NAILS | The Face Shop "Steel Navy" Gradation Nail Art Kit #CBBxManiMonday

Here we are at the last #CBBxManiMonday of the month and it has been a strange ride hasn't it? I feel like we have all lived a lifetime in a dystopian universe and today is one of those days where I have been sliding back and forth along my emotional ruler. I started off this morning feeling bright-eyed and bushy tailed and then the afternoon sort of went to shit and now I'm feeling like I'm in some sort of funk. Well, at least I put some makeup on and styled my hair. I haven't been in quarantine for the last two weeks because I have been working, but I think that might change for the next two weeks as I don't feel safe being outside and potentially interacting with clients as the ones who have come in don't feel like respecting the "STAY AT HOME" advisory. It just makes me very angry to see people coming in to shop for a non-essential in a time like this or when someone comes in and tells me that "they are tired of being at home and just want to look around". I mean, REALLY? Now, is really not a good time to be a looky-loo! Rant aside, I do have some pretty nail today that are still shorter and in the rounded shape as I have found them easier to maintain during this season of handwashing.

Blue Glitter Gradient Nail Art
 Purchased by me

SHEET MASK | Clarins Super Restorative Instant Lift Serum Mask with a Sunday Chat

It's crazy to think how day to day things are changing globally and even within my mental state. I think what has made me more fearful is that I am still having to go into work. I have been given the OK to leave if I feel uncomfortable, but it means going on EI which given the current climate, I feel like I should be grateful that I still have a job. Our hours are reduced and it's actually safer for me to go to work then to the grocery store as staff and client contact are very minimal. I have interacted with one client in 2 weeks so my overall exposure risk is low, but we're at a point where we are all feeling the anxiety of a world in quarantine. You would think that with the extra time at home, the house would be spotless and the blog posts would be comin' a mile a minute, but stress and anxiety are a funny thing. They incapacitate and cripple you and normally, I work through stressful things in life in a methodical way, but this is the first time in my life (and I'm sure your lives) that I feel this general sense of WTF that I can't shake. My husband has asthma so I don't want him going to the grocery store if he can help it so I decided to do a bulk of it on my own today and I felt so panicked trying to carry all the stuff on my own. It was also eerily quiet in Loblaws as they have restricted the number of people in-store to allow for social distancing so shopping for groceries was rushed and even though I was already carrying stuff on my shoulders (I broke blood vessels because my bags were too heavy!), I came home and realized I'd forgotten things like green onion and ground beef which means another trip that I will have to mentally prepare for. Then came disinfecting all of the groceries and keeping track of what we touched and making sure we put things down on sanitized surfaces. It's crazy times, but lemme tell ya, even going through virology and biology in school, I have learned so much about what true sanitization means! 

Clarins Super Restorative Instant Lift Serum Mask
Purchased by me

NAILS | Deborah Lippmann Mermaid's Eyes Swatch #CBBxManiMonday

When I first started blogging years ago, DL polishes were all the rage and very sought after especially in Topboxes! I still think her polishes are beautiful and I have to hand it to the brand for coming out with some iconic shades like "Mermaid's Dream" and "Birthday Cake" which had plenty of dupes at a lower price point. Even Revlon duped "Mermaid's Dream" in a scented form! As I mentioned in last week's ManiMonday post, I lost most of my nails and even now they are still fairly short which may a good thing in light of keeping things hygienic. 

Deborah Lippmann Mermaid's Eyes Swatch
 Purchased EONS ago by me

HAIR | 5 Hair Masks

I had planned on so much blog content for this month as I had vacation time scheduled the last two weeks of this month, but then came COVID-19 and me being called back into work to hold down the fort so it looks like this month is going to be a weird one for everyone. Now, don't think me insensitive for NOT talking about what's going on in the world, but I don't think I want to read more about COVID-19 than I should. I get my daily dose from Dr. Bonnie Henry and will continue to do my best to stay at home when not at work and get from Point A to B with as little extraneous contact as possible, but we all need a bit of a break sometimes so for the next few minutes, we are going to think about our hair!

 The only product I have purchased is the OLAPLEX

BOOKS | What I've Been Reading Vol.1

What I really enjoyed about doing #NaBloPoMo in January was writing about things other than beauty. Like most people, I have other interests that I don't often get to feature with one of them being books. I was always a big reader as a child and loved going to my local library to indulge in books. My tastes tend to vary, but I stick mostly to fiction with the exception a few autobiographies or historical accounts. If I read an easy or junky book (ahem, the Brandi Glanville tell-all), the next book I read will be more "meaty". I have always advocated for literacy at a young age as it generally helps with your spelling, vocabulary and writing especially now that we are living in a time of instant gratification where we use emoticons and shorthand to communicate. Reading a book forces you to slow down and disconnect and is something I have been guilty of not doing as evidenced by my many failed Goodreads Reading Challenges over the last couple of years. Reading more was one of my goals for 2020 and so 1/3 of the way into the year, I am on track and enjoying it so here are the first five books I have read this year!

