Collective Mini-Haul

Hello again! It’s been more than 2 weeks since my update post, so it’s about time I got back into this. I thought it would be good to start off with an itty-bitty collective haul for you, so here are just a couple of things I’ve acquired over the past couple of weeks.

1.Nicole by OPI Nic’s Sticks in “Rainbow’s End,” “Don’t Leaf Yet,” and “Stick With Me”:

I think these are a pretty old product since the majority of the results when I googled them I got several reviews from 2011 and 2012, and nothing newer, so they probably aren’t available in stores. That said, however, I don’t think that’s much of a loss, as these are pretty terrible. I got these, along with the next product from a girl that David works with since she never uses them, and I can see why! The idea seems to be that these are portable and convenient, but I just found them awkward and frustrating. The top of the pen clicks to release product into the brush, which you then brush onto your nails, but it’s very inconsistent, hard to control, and watery! The picture below is two coats of each colour on my nails, since I had no intention of wasting space on a nail wheel for these. (Which is  a little unfortunate, as that gold is a really pretty gold holographic, but it’s so impossible to use!)

2. Sally Hansen Hard as Nails polish in “Peony”:

As I mentioned above, I got this polish from the same girl as the Nic Sticks. This, however, is a full bottle of this gorgeous shimmery pink polish that goes on beautifully in two coats (see the swatch below). I will get plenty of use out of this!

3. Tresemme Split Remedy Split-End Leave-In Conditioning Spray:

I was looking for a new leave in treatment since my Argan Oil is almost gone, and this was on sale at Shoppers Drugmart for only $4 for this big bottle, so I decided to try it out. It’s not your usual leave-in spray, since the formula is thicker and creamier. I actually thought it just looked like conditioner in the bottle, but it sprays out fairly evenly, and you’re meant to use it on damp or towel dried hair anways, so it spreads through your ends fairly easily. I’ve only used it once so far, but I definitely like the smell and it did seem to do good things for my hair’s softness and shininess!

4. Urban Decay Naked 3 palette:

I want to do a more in-depth review post on this palette later on—even though I’m pretty sure most of you have read and seen tons of other reviews already—so I won’t go too much into my thoughts on this palette just yet, but I wanted to show it to you so you would know that that review is coming! I’m so glad I finally have it, though; I’ve been drooling over these colours ever since I got to swatch these shadows in-store a couple weeks ago. So that review post should be up sometime in the next week or so, once I’ve had a chance to use more of the shadows.

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Also! I would like to start doing more reviews of individual products, so if there was anything you’ve seen in a previous post you want more of my thoughts on, make sure to leave your suggestion in the comments!

Thanks for reading!

October 2014 Favourites!

Once again we have come to a new month, and that means it’s time to talk about my favourite products. This month, I had very few products that really stood out, at least none that I hadn’t mentioned in the past month or two, though many of my September favourites were going strong for October as well. That said, I do have a couple of things to mention:

1. Peace & Love & OPI by OPI

This is probably expected, considering I was already raving about it in the haul post when I first got it. In the last month, though, I’ve probably worn this polish at least three times! If you want to see some great swatch pictures, you can see my haul post featuring this polish.

2. L’Oreal Paris Hair Expertise Power Moisture Shampoo and Conditioner

I decided to switch up the brand last time I needed to buy a new shampoo, and so I settled on this one because my hair definitely needs the moisture, and also in part because I think Elle Fowler (from YouTube) was talking about how good Hyaluronic Acid is… and Hyaluronate sounds like that. Yeah. Anyway, this shampoo is actually fantastic. It definitely leaves my hair feeling a lot softer and smoother, and I like that it doesn’t attempt to amplify my curls like my last shampoo did, since all it ever managed to do was make me look lopsided and messy, in my opinion. So I’m definitely enjoying this shampoo, and I may even repurchase the same one for once when this one is gone.

3. Coca-Cola Lip Smackers

I have a lot of lip balms, some more high-end, some super cheap. You’d think I use a lot of lip balm if you counted how many I have, but I usually don’t bother because I generally don’t like how they look, feel, and/or smell on my lips. I’m also really inconsistent about what I like a lip balm to be like: minty? flavoured? slick? shiny? thick and creamy? coloured?

