ILLAMASQUA HAUL AND REVIEW!

I ordered some Illamasqua goodies after Christmas as they there was a code that we could use for a 15% discount and they were also having an online sale for selected items so I took the advantage of the 15% discount code and I also got one thing from the online sale that they were having as the other 3 items I wanted wasn't in their online sale's list, so I just used the 15% discount code for the 3 items.

So I got 3 Blushers, and a face primer; 2 of the Blushers are powder and 1 is a cream blusher and as for the face primer, I got the Satin Primer instead of the Matte Primer.

So let's start with the "Satin Primer":

Before applying make-up, it is best to prepare your face with a primer; as this evens out the skin and allows a better application of either your foundation or powder and it also gives one's face a better look (e.g. I got the Satin Primer and this gives my face a more 'dewy' look, if you get the Matte Primer it will give your look a more 'matte' look) I did not get the Matte primer mainly because my skin is a little dry, not too dry but dry at certain areas and I think if I were to get the Matte primer, it would enhance those dry spots that I have and overall with this Satin primer, I really like it as it does even out my skin and allows a more smooth application of foundation and I love the effect it gives on my skin. It has a vanilla scent to it but it's ok for me and it comes out as a white liquid-lotion texture but it blends out into the skin without leaving your face looking white. The primer was £19.00 but after the 15% discount, it was £16.15.


Next thing I purchased and LOVING IT! is the Powder Blush in "Rumour":

This I love so, so much! It is described as a Pale pinky-beige with a matte finish but I would agree with the description of it but on my skin it looks just like a beige which makes it really great for contouring and that was the main reason why I got it. So I'm really happy with it as it does serve it's purpose and the powder is highly pigmented as well as finely milled which is great as it blends in effortlessly. Another shade which is great for contouring from Illamasqua would be "Disobey" but it will be great if you could go to their counter and choose the shade that best suits your skin tone as I've heard that there are a few contouring shades depending on your skin tone but "Rumour" suits me just fine and I'm happy with it. The Powder Blushers are £16.50 each but as it was on sale on their website, I can't remember how much it was but if I wasn't mistaken it was either £9.00 or £10.50.


Another Blusher that I got was the Powder Blush in "Lover":

This powder blush is not something that I would go for naturally but I've been on a kick recently for peach/beige Blushers so I got this one. It is described as a Soft Apricot with a matte finish as well and it is gorgeous, on my cheek, it just brightens up my whole face. In person it looks scary in the pan as it looks like a really bright peachy orange shade but once applied on the cheek it is beautiful and you'll only need a little as all Illamasqua's products are highly pigmented. So make sure you use a light-hand if you dont want to go out looking like a clown. This is originally £16.50 but after the 15% discount, it was £14.03.


The next Blusher is not a powder blush, it is a Cream Blush in "Rude":

This is another blush that is famous when it comes to Illamasqua and it is a coral pink shade in the pan and also when swatched. It also looks really scary in the pan but when applied it gives a nice flush to the cheeks. I was very surprised with the texture of this cream blush as I've never felt a cream blush so smooth before and it doesn't come off as super pigmented when swatched but it is definitely buildable and feels so light. And the best part is, this can also be used on the lips! which is great and a plus point. The thing about Illamasqua is that their products are highly versatile. So, this was £16.50 also but after the 15% discount, it was £14.03.

Here are some swatches:

From Top to Bottom: Rumour, Lover and Rude (all swatched heavily for swatching purposes)

LOVE,

ALVINA

MAC Cham Pale Haul

Hi everyone, firstly, I'm really sorry for taking so long to post this up. So I got 3 things from this collection. I did not get the palette, I did not get the Lip Gelees and I did not get the Eye Kohl in either Feline or the shimmery champagne one (correction, I did get the shimmery champagne one just that I returned it as I wasn't too impressed by it, so I return it and exchange it for one of the paint pots and I already have one of Feline, I didnt need another one, so I skipped that too).

So I only got the Fix+Lavender, Chromagraphic pencil in NC15/NW20, and a Paint Pot in Dangerous Cuvee. 

First up, let's talk abt the palette, I didnt get it because I recently got a 4 pan-palette as well and I also got one of the shades that were in the Cham Pale palette which was "Brule" so I did not see a purpose for me to buy the palette as I rather fill it up with the shades that I love more:

  

Next, let's take a look at the Fix+Lavender:

The Fix+Lavender has a very mild scent of Lavender; not too strong and since its my first Fix+, I am liking it as a refreshing mist spray for the face. The Fix+Lavender was £12.50.

Next up, the MAC Chromagraphic Pencil in NC15/NW20:

The MAC Chromagraphic Pencil is just a skin tone pencil shade which can be used for concealing spots, lining the waterline for brightening of the eyes with instead of a white pencil, and also highlighting the brow-bone. This is a very versatile pencil and I love the texture of it which is super creamy and is easy to apply. The pencil was £12.50.

 *Just a word of caution, this can't be used on the lips as it is stated on the box itself as a warning.*

The only Paint Pot I bought is the darkest shade among all the Paint Pots; "Dangerous Cuvee".

