Hair New Era

Happy Valentine's Day!! This is the second year Brian and I are separated for V-Day ;( I just stayed in and baby sat for a friend - pretty uneventful. I'm not complaining though Valentine's was never really a big deal for me! I meant to do a FOTD but I ended up being lazy.

I am a total procrastinator/perfectionist which is such a bad mix! I always make mental notes on what to blog about and even take pictures, but I never get around to it and when I do, I look at the pictures and I'm like ugh I don't wanna use these pictures anymore! Or I think I should take better/more pictures and by that time I'm too lazy to blog. LOL It's way harder for me to do videos too because I think I wanna do videos AND post on my blog at the same time and.. you know how that goes. So I'm gonna try to post things when I think of it (as long as I don't have school stuff to do!) School has seriously been kicking my butt this semester but I really wanna stay on top of EVERYTHING because I always think about how much time I waste being lazy and it drives me insane!

Another side not before I bombard you with haul pictures, but I was thinking of making my blog a little more personal - not completely - but I didn't know if anyone really cared. But when I read blogs, I do like when they make it more personal so I thought maybe you guys might too? I have another more personal blog but I don't really post pictures on it and I thought it might be kinda cool to post it here.

Anyway.. on with the hauls! These are just a bunch of stuff I got from January to now. I made it my New Year's Resolution to cut back (not completely stop!) spending so much money on make up because everytime I look at my collection I remind myself that I DON'T need anymore make up - it's just ridiculous! Seriously, anyone who's not a make up artist doesn't need this much make up! But I can't stop myself from completely buying otherwise I'll go crazy!

brush roll

I got the Sigma Complete Kit with Brushroll in pink when it was only sale for $79 on Sigma Makeup back in December but I didn't see it til I came back from Guam in January because I sent it to my sister when she was in Hawaii (the shipping to Guam was RIDICULOUS!) I don't think the pink set is on ther anymore, just the black set but they're basically the same thing except pink! I'm really happy with this set! I plan on doing a full review & video on it after I've used all the brushes a few times.

brush roll open


the brushes! 4 face and 8 eye brushes


MAC Fluidlines in Siahi and Ivy

These two I got from the MAC Mickey Contractor collection - the one that was based on Bollywood make up. There were so many bright colors but the only one I really wanted was the fluidlines! They rarely come out with new fluidline and paint pot colors so I'm always on it when they come out! I'll post swatches of these later or you can see them in my January Haul video.

Coastal Scents Winterberry Palette!

One of my really good friends bought me this palette for Christmas! I always eye out the Coastal Scents palettes because they look so pretty but always talk myself out of buying them! I wanted the creative me palette ever since it came out but when I saw this I thought it was so pretty! My friend got it for herself and she was showing me the palette and I told her I really liked it. I found out later she ended up buying it for me! I LOVE the colors in this palette, especially since I tend to gravitate towards purples with my make up. My only gripe is that all the colors are shimmery and there's no matte or satin finishes, but the pigmentation overall is pretty good. I'll do a video and swatches of this later too.

Physician's Formula Gel Liners

Last but not least, I won Tammy's Physician's Formula Giveaway!! I got thes fluidlines and a black/brown mascara which I swear I had the picture of but I can't find it! =( I'll probably find it later and post it or do a review on both the products. I showed my sister when I got it in the mail and she said, "No fair I never win contests!" LOL If it's an easy contest like a giveaway where you just comment and leave your email, I do it - might as well! I've won a couple giveaways that way, it's kind of cool!

That's pretty much it for my hauls! I have a couple lippies I got from the MAC Wonder Woman collection but I'll post those later. =P

For some reason there are a ton of sales going on this month! Just thought I'd share them with you!

+ Sephora Beauty Insiders get 15% off April 12 - 19 use code BI15 online.
-- also if you have ebates you get 4% back when you click the link from ebates! It's like you're getting 20% off :] If you're not signed up sign up now and after your first purchase you and me both get $5 =]

+ Coastal Scents is having 25% off their gel liners until tomorrow night! [April 15] no code necessary

+ Urban Decay is having 30%! Use code 1SFNF. Spend $75 or more and get free shipping too.

Happy shopping!