Anyways, at the moment, my favourite is likely a childhood classic for lots of people: Lip Smackers. Specifically the Coke flavoured ones. If you had these as a kid (or if you use them now, obviously), you probably remember not just how great they smell, but how great they taste. For a long time I stopped bothering with lip smackers because my little sister used to eat lip balms as a toddler… I’m writing a lot about this, probably unnecessarily, so I’ll get to the point. This lip balms smells like those Coke bottle candies, is shiny (not shimmery), barely tinted (just sorta makes your lips look a little redder/darker) and doesn’t end up feeling greasy unless you really layer it on. Also, it’s been super hydrating for my just-starting-to-dry-up lips.

Non-Beauty favourites:

1. Michael Kors Jet Set tote

I just posted about this, so I won’t bore you with more, but this is definitely a favourite! If you want to see more pictures or read me ranting about how much I love this bag, you can check out my other post about it (and check out my anniversary makeup at the same time!).

2. Plain teas

Image from LuckyVitamin.com

Usually I prefer my teas with cream or milk and sugar, but lately I’ve really been enjoying flavoured and spiced black teas with no milk and either very little or no sugar. Aside from being healthier and lower in calories, which is definitely not my reason for drinking my teas this way, I’ve basically just been enjoying tasting different flavours in my same old teas. Tea is also a lot more refreshing when you don’t have a sweet, milky aftertaste! It’s good for a change of pace. (My particular favourite at the moment is Stash’s Holiday Chai tea. Not sure if you can get it in stores yet, but it’s available every Christmas season.)

3. Agents of SHIELD

Image from KernelsCorner.com

This is a brand-new(ish) tv show from Marvel, and it is fantastic! If you like superhero movies like The Avengers and Ironman (which everyone should), you should love this show as well. If you haven’t seen the Avengers movies, some references might be lost on you, but its still a great, funny show all the same. And Agent Coulson is fantastic. Also, if you have seen the Avenger movies, but haven’t heard about this show, the show takes place starting a while after the events of The Avengers movie. The 6th episode just aired this Tuesday (the 5th), so it shouldn’t be too hard to get caught up, and I definitely recommend it if you haven’t seen it yet!

And that’s all for this month! Let me know your October favourites in the comments!

A Super-Tiny, Super-Quick Haul

Alright, maybe two little things doesn’t qualify as a haul, but this is my blog so I can call it what I wanna! My boyfriend randomly decided to get me two things off my wishlist that I posted the other day… Here’s what I got:

Maybelline Color Tattoo in “Pomegranate Punk”:

This is just a gorgeous red/brown/rusty/bronze-y colour, and I love it a lot. It doesn’t seem as pigmented as Bad to the Bronze, but it still looks great on it’s own, is plenty buildable, and I happen to have an eyeshadow in almost the exact same colour that should be great for layering over top!

OPI polish in “Peace & Love & OPI”:

A stupid name for a bloody gorgeous polish! It looks kinda blue-grey in sad indoor lights, like at my house, but outside, there are also flashes of green and purple depending on the angle and types of lights. It’s so gorgeous, I never want it to come off my nails! *drools*

And that’s all. Thanks for reading! =)

Fall 2013 Wishlist

No money? Make a wishlist! It’ll feel like you’re shopping without any of the spending money, or any of the having cool new stuff! Yeah, it sounds depressing, but for now it’s the best I can do. Besides, it’s fun to want stuff, right? Plus, maybe it will be good motivation for me to work harder at getting a new job…

Most of this wishlist this time is makeup, since there isn’t a whole lot that I need or want fashion-wise right now. I have boots, heels, scarves, new jeans, tons of bras/underwear/socks/shirts/hoodies/jackets… and nothing trendy that I’ve noticed and fallen for recently. But there is plenty of makeup that’s been slowly adding itself to my list over the last little while…

1. More Maybelline Colour Tattoo colours

Image from Eyemasq.wordpress.com

Basically, I adore the one i have (Bad to the Bronze) more than I thought possible before buying it, and now I want more colours.. Maybe Barely Branded, Bold Gold, or one of the blue or green coloured ones? *shrugs*

2. Peace & Love & OPI by OPI

Image from Swatchandlearn.com

This colour is simply gorgeous. It’s like, multi-chrome and shiny and sparkly… I kinda just want it. A lot.

3. Lorac Pro Palette

Image from En.paperblog.com

Everybody on YouTube raves about this palette, but especially Emily (emilynoel83 on YouTube), whose opinion I really respect. Plus, all the swatches and looks I’ve seen done with this palette just look so wonderful. I believe it’s $55 Canadian from the Sephora site (I’ve never seen it in a store), but it comes with 16 shadows… though this palette has just over half the product of a Naked Palette, so I’m not sure it’s worth the price…. As you can see, I’m still a tad conflicted.