 

 

 

This is my first Paint Pot and I'm loving the texture on how creamy it is and I love the shade as well! I didn't planned on purchasing this one at first as I bought the Eye Kohl initially in "I Get No Kick" but I did not like it at all it's just a champagne sheen but I love the Chromagraphic Pencil so I returned the eye kohl and exchanged it for the paint pot instead. I've heard that the Paint Pots in this collection was sheer and glittery but the reason why I picked this up was because it reminds me so much of the "Hypnotizing" e/s from the Love Lace Collection. When paired with the "Hypnotizing" shadow, it is gorgeous! The only downside about the paint pot is that it is very glittery and I did experienced fall outs under my eyes after awhile but it can be solved with powder so I am not too bothered as I love the colour.

LOVE,

ALVINA

DEBENHAMS MINI HAUL

Hey my lovelies, so a little while ago, Debenhams had a sale; 20% off every department and 10% off the Beauty department so I decided to get some things I have been wanting to try and my lovely cousin decided to get them for me as an early Christmas present from her to me. So yea, she went ahead and ordered it for me and I received items in less than a week. So great and fast shipping from Debenhams; definitely a thumbs up. So without further a do, let's go on to the items that I've got. Enjoy!

 

This are the 3 products i got:

Illamasqua Precision Ink Liner in Alchemy

YSL Mascara Volume Effet Faux Cills in  1 High Density Black

Illamasqua Liquid Metal in Solstice. 

 This is the Illamasqua Liquid Metal in Solstice.

 It's a cream based product that can be used on your face, lips and eyes for a gorgeous look .

This is the product itself and that's how the packaging looks like, very nice.

Only con is that it's not a screw-lid top, it opens very easily.

That's a swatch of the colour itself. GORGEOUS isnt it?

See how gold it is? It's like taking your gold jewellery and melting it. =p

It comes with 1.5g of product and it is definitely highly pigmented. 

I've tried this on the other day and surprisingly it didn't crease on me at all. I wore it from 9am till 8pm at night.

 I would definitely recommend this and this was £15.30 after discount.

Original price : £17. 

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This is the Illamasqua Precision Ink Liner in Alchemy.

It's a true gold glitter/ shimmer liner (because the glitter isn't the type which is gritty). 

This was £14.85 after discount.

Original price: £16.50 

This is how the packaging looks like.

Very tiny, much tinnier than I've expected it to be.

It comes with 1.8ml of product.

 That is the applicator. It has a felt tip applicator which makes it so easy for application.

That's a swatch for it. It's a really gorgeous gold shade and as I mentioned, the glitter isnt gritty at all.

I am not too sure whether is it water-proof.

It does not smudge or come off easily but it takes a while to dry but when it dries completely, it really does not move. So overall, this is a great product, the only down-side is that the amount of product it comes with.

I might have to get a second one once I'm out of this, that means I will repurchase this. *THUMBS UP* 

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YSL Mascara Volume Effet Faux Cills in 1 High Density Black.

Its just a plain Black mascara that gives your lashes a voluminized effect.

I got this for £19.35 after the discount.

Original price: £21.50 

This is how the item looks like. Reminds me of a gold magic wand. =p

 One word: Gorgeous.

The logo separates into half when opened and when closed, you'll know its well closed when it joins back together.

This is how the bristles look like. It well densed which is great. Easy to get into the inner and outer parts.

I tried this on twice and it definitely lives up to what it claims to do, which is to voluminize and it also lengthens my lashes, very awesome product in my opinion.

There is a strong perfume scent to it though which is unusual but it doesn't bother me much. 

This is how long the wand is. Just nice in my opinion. =)

The YSL compared to the DIOR Iconic Extreme.

I prefer the YSL in terms of volumizing and lengthening and as well as the darkness of the colour.

The DIOR Iconic Extreme is great as well in terms of defining my lashes and slightly volumizing and lengthening but not as dark in colour as the YSL one.

Okay, so that's my post for my recent most haul, I think you guys will know by now that I love anything and everything in the shade of a lovely gold (except the mascara XD) but yea, I hope you guys find it informative =) and as usual, if there's anything that you guys would like me to do a detailed review of, just drop me a comment. Thank you! 

LOVE,

ALVINA 

MINI O.P.I. HAUL

First of all, I would like to apologize for the super lack of updates, well it's all because of the weather and uni assignments, I'm sorry...

So I went to Cambridge the other day and I got some O.P.I. nail polishes.. =) *squeals*
O.P.I. nail polishes are really nice in my opinion, I'm not a huge nail polish addict but I just wanted to get a red nail polish but i ended up getting 2 just because i couldn't make up my mind.. and you'll see why. So here are some pics =)

This is "VODKA & CAVIAR"

*This is the most gorgeous red I have ever seen, and it doesn't look so bright in person*

This is "BRING ON THE BLING"

*Look how sparkly it is...it's gorgeous!! This is why I couldn't choose between the two, I had to have both* 

*BRING ON THE BLING V.S. MAD AS HATTER*

Bring on the Bling is definitely more gold and doesnt have as much purple glitter in it as Mad As Hatter. It has lots of gold glitter, pink, green, slight red and blue glitters. Whereas Mad As Hatter is more silver based with lots of purple, red, silver, green and blue with a slight gold glitter. 

In terms of consistency, it is the same gritty glitter. =p But I love it because it BLINGS out my nails totally and it is sooooo PWEEETTTYYY... =)

Anyways, that's all for now, there will be more make up reviews to come, so stay tuned! 

Love,

ALVINA.