If you have that sweet NRI uncle who promised to get your US-makeup stuff, or that irritating aunt who gave you a nod to ship few items to her US address, you might want to head over to Sephora.com for the ultimate US makeup shopping. Lets be real, there are very few International makeup brands that sell their products in India and a whole lot less who sell it at the actual rate. Most of the items, the items are priced at 2000-3000 rps more that the price*FX rates.

I haven't shopped at Sephora India yet, but I have had my cousin say that they are very few brands available in the Sephora store. NARS, Anastasia, Urban Decay, Too Faced and so many more are yet to make their way onto the isles here in India.

If you can, get your items shipped to your relative's place and request them to bring the stuff along to India. I am very lucky wrt the shipping part. My husband's cousins split their time in India and US, 3-4 month's each. So, I always get my items in 2-3 month's time.

Here are some tips and tricks that would help you with your shopping at Sephora.com:

• Payment through an international Credit Card: I faced issues with card authorization when the orders were valued above 100 dollars. Both the times, the orders got cancelled. I had to order in chunks (3 chunks), with each order value less than 100 dollars.
• The exchange rate are always high, ie, on the transaction day, the FX  rate was 62.3, CITI charged me 64.2 for the transaction.

          FYI: I used CITI bank credit card. 

• For every 15 dollar you spend, you will have to give about a dollar as tax. The tax will be added to the final payable amount. 

• You will not be immediately charged by Sephora for the purchase. Only when the item is shipped, you will see the entry in your credit card statement.

• Ensure you utilize your beauty insider points (subscribe to their newsletters) in exchange of good sized products. I utilized my 200 points in return of CLINIQUE Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief (0.21 oz) and Lancôme Advanced GÉNIFIQUE Youth Activating Concentrate (0.27 oz).

• Before confirming payment, check for any available offers. Click on View Current Promos link and it will display the running offers. I received a sample sized Benefit Hello foundation.

• Apart from the above two, you can select three samples (perfume, makeup, or skin care) and add to your basket for no added cost when you shop for more that 25 dollars.

• Shipping is free above orders worth 50 dollars.

• Sephora has a good collection of Value Kits available from this link. If you are one of those people, who never go through the entire product, the value packs contain different travel sized products. In this way, you can try a different bunch of products. I got the Benefit Bronze Of Champions kit and Tarte Poppy Picnic LE palette.

• Sephora runs 10% discounts on their entire line once or twice a year. This is available only to their VIB Rouge customers (the ones who spends $1000 a year). If you are or plan to be one, then shop during this time.

• Their shipping (standard) is pretty quick and you can expect the package to arrive in 3-4 days based on the location. Apart from the standard shipping, they also have priority shipping which is costlier in comparison.

• Sephora customer desk is not so helpful in solving your queries. The first time I saw my order was cancelled, I mailed them asking why was there a confusion when the 2nd order was already shipped, I even got manual authorization code from my bank, all their customer care replied was in standard template. I figured out myself that if order was valued less than 100 dollars, it wouldn't get cancelled because of authorization issues.

• If you are looking for perfume, I would suggest trying their roller-ball versions. They are much cheaper, and you can try out a scent without having to commit to a bull sized bottle.

• Ulta is a cheaper alternate for drug store+high end makeup shopping. They stock brands like Maybelline and Lorac, and the only downside is, Ulta does not allow the billing address to be different from the shipping address. If you have an option, do check out Ulta first.

February Empties

It's March, phew!!! surprising how months just fly past and you struggle through the days. I am back with my empties for this month. I am trying to finish up products, before I move back to Cochin.

Jhonsons Baby Wipes: A regular in my empties list. I use these wipes to remove makeup, as stage 1 of my night skin care routine.
Yay or Nay: Yay, as these are the best cost-effective wipes available in the market.

St. Ives Purifying Salt Body Wash: I love this brand, the only issue is availability. This particular body wash, has fine salt like exfoliant. Very fresh smelling, if you like ocean, you would definitely love this body wash. Priced at Rs.480, they last for a long while.
Yay or Nay: Yay, but I may not repurchase this as there are so many variants to choose from.

Olay Age Addict Day Cream: Part of my morning skin routine. I mix this day cream with my Sunscreen for hydrating my skin.
Yay or Nay: Yay. Repurchased

Photo Bloc: My HG sunscreen (with SPF 50+) recommended by my dermatologist. Unlike, so many others in the market, this one doesn't turn my skin into an oil mine, keeps my skin matte and does not create a white cast. The new version however has a light brown tint.
Yay or Nay: BIG YAY. Repurchased

Forest Essentials Narangi and Nagkesar Ubtan: Works decent for an ubtan. Smells like oranges, very gritty and grainy, making it difficult to apply. It comes in a tub, and the label says that ubtan has to be used in 6 months, but it is difficult to use up so much product in the stipulated time. Doesn't dry out the skin excessively, but dry skinned beauties need to follow up with a good moisturizer.
Yay or Nay: OK. Not repurchasing.

Dior Forever Foundation: I got the sample, when I purchased few Dior goodies, I loved the foundation, but the sample shade was not a good match. It was a pink tone foundation, and I was not able to match within the available shades. The foundation stayed for 6+ hours with only light shine in my T-Zone. On my never end hunt for an awesome HG foundation, I have found a good one, Estee Lauder Double wear foundation in 4N2, Spiced Sand.
Yay or Nay: Nay

Night time skin care routine

9 hours shift, travel, constant AC exposure, how much more will you torture your skin?. It took me 27 years to understand and realize the importance of a good skin care regime.

Skin Type: Normal
Skin Concern: Uneven skin tone

I play some random music, watch Youtube and religiously follow the said routine every single day.
I start with removing my eye makeup, which is mostly kajal smudged under my eyes . I use Maybelline Eye and Lip Makeup Remover. I use the bi-phase liquid with a q-tip and carefully remove traces of eye makeup.

I use a Johnsons Baby Wipe to remove the foundation or any other makeup on my face. As I wear foundation, I follow it up with The Body Shop Vitamin E Cleanser. This step makes such a difference as the makeup does not completely  go off after step 1. I wipe off the cleanser with a cotton pad.

I use my Just Herbs Silksplash Face Wash to clean my face. At this point, my face is squeaky clean and a tad bit dry. The next step is to hydrate the skin, for this I use Just Herbs Fair'e Skin Lightening Gel, it contains Mulethi-Khus essence and after using this my skin feels hydrated and fresh. For my under eyes, I use Just Herbs I`Clear gel, it hydrates my under eyes.

At this point, I usually take a shower and after 2 hours or so when I am ready to hit the bed, I apply 2 drops of Vaidyarathnam Kukumadi Oil and massage my face nicely, the oil is said to improve your skin texture and bring in radiance. I re-apply my eye cream and then hit the bed.

This may seem like a lot of products for some of you, but trust me guys, a routine can make a lot of difference. Apart from my daily routine, I do have like a mid-week routine where I throw in my St. Ives Apricot Scrub, and use Just Herbs Petal Soft Anti-Tan Rose face-pack twice a week.