September & October hauls

Yes you read that right...Yes it is embarrassing that I am writing this in NOVEMBER. Let's not talk about it.

Also, this definitely isn't everything I hauled in September & October. But it's all the stuff I made sure to take a picture of. Ha!



So, first we'll dive into possibly the most important one. I bought my first MAC products!!
If you're a beauty aficionado you're probably wondering what took me so long.
If you're a a budgeter like me you're probably wondering why I dropped the cash on it.
I think those two assumptions answer both questions!

But I'm here to remind you that yes I am on a budget (really, a nice way to say I'm broke) so I got these from CCO (Cosmetics Company Outlet). I can't believe I have been a beauty addict for so long without knowing about that store.

Like most, I was weary about encountering fakes. Upon doing my research I have found out (allegedly...can't find an "official website" for this store so I must admit I have no 'official' information on this store- just info I've amassed from the internet) that this store sells cosmetics owned by Estee Lauder's companies. This includes Smashbox, MAC, Bobbi Brown, Clinique, and many others.

To find a store nearest you you can go to www.outletbound.com and search for "cosmetics company". I found out that there are not one but two in Orlando so the next time I was in Orlando, I checked it out! Here is what I got there.

As you can see I got a pigment and a Lady Gaga lipstick. The Lady Gaga stuff has of course been discontinued so this was a great find for me!

The first thing that caught my eye was this pigment in Bright Fuchsia. True to the name, this is a hot pink color. It was love at first sight because I found myself wanting to do hot pink looks lately but didn't have anything in my stash that could accomplish what I wanted. I mean, I understand. Hot pink isn't a color that everyone would want, so most companies don't offer it. But when I saw this for $14.75 I couldn't resist. I knew that this little bottle will last me my whole life probably, ha!

If you're not familiar with MAC pigments I can tell you that they -duh- are pigmented. Bold, in your face, and it's an understatement to say "a little bit goes a long way". when I use it I simply use the small amount that has stuck to the lid. It is always MORE than enough for my eye looks.

I will be posting some looks using this very soon! :)

Second item I got is the Lady Gaga Viva Glam lipstick. This is a true Barbie pink in my opinion.

The price tag is gone but I believe I paid approx. $12 for this

As you can see this lipstick definitely highlights imperfections. I would definitely suggest exfoliating and applying a balm before applying this.
In all honesty I haven't worn this lipstick aside from the picture above which is the first night I got it. I find that pale lipsticks don't find a place in my makeup routine too often! However I'm glad that I have a Lady Gaga x MAC product- even if I was late to the party!

Have you ever been to a CCO? The price points were still a little out of my normal range but I think they are acceptable prices for such a prestigious high end brand. I can't wait to go back and see what else I can get my hands on! :)

This is a small haul from Sephora I did at the end of September. I had a groupon ($5 for a $10 gift card) and originally set out to buy the Kat Von D liquid lipstick in Outlaw- a beautiful matte red. I still fully plan on buying this lipstick, it just wasn't in the cards for the day.

Once there, I took a look at the Urban Decay revolution lipsticks. I wanted to check out the darkest shades in person. On the website there is a picture of a girl with delightfully dark lips. I wanted to replicate them but when I picked up the darkest shade and swatched it, I wasn't very happy with the results. Luckily, one of the employees there drug me around the store showing me all the dark lippies they had, which resulted in my first Make Up For Ever purchase!  More about that in a minute!

I also got my skintone matched at the Pantone Color IQ stand and apparently I'm a 3Y06. I haven't tested this theory but the nice man gave me 2 samples of the Urban Decay Naked Skin liquid makeup in 4 to try out. Honestly this foundation works but it's nothing special, I wouldn't purchase it.

Last I got this lovely blue nail polish on clearance for only about 2 bucks. I also had a yellow one but I left it in a hotel in Orlando :( I tried to find the polish online to find out the shade name but it seems this kind of polish has been discontinued. I guess that's why it was so cheap!

OK back to this amazing lip product. This is shade 11 Dark Raspberry. At $24 it's definitely waaay out of my price range for a single lippie. But with the $10 gift card I rationed that I'd only be spending $14. Still pricey but for a respectable brand like MUFE and a shade that I fell in love with, I figured it was worth it.
What sold me on this is that it's long lasting, smudge proof, and when applied without the double ended gloss, its matte. I love it!

Lastly I got these 2 limited edition products at Walgreens.

Three's A Party is the trio from the Wet n Wild pop art collection. Let me tell you, I was so excited to find this collection at all. We all know how hard finding red eyeshadow is so when I saw this I actually snatched up 2!

Here it is swatched with no primer! Pretty great! The white isn't very pigmented but I could honestly care less. White is easy to come by.

Second is the Maybelline color show Vintage Leather nail polish in Antique Teal.

This is just a quick swatch to show the texture and finish of this polish. Interesting! I have nothing like it.


Well, those are just a few things I picked up during September & October. Did you pick up any limited edition products?

Follow your bliss,

Ember Darling