1. A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka

"Two years after my mother died, my father fell in love with a glamorous blonde Ukrainian divorcée. He was eighty-four and she was thirty-six. She exploded into our lives like a fluffy pink grenade, churning up the murky water, bringing to the surface a sludge of sloughed-off memories, giving the family ghosts a kick up the backside."



I purchased this book a long time ago when it was still considered "new and hot" and with a teaser like that, it seemed like it was going to be an interesting read when it came to the balance of family dynamics. As someone whose parents divorced in their late 20s and then remarried younger partners, I thought I could relate a little bit to some of the awkwardness that is sure to arise when someone new enters the family fray, but though there were promising moments, I never felt pulled in or even LIKED anyone or their relationships. Sure ongoing feuds were buried with a few funny things along the way, but it was just one of those books were when I never felt fully invested in the characters or fully understood their motivations. It was a relatively easy read especially when Valentina (the glamorous blonde) was in the picture since she had a big personality that dominated over all the other characters, but I would not read this again.

SHEET MASK | Yadah Soothing Jelly Pack

I guess now that we are all on lockdown for the rest of the month, I am absolutely determined to blog about alllll of the sheet masks I have had notes for for the last 1.5 years! When I first embarked on this sheet mask mission, I literally wanted to do a blog review for EVERY SINGLE MASK I ever tried, but now after trying A LOT of of them, there are some that just aren't very interesting to talk about for an entire post so I started reviewing select ones with cool ingredients, were super expensive and we needed to find out WHY? or looked funny/pretty once I had it on my face. The Yadah Soothing Jelly Pack is about the packaging and a very weird texture so let's have a closer look, shall we? 

Yadah Soothing Jelly Pack
Purchased by me as part of my FaceTory subscription

NAILS | The Last Decade #CBBxManiMonday

Today's ManiMonday is not going to be your typical one because thanks to all of the extra hand-washing we are doing to do our part in preventing the spread of COVID-19, my nails have taken a beating and three have broken down to the skin so they are quite sore. The air is also quite dry which compounded with all of the hand-washing makes for dryness all around. I even had a nosebleed this morning which I have not had since 1998! 20 years since I've had a nosebleed so it was a bit jarring to have it happen this morning. What I thought might be nice to do and still keep with my Monday nail theme is to showcase some of my favourite manicure from the last decade. Probably something I should have done back in January, but now that we are all doing our civic duties and trying to stay inside, what better time than the present?

Molecular Nails 2012

MAKEUP | Charlotte Tilbury Magic Foundation - I've Found "The One"!

Last Fall, I finally got a chance to try a Charlotte Tilbury foundation and it was very disappointing. After years of loving her eye, lip, cheek and skincare products (dry sheet mask please!) I was heartbroken when the Airbrush Flawless Foundation just did not work for me (see my sad face here), but there was still another foundation to try that people seemed to like and that was the Magic Foundation!

Charlotte Tilbury Magic Foundation Review
 PR gifted

SHEET MASK | Glamglow Glowlace Radiance Boosting Hydration Sheet Mask

I am sort of about to start a staycation next week, but have the next three days off in a row which in retail is a real rarity so this is sort of my "vacation eve" if you will. I have been feeling a little burnt out which I guess makes sense as the last time I had a solid chunk of time off was back in October. I had been feeling fairly productive at work (not really at home because I can never do a great job of being productive in both areas) and then March started and I have felt a bit slower. Hopefully the time off will give me a chance to recharge and OBVIOUSLY wear more sheet masks like this purdy lace one from Glamglow!

Glamglow Glowlace Radiance Boosting Hydration Sheet Mask
 Purchased by me

NAILS | Throwback to Nerd Lacquer's Antisocial Media #CBBxManiMonday

Whew, well that was an unintended break! I worked a 6-day work week last week and thought I would do my blog catch up over the last three days I had off, but as it turns out all my body had energy for were two social outings, grocery shopping and cleaning the house! I had a total of four naps in the last three days and it felt nice to chill for a bit even if I still felt incredibly guilty for not being more productive. Having cooked dinner fairly late today, I didn't really have a lot of time for the nails so I decided to dive into one of my indie untrieds from years ago with the new defunct Nerd Lacquer.

Nerd Lacquer Antisocial Media Swatch
 Purchased a loooong time ago by me

NAILS | Green Geodes #CBBxManiMonday

I feel like I am about to fall asleep which makes sense as it's midnight and I am only now getting onto the computer to do some typing so this post is going to be an efficient one! This month's #CBBxManiMonday theme is "Green and Blue" so whether use both shades or just one in our manis this month is all up to us! I adore both colours, but don't really get to use green a lot other than around Halloween and even then, "Halloween green" is usually mucous-like in colour. This month, I vow to bring out all the beautiful greens I have been stowing away!

Purchased by me