Josie Maran Whipped Argan Oil Face Butter Review

Posted on January 8, 2021 by Henna

Argan oil is one of the more thick oils that you can put on your skin, and so it’s particularly great for people with dry skin.  If you haven’t tried it already, you could add argan oil to the end of your skincare routine at night and see if that alleviates dryness on your skin.  You might also know argan oil from the Moroccanoil brand, but its other fan is Josie Maran and all her products are formulated with this oil.

You can see from the picture below that the Josie Maran Whipped Argan Oil Face Butter has a light creamy consistency which doesn’t really make it a butter.  Granted, I took this picture in the summertime, so maybe it was more melted than it normally would have been, but it also doesn’t feel thick or heavy like a butter when you apply it.

I will say that this is a nice rich moisturizer that is great for dry skin and it absorbs into your face pretty quickly making for good hydration.

$55 at Sephora.

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MAC To The Beach Collection Review

Posted on January 7, 2021 by Henna

A throwback this morning to one of my favourite collections ever from MAC.

The collection best product, by far, is the Cream Bronzer. This comes in 2 colours: Beach Bronze and Weekend, and has a true cream to powder finish. In the pan it is most definitely a cream, but rub it between your fingers and the product becomes a soft finish powder. Beach Bronze is my favourite colour: it’s a bronze with gold shimmer in it, and is great for highlighting or as a way to give you a glowy bronze look if you’re paler than you’d like to be.

My other favourite product is, of course, Hipness blush. This blush is a repromote, but I almost ran out of it the first time it came out, so I’m glad that it’s back! This is the best peachy pink blush out there. It’s super bright, and more pink than Orgasm, which is also peachy pink. It really reminds me of Bobbi Brown’s Apricot, but it’s more sheer, thus easier to use. Put this on top of your bronzer and you are set!

The only product that I would skip in this collection would be the highlighting powder, Marine Life, which is in the middle of the above picture. I found it to be wayyy too pigmented, and although it’s covered with a layer of gold shimmer, the powder underneath is matte, and too soft so it’s very difficult to get just a tiny amount on your brush. It has a very pretty design on it, and I’m sure collectors are going to love it, but it’s not a product that you can use on a regular basis so don’t be choked if it sells out. This was just way too difficult to use, and it’s more of a super pigmented powder than a highlighter or even a blush.  Hipness is more on the pink side, while Marine Life is more on the coral side, but I still think that Hipness is a nice replacement for Marine Life and it’s much easier to use.

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Beatrice and Virgil

Posted on January 7, 2021 by Henna

I hated Life of Pi by Yann Martel.  I know that it won a Booker Prize, but I hate that the reader was tricked into reading the whole book before getting a surprise ending.  I hate endings like that.

Thus, it was with some skepticism that I picked up Beatrice and Virgil, the new book by the famous author.  I knew that it would be good… I just didn’t want to get tricked again.

Actually, this book is better than good, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it from beginning to end.  Beatrice and Virgil seems semi-autobiographical – it is about an author who becomes famous and then stops writing for a while because his new piece of work gets torn down by his editors and reviewers.  He decides to go on with his life – and stop writing – and it’s then when he meets a taxidermist who wants the writer’s help in writing his own opus.

The man is a bit strange, to say the least, but his play is so good that the writer wants to keep helping him and keeps going back to his shop because he’s intrigued by the man who writes so well already.

Again, like Life of Pi, this one is a deep novel and leaves you thinking even after you’ve finished it.  If you hated Life of Pi all the way through, then maybe don’t pick this up.  If you were torn about Life of Pi or you’d be willing to give Yann Martel another chance, then pick this up – maybe, like me, you’ve grown a bit since you read his last work and can “get” this a little better.

Available here.

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Le Paradis de Ricci Perfume Review

Posted on January 7, 2021 by Henna

Nina Ricci has a new scent out this spring called Le Paradis de Ricci. The scent was made in collaboration with scent-maker Puig, and is limited edition and only available in the 50 mL size.

This is mainly a gourmande scent, and has a base of vanilla. The vanilla only really comes through after the drydown, and I have to say that the top notes are quite intriguing and easy to wear. They are mandarin and orange, which are fresh and sweet at the same time. Almond blossom and gardenia make up the base of the scent, and woods and vanilla start to come through at the very end of the scent, after a long day. The woods, I find, are not as strong as I would like, and are overpowered by the vanilla.

