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Amie Eye Makeup Remover

December 15, 2014

I am baaaackkkk with another Amie product post! I have been using The Body Shop’s Chamomile eye make up remover for around one year now. I used to like it a lot but I found that over the past few months, it started to irritate and sting my eyes a bit. I’ve been trying to find a different one to use, so when Amie contacted me again to try their eye make Bright Eyes Eye Makeup Remover, it couldn’t have came at a better time.

I’ve probably mentioned this before, but one thing that I love about Amie products are that they are made with almost all natural ingredients. In particular, the makeup remover is 98.9% natural. Just like my Body Shop chamomile makeup remover, this also contains chamomile. It is also free from parabens, sulphates, mineral oils, petrochemicals, and animal extracts (making it suitable for vegetarians and vegans). The product itself is a blue liquid, and has a watery consistency – it is not thick or gel-like.

When I first opened the product, I noticed that it had a scent that I didn’t really like. It didn’t smell like chemicals, I’m not really sure how to describe the smell… just that I didn’t like it. As per normal, I dabbed a few drops of this on to a cotton pad and wiped it over my eyes. My eyeliner came off immediately, but there were still little mascara flakes around my eyes that I had to wipe again. It also stung a little, but not as much as my usual makeup remover. I wonder if my eyes are just sensitive… both of these products shouldn’t sting and are already really gentle.

On days where I wore eyeshadow primer and eyeshadow, I found that it was harder to remove. It took probably three or four wipes to completely take off my eye makeup when wearing eyeshadow and primer.

Because of this, I think that this makeup remover is suitable for someone who wears minimal amount or is just starting to wear eye makeup. It is okay to use on a daily basis but I wouldn’t use this to remove makeup if I was wearing a lot that night. I wouldn’t recommend using this product if you use a lot of eye makeup.

Fun and random fact, do you like the Christmas tree decoration in the picture? My grandma used to make a bunch of cute beaded ornaments like this, and I thought it would be nice to include it in a picture. Especially since I’ve been making my recent beauty posts more festive looking! Thanks grandma! (Even though she won’t be reading this post…haha)

Do you have any good makeup remover suggestions? Please let me know in the comments!

-Carmen

This product was sent free of charge in exchange for a product review. Opinions are my own and are not altered by the requests of Amie.

ELF Geometric Eyeshadow Book

December 11, 2014

I find that many ELF products are a hit and miss. At insanely cheap prices, I don’t blame them either. In high school, I bought their liquid liner and it reeked so bad of chemical smell that I threw it out. Sometimes, you’ll be able to find amazing, great quality products for under $5 (maybe even under $3!) but other times, you’ll find that the price you paid reflects the quality of the product. Last year, ELF was having a huge online sale and I went absolutely crazy. I can’t remember exactly what the sale was, but I think I only paid $20 for $45-65 worth of product. In fact, I bought so much that I didn’t even open some of the products until now. One of those products was the their 36 Piece Geometric Eyeshadow Book.

Bear with the snowflakes, I’m sorry if you think it’s tacky but I love them! Once the holiday season is over, they will be gone so don’t worry :). Anyways, the packaging of this eyeshadow packaging is a bit flimsy, I wouldn’t carry this around openly in my bag. It would definitely be a product I leave at home because the book doesn’t have a clapse to close it. There is a magnetic piece to close, but I don’t think it would be that helpful in a purse with other items inside. It is also made out of a thicker cardboard material.
Here are the colours of the palette. You can tell which ones are my favourite, and which ones I have yet to touch =P There are a total of 36 different shades, but some of the shades are a bit smaller in size. I love this palette because of how many champagne and shimmery gold shades there are! It also comes with a mirror which is a bit handy. It comes with the standard mini sponge brushes, which I haven’t used yet.

Because I love golden/champagne tones so much, here is a close up on them! There are enough colours in here to create many looks! The colours on the palette were not edited, I just added some border effects. I found the colours to be pretty pigmented, and they were also very glittery and sparkly. The only thing I didn’t like was that there was a lot of fallout. I noticed after that my cheeks had a lot of sparkle on them after I applied this.

Anddd here is the finished look! 🙂 This look was my first time trying out this palette, and I was in a bit of a rush. Otherwise, I would have created a deeper smokey eye look! For the price that I paid, the pigment was pretty rich and vivid! Personally, eyeshadow doesn’t last a long time on my eyelids so I have to use my Urban Decay primer potion beforehand. Because of this, I’m not sure how long it will last without primer.

I also used the Dollywink liquid liner (thinking of writing on this too!) Lancome Hynose Star marsacara, Urban Decay Naked Skin foundation, Bare Minerals matte powder foundation, and Makeup Forever lipstick. I wore this out for four hours at a holiday party and it did not smudge with my primer on. It came off easily with my makeup remover.

