2013! Collective Haul

Annoying people say this every year, but i really can't believe 2012 is over. It almost feels like it just started. I spent all last year obsessing over working more and more to the point where i was working everyday and wanted to die. But all that is over now. 2013 i'm going to take it easy for now. Maybe i'll get restless as time goes on but right now i'm going to enjoy my free time.

I've really cut down on my shopping habit and stopped buying small things. All my money goes towards food and the occasional splurge which is what i need to be doing since i'm working lesser now.

Here's a little update of all the pretty things i've acquire during the Christmas period. 

L's parents came over in Nov and i didn't go have dinner with them like they wanted because i was overworked and unwell at the time. They brought me back gifts from their trip to Hong Kong and i feel really bad for not making more effort to see them. 

I got this pearl bracelet from them which is super cute with the little silver flower clasp. I really love this and have worn it many times since.

I also got this lovely flora scarf which is super soft! His mum also made me some delicious healthy soup and i hope she makes me more again next time :D

I got L's parents the cutest Christmas card. The only sad part is there's no space for a small message besides Merry Christmas and they didn't get it till after Christmas even though we sent it out a few days before.

I was spoilt for Christmas and got 3 presents. One each week until Christmas.

The first week i got the Marc Jacobs watch i've been lusting over. I have the purple/gold one and really want to collect all the other colours. But because rose gold is so popular right now i wanted a white/rose gold one which is what i got :) Although i was promised a watch for our ignored anniversary and never got it!

I was worried it'll be hard to match things but it surprisingly goes with almost everything and i've worn it so much already. Confirms i should definitely collect all colours! I believe this is the 'Amy' watch.

The second present i got the next week is the perfume i've been wanting and reminds me of a Lush store.

Dior's Miss Dior Cherie! I love the bottle. It reminds me of the Chloe bottle and i sit them both together on my drawers now :)

I only expected to get the perfume but L said he went looking around to find it in a gift set and managed to find one place that had it. The box it came in is so lovely and the body lotion is so pretty but i don't really approve of spending that much on body lotion! I use that stuff up like no tomorrow! 

And my third gift :) I had no idea what this was going to be. Since the previous 2 were things i've been hinting very hard and L let me know he got them for me early on.

I got a diamond bracelet which L picked out himself. I've worn it once and it's not really my style. It's very thin and girly looking and reminds me of something my mum wears. It might grow on me but until i'm older and only into dainty stuff i'm afraid it will be sitting in it's box for quite a while :( It does look super pretty in this photo, please ignore my glossy moisturizer which made my arm glitter. I would have to wear it without a watch because it looks like just a chain against things.

C started talking to me again not long ago and i hope we can be friends again although i've made sure to keep my distance enough but not ignore him completely. He got me a Xmas gift and it was delivered to my place. I had no idea and was shocked when i can home to a giant box outside my room.

It was one of those mirror jewellery cabinets that i've seen in those pretty homeware stores and i've eyed these many times but always decided i shouldn't spend the money on another piece of furniture my room doesn't have space for.

I did however shift furniture and made space for it :) It's so full of jewellery now. And i'm actually quite happy that i have everything in one place now.

Ok now it's time for the shopping!

Clarins Xmas Gift Sets! I ordered a few more sets but they were actually out of stock so i didn't receive them which made me very sad! If i knew i would have bought some other sets instead.

I got these for a really great price on Ozsale.com.au. However i don't recommend that site to be very reliable in stock quantities. I've also received missing items before and had to get it sorted. Also, these came in a plastic envelope. No packaging. The pretty boxes were all crushed and looked like i was receiving second hand old stock. They are current Christmas sets though and i've seen these in store so i'm kicking myself for not getting a few more other sets.

Lush goodies! I must admit i got into Lush a lot later than most people only because the closest store to me is in the city so i tend to only go there on Thursday nights when i go out with L.

I love the sugar scrub so i got the limited edition Santa one which didn't look like santa at all lol And picked up a few other fun and different things to experiment with. I was feeling splurgy that day.

I made quite a few trips to Lush during the xmas period and also picked up a gift box for my secret santa at work which had the cutest packaging but i guess i forgot to take a photo of that :(

I found out online that Lush has a 50% off all xmas items for their Boxing Day sales which got me very excited but i didn't go till a week later and they didn't have too much stock left. I did stock up on the midnight clock massage bar thingy because i love it so much. It's so moisturizing on the skin i can still feel the layer on oils on me when i get out of the shower! But besides that nothing tempted me. There were heaps of bubble bars and bath bombs left but sadly i only take showers

Relaxing tea break :)

Next up is the Dior Abricot Creme! Yay. I've been wanting this ever since i saw it. My nails are constantly dead from work and my constant use of nail polish. The second i use nail polish my nails dry and chip like crazy! However even with the amazing reviews online i refrained from purchasing this as it's $50! Which is very steep. However it does seem like it would last me well over a year or two. And every time i look at my nails i think a investment is needed. 

