REVIEW + Giveaway || What's Up Nails Canada Day Nail Vinyls

Hey guys, long time no talk! I'm trying my hardest to get back on track right now, but it's taking some work...

But that's not what today's post is about! Today I have a quick, short review for you and a giveaway for the first 10 people who read this and want these vinyls! Thanks so much to Nail Polish Canada for sending these for me to review and including me in their giveaway promotion! For more details on how to get your free vinyls, stick around until the end of this post!

First, I wanted to share my quick thoughts on these guys. I also ask you to forgive my atrocious nails; my new job (Starbucks barista) doesn't allow nail polish at all and I spent a lot of time washing my hands, using cloths soaked in sanitizer, and washing dishes, so my nails have seen better days. Not all of us can have stunning Instagram-ready nails, I guess. Anyways, here's a look at the vinyls I keep talking about:

As you can see, these vinyls from What's Up Nails come with 20 stencils of various sizes, as well as 20 maple leaf stickers. And as the back of the package suggests (and I'll demonstrate later), you don't have to waste those maple leaf pieces: they make cute nail stickers!

I love that this packaging gives you detailed instructions on how to use these properly, because not everyone has any clue how nail polish and nail art works. And in my impatience to get this post together I even made the mistake of not letting my base polish dry before using the stencil... So please... LET YOUR BASE POLISH DRY COMPLETELY... It will save you tears and nail polish!!

Once your base is dry, select the right size stencil for your nail size, position the sticker how you want it on the nail without any rippling or bubbling so you'll have clean lines, carefully fill the stencil with a thin layer of your chosen polish, and remove the stencil immediately.

If your polish wasn't dry before you put down the stencil, it will pull away some of that base when you peel back the stencil, which sucks... You can see an example of this below. Sometimes it is much worse, and sometimes (like this time for me), it's mostly saveable with a nice layer of topcoat. But DO NOT put on your top coat until the design is dry, or it will streak! As I mentioned, you can also use the maple leaf shapes as nail stickers, which you can also see below. You'll just want to make sure to remove any bubbles and that the edges are laying flat against your nail before you put on a topcoat to seal it to the nail. The package suggests 2 good layers of topcoat; I used a layer of my glittery base and a quick-dry topcoat, and can't feel the edges or corners on the leaf, which is my biggest gripe with most nail stickers!

I figured everyone would be doing some form of the basic red and white for their reviews for this promotion, so for something a little different I went with this magenta over a sheer white base, and I actually really like how it turned out! So don't be afraid to mess around with colours for something unique if you're doing Canada Day nails... if you have these stencils, you already have the shape down right, it will be recognizable even if you do it in, say, your hockey team's colours instead of red and white!

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If you want to get your free Canada flag vinyls, you can go to http://www.nailpolishcanada.com/products/free-canadian-flag-nail-vinyls-1-sheet-20-stencils-by-whats-up-nails.html and use my code: O3Y5CUGSOGP. The code will work for the first 10 people to use it. In the case that all my codes are used, there is a list of other bloggers with special codes on that page, so make sure to see if any are still available before giving up!

If all the codes are gone, but you still want the vinyls, or if you prefer spending money to getting free things, you freak, then they only cost $5.65 CAD, and can be bought here.

Don't forget to let me know if you use my code! I'd love to hear what you think of these vinyls; personally, I'm pretty impressed with the quality!

Thanks for reading!

REVIEW || Acure Brightening Facial Scrub

Hello again! Today I'm reviewing Acure's Brightening Facial Scrub, as you can see from the title. I was sent this product for consideration, but this post is not sponsored, and I am always completely honest with my opinions. This is also not the first time I've tried out Acure products, and I've always liked them quite a lot! I had thought I'd written about more of the Acure products I had tried, but it seems like I only included one of them in a skincare favourites post, so I guess I have another review I should put on my list!

