Work clothes #3 and FOTD

Clothes:

- Top - Miss Swiss
- Pants - Jacob

- Shoes - Zara

- Purse - H&M

- Earrings - Spring

Makeup:

- Lise Watier portfolio professionnal corrector
- MAC Mineralize skin finish natural in Medium plus

- NYC Blushable creamstick in Plaza Pink
- MAC Mineralize blush in Dainty

- Nars Duo eyeshadow in Grand Palais

- Maybelline Master Drama eyeliner in Midnight master
- MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack 

- Rimmel Glam'Eyes mascara in Black

- MAC eyebrow pencil in Lingering

- Nars lipstick in Pago Pago  

Haul

What I bought over the past 3 weeks... It's a lot, I KNOW, but I have no regrets, I absolutely love everything!!

However, in order to control my spending, I decided today, Oct. 3rd 2011, to follow my girl's initiative and go on a beauty products-buying hiatus. Steph, you lasted a week, let's see how long I last ;) My goal is one month! And since this is a challenge where I make my own rules, I will allow myself to spend my 60$ worth of Optimum points at Shoppers (because it's not real money and I earned it okay?! :) Wish me good luck!

 

Skincare:  

Andrea's Eye Q's makeup remover pads & eye makeup correctors - I bought these 'cause they were on sale (2 for 3.99$, usually 7.99$ each!), the pads are good, efficient and not irritating for the eye, really thin though (you will need at least 2 per use), the 'correctors' are not worth it, they're too wet or something... I will probably go back to my Sofcil once I finish these.

Origins Ginzing eye cream - AWESOME. I've always wanted to try it and with the Bay having a sale on Origins products (that NEVER happens) AND a gifts with purchase, I just couldn't resist. It's beautifully creamy, it smells great and it brightens like no others. I  love using it every morning.

Origins Checks and Balances cleanser - I got a sample when buying the eye cream and I fell in love. It has a refreshing minty smell, a nice creamy texture and most importantly, leaves the skin really clean (without completely drying it out). A potential substitute to my Clarins Cottonseed foaming cleanser, which is a lot more expensive.

Eye makeup:  
MAC Fluidline in Midnight Blues - A beautiful and unique color (dark teal), very pigmented and easy to apply (works like a charm with the 211 brush)

Maybelline Eye Studio Gel eyeliner in Eggplant - I didn't have any purple gel eyeliner so I decided to give this one a try. Overall, I was a little disappointed by the intensity of the color.

Nars Duo eyeshadow in Grand Palais - From the new collection, ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS. I wear the taupe all over the lid and the pink in the outer corner. The colors are beautiful mixed together, very sophisticated I find.

MAC 211 eyeliner brush - I think this brush came out recently along with the new fluidlines, and I love it. It glides on so easily and the pointy tip allows for a nice wing out.

Maybeline eyeliner brush (comes with the gel eyeliner) - Great brush! and definitely makes up for my dissapointement in the gel eyeliner (I would have paid 8$ for this brush alone!) Although not as precice as the MAC 211, this brush is nonetheless great and easy to use. I like to use it on my waterline, the bristles are soft enough.

MAC eyebrow pencil in Lingering - This product is perfect, period. Thanks BeautyWithStephanie for the recommendation.

Lip makeup:
MAC lipstick in Girl about town - Very intense magenta (which didn't really translate on this picture), not an everyday color.

MAC lipstick in Lady Danger - Orange red, not an everyday color either!
 (I bought these two at the same time, and they're definitely the loudest colors I own. Now I just need to find occasions to show them off!)

Nars lipstick in Pago Pago - Nars' new collection is oh-so gorgeous. Pago Pago is just the perfect nude for my natural darker lips. It lightens them slightly without making me look a ghost. It's creamy, almost glossy and smells fantastic (kinda like green tea?!).

MAC lip erase - As recommended by my girl EssKayJay, this product is da bomb, totally neutralizes your lip color without drying them out. Very unique product.

Nail:
Revlon nail polishes in 799-Plum night and 915-Crème brûlée - Did I need more nail polishes? Absolutely not. But these were on sale for 2.99$ and they're gorgeous!! The first one is a deep purple-blue and the second is satiny gold-beige. I've been wearing Crème brûlée for 2 days now and I'm seriously  obsessed with it. I don't want to make a premature statement, but I think it made my top 5 nail polishes of all time!!

