NOTD: Ciate - Wait Until Dark

Ciate - Wait Until Dark

(Rimmel Base Coat, Two Coats of Wait Until Dark, Sally Hansen Mega Shine Top Coat)

This was my freebie with Marie Claire. I chose this shade as I don't really have a dark purple but I was unsure if I'd like it due to it having shimmer in it. It applies easily and is opaque after a couple of coats. I've had it on for two days now and not found any chipping. I'm quite impressed with this and I like the colour a lot more than I expected! This will be a great winter polish for me.

Did you pick up one of the free polishes with Marie Claire? Which shade did you go for?

Stace xx

MUA Professional Heaven & Earth Vs. Urban Decay Naked Palette

Before going on my no-buy, I ordered this from Superdrug online. I quite like the quality of the regular MUA eyeshadows so was excited to hear they were coming out with palettes in their new Professional line. I can't find the range anywhere in stores at the moment and Superdrug had a free delivery offer on all orders so I decided to pick this up. I've read quite a few rave reviews of this particular palette, the neutral toned Heaven & Earth palette. 

I like the colours, they're very typical of the sorts of shades I gravitate towards. I've done some swatches:

Quality-wise, these shadows are creamy and pigmented. I think it's a total bargain for £4 and I know I'll get a lot of use out of it.

However, lots of people have been saying it's a 'dupe' for the Urban Decay Naked Palette since they both contain twelve neutral shadows. I decided to have a play and compare the two. 

In all honesty, I don't think these two palettes are dupes at all. I tried swatching several of the shades together and aside from the two light, champagne shades from the MUA palette which are similar to Urban Decay's Virgin, I couldn't find any other shades which were exactly the same. There are also no shades which are even similar to Creep and Gunmetal. I think the textures are quite different too - the Urban Decay shadows are more silky than the MUA shadows and I prefer this texture to the creaminess of the MUA shadows.

I think if you already have the Naked palette then you don't really *need* the Heaven & Earth palette but since it's only £4, it won't break the bank to have both. If you're considering buying the Naked palette but it's not in your budget right now, the MUA palette is a nice and more budget-friendly alternative which will save you £31. If you desperately want the Naked palette, I'd tell you to save your £4 and put it towards the Urban Decay palette.

Do you own either of these? Do you own both? How do you think they compare?

Stace xx

Beauty Buying Ban - Day 11 - This Is NOT A Haul!

Okay, well it sort of is but I don't think I'm breaking my buying ban so here goes...

I placed an order on Superdrug for the MUA Professional Heaven & Earth Palette. It arrived at the end of last week. Delivery was super speedy and it was free! Although I think the free delivery on all orders promotion ended on the 8th, unfortunately. I've got a comparison between this and the Urban Decay Naked Palette coming up. It was £4.




I went home for a few days and my granny, who always has a lot of Avon in the house, gave me a lovely bubble bath. The scent is White Lily so it's a nice, clean floral scent. I'm looking forward to using this as my current bubble bath has almost run out and I didn't want to be without bubble bath for the whole month!




I picked up Marie Claire because I'm a bit of a magazine addict. I hope this doesn't break my beauty buying ban but I don't think it does as the products I got were technically freebies. The first freebie is a 50ml tube of Dove Express Treatment Conditioner. The second is a Ciate Paint Pot polish in Wait Until Dark. Watch out for a NOTD post with this very soon! The magazine is £3.60 and the freebies are supposedly worth £18.




I picked up a few items from a blog sale before the beginning of my buying ban. First up is an Urban Decay 24/7 Glide On Shadow Pencil in Rehab. I love this! I had tried Midnight Cowboy and found it too glittery but this one is excellent! Secondly, I picked up a Models Own polish in Fuzzy Peach. I've already done a NOTD for this one and whilst I initially wasn't overly impressed, I did grow to like it a bit more once I'd worn it for a few days.




I'm waiting on a few swap parcels too so this buying ban is going well so far! There are a few essentials that I'm running out of (nail polish top coat!) but I'm going to try really hard to make them last until the end of the month to avoid having to go into Boots or Superdrug!

Have I broken the rules? Let me know what you think!

Stace xx

Overview: The Body Shop - Body Butters

I could quite happily use these, and only these, to moisturize my skin for the rest of my life. If you've not tried one yet - where have you been?! 

I have relatively normal skin which is a little sensitive. I sometimes have reactions to other body lotions and always need to moisturize well after shaving my legs. I used to hate the sticky feeling from using a body lotion after showering but if you apply a thin enough layer of these body butters, they sink in pretty quickly and as they're not slippery like a lotion, you only need a little. I love to use a thicker layer after a bath and just before bed. In summer I'll moisturize around two or three times a week whereas in the winter I try to moisturize every day.

Prices:

50ml - £5.00

200ml - £12.50

I don't think I've ever paid full price for one though. The Body Shop always has great sales and offers so it's best to buy then! The last time I purchased any was back in June where I got four of them for a mere £11.70 thanks to a sale, a gift voucher and my discount card. Even at £12.50, they're still pretty good value for money, particularly if you buy one with a thicker consistency as you end up using very little each time.

I  currently own Blueberry, Papaya and two Brazil Nut butters. I have owned Brazil Nut once before and love the scent. I'll admit that it's not for everyone, though, as it's quite strong. It's for dry skin so I'm more likely to use it in the winter time when my skin needs more moisture. I have owned Blueberry before too and it is also for dry skin, however, the texture feels a little lighter than Brazil Nut. I've not used Papaya yet; it claims to be for normal skin but the texture actually feels more like the Brazil Nut.

I have tried and would repurchase Coconut, Shea Butter, Satsuma and Mango. 

I have tried and would not repurchase Wild Cherry (the texture was weird - like a Petit Filous), Sweet Lemon and Strawberry (the scent of these really put me off; it smelt very synthetic).

I would love to try Moringa and Buriti Baby (it smells lovely!) next.

Olive is one scent I will never be trying. Bleugh!

I hope this was useful and that you try some of these if you haven't already!

Stace xx

Get 33% Off Your E.L.F. Order!

E.L.F. has massively upped its game recently when it comes to sales! After many months of customers asking for sales similar to those offered by the US distributers of E.L.F. cosmetics, E.L.F. UK is definitely listening. They've had a few 50% off offers too so follow their Facebook page to watch out for those.

I do like some E.L.F. products; particularly their eye primers (both mineral and professional) and their Studio blushes.

The offer ends on Friday and is valid if your total spend if over £15. Just enter the code MAD33.

Will you be picking anything up?

Stace xx