Beauty Products

Drugstore (Makeup) Essentials #2

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So I was feeling a wee bit nostalgic and strangely sentimental – sue me. An all around beauty product drugstore staples post was my first post ever, right after I discovered these fantastic beauty products that didn’t break the bank and since then I’ve tried um lots more, shall we say and I always like reading these posts so I thought a post with my budget-friendly staple products was in order as I haven’t been giving some of these workhorses as much credit as they deserve. As I’ve said many times before, in Canada drugstore makeup doesn’t tend to be nearly as affordable as it is in the states so I’m sure for many of you these hero products will be even more affordable, but price aside these are all fantastic products I always come back to. And I easily could have included 72835 products more…

Real Techniques Core Collection ($19-22 CDN):

I’m actually aware that everybody and their pet iguana declares their loved for this affordable hyped-up brush set but after spotting the set for the first time this summer, these four brushes have made their way into my daily makeup routine, so they are kind of a ridiculous bargain considering their quality. Everyone’s favourite, the buffing brush, was my first love from the set, initially seducing me with its ability to buff foundation into the skin to help it blend seamlessly, but I’m tempted to say that I now love the three other includes brushes as much; the contour brush is amazing for its intended use, namely sculpting the face efficiently, the pointed foundation brush blends concealer underneath the eyes like a dream and the detailer brush is responsible for my newfound ability to do Lisa-Eldridge-Induced pinpoint concealing.

Annabelle Smoothliner in Brownie ($7 CDN):

I’m pretty sure this is one of the few beauty bits that ever existed that are easier to get ahold of in Canada and that is rather pleasing, I must say — but I know that Americans at least can order from the website for reasonable shipping rates on the already reasonably-priced brand. This is easily the best affordable liner that I’ve ever tried but it’s up there among the best liners I’ve ever tried regardless of price as well and it’s the first non-black liner that I’ve found worked. It has that kind of creamy, long-wearing and pigmented formula that I had hoped the cult-favourite Rimmel Scandaleyes had but most certainly did not. The shade is also spectacular as it’s a rich deep brown that adds adequate definition unlike the other brown liners that I’ve tried in the past.

L’Oreal True Match Mineral Pressed Powder ($14-16 CDN):

While I wouldn’t say that it’s an exact dupe – oh how I hate that word – for the MAC Studio Careblend, it’s very similar – the only difference is the more minimal coverage and decreased longevity – and I’ve been hugely impressed with this as a girl who doesn’t really like powderiness and is looking for a non-powdery powder. It is one of those soft powders that I adore unlike the typically powder-y powders that cling to my dry patches and take away all life from the face. Although it blurs imperfections in the way that powders do, it has more of a natural velvet kind of finish and doesn’t take all luminosity out of the skin. But like many L’Oreal products, it’s not actually all that affordable…

Revlon Nearly Naked Foundation ($11-12 CDN):

So a review of this luminous foundation is long overdue and I do plan on getting one done in the general near future but in short, I’m still loving this one. This is one of those foundation  that under ideal skin conditions – ahem, by skin isn’t in one of its tantrum phases – is undetectable on the skin while offering light coverage that is easily built up to medium with the help of the buffing brush. I believe I wear the third lightest shade, Shell, that is a really good match, particularly undertone-wise as it leans on the warmer side of things without being so yellow and in my humble opinion the shade range does cater to us fairer-skinned ladies. It’s luminosity is nowhere on the questionable greasy side of things but in my opinion, unless you have skin that’s as dry as the desert, some powdering – of the t-zone at least – is optimal. I’ve read from others that the finish on this beaut is a natural satin one but in my opinion its glowier than that and not in a bad way.

