New Year, New Make Up! 2013 Materialistic Wish List

As I am in the final year of my undergrad and as I take on more courses (6) than I will ever have, I want products that will be easy to slap on while delivering in coverage and finish. Based on the reviews I have read, here are some of the products that I see potential for this task. These products will be purchased when they are "needed" (ie. to replace something else) or when there is irresistible deal.

1. MAC Mineralize Volcanic Ash Exfoliator ($28USD/$33.50CAD)- MAC has released this exfoliator on and off again for various collections, but they have finally decided to make this a permanent product in their skincare line. When this was a LE, I could never get my hands on this stuff, so now that it's permanent (with a significant price increase), I will finally be able to try this much raved about product (“Refines and unclogs the skin, adds instant moisture … mineral-rich”) - I am also looking to replace the abrasive St. Ives Apricot Scrub I am currently using.
2. L’Occitane Immortelle Precious Serum ($70USD) - Although this is an "anti-aging" serum, I get the impression that it is more suited for skintypes that already have wrinkles, I got hooked on this stuff after using sample. I may be only buying this for its heavenly scent.
3. Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette ($27USD/$32CAD) - I do not have an extensive
   eyeshadow collection so I can easily justify this even though I do have both NAKED 1 and 2. I feel like this is too "practical" to pass up.
4. Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Matte Bronzing Powder with Real Cocoa ($29USD/$36CAD)- Matte, not too orange, no parabens = perfect for my new contour powder.
5. Bobbi Brown BB Cream Broad Spectrum SPF 35 ($42USD/- Although I do love my Dr. Jart Black Label BB cream, I am always looking for new things to try out; I love Bobbi Brown and I've heard many good things about this product!
6. MAC 109 Small Contour Brush ($35USD/$42CAD)- This may not be the most "necessary" item on this wish list because my Elf Complexion Brush but that ferrel is barely holding on. I love this because the shape is so unique, and God knows that after these holidays, I am in major need of some major contouring action.
7. DR. JART+ The Original BB Cream Set  ($34USD/CAD)- Instead of buying another Dr. Jart Black Label BB cream, why not go for a Dr. Jart set to try out all the other different BB creams Dr. Jart has to offer? This kit is perfect!
8. Dermablend Jar Cover Creme ($35USD/CAD) - I was sold when I saw the Dermablend commerical featuring the awesome Rick Genest! Full coverage, here we come!
9. SHISEIDO The Makeup Powdery Foundation - O40 Natural Fair Ochre ($29.50USD/CAD)- I found out about this product when I was looking for a medium coverage powder foundation. At that time, all the shades and the case were out of stock and people were saying that this was being discontinued or Sephora will no longer carry this product anymore ... of course, after reading all the raving reviews on the website, I was heartbroken. Nontheless, I put down my email for notification if this was coming to ever come back in stock, and thankfully, a few months later, I got the good news from Sephora. They were bringing this back! I cannot wait to try this out when I am done with my Cover Fx powder foundation.

If I can resist, these will probably be the only products that I will buy - unless, something incredible comes along and I cannot resist.

You may notice that I am holding off on purchasing a fragrance. I have a bucket load of perfume samples and I also have a brand new Lancome La Vie est Belle lying around, which I am hoping to sell off because I'd rather much get my Miss Dior! :)

Skincare does not count as good skincare is an absolute must!

XO Nicole

eBeauty Haul (Too Faced, Alpha Hydrox, Sophyto)

While I am not always fond of shopping on eBeauty.ca, I really just had* to because they offered harder to find products and more "green" product selections.

Sophyto Balancing Daily Moisturizer
I was running out of my DHC Acerola Gel Moisturizer, (which I love - it's so fast absorbing for my morning makeup routine) but since it is not a very "green" product, I had to look for something else. I have never heard of Sophyto (as like most of the products I've purchased from eBeauty) but the description fit what I was looking for so I took the dive (50ml tube for $32!):

This cream energizes your skin, and helps harmonize and hydrate your complexion. The nurturing formula contains Asian ginseng, shizandra and astragalus to promote repair while nourishing jojoba oil and shea butter deeply moisturize. Fast-absorbing and lightweight, it does not contain artificial fragrances, fillers or parabens.

