Review: Disney Collection A Whole New World Roller Ball

From Sephora's website:
Enchanting as magic itself, this alluring blend of exotic flowers and rich, warm woods is fit for a diamond in the rough. Empowering and seductive, this tempting fragrance will allow you to be the master of your own destiny. So go ahead, make your own magic. 
Notes: Carnation, Orange Blossom, Mandarin, Gardenia, Mimosa, Musky Accord, Cedarwood, Sandalwood, Vanilla, Amber, Benzoin.

I picked this scent up on a whim one day while I was at Sephora. I've been trying not to buy new fragrances until I use up some of the ones I already have but I make exceptions for roller balls because they're perfect for traveling and tend to be under the $30 mark.  I'm not normally a floral scent person but this one intrigued me. This is the only item from the Disney collections that I have bought, they just haven't piqued my interest.

The bottle is pretty; fuchsia gradient with gold details and the words make your own magic embossed on the side. I like that sentiment, the idea of being in charge of your own destiny and not leaving it up to chance.

For the most part I don't like floral fragrances because the tend to be too big. They overpower the person wearing them. This could be largely because people tend to spray floral fragrances liberally which therefore results in a headache whenever I'm around them. Because this is in a roller ball version it stays close to the skin which I much prefer to being a walking talking garden that assaults people with scent. The sandalwood and vanilla mellow out the floral notes and bring them down to a pleasant (to my nose at least) level. 

This is going into my bag to come with me to Japan. I'm not sure what other fragrances I'll bring with me but I'll be sure to keep you updated!

Review: Sephora + Pantone Brush Set

I bought these brushes back at the end of June because I was attracted to their pretty packaging and thought they were a great deal! 5 Brushes for $46CAD when one of my favorite MAC brushes (the 217) was $27 for one brush. Sadly no matter how much I tried to love these brushes they were a huge fail and I ended up returning them to Sephora last week.

First off they applied product terribly! I get fallout from my Naked2 palette even with my MAC brushes but this was ridiculous! Even with my MAC eyeshadows that I've been using for years now with no fallout, ended up all over my cheeks with these brushes.

Another thing that drove me crazy was the bristles kept coming out partway (as seen in the close up shots) but wouldn't fall out. I tried pulling on the offending bristles but they wouldn't budge. This meant for prickly application.

Thankfully the Sephora at Bloor Street West in Toronto was super nice and let me return these no problem even though I didn't have my receipt, or the original packaging and it had been over 3 months. A HUGE thank you to the lovely sales associates who were so nice about it. Honestly the customer service at Sephora has always been lovely, but this was just above and beyond.

Overall rating: DO NOT BUY. I think these are sold out as I can't find them on the webpage, but I did see some still in store when I exchanged these. I'm going to order the essentials kit from Sigma in the near future as I really do need more brushes.

July 2012 Favorites

July has been a boring month for me after the excitement of Italy in June. My courses are picked for the fall, but book lists aren't up yet. I've purchased some great fall pieces for my closet on sale, but the weather is still too hot to wear them. I've spent my days working, going to movies or curled up on a lawn chair reading, kind of boring really. While I love summer I hate not having a purpose while school is off. Anyways here are the products/things I have loved/used to keep me sane so far this month.

1. Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette $60CAD

I hesitates to buy this because of the cost, but I'm so glad I did. I use this almost everyday to do my makeup. Standout colours from this are Tease, Snakebite, Pistol, and YDK, but I have used every single colour at some point. I'm going to try to get a review + swatches of this up by the end of August.

2. Maybelline Dream Fresh BB Cream

I think this retails for around $13, but I've seen it on sale for as cheap as $8. This is my first ever BB cream so I have nothing to compare it to, but I love this so much. It gives great lightweight coverage without feeling greasy. The colour actually matches my very pale skin, which is hard to do. Unlike some foundations/tinted moisturizers I've tried I don't feel this on my skin after I apply it, something I can't stand. Miss Glamorazzi posted great comments about this as well and she has much more experience in the BB Cream department than I do.

3. Sephora Collection Microsmooth Bronzing Duo in Spicy Heat $23CAD

 I keep my face slathered in sunscreen during the year, so in the summer it tends to be a couple shades lighter than the rest of my body. So when I went to Sephora to find a bronzer back in April, I was surprised the sales girl chose this for me. I asked her to apply it in store so I could see how it look and I fell in love. I love this bronzer  because I can make it lighter or darker depending on my needs. It also gives a very subtle glow to my skin without looking like I've doused myself in glitter. I've been using this since April (when I had zero tan) to now (when I have a bit of a tan) and it works perfectly no matter what shade my skin is.

4. Revlon Lip Butters

I love the Revlon Lip Butters, they're moisturizing and the colour payoff is really great as well. I've been wearing the colour Peach Parfait a lot lately, as it works really well with any looks I create with the Naked 2 Palette. I think these retail for around $10CAD but I got mine on sale for $6. I haven't seen a good sale on these for a while now so I haven't picked up any new shades.

