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May 2014 Favourites

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I’m not one to get all nostalgic and sentimental — in fact, the whole institution makes me feel slightly nauseous — but here I am anyways. One: where has this year gone? The fact that tomorrow marks the beginning of the sixth month of 2014 absolutely blows my mind. Two: today marks the one year anniversary of my little blog, as hard as that is to believe. It seems equally as shocking to me. But here I am, bringing you my little selection of essential products from May that I originally thought was going to be quite a small collection but somehow they piled up and I couldn’t be happier to share them with all of you amazing people. This month, the products seemed to take on more of an everyday staples kind of vibe and I can recommend them all, as you will be able to tell from the below ramblings. I feel that I should warn you that you’re in for a long one… 🙂

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I can count on one hand (and not even using the thumb) the number of times this month that I haven’t used slightly amazing Dior 5 Colour Eyeshadow in 734 Grege ($61 CDN) and I can honestly say that I loved the results of this versatile palette each time, as shocking as that might be to hear from someone who easily feels a bit ‘meh’ from sticking to the same makeup routine for too long. I’m sure some of you are not surprised that I included this as it’s been consistently mentioned in my posts within the last month but the love I have for this has far exceeded what I can generally convey. I think that it’s easy to neglect these seemingly less economical and less exciting smaller palettes when larger palettes are consistently released but this quint is one of those smaller palettes that houses the essentials without forgoing interesting shades. As I’ve come to expect from Dior, the shades are the longest wearing on me with equally-as-fantastic pigmentation and zero fallout but this quint in particular features an excellent edited selection of varying finishes and depths – because of this versatility I deem this particular palette to be splurge-worthy. The matte chocolate brown is a great option to be used as liner as well as in the outer corner, the satiny warm caramel shade is ideal for blending through the crease on me, the shimmery ivory is great for lightening and brightening the inner portion of the lid, the sheeny grey shade is a nice one to apply more precisely through the crease to add smokiness and the pale taupe sheeny shade is a gorgeous-but-basic lid shade. Together these shades create a variety of different “looks” – I hate that word but anyways – and they’re also helpful to have to pair with other shadows.

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After missing out on MAC Sweet & Sour Lipstick ($19 CDN),the muted peachy coral when it was released last summer with MAC’s limited-edition ‘All About Orange’ collection so when it was recently made permanent, I made not and obviously could not resist picking it up for myself as soon as I finished my exams. It’s difficult for me to include lipstick in these favourites posts because it’s rare that I will be content to use a colour with this sort of frequency but I have been wearing this shade loads this month and by loads I wore it at least half of the time that I wore any sort of makeup. I don’t love the cremesheen formula of this one as it clings to any sort of texture problems on the lip area but it lasts and does not dry out the lips visibly so I can’t complain too much given the fun-but-everyday nature of the shade. This is not one if you want to make your teeth look whiter but you win some and you lose some…

When I wasn’t wearing the above lipstick, there was about a 90% chance that I was sporting the rose-hued Rimmel Kate Moss Lasting Finish Lipstick in 08 ($7-8 CDN) that with its brown undertones, gives that my-lips-but-better slightly deeper effect with a longwearing and hydrating formula to boot. I dedicated an entire post (here) to my newfound love of this lipstick that I rejected in the past for its overt brown hue. For me, the secret to pulling off this gorgeous everyday shade is to apply it with a lip brush for less intense colour payoff – and I wore it this way often.

I’m not ready to say that its superior to the ashy MAC Coquette eyeshadow for filling in my brows but I figured that I owed the L’Oreal Superliner Brow Artist in Blonde ($12 CDN) a mention considering that it’s a drugstore offering that actually does not look warm or red in my cool-toned brows and that it’s the easiest thing to use ever (only complaint is sharpening) and comes with both a wax to seal in the hairs and a handy little comb. All I have to say is that I really don’t think this shade would be ideal for blondes as I’m a medium brunette and this isn’t even particularly all that light. Did I mention that with this my brows stay put like a champ?

It appears that I’ve been enjoying L’Oreal products quite a bit this month which is kind of shocking as I hadn’t really noticed. Easily my most frequently worn blush was the L’Oreal True Match Blush in Innocent Flush ($13-16 CDN) a pigmented and finely milled peachy-coral with a golden sheen running throughout. It’s definitely not the most unique colour in the world, instead just another one of the many corals with golden sheen running throughout but these kinds of shades suit me and scream warm-weather-appropriate so I’m not one to complain about the lack of innovation.

