Makeup Collection 2020

This is my makeup collection as of right now, missing a few things that are still in my car, which my sister has at the moment.

I don’t feel it’s a lot, then again, I AM a makeup junkie.

I can’t wait to have a vanity. That’s my dream. To have my own space, my own apartment, and FINALLY HAVE A VANITY.

Baby steps, baby steps, I know. But I’ve wanted one for so long, simply have no where to put it.

So I’m currently saving up for an apartment, and hopefully a cute vanity desk type deal to store my compulsive disorder of buying makeup.

Serious note, I genuinely scare my family with how often I buy makeup… but I can’t help it! It’s fun and gives me even more stuff to play with on days when I’m sick– like today, cough cough.

I’m excited to have a goal.

Originally it was for London, but seeing as everyone is under qaurentine right now, that looks to be a bit difficult. Besides, I’d have to save up my money and I just spent most of it at Ulta, Sephora, and Mac.

Not to mention paing bills- which I HAVE been doing by the way. There’s just a lot of them. UGH.

Anywhoooo hope you’re having a lovely day wherever you are, whichever cozy nook you’re reading this from, whenever time of the day it is where you’re from.

Have a great one.

Love,

Nat 💖

What’s in my bag

It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these and I’ve transitioned from shoulder bags to backpacks recently too. Here is what’s in my bag:

1. A book

2. A notebook

3. Gum

4. Rollerball perfume

5. The basics of makeup: Concealer, blush, mascara, lipgloss

6. Lip balm

7. Gingerbread squishy

8. Pen

9. Charger / charger case

10. Wallet

11. Primer water (life saver for long days)

12. A nail polish

13. Headphones (not pictured)

What’s in your bag?

Love,

Nat 💖

Lancôme Hypnose Drama

This is a mascara I LOVE. It goes way back with me all the way to when I was around 15 and really began loving makeup. I would always borrow or be given my moms mini travel size to use and it’s always been one I’ve been in love with because of memories (my moms still around don’t worry haha) and simply that it’s an amazing mascara. 

It’s about $27.50 at Sephora and Ulta and there are a bunch of other mascaras Lancôme makes in case you wanted to check others out. My moms favorite is definicils. 🙂

The brush is not plastic, it is in fact a brush and it’s a bit curved, a bit like an “s” so it grabs every lash well (at least for me). It also smells great! Nothing special really, just fresh. If you really want a mascara that has a scent the YSL babydoll mascara has a nice rose scent. 🌹

Hope you enjoyed this mini review! 

Love, 

            Nat 💖

High End VS. Drugstore

Because I just feel like it I’ll make a mini list of makeup, both drugstore and high end that I love.

*Note: These are not dupes, they are alternatives that I personally found work well*

High End

1. Fresh Lotus Youth Preserve Face Cream $43
2. Hourglass Mineral Veil face primer SPF 15 $19 / $54 / $75
3. Benefit Erase Paste $26
4. Nars Sheer Glow (Have not tried this yet but hear it’s amazing) $47
5. Bare Minerals Original Foundation ( I like to use this as a powder or foundation) $28.50
6. Too Faced Shadow Insurance Eyeshadow Primer $20
7. Too faced Natural eyes Eyeshadow Palette (One of the least expensive yet amazing quality at Sephora) $36
8. Urban Decay Eyeliner $20
9. Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara (yep, that’s really what it’s called, Benefit They’re Real Mascara, Tarte Light’s Camera Lashes Mascara $23 / $24 / $21
10. Tarte Blush, Benefit Coralita Blush $28 / $29
11. Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit $40
12. Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Bronzer $30
13. Dior LipGlow Pink $30
14. Becca Highlighter $38
15. GlamGlow Glowsetter makeup setting spray $32

Drug Store

1. Olay Complete Daily Defense All Day moisturizer SPF 30 $13

2. Rimmel London Fix and Perfect Primer $7.99

3. Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Concealer $8.99

4. L’Oreal True Match Lumi Foundation $12.99

5. Essence Matte Powder $4.99

6. NYX High Definition eyeshadow base $6.99

7. Wet N’ Wild walking on Eggshells trio $2.99

8. Rimmel London Waterproof Retractable eyeliner $5.99

9. L’Oreal Miss Manga, L’Oreal Carbon Black, L’Oreal Telescopic / Maybelline Great Lash $7.99 / $7.99 / $9.99 / $5.99

10. Revlon RavishingRose (I don’t know why but at first I thought it was called ‘Racy Rose’) blush $10.99

11. Wet N’ Wild Ticket to Brazil Bronzer $4

12. Revlon Lip Butter, L’Oreal Colour Riche $5.99 / $8.99

13. Mario Badescu Face Spray $7

All for Galifornia

Ever since I randomly stumbled upon the new blush by Benefit on an Australian website,”Galifornia” has been on the top of my list- because I knew it was one that I’d fall head over heels for. Galifornia is the absolute reason I splurged a bit today…

I went to Ulta, and I went to a corner store afterwards (mainly to pick up some mucinex for my mom who has a cold; keep away from sneezers people it’s cold / allergy season).

