January Favorites

Hey everyone! For the month of January I've been testing out a few products that range from beauty to hair care and these are the ones I really liked. I also have my latest Glymm Box which I'll write another post about. I'm not as excited about this months variety of products as opposed to last months but I guess it's hit or miss with those since they're a surprise in every box haha! Anyways, here are the products I liked!

EOS Lip Balm - Lemon Drop Flavor
I love this lip balm, especially in the cold season because my lips get very dry and chap. Aside from the adorable round packaging with bright colors, this lip balm is a great moisturizer. The lemon drop flavor has a pleasant scent that reminds me of candy necklaces and it applies nicely without having to put on several coats. Another great thing is that it doesn't have a disgusting flavor even though it has SPF in it which is great for protection, but in other lip balms I've tried, it makes them taste really gross!

Rimmel Glam'Eyes Mascara in Black
I'll admit that I was hesitant in buying a drugstore mascara since the last few I tried bombed hard core! Though after some pushing and prodding from my sister I caved and decided to try another one. We'll ignore the fact that my favorite Stila one was drying up and that it's super crazy expensive ($30 for a small tube of mascara...really?) and put our thumbs up that Pharmaprix was having a sale on Rimmel mascaras! Yay! I think I got it for something around $7-8 instead of $9-10, not to sure what the price was any more, and I chose black though there was a darker shade of black up from that one.

The tube itself is really cute with the metallic pink and the graphic pattern imprinted on it. The wand is pretty good too for one of the silicone applicators with the tiny little feelers (They always look so funny to me!) and I really don't have any complaints for this mascara. It doesn't flake off at the end of the day, it's buildable, applies evenly to my lashes without caking it on and I haven't poked myself in the eye with the applicator yet! Bonus for me! I have a tendency to do that with bigger or longer applicators.

All in all I really like this mascara over the Maybelline ones I've tried before. Namely the Falsies mascara. I had liked it at first and then the mascara just went down the toilet for me, gawd it was awful! But Rimmel has made me less wary of buying drug store mascaras, and for that, my eyes and I thank you haha!

Babyliss Pro Argan Oil
I received this little bottle as a stocking stuffer this Holiday. I'm not sure where my mother found it or how much it costs, but I do know it smells amazing and my hair is really loving it! I apply it to my wet hair when I come out of the shower and let it do it's thing. I don't even need to put in any other hair products to tame my frizziness and curls, it's awesome! And the shine it leaves..gawd my hair is finally starting to looking and feel awesome and healthy and it's great! The argan oil an oil treatment that is supposed to help with the frizzies and smooth out your help, give an amazing healthy shine and condition your hair all without leaving it feeling greasy or weighed down. It's a little miracle bottle if you ask me. My hair was lack lustre, dried at the tips and always super frizzy before I started using argan oils. I've noticed a big difference in my hairs health and how it looks and feels now a days and I have to say it's awesome. I definitely recommend any argan/morrocan oil hair treatments!

Essie Luxeffects Nail Polish - Shine of the Times

Yay another awesome Essie nail polish! I was given this one as a Christmas present so I'm not sure where my friend got it, but what I DO know is that it's an amazing top coat. The glitter in this little bottle is amazing, it's like white glitter with yellow and pink shimmer. It's really cute and unique, I don't own any other glitter polishes like this one. And the glitter when it's applied is great too. I have a few other polishes where I get more clear than glitter but this one coats really nicely with just one application. It's great paired over any color and I had fun using this one when trying to do a cosmic effect on my nails. Needless to my nails turned out bad, but the glitter on top looked nice! I know Essie polishes usually run around $14 at the Pharmaprix by me, but I haven't seen the Luxeffects collection there yet. Hopefully soon because there were some other shades I'd like to get my hands on!

E.V.A. Clip Free Curler - 25-18MM Tourmaline
Here's another awesome Christmas gift that I got from a friend. I was looking into getting a curler that didn't have the clamp since I never could quite get the hang of using them. Plus the one I have gives a bigger curl and I wanted something that would give a tighter curl. First off, I love the pattern, animal print oh yeah! It comes with a glove to help prevent me from burning myself and the base swivels to help make things easier. It's a nice light weight tourmaline curler that heats up relatively fast and is really easy to use. If you're looking for something similar I believe this one was from Winners and it comes in various prints too, from solids to other animal prints. They're really cute and not overly expensive!