Anyways, onto the product at hand: the Acure brightening facial scrub is meant to be good for all skin types and says that it features argan stem cells and chlorella, as well as sea kelp and lemon peel (to gently exfoliate), French green clay (to remove impurities), and Madonna lily stem cells (to help brighten). Acure products are always full of great ingredients, though, and this one also contains acai, blackberry, pomegranate, and rosehips fruit extracts, chamomile and calendula flower extracts, rooibos, sage, and spearmintleaf extracts, walnut shell flour, and olive oil. It's cruelty-, paraben-, and sulfate-free, and also vegan, so it's safe for just about everyone in that way as well!

So, my thoughts? First off, this stuff smells awesome! It's kind of a citrus-y, mint-y green tea scent, in my opinion, which just comes from all the various extracts and ingredients, since this product doesn't contain any extra perfumes or fragrances, which is great, especially if you are scent-sitive like me. (See what I did there?) The scent is herbal, refreshing, and calming.

Aside from that, I really like the formula of this scrub, as well. It's got some good grit to it, but it is not too harsh. If you've ever used a face scrub that was a little too intense, you know how much that can hurt, but this doesn't do that; it isn't scratchy and doesn't hurt at all, it just sort of gently massages away impurities and dead skin. It doesn't strip your skin of all it's natural oils, either. Some face washes and exfoliators can leave my skin begging for moisturizer, but this leaves me feeling clean and fresh, not tight and parched. I would agree that this is likely a good product for anyone for that reason: it doesn't dry or add moisture, it just leaves a clean, fresh canvas for whatever other products you want to follow up with, whether that's acne products, toners, or moisturizers.

Oh, and by the way, this isn't meant to be a daily scrub. I'm sure you could use it that way if you wanted, or especially for acne-prone or oily skin, but it recommends using it 3 times a week for best results.

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That's everything for this review! Let me know in the comments if you've tried anything from Acure and how you liked it! Also let me know your favourite face scrubs and washes. I like this one a lot, but I'm still not sure I've found my perfect face wash, so I'd love some suggestions!

Thanks for reading!

REVIEW || Conair Infiniti Pro Ionic Straightening Brush

Hey guys! Today I've got a quick review for you of the Conair Infiniti Pro Iconic Straightening Brush! I was really excited this was one of the options when the PR for Conair recently reached out to me and asked if I'd like to review some of the products, because I love how my hair looks when it's straight, but with my thick curls, it can take a long time and be a huge pain, and this brush looked super easy to use. And as I'm sure you know by now, though this brush was sent to me for free to review, I will always tell you if I don't like something about a product! All my reviews are honest, and I was not paid to write this post.

So this brush features ceramic coated bristles (to protect your hair), nylon bristles (which are basically regular brush bristles), as well as soft silicone bristles (which the box claims add shine and control). There is also an ionic generator which is supposed to create negative ions that neutralize the natural positive ions in the air, making hair less frizzy by flattening and sealing the hair cuticle. This generator, by the way, is what makes the strange crackling sound when this brush is turned on! I was concerned about the noise at first, but after looking at the instructions, which explain this, it doesn't seem like a big deal.

In the box, you get the brush (of course), an instruction booklet/product warranty, and a heat pad to rest the brush on. Nothing too fancy, and you really don't need the heat pad, but it's a nice little addition.

After testing out this brush a couple of times, I'm basically in love! It's so quick and easy, I'm not sure why I'd ever use a regular flat iron. I mean, maybe if you really like your hair pin-straight, but I like mine a little more natural, and that is super easy to accomplish with this brush. I have used both the high and medium settings, and both worked on my hair, though the high setting was much faster and more effective. For reference, I do have thick, curly hair. I do still separate my hair into sections, but I don't have to formally go in layers, starting underneath, with all my hair clipped to the top of my head, like I do with a regular flat iron, which is so great. I think it takes me maybe 15-20 minutes to finish my whole head, and that's only because I like to take my time and go over each section to make sure it's even and pretty straight. If you just wanted to tame thinner or straighter hair, you could easily be done quicker! I really like this product, and would wholeheartedly recommend it if you like a natural, mostly-straight look, and hate messing around with flat irons or blow dryers. It's quick, easy, fuss-free... yeah, it's my new favourite hair tool, to be completely honest.

