New year, new pretty things to play with.

Happy new year, folks! If you're an old reader of mine, welcome back. If you're new (or just passing by), hello!

I want to start 2019 on a good note so here I am, sharing my very first beauty haul of 2019! What can I say, there's nothing more exciting than a package arriving at your doorstep on the first week of the new year, a package that contains something you shopped for before the previous year ended. It all started on the chilly, slight rainy, morning of the 29th of December. It was when I found out about Ellana Cosmetics' Boxing Day Sale. Out of curiosity, I checked out their page and an hour later, after a lot of cart adjusting, computing, and convincing myself that I need these, I made my very first order from them. On the 4th of January, I have my package!

See, this haul excites me so much because it's my first time to try out some of their products for half the price. I've read features about their products through local blogs I follow but I never got the chance to try or buy anything from them because, not gonna lie, their products are quite pricey, at least when compared to other drugstore brands like Maybelline, Detail, and L'Oreal. They specialize in mineral makeup but since those weren't included in the sale, I just bought the things in their sale page that tickled my fancy: brushes, lipsticks, and a multipurpose pigment.

The very first items that made it in my shopping cart was the Galatea Paddle Brush Quad, priced at 399.50php (orig. 799php). I couldn't pass up these ones because I thought it was just such a good deal, especially for paddle brushes. This quad includes 110 (Precision Pro Brush), 113 (Concealer Brush), 114 (Brow Brush), and 116 (Precision Eyeliner Brush). I'm most excited about the 110 and 113 because I am in desperate need of a good foundation and concealer brush. As for the 114 and 116, I'm pretty sure I'll use them differently since I'm much more used to angled brushes for brows and liner. I'm thinking 114 for highlighter, 116 for smoking out the lower lashline? We'll see.

The majority of items on sale were lippies so I knew I had to get a couple. What can I say, lipsticks are my kryptonite. Ellana Cosmetics' Lip in Luxe Lippies on sale (249.50php, orig. 499php) is a riot because they put up so many shades I had a hard time narrowing it down to two. The first one I immediately added to my cart was Love is the Answer, described as "a mauve with a purple undertone". I've always wanted a good purple toned lipstick that would complement my skintone and this looks just the right shade. Oooh, I can't wait to try this one.

The next lippie I got was Love is a Gift, a "deep pink with peach-orange undertone". This was actually a last minute addition because I just fell in love with the swatch on the website. Deep rosey pinks are my faves so I just had to add it in. Other shades I considered were Love is a Rose, Love is Noble, and Love is Deep but I figured the ones I got were a good place to start.

(Special shout out to the lippie packaging: how cute!! Oh and yes, these are matte lippies.)

Last item I got is a Loose Multipurpose Pigment in Inspiration (149.50php, orig. 299php), a frosted beige. I wanted to try this out because the swatch on the site looked like a really good highlighter: subtle on the skin but really frosty when hit by light. I like skintoned highlighters because they blend better on the skin, hence why I went with this. The other ones I considered was Beam, a light coral peach but I thought it leaned more on the bronzey side than the nude side so I didn't get it. Can't wait to play with Inspiration since it can be used as both an eyeshadow and highlighter.

Not bad for my first Ellana purchase, huh? I got tools, lippies, and a pigment- not a bad place to start. I'd still like to try their signature products, particularly their mineral foundation and Stay Matte powders, but if it ain't on sale, it's a no go, hun, haha!

I'll be reviewing these products of course, so stay tuned! I'll probably review the lippies first because I'm itching to use them ASAP. So swatches and all that will be on those posts. Hope you're as excited as I am!

Happy 2019, dear reader! Cheers for another interesting year.