Marcelle Sale Haul: Fall 2014

Over the weekend I had a chance to go to the Marcelle and L'Oreal warehouse sales, and I have to say, Marcelle blows L'Oreal out of the water. Over the years, the L'Oreal sale has become more and more pathetic. The prices are going up each year, and in the end, you don't save as much money as you think. It's not a blowout warehouse sale so much as a small discount. The items L'Oreal offers at their sale are pretty terrible too. I don't like Maybelline mascaras, and they're still $4 anyway - chances are you can get that on sale at Pharmaprix. The blushes and eyeshadows they have are usually bad quality (low color payoff, barely pigmented). The only thing the L'Oreal sale is good for is Essie nail polish, and even at that, they still go for $4.50 each. You can buy Essie at TJ Maxx for $3.99.

So, needless to say, I won't be doing a L'Oreal sale haul because all I bought were 3 Essie polishes and some shampoo. Onto the better stuff: Marcelle. Marcelle is a Quebec-based makeup brand that I've truly grown fond of. It doesn't get as much love as the massive American brands, but the quality is great. They're also the makers of Annabelle products, and you can buy their makeup at most Quebec pharmacies.

The Marcelle sale discount prices are incredible. Every makeup item is $2.50. Nothing more. Skincare items are more expensive, which makes sense, but the makeup is cheap. On top of that, you don't need to have a ticket to be able to access this sale (whereas the L'Oreal sale is invitation-only).

The two items I beeline for at the Marcelle sale are the foundation and mascara. I used to adore their Hydra-C foundation, but then they discontinued it (which I'm still upset about!). Luckily, they had their New-Age foundation on sale at $2.50 and the shade range is exactly the same as the Hydra-C so I knew which color I had to get. As you can see, I bought a grand total of three of these foundations... Why, you ask? They cost $20 at the pharmacy. Yep. $20. That's a $17.50 discount.

I'm also obsessed with the Annabelle Big Show mascara, so I picked up two of them. The formulation is perfect. It's not too wet, and the brush is just the right size. It reminds me of a slightly smaller version of Benefit Bad Gal. I can use one tube for months and months because it retains its quality really well.

The next thing I wanted to pick up was a basic black kohl eyeliner, which they were selling individually for $2.50.. Until I realized they were selling sets of four for $2.50 that included black in them, so I picked up the set for blue eyes and the set for green eyes. I already own the set for brown eyes.

The last two items I picked up are the Annabelle Skin True foundation and a Marcelle velvety powder blush. The good thing about Annabelle foundation is that it's only $8 in-store, so the Marcelle sale is a good time to try out different shades. I like knowing that there's a cheap foundation out there that I can go to in case I ever run out, but it's definitely crucial to know your shade. As for the blush, I have this exact blush in the shade Blossom and I'm obsessed with it, so it was only natural that I picked up another.

I don't think I'll go to the L'Oreal sale next time. Marcelle all the way!

Thoughts on TARGET Opening in Montreal

Hey everyone! On Monday night I was fortunate enough to be invited to the friends & family opening of Target in St. Dorothee (which is a suburb of Montreal). Personally, I don't think Montrealers know about the awesomeness that is Target since this is the first one to open in the Montreal area. As an avid haul-watcher and reader, I know Target is the place to be for inexpensive but awesome clothing, shoes, and beauty stuff!

I only had one hour to shop around but I figure I'd let you know what the highlights were. The one thing I really wanted to buy when I walked in was a pair of tall fall boots. Unfortunately their shoe section was not yet fully stocked, but they did have some really cute combat boots that I was considering.

Across from the shoe section was the clothing section. I was really happy to see they were carrying the Phillip Lim for Target collection - a good sign since I wasn't sure they would bring in the American lines. Although I didn't pick up anything from that collection (and since I didn't have much time to try stuff on), I found this thin black blazer I thought might be a good staple to own. It was $25.

Then, I stopped off in the incredible snack section. Tons of selection, including stuff you could never find anywhere else in Montreal. Lots of health-food, like chip alternatives, nuts, oats, etc. I picked up a packet of oat clusters for $3.99.

And now for the good stuff: the beauty section. I was crossing my fingers for some brands that aren't available in Quebec, and low-and-behold, they carry NYX, Pixi, and Sonia Kashuk (amongst others, I'm sure)! Not only was I happy to see the brands, but the price-points were comparable to the American ones. Nothing ridiculously more expensive than in the States! In fact, some of the brands also available at Pharmaprix/Walmart/etc were even cheaper I believe.

I picked up the Tigi S-Factor Smoothing Lusterizer Defrizzer & Detamer for $19. If I'm not mistaken I don't think I've seen it this cheap anywhere else. It's $35 on the Canadian Amazon (...LOL). I also bought a NYX lip gloss in "Beige" which is one I've heard lots of good things about. It was $4.99 and it smelled really good so I'm excited to try it! The only disappointing thing is that I didn't see any NYX blushes, oddly enough.

Overall I can't wait to start shopping at Target. I was a little rushed this time around but I'll go again sometime soon so I can do some better shopping & price comparisons. Do you guys love Target as much as I do!?