IndieAna- In Search of the HolyGrail

I can finally show you my Black Friday haul. I had almost all of my parcels, except for one, my Beauty Bay order. Almost a month later and it arrived. I wasn't thrilled, but at least I got it. Ok, I'll start with the skincare. Mostly The Ordinary. but all under the Deciem umbrella. Beauty Bay was my first order of the Ordinary products, then Deciem revealed their Black Friday sale that I just couldn't resist. My order contained Azelaic Acid, Natural Moisturizing Factors + HA, Buffet, Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate Solution 20% in Vitamin F, "B" Oil, Alpha Lipoic Acid, Caffeine Solution + EGCG and I needed to stock up on the Glycolic Acid Toner. From Deciem I bought High Spreadability Fluid Primer x 2, Heel Chemistry cream x 2, Lactic Acid 10% + HA x 2, NIOD Survival 0 Serum x2, Buffet and Retinol 1% in Squalane. Let's just say I'm pretty stocked up on the Ordinary, however there are still other products from the line that I want to try! ...

I hope 2018 has treated you well. As it closes, I have been thinking about the direction I want my blog to go next year. I guess actually blogging would be a good start. I know my schedule has been sporadic the last few months and I can't promise that I will have set days and number of posts per week, but I do want to continue blogging. I just don't want to churn out content because I feel obliged. Blogging is a hobby of mine and hobbies are meant to be enjoyed. I want to continue both my lipstick and nail polish declutter series. I also plan on more of a "shopping my stash" overall theme, because I don't want to keep adding to my makeup collection. Not to say that I won't buy any more, but I want to be more mindful of my spending, so that means that I will remain on a low buy. Especially after my Black Friday hauls, which I do plan on blogging but am still waiting on my products from Beauty Bay. A project pan is a possibility, however, I have been enjoyin...

Ok, I am so behind with these declutters. I have been trying on lipsticks and taking photos, but neglecting to write them up. As you can see in this update I am wearing Winter clothes, and well,  now it's Summer. How about I just show you what lipsticks I decluttered in this update :) Doll Hospytal Lipstick in Melon Collie Hi Selfie Esteem Overspender These 3 lipsticks are new and although they are not necessarily unique shades to my collection, I really like the formula and most of all the cause supported by the owner. She wants to destigmatize mental health. Lime Crime Liquid Lipstick  I didn't expect to like this shade of lipstick, but I really do! It will be staying in my stash. ColourPop Lippie Stix in Frida This is such a flattering peachy shade, no way am I decluttering it. ColourPop Luxe Lipstick in Still Crazy This pink shade is not a unique colour to my collection, but the lipstick is and I really like the formula. Lips...

I hope you are keeping your sanity this crazy time of year. I am holding on, but barely by my fingernails, it seems. Ok, I'm being dramatic, but I find that this time of year you're either super excited about Christmas, or if you're like me, the Grinch. What I have still been doing is trying on nail polishes, I'll show you. I'm not sure on the shade name, but I adore this pink shade. It has a soft textured finish. Definitely keeping! Cyberspace I like the holo, but not really keen on the pale blue, it's not opaque enough for my liking. I'm saying goodbye to this one. This black holo is so gorgeous in the bottle, but on the nails? Nope, it's washed out and patchy. Decluttering. Shade 01 Although not such a special polish on its own, this turns any nail polish colour into a holo, so I decided to keep it to play with. Fantasy Fire I'm keeping this nail polish topper. It doesn't look so special on its own,...

So, it just occurred to me that I was about to write up my last empties post for the year, which is crazy to me. But, you're not here to read about me crowing on about how fast the year has been flying by. Onto the Empties.... If this were a declutter post, I would call it very successful, but alas it is not. I didn't finish much in November.                                        Skin Republic Green Tea Mud Sheet Mask- This is the first clay mask in sheet mask form that I had used thanks to a blog prize I won from the lovely lady behind Kats Colourings . It cleansed the skin whilst also providing a radiance to my face. Repurchase? Yes, I really enjoyed this mask! Skin Republic Pink Clay Mud Sheet Mask- Also in the blog prize was this version.  Repurchase? Possibly, but I did prefer the Green Tea one. Eaoron Instant Whitening Face Mask- A hydrating sheet ma...

I have been waiting patiently for some time now to use the Beauty By Nicholas Eye Alchemy. I like to finish existing products before opening new ones, and it felt like the eye cream I was using was just not giving up. Taken from Priceline - "Ditch dark circles, bags and crow's feet with instant eye candy. This highly effective formula is gentle on your delicate eye area, to instantly smooth and brighten without painful procedure." The eye cream comes in the typical packaging of the Beauty By Nicholas range. I really like the classy look of the chrome cylinder, but I also find it inconvenient not knowing how much is left in the container. Dispensing the product can be done through the pump top dispenser. The consistency of the eye product is that of a light weight serum.  Although I normally love a pump top dispenser, I find that this one can get messy as the pump can squirt the product out too quickly, plus for me it's too much product for an applicati...

I'd like to say that I am still going strong with this lipstick declutter. I am determined to continue with it, but I am not wearing makeup as much lately, so it has slowed down some. Anyway here's the lipsticks I tried on in this update. ColourPop Ultra Metallic in Kween As much as this lipstick is such a stunning shade, I've made the difficult decision to declutter it. It's metallic and I just can't see myself realistically reaching for it. I've already bent the rules and kept a couple of others, so this one had got to go. Savvy Lipgloss  I can't seem to find a shade name for this lipgloss, but it will be staying in my collection. It's nice on its own, but it would be nice over a neutral lipstick as well. ColourPop Lippie Stix in Flawless I've decided to declutter this lipstick. It's a nice deep shade, but I know I won't reach for it. ColourPop Ultra Metallic in Salt This was a hard decision for me. I...

Another month, another rubbish blog post. Well, me posting about my rubbish, anyway! It's actually a little misleading calling this an Empties post because I have way more items that I am decluttering. Firstly, I'll show you what I finished anyway Papa Recipe Bombee Royal Honey Propolis Sheet Masks- I finished off the box of these masks and as much as I ended up quite liking them, there's so many sheet masks that I want to try. Repurchase? I'm not in any hurry to restock these. Hand Chemistry Triple-Function Hyaluronic-Rich Hydrator- This hand cream is quite light weight, which is great for applying during the day, and does a nice job of hydrating the hands. Repurchase? I would consider buying this hand cream again. If I'm to be honest, though, I'm not that fussy with hand creams and I don't seek out particular brands, just whatever sounds good. Sierra Bees Unflavored Lip Balm- I finally finished off this pack of lip balms. I found ...