A Little Haul

Hey everyone! For the past few weeks, I have been on an unintentional shopping ban. I am proud of the fact that I don't just buy everything I see, that definitely can't be a bad thing. So to celebrate my "accomplishment", I have recently checked off a few things of my wishlist and thought I'd share them with you! :)

Herkese selam! Son birkac haftadir kendimi tamamen istek disi kozmetik alisveris yasagi gibi birseyin icinde buldum. Gordugum herseyi almaktan kendimi alikoyabildigim icin kendimle gurur duyuyorum tabi, bu kesinlikle kotu birsey olamaz! Bende bu basarimi kutlamak icin istek listemde uzun zamandir oylece duran birkac urunu almaya karar verdim ve sizinle paylasmak istedim :)

Hitting pan on MAC MSFN meant one thing - mission: finding new setting powder. Sure, I could just go and repurchase the mineralize skin finish but I was really up for trying something new as MAC MSFN has been my setting powder for longer than I can remember. On my wishlist were powders from Laura Mercier and Chanel but when the lovely Delyteful Speaks recommended I give this Burberry Sheer Foundation a try, I found myself at Nordstrom's website. It is pure luxury (I actually don't know how long it will take me to dip my brush into this beauty, it's so pretty!) just like the Burberry eyeshadows I have fallen in love with couple months ago. With this occasion, I also checked off another wishlist item which was the gorgeous Burnished Copper, a metallic eye creme by Laura Mercier.

MAC MSFN'imin dibini gormek = misyon: yeni bir sabitleyici pudra bulmak. Tabii ki, MAC'e gidip yenisini alabilirdim ama bu sefer yeni bir pudra denemek icin kollari sivadim ve arastirmaya basladim. Aslinda listemde Chanel ve Laura Mercier'den iki pudra vardi ama ne zaman ki Delyteful Speaks bana bu Burberry sheer fondoteni tavsiye etti, o an kendimi Nordstrom'un websitesinde buldum. Tipki birkac ay once asik oldugum Burberry farlari gibi cok luks. (Bu guzellige fircami batirmak ne kadar zamanimi alacak bilemiyorum, resmen mukemmel!) Bu vesileyle listemde uzun zamandir bulunan Laura Mercier Burnished Copper isimli metalik krem farinida aradan cikarmis oldum.

St. Tropez Bronzing Mousse

Summer may be coming to an end (technically we have a month left!) but bronzing season for me is never over! I like a nice tint of color and a healthy glow to my skin all year around. I have been meaning to try the ever so talked about St. Tropez for a very long time and the time has finally come. Previously I had been using Sun Labs lotion bronzing products and while they are amazing, I hated their dark cherry/root beer-like scent that just doesn't dissipate. I really want to love this bronzing mousse *keeping fingers crossed*

Yazin sonuna yaklasiyor olsakta bu bana gore bronzlasmayi birakmak icin bir sebep degil. Ben butun sene abartili olmayacak sekilde teninde hafif bir bronzluk sevenlerdenim.Artik bloglarda gormekten ve Youtube'da duymaktan baydigimiz St. Tropez sonunda benim. Daha once Sun Labs'in bronzlastirici urunlerini severek kullaniyordum ama artik visnemsi ve butun gun tene yapisip kalan kokusuna tahammulum kalmadigi icin cozumu St. Tropez'de aramaya karar verdim.

Batiste Dry Shampoo

Of all the places, I have come across the famous dry shampoo at TjMaxx! I have a lot of thick hair that really only needs a wash 2 times a week. Nonetheless I thought between the 2 washes I could freshen up my mop using this dry shampoo, let's see!

TjMaxx'te gezinirken tesadufen buldugum Batiste kuru sampuani hic dusunmeden kaptim. Kalin telli ve gur saclara sahip oldugum icin sacimi haftada en fazla 2 kere yikamak bana yetiyor aslinda. Yinede 2 yikama arasinda saclarimi bu kuru sampuanla ferahlatabilirim diye dusunuyorum, bakalim!

