A Mini American Beauty Haul

Hello again!

I think I am finally (after being home for a week) settling back into some sort of normal again, which includes getting back into my blog!

If you guys didn't know, I was lucky enough to jetset around the states for 4 weeks with my boyfriend on one hell of a holiday!

I have been dying to try out all of my new beauty goodies I purchased on holidays, but wanted to leave it until I could grab some snaps! #bloglife

I really didn't buy a whole lot this trip for a couple of reasons.
1. I have a LOT of makeup already that I don't really use/have occasions to wear/ forget is there and
2. The exchange rate absolutely sucked this time around. Stuff that is normally cheap in America was either more expensive after I converted it back into Australian dollars or around the same price that I could grab it back home.

I did however grab a few pieces that I couldn't get back here in Oz or that were still cheaper after working out the AUD pricing.

Lets start with the pieces from Bath and Body Works. These bits are hard to come by in Australia, however you can grab selected bits from Bath Body and Home.
I picked up 3 travel sized products as they had a promo going, plus they're just easier to cart around. The first is the Velvet Sugar fragrance mist. I had purchased the body wash from Bath Body and Home a while back. This smells SO nice! super sweet. It reminds me of those red love heart lollipops I used to get as a kid!! (who else remembers those??)
I also got the Warm Vanilla Sugar scented body wash and lotion. A lovely sweet but subtle scent.
Then last but not least the hand sanitisers. I love that Bath and Body Works make so many different scents. It's nice not to have to smell so antibacterial after you sanitise your hands. I got the scents Cosy Vanilla Cream and Berry Scary.

Next up are the bits I purchased from Walmart. This is where I found things were still a fair bit cheaper than home and a couple items I hadn't seen in our stores yet.
I got the L'Oreal Miss Manga Rock waterproof mascara in Blackest Black. I had heard good things about the regular Miss Manga mascaras and these were only like $7 USD.
I also grabbed the L'Oreal La Lacque lip crayon in the colour 203 Lacquerized. A glossy fire engine red.
I picked a Milani Powder Blush in the colour Romantic Rose. The picture doesn't really show its true colour but its a lovely dusky rose.
I stocked up on some more Vaseline Lip Therapy Pots. This one is the cocoa butter scent. If you follow me on instagram (@eclecticclash) you would have seen me raving about the creme brûlée flavour.
The last one I'm really excited to try! The Jergens Wet Skin Moisturiser with added coconut oil. If you're a coconut scent fan, you will love this. Perfect for the warmer weather! (when it finally decides to make its way to Victoria...) It's a little different to the Nivea after shower lotion as you don't have to rinse the Jergens lotion off. Just shower, turn off the water, apply to wet skin then pat dry. Sounds really great to me!

Finally I have the bits I grabbed for myself from Sephora. Let me tell you I restrained myself HARD in this store. I wanted everything! I did however grab mainly Kat Von D things as you just can't get them in Australia (apart from Sydney Sephora, which don't do internet orders) I am eagerly awaiting the Melbourne grand opening. This girl will take the day off work if she has to to be there! #eagerbeaver
I purchased one of her new Everlasting Liquid Lipsticks in the colour Outlaw a beautiful traditional blue based red. I could have lashed out and bought majority of the colours available, something for everyone. These are my favourite kinds of lipsticks. Matte and SUPER long-lasting. The swatches on my hand lasted all day long. Perfect for a night out!
I also got a regular Studded Kiss Lipstick in the colour Motorhead. It's a gorgeous matte wine/plum/burgundy red/purple it transfers a lot lighter than the colour of the bullet.

Now I knew before I left home that I wanted to get a Kat Von D Tattoo Liner. This is a lot of YouTuber/bloggers fave liner on the market. BUT! There is a new kid on the block. The Ink! Liner. I thought when I picked it up that it was the same thing but I asked the lady working there at the time if there was any difference and she swatched them together.
This new ink liner is SO much more pigmented than the tattoo liner and it literally does not budge. I can definitely see the hype about her products.

Now this last one was a bit of a splurge for me. I'm not normally a big spender when it comes to makeup. I like my drugstore products but I just had to come home with a Naked Palette. After much deliberation on which one I would get I settled with Naked 2 as i thought I'd get the most wear out of those colours.

And that was my little haul! Very paired back for someone like myself but I'm really happy with all my bits. Besides, this trip was more about just getting away and enjoying each others company and the locations (and lets be honest, THE FOOD) than spending all my money on things I really didn't need.

Let me know if you've tried any of the above or if there's other things you'd like to recommend!

Xx

My Long Haul Flight Beauty Essentials.

