HAUL: Expocosmética 2017

The Expocosmética is a yearly cosmetic, aesthetics, nails and hair market, the biggest one of the Iberian Peninsula. This year I was thrilled to be invited from the 22th to the 24th april. And this article is an haul of I bought there.

• First I stopped at the Flormar sales stand and bought some Clean Care Makeup Wet Wipes, a little bit rough but it removes perfectly the makeup so it's always useful! A Loose Powder in the shade 03 Medium Sand Transparant which I already tried on a very warm day and it kept my makeup intact. A Puffy Blush in the shade 02 Hippie Fest that came broken but it's still usable, not very pigmented but since the colour is so deep I think it's a good thing, so it gives a little bit of colour and shimmer to the cheeks. And two Waterproof Lipliners in the shades 201 that is a really pretty nude that goes very well with the Velvet Teddy from MAC and 203 which is a lightly metallic dark pink.

• After that, I bought this keratin mask, without salt, moisturizing repair, for damaged hair, volume reducer, high concentration, 1kg of product for just over 5€. It's from the  brand Real Natura which is a portuguese brand that is inspired on what nature gives us for the product's formulas.

• Then, I stopped at Peggy Sage's sales stand and bought these cool square cotton pads, that is really cool because it doesn't undo itself once the product's on it, and it's big enough so you can use only one or two to remove the makeup off your face.

• Finally, I got my hands on the Real Techniques brushes. A little bit late on these maybe, but better late than never. I bought the "Starter Set" eye brushes, the "Core Collection" face brushes, and the "Miracle Complexion Sponge". So the "Starter Set" contains: a "deluxe crease brush" perfect to contour the eyes; a "base shadow brush" that i love to blend the crease with to erase the harsh lines; an "accent brush" great for the colour touch in the center of the lid; a "fine liner brush" for eyeliner I suppose, but I think it's a little bit too thick for that, I like to use it for smoking the shadow next to the lower lashes; and a "brow brush" simply for brows. The "Core Collection" has: a "contour brush" that I actually don't like to contour the forehead (maybe my forehead is the problema, don't think so though) because it's a little bit small and too precise, so it's perfect for under the cheek bones and the jaw line; a "pointed foundation brush" that I also think it's too small for foundation, I'd rather use it for under eye concealer; a "detailer brush" which is tiny, so I use it for colour correcting for example, to hide some small imperfections and stuff; and a "buffing brush" that I like to wipe the excess of powder after baking or to blend harsh contouring. Both these sets come in a really cool case that protects the brushes when it's closed and it can keep the brushes stood up so it's easier for you to reach it. And finally the "Miracle Complexion Sponge" that I only used to bake until now and it's really awesome, so the rounded face of it can blend the larger face areas; the tip is great to reach the eye's inner corner or the nose's sides; and my favourite thing about it, the flat part, perfect for baking under the eyes, on the jaw, the forehead and the chin.

That's it for this article, I really enjoyed being at this event, I wanted to thank Expocosmética for inviting me, and I hope you liked getting to know what goodies I bought there. Stay tuned until the next article, xoxo!

HAUL: What I bought in Lyon

As you know if you follow me on Instagram (@sophiemaldjianblog) I've been like a week and a half in France. I didn't bought much because this time I visited more than I went shopping but I wanted to show you some things that were really cheap and with good quality. I feel like I should post the Travel article before the Haul article but it takes longer to be made and I wanted to post something this week. 

HEMA opened in Lyon recently so I went there to check out what it looks like because I heard good things about it. So stationery talking, I bought 12 (2x6) Highlighters, a cute Pen Set (3), both items costed 2€50. And a Gift Garland for around 1€50 that I used to organize my makeup actually by sections like "Face"/"Eyes"/"Nails" etc. 

Also, I bought some things for the hair. So I bought a Tail Comb which was really cheap (1€50), some Hair Elastics that costed 2€, and some Hair Clips that costed 2€50. These three products are very good, the quality is just awesome, the elastics don't lose the elasticity, the clips don't break, the comb totally does the job. 

