats.

Going Incognito is a dark green with a hint of teal. It's a cream finish. I love how glossy it looks on my nails. The formula is quite pigmented and I got a nice even application with 2 coats.

Mint Candy Apple is a light blue with green undertone. It's a cream finish. The formula is pretty pigmented and leans more on the thicker side. I did experience some streaking and uneveness in the first 2 coats. The third coat helped even it out. Still a workable and nice polish.

Which is your favorite Essie polish?

 

Luuux Shared Link

Small Mac Haul From the Styledriven collection With Swatches

Hello Beautifuls,

I stopped by my local MAC counter today to check out the new collection that just launched in store today. Well technically, the products are from the MAC Pro permanent line so this isn't limited edition. Unfortunately, not too many of us live near a MAC Pro store so this is a nice way to be introduced to other line of MAC products. I only picked the product that appealed to me the most and that I would most likely wear.

Pro Longwear Lipglass - Show me is a nude coral lipgloss. It looks more warm toned on my skin than it looks in the tube. The formula feels pretty thick and tacky upon application but after I applied it, it doesn't feel too bad. Definitely a heavy duty gloss that will last you a lot longer than the average gloss. It's also very pigmented.

Pro Longwear Lipcream - Sof Sell is a medium dusty rose that has a slight sheen to it. It's pretty pigmented also and feels comfortable upon application. Although it feels creamy when you first apply it, I heard it can be drying after a couple hours of wear. Now that I think of it, I might have several shades that look similar to this color.

Pro Longwear Lip Pencil - Staunchly Stylish looks like a slightly darker version of Soft Sell. I initially wasn't planning on getting any lip liners but when I swatched this, it just glided and applied like a dream. Once it sets, it doesn't budge, which is awesome!

I didn't pick any eyeshadows. They were all nice but didn't find a color that really stood out. So that's it for my little haul. Did you picked up anything from this collection?

Luuux Shared Link

Kat Von D Angeles Eyeshadow Palette Review

This is another of Kat Von D palette that I purchased from Sephora for $24.00. I just reviewed the True Love palette so if you didn't get a chance to have a look, please feel free to do so as well.

Packaging

• Sleek and sturdy
• It was neatly packaged in a folded cardboard paper.
• Large mirror with two double-sided small brushes. I find them pretty useless if you ask me.
• 8 eyeshadows. They actually have names on all of them.
• Net weight 8 oz or 1.4 g

Colors (swatched without a primer)

• Venus - shimmery copper
• Leather - matte medium brown
• Specimen - shimmery medium brown
• Rehab - shimmery light brown with fine silver glitters
• Peggy - teal blue with a satin finish
• Bukowski - shimmery turquoise
• Bellbottom - light blue with a frost finish
• Morphine - light blue cream shadow with fine blue glitters

Product

• Fortunately, the cream shadow was workable although it did feel slightly on the drier side. It works very nice as a base.
• I love all the colors in this palette. They are quite pigmented and easy to work with. I've found myself using the neutral shades a lot.
• Leather had such a nice buttery and smooth texture for a matte color.

Overall

I'm not fan of having cream based shadows in a palette. They tend to dry out faster since they have a little more exposure to air. This is a gorgeous palette and contains beautiful colors. I really love the pigmentation and texture of the shadows.
My rating 9.5/10.

Luuux Shared Link

Kat Von D True Love Eyeshadow Palette Review

I purchased the True Love palette on Sephora's website. You can still get it on sale for $24.00. It was originally $34.00.

Packaging

• Sleek and sturdy
• It was neatly packaged in a folded cardboard paper.
• Large mirror with two double-sided small brushes. I find them pretty useless if you ask me.
• 8 eyeshadows. They actually have names on all of them.
• Net weight 8 oz or 1.4 g

Colors (swatched without a primer)

• Peanut - shimmery light champagne with a frost finish
• Benji - Medium bronze cream shadow
• Rebekah - dark satin brown with fine gold glitters
• Lucifer - matte medium black
• Cholita - Dark eggplant purple with a satin finish
• Skiba - Medium lavender purple with fine silver glitters
• Babe - electric violet with a blue sheen
• Missy - Frosty light lavender blue. It looks white in the pan but turns a different color when swatched. My camera didn't do such a great job at capturing the blue.

Product

• I had the most trouble with Benji, the cream eyeshadow. It has pretty much dried up in the packaging already when I received it. That's such a shame because it looked so pretty in the pan.
• I had some minor glitter fall out with Skiba.
• Lucifer was the least pigmented shadow. I was expecting it to be a lot darker for a dramatic dark smokey look but I guess it can be good for those who enjoy much more subtle smokey eyes.
• I was pretty pleased with the pigmentation and consistency of rest of the eyeshadows. They felt buttery smooth and blended quite nicely.

Overall

This is a pretty nice palette that comes with a variety of shades and finish. I'm pretty bummed about the dried up cream shadow and I would have liked it better if it was a pressed eyeshadow instead so that I wouldn't have this problem. Aside from poor color payoff with Lucifer, all the other shades worked well.
My rating 8/10.
If you would like to see a makeup look I did with this palette, please check it out HERE.
Have you tried any Kat Von D products yet? If so what it is and did you like it?

Luuux Shared Link

Hair Feather Clips

I've been wanting to get my hands on some hair feathers. I think they look so cool but I didn't want to pay salon prices. Plus I work in a conservative business casual office so I was looking for clip ons. That way I can put them in or out whenever I want.
I found these feather hair clips at Walgreens. They were selling for $4.99 each, which is a pretty reasonable price. They had so many different style and colors to choose from. The ones that I picked are short and attached to a small chain connected to a little hair clip.
With that said, I'm not sure if every Walgreens sell these but it's worth checking to see if your local Walgreens carry them, just in case you have been wanting to try them too.

Have you tried feather extentions/clips? If so, do you have any recommendations?

Luuux Shared Link

Accessory Haul

I purchased a few pairs of earrings at a festival couple weeks ago. They were dirt cheap and I was getting such a good deal out of it that I couldn't resist. 4 pairs for $4.50! I gave one away as a gift.

Jewelries were on BOGO sale at Wet Seal. I was only interested in the bracelet, which I thought was so cute cause of the hearts and ribbon chained together. I asked my daughter to pick out something else for half off so she decided to get a necklace.

I have been on the hunt for a large wallet to hold all my cards, cash, checkbook, and receipts. I haven't been successful. This floral clutch from Wet Seal seem to have enough room for everything I need.

Sears currently has a pretty good sale on jewelries and all sterling silvers are 60% off. This pair of dangling heart-shaped earrings is so cute and classy.

I'm looking to buy a fancy watch. Any suggestions?

Luuux Shared Link

NOTW - Zoya Pandora

Zoya Pandora is what I am wearing on my nails this week. It's a very nice cool-toned pinkish beige color with a very slight sheen. The formula is very pigmented and dries fairly quick. It is a bit thick but workable. You can pretty much get an opaque application with the first coat but the 2nd coat will help even it out.
I featured this nail polish in my last month favorites. I think it is such a pretty nail color. It looks very classy and sophisticated.

What is your favorite nude nail polish?

Luuux Shared Link