2015 Year in Review & Favorites

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday and wish you all an even better 2016!

2015 was definitely a new milestone year for me with the engagement and wedding planning.  This year also marked many new tried and true products that I definitely have on my holy grail repurchase list.

2015 Beauty Faves - Lorac Skinny Eye Palette in Black, Dior DiorSnow White Reveal Sunscreen, Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua Foundation, Sunday Riley Luna Sleeping Night Oil, Laura Mercier Lip Parfait Creamy Colourbalms

• Lorac Skinny Eye Palette in Black - this was a Nordstrom Anniversary Sale Exclusive and I didn't expect it to be so perfect! Not only is it the perfect warm nudes palette, but it has both the shimmer and matte shadows that I use daily. The shadows are so buttery soft AND they don't crease despite all day wear. I found myself reaching for it almost every day in the last 4 months so it definitely had to be a fave for this year. I'm looking forward to getting more.
• Dior DiorSnow White Reveal UVB Protection Sunscreen in Translucent -  I was reluctant to use it in the beginning since it's pure sunscreen. I always have to mix it in with a moisturizer every morning so it was a little cumbersome but after finding the right one (Clinique's Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief), it works so wonderfully. Never greasy feeling and doesn't crease any base makeup.
• Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua Ultra Light Skin Perfecting Sunscreen Makeup Foundation in 20 Beige - super lightweight foundation that has a light to medium coverage. My skin stays dewy all day without getting oily. Super love and already restocked.
• Sunday Riley Luna Sleeping Night Oil - if I had to choose the #1 beauty product of the year, I'm most amazed by the Luna Sleeping Night Oil's results. No, I didn't see overnight results like most people claimed, but I did see noticeable differences to my pores within a week.  I also saw improvement to acne scars around my chin area. Maybe a full review to come soon?
• Laura Mercier Lip Parfait Creamy Colourbalms - I already own 5 of these! They go on smooth and doesn't accentuate any lines. Leaves lips looking glossy and rich. Laura Mercier already added more colors in this line, I guess I'll be stocking them up again.

That's it for my top 5 beauty favorites of 2015! There were many wonderful products this year but these are definitely hands down the best I've tried and used this year. Do you have a list to share?

Once again, thank you for stopping by and making it possible for me to get chances like sponsored posts. I wish you all a wonderful 2016!

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. Additional info can be found here.

Monthly Empties: February, March & April 2015 & A Personal Update

Somehow I managed to turn it into quarterly empties again, but work and personal life has definitely taken a toll on my time! I just got engaged! ^_^  Even though it's only been a month, so much has already happened. We've taken the plunge and already made an offer for our new home! Hopefully everything will work out so we can move forward and onto home decor. So exciting!

With a new home in the horizon, I really need to start downsizing on everything I own, not only on makeup/skincare but also on clothing and bags and shoes. I'll be posting a lot of items on my Poshmark (@mellie_closet) and on Ebay. Check it out if you're interested, mention my blog and I'll offer 10% discount!

Now I'm really on a mission to empty out more products, there should be more products going into these posts.

February 2015 Monthly Empties 

February we have mostly skincare and samples used up!

Monthly Empties: January 2015

We're off to a very good start for 2015! January called for an end to a lot of products including very rarely seen makeup items! Brace yourself, this is going to be a long ride (on in our case - post =D ).

January 2015 Empties - this Glossybox was definitely overflowing this month

Let's go through the makeup/color items first since I barely ever show any.

Monthly Empties: A Quick Log

It seems a little pointless reviewing products from so long ago, but I had kept all the pictures taken from each month's empties. So here's a comprehensive list for logging purposes. This way you can see how often and how quickly some of these products get used up!


