Sephora VIB Sale Skincare Haul | Bye-Bye Money
This past VIB sale was the biggest Sephora splurge of my life. On one hand, I do feel guilty for spending so much money over one weekend. On the other hand, I adjusted my spending habits over a couple of months and have been waiting since summer to purchase many of these items. I believe if you're in a healthy place-- financially and mentally, it's okay to treat yourself. And I sure did.
💸💸💸💸💸💸💸
Part I of my haul is allll skincare. I've been heavily into skincare over the past few months, largely because of my discovery of the world of Asian skincare. Thanks to the trendiness of K-beauty, Sephora offers a whole host of brands and I took the opportunity to try a bunch out. Of course I'm still interested in Western skincare and the combination of the two resulted in this spendy haul.
Repurchases
Fresh Soy Face Cleanser
It's no fun to talk about the same product twice in one month so you can read about it in my review of last year's Sephora VIB haul.
Clinique 'Take The Day Off' Cleansing Balm
This is another product I also recently mentioned. You can read my thoughts on it here in my first ever empties post.
Dr. Jart+ Ceramidin Cream
Okay, maybe calling this a repurchase is a little bit of a stretch since my first taste of this product was in the form of a mini 100 point point perk. But I stretched that little tube out to almost two weeks of use and fell in love with the product. It's a god send for dehydrated skin.
While it's comes out as a thicker cream, when I blend it into my skin it easily melts into a thinner consistency and sinks into my skin. The entire "Ceramidin" line by Dr. Jart+ relies on the use of ceramides which are fantastic for dehydrated skin since they aid in water-loss prevention.
New Kids on the Block
Dr. Jart+ Ceramidin Liquid
Since I liked the Ceramidin cream so much, I thought I would give the ceramidin liquid a try too. So far I have mixed feelings on it. Pros: it's lightweight, it isn't sticky, it wears well underneath my sunscreen. Cons: it isn't as hydrating as I would like.
I thought after purchasing this I could cut down my morning routine to BHA, this stuff, and sunscreen but it seems like I'll still need to add in a step or two to prevent midday dryness.
Sunday Riley Good Genes
So if you read my VIB post last year, you might remember that I purchased the Sunday Riley duo set. It was on my wish list for the sale and I was so excited I was able to nab the last one in my closest store. Unfortunately it did not work out for me. But it's a year later and I'm much more knowledgeable in my skincare journey and am ready to give this guy another go.
To make sure that I was absolutely sure about giving this a second chance, I got 2 or 3 samples from Sephora over the past two months. Ultimately I concluded it's a really strong chemical exfoliant that's worth it if your skin can handle it and you use it properly. If you've never used an AHA before, I would recommend starting off with something gentler like the FAB facial radiance pads.
There will definitely be a post dedicated to Good Genes in the future!
J. One Jelly Pack available via Sephora
This is one of my most interesting beauty products I've ever tried. It has a sticky consistency when it's dispensed but once you start blending it out, it almost turns watery. I haven't given it a try on my face yet but I've heard many rave reviews!
It's supposedly a skincare product and makeup primer all in one 🤔.
Too Cool For School Aqua Gel Mist available via Sephora
Too Cool For School recently opened up a shop in the city, and while I haven't taken the time to go visit, I couldn't resist trying something of theirs during the Sephora sale.
Since I love mists, I decided to try out theirs which I have literally never ever heard of. But it was a happy surprise since the mist is actally quite lovely-- hydrating and doesn't sting the eyes! I haven't used it much but I like it so far.
I seem to have racked up many mists over the past few months so expect a most comparing them all at some point! If you have any favorite mists, please do share :)
Omorovicza Thermal Cleansing Balm
Out of everything that I bought during the sale, this is my one regret. It was a total impulse purchase and I'm almost sure that it isn't worth it. I say almost sure because I haven't actually tried it yet. This 0.5 oz cleansing balm retails for a whopping $32. In comparison, the 100 point perk of the Clinique cleansing balm contains 0.5 oz.
I bought it because I really wanted to try anything by Omorovicza. I had already gotten one of their deluxe sized free samples so in the rush I was like "hey, why not try something else?!"
Sephora Favorites: Beauty Sleep
If there's one thing I absolutely could not resist during this sale, it was the holiday gift sets. This one contained three products that I've been itching to try: Sephora's in-house brand sleeping mask, Sunday Riley's Blue Moon Tranquility Cleansing, and Farmacy's Sleep Tight Firming Night Balm with Echinacea GreenEnvy.
Unfortunately it's sold out online but you might be able to snag one in stores like I did!
Sephora Favorites: Customizable Skin Care & Hair Set available via Sephora
Like I said, I love Sephora's sets and out of all the sets, I love the ones where you can pick your own items the most. I purchased two different ones earlier this year and when I saw this new one I snatched it up! The mini Sunday Riley Tidal Brightening Enzyme Water Cream itself retails for $22, so needless to say the set was a steal.
P.s even though the set is only $25, it ships for free! And you can use one of the bagillion promo codes Sephora is currently running. One of the best ones is "MICROMINI" which gives you a free beautyblender mini! You can find all the current promo codes on this page.