The final L’Oreal product to grace this post is the Oleo-Therapy Oil Infused Conditioner ($9 CDN), I swear. I’ve been using this conditioner for a few months but this month was when I realized how great this product really was. On my dry curly hair this conditioner deeply nourished my strands, doing what it claimed, without any silicones (that I can see) and a high concentration of oils that remain lightweight. It’s rare that I find affordable conditioners to be as nourishing as this one and it also detangles nicely and smells luxurious to boot!

With the whole having curlier hair situation, the last thing I would expect to love would be a brush, considering that fingers are supposed to be adequate to detangle and all that but I have to say that I adore the Tangle-Teaser-copycat, namely the Goody Tangle Fix that I can’t recall the price of because I received it as a gift. I’m naughty and have been using it in the shower to detangle my hair prior to rinsing my conditioner out with this and I have to say its the most effective detangler that I’ve ever tried and I don’t even know anyone who experiences more tangles than me.

After embracing my paleness for years following my first foray into the gradual tanners, I’ve gotten to really appreciate the basic-but-noteworthy – to the point that I have completely ran out of my first tube of the Jergen’s Natural Glow Firming Daily Moisturizer in Medium to Tan ($9 CDN) and have happily moved onto my second. I’m skeptical of the whole firming situation (and considering my age I can’t really comment to be honest) but this one is great because it’s intensely moisturizing and non-irritating as a moisturizer on my irritated eczema-laden skin, goes on evenly (with a few slight patches) without needing to exfoliate (my body cannot tolerate any sort of scrubbing action so self-tanner is generally out of the cards) and it doesn’t burn or irritate my skin despite its fragrance. I noticed that in the ingredients list, there’s no synthetic fragrance listed but rather caramel is included instead and I can assume that this is what gives it its authentic nice scent that my ulta-sensitive skin actually agrees with. The darker shade actually does suit my skin nicely, looking like an authentic tan on my warm-toned-but-not-golden skin with yellow undertones.

I haven’t been particularly obsessive about painting my nails this month but when I have made the effort, I’ve been consistently going for the pale cornflower Essie Bikini So-Teeny ($9 CDN) and haven’t regretted it once. It’s a gorgeous pastel hue and the formula lasts on my nails five days without major signs of wear so obviously it checks all the boxes. It’s not the most opaque formula (not shocking considering that it’s a pastel hue) but it doesn’t streak and goes opaque in two coats and therefore is impressive in my view.

I might just begin to have an actual emotional outburst if you recall my ramble on a few weeks back about rekindling my interest in style and I’m not one to display human qualities of the emotional kind. This interest has remained but a post hasn’t been in the works as of yet and style-wise, I’ve been obsessed with the comfortable and flattering, American Eagle High-Waisted Jeggings that I picked up towards the beginning of the month for mere third of the full retail price — $20 instead of $60 — in the pale grey shade. I’m a big fan of the store in general for the ease of shopping, the fit and general aesthetic of their clothes but I have to admit that this pair was something special – the regular length running a bit longer than usual so I didn’t have to order online to suit my strangely lanky legs, the slightly higher-waist sitting at the perfect height to flatter my not-so-tiny waist, the lightweight denim remaining comfortable even in the warmer weather.

This month, I’ve really fallen in love with Natalie’s blog, Thunderlove. I’ve mentioned her blog a few good times this month and when she commented on one of my posts where I linked her, I had a sort of fangirl moment – and I don’t have these easily. Both in videos and posts, she has an authentic and laid-back manner and also gives fantastic reviews, so obviously she’s golden.  At this point, she may fear that I’m stalking her but I promise that I’m not – I just kind found myself routinely scouring through her archives with no shame.

What have your standout products been this month?

Maggie, x.

 

Weekly Medley #18

(1) we've fallen back in love (2) kept putting on skincare series with the Morning Routine (3) the weekly objects plus my glasses just for kicks (4) the obligatory weekly shot of my face featuring questionable red lips and the palette above (5) I binge-watched Well Taylered's videos with no regrets (6) evidence of rekindled hair interest and - don't I look cute?
(1) we’ve fallen back in love and into a committed relationship (2) kept putting on skincare series with the Morning Routine (3) the weekly objects plus my glasses just for kicks (4) the obligatory weekly shot of my face featuring questionable red lips and the palette above (5) I binge-watched Well Taylered’s videos with no regrets (6) evidence of rekindled hair interest and – don’t I look cute?