NYC Smooth Skin Bronzer in Sunny ($3 CDN):

What would a drugstore post of mine be if I didn’t throw in another reference to how much more ridiculously expensive drugstore makeup is here compared to the US? There are very few beauty products that are as inexpensive as this that you can buy in Walmart, Target and the traditional drugstores so it’s particularly impressive that for a toonie and a loonie or less, you can pick up this bronzer. Regardless of price, it’s one of my favourites, that is, it’s better than high-end that I’ve tried and it’s matte while having a smooth blendable texture. I know I’m in the minority of fair-skinned girls on this one as it is so warm and can verge on the orangey spectrum of things but on my neutral-to-warm skin, it isn’t problematic in the slightest and unless you’re extremely cool-toned and fair, I would be tempted to give it a go.

Maybelline Colorsensational ‘The Buffs’ Lipstick in Nude Lust ($9-10 CDN):

When I mentioned this before it my review of the two lipsticks from the new line of nudes, the lighter but much-peachier in undertone Blushing Beige received more appreciation from me but as time has gone on Nude Lust, with its slightly more flattering formula and slightly deeper tone with more of a beige-y hue to it has become a favourite of mine. The lipstick formula reminds me of an improved-upon MAC Cremesheen, as it has the same creaminess with good longevity but is a smoother texture that’s more hydrating and much more comfortable on the lips. I would have to posit this lipstick as halfway in between the true typical nude offering, MAC Creme d’Nude and the somewhat-nudey-my-lips-but-better offering, Patisserie; it has true nude undertones and isn’t so pale that it needs to be worn with a full-on smoky eye to be flattering without looking brown on my pale lips. It has a play-doh scent but I don’t mind it so much as it’s not overpowering.

L’Oreal Lineur Intense in Carbon Black ($9-11 CDN):

So this product pick probably has your eyes rolling if you’ve been following me for a while, but I had to mention it considering it didn’t make its way into my first post of its kind and it is the epitome of what this kind of post is about. In the last six months since I’ve picked the felt-tip inky liner, I don’t think I’ve ever used it less than 4 times a week. It still remains nice and wet despite its frequent use, I’m pleased to report, but it isn’t so wet that it ever smudges and makes a mess. It’s pretty much a precise and easy to use brush that quickly can produce those thin everyday kitten flicks for those with less dextrous hands like mine.

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Romantic ($8.50 – 10 CDN):

In an ideal world where I did not seem to misplace lip crayons at the most inopportune moments, the product mentioned here would be the Revlon Lacquer Balm in Enticing but in that place called the real world, I appear to have lost said lip product and so I’m going with the similar but slightly lighter-rustier red Revlon Kissable Balm Stain in Romantic which I like only the tiniest bit of an imperceptible smidgen less because it’s not quite as hydrating with the more obvious cooling-mint sensation that can irritate the sensitive lips (boo) but at the same time has ridiculous good wearing power and is comfortable to wear and doesn’t show hideously chapped patches on your lips.

Bourjois Cream Blush in 04 Sweet Cherry ($20 CDN):

I know, I know, this isn’t actually exactly budget-friendly in Canada but it is in the UK for certain – I’m jealous of all of you who live there, by the way – but it is still more affordable than anything resembling higher end and is generally fantastic so I’m counting it here. For a true cream blush, this creamy-but-not-wet-feeling texture is much easier to work with than say the very creamy and emollient Bobbi Brown Pot Rouges without setting to that cream-powder finish that kind of negates the point of cream blush for me. I should mention two slight downsides to the product, however; not a ton of product comes in the compact product and it has that typical heavy and perfume-y scent. I have the deepest shade in the range because in the lighting I was working with the others looked deceptively sheer and light and I’m a fan of it nevertheless, despite its less exciting neutral rosy deep pink shade.

Sooo this turned into one of my marathon posts but I’m telling myself — and I mostly believe it — that it is completely acceptable and concise because it’s not an abstract tangent on a single product but instead one of my essential picks posts. What are some of your drugstore essential products?

Maggie, x.