Then, I bought some nails stuff, which are a really good surprise. First one wasn't really a good surprise though, this Quick & Go Nailpolish costs 2€50 and the problem is that the colour is lighter than it seems because I thought it was a blue almost like night sky, and it's more like electric blue and, in fact, it dries really fast so it is "quick and go" but it algo comes off really quickly. In another hand the Long Lasting Nailpolish that costs 2€50 too, the colour is beautiful, it's a kind of bordeaux, and this one lasted a good week and a few days, and I worked, cleaned and did plenty of things and it stayed intact. And finally, I may seem very late on this one, but I found this Dip&Clean nail polish remover that consists in a sponge with acetone and all you have to do is put your finger in the middle of the sponge and rub until there's no more polish. It smells really good even if it has acetone, I just loved it and I bought three of them because I was so sick of using liquid acetone and cotton pads that my hapiness finding this was huge, and it costs 3€25 I think.

The last things I bought at HEMA are these Cleansing wipes, that are not really makeup remover but when I have a lot of makeup on, I like to use it first and then use makeup remover on a cotton pad, or use makeup remover first and then use these wipes to take off what's left, they're really good and cost only 1€. Second, I bought this Lipliner in the shade 23. First thing I check out when I go shopping makeup are the brushes and I have to say, the HEMA brushes are really bad, but then I kept watching and I saw the lipliners and I think this is AMAZING, the colour is from another world, I love it and it is super cheap (2€50).

This amazing little-plate-to-put-things-on which I don't know how it is called in english is beautiful, super simple, delicate, perfect size, really cute with this unicorn. It is from an awesome shop called Le Petit Souk. It costs 17€50 and I displayed it in my vanity to put products I use everyday like eyeshadow primers or blending sponges.

Last but not least, a methalic plate representing the city that I love to visit not only to be with my family, but also because I love the architecture, the variety of people, and the lifestyle. I bought this for the love I have for this city but also because I kind of collect this kind of plates and you actually can find it for every country for about 10€.

I hope you guys enjoyed it and subscribe so you don't miss the next article that will be kind of a vlog but through pictures of the trip I did to Lyon!

HAUL: Makeup

Hey, so the simple title of this HAUL, means that this is (finally) the third part of my after Christmas SALE HAUL (you can find the Clothes&Accessories one here and the Stationery one here if you haven't seen it yet).

So let's start:

This first item, isn't really about makeup you know... unless you consider a shower a beauty thing... but anyway I loved it because it's super funny so it is a shower cap and when you put it on you look like an hipopotamus... I know, not very elegant... But funny! This Hipopotamus shower cap is from PRIMARK and costs 1,50€ which I think is really cheap as almost everything at Primark and being what it is, it doesn't have to have the most incredible quality, but it actually does!

Still from Primark, I had this travel kit that I thought it was amazing to travel (a little bit obvious since it is a travel kit...) so it has 4 containers: a bottle with a pump; a bottle with a regular cover; another one but smaller; and a little circular box. What I think that is really cool too is that there are stickers to identify the products that you put into the containers. So this Travel Kit by PRIMARK also costs 1,50€ which I think is really cheap. Continuing on the travel vibe since I'm going to France soon for a couple weeks (I'm thinking about doing an article about the places that I'll go and opening a "Travel" section) I picked up this tiny Hand & Face Wet Wipes from H&M that costed 0,99€ I think, so yeah, I get a lot of satisfaction when I buy cheap things with a good quality!

Staying in the Primark vibe, I bought some beauty stuff to try because I mean, when the price is so attractive, I wanted to see if the quality is just as low as the price or it actually works well. So here you can see a Make-Up Brush Cleanser from PRIMARK that costed 2,50€ and there will be a review  article about this monday! Also to clean brushes, I bought a brushegg, and I was so excited when I got it because it is so good to clean your brushes, and you can clean itself very easily too after using it, also it is a very good alternative to the SIGMA glove to wash the brushes that I think costs about $40, so this original Brushegg costs $8.

So I have a thing with brushes right now, I swore I'd never use that word, but yeah, I'm kind of obsessed with makeup brushes. I saw the contouring one at Primark and again I wanted to try it out to see if there's a reason for the price to be so low or is it just a miracle, but I'll let you know in the Primark beauty products review that I'll post soon. I posted two pics of the same brushes just to show you the super cute packaging they had at Primark, So this Contouring Make-up Brush from PRIMARK costs 2€. Then I actually didn't buy this, it was a gift but I love it and I use it a lot, so it's a Pollié 04098 Kabuki brush so you can find it on the website I put on the name, and for those who live in Portugal (and Spain I think) you can find them at PLURICOSMÉTICA, its price is really affordable (1,20€) and the quality is pretty good. 

