I'm Not a Beauty Guru

Haul: Spring Sephora Sale aka Excuse to Buy Things

April 30, 2015 9 Comments

I’ve been doing okay in my unofficial buy-less-use-more movement, but I was weak when the Sephora sale came a’ callin’. Most of the stuff I wanted to buy was for the vacation I had last week. Well, that’s what I told myself. :p

1. Free Bag

What can I say, I like free stuff. The only thing is that I don’t really understand the composition of this bag. When I saw it on the email, I thought it would be like a kate spade bag where there is the opening on the flap and also an opening in the crease. But no. The bag is just awkwardly creased with only an opening in the top. I think this would be a nice way to travel with palettes, but I might iron out that weird crease.

2. BITE Beauty 5 Night Fix for Lips

I knew going into this that these would be very very small. And my intuition did not disappoint. They are more like deluxe samples, but I don’t really mind. I’ve been hoping to buy the Agave Lip mask for the longest time, so I thought this kit would be cute to try. The lip exfoliator is nice too. It almost dissolves on your lips which means I don’t have to press vigorously to make it work. It has the BEST scent too. I think it smells like cherry cola. Yum.

3. Ole Henriksen The Clean Truth Cleansing Cloths

I honestly can’t escape these. They are so expensive, but I always come back to them. I wanted a mini pack to take on vacation with me.

4. Urban Decay De-Slick

I thought that this would be a great time to try this sucker out. I’ve used All Nighter before, and it’s been okay. For my vacation I went to a very humid and warm place so I wanted this. I used it every day and it worked out well! It could also be due to the fact that I used Bare Minerals foundation instead of my usual liquid. Either way, with that combination it worked well!

5. Sephora Retractable Face Brush

I went into Sephora looking for this retractable kabuki to take travelling with me. I couldn’t find it unfortunately but the nice associate found me this one instead. I felt bad because she searched forever to find this one so I bought it. It was DEFINITELY a bit more than I expected it to be, but it does the job just the same. It’s a very substantial brush which is nice. I wish I could have found that $12 dollar brush though. :/

6. Jack Black Moisture Therapy Lip Balm in Mint

I can’t believe I have not discovered this yet. I wanted a stick lip balm with a very high SPF for my vacation. So far I LOVE it. It comes out as a thick balm which might turn off some people, but I don’t mind it. I don’t think it’s as thick as the Fresh lip balms (which is good). I’ve just started using it, but I feel it’s gonna be holy grail status for sure.

7. BITE Beauty Luminous Creme Lipstick Duo in Fig/Date

I’ve been looking at this duo since Christmas and finally caved. it is sooo beautiful. I got the Fig/Date combo versus the brighter duo they have. As expected from BITE, they are smooth and pigmented. Super beautiful!

8. Laura Mercier Foundation Primer to Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer

So this primer was a total splurge/ impulse buy. I wanted a new primer for my vacation and just in general because I have lousy luck with primers. This seems super expensive just for this small size (not that I need any more). After reading not so glowing reviews for this, I ended up exchanging it for….

The Hourglass primer. Funny enough, I didn’t bring this on vacation because I was scared haha. I have yet to use it yet, but I am excited to try it!!

And there we have my most recent haul. I didn’t go nuts, but I definitely didn’t hold back haha. I’m so happy with everything I bought. After my vacation I had dental surgery and am still in recovery. I haven’t been wearing makeup at all for the past couple of days. I can’t wait to hurry up and get better so I can slap on some makeup and try a lot of this stuff out!

Thanks so much for reading! Hope you are having a great day!

Personal

The Liebster Award: I’m an IT Chick (Sort Of)

April 29, 2015 8 Comments

So I’ve FINALLY gotten around to doing the tag questions that Ling from The Cosmetic Critic sent me. If you haven’t stumbled upon her blog yet I highly encourage you to check her out. Her posts are always super informative and straight to the point! Thanks again for thinking to tag me! 🙂 Super thoughtful!

