USA Beauty Haul | Sephora, MAC and Ulta

Hello everyone!

I am writing to you today from a gloomy Dublin (what happened to the expected heatwave?!) not very happy to be back from sunny Florida. Before I get too moany I'll move swiftly on to the makeup that I picked up while I was there.. I'm so happy with everything I bought and I was so very proud that I didn't go too OTT! I tried my best to refrain from trying this makeup but I failed miserably so I may throw in a few mini reviews or first impressions along the way. Be prepared for quite a lengthy post with so much USA beauty goodness so make sure to grab a cuppa!

//SEPHORA

Sephora is such a wonderful place that is so easy to get sucked into buying so many things you don't need as the staff are so helpful however I just bought three things, two of which I had my eye on for a while. The first of which is the Laura Mercier Oil Free Tinted Moisturiser which I am very impressed with. I mix it with a darker BB Cream and it gives such nice light coverage and lasts quite a long time. The other product which I desperately wanted is the Too Faced Natural Matte palette filled with gorgeous buttery eyeshadows that are to die for. 

As you may know, as you queue in Sephora you are surrounded by minis and boy do they suck you in! I ended up buying the Makeup Forever HD Powder but it worked out well as my current powder actually broke on the trip home.

As a free sample I picked the Urban Decay Peversion Mascara which I have tried but I'm not too impressed with.. I'll keep trying it and report back!

//MAC

So much cheaper and more products? You can't really go wrong with stocking up on some MAC while in the states. I picked up three lipsticks which are all matte finishes- Diva, Russian Red and Whirl. Yes you heard me right, Whirl has been made into lipstick form but is only available in the US at the moment.

On to concealer, I ran out of my go to Pro Longwear Concealer so I had to repurchase it while I was there.

//ULTA & WALMART

I had a few things on my list of products from the drugstore that I wanted so I picked them all up! From Covergirl I got the Outlast 3 in 1 foundation in the shade Classic Ivory, a shade darker than the one I got last year along with Clump Crusher Extensions Lash Blast Mascara. 

From Ardell (aka the best lashes ever), I picked up the Demi Wispies and 110 Natural along with two EOS Lip Balms.

You can't go to the states and not pick up a Milani Baked Blush! The one that Lizzy kindly picked up for me was the colour Dolce Pink. The colour is amazing however my only complaint is that the glitter is quite thick and I feel that it is quite noticeable when I wear it.

I was intrigued to try the Crest 3D White Strips (which I am loving so far) so I picked them up along with the Its a 10 Miracle Leave in Conditioner Plus Keratin, a product I loved last year.

Aaaaand I think thats it! I'm so happy with everything I got and I hope you enjoyed reading all about the US Beauty bits I picked up while I was in Florida.

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The American Beauty Wishlist

What is it about American Beauty products that we all love? I think it is the fact that as some of them are so hard to get, it makes us want them so much more.

I was lucky enough to visit America last year and it was my first time to set foot in the mothership we all know as Sephora so you could say I went a little makeup crazy (see the haul here). This year I'm going in armed with my fellow makeup obsessor Lizzy however I'm going in with a much more level head and tighter budget. So here is what I hope to pick up in both Sephora and the drugstore.

// Two Faced Natural Matte Eye Palette

I have been on the hunt for the perfect matte eyeshadow palette for a few months now and I think I have finally found 'the one'. This palette has various natural warm toned browns, exactly what I want. I have heard so many amazing things about Two Faced eyeshadows so I am very excited to see what this one is like in person.

// Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturiser

A tinted moisturiser is one item that I am lacking in my makeup collection. All of my foundations and base products seem to be very heavy, not ideal for the warmer weather. I have heard many raves about this tinted moisturiser so I thought I'd give it a try!

// Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blush

When I think of Tarte I think of these blushes! I tried Tarte for the first time last year and I was very impressed so I can't wait to look at these blushes. I only have one blush and I really want to branch out and try some more so I thought that these would be perfect. If you have any shade recommendations let me know in the comments below.

// Benefit Roller Lash Mascara

As this is a massively hyped up product to be honest I just want to see what all the hype is about! I wasn't a fan of 'They're Real' mascara but I'm hoping this one will be a lot better.

// Kat Von D Everlasting Lipstick in Vampira

Going by what Anna from ViviannaDoesMakeup says about these, they sound bloody great! Even though it is summer you can't beat a berry lip so I decided on the shade 'Vampira' which is described as a 'deep reddish burgundy', a colour that is right up my street.

// Ardell Lashes in 110 Natural

Hands down my favourite fake eyelashes. As my natural eyelashes are quite short I prefer more natural fake eyelashes so they don't look too drastic and these are perfect for that. 

// Crest 3D White Strips

I have heard both good and bad things about these. Although I have heard they make your teeth sensitive, I have seen people have amazing results so I thought I'd try them out for myself.

So thats pretty much everything that is on my beauty wish list for Florida. If you have any other recommendations of products that I need in my life please leave them below because I probably will go overboard in the end! 

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What's in my Travel Makeup Bag 2015

Ah this is such a classic post! I have wrote it twice before, when I went to Berlin, Germany in 2013 and before I went to London last year (posts here and here) so today I present you with the third edition of What's in my Travel Makeup Bag!

// BASE

For foundation I brought my NARS Sheer Glow along with this Rimmel BB Cream. I brought the BB Cream as it is in medium, it allows me to add it to the foundation and darken it up as I want to! On to concealer I brought the MAC Pro Longwear concealer along with the Laura Mercier Colour Corrector. To set it all, I brought the Rimmel Stay Matte Powder. 