5. The Lizzie Bennet Diaries!

I love Pride and Prejudice, it's one of my favorite books. I read it at least once a year, and watch the 2005 movie version at least twice a year. When I stumbled across this YouTube version I fell in love. If you feel like a modern take on a beloved classic, this is for you!

Haul Post: Shopping with Starry Eyed Beauty!

Topshop necklace and lip glaze

So on Tuesday I went and met my friend Christine aka Starry Eyed Beauty at the mall and we did a big(ish) makeup shop! I kept myself pretty well in check and only bought a few new things to test out. I haven't seen Christine since we wrote our British History exam way back in April, so it was great to catch up!

First up is this adorable necklace from Topshop that we both got for $18. I really love wearing delicate long necklaces and this ones 3D shape makes is really interesting. I also snagged Topshop's lip glaze in bubblegum which was around $11. I've tried it once and it's not too sticky and the colour is really nice, but I thought Topshop was supposed to be cheap? I find their prices to be a bit much considering the quality of the garments... I do really like their accessories though for more trendy pieces.

 

Next up I bought the St. Tropez tanning mouse and mitt from Sephora. I try to avoid tanning in the sun because skin cancer runs in my family and I'm super pale so I burn really easily. I am getting really sick of people telling me I'm pale though, as right now I'm tan for me! I even had a sales girl at Origins scoff at me when I said that.  

Miss Glamourazzi, Fleur de Force and Elle Fowler have all raved about this self tanner and as they're all fair skinned girls I thought I would take the risk and try it. I will report back and fingers crossed I don't turn into anything resembling a member of Jersey Shore! The mouse is rather expensive, at $38 for the smaller bottle, but with recommendations from three of my favorite YouTube beauty gurus I figured I'd take my chances.

That little pink thing is the Sephora Precision Pore Cleansing Pad which retails for $7. It's a cute little exfoliater that works with your cleanser to scrub away dead skins. I've used it already and it's gentle enough for my sensitive skin, plus it feels a bit more sanitary to use than my body shop scrub brush for my face as this dries really quickly. 

Last but not least (and kind of out of focus... oops!) are the three things I bought from MAC! Now I only bought two with Christine because the MAC we went to had terrible service and kept us waiting for forever! I bought the 15 slot palette which I will give you guys progress as I fill it up as well as my first eyeshadow for it, All That Glitters. I've got some MAC eyeshadows to depot and I can't wait until I have this filled! I don't live near a free standing MAC that sells palettes so I've been putting off this purchase for a bit.

The other thing I bought from MAC I picked up on Wednesday which I had meant to buy but was too irritated to wait for them to help me find the product was the Cream Colour Base in Pearl. Amarixe used it in this tutorial and it looked so pretty and I don't currently have a highlighter so I took her suggestion and made the purchase. I can't wait to see how it looks with my daily makeup :)

I felt like I had a lot of bags at the mall, but when I gathered it all together to shoot it for this post I realized I hadn't actually bought that much. I'm really excited/nervous to test out the self tanner and after a couple of uses I'll be sure to post a review up!

Sephora Haul!

I have an obsession with makeup brushes at the moment and when I saw these strokes of nature brushes by Sephora in collaboration with Pantone I had to have them! My obsession with teal is legendary so these fit in perfectly. Seriously though, at the airport on the way home from Italy without trying to I was carrying my bright teal luggage, wearing a bright teal hoodie, with my new teal purse. It was a little embarrassing because I didn't realize until it was too late for me to change out of such a matchy matchy outfit!

These brushes are so pretty in person, honestly I love them. The bristles are super soft and I will post a review as to how they stack up to my MAC brushes. These are such a good deal, you get 5 brushes for $46CAD. To put that in perspective my favorite MAC 217 brush is $27CAD for just one brush.

There is a story behind why I got the Urban Decay Naked 2 palette (which at $60CAD is a big splurge). I have terrible friends, I've been back in the country for two weeks now and had plans on 3 separate occasions with 3 separate friends and they all bailed on me! For legitimate reasons, but still! I figured I would have spent around $20 each (at least) getting dinner or drinks with these friends and therefore I was going to spend the money I saved by buying the Naked 2 palette. Because makeup never stands you up.

I had a really hard time choosing between the Naked palette and the Naked 2 palette. I swatched both (which covered both of my forearms, I looked a tad silly in the store) and stood there for about half an hour trying to decide. I've really been loving grey tones lately so I went with the Naked 2 palette, but I think I might save up and by the Naked palette for my birthday in September.

I really love that every colour in the palette is something I would wear, I feel like this would have been amazing to have had with me in Italy. I can't wait to play around with it and create a ton of looks to share with you guys!

Ok so I feel like all I'm posting lately are haul posts lately, so I promise my next post will be something other than a haul.