Sephora Haul, Free Makeup?!

I did a little online shopping with the Sephora app and scored big time! By using my VIB points and utilizing the ‘Mobile Rewards’ offer I was able to get a bunch of free deluxe sample sized products in addition to the two skin care items I purchased. I spent $54.57 total, including tax.

Items I Purchased:

($22) GlamGlow Gravity Mud Firming Treatment Sonic Blue Collectable Ediiton- Tails

($29) The Estee Edit Guest Editor Skincare Picks Go Glow

Received for free*:

Benefit Cosmetics Dandelion Deluxe Sample Set (free with any $25 purchase)

Tarte Happy Birthday Gift, Lip & Cheek Set (free with purchase during your bday month)

Tarte Pro Glow Liquid Highlight in Stunner (100 points)

Henriksen Truth Serum (100 points)

Laura Mercier Velour Lipstick in Devotion (100 points)

PLUS: 3 SAMPLES— The app lets you pick the samples you want receive, but I always end up with completely different samples altogether.

*If you are unfamiliar with how Sephora points work or how to use the mobile app to the best of its ability, check out my blog post ‘Sephora App Perks & Haul’.

I have never tried any of these products so I am really excited to test them all out! I will be doing quiet a few reviews like ‘First Impressions’ & ‘Worth the Hype’ blog posts soon with some of these products in addition to the new Urban Decay items and Wet n Wild items I recently picked up. There will be a lot more posts coming regularly so keep an eye out!

Thanks so much for reading! Don’t forget to follow my IG & Blog, (@bewitchingmakeup)!

Battle of the High End Mascaras!

Mascara is vital. It gives the eyes that little extra lift that I just cannot live without. I have gone through a good amount of mascaras in the past year, some full sized, but mostly travel sized. (I tend buy a lot of travel sized product at Sephora because I’m picky and don’t want to spend a fortune on something I don’t like. Plus, I am subscribed to a few beauty boxes so I got some of these through Ipsy, Sephora Play, etc.)

Below we have 9 mascaras from 9 different cosmetic brands. The pricing listed is for full sized tubes, some of these are available in travel sizes but not all of them. So, lets get started!

The 9 mascaras are: (listed in no particular order)

Taste, Lights Camera Lashes -$21

Too Faced, Better than Sex -$23

MakeUp Forever, Smoky Extravagant Mascara – $24

Mally, Volumizing Mascara -$20

Lorac, Cobra Mascara -$24*

Dior, Diorshow Mascara -$28.50

It Cosmetics, Hello Lashes -$24

theBalm, Mad Lad Lash Mascara  -$18

Benefit, Roller Lash  -$24

 

Taste, Lights Camera Lashes -$21

This is a great mascara! It is lightweight, thin formula that applies very evenly. Because of that, it is build-able without getting chunky. I do feel my lashed look lengthened after applying this. This is the type of mascara that it fantastic if you do false lashes. Since this is so lightweight it does weight down your eyelids, and makes natural lashes blend into falsies beautifully. I did see Tarte released a new magical line, the packaging on the magical Lights Camera Lashes is a gorgeous shimmery color  (pictued is the original purple packaging).

Too Faced, Better than Sex -$23

Apparently I am alone on this opinion, I don’t like this mascara. This seems to be everyones favorite so I’m not sure why I haven’t had luck with it! I purchased a full sized tube of this mascara a few years ago and the first time I used it, I did really like it. It has a thicker consistency so I felt my lashes gained volume. I used this for about a week and then the product inside started drying up and getting really clumpy. I wasn’t happy being that I sprung extra for this mascara, when at the time I was using mostly drugstore products. I didn’t repurchase this because of that first experience, but I did received this travel sized tube in a gift set last Christmas from a former co-worker (best gift ever!). I was actually excited to try this again, thinking maybe I got a bad batch with my first tube. Upon using this, I had THE SAME EXACT EXPERIENCE! I was even careful to seal this tube tightly every time I used it thinking maybe something I did dried this out. So yeah, I will not be repurchasing and I hate to say that be I looooove me some Too Faced products.

MakeUp Forever, Smoky Extravagant Mascara – $24

This mascara is actually really great. The texture is different, it is a dry consistency, but in good way!  The wand is fabulous, it’s heavy duty and really works well with the shape of my eye. I like the tapered end to get into the corners of the eyes and the bottom lash line. This reminds me of the Lights, Camera Lashes formula but on the drier side. This also works great to blend false lashes. I would say this is one of  my top 3 mascaras.

Mally, Volumizing Mascara -$20

This gives volume to the lashes for sure, but in a natural way. I liked this mascara, although I didn’t find myself repurchasing it. This might be the only Mally product Ive ever used. I didn’t hate it but I wasn’t head over heels in love with it. This is fantastic for a natural look, or a no-makeup makeup look!

Lorac, Cobra Mascara -$24*

I cannot find this online anywhere, it seems to be sold out on every website I check. I am assuming that this is $24 because all of the other Lorac brands are priced the same. I looooooove the shape of this wand! It is curved (like a Cobra) to fit the lash line perfectly. The product is great, my lashes looked fuller instantly! This wore well throughout the day, but did start to get really dry by the end of the night. I found myself washing my makeup off earlier than I normally would after work, but that isn’t a huge downfall for me. I would highly recommend this mascara, if you can find it.

