Collective Sephora & Fenty Beauty Haul

Your girl is still being savvy with the coins, but I had to ball out with a bit of this graduation money. I mean why not!? from what I’ve purchased and what’s been gifted, I have a nice little collection to share. Sadly, there are no swatches today (I’m clearly slacking) but there’s a lot of good things to look at. I hope you enjoy!

The goods:

Boscia Detoxifying Black Cleanser $10

Bomb Baby Mini Lip and Face Set $23

Lil Match Stix Duo Mini Shimmer Skinstick Set $22

Lip Luminizer Trio in Summer Daze $32

100 Point Perks: YSL Touche Eclat Blur Primer & Sol De Janeiro Brazillian Bum Bum Cream

Fairy Bomb Glittering Pom Pom $42

Killawatt Foil Freestyle Highlighter in the shade Mimosa Sunrise/Sangria Sunset $36

Body Lava in the shade Who Needs Clothes?

Killawatt Foil Freestyle Highlighter in the shade 7daywknd/Poolside $36

YASSS get into the newness!

Target’s Wakeup and Makeup Beauty Box Haul

I had a ball when I saw the stand of beauty boxes displayed in my local Target’s beauty department. It took at least 6 minutes for me to make a decision, asking myself
“do you want to luxuriate?” “do you want new makeup?” or “do you have room for more face masks?”. During my final deliberation, I decided to buy the Wakeup and Makeup beauty box which is a box full of makeup that’s worth $30 USD. for only SEVEN dollars!

For $7 USD, this is what I received:

 

ELF Beautifully Bare Blending Brush $6

ELF Beautifully Bare Natural Glow Face Palette $8

Dove Invisible Dry Spray $5.50

Covergirl Peacock Flare Mascara $5.50

Dove Dry Shampoo – Coconut $2

Honest Beauty Makeup Remover Wipes $2.50

A few weeks in and I’ve used everything except for the dry shampoo, Covergirl mascara, and the makeup brush cleansing wipe. I was quite skeptical when I opened the ELF face palette and realized how light each shade was, to my surprise the blushes and highlighter were able to finish off my everyday makeup look with a natural flush and subtle highlight. The makeup remover wipes worked well but they smell very strong and that was definitely a turn-off. If I was in need of more makeup remover wipes, I would not purchase the Honest brand due to the smell alone, and it is not a bad scent just strong. The spray deodorant works well but I prefer my Degree dry-spray better, as it seems to last longer throughout the day.

Overall, I would definitely purchase another beauty box from Target if they continue selling them in-store! It’s a great deal and opportunity to try products you may have always wanted. A steal!

koyVoca Cosmetics Haul + Review

When I received an email from koyVoca cosmetics saying that everything was 30% off, I ran to their website and placed an order. In this order, I purchased the Hilife Highlighter in the shade Heir $12 and their Classic Setting Powder in the shade Medium-Deep $10.

 

Hilife Highlighter in Heir

 

Choosing a highlighter from their collection was so hard because they have several gorgeous colors and I love them all. I eventually decided on Heir and I’m loving it’s true gold color. The powder is so smooth, doesn’t have obvious glitter and it gives me an ethereal glow. The packaging is compact and great for traveling but I dislike the labels used for the shade names, I accidentally set it on a wet counter and the sticker started peeling almost immediately. Also, my highlighter came with a huge nick in it (as seen above), I assumed that it maybe happened while the powder was being pressed or during shipping.

After traveling with it and using the highlighter a few times there are more dents on the product! If you drop this once, you will probably be devastated at the empty pan and product everywhere. I’m not sure what they are using to press the pigments but the product is way too soft and will break away slowly, do you see all of the powder on the packaging? I don’t have this issue often.

 

Classic Setting Powder in Medium-Deep

 

I have no complaints about this powder! I realize that I should have purchased it in the Medium shade but I am so used to commercial brands who sell medium powders that are really “light” so my skepticism prevented me from going with that option. Thankfully I can work with medium-deep even though it’s a bit too red for my liking. My face is set nicely after initial application then I’ll notice a bit of oiliness in my T-Zone but that has happened with other powders also.

Good Chemistry Fragrance Haul From Target

I recently heard of this affordable fragrance company that just began to sell their products at Target, so I had to go check out what they were offering. They have 16 different scents with prices ranging from $10-$25 dollars. The scents are broken down into four collections with four in each collection.

The collections: Confident and Charming (Floral scents)

Cool & Collected (Earthy Scents)

Vibrant and Playful (Fresh scents)

Good and Grounded (Floral scents)

It was so hard making a decision out of the sixteen scents but I finally was able to decide on three; Brainiac, Daydreamer and Magnolia Violet.

Brainiac is described as clean + practical with a bit of wit. The top notes in Brainiac are citrus, peppercorn, and vanilla.

Daydreamer is described as vivid + lush with a hint of longing. The top notes are sea salt, pineapple, and cashmere woods.

Magnolia Violet is described as romantic + captivating with true elegance. The top notes in this scent are magnolia, peony, and amber.

Out of the three, I am obsessed with daydreamer, I could not help but continuously smell my wrist after applying it. If you come across this brand in-store then I’d definitely recommend picking up at least one scent from Good Chemistry’s line. You won’t regret it!

Fenty Beauty Cosmic Gloss Dupes Under $5

I love Rihanna, I swear I do but I looooove a good deal! At the end of my Jordana Cosmic Glow Holographic Lipgloss haul, I hinted at a finding a possible Fenty Beauty dupe in their collection. Let’s see if the $19 limited edition glosses can be duplicated for $3 by Jordana!

There are three shades out of six in the Jordana collection that look very similar to the Cosmic Glosses by Fenty Beauty but I only own two of those for comparison. If I get my hands on the third from Jordana and Fenty beauty then another post will be coming up soon!

