the most magical time of the beauty year: sephora's VIB sale
This weekend is the one and only sephora VIB sale. It's that special time of year where VIBs get 20% off every purchase made at sephora! It's also a very dangerous time because I'm at risk of spending waaaay too much money on makeup and beauty products. When I first started this post, I had 30+ products on my wish list which totaled a price too high for me to fathom. After paring down the list I split it into two sections.
The first half of the post includes items that I've used and plan on re-buying or already bought during the friends and family sale last month. The second half of the post includes new products I want to try.
Tried & true
Makeup
Kat Von D ink liner: Eyeliner is an everyday makeup must have for me and consequently I've been through so many. In the past year my two favorites have been Stila's stay all day waterproof liquid liner and Sephora's classic line 24 hour felt eyeliner. This liner is like the baby of those two, with the best features of each of them. It's a dark, true black, stays on all day, and applies smoothly.
Becca shimmering skin perfector pressed in opal: After reading various articles on the magic of strobing I went ahead and bout this during the friends and family sale. And it did not disappoint. Several quick swipes across my cheekbones and voila, I feel like some sort of strobing goddess. This is coming from someone who could not contour to save her life.
Dior diorshow waterproof mascara: No matter how many different mascaras I try out, I always come back to this one. It adds nice volume and length without getting clumpy.
Skincare
Glamglow giftsexy dazzling hydration set: I absolutely love glamglow. I've tried all of their masks and the supermud is my favorite with thirstymud coming in at a close second. This set costs the same as one full size mask but also includes a travel size face wash, travel size supermud mask, and an exclusive brush. It's a pretty good value if you're looking to splurge on some glamglow products. To be honest, when I purchased it I did so partly because I wanted the brush which isn't available outside of the gift sets. After using it a few times I can say that the brush is nothing amazing. The bristles aren't particularly soft and have a waxy texture when wet. But even without the brush, the set is still worth a purchase.
Sephora instant moisturizer: Last winter I suffered from the driest skin ever. It was a pretty big deal for me because before then my skin had consistently been oily. After trying various moisturizers I settled on this. I'm not going to say it's the best moisturizer ever but it does hydrate my skin pretty well, is free of mineral oil (which wreaks havoc on my skin), and isn't terribly expensive. In fact, I think I'm on my 5th or 6th tube for the year.
Miscellaneous
Nars pencil sharpener: A pencil sharpener is a relatively cheap way to splurge in your beauty routine and this one beats out the rest. A turn or two is all I really need to sharpen any lip or eye liner. It's also the perfect size for sharpening Nars's lipstick pencils.
Tweezerman slant tweezer: These are super sharp and are able to pull out the stubbornest of hairs. I already have one of these tweezers but wanted another one to keep in my bag.
Hair
Ouidad moisture lock leave-in conditioner: I received a travel sized sample of this at Ulta last year and pretty much forgot about it. This summer I found it while cleaning and started using it on a regular basis. I'm still trying to find the perfect shampoo + conditioner routine but this has been a constant over the past few months. Although I curl or straighten my hair once or twice a week, I have virtually no split ends (and my last haircut was about 5 months ago.) For that I thank this product!
Klorane dry shampoo with oat milk: This is one of my favorite dry shampoos but I don't always have it on hand because it is quite pricey. Since there's a sale, I figured it wouldn't hurt to buy a bottle or two. It has a very mild scent, which I like. Also, unlike other dry shampoos, it's very easily brushed into my black hair.
Uncharted territories
Makeup
Formula x color plus
Shiseido sheer eye zone corrector: I've pretty much given up on concealing my under eye area because nothing works. After reading the reviews for this corrector I've had some faith restored. A concealer that works on thin, veiny skin and doesn't crease? I hope so!
Laura Mercier hydrating primer: I have this weird thing where I don't like putting any makeup on my forehead. Partly because then it makes me face look sort of two dimensional, and partly because despite the fact that the skin on my forehead is not dry, makeup always seems to settle into weird patches there. After reading endless glowing reviews, I'm hoping this guy might be a game changer.