 

Dior had this limited edition set on offer which included the abricot creme for $75. So i decided i might as well upgrade and get the set. Also because the make up bag is really nice. I don't really need the polish but it was worth paying a bit more to get 3 polishes right?

Picked up MAC's mineralized blush in Warm Soul. Was eyeing this colour last time when i purchase Dainty. Now i have them both :)

Sometimes it's not good to have so much shops nearby while at work. Everyone at work was talking about their boxing day purchases and it made me feeling like shopping so i got these randomly from Colette. They had a 50% off sale. I love the keyring and these hair bows. I didn't find anything else that was too tempting. I was trying really hard to not buy too much 'small useless' things like i always do. The bows were only $2 each and the keyring $4. How can you say no at those prices!

Next up is just a photo collection of food. With my new diet in place, my food choices are very limited. Looking at stuff i didn't have to cook for myself makes me happy :)

Snag Stand Hotdogs! Mine is the Chicken Rocket with Gluten free roll and mustard :)

 Thai Chicken with Papaya Salad.

 Thai Beef Pad See Ew

Spuds N Crepes

 

Japanese Hot Pot :)

Vietnamese Chicken Rice Noodle Soup

Tomato Rice with Pork

Fries! Yummy :)

Now back to the shopping.

 L'Occitane Cherry perfume. They had a Fleur floral one which i liked but L preferred this more. Smells a lot like The Body Shop's Japanese Cherry Blossom perfume which is one of my favourites.

Shu Uemura Mon Shu Palette!

 

Mon Shu Bordeaux Palette. Totally cute and creepy at the same time hehe

Such pretty girly colours

Orange Pistachio Palette! From Chocolat Donna Collection!

It's one of my most prettiest palettes. And i love the matte browns it has. I went home and immediately regretted not getting the Vanilla & Mint one as well. I had in mind to get it the next time i was in the city but i didn't get a chance to last week and i was freaking out that they might ship the stock back soon since it is limited edition and i guess after talking about how i want it so much L got it for me yesterday while he was at work :) I'm so spoilt and lucky hehe

Spoilt because i really didn't want him to get it for me! I accidently dented my Mon Shu Bordeaux Palette while showing it to my sister and i told him about it and how sad i was. And he surprised me later on with the same palette and the Smoky Velvet one as well! He also got the cute tote bag with the purchase so i was already really happy and i feel bad that he ended up getting me a third palette too! I guess i'm lucky that he loves me enough :)

 And last but not least is my most recently splurge at Review. They had a further 25% off reduced items which was pretty much everything in their Myer section. And i couldn't help but get 4 blazers. At the RRP of around $280, i think getting them for around $100 each is a really good buy right? And i've been thinking about how i want to invest in a nice blazer, preferably a navy one.

I've only got a picture of my favourite one for now. It's blazery yet still casual classy, can be dressed up or down and has very nice detail.

I got it in white as well as a last minute impulse decision and i must say i'm not regretting it at all! I've shopped around quite a bit lately and cannot find any nicer jackets/blazers and all the ugly stuff is around $100 anyways not on sale so it makes these well worth it :)

I've got a lot more other things i've bought and loved since but i've been writing this post way too long and i'm getting a little sleepy :P So they will just have to wait for another day.

I hope this makes up for the time i've been slacking and not posting anything!

Hopefully i will continue to have a lot more happy things to post here in 2013 :)

Ozsale - The Balm Haul - Small Ozsale.com.au review

A while back, probably over a month ago, Ozsale had The Balm products on their site for sale.
I got the news from other beauty bloggers and went straight onto the site to check it out. I've never made purchases from these 'deal' sites so i wasn't sure how they worked. It looked pretty easy and before i knew it, i had over $200 of products in my cart. After i had paid and was offered free shipping for the next hour i ended up spending another $100 *hangs head in shame*.

I'm a little embarrassed to say i didn't really get a good variety of things. I didn't want to spend money on things i wasn't going to use or things that i didn't need anytime soon.
I may or may not have ordered excessive amounts of concealer. I had been eyeing it in store and fascinated by the quality when i had tested it, but i couldn't justify getting another concealer to play with at that price.
Here is what i got :)

I bought a few Nude'tude palettes, these will make perfect gifts! The concealer, foundation, 2 Shade Lady palettes, betty lou-manizer and the mary lou-manizer.