April 2014 Empties

Apr 2014 Empties

• Diorsnow D-NA Control White Reveal Day Essence (discontinued - still available here)
• Shiseido Superieur Lifting CE Emulsion (discontinued - still available here)
• Clinique Rinse off Eye Makeup Solvent  (a gwp staple)
• Shiseido White Lucent Brightening Balancing Softener (a gwp staple)
• Victoria's Secret Hand Cream with Shea Butter in Warm Embrace (discontinued - still available here)
• My Beauty Diary - Black Pearl Mask

Reveal: Dior Secret Diva Monthly Box June - October 2014

The Dior auctions are open again. Until Oct 10, you can check out their website to bid for once in a life time experiences or monthly subscription boxes.  I ordered their monthly subscription box last year - for $600 you'll receive 1 full size new release Dior beauty product every month. You can check out what I've received in the first 5 months here. Here's to the recent 5 months.

June & July 2014 Dior Secret Diva Box

June and July boxes came with the new Dior Addict It-Flash ($26) and It-Line ($31).  The Dior Addict lip products are one of my favorite lipsticks so I was very excited to see the new coveted mascara and liquid eyeliner.

Reveal: Dior's Secret Diva Monthly Box March, April & May 2014

I got so excited when I received my May Dior Secret Diva box yesterday that I thought I should share it right away! But before I show you what I got in my May box, let me share the March and April boxes first. If you follow me on Instagram (@melliescloset) you would have seen them already. Details of this subscription box service can be found in my previous post.

Dior Secret Diva March 2014 Subscription Box (photobombed by Macie)

Reveal: Dior's Secret Diva Monthly Box Jan & Feb 2014

Not sure why there isn't a lot of info on these, but you saw right, super high end luxury cosmetic brand Dior has a monthly subscription box as well, it's the Secret Diva subscription. The Dior Secret Diva subscription is slightly different than Glossybox or even the Le Metier De Beaute one that I've been sharing. The Secret Diva subscription was part of Dior's annual Auction event in October where all profits are donated to Look Good Feel Good. The Secret Diva was a limited quantity auction (I think there was only 100) and each subscription was $600 for 12 monthly boxes. Now $600 is very pricey upfront especially when you compare it to all the other subscriptions (LMdB was $348), but I consider it as part charity donation and am just fulfilling my annual charity donations (though this is not tax-deductible). Also for $50/month, you will receive full size Dior products which includes limited edition and early releases of the upcoming product launches. I see this as a foot in door with other pristine beauty bloggers ( XD  ok, I stop dreaming.)

The Secret Diva programs starts in the beginning of the calendar year and I was expecting to receive mine on the 8th of each month as advertised, but my January box came before the year even started. Here's the reveal of my very first Dior Secret Diva - Jan 2014:

Luxe Dior packaging for each Secret Diva box.

Dior Diva 250 Point Reward - Aug 2013

I recently mailed in my receipts for the Dior Diva program. For those of you that don't know, if you purchase a certain limit of Dior products from specific department stores & Sephora, you can free goodies from the brand directly. If you're interested to see what I've received in the past, you can check out my posts here and here.

Dior Diva 250 Point Reward

Skincare Haul - Spring 2012

Also somewhat of a back log of haul pictures, I want to share some of the skincare products I bought last season. Reviews should be going up very soon as I've tested these products for months now! Stay tuned!

Splurge a little at imomoko.com after learning about their 20% off SK-II sale. I've been reading so much about the brand. Many Asian celebrities refer to their Facial Treatment Essence as "Heavenly Water". So I tried a value pack!

imomoko Haul

SK-II Pitera Essence Set

SK-II Pitera Essence Set which includes the famous Facial Treatment Essence 75ml, the Facial Treatment Clear Lotion 40 ml and a Facial Treatment Mask. This set alone has over $100 worth of products but with the 20% off coupon, I paid $68! I'm not sure how much I like it so far. I'll let you know soon!

Skin79 Super Plus BB Cream Gold

To qualify for the free shipping, I also picked Jen's (FrmHeadToToe) favorite Skin79 BB Cream Gold 40g. This was $16.80 after discount, I see them selling for less on Amazon right now. I gotta admit though, this is working wonders! I think I like this even more than my Missha Perfect Cover.

