Yes, yes, it is December, the year has flown by, and I am sure you have read more than enough about how fast the year has gone by on every blog… So, let’s just move right along to my November First Impressions.

I have been trying out quite a few products this past month, so here are my quick first impressions, starting with haircare, skincare and then makeup!

The Moroccanoil Texture Collection has launched with three products.

A *Dry Texture Spray which is infused with dry argan oil and gives hair great hold and volume. It has a dry gritty feel, the signature scent, and keeps hair in place. It can be used as a hairspray to finish your style and keep it in place, or as a pre-style product to provide grip and hold. I really like this, it isn’t heavy on the hair, and doesn’t make hair hard and crunchy.

Next up is the *Texture Clay, this is amazing at taming fly-aways! It doesn’t leave the hair shiny or greasy, and will be a great product for short hair. Also, a little goes a long way, so this tub will last ages.

The last new product in this launch is the Beach Wave Mousse, and I definitely want to get my hands on this! It gives you beachy waves like a salt spray, but without the salt and the dehydration that comes with it! It also includes UV protection, so this is a must this holiday season.

Oh, dear invisibobble, you make my hair less kinky and my head less sore. I must admit I have tried the fake invisibobbles, and I thought I had found a good one from Dischem, but whenever I put my hair in a bun my scalp would get really sore, and when I put my hair in a high pony it wouldn’t quite hold. So, I went back to the original and my scalp has not been sore again, and it holds my hair in a high pony really well, sorry I ever doubted you invisibobble! There is a summery new collection called *Secret Garden, and any or all of them would make a great Christmas Gift. I just bought the nano and power invisibobbles from Retail Box, and will be trying them out soon, you can check them out in my November Beauty Haul.

An affordable and good quality ceramic styler is now within reach! You can read more about the *Stylerush Styler here. And don’t forget you can get R150 off with my code.

*la tweez illuminating tweezers, where have you been my entire life? Who knew what a difference a little light would make! Aside from the light, the tweezers are really thin and sharp, so it is easy to grab even the shortest hairs. I love that they don’t snap the hair off, it grips and pulls the hair as gently as tweezing can be.

Another amazing product is the *Tangle Teezer Ultimate Finishing Brush. Easy to hold, longer teeth, and it is meant to dry-style and finish the hair. I have been loving it on towel dried hair too, it works just as well as the original awkward to hold one.

*Curaprox Black is White Toothpaste is the weirdest coolest toothpaste in the world! Yes, it is expensive, and probably not necessary, but I love it. Anyone who is lazy to brush their teeth would definitely use this, just because it is so cool. My teeth did look whiter after just one use, maybe that is because they were black while brushing, or maybe the activated carbon blitzed any stains away without eroding the enamel with abrasive ingredients. Either way, it was never okay to gift someone with toothpaste for Christmas until now! There is a set with a Hydrosonic Toothbrush, which I would love to own!

Skoon recently launched a new product, *Retinin, a stunning bright yellow cream suitable for sensitive, ageing and acne-prone skin. Retinol is a skincare superhero, and kick starts the skin cells into working harder, it stimulates collagen production and promotes regeneration, but because it is such an active ingredient, most retinol products could be too harsh for sensitive skins, and this is where Skoon comes in. This product is perfect for both sensitive and non sensitive skin types.

I am so glad affordable skincare brands are jumping on the dehydration train. All skin types can have dehydrated skin, and Neutrogena now has that covered, on a budget. The *Hydro Boost Range with Hyaluronic Acid boosts hydration for plump and supple skin. I had actually bought most of this range before receiving it, and it did not disappoint.

The Micellar Water and Cleanser have a slight fresh scent, and remove makeup and cleanse the skin really well, without drying it out, and without being too greasy.

The Water Gel which is best for normal or oily skin, and the Gel Cream which is best for drier skin types hardly have a scent at all, a light but hydrating feel and work as a perfect base for makeup. They both have a continuous release system to keep skin hydrated all day long.

The facial wipes were a bit disappointing, they weren’t very good at removing eye makeup, but I am not a fan of wipes in the first place. If you had to buy wipes, I would recommend the Garnier Oil Infused Wipes.

