back to school

The Monthly Roundup #10: September 2014

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Last month was definitely one of those fast-paced months of adjustment, as September tends to be in my world. I’m sure I’ve said this in loads of posts of this kind before but the following statement was especially true over the last month; While I might not have been able to get up as many blog posts as I would have liked, I’ve been particularly satisfied with my quality of content in September. Now, this seems awfully self-indulgent to talk about in a sense but so much of blogging for me comes down to how I feel about the content that I’m producing so it’s crucial to me in a non-narcissistic sense — first and foremost I’m doing this for me and what’s the point if I’m not enjoying what I’m producing. Can anyone relate? — I’m not positive this is coming out adequately. Regardless, I’ll be pleased if things continue down this path through this month and and even more pleased if I add a few more posts into the schedule of things.

1. The Weekend Post | Project 10 Pan –

Believe it or not, I’m actually making even more progress towards the commitment I made in the beginning of the month to finish up 10 products before purchasing other products of the kind despite that small little failure that didn’t even register as such, known as that time when I found myself at the register with the Dior Star Foundation prior to finishing up my beloved Rimmel Wake Me Up. This was definitely a post that I enjoyed writing and it’s the kind of post that I love reading for others fittingly. Plus I think there’s something so satisfying about trying to limit your endless product purchasing and accumulation by trying to finish up products before they go bad. The de-cluttering is also rather life affirming.

2. The Daily Face #22 –

I promise that I didn’t merely include this post because it was the only ‘The Daily Face’ post that I put up this month; I was actually rather pleased with the autumnal-themed makeup variation and it’s definitely been one that I’ve been sporting regularly. It features the lovely Smashbox Cherry Smokes Photo-Op Eyeshadow Palette and uses it in a way that I think is rather flattering and easy to achieve with half-assed effort. I liked it.

3. Weekly Medley #33 –

Now, I’m not saying that this post was preferred over any of the other weekly editions of the post but I’m rather enjoying refreshing these with the change of format where I was inspired by Laura a wee bit and decided to annotate the pictures included in the collage and provide a much shorter little ramble at the end that detailed my week. I’ve found that I have enjoyed writing these since the switch-up and I think they might be slightly less daunting to read with the more casual structure. I also rather enjoy being able to share my thoughts without going into formal paragraph structure on them all if that makes any sense…

4. The Monday Morning Edit –

I had to include my final post of the month; there was no doubt or deliberation concerning the matter. It was one of those posts that was written on the stir of the moment and almost seemed to write itself, surprising me with how quickly the end result came and how nice and authentically-me it was and it was easily my most liked post in months, so I’m assuming it went over well with you guys too. If you missed it and are curious about the products I reach for when I can hardly muster the effort to get out of bed in order to look presentable, I would love it if you gave it a little read.

5. A Standard Autumnal Shopping Trip –

I’ve shared the complexities of my feelings toward putting up haul posts on numerous occasions, so I’ll spare you another ramble here but keeping that anxiety in mind, I was particularly pleased with how this post detailing the small assortment of products I picked up recently turned out. I’m also enjoying the products, so this is a double source of pride for me. Lame?

6. The Weekend Post | The Productive Pamper –

Last-but-not-least is yet another one belonging to my the  ‘The Weekend Post’ variety and it’s one that I’m rather pleased with because I don’t find it painfully cliched, I think the material is a little bit different and it’s something that’s very true to me — I employ the whole technique often and love doing so. I also liked the pictures and this may have played more than a little bit into the consideration of including it here.
 
I promise I’m not as self-absorbed as the following question makes me sound but I would still like to know the answer: What kinds of posts are your favourite to see around these parts? I would love to hear some feedback to take into consideration!
Maggie, x.