Benefit Moisture Prep Toning Lotion
This little guy right here was a sample that my sister received in her luxebox I believe two months ago? It's a toning lotion that you apply to your face before applying your moisturizer. While I'm not too crazy about the scent (It's like a dilute shampoo scent and something really fragrant like a strong perfume) I have noticed really great results with this product. We're in the winter months and with the cold and humidity come dry cheeks. A quick fix for that when just my moisturizer isn't enough? A dab of this toning lotion and my cheeks feel as smooth as a baby's bottom. Well not quite cause that'd be awkward...but you know what I mean! Anyways, the packing is really cute, the product does wonders on my dry skin and it's another great product from Benefit. I've seen the latest collection of Benefit products at my local Pharmaprix and I have to admit that I really love the packaging! The full sized bottles look other wordly, kind of like genie bottles or something old like a glass bottle I'd find my grandmother keeping. All to say that I really like the packaging! While reminding me of little genie bottles, I guess you could say that they also kind of look like potion bottles. Which is a plus for me since it makes me think of Harry Potter...*insert nerdy fangirl here*

Anyways! If you're looking for something to help prep your face before putting on your moisturizer to give your face that extra boost of hydration I would recommend this product, but my one hesitation is the price since it is pretty pricey. I think it's about $30 for the full sized bottle.

July Favorites - Beauty Products

Hey everyone! For the month of July it's been really hot so far so I've had to switch up a few things for my daily routine. It's too hot to layer products on my face for me to sweat it off....eww I know!

Anyways, I have a few new purchases and some older ones that are making a comeback in my new daily summer routine for this month. I've narrowed it down to my top 7 beauty products which range from makeup to nail products!

Essie nail polish in too too hot

This nail polish is a really fun summer time color that's perfect for mani/pedi's. It's a cute coral shade that has a bit more of a red under tone but is similar to "Like Me" which is a similar shade with more orange under tones. It's described as a sizzling rich red coral and has been my go-to color on more than a few occasions so far this summer. It really goes with every thing!

For more information check out the Essie website.

Stila smudge stick waterproof eye liner in stingray

First of all, I love love love this eye liner and have been using it for a while now, but now that it's summer time and there's all this gross humidity and heat, this eye liner is my new best friend! Not only will it stay on my water line all day...but I don't get raccoon eyes either. It's wonderful to say the least! It's a bit on the pricey side and I've already gone through two of them. But if you really want an eye liner that's going to last you all day, is water proof and you don't have to spend 5 minutes swiping on to get the intensity you'd like, I'd definitely check it out!

For Canadian's like myself, you can find it online or in store at your local Sephora

Stila blush in make me blush

This blush is one of my favorites and I think it's a good knock off for Nars' orgasm blush. It's a mix of three different shades of pink, ranging from a sheer pink to a deep coral. There's a hint of glitter and I really like how this blush looks on my cheeks. My cheeks are naturally flushed and instead of making them worse it helps calm the coloring down yet still make them look cute! For once I like my cheeks!

Unfortunately this was a limited edition version that was sold around Valentine's Day. It was sold in a set with two lip glazes and I don't believe it's available for purchase any more.

For more information on the Valentine's Day set, check out a previous blog post.

Lise Watier Satellite bronzing powder in #198

This bronzer is an old purchase that I made in the winter when I my face needed that extra pick me up so that my complexion didn't look so ghastly. I bought this one on a whim because the glitter is very minimal and it gives me a natural looking complexion. In other words, I'm in between ghastly pale and looking like a got a bit of sun!

There's four different parts of this bronzer, I'm not an expert and don't fully understand what each one is and what they do, but what I do know is that when I mix all four together with my kabuki brush my face rejoices and I like to use the lightest color as a highlighter for my brow bone.

It retails for around $30.00 which is pretty pricey, but I'm happy with it and I love the brand. I would definitely shop around before recommending this one, but it is a product I would recommend testing.

Check it out here for more information or to purchase it for yourself.

Bare Escentuals Buxom mascara in blackest black

Hands down this is one of my favorite mascaras! I tried switching to Maybelline's Falsies mascara because it was so much cheaper....but I really didn't like it as much in the end. The Buxom mascara is on the pricey side but I really love what it does to my lashes and it's always consistent results. They look fuller, never clump and it stays on all day!

The brush itself is a bit weird, it's not your typical mascara wand and the bristles I believe are something like silicone, so there's dozens of little spikes to pick up your lashes. This mascara is described as an intensely volumizing mascara for bigger, fuller lashes and I really have to agree. I would literally shout from the roof tops how much I love this mascara but it's biggest downfall is the price! It retails for almost $30 Canadian which is enough to break most wallets. Seriously...why spend $30 on a mascara when you can get a pair of shoes for that price!?! Anyways....if you're at Sephora looking to try something new and possibly have it in your budget, I suggest checking out this amazing masacara!

Find Buxom's mascara on Sephora's website here.

