Good morning everyone. I hope you've all had awesome weeks so far. I got back from Sydney on Monday night after such an awesome four days but more on that another time. Whilst I was in Sydney I knew a visit to the Pitt Street Sephora was inevitable mandatory. Now the store itself was reasonable sized but they didn't have the most extensive range of stock. Some of what I'd gone there for specifically wasn't in stock so that was a bit disappointing. Still, it was nice to set foot in a physical Sephora again and wander around taking in all the beauty things. It was also a little bit pricey in there, hence I didn't go crazy with purchases. Here's what I did place in my little black basket though..

Tarte 'Tartelette' Amazonian Clay Blush in Celebrated-Tarte's blushers are some of my all-time favourites. They're pigmented without being ridiculous, come in a range of flattering colours and last a pretty reasonable amount of time on the skin. I had to get this limited edition shade, not only because of the foiled gold packaging I swear! Celebrated is such a natural shade that I know I'll get a ton of wear out of.

Bite Matte Creme Lip Crayon in Glace-I initially went to the Bite stand in search of the Agave Lip Mask but I chose not to get it straight away. Instead I found this lip crayon which I'd seen Gabby raving about. It reminds me a bit of Mac's Syrup but with less of a sheen to it. 

Marc Jacobs Twinkle Pop Eye Stick in Three Shakes-Another blogger inspired buy, this time thanks to Tamira. Y'know I love my cream shadows and eyeshadow crayons. They're just stunning in my opinion. I loved this bronzey-coppery colour and know it'll get a lot of use over Winter.

So there we have it, my not-so-extensive Sephora haul. I'll be back tomorrow with the rest of my Sydney beauty buys so keep an eye out for that.

*Have you tried any of these products before? What did you think of them?

So a couple of months back Tamira of lipstickwithsomesunshine and myself decided to do a swap. If you're new to these parts, swaps typically involve the exchange of beauty products and whatever else you'd want to send really, for instance I also sent some stationery, candy and the current issue of Frankie magazine in my parcel. This is the second formal swap I've done and it's so much fun putting things together for someone else and then wrapping them up all pretty. Well Tamira's lovely parcel for me turned up last week, beautifully wrapped in brown paper and twine-none of which you are seeing because I got too excited and opened it all. Here's a look at the beauty loot she sent me but there was also candy (nom!) and stationery for me too, some of which you'll see over on Facebook. 

As with Anna's parcel, I'll do an update on the products I'm yet to try from this swap so keep an eye out for that..

Marc Jacobs Kiss Pop Lip Color Stick in Wham-Whenever I see this lip product's name I'm torn between saying "Wham bam thank you Ma'am" or starting to sing this little number. How gorgeous is that packaging too!? Marc has that aesthetically pleasing side of beauty down. I've worn this once and on the lips it's more of a coral rose. Beautiful in other words and I think it's going to be perfect going into Spring and Summer.

Jouer Moisturising Lip Gloss in Pink Glace-Tamira must be psychic or something because she clearly knows about my love for lip products. Jouer is another brand we can't get in New Zealand and I've always wanted to try their Moisture Tints. Anyway, this lipgloss is so pretty! I wore it on Saturday on its own and loved it, largely because it was not sticky or gloopy in the slightest. This shade would also look great over nude lipsticks or lipliner if you're that way inclined.

Hourglass 1.5mm Mechanical Gel Eyeliner-Oh Hourglass, you've done it again. This liner is said to be simple and mess-free. According to Tamira's blog, the fine tip means you can get in ridiculously close to the lashline and create flicks a lot easier. It looks a lot less awkward to hold than some other gel pen-liners as well. Maybe my days of cotton buds lining my rubbish bin are over.. 

L'Oreal Telescopic Shocking Extensions Mascara-Another L'Oreal mascara! *insert heart-eyed cat emojis*. I've not tried this before but I've only heard and read good things about it so I'm looking forward to giving it a go.

Sephora Cream Lip Stain in 01-After seeing countless beauty bloggers, including Tamira singing this little beauty's praises I knew I had to have one in my possession. In person it's reminding me of the Mac Maleficent Lipglass without the shine, but I haven't actually worn it yet so will keep you updated.

LAVANILA Deodorant in Pure Vanilla-I have no idea why this has appealed to me but I've often seen it in Sephora hauls so obviously other beauty lovers are curious about this one too. What we have here is essentially a one hundred per cent natural, roll on deodorant. I'm not gonna lie it smells pretty darn good. I was scared it'd smell like hemp seeds or something. Moving on to something less awkward to write about....

Almay Color + Care Liquid Lip Balm in Apricot-This sounds intriguing and again, according to Tamira's blog (good old point of reference...), these are comparable to the Clarins Lip Perfecters. This colour looks so pretty too. 

*Have you tried any of these products before? Let me know what you thought of them!