London IMATS Haul!

*Incase you're confused I had already posted this before but being a ditzy idiot I accidently deleted it so I've had to rewrite it*

Last weekend I made a trip to London to go to Imats. It was the first time I'd ever been to it and I bought the tickets way back in January so you can imagine how excited I was. On the day I met up with the lovely Alberteen from the blog Dippy Writes and it was so good to be with someone as mad about make up as I am! Just as a little disclaimer, I did spend a lot of money considering it's just make up but I've been saving up for it for months now and  it was my end of exam treat.

L-R: Sweet Prawn Lipstick, Princess Lipstick, Dolly Pink Liner, Desert Rose Blush, Bourgeois Pig Blush

Cork Eyeshadow, Light Brown Pencil, Sparkly Lepoard Jumbo Eye Pencil, Yogurt Eye Pencil, Eyebrow Kit

 The first stall I bought from was NYX. There was a ridiculous queue that we must have been in for at least twenty minutes and it was still heaving around all the make up. So I did go a little crazy and bought lots of things to make it worth the wait. I had wanted to get the matte bronzer but I couldn't get near it and the swatches pictured was the first time I had swatched most things.

The first things I picked up were two lipsticks in Sweet Prawn and Princess. I wasn't sure about the colours but as they were only £2 each it was a good chance to try them out. I've not worn them out yet but I'm so impressed with the creamy texture when I tried them on. I also picked up a lip liner in Dolly Pink but I don't know what lipstick I was thinking for it to go with. I can't see myself getting much use of it! For blush I picked up Desert Rose with is a dark purple pink and Bourgeois Pig which is a bright pink. I love the pigmentation and texture of NYX blushes so I would've picked up more but there were hardly any left. Eye wise I picked up two of the famous jumbo eye pencils in Yogurt, a gorgeous shimmery beige, and Sparkly Leopard which is a beautiful bronze colour. I also got a pretty gold eye shadow called Cork and an eye pencil in Light Brown. Finally I got an Eyebrow Palette in Light but I'm not sure why as I already have a few eyebrow palettes so I might end up giving this one away.

The next stall we went to was Crown Brushes. I'd already planned my purchases because I'd been wanting to try the brand for ages. I got an angled contour brush for £12 as an alternative to the real techniques contour brush. I got a couple of blending brushes for eyeshadow. The pure white one is supposed to be a dupe for the Mac 217 which I already own so it'll be interesting to compare the two. I think these brushes were about £4 each which is pretty good. I also got a new eyeliner brush for the same price because I've been needing a new one for ages. Being ditzy I forgot to photography a fan brush that I got, mainly because of the cute pink handle. Lastly I got a daily brush cleanser for £8, which is a bit of a steep price in comparison, and I'm so annoyed with it. The spray cap is awful so the cleaner sort of spills out making it really difficult to use and the bottles already lost it's shape. I like the brushes but the cleanser has left a bitter taste about the brand in my mouth!

Next I popped over to Inglot for one of their freedom palettes. I got two matte shade, 329 and 3  because I feel like the Naked 2 palette is missing some more mattes for the crease. I do love some shimmer on the lid though so I got the colour 4  which is a beautiful bronze with gold shimmer. Can you geuss I like my golds and bronze colours?

I wasn't planning on buying a Mac lipstick because the discount wasn't great and the stall was manic but when Alberteen was getting one I noticed this gorgeous coral lippy aptly named Coral Bliss. It's such a gorgeous colour and in my favourite formulation- cremesheen.

Nars had the best discount by far- 60%! As it was the last stall and I'd already spent a lot of money I only got a couple of things. I got a Matte Lip Pencil in Never Say Never for the bargain price of £7. The purple colour isn't something I'd usually go for but its gorgeous and I'm glad to get out my comfort zone. Next I got a cream duo with the famous Orgasm and South Beach in it for £12.50. The colours are quite subtle but they will give a beautiful summer glow. While we were in the queue we saw Sammi from Beauty Crush and Patricia from Brit Pop Princess. They were both so lovely and just as gorgeous in the flesh.

That's everything I got! I had a fantastic time and I'm really happy with all my purchases.

Updated Blog Sale

 

 This is just a really quick post to let you know that I've finally gotten around to updating the blog sale! If you want to have a nosy then just click on the tab just below the header. Hopefully there will be a bargain there that you like!

Real Techniques Customer Service Rave

When a company has rubbish customer service people are quick to write a rant post and warn people away so I thought that I'd share the amazing customer service I had from Real Techniques. I'm actually shocked at how good it was!

Not too long after Real Techniques came to Boots I bought the stippling brush and was left unimpressed (although I love the core collection). Other bloggers raved about how soft it is but mine was stiff and horrible to use. Despite regular washes the bottom of the brush was matted and clogged with product so I couldn't use it for cream blush let alone foundation. 

A couple of  weeks ago I saw someone post about a problem they had on twitter with Real Technique brushes so I replied letting them know I got a bad brush too. The next day Real Techniques tweeted me with a contact email to send a complaint to. I'm not sure why I didn't complain sooner as I usually don't hesitate to! So I sent an email explaining my problem with the brush and with in a matter of hours I got a reply. That's pretty good right?! Sometimes companies take weeks or even months to reply. They asked me to said pictures of the stippling brush and an address to send out a replacement. I replied with the details on Saturday and the next Monday a replacement arrived! Talk about speedy.

Anyway it gets better. Not only had they sent me a replacement for the stippling brush they also sent a kabuki brush too! I was over the moon with this as I'd been after a new brush for bronzer for ages and the angled shape of this will be perfect. They didn't have to include the extra brush but the fact they did left a sweet taste in my mouth.

All in all the customer service really couldn't have been any better! It's refreshing for a brand to value customers and treat them so well. I'll definitely buy from Real Techniques in the future - infact I've got my eye on the powder brush at the moment.

What's  the best customer service experience you've had? What's the worst?