Spring Beauty Haul: Sephora, NYX, Tarte, Skin Care, + More!


I know I just posted a massive collective beauty haul on January, but I seriously couldn't resist buying all these amazing new spring releases! A majority of these products are some of my new all-time favorite things, so keep reading for more details!

NYX Highlight & Contour Pro Palette ($25)
Starting with the product that I was most excited about purchasing last month: NYX's new Highlight and Contour Pro Palette. I've been lusting over the ever-so-coveted Anastasia Contour Kit, but it's a little (a lot) too pricy, so I thought I'd try out this potential dupe. A lot of people say that it's not worth it because it's only $10 cheaper than ABH, but the pans hold a lot more product and there are 8 refillable shades instead of 6, so I think it's worth the drugstore splurge. Here's my review!

NYX Tame & Frame Tinted Brow Pomade in Brunette ($7.00)
Speaking of NYX, I also bought their new brow pomade because my holy grail eyebrow gel from the brand is almost used up and I thought I'd try something else even though I swore by that product. I gotta say, I wasn't too impressed with this one.
NYX HD Blush in Amber ($6.49)
I took advantage of an Ulta coupon code, so I got one of their new HD blushes in addition to the brow pomade. They actually had samples in store to swatch, so I was able to choose a shade quite easily. I always lean more towards the natural muted mauves or dark peaches, so I got the one in Amber which is crazy soft and pigmented. I'm pretty sure this blush will last me a long time because one very light tap is more than enough to add color to my cheeks. NYX's new releases really got their pigmentation on point!

Daiso Falsies & Eyelash Glue ($3.00)
Not that I need any more of these, but Daiso has a falsies heaven that never fails to tempt me, so I had to get a pair of natural-looking ones along with a black eyelash glue that I absolutely love.

Vaseline Original Petroleum Jelly ($2)
This one's not too exciting, but I had to grab a jar after hearing about its lash-lengthening properties. Believe it or not, I've actually noticed some growth already after just 3 days! I might do a post on it if it truly makes a dramatic difference.

Ulta Complete Eye Palette
I dropped by Ulta to claim my free birthday gift, and it happened to be an exclusive eyeshadow palette! I didn't hear too many great things about it, but for the price, I think the quality's quite decent. I also don't own a few of these shades, so I'm definitely going to get some use out of them.

Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes 4-in-1 Mascara - $10
I had a JC Penney gift card from Christmas, so I thought I'd spend it on one of Sephora's deluxe samples. It just so happens to be something that people often compare to the highly acclaimed Too Faced Better than Sex mascara, so of course I had to try it out... and I gotta say, it's definitely my holy grail mascara right now. It seriously does wonders for my eyelashes and makes them look super voluminous, long, and fluttery. You probably already caught a glimpse of my thoughts on this in my February favorites!
InstaNatural Eye Serum, Youth Express Eye Gel, Retinol Moisturizer Cream  
I received a bunch of skin care products through Brandbacker in the past two months, which I'll certainly be reviewing since they're part of a sample campaign for bloggers. I actually already wrote a review on these three, all of which were from InstaNatural, an organic skin care line.

Valentia Even Glow Serum
This serum from Valentia is probably my favorite so far because it gave the quickest results. I won't provide any details because I talk about it in-depth in a full review I recently posted.

InstaNatural Deep Sea Mud Mask, Pure Emu Oil
I've been using this mask for over four weeks now, and I always see a stunning difference every time I wash it off. It instantly brightens my complexion and keeps it squeaky clean and smooth. I also got a complementary pure emu oil from InstaNatural, but I gotta say that I haven't been using it all that often because I just can't stand the fishy scent. 

Girlactik Matte Lip Paint in Demure
This might be my last new lipstick purchase of this shade because I finally found one with the absolute perfect color and formula. In other words, this is my new all-time holy grail lipstick... ever! No other lip colors I've owned have reached this high of a status, so I try not to use this every single day because it's extremely pricy in my opinion. I already did a review on this, which you can check out here!

Maybelline Face Studio Master Conceal in Light Medium
My Maybelline Age Rewind barely has any product left, so I thought I'd try out their newest concealer which has gotten quite a lot of praise. I've actually been loving it myself because it provides incredible coverage without looking cakey. However, it creases like crazy on my undereyes so setting it with a powder is absolutely necessary.

