Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Hello :) Prada Birthday Haul!

Hello There :)
Ok so i'm not going to make anymore promises of more blog posts lol Because at this point i don't trust myself to be all that reliable. Also that 2nd Lush haul never came and at this point i've used up most of those products already! Epppp! I'm lazy, what can you do? :(

However my birthday did pass recently and i wanted to post up some goodies i got. L did not promise me any special gift this year but we all knew since my last birthday that from now on i'll be getting a little something something from Prada ;)

I've been eyeing the BN2619 Glace Calf Tote in Pale Grey in Prada everytime we went in for a little look. Earlier this year when i picked it up, i was thinking about it for a week! Not in a, i want it now! way. More like, isn't that such a lovely bag?, it would nice to have that bag. And L said maybe for my birthday if i'm good and we all know that means the bag is pretty much mine :P

So the week before my birthday we went in to have a look and L was all ready to make the purchase. However i wanted to wait because i knew the Prada sale will be starting any day now and i will absolutely rage and cry if a bag i just bought went on sale. So we waited for the week after and the day i was making the trip after work was the day the sale started. I was so excited and hoping to find a few more goodies in the sale.
However when i got there i was a little disappointed. Last year i got the cutest make up bag but this year i feel all the designs on sale were the limited collection items that had too much going on and wasn't up my ally at all. Also the prices were so much more higher for the smaller accessories which i didn't think were that nice.
I met up with L when he finished work and we headed over to Prada, after a long decision i decided to go with the one i've been eyeing since that was the one i liked the most and would be most practical. Turns out L already paid for it a few days ago to make sure they had it in stock! Super nice and considerate of him. So the SA brings out my bag from the back all packed and i had to ask if i could have a look at it first.
Upon instant inspection the inside leather pocket was in the worst condition ever. The leather looked mangled or damaged and was very VERY noticeable. I was unhappy and asked if they have another one which they didn't besides the display. I didn't like how the manager there then rushed over and explain to me how with leather it is all different and i should see this as unique to the bag etc etc and at that point i knew they were just trying to brush me off and stuff me with a awful condition bag. I was undecided whether i should go for the display instead which looked perfect. The leather was smooth and consistent throughout. While i was examining the new bag some more and deciding if i can accept it with the mangled interior leather, i found a long scratch along the handle causing it to peel and that did it for me. I said to just give me the display one.
So to make matters worse the guy said they didn't have a box for my bag and if i really wanted he can give me a box from one of the other saffiano models but then he made an excuse right after that it won't fit and he didn't want to squish the bag. At that point i was just too upset for words. At the end of it i finally managed to push on and again insist i want it with the box, i don't mind if the box doesn't close, because i can still store the bag with the lid off. He said ok, went to the back and brought my bag out in a 'industrial packing box', his words not mine. Ok... well i give up now.
I was also eyeing one of the bags on sale and was told they only had one new one left. I asked them to hold it for 10mins so i can quickly head over to the main store and see what other colours they had there. So when we left they insisted we leave the bag we just bought there as they weren't really suppose to use those boxes and probably didn't want the main store seeing them giving us such shitty packing. We just left them there and headed over. I didn't find anything at the main store i liked better so we went back and i made the decision to purchase the other bag as well :) I liked the style and colour. Out of all the sale bags i thought this was the only one that was a good design and good colour! It is white so will require a lot of loving hehe
So i checked the new one, this style was in perfect condition, not a single fault.
And again the SA said there was no box which really upset me as i already have the other bag without a box. How will i store my bags? On the limited floor space i have? I feel like i'm entitled to a god damn box for the price we are paying. L was tired after a long day at work and didn't say much or seemed happy.
And i felt teary because i was having such a bad experience and this was suppose to be a very happy purchase!
So i paid for my bag and again he stuffed it into another industrial packing box and we left. I tried to pretend to be happy since i really appreciated L getting me such a lovely gift and i didn't want him to think i was unhappy.

When i got home that night, i was inspecting the bag some more as you should always do with these pricey bags, and found a massive marker mark on the base! And to make it worse, it looked like the staff or someone tried to clean it off and rubbed on it so hard there was a faded patch around it! I was devastated. I can't believe i didn't see it in store. I guess the lighting was dim but i instantly picked up the phone and called them. I asked for them order another one from another store for me. I didn't care if i had to wait over a month, i will not accept paying this much for a faulty bag. The staff was very unhelpful and said there was one in the main store and they won't transfer if for me until i go and check it there myself. And i cannot do the exchange there.
So the whole night i couldn't sleep worried over getting this sorted out. I was working straight the next 4 days and i knew i couldn't wait that long. So i tried to leave work early the next day but couldn't. I did find out Prada opened later that night so after work i went out to the city even though it was freezing cold. After all night and morning thinking about it at work i was just over it. I was ready to just get another saffiano tote in a different colour than what i already own and be done.
When i got there, the staff did not even look at my bag. They said a new one had JUST arrived downstairs today and they can go get it for me now. I still took the bag out and showed the other SA the mark. If they work there, they should be well aware of the mark on the base for their display bags. Maybe that's why they seemed to try to convince me not to get the display but still did not mention the mark to me. So when the original SA who helped me went to get the bag, i did say i still want to get a box for my bags. The girl said because it was sale season they had no boxes but i can leave my details and they can call me when they have them available, or i can just call up and ask them. So that was what i did. I checked the new bag which was perfect this time and left feeling my mission was accomplished. I got a bag in the new and good condition we paid for and i will make sure i get the proper boxes for my bags later on.
I was so glad it was sorted. I always imagine the worst scenario and was ready to go full bitch mode to get my way if they insisted on being difficult.
And because we made our purchase at the DJs Prada, refund is always an option so that was going to be my final solution. I wasn't going to have a bag that cost $2.5k and be unhappy with it. Money doesn't grow on trees and we all have to work hard for it. The bag better make me god damn happy! So i am happy now :) Although with this whole experience i have to admit i am not treasuring the bag as much and i did with my first and am very reluctant to want to go back to Prada now. I think it's time to venture out into other brands that offer better quality and service.

