2016 may have not been a good year overall for the world, but a very small positive that came from it was that Mecca Maxima opened it's very first store in New Zealand, made even more special as it is in my hometown of Christchurch! They also launched all the new brands and products on the Mecca Beauty website, along with the huge selection of Christmas gifting, and beautiful gift wrapping. I ordered the day they launched all the Christmas gift sets and Urban Decay, Too Faced etc on to the website and went a little overboard with the beauty shopping. I was also down in CHCH for work in November and managed to get through the crowds and do some shopping in the actual store. Here is my large and excessive haul from Mecca Maxima.
We have had access to Mecca Cosmetica for a while in NZ and they stock brands such as Hourglass, Stila, NARS, By Terry etc, but it was always difficult to get those very popular US brands such as Too Faced and Urban Decay. I have used forwarding services in the past (Shipito is a good one for Sephora), have had family members buy things for me whilst overseas, or I've stocked up the few times I've been to the States so I have luckily tried a bit from the brands. It is beyond exciting though to be able to see these products in real life, get to swatch them and test drive before making the leap and purchasing them.
The Mecca Maxima store in CHCH is located in the brand new ANZ Centre at Cashel Mall and the store is so beautiful. It's a little smaller than I thought, although possibly because it was SO busy when I went that it felt quite cramped but there were loads of staff on hand who were helpful, friendly and approachable and just genuine beauty lovers, passionate about what they do. As well as all the new makeup brands, there are some really good skincare brands launched such as Mario Badescu and Frank Body. The range available now is seriously impressive and a major step in the right direction, particularly from when I first started my blog 3.5 years ago and the beauty selection was limiting, and also very pricey. The pricing is so competitive and is basically the exchange price plus GST. There are also more to be launched next year but I will keep tight lipped about that for now (I had some insider info!)
Mecca always nails it with their Christmas packaging but this year I think they knocked it out of the park. They collaborated with Australian artist Pip + Pop, whose work I have seen in the flesh and it blew me away. They gift wrap everything so beautifully, with a box, tissue, and include a ribbon and gift tag, as well as a card which you can write a note when you make the order (I wrote one to myself that just said #TreatYoSelf). It's all free to get it gift wrapped and lately, they have had a lot of free shipping offers too, or spend a certain amount and get a free product.
Soap + Glory is one of the newly released brands and I am SO glad they are here as their products smell incredible. I bought the Pink Twice Set (NZD $10.00) which includes a mini Hand Food and mini Heel Genius, and also the large Simply The Zest Bodycare Set (NZD $20.00) that has the Sugar Crush Body Wash (75ml), Body Scrub (50ml), Body Buttercream (50ml) and the Hand Food Hydrating Hand Cream (50ml). Both of these would make great stocking fillers or secret Santa gifts!
ThisWorks has been a brand I have heard a lot about from UK bloggers but never tried. The Deep Sleep Pillow Spray is one thing I really wanted to get, so this cute Dream Team Set (NZD $20.00) was perfect to trial the product. It includes the Deep Sleep Pillow Spray (5ml) and Deep Sleep Stress Less (5ml), which is a roller ball that you can apply to the skin and inhale to help you relax. The Pillow Spray is lovely, it is very strong on the lavender which I really like and I do think it helps to make me doze off a bit quicker.
Much like in Sephora they had the 'Aisle of Doom' near the checkout which had loads of mini products. I am a sucker for them, but also think they're a great way to test something out without committing to the full size. I bought the Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask ($26.00 for 50ml, $41.00 for 100ml) on recommendation from my sister. I will often do a clay mask once a week to draw out impurities etc, and then follow up with a rich layer of this mask before I got to sleep. If you have dry skin, this one is a must have as it deeply hydrates the skin.
When I went into the physical store, I spied this in the Mecca Cosmetica brand section and was intrigued to give it a try. This is the Ready Set Quick Dry Nail Mist ($25.00), which aids in drying your nail polish quicker. It comes with a little fabric cloth to place on the surface before you spray and I just do a few spritzes over the nails and let it dry down. It doesn't dry them completely but it does take away that tackiness.
With every order online you also get a couple of samples, so I have samples from Kate Somerville and the NARS Skin range.
Now onto some of the makeup bits I bought. The first set that caught my eye online was the Stila Naturally Nude Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick Set ($30.00). At $30 this set is a total steal and contains three gorgeous shades, Serenata (cognac rose, limited edition), Perla (pale dusty pink, limited edition), and Patina (dusty rose; a shade I really wanted to try!) and are a decent size at 1.48ml each, compared to the full size which are 3ml for $37.00 each. These are some of the most comfortable liquid lipsticks I have used (and I have used many). They apply very light and liquidy and start to set after a few seconds. These don't settle into the lips or starve them of moisture, plus they do last a good 5-6 hours. They also have this set in the Bright + Bold selection which has the shades, Beso (true red), and limited edition shades in Viola (cool lavender), and Lume (deep fuchsia).
Another cute mini/travel sized product I got at the checkout/Aisle of Doom was the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Custard (yellow tone for light to medium complexions) ($18.00 for 1.4ml). The full size is $46.00 for 6.5ml, but I wanted to give it a go first before buying a large one. I actually am yet to try this yet, but I will report back once I have.
When I did the first online order, I spent over $150.00 so I received a full size Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner in Midnight Blue (worth $34.00). I was so happy with that because I have two of these already in dark shades and love how long they last. The dark navy is also a beautiful shade and something a bit different from dark browns or blacks.
The piece de resistance and main reason I even ordered in the first place was to get this stunning beauty of a palette. This marble encased limited edition palette is the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Surreal Light ($127.00). It is a pricey thing, but the powders are so nice to use and I adore their blushes (my Ambient Lighting Blush Trio gets used SO often and you can barely tell in the pans). The palette contains one of their Strobing Powders, two blushes, a bronzer and a powder - all gorgeous and all worth the spulrge. It was a major treat item for me to purchase but I am so glad I did. Plus I am a basic bitch who loves marble, so why the hell not!
Although I didn't get anything this time from Urban Decay or Too Faced, I do have my eye on a few things... the Too Faced Sweet Peach Palette launches end of January 2017 and it looks stunning so I definitely want to get my hands on that. You can find the entire range online if you don't live in CHCH, and cross your fingers for Mecca Maxima stores to open in Wellington and Auckland soon!
Did you do any Christmas shopping at Mecca? Anything on your wishlist from there?
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