Here are the questions that Ling asked:

1. What is your best/unique beauty tip?

Haha I had to think long and hard about this. I would say my best tip is using a hair straightener as a curling iron. I’ve never owned a curling iron and have been able to achieve the same (if not better) results from my straightener. It’s a multi-use tool that can definitely save you money! It takes a bit of practice but I always love the way that the curls come out!

2. What is your current occupation?

I’m in between occupations now I guess. My most current occupation has been student, but I will be starting my full time job in a couple of months. I will be working as a management consultant. 🙂

3. What did you study in post secondary education (or plan to)?

I studied Information Tech in university. My program was a hybrid between business and computer science. I would say it’s definitely more focused on business though. It was something I could see myself doing and I honed in on my program in grade 10. I’m very happy I chose the program that I did. I am by no means a coder (even though I truly wish I was) but it has given me many opportunities.

4. What’s a beauty regime you rarely do?

Haha, there are so many. I should definitely exfoliate more than I do. I also don’t really take care of my skin as well as I should. I don’t use a toner or anything. I’m honestly the most lazy person ever.

5. What’s your favourite cuisine/food?

Japanese for sure. Sushi in particular. I just find it so easy to eat and I always feel refreshed after eating it. Yum yum!

6. When procrastinating, what are you usually doing?

It’s usually a combination of things. The easiest is of course YouTube videos. I can watch those things for hours. 😉 Not only beauty videos, but vlogs, or video game ones. The list is endless. There’s also that rabbit hole known as social media. I’m sure everyone can get caught in their Facebook/Twitter/Tumblr/etc. for a very long time…

7. What is your current blog goal? Why?

Hmm good question. I don’t really have any sort of hard goal or anything. I would say that my main goal is just to try and consistently post. I’ve been lacking that lately, but sometimes you get busy right? I wouldn’t even really want to put a number like ‘post once a week’ or ‘post 3 times a week’. Sometimes I will pump out more posts on one week than another. I don’t want to force myself to write a subpar post just to meet a quota.

8. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Another good question (these are all good questions. Is this what celebrities feel like getting interviewed?). This is not a very descriptive or helpful answer but I honestly can’t even pin it down. I’ve never been one of those people who was like “job here at this time, kids here at this time, house here at this time…” blah blah blah. Where I’m at in my life right now I can see there will be changes on the horizon. The scope and the magnitude of these changes has yet to be seen. All I can say is that I hope I along with my friends and family are happy and healthy in 2020.

9. What’s your current jam?

Honestly ANY old school Disney song. I just got back from Disney World and am belting out song after song (rather poorly) any chance I get.

10. Are you a DIYer? If so, what do you diy? (Or why not?)

I would definitely not consider myself a DIYer. I just don’t like doing that stuff enough to actually do it if you know what I mean. If it’s a simple DIY that will save me money or time, then for sure. For example, I used to make my own brush cleaner with olive oil and dish soap (thanks Michelle Phan). It definitely did the job, but I felt there were other options out there that I’d like to try like baby shampoo. So long story short, not really a DIYer lol.

11. When do you see yourself not blogging anymore?

I addressed this a bit in my 1 year blog birthday post which can be read here if you’re interested. I can see myself not blogging when it no longer becomes a joy and becomes a chore. Or if I feel there are unnecessary pressures from my blog that I just can’t seem to escape. At the moment though I am very happy with my blog and where I am at with blogging. 🙂 I hope that continues!

_______________________________________

Liebster award rules:

Thank and link the person who nominated you.

Answer the questions given by the nominator.

Nominate 11 other bloggers, who have less than 200 followers and link them.

Create 11 new questions for the nominees to answer.

Notify all nominees via social media/blogs

I’ve decided to tag:

1. Filomena from Filosophie!
2. Chelle from Makeup Your Mind
3. Miranda from miranda loves
4. Nadia from The View is Beautiful
5. Shawna from Spill the Beauty
6. Megan from Megan Joy
7. Emily from Emily Shea Beauty

Here are my 11 new questions:

1. Are you an early birdie or a night owl?
2. What is your favourite place in the world and why?
3. If you could eat one food for the rest of your life what would it be?
4. If you were to only wear one makeup item forever what would it be and why?
5. Where would you like to go on vacation next?
6. What is your biggest fear?
7. What do you struggle the most with beauty-wise?
8. What is your favourite can’t-live-without lip product?
9. What occupation did you want to have when you were younger?
10. What is your favourite animal?
11. Do you like to workout? If so, what types of sports/workouts do you like the best?