4. Maybelline Vivids Lipstick(s)

Image from Beautezine.com

Not sure what colour, but Ania (annabellesmakeup on YouTube) raves about these all the time, and when I’ve swatched them in stores they always look so bright and pigmented and fabulous, so I’d love to try one out more seriously.

5. Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Black Cherry (?)

Image from Pinkpineapple8.blogspot.ca

There’s a question mark on this one, because, although I wanted this one since about the end of last winter, I think I may now have the same colour. Swatches online look a lot like my MAC lipstick in Hang Up… That said, I’d love to give it a swatch; if I remember correctly, there’s also a really cool dark purple-y lipstick that I think is also Revlon. I’d have to try to swatch this one myself before making any decisions.

6. Gel liner

Image from Myeyeshadowconsultant.com

Not sure what brand. I have heard good things about the Makeup Forever Aqua liner, the MAC Fluidline, the NYX gel liner, and the Maybelline Master Drama gel liner. More research is required!

7. Katy Perry Killer Queen perfume

Image from Pausaparafeminices.com

I’ve honestly only smelled this one once, and I haven’t fallen in love yet, but I did really like it. Also the bottle is so so pretty! The scent reminded me a bit of my favourite cheap/celebrity perfume, the original Paris Hilton one, since it’s a bit floral-y, not super sweet, but also not super heavy.

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So that’s about all I can think of for now. Let me know what’s on your wishlist in the comments. Thanks for reading!

My January 2013 Favourites!

So, I’m barely getting this to you by the end of the first week of the month, as I like to do, but honestly, I forgive myself…

Anyways, I only have a few favourites this last month. I’m not really sure why, since I’ve been able to buy myself more stuff than I have for the past few months, but I guess I just stuck to old favourites. I do have a couple of things to share with you for January though, and here they are:

Lipstick/lip products:

I don’t have any particular shades or products for you in this case, but more and more lately I’ve been loving lipsticks, lip balms, and lipstains. The only thing I’m still not very into is gloss. These are some of my favourite colours at the moment, and I love that NYC one more than it looks like I should. Once it’s on it has a really nice dark-ish berry colour!

Real Techniques flat top brush as foundation brush:

Most of the time, I apply foundation with my fingers. I’ve tried using my ELF brushes, but they just don’t really seem to spread the product very well or evenly. However, when I tried this brush, it worked beautifully! I haven’t used my hands alone to apply my foundation since! It really blends the foundation in naturally, even my Lancôme, which I usually have found looks a bit cakey on my skin.

OPI’s On Her Majesty’s Secret Service:

I’ve been loving this colour so much. I’ve worn it several weeks in a row, on it’s own, or layering it over other polishes to play with how best to wear it. It’s just so shimmery and gorgeous, especially under natural light!

Non-Cosmetic Favourites:

Greek yogurt:

Image from Delectablychic.com

I posted this in my last haul post, so this might not be a shock. Astro is definitely my favourite of the three brands that I’ve tried. I love how thick and creamy Greek yogurt is. I wouldn’t say its all that healthy, though, if you think that. All the one’s that I have found have had very high fat contents, about as much as cream in some cases. It also has lots of protein, making this a very high-calorie food. It is delicious though. I think it makes a great treat, and I like to eat it as a dessert type food. =)

Vanilla Spice Lattes:

Image from Starbucks.co.uk

I’m very much hoping that these, and the Vanilla Spice syrup, are permanent additions to the Starbucks menu, because I am completely in love! It tastes so much less sweet than the plain vanilla, and the cardamom (which is the “spice” in vanilla spice, and also one of the dominant flavours in chai tea) is so smooth and soothing! So delicious!

And that’s all for January. I hope to have more posts up soon, including some Valentine’s Day nails. I apologize again for my slow posting lately.

Anyways, let me know what your favourites were in the comments! I love to here from you, as always. And don’t forget to follow on GFC if you aren’t already; I plan to start my first giveaway when I finally get to 50 followers! =)

Thanks for reading <3

Multi-Week Collective Haul

Hello again! Over the past couple of weeks I’ve picked up a bunch of stuff that I’ve been wanting to try or needing to replace, and a couple extra things. Most of the following is cosmetic related, but I’m also going to show you a few other things:

Random food/snack purchases:

