High End Haul: MAC, Sephora & NARS
There is nothing like a good ole' high end beauty haul, picking up all the products you've been lusting after for a long time all in one go and having new exciting makeup in your bag, what a wonderful feeling. The beauty world is a beautiful place and a pretty expensive place, if you live in the UK... Some of you may've seen on twitter that my dad went to New York recently, and of course I sent him with a list of products to pick up for me, with everything being so much cheaper over there, I had to. Despite picking up lots of new products from his trip, I found myself in the NARS and Urban Decay counter in Selfridges the other day and you can probably guess that I didn't come away empty handed... Ooops.
Studying my degree in Birmingham with Selfridges a 10 minute train journey away from me, you can imagine how hard this is for a beauty blogger and makeup addict, I find myself in the beauty floor at least 3 times a week. NARS is definitely my favourite high end brand, with such a wide range available and at such high quality, there is nothing better for my skin. Sheer Glow Foundation has been on my wish list for god knows how long now so I thought it was about time I got myself colour matched and brought one home. This is hands down one of my all time favourite foundations, having wriggled it's way into my top 3, I have a new every day base. The finish is dewy, glowing and long lasting, leaving me with radiant skin. The very helpful lady who helped me with this, recommended I use a primer with it as it will ensure it lasts a lot longer, doesn't cling to any dry patches and generally makes me foundation go on a lot smoother. The Multi Protect Primer has completely changed my base makeup routine, if you're looking for a primer, this is a really good one! Now for a new concealer release and a new concealer to me, the Urban Decay Naked Concealer. After watching Lily Pebbles using this, it went straight on my list. This is such an amazing concealer, it conceals dark circles, brightens my eye area and works as a fab one for covering blemishes.
Now for the New York beauty buys... Starting with Sephora, a beauty bloggers dream store. I've never been to a Sephora store myself, or purchased anything from one so I was very excited to choose some bits from the website for my dad to pick up for me. My list was enormous and I could've brought a lot more, but I narrowed it down to the two things that have been on my wish list for a long time. First of all, the Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit, this was a no brainer, I had to pick one of these up, I've been lusting after one for ages and they are so hard to get hold of in the UK and are pretty pricy so this was my easiest chance to get my hands on one! The palette contains 6 powders, 4 contour shades and too highlighter/setting shades. In order: Sand, Vanilla, Banana, Java, Fawn and Havana. I am so impressed with the formula's so far, they are really easy to blend and they don't look dirty or grubby, they simply naturally enhance my cheek bones. The shade Vanilla is perfect for setting under eye concealer, it ensures it all stays in place and brightens the area to and Fawn is best for the most natural contour look. Once I have tried this out a bit more, I will be doing a full review so keep your eyes peeled!
The second and final thing I picked up from Sephora was the Ole Henrickson Brightening Cleansing Cloths. I saw Lily Pebbles speak about this a while ago now in a Haul video, and I've been meaning to try them ever since. When I was in Selfridges recently, I had swatched lipsticks and eye liners over my entire hand and these wipes were out as testers and to my surprise, they removed all the marks instantly, they didn't leave a trace behind and left my skin feeling soft and radiant. So of course, they went straight onto my list! I'm not really a face tip kinda gal, I always use cleanser and toner to remove my makeup, but these feel just like using a cleanser and clean my face just as well, so for days when I am feeling lazy and too tired to remove my makeup, I will be reaching for these! MAC is one of my favourite beauty brands, for a high end brand and incredible quality, I find their products are really reasonably priced, especially in America, 16$ working out as £10 for a lipstick... It would be rude not to, righhhtttt?! I actually picked up quite a few things in MAC, these are things that have been on my wish list for a really long time so thought it was time to tick 'em off! Starting with the famous Velvet Teddy lipstick, this is probably the most spoken about lipstick shade of all time since it was said to be Kylie Jenners shade and as you can imagine, it is sold out everywhere and impossible to get hold of, in the UK that is, my dad managed to get hold of one in New York and I am so pleased I finally have it! The lipstick itself? A gorgeous nude brown with a matte, long lasting finish, a perfect everyday shade and can be glammed up for an evening look also. Next up is a Creamblend Blush in Lady Blush, I am much more into cream blushers at the moment, I find they look much more natural and help me achieve the dewy finish I am after. Lady Blush is a gorgeous peach shade, perfect for the Summer! After watching one of Tanya Burr's celebrity inspired makeup looks, I really wanted to try the Cream Colour Base in Hush which she paired with Lady Blush. This is a beautiful peachy/bronze cream highlight and goes perfectly with the blush. The final item from MAC is the Eye Pencil in Coffee, I'm not really a black eye liner girl, I find it looks to harsh on me and they always smudge so have been after a brown liner for a while now. MAC Coffee seems to be one of the most spoken about brown liners so I was interested to try it out! The pencil is so soft and is really easy to blend for a smoked out eye.
So that is all the products my dad picked up for me in New York, I can't wait to try them all out properly and keep an eye open for a review of each product coming up!
Have you tried any of these products and what is on your wish list? *leave answers in the comments below*