Of course this is not limited to just the people I tagged. If you feel interested, then I totally nominate you as well! Be sure to link me so I can read your answers!

Thanks so much and have a lovely day!

Reviews

Review: Nair Cire Divine Wax

April 26, 2015 2 Comments

*Sent for Review

Overview:

Was not effective at removing my unwanted hair.

Price:

This was given to me by the ChickAdvisor Product Review Club, I’m not too sure what the retail price is.

Rating:

3 / 10

Would I Buy Again?

Rambling Review

All I can say is that unfortunately, this did not hit the mark for me. I have tried other Nair products, one being their Candy Apple Sugar Wax I reviewed through ChickAdvisor as well. I guess I can start this review by saying that I am no expert at hair removal, but I have definitely been around the block and tried many methods (shaving, cold wax, warm wax, etc).

When opening the package, the first thing I noticed was that the wax did not have a top! We were told by ChickAdvisor the reason for this was because Nair is looking to eliminate waste. Good on them for sure, the only concerns I have would be to ensure that the product can’t be tampered with in anyway. A good seal on the box would probably do the job.

The kit comes with a wooden stick, 3 post waxing wipes, the wax, and an instruction booklet. I was very pleasantly surprised that the instruction booklet had a lot of details. It gave lots of tips, tricks, recommendations. It seems a bit overwhelming, but trust me, the more the merrier when it comes to this stuff!

What I also noticed when opening the box was a lack of fabric cloths used to remove the wax! I was quite happy with this, as it removes one more unwanted step of washing the clothes for the next time. This wax is to be applied directly to the skin and then can be removed after it dries for a bit.

I started to notice issues with this product when I began to heat it up. I followed the heating instructions to a T, but after the first heating round, the wax was very very solid still.

I continued to follow the instructions to get a “creamy honey” consistency, but it unfortunately never came. The instructions list that after the first heating round, heat in 10 second increments until desired. I had to do 6 10 second increments (a full extra minute), until I was able to get a some-what workable consistency. The instructions listed that if bubbles appeared at the top, the wax was heated for too long. I do not think I would have been able to get a workable consistency any other way though.

After stirring the wax, I still noticed that the consistency was an issue. It was no where near smooth, but I thought I should just dive right in and try it out. The wax was a bit of a struggle to get a thin layer on the skin. Since the wax came out so thick, the wooden stick did little to help spread it out. After applying and removing the wax in a fast motion, I noticed no hair was removed. After a couple of times, I noticed that actually if I peeled the wax back very slowly, it did remove the hair. This was not the most pleasant of experiences though. What I can equate it to is peeling off a nose pore strip.

I also noticed it was pretty messy. The wax did not come out of the jar on the stick cleanly, but left very long strands which were hard to contain. I can say that once the wax was left to dry, it was very easy to remove from fingers and counter tops.

It’s sad that this product didn’t work out for me. I’ve tried and loved many Nair wax products, but this one did not work out as expected. I wasn’t able to see any noticeable results. One thing I can say is that the smell was quite pleasant. It’s probably one of the nicest smells from a wax product I’ve experienced.

I hope this review was helpful! From looking at the other ChickAdvisor reviews here, it seems that my experience was an anomaly as many people seem to have had good experiences.

I just want to iterate again that I can only speak on my experience! 😀

Thanks very much for reading, I hope you have a wonderful day!

#NailsOfTheDay

#NailsOfTheDay: Let’s Get This Party (Minimally) Started

March 26, 2015 18 Comments

Hello hello! Hope you are having a lovely day!

So today I did my nails with inspiration from a guest post I saw on Natalie’s blog Ivory Avenue which was written by Nadia from The View is Beautiful. Haha so many links! But when I saw it, I loved the design! It was so minimally understated, but still looked so nice.

