Tag Archives: Sephora

Sephora Yonge-Eglinton Centre VIB Rouge Opening Party Recap

Sephora Yonge-Eglinton Centre

Image Credit: Zak Communications

On Thursday July 7th, because I was a Sephora VIB Rouge member, I was invited to the Sephora Yonge-Eglinton VIB Rouge Opening Party to preview the newest store located at Yonge-Eglinton Centre (2300 Yonge Street in Toronto).

The Sephora Yonge-Eglinton store opened to the public on Friday July 8th, and I highly recommend that you check it out, if you haven’t already.

Even with the crowds of people at the party, I still found it very spacious and large. Everything was set up beautifully, and if you take public transit, it’s extremely convenient.

This exclusive Opening Party allowed VIB Rouge members (and a guest) to shop for products, check out the displays and store layout, as well as enjoy appetizers, champagne, and marketing activations.

There was a professional photographer who went around the store and snapped candid photos. (The photo shown above was one I saw shared on Instagram on Friday.)

It’s so funny because, if you take this photo out of context, it looks like I just bring champagne to sip wherever I shop! 😉 Haha, I don’t. There were servers who came around and offered drinks and yummy food.

Even the champagne they offered us had raspberries in it! 🙂

On my nails: Zoya Logan (This is one of my all-time favourite green nail polishes.)

Read the rest of this post to hear more of my thoughts on the new Sephora Yonge-Eglinton store and more!

Sephora Yonge Eglinton Centre

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My Thoughts on the Sephora Epic Rewards (aka Sephora Epic Fail) Yesterday

Sephora Epic Fail Epic Rewards

Yesterday, most Sephora customers (myself included) felt like Chris Bosh.

If you’re reading this, chances are that you’re a beauty enthusiast like me and you spend a good chunk of change at Sephora (also known as a makeup paradise).

But with the Sephora Epic Rewards fiasco yesterday, many have been referring to it as a Sephora Epic Fail!

Is Sephora now a paradise lost?

Today, I share with you my honest, raw opinion about how everything unfolded.

Although it’s a departure from my usual nail-polish and beauty-product reviews, I feel that the topic is worth discussing because: 1) This is a beauty blog, 2) Some of my readers were probably affected, and 3) I was one of the people who tried to score the Sephora Epic Rewards and didn’t.

This post isn’t a rant. It contains constructive criticism and my viewpoint as a customer, the marketing missteps I think Sephora made, and how the company should see it as a lesson to be learned, so they can avoid making the same mistakes again and avoid a similar hailstorm of complaints.

Although I feel like I’m in the minority here, despite them being under attack from all angles, I still support Sephora and hope that they’ll find their footing again.

For the record, I’m very disappointed in what went down yesterday. They dropped the ball.

Readers, get comfy, and start painting your nails because this post is very text-heavy!

Also, if you were affected by the Sephora Epic Rewards event yesterday, how did you feel about it? Even if you didn’t participate, but heard about it, I’m curious to see which way the pendulum swings for you.

P.S. I added the caption to the image of Chris Bosh, which is from my video clip I posted over a year ago on Instagram. I think it expresses how a lot of Sephora customers feel.

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Haul of Shame: Sephora VIB Sale Haul 2014

Sephora VIB Sale 2014 HaulHi! I’m Mary, and I’m a beauty junkie! Here’s my Sephora VIB Sale Haul! 😉

It’s both exciting and embarrassing to admit that I re-qualified for my second consecutive year of being a VIB Rouge member. (Maybe I need to join Sephora Junkies Anonymous. However, if there is such a group out there, I think we would just wind up talking about our favourite makeup items and then enable each other to buy more. Dangerous! We’re talkin’ Code Red or…Code ROUGE! Hehe, I can’t resist cheesy puns.)

Recently, Sephora had their much-anticipated VIB Sale, which only happens a couple of times each year, and it’s available to those who reach VIB and VIB Rouge membership. This time, the Sephora VIB Sale was for 20% off everything in-store and online.

Since I have a lot of favourites, I try to hold out until these sales, so I can stock up. But, of course there are always makeup products that wind up in my cart. (Don’t know how they sneak in there. Life’s greatest mystery. Or not.) *Shrugs shoulders and gives a sheepish grin*

While I don’t often post hauls, I thought I would do one this time because I really enjoy seeing other people’s Sephora VIB hauls. It’s a grown-up version of Show And Tell.

When I was in kindergarten, for Show And Tell, I would often just grab something random to bring to tell my classmates about.

Once, it was a piece of lint that I told the class was part of a cloud from Heaven. (After Show And Tell was over, I didn’t keep the story going. It was just a piece of lint again.)