Nails Inc. & Sephora by O.P.I.

With fall coming full speed, I thought it was only appropriate to check out some fall nail polish shades. At a recent Sephora nail polish swatch fest, I randomly met "I'm With Brad" - I don't think it gets any more fall than this color! I'd describe the color as a very dark (almost blackened) slightly shimmery red wine.I also purchased my first Nails Inc. shade in Sloane Square and have been absolutely in love with it. I fall in and out of love with glittery nail polishes quite a bit. Sloane Square is nothing like my nails have experienced it before. It has a darker glittery silver base with chunkier multi-colored glitters. "I love this nail polish" is definitely an understatement. I cannot stop looking at my nails! Another and last shade I picked up is Traffic Stopper Copper by Sephora by OPI.

Son surat yaklasan sonbaharla beraber en son Sephora ziyaretimde sonbahar oje tonlarina bakmadan edemedim. Oje swatchlarken tesadufen buldugum "I'm With Brad" kesinlikle sonbahar diye bagiran hafif piriltili koyu kirmizi sarap rengi. Uzun zamandir istedigim yine Sephora by OPI'dan Traffic Stopper Copper isimli seffaf bazli ve icinde irili ufakli bakir renkli simler olan ojeyide almis bulundum. Son olarakta ilk Nails Inc. ojem olan Sloane Square benim oldu. Hayatimda gordugum en pigmentli simli oje diyebilirim. Koyu gumus/tunc bazli ve icinde minik rengarenk simler var.

What have you been buying lately? Have you tried any of these products?
Siz son zamanlarda neler aliyorsunuz? Bu urunlerden denedikleriniz var mi?

A Little Haul

I haven't been shopping (for makeup that is) a whole lot lately, which cannot be a bad thing. For that reason I decided to reward myself with little treats. Okay the first two products aren't really a reward as they are more of a necessity, you will see what I mean in my "Finished up/July" post - let's just say I have been scrubbing like there is no tomorrow :)

While out thrift store shopping with a friend this past weekend, we decided to also hit up The Body Shop solely for purchasing body scrubs. I have used many, many different products from The Body Shop before but this is my first time trying their body scrubs so I am a little excited. According to my friend who already indulged in her Sweet Lemon scrub, it's AMAZING!

If you love citrus-y scents and happen to be looking for a body scrub then you must check out Sweet Lemon. I have tested it on my hand in store and it made my hand beyond smooth, I cannot even image what it will do to my entire body. I have also picked up Shea Butter body scrub because they had a promotion going on, and anyone that knows me knows that I have a problem turning down amazing deals/promotions. So the Shea Butter one says "For Very Dry Skin" which is not what my skin is like at all. But I don't care because the scent is just divine...I'll just pretend I have "very dry skin" while using this yummy product. By the way while taking the photo below, the two scents combined in the air creating an even more amazing scent. I will use a little bit of each for the ultimate exfoliation experiment. :)

Now onto the fun stuff!

I have been wanting the Beauty Blender for a long time and when I spotted it on Apothica's website (which I had a giftcard to) I just knew it was going to be mine!

Stila's gorgeous eye shadow in Diamond Lil was yet another product that had been eternally sitting on its spot on my list. To my surprise, it was on sale on Apothica's website. The price was just right! By the way if you were sad to have missed out on MAC's Smoke & Diamonds eyeshadow from Starflash collection, turn your frown upside down because these two are definitely twins!

This isn't my first Cargo purchase but it is my first Cargo blush purchase. I've been meaning to try one of their blushes since seeing them swatched and talked about on the gorgeous blushingpixie's channel on YouTube. I am so happy that I picked up Topeka and cannot wait to get even more colors. I don't think I've ever touched a blush so velvety soft!

Have you tried any of these products? What are some of your recent purchases?

Bits & Pieces

Just sharing with you guys bits and pieces of goods I collected in the last few weeks.

