June Haul 2016 (Makeup)

Since I didn't purchase a lot of makeup last month, you know that I did some damage this month! Isn't it just crazy how many new products launched recently?! There's also a lot more coming in July! Like, it's crazy and I just fall in love with everything! I just feel like I need it all, even though I really don't. Do you get what I mean? There's just so much out there! Then you have the Indie brands on Instagram, like cosmetics is big now! There's so many brands and as a blogger, I just want to try them all! However, this haul is mostly from Sephora, so hopefully next month, I can purchase things from a few Instagram Indie brands that I've been eyeing! Let's just get into the haul!

A few products from this haul!

I went to Pharmaprix to pick up some makeup wipes. I ran out for my clients, so I had to stock up! I purchased the Garnier Fresh Cleansing Cloths and the Neutrogena All in One Makeup Removing Cleansing Wipes. The Garnier ones were really inexpensive! I've used them before and I do like them. The only thing is that they can get dry really quickly, so make sure that you put them upside down in your kit! That's what I do with all my makeup wipes, so that the first few cloths don't get dry! The Neutrogena ones are better than the Garnier ones, but they're a bit more expensive. However, these get rid of all your makeup with one cloth! Normally with my Garnier ones, I use about 2 cloths. It's also better for waterproof makeup! It also doesn't strip away the moisture from your skin! So, I do recommend the Neutrogena ones over the Garnier ones! I just didn't want to spend a lot that day, so I did 1 and 1! I finally picked up the L'Oréal True Match Lumi Powder Glow Illuminator in Golden. I've heard a lot of great things about this highlighter! I also love L'Oréal products, so I felt like I couldn't go wrong! It was also on sale (I believe $13CAD). I still haven't tried this on yet, but I did swatch it on my arm. It has a lot of glitter in it, so we'll see how it goes.

You always need makeup wipes!

This is my first drugstore highlighter! Can you believe that?!

Next, I made a trip to Sephora. In case you guys didn't read my previous post, Sephora was having a VIB Rouge event, so I went to it. I spoke a little bit about the event and the welcome kit that I received for hitting VIB Rouge for the year 2017:http://makeupcheckbydivya.blogspot.ca/2016/06/2016-vib-rouge-welcome-kit_22.html. I also placed 2 orders online to get some cashback on Ebates! So, the first product that I picked up is the Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance Palette. This palette has the word GORGEOUS written all over it! It's a beautiful palette with berry, mauve, red and orange tones! This is definitely my "summer palette". I just been obsessed with it. My only complaint about this palette is that the eyeshadows are really fragile, so when you dip your brush into it, it kind of gets messy, because the eyeshadows crumble, which causes a bit of fallout. Other than that, it's legit perfection!

I can't get over how stunning this palette is!

I also picked up the Smashbox Master Class Palette: Lightning Theory. This stuff wasn't cheap at all, but I really loved the concept of it. It's a face and eyeshadow palette that comes with correctors, which is really interesting, because most brands don't include correctors in their face palettes! I just found this so convenient, so I splurged! I've swatched the eyeshadows and they're super pigmented and buttery smooth! Again, the eyeshadows are fragile in this palette, so they crumble, which causes a bit of fallout. It's the same thing with the blushes, but the shades are absolutely stunning! The correctors, contour shades and highlighters are all cream products, which are also super pigmented! They're also buttery smooth and blend like a dream! I'm not going to talk too much about this palette, because I do want to review it!

My first Smashbox Master Class Palette

Next, I picked up the Boscia Wakame Firming Hydrogel Mask. I bought a Boscia mask not too long ago and I really liked it, so I decided to pick up another one! This one is to firm, smooth and nourish the skin! I really like how it's a hydrogel mask, because it keeps your skin super hydrated and smooth! I can definitely do a review on this, if you guys are interested!

Boscia Hydrogel Masks are definitely a must try!

Moving right along, I picked up the Anastasia Beverly Hills Lip Gloss in Gilded. This is a beautiful warm orangey brown with gold glitter. I just been obsessed with shimmery lip glosses lately, so I decided to give this a go. I actually never tried a  ABH Lip Gloss before, so I'm super excited! I have so many looks in my mind, I just can't wait to play with this! Next, I purchased the Sephora Contour Eye Pencil 12HR Wear in Tiramisu. It's a gorgeous matte brown. I actually don't own any brown eyeliners, so I had to pick it up for my kit. These Sephora eyeliners have great reviews, so definitely check it out! I also picked up the Buxom Waterproof Lash Mascara. I'm not a fan of waterproof mascaras, but I desperately needed this in my kit for my brides! I also read great reviews about this mascara, so hopefully it works out!