This PRIMARK Foundation Sponge was a gift too, and costs 1,50€. First I was suspicious because it's quite tough, but again, I'll make a Primark beauty products review explaining everything!

Once we're done with the Primark products, I bought two CHANEL products, the Perfection Lumière Foundation 10 Beige (that you can see the review here) which costs $58 and the Joues Contraste Powder Blush 72 Rose Initiale which I really love costs $45, the colour is so soft and give a natural look, the powder is really easy to apply and give a smoothie look to your skin.

Next stop was MAC Cosmetics with this I-can't-live-without-it-anymore Sheertone Powder Blush Gingerly, it's a bronze colour, it's just beautiful, it goes with every makeup, definitly a must-have. Its price is $22.

I wasn't a huge fan of highlighters before because I thought (closed-minded thought) that the glow on the face would look like oily skin... Don't judge me... I didn't resist, I mean, everybody said that the Mary-Lou Manizer AKA "The Luminizer" from THE BALM (that costs $24) was a favourite, so I tried it, and I'm in the Mary-Lou club too, for sure.

Another had-to-try product: The POREfessional face primer from BENEFIT that reduces the appearance of pores, the packaging is bomb! One of my favourites definitly. Its price is $31 I think, I'm not sure, but I think it depends on the tube's size or at Sephora the price is lower, I can't remember anyway, excelent product.

This is definitly one of my favourites! A CHRISTIAN DIOR lip balm, so this is the Dior Addict Lip Glow - Color Reviver Balm, excelent lip primer, I love the way it gives a super natural colour to the lips. This is a travel size because I wasn't sure of what it was so I didn't want to spend more money on something I wasn't sure I would like.

This was a gift from my sister from a trip to Madrid. It's kind of a lipstick cover. I really think it's kind of unique and beautiful, and I think she bought it in a ancient stuff store.

Humm... I don't know what happened here because I don't like to use products on my face that I don't know where it comes from. But I kind of purchased this for the packaging, and then I tried it, and now I love it, it's a super matte black eyeliner pen, it's super easy to apply, long lasting, and very cheap! This is the YANQINA Waterproof Eyeliner and you can find it on eBay as I put here the link.

So... I bought this one as a I-didn't-find-what-I-wanted-but-I-didn't-want-to-go-home-with-empty-hands. So I went to H&M looking for the matte liquid lipsticks, and I don't know how it is abroad, but here in Portugal not all the H&M's have the makeup section... So I just saw a tiny place with some makeup, I tought this gloss was cute and I bought it, and actually it's very cute, it looks like I ate a lot of strawberries and raspberries. So this is a H&M Lipgloss called Berry Lips and it costs 1,50€.

Again at H&M, but this time in a store with a makeup section (I just got there too late, there wasn't any liquid lipsticks) I found this H&M Invisible Touch Lip Definer that costs 4,99€ so I decided to see if I don't need to buy a lip liner everytime I buy the lipstick, and the answer is quite divided. It works, definitly, but it doesn't replace a lip liner pencil. 

This is a very good surprising product, it's the CHANEL Rouge Coco Ultra Hydrating Lip Colour (440 Arthur) and it is surprising for a very simple reason. I have very sensible skin, and even most sensible lips, so on Summer time and Winter time 1 day using lipstick = 3 days using lip balm for me, and I tried this one and it's just super hydrating, my lips were super soft, super smooth, and they didn't get injuries at all. Its price is $37.

This accessory is one of the best inventions in the world, if you're one of those who always put mascara on all the eyeshadow work you had, this is perfect for you. You can use for the top lashes, the bottom lashes and it has a little kind of brush to take out the stickiness. I just can't find the website anymore, but as soon as I find it I'll post on IG or something so you can follow me (@sophiemaldjianblog).

I wanted one of these acrylic holders for centuries, and I finally got one. I didn't know how it was going to be so I just bought one, so it's full, and I'll probably get another one very soon! It's really good looking on your makeup station, it's uncoloured so it goes well with everything, the spaces are a little bit limited, so the KIKO's lipsticks don't fit completly in it but it works fine. I bought this Lipstick holder on the website here and it costed 8,90€.

