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

Brand Focus: Gabriel Cosmetics & Zuzu Luxe

Gabriel and Zuzu Luxe are sister brands, and definitely well known worldwide.  I've already tried (and loved) their mascara, brow pencil, and liquid liner, and although I've always wanted to explore more, the price point in Canada is quite high. When I say high, I mean almost double the American pricing and it hardly ever goes on sale. I think it's amazing that their products are made in the USA, with the exception of their pencils which are made in Germany. But what I absolutely love most, is that they are vegan and free from the following:

• Coal Tar Derivatives or FD&C agents
• Parabens
• Soy
• Mineral Oil
• Peanuts & Tree Nuts
• Lanolin
• Talc
• Propylene Glycol
• Hydrogenated Oils
• Gluten
• Phthalates
• DBP
• Toluene
• Lead
• Formaldehyde
• Nano/Micro sized particles

You can read more about Gabriel/Zuzu Luxe here. 

I was given the opportunity to try out a few of their products and decided on the *Zuzu Luxe Dual Powder Foundation in D-10, *Zuzu Luxe Mascara in Onyx, *Zuzu Luxe Lipliner in Bounce, *Gabriel Lipliner in Berry, *Gabriel Moisturizing Liquid Foundation in Soft Beige, and *Gabriel Eye Primer in Neutral.

For ingredients, click here

Good eye primers are hard to come by, especially when you have really oily, deep set lids. Every brand boasts theirs as the best, but so far only the *Gabriel Eye Primer ($13.55 USD/2.5 g) has worked for me. It's extremely creamy, offers pretty good vein coverage, evens out the lids well, and keeps shadows from creasing for several hours. Not sure that it would last quite as long in the middle of a super hot Canadian summer day, when humidity takes over and you can barely breath, but I guess we'll find out in a few months. The neutral shade is slightly darker than pictured above and leans cool. On medium to dark skin tones, this could appear white on the lids. I've applied this primer with fingers and brushes, and much prefer the even application that a brush gives. The packaging is lovely, super small and sturdy, and great for travelling with. If you're looking for an eye primer, I highly recommend this one.

For ingredients, click here.

I'm beyond in love with the *Zuzu Luxe Dual Powder Foundation ($28.30 USD/9 g) and have used it every single time, without fail, since receiving it. It provides such beautiful coverage on its own and extra, flawless, coverage over top of my beloved Sappho Liquid Foundation in Leisha. It can sometimes cling to dry patches, although it's not often that I find my skin looking cakey or flaky when wearing this foundation and my skin tends to lean dry in the colder months. I don't want to jinx it but, it hasn't developed a crust on the top like most pressed powders do. You know, when you have to scrape the top layer in order to get the product to actually come off on your brush or sponge? So annoying. The shade is a tad light for my skin but is easily manageable. D-10 is described as Pale Ivory Skin/Pink Undertones, however, I don't find that it leans pink at all. I chose this shade prior to them revamping their site and could swear it was described as neutral, which I find it is. The compact is a bit bulky, but it's great for taking on the go because of how sturdy it is and the great sized mirror (which I've covered with the sponge). My only issue, being Canadian, is that I cannot find the damn refill pans ($21.25 USD/9 g). I've called 4 different stores within the GTA and nobody carries them. What's up with that Gabriel?? It is probably the best foundation that I've ever used, to date, but if I can't easily get my hands on a refill, I may need to find another powder :(:(:(.

For ingredients, click here.

I really wanted to love this *Gabriel Moisturizing Liquid Foundation ($28 USD/30 ml), like really wanted to love it. I didn't play with it much because it was way too pink for my warm/neutral skin tone, however, I did wear it once (around the house). It provided beautiful medium to full coverage, minimally clinged to dry patches, provided a dewy finish, and wore pretty well. I've swatched all of the available light to medium shades, of this foundation, and find that they're all cool toned, which is really disappointing. Hopefully they include a wider range of undertones at some point.

For Gabriel ingredients, click here. For Zuzu ingredients, click here.

