It was my birthday last month and I had previously signed up for Sephora, so therefore received a birthday gift for free. Now before we get into this, I had never purchased from Sephora before because I think that higher-end makeup is ridiculously expensive for what it is. However due to have the free gift, then also having been able to choose 3 sample products, I really wanted to become part of the Sephora community.
By the way, I will leave a link to all full sized products at the very bottom of this post.
I had been reading and watching reviews about the Benefit Roller Lash Mascara - "it's amazing", "best mascara I have ever used", "better curl and longer lasting." I finally bought myself the courage to just purchase it and treat myself a little bit.
First of all, the packaging it comes in is super adorable and chic. I love the casing, the tube, the lid, just everything!
I unscrewed the mascara, and found it to be a plastic brittle. Now I did know about this, and was very anxious because I always buy my mascaras with fibres, just because they have always given me an even coverage without clumps (nothing worse!). The wand itself is very long which I love, and has a slight curve to it, which helps with curling the lashes - no need for harsh steel curlers now! The end of the wand is a preachy rubber grip which I think it so pretty and comfortable.
I applied the masacara to my natural lashes, and wow what can I say. Best beauty purchase ever :D My lashes in real life hoestly look fake but not the kind that look fake.. if that makes any sense. What I'm trying to say is that my lashes have never been so long, curled and defined and I am loving it!!!
Without Roller Lash With Roller Lash
Now onto my birthday gift... Nars Velvet Lip Pencil in Cruella and the Satin Lip Pencil in Rikugien. I'm going to start off by saying that I'm a little disappointed... They are tiny! The amount of product you see in this photo is the amount you get. I thought since they were a pencil they'd screw up or something... I know they're only samples, but c'mon Nars and Sephora, I'm sure you could fill these little pencils with more product! Also, I wouldn't call this product a lip pencil, but more of a crayon.
The smell is awful, but I don't really mind because I'm not the type to stick my nose into lipsticks/pencils. Now onto the colours. I am in love with Cruella, it's a gorgeous deep red matte lip pencil. However I am very upset because as beautiful as it is, I don't suit deep reds - they make my teeth look yellow, my skin washed out, and sit really deep into the cracks of my lips :( Rikugien is also amazing. It's more of a satin nude kind of colour. It looks amazing on my lips (I think anyway) and just gives them a really nice finish to a bold eye or natural makeup look. This is not going to last me long at all.. :(
Please excuse the very poor application.
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| Nothing on lips |
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| Rikugien |
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| Cruella |
The first sample product I chose was was a face cream. It was only enough to only cover my face once, but I thought it was a beautiful face cream and I would seriously consider trying it more if the funds would allow it. Of course I can't say how my face felt because I could only use it once, however it smelt amazing and did leave my face feeling smooth and silky.
Secondly, I grabbed myself a Perfect Pout lip duo. One is a mask you leave on for five minutes, which is meant to plump your lips, and the second is a balm. I tried this while putting on my moisturiser and other pre-makeup products and I found them to be alright. Again, only sample sized therefore only used it once, however I though the Lip20 Mask would make my lips more plump and would have that little stingy feeling, but nothing really happened except for it smelling and tasting amazing! The balm was just like a moisturiser for my lips. I used it prior to wearing lipstick and they made my lips moisturised and made my lipstick last. But I can't really comment because I can't use it on a continuous basis.
And last but not least, I could not leave the website without a little sample bottle of a new perfume. Now I love perfumes, but at the moment cannot justify over $60 for a bottle, therefore I pick up samples where I can and just enjoy the scent for as long as I can! There were honestly about 5 perfumes to try, however this one intrigued me with the orange infusion. Now I'm not going to lie, I would not choose this in the store only because it is not what I look for in a perfume. It is very strong, and very blood-red orangey. It actually smells like a grapefruit mixed with chemicals. It is lovely, and I will be using this sample bottle, however again not something I would choose to buy myself. It came in a beautiful cellophane envelope with a cute little postcard which yes, I am going to frame and put in my house somewhere :) Probably in the kitchen area, since it is an Italy table of food.
So there you have it, my first every Sephora purchase, along with my birthday gift and 3 samples they send of your choosing. Here are the links to each full-sized item:
Have you tried any of these products? Did you like them?
Stay happy ♥