I promise I’m not always in strange moods as I write posts  — I tend to write blogposts when I’m in strange moods if I’m reflecting or all that to be honest — but I feel I must give warn you about the strange mood I’m in as I’m writing this. For some reason, going over the weekly blog activity as if it were a trashy reality television show strikes me as hilarious at the moment so I’m going to go with it… This week on beautylit: 1. Weekly Medley #17 2. Additions to the Skincare Routine 3. Morning Skincare Routine 4. An Apology to Rimmel Kate Moss Lipstick in 08 5. Spring Essentials

While it has not been the ideal or perfect week in blogging in anyone’s book (certainly not my own), it was a beyond adequate one, sticking with my pre-made plan that I wrote out in my little book of blogging and it did produce five posts that I was satisfied with. As much as I would like to pretend that I’m free from any sort of responsibility, I have been actually working in quantifiable amounts on that whole getting a job thing and despite my unathletic status as an individual and general incompetency at strength or endurance based tasks, I’ve been continuing along with the whole exercising goal that I’ve had going on, mostly opting for the affordable and practical power yoga practice through watching the Power Yoga for Happiness 2 DVD and aching, burning and stretching my heart out. Don’t let the “yoga” in the title fool you, it’s an intense kind of thing that’s fast paced, blending cardio in with the vigorous strength training while somehow calming your mind and leaving you focused in a way that is different from other sorts of exercise. And it’s not too bullshitty either in terms of preaching the whole ‘just breathe and say ohm’ typical kind of shebang. Exercising is not something particularly enjoyable to me in the slightest but this routine strikes me as worthwhile for it rids extraneous chaotic thoughts in your mind as well as focuses your mind in the strangest way. It’s rather strange but I’m not going to complain about the result. 

Considering that I’m studying English in university, it should be no real surprise that I read constantly and don’t tend to stick to the lightest of reading. A few months back, my mother gifted me a copy of George Eliot’s Middlemarch and I’ve started reading it this week and I’ve been enjoying it thus far. It’s a rather long book but fortunately I kind of have the ability to devour books and it’s an enjoyable read that isn’t so laborious.

It should be no secret that I am the kind of girl who adores the original Urban Decay Naked Palette but after a while I was growing tired of it (after using it constantly) and put it away, instead going for other daily shadow options but in the last week or so I’ve brought it out again and I suddenly have remembered why I love it so much in the first place — it’s unbelievably practical and the warm-bronzy hues suit me to a t. However, I haven’t been using it in the same way as I always seem to instead opting for using the Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad To The Bronze on the lid and using shades from the palette such as Darkhorse, Hustle and Creep to add some more smokiness and depth and you can see this in the above weekly collage.

I’m still working on my whole skincare series thing and I can promise that a full-on evening routine post will come your way in the next little while and perhaps another addition to the series. Let me know your thoughts on these skincare-themed posts – please? 

What were the highlights from your week?

Maggie, x.

 

An Apology to Rimmel Kate Lipstick in 08

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I’m afraid that I misjudged this one — and that I shortened its name in the title for the sake of rhyme and rhythm — when I picked this one up fairly early into the new year. I had already tried the matte formulation and was impressed and I wanted to give the original formula a go; the my-lips-but-deeper hue of the Rimmel Kate Moss Lasting Finish Lipstick in 08 ($7-8 CDN)seemed like it would fit the bill. I fell in love with the formula but was disappointed with the shade as the rosy hue of the shade was dominated by its brown undertones, looking a little to ‘mature’ and brown on the lips – so despite it’s comfortable creamy texture and beyond-tolerable vanilla-fruity scent it was a bit of a failure, tossed towards the back of my drawer.

After this particular failure I kind of abandoned the whole quest of finding that neutral-albeit-slightly-deeper lip shade and convinced myself that the MAC Patisserie Lipstick and Bobbi Brown Rose Pot Rouge were as close as I was going to get but when I decided to binge-watch Tijan Serena’s videos and spotted the very same lipstick in her March Favourites, I tried again. I was having quite a ‘meh’ day so I wasn’t expecting much but I discovered that when applied with a lip-brush rather than straight from the tube, it was a flattering rosy hue that not only didn’t emphasize uneven texture on my lips and lasted ages but it didn’t have a bothersome smell or any other bothersome side effects. In other words, when the intense pigmentation is toned down with a lip brush, the strength of the brown undertones diminish, leaving the lips with a flattering rosy shade.

