American Haul

Hi everyone,

Sorry that I haven't posted in so long! I've been away in America & also recovering from serious jet lag. I was staying in 2 states in America over 2 weeks - California & Kentucky! Both awesome places but very, very hot. One of the best highlights though.. SEPHORA! Wish we had it in Ireland! SO many awesome brands there that we don't have easy access to yet.

So I went on a couple of sprees during my time there, and picked lots of makeup I've been dying to try & also a few skincare and haircare products that seemed interesting. Keep reading to find out what I picked up and what I think of these products so far.

1. Nars Audacious Lipstick

Beginning with makeup, I picked up mainly smaller items such as lip and eye products. These all came from Sephora (tarting from left to right in the photo above). The Nars Juliette lipstick is such a beautiful summery & bright coral colour, I'm wearing it every time I go out these nights. It's very warm but also super fun. It's from the Audacious collection & is very creamy and easy to apply (unlike most of my other lipsticks which are mainly matte). I picked this up for about $32.

2. Make Up For Ever – Full Cover Concealer

I have to say, I was embarrassingly happy when I tried this concealer out.. I'm quite a big fan of thicker concealer that really do their job and conceal. This concealer is very suitable for those who prefer heavier, thicker concealers or those who have skin problems such as acne, redness, hyper-pigmentation or skin discolouration. I'm a sufferer of a little bit of all of these problems, especially macules from previous problems with acne. This concealer does it's job. And I really mean that.

I'm a big lover of MAC and have always favoured their concealers along with Dermablend concealer, but this has to top both of those brands. It's description is "camouflage cream", and you'd well believe it. Definitely worth the money if you are a suffering from any skin problems and feel uncomfortable with your face. I picked this up in Sephora for about $32 as well, and in the shade number 5 because I like my concealers being a little lighter than my foundation - it really helps with highlighting.

3. Nars Lip Pencil Duo
This lip pencil from Nars was actually given to me from Sephora as an early birthday present, because the woman in the store realised I wouldn't be in the US on my birthday so she just popped it in my bag as a 2 month early birthday present, haha! The lip pencils are fabulous, espeically the matte pencil in shade Cruella. This is a brilliant red that gives such a matte, classic feel to your look. The other pencil is a satin pencil, in shade Rikugien. This is also lovely, and quite simple - gorgeous for a casual evening or daytime lip.

4. Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade
FINALLY I got my hands on Anastasia Beverly Hill's Dipbrow Pomade! And it's incredible.. as expected! My brows are definitely better than they have ever been thanks to this! I bought it in the shade Ebony because of my dark hair & eye colouring. This is a very light yet perfectly pigmented gel, that blends into your eyebrows keeping their shape & colour perfect. I use this with any angled brush, be it MAC, AYU or Callanberry. I've fallen in love with it, and it was only $18! I will be posting a photo on my Instagram (@besosbeauty) of my brows after using this product so keep an eye out.

5. Nars Dual-Intensity Eyeshadow

I spotted this gorgeous shimmery eyeshadow as I was browsing in Nars in Brown Thomas, Dublin, but they were unfortunately sold out at the time! :( So I waited until I got to California before swiping it up. This shadow is the shade Desdemona and is a sort of pink/purple shade depending in what light your standing in. This shadow works best on primer, but is still incredibly pigmented without. This shadow also works wonderfully well when mixed & applied wet, boosting the dramatic colour and shine. This is priced at $29.

6. Beautyblender
I've been dying to get my hands on these babies for months now, and I know a lot of brands do their own versions of these but I really wanted to try out the originals. These Beautyblenders are absolutely game-changing. They have enhanced my foundation & concealer skill like you wouldn't believe. They work unbelievably well. Beautyblenders are literally magic wands when it comes to applying makeup. They help to apply makeup without any streaking whatsoever – no lines, no brush marks. The makeup also stays put for HOURS, without budging. These, combined with a heavy, creaseless concealer + a good setting spray = real life airbrushing. So, SO worth the money. Definitely my number 1 buy. All you have to do is wet them, squeeze them and apply. They soak up as little makeup as possible. These are priced at $20 each. There are many variations of Beautyblenders which you can find on their site - http://www.beautyblender.com.