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Weekly Medley #34

Recently Updated341. An addition to the whole blogging notebook family… Being as perpetually disorganized as I am (but still a notebook freak), I’ve decided to up my game by adding another notebook to my blogging game – one for planning out individual posts in full, rather than just fitting the details of everything together. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it ups my blogging game!

2. An edit of my beauty bits for when the cold hits… I still have last week’s cold and it hasn’t exactly dwindled in the slightest and seeing as I have to act human and get out and face the world, I thought I would share the essential beauty bits and an add-on or five here.

3. Essentially my week in picture form… The unbearable fatigue, stuffy and runny nose and general crappiness that has summed up my week. And I have a super cute zit, too. Woo.

4. A daily face that I was partial too… I really liked my makeup on Friday and I took a decent picture too so it obviously had to include it. On my eyes, I’m wearing the Maybelline The Nudes Palette that I’ve picked up and am fairly impressed with along with my fave MAC Kinda Sexy Lipstick.

5. Another document of my week… I might have only started classes again recently but the reading has piled up and I wasn’t going to let a measly cold stop me from getting things done – no. I’ve been forcing myself in a slightly upright position to do my reading with a tissue box in the other hand for some appearance of having manners.

6. A post on the Productive Pamper, a subject that I know fairly well … Obviously, I wrote a post yesterday and the subject of that post was how to give yourself a bit of a pamper while getting stuff done. Part of said pamper was lighting the above candle — I’ve finished with my summer ones. Woot.

7. Perhaps my favourite distraction this week… I really love magazines and I’ve been obsessively pouring through this special issue of Glamor, dedicated to all things beauty. It’s actually worth the ten dollars that I didn’t realize that I was going to pay for it.

 

Remember that cold that I was going on about on Thursday? Well, it certainly hasn’t passed yet. I’m still so tired/fatigued that its ridiculous but on top of that I don’t seem to be able to sleep more than two hours at a time without waking up, my whole body has become dehydrated like a prune despite my best efforts to inhale gallons of water and slather my entire body with cream and I can’t seem to stop sniffling and/or blowing my nose. Plus, there’s that cough that I’m in denial about… Okaaay, I’ll stop with the complaining now. I’ve been feeling fairly craptastic this week but regardless, I appear to be alive and putting along, writing a few blog posts here and there, while I’ve been at it. I might only be on my third week of classes but I feel the strain of it already. Figures.

How was your week?

Maggie, x.

P.S. Any other cold sufferers?

The Beauty Bargain | Annabelle Demure Lip Liner

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Given that Annabelle is one of those few Canadian beauty brands, it shouldn’t be too much of a shocker that their products aren’t talked about often in the blogosphere and but I think that their lack of buzz is why I haven’t tried more of their products. With this in mind, however, the products that I have tried from them have been great and the lip-liner ranks up there with the best of them. The Annabelle Lip Liner in Demure ($5.95) is a creamy and comfortable liner that I can use either as a liner or all over the lips with some balm over the top to feel like I’m channeling my inner Lisa Eldridge. It’s a natural rosy hue that leans warm, which I find flattering, and is only subtly different than my natural lips – much rosier and less drained – but can make a big difference. Also, it doesn’t dry out my naturally chapped lips. For these reasons detailed, this liner was the one that converted me over into the realm of liners.

 

DSC_0663As I’ve already hinted, this liner is incredibly versatile. It actually works nicely in the place of lipstick, worn with some balm over the top but also suits any sort of nude or neutral lip perfectly. When worn with more nude lip offerings, it helps to add shape to the lips and avoid the dreaded concealer lips effect and with slightly deeper shades, it adds a bit of added longevity while perfecting the lips and making things look a bit neater.

If you’re looking for a creamy liner or just want to try one, I would highly recommend this one. Canadians can pick it up at drugstores and it can often be found at Target and Walmart for much less than the typical price but Americans also can purchase from the website. Look at me, being all concise and stuff and below, I’m wearing the liner on its own (left) and the liner with MAC Kinda Sexy Lipstick (right)…

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Have you tried anything from Annabelle?

Maggie, x.

Thoughts (and Updates) on Makeup Acquisitions

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This morning, after I rolled around groggily and developed the capacity for coherent thought, it dawned on me that I wanted to write a post different than the one I had planned. From playing with makeup in the last little while, I had thoughts that I wanted to share on a multitude of different products, both ones that haven’t been mentioned much before and those that are regularly featured around these parts, without committing to the formality and conclusiveness of a traditional review. And I was feeling in a chatty mood – or is it type-y? I’m not in love with the title of this post either, if you were cringing along with me.

