When people asked me what I wanted for Christmas this year, of course I said I wanted Sephora gift cards because... I mean, what else does a makeup junkie really want for Christmas? I mean, I could have made a wishlist of holiday sets or makeup products that I wanted, but I feel like a gift card is a twofer because you get the gift, but you also get to shop - and getting to shop is always a treat, but especially when you're not smashing into your own bank account. So, when Christmas day ended and I was faced with what would be my biggest Sephora spend ever, I was literally having dreams about what I was going to buy. This is a bit of a collective haul and includes 1 online order, 1 return, and a total of 3 trips to my 2 different local Sephoras... all in about 4 days. I know, I'm a fiend, but can you blame me? I was going to hold onto one of the gift cards... but then I got an email telling me that I was almost at VIB Rouge status, so clearly I had to spend it and get myself those perks for 2017.

Let's get onto the haul, shall we?

So, I already wrote about the Urban Decay VICE Lipstick in the shade Rapture here on the blog, but I figured that since I picked up this shade as well and it's in a different finish I would talk about it as well. This shade is POPULAR. I went to two different stores and it was sold out, so I had to order it online - and I got an email while it was sitting in my cart saying that it was almost out of stock on Sephora as well. I mean, I'm not surprised, because not only is the Comfort Matte finish sure to be a popular one, but this pale mauve shade is really on trend right now as well.

Want to see more? Keep reading!

I, like most other beauty obsessed people, saw the huge PR packages that a lot of bloggers and vloggers got of the new Urban Decay VICE lipsticks and I'll admit that I was overwhelmed by the number of them. However, I finally got down to a store where I could see them in person and swatch them on my hands so I could get a better idea of the shades and formulas that might be most appealing to me. Now, of course the shade I wanted the most was sold out (it's currently on its way to me from Sephora... It will be mine!!!) Anyway, this one came in a close second and, though it wasn't in the finish that I would have preferred I was still very interested in putting it on my face. SO I picked up the Urban Decay VICE lipstick in Rapture and I've been wearing it for a couple of days, so let's talk about it!

It's that time again... and weirdly enough, it didn't feel like this month passed all that quickly. Feels like the beginning of the month was ages ago, to be honest. That said, as it gets closer to fall I'm always a little sad about the end of summer, but balanced with excitement about cozy fall fashions. I feel like that probably goes around a lot. Fall is my favorite season, particularly when it comes to fashion and beauty, because everything seems to be about warmth and comfort. For me, September was all about makeup... which is possibly why the tail end of the month saw my skin looking less than amazing, since I was focused more on the esthetics than the care... But I digress.

Keep reading to take a look at my favorite products this month... and a few extra non-beauty favorites, of course.

I wanted this as soon as I saw the promotional images of it. I wanted it DESPERATELY. And my best friend hooked me up - before I had even seen it in Sephora! Not gonna lie, I might have squealed a little bit when I took the tissue paper off of it. I wanted to go home from our sushi lunch, scrub off my makeup and redo it using this for my BBQ birthday party with friends that night, but I wanted to take photos of it for the blog first. And, honestly, I chose a nap and a quick touch up afterwards over a complete new face. I know this information is not what you're looking for, but oh how I love the story telling. Anyway, I started using this and playing with it the very next day and now I feel like I'm definitely ready to give it my review.

So... I'm gonna be really honest. Mostly this post is about me being able to peruse the Sephora website for things that I'd really like to buy. I anticipate that when my birthday comes around at the beginning of next month I'll end up with at least a couple of Sephora gift cards (mostly because that's the only thing I asked for), so I'll certainly pick up at least a couple of these things in the near future. That said, I figured that I would make a wish list of things that I really want for the blog - for people in my life who are anti-gift card and also for myself so that I can remember what I wanna pick up. And for YOU, dear reader, because this stuff is great!

Keep reading for my list...