Last weekend, I decided to try it out again! I had a cold and wanted my eyes to seem brighter. This time, I used both the ELF palette and Naked 2 palette. Again, I was satisfied with the application and pigment, but there was a lot of fallout.

I would recommend ELF palettes to those who are just starting out with makeup, and are unsure if they would like to invest in an expensive eyeshadow palette. For under $10, it’s a decent palette with great shades, the eyeshadow looks are almost endless too with 36 different colours to choose from. The only annoying thing about it is the fall out.

Also, I mentioned above about the first ELF product I bought that reeked really badly of chemicals… it is the eyeliner here. The horror!

-Carmen

Black Friday Sephora Mini Haul!

December 1, 2014

It’s funny that I’m doing this post, because I wasn’t planning or even wanting to go Black Friday/Black Friday weekend shopping. My friend and I had planned a girls day out, and only on Thursday did we realize that we accidentally planned it on Black Friday weekend. Ahhh! I really did not want to step inside a mall during Black Friday weekend, dealing with crowds and swarms of people fighting each other to get the cheapest prices. Anyways, since we had been planning our shopping trip for a few weeks, we didn’t want to reschedule so decided to just suck it up, and pray for the best. If it got cray cray, we figured we would just leave and find something else to do LOL.
I am happy to say though, that it didn’t turn out as crazy as we thought it would be. We went shopping on Saturday instead of the actual Black Friday, which probably really helped. Most of the stuff I bought was at Sephora (no surprise there hah), so I’ll just be focusing on what I bought there. Please keep in mind that I didn’t try any of these products fully yet, I may write a detailed review on some of these products after I’ve used them for longer.

Walking into Sephora, the first thing that caught my eyes at on the Black Friday exclusive shelf was the Kat Von D Lip Love Set. Admittedly, I tried to buy this from the safety of my laptop on Friday but just as I was about to check out my purchases, all of the items I wanted were sold out! So you can imagine my happiness when I found this in store, I grabbed one right away! This set is a Sephora exclusive and limited edition. I’ve always wanted to try Kat Von D lip products because I absolutely love their tattoo liner. It came in a lip gloss and lip stick duo, with pre-selected shades. Right after we left Sephora, I tried on the lip gloss. My first impression was that it was very pigmented, and the shade was a lot brighter and lighter than it looked in the tube. For the first few seconds, my friend and I were absolutely horrified at how bright it was but after applying it all over my lips, it didn’t look as bad and I actually ended up really liking the colour on my skin LOL. It stayed on for a few hours until I took it off at dinner. At $12CA for both, the lip love set was an amazing deal and I’m glad I was able to pick one up.

Just like the KVD lip love set, I was also hoping to buy this online on Friday, but it was sold out by the time I went to the online check out. Lesson learned, do your online shopping quick during huge sales. I’ve been looking for a new face wash, and read pretty good reviews on this. This was the Bliss fabulous foaming face wash, a 2-in-1 cleanser & exfoliator. From first glance, the formula looked very thick and gel-like. A lot of reviews that I read said that this does an amazing job of removing face make up immediately, and that was exactly what I was looking for. An amazing cleanser that will remove foundation right away, because let’s face it- after a long night out, there is nothing better than changing into cozy pajamas and letting your skin breathe and be makeup free. I know that when you sleep with makeup on, or get makeup trapped in your pillow cases (so gross), it is really bad for your skin so I don’t take any chances when I’m already susceptible to breaking out. Which is why I also don’t wear foundation on a daily basis. This was half price for their Black Friday sale, I got it for $12CA!

As I was about to leave the Black Friday shelf, the Buxom Power Players set caught my eye. Darnit, haha! Considering that it came with a full sized Buxom sculpted lash mascara, which retailed for $24 Canadian, AND a waterproof eyeliner, for $12 Canadian, I knew that it was a sale opportunity that I could simply not pass up. My friend gave me a gel pot liner from Buxom last year, which I really liked. I’m hoping that I’ll like these two products as well.

Time just disappears when I’m in Sephora, and before us girls knew it, almost one hour had passed by… we decided to finally go and pay for our things, but we had another tempting obstacle to overcome… the last minute product shelves they have while you’re waiting in line to pay. I was really wanting a darker lip colour ever since my possibly haunted experience with the Too Faced melted lip stick, and the colour in the Make Up Forever Redefining Red caught my eye. The duo also came with a colourless lip liner, known as their lip line perfector and claimed to prevent lipstick from smudging. And at $17 for two MUFE products, I thought it was a good deal.

