NAILS | Neon Flowers #CBBxManiMonday

 

Press samples

Summer weather is officially supposed to hit Vancouver this week and I could not be happier! We haven't gone over 20 degrees yet so I look forward to not having to wear a coat in the mornings! To celebrate the last #CBBxManiMonday this month, I've brought out the rest of the BIO SCULPTURE Live Life Loudly collection as these polishes are to die for in terms of opacity, colours and overall neonness!

SHEET MASK | A by Bom Honey and Blue Cica Sheet Masks

Purchased by me

Here we are at the last Sunday of May! I feel like once it hits June, my brain automatically goes into summer vacation mode even though I haven't been off a single summer since my UBC days! Then again, even work feels different when the weather is warm and you see people coming into the store in summer clothing and sunglasses. To mark the beginning of summer, starting on June 1st, I will be doing a blog series entitled "The Summer of Sheet Masks" in an effort to get through some of my sheet mask stash (and not buy anymore for awhile). In addition to #SheetMaskSundays, I will be adding in reviews every Wednesday all the way up until September! I know some of you may be over sheet masking, but I never will be! They are a part of me now LOL! 

HAIR | Getting to Know Voir Haircare (Made in Canada!)

Purchased by me

I first took note of Voir when I saw it grace @thestoryofmar's Instagram a number of times. When it comes to a good product/brand, Marion is one of the few I trust! Initially, the packaging caught my eye and then when I realized Voir was Canadian, I was even more intrigued as there are not that many Canadian haircare companies. I made in vow in 2020 to support more Canadian brands so this is when I made my first purchase!

BODY | Veilment Hemp Seed Oil Collection

 

Press samples

Here I am takin' care of my body once again! I don't know what prompted my sudden interest in body products. Perhaps it has been my ongoing beauty clean out (it has been 4 consecutive Sundays in a row now!) or the fact that I am determined to get rid of my strawberry legs (does anyone else have those?)! The latest bodycare I have been using is from the brand Veilment from Fruits & Passion which I'm sure more of you are familiar with. I primarily use their Cucina products in the kitchen so Veilment was completely new to me and is now carried through Avon.

NAILS | Beachy Daisies #CBBxManiMonday

 

Press samples

Happy Victoria Day to those who have it! Work is actually closed for today which does not happen a lot so I have had a real weekend off as we are closed on Sundays as well! I have plans to resume my beauty and house clean up today as well donating some old clothes to Big Brother. I have really been wanting to refresh my spring/summer wardrobe which means I need to make some space! I gained about 10lbs during 2020 that I have not been able to shed (granted, I haven't been exercising so...) and a lot of the clothes I thought I would be able to fit into are now just a no-go. In addition to changes in my wardrobe, I have also made changes to my nail shape! This is now my second manicure with ballerina coffin style nails and I am kind of loving it! I feel like a different person! 

SHEET MASK | PibuWang 17VDerma Vegan Cat Mask

Purchased by me

Early on in my sheet mask "career", the PibuWang #17VDerma sheet mask was one of the few out there that were vegan and had EWG certified Grade 1 ingredients (I never liked the EWG, but to some this is important). This brand also pledged to donate a portion of their revenue to animal rescue efforts in Korea as their "beauty muse" is their adopted street cat Mormi. The cynic in me wants to say this is all just a convenient way of putting a cat on their packaging, but I am going to be positive and believe that all of this is indeed true! 

NAILS | Cadillacquer Lullaby Thermal Polish Swatch #MidWeekMani

Purchased by me

I promise this blog isn't a shrine to solely Cadillacquer polishes, but how can I resist featuring such beautiful thermal polishes?! Now, that I know thermal polishes don't stay thermal forever AND considering these polishes are almost $20 per bottle, it makes the most sense to use them when they are freshest! Today's thermal polish is "Lullaby" which goes from teal when warm to cobalt blue when cold. Also, I decided to try the coffin nail shape after breaking one of the corners from my thumb. Do we like this new nail shape?

HANDS | Mary Kay Satin Hands Collection

Press samples 

Never before have I blown through hand cream like I have the last two years! Never have I had hands so dry throughout the year or hands that have cracks in the skin that CATCH on fabric! If we all learned one thing from the pandemic, it's that washing your hands is VERY important which in turn means that they are in constant need of moisture replenishment! I wash my hands a lot at work after touching money or client merchandise, but I also use the computer most of the day which means that my hands CANNOT be greasy! There are certain hand creams where you accept the grease levels because it's about treating and nurturing the hands, but in a practical environment you just want your hands to feel unparched and not to leave greasemarks for your colleagues! I have armed my colleagues with many tubes of Mary Kay Satin Hands in a variety of scents with the men preferring Unscented and women the florals.   