Skincare
First aid beauty cleanse & exfoliate kit: Caroline Hirons recommends the radiance pads featured in this set so of course I'm going to take the opportunity to try this travel size out. I also remember reading another review where the blogger said the pads helped removed the small bumps under the skin of her cheeks.
Sunday Riley power couple duo: Good genes and luna sleeping night oil are cult products I've heard about again and again. They're also ridiculously expensive. For that reason alone I'm not sure if I will end up purchasing this. Also, I'm a bit afraid to see how my sensitive skin will react to these products.
Nude Skincare double dose of genius: When checking out the above duo, Sephora recommended this as a similar product and at a much more reasonable price point. The oil is supposed to contain a "natural" alternative to retinol.
Boscia luminizing black mask: Reviews claim this mask is similar to glamglow in that it really clears out your pores. I also used the charcoal cleanser from the same line over the summer and found it really effective in controlling the oiliness of my skin. There's a chance I might hold off purchasing this until next summer because I don't see myself using it on my dry, winter skin.
Haircare
Bumble & Bumble hairdresser's invisible oil: This has been on my wish list for sooo long. It's supposed to be a cure all for hydrating, and removing frizz, and overall just making your hair look amazing. This is another iffy purchase because I already have about 6 or 7 hair oils I need to finish...
Miscellaneous
Clean warm cotton perfume: This was on my birthday wishlist back in July but I never ended up purchasing it. It just so happens that my current perfume is almost finished so the timing to purchase this is perfect. I've smelled it numerous times at sephora and it smells sooo fresh, like clean laundry!
Surratt Beauty relevee lash curler
End Notes
If you aren't a VIB at sephora, you're still in luck because the holidays are full of beauty sales! For instance, I'm not buying any Nars products because I know later this season Nars will be having their annual friends & family sale. Lord & Taylor usually also has $20 off $40 purchase coupons this time of year so I'm waiting to buy a few clinique products then. At the moment, beauty.com has a 20% off sitewide sale!
If you have any recommendations on what to buy during the sale, please do share!
The first half of the post includes items that I've used and plan on re-buying or already bought during the friends and family sale last month. The second half of the post includes new products I want to try.
Tried & true
Makeup
Kat Von D ink liner: Eyeliner is an everyday makeup must have for me and consequently I've been through so many. In the past year my two favorites have been Stila's stay all day waterproof liquid liner and Sephora's classic line 24 hour felt eyeliner. This liner is like the baby of those two, with the best features of each of them. It's a dark, true black, stays on all day, and applies smoothly.
Becca shimmering skin perfector pressed in opal: After reading various articles on the magic of strobing I went ahead and bout this during the friends and family sale. And it did not disappoint. Several quick swipes across my cheekbones and voila, I feel like some sort of strobing goddess. This is coming from someone who could not contour to save her life.
Dior diorshow waterproof mascara: No matter how many different mascaras I try out, I always come back to this one. It adds nice volume and length without getting clumpy.
Skincare
Glamglow giftsexy dazzling hydration set: I absolutely love glamglow. I've tried all of their masks and the supermud is my favorite with thirstymud coming in at a close second. This set costs the same as one full size mask but also includes a travel size face wash, travel size supermud mask, and an exclusive brush. It's a pretty good value if you're looking to splurge on some glamglow products. To be honest, when I purchased it I did so partly because I wanted the brush which isn't available outside of the gift sets. After using it a few times I can say that the brush is nothing amazing. The bristles aren't particularly soft and have a waxy texture when wet. But even without the brush, the set is still worth a purchase.
Sephora instant moisturizer: Last winter I suffered from the driest skin ever. It was a pretty big deal for me because before then my skin had consistently been oily. After trying various moisturizers I settled on this. I'm not going to say it's the best moisturizer ever but it does hydrate my skin pretty well, is free of mineral oil (which wreaks havoc on my skin), and isn't terribly expensive. In fact, I think I'm on my 5th or 6th tube for the year.
