U.S. Shopping Haul!

Hello Beauties!

Welcome back! Yet another break from my blog as I recently returned from a road trip around the US! For a little over 2 weeks we ventured along the West Coast through LA, San Fran, Yosemite National Park, Death Valley, Vegas and Phoenix! As you can imagine, there was plenty of opportunity to pick up some real goodies from over there. I decided to do a post on what items I picked up abroad, some you can easily get in Australia, some not so easy.

I went there with the long term assumption that everything would be a great deal cheaper in the US than in Australia, but that wasn’t the case in some instances. While the US price seemed a lot cheaper, with the exchange rate at the time I was still saving maybe $10-$15 per high end item (depending on the item), but it wasn’t sooo much cheaper. The exception was a cosmetics outlet I went to in Vegas, things were really cheap there!

This is a picture of my main haul. There were some other items I forgot to put in there, like some clothes, BB creams and skincare. But this was the most exciting part! Also, my garden has finally started to bloom and the flowers have been so gorgeous that I wanted to feature them in this post, so they are in nearly every product shot. Sorry not sorry.

When in the US, buy a Michael Kors bag! I picked up this at a Michael Kors outlet for the crazy price of about $120 AUD! I also wanted to start a trend for my travels. This was the first time going overseas since I was really young, so it was a good time to start this tradition. Basically, every time I go overseas I want to pick up a ‘special’ pair of underwear so that over time I have a sentimental collection of gorgeous underwear that will remind of my travels. Weird I know, some people choose perfumes, some choose charms for their bracelet or basic souvenirs. I wanted to go a step further and start collecting underwear. Hence the Victoria’s Secret bag, and gosh their stores are absolutely incredible in America. I’m so jealous!

To start with, the LORAC Pro Palette 3 was at the top of my list. I almost died when I saw it in store, it’s so damn pretty! I went to Ulta Beauty to pick this one up for $44, which equates to about $57 AUD. It also came with a bonus deluxe sample of their ‘Behind the Scenes’ eyeshadow primer.

Also from Ulta, I picked up the Makeup Revolution ICONIC 2 eyeshadow palette for $7 US, aimed to be a dupe for the Urban Decay Naked 2 palette. Originally, I was going for the ICONIC 3, but the rose toned shadows were similar to some in the LORAC Pro 3, so I got the ICONIC 2 instead which had more cool toned neutrals.

I also got some minis/travel size items, which I got so excited about! What I love about America was the range of travel size or deluxe samples there were for some much loved and hyped items. It gave me the chance of trying high end makeup for a fraction of the price, while still having a generous product size. For example, the LORAC TANtalizer mini contour and highlight duo was so generous that it contains more product than some full sized items! And for $13 US I really could not pass it up! The rose gold packaging is just another thing to drool over as well. The LORAC waterproof eyeliner was a gift with offer at Ulta when buying a LORAC palette, winning! The Urban Decay Naked Skin and IT Cosmetics! Bye Bye Under Eye are some of the most popular concealers going around, so I had to purchase the travel size! I also got an Urban Decay De-slick setting spray for $14 (not pictured) but still a massive 30ml bottle!

And something you have to now be on a waitlist for in Australia is the BECCA Opal Glow on the Go set, featuring minis of the Opal Shimmering Skin Perfector in Pressed Powder  and their liquid Spotlights version. Man, now looking back I should have picked up 5 of these! They are my first BECCA products and are insanely beautiful. They were $20 US, so only about $10 cheaper in AUD than what you can get it for in Australia, if you CAN get it that is!

Then, probably the most exciting part of my cosmetics shopping occurred in Vegas, a little bird told me about about an outlet centre which had a shop called ‘The Cosmetics Company’ were you could pick up high end cosmetics at really great prices, the only issue is limited shade range but I decided to take the plunge anyway.

I picked up some Bobbi Brown items, including their Skin Care To Go set for only $20! It included the famous Soothing Cleansing Oil and Hydrating Eye Cream, and the Hydrating Face Cream.

I also got the Secret to Standout Eyes set which included a limited edition XO palette which is ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS by the way, the gel eyeliner and Smokey Eye Mascara. All For $49 US.

Next up was some Smashbox goodies! I got the Double Exposure eyeshadow palette for $28 US, and their Summer Essentials gift set which was originally $49 for $116 value, down to $28.70!

They also stocked a HUGE range of Estee Lauder products, and I’ve heard amazing things about their Double Wear Makeup To Go Liquid Compact. The concept behind this is that the packaging prevents spillage and excess product coming out when you use it. You push down on the compact and the foundation disperses through the small hole. This retails for $68 in Australia, and I got it for $31.50 US dollars.

I also picked up some really cheap MAC items, including the Pigment set from their past holiday collection in blue and gold, and a mineral eyeshadow in Pink Cluster. I also got a lip liner in Whirl from Nordstrom, even if the US they are so hard to find now!

Lastly, I got some Wet n Wild and Milani products from Walmart. The ever so infamous Baked Blush in Luminoso, and a pressed gold glitter from Wet n Wild which was 93 cents! I searched absolutely everywhere for the Wet n Wild highlighter in Boozy Brunch but could not find it anywhere! So disappointed, but I know it’s very hard to find these days. Also, I got some samples from a few chemists, which is something else I loved about the US, chemists have tables full of free samples you can go through and pick whatever you like! I got some skin care samples from drugstore brands, a Clinique Moisture Surge and Estee Lauder lipstick.

There you have it! I spoiled myself quite a bit, but I was holding back from buying any makeup or skincare months before going so I didn’t feel so bad about spending so much money over there, I was biding my time!

If you think there was something I should have bought that I didn’t, comment with your suggestion! I think we may be planning a trip to Hawaii next, so I’ll put them on my list.

In between posts, you can catch up with me on Instagram with the handle @ thebeautyandthegeekau

Love,

Fel x

PS, I linked up with the Fabulous and Fun Life Link Up Party