The Violet Blonde: The slightly naughty Sephora Haul.

Sephora, the amazing beauty cosmetics brand that now finally ships to the UK - yey :). I have been avoiding it for as long as I possibly could, but then I spotted the Tarte eye and cheek palette and failed to resist. Oops, so here goes.

This palette comprises of six eye shadows, a bronzing powder, highlighting powder and a blusher as well. I fell in love with the colours at first sight, it is different to anything I already own - especially the eyeshadow colours. As to the quality I wasn't sure what to expect, but I have found they are really creamy and easy to both apply and blend. Three of the shades are even matte. I can see these shades being perfect for when it gets to Autumn/Winter, with the shimmery gold colour (up to no gold) being a great all over colour for right now. The bronzer surprised me as it is quite light, so perfectly suited to my skin tone. The highlighter is a gorgeous champagne colour. Again the texture of both of these is lovely and creamy, soo easy to apply. The highlighter seems to have a bit of fallout, but nothing that hurts. As to the blusher this is another gorgeous shade, it is a nude pink. I love the fact it's a natural colour, I have been looking for a more natural blusher for a while now. As to the lasting time, this is really good. It lasted all day, from half 8 to 6 o'clock in the evening.

One last point as I can't not comment on the packaging. How cute is it? It is lovely and small, just a bit smaller than a CD disc, but still with decent size products. There is also a large mirror enclosed. I am so glad I purchased this product.

Next up is another Tarte product, this time a value set. The Tarte Discover The Amazon 3-piece Kit includes the Amazonian Clay 12-hour Full Coverage foundation, pure Maracuja Oil in a rollerball format, and the gifted amazonian clay smart mascara.

I think we have all heard of the famous Amazonian Clay 12-hour full coverage foundation over the last few months. It is a foundation designed to "reduce the appearance of pores, discolourations and imperfections" leaving a "natural healthy-looking complexion." It also contains an SPF 15. This all sounds amazing to me and I can't wait to try it. From what I've heard it is a full coverage foundation, but you need the tiniest amount to cover your entire face, and it doesn't feel heavy after applied. I can't wait to try this, but I am trying to work my way through my other foundations so haven't tried it myself yet.

The Maracuja Oil is another one I have heard a fair bit about, and really wanted to try. It contains vitamin C, something that always makes me go 'ooh' at a product. It also contains essential fatty acids. Together they are said to leave skin looking "brighter, firmer and smoother." I also like the idea of the oil being in a rollerball, which helps add a light cooling sensation when applied. Ahh, definitely excited by this as well.

The Tarte Clay Tinted Brow Gel was a complete impulse purchase. I like trying new brow products, especially since I can't seem to get hold of my Sleek Brow Stylist at the moment. This is a tinted brow gel that tints them, fills gaps in, and holds them in place. It also comes with a nifty tiny brush that is so easy to use, and means you won't spread the product everywhere. I have only tried this the once so far, but it definitely did its job - I didn't need any other brow products. It also lasted all day.

A product that isn't Tarte is next haha. The Bite Beauty Luminous Creme Lipstick Duo is so cute, I mean who doesn't want a dual-ended baby lipstick? As you can see, this is a miniature product with two different lipsticks either end. The product is actually a lot smaller than I expected, you get very little product. However, the creamy-ness of the lipsticks makes up for this. The shades I have are Lychee and Musk, a neutral selection, but you can also get a brighter pair as well. I have been very impressed with the quality, and definitely want to try more Bite Beauty products when I get the chance... or in another Sephora haul.

We're nearly at the end of my haul now, these were my last two products (before samples of course). The first is the Sephora Instant Depuffing Eye Mask. I've actually tried these before when I went to the Sephora in Paris last year, and loved them so had to pick up a couple more. It is basically a pre-made eye mask with product on it. They really do depuff my eyes in an instant, and feel so relaxing and cooling on my eyes. I will be saving these for special occasions, or crisis times I think.

Lastly is the Sephora Precision Pore Cleansing Pad. Another purchase I brought down to reading a review. It is said to "gently massage the face, and help deliver deeply clean, radiant results." I can't wait to give this one a go.

These are my selection of freebies I received alongside my order. The most exciting one for me is the Laura Mercier Smooth Finish Flawless Fluid foudation. I have wanted to try some of her products for a while now, so this is a great little chance do just that.

Overall, I am extremely impressed with not only my order, but Sephora's service. I think I received this in just five days, including a Sunday in the middle - who can complain at that? I think the shipping has gone down since Sephora first started shipping to the UK, it cost me just £6 and I think about £18 in taxes and custom charges. Other than that there was no extra cost. I will happily order from Sephora again, but as much as I could order the whole shop it probably won't be for a while.