If you like sweet gourmandes then this is definitely for you – it’s more of a spring scent than a summer one and I would have a hard time wearing something this sweet if it was warm outside.

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Fresh Rose Hydrating Eye Gel Cream

Posted on January 7, 2021 by Henna

Time to post a review of an eye cream from one of my favourite skincare brands, Fresh!  I’ve written about their Soy Face Cleanser which is the most gentle cleanser and loved by so many of my friends.  I’ve also reviewed their Seaberry Oil which is great for dry skin, and early this year, I tried their whole Youth Preserve collection which was absolutely lovely and very moisturizing.

The products in the Rose collection of Fresh products are a little lighter, so they’re great for dry skin and the summer.

The Fresh Rose Gel Hydrating Cream is formulated with hyaluronic acid in a light gel formula that feels instantly cooling on your face. It also has rosewater in it, of course, and so it smells like lovely fresh roses.  Unlike most gel creams, this is creamy enough to actually be hydrating on my skin, and I’ve noticed that it makes a difference on the dry skin under my eyes.  I also love to use it under makeup during the day, so you could use this day and night.

The jar is $54 but the one in my picture is a mini size that came as part of a gift set.  Not only was it the perfect size to test out the cream, but it’s also a great size for an eye cream because I find that I’m using such a small amount that it lasts forever anyway.

It’s really a superb eye cream.

You can get it at Sephora.

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Empty: Aveeno Oat Mask with Pomegranate Seed Extract

Posted on January 6, 2021 by Henna

I posted about the Aveeno Oat Masks when I got them last fall, and then when we started to be home for quarantine, I added masking back into my routine. This Aveeno Oat mask with Pomegranate has to be one of the best I’ve used recently. It’s got a moisturizing but mattifying blend of Kaolin and Glycerin which makes my skin look amazing. It’s matte, but glowing when I’m done with this mask and it makes me reach for this mask over and over again.

$10.97 at drugstores and mass merchandisers.

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Serge Lutens Fleurs D’Oranger Review Video

Posted on January 5, 2021 by Henna

Oh good morning! And Happy New Year!

My first video of the year is going to be a perfume review, so enjoy and let me know what you think!

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CJo7ZNDhdHc/?igshid=1kyc7jn07evlz

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Moroccanoil Body Souffle

Posted on January 5, 2021 by Henna

I remember when Moroccanoil body products launched, I found the scent of them too strong, but this Moroccanoil body souffle hits all the right notes. This is a rich lotion that sinks into your skin almost immediately and leaves your skin hydrated. It’s not greasy either.

This comes in 3 scents now – original, rose, and Fleur d’Orangeur.

This is a mini travel size, but a 45ml is $20 and a 190ml is $36.

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Urban Decay Vice Lipstick in Rapture Swatch

Posted on January 4, 2021 by Henna

I haven’t tried all the Vice lipsticks, but I have to say that this is not one of my favs.  It’s kind of a mature formula – which is my nice way of saying that it reminds me of something my mom would use.  The Satin formula in Rapture (and this lipstick comes in matte, metallic, shimmer, and high shine) is thick and creamy.  Considering the wide array of lipsticks available, this one isn’t something I would go for.

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L’Oreal Everstrong

Posted on January 3, 2021 by Henna

Ever Pure is L’Oreal’s own line of Sulfate-Free Shampoo and it’s a pretty fantastic line for the drugstore. The shampoos lather really nicely even though they don’t have sulfates in them, and they smell amazing too.

L’Oreal’s also has Everstrong – the same sulfate-free product formulation applies, but this line has ingredients said to make your hair stronger.

I’ve been testing out the line, and I found that when I just used the shampoo and conditioner, my hair was left feeling super dry. But the masque that comes with the line is amazing. When I used that, my hair looked absolutely fantastic! It was shiny, bouncy, and my curls came out super defined which is always a good sign of hydrated hair.

I’m going to stick with this shampoo and mask for the next little while because I really like the idea of everything being sulfate-free and thus less drying for my hair, but I’m going to use the mask every time I shampoo instead of using the conditioner.

Did it make my hair stronger? I’m not sure – I had the same amount of fallout as always, but it will take me going through the whole bottle to really be able to tell. As it is, I believe that taking vitamins for your hair, skin, and nails will help you a lot more than just a shampoo and conditioner can so I’m going to be sticking to that system.

$10.99 online each and in drugstores and mass merchandisers.

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