 // CHEEKS

Nothing new here, I just brought my go- to cheek products. To bronze, contour and highlight I brought the Sleek Contour Kit in Light and for blush I brought the MAC Blush in Peach Twist.

// EYES

Mascara wise, I have packed the L'Oreal Telescopic a favourite of mine that recently I have not been liking. For eyeliner, the trusty S&G Supercat Liner. To keep my brows in shape, I'm bringing the S&G Brow Archery along with the MAC Brow Set. Even though I probably won't be wearing eyeshadow on the holiday, I had to pack some just in case! I packed my MAC quad featuring All That Glitters and Quarry on top and Coquette and Satin Taupe on the bottom. In the duo I packed Omega and Charcole Brown.

// LIPS

I can't go anywhere without brining a few bold lip options with me. I decided on the  Maybelline Colour Drama in Berry Much, Charlotte Tilbury's Glastonberry and MAC's All Fired Up. 

Looking at all of this makeup, I seem a bit crazy as I can see myself not wearing much makeup at all but I can't help packing it all 'just in case'! 

What's in your travel makeup bag?

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Charlotte Tilbury Lip Cheat in Crazy in Love

Charlotte Tilbury seemed to be the brand of 2014. From the Film Star Bronze and Glow to the Revolutionary Matte Lipsticks it just seems to be an all round, fabulous brand with incredible packaging. We've all heard of the Lip Cheat in Pillow Talk, a gorgeous nude lip liner however some of the other Lip Cheats in my opinion were pushed to the side.

For Christmas I received the Lip Cheat in Crazy In Love as a surprise. I never heard of it before and lip liners were never really my thing until eventually I rooted it out and gave it a whirl (haha oh look at me and my beauty blogging puns). After finding one or two MAC lip liners quite drying I was really taken aback when this was so easy to apply on the lips! It has a very creamy formulation and leaves a satin finish on the lips which lasts a surprisingly long time. As it is a beautiful reddish berry shade it goes perfectly under Rimmel Kate Moss lipstick in 107, the cult beauty favourite. 

Even though I was sold on the CT Lip Cheats I couldn't help but notice one or two minor things that has room to improve. First of all I found it difficult to apply evenly on the lips but hey- that just could be because I haven't mastered lip liners yet (not even in the slightest). Make sure you exfoliate your lips first before using this but thats just a given before using them anyway.. The thing that annoys me about this product though is the packaging, you have to sharpen it so often. I'm just not used to that at all with products but I guess I'll have to get used to it!

Overall with this beautiful lip pencil, the pros definitely outweigh the cons and I can't wait to get my hands on some more Lip Cheats.. Or even the Revolutionary Matte Lipstick if I'm lucky!

Have you ever tried a Lip Cheat? What's your favourite lip liner?

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Summer Fashion Haul

As the days are getting warmer it is getting me more and more excited for Summer. In a few weeks (42 days precisely) I'm lucky enough to be jetting off to Florida with Lizzy and her family. I felt like I didn't need many new clothes but over time I have seemed to accumulate a lot of new bits that I thought I'd share with you today.

Topshop

Can we talk about the Topshop sale for a moment, it was AMAZING! I went in on the first day of it about three weeks ago by accident and ended up with three items with over half the original price off and they are all things I had my eye on before. I got two tops which were originally €27 reduced to €10.  On the right the Scallop Frill Tee in black and on the left the Zip Back Tee in nude. Next I got this grey jersey dress with black lace on the shoulders. I'm not sure of the price because it didn't have a tag, but it is a gorgeous casual everyday dress that I'm sure I'm going to wear to death!
On to a bikini that I'm in love with, the Box Pleat Bikini in Navy. Not that I don't have enough bikinis already, I just had to buy it!

Boohoo 

At the beginning of the month I was invited to the Boohoo #WeAreUs SS15 Preview (full post here) and afterwards they kindly gifted us a voucher to spend online for ourselves. I picked out a few bits for my holiday as they had such gorgeous summery pieces. I got the Charlotte Spaghetti Strap Crop Top* in black to pair with the Ellen Mixed Jungle Print Contrast Runner Shorts*. Again, a big thank you to Boohoo for providing me with these gorgeous clothes for my holiday!

Primark/ Penney's

One day feeling very motivated I headed up to my local shopping centre to raid Penney's for some new workout gear. Surprisingly I was very impressed with their selection of gear however their lack of certain sizes really restricted what I was able to get! I got these to capri length bottoms for €9 each, how great is that?! The grey marl ones were very similar to a pair I wanted to buy on Missguided Active but were always sold out.
I also got this blue and white slightly off the shoulder top. I really like this style and I think it would be really nice with some white jeans over the summer.
As for bikini's, I'll admit it, I have a problem but I'm in love with all of the bikinis I bought.

Vans

After realising that since the weather has picked up I wear nothing but my low white Converse, I decided to buy some slip on Vans. The ones I got were the Vans Classic Slip Trainers in white as they are so comfortable and easy to throw on with any outfit.

H&M

While I'm in Florida I really wanted a few pieces that I could throw on and be ready to go so when I saw this playsuit in H&M I knew it would be perfect. It is this jersey black playsuit, so comfortable for wandering around the parks during the day.

So that is everything that I bought over the last few weeks. Thanks for reading and I applaud you if you got down this far!


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