Beauty.com's Friends & Family sale runs several times a year so I decided not to wait for the Urban Decay F&F and snatched up their new eyeshadow.

Urban Decay Build Your Own Palette

With Suspect & YDK

The Build Your Own palette itself is $18 and comes with a brush and shadow in Walk of Shame. I never tried the original Urban Decay single eyeshadows, but these go on super smooth. I do notice that they crease after a long day, so you definitely need to use primer with it. So this palette cost me $18+$18+$18= $54 - 20% off = $43.20. Not too bad.

Last but not least (when do I ever stop), Lord & Taylor is probably the only department store that runs a Friends & Family Sale off on cosmetics as well. 10% off all cosmetics during their F&F sale in July. I took advantage to get some new skincare after hearing Holly at HollyAnnaeree's channel regarding Dior's DiorSnow line.

Lord & Taylor's DiorSnow Haul

I bought the Dior DiorSnow D-NA White Reveal Essence at $117 (originally $130)!!!! Targeted at Asian women, this serum is supposed to have brightening and scar lightening properties. We'll see how that goes. I also got coaxed into purchasing the line's UV Shield BB Creme at $45 (originally $50). This is definitely a big step up of my regular BB creams. But there was some payoff, with these purchases I got a really nice gift set.

The gift comes in a pretty white leather zipped pouch with deluxe sizes of the White Reveal Fresh Creme & Essence, as well as the Capture Totale Super Serum. These are great keeping in mind that this whole purchase qualifies for the Dior Diva rewards ( I reviewed the 2 that I've received here and here).

Enough of my hauling, I should be posting some reviews soon. Until next time!

New Dior Diva 100 Point Reward - May 2012

Haven't written for a while, I think I've put too much effort into this blog to actually neglect it. But I really do have a lot of reviews/hauls/swatches that I've been collecting and it's piling up!

Here's a quick overview to a new Dior Diva 100 Point Reward that I recently "cashed in" with my Dior purchases. (You can see what I've received last year here.)

Dior Diva 100 Point Reward

Included in this year's gift are deluxe samples of the DiorShow mascara, j'adore eau de parfum, and a Rouge  Dior lipstick. All packed in a cute mini Dior shopping bag.

Dior Addict Full Size vs Rouge Dior Deluxe Sample

The Rouge Dior lipstick was a pretty generous size. I tried to compare it with my regular full size Dior Addict lipstick here. The one I received was in color 644 in Rouge Blossom. It's a gorgeous deep berry plum color. I haven't tried it yet, but I'm itching to!


Dior always have generous samples so make sure you save up those receipts!

Nordstrom Anniversary Beauty Haul July 2011

July marks the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale and with that a bunch of Nordstrom Exclusive beauty must haves! Meaning you won't be able to find certain colors and sets anywhere else but at Nordstrom (just to justify my shopping habit. =)  Here's what I've hauled XD

Nordstrom Anniversary Sale 2011 Beauty Haul

All this was a total of $223.78 including tax! I probably wouldn't have even attempted to spend so much if it weren't for the $8 shipping cost, so I made a $200 purchase to get free shipping. XD sigh... shopaholic, I know. Thank goodness Nordstrom now offer FREE SHIPPING & FREE RETURNS for ALL purchases! (ok, maybe that's not a good thing for my wallet either, haha)

Possibly the most worthy item and biggest fail item I got from this haul was the Estée Lauder 'Double Wear' Makeup Lesson Set which is a $105 retail value for $37.50. 

Estée Lauder 'Double Wear' Makeup Lesson Set

Comes with a full size Double Wear Light Stay-in-Place Makeup SPF 10 (1 oz.) and deluxe size Double Wear Stay-in-Place Concealer SPF 10 (0.06 oz.), a full size Spotlight Skin Tone Perfector (1 oz.) (primer) and a Foundation brush. But the failure on my part was that I got so excited seeing this set that I didn't realize I got the wrong color!!!! >_____<  And since there's no Nordstrom near me, I can't do anything about it.

