Beauty Swap with Confessions of a Beauty School Dropout

Ages ago (so, probably really not that long ago), Danielle of Confessions of a Beauty School Dropout told me about a new line of matte lipsticks that Maybelline had brought out, and, because they were so cheap, she offered to send me some. I jumped at the chance because, naturally, even drugstore products here can be three times the price. (It is a travesty and we have despaired accordingly.)

I offered to send her some brands that she wasn't able to get in the US and before we knew it, we'd somehow inadvertently organised a beauty swap! I packed some stuff up in a box and shipped it to her -- you can read about it here! I got my package a couple of weeks ago (just at the right time, too, with all of my uni shenanigans) and I was so excited, I completely forgot that I'd answered the door at 11 in the morning still in my nightie with cats on it.

Cat nighties are cool.

This was my pretty much my face when I got the parcel.

I feel like Gushica from Bachie 2014.

I got changed and put on makeup first.

Danielle had promised me one or two American snacks, and yet I got all this!

Hello fat life!

I haven't been able to try all of the snacks at this time -- I'm trying to stagger them out for full enjoyment -- but I'll totally give my short thoughts on what I have tried so far!

1) Pop-Tarts || Oh. My. GLOB. I know that Pop-Tarts are an American staple, but here they are a delicacy. They were available for a short time when I was wee kid but they disappeared quickly. They've been available at an extortionist's price at international food stores for years, but they've recently reappeared on supermarket shelves, albeit not with the wide variety of flavours the US are used to -- but either way, hallelujah! I don't know what flavour Danielle has sent me -- I want to guess either chocolate or strawberry -- but I am so, so excited for a quiet morning to stick these bad boys in my toaster. Probably tomorrow.

2) Cupcakes || "Hey Danielle," I typed one day whilst balancing this delicious little thing on my head, "what are those little chocolate cakes you sent me?" "They're called Cupcakes!" she replied, most likely amused. These I have eaten. And they are delicious. First off: the icing is awesome. It's better than some of the abominations I've made in the past. Second of all: cream! The cake has mock cream in the middle! This is something I've actually done with my own cupcakes, but I've never seen them in anything you can buy!

3) Twinkies || Do these even need an introduction? They sure do, if you mistakenly thought, like me, that Twinkies were some kind of chocolate bar. (Maybe it's because I heard Americans deep fry them and here, if you're very lucky, your local fish and chip shop might deep fry Mars bars -- so, y'know, ipso facto chocolate bar). As it turns out, they're not. They're a sweet kind of sponge cake with... wait for it... mock cream inside. Isn't America a wonderful place? These are yum, but not an everyday snack for me.

4) Wonka Rainbow Nerds || Holy mackerel. I know you used to be able to get giant packs of nerds at the supermarket, but I haven't seen them at my local Woolies for a long time. Nerds were a thing of my childhood, and I've been reliving my childhood by chowing down on them!

5) Wonka Mini Chewy Sweet Tarts || Not gonna lie, I have no idea what these are. They remind me of these kinds of lollies that you can get from one of those lollie "vending" machines by inserting 20 cents, but given that these are chewy... I haven't tried these yet, but they are definitely the item that made me the most curious.

6) 3 Musketeers || So, the thing about this chocolate bar: it's almost, but not quite, a large Milky Way. The nougat isn't quite as light and fluffy -- its density does kind of fit that more of a Mars bar (look at me, talking like I know what I'm talking about). It was quite a tasty snack, and totally helped me get through one of my many late nights in the last couple of weeks.

7) Air Heads || I can't lie, I have no idea what these are either. I haven't tried them yet, but they seem to be some kind of fruit-flavoured lolly. The name is familiar, so it is very possible that the supermarket sells these and I've somehow ignored them for the last twenty-odd years.

8) Milky Way || Okay, so I haven't eaten this -- yet -- but let me tell you: this is basically a Mars bar. The wrapper description lists nougat and caramel, and that's pretty much a Mars bar! If it's as good as a Mars bar, it is going to be delicious.

9) Rice Krispies Treats || In Australia, Rice Krispies are called Rice Bubbles. We also have these Rice Krispie Treats in Australia, but a) they're not as big, and b) they're called LCMs (nobody in Australia actually knows why). I actually think that these are more delicious than the ones we have here; I think the recipe for LCMs here may have changed over the years, because the Treats that Danielle sent me reminded me of the ones I used to eat as a kid when they first came out.