Brilliant Fuschia $3 vs. Plutonic Relationship $19

As you can see from the swatches above, these are pretty spot on! The differences are Plutonic Relationship being more opaque, blue-based and it appears to have more glitter. Outside of that when they are being swatched, you would not be able to tell the difference between the two. I know many people weren’t able to get their hands on Plutonic Relationship when it came out so I am glad that I was able to find an affordable dupe for everyone to try.

Iridescent Purple $3 vs. Gal On The Moon $19

Even though these look spot on in the tubes, Iridescent Purple would not be the closest dupe for GOTM. An alternative? Yes but a dupe it is not. I was really hopeful that this would work out but Gal On The Moon was definitely more purple whereas Iridescent Purple has a green shift due to the glitter used in it. If you enjoy holographic glosses like myself then you will love either one and their differences.

Will you be checking out these affordable Fenty Beauty dupes at your local drugstore?

HAUL | Jordana’s NEW Cosmic Glow Holographic Lipgloss Collection

The lip product junkie in me rejoiced when I saw that Jordana was coming out with a new line of lipglosses. One of my favorite things about the brand is their great deals, but they do not release new products as often as my other favorite drugstore brands.

As soon as I found these glosses in my local Walgreens, I grabbed up two of six from the collection.

Then maybe a few days later, I picked up two more glosses from the collection. At this point, it would seem like I may be going to pick up the last two from the collection but I wasn’t interested in those. A shocker? I know LOL.

The glosses retail for $3 a pop – A DEAL!

The shades that I purchased are 02 Galactic Blue, 03 Crystallized Pink, 05 Brilliant Fuschia and 06 Iridescent Purple.

 

SWATCHES || (R-L) 06 Iridescent Purple – 02 Galactic Blue

 

Stay tuned because I may or may not have a few dupes coming up *cough* Fenty Beauty *cough*!

Laura Geller Diamond Dust Baked Gelato Swirl Highlighter Review

Laura Geller is known for her baked makeup items that give you an “I drink water and mind my business” type of glow. Her baked gelato highlighters are to-die-for and I was excited to get my hands on one. Sometime before Christmas, I came across the diamond dust ornament and figured it’s Christmas packaging was a great excuse to buy this for my stocking. It never made it to its destination but that is neither here nor there.

 

 

Seeing how amazingly the other highlighters applied, I had very high expectations for this highlighter. Were they realistic for this pearl highlighter with a lilac shift? Not exactly but that’s the way life goes.

The diamond dust highlighter is not my favorite as I’ve had very mixed experiences when applying it. When applied with my ELF fan brush it takes a bit of effort to build up color. Whereas it applies very generously with my tapered brush from ELF (featured in my dollar tree brush haul here) that it’s almost overpowering, even with its light coloring. When it is applied to highlight the inner corner of my eye and brow bone it looks amazing!

Final thoughts: Two months and several uses later, I am giving this a pass. If you must pick up a baked blush or highlighter from Laura Geller then skip this shade! Live life with #NoRegrets!

My Five Minute Work/Internship Makeup Routine

In the morning when it’s time to go, it’s time to go – and most times I will briefly do my makeup before hitting the door. At my internship, I am always on the move and a full face using foundation wouldn’t exactly look good at the end of the work-day. So this is what I’ve been doing each morning:

First I’m priming with Fenty Beauty’s Soft Matte Pro’filtr primer, it is my go-to with and without makeup.

Then I’ll buff my MAC MSF in the shade Dark Tan into the skin with my ride-or-die makeup brush from eyeslipsface (E.L.F.).

Next, I will apply Black Radiance’s Baked Blush in the shade Toasted Almond to add a little color to the cheeks.

Following the blush, I’ll add Black Radiance’s Baked Bronzer (read as a highlighter) in the shade Rose Gold to the high points on my cheeks.

After this, I set my makeup with a makeup setting spray mix, and I’ll top the look off with Fenty Beauty’s Gloss Bomb in the shade Fenty Glow.

Easy, breezy, beautiful, working girl!

Mattemoiselle Lipsticks from Fenty Beauty + SWATCHES

The HAULidays haven’t come to a complete end yet. It’s the day after Christmas, Fenty Beauty just launched their line of lipsticks, and my Sephora gift card came in handy.

The Mattemoiselle lipsticks come in 14 unique shades which made it hard to make a final decision. Since they cost $18 a pop, I went with the colors that I would wear the most, PMS and Candy Venom. Each lipstick comes in sleek silver packaging with the Fenty Beauty emblem engraved in the lids.

PMS is described as a moody brown (definitely my fall/winter color), and Candy Venom is described as an electric pink, this color is perfect for NYE!

SWATCHES – Candy Venom (L) | PMS

You can find these lipsticks in Sephora (and online) and on FentyBeauty.com. Happy shopping!

XOXOSelenaNicole’s Beauty Favorites of 2017

Since discovering these items, they have become an everyday staple for creating a full face. My life would not be the same without them, and I believe they deserve every bit of recognition they can receive. I present to you my beauty favorites of 2017…

BEAUTY ||

Fenty Beauty Soft Matte Pro’Filtr Primer | $32

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in the shade Dark Tan | $34

L.A. Colors Contour Stick in the shade Medium

Bad Habit Beauty’s Aphrodite Eyeshadow Palette | $12

Black Radiance Artisan Color Baked Bronzer in the shade Rose Gold | $5

Maybelline Lip Studio Shine Shot Prismatic Top Coat | $5

Kleancolor Pro Sealer Setting Spray | $1.50

Sinful Colors Sinful Shine Polish in the shade Karamel