Lastly for skincare is the *Lamelle Clarity Active Cleanse and *Corrective AM. I am loving the cleanser, it cleanses deeply without drying, and it can be left on for about a minute for a mask type effect. I have not had any breakouts since using this, and my skin has been less clogged but still hydrated. If you suffer from clogged pores or breakouts, this is an excellent cleanser. The Corrective AM cream can also be used at night, it is light, and at first felt a bit drying. But once my skin got used to it there was no tight feeling. It is in an airless pump tub which I love, so the ingredients don’t get stale. It is Anti-infective, Exfoliant, Wound healing, Anti-inflammatory and Antibacterial. If you suffer from Acne, this is a great range to try out.

Sephora Toffee Creamy Body Wash is a yummy scented body wash, there is not much to say about a body wash, as long as it isn’t drying and smells good.

Nature’s Carnival Soft Vanilla Kiss Triple Moisture Body Cream is so moisturising without being too rich and greasy. It has a slightly sweet fragrance, but not too heavy.

I have no idea what the soap is called, or where I bought it from. Either way it is rich and natural and not drying and has a light natural scent.

*essence gel polish in Pretty Cool Life is a stunning mint green, part of the new essence launches. This is 2 coats and no top coat. essence always hits it out the park with its colours and longevity.

How gorgeous are these lipsticks from Lancome? *L’Absolu Rouge comes in 25 shades and 2 finishes, matte and cream. I love both formulas, but the matte is slightly longer lasting. My favourite part is the packaging, the sleek bullet casing, just click on the rose and the lipstick is released. There are nude to bright, cream and matte, perfect for the day and night. The Le Rose Persian Matte is my favourite shade, it is a stunning pink shade. Aside from the stunning shades and packaging, the lipstick has additional benefits too. It has moisture-boosting Pro-Xylane, so you get high color payoff without dryness, leaving lips moist, soft, and comfortable. It also includes antioxidant-rich Vitamin E which helps keep lips safe from environmental aggressors.

The AVON CC Pearls are really awesome, I have been using it to set my under-eye concealer, and it really helps to brighten the area.

The AVON highlighter and blush duo stick is really nice, the highlighter shade is amazing, and reminds me of Benefit Watts Up. Unfortunately the blush side doesn’t show up much on my skin tone, so off to the blog sale it goes.

Maybelline Baby Lips is always a good choice to keep lips moisturised.

I saw the new Enjoy Range at Clicks, and picked up a few product. Fun in the Sun is a fresh summery scented range. The Body Lotion is moisturising and better than I expected for the price! This range reminds me a lot of Bath and Body Works.

Coloupop Lippie Stix are so long lasting and pigmented. Aside from the Ultra Satin Lip, the Lippie Stix are my favourite products from Colourpop. This shade, Barely There is stunning, bright and perfect for summer!

The NYX Blush and Bronzer duo is stunning, but I already have one in another shade, so this is brand new and going to my Blog Sale.

This NYX Butter Gloss was a bit disappointing. It isn’t as pigmented as I would like, but it is hydrating. Also onto my Blog Sale.

A couple of things from *Born Pretty Store. This brush is amazing for applying blush. It picks up the right amount of product, and is not scratchy and doesn’t have any fall out after washing, I actually want to buy another one for applying highlighter. This peel off lip stain does not peel off, but the colour is amazing. And this gorgeous lipstick is a cheaper version of the Kailijumei Flower Lipstick, it doesn’t give much colour to the lips, and reminds me of those mood lipsticks I used to have when I was younger, but it is beautiful.

This *Glitter Holder from Belleblushh is just gorgeous. Use it to keep brushes, lipsticks, eyeliners, anything really. There are other colours and sayings, and I would love to add more to my makeup storage collection.

I tried a whole bunch of new essence products, including a few goodies from the Christmas Collection. There is a full review here, so I won’t go into any details. But these pictures are a round up of everything I have tried.

A few of the new Catrice Products really impressed me. Check out my full review here.

Thanks for reading, see anything you want to add to your Christmas Wishlist?

*Press Sample