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Etude House- gradient nail trio

July 17, 2014 1 Comment

The full name of this nail polish is actually Etude House Juicy Cocktail Graduation Nails, but that seemed like too long of a name to include in my title. The name also doesn’t really make sense, but oh well 🙂 I was over at my friend’s house, and loved the gradient and golden shimmer on her nails. She told me that her aunt got the set for her in Hong Kong, and let me use it as well. The nail polish set comes with three shades, which you are supposed to use in a specific order for the desired gradient effect.
The nail polish themselves are smaller in size than your typical drugstore nail polishes. After browsing on Amazon, I found that the average price of one set is around $3-10 dollars. The relatively large price window was very surprising to me! I also came across a review from Youtube beauty guru FromHeadToToe, who had the same set but in different shades. I have attached her picture here because it explains a lot better.
Straightforward enough, you start with the translucent polish all over your nail. You can choose to use more than one coat, I used two coats for mine and I will attach a picture of my own nails down below. After it dries, you apply the second polish, which has glitter to half of your nail – from the tip to the middle, not the base. From there, the third polish is applied which has bigger glitter particles, giving it a beautiful gradient!
There are also instructions on the back as well (written in Korean but with straightforward pictures).
Unfortunately, I was only able to wear my nails for one day as I had to work the next day. I work part-time at a coffee shop, where we are not allowed to wear nail polish due to health reasons. This is both good and bad. The good is that I have saved a lot of my money by not buying copious amounts of nail polish. The bad part, of course, is that I love painted nails and that I miss being able to paint them whenever I want! I apologize for the blurry picture, I was in a hurry to work and quickly snapped this picture. I was having a hard time removing the glitter off my nails. I have yet to find an easy way to remove glitter, if anyone has a solution PLEASE let me know! I know you can wrap your fingers in foil and let it soak but I don’t have the patience to cut up the foil, soak my nails, etc etc etc.
A better, less blurry picture of my nail. I showed this picture to my best friend and she thought my finger was swollen. No, my nail naturally looks like that,I don’t have “lady-like” long, slender, and beautiful fingers 🙁 Anyways, since I didn’t get to wear this for as long as I hoped (3+ days at least!), I wasn’t able to test how long lasting it was. One thing that I really liked about the nail polish was that it gave my nails a good healthy and natural shine. My nails also looked thicker and healthier with this on, kinda like gel nails but that might have been the top coat I used from my friend. I am hoping to try this polish out again in the upcoming months so I will post an updated review to this current post when I do!

I also found this awesome compilation online of all their various sets! I used the one in the middle, first one on the left. I really like peachy and pink sets in the first row! What about you?

Pros:

Love the shade and idea of this!
Don’t have to waste time finding three separate nail polishes that will blend well together
Gives your nail a healthy shine
Many beautiful colours to choose from

Cons:

Small nail polish set
Glitter was hard to remove (But then again, all glitter polish is difficult to remove)
Can’t buy this in Western drug stores or Sephora, best bet is online or in Asia

Update: I wore this nail polish for four days again the week after writing this draft. Most of the polish had chipped off, except for the glittery tips. I noticed that my nails began to chip the second day. After going swimming on the third day, more than half the polish had chipped 🙁 But overall, not too bad! I also didn’t wear a top coat, which probably would have helped!

That’s it to this review! Happy painting everyone!
-Carmen

Trader Joes Refresh Citrus Hair & Body Wash

May 24, 2014 Leave a Comment

I love Trader Joes food products. A few months ago, I went through a phase of going crazy over their food products, because it was so good and (mostly) healthy! Unfortunately, the closest Trader Joes to where I live is in the country next to me, so I can’t simply stop by when I have free time. I’m seriously debating on getting a US debit/credit card just to fuel my Trader Joes love. Anyways, the last time I went to Trader Joes a few months ago, I was strolling down the aisles and saw that they sold body wash. Needless to say, curiosity got the best of me and I ended up buying it. I think it was around $5-6 USD.