I wanted to try a NAKED palette for a long time now, and I chose the 2 because it looked like the colours were the ones I'd use the most, and they're in fact incredible, without a primer it isn't the most pigmented palette ever but it's fine and I think I'll definitly buy the 1. So this NAKED 2 palette from URBAN DECAY costs $54.

I have a regular brush bag for when I travel, but I had the struggle that I lose to many time taking out the brushes and putting them in again, So I was looking for a travel brush holder like this so it's the easiest way to reach the brushes. When I saw this golden one I didn't look for another because I loved this one too much. SIGMA has some, the black being more expensive than the coloured right now, but normally costing $25.

You must think I spend my money ridiculously or that I'm insane! But I just LOVE this drink, I could stop eating and just drink this for the rest of my life, so when I saw this I had to buy it! So it's a Coca-Cola eyeliner. It was only for the packaging, but I still tried it and the brush is too dense, too tough so it doesn't apply very well, but I use it to fill the blank spaces etc, and you can find it here.

Finally, the NARS Ita Kabuki Brush. This brush costs $55, which I think it's a silly amount, and even if it's very good, any brush is worth that much money but I was curious, you know it's one of the most talked about brush, and in th end it's a very good brush, but nothing that takes me to an other world.

This is it for the after Christmas SALE HAUL, I hope you enjoyed it, and that might have helped you some way. Don't forget subscribing and comment if you liked it or you want to know anything about these products and stay tuned because another article will be online very soon!

HAUL: Clothes & Accessories

I decided to stop shopping clothes and accessories for this sale's season, because enough is enough you know... Or not... Well for now it is...

I'm going to show you three HAUL's because the article would be too long if I showed you everything in a single HAUL. So this is the Clothes & Accessories HAUL, and there will be a Stationery mini HAUL and a Makeup big HAUL.

So this time I got some Harry Potter items that I love:

- Two t-shirts from PRIMARK, both costed 8€, so one of them says "Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus" which means "Never Tickle a Sleeping Dragon" (Latin class are so useful at college) and it's kind of the Hogwarts slogan, and the other one says "I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good" that is the password that the four troublemakers put on the magic map they made of Hogwart's castle:

 - A quidditch (traditional game on Harry Potter's saga) broom necklace that you can find clicking on the green word:

Still on the movie themed vibe, I bought a Cinderella necklace that again you can find clicking on the link:

And finishing the themed items, an Hunger Games necklace that you can find clicking on it:

Then I bought a PRIMARK sweater for 9€, it says "It's freakin' Weekend" on it, and I swear I only use it on weekends (sorry, I should've iron it before the photo shoot but you know how it is...):

As you can see 10% of it in the previous photo, I bought a skirt on sale at ZARA, its initial price was 25,95€ and I paid it 6,99€:

And I actually bought a lot of things at ZARA, sometimes it's frightening because my entire outfit is from there, even the shoes so I let you imagine what it's like on sale's season... This top is one of the items, its initial price was also 25,95€ and I paid it 6,99€:

Then I bought a kind of t-shirt but it's kind of elegant, I paid 9,99€ instead 25,95€, still at ZARA:

Now a real t-shirt, really comfortable, paid it 3,99€ at ZARA:

Last top I bought at ZARA is a jacard top that I paid 5,99€ instead of 25,95€:

And the last ZARA item is from ZARA Knit, really warm and comfy, and I paid it 12,99€ while its initial price was 39,95€:

Talking about handbags, I bought two:

- A MOSCHINO clutch, it's a really special red (like fresh meat, I don't want to be weird but it's that colour though!), it has a removable handle, and the leather is amazing:

- And a green bag really cute, with something that looks like a college logo printed on it, and there's a huge amount of things that fit in:

Last but not least, a watch that reminds me something like the fairy that live in the woods (I have to stop having such a big imagination...), and you can find it here:

I hope you liked it, and I hope that will help you to find products you like, most of them not very expensive in accessible stores or sites. Thank you for reading, and if you want to read more articles like this one, you can follow inserting your e-mail on the side bar to get notifications everytime I publish one!