I've never been a lipliner girl, until now. They really do make a difference in how your lipstick wears and helps define your lips, especially when wearing bolder shades. Both the *Gabriel Lipliner ($12 USD/1.13 g) in Berry and the *Zuzu Luxe Lipliner ($13.80 USD/1.13 g) in Bounce are stunning. Berry is described as a Pinkish Plum/Cool Blue Undertone and Bounce is described as a Deep Pinkish Plum/Cool, both are accurate descriptions. They're incredibly long wearing, pigmented, creamy, and just an absolute pleasure to use. I love wearing them on their own and under a lipstick or gloss. The only negative I have is that the caps don't stay on tightly, specifically the Gabriel one. Aside from that, I'm hooked and desperately want to pick up a few more (Innocence, Port, and Red).
Get it here: Gabriel, Pharmaca, and most health food stores (including Whole Foods, Goodness Me!, The Big Carrot, and Nature's Emporium). 
*Products provided for review consideration. All opinions are entirely my own.

Reveal My (Makeup) Stash #3: All About Eyes

I'm not adventurous with my eye shadows, I much prefer a neutral eye but still love a nice pop of colour on occasion. That being said, I rarely ever apply more than just mascara to my eyes because a eye primer doesn't exist in my collection. Creased shadow just annoys the heck out of me. Caitie has raved about the Faerie Organic Forty Winks Eye Primer and I keep meaning to pick it up. Perhaps it's about time that I do? Probably.

I'm going to list the shadows by row, starting at the top. To see swatches of Pure Anada shadows, click here. To see swatches of Sappho shadows, click here.

First Row: *Pure Anada Pearl (loose), and Cheeky Cosmetics Samples in Aubergine, Midnight, & Cocoa (loose).

Second Row: The All Natural Face Sample in Smolder (loose), Silk Naturals Custom & Satin (loose), and W3LL People Holiday (loose).

Third Row: The All Natural Face Diva Stix in Milk.

Fourth Row: *Sappho Turtle, *Pure Anada Whisper, Pure Anada Burlap, and *Sappho Craving Cocoa.

Fifth Row: *Sappho Norma, *Pure Anada Mirage, and *Sappho Chloe.

Sixth Row:  *Pure Anada Blackberry, *Sappho Beckitt, *Pure Anada Onyx, and *Sappho Raven

Youngblood Pressed Mineral Eyeshadow Quad in Eternity is the only quad or palette that I own. It comes with me whenever and wherever I travel because they, to me, are the perfect colours for a subtle or smokey neutral eye.

Silk Naturals Satin & Custom, Pure Anada Burlap, Sappho Craving Cocoa, and W3LL People Holiday

Here are four shadows that I have yet to swatch and thought it would be a great time to do so, in case you're thinking of picking them up. Holiday I'm not too crazy about but, the other three are stunning! Also, Craving Cocoa is a bit more or a red brown, almost burnt orange or brick.

Left to right: W3LL People Holiday, Silk Naturals Satin, and Silk Naturals Custom

Left to right: Pure Anada Burlap and Sappho Craving Cocoa

Left to right:  W3LL People Holiday, Silk Naturals Satin, Silk Naturals Custom, Pure Anada Burlap, and Sappho Craving Cocoa

Bottom to top:  W3LL People Holiday, Silk Naturals Satin, Silk Naturals Custom, Pure Anada Burlap, and Sappho Craving Cocoa

Here we have Youngblood Eye Illuminator, Zuzu Brow Pencil in Russet, Physicians Formula Organic Wear in Black Woods, Benecos Kajal in Black, Pure Anada Mascara in Black, and Zuzu Liquid Liner in Raven (AH-MAZING). I've since added Sante Brow Pencil in No. 2 Brown to my collection. Stay tuned for my lippy collection! *PR SAMPLES. The two Silk Naturals shadows were sent to me by the lovely Cori from Well Beauty Blog.

Rave Review: ZuZu Luxe Brow Pencil in Russet

They say that brows are the gateway to the soul...wait...or is it eyes? Whatever. Brows make a huge difference in how your face looks and ties any makeup look together. I love me a full, beautiful, well groomed brow and I always fill mine in regardless of whether or not I'm waring a full face of makeup. Sadly, years of waxing and plucking have resulted in bald spots and I now rely on a pencil to fill in the gaps. Damn you thin brow trend!! I've searched high and low for the perfect pencil, since I just can't stand to use powders. Why Nicole, what do you consider the perfect pencil? Let me tell you! 1. Great shade match: Seems obvious but, finding the perfect brown is really hard. Too light and it's wayyy too obvious. Too dark and all of a sudden your brows are virtually black and unnatural. 2. Texture: I prefer a brow pencil that's not too creamy and not too hard, I'm Goldilocks apparently. A creamy textured pencil, smudges and doesn't last long. A super hard pencil doesn't deposit enough colour, takes too long to apply, and tugs on the skin. The perfect texture is a mix of the both, this allows for feathering the colour on the eyebrow to give it that naturally full look. 3. Lasting power: Like any makeup you wear, you don't want to look like a disaster at the end of the day/night. After much searching, swatching, and experimenting...I have found THE perfect brow pencil (for me)!