First up, we have this Sonia Kashuk eye make-up remover...I have been using my H2O & olive oil mixture as my eye makeup remover for a long time. Since I have just run out of my mixture, I thought I would try an actual product just for the sake of trying something new. I have no clue how it will perform as this is my first time using a non-makeup Sonia Kashuk product. (I do love her eye shadows though!) Hopefully it'll be a great alternative to that of Neutrogena because I simply despise the oily residue it leaves on my eyes.

I had been wanting to get a Clarisonic cleansing system for a long time! I just recently caved and picked it up. I haven't been using it long enough to tell you how I am liking it so far but I will do a separate and more detailed review on it when the time comes.

 I was in dire need of new brushes for bronzer and MSF application. I was previously using a really old (in fact so old using it to this day should be illegal!) The Body Shop brush for applying my MSF and a not-so-old-but-not-that-great-and-now-a-little-too-scratchy-for-my-face Avon brush for bronzer. Simply put, these new brushes were a total need and not a want at all. Besides my little elf concealer brush, this will be my first time using a "real" elf brush.

The complexion brush feels soooo soft, I love it! I feel like this is just made better than the bronzing brush (perhaps because it's from the "Studio" line?) and it will not shed, or at least not as much as the bronzing one. Bronzing brush is soft too but not as much the complexion brush and right now I feel like it'll shed so much that it won't have any hairs left. We'll see!

I actually vowed that I will be staying away from Bella Bamba because...I mean another pink blush, really?! But I just couldn't help it. It's just very pretty and girly, smells like flowers and/or candy, I love the new and improved box with its little mirror inside.

Nothing big here, just my 123958th container of my favorite facial scrub. After I run out of my last tube, I always say to myself that I want to try a new scrub and I just always find myself going back for more of this green tea scrub, I don't know what it is! It seems to work for me, I love the smell, the feeling on my face afterward.

Rose D'oro is only one of the 9 colors in Milani's baked blush/bronzer range. It's gorgeous and looks like it will be perfect for achieving a sun-kissed look.

Topless and Barefoot is part of Essie's new Spring collection called "A French Affair". I had just received my quarterly Ulta certificate and chose to get a free nail polish with it. I was originally planning to get a nail polish from OPI's Texas collection but absolutely nothing grabbed my attention, at all! So I decided to go with Topless & Barefoot. It's a pastel nude in creme finish.

 Since receiving a Bath & Body Works mailer the other day, I had been dying to try out their new scent Carried Away. Finally yesterday I had the chance to check it out! I tested it on my hand and walked around int the store a good 15 minutes sniffing...everything! The scent was still there, going pretty strong. I decided to buy it because I just loved its sweet, flirty, summery scent. I came home an hour later, washed hands with soap, the scent still lingered on. On my skin, its staying power is just amazing. Quick glance on the back of the tube; ... "a whimsical blend of lush raspberries, white jasmine and whipped vanilla inspired by the way love sweeps you off your feet". Oh yeah, it's definitely comparable to love tee heee!

 I just ran out of my beloved Neutrogena hand cream and when I saw these on a shelf at my local Walgreens I knew I had to try it! I love EOS lip balms so I thought I'll probably and hopefully love their hand creams as well. First impression...it smells delish (if you like the cucumber scent that is), very moisturizing, creamy texture.

What have you all been hauling lately? Did you buy any of these products?

Random Finds

Hey everyone!

I've been having writer's block these days...Actually I have so many ideas in my head that I want to blog about but all this excitement of my upcoming trip to Turkey is consuming all my energy which I don't have too much of since I'm fasting  :) Not to mention, I have zillions of things to do before my trip. Of course there are no obstacles when it comes to shopping ha! I just wanted to share with you guys my recent finds in random places :)

Ever since I first found out that Nicole Richie is getting in the jewelry business, I knew I would fall in love with her creations! I adore her style and sense of fashion, you can't deny that the girl knows her stuff! There are a few different pieces from her House of Harlow 1960 line that I've wanted since the beginning but of course I always chose to invest my money in MAC (let's not even go there!). I finally caved and purchased these beautiful earrings..