LOVE:
Point G macarons - I just discovered these and they totally changed my opinion of macarons (I used to think they were too sweet). The Caramel Fleur de sel & Maple Taffy ones are TO-DIE FOR, absolutely insane. And yes, I agree the picture would have been better with a full box, but I was driving home, they were next to me, what was I supposed to do? :D

talk to you guys later!! (I'll try to be better and post more often)
xox

Girly

Sunday: 

- Tank top - Jacob
- Sweater - J.Crew

- Jeans - Seven

- Flats - Aldo
- Watch - DKNY
- Purse - H&M

Manicure:
Ongles Flory, Brossard

Work clothes #2

Yesterday:

- Dress - Miss Swiss

- Shoes - Banana Republic

- Purse - Longchamp

- Watch - DKNY 

Today: 

- Skirt - Mexx

- Tank top & Blazer - Dynamite

- Flats - Aldo

Best brunch spot in Montreal

Brunch santé - Le Cartet in Old Montreal

Skincare routine

 

Day:  

Cleanser: Clarins Gentle foaming cleanser with cottonseed - very soft

Serum: Clarins Bright plus HP intensive brightening smooting serum - a little goes a long way

Moisturizer: Clarins Bright plus HP intensive hydrating day lotion SPF 20 - very hydrating but not oily

Night: 

Cleanser: same as day 

Serum: Mary Cohr Vital Essences - I bought this at my spa last spring, when my skin was really dry and flaky, it fixed everything. Now that my skin is back to normal, I'm just trying to finish it up 'cause it might be a little to intense (which is why I use it at night)

Moisturizer: Clarins Multi-active night - smells fantastic

Eyes:

Makeup remover: Sofcil eye makeup remover - great at removing all eye makeup and gentle on my sensitive eyes

Cream: Clinique All about eyes - very light and easy to apply, perfect for day. I'm considering buying a more hydrating one for night, maybe a Lancome one (I've tried them before and they're amazingly rich) or the Origins GinZing eye cream...

Lash serum: Lipocils Expert - this baby works! 50$ well spent :) I bought that product because I was getting paranoid about losing lashes (being asian, I only have a few to start off with!) and after using it for one month straight, day and night, my lashes are definitely darker, stronger and more curled!

Lip:

Lip balm: Blistex Medicated lip ointment - Put this before going to sleep and you will be guaranteed to wake up with soft lipstick-ready lips

Exfoliators:

Gentle exfoliator: Clarins One-step gentle exfoliator cleanser -  I love this cleanser so much, I would use it everyday, until my esthetician told me that doing so stimulated the skin to produce more oil (again, being asian, my skin is pretty oily to start off with!) So now I use this 2-3 times a week, whenever I feel like I have makeup build-up I need to get rid off.

'Rough' exfoliator: Origins Modern friction - Okay, this is not for everybody, NOT for sensitive skin, it's rough, it kinda hurts, BUT it gets rid of ALL impureties and leaves the skin luminous!

Note:

After testing many drugstore (Clean&Clear, Neutrogena, L'Oreal, Garnier...) and high-end (Dior, Guerlain, Lancome...) skincare products, I've come to realize that Clarins makes the best product for my skin (which is combination-oily if you wonder). The texture, the smell (very botanical-ish) and the effectiveness of the various products are great. I feel lucky to have found the most suitable skincare brand for my skin and I don't think I'll try anything else for a while.

Also, you might have notice that I don't use any toner in my routine. I just don't think it does anything. And I hate wasting a cotton pad on it... I know it's supposed to tighten up your pores and all but I made a decision to skip that step (I have enough as it is!)

hope you enjoyed this!

xox

What heaven looks like...

Canollis - Greatness from Alati-Caserta in Little Italy, Montreal

Everyday makeup

This is what I like to use on a daily basis. It takes me about 15 minutes in the morning so it's not that bad. And when in a hurry, I'm totally comfortable skipping a few steps (ie. liquid foundation, cream blush & eye shadow). I also don't wear makeup everyday...

Not sure why I feel the need to justify myself, this is partially a beauty blog after all!! So people, here it is, my daily makeup routine!

in the order in which I use them:
- Concealer: Lise Watier Portfolio professionnal corrector
- Foundation: Giorgio Armani Luminous silk foundation in 5.75
- Powder: MAC Mineralize skin finish natural in Medium plus
- Cream blush: NYC Blushable creamstick in Plaza Pink
- Blush: MAC Mineralize blush in Dainty
- Eye shadow base: NYX Jumbo eye pencil in Milk
- Eye shadows: Dior 5-colors e/s in Incognito and MAC e/s in Shroom
- Liquid eyeliner: Maybelline Line Stiletto in Blackest Black
- Waterline: MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack
- Mascara: Clinique High definition in Black

And the result:

Please don't mind my messy hair & my ungroomed eyebrows (still trying to figure out what to do with them).

talk to you later!
xox

Happy birthday Seema!!!

You're gorgeous, smart, funny, patient & loyal. And you have no idea. So today, since it's your birthday, I'm telling the whole world how great you are, my blog is my platform, all my followers now know how much I love you ;)

New things

Coach wallet - 110$ at Holt Renfrew
Rayban aviators - 170$ at KeyWest
Earrings - 8$ at Aldo
Essie nail polish - Mink Muffs - 8$ at Pharmaprix