 |
| ...except for Elle is for Living, who has not purchased makeup in 2 years now! |
I stayed away from Sephora most of the year (it helps there is not one within 130 miles). I only made two online purchases from them in all of 2016. Ulta, though there is the temptation of a local store, did me a favor by messing up my online account in some bizarre way that I cannot order from them online anymore. Well, I don't think I can; haven't tried since last June. But I was prone to ordering from them online quite often, so that's a bad habit kiboshed.
While I'm no longer exactly in the back of beyond, we're still pretty close to it. Thus national chains like Walmart, Target and Walgreen's seem to send the area stores here the latest and greatest long after everyone else in the country gets them. So I tend to forget about or even forget to look for new-launch drugstore cosmetics, thus saving myself a few dinero there. As well, there are no CVS pharmacies here (!)...more temptation averted. Isolation is not always a bad thing... We just have to look at the positives, right?
All that being said, I did purchase a few goodies this last quarter of the year. It was inevitable. After being pretty darn good all year, I gave myself permission to indulge. Especially with the holidays coming up and you know how they market hard this time of year.
On my birthday in October, I got the Lorac Mega Pro 3. I have to say, despite the YouTube and online reviews bashing these, I've quite enjoyed the 2016 Lorac third editions of the regular Pro 3 (the cause of my falling out with Ulta online ordering) and the Mega Pro 3. I love the shade selections so much! Not as many dark colors as previous releases; I like that. I don't do dark colors well at all. They're generally unflattering on me; smokey eyes make me look like my face needs a "good washin'", as my mother would have said!
 |
| Lorac Mega Pro 3 (image from Temptalia) |
Hautelook had the Morphe 35O, 35OS and 35OM eyeshadow palettes on sale recently. They feature Morphe quite often actually. I think maybe once a month at least. Though Morphe products are not quite the quality of high end brands, the shadows are not the worst either. I feel they're a step above BH Cosmetics or Coastal Scents (no shade to them either). I think they're fine, especially for anyone on a tight budget or the maniac who thinks she must own every-single-eye-shadow-ever-created. (That might be me?)
 |
| Morphe 35O Matte and Shimmer eyeshadow palettes (image from Morphe) |
At any rate, I did get the 35O matte and shimmer palettes through Hautelook. I've been tempted by those for such a long time and kept putting it off repeatedly. (What I really wish Morphe would put on Hautelook is the Fall Into Frost palette; those shades are more up my alley. Trust me, the minute it shows up there, I'm on it!) I'm pleased with the 35O's warm rusty, autumn-y neutrals. And I can hardly pass up a deal. How much of a deal? Well, the Morphe website sells the 35O matte and shimmer palettes together as a bundle for around $42 or individually for $22.99 each. Hautelook had them for $15 each, so I saved about $12. And Morphe shipping charges are outrageous, so that was a savings of around $12 in itself. (Hautelook shipping charges are less than half of that.)
IT Cosmetics offered their Most Wished For Holiday Palette again this year (via QVC), only with new shades of shadow and lip colors. After reading the reviews, which were mostly stellar, I took the plunge. And boy, do I not regret it. If you can still get your hands on this, don't let me stop you. Especially, if you have never tried this brand, this is the perfect way to get started with IT. You get a variety of products in this compact little case: 3 blushes, 1 bronzer, a finishing powder, 18 eyeshadows, six lipcolors, 2 highlighters (1 cream and 1 powder, and a range of concealer shades. If you travel much, this is perfect; all you need to add is your foundation and a mascara and you're all set to go. The quality of the products in this is the same as the individually sold products...high. Click here to see it on QVC.
 |
| IT Cosmetics All You Wish For Holiday 2016 makeup kit (image from QVC) |
Then the latest Sephora purchase was the Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance palette. I was really slow jumping onto that bandwagon. When that first came out I thought, 'Nope!' The beauty magazines told us for years to never put bright pink, red or orange near our eyes because we'd look like we had an eye infection or had been crying for hours. But that palette was such a YouTube sensation, every time I brought up my subscription feed, there was at least one tutorial using that palette. This went on for months. And I had to admit, albeit reluctantly, there were some beautiful eye looks those girls came up with. Key word: girls. Always need to keep in mind that what the 20- and 30-somethings can get away with, doesn't mean a golden oldie like me can.
 |
| Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance shadow palette (image from Sephora) |
Then...I dropped into Ulta one day...actually it was back in October when I went to get my Lorac Mega Pro 3...and there was the Modern Renaissance on display in the Anastasia section. I was drawn to it like a moth to flame. They were out of stock, but I decided right then and there to order it online when I got home...but Ulta was out even online! Of course, that only served to fuel my desire for it even more! Sephora still had stock though, so I ordered one pronto, fearing that any moment they'd be sold out, too, and I'd never, ever get that palette....crazy how our minds get over on us like that...
The Modern Renaissance is amazing. My first purchase of this brand, not only are the shadows soft, rich and saturated with pigment, but those reds look quite nice, even on a silvering granny 'comme moi'. Admittedly, I keep the red usage to a minimum, mostly in the outer crease, just to deepen up a neutral transition color. I certainly could never wear vivid red all over my eyelids like the youngsters do. But they give a nice berry accent to the overall eye look, used sparingly. I could gush on about the shimmer colors, too. Gorgeous! Don't let anyone tell you you're too old for shimmery eyeshadow! Just restrict it to the mobile lid and keep it away from the crease and brow bone and it's quite wearable at any age.
Naturally, when I ordered the Modern Renaissance palette, I had to order something else...just to hit that free shipping plateau. So I ordered the Sephora Blush 101 Face palette, which was marked down. (I'm also a sucker for blush palettes.) This one I can't rave about. It's pretty. It's huge. The colors are lovely. It's just not very rich in pigment. You really have to layer these colors on to get them to show up. I'd gotten the Sephora Ombre' Blush palette in the spring, and it was super nice quality. But this one did not measure up to that. Can't win 'em all...
 |
| Sephora Collection Blush 101 Face Palette (image from Sephora) |
Then Revlon brought out their new Ultra HD Gel lipsticks. Hellooo Lips! These really appealed to me like no other lip product had in a long time. I've no idea why. Plus I love Revlon lip products.
 |
| Revlon Ulta HD Gel Lipcolor (image from Musings of a Muse) |
So I bought 4 of these: Desert, Vineyard, Sand, and Dawn. All beautiful and very nice finish. Except for Vineyard, which is a berry/mauve, the other shades I snagged are very neutral. Desert is probably my favorite. These are not too shiny but certainly not matte. Not an all day lip color either; those are always so drying. I find these very moisturizing. However, they did last through a few hours, including a cup of coffee.
Okay, so I guess I did go a little crazy on the palettes this year...but, but, but...it really was an improvement on my past habits! No, really! After all, I didn't hit Laura Geller up on her incredible end of the year clearance event like I did last year! I avoided the big Sephora VIB fall event! I avoided Ulta's last 21 Days of Beauty! Baby steps, girlfriends, baby steps.
And next year will be even better!
Till next time,
"Happiness is the bomb cosmetic! When I'm smiling, sometimes I'm giving thanks for all the things I have, rather than worrying about the things I don't." ~ Yaya DeCosta
"Taking joy in living is a woman's best cosmetic." ~ Rosalind Russell
"I will buy any creme, cosmetic or elixir from a woman with a European accent." ~ Erma Bombeck
No comments:
Post a Comment