EEEEP! It's almost that time to start packing my stuff for my trip away!! SO excited but also a little nervy. Im not really sure why I get like I do, but I freak out that I'm going to forget to do something before I leave or leave something important at home. #neurotic

This post is all about what I plan to take in my hand luggage to keep my skin in check mid flight!

As I've spoken about in my previous post, long haul flights wreak havoc on the skin. All of that recycled air drying everything out.

The following are items I hope are going to keep my skin calm and refreshed on my long ass trip to New York City!

1. Formula 10.0.6 Clarifying Facial Wipes - $6.99AUD
Perfect for taking off any makeup or just for a nice refresh after a nap.

2. Antipodes Night Replenish Serum - $58.99AUD
A beautiful serum to put some moisture back into your skin after a cleanse.

3. Maybelline Baby Lips - $3.95AUD
There's really nothing worse than dry lips in my books. Especially when you have nothing to put on them. I once resorted to hand cream at work because I'd left my lip balm at home. (Don't recommend that by the way) These lip balms would have to be my absolute favourite. No touching the balm involved so no germ spreading. They also smell amazing! Mango Pie, Anti-Oxident Berry and Lychee Addict (pictured) are my faves!

4. Rosken Intensive Moisture Hand Cream - $3.99AUD
I got this hand cream as a freebie in a gift bag from Priceline and I really enjoy it. It doesn't soak in super quick but it is for "very dry hands" It has a lovely subtle scent and will be perfect for the plane.

5. Avene Thermal Spring Water - $9.99AUD
I love this stuff on flights or on really hot days to refresh your skin. Spritz it on over makeup or on a fresh face as a toner.

6. Antipodes Avocado Pear Nourishing Night Cream - $52.99AUD
This is my current love and will be used on the daily over my trip. It is super nourishing and hydrating and I will be lathering this on after take off.

7. Jessica Simpson Fancy Rollerball 15ml (part of a gift pack) - $39.00AUD
This little rollerball is part of a gift pack and would have to be my favourite scent and one i wear on a daily basis. The 100ml bottle will be travelling in my main bag. No being stinky for me!

So those are my main squeezes for my carry on. Is there anything you think I might be missing?
Let me know!

Xx

Product Review || Maybelline Color Drama Lip Pencils

It's another lip product review! This time I've got the Maybelline Color Drama Lip Pencil.

These are apparently a great dupe for the NARS Velvet Lip Pencils, although I will have to take their word for it as I don't own any.

I really love these lip pencils. They are SUPER pigmented, silky smooth to apply and I didn't find they bled either! Score!

Being a pencil lippy, some people don't like to have to sharpen them and would prefer a wind up. I on the other hand don't mind. I think with a pigmented stick like this, it's easier to have a sharper edge to get to the edges of the lip better. (Colour in between the lines)

I am a big red lip girl, so of course I had to buy the two reds in the collection. Red Essential, what I class as the classic red lip. Lovely and rich with a blue undertone, perfect on any skin type. The other is Light It Up, a bright fire engine red.

The other two colours were a little out of my comfort zone but I loved the swatches, so I took a chance and I'm glad I did!

In With Coral is the most out there one for me. A bright pinky coral, it was a little harder to get a smooth even coverage with this one and I could see it getting a little patchy quicker than the others, but I really love the colour. I think the trick with this one is to have really well prepped lips and apply a little lip balm on beforehand.

The other is called Pink So Chic. A gorgeous dark dusky pink, again something I normally wouldn't gravitate towards but I loved the swatch. This is probably the easiest colour to wear every day, I found it a little less matte than the others which I liked, it felt more like a moisturising lipstick than a matte lippy.

I would highly recommend these to anybody who will stop and listen and I will definitely be out to (more likely than not) buy the rest of the collection.

I was lucky enough to score mine half price at a Chemist Warehouse sale, but on the regular they're only $9.95!

Available from the usual haunts, Priceline, Chemist Warehouse, Kmart and some Coles and Woolies!
(Priceline have actually got these on sale right now as we speak for $5.95!) Run, don't walk... Click here to shop!

I'd love to know what you think about these! Leave me a note below about which colour you think I should get next!

Xx

Product Review || Rimmel Oh My Gloss!

A new kid on the block... Today I have the shiny new Rimmel Oh My Gloss! lip gloss.

Being a mine worker 6 days a week, I'm normally more of a Chapstick/Maybelline Baby Lips type of gal, but when these pretty little things showed up in my mailbox I was more than willing to give them a test run.