Sometimes I would bring meaningful things to talk about, but I enjoyed making interesting stories about ‘boring’ objects or even just things that could be considered garbage. (Haha, one time, I brought in trash and explained how it was really a piece of history! Like nearly every kid, I was obsessed with time capsules.)

Well, I don’t have any lint or garbage to show you. Bummer, right?

Instead, I have my Sephora goodies that came in the mail yesterday! 🙂

When I returned home after having a lovely dinner out with a friend, I immediately picked up my camera and became a paparazzi.

This post just contains quick photos of what I got. If you’re interested in seeing a detailed review and additional photos of any of the items, let me know. (Not all the stuff is for me. I got some for my mom, so I’ll only be able to do reviews on the things I keep. I’ll indicate which ones I got for her.)

P.S. Ever since Wiz Khalifa’s album, Blacc Hollywood dropped, I’ve been listening to it almost on a daily basis. I think this is why whenever I read or write the word “haul”, his song “We Dem Boyz” plays in my head. Instead of “Hol’ up”, I think of it as “Haul-up”. Yeah, I know. Something just ain’t right with my mushball upstairs.

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Haul of Shame: What I Bought with My 20% Sephora VIB Discount

Sephora VIB Discount Canada November 2012So…I did some serious damage. No, I didn’t go buck wild with a sledgehammer, but it sure was a harsh blow to my wallet!

Yeah, I’m talking about the current Sephora VIB sale! (VIBs get to use a 20% discount on anything in the store November 8th through the 12th.)

Since Sephora hardly has any storewide sales like this, I had to take advantage of it, and boy did I. Although the products I got aren’t colourful or fun, they’re practical and I’ll be using them all (well, except for one, which is a gift for my mom).

Haha, maybe you’ll think this is the most boring Haul of Shame post on here, but I’m still sharing it with you. (It’s okay…go ahead and yawn. I won’t be offended!) 😉 And, yes, I’m embarrassed by how much I spent in a single trip (and literally in less than 15 minutes)!

Did you get anything from the VIB event, or are you going to?

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Blog News: I Was Mentioned in a Sephora YouTube Video About Illamasqua Nail Polish

Hope that you’re having a fantastic Wednesday so far! Guess what? I’m about to freak out! 😉 I have something pretty cool to share!

One of my loyal readers, Olivia Frescura, told me yesterday that Sephora mentioned me in their YouTube video about the Illamasqua Rubber Brights Collection! (Edit: I later learned that this video was produced by the amazing Illamasqua team themselves for Sephora’s use. :D)

I’m so excited about this – it was a pleasant surprise! 🙂 They included me in their section about Illamasqua Nurture (the green polish in the new collection).

(You’ll remember that I reviewed and swatched it not too long ago. You can see my blog post on Illamasqua Nurture here.)

Swatch And Learn Mentioned in Sephora Illamasqua YouTube Video

Swatch And Learn in Sephora Illamasqua YouTube Video

What blew my mind was that they also featured quotes from Harpers Bazaar US, Scrangie, and a few other bloggers. It was a real honour to be in such incredible company!

In the video, they not only show the Illamasqua nail polishes, but they also show you a quick and easy nail tutorial. You can view the YouTube video here or by clicking on the screenshot above! (And if you want to see where they mention me, it’s at 0:51.)

I want to take this time to say a huge thank you to all of my wonderful readers for supporting me every step of the way. It means so much, and I’m looking forward to blogging for as long as I can. 🙂

What do you think of the nail art they did? Would you try it? Have you purchased any of the Illamasqua Rubber Brights polishes?

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What’s in My Travel Makeup Bag

I’ve been seeing a lot of cool What’s in My Travel Makeup Bag YouTube videos and blog posts this summer. Thought I’d join in and show you what products I take. Plus this is very timely since I’m actually going on a short romantic ‘trip’ soon. I’m staying within the city, but he and I always have a great time.

Whats in My Travel Makeup BagBut before I go into the details about what I’m taking with me, I’d like to blab a little bit about myself first. If this bores you, you can scroll down this post to get right to the makeup. 🙂 Continue reading

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Sephora Face Complexion Brush Review

** This post was written by Fiona. She no longer blogs for Swatch And Learn. However, Mary still continues to blog and will be happy to reply to your comment. **

For months, I’ve wanted the Clarisonic Skincare Brush. But what if I don’t like it? That’s a whole lot of $$ down the drain. So I decided to first try the Sephora Face Complexion Brush, a manual version of the expensive electronic one. I don’t know what I had hoped. Whether I love it or hate it, wouldn’t it just make me want the Clarisonic one more?

The Sephora brush was definitely worth the buy for me, but not for the reasons you might think… Continue reading

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