August Collective Haul

It is time for my favourite end-of-month post! Haul posts and videos are my favourite because I feel they portray the blogger/vlogger's individual style and tastes...and they might even be a source of inspiration for your next buys!

This month was a little heavy in terms of shopping for shops were still on sale and the majority of them had prices slashed down by 70%. I took the opportunity to buy a few things to take with me to London this December (yes we will be going for the second time in a matter of 9 months!) and I need some different clothes since the temperatures will be much less than the previous visit.

Mango in Paola ticked most boxes and I was pleased to find good deals on clothes my size! Firstly, this suede leather jacket which originally retailed for €90 and I paid €44.99 for it. Next I got four new pairs of jeans at €22.49 per pair (sale price). Mango do some very good jeans and I have pairs from them over 5 years old and still look good! I also got some jumpers and tops and I couldn't resist the 'Bloggers Do It Better One' even though it was too big for me but I can always wear it around the house. The white jumper was €12.49, the half-sleeve top was €19.99, the navy blue one was €14.99 and the slogan one was €12.49.

I needed a new set of pajamas and I found this gorgeous set on sale at Boux Avenue. It was still a little pricey at €25 I guess but considering it was 50% off I don't think it's that bad of a deal and they are really comfortable! Incidentally my mum, was shopping at BHS and found me this pair of super comfy slippers that match the pajamas. They were only lying in the damaged goods bin priced just €3 and honestly, neither me nor my mum could find any damage. Well, they're mine at a bargain price anyways!

The last clothing related purchase I made this month is this gorgeous pair of leather pumps with ankle strap. I love shoes with ankle straps and the blood red colour of this one is just perfect come winter. The best part? It was down to just €35 from €96!

Up next are makeup and beauty purchases starting with MAC. Of course, my excitement over the opening of two MAC posts in Malta has not yet subsided so I went again and bought Brick-o-la Amplified Lipstick (€19), Petrol Blue PearlGlide Intense Eyeliner (€17.50) and Gleam Lustre eyeshadow (€18). Of course Ruby Woo lipstick and Soar liner were out of stock so when the second store opened and I got a call from my friend Marija that she could try and see if they have them, I jumped at the chance and here they are!!! Ruby Woo costs €19 and Soar costs €15.20. I also managed to drop Ruby Woo when I first opened it, hence the weird looking bullet tip in the picture.

I picked up some essentials from Yves Rocher and this is what I got; a lavender foot scrub (€5.10), Apple Star Anise Exfoliating Shower Gel summer limited edition (€4.50), Active Sensitive masque (€14.50) and Raspberry perfume (€5.60).

Other random bits I purchased are this Nivea lip balm, a Max Factor clear nail polish and the Max Factor CC Colour Corrector in Yellow as I really wanted to try it. I think the polish was €7.40 and the concealer was €10.40 but I can't remember the price of the lip balm.

The much anticipated and hyped about Urban Decay Naked Smoky palette has also made it's way to my makeup cabinet and I couldn't be happier! It cost me around €55 from feelunique.com but I think it is worth every cent!

Lastly, I have two Essence products which were a gift from a friend. So a few weekends ago, Essence organized an event where you paid €5 or €10 and you got the chance to dig in and take home whatever you could grab. She got the Gel Nails at Home Primer and an Effect Gel Top Coat and since she doesn't use gel polish, she gifted them to me :)

That concludes this month's haul post! Now I am going to try and be a very good girl and not buy anything till December so I can have money to splurge on a luxury item or two in London!

Monthly Favourites | August

Last month I skipped the favourites post because there were really no new products to show you but this month has definitely made up for it for I have quite a lot of new things to share with you!

For starters, I have two new summer favourites courtesy of Lierac Paris and Kiko Cosmetics. Let me start with the Kiko Summer Wipes first. These wipes are meant to dissolve salt from the skin after swimming so that you can refresh yourself and they have proven to be God-send when we went to the beach in the afternoon and stayed there late for a bar-be-que as well on days by the pool to refresh my skin. They are quite handy in that regard and I like the tight closure the packet comes with as that way the wipes don't dry up.