 

 

 

 

Weekly Medley #4

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This has been one of those weeks that requires limited elaboration so I’ll try to spare you my usual meaningless lengthy blabber. I’m pretty much in the same kind of zone as any other University student, stressed to the maximum with more work to do than she can handle. On top of this, I haven’t really been sleeping (at all) due to the stress of this and to be honest, I haven’t really been going for anything elaborate beauty-wise, as you can probably imagine. To be honest this has been one of those weeks when it’s a struggle to pull myself out of bed in the mornings.

After trying the much talked about Revlon Nearly Naked Foundation ($11-12 CDN) last week and using it on the daily since, I’m pleased to report that’s a foolproof slap er on kind of foundation that successfully masks the dreaded sleep-deprived and stressed face with minimal effort – and when you have about three minutes before running out the door, it can be applied with the fingers somewhat attractively in maybe thirty seconds. Score.

 

 

Generally speaking, I am a magazine fanatic and there’s always one that I’m subscribed to at any given time and at the moment it’s Elle Canada, which I subscribed to on a whim and I’ve been particularly impressed with the newly released March 2014 issue. While remaining on the affordable end of style/beauty magazines, it has interesting style and beauty content while still containing interesting and relevant nicely written articles as well. It can be difficult. It’s one of those rare magazines that seems to be written for those who have graduated from high school but do not quite have their lives sorted out yet for the next twenty-or-so years. This month featured a pull-out Spring/Summer 2014 Beauty Trend Report and as one would expect, I was all over it – I’m not a person who necessarily chooses makeup and other beauty products based on trends but I do like to see some inspiration, especially on dreary days like these. I particularly enjoyed the article titled “The Hits” that detailed ten spring fashion essentials.

 

 

Over the last few weeks, I’ve noted that I have been running dangerously low on mascara – not a hyperbole – and after dropping into Walmart last week and seeing this on for eight or so dollars I picked up the L’Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Excess Mascara ($9-10 CDN) and I’m really loving it (even though it is not dried out yet!) thus far. I tried the original Voluminous Million Lashes years ago which I liked for big lashes but found rather difficult to remove. I like that it’s not a particularly wet formula so with the synthetic brush you can achieve perfect separation with buildable volume and length without the potential of clumping. This one is also foolproof on the lower lashes, even without taking some of the excess off of the wand. However, it’s not difficult like waterproof mascara to remove but it is more difficult than most mascaras (such as my long-love The Falsies). But I note I naturally have long curled lashes that are much too wimpy for my taste so I don’t need a mascara to perform miracles per se….

 

THE MASCARA WITH MINIMAL EFFORT
THE MASCARA WITH MINIMAL EFFORT

 

A few weeks back I was enticed into picking up some products at The Body Shop and along with the body milk I picked up the Aloe Protective Restoring Masque ($22 CDN) – however it’s on sale on the site at the moment for $13.20 if you’re interested – in all honesty because I was feeling nostalgic wanting to try a product back from the line I used back in the day and for ages I’ve been wanting to venture into the overnight moisturizing masques but I’ve been non-committal. I’ve been using this a few times a week for the past few weeks and let me tell you, I could tell the difference right away – and that is not something I can say about a lot of skincare products. The tub is completely unhygienic and would be completely inefficient if it contained high concentrations of active ingredients but it is extremely economical, containing 100 mLs of the goo-like substance. It smells unenticing but I could not be more thrilled as it has not been fragranced-to-the-nth-degree as per usual at these natural sorts of stores (I might possibly be making reference to Lush here) but it’s not awful, but rather smells slightly medicinal like the gentlest unfragranced products. It has the texture of goo and is ultra-concentrated with moisture that stays in the skin after it has drunk it up. For the first half hour or so, the mask feels kind of tacky and gooey on the skin (due to its first ingredient aloe vera, I would hypothesize) but then the skin ‘drinks it up’. In the morning, I consecutively woke up dewy-looking and luminous skin that was quite soothed. It really helps to take down redness and irritation (particularly from breakouts I’ve noticed) and keeps the skin plump and hydrated even after it is washed off. And makeup sits so much nicer on the skin the next day, I’ve found.

