CCO (Cosmetic Company Outlet) Haul!

This was actually the very first time going to a Cosmetic Company Outlet (CCO) and I had no idea what to expect. I didn't know it was going to be such a small shop with so many shelves of different brands of makeup. I pictured it to be completely different. I saw so much stuff I wanted to buy. Mainly MAC and Bobbi Brown, but I tried to keep my purchases within budget. I bought some things from MAC which I am pretty excited about. All things I've had on my wish list.

MAC Fad-dabulous Mineralize Blush

MAC Fad-dabulous Mineralize Blush

This has been on my wish list for a long time and I didn't to the extreme of how pretty this blush is. In the pot it doesn't look like anything special, it looks like a sparkly plum with some gold veining. BUT, When I swatched it on my hand, its a total different story. I don't know how to explain it.. its like a shimmery plummy, rosy, pink. It has to be one of my prettiest, if not the prettiest blush I own & my current favorite. I've been wearing it every day.

Small Swap Haul. MAC Margin Blush, Stila Smudgepot, UDPP

I am obsessed with swapping! The idea was pure genius. I've gotten some pretty awesome stuff.

Here are a few other things I received last week:

MAC "Margin" Powder Blush (frost)
BN Urban Decay Primer Potion XL
BN Stila Black Smudgepot mini

This color is soo pretty! It reminds me of Sunbasque, but more pink.

ULTA had a great sale on the XL last week. It came with a few other things for like $18. With a $3.50 off coupon its an awesome deal. I'm not sure if they still have it, I don't see the set on the website.

I haven't tried it out yet. I've never tried Stila smudgepots and I've always been interested. I'm very curious to see how it works in comparison to MAC Blacktrack Fluidline and Wet n Wild Creme Liner. I'll have a review for this at a later time. I kinda want to round up a lot of different brands of gel/cream liners and see which one is best. I really want to try Bobbi Brown Long Wear Gel liners.

Swap Haul! MAC Lipsticks: Masque, Blankety, Colour Crafted.

I got these in the mail today! "Masque" is a LE shade. This one in particular is from the Alexander McQueen Collection. I'm not sure if it has been relaunched since then. It looks almost exactly like "Blankety" and similar to shades like "Faux" or "Honeylove". This isn't a very flattering shade on me unfortunately.. as well as Blankety since they're almost identical. Colour Crafted is a LE shade as well, and its a barbie pink. This is the only one I may wear out of these. I would have to mix it with something because its very intense.

They look so pretty in the tube, but they look very dull on me. And mauvey shades just don't flatter my skin tone.

Small Sephora SALE Haul.

I was at Sephora the other day to purchase a new foundation and picked up some goodies! There was a small sale rack with various Sephora brand lipsticks, lip liner and eye shadows for $3-$5. I was going to buy a bunch of things, especially eye shadows, but I decided to just get a few things, because well, $5 an item adds up if you have a ton of things.

Anyway, here is what I purchased:

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Sephora Colorful Eye Shadow No. 18 $5
Sephora Colorful Eye Shadow No. 19 (not pictured above) $5
Sephora Lips Pencil #110 $3
Sephora Lip Stick No. 12 $5

The reason No. 19 wasn't pictured above is because I made a 2nd trip to Sephora the following day and purchased it.

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No. 19


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L: Sephora Colorful Eyeshadow No. 18, R: Sephora Colorful Eyeshadow No. 19


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Swatches of the two. No. 19 is a deep black pine green with green and silver glitter. No. 18 is a olive green with silver glitter. Both colors are gorgeous. The glitter in No. 19 is a little less day appropriate. I've worn both and I'm in love with them. The pigmentation is really good, especially when applied wet. I won't wear these eye shadows any other way. Really good buys.

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Onto the lip products..

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The lipstick applies like a glaze, and its a sheer golden. It looks like it would apply like a peach, but its just a pearly sheen. I love the pencil.. there were a bunch of other shades but I only purchased this one because it looks just like my beloved MAC Stripdown. I really like it.


This is a swatch of No.18, the lipstick and liner.

I checked on the Sephora website and I didn't see any of this stuff available. Check for it at your local Sephora! :)

Small Swap Haul! MAC Earth to Earth Mineralize Blush!

MAC Earth to Earth Mineralize Blush

Bobbi Brown Face Blender Brush

MAC Maroon Pigment Vial

I got both the brush and pigment as extras!! Don't you love when you get awesome extras!!??

I'm so happy I finally got Earth to Earth. I've been wanting it for the longest time.

It is the perfect shimmery earth tone with a hint of plum and light pink.

Here are the colors swatched separately.. 