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Smashbox Cherry Smokes Photo-Op Eyeshadow Palette ($44)

I actually had gone back to Shopper’s Drugmart, where I purchased this in the first place and I would have returned it if it hadn’t been such a hassle to do so but regardless, this is a lovely autumnal-themed palette. As for the individual shadows, they are creamy and uber-pigmented but it has to be noted that their powdery texture should inspire caution because there disasters can easily come awry with the fallout situation. My issue with the palette is that it doesn’t contain all of my essential daily shades — it does have some nice shimmery lid shades and some matte shades but it would greatly benefit from a lighter shimmery highlight/lid shade and a nice light brown shade for use through the crease and blending. With this complaint aside, the eight shades found within this palette are a nice mix of cool and warm tones that are unique and interesting yet neutral shades. None of the shades in the palette are anything less than poor but unfortunately the least fabulous is the matte reddish brown – which is still good but a wee bit dry and more difficult to blend than the others. The black is bloody amazing, though.

Dior 5-Colour Eyeshadow in 734 Grege ($61)

Speaking of palettes, this one remains being a staple in my routine with its small selection of essential everyday shades and impeccable quality; they’re pigmented, long-lasting and blenable with the least fallout out of any shadows that I have ever tried. Even though this quint really does not seem exciting in the slightest, it really is one that should be more compelling. The cool-toned deep brown works effectively to deepen the crease and it also works to fill in my eyebrows, if used with a light hand, the satiny caramel shade fits the bill for use as a transition colour or a standard shadow for the crease, there’s a nice shimmery highlight shade as well and there’s a nice defining shade along with one for the lids. While this palette functions nicely on it’s own, my experience has taught me that it’s also a good one to use with other shadows that are missing the essentials.

Chanel Perfection Lumiere Velvet Smooth-Effect Makeup ($48)

Before you give into the urge and roll your eyes at me for talking yet again about a product that I’ve been nothing short of confessing my love for since picking it up as a birthday gift for myself back in June, hear me out. I still love this foundation for all of its virtues but seeing as my skin has been on the drier state of things as of late, with dry patches and some of the expected flakiness, so I thought I would give an update on how the velvety foundation would fare with the drier skin, seeing as I’ve been experiencing dryness and a definite introduction to autumnal weather. The formula can show the more severe dry patches but still, I wouldn’t say that it highlights them but more than this, it doesn’t highlight or show skin texture issues in a way that is helpful when I’m on the drier side of things. It’s not necessarily going to perform quite as well on my skin in the colder months, but I still expect it to be one that I frequently reach for. It’s lightweight luminosity manages to really flatter dull dehydrated skin and it can definitely sit nicer on skin with a little bit of extra help on the hydration front or with a luminizing primer such as the Annabelle Luminous Finish Colour Control Instant Perfecting Base. Again, I emphasize that it doesn’t belong with the camp of hideous foundations on dry skin.

 Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette ($67)

I’ve given my thoughts on this gorgeous trio of the supposedly air-brushing powders in a rather comprehensive manner before and have thrown in a few updates before but here I am, adding a few more thoughts. I’m still feeling equally as impressed with the first two shades of the palette — Incandescent Light as an opalescent subtle highlighter and Dim Light as a nice blurring powder — but I have actually ventured into using the darker golden Radiant Light shade and have been using it often. This shade neither works as a traditional highlighter or bronzer in a way that I love, but I’ve found it stunning when used as a glowy ‘blush’ when I’m not going for a ‘blushy’ look. There’s something about wearing this on the cheeks that makes you look glowy and a bit more golden.

L’Oreal Glossy Balm in Ginger Candy ($9-11)

I somehow hadn’t noticed this until now, but it appears that I like these balm pencil style products, especially from the more affordable brands but I might like this formula and shade the most. They have all of the positive traits of the Revlon Lacquer Balms but they don’t have that mintiness to them — my lips might be rejoicing — and there’s even less of that sparkle going on. I picked up this shade without thinking about the shade and I automatically gravitated towards this gorgeous warm-toned darker peachy nude, that strikes me as one of those flattering no-fuss shades, and I have to say that it’s like MAC Patisserie Lipstick in more than just function and practicality – it’ a slightly peachier version of my favourite MAC lipstick. This has found its home in my bag, but has also frequently seen the light of day. I don’t regret this purchase in the slightest.