This might sound a bit familiar as I tried to get into this rediscovery in my Lip Product Addict post but then restrained myself somewhat – but of course I left some extraneous details in, you know me… It’s safe to say that I’ve been reaching for this one quite frequently lately and of course, the inanimate object was begging for an apology, heartbroken from it’s lack of written love from me. It’s up there for my favourite lipstick formulation at the drugstore (with the Revlon Lacquer Balms), the formulation is that fantastic and if you haven’t I’d recommend giving these a go, especially this neutral everyday kind of shade.

Have you tried either of the Rimmel Kate Moss Lipstick formulations? As I love the formula, I would kill for a shade recommendation or 394882…

Maggie, x

 

Weekly Medley #17

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(1) evidence of writing the skincare series this week (2) if you’re total order at Sephora was $40 it clearly doesn’t count… (3) the lovely Natalie who writes the blog thunderl0ve that has been added to my bookmarks this week – it’s that good… (5) Essie Bikini So Teeny (6) the weekly product picks (7) the weekly selfie featuring the blush in question on the cheeks

Yet another pretty monotonous and nondescript week has gone by; I’m pleased to report that nothing semi-catastrophic happened but nothing of the particularly exciting sort happened – other than a fun low-key night with friends. I feel like I can sum-up my week into two phases – the first half of the week was characterized by continuing on in attempting to get somewhat in shape without leaving my living room that I started at the beginning of last week and the accompanying aches and pains and then suddenly the second half of the week was full of gorgeous sunny weather outside that could only be classified as hot and required things like sunscreen and shaved legs.

Right at the beginning of the week directly after the Sephora incident shown above, I went into the drugstore and Essie was on sale for a few dollars of so it was kind of expected that a polish or two would be coming home with me and the pale cornflower blue Essie Bikini So Teeny went right onto my nails and remained there until the very end of the week with minimal chipping. I’m kind of in love with the shade as it is a pastel blue kind of hue with a kind of different spin to it and the formula actually lasted on my chipping-prone nails. Being a light shade, it’s not the most opaque polish in the world, definitely requiring two solid coats but at the very least it wasn’t streaky or anything of that sort. I might be in love.

There’s another product of the beauty variety that stood out this  last week was the L’Oreal True Match Blush in Innocent Flush and if you’ve been reading my posts as of late and have a good memory, you’re probably aware that I initially misjudged this one. At fifteen dollars for a drugstore product, this is certainly not a bargain but this peachy-coral shade with that golden sheen is well worth it. In fact, I think I only went for a different blush once last week – ohemgee groundbreaking. Pretty much, it’s just a smooth-textured coral blush with a creamy texture that adds that glow to the cheeks that instantly perks up my face but it does deliver at a slightly lower price point and has that peachiness that differentiates it from the other 284847 coral blushes I own. I might have a slight blush hoarding problem, if you catch my drift.

On The Blog…

1. Weekly Medley #16 2. Skincare Thoughts and Tidbits 3. My Skincare Saviors 4. The Daily Face #15 5. Lip Product Addict Tag

You could easily have a different take on this than me, but I thought that this was one of my better weeks, putting out five posts that I’m pleased with and actually committing to writing the little skincare series that I’ve been pondering over for ages and ages without any sort of action occurring. I plan on doing a few more posts in the next little while, if you’re curious, but I do plan on trying to write a few more skincare posts on a regular basis in the future — thoughts?

I can’t be one hundred percent certain that these plans will come to fruition but in the next week you can expect another installment in the skincare series (or perhaps even two…) and perhaps a roundup of my essential beauty products throughout the duration of spring. I’d love to hear any sort of post requests as always!

How was your week?

Maggie, x.

Weekly Medley #15

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(1) The pre-movies face (2) The loved product of the week (3) My face again, obviously (4) evidence that I am no longer ghastly pale – woo (5) the show that I’ve Netflix-marathoned this week (6) the blog that rekindled my fixation on style

This week was an uneventful one, I’m afraid, but it would be difficult for me to be happier about it. Although I can say that I actually went out and socialized in public this week, wrote up a few posts and made some major organizational headway, this was not a particularly eventful or productive week but for once that does not ensure impending doom. And, let me just express my incredulity over the fact that it is now May.