Dior, Diorshow Mascara -$28.50

This would be the most amazing mascara ever, if it wasn’t scented! Don’t get me wrong, I like scented products, for example I’m obsessed with my Too Faced Sweet Peach Palette. But scented mascara kind of freaks me out, especially scented like this. This mascara smells like straight up perfume. It’s floral and weird and I’m just not a fan. This also comes in at the most expensive mascara on this list, which I would stand by if it didn’t stink!

It Cosmetics, Hello Lashes -$24

This is almost an in between of the Lights, Camera Lashes and the Roller Lash. It is thinner than Roller Lash. This is kind of build-able if applied lightly, but one stroke too many and your lashes start to clump together. I would like to mention, I hate this wand!!! I thought I would love it, and I do like the rounded part for the bottom lash line. My problem is when applying to the upper lashes, I would always stab myself in the eye and this is a hard plastic wand so it’s super painful! I did this so many times that I stopped using this mascara all together, ouch!

theBalm, Mad Lad Lash Mascara  -$18

This is an example of a hard plastic wand that doesn’t bother me. The shape is perfect for the material of the applicator. This is another curved wand, similar to the Cobra in that is has a defined arch. I liked this product a lot, it really clings to your lashes, and is super black. I felt like even after I washed my makeup off, I would still have mascara residue, so make sure your removing this completely before bed. This comes in as the lease expensive mascara on this list!

Benefit, Roller Lash  -$24

This is my new fav! I love how this mascara applies and wears throughout the day. This stays in place once its on your lashes and really keeps a curl! The consistency on this product is very gel like. I believe the consistency is what makes this so great because it keeps the lashes lifted upwards and looking beautiful. This mascara is another one of those hard to remove products.  If you don’t completely take this off, you will get clumps the next day when you go to apply your mascara. Just make sure your using a makeup remover with this one to fully clean your lashes off. (Sorry this photo doesn’t match the others. I somehow forgot to take a photo of this with the grey back drop, but this shows the packaging and wand).

 

The order in which I like these products, starting with my favorite:

Benefit, Roller Lash  -$24

Lorac, Cobra Mascara -$24*

MakeUp Forever, Smoky Extravagant Mascara – $24

theBalm, Mad Lad Lash Mascara  -$18

Dior, Diorshow Mascara -$28.50

Taste, Lights Camera Lashes -$21

Mally, Volumizing Mascara -$20

It Cosmetics, Hello Lashes -$24

Too Faced, Better than Sex -$23

I hope this was helpful if you are looking for a high end mascara! All of these brands sell a variety of mascaras, these just happen to be the ones I’ve tried most recently. These  products that worked for me, my eye shape and my lifestyle. Your opinion may differ, and that’s okay! What are your experiences with these products? Let me know in the comments!

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High End Splurges- Worth the Price

I like to have a mixture of high end and drugstore products in my beauty arsenal. There are a lot of drug store products the are just as good, if not better than high end products. However, every so often I come across a high end product that can’t be beat. The items listed below are on the pricey side, ranging from $25-50, but totally worth it!

Too Faced Sweet Peach Palette, $49

This baby is amazing! It comes with a variety of fun colors in the pink/peach-y family, but also your basics (black, white and transitionary shades). This is 100% the type of palette I look for, being that you can create full look with this palette alone. There are 18 shades included that apply and blend out flawlessly. The color is very rich and pigmented. Not to mention, this smells like peaches because its infused with oil, YUM!

 

Kat Von D Beauty Lock It Foundation Brush, $34

Nothing compares to this brush! I’ve used Beauty Blender and other sponges and I do like the finish you get from them, but this brush just applies everything soooooo quickly. I feel as though this is easier to clean than sponges. too, which is a major plus. The long spiked handle fits so well in my hand. The bristles are dense but soft, it’s not scratchy at all. I purchased this brush in December and have used it every day since, I can’t go back to anything else!

 

Benefit Roller Lash, $24
This product is fairly new to me, I recently picked this up in a travel size at Sephora and will definitely be repurchasing! I love the lift this give to my lashes. I typically use a lash curler and then top with the Roller Lash. I can actually see the curl of my lashed holing throughout the day, more so than other mascaras I’ve tried recently. I will mention the texture of this is different, as its a gel like consistency. I think that’s what holds the curl so well, but the one downfall, it’s a little tough to get off your lashes.
Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush, $28

Oh my goodness, I have never been so in love with a blush. I got this blush in ‘Celebrated’ as a Christmas gift and never looked back. The color is the perfect shade for my pale skin. It blends well and wears throughout the day. I have been using this religiously and haven’t even put a dent into the pan, so I would say this is worth the price. Even though this is expensive, its last forever. I cant say enough about this product!

 

Benefit Professional, $31

This product work! I was iffy on this for a while because it is pricey, and I don’t always use primers (a lot of the time I do face moisturizer instead). I did a little experiment where I wore no primer one day, and then the Porfessional the next, look at the difference! I cannot believe how well this fills in the pores to make the skin look smoother. I have pretty bad acne pitting and scarring so this is definitely worth the extra money.

 

Clinique Pep Start Eye Cream, $26.50

This works wonders under makeup or alone. This de-puffs the under eye makeup and smooths everything out. I really love this cool refreshing feeling on my eyes before applying my makeup. I have been trying to be more cautious of my under eye area, as the skin is delicate and needs extra moisture.  A little goes a long way with this product, so it should last you a while.

I hope this was helpful if you are interested in one of these products, or just looking to expand our makeup collection. These products are definitely worth the price!! Please note that these are my personal opinions, and yours may differ. Due to different skin types and personal preference, our opinions might not be the same, but that’s okay! Let me know in the comments if you guys and gals have tried these products before and what you think of them!

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