Estée Lauder Gift With Purchase

The best part might have been that there was a gift with purchase with this Estée Lauder purchase. Comes with a blush palette with perfect fall colors cool pinks and corals and bright berry lipstick and lip gloss. Swatches later when I finally decide to use it. Am not a fan of the snakeskin/reptile skin cosmetic pouch (but hey it's free) so I might put that up for sale on my eBay account.

Lancôme 'Définicils Precious Cells' Mascara Set (Nordstrom Exclusive)

Next was the Lancôme 'Définicils Precious Cells' Mascara Set (Nordstrom Exclusive) which retails for $88 but was sold at $39.60 at Nordstrom.  This set includes a full size Définicils Precious Cells Mascara, Le Crayon Khol Eyeliner in Black Ebony, and Cils Booster XL Super-Enhancing Mascara base.

Color Design Sensational Effects Eyeshadow Smooth Hold in Filigree

Also included in this set is a beautiful eyeshadow in Filigree and deluxe sample size of the Bifacil Eye Makeup Remover. The eyeshadow's a great neutral color with a hint of shimmer to brighten up the eye.

And of course Lancome purchase also came with a gift with purchase! The tote I'm probably going to put up on eBay as well, but the eyeshadow is so pretty!

Lancome Gift With Purchase

Lancome Sensational Effects Eye Shadow

Lancome Sensational Effects Eye Shadow - Color Codes

Beautiful eye shadow colors! I think the shimmery white and silver will work best for elegant looks. If you look carefully, the black also has silver shimmers in it. =)

Next up, the biggest splurge of makeup I've ever done: Dior 'Fall Ready-to-Wear' Palette.

Dior 'Fall Ready-to-Wear' Palette

Dior 'Fall Ready-to-Wear' Palette - Comes in a beautiful velvet pouch

Dior 'Fall Ready-to-Wear' Palette - the beautiful packaging

Dior 'Fall Ready-to-Wear' Palette - individual brushes

Dior 'Fall Ready-to-Wear' Palette - SUCH BEAUTIFUL SHADES

The palette is so beautiful. It is definitely a luxury item, with its velvet pouch, sleek dark blue packaging, individually wrapped brushes... ahhh... so beautiful!! Haha, I can't stop gawking at it. The colors are very neutral with earthy browns and pale pinks. I've been looking at reviews for this palette, most complaints are on the face that the lip glosses are so close to the shadows and blush. I can see why it would a little unsanitary, I guess I'll have to watch out for it. =)  It's still too pretty for me to swatch.

M.A.C. Purchase

M.A.C. Semi Precious Mineralize Blush - Warmth of Coral, Select Sheer/Pressed Powder NC25, Surf Baby Lipglass in Strange Potion

Picked up some of M.A.C.'s limited edition collections. The lipglass in Strange Potion is part of the Surf Baby collection and was also part of the Villians collection that came out earlier. A coral peach color with gold shimmers.  I wanted to get a pressed powder that I can carry around with me so I ordered the M.A.C. Select Sheer Pressed Powder in NC25. Very finely milled but I'm not sure how much I like it yet.

M.A.C's Semi Precious Mineralize Blush in Warmth of Coral and My Highland Honey

My favorite item from this haul must be M.A.C's Semi Precious Mineralize Blush in Warmth of Coral. It's the most flattering coral peach color with just a hint of bronze shimmer for a natural glowy flush. Here I compared it with the My Highland Honey blush.

Evian Facial Water Spray Set

Nordstrom brought this Evian Facial Water Spray Set back during their semi annual sale. It's $15 for a $27 value set. Comes with 2 travel ones that usually sell for $14 at Sephora. These water spray bottles sprays out a very light mist that feels really hydrating. It doesn't mess up my makeup, but these are definitely not very good a setting makeup. Is it worth $15 to get water in a spray bottle? Probably not, but I don't think there's any refillable spray bottles that you can find that can spray out as nice of a mist.

That's it for my haul post! A very long long post that is way overdue!