Image Courtesy of Gabriel Cosmetics Inc.

Description: ZuZu Luxe Cream Eyebrow Pencils are available in four natural shades that sculpt and define brows. These pencils are specially formulated to shape, fill in and define to achieve natural-looking brows without harsh edges. Creamy pencil on one end and a brow brush on the other work together to shape your brows.

I love the fact that there's a pencil on one end and brush on the other. I can't even tell you how handy this makes it for applying on the go. It is a great shade match for brunettes because of the fact that it's taupe. It's not too light, warm, dark, red, orange, cool, it's universal. It fills in my brows, without making them look like I used a black Sharpie. The texture is fantastic! It applies with ease but isn't too creamy. The lasting power is way better than I expected. I went from a waterproof, chemical filled, brow pencil to this. I was super worried that I'd look like I had rubbed dirt around my brows and forehead by the end of the day. Boy was I wrong! This lasts ALL day. In fact, my eyebrows are the only part of my makeup that still looks perfect by the end of the day. People constantly tell me how amazing my brows look and I've been getting even more compliments since using this pencil. Nobody can even tell that they're filled in. The only negative I have, is that it has to be sharpened. If I loose my sharpener or don't have it on hand, I'm screwed. That being said, it's lasted longer than the ones you twist up. Gotta pick your battles. I used to go through those monthly. I've had this same pencil for like 2 or 3 months now, and it's still going strong! I absolutely love this brow pencil, it's my holy grail now, highly recommend, and will always repurchase. You need must go buy it, now!

Retails for approx. $20 CAN/$13.80 USD for .044oz/1.25g. It comes in 4 shades and can be purchased through Gabriel Cosmetics Inc and pretty much any health food store. I purchased mine at The Big Carrot.


Do you think brows are important? What do you use to fill yours in?

Excuse my dry hand. Left: lightly applied. Right: built up

Ingredients: Copernica Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax, Euphorbia Cerifera (Candelilla) Wax, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Xanthan Gum, Tocopheryl Acetate, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Crithmum Maritimum (Sea Fennel) Extract, Hectorite, Lecithin, Iron Oxides, Titanium Dioxide

Face of the Day/Eye Shadow of the Day featuring MarieNatie

I recently posted a couple of pictures on Twitter showing a shadow of the day and the entire look of the day, I guess it should be face of the day since I only showed my face right? Just started playing more with makeup and I'm still working on finding good lighting in my house to take pictures. A million windows and I still struggle. Anyway, thought I'd put up a more in-depth post with better pictures for those of you who aren't on Twitter. A little disclaimer before you continue reading. I am not a makeup artist and until late last year, never really played much with makeup beyond the basics. My brows desperately need to get done and I fully realize that one is darker than the other, luckily, they're getting done today lol. You may now proceed...

Here are the products that I used, you can pretty much guess where I used each one :P/

L to R: 100% Pure Lip Glaze in Seduce, MarieNatie gloss in Nearly Wild, Zuzu Luxe mascara in Onyx, Alima Pure foundation in Warm 2, MarieNatie pigment in Emerald, MarieNatie pressed shadow in C'est bon, All Natural Face cream blush in Cotton Candy & Physicians Formula Organic Wear liner in Black Woods

MarieNatie was kind enough to send me these shadows to try out. This is the very first time that I'm wearing them and must say that I'm impressed. I will do a full review of them at some point. I used C'est bon all over the lid and in the crease, then used Emerald as a liner on the top and bottom lash line. I don't often wear liner but I added Physicians Formula dark brown liner to the bottom lash line, which seems to have come off in the pictures already, then coated my lashes with some mascara. The whole look, especially Emerald, really makes my eyes pop!

sassy! Fun makeup = fun/stupid faces? 

TA-DA, the complete look!

Hope you guys enjoyed, let me know if you'd like me to do more of these posts. Maybe the more I do the better I'll get!

xo!

*MarieNatie sent me the gloss & shadows. I am in no way being compensated for using or reviewing  them. All opinions are my own. 