Here is my attempt at a recreation!

I haven’t used glitter in so long, so it was nice to break it out! I love this glitter polish too. It reminds me of a birthday party with confetti. :3

The polishes I used are:

Base Coat: Revlon #955
Base Colour: Essie Turquoise & Caicos
Glitter: American Apparel Glitter (no name)
Top Coat: Seche Vite

I am loving Seche Vite so far. The hype is real. *u*

Thanks for reading! I hope you have a wonderful day!

Empties

Empties: Trying to Use Up Things

March 23, 2015 14 Comments

Such an original title.

So onwards with my journey of using more and spending less! Here’s what I used up in the last couple of months.

(How I’ve been doing this is just filling up an old Sephora bag and when I see it getting somewhat full, it’s time for an empties post. I don’t use up enough stuff monthly to do that shindig)

1. Cotton Rounds from Target

Repurchase: Yes (until I run out D:)

Boring, but always go back to them. Even long when Target leaves Canada you’ll be seeing these just because I bought like 10 million of them as backup. It’s the nostalgia man.

2. Skyn Iceland Glacial Cleansing Cloths

Repurchase: Maybe

I got this mini travel size in an ipsy bag. I quite liked them actually! They were different than any other wipes I have tried. They were kind of soapy which was interesting but didn’t leave a residue. They are expensive (about the same price as the Ole Henriksen ones) so I’m not too sure if I will be getting them again anytime soon.

3. Ole Henriksen The Clean Truth Cleansing Cloths

Repurchase: Maybe

I actually got this pack from a friend for my birthday (which was ages ago). I like these wipes as they are substantial and leave my skin feeling very nice. The only thing is the price as always. *sigh*

4. Balea Defrizzing Hair Mask

Repurchase: No

Wasn’t really a fan of this. It didn’t really do much to my hair. I have a Macadamia deep conditioning cream that I’ve been using for years that I would much rather use.

5. Living Proof Perfect Hair Day Shampoo and Conditioner

Repurchase: Probably not

I bought this on one of the $12 Sephora sales. I still have the leave-in treatment to use up. I liked this shampoo and conditioner. I actually wasn’t a huge fan of the smell, but I did think they did a better job than my drugstore shampoos. The price of these are just astronomical in my opinion though.

6. Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Peel

Repurchase: Maybe…

I got this in a kit from Sephora that I got for Christmas. It was a really interesting concept and did make my skin feel noticeably tighter and smoother. It’s a 2 step process that give you 2 different wipes to use. Super easy which I loved. I’m not really too sure if I’m looking for a product like this to integrate in my skincare though…

7. Nivea In-Shower Body Lotion

Repurchase: Probably Not

I had two samples of these to use up. I’m sure a lot of you have seen other beauty bloggers reviewing this. I guess it could be hard to judge from a foil package, but I didn’t notice a huge difference in my skin. Maybe I don’t normally have super dry skin though. Dunno.

8. Rocky Mountain Organic Sugar Scrub

Repurchase: No

I got this from the Chick Advisor Show Case I attended (you can read about it here). I wasn’t a huge fan, but maybe just because I’m not a huge fan of the scent (lavender). The product itself worked okay though.

9. Stila Stay All Day Liner in Black

Repurchase: Yes

This has been my go to liner for the longest time. I’ve been trying out other liquid liners though, and I’m really liking the Kat Von D one! I also want to try the MUFE one!

10. Aveeno Positively Radiant Daily Moisturizer

Repurchase: Yes

I really liked this moisturizer! I’m trying to find it in full size, but I still have a couple of moisturizers to use up. I would definitely re-purchase it though!

11. Neutrogena Oil Free Acne Wash

Repurchase: Yes

I go back to this face wash time and time again. It does a great job of cleaning but without leaving my skin too dry. I would definitely recommend this!

And there we have it! Hope you enjoyed going through my garbage. 🙂 Have a wonderful day!

Hauls

Haul: L’Oreal Sale

March 20, 2015 10 Comments

*Purchased

Hi there!