That lip gloss is stunning!

We're almost done with this haul! I picked up the Sephora Argan Hand Mask. I already used this and yes, when you put this mask on your hands, it's super moisturizing. The next day (I put this mask on at night), my hands went back to being really dry. So, it didn't do much for me, but it felt good for the 20 minutes that it was on. Will I be repurchasing it? I doubt it. Lastly, I purchased the Sephora Pomegranate Eye Mask. I love how hydrated my under eyes felt after using this mask. However, I still seemed pretty tired, it didn't do anything for anti fatigue. Maybe, I have to use it more than once to see a difference, so maybe I'll give it another try in the future and purchase a few of them to see if it does help. However, since these are like $5 a mask, maybe it's better to just purchase a eye cream, so we'll see.

Has anyone tried these masks? What do you think of them?

Other than that, that's all that I purchased. I received 2 PR packages this month. The first one was from Tatcha. I've never tried anything from Tatcha before, so I'm super excited and grateful for this package! They sent me the "Ritual Discovery Kit". It comes with 4 deluxe size products (they're a really good size!). This Ritual Discovery Kit came with the Pure: One Step Camellia Cleansing Oil, Polished: Classic Rice Enzyme Powder, Supple: Moisture Rich Silk Cream and Radiant: Deep Brightening Serum. It's such a beautiful luxurious skincare brand honestly, like I'm not going to go into detail, since I'll be posting the review soon! Like, the review will be a must read!

Thank you Tatcha for these beautiful products!

I also received a package from My Makeup Brush Set. They sent me The Aphrodite 10 Piece Oval Brush Set. I've always wanted to try these Oval Brushes, so I'm super excited that they sent me this! Everyone has been using these! The Artis sets cost about $580, so My Makeup Brush Set is a complete steal, because this set retails for $39.99! The brushes are great quality, so it's definitely worth the price! I'm not going to go too much into it, but my review should be up soon, so stay tuned for that!

These brushes are gorgeous! Thank you My Makeup Brush Set

That's it for my June Haul! It wasn't my biggest haul, but it was quite a bit of products, no? There's so many reviews that I started, so definitely stay tuned for those! Be sure to subscribe to my blog, so that you don't miss a thing! I also been posting a makeup look every week, so please follow my Instagram @divya_patelxo. Hope you guys have a great week!

2016 VIB Rouge Welcome Kit

You know you have a serious makeup addiction when you hit VIB Rouge! This is like my third year hitting VIB Rouge and honestly, I don't know if that's a good or bad thing! The benefits are great, but my bank account isn't too fond of it! So, I wanted to write this post to just inform you guys on what VIB Rouge is and to show you this year's welcome kit. I'll also be talking about the recent event that I went to at Sephora! So ya, hopefully you can jump on this VIB Rouge wagon with me!

VIB Rouge 2016 

Let's start off with "What is VIB Rouge?". You hit VIB Rouge when you spend over $1000 at Sephora in a calendar year. It's a lot of money, but if you're a makeup addict, it's not really a problem. Once you become VIB Rouge, you get tons of benefits that regular Beauty Insiders and VIBs don't get! Some of the benefits include exclusive VIB Rouge events, unlimited free makeovers throughout the year, free shipping on all online orders, a private concierge and early access to special products and offers. You also get a "welcome kit" every time that you hit VIB Rouge in a calendar year!

The past few years, the welcome kit was ok. My first year, I got the mini Bite Beauty lipstick. It was a nice lipstick, but it finished really quickly since it was a deluxe size. I'll be honest, I wasn't too impressed with it, but then again, Sephora isn't obligated to have a rewards program, so I'm thankful for anything! Last year, I got the full size of the Formula X nail polish in this red shade (unfortunately I lost the nail polish, so I don't know the name! However, it was VIB Rouge exclusive). Nail polishes last forever, so this was a really nice gift! It was a gorgeous true red on top of it! Now for 2016, Sephora made things even better. This year it came with a deluxe size of the Nars Blush in Goulue. I already own a deluxe size Nars Blush and these last forever! They come with 4g of product, which is almost like getting the full size of the blush (regular Nars blushes come with 4.5g of product). Trust me when I say that it'll last you forever! Goulue is a medium-dark berry shade with subtle warm gold shimmer in it. It's more on the cool side. It's definitely a unique shade! It also comes with a little pamphlet listing your benefits as a VIB Rouge and you also get a coupon for a friend to get a free makeover at Sephora! Also, they did a good job with the presentation. The box just feels so luxurious! It's nice to get rewarded for your beauty addition! 