Next is the Lierac Paris Sunific Solaire 2 Iridescent Milk Mist with SPF15. This came at the right time when I already had a tan and just want to preserve it and still protect my skin. It goes on as a light white mist that just melts into the skin as an iridescent sheen with a very nice scent.

Next up are some skin care products starting with this Micellar Water Gel Makeup Remover and Ultrafine Scrub from La Roche Posay. Both products have intrigued me from the first time and they have now become part of my skin care routine. After trying other varieties of the Yves Rocher Exfoliating Shower Gel, I decided to give this summer limited edition version a try. It is in Apple Star Anise and I immediately took a fancy to the fresh, invogorating smell. It does a good job at gently exfoliating the skin, is gentle enough for everyday use and perfect when you're in a hurry!

Also shown in the photo is the Kiko Cosmetics XL Travel Pochette. I got it in my most recent order and it is practically the only one use now! It holds all my toiletries and makeup in just one place and feels very nice and sturdy.

Next, I have some nail product favourites. I have bought this Kiko Cosmetics glass nail file and I also picked up another one while visiting Dubrovnik and they do a better job at preventing the nails from splitting than any other nail file! I have also been liking the Essence Nail Caring Oil for my cuticles which despite being very cheap, it works just as well as the more expensive ones I have.

Moving on to makeup, I have some new MAC favourites, namely Prep+Prime Fix+ Refreshing Mist, Lipstiks in Velvet Teddy and Hot Gossip and Powder Blush in Dame. I could finally see what all the hype about Fix+ is because it is such a versatile product and essentially, you don't need any other primer or fixer after you try this!

The lipsticks are both new shades to me and come in my favourite finishes from MAC, Matte and Cremesheen. They glide smoothly with amazing pigmentation and last very long. Lastly, the blush is a very lovely colour that suits every complexion giving you a nice, healthy glow. It is quite sheer but buildable and stays on all day.

Next is another Kiko Cosmetics (I promise it's the last one in this post!) - the CC Cream Cushion System in the shade 30 Warm Beige. I got two shades of this, one for summer and one for winter. 30 Warm Beige, is the darker colour and it turned out to be a good match for my tanned skin. This CC Cream has quite an unusual packaging as opposed to similar products from other brands. The product itself is very light and blends really well into the skin covering all imperfections and just giving you an overall uniform complexion.

Of course sometime, we still need help in some areas and for my under-eyes, this Max Factor CC Colour Corrector in yellow does the trick! I shall be reviewing this in a separate post so I am not going to go into any details about it other than saying I love it!!

If on the other hand I needed something more for other areas of my face, my new favourite product for those instances, is the Makeup Revolution Ultra Base Contour Palette. This has everything I need in one place and even has a darker concealer that is perfect for me to use when I am more tanned!

I have also been liking the Makeup Revolution Ultra Contour Palette which has everything if you're still into contouring as well as good highlighters to try your hand at strobing.

Lastly, I have really been enjoying using the Naked Smoky palette from Urban Decay. It has everything you need to achieve the perfect smoky eye and I really like the quality of the eyeshadows! 

August Collective Haul

August is one of my favourite months of the year - some might think I'm crazy to say such a statement but it's true! It's probably the only month where I don't feel cold (yeah even in out hot summer, I always carry a cardigan with me on evenings out) and somehow it's the only month where I get to enjoy summer properly.