And yes, I did take these photos outside. 🙂 The best lighting is there, and today was a nice day anyway’s so psh if you judge me.

Onto the things at Ulta:

1. Soap and Glory ‘Clean on Me” shower gel.

2. Soap and Glory Super cat liquid liner pen (which slightly terrifies me, but less than the super cat fat liquid liner unless I was going for a thick liner look which I rarely do) in “jet black”. Still a hard-core dollywink eyeliner fan. 😉

3. Benefit Cosmetics “Galifornia” Blush. Fun spin on California, which I’m hoping / wishing to go to in June for VidCon. I’ve read some reviews on it that mention the golden overlay disappearing after 5 swipes and while that’s most likely true, I still felt the need to buy it. It looks like summer, it smells like summer, it simply reminds me of summer. Plus, Coralista my all time favorite blush ever to exist which always comes from Benefit reminds me a bit of this by glancing at it. Not entirely sure if it will resemble it all but either way I have a gut feeling I’m going to love it. ^_^

Onto the things at the corner store:

1. Herbal Essences Body Envy shampoo
2. Herbal Essences Body Envy Conditioner
3. Revlon Eyelash Curler (my old one was soooo overused that I threw it out a month ago and haven’t used one since)
4. Curad Bandaids just because I’ve always wanted to try these and what better a time to buy some when someone needs one and there are none in the house.

That is the mini look into what I bought today!

Hope you enjoyed reading, do you know of anything I should keep my eye out for make-up wise, hair wise, book wise, or all sorts of wise?

Love,

Nat 💖

 

 

Garnier Girl Now?

This is the garnier whole blends shampoo in “honey treasures.”

It is specified as a repairing shampoo which intends to help with split ends and damage (very much needed for me). It smells like magic, and the cap is adorable and pretty secure despite the leave imprint on it causing it to be slightly nerve wracking if traveling with it. Yet, it’s cute and fits with the natural theme of the line like a gem.

I’m not a major fan of Garnier, it is one of those drugstore brands I haven’t been able to get behind because of past experiences with the brand making my hair appear greasy or breaking out my face. 

BUT, I am in love with this shampoo. I have been eying it for a month or so now, the entire wall which is a sea of different scents with different aspirations for people’s hair– and I decided to dive in too. 

It was between the “honey treasures” and the “mythic olive” one because I found the scents most appealing. 

I have used the “coconut oil and cocoa butter” leave-in-conditioner back in the summer, which smells AMAZING. 

It smells so so good, and I’m going to give credit to my cousin for discovering it. 

The garnier hair care line ranges from $3.47 – $6.29 in price, which is a pretty rad deal when it comes to shampoos. 

My other drugstore favorite would be the Pantene volume range although some have noted it isn’t the best for hair because the shampoo etc. causes buildup eventually thus creating volume, etc. But, my hair always came out looking bomb. 

I decided to step out of my comfort zone (entirely) and try out this garnier whole blends shampoo, I am so not disappointed. 

I plan on trying the olive (woo I’m actually so excited) one too. 

Mac and Essence

Nothing compares to the scent and feel of Mac lipsticks… except for Essence.

Mac lipstick retails for $17 whereas Essence retails for $2.99.

Essence “like a princess”

Mac Creme D’Nude
I bought the essence lipstick “Like a princess” #13 back in July, and alternated between that lipstick and the L’Oréal Paris Colour Riche Lip in #401 “Julianne’s Red” during the summer.

I have been fighting the urge to wear them until recently where I realize spring is on the way and that it is the perfect time to begin again (lol Taylor Swift reference, what else would you expect).

Recently I’ve rediscovered Mac’s Creme D’Nude considering I am as whites as snow at the moment and I have to be honest, I still can’t get over how AMAZING it smells.

 

Fresh Rose Review

This has grown on me.