Small MAC Haul! (Creme Cup Lipstick, Like Venus Dazzleglass)

I bought a few things at my recent trip to MAC. I didn't end up getting any of what I came for, but I did get a couple goodies that have been on my wish list forever! I was going through the lipsticks, picking out all of the colors I already owned.. lol and then I picked up "Creme Cup", a color I've been wanting for a really long time but never really had the chance to view it in person. I didn't know it was a Cremesheen, which made me extremely iffy, because I do not like the Cremesheen formula at all. All of my Cremesheens have broke.. Either completely smashed, have slanted or melted. It's not like a Glaze or Luster that goes on smooth.. you have to apply a little pressure to get the color on your lips (at least for me) and you can't apply too much pressure otherwise your lipstick will tilt. Anyway, I took a chance and got it. AND, I purchased "Like Venus" Dazzleglass. I also dislike dazzleglass because they run out so quickly and the color doesn't stay on your lips very long, but I thought paired with Creme Cup, it would be very pretty.

I really like Creme Cup. It reminds me of a more intense "Hue". It's a very "wearable" pink. And it is really hard for me to find a wearable every day pink. I don't like pinks that are too cool (have too much of a blue or purple tone to it). I like my pink to be slightly warm, and this one is. :)

Left: Bare Lips with Creme Cup

Right: Creme Cup w/ Like Venus over it

Also, I purchased another bottle of Mineralize Satinfinish Foundation in NC37. I'm a NC40 in Fix Fluid, but NC40 in Satinfinish goes on a tad too orangey for me. NC37 works great. I love this foundation on my more natural days when I want my skin to look radiant and glowing.

And last but not least, I purchased the 224 brush! Ever since I saw pixiwoo using this as a concealer brush, I wanted it. I don't like the regular concealer brush that much that just smears it under your eyes, and I don't like applying concealer with my fingers because my nails are so long and my concealer will end up in my nails (yuck!) Sooo, I am very happy I bought this. This brush is amazing.. it's definitely one of my new favorite brushes. It applies my concealer flawlessly and buffs it into my skin so perfect. It's very dense and it doesn't smoosh or bend during application. It's very sturdy. I absolutely love it. Well worth the $28 in my opinion. You can use it for so many things too.. you can use it to highlight areas on your face.. blend your shadows, contour your nose, etc.

That's all for my MAC haul!

Swap Goodies: Giorgio Armani Lipstick, MAC Lip Liner & Blush!

Hey Everyone! I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Mine was wonderful spending it with the people that mean the most to me :) And wow, I have close to 540 subscribers! That's awesome! Thank you everyone for reading, subscribing and posting about me! It makes me so happy when I get positive comments from you guys letting me know that my posts are helpful to you. I'm so happy I have a long weekend! Yay!

Anyway, I got a few goodies in the mail this week and I thought I'd share!

Giorgio ArmaniSilk Lipstick in shade #22 & Armani Lip Shimmer in #22

I should of wiped off the lipstick before I took this picture. lol

The lipstick sort of reminds me of MAC High Tea, but a little more pink. It has the same smooth texture, similar to a mac glaze or luster and it has a pretty shine to it. It is also very sheer and my lip color does show through. The gloss is also very sheer and is almost exactly the same color as the lipstick except it has a tiny hint of coral to it plus sparkle. This was such an amazing swap, she also added a really nice freebie :)

Left: The lipstick alone, Right: The lipstick with the lipgloss over it

MAC Powder Blush in Taupe (Matte)

This is a great color for me to use on days where I want minimal bronzer. Even though its very light, it show on my NC40 skin tone. It also looks like a lovely color to contour with. I will have a review for this soon on Make Up Alley.

I have it pictured with two of my favorites.. MAC powder blush in Honour (my favorite highlight) and MAC bronzer in Refined Golden. As you can see Taupe is a light powdery.. well, taupe. :)

Lastly, I got MAC Lip Liner Pencil in the shade Stripdown.

I'm surprised I never purchased this color before, but it has surely became my favorite MAC Lip Liner Pencil. It is the perfect color for a nude lip. It is a very light brown thats very flattering on my skin tone.

Here is a picture along with my other top favorites.

Left to Right: Stripdown, Hover & Spice.

The swatches look funny b/c I took them on the side of my palm..

Left to right: Stripdown, Hover & Spice

Heidi Klum for Victoria's Secret Makeup.

You can view the whole collection here Has anyone tried any of the products? The Eyeshadow palette looked gorgeous and I swatched the colors and they were pigmented and true to color.. but I figured I didn't need it and I have all the colors.. but it is soo tempting because it looks so pretty. lol 

I did buy the Heidi Klum Luminous Face Powder Gems. They looked pretty irresistible and it was $22 which didn't seem too bad.

 

Product Description: Illuminating powder spheres brighten and balance for a sultry, jewel-like glow. For an even blend of radiance, swirl your brush over the powder gems in a circular motion. Lightly tap to remove excess, then apply all-over face, building color on cheeks if desired. I've only used the gems today.. and so far I really like the color. I used it with a lot of the darkest pink gems and the color really suits my skin tone. I'll have a review for this soon. :)

I also picked up the Very Voluptuous® Lip Plumper Extreme. 