I don't own too many glassy lip lacquer type glosses as I find they're always too thick and super sticky. The Oh My Gloss! range is surprisingly smooth and glides on like a dream, making it a lovely everyday staple.
It's formulated with Argan oil and vitamin E leaving a silky soft feel on your kisser!

On their own the glosses deliver a nice sheer colour, nothing too out there for those who aren't into a bold lip.

They claim to deliver 6 hours of colour and shine, I wouldn't say they lasted that long on me, but I found the gloss to have hung around even after eating and a few glasses of wine! #winning

They have a nice doe foot applicator and I love the tubes sexy curves! Very sleek.

With a range of pinks, reds, mauves, nudes and a clear gloss, there's something for everybody!
I have been grabbing the clear gloss to layer on top of my matte lipsticks, turning them into super pretty wet look glossy brights! Sometimes it's just nice to be able to smoosh your lips together without the grip from a matte lip!

There are 8 colours to choose from in the line and they sell for $13.95AUD. 

Available from all of the usual haunts. Priceline, Chemist Warehouse, Target, Kmart and selected Coles and Woolworths supermarkets.

The three I received were the Crystal Clear, a red called Ooh La La (left) and a sparkly pinky nude called Love Bug (right).

The only slight negative for me about the gloss would be the scent. It doesn't have one. A nice peppermint or vanilla smell to it would have made it a bit more appealing to me, although this might be a bonus for some.  

Well, do I recommend these I hear you all asking? Yes! Perfect for an everyday casual look, great to add some sparkle over the top of lipsticks, or for those days you just want a sheer wash of colour. 

Definitely worth a swatch next time you're browsing the makeup isles. 

Let me know if you have tried these out and what you thought down below!

Xx

Whats In My MECCA Wishlist

If you're like me and don't have unlimited funds in the bank, but you love to "window shop" online, then you will have all your favourite sites bookmarked with wish lists, hearts, save for laters all neatly filed away waiting patiently for some rainy day spare cashola to come your way.

Today I wanted to share my Mecca wishlist.
SO MANY AMAZING GOODIES!!!

1. Philosophy - Birthday Girl Vanilla Bath Gift Set.
Who says gift sets ACTUALLY have to be gifts!? Vanilla birthday cake scented shower gel AND lipgloss sound like heaven to me and I think it would go peachy with my TIGI Caramel shampoo and conditioner! (Product review on that here)

2. Soap & Glory - Orangeasm Body Wash.
For starters, I love ALL Soap & Glory packaging and this body wash sounds amazing. Scented with fresh green mandarine, lemon and orange, this wash would be a nice pick-me-up in your morning shower.

3. Bobby Brown - Hot Nudes Eye Palette.
Umm... YES PLEASE! I have a thing for nude eyeshadow palettes (or eyeshadow palettes in general) and this one is no exception! There are 8 gorgeous shades that include mattes, metallics and shimmers.

4. Diptyque - Vanille Candle.
"A blend of vanilla orchard, sandalwood, elemi and balsamy bourbon vanilla, this candle delivers a scent that is both warm and comforting"
How dreamy does that sound!?

5. Philosophy - Hope In A Jar Night.
This is an intense night time retexturizing moisturiser which claims to help noticeably smooth the skin, visibly soften lines and restore your rosy glow... Who wouldn't like the sound of that?

6. Mario Badescu - AHA Botanical Body Soap.
This one is currently living in my shower as we speak and I love it! A definite repurchase from Mecca after buying my first bottle from an American site I'm happy I can finally get it in Australia. This was featured in Women's Fitness magazine and claimed to help eliminate those pesky little bumps you get on your upper arms... Well, I can say it works!!

7. NARS - Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Cruella.
I've seen a few bloggers rave about these lip pencils and I'd love to get my hands on this colour in particular. A beautiful rich deep red. This shade would look amazing on anybody!

8. Bumble and Bumble - Thickening Dry Spun Finish.
I will try anything that claims to give hair some volume and lift. This claims to add volume, fullness and texture to the hair... SOLD!

9. Philosophy - Coconut Frosting Shower Gel.
Another yummy sounding sweet shower gel to go with my caramel smelling hair. Bring it on!

10. Kiehl's - Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado.
I'm searching for a new eye cream and this one sounds super hydrating and perfect for putting on before bed. The avocado oil helps restore the skins natural moisture.

11. Urban Decay - Naked3 Eyeshadow Palette.
I'm pretty sure I have saved the most wanted until last. The Naked3 palette is the one I would most like in my hands! The rose gold shades look amazing and I am yet to have one of these palettes in my possession. One day soon Urban Decay. One day soon.

Has anyone tried any of the above or have any other suggestions on things I should try? Leave me a shout out below and let me stalk your wish lists!

Xx