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Have you tried any of these products?
Maggie, x.

 

 

MAC Kinda Sexy Lipstick

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As much as I love a good bold lip of the red or coral variety, sometimes I come to admit that it’s those more difficult to find those flattering neutral shades that are the essentials or most valuable and for me, the MAC Matte Lipstick in Kinda Sexy ($19) is definitely one of those. I’ve waxed on about my love for Patisserie, the sheerer warm toned pink tinged neutral hue, and this one offers a similar kind of thing and I suspect it will become just as loved over time. Kinda Sexy definitely sits on the more pigmented and long-lasting side of things with its matte finish and it definitely has a bit more colour to it, while still being neutral. It’s a neutral hue with strong peach undertones that still fits into the cliched my-lips-but-better territory but it actually serves to darken/brighten the lips, while still remaining neutral. This lipstick isn’t ‘nude’ in the strictest sense on fair skin like mine, but it might be considered one (and a nice one at that) on deeper complexions — you’ll have to let me know.

Despite the neutral hue of this shade, it’s not a slap er on kind of hue that doesn’t require a mirror or any care but the extra effort proves worthwhile because the shade actually serves to stain the lips and last through a good moderate amount of eating and drinking. Despite being a matte finish, it doesn’t dry out my perpetually chapped lips or emphasize the patches in the slightest. This matte formula is impressive in how comfortable it is on the lips and I’ll definitely have my eye out for more matte shades — this matte is nothing like the uber-dry/drying Ruby Woo, if you were curious. My lips are peeling in the below picture and this shade does not emphasize it in the slightest, if you ask me. I find this shade lasts about 5 hours, which kind of blows my mind given that it’s such a neutral shade.

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Being a neutral (but brightening) shade, Kinda Sexy goes with just about any sort of makeup look, regardless of how minimal or dramatic the rest of the face is and it’s one that I grab for when I don’t want to think about what shade would go. I’m obsessed with this shade at the moment and as a result, it has found a home in my bag and I don’t expect this to change any time soon. For the sake of full-disclosure, the link below will be an affiliate link, too.

DSC_0471Shade comparisons: MAC Kinda Sexy (top), MAC Patisserie (middle), Revlon Matte Balm in Complex (bottom)
 
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MAC Lipstick in Kinda Sexy ($16/$19)
What’s your favourite MAC Lipstick?
Maggie, x.

Weekly Medley #32

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If you remember last week’s post, I’m sure you can recall that I was feeling “under the weather” and unfortunately I wasn’t feeling any better this week; that feeling transformed into a cold with the runny nose, dry skin and heavy fatigue but fortunately it’s not too much of a serious one of the head variety. At the beginning of the week, there was this onslaught of scorching weather and I wanted nothing less, given how I was feeling, so I was as happy as a clam when the cooler weather came along. Along  With the perpetual exhaustion and runny, the sahara dry, flaking and generally red skin was problematic, both on my face and body and two products that helped immensely were the above moisturizing mask and facial oil. Although the Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask does tend to burn slightly upon contact with irritated skin, the thick and nourishing mask did work wonders on my reddened dry patches and general irritation, when I was applying it at night. I swear, my skin absorbed it instantly, it was that dehydrated.  On the soothing and redness-reducing front, the By Nature Organic Rosehip Oil worked wonders; whenever I didn’t have the mask on, this was slathered all over my face because I could quickly see the difference with this one. This was one that stopped the itching and took down to red irritated patches within hours. In short, this duo has restored the state of my skin tremendously and I adore both products — and slathering my face in both products.

At this time of the month, there’s an onslaught of favourites posts (and videos), which I know is redundant and irritating to some, but I salivate at the very appearance of them. I love favourites posts and videos like I love lattes in my sleep-deprived state. My absolute favourite of the ‘favourite’ themed posts/videos had to be Suzie’s and if you haven’t watched it already (and every other video that she has ever made), I would highly recommend giving it a go – here. She’s relaxed and amusing and can probably sell me just about anything… but honestly, she’s great.