 They come in several other colors such as red, green, black, purple and blue :)

I hit up Old Navy for some workout pants, I really love their yoga pants! They are so comfortable and reasonably priced. Right across from the pants were these adorable cardigans so I grabbed one though I wanted one in every color!

While at Target, I spotted this cute iPhone/iPod/digital camera pouch thingie which I thought would help me haul less stuff to the gym. I have this huge problem of toting way too many things around with me. My gym bag is huge, for that reason it's quite tempting to fill it up with unnecessary junk as there is only one reason of going to the gym and that is...to work out! I insist on taking a make-up bag full of cosmetics and much more! With this bag, I will definitely keep it simple. It's cute and small, compatible with iPhone (and I'm sure with anything that's the size of an iPhone or smaller) has a front pocket for ID, cards etc. Then on the side, there is another pocket that could be used for whatever. The brand is 'Golla', it's a Finnish brand and you can find out more about it on their website. The style I bought is called Riley - it's a 'smart bag'.

I also took advantage of the swim sale at Victoria's Secret's website. Don't I already have bathing suits? I do. But who wants to wear the same ones every year? I don't. So I found myself at VS's website. Needless to say, many of the super pretty bathing suits were sold out or they didn't have my size. I always loved polka dots but never bought a bathing suit with that pattern. I also reallllly adore bandeau tops, it's not because I am anti-tan lines I just think there is something glamorous about them. So why not combine both? :) I ordered a bunch more which I'm returning since I didn't like them too much, I'll stick with these! VS photography can be deceiving sometimes, who agrees?

I don't know about you but I am huge on candles. I especially love the ones that burn to a pleasant smell that one can smell a mile from the house. It's hard to find quality candles though. Recently I was at HomeGoods looking for a completely different product. Then I spotted this candle by a company called For Every Body, which I've never heard of before. First of all, let me say that this candle is AMAZING! This particular scent is so yummy! If you like the way a Streusel cake smells or cinnamony goods in general then you will love this candle! It smells just like the real thing, and once it's lit the house smells like you're baking a Streusel cake in the oven. I've always had a positive experience with soy-based candles, they all smell good, burn good, and last a long time! Another soy-based candle brand I love is Archipelago. If you have a candle by this company then you know what I'm talking about! They are freakin' pricey but if there is a day in your life you don't know what to do with an extra $30, I say go buy a candle from them. Especially the Verbena one, it smells out of this world good!

After all these products, you may be thinking 'but I thought this was your make-up bag', I know...I'm branching out a bit here as I haven't really been purchasing much beauty-related products lately. However, I did find a few beauty-related items that I love! Check them out :)

I first saw these eyebrow razors in this eyebrow video by DulceCandy87 . They seemed like a great idea, so I went ahead and placed an order on Amazon. These things are amazing!!! I tweeze both over and under my eyebrows. Under eye-brow area is much easier to clean up but I can't say the same for over. My hair that grows in this area is so stubborn and hard to pluck. These razors seem to do such a good job to remove the unwanted hair/fuzz in that area. I think they could be used pretty much anywhere on the face. Back of the packaging suggests that it could be used in neck and face in general as well. I know some people have unwanted sideburns that they remove using other methods.The razors are really gentle at removing hair. My eye area is one of the most sensitive spots on my face and I did not see a tiny bit of redness or rash using these! Thank you Dulce for sharing this great tool with the rest of us, I'm sure otherwise I would have never found out about them! :) Here is the Amazon seller I purchase these from, there are a few others who sell them as well.

Another product I discovered recently is this body lotion by Johnson & Johnson! Last time I used Johnson and Johnson products was probably 24-25 years ago when I was a baby. I honestly never had a body lotion that I was totally in love with which I would purchase for the rest of my life. Then I was introduced to this lotion by a friend whose friend swore by it. It supposedly has lavender and chamomile in it so you'd think it smells like it. I don't know if I agree, I mean it smells really good but I don't really smell lavender. I am not even really fond of lavender smell so I probably wouldn't love this so much if it did smell like it. I don't know how to describe this scent, if you see it at a drugstore, smell it and you'll know! :) Why do I think it's a great product? Well, besides the smell, the texture is just incredible! It has a thicker consistency, definitely not runny like Victoria's Secret lotions but not so thick as a body butter. It has a whipped feel to it. I love how it leaves my skin soft and smooth and not greasy and sticky like some other lotions. I also love the fact that the scent and hydration stay with me for a good while :)

Today was Muffin's 1st birthday! We got him when he was 2 months old, it's unbelievable how fast time flies!

