Sephora VIB Haul (15% off)

I've been on a no-buy since January so I thought I could treat myself to some new things since I had the coupon. I picked up the NARS duo in Earth Angel, the Urban Decay Electric palette, the Sephora Color of the Year blush palette and a 100 point perk which is a deluxe size of the Glam Glow Youthmud Tinglexfoliate mask. Let me know if there's something you want me to review!

Empties: November 2013

I've managed to accumulate a good number of empties (used up products) so I figured I would share my thoughts before I send them to their respective recycling, trash and Back to MAC futures.

Let's start off with skincare items:

I used up a travel size bottle of the Bioderma (though I have used up a large size before as well) and a Kiehl's creamy eye treatment with avocado. The verdict on both of these is that I won't be repurchasing them. Say what?! How can I not want to repurchase a cult favorite like Bioderma? The problem is that while I find it removes my face makeup extremely well, it irritates my eyes like CRAZY if I try to use it to remove my mascara and eyeliner. I've given this a truly thorough test because I suffered the same experience all the way through my large size and travel size. As for the Kiehl's eye treatment, there's nothing wrong with it, but I also don't feel like it did anything special. I don't think it particularly hydrated my under eyes and there are other eye creams I prefer to it. If you don't have an eye cream you like, it wouldn't hurt to give this a try to see how it works for you.

Moving onto haircare:

Am I the only person who takes forever and a day to use up hair products? One of the only things I actually go through semi-frequently is dry shampoo because I only wash my hair 2-3 times a week. All the other days, I use dry shampoo. I received the New York Streets dry shampoo in a Beauty Army box a while back and was thrilled when I got it. I won't be repurchasing this, but it is a decent dry shampoo. I didn't find it to leave a white cast in my black hair (upon initial spray yes, but a little massaging and there's no trace of it). The reason I won't be buying it again is that I found that if I tried to use it on third day hair, it did absolutely nothing. If you wash your hair every other day, this could still be a great option for you.

And now onto the makeup! Let's start with the face:

I know, that's a lot of MAC. But, let me explain why. Over the summer I always end up interning in the hottest and most humid places. And what I have found over time is that there is really only one foundation and primer combination that truly withstands 100F+ heat and 40% humidity, and that is the MAC Prep and Prime Face Protect  and MAC Studio Fix Fluid. I LOVE the primer, it's incredible and controls oil while packing a 50 SPF punch. Studio Fix isn't my favorite foundation, but it is the only one that can survive long days in the heat and for that reason alone it will be a go-to for the summer for years to come. As for the MAC Matchmaster foundation, I despise it and certainly won't be repurchasing. The color is much too orange (odd since it's supposed to be a neutral foundation) and completely breaks down in my t-zone even in the winter time. Fix + is MAC's setting spray and I like having this around because it can eliminate any extra powder you dust on and save you from looking too cakey. So, yes to repurchasing MAC Prep and Prime Face Protect, Studio Fix Fluid and Fix+. No to MAC Matchmaster foundation.

And lastly, the eye makeup products!

Mascaras and eyeliners, the eye products I go through the most. I know mascaras are kind of boring as an empty, but I do have some strong opinions about the ones I tested. Starting from the left with Bobbi Brown Intensifying Long-Wear mascara. This mascara has a teeny tiny brush and is great for the bottom lashes. I enjoyed it because it was smudge-proof and truly long wearing, however I am undecided about whether I would buy this with my own money (the one I have I got as a sample). Moving on over, we have the Chanel Imitable Intense mascara which I also received as a sample. This mascara is pretty much complete garbage and does nothing special for your lashes. If you are looking for a very subtle "I barely applied anything" eyelash look, then maybe you will like it. I personally really like my mascaras to be volumizing and this just did not make the cut. Lastly, we come to the amazing YSL Babydoll mascara. Oh my goodness, what this does to your lashes. This is probably the very best mascara I have ever tried, which pains me because the price tag on it is sort of insane. I got this sample for free and am unsure whether I will take the splurge and purchase...maybe when Sephora has a 20% sale again in the future. If you want perfectly lengthened and volumized lashes that look out of this world, this is the mascara to pick up. Lastly, my wonderful Jordana liquid eyeliner in brown. This is actually the first liquid eyeliner I have had in brown, and I was so sad when I finished it. At a crazy amazing price point, this liner lasts a long time and is inky dark. The pen point felt tip makes it a breeze to apply. I will definitely be repurchasing this in the future. 

All right, well that ended up being kind of long. I might end up doing more frequent empties posts rather than waiting to accumulate so many since I want to share my thoughts on each product. What do you think?

Updated Skincare for Fun in the Sun!

I did a post a while back about my general skincare routine, which still serves as the bare bones of what I do now, (http://makeupbyamrita.tumblr.com/post/44197920666/skincare-routine) but with the sun in full force I like to add a few extra steps to help keep tanning and burning at bay.

1. Sunscreen
Oh yes, this is so important. If you have an Indian mother or grandmother like I do, most likely at some point, the extreme importance of sunscreen has been made evident to you. If you don’t diligently keep up with your sunscreen, you will be forced to listen to stories of carrying parasols and wearing long gloves in the blistering heat and how previous generations really suffered for health and beauty as compared to us youngins now. I still know Indian moms who wear long sleeved shirts, socks on their hands, giant hats and giant sunglasses in the summertime just to drive their kids to summer camp. Extreme behavior aside, I like to use the Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Lotion in Broad Spectrum SPF 50+ for Face and Body. I mostly use this for my face, neck and hands. The main reason I like this is that it doesn’t break me out. I used to use Neutrogena’s sunscreens for the face but I would still get break outs :( I love using the Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry Touch Broad Spectrum SPF 100+ for my body. I know that a lot of people say that you don’t need to use anything above SPF 50, but the standards for testing SPF in America are less stringent than those in, for example, Australia, where people really see the sun, so I figure a little extra precaution never hurts. The newest addition to my sunscreen routine is the Shiseido Sun Protection Eye Cream in Broad Spectrum SPF 34. First of all, weird SPF number, and second of all I’m not totally convinced this is necessary. I do think the skin in the eye area is a lot more delicate, but I’ve personally never experienced a sunburn around my eyes so I’m not sure if this is totally necessary. For now, I’ll just go with it and see if I notice a difference by the end of the summer.

2. Face Scrubs
With the heat, comes sweat, and oily-ness. And with all that, come more breakouts! To help combat this, I’ve been using the St. Ives Apricot Scrub (Blemish Control) alternating with the less abrasive St. Ives Green Tea Scrub (Blemish Control). These make such a difference in keeping my breakouts at a minimum, and make my skin feel super smooth and soft. The blemish control line only contains about 1% salicylic acid, so its nothing too harsh. I still need to use a spot treatment on stubborn acne. I also think that scrubs help diminish the appearance of acne scars, which is great in case you do get the inevitable trouble spot.

3. Face Masks
For the summertime, I love using the Queen Helene Mint Julep Mask. This mask is way too drying for me in the winter time, but I like using it in my T-zone to keep the shine at a minimum and to prevent blackheads and blocked pores. I use this maybe once a week, or once every week and a half based on how my skin is feeling. It’s your traditional scary green face mask which dries and tightens up to pull out impurities. I definitely recommend moisturizing afterwards to avoid getting any dry patches.



What are your favorite summer skincare products?