I was also rather pleased with this weeks posts in general. It’s definitely rewarding to go through your archives and not even questioning whether you’ve uploaded a post or two. My three favourites would have to be my ‘August Favourites‘, ‘Beauty Bargain‘ and ‘The Pre-Fall Haul‘. Writing this down, I feel more than a little bit self-indulgent so I better stop myself. I’m back to classes on Thursday, as absurd as it feels and equally as absurd are my thoughts on my new Smashbox Cherry Smoke Photo-Op Eye Shadow Palette – I stand by what I said about the amazing pigmentation and general formula of these gorgeous shades but I don’t love it as a staple palette for putting together entire ‘eye looks’ and because of this, I might actually be returning this. However, the formula is so great. Angst.

How was your week?
Maggie, x.

The Monthly Roundup #9: August 2014

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I might not have been loving life all August (but when am I ever?), but things have been pretty great here at Beautylit & Ramblings this month. Obviously, I haven’t done all of the posts that I planned to at some point but I’ve definitely been pleased overall with the quality of my posts and I did post 22 times, so I can’t complain.

1.  August Favourites –

Where I shared a nicely edited selection of products of the beauty variety (along with a few random ones) without going overboard with the most complex, exhaustively long sentences known to man. I’ve been good in the last few months and haven’t been consistently including every single favourites post in these monthly posts so I was happy to go back to my old way for once.

2. The Pre-Fall Haul –

Where I outlined the products that I picked up in preparation for the upcoming fall season and close-approaching fall school semester and gave my general thoughts on them. I was particularly pleased with the vast quantity of nice pictures included in the post along with my feelings towards the items themselves.

3. The Six-Step Sunday –

Where I wrote more of a typical lifestyle-infused ‘weekend post’ and talked about my six different steps for the ideal relaxed Sunday. It was definitely a different post for me but I was pleased with the results and it did get a significant number of views etc., so I’m assuming you enjoyed it as well.

4. The Five Sumer Essentials –

Where I wrote a ‘little’ ode to the five products that I agonized over including as my five standout products of the summer season. I liked it and it did take some thought…

5. My MAC Eyeshadow Palette –

Last but not least is a post that I’ve been meaning to do and planning for ages that finally came to fruition this month, taking more work than you would assume. I was happy with the result and I hope that my overview of my shadows was a helpful resource to some of you. I just about choke with satisfaction whenever I glance at this post…

What were your standout posts/things of the month?
Maggie, x.

August Favourites

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DSC_0451Ahh, I suppose the summer is now coming to an end and to be honest, I’m not particularly sad about it for two different reasons. First off, I’m beyond done with the hot summer weather and am ready for more than a little bit of cooling down and also, this summer wasn’t a great one for me and I’m ready for a change of scenery. I’m sure I’ll change my mind as soon as the stress sets in, though. This month brought a smaller selection of products than my usual but I’m definitely pleased with this bunch as a whole… This post does contain affiliate links too.

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The Bath & Body Works 3 Wick Candle in Beach Day ($10.50 on clearance – now) was my first foray into the world of Bath & Body Works scented candles and I’ve been obsessed with this light and unoffensive but potent scent. I smells like a relaxing beach day, reading on the beach and the gentle crash of waves with the light lemon and lime, saltwater and light citrusy musk scent. It’s a nice relaxing and low-key scent that lingers nicely. Plus, finding this one on sale was rather nice and it softened the blow of spending fifty dollars on candles.

Also, on the “non beauty” front, I’ve been obsessed with my Forever 21 Coffee Understands PJ Set ($15.80). This should not be a surprise because I’m one of those people who are obsessed with comfort and these fit the bill on that one and somehow seem more appropriate to be lounging around in at random hours of the day than mismatched tops and bottoms. The set is nice and lightweight which was key for the weather earlier in the month and I do adore the cheeky and true ‘nobody understands me like coffee does‘ lettering on the top and the printed shorts. I’m saying that I wore out the top portion in public but I may have been spotted leaving the house, wearing it with leggings…

Before venturing into the usual charted territory, I have two more mentionables of the more random variety. I’ve been really loving watching Suits this month and I may or may not have had a slight binge watching episode where I went through three seasons in less than 24 hours. Without paying attention, I grabbed the fifteen dollar special issue of People Style Watch and despite its purchase happening my accident, I adored the ad-free issue. I loved how it wasn’t based on actual pieces or selling of items but rather about styling outfits for everyday life. The price-tag on this one was rather hefty but it might actually have been worthwhile – it did help me with recognizing what kind of pieces I’m looking for and what is essential/extraneous.

