Mindful Black Friday Sale Haul: Sephora, Tarte, Becca, Muji, J Crew, New Balance, Rockport Mary Jane Shoes

How did you make out with Black Friday?  I have never been one of those people who line up on the sidewalk at 2 am in the morning.  These days I usually utilize Black Friday to get my hands on Christmas pressies at a price that eases the strain on my wallet and to get replacements for things that have long since bid goodbye to their best before date.  I have a running list in my head of needs balanced with wants.  I hesitated on calling my buys a "haul" and settled on calling them a mindful or intentional haul (only slightly less cringeworthy!).  Did you stop in at Sephora?  I do love checking out the limited edition boxed sets that brands come out with specifically for Black Friday and the holidays.  I picked up this boxed set from Tarte.

You get a blush in Ornate which is a lovely coral that I know will suit me to a "T", a mini lipstick called Surf's Up which is a warm brown pink, and their Lights Camera Lashes mascara.  The set that I got last year had a full size lipstick and I do wish that this year's lipstick was also full size but for $13.00 it is a screaming deal so I can forgive the mini sized lipstick.

I picked up this set from Becca.  I have never tried anything from Becca so I am really looking forward to acquainting myself with the Shimmering Skin Perfector Spotlight in Moonstone.

Becca's highlighters are known to be holy grail products so I was really pleased to pick this up for $20.00.

Next up, I think every beauty vlogger on the planet has stacks of Muji's acrylic storage cases sitting on her/his vanity.  Well, I am no beauty vlogger but I was growing tired of the mess on my table.  I have noticed that Muji's sales are far from being doorcrashers.  They are usually very sedate affairs but for this Black Friday, their acrylic storage line was 30% off.  Woot!

The long wide 3 drawer case was completely sold out so I had to settle for the smaller, 2 drawer case.  Now I know why this line is so popular.  The clear acrylic is so sleek and minimal and you can see at a glance what is inside and in which drawer.  Honestly, I could spend hours opening and closing the drawers.

Next, I have had a long standing love affair with Mary Janes in all its incarnations whether as a high heel, flat or wedge.  My old pair of wedge heeled Mary Janes were in a dire condition.  I tend to wear shoes until the straps and buckles are hanging by a thread, the leather is splitting apart and the soles are disintegrating.  Unless you have no choice, do not take frugality to the extreme like me.  I am worried that I have permanently broken my feet as a result.  So I was thrilled as anything to pick a new pair from Rockport.

What, Rockport, you say?  Gone are the days when I would make a beeline for the stilettos whenever there was a sale.  These days, the question in my mind is "Can I walk in them?"  Rockport has a line called Cobb Hill which is slightly dressier but still prioritizing comfort.  Hopefully, I am not in granny, orthopedic shoe territory just yet and these Mary Janes ride that comfortable yet pretty line just right.  The fact that they are riffing off Chie Mihara shoes but at a much more affordable price point doesn't hurt either.

Last but by no means least, are a pair of sneakers by New Balance for J. Crew.  The soles of my last pair of sneakers literally separated away from the shoe so a replacement was most definitely in order.

To be honest, I am still on the fence about these.  I love the crisp contrast between the navy and the white and the slight retro vibe.  But now I am wondering whether they are a bit too retro?  What do you think?  Yay or nay?

And that's it!  Let me know of your Black Friday scores and adventures!

This is not a sponsored post.

LBH Weekly Roundup: Acqua Di Parma Holiday Gift Sets

The great thing about Autumnal birthdays is that one can take advantage of holiday gift sets that only appear in the shops at this time of year.  Monsieur had a birthday recently and I took the opportunity to pick up this gorgeous showstopper.

Monsieur does love his smellies and his number one favourite is Acqua di Parma Colonia Essenza which strikes that magical balance between crisp citrus top notes and heady woody base notes.  Acqua di Parma don't release holiday sets of all their fragrances and, sadly, Acqua di Parma has not offered the gift set in Colonia Essenza for a couple of years now.  If Acqua di Parma is reading this, please bring that back next Christmas!   I had to settle for giving him the Colonia gift set instead (pictured above) which he deemed a close second with its notes of lavender, damask rose mingling with the citrus over a base of vetiver, sandalwood and patchouli.  I got it at Saks Fifth Avenue but it is also available at Holt Renfrew.  It is a great deal as the cologne bottle is the large 100 ml one and it comes with travel sizes of body creme and shower gel.  On its own, there is no doubt  that even the smallest 50 ml bottle will set you back a big chunk of coin so getting a large size and a couple of extras in a handsome presentation box helps ease the pain. 

