this is only a test: part one

this is the story of an adventure.

a few weeks ago, i ran out of foundation. usually under these circumstances i would go to target and take a gamble on a new product. i have nothing against buying makeup from target, but i feel like i have a difficult skin color to match and so trying to find foundations and powders is a little bit challenging. instead, i decided to go to the mall. but being super indecisive and really cheap, i couldn't commit to anything. my indecision turned out in my benefit, however, and by the end of the trip, i had come away with a small collection of samples:

included in this collection was r&b hair product and flying fox shower gel from lush, a super silky setting powder from sephora, and a mineral veil & powder combo from bare escentuals. 

later on, i was telling MCA reader amanda about this trip and she posed an interesting question: how many free samples could you get from one day at the mall?

this seemed like a challenge that had to be accepted. so today, miss amanda and i went to our local mall with the vision of spending nothing, getting lots, and most importantly, getting the opportunity to try out a lot of products that we'd never tried before. 

our first round was at macy's, where we were super unsuccessful....no samples to be had. a little while later, however, we ended up at the body shop, where the staff was extremely helpful, knowledgeable, and nice. we also hit up bare escentuals, sephora, l'occitane, origins, and crabtree & evelyn. at each stop, we added more to our loot, and became increasingly curious about how we would like these products once we used them. in the end, our treasure trove is impressive, exciting, and a bit daunting!

let's review! 

from bare escentuals, we got...

- flawless definition volumizing mascara

- pretty amazing lipcolor

- pure radiance face shimmer

- a 10-day trial of their original foundation with brush

from l'occitane:

- brightening moisturizer mask

- protection lotion

- hydration cream

from nordstroms:

- MAC strobe liquid 

- oh lola! by marc jacobs perfume (came out this morning!)

- clinique cleansers

from body shop: 

- seaweed toner

- seaweed facial cleanser

- vitamin c skin boost

- pink grapefruit body butter

- vitamin c microderm abrasion

- tea tree blemish night fade

- seaweed matte spf moisturizer

- seaweed face mask

from origins: 

- zero oil cleanser

from sephora: 

- bare escentuals eyeshadow in queen phyllis

- stila illuminating tinted moisturizer

- stila one-step correcting primer

from crabtree & evelyn:

- eau de toilette in iris, lily, lavender, and rosewater

- rosewater body lotion

- citron body scrub (x2)

- citron body souffle (x2)

oh my gosh so much.
and so, following the success of this adventure, we are unveiling our multi-part series: this is only a test. in the next few weeks, i'm going to be testing out these products and letting you know which are my favorites. i don't intend on commenting on anything i don't like - everyone has different preferences and i don't want to give anyone a bad name. but do expect a full review of my favorite things!

let the adventure...continue!