Sephora & Ulta Haul + Cargo Hands of Hope Palette!!!

Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed your Christmas! :)

So today I went after Chrismas shopping at the mall and picked up a few things from Sephora and Ulta. Here are my first impressions of each one in case any of you are interested in learning more about each product. Today is the first day I've used the majority of these products so I'll update my opinions later on down the line and keep you all posted.

By the way, I almost always read reviews on Makeupalley before purchasing items. It's saved me a lot of time and trouble by helping me weed out good products from the bad ones and I would highly recommend you register for that site if you already haven't :)



-L'Oreal Extra-Intense Liquid Pencil in Grey:
I have the Carbon Black version of this pencil and I absolutely love it. I bought the grey this time because I wanted to get something that would look less harsh on my waterline for less dramatic looks. These pencils are smooth, soft, pigmented, and stay on for a VERY long time. The Carbon Black shade is as inky and dark as black gets. These remind me of Stila Kajals except they actually last, even on the waterline. Probably my favorite drugstore liner along with Revlon Colorstay.

-L'Oreal Telescopic in Carbon Black:
I have been wanting this mascara for the longest time after hearing so much about its lengthening abilities. I tried it out today. It's SUPER black (love the Carbon Black shade L'Oreal has) and really does give my lashes a lot of length. The wand is unlike any other wand I've tried. It's rubbery but very narrow with a large space between each row of bristles... interesting. I've only tried it once so I'll keep you posted on this one.

Update: This really reminds me of my BE Flawless Definition Mascara. This is more of a 'wet' formula so make sure you're okay with that if you plan on checking this one out!

-L'oreal Extra-Collagen Mascara in Blackest Black (WP):
I might go back and exchange this one for the original formula instead of the waterproof I accidentally grabbed up. I usually prefer original formulas over waterproof because I like the consistency a lot more. This is supposed to be very similar to Voluminous, one of my favorite mascaras for volume. Comparing the two wands, Extra-Collagen is a lot larger and the bristles are less uniformed.

Update: Really did not like this. Clumpy and hard to apply. Stick with Voluminous, it's a much better choice.



-L'oreal HIP Duo in Sassy:
The taupey purple shade in this duo is supposed to be an exact dupe of MAC's Satin Taupe. I used to own Satin Taupe way back when, but swapped it on MUA awhile ago since I thought it made me look bruised. It was a beautiful color swatched on its own though.... Then I started getting curious, wondering what other colors it would pair well with. Instead of purchasing another one, I went with the L'Oreal option because if I didn't like it the second time around, it wouldn't matter because I loved the blue color this duo came with too :) Both colors have a pretty sheen and are highly pigmented. This is definitely a higher quality DS e/s than most in my honest opinion.



NARS Concealer Duo in Custard & Ginger: (Medium-Medium Warm shade)
This was in the Sephora weekly special section for $10. I couldn't pass it up, it was such a steal. Originally, this concealer duo retails for $30. It was the only shade available for the special but was actually the perfect match for my skintone. I would say this would work well on skintones between an NC35 and NC42. Those on opposite ends of the spectrum might only be able pull off one color or the other. I I'm about an NC37 so both shades work for me... how convenient! :) I noticed that the lighter shade worked better for my undereye area while the darker shade worked well with blemishes and any discoloration. If you're a little lighter, you can maybe even use the darker shade as a brown base over UDPP or even a cream contour color. If you're darker, you can use the lighter one to highlight, like down the bridge of your nose. These are very creamy without being oily and have a natural finish. Very pigmented, as are all NARS products. I purchased another one for my sister :)

-Cargo Hands of Hope Palette:
OMG!!! This is probably my favorite beauty purchase of the year!!! I'm so glad that I got my hands on this beautiful palette. Seriously, it kicks some of my MAC and UD palettes to the curb, it's that good. I don't even feel the need to purchase the new BOS anymore. My life is complete, LOL! I've never been interested in Cargo but they REALLY caught my attention with their holiday palettes. I was lucky enough to even find one of these in stock. The first two Sephoras I checked today had been completely out of stock since way before Christmas. On the way back home from shopping, we happened to pass by another Sephora, one that was not as popular of a location as the other two. I gave it a shot and got.... THE LAST ONE! Yay! I was soo excited to see my palette lying there all alone in the back of the shelf and literally snatched it up in like a second. I think this one lady and her daughter next to me thought I was completely insane, lol. Now onto the palette itself....



They have a beautiful pearly sheen in real life. The colors are brighter. The purple is more purple in real life. It turned out a little blue/violet in the picture. The camera didn't pick up the colors too well :(

It's hard for me to justify buying a palette if I'm not completely in love with all the colors... and rarely does this ever happen. There's always that one shade that's really off or one you're never going to use. That was not the case with the Cargo palette. I love all the colors in this palette. It's a good mix of bright funky (yet wearable) colors and un-boring neutrals. I haven't played around with the colors too much (the beautiful embossed Hamsa hands also play a part in this) but I've swatched them all and they are buttery smooth, soft, blendable and pigmented. What you see is exactly what you get. The texture reminds me a lot of MAC's Veluxe Pearls. I especially love the purple, green, and taupey brown shades in the top row. There are a lot of unique shades in this palette, which is another plus.



The best part about this palette was the incredible value I got for just $29. In my eyes, this palette would definitely be worth at least $40. The shadows are also HUGE and the embossed packaging is unique and very pretty. Basically, you would be paying $3 and some change for each shadow, which is a great deal. I'll put up some swatches as soon as I get a chance to. The only bad part about this palette is that the individual shadows do not come with names :(

This palette was nearly impossible for me to find and I don't believe they are restocking it since it was a holiday collection. If you're planning on purchasing this palette, try calling the store first. It'll save you a lot of time and trouble. It's still available as of now on the Sephora website but who knows for how long. Seriously, HURRY and get this one before it's gone for good!!

I also stopped by Walgreen's again and picked up a WnW tinted moisturizer in Sunkissed after hearing so many amazing things about it on MUA. I'll keep you guys posted on that as well :) And the little sample jars in the picture are Benefit's High Beam and Moon Beam, which I'll be trying out this week.

Oh and one last thing...
I've also been really interested in purchasing MAC's Spring Bean lipglass. It's a bright shimmery green in the tube but when applied to the lips, it neutralizes the red in your lips and leaves you with a honey nude lip. Does anybody own this lipglass? If so, what are your thoughts on it??