Sometimes i think maybe a Celine would have made me more excited :D But i feel it is a very seasonal in trend bag and it is also very heavy! The prada is perfect lightweight and simple everyday design. I am also obsessed with the white BN2579 i purchased too :) It's not saffiano like everything else i own but feels tough and as i mention, is perfect. It is a off white so i guess getting it a little dirty over time is ok. After all they are just bags and they are meant to be used!
I'm just terrified to start using them. They seem so fragile and when i pull out my saffiano tote i can really appreciate how structured and durable it seems now hehe
Anyways i think my story of my bad experience at Prada totally overshadowed the happiness of me getting 2 Prada bags for my birthday! One from L and one from me to me hehe :D Aren't they beautiful? I feel so blessed and happy for having such a loving bf. For having a job which allows me to support myself and can afford to buy a Prada bag (on sale). I know the amount of money it costs for these bags are ridiculous but i feel like we all work hard for something and at this point in time, these bags show the effort we put in life to live a life we enjoy :) In the future i hope to be buying a house instead! But that's for the future after a lot more hard work hehe :)




Sunday, January 12, 2014

Australian Lush Christmas Collection Boxing Day Sales Haul 2013




I've been obsessed.
I love Lush. But not enough to pay $8-10 for some soap.
I've tried many lush products in the past and in the end didn't find it to be anything special besides just being fun to use.
I still go into Lush occasionally for a browse but have not purchased their stuff regularly anymore.
Now that i've had to cut down on my products and have to be extremely careful of ingredients in the products i use, i don't shop as often for beauty items anymore.

I did check out the Lush Christmas collection early December and wasn't tempted by anything besides their Santa Baby Lip Tint. Having gotten rid of 20+ MAC lipsticks, i felt like i had nothing to put on my lips in the morning! So when i swatched this Lip Tint and found it to be a very rich full pigmented red, i knew i needed to hoard these. I have been loving red lips for a year now! I dab it on so it's not completely in your face bright. The ingredients appear gluten free and have been safe on my lips so far :)
The only downside is that it is very dry. It is almost rough and clumpy when i'm trying to smooth some product out of the tin. However it dabs on the lips fine and spreads easily with some lipbalm on the lips first :)
Also the expiry dates are only for a year long. I purchased 3 when i first spotted them and tried to not go crazy since i knew they would last forever and boxing day will have 50% off all Christmas Lush items.

I did end up going to the city on Boxing Day even though i had no plans to be part of the crowd. So my first priority shop was to Lush! Only one Santa Baby Lip Tint was found on the shelf so i grabbed that instantly. Originally $9.95 so half price was pretty good. I also grabbed one of their lipsticks that come in a dropper style bottle. I have been eyeing their lipsticks FOREVER but cannot justify paying $24.95 on another make up item when i have so much already. I got the shade Strong which is a dark deep orange. I absolutely love orange on my lips. It's like a pin-up red but much more cute :)
And that was all i got. The shelves were all ravaged to the point of almost empty. The line was to the door and the sales assistants were being extremely slow and inefficient. They love to talk and talk and TALK. When the line is out the door and the heat is up to 40 degrees C in there, you would think they would hurry up a bit more? That's the problem i've experienced at Lush. They are lovely but too friendly. There were times i've missed the train because they don't stop talking even when it's to the point where you're feeling awkward now and they need to stop. If i'm looking for something and you're helping me, ok fine. But when i've helped myself and gone to the counter because i want to pay and leave, please just stop :(
I went home with no regrets of not buying anything else from Lush. I didn't even think about it.