I have like 3 FOTDs to post today! I did this one using the Coastal Scents 78 Palette that Vanessa gave me! I haven't had the chance to play with all the colors yet but I looove this palette!


I used E1 (light blue), F4 (dark blue), D1 (light brown).





FACE
+ MAC Studio Fix Powder in NC42

EYES
+ MAC PAINTERLY Paint Pot
+ CS E1 [all over lid]
+ CS F4 [crease/outer v]
+ CS D1 [highlight]
+ Stila Smudge Pots in BLACK
+ Eyeko Mascara
+ MAC Brow Shader in CHARCOAL
+ Technakohl Eyliner in GRAPHBLACK [waterline]

LIPS
+ NYX Lip Liner in NUTMEG
+ MAC CREME CERISE L/S
+ MAC BEAUX L/G

I've been meaning to put up this post FOREVER so here it is finally! lol In this post I said how disappointed I was in the pink Coastal Scents brushes I bought, but after using them for a couple months now, there are a couple brushes which I think are totally worth it.


BRUSHES L to R: synthetic concealer, oval fluff shadow, blending fluff, angle blush, stippling, chisel blush, synthetic foundation, sable powder, & lip brush

[the lip brush cap & crease brush not pictured]

COMPARISONS:


stippling vs MAC 187 SE
>> I actually use this brush a lot! I don't own a 187 [although I wish I did] but it does what a stippling brush is supposed to do - create that "airbrushed" look. I use this with blushes mostly. When I first got it, though, it shed like crazy! But after a few washes the shedding stopped and it's still completely full.


foundation vs MAC 190 SE
>> I personally don't like this brush at all. Normally I love synthetic brushes, but thse bristles are not soft at all and they totally leave a streaky look when I apply liquid foundation!


lip vs Sephora retractable lip
>> I'm not a big fan of lip brushes, but it does it's job. Nothing special really.



chisel blush vs BE foundation vs sable powder
>>Personally, I think this "chisel blush" brush is wayy to big to apply blush! [it takes up half the side of my face!] I sometimes use it for powder but I don't really like it. When you wash it the water comes out black [even after months!] and it's not soft at all. Also I don't like BE brushes at all!! I got this in the foundation kit they had and it's totally scratchy! To me, the sable powder brush looks exactly like it [it's not soft either] so if you're planning on buying this BE brush, you're better off with this Coastal Scent version.


angle blush vs MAC 168 SE
>> This is one of my favve brushes! I use it everyday for contouring. I just love how angled it is. It does bleed black when you wash it, but after a few washes it goes away. It's not the softest brush but it's not the harshest either. I'd say it's worth $2.50!


Sephora concealer vs concealer vs MAC 194 SE
>> I hate this concealer brush too! CS synthetic brushes don't do anything for me. I do use this to apply P/P and eye primer but for concealer I'm better off with my Sephora brush or my MAC 194


MAC 239 SE vs oval fluff
>> This was my fave brush out of everything! After I got the 239 SE I realize they're totally comparable. I'm not sure how the full size bristles feel compared to the SE, but the CS brush is really soft. I use this brush daily to pack color on my eyelids =]


crease brush vs MAC 219
>> This is my second fave brush! The bristles are soft, however they aren't as stiff as the 219 brush. It's supposed to be a "crease brush" but I use it for putting eyeshadow on my lower lash line.

I just got a bunch of the brushes from the MAC Holiday Collection which it was they're all red. ;] The passable brushes are the chisel blush, sable powder, lip, concealer, & foundation. Must haves are the crease brush [if you don't have a 219], the fluff shadow brush [if you don't have a 239], the angle blush [if you don't have a 168] and the stippling [if you can't convince yourself to pay $42 for the 187 like me!]. The blending fluff brush, I personally really like, but it's passable if you have other blending brushes. I like to use it to finish off blending my crease and highlighter colors together but it's not a necessary brush.

Here's a list of the prices on Coastal Secnts
$2.49 Pink Angle Blush Brush
$1.99 Pink Blending Fluff Brush
$7.95 Pink Duo Fiber Powder Stippler
$1.69 Pink Oval Fluff Brush
$2.49 Pink Synthetic Concealer Brush
$1.49 Pink Round Crease Eye Brush
$2.99 Pink Sable Powder Brush
$3.99 Pink Synthetic Foundation Brush