NARS Sephora Birthday Goodies!

Hey everyone,

Today is my 21st birthday so I thought it would be appropriate to do a review on the Sephora Beauty Insider birthday treat. I think it's a great freebie and since it changes every year you get to try deluxe samples from various brands. Two years ago it was from Benefit, last year was MakeUpForEver and this year we have a great sample from NARS. If you aren't already a Beauty Insider for Sephora- sign up! It's well worth it for the birthday gift alone!

The Beauty Insiders received two lip pencils from NARS, and VIB Rouge members also get a deluxe eyeliner.

It's really nice that you get two different colours and textures- and the sizes are excellent!

Rikugien is a Satin Lip pencil by NARS in a neutral pink shade. It has a bit of shine to it but is surprisingly long lasting. It's a perfect everyday shade and I have already worn this on several occasions!

Here it is on the lips.

This is what I was most excited for (mostly because of rave reviews from Anna from Vivianna Does Makeup), NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in the shade Cruella.

It's a beautiful, deep, classic red- leaning more on the pink side in my opinion. It is completely matte and dries down almost instantly on the lips. It is so pigmented but quite easy to apply. It never gets on your teeth (huge bonus for a red!) and while it is very slightly drying, it might be worth it for the incredible colour payoff and lasting power.

This is a very unfocused picture but I had to swatch them together next to my little owl!

Overall, I was very, very happy with this birthday gift. I'm impressed with the NARS products and am convinced I will purchase more full sizes in the future!

Thanks for reading! Yay for turning 21!

Megan

Origins "Clear Improvement Active Charcoal" Mask

Hey everyone!

Today I'm reviewing yet another face mask, this time from Origins. It's a clay mask designed to clear pores and bring impurities to the surface. It definitely works! While it can be drying it's does exactly what it says it's going to do. I've found it works well on clearing blackheads and taming hormonal breakouts- but it can bring some pimples to the surface so it's not a mask you'll want to use the night before an important event. 

I have a sample size but so far it's given me two full face masks and I haven't noticed it going down much at all! You definitely don't need to use a lot. 

I have dry, dehydrated, acne-prone sensitive skin. So basically the worst skin type. But for a clay mask I found it to be surprisingly gentle and not too drying- although I recommend following up with a moisturizer! 

I recommend using this 1-2 times per week if your skin isn't too sensitive. As long as its followed with moisturizers I feel like it can be used regularly without issues. 

Overall I think this mask is a really great buy. At $28 CDN for 100ml it is a mid-ranged price point, but not that much more expensive than a drugstore alternative which are often much more drying to the skin. I will continue to finish this sample and will consider repurchasing in the future! 

Thanks for reading!

Megan 

Mani Monday #5

Hey everyone!

Sorry about the day-late upload- the weekend kinda took over and I messed up my scheduling! 

Just another quick post featuring my manicure of the week! Enjoy!! 

This is a mini bottle of Essie's "Chills and Thrills" from their neon collection last summer. 

It's a bright electric blue, but I wouldn't say it counts as neon. Its actually quite wearable, I've worn it all week and despite changing it up with a matte topcoat I've found that I'm not bored of it- pretty amazing really.

I found this formula to be a bit thicker than Essie's usual shades, but I own another neon collection shade so I'll have to try that out and compare the formulas. It's quite a bright pink so I'm not sure exactly when it will be featured but I promise it will be soon! Maybe for Valentine's Day! 

I know his post was short and sweet but I hope you enjoyed it!! 

Megan 

Ren "Glycolactic Radiance Renewal Mask" Review

Hey everyone,

Today I'm doing a review on RENs Glycolactic Radiance Renewal Mask. It's described as a "potent bio active peel mask designed to renew the complexion, reduce the appearance of fine lines and dramatically improve skin tone." That's quite a statement, but I know lots of people love this mask. Here's what I thought! 

I just have a trial size, but I think it would last for quite a while. The back of the tube does say to use a generous amount so you could likely get between 5 and 10 uses. 

It's a really slimey, tacky texture. I am not used to a mask that feels like this and it's hard to tell exactly when to take it off. It says to keep on for 10 minutes but there's not much difference in the texture at all. It makes me wonder how effective the ingredients are or if it's doing much at all- but the ingredients are very potent. 

Here you can better see the jelly texture. 

REN also has some great ingredients and a big list of "no"s so it doesn't include ingredients like parabens, sulphates etc. 

Overall I'm a bit underwhelmed by this mask. I didn't really notice any results at all- and it was just a weird consistency. I know people rave about this stuff and I've heard it can add lots of glow and really exfoliate the skin, but I just don't think it worked for me. 

I hope you found this review helpful! 

Megan

Space Face Makeup Look

Hey everyone,

Again, this is a bit of a random post. I did another half-face crazy makeup look. I simply used a black face pencil blended into my skin and added various pigments and sparkly eyeshadows. I didn't really take note of what I was using, but it was mainly just an experimental mess I thought I'd share with you! 

 I tried to add light and shadows to different areas of my face using various colours and finishes.

 To create the highlight I used a silver glitter in a light cream base. 

 The stars come from NYX "Milk" Jumbo Eye Pencil and I dotted them on with a liner brush. If I were to ever re-create this look I would try and find a silver liquid liner and create finer dots.

 I used metallic eyeliners and cream eyeshadow to really hold the powder shadows into place and to help change the colours a bit.

 Close up

And another close up!

Overall, I really had a lot of fun creating this look. It wasn't the easiest to remove but I think it turned out great! It's amazing what you can do with products you may have laying around in your collection!

I hope you enjoyed this post!

Megan