 

Its clear, but the brush is discolored from my lipsticks The regular non extreme lip plumper costs $18 and the extreme costs a whopping $26. The EXTREME label tempted me.. but I don't really think there is anything extreme about it. I'm pretty disappointed with it. I love lip plumpers and the burning or tingling feeling it gives your lips. This one in particular has no tingle or cooling minty effect. It just burns a little.. as if I wiped my lips with cayenne pepper. It turns them slightly red but it didn't irritate them or really make them appear fuller. sad. *sigh* I guess a pro can be that it is pretty moisturizing? lol I should of just stuck with the regular one.. I know lots of people love it. I may end up trying it in the near future.

Cherry Culture NYX Haul!

I placed an order with http://www.cherryculture.com last week when they had the 20% off promotion and just received everything in the mail today. I placed the order last Monday night, so it took exactly 1 week. This is my 2nd time ordering from cherryculture and I'm really pleased. :) I took these pictures quickly on my lunch break because by the time I get home its pitch black outside and can't get good pictures. I will have swatches and pictures of the actual lipsticks to come soon!

All pictures are click-able to view the full size.

Powder Blushes: Chocolate Moose, Sand & Dusty Rose. $6 each
Eye Shadows: Dune & Midnight. $3.50 each

Round Lip Gloss: Sorbet (back up), Natural, Real Nude, Mauve, Pinky Natural. $2 each

Round Lip Sticks: Rea, Frosted Flakes, Echo, Summer Love, Strawberry Milk, Fig, Louisiana. $1.75 each

Not NYX, but also ordered..

Milani Easybrow Automatic Pencil in Dark Brown. $4.99

All together I paid $40 with the 20% off, and free shipping! watch out for my upcoming posts with swatches and fotds :)

Recent Swap Haul: MAC Petticoat, Light Flush, Smooth Harmony and more!

I recently got my hands on some things I've really been wanting! I love swapping - It's awesome getting things you want and will most likely use, for the items in your makeup stash that you didn't like, or didn't work out for you. I wish I had more things to swap!

Anyways, onto the stuff I got..

MAC Petticoat & Light Flush Mineralize Skinfinishes (click the pic for full view)

MAC Petticoat Mineralize Skinfinish is described as a pale rose with gold and amber veining (Frost). It also has raspberry veining, so when the colors are swirled together, a light, warm, frosty pink-raspberry is created.

MAC Light Flush Mineralize Skinfinish is a light, warm pink with golden shimmer. It's similar to Petticoat, but a bit lighter, and warmer. It's a very pretty subtle pink highlight.

They both remind me a bit of MAC Pink Bronze pigment. I sometimes take a tiny bit of pink bronze pigment and dust it over my bronzer for a pinky orange glow, and it really looks just like that. It has the same exact color pearl. (Comparisons below)

MAC Coygirl Powder Blush

MAC Coygirl Blush is a cool, powder pink-mauve with a hint of purple.

Ever since I saw a girl on makeupalley do a FOTD with this blush, I had to have it! So far, I've only worn it once, but I really like it. I think its a color that's really flattering on light, cool skin tones. I think it's a difficult shade to wear on tan skin tones because of the cool undertone. I found that this blush looks extremely similar to MAC Dame Blush. I could barely tell the difference between the two except if you look up close at Dame, it has the tiniest bit of shimmery sheen to it. I actually grabbed Dame the other day and threw it in my purse on accident instead of Coygirl. I find that Coygirl is more pigmented. Dame is a bit easier to wear on warm skin.

MAC Smooth Harmony Beauty Powder 

This is a back up. I really like this beauty powder. I use it as a bronzer or a contour. The consistency is very soft, like a powder compact, not like a bronzer. It is a matte bronze. It looks just like the color of terracotta clay. That's the way it will look on your face as well. It's definitely not a golden brown. Its more of a coppery orangey bronze. It really suits my tan skin tone and gives me such a pretty color. I like to buff this into my cheeks with my ELF Studio Powder or blush brush after I applied my foundation. I love it especially with my MUFE HD Foundation.

MAC Creme de Violet & Crystal Eyeshadows

MAC Crystal Eyeshadow is a pale violet and silver duo-chrome with a pearl finish.

MAC Creme De Violet is described as a pink-violet with gold pearl (frost).

I haven't used creme de violet yet, but I've been using crystal almost every day since I received it. It looks so pretty paired with deep purple eye shadow, which I've been wearing a lot of lately! I think I'm alright on purple eye shadows now.. lol I've accumulated a million.

Physician's Formula Shimmer Strip Light Bronzer in Vegas Strip

This is a pretty drugstore bronzer that you can use as a bronzer, highlight and even eye shadow. It costs around $11-$13 depending on where you go. It's very shimmery/frosty. I thought the yellowish color at the top may be a dupe for my MAC New Vegas msf.. I have yet to try this out. I'll keep you posted!

and, the swatch of the top color on my thumb.. haha 

I also received a few other things.. such as samples.. I got a MAC Shygirl Lipstick back up as well as a NYX Circe Lipstick back up..

I'm still waiting on some more items. I'll be posting those soon. :)