If you also shopped the Sephora sale, what did you get? Have you tried any of the products I got? If you didn't shop the sale, all hope is not lost because there are so many more holiday sales to come! And if you can't shop any of the sales, it's also not a big deal since hey, at the end of the day these are just material goods that ya don't need ;)
💸💸💸💸💸💸💸
Part I of my haul is allll skincare. I've been heavily into skincare over the past few months, largely because of my discovery of the world of Asian skincare. Thanks to the trendiness of K-beauty, Sephora offers a whole host of brands and I took the opportunity to try a bunch out. Of course I'm still interested in Western skincare and the combination of the two resulted in this spendy haul.
Repurchases
Fresh Soy Face Cleanser
It's no fun to talk about the same product twice in one month so you can read about it in my review of last year's Sephora VIB haul.
Clinique 'Take The Day Off' Cleansing Balm
This is another product I also recently mentioned. You can read my thoughts on it here in my first ever empties post.
Dr. Jart+ Ceramidin Cream
Okay, maybe calling this a repurchase is a little bit of a stretch since my first taste of this product was in the form of a mini 100 point point perk. But I stretched that little tube out to almost two weeks of use and fell in love with the product. It's a god send for dehydrated skin.
While it's comes out as a thicker cream, when I blend it into my skin it easily melts into a thinner consistency and sinks into my skin. The entire "Ceramidin" line by Dr. Jart+ relies on the use of ceramides which are fantastic for dehydrated skin since they aid in water-loss prevention.
Dr. Jart+ Ceramidin Liquid
Since I liked the Ceramidin cream so much, I thought I would give the ceramidin liquid a try too. So far I have mixed feelings on it. Pros: it's lightweight, it isn't sticky, it wears well underneath my sunscreen. Cons: it isn't as hydrating as I would like.
I thought after purchasing this I could cut down my morning routine to BHA, this stuff, and sunscreen but it seems like I'll still need to add in a step or two to prevent midday dryness.
Sunday Riley Good Genes
So if you read my VIB post last year, you might remember that I purchased the Sunday Riley duo set. It was on my wish list for the sale and I was so excited I was able to nab the last one in my closest store. Unfortunately it did not work out for me. But it's a year later and I'm much more knowledgeable in my skincare journey and am ready to give this guy another go.
To make sure that I was absolutely sure about giving this a second chance, I got 2 or 3 samples from Sephora over the past two months. Ultimately I concluded it's a really strong chemical exfoliant that's worth it if your skin can handle it and you use it properly. If you've never used an AHA before, I would recommend starting off with something gentler like the FAB facial radiance pads.
There will definitely be a post dedicated to Good Genes in the future!
J. One Jelly Pack available via Sephora
This is one of my most interesting beauty products I've ever tried. It has a sticky consistency when it's dispensed but once you start blending it out, it almost turns watery. I haven't given it a try on my face yet but I've heard many rave reviews!
It's supposedly a skincare product and makeup primer all in one 🤔.
Too Cool For School Aqua Gel Mist available via Sephora
Too Cool For School recently opened up a shop in the city, and while I haven't taken the time to go visit, I couldn't resist trying something of theirs during the Sephora sale.
Since I love mists, I decided to try out theirs which I have literally never ever heard of. But it was a happy surprise since the mist is actally quite lovely-- hydrating and doesn't sting the eyes! I haven't used it much but I like it so far.
I seem to have racked up many mists over the past few months so expect a most comparing them all at some point! If you have any favorite mists, please do share :)
Omorovicza Thermal Cleansing Balm
Out of everything that I bought during the sale, this is my one regret. It was a total impulse purchase and I'm almost sure that it isn't worth it. I say almost sure because I haven't actually tried it yet. This 0.5 oz cleansing balm retails for a whopping $32. In comparison, the 100 point perk of the Clinique cleansing balm contains 0.5 oz.
I bought it because I really wanted to try anything by Omorovicza. I had already gotten one of their deluxe sized free samples so in the rush I was like "hey, why not try something else?!"
Sephora Favorites: Beauty Sleep
If there's one thing I absolutely could not resist during this sale, it was the holiday gift sets. This one contained three products that I've been itching to try: Sephora's in-house brand sleeping mask, Sunday Riley's Blue Moon Tranquility Cleansing, and Farmacy's Sleep Tight Firming Night Balm with Echinacea GreenEnvy.
Unfortunately it's sold out online but you might be able to snag one in stores like I did!
Sephora Favorites: Customizable Skin Care & Hair Set available via Sephora
Like I said, I love Sephora's sets and out of all the sets, I love the ones where you can pick your own items the most. I purchased two different ones earlier this year and when I saw this new one I snatched it up! The mini Sunday Riley Tidal Brightening Enzyme Water Cream itself retails for $22, so needless to say the set was a steal.
P.s even though the set is only $25, it ships for free! And you can use one of the bagillion promo codes Sephora is currently running. One of the best ones is "MICROMINI" which gives you a free beautyblender mini! You can find all the current promo codes on this page.
If you also shopped the Sephora sale, what did you get? Have you tried any of the products I got? If you didn't shop the sale, all hope is not lost because there are so many more holiday sales to come! And if you can't shop any of the sales, it's also not a big deal since hey, at the end of the day these are just material goods that ya don't need ;)