Everything is so soft and swatches beautifully. The concealer is as lovely as i remembered. And the foundation... it is like my beloved discontinued Maybelline dream smooth mousse but slightly thicker and more coverage! Now i'm kicking myself for not getting more since it's such a large product if i was to use it as a concealer instead. But now i have no regrets for buying a second one with my 2nd order :D

I'm lucky that the shades i chose fit me perfectly too :)

Shipping took 4 weeks which is more than the stated delivery time but is how long i expected from what the beauty bloggers have said.

My little review of Ozsale.com.au is 2/5 stars. They have good brands on their site now and then. But how long it takes for delivery isn't very good. Also the products weren't bubbled wrapped at all. They were thrown all together into a plastic envelope and i'm surprised nothing broke too badly. There are dents in the packaging but only one nude'tude palette suffered slightly. The authenticity of the products are questionable as well. I had compared the Nude'tude palette and there is definitely differences. The packaging is a little lighter than the one i purchased in store. Which could be a manufacturing thing. And a few shadow swatch differently. The Ozsale ones do have an extra ingredient listed which might mean they are authentic but TheBalm has changed the formula since?

Fake or not, the Ozsale palette swatches better than the one from in stores... so i'm not sure what to think of that if they were fake. I have high doubts they are fake simply because the website sold the whole range offered by TheBalm including their skincare. I know there tend to be fake copies of popular items but not of every product available from a brand.

I also had an issue with my order, 2 palettes were missing. It might have been due to ordering multiple quantities of a certain palette and they overlooked that. However i had contacted them to request they resend or refund on the missing items. They have ignored my contact for over a week now. I have to go through Paypal to sort it out and am waiting for a resolution at the moment.

Wow strangely enough as i was typing that an email notification popped-up and my paypal case was resolved with Ozsale refunding the amount for the missing items :)

It took them a few days to respond to the Paypal dispute though. Overall if you shop Ozsale.com.au, use Paypal! I called paypal with another Ozsale issue last time and the girl was very helpful and was definitely on my side. I will probably rant about that another time. I have a few more purchases from them. So expect another post soon! Or when i find the time :)

My new Prada 1M0881 Peonia Cardholder :)

Had no intentions of getting this but had a little bit of store credit left over. 

I love it more than i expected. A little too thin but is the perfect size to hold together with my phone in one hand. Love it.

I wish i had time to blog but i'm just too busy to even breathe right now. Maybe after next week.
A few exciting purchases i've made recently to post about!

Bourjois Paris Sucre Spring 2012 Collection

Spotted this collection around 1-2 weeks ago. Although it seems a bit out of place in Priceline because of the way it's set up, the bright colours still caught my eye. Priceline seems to not carry the pink eyeshadow and has 2 different mascaras rather than one.

A little display box with the products sitting neatly inside.

After trying the Anti-choc No-chips polish last time, i am in love with them! They are very pigmented and dry quite fast. Usually 2 coats is all i need for perfection. I'm not a fan of the slanty brush though. I always miss one corner of my nail and i have to go cover the undried parts to get into that corner which leaves potential for clumpy polish.

Currently Bourjois at Priceline has a spend $25 and over to receive a free gift with purchase.

I couldn't say no to the polishes because the colours were too cute. At $13 each they are still pricey considering i can get O.P.I for $12 at ProNail supply. But there was a GWP so it was all justified!

The blush and 2 eyeshadows

swatches!

The blush is very nice and pigmented unlike most Bourjois blushes. It is a very pinky coral with shimmer from what i recall. The eyeshadow pots are super pastel and remind me of macarons!

 Here is what i got :)

The 2 limited edition polishes. RRP$13.00

This is what was included inside the GWP. An eyeshadow palette (pinky brown tones), mascara and nail lacquer in Magenta Show. Valued at $62.

I've used these polishes and they're nicely pigmented as expected. Spread on like a dream. And the colours are way too cute. I think i need to get backups! I hope i find a store that's not sold out. My total for the 2 polishes was $26 which just qualified from the GWP. I might consider getting the blush later too :)

Rimmel Stay Matte Foundation Review

Got my hands on this a few months ago but haven't gotten around to using it till recently. And i hate to say it but i absolutely HATE this foundation. It is very thick, doesn't spread and has no coverage at all.
I can always tell how well the foundation spreads by the little hairs above my brows. With the Bourjois Healthy Mix foundations i can't see the foundation on my face when i smooth it all out. But with this Rimmel foundation, there are clumps and dry looking patches on my face.
Not only that, it doesn't spread yet is thick like a cream. I found the best way to use it is to pat it into my skin like a night cream. It clumps up on little hairs on the face and you can add more to fill in the gaps but it feels so thick already so i wouldn't want to do that.
After managing to get it on the skin without it being patchy, i was sad to see no coverage at all. On my freckles i can understand why, but on the minor pinkness in my skin? NO foundation has ever let the redness show through.
In conclusion, this foundation is horrible. It is more like a tinted moisturiser yet worse because it doesn't spread nicely either. It might work better on oily skin i suppose but the coverage is 1/10. It works great if you want almost no coverage and look natural but as i said, it clumps up on fine hairs on the face so you're better off with a tinted moisturiser.
I'm around NC20 in mac and the shade 100 Ivory matched me pretty well. Usually i got for the light-medium shades so i'm pretty surprised 'ivory' suited me. Maybe the Bourjois foundation is just too amazing and my standards have gone through the roof? :)