Premium Organic Argan Oil Based Hair Loss Prevention Shampoo
Premium Organic Argan Oil Based Conditioner, Lavender Vanilla
Pure and Organic Argan Oil
I received yet another set of samples through BrandBacker from the brand Pura d'or. It arrived at just the right time because I was actually running out of shampoo, so it's the perfect opportunity for me to try out brand new hair products. The conditioner smells absolutely divine and the argan oil actually doesn't reek of some kind of fishy scent like the Emu oil. Stay tuned for an in-depth review on these!
Pure & Essential Minerals Dead Sea Mud Mask
Okay, last skin care product. Even though I've been really loving the Dead Sea mud mask I just mentioned, I couldn't help but try another one, so I requested this other sample from BrandBacker. It has better reviews on Amazon, so we'll see!
Lorac Alter Ego Lipstick in Secret Agent
My friend got me this gorgeous lipstick from Lorac for my birthday. I've always wanted to try something from this brand, and this lipstick line happens to have really good reviews. It's the perfect fall/winter neutral because of the plum brown shade, so I'll definitely get a lot more use out of it during those seasons. Thanks again, "Auntie" Nessa! ;)
Sephora 2015 Birthday Gift
I dropped by Sephora on my birthday to claim my free gift, but they ran out because everyone obviously wants free Nars lippies, so I had to order it online instead. I'm slightly disappointed with the satin one because it's a lot sheerer than I anticipated and it's actually more of a metallic finish rather than a satin. The matte red, however, is super gorgeous and creamy!
Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blush in Exposed
I recently won a giveaway on Instagram and received a $50 Sephora gift card, and honestly, it felt like I spent hours contemplating on what to get because I really didn't know what to spend it on. I would've gotten the ABH Contour Kit, but I just bought the NYX palette which some people actually find to be slightly better. Anyway, I went with Tarte's Amazonian Clay Blush that I've been wanting to try out since everyone says it lasts literally all day long. I got the one in the classic muted mauve color, Exposed, which is also their best-selling shade.
Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow in Soft Brown
I also got the highly acclaimed Anastasia Dip Brow in Soft Brown because I felt like it'd be far better than the NYX pomade that I showed earlier. Don't get me wrong, that one has its pros, but it lengthens my makeup routine considerably because it's so hard to work with. I did a comparison review of the two, which you can check out here if you want to know which one I'd recommend more!

Sephora Instant Eye Makeup Remover
I needed about six more dollars to get to $50 for free shipping, so I added this eye makeup remover from the Sephora Collection since I recently ran out of my Neutrogena one. 

Sephora samples
It's not an online purchase without some free samples! I got the Photo Finish Foundation Primer from Smashbox, an eye cream from Shiseido, and a hydrating gel cream from Fresh. I've only tried the primer so far, and I actually really like it. I never had any good experiences with any brand of primer, so this is quite exciting.
Rimmel Provocalips Lip Color in Heart Breaker
It turns out that the Girlactik lip paint wasn't the last purchase I had of this shade. This lipstick line finally hit my local Target and I recently watched ItsJudyTime's review on it, so I needed to give it a try since I always trust her reviews because we have the same skin type and a very similar taste in lip products. This one happened to stay on her lips completely for a whole day, which is super impressive for a drugstore liquid lipstick. Be on the lookout for a review!

Wicked Crown Hair Chalk
Another thing I received from Brandbacker is this set of hair chalk, which is completely new to me. The "craziest" color I've ever dyed my hair is red, so these will be a lot of fun to play around with without having to commit. I've actually tried it out once and did a whole review on it here!

#Eyelove SF Eyeshadow Quad
I was fortunate enough to be chosen as one of the few bloggers to test out Memebox's latest products, including SoothingSista's new eyeshadow quad. She is seriously one of my favorite Youtubers/bloggers, so I was super excited to receive her very own product. Check out my review here!
Flame Shaped Nylon Powder Brush
I came across this brush on Instagram and found that it's from Light in the Box, an Asian-based wholesale website that sells insanely inexpensive items ranging from beauty, fashion, to home decor. It caught my attention because the packaging looked exactly like the brushes from Real Techniques which I've always wanted to try. I just hate how I had to wait over a month to receive it.
e.l.f. Blush in Gotta Glow
 My local Target has lots of new e.l.f. stuff in stock, and naturally this caught my attention because it's a yellow highlighter. Unfortunately, it's not nearly as illuminating as I expected. The shimmers are too subtle that it'll probably work better as an undereye setting powder, which I have yet to see.
NYC Liquid Eyeliner in Black 
My holy grail liquid eyeliner is starting to get clumpy, so I grabbed another one. I don't think I'll switch it up anytime soon because this has everything I look for in an eyeliner - jet black, matte, long-lasting, and easy to use. Though it's not meant to be waterproof, it never fades on me either.
Sinful Colors Nail Polish in Lavender
I haven't bought nail polish in a while, so when I looked at the Sinful Colors collection (my favorite drugstore nail polish brand), this color instantly caught my attention. It's an incredibly gorgeous pastel purple (or lavender in short) that has quickly become my absolute favorite spring nail color. I might even love it more than my muted mauve nail polish called Vacation Time from their collection!

Like most of my hauls, this started out with only a few products, but it kept expanding over the course of three months, so... yeah. I hope you enjoyed it anyway and I hope it got you hyped up for all the new spring releases! 'Til my next one!

xoxo,
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CONVERSATION

2 comments:

  1. ahh i totally feel you on sephora paralysis haha i got a gift card for christmas and debated between the anastasia brow wiz and tarte blush in fearless for sooo long! i ended up going for the brow wiz because i conveniently forgot my brow pencil over spring break but now i really want the blush too!

    Natalie / Salt & Sail

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  2. @Natalie i know right! it's like there's so much to choose from but it's so hard to pick just a few! you should definitely get the blush sometime. it's amazing :)

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