Tag Archives: NYC

What I Bought This Month – May 2014 Haul

Hauls, , , , , , ,

I actually hadn’t picked up any beauty products this month until the very last week and then suddenly I had a whole stockpile!

MAC – Mystical ($21 CAD)
MAC – Mystical ($21 CAD)

While MAC‘s summer collection didn’t have a whole heck of a lot of bright colours, I knew I still wanted to pick up a few products because holy hell is that packaging ever beautiful! The first item I picked up was the cremesheen finish lipstick in Mystical. The colour is slightly more brown than I had expected, but it’s a very easy, every day colour for me. Slightly more fall-oriented than spring or summer, but still really beautiful.

MAC – Sea Me, Hear Me ($32.50 CAD)
MAC – Sea Me, Hear Me ($32.50 CAD)

I wanted to give MAC‘s extra dimension products another shot because everyone seems to love them and I’ve always been kind of “meh” about them. I have the skinfinish in Whisper of Gilt, but I’ve always found the product to be very hard and stiff in the pan, which requires using a rather stiff brush to actually get any product out of the pan. Turns out the blush is really no different! Like the lipstick, Sea Me, Hear Me is far more of a deep fall colour (I really didn’t understand this collection, despite the packaging being spectacular) and it looks nice on my cheeks, but I really need to use a stiff brush to get it out of the pan!

Hard Candy Ombre Lipstick – Cheerful (~$6 CAD)
Hard Candy Ombre Lipstick – Cheerful (~$6 CAD)

Ugh. Spoiler alert: these next two products by Hard Candy are terrible. I noticed the brand had put out some new products and wanted to give them a shot. The Ombre Lipstick inCheerful looked kind of neat but it’s really just an awkward product. It goes on the lips rather greasy, like the “play” makeup I had when I was 5 years old. Also, can we have a conversation about how the lip product actually changed colour once I rolled it up?  Ew! :s

Hard Candy Cheeks and Balances – Cheeky Pink (~$8 CAD)
Hard Candy Cheeks and Balances – Cheeky Pink (~$8 CAD)
This works slightly better than the lip product, but not a whole heck of a lot. Hard Candy‘sCheeky Pink “Cheeks and Balances” is supposed to be a cheek colour and highlighter in one. It goes on stripey (obviously) and you really need to blend it out with a finger or two. It can be a bit greasy, but I’ve only tested it out so far without wearing it for any extended amount of time. It’s a bit too finicky to keep the actual colours separated once you blend them, so it’s easier to just smush the product together as you swipe it on your cheeks. It’s quite frosty overall (even the darker pink colour), so apply lightly and build up if you need to.
Julep polishes in (l-r): Michelle, Angela, Missy, Paris, Hilary (free)
Julep polishes in (l-r): Michelle, Angela, Missy, Paris, Hilary (free)

I won a contest over on the lovely Kalyn‘s blog and she sent me a few Julep polishes as a prize. Having never tried out Julep‘s polishes before, I was eager to get my hands on these. This completely surprised me, but these bottles, despite looking small, actually contain the same amount of polish as any other regular bottle! So far I’ve tried out Hilary(sparkly orange/bronze/silver) and Michelle (creme). They both applied beautifully and those glitter ones are definitely going all over my toes!

NYC polish in East Village (free)
NYC polish in East Village (free)
My mom picked up this polish for some craft project but had little use for it after she finished her project so she passed it on to me. NYC‘s nail polish in East Village is really sheer, but the colour is beautiful once you build it up. I have to apply about three coats before I get an opaque coverage but it never feels goopy since the polish is quite thin.

Bioderma – Crealine H2O (~€12)
Bioderma – Crealine H2O (~€12)
Next up are a few items direct from France. My dad was snowboarding in France a few months back and I asked him to pick up a few products from some French pharmacies for me. Armed with a list, he managed to locate the bulk of the items I had requested. First up was a massive 500 ml bottle of Bioderma‘s Crealine H2O. The largest size they sell in Canada as far as I can find is the 250 ml and it sells for a whopping $23 CAD. This 500 ml bottle is double the size for a fraction of the cost. I wasn’t overly sold on Bioderma when I first used it, but after I used up that bottle, I found myself missing the product more and more. I use it predominantly as a makeup remover/touch up for when I make mistakes and it’s great for cleansing the skin lightly (I wouldn’t use this to deep clean).
Embryolisse – Hydra-Masque (~€15 CAD)
Embryolisse – Hydra-Masque (~€15 CAD)

This is a new product to me – Embryolisse‘s Hydra-Masque is a hydrating facial mask that can be used 1-2 times a week. It’s surprisingly thin in consistency – to the point where I didn’t expect it to actually do anything. If anything, it was so thin I was fully expecting it to sink completely into the skin. It doesn’t, however, and it feels amazing! I tried it out for the first time last night and this stuff is glorious! My face feels wonderful – hydrated and smooth.

Embryolisse – Lait-Creme Concentre (~€14 CAD)
Embryolisse – Lait-Creme Concentre (~€14 CAD)

And another one I’ve previously tried. Embryolisse‘s Lait-Creme Concentre is another amped up product from the beauty world. It’s a no fuss moisturizer that I use when I want a break from my usual Aveeno.

Olay Fresh Effects – Shine, Shine Go Away! (~$4 CAD)
Olay Fresh Effects – Shine, Shine Go Away! (~$4 CAD)

Yep, suckered in by the packaging again!  Supposedly this controls shine, but I suppose we’ll have to see. It was on sale at Walmart so I snatched it up.

Dermal Therapy – Heel Care (free)
Dermal Therapy – Heel Care (free)

And lastly… Dermal Therapy Heel Care. If you have cracked or dry heels, you need this. This is the *only* product that works on my horribly dried out heels. Seriously, you can go from grand canyon style cracks on your heels to baby butt smooth in about a week. My mom picked this up for me at Walmart so I’m not sure of the cost, but I know it’s under $10 which is incredibly reasonable for such a miracle product. Well worth the money.

And that’s my beauty haul for the month!