I recently took a little trip to Sephora & picked up a few different products that I haven't tried before (& one that I love). Below are the items that I bought & whether they will get added to my collection or returned.
I almost always shop at places with a great return policy. I hate trying a product a couple of times & then deciding I don't like it. Now What? Did I just waste money on a $20 lipstick that looked great in the tube & horrible on me? or the eyeshadow that I get home & realize that I have a color just like it? Sephora's return policy is great. They will take anything back that has at least 1/2 of the product left. If you don't have the receipt (hey things get lost & people buy you things that suck), they will even give you store credit. This is one of the reasons that I almost exclusively shop there for higher end brands. I feel more confident buying something if I know that I'm not out the money if it doesn't do the trick.
Tokidoki Fantastico Lip Stain in Carnivora
$10
-Return It-
I thought the color was beautiful (a purplish hot pink) & the packaging was really cute. Plus it was on clearance for $10 instead of $15. The applicator was fairly dried out (probably because it was old & why it was on clearance) making it difficult to apply to my lip line. Besides that, the formula was very sticky & did not feel comfortable on my lips at all. I actually ended up removing it & using my Maybelline lip stain.
Sephora Collection Premium Dual Pencil Sharpener
$5
-Love It-
These are the best pencil sharpeners on the market. I had put my personal one in my pro kit after being unsatisfied with a high end brand one that I had gotten. I am so happy to have this one back. It gives me the perfect tip on my liners every time & is very easy to clean. I was bummed to discover that the nano liners still don't fit in here thou & that I have to buy a specialty sharpener just for them.
Sephora Collection Ultra Vinyl Lip Pencil in Raspberry
$12
-Exchange It-
I was looking forward to getting this pencil after loving my fuchsia one so much. Unfortunately this one is just too close in color to the one I already have. It is a slightly darker color but is more shear, so they pretty much look the same. The only big difference is that fuchsia has pink sparkles & raspberry has red. Still amazing thou & I will simply be exchanging it for another color.
Make Up Forever Mat Velvet + Matifying Foundation in 20
$34
-Love It-
This has most definitely become my favorite foundation. It has great coverage & a beautiful finish. It lasts all day. I love the texture of it. It applies fairly easy & blends well too. All in all, it's really a great foundation. Plus, I don't have to use as much as my other drug store foundations, so the price ends up being about equal. I really have fallen in love with this foundation. A small note however, do not open this up until you are ready to use it! The bottle is so full that it started overflowing the second I took the cap off.
I am a strong believer in taking advantage of companies that offer samples of products. Why buy a product, get it home, & hate it? If I am interested in a product & have doubts or have heard a few bad reviews I will get a sample. Most of the time, my initial reaction was right & I'm glad I didn't waste the money (& the time it would take for me to return it). Sephora is a great place to try before you buy & makes sure to give you enough for a few trials. Here are a couple of things that I got samples of & if I will be splurging for the full size
Benefit Dr. Feelgood Balm
$28
-Love It-
I wasn't sure what I thought about this at first as it didn't have a drying or tightening feeling that most matifyers have. I was interested in it so I figured I would get a sample & see what I thought. I love the feeling that it gives my skin. Almost a finely milled powder type of effect. My skin just feels velvety! I have also noticed that it helps my foundation adhere to my skin better (a problem for those of us with oily skin) & last longer then using any of my other anti-shine products. You do have to put less powder on over your foundation as well. I have also read that you can put this on over your foundation & am interested in trying this once I get the full size.
Benefit Porefessional
$28
-Love It-
This is another product I wasn't too sure of. The packaging seemed small for the price & honestly, the claims seemed too good to be true. I mean, I have tried a lot of products & none of them have been able to hide my large pores & give me that plastic barbie face that I dream of. This stuff really is a plastic girls dream. It isn't too noticeable on it's own but, under foundation my skin looked completely smooth. It smoothed out all my pores along my nose & cheekbones to a flawless finish. It is supposed to help with fine line but, I didn't notice too much of a difference on my little lines from under eye bags (might work on crows feet or things like that thou). It is supposed to be used as a primer but, I didn't really care for the finish it left or the staying power (it was ok). So I will be using it simply for a skin refiner under my primer. You also need very little of this, so I foresee it lasting a long time & being well worth the price tag.
A few items that I had gone to Sephora with the intention of buying, I did not get. One of them was the Hello Kitty palettes. I was super excited about these & horribly disappointed when I swatched them. There was almost no color payoff & the formulation was horrible. While the packaging was amazing, I see no point in buying it if I can't use it. All of the products from the line seemed like little girl dress up makeup. They were bad quality & almost invisible when on. Big disappointment there. The other was the Urban Decay eyeshadow crayons. These are dry & chalky. I couldn't even blend it out without it just rubbing off. Definitely check these out beforehand if you are planning on buying them.
A few items that I had gone to Sephora with the intention of buying, I did not get. One of them was the Hello Kitty palettes. I was super excited about these & horribly disappointed when I swatched them. There was almost no color payoff & the formulation was horrible. While the packaging was amazing, I see no point in buying it if I can't use it. All of the products from the line seemed like little girl dress up makeup. They were bad quality & almost invisible when on. Big disappointment there. The other was the Urban Decay eyeshadow crayons. These are dry & chalky. I couldn't even blend it out without it just rubbing off. Definitely check these out beforehand if you are planning on buying them.
If you have any questions about a product listed above or are interested in me doing a review a specific product feel free to leave a comment below or on my facebook page!
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