The Ionic Straightening Brush costs around $89.99 CAD, depending where you shop, and is available online on Amazon, as well as from Walmart (affiliate link), HBC, Ulta (affiliate link)—who now ships to Canada!—and just about anywhere else you can find Conair products. Let me know if you get this, or if you've tried it! I'd love to see other opinions, or if you also agree it's magical! **If you're uncomfortable with affiliate links, feel free to Google the product yourself if you wish to purchase online. Thanks!**

Thanks for reading!

REVIEW || Kat Von D Shade & Light Eye Contour Palette

Today's video is all about my thoughts on the Kat Von D Shade & Light Eye palette. No, it isn't new or fancy, but I think it's worth talking about nonetheless! I hope you enjoy this video, and don't forget to let me know if you've tried this one out in the comments!

Click here to watch in HD, or watch below:

Thanks for watching!

REVIEW || Pixi Beauty Skincare Products || Revisiting Products in my Pixi PR Haul -- Pt. 2

As promised, I'm back today with the second half of my Pixi Reviews: Skincare!

Again, if you haven't read it yet, don't miss my Pixi PR Haul post, and now also my Pixi Makeup Product Review post!

Before we jump in to the reviews, I feel obligated to once again remind you that I was not paid or even asked to do these reviews, and as always, all opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own. Now let's look at some products!

Glow Tonic

I'm honestly still not sure how much I love this product. It definitely is a lot nicer and gentler than the average facial toners I've tried in the past, but there are a few down sides, in my opinion. First of all, I don't feel like I have a place for this in my routine anymore. I like to wash my face and follow up with micellar water. I guess this goes in place of that, but I don't feel like it does the same job of making sure all my makeup and face washes are off my skin before moisturizers. It also smells... not great? It's a clean floral scent, as far as I can tell, and it really bothers me about half the time. So yeah... it's pretty good as a toner, so give it a go maybe if you have dry, normal, or combo skin and really want a good toner. It's pretty gentle, I just don't dig the scent.

Hydrating Milky Mist

I love face mists, and this one is no exception. This one has a kind of indistinguishable skincare-y scent, but it doesn't bother me at all. It's soft, refreshing, lightly moisturizing, and also calming. I love using this as the first or last step in my nighttime skincare. Or both...

Vitamin Wake Up Mist

This mist smells even better than the Milky Mist! It's a fresh, bright orange scent, without being fake. It's so refreshing, and I'm such a fan of citrus scents! This one is great as a morning mist because of the awakening scent, after your morning skincare, before makeup, or any time of the day over makeup to refresh and add moisture back into your face.

Nourishing Sleep Mask

I've been loving this stuff as a nighttime deep moisturizer. It smells herbal and calming, like lavender, bergamot, and all kinds of lovely relaxing scents. It's also very moisturizing without being too heavy or greasy, but it also definitely feels a little thicker and more deep moisturizing than my average moisturizer. It's a good balance.

Peel & Polish

This is a very nice, gentle face peel and exfoliator hybrid. You start by letting it sit for a couple minutes to work into your skin, it does sting my sensitive skin very slightly, but nothing painful or unbearable. Then you rub the light grit of the exfoliator into your skin in circles to exfoliate before you rinse it off. I haven't noticed any awesome side effects, but it does leave my face soft, clean, and not feeling sore or tight like other exfoliators can. It also has a nice cucumber-y scent which is refreshing and clean feeling.

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And that's all for this post! I did skip two of the products I received because I didn't get a good enough chance to test them. I had to toss the 24K Eye Roller at the same time as my mascaras, so I only used it once or twice. And the Rose Oil I haven't used once... partly because I can't use it at home, since my mom is allergic to roses, and second because I can also be sensitive to rose scents, so I never feel inclined to reach for this one. I should probably pass it on, otherwise it will probably just sit around until I throw it out...

Anyways, let me know if you've tried and loved any of these, or any other products from Pixi. I am really liking the brand overall, and I would love to try more from them, so let me know your favourites!

Thanks for reading!

Book Chat || What I've Been Reading || Jan-Apr 2017

Hey guys! Here's a quick look at the books that I've finished since the beginning of the year so far! The last two weren't quite done as of filming this video, but I have finished one of them between filming and uploading this video, so only one remains unfinished, and I do still have two weeks to finish the Mists of Avalon =)

Let me know what you've been reading!