 

Ummm, in terms  of post and video obsessions there’s one clear standout in my book: The Drugstore Beauty Chat with Lilly Pebbles on Anna’s channel (Vivianna Does Makeup). I always love their “beauty chat” videos as they are entertaining to watch, amusing yet helpful at the same time. I love the laid-back style of them and I’m constantly cracking up while watching one and this one was no different. There were some great additions to my wishlist as a result of watching but I couldn’t be happier. I just loooooove when these two get together and make these.

There are no words.

How was your week and what have you been loving?

Maggie, x.

holed up in the library again and indeed, I do wear glasses and warning I'm not actually wearing foundation here
holed up in the library again and indeed, I do wear glasses and warning I’m not actually wearing foundation here

 

The Daily Face #7: A More Minimal Approach

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I’m going to make my understatement of the year in the following sentence so be forewarned. I’m not the kind of girl who rocks the minimal makeup look. It’s not that I feel the need to wear makeup in public constantly – I’m fine going out without makeup and I do enjoy it on a regular basis – but I don’t see the point of the whole natural minimalistic makeup as I feel like slapping on mascara and foundation to be missing the whole value of makeup. I have the kind of face (especially my large eyes) that really benefits from more definition than that, however I love the look sported on the runway and whatnot of makeup with a slight pop of colour on the lips that looks like skin everywhere else without losing the benefit of makeup. Can anyone follow my logic here?

It’s actually frightening to think of how many occasions that I’ve attempted to write a post of this variety but failed in some drastic way. Inspired by the makeup goddess we call Lisa Eldrige (she embodies the not overly-made up makeup), this happened.

While it’s improved drastically in the last day or two, I’m going through quite a breakout on my face and one that’s quite difficult to cover on account of texture and general skin irritation at that and had to think about what foundation wouldn’t highlight all of that loveliness and I went with my recently purchased Revlon Nearly Naked for its luminous but seamlessly blending texture that provides a true medium coverage. I’m very pleased to report that it didn’t highlight the warzone currently occurring on my forehead while still covering the uneven tone. But first I did apply some Laura Mercier Radiance Primer, I might add. Inspired by Lisa even further, I used my Real Techniques Detailer Brush to do some pinpoint concealing with the second-lightest shade Make Up For Ever 5 Camouflage Cream Palette – the colour was spot-on enough that I could actually see the benefit of the technique. Hmmmm. Oh, and the lightest shade was blended underneath the eyes to highlight and cover the bags.

I’m not always a powder kind of girl but I do find the MAC Studio Careblend Pressed Powder to help cover and blur texture imperfections and that’s sort of essential on a day like today. With my square face and all, I rely on doing some sort of contouring regardless of how casual I want to look and I used the contour/blush hybrid, MAC Tenderling, that looks like skin while adding some shape.

I wore the hyped Rimmel By Kate Moss Lasting Finish Lipstick in 107 on the lips, applied with a brush for a more natural, precise and effortless sort of effect. Note: this is a lipstick that I find difficult to wear as I don’t know what to pair with it – truly minimal makeup makes my lips look overly pronounced and too much going on makes the lipstick stand out in an unflattering manner on me due to its pink tones. The formula is one of my favourites, wearing for a long time without drying the lips and wearing evenly. There’s something I love about a bold lip with minimal looking makeup and the whole effortless but polished and awake look that it brings. I must take note of how I applied it today because I’m feeling it.

Of course, I wore my Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette today and continued with my consecutive wearing streak but these flattering warm shades are ideal on me for an effortless yet defined makeup look. Having weirdly creasing-prone lids, I put the Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Barely Branded on my lids underneath the shadows.