Miscellaneous
Nars pencil sharpener: A pencil sharpener is a relatively cheap way to splurge in your beauty routine and this one beats out the rest. A turn or two is all I really need to sharpen any lip or eye liner. It's also the perfect size for sharpening Nars's lipstick pencils.
Tweezerman slant tweezer: These are super sharp and are able to pull out the stubbornest of hairs. I already have one of these tweezers but wanted another one to keep in my bag.
Hair
Ouidad moisture lock leave-in conditioner: I received a travel sized sample of this at Ulta last year and pretty much forgot about it. This summer I found it while cleaning and started using it on a regular basis. I'm still trying to find the perfect shampoo + conditioner routine but this has been a constant over the past few months. Although I curl or straighten my hair once or twice a week, I have virtually no split ends (and my last haircut was about 5 months ago.) For that I thank this product!
Klorane dry shampoo with oat milk: This is one of my favorite dry shampoos but I don't always have it on hand because it is quite pricey. Since there's a sale, I figured it wouldn't hurt to buy a bottle or two. It has a very mild scent, which I like. Also, unlike other dry shampoos, it's very easily brushed into my black hair.
Uncharted territories
Makeup
Formula x color plus
Shiseido sheer eye zone corrector: I've pretty much given up on concealing my under eye area because nothing works. After reading the reviews for this corrector I've had some faith restored. A concealer that works on thin, veiny skin and doesn't crease? I hope so!
Laura Mercier hydrating primer: I have this weird thing where I don't like putting any makeup on my forehead. Partly because then it makes me face look sort of two dimensional, and partly because despite the fact that the skin on my forehead is not dry, makeup always seems to settle into weird patches there. After reading endless glowing reviews, I'm hoping this guy might be a game changer.
Skincare
First aid beauty cleanse & exfoliate kit: Caroline Hirons recommends the radiance pads featured in this set so of course I'm going to take the opportunity to try this travel size out. I also remember reading another review where the blogger said the pads helped removed the small bumps under the skin of her cheeks.
Sunday Riley power couple duo: Good genes and luna sleeping night oil are cult products I've heard about again and again. They're also ridiculously expensive. For that reason alone I'm not sure if I will end up purchasing this. Also, I'm a bit afraid to see how my sensitive skin will react to these products.
Nude Skincare double dose of genius: When checking out the above duo, Sephora recommended this as a similar product and at a much more reasonable price point. The oil is supposed to contain a "natural" alternative to retinol.
Boscia luminizing black mask: Reviews claim this mask is similar to glamglow in that it really clears out your pores. I also used the charcoal cleanser from the same line over the summer and found it really effective in controlling the oiliness of my skin. There's a chance I might hold off purchasing this until next summer because I don't see myself using it on my dry, winter skin.
Haircare
Bumble & Bumble hairdresser's invisible oil: This has been on my wish list for sooo long. It's supposed to be a cure all for hydrating, and removing frizz, and overall just making your hair look amazing. This is another iffy purchase because I already have about 6 or 7 hair oils I need to finish...
Miscellaneous
Clean warm cotton perfume: This was on my birthday wishlist back in July but I never ended up purchasing it. It just so happens that my current perfume is almost finished so the timing to purchase this is perfect. I've smelled it numerous times at sephora and it smells sooo fresh, like clean laundry!
Surratt Beauty relevee lash curler
End Notes
If you aren't a VIB at sephora, you're still in luck because the holidays are full of beauty sales! For instance, I'm not buying any Nars products because I know later this season Nars will be having their annual friends & family sale. Lord & Taylor usually also has $20 off $40 purchase coupons this time of year so I'm waiting to buy a few clinique products then. At the moment, beauty.com has a 20% off sitewide sale!
If you have any recommendations on what to buy during the sale, please do share!
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