London trip / haul..

WARNING : this blog post contains lots of Christmas excitement.. 

Last Friday I took a long awaited trip into central London with a friend, I hadn't actually been since before I went to Australia which is well over a year ago now, and I was pretty overcome with excitement. ~ I live about a twenty five minute train journey from St. Pancras, so realistically I didn't have an excuse as to why I haven't been, in a way it's always seemed so close yet such an effort to travel into. (London commuters you may understand this)

Having said all that, I really do love London. In fact I was literally like a child in Disneyland, stumbling across MAC & Bobbi Brown in Covent Garden, Selfridges on Oxford Street I started to remember why I used to love London so much. - to top it off, the Christmas lights were on and the whole of Oxford street had a festive feel.

We started in Covent Garden and walking out of the tube station I spotted MAC first, the dainty shop (which on a busy day, can be .. Yes.. Really busy) I ended up buying a lipstick in the shade 'Flat Out Fabulous' and the extreme dimension mascara.. After a very persuasive consultation with a lovely sales assistant Elena.

This lipstick colour is actually a lot less bright and vibrant as it looks, in fact it gives off more of a light plum colour and goes really well with my current winter attire.. I love the colour, and find it perfect for the season. 

The mascara has lived up to it's expectation and has been an absolute winner for me, Infact I think it tops my all time favourite the Clinique high impact, it does everything for me, volumise, length, and depth of colour.. I've had a few comments on my eyes and eyelashes in the last few days (always a bonus) overall very happy! 

After taking a trip around the beautiful Covent Garden courtyard of shops and a swift visit into Bobbi Brown we made our way towards Leicester Square (well I hope that's the way we were heading) and came across a muji store.... Finally I am able to buy the stackable makeup storage 

I intend on using this for my current every day use makeup, as far as makeup storage goes, I have the Alex narrow draw set, which pretty much holds my entire collection.. However I wanted something with easy access for the early mornings when I'm in a rush before work, this sits and looks perfect on my dressing table and will come in handy for access to all my currents..

Before heading to oxford street we stopped at space nk, I ended up treating myself to the NARS 'Digital World Lip Pencil Coffret' Christmas gift set, yes I know.. Very selfish of me. This gift set comes with five beautifully coloured lip balms, highly pigmented and moisturising on the lips these balms are perfect for the winter. They give off a satin finish and are perfect for an 'on-the-go' application. 

As you can see, festively packaged. These are the perfect christmas gift for somebody into the lipstick area of makeup.. Retailed at £32.00, they are significantly cheaper than buying each one individually. 

I also ended up buying the 'Kiehls midnight recovery concentrate' after a long period of umming and ahhhing over this product I finally took the plunge to give it a go and see what the hype is all about. WHY DID I WAIT SO LONG!! I am on day four and can already see a dramatic difference in my face every morning, this oil is fantastic and seriously lives up to it's expectations.. I wake up with clear and glowy skin.. and as somebody with combination skin and initial worry that it might be too greasy for me (as it is an oil) it really doesn't leave an unwanted oily residue..

If I can fault it for one thing it would be the scent, not everyone is a huge fan of the lavender and this gives off a very strong scent of it. I personally don't mind it though. 

Apart from the excessive makeup buying, I enjoyed seeing london again and in particular the Christmas lights, where has November gone already? Christmas is literally round the corner.. Better start planning gifts for friends & family rather than myself! 

Have you bought any presents yet? Any gift set recommendations? When was your last haul and what did you buy? Have you tried out any of the products I bought in london? Leave a comment below! 

Jess xox