Weekly Medley #33

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1. The necessary tools for surviving a Monday, even if it’s the first authentic one you’ve had in ages… The friend that allows you to cry about your life to and make inappropriate jokes to without judgment is not shown, but there nevertheless. Anyways, if you’re ever in Halifax (yes in the Canadian Maritimes) and you’re into that whole cafe situation, I highly recommend Coburg Coffee. Their food in general, and in particular their breakfast bagels are also fantastic.

2. The post that had me genuinely hysterical… Vanessa, a fellow Canadian, shares my sense of humour apparently and had me keeled over with her ‘Some (Sarcastic) Tips to Become a Popular Blogger’ over at Citron & Guavaberry.

3. The product that you need in your life if the first words you’d use to describe your legs/arms/other body part would be itchy, eczema-ridden, dry and/or scarred… Like pretty much any product in existence, the La Roche-Posay Lipikar Baume AP will make patches with open abrasions burn but it doesn’t have any irritating ingredients and actually works to help prevent itchiness and other nastiness in the future, with its high niacinamide content. It also absorbs in seconds, working without that greasy residue.

4. Charlotte Tilbury lusting reignited… I had just about given up on trying the legendary makeup artists beauty line because (a) I have no income and (b) it’s not impossible to get her products shipped to Canada, but it’s ridiculously ridiculously monstrously expensive but when I saw Allana haul some of her treasures from Beautylish and say that they waved the $20 shipping fee from her first order, I was excited. As much as I’d love the Filmstar Bronze & Glow, the price-tag is a little steep by any stretch of the imagination, especially compared to other treasures like the Dolce Vita Luxury Palette.

5. Favourite overall makeup face and photo of the week… I’m not in love with the whole yellow undereyes situation which I have to blame on my laziness — I was lazy and attempted to use my face concealer underneath my eyes. I’m wearing the gorgeous L’Oreal Ginger Pop Glossy Balm, Bourjois Sweet Cherry Cream Blush, Smashbox Cherry Smokes Eyeshadow Palette and the Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation. I’m somewhat partial to my hair as well here, so yay.

6. One moisturizer finished … I mentioned this already but I was a good little beauty-obsessed individual and actually used up a product before moving onto the closest light-reflective object. T’was nice but not life-changing enough to repurchase, in short.

7. My ‘Project 10 Pan’ post… Not only was I a fan of how this post turned out but I also have been enjoying the whole committing to use up products thing and not buying as many things endlessly. Woo.

8. A final moment of shameless self-promotion … Not only was I pleased with actually getting an actual product review out there, I was particularly happy with how it turned out and the photos that went with it. And, I kind of love the product in itself, the MAC Kinda Sexy Lipstick.

In case you didn’t notice, I tried something a little different for this week’s round-up and I’m feeling the less-focused informal style. I haven’t been back to university for an entire week yet but I’m already bogged down with readings and that all that accompanying fatigue already. I’ll stop crying about my life now. Erm, let’s just say that Fall doesn’t appear to have begun here by any means and it’s been so very hot hot hot here. I swear to god I’ve slept in a sports bra and short shorts above the covers and still have been dying of heat. I’m not meant for a hot-climate obviously.

How was your week?
Maggie, x.

The Pre-Fall Haul

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I can’t completely explain it in a comprehensible way but I kind of detest the word ‘haul’ and as a result I tend to tiptoe around posts of this type and call them by another name; however I’m just going to bite the bullet and call it what it is this time. As per usual, it’s not a massive supply and this one is a bit collective and it is centred around picking things up for the upcoming school year along with the usual pick or two. If you’re anything like me, this will sound all too familiar. Because I’m paranoid about violating disclosure policies, I’m going to say now that a few affiliate links will actually appear in this post.

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It was about a month ago when I picked up my first Bath & Body Works candles and that purchase included two fall-themes options, the Cayenne Caramel and the Spiced Pumpkin Cider 3 Wick Candles. I’m new to the candle party but I do find them nice and relaxing with the ability to help boost productivity too. The second candle was a safe pick for me as I typically adore those spiced apple/pumpkin scents but the first one surprised me- cayenne
And caramel did not sound appealing but it has that nice warm spicy feel to it with a hint of caramel sweetness. Somebody stop me now.