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First I put Burnout, the peachy golden shade on the lid and then I blended the mauvy-taupe Limit into the crease and the slightly darker Nooner lower down in the crease. Then I added some of the plummy-toned Factory into the outer corner and used the matte Strange to highlight. This sounds like a lot, I know, but it was quick to do and reads as simple definition on the lid. Although I actually really dislike the Rimmel Scandaleyes Eyeliner in Brown that everyone seems to be in love with, I find it overly waxy and unpigmented, I used this on both the upper and lower lashlines to add some definition to the lashlines without reading as liner. I really don’t understand the hype on this one. On the mascara end of things, I doubt you really even need to ask…. Same with the brows. I’m one of those people blessed with unruly yet sparse shapeless brows and filling them in is essential and obviously I used the ashy MAC Coquette eyeshadow and an angle brush from the same brand.

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Do you frequently sport minimalistic makeup? What do you reach for when you go for minimal makeup?

Maggie, x.

Weekly Medley #2

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Not all that much has changed in my life in the last week so there’s nothing groundbreaking to add on that front … other than perhaps one of those lovely impromptu trips to Sephora with the girls, where you show them the copious amounts of products that they need and you allow them to help you justify purchasing your latest beauty lust(s). The impromptu trip to Sephora is a sacred institution in my world, allowing me to cling on the proper side of insanity in this blur of sleep-deprivation and stress.

The Products

I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned it before and I hardly need to because I’ve mentioned anxiety before, but I do struggle with my sleep and there are too-frequent nights of exhaustion when I lay in my bed in hopes of sleeping four hours or so such sleep occurs. Keeping my computer on into the wee hours of the morning is a habit that I engage in all too often and it does not help the sleep situation and makes the quality of my sleep rather poor so I’ve been really loving my “notebook of blogging”. I’ve kept one for months but recently I’ve gotten really into using it and keeping it on me at all times. Taking notes for blogposts is productive in itself when my mind won’t shut off but also seems to help me get to sleep in these circumstances and a few of my recent posts were typed in here straight from the notebook pages. I’m someone who is struck by inspiration when trying to sleep in the wee hours in the early morning and it’s really helpful to write the ideas down.

I’ve been meaning to talk about Ren Hydracalm Global Protection Day Cream last month but I’ve never quite gotten around to it despite the fact that I really like it – however despite the heftier price tag I would rank it on par with my other favourites, the Caudalie Sorbet-Creme and Kiehl’s Stress Rescuer. It’s an effective, rich and nourishing but lightweight moisturizer that comes in hygienic pump packaging and does soothe the skin effectively as promised but it isn’t quite as gentle on my skin when it’s sore, flaking and irritated. Although it’s boasted as natural, there is fragrance in this one and potentially irritating plant extracts along with the beneficial ingredients. It leaves a wonderful energized luminosity to the skin and it helps for makeup to apply seamlessly to the skin. I’ve been using this constantly over the last little while. And if you were curious, it hasn’t been discontinued but rather repackaged with the Evercalm label – the formulation has not changed.

I’ve dug out my NARS Kalahari Eyeshadow Duo again and I’ve been reaching for the darker, mauve-y plum tinged taupe shade as my crease shade on a daily basis. It’s the perfect slightly-darker-than-medium toned shade to add subtle definition and smokiness to the crease along with the lower lashline. It’s not matte but it’s shine factor only verges into the satin-finish territory with the subtlest of sheens. It’s like MAC Satin Taupe with warmer undertones, less shimmer and with more of a mauve lean to it, if that makes any sense – and I do prefer it to the cult-classic MAC shadow.

the taupe in action in the crease
the taupe in action in the crease

Recommendations

If you didn’t figure this out before now, it  shouldn’t be a shock that I am one of those sad sad people who look forward to the end of the month slash beginning of the next because of the influx of favourites posts and videos which I adore – I do suspect some of this is due to my inherent nosy nature but I’m always curious to see what others are wearing consistently throughout the month and this influences my makeup buying … for the better I hope and here are an edited selection of the ones I enjoyed the most. In terms of videos, I’d have to say that my top pick would be Jaclyn Hill‘s as she’s so informative but hilarious at the same time and it doesn’t hurt that shes gorgeous. And postwise, I’d recommend checking out Girl With Makeup‘s offering.