Go Muffin it's your birthdayyyy!!!

Have a great week everyone! Monday is over, 4 more days until the weekend! :)

Mini MAC Haulage + My Blooming Lovely Trick

Hey girls!!!

I have recently been to MAC because I had some empty containers for back 2 MAC and here is what I got in return. I also picked up 2 other eye-shadows. I couldn't help it, they were staring at me! :)

Texture 

Peachy Brown with shimmer

(Velvet) 

Texture just kept popping up everywhere I looked and now I understand why. It's gorgeous! I've seen it mostly used on crease but I'm sure it'll be just as beautiful as a lid color. 

Scene 

Muted blue-gray 

(Satin)

I can't believe I've never SCENE this! What I love about this color is that it's not blue and it's not gray but a mixture of the two. I guess it's safe to call it slate gray. This shade is great if you are a bit intimidated by color but still want to wear it. I think it's pretty versatile and can easily be worn during day-time without looking overdone.

Seedy Pearl

Chilled lavender pink

(Frost)

The color is a mix between pale pink and lavender duo-chrome. It has an iridescence to it and can be used as a highlight on cheeks as well. When applied on eyelid, the color turns into more of a pale metallic pink It's a pretty unusual shade, definitely don't have any dupes for this. I am curious to see how it'll work into the looks I'll do..

Fulfilled Plushglass 

Full-blush Creamy Pink

I definitely did not plan to walk out with Fulfilled in my bag. In fact this is my first plushglass ever. As I was checking out at the register, the make-up artist's blush caught my eye so I asked her. She said it was Prim and Proper from the Liberty of London collection. (She also has porcelain-like skin and looks like a doll so that's probably why it looks perfect on her :)) I told her I was such an idiot for not purchasing that blush and that in stead I got Blooming Lovely and now I have no idea how to make it work for me. So another make-up artist suggested Fulfilled. I asked him to put some Snob on my lips (which I think is the closest permanent color to Blooming Lovely) and apply Fulfilled on top. It was just amazing! If you're having issues with your Blooming Lovely and don't want to toss it, try applying it with a very light hand (and if possible with a lip brush so it's easier to adjust the amount of color that goes on your lips) that way there is some color but it's not "hey I just spent an hour in the freezer" kind of color. Then try Fulfilled on top or a similar sheer gloss. I think the pink in this lip gloss overpowers the blue undertones of Blooming Lovely thus creating a softer and more wearable shade. I'm so glad I got this! Don't get me wrong, if Blooming Lovely works for you or I should say if you can make it work then I'm happy for you and I envy you :) Mauve just looks horrible with my skin tone. I don't know what I was thinking, could it have been the cocktails at the preview?!

*Color descriptions are taken from www.maccosmetics.com

Collective Haul: MAC, Ulta, CVS, Target, Coastal Scents

Hey girlies!
Just wanted to share with you a collection of stuff I hauled within the past month or so

MAC Paintpot in Coral Crepe 

I've already done a look using this and I absolutely love it! I'm so happy I purchased it, it's really gorgeous. If you like corals and wear them often, I say get this before it's gone! ( I really can't stop talking about this, sorry if it's annoying, I promise you will only have to see it twice more then I'll shut up about it lol)

MAC Eye Shadow in Paradisco

I had been eying this eyeshadow for a very long time but every time I went to MAC, I walked out with another color. Finally I pulled myself together and purchased it, it's so pretty and looks beautiful layered over Coral Crepe.