 

Here's what I have been buying to make this month even more fun :)

Starting with beauty stuff, this month I have added some new nail polishes to my collection and I bought most of them from Gozo...and they are mostly Sally Hansen. They were €4.50 each for the Xtreme Wear ones (l to r: 540 Glitter Gun, 740 Carnival and 510 Strobe Flash) and €7.50 for the Fuzzy Coat in the shade 600 Fuzzy Fantasy. I have also purchased the Pupa Milano Gel Top Coat for €6 and a Montagne Jeunesse Sensitive Skin Masque for €2.31. The lady at the counter was also kind to throw in a sample of Max Factor Face Finity Primer which is my go-to primer in the summer months.

 

 

More Sally Hansen products, this time another nail polish from the Xtreme Wear range which was also €4.50 and the shade is 450 Ice Pop. I also bought this Cuticle Rehab pen which I shall be reviewing soon but for now I will only tell you two words...get it! It's the best €9.95 you will ever spend on your nails! I was looking for a good waterproof mascara as I swear by it in the summer and I decided to give this one by Max Factor a go. It is the False Lash Effect Waterproof Mascara and all I can say is that I love it! I use it everyday and it only comes off with makeup remover - no smudging or budging all day! It cost €13.65.

 

Another nail polish which I added to my collection is Orly Rage. I have this in Gel FX form and I love it so much I decided to buy it in polish form for when I'm in a hurry to do my nails. It is a nice rose gold foil that goes with everything and I believe it cost me somewhere around €6 from Ebay.

 

 

More beauty purchases from The Body Shop! I have just used up a body scrub and so I obviously had to get a new one. I settled on the Vineyard Peach (€12.50) variety this time; will see how it performs. I also wanted to try the newly launched Instablur (€14) which is basically a sort of primer that evens out the skin and the likes. Since I had arrived to my fourth stamp on the 'Love Your Body' card, I have had €10 deducted from my bill and only ended up paying €2 for this Coconut Eau de Toilette which has become my favourite everyday fragrance (normal retail price: €12).

 

Sleek MakeUP have launched a new limited edition i-Divine palette, the Arabian Nights Smoke & Shadows (left) and I went ahead and got that along with the Snapshots palette (right). I really like Sleek palettes for their colour pay-off and the clever names they give to their eyeshadows. The palettes cost €9.99 each.

 

 

The last beauty purchases come courtesy of Kiko. I have only just discovered that the brands ships to Malta and I placed a small order to check the brand out as I have heard a lot of good things about it. I only paid €7 shipping as I spent over a certain amount and the order was here in 4 days I think. All was securely packaged and nothing broke on transit. Very impressed!

 

This is what I actually got:

Daring Game Limited Edition Queen of Hearts Eyeshadow Palette 03 Elegant Ebony €14.90
Eyes 207 Brush €9.00
Life in Rio Limited Edition Face Brush Duo €11.80
Brush Cleanser €5.90
Smart Lipsticks in 904 Strawberry Pink, 916 Golden Beige & 911 Watermelon €3.90 each

Whenever I visit Gozo, I always make it a point to visit Pimkie since we do not have one in Malta and I really like their clothes. This time I managed to get my hands on this denim waistcoat which was on sale for €13.99 and I also got this pair of floral jeans from their new collection at €25.99. 

 

From Stradivarius, I got this oversize top and midi skirt which I instantly fell in love with! They are part of the new collection and I really can't wait to wear the skirt but since it's fabric is a little thick, I would have to weather till the weather cools down a little. The top cost €25.95 and the skirt cost €19.95.

From Calliope I scored this creamy yellow scarf for just €2 in the sale section. I really look forward to wearing it as scarves are my favourite winter accessory :)

 

Finally, finally, after years of searching for the perfect pair of silver occasion sandals, Aldo has answered my prayers! I badly needed a pair for weddings (in fact I just wore them for one last Friday) but they either weren't to my liking or they didn't fit. This pair, on the other hand is ace! And best of all, it was on sale for €45!

 

Accessorize really do offer a good sale and for the last few days, they put sale items on 70% off. I treated my self to this cute yellow bag which only cost €10.25 and this pair of daisy print sunglasses which were retailing for just €5.50. I also bought this pair of earrings which are part of their new collection for €9.90.