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Before getting to the beauty bits, I’m going to share the four items that have served to update the wardrobe for fall. It’s not large enough for a school bag but I first picked up the smaller red cross-body structured bag from Forever 21 because I’ve seemed to kill all of my cross-body styles and it seemed to be the perfect everyday bag when you don’t want to carry the content of your life with you. I mentioned picking up this thin light beige slouchy sweater from Garage in last weeks ‘Daily Highlights’ post but I feel compelled to include it again here. It has a cropped cut in the front of the sweater that graduates to a longer length on the sides and has an impractical but cute peekaboo back.

More recently I finished off these little wardrobe updates with another slouchy lightweight sweater and a new pair of jeans. The H&M sweater is nothing shocking, especially considering that it was just included in my ‘Weekend Wishlist’ post. It’s quite oversized and slouchy because I picked it up in a large – the only size I could find – and it will become a staple paired with jeans and leggings. The jeans were a far more surprising purchase for me as they were from Hollister, a store that I very very rarely venture into, let alone go as far as to try something on from. Hollister had all of their jeans on sale for $27 dollars and I loved the Blake Natural Waist Jeggings so much that I had to have them instantly. Despite their name, they are more of a high-waist jean and the waist served to really suck in the stomach and they were more than flattering on my non-existent butt etc.

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DSC_0416In my day out shopping with friends, we went all over, so of course I couldn’t help but checking out both major drugstores and ending up with more than a few items. First up, I hit up Lawton’s and ended up with six items, all but one of which were on sale. L’Oreal was on for 40% off and I was tempted to try out loads more but I was good and picked up the L’Oreal Glossy Balm in Ginger Candy ($6), a flattering and comfortable peachy nude and the typically-my-lips-but-better L’Oreal Collection Privee Lipstick in Eva’s Nude ($5). These both have impressed me as comfortable and flattering everyday lip options so I’m fairly proud of myself. There was quite a sale going on with La Roche-Posay, with most things on sale for more than the usual dollar or two off and I took the opportunity to try out the La Roche-Posay Lipikar Balm AP ($12.50) because it looked promising for eczema-ridden legs with its high niacinamide and shea butter content. I’m liking it thus far. 

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Then I found myself in the nail-care aisle with my polish-savvy best pal, Lauren and somehow ended up buying three items there. First off, I spotted the Sally Hansen Kwick-Off Moisturizing Nail Polish Remover ($5) and I couldn’t resist replacing my used-up pot with this one – it’s seriously amazing. Before heading through the cash, I noticed that Essie was on sale and I was compelled to pick up the gorgeous On A Silver Platter Nail Lacquer ($7), a gorgeous antiqued silver shimmer with cobalt glitter running throughout and the No Chips Ahead Top Coat ($7).

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I might not have spent much less at Shopper’s Drugmart, but I did come away with only two products, neither of which would be considered typically affordable drugstore products. Frustrated with my drier-than-dry lips, I went to pick up the pot of Rêve de Miel® Ultra-Nourishing Lip Balm, but it was unfortunately out of stock so I went for the $9 stick format of the Rêve de Miel® Lip Moisturizing Stick in its place. Thus far, I can say it’s a nice balm but it’s not a rich and nourishing treat like I had heard the pot formula to be. The big purchase of the stop was in the high end section and was a palette that I somehow justified to myself as completely realistic as I hadn’t bought a palette in a while but I know it wasn’t strictly essential. The palette was the Smashbox ‘Photo Op – Cherry Smoke’ Eyeshadow Palette Cherry Smoke that contains eight smooth and pigmented warm autumnal eyeshadows for $39 US or $44 CDN. I’ve tried the palette out and it is fantastic, as the below evidence might indicate. I would return it to ease my guilty conscience if it wasn’t so beautiful and amazing.

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What have you picked up lately?
Maggie, x.