Click here to watch in HD, or watch below:

Thanks for watching!

REVIEW || Pixi Beauty Makeup Products || Revisiting Products in my Pixi PR Haul -- Pt. 1

Hi guys! It's been a long time since I wrote a blog post that was not a video update, but here I am!

I thought it was time to update you on my thoughts on some of the Pixi Beauty Products I got from the event I went to back in February, now that I've had a good long time to test them. In case you didn't see it, click here to check out my Pixi Beauty PR Haul. Unfortunately, I did have to toss the mascaras (because of the pinkeye last month 😞), so I don't have much to say about those, but I have been using lots of the other products, and I'm ready to share my thoughts! Let's start with makeup.

Oh, and to be clear, I was gifted these products at the Pixi launch event, but I was not required to write about them and have not been paid to talk about or promote Pixi products. All opinions expressed here are—as always—100% my own.

Endless Brow Gel Pen in Medium

I still pretty much agree with my last assessment of this pencil: for me it's way too creamy and soft, and thus really easy to use too much product! The colour is pretty good, if a little ashy and cool toned. It worked better with my natural hair colour, though, than with my now-henna'd hair, since my hair has too much red in it for the ashy brows to look right. I do like that this pencil sets so you don't technically need a gel on top of it... it does the work of two products that way, which is nice. But I have to use a very light hand to get the right look with this product. I'd still suggest looking into it, if you don't mind using it carefully and love the idea of two products in one step.

Book of Beauty Contour Creator

I still think this is definitely my favourite thing I got to test out. I've been using it almost every time I do my makeup since I got it! The powders are all super pigmented, so you can get a soft look with a light hand and/or lots of blending, or pile on the pigmentation, if that's your jam. These are incredibly blendable, and I don't even mind how much powder my brushes kick up every time I dip into one of these shades. All of the bronzer/contour colours look great even on my pale skin; in fact, my favourite contour colour is the deepest one! I like to dip in very softly and then blend like crazy, but the deep shadow effect is perfect! I also really like that there's a nearly white shade for highlighting or baking, though sometimes I mix it with the more yellowy-beige shade to tone it down. Finally, that soft pink makes a gorgeous subtle highlighter or blush shade, somewhat similar in tone to Dandelion from Benefit. On deeper skin tones, though, I suppose it would be more of a highlight, as it's very soft.

Flawless & Poreless Primer

To be honest, I'm still sceptical about whether primers do a whole lot, at least for me. That said, I have been really enjoying this one, because it seems to be hydrating and smoothing without being oily or feeling like a lotion, which is great. It still lets all my foundations sit like they usually do alone, with the added benefit of smoothing out any dry patches, so I don't look flake-y... which is never a nice look! I would recommend this one to anyone with dry combination skin, like me—this stuff doesn't make your oilier areas look oily, keeps your foundation in place, and smooths and hydrates dry patches! At least in my experience, it's hard to find something that does good things to both the dry and oily areas of my face!

Large Lash Mascara in Brown

I know I said I didn't get a lot of time to test the mascaras, but there are two I wanted to say a little about. One is this one, which I got to test in Brown. I was unsure about brown mascara before, since I'm an all-black mascara girl... but it looks really great if you just want a subtle look! I have pretty blonde, invisible lashes without product, so I put mascara on even when I'm doing no other makeup, and this brown looks a lot less harsh and more natural on almost-no-makeup days, which I did really like. It isn't waterproof, but I didn't have a lot of smudging or anything the couple times I got to wear it, which seemed a good sign. It does claim to be smudge-proof, to be fair. I also tested this in my brows as a brow gel, since I use a pretty dark brown shade in my brows anyways, and I also liked it for that, though with the large brush, you need some care and precision to keep the product off your skin!

Lash Booster Waterproof Mascara in Black

This is the second mascara I wanted to touch on: it's super black, waterproof, and has a great dense little brush! I really like how this one applied, how it built up, and how it lasted through the day without any flaking, and obviously no smudging... because it's waterproof! I wish I had had more time with this great mascara, and I might even repurchase it in the future to give it another go!