The beautiful box!

Inside the box

VIB Rouge exclusive Nars Blush in Goulue (deluxe size)

The swatch of Goulue!

Let's get into the event that I went to on Wednesday. Sephora always sends you the event invite last minute. I only get them a a few days before the actual event, which is why I'm not really able to attend them all the time. This time I just got lucky and had nothing planned after work. I went with my friend Dana. She's also a makeup lover. The event was from 7-9pm and we went at 8. It was pretty dead, there weren't that many people. We went to the Sephora in Fairview (West Island) and the staff is always so nice! They're super welcoming and helpful! I had a list of the products that I was going to purchase, but unfortunately, everything was sold out. So, I didn't end up picking up that much. We didn't get a discount or anything. It was just a exclusive shopping experience for VIB Rouges. However, if we spent more than $35, we did get this really nice Sephora bag filled with deluxe sized samples! They were really nice sizes and weren't just a one use thing! They also had refreshments, such as macaroons, which were delicious! So ya, it was nothing fancy, but who doesn't like being at Sephora?! The event that they have in November is a lot better, since you get a discount and early access to the holiday collections! This time around, there were new products, but most of them weren't available at my local Sephora. At least I got some really nice samples, so I'm happy!

The makeup bag that we received! It's pretty big!

Here are a few deluxe samples that we received. I'm missing about 3 of them! 

That concludes this post! If you shop a lot at Sephora, just keep track of your spending. If you're a few bucks away from VIB Rouge, I would definitely spend those bucks to become one! I think the benefits are just great! Who else became a VIB Rouge this year? What do you think of the Nars Blush? I have a lot of reviews that are coming your way, so be on a look out for that! You can subscribe to my blog, so that you don't miss a thing! Also, don't forget to follow me on Instagram @divya_patelxo. Hope you guys have a great week! 

Ouai: Dry Shampoo Review

Hey guys, today I'll be reviewing the Ouai Dry Shampoo. I been getting a lot of questions about it lately, so I figured why not talk about it on my blog. In case you guys haven't heard about Ouai, it's Jen Atkin's line. She's a celebrity hair dresser and stylist. She's known for working with the Kardashians. Ever since Ouai launched, I feel like everyone has been talking about her! The Kardashian's hair is always on fleek, so her hair products must be also, right? A lot of beauty gurus and bloggers have been talking about her products, so I kind of fell for the hype! But ya, let's just jump into the review! 

Who else has tried this dry shampoo?

Let's start off with the packaging. It's simple, but chic! I really like the silver tin packaging, it's just so nice to display it on your vanity! The bottle and spray is the same as most dry shampoos, there's nothing fancy about it. It's super simple. Now, I haven't been a fan of this bottle. I don't know if I got a bad one, but the product has just been leaking. I threw it in my purse (like I do with most dry shampoos) and it just leaked! It wasn't exposed to heat or anything. Luckily, the cap stayed shut, but I had a hard time removing the cap and since the product dried up, the spray part was jammed. It took me like 10 minutes to clean it up and get the spray to work again. After that, I just left it on my vanity and decided not to travel with it. Even when I left it on my vanity, I had the same leaking issue. The bottle was standing up and it still leaked. Not only is it a struggle to clean it up, the product was getting wasted. So, it's been a real struggle, I've wasted a lot of product! It just keeps leaking! I never dropped it or anything, so I guess I just got a bad one?! Has anyone else had that issue?! I never experienced this with any other dry shampoo before! This product retails for $30CAD and comes with 4.5oz. The price isn't too bad, because most dry shampoos range around that price point at Sephora and this product does come with a bit more product. This product is available at Sephora and  Ouai's website (www.theouai.com). 

Another view

Some of you may be new to dry shampoo. It's basically a shampoo in a spray bottle. It neutralizes oil and product build up, leaving your hair feeling instantly refreshed! It's really simple to use. All you do is hold the bottle 6" from your hair and you spray your roots. You flip your hair and then "fluff" with your fingers. 

Up close!

Let's talk about the product itself. It has a strong musky scent to it, which I'm not a fan of. However, a lot of people do like it, but if you're not into musky scents, then I doubt you'll like it. Aside from that, it does work well. I do two quick sprays and it leaves my hair looking fresh! It even adds a little volume to it! It's not sticky and  it does what it states! My hair tends to get really greasy and this stuff solves the problem!  I do find at times it makes my hair stiff. I don't know if it's because I spray too much. It doesn't always feel stiff every time that I use it, just the 3-5 times, it was weird. However, I did have a issue with the packaging, so it could have been because of that! Also, I have this dry patch in the back of my head. Like my hair is always dry there. When I spray this on top of it, it just looks and feels dry. Normally, I don't have that issue with other dry shampoos, but with this one I did. I try to avoid that area! Also, be sure to shake the bottle really well or else it'll leave that white cast on your hair! Other than that, it's a good product. It lasts all day! The next day, it starts to get flat, but you can always just use the dry shampoo again to refresh your hair!

