I want to introduce you guys to Altilis Beauty.
They use breadfruit extract as a key ingredient in all their skincare. I’ve only used the body butter and face wash so far, but both are luxurious and nourishing on your skin. Breadfruit extract has antioxidants in it which makes it a powerful defense against free radical damage.
You can find them online.
This is the perfect fall scent. Woody, warm, and comforting but different too. Highly recommend Gypsy Water by Byredo.
I’ll be honest, I was ready to hate Byredo Gypsy Water because it’s one of those scents that I figured would smell too warm or too sweet on me. The notes are: bergamot, juniper berries, lemon, pepper, incense, orris, pine needle, amber, sandalwood, and vanilla. Nothing that I haven’t smelled before and nothing that really reached out to me. Amber and Vanilla together are often too much for me, so there’s that.
But maybe that’s exactly why I need to stop reading the notes all together. Clearly, I need to smell everything and wear it and see if I like it, because the truth of the matter is that Gypsy Water smells amazing on me.
Gypsy Water is totally a mood. It’s easy to wear, it’s not too heavy on any note, and it isn’t too strong but it lasts. A day after I wore it, I can still smell it on my favourite sweater and I like that. At the end of the night I can still smell it on my wrist and I like that too. It’s warm like hugging an old friend or a summer night. The scent of pine and sandalwood make it slightly woody that makes you think of the outdoors. It’s friendly without crossing any boundaries and it doesn’t have any strong notes like most of the scents I pick. Each facet kind of just blends into the next and that’s what’s good about it.
Gypsy Water is unassuming and calm, tranquil, and it’s perfect for fall or winter weather.
$226 for 1.7oz.
So L’Oreal’s Voluminous Lash Paradise is maybe the most hyped mascara of the season. You’ve probably seen it everywhere being compared to Too Faced Better Than Sex mascara, which itself was a very hyped mascara and worth the coin.
Maybe it’s the rose gold packaging which is inspiring the comparisons and that’s probably on purpose.
The thing is, these mascaras are actually different. They have different wands, different formulas, and overall different feels when applied.
What made the Too Faced mascara so great was that it went on super thick from the very first swipe and instantly gave you thick and voluminous lashes.
Lash Paradise doesn’t do that, but it does give some volume and length right from the get go, and lets you build as much volume as you want. I actually like the Lash Paradise formula better than the BTS formula because it builds better, and the colour is a more pleasing carbon black rather than a blue-black. It also lasts longer during the day and doesn’t smudge on me like the BTS formula did – and keep in mind that I’m trying this during the peak of my summer, and I haven’t had any problems with it.
I found this for a very reasonable $8.95 online.
I’m on the lookout for comfortable masks that can be worn all day. I find that once you get used to wearing them, it’s really no big deal to have them on, so I’ll continue to be on the hunt and share any good ones that I find.
I bought these constellation masks for my kids and they like them – they have other fun prints, like unicorns and rainbows, so if you’re looking for something for small faces, check them out.
I also found someone on Etsy selling these exact same masks, but I think they are buying from Amazon and then surcharging the shipping. These are $14.99 each on Amazon.
If you’ve found a mask you really like, tell me in the comments! I think we will be wearing them for a while!
I’ve had a bit of dry skin lately, so I’ve added Roger and Gallet’s Le Soin Aura Mirabilis Beauty Vinegar to my skincare routine. This is a moisturizing toner that I use in the morning and the night after I cleanse my skin. You can see that it’s bi-phase. This beauty vinegar is made up of 18 extracts, and some of them are oils, so they separate from the ones that are watery
Here’s me shaking up the bottle. You give it a shake to mix the water and the oils.
Once the two parts are emulsified, you pour on to a cotton pad and wipe all over your face. It’s easy to do and the first time I did it, I saw a lot of makeup residue come off my neck. I hadn’t realized that my cleansing wasn’t what I thought it was.
The Beauty Vinegar smells absolutely amazing, and it’s a scent that I can smell for up to an hour after I use this. Because it’s not stripping at all, I find that my skin is so comfortable after using this beauty vinegar.
The line launched at Sephora in 2017 but isn’t available there anymore, so you’ll have to find it on a site that ships from the UK.
You can read my original review of the whole Aura Mirabilis line here.
Makeup Revolution is a British brand that’s available at Shoppers Drug Mart, and it’s quite affordable. This palette is just $8 which is a great price for the range of colours that are in it and for the pigmentations that these have. This palette is the Neutrals 2 palette, so it’s got neutrals but they all have a rust/red element to them. Even the browns go on a bit ruddy, as do the shimmers.