Mattelustre Lipstick in Rose Naturalle

To be fair, this lipstick is not really my colour. I haven't worn it a lot because of this, but I have tested it out pretty well, I think... it doesn't take a long time to figure out how you like a new lipstick! This one is pretty well pigmented, if not entirely opaque. It feels nice and moisturising on the lips, is fairly glossy, not thick or matte. I'm really not sure why they are called a mattelustre? Maybe they mean matte as in no shimmer, and lustre as in... glossy? It's a nice enough lipstick, however. This shade is a good basic nude for most people with a bit of a pink tinge so you look more alive than a more mauve-y nude. It's pretty, but like I said, not a shade I reach for often. I wish they'd given me a brighter or deeper shade to test!

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Originally, I was going to go over all the products in one big post, but the PR Haul post was already super long, so I have decided to split my review into two posts. These were all the makeup products I plan to review, I think I only skipped one mascara which I didn't get to test enough to have opinions. I hope that this post was helpful, and don't forget to check back next Wednesday for part 2: Pixi Skincare Products!

In the meantime, leave me a comment if you've ever tried any of these products, or tell me about anything else from Pixi you loved!

Thanks for reading!

My Current Skincare Favourites || 2017

Hey guys, thought I'd update you in today's video about my current go-tos for skincare, since it's been a while since I talked about that outside of my yearly favourites post. Nothing else really to say about the video, so here you go:

Click here to watch in HD, or watch below:

Thanks for watching!

REVIEW || RaspberryMint Lip Care Products || New Canadian Brand Review + Discount Code

Hey Guys! Today's post is going to be a quick little review of two Canadian-made lip care products from new Canadian brand: RaspberryMint! I was lucky enough to be sent a couple of products to test out and review, but as always, all opinions expressed in this blog post are my own and completely honest. And as a heads up, if the brand or anything I mention in this post interests you, RaspberryMint was nice enough to give me a 50% off code to give you, so you'll want to make it to the bottom of this post.

RaspberryMint is cruelty free, Canadian made, and was started by a registered nurse who is committed to hand making products in small batches using natural, organic ingredients and no parabens. If you want to read more about the brand, you can do so by clicking here. Now let's take a look at what I tested out myself.

Diva Night Repair for Lips

This stuff smells so good! It's a strong cherry candy scent, and maybe it won't be for everyone, but I love it! It smells like Cherry Nibs, or maybe the cherry scented markers...? Anyways, I'm obsessed! It's also great how basic and nourishing the ingredients sound: coconut oil, shea butter, beeswax, flavour, argan oil, vitamin E, and hemp seed oil. Only the flavour is a little vague, but I'm not bothered. When I first got this, it sat in a cold car for a while before I got around to opening, and it was really, really hard, but with a little warming up, and the warmth of your fingers, it melts quickly and easily and glides easily on to the lips.

As the name suggests, it is mainly intended for nighttime lip conditioning, since it is basically an oil, even if it does start off as a solid; the heat of your fingers and lips practically liquify it, but it does also sink in quite quickly, depending how thick you apply it. Of course, you could always carry this in your bag and apply any time of the day, there's nothing stopping you from using this anytime, aside from the prospect of of oily fingertips.

Also, this product is HUGE! I don't know what I was expecting, but it was definitely smaller than this! The tin this comes in looks more like the packaging for a hand cream or something, rather than a lip product. Here's what it looks like sitting on my hand, for scale:

All in all, I quite like this stuff as an at-home lip moisturizer, where I can easily find a way to get it off my fingers without making a mess. It smells great, feels great, and really does moisturize. I was skeptical that it could last through the night, since it is more slippery than thick or sticky, but if you apply generously it does keep your lips soft and comfortable through the night and into the morning. I'd happily recommend it if you are interested. It sells for $14 CAD, which is pretty good for how much you get, but don't forget about the discount code at the end of this post. You can find the Diva Night Repair for Lips here.