A Lush Kiosk opened near where i work and somehow it has tempted me after that. I walked pass during work and had a few looks. And in the end, decided to buy some of the gift sets while they were half off. It's the best time to buy so i needed to take advantage!
It started with one big gift set and a small one.
Then when i went home and got all excited smelling each item and looking at the pretty packaging, i ended up going back the next day at work and got another gift set and some small items.
Also when i notice one gift set being the last one left, i tend to just NEED to buy it.
So through all Boxing Day till this date, i've been popping into lush constantly and buying an item here and there. There isn't much left unfortunately and i feel sad i didn't decide to buy while there was still stock around. Today i did finally make an order from the Lush website which does have SOME stock left that i couldn't find in stores. There's only 3 different gifts sets left and like maybe 2 other single items. Not much at all. :(

I have unboxed a lot of the items that came in gift sets, cling wrapped them and put into my Lush tin anad threw all my extras into a bag.
I've got a whole assortment of stuff so i won't list everything i got.
Products which has stood out to me are, the Mr Punchy Soap. The smell is just so fruity and nice, i bought a few of the gift sets it came in. Keep in mind the 2 item sets were around $6-7 and 3 item sets were $10-13. The most expensive gift set i got was for $31.50 and there was 9 items. Overall i figured they worked out to be around $3.50 each item which is a super good deal!
I also love the Candy Mountain scent. My sister described it as cherry flavoured medicine which isn't very off from what it smells like. The Snow Fairy Massage Bar is the same scent and i was so reluctant to buy these at $5 still after being discounted but when i noticed stock was running low, i did purchase a few here and there. It's so creamy, i just love touching it. They won't last though and are very melty.


I've been told the Valentines' Day collection will be out soon and i have the catalogue with all the products on there. I will definitely be checking it out but probably not purchase anything since i have so much now! Although, if a Valentines' Day sale also happens, i might learn my lesson from this time and quickly snap up all the good stuff first!
I'm a little obsessed but i've been nothing but work work work lately so it actaully feels good to have something to be excited over :)

Ok so i guess i've mention the other things i've purchased during this sale season :)
I've been quite good until this Lush obsession hit. I've only been on one other proper shopping trip.
I purchased a fabulous dress from Myer and of course in one of my favourite brands, Tokito for $45 which isn't too bad. I expected the sales to be much more and the Parramatta Myer sale sections were in such a mess. They threw all the sale clothes on 3 massive racks and after a bunch of browsing, you realise there's only a few styles on there but just all over the place. Things were still not considered cheap to me. There are constantly 30% off sales at Myer and the clothes were only marked down by that much anyways which didn't make anything a 'steal'.
I purchased a wrap bracelet from Fossil. They had half price on certain stock. However it is blended in which normal stock so you won't even notice they were having sales besides one dinky red sign in the corner of the shop somewhere. The bracelet i got turned out to be the last one so i was fine with taking the display since i was going to wear it anyways. However i noticed it was all scratched up and had a massive logo flaw where the metal had a dent. This made is quite upset so i took it to another Fossil store just to change it over to one that was in decent condition. The service was shocking. Not only to me. I noticed it towards other customers as well. 3 staff in the store, yet none can finish serving this one girl waiting to pay and no other customers were needing help besides me just wanting to exchange the bracelet over.
They took forever to get the bracelet out of the case, one girl standing at the case not doing much got annoyed she had to take it out for me, took the faulty bracelet and asked what was wrong with it rudely. When i showed her the obvious faults, she said 'that's what happens when you buy sale items'. Excuse me? Sale items aren't faulty items. And i've been a constant regular to this store and purchasing everything at full price all year round, now to have this kind of treatment makes me extremely turned off the brand. The lady taking 1 hour to process a simple exchange because all 3 staff were incompetent, eventually had to call someone from outside to do it. The girl came in, knew what to do straight away and gave me the new bracelet and let me go. The sad part is that it wasn't their usual staff who would have recognised me, and these 3 random staff seemed like they would have been head office people too because their heads clearly weren't on this planet.
I was going to do a massive order from the Fossil website since none of the sale items are even displayed or available in stores for some reason. However after that day, i don't think i will be buying anymore from Fossil.

My next purchase was at the Chanel counter. I've been needing a new powder to set my make up and i've been loving my Chanel blush so i decided to have a look at what they had. I purchased 2 items from them and the young girl there had the snootiest attitude. She stood on the spot and everytime someone called her over, she would roll her eyes a little and go to them, answer their question and walk off back to her spot. While the other 2 staff were actively helping other customers.
She was the only staff available for us to call over for us to make the purchase and even thinking about it now makes me annoyed at that kind of attitude. We were such an easy sale for her, she made no effect, she even tried to up sell me stuff after i told her what i wanted. To the point where i was going to change my mind because she told me what i'm buying is not for what i plan to use it for...
There's bad staff everywhere. It makes me sad how some much more capable people are more deserving of these jobs yet these kind of people get it instead.
Another thing i got was 2 Avene Body lotion creams for sensitive skin. This has been the best face moisturizer for me now. When my skin is flaring up from allergies and hormones or whatever, this is the most basic and nicest feeling cream for the face. It's also a massive tube so it will last agessss. But when Priceline had 40% off i couldnt resist  to not buy 2 back ups :)

My Victoria Secrets order also came. I love their body mists. Everything of theirs just smells heavenly and luxurious! This is going to be one nice smelling year with all my new goodies i think :)




Scored some generous Lush samples without even asking! :D



I don't like the dry feeling of soap but this smell is addictive!

Candy Mountain Bubble Bar!

I went back for more :D

Shooting Stars Gift Set





This bag of lush goodies has now completely over flown :)

2nd Lush haul coming soon.... :D