Saturday, May 31, 2014

Philosophy Purity Made Simple Cleanser review

Purity Made Simple cleanser really is a ‘simple’ cleanser. I was hesitant to try this cleanser since I am not a fan of Philosophy’s smells but I’m really glad I did try it.


Philosophy Purity Made Simple is a pH-balanced formula that rapidly dissolves dirt and makeup while deep cleaning pores. The bestselling cleanser contains infusions of sage, chamomile, and carrot.

It is a very lightweight yet somewhat creamy cleanser that works up a small lather. You need about a quarter sized dallop of this in order to cover your whole face and neck. This product really does what it claims as since it helps remove any makeup or oil from my face. I always use a toner after cleansing in order to close my pores and I never see any residual makeup left on the cotton pad after using Purity. It even effectively takes off light eye makeup! To go with the lightweight feel of it, Purity also has a very light smell. I smell the chamomile and a bit of sage, but not the carrot of it. This cleanser is great for all skin types since it is so gentle.


I mainly use this cleanser for days of heavy makeup since I already have a daily cleanser to use up. It hasn’t broken me up or caused any dry skin patches so I can see using it as a daily cleanser if necessary. Another great use for this cleanser is as a makeup brush cleaner! You do need a bit more of the product to clean your brushes and work up a richer lather to get in between bristles, but it is great for deep cleaning brushes.

It is very pricey since it is a high-end cleanser but I actually think it is worth it. I purchased this for $12 as yet another Sephora Black Friday deal ;) (regular price is $26). It was actually supposed to be the 12 oz. size but those seemed to be sold out by the time I got there. I also received a few 2 oz. bottles from Hudson's Bay makeup galas. This $12 Purity deal seems to be a recurring deal for either Black Friday or Boxing Day from the blogs I’ve read so remember to stock up on it then, I definitely will!

Friday, May 23, 2014

Laura Mercier Lip Glacé review + swatch

I received this Laura Mercier Lip Glacé in a Sephora 500 point perk several months ago (November I think) but only started using it now. It came as a mini that is 2.8 g/1.0 oz. which is pretty generous considering the full size is 0.15 oz.! I also love the size because it makes it very compact since it is the same length as a chapstick. The point perk came with the shade Rose which is a soft pink shimmer.




This sheer, high-shine gloss can be worn alone or layered over lip color to add a touch of luster to lips.

The first thing I noticed about this gloss is that there is a bit of scent to it. It smells like some sort of vanilla candy to me and although I hate vanilla scents, I don't think that it is too strong and it also doesn't linger for long. This lip gloss is a little bit thick and slightly sticky but still very easy to apply. It comes with the usual doe-foot applicator so it isn't too messy to apply. Once it is on your lips, it feels a bit sticky but not sticky enough to take a strong hold of your hair. The colour is very true to the ‘Rose’ shade and is similar to the fresh Sugar Lip Treatment in Rose. This makes it quite natural looking for my lips since it is a bit sheer.



It looks pretty shimmery in the bottle but is less so when you wear it. The finish is slightly glossy so people that like high shine probably wouldn’t like this gloss. I always apply it on top of a lip balm so I am not sure if this would be moisturizing enough on it's own, but it was not drying to me at all. The wear of this lip gloss is fairly average as the colour seems to fade after 3 hours and the shimmer lasts a bit longer than that. It also stays a little even after eating and drinking. I’m not much of a gloss person but this product has definitely impressed me! The shade and the finish make it a great everyday lip product.

The full size (0.15 oz.) sells for $29 at Sephora.

Friday, May 16, 2014

Topbox May 2014 Review

Wow I'm amazed that Topbox is always able to ship so quickly! I only received my tracking email yesterday and received my box today. This month I opted to add a Privé box to my wishlist and I ended up getting the GlamGlow one :) To celebrate eco-month, Topbox decided to use a re-usable organza bag as the 'box'. I already have plenty of these but they're always great to keep around to pack gifts!


The GlamGlow Privé box was a 1 Topbox so I just got the 15 g/0.5 oz. travel size of the GlamGlow Youthmud Tinglexfoliate Treatment ($21 value). This is the 2nd time I added this one to my wishlist so I'm glad I finally got it. My box also came with a replacement for the Alien fragrance in my April Topbox and the $10 mystery add-on.


The replacement was the Ceramic Glaze Long Lasting Shine Nail Lacquer in the shade 'Pure' which seems like a nice opaque white. I actually don't have a white among my excessive nail polish collection I'm satisfied with this replacement :) It seems like it'd be great with the new OPI Sheer Tints that I got.

The $10 Mystery Add-on was the Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner in 'Intense Black'. Woohoo! I've been meaning try this but was always hesitant because of the price and hearing that it dries out quickly. It regularly costs $26 at Sephora/Shoppers so I'm able to try this for less than half the price.

I paid $24.86 for this box and the value (excluding nail polish) was $53.11 so this was another hit for me. Topbox was a great value this time and it makes me excited for the next box.

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Julep Maven May 2014 Bombshell Box review

Yay my May 2014 Julep Maven box finally arrived! For those who don't know what Julep Maven is, it is a monthly nail polish/beauty subscription from Julep. You start off by taking a style profile quiz to see which welcome box suits you best. If you don't like it, you can always change your box :) The first box is even free with the code FREEBOX so you are just paying the cost of shipping (It was $4.99 for me in Ontario). Here's my referral link for anyone that wants to give it a try!


I chose to stick with the Bombshell box this month because I loved the colours! This one came with the colours Laree and Saaya as well as the Plié wand. I actually was a bit unsure about Saaya so I got someone that would buy it off me :) I also got 3 add-ons: Paulette, 2 pack of precision brushes, and the Plié wand creativity kit.




Left to right: Saaya, Paulette, Laree

Saaya - golden apricot shimmer
Paulette - golden lilac tulle shimmer
Laree - golden pink tafetta shimmer

These colours are awesome! I love the shimmer since it seems so subtle and the shades also seem perfect for summer. I haven't had a chance to swatch them on my nails since I just did them, but I swatched Paulette and Laree on their caps. I couldn't get the shimmer to show up in my pictures, but it's definitely there!




I also haven't had a chance to try the Plié wand yet but I am really excited to. I'm not sure if this was an accident, but I got an extra precision brush with overcap as well as an overcap on it's own. It was a nice surprise but I'm not sure I need that many extra brushes so I may try to sell them or give to someone.

And as always, the Maven box came with a discount coupon, which is $10 off a $20+ purchase. It is only for Mavens and expires May 31, 2014. The code is PERK10!

What box did you decide to get? :) And for those non-Mavens, give it a try and take the style profile quiz!

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

MAC Cosmetics Powder Blush Harmony Blush review + swatch

Helloooo! Today's review is for the MAC Harmony Blush which is part of their powder blushes. It is described as a "muted rose-beige brown" and it is a matte blush. I bought this because YouTube beauty guru Tanya Burr described this as a great contour colour so I decided to try it.


I have light-medium skin tone (around NC25) so I find that this blush has too much pink tone in it to be good for contouring. In my opinion, this does not have enough brown in it to be a good contour powder. Instead of for contouring, I often use it as regular blush on the apples of my cheeks and I think that this way provides a slimming effect for me.


It is $25 for 6g so on the pricey side but as with other MAC products, it is a good product. It has great pigmentation and lasts for a few hours. Since it is so pigmented though, it is easy to overdo it with this blush. I also think it is more of a winter colour since it is so dark. This product didn't really work out the way I wanted but I've been reading reviews saying that Blunt is a good contour shade, so I might try that next!

Swatch without flash

Wish flash

Happy Tuesday!
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