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By the second week of the month, I had pulled out the muted neon peach MAC Lipstick in Sweet And Sour ($19) and since, I have not put it down or gone many places without it. I will admit that it’s not gorgeous when my lips are looking a bit horrific but at a certain point, I couldn’t muster the effort to care and the gorgeous colour was worth it. It’s one of those shades that adds some colour to the face but isn’t out there in the slightest. In the latter half of the month, I had gotten lazy on the lip balm front and then managed to burn my lips — ow / ew — so I wasn’t reaching for the matte formulation as much, but I also enjoyed the flattering darker peachy-nude shade, known as the MAC Lipstick Kinda Sexy ($19). Despite being a matte formulation, this lipstick manages not to dry out my lips and isn’t completely unflattering on them either — unless they are both flaking and peeling…

Around the midpoint of the month, I picked up a few things at MAC, shortly after making an order to Sephora online and there are two products that were late to the party but I fell in love with so instantly that they were begging to be mentioned. It’s been almost every day that I’ve been reaching for the creamy and jet black MAC Kohl Power Eye Pencil in Feline ($19) and I’ve been adoring it. The pencil glides on as smoothly as any one has before with almost a liquid-like appearance and can be smudged nicely until it sets, when it becomes long-wearing. Its only faults are how difficult it is to remove without an oil based remover and that it transfers from lower to upper waterlines so easily. Because of the formula, this pencil can reach small spaces that other pencils cannot and I’ve been enjoying this.

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Since receiving the NARS Contour Blush in Paloma ($46) with my Sephora shipment, I don’t think I’ve put on any makeup without going for the contour portion of this duo. It doesn’t look that amazing in the pan — it’s really a rosy tan shade — but its formula is so amazing that it provides an ‘instant cheekbones’ kind of sculpted effect without much effort at all. I’m in love.

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I wore the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette ($67) consistently this month, as I had in July but this month I was much more consistently pleased with the result. To be honest, I don’t use the golden Radiant Light powder often at all, but the other two shades were consistently gracing my face. Dim Light is a nice finishing powder that adds a bit of glow while blurring things slightly and I’ve been enjoying this as I’ve discovered not to put this on the sides of my forehead – it tends to look weird and out of place there — and Incandescent Light is a lovely subtle highlighter that simply reads as a glow on the skin that I’ve also been using to set my under-eye section. I reviewed the palette in full here, if you’re interested.

What were your standout products this August?
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.

The Five Summer Essentials

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There are numerous ways in which I struggle with the whole task of narrowing things down but with a frighteningly long time of thinking and deliberation, I have found myself able to narrow my absolute favourite beauty products of the summer to a mere 5. Whether you’re willing to admit it or not, the summer is quickly coming to a close and therefore a roundup post strikes me as appropriate. Honestly though, don’t expect a post with products you haven’t seen featured here before — these are my staples after all. Before I bore you all to tears, I’ll try to move on to the products.

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Skin79 Snail Nutrition BB Cream

Slowly but surely, I fell in love with my first BB Cream this summer and although I’m not one to buy into the hype of these all-in-one skincare-makeup hybrids, I actually have to agree that this one kind of does it all. With it’s soothing and hydrating abilities — it contains a good amount of moisturizers and ingredients such as niacinimide –, this makeup product actually has visibly improved my skin. Although I do use a multitiude of other products along with this one, I actually do find it somewhat brightening on the skin and this makes sense with its ingredient list and the high sunscreen content never irritates my skin but is extremely protective. This isn’t a product that you can quickly slap onto the skin without giving it a thought and expect it to look stunning, however. With it’s thick texture and high sunscreen content, it really has to be worked into the skin but once it is, it looks almost undetectable on the skin while providing medium but buildable coverage with a glowy finish. I’ve found myself wearing this on days when I hardly wear any makeup because of its ease of use and skincare benefits but it’s also one that I go for when I’m doing a full face. In other words, it’s a versatile product. Review here.

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Chanel Perfection Lumiere Velvet Smooth-Effect Makeup

Since picking up the latest foundation release from Chanel at the very beginning of June as a birthday present to myself, I’ve been adoring this foundation and often discussing my love for it around these part;this love has not since faded and it was my most worn traditional foundation through these summer months. I haven’t done a formal review but I still feel the same way (if not slightly stronger towards it) as I did in my much earlier acquisitions post here. In a nutshell, this velvety foundation manages to give that luminosity to the skin that few foundations can match while being less ‘shiny’ or ‘dewy’ and more of a satin-like finish that is suitable for oilier skins while providing good medium coverage and looking and feeling like bare skin. I only wish there wasn’t so much added fragrance and alcohol in the product. Oh, and I’m the palest shade (10) but it’s not that pale, if you’re wondering.