The description on the label made it sound super awesome, so I was very excited. “The pure aroma of sweet orange, succulent grapefruit, tangy tangerine, and luscious lemon refreshes the body and smoothes the mind.” is what the first line read. So obviously, what kind of woman is not going to be attracted to great metaphors like that? Props to their marketing team. However, I think they over-exaggerated with the description. The scent of the body wash isn’t that strong, contrary to what it says on their label. After taking a shower, I was a bit disappointed because I couldn’t smell much of the body wash on my skin.
Since I was disappointed with what little scent it had, I started to neglect it and left it sitting in my shower over the past months. I recently decided to give it another chance, which is why I am writing this review now. It says that you can also use this as shampoo, so I decided to give it a try. As a shampoo, it worked a lot better and formed a great lather, even with a small amount. But I would suggest using a lot of conditioner since this doesn’t really moisturize your hair. I felt that my hair was drier than normal afterwards (didn’t use conditioner to test this out).
Anyway, needless to say, this body wash is pretty average, so don’t let their description deceive you, like what it did to me. I think if I didn’t read the description, I would have liked it a lot more, but I did have high expectations for this product. I should also mention that there are a lot of quality ingredients in this body wash, if you look at the picture above. (botannical water extracts of chamomile, ginseng, lemon grass, sage, essential grapefruit/tangerine oil, vitamin b5, vitamin c, vitamin e, vitamin a) ^ I’m not sure if I would buy it again.

Pros:
-Good price
-Has a light citrus scent
-A tiny amount produces a lot of lather
-Quality ingredients, not just your usual body wash ingredients
-Cruelty free, no animal testing, biodegradable bottle
-Durable bottle

Cons:
-Can’t smell the scent before purchasing; bottle is sealed
-Description is deceiving
-Says it is “aroma-therapeutic” but didn’t have any effect on me

What else did I get at Trader Joes? On a side note, if anyone reading this is going down to the states and wants to get me some TJ cookie butter, let me know and I’ll pay you back 🙂 Hope you enjoyed the review!

-Carmen

Babyliss Pro Argan Oil ( vs. Moroccan Oil)

May 10, 2014 Leave a Comment

My hairstylist recently introduced me to argan oil. I was in absolute shock when she told me that argan oil and Moroccanoil (Yes it’s spelled like that without the space) are the exact same thing. I’ve heard many things about Moroccanoil, but not too much about argan oil. “Moroccan oil” is just the company name, while argan oil is the actual ingredient in it that gives your hair that healthy shine and condition. The ingredients in the Moroccan oil brand are very, very similar to the Babyliss Pro Argan Oil. My hairstylist told me that if I wanted to buy argan oil, to go with the Babyliss one because it does the exact same thing as the Moroccanoil, just that it is not as marketed and cheaper.
I purchased my Babyliss argan oil from Kingdom Beauty Supply, a wholesale beauty supply store that sells professional hair products for hair stylists. Since you do need to be a hairstylist to be able to buy the products (unless you have a personal contact like I did), another place to try would be hair salons or the internet. I tried looking on their website but it didn’t even give an option for Canadian stores. It’s a pretty crappy site as opposed to the Morrocanoil site, which is tailored to consumers. They were having a sale on their products, which was 2 for $20 (I think original price is $15 a bottle).

When comparing the ingredients in Babyliss and Moroccanoil, they are very, very similar. They both contain the same type of argania spinosa kernel oil. It just goes to show how powerful beauty marketing is and to always check labels. You could save yourself a lot of money by doing that. I got the ingredient list for Moroccanoil online.

Now, time for my actual review on the Babyliss Pro argan oil. ft polka the cat (remember him?)! Yay! I am very low maintenance with my hair. I don’t ever style my own hair unless it’s just a straightener or crimper. I’ve battled with my hair curler for years now, and I still have not mastered how to curl my hair nicely. Needless to say, I never buy hair styling products. I’ve dyed my hair over 15 times in my life, so my hair is pretty damaged. But, I was sold on this one because of how healthy and shiny my hair looked afterwards.
The application process is so painless and easy (another main reason why I bought this). After washing your hair, you just spray the product onto your hair and blow dry it. Then, watch the magic happen, DONE! 🙂 I took this picture after my hair appointment, with the argan oil. I noticed that my hair looked a lot healthier, shinier, and felt a lot softer after using this product.
Of course, sunlight can be deceiving so I took another picture back inside my room. I think my hair still looks shinier and healthier than without out. On the bottle, it claims to be lightweight, non-greasy, gives instant shine, hydrates, conditions, eliminates frizz, and repairs damaged hair. Furthermore, it provides thermal protection while reducing drying time and provides colour protection. In my opinion, Babyliss pro argan oil does all that it claims in their packaging. What’s not to love about this product?! =)

Pros:
-Leaves hair very soft, conditioned, and shiny
-Smooths out frizziness
-Protects hair from heat products
-Does not leave an oily residue, feels very lightweight/non-greasy after applying
-Cheaper than Moroccanoil, which essentially does the same thing
-A little goes a long way, making the bottle last longer

Cons:
-Not sold in retail stores, a bit hard to find
-If you’re used to buying drugstore products, you might find this product a bit overpriced

-Carmen

April Beauty Favourites

May 9, 2014 2 Comments

This is my first time doing one of these monthly favourites! I’ve seen them on YouTube a lot, plus some fashion/beauty/lifestyle blogs that I follow. Since I don’t have photoshop on my computer, nor am I good at it, I had to come up with a way to create a collage by other means. After pondering the internet and trying out various photo apps, I have finally created my first one! I know it’s not perfect, so please bear with me here. It’s been awhile since I’ve done a beauty related post, yet alone a mini haul, so I’m quite excited to try this out! These are in no particular order!