As a bonus, I also received my birthday gift from Sephora! It was also MUFE, but with their mascara and other lipstick instead. I forgot to pick my gift up last year, which I’m still mad at myself for, so I’m glad that the cashier was able to give it to me even though my birthday isn’t for awhile. Since I’m a late December baby, did anyone pick this up already? How did you like it?

I am quite happy that I bought all these products on sale. And before you judge, let me just say this. If there wasn’t a sale, I probably wouldn’t have bought anything. Most the time I go into Sephora, I browse and end up walking out without anything. It may not look like it because my blog focuses on a lot of purchased beauty products, but I only buy products that are on sale and know are a good value for what you receive. You only see half the picture, and don’t know what else goes on which is completely okay because I like to keep some things personal. I usually don’t buy this much in one visit, but I wanted to take advantage of their sale because deals this great don’t come around often. I don’t want you guys to think that I have a habit of consistently blowing money for no apparent reason, because I am quite the opposite. I think carefully about my choices before I buy and am conscious of how much I spend (which is one of the reasons why I spend so long in Sephora, debating if I should actually get the products or not haha!). I know, and can distinguish when I can or should spend money, versus times that I shouldn’t. Okay that’s all, thanks for reading that blurb 🙂

-Carmen

Amie Morning Clear Facial Wash

November 26, 2014

After being introduced to a few Amie products in September, I have quite liked all the products in the line so far. If you haven’t read my previous post on Amie products, Amie is a UK-based skincare company that has recently launched products in Canada. For now, Amie products are exclusively available at Shoppers Drug Mart locations, but I haven’t been able to find any of the Shoppers locations that I go to. I think maybe because they have just recently launched, they are slowly bringing it to all the stores? Also, am I the only one that finds the Shoppers website hard to use? I tried to search up which locations sell Amie products but it was giving me a difficult time like always… I guess I’ll just try my luck by visiting the stores in person, hopefully each Shoppers will carry Amie products soon!

Amie’s morning clear purifying facial wash claims to be a “moisturising facial wash that removes all dirt, oil, and makeup leaving skin beautifully soft and refreshed. Mayblossom and elderflower help control oiliness and prevent blemishes while orange blossom and raspberry tone and refresh. Natural moisturisers ensure skin is not dried out.”

unnamed (4) — Looks the same as the facial wash, amirite?!

First impression: The packaging and design of the bottle was the same as the previous Amie products I tried, so nothing new there. The colours of this tube are also the exact same as their hydrating daily moisturizer which added to the confusion. It may not seem that confusing but trust me, when you are half awake at 7 am on a Monday morning, things can get tricky (that or I need more sleep).

Compared to Amie’s exfoliating daily wash, this facial wash had a very creamy texture. In fact, the first couple of times using this was a bit strange to me because the texture was exactly like moisturizer, and I felt like I should just be applying this on my face as a cream rather than washing it off with water.

My favourite part of this facial wash, and what made it stand out for me was the scent! My goodness, if Amie ever came out with a perfume that smelled like this facial wash, I would be their first customer. The facial wash had a very flowery and girly scent to it. After washing my face, the scent stayed on for awhile and was quite noticeable, the boyfriend could smell it as well.

This product was also purposely sent to me in the upcoming winter season, as it is supposed to protect your skin against the cold. After a few days of usage, I noticed that my skin was a bit softer. I’ve been suffering from very dry skin lately, which was very surprising because my skin tends to be the opposite- very oily!! I’m pretty sure this facial wash played a vital role in moisturizing my skin, it doesn’t feel as dry and look as flaky anymore. One of the main ingredients in this face wash is cacao seed butter (no, I don’t mean cocoa) which contains a very high amount of antioxidants and is really moisturizing as well. I probably wouldn’t use this when it starts to get warm again because it’ll just make my face extra oily. But in the current weather, it brings a good balance to my skin. Yay!

unnamed — My Amie haul from September- Click to read!

Another great thing about this product is that it is free from parabens, sulphates, mineral oils, petrochemicals, products that have been genetically modified, and animal extracts. Amie also does not test on animals. All products are suitable for vegetarians and vegans, and their formulas contain high-quality plant and botanical ingredients. No, they did not pay me to write that! 🙂 It is also 100% soap free but to be honest, I’m not sure what kind of pros are involved in that so I’ll have to contact Amie and get back to you LOL. If you know, please leave a comment and enlighten us all.

Well, another great and moisturizing product from Amie! Have you seen any Amie products in your local Shoppers Drug Mart? Please let me know in the comments down below!

Thanks for reading!
-Carmen

This product was sent free of charge in exchange for a product review. Opinions are my own and are not altered by the requests of Amie.