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L’Oreal Glam Bronze Mono in 04 Universal Sun

Like the Chanel foundation above, I fell in love with this product instantly and haven’t wavered in that love since but fortunately it’s more than a little bit more of an affordable product. I don’t even want to count how many times that I’ve raved about my love for this product because I have more than a slight inkling that such a count would be rather high in a slightly embarrassing way. Anyway, this is a slightly deeper soft-matte bronzer that has those natural warm red undertones to mimick natural colour but it’s most impressive feature is its creamy, finely milled and smooth-textured formula. Review here.

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MAC Pro Longwear Waterproof Brow Set in Quiet Brunette

Considering the depth of my love for this tinted brow gel, I’m somewhat shocked that I haven’t actually dedicated a full post to this product. Regardless, this is a brow product that has impressed me with it’s amazing longevity (that lasts through swimming etc.), effect and ease of use; it’s much easier and time-effective to apply than a pencil or brow powder, has a slightly more natural look that also seems to mimick the texture of brow hairs and is the perfect slightly grey-toned light brown shade for my medium brown hair.

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Revlon Colorstay Moisture Stain in Milan Moment

The last in this quint of products strikes me as remarkable for it is neither atrociously expensive or has been talked to death by me in recent months but it’s a favourite, nevertheless. The formula of this liquid lip-stain is really unique as it’s lightweight and non-sticky with a hydrating balmy texture — this also allows for it to glide comfortably over lips with even the driest of patches — and it manages to leave a stain behind, as well. The sheer tangerine shade has been a great everyday shade to slightly brighten up my lips without adding anything too drastic and it can only be faulted for the slightly uneven/patchy way that it applies at first. More on this here.

Have you tried any of these staples of mine? Also, what were your staples?
Maggie, x.

Weekly Medley #31

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In a nutshell, last week was a week of feeling under the weather. I’m not saying that I began to not feel well last week but previously I chalked the feeling down to hormonal origin but now I know that I was most certainly fighting something off. There were also a few days of scorching weather and as nice as those days can be, I was not in the mood and continously found myself wishing for cooler autumnal weather. Don’t shoot me. Along with feeling more than a little bit run down, I experienced quite possibly the worse eczema breakout in my life with that painful itchiness and burning, along with the unsightly physical symptoms. I can’t chalk it down to one specific thing considering that I’m one of those people that are mildly sensitive to a myriad of things but I did go with my cousin to pick up her new kitten at the pet store (stupidly because I am quite allergic to dander) and suddenly felt awful; BAM, then the symptoms occurred. Allergies and skin sensitivities are no fun. At all. Ever.

I might not have been wearing makeup every day of the week and when I did I didn’t exactly go for the full deal but despite these two facts, there have been a good number of makeup related items that scored highly on my “things I loved” metaphorical checklist last week…

  1. Essie Sssssexy Snakeskin Magnetic Nail Colour- At the very end of the previous week, I had painted my nails in this opaque oxblood hue and despite my extremely questionable polish skills (pertaining to its magnetic effect), I found myself really enjoying them. Also, there were about five coats of polish on my nails (because it took that long for me to figure out how to create the design) and it still lasted nicely for 4-5 days. I will definitely be reaching for this colour in the very near future.
  2. A cup of tea in my favourite mug – Traditionally I’m much more of a latte kind of girl but since feeling so drab and generally questionable, I’ve found a cup of tea to be therapeutic and relaxing. There’s no type in particular but I have consistently been enjoying that whole relaxed tea-drinking experience.
  3. My new Nars Pro-Prime Smudgeproof Eyeshadow Base & Contour Blush in Paloma – I have gone on and on about my intense love for the contouring blush on a few occasions since receiving my order in the mail and that still hold’s true as the product is pigmented and buttery, providing instant cheekbones but I’ve been really impressed with the primer as well; it might not always prevent creasing for me but it minimizes it the best out of any primer that I’ve tried.
  4. Kate’s “Forever Repurchased #8” post – Kate’s blog-posts are just the best in general, so life was extra good when I was reading her chronicle those products that are so amazing that she actually does that crazy thing and repurchases them rather than trying something new. These posts are really helpful as they show what products truly are so amazing that they beg to be repurchased but hers was also entertaining to read as well!
Apologies for the late post; regardless, how was your week?
Maggie, x.