I hope you are having a great day. I come to you with a haul. At the start of the year I said that I would be cutting down on hauls, and I have to some degree. A couple of weeks ago though, my friend asked me if I would be interested in going to this L’Oreal sale. It’s a ticketed event but his mom got them from work. SO. HAPPY. No buy? No more.

My friend and I trekked out not really knowing what to expect. I knew they had some pretty good deals on Essie, but other than that I wasn’t too sure. When I got there, I was pleasantly surprised. Here’s what I picked up!

1. Garnier Refreshing Remover Cleansing Towelettes

Price: $5.75 CAD

I didn’t actually really want to buy these. These were actually one of the more expensive things that I bought. I am running out of makeup wipes, so instead of being economical and going out to get cheaper wipes, I bought these. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this in the store. Meh, I’m usually game for trying any type of makeup wipes. We shall see!

2. Ombrelle SPF 45 Ultra Light Cream (Sunscreen)

Price: $5 CAD

Just realized I photographed the French side. D’oh. But you get the point. I actually need a new face sunscreen and I haven’t used the Ombrelle brand in forever. I used this today actually and it’s pretty nice! The only thing is that it expires next year, so I’ll have to spend a lot of time in the sun this year!!

3. Garnier BB Cream Skin Renew in Light

Price: $12 CAD

As usual, I’m always late on the bandwagon. This was hot a couple of years ago (maybe more than a couple of years ago). This was more of an impulse buy, but I thought, meh, wanted to try it. Me buy. 🙂 I’ve used it a couple of times and like it! The only warning I have is that it is VERY VERY scented. I don’t actually mind the scent, but if you’re not a fan of fragrance in makeup I wouldn’t recommend this.

4. Maybelline Baby Lips in 70 Coral Crush and 95 Strike a Rose

Price: $2 CAD each

I was so happy to find these! I’m already a fan of the Baby Lips line (other than Dr. Rescue), so I thought I would branch out from my clear one. I’ve used the Coral one and really like it! Can’t wait to see how pigmented the bright pink one is. 😀

5. Essie Nail Polish in Vices Versa and Strut Your Stuff

Price: $4.75 CAD each (I think)

I thought I would go bananas for the Essie, but I reigned myself in. 😉 Both of these are from the Neon 2014 collection. Can you tell I’m ready for spring and summer?!

6. Maybelline Colour Tattoo in 90 Nude Compliment, 80 Pure Nude, 85 Beige-ing Beauty

Price: $2.75 CAD each

These took a lot of digging in the big bins, but I managed to grab 3 that I really love. Can you tell I like neutrals? The only Colour Tattoo I have right now is Bad to the Bronze, so it’s nice to add a few lighter shades to the mix.

7. L’Oreal Colour Extraordinary Lip Colour in 104 Dancing Rose

Price: $3

When I saw these there I probably (embarrassingly) squealed a bit. I got one of these at TIFF this year in the L’Oreal hut and I’ve been waiting to purchase more. It’s a lip gloss that wears so nicely. It also leaves a nice stain on your lips. I’ve been holding off just because of the price in the drugstores, but this one was such a steal! So glad I waited!

And there we have it! After doing this haul, I feel like I could have gone a bit crazier. I’m gad to be saving my money though. :p This sale was totally worth it and I’m so happy that I went. 😀

Thanks for reading and I hope you have a great day!

Reviews

Review: E2 Elements Squared Hair Care

March 8, 2015 11 Comments

*Gift/Sent for Review

Hi there! 🙂 This post is a long time coming! Back in December, Whitney from Macarons and Mischief (she is so lovely, please check her out!) held a contest and I won! The prize included a personalized set of Shampoo, Conditioner, and Leave-in Treatment from Elements Squared. After asking E2 if it was okay to talk about their products on my blog, they included a mini set of their shampoos to mix and play around with to create my own shampoo!

