collective haul #1 - sephora austrlia & mac

Hey guys!

During Christmas time, I was lucky enough to be given a couple of vouchers that allowed me to do some serious damage WITHOUT spending all of my own money! So this is for you friends and family - thank you for allowing me to support my addiction without breaking the bank, especiallt after Christmas time!

The two vouchers I was given was to Sephora and MAC - quite possibly two of the holiest of churches in the make up world. I will admit that some of these purchases did come before Christmas BUT I of course had to check out Sephora when it opened to know exactly what was in there, the layout and all that before I decided to go completely cray with my spending.

This will be a quick post, as I'll just be recapping what I picked up. Some purchases in both hauls were made before Christmas, but I've included everything from both stores that has been a recent purchase. If there is anything you'd like to see a more in-depth review of, I'd be happy to oblige!

First up, Sephora! Sephora AUSTRALIA! How crazy is it that we can actually say that now - Sephora has finally caught up, and now is actually something tangible in our country! I've only been twice, because it's in the city and I don't visit there very often but I had a ball each time I went. Not to mention the damage to my bank account..

In my first haul, I picked up a Sephora lipstick (although I couldn't tell you the name, can't find the bloody thing anywhere), Tarte's Amazonian Butter Lipstick in Angelic Nude, Tarte's LipSurgence Lip Tint in Energy and a sample size of the It Cosmetics Tightline Mascara! I've used them all, and definitely looooove the Tarte products the most. Angelic Nude has a permanent place in my makeup bag and Energy is such an easy colour to wear as it self adjusts to your very own lip colour. I also picked up the Elizabeth & James perfume in White Nirvana for my boyfriend to give me as a Christmas present!

I have my second haul to thank my Christmas vouchers for because wow, I literally spent $7 out of pocket with them! I picked the Bite Beauty Agave Lip Mask in Natural, Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation, a sample size of the It Cosmetics CC Cream (review coming) and two of the Sephora branded masks - one in Rose and the other in Pomegranate. Again, impressed with everything in this haul EXCEPT the Bite Beauty Lip Mask. But that's a rant for another day.

From l-r: Prabal Gurung in Light English Red, Costa Chic, Sunny Seoul, Runner & Gunner

Now onto my MAC haul! I picked up two in a haul from the US and three with my Christmas voucher. The first three pictured were brought with my voucher, one from the LE Prabal Gurung Collection and two from the permanent line, and the last two pictured are from the US and are apart of the LE Nasty Gal Collection which has just hit Australian shores recently!

I do have another haul coming that is full of Black Friday and Christmas sale purchases - and that will probably make its way up early next week! In the meantime, if you like anything you see here and would like a more dedicated post, let me know in the comments!

Until next time...

xxxx

in between blogging, you can find me here!

instagram: http://instagram.com/beautybybek

twitter: https://twitter.com/bekaaturner

my beauty resolutions 2015

Hey guys!

I got this super smart idea from the gorgeous Sarah from Bows & Pleats - making New Year resolutions decdicated to improving your beauty status, as I call it. Let's be real - us make up junkies have some serious issues. We hoard (both make up and packaging), we buy more than one of the same product, are suckers for packaging and more often than not have something similar (if not the same) already sitting in our drawers unused.

I am willing to admit that I own way more make up than necessary for one small girl. And of course, do I ever find the time to use it all? No - I actually rarely wear makeup most days, maybe 3-4 times a week. Not that I am ashamed of how much I own - quite the opposite, actually. I love my collection, and I love looking at it and seeing how much I've stuck to something for the past couple of years. However, since starting blogging last year, my collection has grown immensely, to the point where my drawers are full of products that are just going to go off, and sit there sad and lonely. I've just realised that while it's fine to collect make up and use it, it's a little unnecessary to have drawers full of it - and to keep buying it when there's no room.

It's no secret that I don't do new years resolutions - only because I rarely stick to them. But, I'm making an exception in this case. I'm not saying that I will always stick to them, I mean come on, we all have slip ups or times where we need to treat ourselves. But, I will try to keep these in the back burner of my mind before going into Mecca and just handing them my credit card. We are strong confident women ladies, and we can do this!

I've picked five main points that I will be sticking to as consistenly as I can. Read on to see what I chose!

1. Unless its the MAC Cinderella Collection Bek, you will not buy something just because it looks pretty.

So yes, I am guilty of buying products purely because the packaging on the outside is gorgeous. Sometimes, in the heat of the moment, I don't even really care about the product on the inside. Which would be fine if it was for collecting purposes, but we buy make up to actually make use of it and a black lipstick inside beautiful packaging is not of use to me. So this year, with the exception of few collections (of which I actually like the product), I will not judge a book by its cover and buy it purely because of decoration.

2. Stop buying shitty drugstore products because you're in Priceline and decided that you can't leave the store without at least one thing

Guuuuuuurl, I see you shaking your head but let's be real - the drugstore has proven to have some real duds rather than gems. And then I see gorgeous higher end product, which are usually only $10-20 more than what I just spent my money on, and I get cranky - because I implusively threw money down on something I didn't really need or want, and now I can't have the Too Faced Hangover Primer until next pay day. So now, I'm putting my foot down - and not just throwing my money at Priceline unless I actually need it, or have proof its an actual good product.

3. Go through your make up and throw shit out! Think you need all those eyeshadow palettes you never use? Think again.

I've already done this once this year (using the principle of 'if it hasn't touched your face in a month, it needs to go'), and not only do I have space for more activities, it was also clearing for my mind and somehow motivating to see what I actually want to use more in 2015. Not only that, my mum and sisters in law had a ball going through the box of things that I had leftover, and it's nice seeing it go somewhere where it will actually be used! So, I'm going to try and purge a couple more times this year, and be ruthless! And also, get rid of your packaging girl, so not necessary to just have mounds of cardboard sitting next to your vanity.

4. Rotate, rotate, rotate! 

I will admit that I am guilty of finding a routine that I love and sticking to it until I buy something new. That's bloody awful! Really, I always lose the love I have for other products because of them being replaced and never used again. So I have decided enough is enough - at least once a month, I will be going through my products and choosing what will be my go-to's for the month. I will put them on my vanity, right in front of me, so I always choose them first before looking elsewhere. I am thinking I will do this as a series on my blog as well, not only to show you guys what I am using, but to actually make me stick to this resolution - let me know if that's something you would like to see!

5. Actually wear the makeup that you buy on a permanent regular basis.

This is a big one - I mentioned above that I rarely wear makeup during the week. That's mainly because I'm lazy and I can't be bothered to get up an extra hour before work to slap it on, but really I should be taking that time to do it rather than waking up 10 minutes before I have to leave and running out. Starting now, I will actually get up when my alarm goes off and take the time to put the effort into my appearance. This will not only minimise the amount of people asking me if I'm tired or sick, but I always feel better about myself if I've taken that extra step towards putting a face on. And we all want to feel pretty and happy, and doing this could actually make my shitty days a little more bearable.

So that's it for my resolutions! I'd love to hear what your beauty resolutions are for 2014 - leave them down below! 

Until next time...

xxx

in between blogging, you can find me here!

instagram: http://instagram.com/beautybybek

twitter: https://twitter.com/bekaaturner