Last view of this product!

Bottom line, would I repurchase it? It works well, but I'm not blown away by it! I find my Living Proof works better than this one. Maybe if they fixed the few issues that I had, I would repurchase it! As of now, I find there's better alternatives in the market! However, I still want to try the other Ouai products, so let me know if you guys have tried them and if you like them or not. Also, let me know your thoughts on this product! I don't know if I'm the only one that feels this way about it. I was expecting a lot more! This was definitely hyped up way too much!

May Favorites 2016

Hey guys, so I'm bringing to you my May Favorites! I actually been loving the same products that I mentioned last month!  If you haven't checked out my April Favorites, well here is the link: http://makeupcheckbydivya.blogspot.ca/2016/05/april-favorites-2016.html. I have a few new additions of course! I also posted my May Haul, so be sure to check that out: http://makeupcheckbydivya.blogspot.ca/2016/05/may-haul-2016-makeup.html. So ya, let's just jump right into my favorites!

Some of my May Favorites! Which products have you been loving?

I have a few highlighters that I've been loving this month! I've been all about that glow! The first highlighter that I want to mention is Champagne Pop by Becca & Jaclyn Hill. Honestly, this was definitely one of my favorite highlighters of 2015! I was obsessed with it and I used it several months in a row! I even used it on my clients, because I just wanted everyone to see how beautiful it was! It's a gorgeous pale gold with peachy undertones. It legit suits any skin tone! The formula is also out of this world! Like, it's super pigmented and long lasting! It's buttery smooth, like I'm just obsessed with it! I wrote a quick review on it: http://makeupcheckbydivya.blogspot.ca/2015/08/becca-x-jaclyn-hill-shimmering-skin.html. As you may have heard, Jaclyn collaborated again with Becca and released a few items! That's why I remembered Champagne Pop and I was like: Why haven't I used this in so long?! Next, I've been obsessing over the MAC Skinfinish in Otherearthly. This is probably the most creative highlighter that MAC has released. There's basically 3 different shades in this compact. You have a silver, a nice iridescent pink and a bronzey gold. You can definitely mix all 3 shades for a beautiful custom shade. Like, there's multiple shades that you can create! It has a lot of glitter packed in it, which gives it that opaque finish. So, if you don't like a shimmery highlighter, this may not be for you. I actually never used to like super shimmery highlighters, but I started LOVING them now! This product is super pigmented and blends like a dream! It's also really long lasting! Like, I have nothing bad to say about it. It's definitely something different and gives you a break from your gold and champagne highlighters! That's the main reason why I been using it so often lately! I just wanted a change. It's limited edition, but it's still available on The Bay's website, so get it while you can! The last highlighter that I wanted to mention is the Anastasia Beverly Hills Glow Kit in That Glow. I purchased this last month, but I only really started using it this month and OMG, I'm obsessed! The packaging is absolutely stunning and it's so travel friendly! I also love how this kit comes with 4 huge highlighters! I've been loving all 4 shades, but my favorite has to be Bubbly and Dripping in Gold! I like how there's something for every skin tone! It's very convenient for makeup artists! The formula is also just wow! It's super pigmented! These powders are buttery smooth! It's super long wearing and blends really nicely! This is just the perfect palette for the summer time! I've been also using some of the shades as eyeshadows and they're just so stunning!

These highlighters are everything!

Speaking of palettes, I've been using the Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit like crazy this month! My favorite contour kit is definitely the Kat Von D Shade and Light Palette and I've been using it for several months now. However, I found my ABH kit the other day and I decided to toss it in my kit, since the pans are refillable. I started using it more and more. I forgot how much I actually loved this palette! The powders are pigmented, blendable and long wearing. They're not as smooth as I would like them to be, but they're still really good quality! My palette is actually custom made. I mixed both the original kit with the medium-tan kit. The shades I have are Vanilla, Banana, Peaches & Cream, Java, Fawn and Havana. These shades are very similar to the ones in the Kat Von D Palette. I made it that way so that I can cover every skin tone! It's been working out great and I'll be keeping this in my kit forever now!

This palette is so beat, because I love it!