Stila lip glaze in pucker up

I love Stila lip glazes and when my sister found a mini kit on sale at Winner's her first thought was to call me...and of course I told her to buy it haha. The kit consisted of a mini black mascara, a lip glaze in pucker up and a cream eye shadow in purple pumps. All three together created a mini kit for the Barbie <3 Stila collection.

Now I'm not a big fan of punchy colors on my lips, I usually stick to sheer glosses or nude lip sticks, but I seriously fell in love with this hot pink shade! It's this really vibrant pink/fuschia color with a hint of glitter and it's amazing for adding a pop of color to my lips. I can make it sheer by adding it over top my lip balm or I can make it more intense by forgoing my lip balm. My lips are now bright and colorful this summer and all thanks to a random find!

The Barbie collection as to my knowledge is basically no longer being sold. You might be able to find an item or two around for sale online, but there are other really cute colors available from Stila that you can get from their site directly or even at Sephora. If you're Canadian like myself, then Sephora is your best bet since Stila's online website doesn't offer international shipping...YET!

Check out other lip glaze colors on Sephora's website

Check out other lip glaze colors and more on Stila's website

EOS lip balm in lemon

Ah how adorable is this lip balm? I found it in the states on vacation last winter and I seriously need to get my hands on another one! Aside from the amazingly sweet lemony scent, this lip balm tastes yummy, does a better job at moisturizing my lips than my old Nivea lip balm...I love the packaging! It's a really fun idea for a lip balm container and I have to say I like this better than a stick. It's easier and might I had more fun, to apply your lip balm with this product than it is with your regular run of the mill lip balm. 

It comes in a variety of flavors and it's relatively cheap too! I think it was around $3 and you get quite a bit of product inside. I've had mine for a few months and with constant application I'm not quite down to the last bit yet! And as a little bonus feature for this cutie patootie...it has SPF15 in it so it keeps your lips nice and moist instead of extra crispy!

Drugstore vs High End Mascaras

Hey everyone! Today's post is all about mascaras. My question is, is it really worth investing in high end mascaras like Yves St. Laurent's Faux Cils, or are drug store brands like Maybelline's Falsies just as good if not better?

I've gone through my fair share of mascaras, trying to find ones that would volumize, others that would lengthen, one that was water proof etc. Now a days it's wanting my lashes to look thicker and fuller. Having heard rave reviews about Yves St. Laurent's Faux Cils mascara, I was curious to try it, but hesitant to shell out 30$+ for it. It's only a mascara after all. And thirty dollars is pretty excessive considering drug store brands are sold for less than ten dollars!

Anyways, while in Vegas for the holidays I had the opportunity to try the Yves St. Laurent Faux Cils mascara at one of the Sephora's there. It's a really cute tube and my first impressions were wow. I like shiny things! The applicator brush itself was nice and big so I could see how it easily covers the lashes (with enough coats!) to make them appear as if you have false lashes on. Now as lovely as this mascara was and how well it applied to my lashes, I have to say that I wouldn't be able to wear this as an every day mascara. For one, it made my lashes really thick looking, and it gave my every day office look a little too much pizazz (if that even makes sense ha!). It was just a bit TOO much for an every day mascara, though would be perfect not nights out, events and more because of the way it accentuated the lashes.

Now though I had purchased this, I did end up returning the tube because unfortunately it was drying out. It wasn't worthwhile paying 30$+ for a mascara that was already thick and chunky in the tube. I'm not putting that on my lashes thank you very much!

Wanting to find a dupe that was cheaper and not so dramatic, I tried out Maybelline's Falsies mascara. At first I wasn't too impressed, mostly on my part because I didn't read the labels and took a brown one instead of black. I dislike brown mascaras for some reason. But also because I didn't have high expectations. I've kind of diverted from only using drug store products to using high end products instead. I guess I was being a snob haha! Anyways, Maybelline's Falsies only cost 7$ and I really like the applicator brush for this mascara! It's a curved brush and I really find that it helps separate my lashes and helps to evenly coat them. Also, when you reverse the brush it's a great way to do your bottom lashes without them clumping. I'm not a fan of clumped lashes!


So basically I found that I liked the Maybelline Falsies mascara to be better than Yves St. Laurent's pricey Faux Cils mascara. The price was better, the coverage was just as good and I also noticed that I didn't end up with raccoon eyes at the end of the day like I did wearing other mascaras (Yves St. Laurent's included!). Moral of the story, don't judge a mascara by it's price! Sure everyone is bound to have their favorites, but sometimes there's a cheap dupe for the high end one you're using. And really, it's mascara...is 30$ a tube really worth it? I know I'd rather spend my money on other products!!!