 Ulta

Urban Decay Face Case 

Was totally an unplanned purchase, it just caught my eye while I was passing by the checkout counters. Colors were just too gorgeous and price was very reasonable. ($14.00) Not just that but it also came with a full-size eyeshadow in Flipside. I can never say no to free! FYI: Flipside is VERY similar to MAC's Shimmermoss eyeshadow, just a tad more turquoise-ish than Shimmermoss, but I think they would make good dupes of each other.

Urban Decay Eye Shadow in Flipside

NYC Lip Sliders Lip Balm in Sugar Kiss

I love to wear this lip balm over nude/pink lipsticks. This lipbalm has crazy amount of shine, it's ridicilous! I also love how it smells, like cotton candy!

Revlon Nail Polishes

Grape Icy (smells just like grapes when dry, I must admit it made me nauseous at times lol) Electric Pink,  Make Mine Mango and Tropical Temptation

Gorgeous summer colors!!! They were buy 2 get 1 free at Ulta on 6/19.

CVS

Rimmel Lipstick in Nostalgia

I believe this is a new shade as I've never seen it before. It's a coral/hot pink shade and it screams summer! Pretty creamy and moisturizing.  

Target

Elf Blush in Candid Coral 

& 

All over Color Stick in Golden Peach

I was so happy to walk in to one of my two Targets and unexpectedly see Elf products! I had been dying to try them but was not willing to pay crazy amounts of money for shipping. Especially when their products are so cheap! I don't know how I managed to get only these but I did. I'm very happy with my Elf stuff. Over all color stick is a great highlighter and I love the coral blush!

Maybelline Dream Mousse Blush in Peach Satin

The word "mousse" was what made me buy this blush, really. I've never used a blush in this form so I thought why not? It has such a smooth and velvety texture and the color is very pretty. I don't think it shows up that well on my skin though. Perhaps I should have gotten a darker shade? I don't know, I have mixed feelings about this. 

Coastal Scents 88 Palette

Can you believe I just got this? I certainly can't. Love love love this palette. It's really everything I imagined it would be. Love all the colors and endless combination possibilities it has to offer! You all know what it looks like, but here is a picture anyway! :)

Haul Time: MAC, Ulta,Target

Hey girlies!!!
 

Supposedly I was going to resist and not buy anything from MAC until Back to Beach collection which will be in stores in May but it just didn't happen. I had 6 empty containers for Back to MAC so in return of that I got the Shy Girl lipstick which I love! In addition, I got three eye-shadows, which I totally didn't need but wanted for the longest time. I didn't just get some crazy colors (though tempted) these are very versatile and everyday colors which I know I'll be using often and they are....

 Satin Taupe (Frost) - Taupe with silver shimmer

 Sable (Velvet) - Gold plum with bronze pearl

 Woodwinked (Veluxe Pearl) Warm antique gold

Shy Girl ( Creemsheen) - Creamy neutral coral beige

(Descriptions taken from maccosmetics.com)

Off to Ulta...I got two nail polishes, Peachy Keen by China Glaze and Lucky Lucky Lavender by O.P.I. I also purchased The Amazing Concealer by Amazing Cosmetics, which I will actually return :/ See my review on it here.

I went to Target for some house needs then I remembered I need to buy some of those facial make-up remover wipes and decided to try out a new brand. I initially thought of buying the Boots Botanics ones but I then remembered I am in the same aisle as Burt's Bees products and even though I knew they didn't have these wipe things, I still looked to see thinking maybe they came out with them in the mean time or something? But nope, still no face wipes from Burt's Bees. Then I look right next to Burt's Bees stuff and see Yes To Cucumbers Facial Towelettes and that's what I ended up getting. It smells just like cucumbers when you open the flap, yummm! I also purchased Revlon ColorStay foundation to see if it lives up to all the hype. While I was there, I thought I'd also get an eyeliner brush from Sonia Kashuk and that was it from Target. Actually then from the pets aisle, I got a t-shirt for Muffin since he grew out of pretty much everything we bought for him when we first got him :)

 It says "Got Biscuits?" :)