Brand Background

Before going into the product, let me expand a bit on the brand. E2 is based in Vancouver, Canada. The company was created after it was seen that the current hair care selection was lacking. Their mission presented on their website is:

Elements Squared Products Inc. aims to enhance natural beauty through our company’s philosophy of using the best natural ingredients to formulate products that are personalized to supplement every client’s needs. Currently we have used this philosophy to develop a revolutionary hair care system that is designed for hair professionals to personalize for you.

The hair care line is to be used by salons which are able to assess your hair situation and then mix accordingly. In terms of shampoo, there are 5 different bases: Detox Fire, Shiny Metal, Flexible Wood, Volume Earth, and Moisture Water.

Depending on how these bases are mixed, the end result is a personalized hair care solution. Their products are vegan, not tested on animals, gluten free, and pH balanced. See below for the full list.

Reviews

I was able to tell the people at E2 a bit more about my hair and they mixed me up a few special concoctions. 🙂 The main concerns I have about my hair is the frizz. It’s almost come to the point where I’ve accepted it as a fact of life. It’s just always there. So what surprised me the most about this hair care system was that it worked! I have not tried anything that has been able to tame my frizz better. I wouldn’t say it’s 100% gone, but MUCH better than it once was. This is not all these do. It keeps my hair light and cleans very well. You have to shake the bottles before use to ensure that all of the components are evenly distributed which was not an issue at all. I noticed that the shampoo and conditioner were a lot more liquidy then I’m used to. This as well is not an issue.

The mixture I created on my own at home (with some help from E2!) was a clarifying shampoo. I wanted something that cleaned well and removed the oil buildup. I mixed Detox Fire, Moisture Water, and Flexible Wood. I was very impressed with the results! Even though I am by no means a hair expert, I was able to create something that really worked.

After shampooing and conditioning as normal, I was also given a bottle of their Star Treatment

It is a leave-in conditioner that can be used in wet or dry hair. To tell you the truth, since using this hair care system since about late January, I have never needed to use it dry. I use it right after I rinse my hair and it works wonderfully.

One thing I did notice is that all of these products work a bit better if heat is applied. The times I used a hair drier helped leave my hair super smooth, and light.

All in all, I’m so glad that I won Whitney’s contest. I was able to experience one of the best hair care systems I’ve used. The only down side is that since I’m not in Vancouver, I have no access to it anymore. D: It will be very sad when these are empty!!

Hope you have a wonderful day and thanks for reading!

Beauty Tags

Beauty Tag: The Lip Product Addict Tag

March 6, 2015 18 Comments

So no one actually tagged me in this, but is saw Ling do it from The Cosmetic Critic (check her out here, she’s awesome) and thought I would do it too! 😀 As I’m sure most people who do this tag feel, I had a really hard time narrowing it down. To tell you the truth, these I would consider lip products of the moment. Who knows. maybe tomorrow I’ll find another winner.

New photo backgrounds for this post! My boyfriend made me a nail polish shelf that included a cork board for Christmas and I’ve been beyond lazy to put it up. So of course, the natural thing to do would be to use it for a background. Clearly. I’m so looking forward to putting this bad boy up and arranging my nail polish all pretty and such. Eventually.

Swatches are at the end of the post!

What is your favourite balm or treatment?

Pixi Shea Butter Lip Balm in Comfort Clear

This is definitely my balm of the moment. I bought it during my Goodbye Target Haul (which can be seen here). At the time, I thought it was kind of pricey, but I’ve ended up really really liking it. A solid lip balm that provides my chapped lips the moisture it needs!

What is your favourite eye catching red?

Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick in 10 Beso

This is DEFINITELY my favourite red. It is so potent and very true to colour. It’s long wearing and smells like vanilla cupcakes! You have to see the swatch below to believe it. This colour was my go-to for the holiday season. The only thing I can say is that it’s hard to apply. You have to be very careful as the colour is so intense!

The best luxury and drugstore products

Luxury

Too Faced Melted Kisses in Melted Nude

Is this considered luxury? I was thissss close to getting a YSL lipstick the last time I was in Sephora but I just honestly couldn’t do it. Maybe someday. I got this liquid lipstick from the 4-pack of the Melted Kisses. I LOVE this colour. When I first saw it, I thought it would look terrible, but it’s honestly the perfect nude. It doesn’t make me look sick which is definitely a plus. I do notice that it accentuates my lip lines a bit, but honestly, I don’t really care. Haters gonna hate.