Massive Mixed Shopping Hauls :)

I've somehow got lots of beauty shopping photos in a folder and yet no interesting story behind them. So i thought it would be fun to just throw them all together in a post :)

Firstly is the Lush Buttercup gift box which i got from a friend for my birthday a while back.

I love the smell of the Honey I Washed the Kids soap, but sadly it is a soap and the filmy feeling it has really annoys me. I'm too use to my Dove cream beauty bar and sadly soap will always feel grimy to me :(

Next up is the Shu Uemura Morphorium Blue Palette! I've been unattentionally trying to collect these lovely Shu Uemura palettes for a while now. I only had 2 so i was super excited to spot this at David Jones. It was reduced and on sale for around $60 also! I know the colours aren't colours i will use. And i would only be buying it to 'collect' it but i just couldn't say no! It was too pretty. And hunting down these palettes is hard work! I know because just a few days back i managed to score the Shu Uemura Reindeer Kiss XXXX palette. I found it online and i'm so glad to get my hands on it. The packaging is the prettiest packaging i've ever seen. It was not cheap on eBay but it is rare and i had to have it! Again, the colours i will be unlikely to use but it is too pretty to say no to :)

The swatches are amazing as well. Super soft silky powder and amazing pigmentation. Shu Uemura is definitely one of my favourite beauty brands.

Next is a lipstick i picked up from Chi Chi. I love Chi Chi products as well. They are an Asutralia brand and i've found their eyeshadows to be extremely high quality. That's why i decided to try their lipsticks earlier this year and got Hollywood Heiress. I love the colour and it is very moisturising on the lips. However it doesn't have very high staying powder as most cream lipsticks and tends to slip around during application. They retail for around $18.95. Target had a few shades on sale for $10 so i picked up the shad Flirt which is another cream lipstick. It is a lovely colour but sadly a little too dark for my liking so i don't see myself using it as much.

After my first TheBalm haul from David Jones, i was shopping with the bf and ended up getting the Down Boy Blush as well. Of course i got another sample goodie bag with my purchase :) This was all paid for by a giftcard so i didn't feel too guilty about it. I still had $4 left on the card so the week after i decided i might as well get the third blush and collect them all... sadly when i got there i realised they had the Hot Mama! blush too. I couldn't decided which i should i did what i always do, and got both lol Paid for them seperately and picked up another 2 goodie bag. At this point i realise i'm just hoarding but it's already done! hehe

TheBalm's Meet Matt(e) palette

David Jones Beauty Deluxe Sampler Goody Bag :D

These are the O.P.I minis i got from the goodie bags. I think i got a very nice selection. I'm super excited about the brownish one because Bobbi Brown has a limited edition polish out right now that's exactly the same! And this was the only one in all the goodie bags so i'm happy :)

I ended up picking up some more polishes with the $10 off Bourjois at Priceline this month. I stopped by Pricelines randomly to pick these up. As you can see i ended up getting 3 of the same shade because i wasn't keeping track. These were normally $12 each but i got them at $2 with the voucher. Amazing bargain i think :)

I also picked up 2 lipsticks. Both in the same shade 06 because it's super lovely. It is also 100% natural which means it does smell a little funny but nothing that bothers me. If you've used Dermalogica products and don't find them an issue then you'll be fine with this lipstick. Staying power is not too bad on this and goes on quite nice. Not too drying but nothing like a lipbalm of course.

During the adorebeauty.com.au sale a while back where they had 22% off. I did some hauling myself but because i'm on a tight budget, my bf offered to get the Clarisonic Mia for me which i really wanted. Normally RRP$150. The site sells it for $135 and with 22% off it came down to $105! So much cheaper than in store. I have used it once and am not too impressed yet. It doesnt feel like its really getting in there and scrubbing but i'm sure it's suppose to be gentle enough on the skin. I'll see after a few more uses :)

Lastly is some Essie value packs and holiday mini set i got from Myer probably 2 months ago. The value packs are definitely worth it at $17.95. Cheaper than the cost of one polish!

Also a random photo of my nails :) China Glaze Tinsel Town with O.P.I's Serena glam collection polish, forgot the shade name.. this was a bitch to take off and i got finger cramps doing so! I'm reluctant to wear glitter polishes for a while now hehe

Will be doing another post later tonight i think! See you soon :)