Another Acqua di Parma holiday gift set is their Blu Mediterraneo.  This one has of orange, mandarin, and lemon essential oils over notes of petit grain, cardamon, caramel and musk.  This isn't one of Monsieur's 

favourites but fragrance is such a personal preference, you or someone you know might fall head over heels for it.

And we mustn't forget the ladies!  

They already had me with the packaging which is just so pretty.  This fragrance has Sicilian mandarin, Calabrian bergamot, and pepper, middle notes of peony, violet, lily of the valley, Italian centifolia rose, and finishes of cedar wood, ambergris and musk.

If like me, you have family members whose birthdays fall smartly right after Christmas, then you probably experience brain fry at the very thought of having to do more shopping.  And let's not forget that the dreaded Valentine's Day is just two months after Christmas.  Over the years, I have learnt to double up with my shopping especially if the gifts are unique items that disappear like snowflakes once the holidays are over.  And yes, of course, they make glorious Christmas gifts as well!

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LBH October Favourites: Charlotte Tilbury Eyes To Mesmerise versus Nars Eye Paint, John Frieda Colour Deepening Treatment and Shampoo

October is done and dusted and, scary thought, we are marching steadily towards Christmas.  Around this time last year, I was thinking about holiday makeup and obsessing about Nars Eye Paint in Iskandar which is a lovely antique gold.  I noticed that my little pot was nearly out and was about to get another when I heard that Nars, sadly, was no longer cruelty-free.  This is a point of difference that may or may not matter to you but I thought that this was a good opportunity to stop in at the Charlotte Tilbury counter.  Charlotte Tilbury is, thankfully, cruelty-free.  I walked away with this.

Yessssss, a pot of Eyes to Mesmerise in Bette.  Charlotte Tilbury describes it as an amber gold and it does have more of a warm, bronze undertone to it compared to Nars' Iskandar which has more of an olive undertone.  Bette has a mousse-like, whipped, light as air texture to it which allows it to blend like a dream.   I have used it on top of eyeshadow powder and underneath without incident. 

Because it is waterproof, Iskandar has a stiffer consistency and once it is on, baby, it is there to stay.  This is fabulous if you are living in a tropical environment or dealing with a hot humid summer day but you have to work very quickly before it sets and it does crease and crack.  I did find using an eyeliner over Iskandar to be very difficult.  Bette is touted as long wear but not waterproof.  What I love about Bette is that it is so easy to apply and is highly pigmented with hardly any creasing. Basically, it is a "one and done" miracle in a pot.  The Nars pot has a fill of .08 oz and Charlotte Tilbury has a fill of .24 fl oz.  Both Charlotte Tilbury and Francois Nars are luxury brands so this type of comparison is, I think, a bit more of an even comparison than, say, comparing a luxury brand to a drugstore brand.  I think I will be investigating the Charlotte Tilbury line a lot more in the oh-not-so-distant-future.

Next up, is John Frieda's Colour Deepening Shampoo in Brilliant Brunette.  Because I have never dyed my hair before, this is my way of sticking a pinky toe in that pool.  I like that it is a shampoo so I don't really have to go out of my comfort zone or out of my daily routine to play with my hair colour.  

It is supposed to infuse rich, dark tones to natural brunette hair.  The effect is quite subtle.  I notice the change in tone more where the light hits my hair.  The shampoo came bundled with the Colour Deepening Treatment.  The treatment only takes 5 minutes (but is not recommended for gray or blonde hair).  I do love 2 for 1 deals, don't you?  Funnily enough, I found this on an end cap at my local grocery store.  I didn't see it at any of my local pharmacies.  I noticed that the shampoo also came in multi-tonal and blonde highlights formulas.  Have you tried John Frieda before?  If you are interested, keep an eye out for the 2 for 1 bundles as there were only a few left at my grocery store.

This is not a sponsored post.