Another product that I been obsessing over is the Cover Fx Custom Cover Drops in G60. I know I'm the last person to purchase this, but OMG! This stuff is everything! It's so full coverage, but yet feels so light on the skin! It's like your skin, but better! It also leaves this beautiful velvet finish! It blends like a dream and it's super long wearing! Like, this stuff doesn't budge! I've been applying it with a beauty blender, which works really well! I've been mixing it with my L'Oreal Infallible foundation, since G60 is a bit dark for my skin. Both of them combined is just out of this world! It gives me the perfect color and coverage! Like, I'm so obsessed with that combination! It's been my go to foundation combo all month and I see the streak continuing for the rest of the year! If you haven't purchased these drops, please do! You'll thank me!

This product is most likely going to end up in my holy grail! I have a good feeling!

Next, I been loving the MAC Pro Longwear Concealers in NC42 and NW35. I had NW35 for the longest time and I never really used it, because I always thought that I got matched wrong. However, that's not the case at all. I was given this shade, because I have dark under eye circles (this shade has peachy undertones). It's not really a concealer that brightens my under eyes, but it definitely covers the dark circles! It just blurs everything out and leaves a natural finish! I bought NC42 for my kit! I was told that it's a popular shade for South Asian people. So, I used it on myself and I really liked it! It definitely brighten up my under eye area (which was something that NW35 didn't do). Since then, I been using both the shades together and it just gave me the perfect coverage under my eyes! I only use a bit of NC42, because I don't want my under eyes to look unnatural and too cakey! These are amazing concealers! It has a medium to full coverage! They have a great shade range! It has a nice consistency to it! It's long wearing! It also blends like a dream! It also comes with a pump and all, so it's really convenient! Now I know what the hype is about these concealers! You just need to find the right shade and combination honestly! I think these concealers may just be a part of my holy grail!

I think everyone can agree that this concealer is amazing!

Color correcting has definitely been trending this year! There's so many brands that came out with palettes, but I stuck to these Nyx Above & Beyond Full Coverage Concealers in Green and Orange. These are inexpensive and come with a ton of product! I bought the Green to conceal any redness that I have on my face and the Orange for my dark under eye circles. The consistency of these are really thick, so a little does go a long way. However, they blend really nicely! They're also really creamy and pigmented! They don't feel oily and they last a really long time! I just been obsessed with them! You really don't need any of those expensive fancy palettes! All you need is to figure out which imperfections you want to correct and just invest in these! I also love these for my kit! It's just so convenient!

These are a must have!

I been using the same lip products as last month. Nothing different, but this month I've been feeling dark lips. I know it's Spring and all, but I just couldn't help it! I just had to bust out my Nyx Soft Matte Lip Cream in Transylvania. This is my favorite deep purple! It's nice and dark. You already know how I feel about the Soft Matte Lip Creams! It's an amazing formula! It feels super rich on the lips! It just doesn't last on my lips as long as I want it to, but it only requires minimal touch ups, which doesn't bother me. Also, even though these look small, they last a really long time! This is my second year that I had it and it still has product (and I wear this a lot!). Like I said, it's not a spring color, but I just wore this every time that I went out this month! If you're looking for a nice dark purple, definitely look into this!

I'm obsessed with Transylvania!

The last product that I wanted to mention is my Makeup Geek eyeshadows. I been going in strong with my Tartelette in Bloom Palette, but I been rotating that with this custom palette. I know I said that I'll do a "What's in my Makeup Geek Palette", but I honestly haven't purchased any new shades to fill up my palette. I also really love the quality of these eyeshadows, so I do want to transfer them into a bigger Z Palette, so ya, that's why it's been on hold. I get great use out these eyeshadows! They're so pigmented and buttery smooth! They're super long lasting! They also blend really nicely! The shade range is also to die for! They also have a ton of different finishes, like Makeup Geek is big on eyeshadows! If you haven't tried them yet, girl you're missing out! They're also super affordable! I just can't get enough of them! Some of my favorite shades are Bling, Shimma Shimma, Beaches & Cream, Creme Brulee, Magic Act Frappe and Cocoa Bear. I use these in my freelance work as well. Like, it's worth every penny!

Who doesn't love Makeup Geek Eyeshadows?!

That's it for my May Favorites! I hope you guys enjoyed reading this post! What are some of your favorite products of the month? I'm going to be in Toronto this weekend, so I'll try to get something up for you guys late next week! I have a few reviews that I want to do! I also want to continue with the freelance makeup artist tips. Maybe, I'll start a series with blogging! What do you guys think? Oh and I'm always opened to suggestions and reviews, so feel free to let me know! Have a great rest of the week guys!