 



 

Lastly, from River Island, I bought this wallet as I needed a new one and I love the flowers and stripes print on them. They have a nice selection of good quality wallets and  paid €22 for this one and it has enough space for all my cards and the bits and bobs I usually carry in my wallet. I also bought this wine crop top as it was on sale for €14.

 

 

So, as I sadly wave goodbye to August, that is all I bought this month!

 

Monthly Favourites | August

August was all about having fun in the sun for me :) Starting the month right off with a weekend in Gozo and every weekend that followed was pretty much characterised by lazy days at the beach when I was not working. All along, I have been enjoying the following products throughout the month.

 

My favourite summer scent is Coconut, more specifically, the one that The Body Shop products have. Now I can carry this scent for a longer time thanks to their Coconut Eau de Toilette :D I got this for free the last time I went shopping there with the Love Your Body Card and I have been using it everyday since! It's got a nice scent that's not overpowering yet it still lasts all day :)

 

Another favourite smell that reminds me of summer is Mango and I have indulged in these travel sized shower gel, body scrub and body butter while in Gozo. They are all from The Body Shop as well and I really do recommend getting your favourite products in this format to save on space. They smell so good, you almost mistake them for the real thing! The same can be said for the Mango Sobet body lotion of which I have a sample and have been loving lately. It's definitely going in my wishlist!

 

The last The Body Shop product is their newly launched InstaBlur. It is basically a primer that can be used alone or under foundation. I love how the product melts into your skin and evens out the skin tone and provides an excellent base for any makeup, even in this heat!

 

Using sunscreen everyday is a must, more so in the hot summer days. I always make sure to protect my face with a high SPF factor so a little help to look tanned is always welcome. This year, my favourite bronzer is the Catrice Sun Glow Shimmering Bronzing Powder for Medium Skin in 010 Shimmering Bronze. I'm super pale skinned but this bronzer doesn't look dark on me. I like to use the light part for a subtle sun-kissed glow.

 

If you live in a place with a humid climate, you know it's an everyday struggle to keep makeup from sliding off your face. For my eyes, I favour waterproof mascaras during the summer and my favourite one is actually a new discovery for me...the Max Factor False Lash Effect Waterproof Mascara. It has an insanely black colour and it lasts all day without budging and it can only be taken off with waterproof makeup remover!

 

I have also been enjoying the Sleek MakeUP Arabian Nights Smoke & Shadows Limited Edition Palette. There are 12 beautiful smoky shades that I have been playing around with a lot lately and I love the different ways they can be combined together for unconventional smoky eye looks.

For lips, I have three Pupa Milano products that I have been wearing all the time. The Shiny Lip Fluid 001 Princess Nude is my favourite nude lipgloss and I wear this mostly during the day. For brighter alternatives I favoured the Navy Chic matt lipstick 001 Chic Pink and I'M Lipstick 206 Coral Dream.

 

Lastly, I have a few nail products. The Pupa Milano Gel Top Coat has concluded my search for the perfect top coat...I just love this one! It has a glossy finish, dries fast and makes manicure last longer. Next I have a selection of glitter polishes from Sally Hansen which I have enjoyed wearing alone or as toppers over other polishes. The shades are 510 Strobe Flash, 540 Glitter Gun and 740 Carnival. The last product is also by Sally Hansen and it is their Cuticle Rehab. This has been a cuticle saviour for me as it helps keep them moisturised and my nails feel as strong as ever with this new addition to my nail care routine!

 

The last favourite I have to share for this month is this manicure where I have used decals from Born Pretty Store. I like how it turned out to be and the results were totally worth the time!

 

 

August Collective Haul

Time for my favourite post of the month...the collective haul! I will start with clothing and accessories first. In the Tally Weijl sale, I got this sleeveless denim shirt for just €9.95. The material is very airy and comfortable even in the Maltese summer heat. I then got this sheer flower applique blouse from their new collection for €25.95.

