It's Haaaaul Time

Hey all! It seems that I am most known for doing hauls. They also seem to be the most popular, so I'm not so ashamed to do them! I've been meaning to post this for a while, but I kept adding more items, so it's been growing and growing. Needless to say, I did not buy all these things at one time. So let's get started.

So it started with theBalm's Shady Lady Special Edition palette. I had some birthday money left over and it was on Hautelook, so I got it :) Yay!

theBalm Shady Lady Special Edition eye shadow palette

I haven't had much of a chance to use this palette--sadly and strangely--but the colors all swatch nicely. Devillish Danielle and Luscious Lani are pigmented, but they're just really close to my skin tone. Danielle's a little more golden and Lani's a little more pink. Both very nice and smooth. The only shades that felt a little dry were Feisty Felicia, Just This Once Jamie, and Caught in the Act Courtney. They're still very nice, and smooth compared to many other brand's shadows, but they are detectably less smooth than the others (not too much, though). I'm just saying.

Wet n Wild Grays Matter eye shadow trio

I wasn't going to put this in a haul since it was bought so far apart from all others, but I figured I might as well. This trio was actually kind of the finalizing decision maker that my Halloween costume would be a flapper. I saw the colors and thought they would perfect--and they were! The lid and crease colors are good, but the browbone color is kind of disappointing.

Essence Metallic Effect Eyeshadow in Disco Diva

I'd heard good things about Essence eye shadows and I've been searching for a bright purple that shows up, so I thought I'd give this guy a try. Plus, it was cheap, so why not? I might've even gotten it to help me cross the $10 line so I could use a $3.50 Off coupon. I don't remember. It's been a while.

Ulta Lipstick in Plum Crazy

I think this lipstick came free with my purchase the same time I bought the Essence eye shadow. I also bought three nail polishes because Ulta was having a 3 for $9 deal. I love this color. It's a deep color without being too deep, too purple, or too red. It's a nice muted color for when I'm not feeling so bold or crazy.

It doesn't really show up, but there is a kind of gold glitter in the product. Ulta has tester tubes, so go ahead and give it a swatch before you buy. Thank you, Ulta! Also, the name "Plum Crazy" was only on the plastic wrapper, so they might change the name from time to time. The identifier on the bottom of the tube is just 217.

I'm surprised how heavy the lipstick feels! It almost looks and feels like a bullet. I only mention this because there's a definite mechanism for closing the cap--you have to snap it shut. I guess I'm just used to fitting the lid on as much as I think is closed, because one day I didn't shut it tight enough, picked it up by the lid, and the base went careening to the floor. Thankfully the product wasn't ruined, but be careful and close the lid tight!

Ioni Blush in Ecstasy

Now I don't live anywhere near a Fred's Super Dollar, and none of my nearby Family Dollars or Dollar Generals don't yet carry Ioni, so when I saw Emily's review on Ioni products and how much she loved the blushes, I thought I would forever be out of luck. Or at least for a long time. But when I had to go to Georgia, I was in luck. They had a Fred's near where I was staying. It was a pain to go there, but I made it just in time and was able to pick up a blush and eye shadow. I love this blush and am so happy I was able to buy it :)

Ioni Eye Shadow in Rodeo

And here's the eye shadow I got. I couldn't remember which ones Emily said were best, so I went with a safe neutral. I'm not that impressed with it. It's kind of dry and streaky. But I can make it work. I feel lucky I was able to get anything at all--the display was pretty well picked over.

Jordana Easyliner for Eyes in Blue Devine

This was a small purchase at a Walgreen's so I could get a small amount of money back from my debit card (Walmart makes me take in intervals of $20, and I don't like that when all I need is $5). Anyway, that's how I justified its purchase. I went for this color because I wear navy liner surprisingly often, but make it by patting navy eye shadow over black liner. I thought this would be easier. Unfortunately, the color isn't what I was expecting, but that's just from a swatch, not an actual usage. I have no idea what the staying power is like.

Estée Lauder Pure Color EyeShadow in Riviera Rose, Sugar Biscuit, Enchanted Forest, and Hot Cinnamon

I didn't buy this. I was given it by my grandmother. She gets a lot of "gift with purchase" sets from places like Clinique and Estée Lauder, but she doesn't really use eye shadow, so she gave me this. I was excited because I've never tried anything by EL, so this was my chance. I gotta say, I'm not impressed. The only smooth one was the darkest shade. The light ones are flakey, but they show up. The green hardly shows up! This doesn't make me want to go out and buy eye shadows from Estée Lauder, and isn't that the point of samples?

Maybelline Lash Stiletto mascara in Soft Black

My grandma also gave me this. I remember really liking this when it first came out, but I haven't used it since. I just wanted to see how I feel about it now that I've tried so many other mascaras.

Sally Girl Eyeshadow in White Chocolate and Cinnamon

And last up is a relatively recent purchase (I think it was last weekend, actually). They're too recent to make it in the group picture up top, that's why they're presented like so, above. Emily posted about two different types of connectable eye shadows, and these won out! And they're cheaper (only 99 cents!) I decided I needed to try them. I can't believe I hadn't seen these before! I wasn't impressed with the color selection--it might've just been really picked over--but these caught my attention. I heard Cinnamon was a nice rose gold and I've been wanting to gray-up my makeup, so I thought White Chocolate would be good.

Sally Girl Eyeshadow in Cinnamon

Love this guy! I've been collecting rose golds and this is beautiful. It's very smooth and pigmented. A great deal, too. I love the idea of connecting single eye shadows!

Sally Girl Eyeshadow in White Chocolate

I'm a little confused as to the naming of this eye shadow. White chocolate is white. This is a shimmery dark gray. I don't know, though. It's growing on me. This is a very soft and buttery eye shadow, as well. In fact, you need to be a little careful when you go in with your brush. Learned that the hard way, teehee.

Finally! This haul is done and posted. Now it won't be too long before a Christmas haul is posted. It just never ends, does it? Oh well. I hope you all have a great weekend. It's snowing right now, so I'm happy :D

~Stacie