Inglot‘s matte shadows are some of the absolute best on the market and it’s nice that they come in such a wide variety of colours. I created this palette in March 2014 in New York City (several months before they opened their store in Toronto!) and loved pulling together such vibrant shades. I knew I wanted all bright mattes at the time because I was on neutral overdose at the time and wanted something to brighten my mood.
It’s that time of the year where us beauty lovers go bat shit crazy. All of the fall collections are out and the Holiday 2015 collections are already starting to drop like napalm bombs onto our bank accounts.
I’m making this post basically to figure out exactly what I want and how much it’s going to cost me (always a frightening notion). I realize it’s September and the holidays are still MONTHS away… but my husband has been singing Christmas songs since July (no, I’m NOT kidding!) and I’m already feeling festive.
Here’s my “To Buy” or “Not To Buy?” list:
This is my absolute number one this year. I NEED THIS IN MY LIFE. It’s not only got the perfect rainbow of colours but it even has neutrals in the middle. This would solve my “I want brights AND neutrals” problem when I go on vacation. Plus hello, look at the packaging. It’s GORGEOUS.
Price: $71 CAD/$59 USD
Release date: September 15th online, October 3rd in stores
Where to buy: Sephora exclusive
I swear I love the packaging more than the actual shadows inside! I think it’s something aout the layout of the shadows… they’re just not calling to me like last year’s did. HOWEVER, I loved the Vice 3 from last year and I really want to add another one to my collection. Those oranges are definitely calling my name! And how can you not drool over that oil slick inspired packaging? /salivates
Price: ~$70 CAD/$60 USD
Release date: September 25th at Sephora
Where to buy: Urbandecay.com or Sephora
I totally forgot about this palette, so I was surprised when pictures started showing up online recently. I’m torn on this one… I’m way more into the shadows in this compared to the Vice 4, but I definitely do not need more cool toned shadows in my life. There also isn’t a single matte or satin finish shadow in the whole box so it’s a LOT of shimmer. However, there are some shades in here that I missed out by not purchasing the Anniversary palette several years ago so that makes it even more enticing. This is an Urbandecay.com exclusive, so you’ll need to order from their web site if you want to get your hands on it.
Price: $55 USD
Release date: October 20th
Where to buy: Urbandecay.com exclusive (EDIT: Seems it may be coming to Sephora as well!)
With Charlotte Tilbury recently launching in Canada it means I have easy access to product, and last year she had a STUNNING quad. I’m not sure if she’s coming out with something similar, but I think I’d like something from her holiday collection. There still haven’t been a lot of details released yet, but I’m looking forward to whatever they throw at us!
Price: No idea, but I know I’m going to end up cringing.
Release date: Unknown
Where to buy: Charlottetilbury.com
WHAT IS THIS BEAST? This is about the only information I’ve seen on the new Too Faced Chocolate Bon Bons palette and I NEED TO KNOW MORE. It’s not technically part of the holiday collections, but I figure it’ll be launching relatively soon. I MUST HAVE IT IN MY LIFE. (Side note, I wasn’t that into the holiday Too Faced palettes because the shadows seemed too similar to the 2013 and 2014 holiday palettes I already own.)
Price: No idea, nothing’s been released yet! But if the other palettes are any indication, it’ll be around $59 CAD.
Release date: Unknown
Where to buy: Sephora more than likely.
Guerlain Meteorites Enchanted Snowflakes
https://instagram.com/p/7OMFjvFgrG/
I’ve never owned anything by Guerlain, but I’ve eyeballed the meteorites for so long that I’m glad I’m finally cracking. I must have these beautiful pearls of goodness. Ever since I saw Steph post about them on Fun Size Beauty, I knew they had to be mine (even if they are RIDICULOUSLY expensive).
Price: $89 CAD (GOOD GRIEF)
Release date: November 1st
Where to buy: Guerlain Boutiques and selected counters.
Other random stuff I have my eyes peeled for are some kind of palette by Laura Mercier since she’s put out two great palettes over the last few holiday seasons; and maybe something by bareMinerals as I’ve discovered I really like the texture of their eyeshadows but I barely own anything by them.
What’s on your wish list? What am I missing from mine?
I like lip balms. I like a LOT of lip balms. In fact, I keep a freaking container full of them on my nightstand for easy access when I’m going to bed. Like seriously, look at that jar on the left above – that’s all lip balm!
As someone who wears a lot of matte lipsticks, I’ve found that keeping my lips moisturized is the best way to ensure that I don’t have any flaky patches of skin on my mouth and that my lips can recuperate from being dried out all the time. I tend to wear most of my lip balms overnight so that they can sink in to my lips and not get wiped off by eating or drinking.
So here’s a roundup of all the balms I’m loving right now.
So little did I know, but apparently Nivea and Labello are the same company. I picked up the Nivea Lip Butter in Vanilla & Macadamia while I was on vacation in Galway, Ireland (and as a result, the scent of it always reminds me of Galway which really just makes it incredibly special to me!) and I grabbed the Coconut scent in Vienna, Austria last year. Both of them have the same very thick, slippery consistency and smell absolutely delicious. I tend to prefer using these overnight because they leave quite a bit of a white-cast on your lips which isn’t so flattering during the day. I love these so much that I’m almost done the Vanilla & Macadamia and I’ve previously finished a Caramel Kiss one!