1. Dove Go Fresh deodorant, pomegranate and lemon verbana scent. I am in love with the smell of this deodorant. I like how it has a strong scent, making you smell lovely the whole day. When I want to freshen up after I shower, I apply this deodorant and feel refreshed.

2. The Body Shop – Mango body whip. I love all the body lotion products from The Body Shop (not body butter, I hate those). The mango one has a lovely, subtle mango scent. It moisturizes very well. I love how it’s very light weight so you don’t feel sticky or heavy after applying this lotion.

3. ELF eyebrow kit. I bought this online back in November, and have been using this everyday for the past few months, so of course it is going on my favourites list! I love the colour/shade of the eyebrow kit, which matches my hair and skintone perfectly. The colour is very soft and not harsh, which I like because I don’t want strong, harsh eyebrows (that’s just my own preference). It’s also long lasting, and the small angle brush that comes with the kit makes it very easy to apply this to your eyebrows- pretty foulproof! Occasionally, I will double this up as a eyeliner for my lower lashes since I don’t like pencil eyeliner.

4. LUSH Grease lightning spot treatment. I received a sample of this, and I am already hooked after 2 days of usage. It is made up of all natural ingredients which fight acne scars, kills dirty bacteria on your skin, and prevents/kills pimples. I had two ugly pimples pop up last week, and after applying this spot treatment, I have noticed that they have diminished dramatically. I love how all the ingredients in this are natural as well.

5. Chanel – Chance Eau Tendre. This is the only perfume that I ever wear anymore, and for good reasons. It has a soft, flowery and romantic scent to it which I love. Whenever I spray it on myself, I instantly feel very calm since the scent is very light and relaxing. I also feel a lot girlier when wearing this, so it definitely gives me a boost of confidence when I feel like I look like crap. I’ve gotten many compliments whenever I wear this perfume, which is a plus!

6. Maybelline mineral powder foundation. I bought this back in high school years back, but didn’t really have a good experience with it and ended up throwing it out. My friend recently gave me hers since it wasn’t the right shade for her, and I decided to give it another try. After wearing this as my setting powder, I noticed that my skin looked a lot brighter, smoother, and more translucent with a hint of shimmer. I realized that the problem was the crappy brush that came with it. I used my own brush and the finish looked a lot better. For me personally, the coverage is too light, which is why I like using this as a setting powder.

Well there you have it, some of my current beauty favourites! What are some of yours?

-Carmen

Suzy Nail Colour Review

April 12, 2014 Leave a Comment

For the past two years, I’ve been stripped away from the liberty of wearing nail polish due to my job. So, whenever I have a few days off, I jump at the opportunity to wear it! I’ve also been stressed due to final exam season, so painting my nails is a great relief and stress reducer, am I right girls?! Since I only wear nail polish a handful of times per year (oh the sadness!), I don’t splurge on expensive ones since they’ll probably dry out by the time I wear it.
I got this nail polish probably last year, at Suzy Shier which is a women’s clothing store. I really liked the soft, girly pink colour and it was also really cheap, so I decided to get it. One of these cost $3, or 2 for $5. It’s a pretty good deal! I applied 2 coats to get the current colour.
I haven’t worn this since last Summer, so I forgot how fast it dried! I would have to say that it dried in less than 45 seconds, I was so impressed. I’ve never had a nail polish dry that fast and have such healthy and strong shine to it! And for $3?! What a miracle.
Also, can you notice how the top brush part is uneven from the bottom? Somehow, I can’t twist it back to its normal position no matter how hard I try. I’m glad that it doesn’t leak, or else we’d have a problem!
One of the annoying things about nail polish is their removal, especially if it’s glittery. UGH. I was in a rush to remove the colour since I was about to be late for work, but thankfully, this polish comes off so easy with nail polish remover. YES!!! Overall, I love this polish!
Pros:
-Fast drying
-Lovely colour
-Matte finish but with a light shine to it
-Easy to remove
Cons:
-Smells strongly like chemicals

-Carmen