March & April 2015 Empties!

Well, hello there. It has been far too long since I've sat down at my computer to blog..or just sat down at my computer at all. Work and life events have kept me insanely busy, as is usually the case when I'm away for this long. In any event, May marks my 3 year blogging anniversary and I do have an exciting giveaway planned. Keep a close eye for that ;).
On to the trash!

Rahua Voluminous Shampoo (sample) - Lilly, from Genuine Glow, was kind enough to send me a care package around Christmas that included this sample. It lathered well and left my hair feeling clean, but I didn't find it miraculous.

Organic Matter Shampoo Level 1 - review here - This is one of my favourite shampoos out there. It's made in Canada, doesn't irritate my crazy scalp, cleans and conditions my hair, lathers well, lasts forever, and is reasonably priced. It has been my go-to for over a year now.

Deep Steep Body Butter in Passion Fruit Guava - This body butter was really nice during the colder months. I liked mixing it with an oil, for extra moisture, after a shower. The scent wasn't my favourite because of how sweet and fruity it was. While it did linger, I actually liked how it smelled after about an hour. The butter itself took a little working in and always left my skin super soft.

Deep Steep Body Wash in Honeydew Spearmint - review here - I love this body wash! This particular scent is my favourite of all the scents available. It lathers well, smells delicious, leaves my skin clean and soft, is affordable, and I find that a little goes a long way. Have already repurchased in a different scent.

*North Hill Soap Company Soap in Sex on the Beach & Blackbeard's Booty - review here - These soaps were absolutely lovely! Sex on the Beach was just the right amount of fruity and worked well for my skin. Blackbeard's Booty was my absolute favourite though. I loved the poppy seeds that gently exfoliated, and the bay rum and nutmeg essential oil gave this soap a delicious spicy kick that I just couldn't wait to be intoxicated by.

*Ella's Magic Balm in My Clementine Darling - review here - This balm came in handy during the polar vortex weather that we experienced a few months ago. My skin was crying for help and this lovely balm came to the rescue! It nourished, moisturized, protected, repaired, and loved my skin.

Meow Meow Tweet Deodorant Cream in Lavender - review here - I forgot how much I loved this deodorant. The texture was whipped, creamy, perfection that easily rubbed into my pits and kept me stink free almost all day. Oddly enough, it didn't irritate my pits this time around. Not sure if it was because the weather was colder and I wasn't shaving as much or what, but I'm glad I got to use up this jar as it wasn't cheap.

Andalou Naturals Apricot Probiotic Cleansing Milk - review here - As I've already raved about this cleanser many times before, I'll just say that I still love this cleanser. It works really well for my sensitive skin and I've already repurchased.

Josh Rosebrook Hydrating Accelerator - This toner is a cult favourite and for good reason. Josh blends gorgeous skin loving ingredients, like green tea, coconut oil, aloe water, neem, vitamins A, C, E and B2, and tops it off with the intoxicating scents of vanilla bean and ylang ylang. While the scent wasn't my favourite at first, I loved it within a week of using it. It was light and didn't linger. This worked to nourish and calm my skin before applying my oils/creams, and worked beautifully to set my makeup. My only complaint is the packaging. Sure it's travel friendly but it looks a bit cheap considering the price and packaging of the other products within Josh's skin care range.

*Mont Echo Nature Divine Creme Divine - review here - Loveeeeed the scent of this cream. As I mentioned in my review, the scent reminds me of something my mom put on her face when I was growing up. As a moisturizer, it was really nice, although using it morning and night for a few days did cause little red bumps on my skin. The pump also stopped working towards the end, making it difficult to get out the remainder of the cream. My favourite way to use this moisturizer was as a hand cream in the P.M. and under makeup in the A.M. 

*Odylique Repair Lotion - review here - Of the three Odylique products that I had the opportunity to try, this one was my favourite. It worked on my face, hands, and body to reduce dry skin, itching, and redness.

Lush's Angel on Bare Skin  - review here - Despite what some people within the green beauty community think about Lush, I love that they support and promote various causes. While they aren't the most natural, they do have a handful of clean products. Angels on Bare Skin is incredible and lives up to my green standards. This gem of a cleanser is gentle enough to use in the colder months on (my) dry and sensitive skin. I find that my skin is less flaky, I have fewer breakouts, and a more even tone and texture when I'm using this cleanser.