Now this is a luxurious lip balm! Nuxe‘s Reve de Miel lip balm was such a surprise when I opened it – I was expecting it to smell honey but instead it has a very lemon-y scent. I love lemons though, so that works out of me! With a name like “Dream of Honey” though… the last thing I was expecting was lemon! This balm is wonderful and perfect for the cooler, drier months (if we ever get there that is. Toronto’s been rocking the 30Cs lately. Ugh.) to keep your lips hydrated. It’s thick enough that you’ll actually feel like you’ve got a physical barrier on your lips to keep them from getting wind-burned, but it doesn’t look like you’ve got cakey balm all over your lips. Love, love, love.
Ah yes, the eos spheres. Who isn’t familiar with this insanely adorable round balls? I’ve actually had mixed feelings about these balms for quite some time: I bought and returned Summer Fruit because I could not stand the smell of it. I’ve asked multiple people and most people smell the fruit scent, but all I get off that one is a very plastic, synthetic scent. I swore off them thinking they were all like that… until I was recently sent these two: Coconut Milk and Sweet Mint, and neither of them has that offensive smell that I got off Summer Fruit.
The eos balms are thinner in consistency than the balms I mentioned above, which makes them easier to use on the go. For me, I think “airplane balm” when I use these since they’re convenient to toss in a bag and take with you. Bonus points for not needing to dip your fingers into a pot when you’re travelling! Sweet Mint is my favourite out of the two; it has a refreshing peppermint taste that definitely tingles a little bit. Coconut Milk smells like it’s name implies and it’s just as pleasant on the lips as well.
The CUBES by Softlips are definitely their answer to eos‘ lip balm spheres, but I’m not complaining because they’re just as adorable. Made to look like ice cubes, these balms have the same thin consistency as the eos spheres and like I said with the eos balms, these are definitely travel friendly. Vanilla Bean is my favourite scent, but they also have Berry Bliss for you fruit lovers out there.
And finally, the mother of all lip balms: Bite Beauty‘s Agave Lip Mask in Maple. This is a very recent addition to my balm collection so I’ve only used it a few times. I’m mostly excited to use this during the winter because it has a very, VERY thick consistency (so much so that it’s kind of hard to get it out of the tube). I picked this up because I had wanted to try out the Lip Mask before, but somehow couldn’t justify the price point ($30 CAd *gulp*)… that is… until they came out with the Canadian-exclusive maple flavour! There is a hint of translucent brown colour to the balm so it will add some colour to your lips while wearing it. If nothing else, the scent is divine.
Not that I need ANYMORE lip balm, but what’s your favourites? What did you hate? Tell me!
The eos spheres and Softlips CUBE were sent to me for consideration.
Consider this another edition of “bloggers made me do it”. I’ve been aware of the Clinique Cheek Pops for quite a while, but had never actually purchased one. That embossed flower design was enough to send many, many beauty addicts into a blush buying tailspin, but I held off because I’ve started to come to the conclusion that there isn’t really anything unique in terms of blush shades anymore, so why do I really need another one? Then Jen of Vibrant, Vivacious, Veracious Beauty Blog posted about Cola Pop, and I was sold. (I don’t know what it is about Jen’s posts, but she always seems to find something unique that makes me want to purchase it as well!)
Clinique‘s Cheek Pop blush in Cola Pop ($27 CAD) is a dark, burnt red blush that probably looks frightening to more than half my readers, but to me, it screams amazingness. Obviously you don’t wear blush at full strength, so try not to let the pan shade frighten you.
What I’m loving about Clinique‘s Cheek Pops is that the company seems to have gone from a very dated metallic plastic look (I could never get on board with Clinique because of their packaging, how terrible is that?) to a very modern thick acrylic packaging. The Cheek Pops come encased in a very solid acrylic compact that shows you the colour of the product right out of the gates.
Of course, many of us beauty addicts are suckered in by the beautiful imprint on the product, but I find the imprint is actually functional since it helps my brush to pick up the product from the compact.
Swatched at full strength, I felt like this blush was screaming my name. I mean, look at that dark red! It’s gorgeous! But bear with me, here’s how it looks on the cheeks when blended out appropriately:
See? Way less terrifying. As we approach fall (thank god, I’m so sick of this heat – I will forever be a fall and winter woman at heart), this is the exact kind of colour I want hugging my cheeks.
I love the soft red-pink flush it gives my cheeks. At the risk of sounding basic, it gives that “cold weather” flush that I always want on my cheeks, particularly since I don’t actually flush that nicely at all from the cold!
As with most blushes, I don’t notice any issues with longevity, and this will definitely last the entire work day on me (which is about 10 hours including my commute before I take my makeup off). I’m impressed that Clinique came out with such a gloriously dark shade and it could definitely be built up to be more intense if you have darker skin (as per my swatch!). For once I feel that Cola Pop is a totally unique shade of blush and I’m happy to have added it to my collection!
I still have a lot of larger palettes to go through, but I wanted to also start covering some of my smaller quads that may (or may not) be limited edition and/or discontinued. I find it helpful to see what’s still in my collection because I’m way more inclined to play with it after swatching it for the blog. And heck, maybe it’s sitting in your collection too and you’d completely forgotten about it!
This quad is Maybelline‘s Irresistible Ivy. It was discontinued a few years back and I snatched it up as soon as it was marked as such. I couldn’t pass up that green AND it was heavily discounted. In terms of a quick review, the quality these types of small four pan Maybelline quads is AMAZING. Buttery, soft and pigmented out the wazoo!
