Mani Monday #9

Hey everyone!

Todays Mani Monday is quite a big one. Usually, I post a manicure for the week, and it almost always using an Essie nail polish. I've mentioned it a few times, but my reasoning for this is because it limits me (although this may not be apparent!) to only one brand, and it means it's harder for me to repeat shades or spend money on something that isn't Essie. Don't get me wrong, I don't necessarily think Essie's products are better than others, in fact, many shades have varying formulas and some wear better than others. I love almost every one of the shades I own, and currently I'm at 61 shades! Many have been gifts or found on sale, so just a disclaimer, I haven't paid full price for all of these shades!

Here is kind of a crappy shot- but an overview of every shade I own.

Essie's treatment products aren't my favourite, but I adore their "Good to Go" topcoat. It's fast-drying and very glossy. I also love their glitter polishes, they are a pain to remove, but are very long lasting and pretty!

I own shades from all colour families, it's getting to a point now where I have them mainly to add to the collection. I do paint my nails very frequently, so they certainly don't go to waste!

I love the brighter colours for my toenails, and especially in the summer months.

For my fingers, however, I really love Essies darker shades. I know a lot of these photograph similarly, but they often have a shimmer running through some, and not in others, and they can look very different on the nails themselves!

I hope you liked this quick overview of my nail polish collection! I know it's a bit crazy, but I love having so many options!

Thanks for reading!

Megan

Soap & Glory Hand Food Trio

Hey everyone!

Today I'm reviewing a birthday present I got from my Mum, the Soap and Glory "Hand Food Trio", a collection of three hand creams with Soap and Glory's signature scents. 

It came packaged in a cute little box, Soap and Glory always has the nicest packaging! 

I've owned two miniature sizes of the original Hand Food before, and I really love the product. It's quite a thick consistency, but incredibly moisturizing. 

The first scent is their original "Pink" scent which has the standard Soap and Glory smell. It's quite sweet but not too overpowering.

The second scent is "Frutigo", a really fruity scent which is a little bit stronger. 

Finally, the last scent is "Sugar Crush", a more citrus scent while still having a sweetness to it.

I think this set makes a lovely gift, and I know I'll get good use out of it! It's great for Canadian winters and for anyone who likes to have a hand cream by their bed, in their car and in their purse! I would highly recommend Soap and Glory for their hand cream formula, it's heavy enough to make a difference but not at all greasy or overpowering!

Thanks for reading!

Megan

Anastasia Beverly Hills "Brow Wiz" vs. "Dip Brow Pomade"

Hey everyone!

Today I'm discussing two very popular products by Anastasia Beverly Hills: The Dip Brow Pomade, and The Brow Wiz. I've owned both for quite a while now, the Dip Brow since December, and this is actually the third Brow Wiz I've owned. I hope you enjoy this comparison!

Here they are pictured together, the Brow Wiz is a pencil and the Pomade is sort of like a gel eyeliner for your brows.

I have the Brow Wiz in the shade "Taupe", which was formerly called "Ash Blonde".

It has two great perks making it my favourite brow product, 1) A Spooley (or brow brush). Super handy to travel with and a great way to tame your brows and evenly distribute the product.

Perk #2 is the super fine tip. It is so small that it can create a fine line which replicates hair quite nicely and naturally. I definitely think the Brow Wiz is easier to apply than the Pomade. 

The Pomade has quite a thick texture and is quite dry. I apply it using an angled brush, and I think the thinner the brush the better. 

Again, I have the Pomade in the shade "Taupe", but I think this comes up a bit darker and stronger. I'm not sure if it's how I apply it or if it's just because of the product texture, but it certainly looks bolder than the Brow Wiz.

It can get a bit messy and I do worry that it may dry out, but the lid screws on tightly and I haven't experienced an issue so far. 

This is my eyebrow with the Brow Wiz. It's a bit more natural looking and I prefer it for an everyday look, and when travelling.

This is my brow using the Pomade. I think it creates a bolder look, which is sometimes nice, and I've found that it lasts much longer than the Brow Wiz. I prefer this for fuller makeup looks or when I feel like wearing a more intense brow. It is cheaper than the Brow Wiz, and I think it will last longer.

I hope you found this review helpful. I would highly recommend Anastasia for your brow needs, everything I've tried so far I've loved and I haven't found a comparison yet!

Thanks for reading!

Megan

Mani Monday #8

Hey everyone!

Today is Mani Monday week 8- and since I had a shellac manicure last week I thought I'd update you and show what I did to update it a bit and what I thought so far.

To begin, I used nail stickers from Essence. They cost about $2.00 and I think just add a little something new to a manicure which would last for weeks. 

The nails themselves are looking pretty good. My nails are growing much faster underneath the tip extensions and the only thing that's bugging me is how fast they are growing out.

I've painted over them twice now, annoyingly I have to use a white base before applying a colour, but since I get so bored of nail polish colours it's been really nice for me to have that option.

So far, so good! I even love the sound of my nails tapping away at the keyboard as I write this post!

Thanks for reading,

Megan

NARS All Day Luminous Foundation First Impressions

Hey everyone!

Today I'm reviewing the NARS All Day Luminous Foundation in the shade Mont Blanc. It's the second-lightest shade with pink undertones.

NARS describe the foundation as:

"Full, natural-looking coverage with unexpectedly weightless, 16-hour wear. Highly pigmented and perfectly balanced, this breakthrough formula builds and blends effortlessly with just one drop—the result of exclusive innovation uniquely designed to deliver long-wearing full coverage, weightlessly. Shake, pump and blend in sections for complete coverage that's completely natural looking.

Pure Innovation. Exclusively NARS.

Weightless Long-wear Technology delivers up to 16 hours of wear, while always feeling light-as-air. Featuring advanced flexible polymers and first-to-market treated pigments."

So far I've only used this product 4 times. The first two I used a Beauty Blender and found it didn't work super well- it was okay, but didn't cover as smoothly as I would have liked. When using a Real Techniques Buffing Brush I found it applied smoother and covered my skin texture and redness with more ease.

The packaging is really nice, it comes in a heavy glass bottle- so the only negative is that it may not be entirely travel friendly. The lid has typical NARS packaging, so expect it to be filthy after the first use. Although these are both slight complaints, overall it's really sturdy and looks lovely on any dresser.

Its a standard foundation size of 30ml, and costs a whopping $57.00 CDN

The biggest perk of this foundation in comparison to other NARS products is that it includes a PUMP! Sheer Glow by NARS doesn't come with a pump and if you want it, it has to be purchased separately. 

It is a very liquid-y foundation, so it does have to be shaken up well. When pumped out it only gives you a tiny amount, this means you don't waste anything, but I usually need 2-3 pumps to cover the redness and bumps on my face. 

Overall, I think this product needs to be experimented with a little bit to find the best way to work with it. I find if your skin isn't completely exfoliated and moisturized it can cling to dry spots or bumps which is quite annoying for its large claims and price point. It also isn't quite as luminous as I had imagined. It's more of a satin/matte finish and while it does look nice, I don't know if it should be marketed as a luminous/glowy foundation.

I hope you enjoyed this post- apologies for not having a before/after shot- but to be totally honest the lighting is terrible where I am at the moment and I wouldn't be able to do it justice! What I can say is that when it's applied to well moisturized skin it looks lovely and even gets better as the day goes on. When applied too soon after a moisturizer it can look patchy and cling to those spots, so I do think it's hard to work with. The next high-end foundation on my wish list is NARS Sheer Glow, so I'll compare them soon!

Megan