Drugstore

Wet N Wild Lipstick in 904B Rose Bud

No question, it is definitely the Wet N Wild lipsticks. They are the most inexpensive things you can buy and they work so well. Some people say they are a bit drying, but for me (surprisingly) I don’t really notice it. The colour payoff is amazing and totally worth the money. Whenever I see a Wet N Wild stand I look for these but since I bought my original 3, I haven’t been able to find them anywhere!

Best MAC lipstick?

MAC Lipstick in Lustering

I only have two MAC lipsticks. This one in Lustering, and a Nicki Minaj Viva Glam one. I loveeee this colour. This lipstick is great for applying a very sheer coat of colour, or going more dramatic. I turn to it a lot because it’s not drying, and I like the scent of MAC lipsticks. I’ve been looking at more MAC lipsticks, so maybe I’ll be adding more to my collection (Syrup anyone?).

Most disappointing lip product?

Cailyn Art Touch Tinted Lip Gloss in 08 Love Affair

I got this product in an ipsy bag. From the first application I knew I hated it. The colour looks pretty nice in the bottle, but on the lips it looks so different. It isn’t substantial and it’s way too thin. I actually will probably throw this out. It’s not even really worth keeping.

Lip Liner: Yes or No?

No Bleeding Lips Lipliner and MAC Pro Longwear Lip Pencil in Trust in Red

Usually I’m a ‘No’ for lip liner, but there are some occasions. If I am wearing a really bright colour I will try and wear one. I notice also that some of my Wet N Wild lipsticks can feather after long periods of time. I actually bought my MAC lip liner specifically for one of my Wet N Wild lipsticks. The No Bleeding Lips is an interesting concept as it’s clear so you can apply it with any lipstick.

Favourite gloss?

NARS Lipgloss in Shade IV

At the moment this is my favourite gloss. From all of the NARS glosses I have, I think this one looks the prettiest. It provides a nice stain to the lips and it also is pretty long wearing. One thing I also like is that it has moisturizing properties as well.

Something else?

BITE High Pigment Pencil in Meritage

This!!! After using this product, I can see why BITE is so popular. This colour would be very flattering on anyone. It’s probably one of my most favourite everyday lip products at the moment. I would HIGHLY recommend this!!

Swatches:

1. Wet N Wild Lipstick in Rose Bud
2. MAC Pro Longwear Lip Pencil in Trust in Red
3. Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick in 10 Beso
4. NARS Lipgloss in Shade IV
5. Cailyn Art Touch Tinted Lip Gloss in 08 Love Affair
6. BITE High Pigment Pencil in Meritage
7. MAC Lipstick in Lustering
8. Too Faced Melted Kisses in Melted Nude

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it! 🙂 See you next time.

#NailsOfTheDay, Reviews

Review: Sephora Instant Nail Polish Remover Wipes

February 24, 2015 7 Comments

*Purchased

I’m one of the laziest people when it come to anything. So when I see a product that could potentially save time, I’m all over it. I was introduced to the idea of nail polish remover wipes through the Josie Maran ones that I picked up through Sephora’s Black Friday/ Boxing Day sales. (You can see the wipes here). I will be comparing these wipes to the Josie Maran ones throughout this review.

Overview

They worked mostly, but I would not repurchase.

Price:

$6 CAD for 20 wipes at Sephora. (I actually remember buying mine for around $10. It lists $6 on the website though).

Rating:

6 / 10

Would I Buy Again?

Nope!

Rambling Review

After trying the Josie Maran ones, I was pretty surprised with these. They are almost the exact opposite. The Josie Maran ones are drenched with oil (almost to the point of grossness) whereas these ones are drying. The very first time I used them I was surprised. After less than a minute after opening the package, the wipe was totally dry. It was quite a weird realization! I was completely unprepared so I had to open up another one. After I learned that they dry up like the desert in t-minus 60 seconds, I was able to use them a lot better. I am able to use 1 wipe for both of my hands. (But that is literally me furiously scrambling to remove the polish! It’s like a race.)