After not buying clothes in ages as regardless of my share of wholehearted efforts to look stylish or pulled together through attire/outfits because I always failed in the face or comfort or whatever, becoming more indifferent about this whole style-oriented thing, my interest has been rekindled this week. That’s not exactly true — there’s been a gradual change but I might have just become more conscious of it all of a sudden. I suppose I admired the style and whole pulled-togetherness that some bloggers and vloggers that I adore exude and then bam, I found myself scouring through Sophie’s blog and found myself inspired by her minimal style posts and addicted and possibly found myself addicted to her other posts as well – I’m sure you know how it is. The picture above in the bottom-right is taken from one of these posts titled, “The Basic Wardrobe” and it’s definitely one to commit to memory if you ask me. In light of this, you might expect the occasional style post or mention in these posts but don’t worry, I haven’t lost any of my focus on all things beauty in the slightest.

Despite being someone who embraces their paleness and doesn’t obsessively yearn to be completely bronzed all of the time, there’s a product of the self-tanning variety that has earned it’s rightful place of mention as the weekly beauty highlight. Being generally incompetent in general and oblivious to the world of fake-tanning, I went for a less intimidating product- a standard gradual tanner- namely the  Jergen’s Natural Glow Firming Daily Moisturizer in Medium to Tan and I’m glad I did. It’s not a dramatic product but this is definitely a perk for me as after a few days of repeated use there is quite a difference and it looks natural. I accidentally picked up the darker shade but I’m glad I did, as it gives me that natural-looking beige-yellow kind of tan that matches my natural undertones. But for me what stands out about the product is that my extremely-sensitive eczema-prone body skin can tolerate this product with no irritation involved – rather it is actually moisturizing – and it goes on fairly evenly even over my rough skin that cannot tolerate any sort of scrubbing action. There may be a few hints of unevenness in colour along my wrists/hands and a select few severe dry patches on my skin but apparently it looks as if I actually got it from the sun — my friends actually thought the shade was authentic. This is no miracle worker but it has found a home in my everyday routine and doesn’t require much fuss.

How was your week?

Maggie, x.

The Monthly Roundup #5: April 2014

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I’m going to do that typical-blogger cliched thing and begin with my disbelief with today’s date. It’s shocking that it’s May but I can’t exactly deny it anymore as it’s finally sunk in that University has ended and that those two hectic months are over. And it’s finally sunk into Spring weather here; although there was some snow going on at the beginning of the month, it has drifted back to perpetual spring rain with the occasional sunny day once in a while. That’s Spring on the east coast in a nutshell. I’ve worn short shorts outside and that should be evidence enough that the seasons have changed and the months have passed. Despite all of this months exam-related craziness or perhaps as a result of procrastinating by writing blog posts to keep insane during, I’ve written 21 blog posts this month and I’m actually pleased with myself. Here are some of my post highlights…

1. April 2014 Favourites:

I promise I won’t be forever including my monthly favourites posts in these round-ups but this month was another one that I’m proud of — I found an edited selection of fantastic everyday staple products and wrote about them in a passable way.

2. Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush in Ethereal Glow:

I know I’ve been rambling on and on about my love for this expensive cool-toned pink blush but it really is that good and deserves the mention. As well, this represents my increase in actual full-on review type single-product posts. And I thought I would switch things up and represent this post with a shot of the blush on my face, as it seemed a bit excessive for the product to be shown four times in the above collage…

3. Drugstore Essentials #2:

While this was not a new post idea as it was kind of an updated post in the vein of my first post on this blog ever but I had been putting it off. I knew I had discovered enough new drugstore treasures that I wanted to show you all wrapped up in this one post but these ones are tough to write and deliberate so I hummed and haw-ed, scratching out various attempts to plan the post until I decided enough was enough and wrote the post up while procrastinating from school-related troubles — I’m beginning to notice a pattern with blog posts being posted and school-related procrastination but I’m not complaining, as writing here is the best form of escape!

4. The Daily Face Routine:

This was one of those post ideas that came to mind numerous times but I rejected out of fear of trying something different than the usual stand-bys and what I see every blogger alive constantly doing but I pushed myself for it to happen and somehow it did. I found myself getting into a constant daily face routine with a few products that was working for me (and still is) and I went for it and was pleased by the results as well as the escape from the monotony.

5. Spring Makeup Update:

For a while I’ve known that I’ve wanted to do a follow-up full on Spring edit kind of posts but rather than going for an excessive edit, I decided to go for more edited selection for updating your daily routine for spring rather than a huge takeover. I was particularly pleased with the result and that I wasn’t writing a nice excessive rambly novella of a post like I can tend to.

What were your favourite post(s) this month? I’m feeling like I’m being rather self-indulgent but I honestly want to know what kinds of posts you’d like to see in the next month and I’ll love you forever if you give me some feedback down below.

Maggie, x.