Corpa Flora Eclat Citrouille - review here - This incredible smelling oil has been a staple in my skin care routine for a long while. It's just an amazing, amazing oil and I'm sure you're all sick of hearing me talk about it.

*SBT Seabuckthorn Oil - review here - LOVE. That's all.

*DeVita Italian Tomato Leaf Mud Masque (sample) - Meh. This mask was less than impressive. It didn't burn but left my skin red as a tomato, as the name suggests. My skin didn't look or feel any different, besides the redness.

Living Libations Healthy Gums Clay Toothpaste - review here - Of the three toothpastes from Living Libations, that come in a jar, this is the best tasting one. It's fresh and worked really well to keep my teeth clean and gums happy. My hygienist even asked what I was using! The only downside is that it's expensive and not as easily available as I would like. For reference, a jar lasts about two months with only me using it.

Clean Well Hand Sanitizer - This stuff is soooo good! When I was doing aesthetics, I would get eczema on my hands and this sanitizer did not irritate it at all. It does smell like thyme but doesn't linger for too long. Sadly, Clean Well is no longer available in Canada.
*Zuzu Luxe Dual Powder Foundation in D-10 - review here - This was a fantastic foundation. It offered great coverage and never looked cakey on my dry skin. The shade range isn't too bad either, they offer shades for light to dark skins, of course there always room for more shades though. The thing that irritates me the most about this foundation is that refills are not available in Canada. Why!? Isn't that the point of offering a refillable compact? Because of that, I have not repurchased.
Sante Brown Pencil in No. 2. - I can't believe that I haven't reviewed this pencil yet. It is perfection. It is the perfect shade of brown for someone who doesn't lean red or warm, it's just brown. It lasts almost all day, but can wipe off if your face is oily or sweating. Already working through another one and have a backup.
Benecos Lip Gloss - This gloss is being tossed after discovering that one of the first ingredients is talc. Talc? Really?? Ridiculous. It also contains carmine and lanolin, if you're wondering. Since the ingredients are not on the packaging, I trusted the brand and picked up this gloss. After using it a handful of times, I decided to look up the ingredients. What a let down.
*Sappho Foundation Brush - This brush fell apart on me, the ferrell came loose and fell off. Despite that, this was a fantastic foundation brush. Sappho has since come out with new brushes.
*PR SAMPLES

Favourites of 2014 - Part 1

In 2014, I really sucked with keeping up with favourites posts. Come to think of it, it was probably because I enjoyed all of these products throughout the year and hardly strayed. This post will be dedicated to my favourite skin, hair, and body care products of the year. There will be a part 2, dedicated to makeup, and a part 3, dedicated to random things like food, blogs, etc.

Cleansers: I've tried several cleansers over the year, and the clear standout is Corpa Flora Beaute Divine. It melts away my makeup, emulsifies with water, and leaves my skin super clean and soft. It doesn't hurt that it's also a Canadian brand.

Toners: Not sure what it is about the Andalou Illuminating Toner but for the price, it's unbeatable. It smells of fresh oranges, moisturizes, refreshes, and brightens my skin.

Masks: The Pretty Ginger & Cypress Soothing Mask (not pictured) has been a favourite since I transitioned to natural products. It smells lovely, helps draw out impurities, and calms any redness. Since my next fave works great alone and mixed with Pretty, I had to include it as well. Manuka Honey has helped my skin in so many ways. It brightens, moisturizes, calms redness, and helps clear acne and acne spots.

Facial Oils: There were three can't-live-without oils in 2014; *Sea buckthorn (I now use the SBT brand), tamanu (I now use some other brand), and Corpa Flora Eclate Citrouille. All three of these oils, alone and mixed together, work incredibly well to combat acne, dry skin, uneven skin tone, acne scars, and redness. Eclat Citrouille especially gives me a beautiful glow, Love, love, love!

Shampoo: It's no surprise here, Organic Matter Level 1 Shampoo. I love this stuff so much. It works as a shampoo/conditioner (for my hair anyway), never irritates the dermatitis on my scalp, leaves my hair and scalp clean, smooth, soft, and shiny. It's also Canadian!