Alpha Hydrox AHA Enhanced Cream
This was the main purpose for my order because I love this stuff. The cream really brightens my complexion and keeps my breakouts at bay. It's a must have in my skincare routine although I don't find the need to use it everyday (every other day does the trick for me). Also, it is has more AHA and is less expensive compared to the one from Paula's Choice.

Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Matte Bronzing Powder
I was especially looking forward to receiving and trying out this bronzer as my new contour shade however, in my box was the Milk shade instead. I was under the impression that this was going to be the Chocolate (original) shade since on the eBeauty web page, there was no option for selecting different shades as well as no indiciation that this would be the milk shade like on the Too Faced website and/or on Sephora. Yes another disappointment from eBeauty. This one I am definitely sending back and thus, have to attempt to get my hands on this product elsewhere, as I am hitting pan on my NYX blush in taupe (swatches here and here) that I use to contour.

Those are all the products!

XO Nicole

Benefit, Smashbox, NARS, Haul

I finally hauled some "essentials".

eyelash curler by Shu Uemura - I cannot say how much this is worth the investment! Being the biggest eyelash junkie, I cannot believe I've lived so long without this baby.

Smashbox 21 Arched Liner Brush - Because I have very little lid space and the normal angle brushes can be a bit too thick, I wanted an arched liner brush like this to give me more precision.

Benefit Cosmetics 10 - Highlighter is one of the makeup items that I own the least of just because I have combination skin and I usually do not need the extra glowiness but I haven't tried any of Benefit's boxed powders yet so I thought this would be great in my collection as one side is bronzer.

Smashbox Lash Revival Treatment & Conditioner - I've only tried drugstore "lash serums" so I thought I'd give this a try as it came with something for the lash line and the lashes itself.

NARS Laguna Bronzing Powder - I only wear matte bronzers so when I decided to switch it up, I've went for the most popular and hyped about bronzer!

Hard Candy Glamoflauge Heavy Duty Concealer - Love this! This gives great coverage. I got this in the shade "light".

XO Nicole

The Body Shop Honey Bronzing Powder Photos, Swatches and Review

The Body Shop Honey Bronzer

While the Body Shop’s Honey Bronze collection includes many products with a lot of shimmer and glitter, a bronze collection just wouldn’t be complete with out a matte bronzer, would it? The matte bronzer prouder in the collection are available in four convenient shades: 01 light matte, 02 fair matte, 03 medium matte, and 04 deep matte.

I generally only use matte bronzers for contouring purposes so I do not find this particularly useful for that field because the shades all have orange undertones. However, I do like the formula as it is not powdery and is very pigmented and it glides smoothly on the skin. Therefore, I think these bronzers are great for giving your skin a nice quick tan, but for contouring, it may not seem as natural for some. As for the packaging, I am indifferent about the packaging as it is a typical compact, but I should mention that the compact is very sturdy and comes with a large round mirror.

The Body Shop Honey Bronzer in 02 Fair Matte

The Body Shop Honey Bronzer in 03 Medium Matte

The Body Shop Honey Bronzer in 04 Deep Matte

Fair Matte, Medium Matte, Dark Matte

The Body Shop Honey Bronzers

The Body Shop Honey Bronzes

XO Jenn

The Body Shop Honey Bronze Collection Haul

I know this post is so overdue but I thought it can still be revelant due to the fact that it is now well midway into the fall season, and for us who live where we do experience the cold and sun-less couple of months, bronzer is essential for us! I took pictures of these products back when I received them but failed to put them up and write an accompany blog post for it .. so here it is! Even though the sun is hiding away, it doesn't mean we can't still keep - or "fake", as I should say, that summer glow. Therefore, I thought why not show you this great collection that The Body Shop released this past summer.

Here are the items to show you some of the things you can resort to during these few months:

• Honey Bronze Shimmering Dry Oil
• Honey Bronze Brilliance Powder
• Honey Bronze Bronzing Gel For Face
• Honey Bronze Bronzing Powder (4 shades available)

Review and swatches on the way soon!

XO Nicole