My Spending Ban Ends!

AND PRICELINE 40% OFF SALE HAUL!

Just two days ago My Two-Month Spending Ban ended! I bloody well survived this long, and I'm amazed by my willpower. I went two entire months without buying anything and it was incredibly hard not giving in to all the sales, new releases and all the things I so wanted to buy.

I gave in once a couple of weeks into the ban, as I really needed a new concealer and DownUnder Makeup just so happened to have another one of their big sales. I went there not intending to buy anything, just to accompany my mum, sister and two girlfriends and give them beauty advice, until I saw the LA Girl HD Pro concealers and picked three shades. You can read about this visit here. After that, I didn't buy anything else, save for my new desk, mirror and acne treatment. I actually returned the desk I initially bought, because we changed the plan for our bedroom, so there was more space available for the vanity (which, in reality, was too small). I ended up going for the IKEA Micke desk, and I could not be more in love with it. I also returned the chair to Kmart because it turned out to be structurally unsafe as the legs were bending at an angle.

To celebrate my success with the ban, I placed a small order with Makeup Revolution. I wanted to try something new, and I'd heard so much about the brand. I actually ordered from them two days before the ban ended, but that was only because one item that I wanted had just been restocked and I didn't know how long I had till they ran out of it again. I'll do a post on the MUR order later, but for now, let's look at my Priceline haul from yesterday. They just so conveniently had another one of their 40% off skincare sales starting yesterday, and it supposedly ends tomorrow. I went there first thing because I needed to restock on things I had run low on or finished completely (Sukin Hydrating Mist Toner, I'm looking at you!)

I picked up quite a few things for myself, including two new products that I've never tried before.

I, of course, picked up another bottle of the Sukin Hydrating Mist Toner. I was actually going to try out the Sukin Oil Balancing Tonic, but it turned out to contain alcohol, which would have dried my skin out. I still don't know the exact purpose of a toner, but I do know that it balances my skin out and my skin doesn't feel as dry or oily as it used to.

I also picked up a bottle of Sukin's Micellar Water. The product itself isn't new to me, as I've been using one from Boots that Cat included in her last care package and I like how well it works for removing makeup. I don't use micellar water for anything else because I find it to be comedogenic for my skin and cause milia and pimples to break out when I don't wash my face with my cleanser. I've used up 2/3 of my current bottle so I wanted to stock up on it during the skincare sale.

Next thing I picked up was Sugar Baby's Vita + Skin Super Serum. I was looking for a serum to use that wasn't greasy but also packed a punch when it came to hydration and antioxidants. I'd heard a few reviews about it, and the brand as a whole, and liked the fact that they were an Australian-owned company with a very retro style to their packaging. I mean, look at the packaging for the Super Serum, isn't it super cute?!

Finally, I picked up a night cream! I had so much trouble trying to find a good one that didn't break the bank. I actually wanted to get A'Kin's Intensive Moisture Antioxidant Creme as it was the only cruelty-free and vegan one that didn't contain alcohol, but it was too expensive for my liking and wasn't technically a 'night' cream. I went for Innoxa Organic Replenishing Night Creme, because despite it having alcohol, it was further down in the list of ingredients compared to all of the other contenders, and unlike the other contenders, there was just one alcohol-based ingredient, instead of two or three. I figured that it wouldn't be so bad to try out, especially because the reviews for this products were glowing with positivity.

Ever since I started putting the effort into my skin to combat oiliness and dehydration, I've been putting a lot of effort into checking the ingredients in the products I plan on buying and trying. It continues to amaze me how many products contain ingredients that just aren't good for your skin. I don't know about the high end, but a lot of the ones that I find at Priceline, basically drugstore and mid-range, tend to contain alcohol, SLS, dimethicone, and other irritants and ingredients. In fact, from what I could tell after inspecting my sister's previous skincare routine, The Body Shop is guilty of the same crime. That's why my skincare routine is a mash-up of several different brands, because each brand has their pros and cons and I try to pick the products most suitable for my skin and budget. It's a lot of effort, but it's worth it, right?

I am so glad that my spending ban has finally finished, and I'm so excited to see how Makeup Revolution goes. I'm doing a makeup cull and it really does show that I need to be more careful and selective about what I buy. I've got too much stuff that need to be either thrown out or given away, though some of them are actually quite nice.

Have you done a spending ban before? How did you go?