Conditioner/Treatment/Styling Product: I only use *Myra Aso 100% Marula Oil . This is my everything oil. With one drop, it styles, smooths, and conditions my hair.

Body Wash & Soap: I love the Deep Steep range, and their body wash is the best that I've tried. It lathers well, smells nice, is affordable, and leaves my skin well nourished. Honeydew Spearmint is my favourite scent. For soap, local company On A Branch Soap has blown me away. With no palm oil or canola oil, their soaps feel, smell and leave my skin feeling incredible. Lavender Oatmeal and Winter Chai are my faves.
Body Scrub: I'm not a huge fan of body scrubs, even though I've experienced some amazing ones this year, like Organic Bath Co. and Nyl, and much prefer using them on my hands. For an all over body exfoliation, I like using my Merben Sisal (medium) hand held dry brush.   Hand Cream: I've loved many hand creams this year, but the standout due to its affordability and performance is definitely Andalou Sea Buckthorn Hand Cream. It moisturizes, smells nice, and soothes my ezcema prone, dry, and irritated hands.
First Aid(?): As you can see, I wasn't sure what to classify this product as but it definitely needed a mention. The NBW Healing Balm has been a major favourite this year. I use it on ezcema patches, dry skin, cuts, and irritations. It quickly heals and soothes whenever applied and I can't be without it.
Spot any of your faves?
*PR SAMPLES. All opinions are entirely my own.

SBT Seabuckthorn Seed Oil vs. Fruit Oil

I've expressed my love for sea buckthorn oil many times on this blog. Today, I wanted to compare SBT Seabuckthorn's *Seed Oil and Fruit Oil to help you decide which would be a better addition to your routine. SBT is a Canadian company who grows their own sea buckthorn plants and turns them into a variety of amazing products. It's all done in Canada! Makes me so proud I tell ya. Now for the comparison...  

SEED OIL VS FRUIT OIL

        

SBT Seabuckthorn seed oil is a golden yellow colour which can either be taken internally or applied topically. It contains over 70% omega 3 and 6, in a 1:1 ratio, which helps to reduce inflammation, moisturize the skin, lower cholesterol, increase heart health, repair damaged cells and much more. It also contains vitamin e and carotenoids. Carotenoids are important because our body can convert some of it into vitamin A. Vitamin A is a super antioxidant that can help fight off certain types of cancer and heart disease while boosting your immune system. This has a very mild scent and absorbs beautifully into the skin.  

SBT Seabuckthorn Fruit oil is a bright orange colour that can definitely stain the skin and clothing. I must admit, when I first used this I looked like an oompa loompa or tan mom....
This oil contains up to 35% omega 7. Omega 7?? You read correctly friends. Omega 7 has been shown to help with cell regeneration (think sun damage, scars, and age), moisturize the skin, manage diabetes and help with weight control. Like the seed oil, it's rich in vitamin e and carotenoids. In addition to all that, it contains phytosterols (cholesterol lowering) and polar lipids (I should know this as an aesthetician but I don't). This has a very strong scent, that lingers just a bit, and takes a little longer to absorb.

SBT Seabuckthorn Seed Oil (left) & Fruit Oil (right)

So basically, both are amazing! I like to mix them together with a little tamanu oil and apply it in the morning. I find that the mixture has helped with acne, scarring from acne, sun damage, and overall skin health. Whether you choose to incorporate one or both into your skin care routine, keep in mind that you can also take them internally for several of the health benefits mentions above. What I especially love, is that they're high in PLANT BASED omegas making them perfect for vegans and vegetarians alike. Most daily omega capsules are gelatin based (aka animal based). Of course you can take straight fish oil, but I appreciate that these don't make me gag.   Available in 3 sizes; 10 ml, 30 ml, and 50 ml. Can be purchased through SBT, Well.ca, and many health food stores. To find a retailer nearest you, contact them via email or phone, or Twitter. Which have you or will you be adding to your daily skin care regime or smoothie?   *Seed oil was sent to me, fruit oil was purchased with my own money. All opinions are my own.