For San Diego Readers Only (or those about to visit San Diego)

I don't write many San Diego-centric posts on my blog, but since I live here, sometimes I come across information that's too good to keep to myself. Looking back into my archives, it looks like I've written one "For San Diego Readers Only" post per year (one in 2009, one in 2010 and the last on in 2011). So it looks like this is an annual occurrence (if you'd like to see my past posts, just enter "San Diego" into the search bar and all three will come up). I hope readers located elsewhere don't mind a post like this once a year!

So I've got two tidbits to share with my fellow San Diegans today:

First up, I know I've mentioned many times in the past that I buy a lot of Asian beauty products at Mitsuwa and Marukai Value. But I don't think I've really mentioned that the OTHER Marukai store called Marukai Living (which is located in the same strip mall as the Marukai Value) is AMAZING. Seriously, their Asian beauty department contains about FIVE aisles of makeup, nail polish, haircare, skincare and body care. In fact, this is where I purchased my FIRST Asian BB Cream (Missha Perfect Cover, which I'm currently testing for review) and I only paid $12 for it. Get over there ASAP if you can--you will be a kid in a candy store!

AND, Marukai Living also has a great variety of US beauty products. They have an extensive selection of Badger Balm, Dr. Bronners and Desert Essence products, and right now, they have a counter display full of these for just $3.98:

LA Girl Polka Dot Nail Art Kit

(retail: $3.98 at Marukai Living)

Keep reading for more info!

I've never seen these kits anywhere else here in SD, and they come with three mini bottles of polish AND a double-ended dotting tool! This is my first "real" dotting tool (yay!). By the way, there were other kits that had different shades of polish in the display. I also bought the LA Girl Pro HD Eyeshadow Primer at Marukai Living, which I'm getting ready to review. It was $1.98 there, and I've seen it online for about $3+. Good deal!

Next up: if you follow me on Twitter, you might have noticed that I freaked out a little bit over the news that Camera Ready Cosmetics has RETAIL STORES IN SAN DIEGO! If you're unfamiliar with Camera Ready Cosmetics, take a peek at their website to see the types of brands they sell. They offer pro makeup artist types of brands like Kryolan, Mehron, Ben Nye, etc. and they also carry Sugarpill and OCC!

I discovered that Camera Ready Cosmetics has stores in San Diego because I actually was trying to find locations in San Diego that sell Embryolisse (that popular French drugstore skincare brand I mentioned yesterday). On the Embryolisse website, they listed Camera Ready Cosmetics in El Cajon as a location where you could find their products, and I just about fell out of my chair!

But here's the thing: there's a brand new Camera Ready Cosmetics SHOWROOM store that just opened last month in La Mesa. The CRC website does not list other locations (you can see a pic of the showroom store in La Mesa here), but after googling a bit, I saw references to there being additional stores in Coronado and El Cajon. SO, I don't know if they've actually closed those stores and now only have the La Mesa location, or if the Coronado and El Cajon stores still exist. I would call first, if you want to visit a location other than the new one in La Mesa.

By the way, check out the review of the La Mesa store here. I'm SO bummed I missed their grand opening! I love how the reviewer said that it's like a Sephora but with pro makeup--lots of testers and displays to play with!

That's it for this "locals only" post. I hope it helps my fellow San Diego peeps out a bit, and if you have any other great SD beauty tips, please leave them in the comments!