So, I lied. I’ve also fallen in love with a new blog independently of my obsession with monthly favourites post and it’s called raspberphobia and is written by the British Annie living in America, an informative but concise and nicely designed beauty blog that deserves way more followers. This blog has quickly become a favourite of mine and if you like laid back posts with a beautiful layout, you’ll fall in love. I must acknowledge that it’s thanks to The Beauty Milk that I discovered her.

General Life Update

I’m aware that it is no longer January, but I’m still going through that kind of January blues of perpetual exhaustion, stress and a sense of blah-ness. It’s now getting to that time when it’s stress inducing merely thinking about what all I have to get done and it’s not short-term work per se but everything seems to be creeping up on me at once, leaving me little time to breathe let alone sleep.

How was your week?

 

The Monthly Roundup #2: January 2014

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Blogging-wise I’m pleased to say that I’m rather happy with myself this month. I managed to have twenty entries this month and although that’s not daily or anything, it’s pretty damn good in my book. I aim to keep it up. And I’ve been pretty happy with my content this month so here it goes.

1. Maybelline Hi-lighting Bronzer in Deep Bronze

I’ve talked about this product (and the post itself) on a variety of occasions this month so this shouldn’t be much of a surprise but I fell in love with the product this month and somehow managed to put up a detailed review fairly soon after its release. I’ll shut up now.

2. Indeed Labs Pepta-Bright

This was one of those posts that I had been meaning to do for ages but never quite got around to until recently and I was pleased with the result. It’s a hero skincare product of mine in short and it’s bloody fantastic and the review is much more detailed obviously…

3.  The Daily Face #6: Warm and Smoky

After going through one of those blah phases when I wasn’t happy with my makeup for about a week straight, this is what pulled me out. It’s one of those makeup “looks” – I’m beyond hesitant to call it that — that was flattering and warm using the beloved Naked Palette, looking smoky but not over the top. Easily my favourite daily makeup of my month, hands down.

4. NARS Golshan Satin Lip Pencil

This post served as another piece of evidence of my mission to post actual product reviews frequently here and the product itself is divine and the shade does not get the recognition it deserves, if you ask me. It’s a gorgeous warm-toned wearable deep berry lip that does not dry out the lips or wear off weirdly.

5. Weekly Medley #1

This is a recent post and the first in a new series of mine that I have committed myself to and I was pleased how the chatty post turned out. You’ll have to let me know your thoughts. I rather enjoyed the mixture of lifestyle and casual beauty check-in post and I’m determined to continue with the series.

What were your favourite posts this week?

Maggie, x.

 

Weekly Medley #1

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I’ve always enjoyed reading weekly favourite posts and videos of the same variety but I’ve thought that my selections would be a little boring and repetitive as I’ve not an unlimited supply of beauty products and thought better of the whole idea. However I’ve noticed that there are products that I’ve been wanting to talk about without donating an entire post to the effort that seem to go unmentioned and thus the weekly medley was born.

The Beauty Staples

A few weeks ago I picked up the Neutrogena Ultra Gentle Creamy Cleanser and it has really impressed me with its balance of gentleness and efficacy; without containing fragrance and stripping detergents, it removes makeup – not of the most waterproof variety of course but double cleansing will remove all of my face products on the regular. This cleanser is affordable and easy to use with its pump dispenser and lightweight texture.

The gorgeous luminous Maybelline Master Hi-light Bronzer in Deep Bronze that I recently reviewed has blown me away this week. It’s a rosy copper that warms up the face, adding that elusive glow without adding a lot of obvious colour to the face. The texture of the product is smooth and it sits seamlessly on even my dry patches.

