Beauty Haul: Chanel, Clinique, Sensai...

Continuing on with my backlog, today I'm going to share a haul from a while back. I re-purchased some of my go-to products, was finally put off one of them, and also caved and tried a new, totally unnecessary item that I'd been lusting after for years. 

Let's start with the re-purchases. The Sensai (formerly Kanebo – I'll probably never get used to the re-branding) Volumising Mascara 38C and Translucent Loose Powder are hero products in my arsenal, and continue to be. No shocking revelations here. Same goes for the Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion+. Some influencers dismiss this moisturizer as being overpriced and basic, but I disagree. I think it's a great value if you get it in the largest bottle, especially if you manage to get it in a duty free shop in some set. I like that it's “basic”. To me it feels nourishing and unlike many richer formulations, in my experience, it doesn't cause breakouts. Win-win-win. 

The Chanel Inimitable Intense Mascara has been on my naughty list for a while. I used to love it! It was my go to “ordinary”, non-tubing mascara, because sometimes getting the Sensai mascara off can be annoying - the water's not hot enough, then it's too hot, then it takes so long... I liked having an ordinary formula in my rotation as well, so that I could easily take all my makeup off with just a cleanser. 

Both the regular Inimitable and the Intense used to be that for me, but over the last few years, I've found the formula to be ridiculously dry from the very beginning. Seriously! A brand new mascara would perform like it's on its last week of use. I thought it was just bad luck – an old batch or something, but after years of excuses, when this one was as bad as the five or so previous ones, I decided I was done. 

Now I only use the Sensai – it dries out a bit too fast for my liking as well, but it's also a different formulation, so that's expected. I've basically given up on finding a non-smearing ordinary mascara, low or high-end, for now – but, hey, I'm open to suggestions from my fellow oily-lid girls 😘! 

The final item in this haul is the Chanel Les Beiges Poudre Belle Mine Naturelle, or Healthy Glow Sheer Powder, no.40. Honestly, I'd watched so many reviews of Chanel's Les Beiges line, and regarding the powder specifically, most people didn't get what it was for. I didn't really need a new powder, but I had plans for this one. I wanted to get it in a dark colour and use it as a bronzer. But mainly, I just really-really wanted it because of the cream packaging. 

I've used it for a while now and it's pretty underwhelming as a powder and a bronzer. I think this particular item might have been from an older batch, because it was extremely dry. It took a long time and some scratching of the surface to get any colour to show up on me. Once I got the ball rolling and actually started to see something on my face, I hit pan soon after. Oh, and I found it to be comedogenic – if I use it too close to my mouth or along the jawline, I get a breakout... So as much as I love the design of the compact, I won't be re-purchasing the Les Beiges powder. Chanel should just make the Miroir Double Facettes in this colour combination - I'd be down for that. 

That's it for this mini-haul of mostly tried and true favourites, and a few meh's. Until next time!

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