What I can say about these wipes is that they work decently well. I do not have to tug or strain to take the polish off. I have not tried these with glitters though.

Even though these are cheaper, I would much rather use the Josie Maran nail polish remover wipes. They make my hands feel a lot nicer (after rinsing the excess oil off). Even if I’m feeling too cheap for the Josie Maran one’s I guess I could go back to just putting nail polish remover on a cotton pad. 😉

Hope that was semi-helpful if you were looking into nail polish remover wipes! Have an awesome day!

Reviews

My Z Palette + Inglot Eye Shadow Review

February 14, 2015 11 Comments

*Purchased

Hello, hello! I wanted to start this blog by saying Happy Valentines Day! Even when single, I never understood the hatred that some have for the day. To each their own I guess. I understand that love should be shown all days of the year, but I still like the idea of Valentines Day. 🙂 Maybe I just like holidays in general.

Anyways, I also wanted to say sorry for the lack of posts. In all honesty I’ve just been a combination of busy/lazy (more of the latter). I haven’t been able to read any blogs either! Hope to catch up on my bloglovin’ blog roll eventually as well.

In this post, I will be doing an overview of my Z- palette and a review of 5 Inglot shadows I picked up. If you didn’t see it, I had to return the Tartelette palette (which can be read about here) and decided to build my own palette.

Z- Palette

For those that don’t know what a Z palette is, it’s a cardboard palette where you can hold individual shadows, blushes, etc. It has magnetic properties in the palette which allow the shadows to stick. I researched a lot before buying this one. You can buy many different types of z-palettes online, or other palettes like the MAC and Make Up For Ever ones. I bought this one from Sephora, as seen by the design. The one thing I can comment on is that it was pretty expensive. This was the biggest size that Sephora sells and it was $35 dollars. You can get Z palettes online for cheaper, but I had a gift card for Sephora so it was worth it for me. The kit also comes with de-potting supplies to help you remove products that are already in a palette. I haven’t used them yet so I can’t comment.

In my palette right now, I have my 5 Inglot shadows and a Benefit Coralista blush. My boyfriend got me the Benefit Advent Calendar 2 Christmases ago and it came with sample products like this blush. I didn’t need to de-pot the blush because it came in a cheap plastic cover which I was able to rip (hulk power!).

Overall:

Great way to cut down on clutter
Easy to see all your shadows in one area
I like that it has a clear cover to see in
Has more than enough room for my makeup needs
A bit on the pricey side compared to online, MAC or MUFE palettes

Inglot Shadows

330-337-397-344-329

Now on to the review of a couple of shadows I bought. I’m gonna just make these quick bullet points, cause I know you wanna move on with your life and such.

#330

A matte beige colour
A good lid colour
Could be used as a highlight on brow bone or even maybe on cheeks?
A bit of fallout noticed

#337

A taupey brown colour
My least favourite colour
Not as opaque as expected
Takes a lot to build up
Noticed some fallout when swishing my brush around

#397

A peachy gold shimmery colour
Looks awesome as an overall lid colour
Very very pretty on the eye and my favourite shadow of the bunch

#344

A purpley taupey brown
I like this for a crease colour
Could also be used as a very subtle outer corner shadow

#329

VERY pigmented
I’ve been using this for outer corner
A bit hard to blend. If too much shadow is used it can look patchy when blended

Overview

In general, after using these shadows for about a month, I think I’ve gotten a good grasp on which ones I like and which ones I don’t. My favourite is #397 and my least favourite is #337. I would say that overall I am happy with these shadows, but they were a bit over-hyped for me. I think it depends the colour you get as I found that different colours had a different formulation. I would also say that my Urban Decay Naked 3 palette is more blendable than these ones in general. With that said though, I would be interested in trying more of these out!

Thanks so much for reading! Hope you have a wonderful day!

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