Even though it’s a nuisance to remove and requires frequent sharpening, I’ve gone back to using the cult favourite Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeliner in Perversion , but as I’ve said before it’s not my favourite for my inner rims because of the impossible to remove factor in my dry eyes and it’s gel consistency isn’t the easiest to apply but I love it on the upper and lower lash lines because of its intensity and ability to be smudged out without moving. Whether I’m going for a smoky eye or a subtle one, I’m someone who benefits from liner and this has been constantly reached for this week, even over my beloved L’Oreal liquid liner. *GASP*.

Blog & Video Recommendations

This week I rediscovered Lily Pebbles and stalked her recent blog posts and had a marathon of her videos that I’ve already seen but feel compelled to watch again. She’s one of my favourite beauty bloggers and she also makes the best laid-back beauty videos. If you don’t watch her videos or read her blog, she’s amazing and I highly recommend checking her out on both platforms. She’s one that I always trust for opinions on items prior to purchasing.

In terms of individual posts, Amelia Liana, the writer of the blog liana-beauty.com, brought out her “Glowy Not Sweaty” post this week and as always with her, it was fun to read and look at and she looked gorgeous – in the loads of posts I read and loved this week, this was the clear standout. You know how I feel about looking glowy….

Blogging Thoughts

I was rather proud of myself blogging-wise this week, putting up not only one review but putting up to. I’ll keep my shameless self-promotion to a minimum and link my review of the aforementioned Maybelline bronzer here.

General Life Update

The whole blizzard episode may now be over but it’s been freezing here, snowing constantly and the like so I can safely say that I haven’t been robbed of the authentic winter experience this year. Getting back into the whole school thing hasn’t been easy strangely and with the change in routine I’ve been perpetually exhausted but I’m pleased to report that I caught up on my sleep this weekend. This week I have been living in flannel pyjamas and I’m not ashamed that I wear them as much as I can possibly get away with. I’m afraid anxiety has gotten the best of me this month but there’s no remedy better that snuggling up in bed with a good cup of tea, book and makeup to stare at.

How was your week and what have you been loving?

Maggie, x

The Monthly Roundup #1: December 2013

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1. December 2013 Favourites  – where I ramble on about my favourites of the list and take a blog photo (and edit it) that I’m rather proud of.
2. Daily Makeup #4: Non-Festive Holiday Makeup & Playing With New Products – where I gush about a good number of my Christmas beauty product additions, ramble a bit about my life as per usual and talk about the non-festive makeup I wore on Christmas day. I was proud of myself for not being cliched and wearing red lips… not that there’s anything wrong with that…
3. My Top Six Cold-Weather Lipsticks – where I somewhat successfully photograph lip swatches of my favourite lipsticks with the same makeup and consequently make my poor dry and chapped lips revolt. I was rather proud of myself for being informative about each shade and formulation while being brief – for my standards anyway.
4. Top Thirteen Beauty Products of 2013 – where I make good on my personal challenge of narrowing down my favourite products to a scant thirteen, use my best efforts to provide concise and informative mini-reviews of each product and don’t go on an on about each product.                                                                                                                                                                        5. Base Bonaza: Dior Diorskin Nude Skin Glowing Makeup– where I make personal progress at taking high-quality product photos (in my opinion at least), force myself to write the review I’ve been meaning to write for weeks and reveal my thoughts on another foundation in my excessive stash.

I’ve always really enjoyed reading these kinds of monthly round-up posts and figured that it was time to start doing my own – but that wasn’t my entire motivation. I figure if I start doing these on the monthly, it will motivate me to keep posting frequently as I have been in the last month or so even though I’ll be weighed down by the force of that thing that one has to do at that dreaded institution known as University, work.

Thanks for reading. X

Maggie

If you’re a blogger, what were your favourite posts that you wrote in the last month? If you’re a reader, first and foremost, tell me what posts you most enjoyed in the last month. 🙂