10) Twix || We have Twix bars in Australia, but they definitely do not come in a four pack. Twix bars were my absolute favourite sweet when I was a little kid and I haven't had one in a long time, so it was good to relive that bit of my childhood again.

11) Reese's Peanut Butter Cups || The thing that made Americans famous in Australia. You cannot buy Hershey's anything at your regular supermarket here. You can get them for the price of a small Caribbean island at an international sweet shop, but that's about it. I have paid the price for several Caribbean islands over the years for these bad boys. Yes, I have devoured these, and yes, they were delicious.

12) Butterfinger || Okay. So. The thing about the Butterfinger. This is, singlehandedly, the best frickin' thing to come out of the US. Period. I don't know what I expecting as I bit into it -- soft peanut butter mix, I guess, something like a peanut butter Snickers or the peanut butter Kit Kat Chunky bars we used to have (but no longer can get because whenever Australia gets anything fun, we get rid of it). Butterfingers are infinitely better. It's crunchy -- and not like crunchy peanut butter, but like... Peppermint Crisp crunchy. Like Crunchie crunchy. It was incredible! I think my brain short-circuited for a moment in pure unadulterated happiness. I am definitely going to hunt these down from the international sweet shops.

In addition to all of the snacks that Danielle sent me, she also included all of these makeup goodies!

OH THE THINGS!

1) Wet 'n' Wild Color Icon Blusher - "Mellow Wine" || Huzzah, Wet 'n' Wild! Here, it's not a cosmetic brand, it's a famous waterpark. This blush is a kind of deep dusty rose pink. You definitely need to use it with a very light hand, because the payoff is easy and you can definitely overdo it if you're not careful.

2) Wet 'n' Wild Color Icon Eyeshadow Collection - "Comfort Zone" || This is a really neat little palette with an apparent multitude of uses! It has shadows which are embossed with the area that they're to be used - crease, browbone, etc. The shadows are velvety to touch, have good payoff and are easy to blend. Winning!

3) Maybelline Color Sensational Creamy Mattes - "Divine Wine" and "Craving Coral" || These lipsticks are the prize winners for me. I cannot wait for them to come to Australia at an insanely ridiculous price so that I can find them on sale and buy the lot. "Divine Wine" goes on like a dream and looks absolutely beautiful. "Craving Coral" is a bit uneven and can take a little more work, but the end result is just as good. They both do look matte whilst feeling very creamy on the lips. Plus how cute is the packaging?!

Maybelline Creamy Matte Lipsticks

Swatchy swatch

 

 Wearing "Divine Wine" (left) and "Craving Coral" (right - somebody call Vogue).

 Back to the stash!

4) Wet 'n' Wild H2O Proof Liquid Liner || Danielle told me that this liner was seriously waterproof, and that she uses olive oil to get it off. My eyelids are naturally oilier than a BP slick, so I was curious to test it out. The applicator isn't a brush or a pen, so I'm not sure what it's supposed to be, but it does the job well. The colour is good, and it tends to last all day. One thing I have noticed, however, is that sometimes it transfer onto my lid! I can safely say that I've never had a liner do that before.

5) Maybelline The Elixir - "Fuchsia Flourish" || I have this in "Signature Scarlet" and although it is super glossy, it does tend to feather and bleed on me after a bit. I haven't tried out this colour yet, but I'm hoping it won't be the same -- it probably won't be, as the softer the colour, the less it feathers. (I don't know why that is.) These in Australia approach the $20 and we have a mere 12 shades -- by comparison, in the US they're half the price and have an incredible 20 shade options. ("Don't be jelly, Linda.")

6) Wet 'n' Wild Color Icon Eyeshadow Palette - "Smoke and Melrose" || This, like the larger palette, is a really gorgeous, velvety palette with embossed pans. I think the browbone colour might be a bit dark for me, but until I wear it, I won't know for sure. I think this will make a really beautiful look which I, for one, am super excited to try.

7) NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil - "Milk" || I think I shrieked when I saw this. NYX is available in Australia from Target, but there's only one store in my area and it's NYX collection is... abysmal at best -- plus it's more than twice the price. A lot of the blogs or YouTubers that I regularly read/watch have this eye pencil and I always wished I had one of my own. Now I do and I'm as happy as a dancing flamingo!

The stuff that Danielle sent me is absolutely amazing and now that uni is over for another year, I'm going to have so much fun playing with everything! I've been so lucky to get all of these items from her, as well as to have her as such incredible friend.

Don't forget to head over to Confessions of a Beauty School Dropout to see what I sent over to her!

Sarah xo