Shoppers Drug Mart Beauty Gala

Last, last Saturday was a pretty good day for me. As I was cashing out at Shoppers Drug Mart the weekend prior, the cashier let me know about the upcoming Shoppers Drug Mart Beauty Gala. If I donated $5, I would get to schedule a free beauty consultation, as well as receive swag, a chance to win beauty gift baskets, and $5 off my next beauty purchase! Needless to say, I was immediately on board. I have NEVER had a makeover done. I know they offer them at pretty much every makeup and department store, but the girls are always too busy with other clients, and I'm just not patient enough to wait my turn. So I made an appointment, and I'm so glad I did!

It was great working with makeup artist Julia (@JULESVERNE87 on Instagram!) on my "not too dressy, but good for looking kind of done up everyday" look. She used a variety of Stila products (some of which I ended up purchasing) and urged me to start incorporating certain products into my absolutely non-existent beauty routine. Next on my beauty shopping list: some BB Cream, an exfoliator (she recommended Clinique's 7 Day Scrub Cream Rinse-Off Formula), and a moisturizer. I'm going to wait for brand promos to emerge to purchase these items so I can reap the free make-up tester/swag benefits (like the Stila one I'll mention below!). She also suggested adding a cleanser to my routine, which I have but tend to neglect due to sheer laziness... ahem.

At first I was a bit apprehensive about my facial transformation; she continuously asked me how I was liking the look and I have to admit I was a bit worried about the direction it was going in. I knew I couldn't really offer an honest opinion though, not until the mascara and eyeliner finally finished the look. When she applied a nice orange-tinted blush, I felt it was a bit too harsh in contrast with whatever else was on my face and used my fingers to blend and mellow it out. I think she took that as a sign that I totally hated it, but I really didn't! I guess I'm just used to seeing myself with the bare beauty essentials (eyeliner, mascara, and a dab of outfit-complimenting lippy on the way out). Seriously, I only ever apply whatever I can get away with on the short bus ride from home to the subway (and I must admit, even on the TTC, I have quite the steady hand).

Here's my Final Look (after a few hours of thrift store shopping):

Dat cat eye.

It was so awesome to be able to look in the mirror and be like "Hot damn". Thank you Julia!

So in terms of swag I got this great goody bag filled with awesome tester products galore. Mainly Vichy, which is cool. I'm going to do my best to try these new products out. 

Now for my Stila haul!

As Julia was dressing my face, she mentioned that Stila had a gala-exclusive promotion going on, where if you spend $65 or more on Stila products, you get a free gift! I thought this was the perfect opportunity to stock up on some new makeup, especially with the awesome Super Spend Your Points Event going on at Shoppers this weekend! I had enough Shoppers Optimum points to redeem the 25,000 points for $50 offer and got almost $80 worth of Stila make-up for under $30. SCORE. 

A beauty in its own right.

My Stila purchase consisted of Stila's In the Light Palette and Stila's Colour Balm Lipstick in Maya. Julia used a few of the colours from the palette on my lids yesterday, and the Maya lipstick completed my look. I love the palette because it's got all of your bases covered for any kind of natural or smoky eye look you can imagine. I had asked a for a nude lip, and apparently the shade Julia had in mind wasn't available, so out of the suggestions she gave I chose the Maya shade. I felt it not only complimented the blush Julia used on my cheeks, but it was the perfect replacement for my Elizabeth Arden lipstick that seems to be running/wearing out. Huzzah!

The Stila gift with purchase included an exclusive Stila make-up clutch, Stila's Smudge Stick Waterproof Eyeliner in Stingray (Jet Black), and Stila's Mini Foundation Makeup Brush #35 (which is not sold separately). The clutch is a super soft sueded material, a stylish replacement for my wrist-strapless MAC makeup bag. Ironically, the gifted eyeliner was the same one Julia used for my look, so basically I got half the products in one purchase! When I do invest in some new foundation/BB Cream/Moisturizer, the #35 will be the perfect tool for my TTC beauty looks. 

Don't you just love when life works out like that?

After this whole experience I feel like I've been too cheap and indifferent when it comes to my "look". When I look good, I feel good, so indulging a little more on tailoring my beauty regime and purchasing poppin' products is definitely a sound investment.

What are some beauty products you can't live without?

-Shopaholic