December 2012 Faves!

I've decided not to do a 2012 favourites list because I have tried and fallen in (and out) of love with so many products and while some have been consistent, many have not.

Here is what I have loved this month...

Thayers Cucumber Witch Hazel Toner - review here - I have fallen in love with product again! It's so gentle and does a great job of cleansing/removing excess oil, makeup and cleanser.  I have added some lavender and clary sage essential oils to help with acne, balancing and soothing and really love the mix.

Evanhealy Lavender Facial Tonic Hydrosol (sample size) - review to come - Enjoyed this toner while it lasted and used it for the whole month of December.  It was a favourite of mine but not something I will be purchasing the full size of.

Eminence Apricot Whip Moisturizer (sample size) - revew here - I love this moisturizer and am still considering purchasing the full size once this sample is used up.  It smells nice, hydrates beautifully and doesn't irritate or break out my skin. Been loving it!

Tamanu Oil - review here - My original review was for Shea Terra's Tamanu oil but there was a little problem with it.  The oil was reacting with the rubber of the dropper and black rubber was getting into my oil.  They were nice enough to get me in contact with the manager of Healthy Planet (where I purchased it) to get it exchanged.  I didn't end up getting the Shea Terra one for fear of the same thing happening so I picked up Aura Cacia, it works exactly the same.  It's hydrating and great for healing any cuts, acne, burns, etc.  I love this oil!

Apricot Kernel Oil - no review -  I picked this up to make my own serums but have been loving it to remove makeup and as a facial moisturizer.  It absorbs and hydrates the skin beautifully without any negative reactions.  One of my new fave oils!

Hugo Naturals Vanilla & Sweet Orange Shower Gel - review here - I have been alternating this with my Hugo Soap all month long and really enjoy it.  Smells wonderful and cleanses without drying out my skin.

Kiss My Face Whenever Shampoo - review to come - This was a complete impulse buy which I'm glad happened because it's fantastic.  If I use it on it's own, it can be a drying to my scalp.  I find it works best when I alternate or even mix it with my JM because it cleans my hair and scalp without being drying. 

Zuzu Luxe Mascara - review here - Okay, I LOVE this mascara.  I have already purchased another one for when this one runs out or dries up.  I originally didn't enjoy it but since purchasing a new eye lash curler, I can't live without it! It makes my lashes so long and thick, doesn't flake or smudge and lasts all day. It's fantastic and I will continue repurchasing.

Everything in December has been a new love except my Tamanu Oil and Apricot Moisturizer.

What have you loved this month?  Any new or old loves?

ZuZu Luxe Mascara in Onyx Review

I think that I have mentioned in a couple of older posts how natural mascara actually causes me to get styes on my upper lid right by my lashes, so annoying.  While I'd prefer a natural mascara, I usually stick to chemical filled ones and just don't apply it directly to the roots.  Yes, it makes me feel better even though it's probably bad for me anyway lol.  I happened to be browsing the Whole Foods cosmetic section, shocking right?, and found this mascara on sale.  It was still $19.99 CAN, but that's better than the usual $28.99.

Description: This gentle and non-irritating formula enriched with vitamins and herbal extracts will help protect each fragile eyelash and encourage maximum growth. The luxurious nylon brush is especially designed to add length while being clump proof and non-smudging. Suitable for sensitive eyes and contact lens wearers.

I've been using this mascara for about 2 weeks and am on the fence.  I like having really full lashes and this just doesn't do that for me.  I love the wand and expected big things from it but it let me down :(.  It's great to pop on quickly but if I try to build up my lashes with multiple coats, it gets clumpy.  It also makes my lashes hard which makes them fall out much easier. If anyone has tips on how to apply this to get amazing lashes, let me know please! I do like how natural looking it is, doesn't flake and hasn't given me styes.  While it's natural and doesn't irritate my eyes I don't know if I'd repurchase.  I may just use this on a day-to-day basis and get a chemical filled one for days that I want va-va-voom lashes. Is it even worth it then?  I don't know.  Maybe if I can figure out a better way of applying it, I may just fall in love.  I'm going to play with it a bit more and perhaps it'll end up in one of my monthly favourites!  I'd recommend it to those who just want a bit of definition but wouldn't recommend to those that like big, full, thick lashes.

Retails for approx. $28.99 CAN and can be purchased at most health food stores like Whole Foods Market.  Check out ZuZu for more info.

What's your favourite natural mascara and why?