Strawberry Hemp Lips Oil

While I was testing this, I thought it was also from RaspberryMint, but with a little searching, and clue from some coupon cards included in my package, I found this lip oil was actually from another site belonging to Cherish, the nurse who started RaspberryMint, and this site is SteviaDrops.biz. It seems a little weird that she runs two sites with very similar products, but I've tested the products and written most of this review already, so I'll continue. Also, while I couldn't find the strawberry scent on SteviaDrops, there were several other scents available.

This "lipgloss" product is basically a liquid oil blend containing "coconut oil, grapeseed oil, hemp seed oil, and natural flavour oils" and it comes in a little roller ball, like essential oil blends sometimes do. A liquid oil product is a bit of a wierd choice for a lip product, in my opinion, but the rollerball application does make it work pretty well. You're never going to get a super accurate application, of course, but it does work to condition your lips. As an oil, it feels really light on the lips, but without completely soaking into the lips right away. You could work around this a little by dabbing less oil onto the lips and rubbing it in with a finger, though. It soaks into the skin quite quickly when blended. The strawberry scent is a little fake, but still more natural than the cherry of the Diva Night Repair. Overall, this is never going to be a favourite product, but it is nice, and I kinda like that it could be used on random dry patches of skin around your body because of the way it absorbs so quickly into the skin.

These sell for $5 CAD, and you can find all the available scents here, on steviadrops.com.

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As I mentioned, RaspberryMint.ca gave me a code for you to get 50% off your purchase from now until March 31, 2017. The code is GRAND50. So if these products, or anything else on the site, interested you, you can give them a go for a nice discount now!

You can also use the code OFF20 to get $20 a purchase of $50 on SteviaDrops.com, if anything there interests you.

Thanks for watching!

Review || Sole Patches Adhesive Shoe Pads

Hey Guys!

Today I have a quick review for you of these little adhesive shoe insert pads called Sole Patches, thanks to Brandbacker. I was sent a pack of Sole Patches in exchange for a review, but of course, the reviews on this blog are always completely honest and my own.

I recieved these in a pack of 6 (so 3 pairs), and they are little flower-shaped adhesive pads that you stick to either the inside of your less-comfy shoes (like many other brands), or alternatively, you can stick these right to your feet where you know your shows cause you pain, so you know they'll be in the right place. This is what originally interested me in this product, since I hadn't heard of a pad that sticks right to your foot before. Of course, if you use them this way, they're basically one use, but Sole Patches claims the medical grade adhesive will stick for skin for up to 24 hours, which is pretty reassuring if they work for you.

As it describes on Brandbacker: "The cushioning is made of Poron by Rogers Corporation, a special material that's shock-absorbing, antimicrobial, anti-odor, and has moisture-repelling properties," so if you are using these more long-term by sticking them right into your shoes, you don't need to work too much about weird smells or bacteria growing on the insert.

Since I found it the most interesting, I tested these first right on my feet. You'll want to make sure feet are clean and dry before application, to make sure they stick well and stay on. They can go on your heel or the ball of the foot, wherever your shoes cause pain. I went for the balls of my feet, since that's where heeled shoes are most likely to hurt me. They're pretty comfortable on, and manage to stick to the curved surface of my feet pretty well, which I was somewhat worried about. For science, I also peeled one back off to see if you've completely fucked up if you place them wrong the first time... While it's best to get it right the first time, on second try, the adhesive did still stick nearly as well. The third try was less optimal, but again still sticky. I wouldn't push them further than that, though!

After trying them centred on the ball of my foot as well as centred across the front, I found that the shape and size of these could be better, but over the ball (to one side) was more comfortable to me. In the centre, I felt like my foot bent funny, and I could feel my feet pinching around the edges on both sides, where there was no pad under my foot. Under the ball is still slightly awkward, though, as it doesn't fully cushion your foot, and it's weird to have your toes sitting about half a centimetre lower to the ground. Do-able, though, I'd say.

I would mostly only recommend using these directly on your skin, though, if you find that inserts never sit in the right place to cushion your foot, otherwise, it will be much more cost effective to apply these to the insides of uncomfortable shoes, since they won't be one-wear that way. I also like that doing it this way means the pad can sit far enough forward to be under the toes and ball of the foot, though I still wish the pad was wider to sit under the whole front of my foot.

