Recent Purchases and Pictures: Essence, Bershka, Rimmel

Dear Readers, 

If you've seen my latest Haul video, then I feel slightly sorry for you. The quality of the image, the lighting, my coughing: it was atrocious. Therefore, I felt obliged to take a couple of decent pictures and post them over here so that you can see my purchases a bit better.

The first thing I want to show you is a sweater I found in a warehouse sale. The vertically striped sweater reminds me of referees - they wear something similar sometimes right? Or am I nuts? - and it has a cute little penguin at the side. As you might be able to tell already, I found this sweater from the men's section and it's in a huge size, so the fit is perfect!

Striped Black and White Sweater - Warehouse Sale

From the same section, in the same warehouse sale, I spotted this white sweater. At first, I wasn't going to buy it, seeing that it's very, very similar to the one above, but then I remembered that I am pretty much obsessed with white tops so I got it anyway. This sweater is slightly thicker and it has black piping on the neckline, sleeves and the lower hem. 

Black and White Sweater - Warehouse Sale

You know me, I'm always raving about Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld and everything even remotely linked to 31, Rue de Cambon in Paris. So can you imagine my face when my friend was amazing enough to give me this vintage Chanel piece as a present? To be honest with you, I'm torn between wanting to wear it and wanting to look at it only to avoid spoiling it! I think I'm going to wear it on Christmas day because it's green and red and special! YAY!

Vintage Chanel Sweater

I bought this sweater below from Bershka and it has the softest material on the planet. Whenever I wear it, I find myself hugging it unconsciously, because it's that soft! Originally, I intended to buy their mustard version of this sweater, but on my way to Valletta, I saw at least 223454 people wearing mustard sweaters so I changed my mind. I didn't own anything in this dusty rose colour before buying this sweater, so I guess it was also a good way to introduce a new colour to my closet :)

Dusty Rose Sweater - Bershka

The chunky knit sweater below is so thick I can barely breathe in it! Guess what, I also found this top at a warehouse sale. I had to buy this sweater in a huge size, it's an XXL, because it's ribbed on the waistline and I hate that! That's principally why I rarely buy sweaters from women's sections, they're nearly always ribbed at the bottom. So, I had to get a big size to downplay that ribbed detail and it looks fine. Real fine hah!

Herringbone Chunky Knit - Warehouse Sale

Not only am I buying from men's sections as if my life depended on it, I now float towards 'old men' sections in shops. Seriously, what's up with me? Anyway, do you like my 'Grandpa Style' waistcoat? I have no idea how I'm styling this, but at the same time I can't help but feel like it's gonna look good on most things I own! Another plus is that it's rather long on me, so I think I can wear it as a dress or on leggings. Argh, still undecided but I'll manage somehow.

Grandpa Waistcoat - Warehouse Sale

Animal print can be incredibly tacky if it's not done well. Most animal print pieces I've seen in the shops and at open markets were the epitome of tackiness, but my mother, now a hero my eyes, managed to find the top below from a market! I can't believe it looks so good! The fabric on the top is brushed so it's a great piece that adds texture to outfits as well :)

Animal Print Top - Random Market

In my last haul, I showed you a pair of navy blue chinos from Bershka. Well, I love them so much that I went to buy a pair of mustard ones too! I've worn them in an OOTD post so you might want to check that out to see how they look when worn. Just for the record, they look divine.

Mustard Chinos - Bershka

Up next are some cosmetics and skin care products from Essence, because yes, I still love the brand to death. Okay, so first thing I picked up was a bronzer in number 02 called 'Love To Be Matt'. Last week, I threw away most of my make up because I had too much stuff I didn't use and to top it off, I've had that make up for some time now and it's not good to keep it for a very long time. Anyway, one of the things I dumped in my bin was my blusher palette which I used for bronzing/contouring. Basically this bronzer is my replacement for that palette! What I like about it is that its pigmented, matt and easily manageable. Essence also do a shimmery version of the same bronzer, but since I already use shimmery highlighter, I opted for the matt one. I don't do disco ball looks hah!

Essence 'Love To Be Matt' (02) Bronzer

I can't get enough of Essence mascaras. I was in front of the Essence stand last time and I noticed that there's a mascara in the Essence 'Black Mania' range. Since I adore the eyeliner from that range - I can't live without it, literally - I decided to give this mascara a try. It's awesome.

Essence Black Mania Mascara

Sadly, my favourite red lipstick from Gemey broke *moment of silence* so I had to replace it. The one I picked is by Rimmel, and it's called 'Diva Red'. This shade, number 321 to be precise, has a darker undertone than my previous red lipstick and I think my new one suits me a bit better.

Rimmel 'Diva Red' (321) Lipstick

My last two purchases are from Essence's 'My Skin' range. I like the cleansing wipes because, unlike many other wipes I've tried, the entire packet doesn't dry up after using the first wipe from the packet. True story. The second product, namely the 4 in 1 cleansing cream, is one of the products I'm using to battle clogged pores at present. Do you remember me speaking about clogged pores in a previous post? I'm winning over those pores thanks to this product. You can use this cream in two ways: either as a normal facial wash on a daily basis or else as a facial mask. I use it as the latter. All you need to do is to apply a good amount of product on your face and leave it on for around 4 minutes and then wash it off. It cleanses very, very deeply.  The only issue I have with this product is that it burns like hell - almost unbearable! - and I don't know whether that is normal or not! If anyone could give me feedback on that I'd appreciate!

Essence 'Caring Cleansing Wipes' and '4 in 1 Cleansing Cream'

That's it really. I'm off to continue working because I'm late, already!

-B