It started out with me being ecstatic to use it because it smells like roses (one of my favorite things / scents) and then turned into me questioning it.

Yes, I read reviews before buying it (it is about $40), and yes I also googled photos and some information before as well.

I’m not the type to just blow $40, I mean unless I was given $500 or something, which has yet to happen to me at random.

What drew me to it was that Fresh (a company originated in Italy) made it, the one that also makes the one that smells like cucumbers (Youth preserve with lotus etc. etc. very long name) which I also absolutely love– maybe even more than this one. It also has the word “hydration” in it.

On my first use of this, I had SUPER dry skin– the worst to the point where even the moisturizer seemed to pare off on the sides of my face. The absolute worst. It has slowly improved with time whereas the Fresh Lotus one made a change in my skin in a SNAP. I genuinely noticed a difference wishing the first three days whereas with this moisturizer it has taken a few weeks.

It could also very much be due to the fact that I’ve been working my a** off that created a blurred line between noticing good skin and bad.

This winter has been no friend of my skin. So in that case I went on a hunt to find a good moisturizer, I have to tell you that this one is great–but I don’t believe it does the trick for me personally. In terms of favorite moisturizer for all eternity, I have yet to discover that.

I suggest it, but I suggest trying a sample before committing to it as I say with every product ever, yet still holds true. Or if you simply cannot wait but don’t have the budget, try the Fresh Youth preserve travel size for $17.

This Fresh Rose Deep Rehydration Face Cream is moisturizing, reduces redness, has cute and simple packaging, has a fresh scent, and feels like a dream.

It comes in a glass jar (be careful, don’t drop it) with a pink-copper-metallic lid that is chic yet inviting and looks damn good sat on top of a dresser.

❤ Nat

Phonecase Love

 

If you want a great, quality phone case I highly suggest this one from Etsy. Not only because of the new “Beauty and the Beast” film (featuring Emma Watson) coming to theaters soon, but because it’s freaking gorgeous and everyone needs something to protect their phone. Why not use style?

The one I just received (my first ever purchase on Etsy by the way, not including the countless hours I’ve spent scrolling through it in the past) mirrors a stain glass red rose, on a blue background which seeps into black towards the bottom and around the edges of the case. When looking closely at it there are miniscopic sparkles scattered throughout making it look all the more beautiful too.

With a rating of four and a half stars and 117 reviews, their page is at least worth taking a look at.

Along with this phone case, there are plenty of other options from this seller alone. Even better? There is currently a 24 hour flash sale cutting the price from $19.95 to $11.05– amazing. I suggest running to your laptop or phone now.

Oh, and coolest thing of all– It’s shipped from FRANCE.

The 3 Best Makeup Removers

From left to right: No. 7 Beautiful skin wipes, Simple Micellar water, Lancôme Bi-facial Double Action eye makeup remover

 

1. The No. 7 Beautiful skin wipes I discovered in Ulta over the summer, they are made in the U.K. (at the time Ulta was incorporating more U.K. brands into the mix so I jumped on the bandwagon, of course) and these were one of the first things on my list.

They are hydrating, a stretchier, covered material rather than     dry and harsh on this skin. They remove makeup in a swipe and leave zero breakouts.

2.  The Simple Micellar water is one of the first products I ever tried from the brand, and still the reigning champ of the brand in my eyes. I first used it in 2014 (during the summer, once again) and instantly fell in love. Didn’t break me out, can be used without water, and gets off makeup whether using a cotton pad or my hands.

3. The Lancôme Bi-Facial Double Action eye makeup remover is my tried and true, old and blue favorite. I began using it when I was 12, whenever I wore the odd bit of brown eyeliner in middle school– yes, you heard that right. Not even consistent, but random days I decided to line my bottom lashes and not even think to add mascara.

It gives an oily consistencey– I would suggest shaking it up to mix the ingredients. It also provides very little effort in removing makeup, the littlest bit will clean my entire eye, that is with mascara, eyeliner, eyeshadow, eyebrows, highlight, foundation, etc. A little goes a long way, it can be used on more than just the eye are of the face, it smells amazing and clean, your face will feel like a baby’s bum after using it. It’s flipping amazing.

 

If you have tried any of these products, please let me know what you think of them, I love them and all opinions are my own and nothing has been sponsored (just in case I get a doubter) or embellished. I freaking love all of these, they have reserved spots in my heart forever.

Thanks for reading! ^_^

Love,

Nat ❤