I was a bad girl this summer! The damage includes two Ciaté shell manicures (a must-have for the mermaid-obsessed), Fresh Sugar Tulip lip balm, YSL Kiss & Blush in #7 Coral Affranchi, Lipstick Queen Jungle Queen lipstick (loving this!), NARS Lost Coast and Tropical Princess duos, NARS Malacca eye shadow and Baalbek eye paint, MAC Legendary Lure eye shadow from the Alluring Aquatic collection, Chanel Mirage Illusion d'Ombre, and Philly Loves Lacquer nail polishes in On the Way to Cape May and Wildwoods by the Sea – couldn't resist the NJ-shore themed names!
(Note: You might know I've dreamed of starting another blog that would be a more traditional beauty blog with product reviews and swatches. Since I can't even keep up with the Museum regularly I know this isn't a good idea, so I thought I'd work in some very quick, not-very-detailed reviews when I do my haul posts which you may or may not find helpful. Please feel free to email me or ask questions about particular products in the comments section.)
The quality of all the NARS stuff is impeccable. The shadows are pigmented and silky and though they look like odd colors they look beautiful on the lids. Plus you can mix and match – earlier this week I paired the pewter shade from Lost Coast with Malacca and lined with Baalbek and it looked fabulous. Chanel Mirage is lovely for summer. It's a bit warmer and less glittery than Initiation, which is the bronze Illusion d'Ombre Chanel released for their holiday 2013 collection. I'm impressed with the longevity of the YSL Kiss & Blush as it doesn't budge on cheeks or lips. As for MAC's Legendary Lure shadow, it's a dark and mysterious shade. I wear it on the outer corner of my lids with a lighter greenish-blue over the whole lid (I call it my "evil mermaid" look.) Like the NARS shadows, it's very silky and applies wonderfully wet or dry. I want more of these shadows.
I loved the Ciaté shells, although they're incredibly impractical – the rough texture snags on everything. I just did my ring finger with them too, I can't imagine having shells on every digit. But I do feel appropriately mermaid-esque when I wear them.
Then there were some other things I gathered later on: Rescue Beauty Lounge polishes in Will They Won't They, Not Your Baby and Instant Amnesia from the Anatomy of a K-drama collection, Lorac Pore-Fection foundation (not loving it), Perricone No Mascara Mascara, MAC Black Ivy Fluidline from the Moody Blooms collection, Becca Shimmer Souffle in Lychee/Opal, LUSH Mangnificent soap and D'Fluff shaving cream (both are delish), and some stuff from R & Co., whose packaging I had been coveting for months. I walked into my salon for a cut and lo and behold they had just started carrying it!
Truth be told, I'm saving Not Your Baby and Instant Amnesia for fall and Will They Won't They for next spring because I'm weird that way. Certain colors strike me as belonging in particular seasons so sometimes I'll buy things and save them for when the weather seems right for the color. The Perricone mascara is fabulous – very subtle and it's perfect for days when I just need a little something extra. My lashes are long thanks to Latisse, but some days I still look tired so it's good to have a product that isn't overly dramatic but is enough to help my eyes look more awake. It doesn't smudge, flake or irritate my sensitive, contact-wearing eyes, and comes off easily and completely with cleansing oil. As for R & Co., the Gemstone shampoo is nice but I feel like I have to use a lot to get my hair squeaky clean, while the Rockaway is comparable to other salt sprays I've tried. I'll probably stick with Bumble and Bumble Color-Minded shampoo and Surf Spray or Davines Sea Salt Spray. The whole line is vegetarian and gluten-free though, so that's where these products differ from Bumble and Bumble. The jury is still out on the Dallas thickening spray. I've been using it regularly so now I want to stop using it and see if it makes a noticeable difference (if it has made a difference I haven't noticed.)
What did you haul this summer? Any hits or misses?