Empties: Amika, Naturally Serious Skin, MooGoo, Revlon. etc.

Wow, it must be Friday because I cannot get myself going today. But I’ve had a productive week, so I’m trying not to be so hard on myself. Here are some things I finished.

Ok, I loved all of these, except for 1, so I’ll talk about that first, and it’s in the second picture.

The little vial of Glam Glow charcoal vitamin C oil. Yep, you read that right, a vitamin C oil with charcoal in it. Like why? It’s awful, because charcoal is, of course, black or grey, and so you’re putting a couple of drops of a greyish oil on your face. At night it’ll get on your pillowcase, and in the daytime, it’ll be on your clothes. Hard pass. This was a free sample.

TextNow on to the things I liked!

MooGoo Natural Skin Milk Udder Cream. Thick and rich, the riches of the ones they offer, and my skin really likes milk protein in a lotion. Loved this. ⠀

Amika Soulfood Mask. Actually, this is just a silicone-rich mask and you could get something like it in the drugstore, so pass on this too.

Naturally Serious Skin Peel Pads and Peptide Cream. The Peptide cream is super rich and not for my skin, but I loved the peel pads. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Revlon eyebrow pencil. Yes! Of course, liked this. And there’s a brow powder in the middle so when I ran out of the pencil, I just used that.

Makeup For Ever Aqua liner in Deep Sea. I will forever prefer navy blue eyeliner because it just makes brown eyes pop. Try it! This one was good – it had a bit of shimmer so it wasn’t flat, and it lasted a really long time.

 

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Jo Malone Black Cedarwood and Juniper Perfume Review

This is the review that’s been a year in the making because I just couldn’t put my finger on what it was about this perfume.

I hope you enjoy it, and let me know what your favourite Jo Malone Perfume is.

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Neutrogena Hydro Boost Micellar Water Review

TextNew cleansers are here part of the Neutrogena Canada Hydro Boost line, and there’s finally a micellar water in this collection. Micellar water is best for dissolving and removing eye makeup and anything that’s generally long-wearing, but sometimes I use it at the end of my routine for getting rid of makeup traces. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

This one is perfect: it’s not greasy and it’s in a large enough bottle to use regularly.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Have you tried these?

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Lanvin Arpege Extrait

Perfume story time.

I put a spray on my mom and she immediately remembered a perfume her aunt used to have. It came in a splash bottle, of course, and in the 60’s in India when my mom and all her cousins got together, they’d go into my aunt’s room and help themselves to the perfume. Then, realizing that quite a quantity had been used up, they refill the bottle with water!

She laughs now that nobody caught them even though they must have reeked of fragrance, but honestly, I’ve found that these kinds of scents sit so close to the skin. You can spray them and spray them, and there’s barely any sillage.

Maybe a projection of aldehydes at the start but once those are gone, you’re left with a skin scent. It’s a difficult smell for me to hold on to, and I find that it disappears even when I spray it on my hair, where usually can can trap any number of top notes and smell them throughout the day. Initial sprays have great projection – people could smell it from different rooms of the house when I sprayed it, but then the smell kind of disappeared.

Anyway, I left what was left of my little spray bottle with my mom and hopefully, she can revisit those memories.

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Ella i Skin Pumpkin Puree AHA and Resveratrol Dermal Peel

TextSmells like Pumpkin Spice but tingles like nothing else! I’ve been the @ellaiskin Pumpkin Puree AHA and Resveratrol Dermal Peel for a few weeks. It is a little tingly on my retinoid-flaky skin, but it’s better than a glycolic serum because I can leave it on for a few minutes and then wash it off.

I find that even with a retinoid in my skincare routine, my skin misses the smoothness that an acid usually gives, so using this type of a mask once a week does the trick. It has 5% Glycolic Acid and 4% Lactic acid so it’s a bite more gentle than an acid toner I might use.

I wouldn’t use this if I had really sensitive skin (think skin that turns red quite easily) but if you have oily skin or even normal skin, then you might enjoy this.

Ella i Skin is a company from Ontario, with interesting formulas and active ingredients.

You can find this on the Ella i Skin website.

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Strivectin Super-C SPF 30

TextNew Vitamin C + Sunscreen + Moisturizer from @Strivectin.

Maybe it’s the price point, but this brand does facial products so well and this is a beautiful rich formula. I’m not crazy about the jar packaging. Dipping my fingers into sunscreen daily is just odd – remember that sunscreen is a medicine in Canada and regulated, so any risk of contamination isn’t good.

Still – rich and creamy, and SPF 30 to boot. I’m using this every morning.

It’s moisturizing and is protecting my skin so I love it. It also doesn’t pill and layers well with makeup, so that’s a bonus, and has Niacin in it which helps brighten skin.  The combo of Vitamin C and Niacin works well for my skin and I try to always have something that prevents hyperpigmentation because I find that my skin is prone to it.  The more I can do to make my skin look great without makeup, the better!

Available now on the Strivectin website.

$69.

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Makeup On Repeat: Charlotte Tilbury and Natasha Denona

Makeup on repeat. I’m using the Natasha Denona Glam Palette eyeshadow (this was a freebie with a Sephora order) and I can totally see what the hype is. It’s a beautiful formula and super flattering. I like the mix of glitter in the shimmer formula and it’s super soft and blendable.

TextAlso: Charlotte Tilbury Beautiful Skin Foundation. I’m the colour 6 neutral, but 7 warm is maybe a bit better.

I’ve noticed a bit of oxidation when I wear this foundation, so be mindful when you pick a warm or neutral colour.  I have found that using a primer definitely helps if this is a problem for you.

Available at Sephora!

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Merit Beauty Tinted Lip Oil in Marrakech

TextMerit Tinted Lip Oil in Marrakech. Beautiful colour in a hydrating formula. I love this tinted oil the best out of any I’ve tried because how much pigment is in it. Most tinted lip oils are rather sheer, but this one is just beautifully pigmented. Have you tried Merit Beauty? Have you found anything you like?

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Uma Oils Hair Oil

Another hair oil from the cupboard today but this one is herbal, with a fresh minty tingle meant to stimulate hair growth. The scent is quite fresh and green, though not what I would call beautiful.

Text

Uma Oil uses Ayurvedic knowledge to craft this oil, and you can use it before or after washing your hair. Isn’t the bottle just beautiful?

This is another one of those oils that can be used as a scalp treatment and then also to condition your hair after you wash it. I like massaging it in, inhaling the refreshing aroma, and then washing it out.

$92.

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Charlotte Tilbury Beautiful Skin Foundation Demo Video

I have been using this foundation ever since I got it and I love it, so I wanted to share some information about it and show you all how it looks.

How glowy is the finish? Check it out here.

I powdered it, but you could also use powder underneath to set it and to maintain more of the luminous finish. I’m the colour 6 Neutral but I wish this was available in a warm shade. 6 warm would maybe be better for me, because my skin is a bit yellow. Blends out really nicely though.

 

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