• Vanilla sprinkle Dunkaroos: I hadn’t had these in years, and they were less than $4, so bought them on an impulse.
• Mint green tea hard candies: I wasn’t completely sure what I was buying when I got these (since all the writing is in Japanese), and I didn’t realise they’re mint as well, but they’re still good.
• Dragon Pearl jasmine green tea: this tea is super expensive, which why I only got a small sample bag. It’s really good, but, to be honest, I don’t think its all that much better than other Jasmine green teas, like from David’s Tea or Stash, which are much cheaper!
• Agave nectar: They use this sweetener a lot when you get a hot tea or tea latte at David’s Tea, and it gives a completely different flavour to sugar, so I got myself a bottle for at home.
• Greek yogurt: Everyone is always talking about this stuff, so I finally had to try it. I actually bought three different brands, to try and find the best one, and the one pictured, which is Liberte in coconut flavour was really good, and bits of coconut in it as well. I really disliked the Krema branded one. The first one I had, which was a honey flavoured was probably my favourite, but I can’t remember the brand off the top of my head…

Other random purchases:

I got these super soft sweatpants from Bluenotes for $5. The colourful pens are smelly pens from a Japanese dollar store near Chinatown, and the black one is just a liquid ink fineliner from a dollar store.

These pretty earrings I found in a little store in Chinatown. They were 40% off, and less than $7. They have sterling silver posts and the stones are Tiger Eye. I really love them, and the way they shine in the light!

Cosmetic purchases:

Rexall Vitamin E Nail Polish Remover with Conditioners:

Just your regular everyday nail polish remover. I was completely out and this was only about $1.50 at Rexall.

Clean & Clear Invisible Blemish Treatment:

I have  Clinique acne gel somewhere, but it’s been lost for a while. I don’t like to use my concealer spot treatment at night, so I finally got myself a new bottle. I picked this one because it was the cheapest one at my Shoppers that had 2% Salicylic Acid, which works best on my zits.

Sephora Triple Action Cleansing Water:

Unless I’m very much mistaken, this is basically a combination of toner, cleanser, and makeup remover (hence Triple action). You just swipe it on with a cotton pad or ball, and it takes off all your makeup, even waterproof mascara with minimal rubbing. There’s a larger size which is much more cost effective, but I wasn’t sure I’d like this product, so I got this one.

Though I’ve never tried it, I think this is basically Sephora’s version of the Bioderma cleanser. So far, I’m really liking it. It leaves my skin feeling clean, without the dryness of my usual toner. I also like the convenient pump-top on the bottle.

Maybelline Turbo Express Volume mascara:

If you remember from past posts, this is my favourite mascara, and has been for a while. The formula and the brush just agree with my eyelashes so much more than other mascaras for some reason. So when I found this one sale for $5 at London Drugs, I had to pick it up, partly out of fear that they’re discontinuing this particular mascara.

Nyx Lipstick in Fig:

I picked this up partly because I wanted to try a Nyx lipstick and I’m pretty into lip stuff lately, for some reason. This is basically a my-lips-but-better type of colour, maybe a bit more bubblegum than the average lip. It’s creamy and shiny, but without any sparkle. I wanted to get one of their matte lipsticks, but they didn’t have any colours that suited me. I’m liking this lipstick so far, but I find it can be hard to make it go on un-streaky sometimes.

OPI polish in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service:

You may already know (or be able to guess) that this colour is from OPI’s Skyfall collection. I fell in love with this colour, and thought about it for a week before finally caving and picking it up. It’s got this beautiful blue-grey base with a crazy amount of silver, blue, and a bit of purple sparkle! It’s so gorgeous in natural light! The swatch above is two coats; I’ve taken to wearing two coats of it over a blue or grey polish to add some more opacity.

OCC Lip Tar in NSFW:

Above: dotted onto my hand; Below: blended out.

I had to pick this up with all the raving about it on Reddit, as well as a couple vlogs. It’s a super pigmented liquid lipstick, which is also very long lasting, and a little bit staining. As you can see from the swatches above, a little goes a long way, and this colour blends down almost to a bright pink, or you can build it up a bit more for a pure red lip.

I haven’t worn this for a full day yet, but I have tried it on. It’s fairly easy to spread and work with, and it feels pretty good on the lips, with a little bit of a minty scent to it. As you can see in one of the other pictures above, I got the colour NSFW. My Sephora only had this colour and Anime (a neon pink) left when I went, so I chose this, which I thought would be more wearable.

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And that’s everything for now! I do have some more stuff to show you, which I got after starting this post, but that will come eventually. I’ve decided that when I get to 50 followers, I’ll start my giveaway… I’ve even started buying the prizes.

Anyways, let me know if you’ve tried any of these products and what your thoughts were. I love getting your comments!