May 2020 anti-haul

Another month of lockdown, another month of not spending money. How are you guys coping? I’ll be honest, I’ve cracked and ordered a few bits of beauty and skincare online- within reason, obviously (I still have a hideously expensive flat in Dublin to pay for. I can’t even remember what it looks like at this stage). So I suppose this post is really a public service- here are pretty makeup things being released, and why you don’t need them. You can thank me later!

Melt Four Twenty palette

Another cannabis-themed palette?

At this stage I’m wondering what kind of audience Melt is creating for- I don’t think that it’s me. Again, I’ll reiterate; I’m interested in CBD-infused products that will help my dry skin- though how well an eyeshadow could do that I don’t know-, but this pro-weed culture thing is just not my cup of tea. It’s bizarre when alcohol is used as a selling technique (in terms of a product’s theme), but imagine if they’d come out with a grey and brown tobacco-themed palette. Imagine the shadow names; ‘Nicotine’, ‘Smokers Cough’. How sexy.

Moving on from the weed talk; this colour story is not for me. Realistically, green does not work with my eye and hair colours, and those pronounced yellows don’t excite me at all. You do you boo, but I’ll be giving this a pass.

Lime Crime Freckle pens

This is such a cute idea from Lime Crime and so in keeping with how I see them as a brand. I don’t need any help with freckles- my face is already overrun with them (and I hate them on me), but for people looking for that kind of aesthetic, I wonder if this is worth it or if it’s just a gimmick? I’ve seen a lot of people using henna for semi-permanent freckles which seems like a good shot- provided you place them correctly.

Nars Orgasm collection

Ridiculous cringey name aside (how edgy and provocative), the new limited edition Nars collection is quite pretty. The collection consists of an eyeshadow palette, a quad, a face palette, and a lip tint in the brand’s cult blush shade. The overall colours are very pretty and soft, very appropriate for the summer that we’re in. Who really uses face palettes properly though? As always, Nars has done absolutely nothing as far as packaging goes- it really must be so easy during those meetings- do they have a rubber stamp with ‘basic black packaging’ on it to describe it? I’m not going to waste too much time on this collection because at the end of the day Nars isn’t cruelty free so I’m not comfortable financially supporting the brand and I don’t want to encourage them.

Haus Labs Stupid Love palette

A palette created in collaboration with Lady Gaga, the Stupid Love palette is reminiscent of the Melt Cosmetics formula of two different colour schemes put into one palette to create a more diverse colour scheme. No tea, no shade; I quite like it. The Stupid Love palette offers a varied colour palette to play with; whites, greys, pinks, oranges, blues, browns and a green in a contained and themed way that we don’t see very often (any one or Morphe’s rainbow palettes, for example). I do think that a lot of inexperienced users will struggle, not only with the very different colours in the palette, but with the mixture of cool- and warm-toned shadows. I think it’s interesting, and I’d love to try the Haus Labs formula, but I know for a fact that I would never reach for this palette if I got it.

Pat McGrath Mothership VIII: Divine Rose palette

You can always tell a Pat McGrath palette from its gorgeous packaging, and the Divine Rose is no different. The palette, available June 15th, offers ten shades of mattes, shimmers and a duochrome! I’m hoping to see more duochromes in eyeshadow palettes personally, they’re my favourite kind of eyeshadow and I just can’t get enough.

As pretty as it is, I can’t put $125 into an eyeshadow palette, on top of whatever customs taxes it will accrue. Putting that much money into an eyeshadow palette doesn’t feel right to me, especially when we’re in the midst of a pandemic and looking at a recession right after. I’ll pass!

Anastasia Beverly Hills Electric Cake eyeliner stacks

Anastasia Beverly Hills is synonymous with a few cult favourites, but eyeliner stacks aren’t one of them.

This is such an easy anti-haul for me- I don’t like neon eyeliner, and I wouldn’t have a clue how to wear it in the first place! The two stacks; orange, white and purple; and red, yellow and green might certainly tick the box for the lovers of colour out there, but I think that the brand seriously underplayed these liners by putting them in stacks. It would have been far more interesting to be able to mix and match the colours in the collection, instead of having to invest in an entire stack, and I fear that ABH may actually have shot itself in the foot with that one. Add to the fact that if one of the liners becomes a holy grail, absolute staple favourite of a collection, the whole stack will have to be repurchased for that one pan.

I love the water-activated eyeliner idea (though I’d be worried about possible infections from using stale or dirty water), and I’d be very interested in a plain black version to try out!

Beauty Bakerie The Bars face palette

Who, who actually uses face palettes on the daily, and actually dips into every single shade? I love the idea behind Beauty Bakerie (they’re a cruelty free brand that I’m 100% testing this year) and I appreciate the packaging that’s appropriately cute for a grown adult. I just don’t understand this concept. I don’t wear blush or bronzer, and the only contour I like is cool-toned, so essentially the only product I would put on my face is the highlight. You do you boo, but I’m going to pass.

What do you think of this month’s anti-haul? Is there anything that you disagree with me on?

Thank you so much for reading my blog, it means a lot! If you want, you can follow me on Instagram @lapetitemis to hear all about what cruelty free beauty posts I publish! See you all again on Sunday for a skincare review!