I liked that there are tons of matte shades to work with in this palette. They show up on my skin and are very pigmented. I also liked that the red component pushed me out of my comfort zone. I’m thinking that lots of these colours would work for a more dressed up look but there’s enough muted shades that it would work for daytime too.
My one issue with this palette is that there are no deep dark shades to anchor a makeup look. I’d love a matte deep brown I could use in my brows or a black for a liner. If I was traveling with this palette, I would have to carry those colours separately which seems a little silly when there are 15 shades in this palette and some of the matte browns are so similar that you could easily take one out.
I also miss a glitter colour. I love wearing glitter on its own or as a pop on top of any of these colours, and so this is missing that too.
All that being said, if you’re playing with makeup, this is nice to have and play around with. Watch the video to see the eye look, and I even used one of the shades as a lip color.
http://www.instagram.com/tv/CCHIuvPpc5P/
I’ve found another favourite Bumble and Bumble shampoo and conditioner duo. My first favourite is the Invisible Oil Shampoo and Conditioner, and I can’t get enough of the warm scent, but the Bumble and Bumble is a close second. It is perfect for when you don’t need to really add a lot of moisturizing to your hair.
What I love about the Thickening Shampoo is that it washes totally clean and lets your hair have a lot of volume. The Thickening Condition has slip but isn’t heavy or thick itself. It’s great for detangling fine hair and then it washes clean.
If you’ve used the iconic Bumble and Bumble Thickening Dry Spun Texture spray then you know how this smells. Kind of fresh and dry at once.
$28 for the Thickening Shampoo, and $30 for the Thickening Conditioner.
Available online or at salons.
Lately, as I’ve been cleaning out my beauty stash, I’ve come across a few minis of the Moroccanoil Treatment, so it’s given me a chance to try it again.
By now, most people are familiar with the treatment but maybe you’ve never tried it.
Moroccanoil was the first big brand to incorporate argan oil into its products, and launched with this original Moroccanoil treatment. Although the ingredients are mostly silicone, there is enough argan oil in this treatment to really help smooth your hair and add some conditioning to it. It’s nice to see the most hyped ingredient further up on the ingredient list, but the truth is that if anything has too much oils, it actually leaves your hair feeling greasy, which is not what you want.
The Moroccaoil treatment is seriously smoothing – I’ve been using it in 90% humidity and noticed a difference in my hair. The best way to use it is on wet hair so that it distributes well. You’ll notice a difference as your hair dries.
Moroccanoil has the most iconic smell – rich and warm, it’s almost addictive how nice this smells, and it’s nice to know that it works so well too.
You can find Moroccanoil here.
I grew up watching cooking shows with my dad, and one of the ones we used to watch way back when was Julia Child’s show. She really had spark, was totally real, and had some good recipes to boot. She didn’t necessarily make anything fancy, but she made food that you actually wanted to eat and could eat at home.
I just got Julia Child’s Kitchen Wisdom and it really reminds me of the show, because it’s just simple recipes that you’ll want to have. There aren’t any pictures in the book and it’s not an expensive one, but it’s still great.
Do you know how hard it is to find a simple recipe for custard? There are a ton of them on the Internet, but the problem is that they are all different and most of them are to be used as part of a larger recipe. Well Julia has a good basic custard recipe and all the variations on it so that you can put things together yourself. The book is a great resource to have in your kitchen and would make a lovely hostess’ gift to anyone who likes to cook.
This is a classic book that you will have forever, and you can get it online for $18.
Jo Malone fragrances are not for everyone – but they are for me, and I still remember how much I loved my first purchase, Pomegranate Noir. If I had to describe that scent, I would have to say that it does sometimes smell like slightly rotten fruit. Can you see why it’s not for everyone?
As it turns out, Jo Malone’s launch, Vanilla and Anise has a much more universally pleasing scent. Although the scent dossier says that it’s a modern vanilla, to me this is totally old school. The Vanilla and Anise Scent remind me of a spiced tea cake or cookies that have hints of cardamom in them. However, it does all this without being overly sweet or even the slightest bit gourmand. Like all Jo Malone scents, her skill lies in the subtlety of creating unique fragrances.
I found that this wore better than most Jo Malone Colognes and layered especially well with Grapefruit, which is a citrus with a spicy base.
$186 for 1o0mL.