Dior Diva & Beauty Haul June 2011

Hello everyone! Work has kept me busy and exhausted. I miss blogging so much already!

June might have came and went, but it didn't go without a heavy damage to my wallet. =)

First off, for the freebies.

If you love Dior and have not signed up as a Dior Diva, shame on you! Dior Diva is Dior's loyalty program that rewards their customers with freebies! You just have to save all the receipts of your Dior purchases from major retailers like Sephora, Macy's, or Lord & Taylor. Then depending how much you spend annually ($100, $250, $500, or $1000), you will be rewarded a different gift set of Dior products. Click here for more details.

For 2010, I bought mostly Dior lip sticks/glosses during Sephora's 20% discount events. I reached the $100 mark and Dior shipped me my package within less than 2 weeks.

Dior Diva Rewards Package

Dior Addict Lipstick in 783 Londres

I love the detail of the signature Dior logo in the packaging. =)  It's silly but I admire companies who brand their shipping material as well. My Dior Diva Rewards package came with a travel size Hypnotic Poison perfume, DIORSHOW mascara, Dior Addict lipstick and a mini Dior shopping bag. Not sure what I'm going to do with the shopping bag but it's cute nevertheless.

Next, I had a little haul from Sephora and got some freebies.

Sephora Haul June 2011

I redeem 500-point perk on my Sephora Beauty Insider Rewards. The Best of Caudalie set came with super deluxe sizes! I calculate it to be about a $65 retail value.

Best of Caudalie - Sephora Beauty Insider 500-point perk

This sample set includes the Vinoperfect Radiance Serum, Pulpe Vitaminée Eye and Lip Cream, and the Instant Foaming Cleanser. Sephora sells a similar set called the Beauty Essentials from the Vine.  This perk is sold out on sephora.com already, but do check your local Sephora store if they still have it in stock!

Also received in the mail a postcard from Sephora regarding a free Bare Escentuals sample summer kit. I already use Bare Escentuals, so this was a good travel set to bring with me.

Sephora/Bare Escentuals Sample Set

This set came with the bareMinerals Mineral Veil, foundation, and their new line of Purely Nourishing Moisturizer and baby kabuki brush. Personally, I don't care for the kabuki brush because I think it is a bit rough.

Now for the only paid purchase on the same Sephora visit, haha. I got the Sephora Favorites In the Glow Set.

Sephora Favorites In The Glow Set

This set is a deluxe sample set of all the exfoliating and skincare for bright complexion. I already own the Boscia Black Illuminating Mask and adore it, just thought this will be perfect for travel. The Ole Henriksen Truth Serum Collagen Booster, I also do love from another 500-point perk. I mostly got this kit for the Kate Sommerville ExfoliKate Treatment. Can't wait to try it!

Also bought this Sephora Favorites Sun Safety Kit. Every year Sephora sells one of these kits to allow you to sample a bunch of skincare/sun care products. All proceeds to these kits are donated to the Skin Care Foundation.

Sephora Favorites Sun Safety Kit

Sephora Favorites Sun Safety Kit

Sephora Favorites Sun Safety Kit - with the tote

This year's kit comes with a full size Ole Henriksen Fresh Lips that retails for $10 alone! Also comes with a cute Little Miss SPF tote that will be perfect for the beach. You can check out last year's kit here.

Also went to Lord & Taylor to use up the gift card from the special deal I got from RueLaLa ($25 for a $50 L&T gift card). I was looking for a new eye cream and stopped by the philosophy counter for the eye hope eye cream. It retails for $48 and came with this cute gift with purchase.

Lord & Taylor - philosophy haul

The gift with purchase came with samples of their famous purity cleanser and grace shower and shampoo. I wanted to try out their new hope in a tinted moisturizer and the sales representative was nice enough to give me a deluxe sample to try! She matched me with the light to medium one. We'll see how it works out.

That's it for the Beauty Haul, clothing haul and swatches coming up really soon! I'm totally back-logged. >.<