Update (12/2/2014): After asking Amie what the benefits of a soap-free product are, it means that the ingredients in soap (Sodium Laureth Sulphate and Sodium Lauryl Sulphate) have a high pH level since it is an alkaline/base (remember your high school chemistry? haha). Therefore, it can disrupt your skin’s natural acid balance due to it’s high alkalinity, which can leave skin feeling dry and taught (I personally hate that feeling). In case you didn’t know, acid and base are opposites. For example, Tums stomach pills are high in alkalinity because when you have a stomachache or heartburn, the acid in your stomach increases, so the Tums balances out the acidity. Hm, the things you learn beauty blogging!

My Makeup Story Tag

November 14, 2014

I have been tagged by the lovely blondebeauty13 to do “my makeup story” tag! I’ve seen this going around the blogosphere for awhile, so here are my two cents on it. Thanks for the tag and keep reading to see who I’m passing this on to.

1- How old were you when you started makeup?
I have been around makeup since I was born, pretty much. There is a professional (well, as professional as Sears photography is haha!) picture of me when I was four years old, on my mom’s lap with noticeable vibrant, deep red nail polish. My mom loves wearing makeup and I guess that’s where it started for me.
I began playing with makeup in Grade 7, so around 12 or 13 years old? That was back in the days of school dances, we would get ready in the school bathroom. Anyone else remember buying things from Claire’s?! I remember receiving an eyeshadow palette from Claire’s, a boutique chain catered especially towards preteen girls. The eyeshadow set was something similar to the one below, but with 6-8 colours only 🙂

2- How did you get into makeup?
I’m not too sure, makeup is something that has always felt natural to me. I don’t wake up everyday dreading putting on makeup, in fact, I really enjoy it. Probably sometime around the first time I started wearing makeup, I began to read a lot of those embarrassing teen magazines that I feel a bit ashamed of now… haha like J-14, M magazine, and Discovery Girls. If anyone read those, please let me know so I feel less embarrassed… I would always go to the library and read magazines like those/novels until the library closed, I was usually the last kid to leave the library. Here’s an issue of J-14 from 2005, back in my prime reading days LOL.. From there, it progressed to Seventeen magazine which I subscribed to for a majority of my high school days. How embarrassing… Why am I admitting to all this publicly…
3- What are some of your favourite brands?
Urban Decay is my favourite brand right now, I love all their products. I also like Benefit, Bare Minerals, and Kat Von D. For drugstore products, I like Revlon, Maybelline, ELF, and L’Oreal.

4- What does makeup mean to you?
To me, makeup is really fun and enjoyable. Makeup shouldn’t be a mask that you hide under, but instead, as something that enhances your features. Makeup makes life more colourful (literally, hehe), and brings together a lot of people whether it’s through Youtube, beauty blogs, or just in person.

5- If you could only wear four products on your face, what would they be?
Eyeliner, mascara, liquid foundation, and eyebrow pencil.

6- What is your favourite thing about makeup?
I love how you can change up your look and dress up. I love how makeup has the power to transform your mood and empower you, and gives you confidence. Also, this is a bit stupid but I really appreciate the packaging and marketing of all beauty products. I admire the design and advertisements of the beauty industry, but that’s probably my Communications (in-process) degree talking. I saw this at Sephora the other day and fell in love with the packaging.

7- What do you think about drugstores VS high end?
I like both, but obviously I can’t afford all high end products which is okay. Drugstore products are becoming more and more innovative, and there are a lot of drug store products that work just as well as high end brands. Just because you can’t afford high end makeup, that shouldn’t limit you to not wearing makeup.

8- What is one piece of advice you could give to a beginner?
Practice makes perfect. No one is born knowing how to create the perfect eyeliner wing/cat eye/ eyebrow shape. See the picture below, we all have been there before at some point LOL. Also, always wash your face and remove your makeup before going to bed to prevent bad breakouts and infections! No bueno =(

9- What is one makeup trend you never understood?
Hmm… this took awhile for me to think about. Heavy lip liner 5-10 shades darker than your actual lip/lip stick. WHY??? Why Britney why? LOL!

10- What do you think of the beauty community on YouTube?
It has transformed the way we view makeup. Great makeup techniques can be taught by the everyday girl, which is very encouraging. It’s so accessible that anyone with an internet connection can learn how to do makeup. I’ve spent many many hours watching beauty videos and vlogs!

I tag (in alphabetical order):

You are also welcome to share your makeup story even if you aren’t tagged, I look forward to reading everyone’s posts! However, please do not feel obligated or pressured to do this if you don’t want to, I won’t be upset or offended 🙂

Thank you for tagging me blondebeauty13, click her link to read her tag!

-Carmen