If you are interested in trying these for yourself, you can find them at SolePatches.com for $9.95 (I'm guessing in USD) for a pack of 6 pads. Unfortunately, it looks like International shipping, including to Canada, is $20 USD... so unless you're buying a few packs, I'm not sure they're worth buying online unless they sound amazing to you, or you live in the states.

Let me know if you've tried Sole Patches before and what you thought, as well as what your favourite brand of shoe inserts is for uncomfortable shoes!

Thanks for reading!

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Non-Beauty Favourites || My 7 Favourite Flavoured & Specialty teas!

Hello again! About 2 weeks ago, I posted about my 7 Favourite Basic Teas, but I love too many teas to stop there, so as promised, I'm back now with 7 of my favourite flavoured or specialty teas. I'm basically including anything you probably wouldn't drink every day, either because of the price, because of the seasonal flavours, or because the tea has a specific benefits. Considering the season, feel free to consider these lists recommendations for gifts for the tea lovers in your life, as well. I know I'd be happy to receive any of these teas as a gift myself!

So if you want to see which teas I've picked, keep reading!

Just like last time, I'm going to start with the one tea I don't currently have in my collection, but which I love and recommend anyways!

1. Tazo Passion herbal tea

(above image from store.starbucks.ca.)

If you're a Starbucks fan, you probably recognize this tea, or at least the name of it, since the Passion Iced Tea (with or without lemonade) is a pretty popular Starbucks drink. This is the original tea that was used to make that drink, and it's so so good iced! The tea that Starbucks now uses is the Teavana Passion Tango tea, I believe, which is very similar, but not quite as nice, in my opinion... there's a weird spiciness to it, and I often find myself wishing for this one when I order one!

That said, this tea is still available for purchase from Starbucks, as well as in grocery stores that sell Tazo teas, so you can easily make it yourself hot or iced. The fastest way to make yourself an iced tea is to pop a teabag or two (depending on the strength you want) into hot water and steep for 5-10 minutes (again depending on the intensity you like), adding sugar if desired, and pouring the tea over a big cup full of ice. Stir (and add lemonade if you like), if you have yourself an iced passion tea! Personally, I usually don't like fruity teas hot, so I only drink this one iced.

2. DavidsTea Blueberry Jam black tea

I hope you're prepared to see several teas from DavidsTea in this post, because I love them! They have so many great products, so I'm about to fangirl pretty hard here.

This tea was actually sent to me alongside a ChickAdvisor sample a while ago, but I absolutely love this tea! (probably more than the sample it came with...). My aversion to hot fruity teas totally doesn't extend to this one, it's delicious hot or iced, and so sweet and blueberry-tastic, like a cup of blueberry pie or something, and great sweetened or plain. I usually don't sweeten it, but it can be nice if you really want a sweet treat.

3. DavidsTea Cold 911 Herbal Infusion

You can buy this separately, but I got this one through the Cold Survival Kit (which I reviewed when I bought it, if you want to see all the teas included). This one may not sound the tastiest with the eucalyptus and peppermint... it probably sounds like Vick's Vapo-Rub to many people. Honestly, it kinda smells like that, but I love the smell of Vicks, personally, and maybe I'm crazy, but I love the taste of this tea! It's so soothing and feels great on the throat and also just the hot, minty, eucalyptus-y steam that comes off it is so nice to breath while you drink if you're sick. If you aren't sick, this tea is INTENSE, so it's really a medicinal tea... but you do you =P. I definitely recommend picking this up for the next time you have a cold. Oh, and it's all herbal, no actual tea, so it contains no caffeine, and you can drink it as close to bed as you want, if that's important for you.

4. The Earl's Garden

After my last tea post, you probably get the picture that I LOVE Earl Grey tea. But in case that hasn't hit home yet, this will probably prove my love. This is a delicious, fancy, fruity, summery take on original Earl Grey, containing the usual black tea and bergamot, as well as freeze-dried strawberry pieces! It is so delicious, and even just smells so good, it's definitely one of my favourite teas of all time. I've repurchased it, which isn't too common with my flavoured loose-leaf teas, because I like to try new ones, but this one is so good I didn't want to be without. I didn't even ask for an amount, I just had them fill the tin!