 

Another sale I managed to check out was the Jennyfer sale where I scored a nice pair of jeans for just €10.

 

 

Lately, I have been obsessing over Orsay's beautiful collections and each time I go one of their shops, I end up buying something. Last time I went, I bought three items out of their newest collection. I find that their clothes are well priced and I like their quality as well. This is what I got:

 

 

The cardigan (€22.95) is my favourite piece as I love all the detailing on it, plus it is a good sartorial investment that never goes out of fashion. The black top is very elegant and goes with a lot of things in my wardrobe. I have already planned some outfits combinations featuring it! The pale pink jumper is a welcome addition as it doesn't look ridiculously oversized on me and the material is vey soft. It has silver threads that give it a more dressy feel. The latter two items each cost €19.95.



More sale items, this time from New Look and Ells' Accessories. I scored this beautiful tweed skirt in the New Look sale for just €8 instead of €25.99 and from Ells' I got this fun pair of Ikat print shorts for only €10.50 instead of €20.99.

Next up is this bag which I had ordered from an ebay seller at the very end of May but it never arrived and so the seller gave me a refund with which I bought another one like it from another seller and it arrived in just under two weeks from it being dispatched. I really like the lace and zip details on it plus being black, it goes with everything. It is very sturdy and quite roomy too. I paid €12.57 for it shipping included.

 

 

 

Finally, I collected this beautiful Viventy Ring from 202 Jewellery. They had to order one in my size just because my fingers are so thin but at least it's here now! I had paid €139 for it and I think it a glamorous touch to any outfit.

 



 

Next up, shoes! Mum found me the most comfortable pair of loafers from M&S and they were on sale for €27.50. I love the patent red colour and they are cushioned on the inside making them ultra comfortable. Then in a separate trip to the store I spotted these peep-toe slingbacks and I was debating whether to get them or not (they were only €19.75 on sale) and when I finally decided to leave them behind and buy the much needed flat sandals (multiple pairs) I need, Johan just went ahead and bought them for me! Gotta love the guy!

I went to Homemate for some makeup storage solutions and I found this large perspex storage set for €24.95. It holds my everyday essentials nicely but I still have to organize it a bit more and decide what to put in its various compartments.

 

OPI just came out with their Fall 2013 Collection, San Francisco and I just couldn't resist the Liquid Sand Alcatraz...Rocks. It is the most gorgeous textured polish ever with shimmers reflecting all sorts of colours from gold to purple and blue to green. I bought it for €10.02 along with Which Is Witch? from the Spring 2013 Oz The Great and Powerful Collection for which I paid €9.76. The latter is a mix of holographic silver hex and bar glitter in a transparent base.

Lastly, cosmetics. I found some of Essence and Catrice new limited editions and picked up a few different items. This is what I got...
 - Essence Stay Natural Concealer 01 Soft Beige €2.20
- Essence Ultra Strong Nail Hardener €2.30
- Essence Guerilla Gardening Eyebrow Mascara 01 Garden Girls €1.50
- Essence Guerilla Gardening Lip Cream 02 Floral Glam €1.50
- Essence Ticket To Paradise Hair Mascara 01 Rumble In The Jungle & 02 Dive With Me To The Island €3.30 each
- Essence Ticket To Paradise Cream Eyeshadow 01 Dive With Me To The Island €3.10

 

And of course, from NYX I bought the following items:

- Round Lipsticks 606 Saturn and 619 Flower €4.95 each

- Single Eyeshadow 37A Lagoon Sparkle €6.95

- Lipliner Pencil 824 Orange €4.95

- NYX Girls Nail Polish 167 Dreamy Glitter €4.95

 

 

The total came to €26.75 but since I bought the stuff during the bloggers' preview event, I was given 25% off and only paid €20.06!

 

That is all from my part! Do you enjoy haul posts?