This tea is pretty great however you want to drink it: hot, iced, black, with milk, with sugar, with honey... it's all good. If you like Earl Grey, and you like strawberries, you should really give this one a go!

5. Stash Holiday Chai black tea

This one is a weird one, but in a great way! It smells and tastes so christmas-y it's insane, and it's only available each year around the holidays! It has all the regular chai spices, but Stash also added gingerbread flavour and Jamaican rum flavour, to give it an unmistakable Christmas taste! It honestly smells like fresh baked ginger bread and eggnog. It's like a Christmas-scented hug! Again, this is great in a variety of ways, though I've never tried it iced. It is good black, sweetened, or with milk and sugar (or as a latte!). If you want to make a latte, though, I'd recommend using an extra teabag, as the box is not lying when it says "one tea bag makes 8 ounces of hot tea." If you like your flavours stronger, brew stronger!

6. DavidsTea Hot Chocolate Pu'erh Tea

If you aren't familiar with the term, Pu'erh tea is black tea that has been fermented. Traditionally sold as bricks and brews a very dark black tea. It's rich and earthy, and quite tasty, though I can't say I have a lot of experience with different types. This Pu'erh blend is mixed with black tea, as well as cocoa nibs, chocolate pieces, and cocoa butter (among other things) to make a very tasty dessert tea! I'm glad that they are selling this one again this year, becasue I purchased it last Christmas and fell in love with the rich chocolatey tea. Usually chocolate pieces in tea can get a bit oily, but I feel they found a pretty good balance with this blend, because it doesn't bug me like some others I've tried.

This tea is great whether you want to drink it black for a low-calorie chocolate treat (one cup has ~5 cal.), or with milk and sugar for when you really cant choose if you want a hot chocolate or a nice cup of tea... this tea lets you have both in one delicious cup.

7. DavidsTea Mulled Wine Oolong Tea

I'm so sad that DavidsTea didn't bring this one out again this year (also, I'll be tacking on an extra tea just because you can't buy this one any more), but I had to mention it because it is delicious! I've talked about how much I like the rich, smooth earthiness of oolong tea before, so of course I love that this tea is based around oolong tea. In this tea, the oolong is blended with all the usual ingredients in a wine mulling spice mix: orange peel, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger, plus apple for more fruity flavour. I suppose you could put together your own similar thing by using wine mulling spices and brewing it with some plain oolong tea, but that's a lot more work!

The scent of this blend in the tin is intense, it really hits you in the face when you take a whiff, but it makes a really beautiful, spiced, and slightly tart tea. I love it black, or with a little sugar, which really brings up the flavour of the orange. It's warming and comforting, and a perfect wintertime tea. Though I guess I'll be using it sparingly this year in hopes they put it out again before I run out!!

8. HONOURABLE MENTION: DavidsTea Super Ginger Rooibos Tea

This is another tea from the Cold Survival Kit. Honestly, I was sure I would hate it, because I don't like rooibos, and I hate ginger teas... but damn does this stuff work well!

Unless you like ginger tea... a lot... you aren't likely to drink this one for fun. It's strictly medicinal for me, and I ONLY drink it if I have a bad cold, sore throat, stuffy... you know the drill. This tea contains dried ginger, green rooibos, black, white, and pink peppercorns, and a bit of stevia. It's a bit spicy, as you can probably guess! But if you are super stuffed up, and can't taste a thing or even think, this is great! Its something you can actually taste! The ginger helps you smell again, soothes your throat, and helps you get better, and the peppercorns help to clear your sinus out as well! One thing I will note is that you should not leave the leaves in the water any longer than recommended... the longer they're in there, the spicier this gets... it gets really intense, but it also works even better... so do what you feel is right. I like to mix this one with honey, for even more throat soothing goodness.

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So that's everything! I mean, it's certainly not all the teas in my collection, but definitely some of my favourites. Again, if you didn't see my first tea post, about my favourite basics and essential teas, check it out now! And don't forget to leave me your favourite teas in the comments, as well as suggestions for other non-beauty favourites categories you'd like me to share with you!

Thanks for reading!