MAKEUP | fmg Ink High-Gloss Lacquers

 

Press samples

I have been wearing lipstick again to work! Albeit, it's matte lipstick so that it lasts all day as we are still masking during store hours, but I have been tentatively taking it off when I am at my desk or on my own. I am prepared for things to change once the Fall/Winter season hits as we might be on to a different letter of the Greek alphabet for the next variant! 

NAILS | Neon Dandelions #CBBxManiMonday

Press samples

SHEET MASK | Sephora Collection Instant Mattifier Hemp Mask

Purchased by me

Here we are with another sheet mask on another #SheetMaskSunday! How long have I been doing this? 2 years now? I think I started in 2020 as a way to regulate my blogging schedule a bit AND because it was the year my work started closing on Sundays for "pandemic times". We are actually STILL closed on Sundays now and I have to say it is just so nice having a set day off for EVERYONE where you know nothing can happen on this one day!

NAILS | Cadillacquer Vita (Thermal) Swatch

Purchased by me

I didn't get a chance to paint my nails in time for a #MidWeekMani as I wouldn't really consider Saturday the middle of the week! I was able to take three extra days off this week as it will be a loooooong time before I can take vacation days again as we are very short-staffed at the moment. I think the next time I have off is for my birthday in July which is fine. It's something to look forward to! I just pray that we don't have another heat dome! 

BODY | Boscia Bodycare Routine

Press samples

I have been on a bit of a Boscia kick ever since the event I attended online two weeks ago! I always feel like these beauty events renew your curiosity and love for a brand or certain products. It also helps when you get co-founder of Boscia, Lan Belinky, to teach you about every single product and how best to use them! For fun, I went back through my old blog posts to see when I started using Boscia and how often, and you know what? I started using Boscia 10 YEARS ago beginning with their Blotting Linens, BB Cream (THE BEST, but now discontinued) and their cleansing oil. Back in the day, I knew them more as a Western brand with Asian beauty roots which was kind of perfect for me as I was still navigating through the world of beauty and skincare. Fast forward to now where Boscia is killing it with updated eye-catching packaging and a bunch of new products not just for the skin, but for the body too!

SKINCARE | The Sunday Riley Routine

Press samples

I first heard of Sunday Riley in 2015 when I was working for Tata Harper as Good Genes was a competing product to the Resurfacing Mask because of the way it gently exfoliates. Even after leaving Tata Harper, I never really thought too much about the brand not because I didn't like it, but I just didn't know enough about it for me to take a deep dive, especially because their products are luxuriously priced! In one of my last press events for 2020, the Sunday Riley team held a Sunday Brunch event in January 2020 to celebrate the Lunar New Year and the Year of the Rat and I have FINALLY used all of the products they gave us!

NAILS | Teeny Tiny Flowers #CBBxManiMonday

Press samples

I swear I had these nails done on Sunday night! My husband and I were doing furniture switching around all afternoon and cleaning along the way so by the end of it we were both pretty spent. Most of the stuff that was moved was beauty so it involved me going through products and seeing if I was REALLY going to keep them or find them new homes. I also had to say goodbye to my Star Trek Voyager and Next Generation DVDs because as long as it took to acquire them and as expensive as they were almost 20 years ago to buy, I no longer have a DVD player anywhere in my life and haven't played them in probably 10 years!

SHEET MASK | Yoji Lab Around the Clock Youth Therapy B3 Mask

This review is LONG overdue as even my mask selfie is from pre-pandemic days and many rounds of blonde balayage ago! Over the Easter long weekend of 2019, fellow blogger Leslie from A Life Well Consumed and I went sheet mask shopping in Richmond and hit up T&T and Aberdeen Center. I was all prepared to do some serious retail therapy and realized I had forgotten my wallet! I just had my phone so before I bought anything, I just made sure that all the stores I went to accepted tap. Let's face it, Asian retailers are very technologically advanced so everyone looked at me like a crazy person when I asked if they had tap! Once a year, I make the trip to the store Green and Pure in Aberdeen Tower as the owner Wing is AMAZING and their store has some of the nicest brands and products that are of course all tried and tested by Wing!

Purchased by me

MAKEUP | Avon TPSY Collection

Products provided by PR

Hello Makeup, my old friend. That's swhat goes through my head whenever I start to put together a full face of makeup and though I am still tip-toeing back into a real daily makeup routine, I have started wearing tinted moisturizer as foundation and lipstick almost everyday! If you are slowly opening up to the world of makeup again or just enjoy the easy glow of Korean style makeup, Avon TPSY is the newest in achieving a quick pop of colour and of course glowy skin!

NAILS | Rainbow Honey Charaxes x Metalmark #MidWeekMani

 

I know we are little past the middle of the week, but I just painted my nails and wanted to share them! These past couple of Sundays (they are the only days off my husband and I share), my husband and I have made a point of doing something together that's not a chore like grocery shopping. He works from home 95% of the time now and even though I love spending my time off on Cosmetic Proof, I have to respect the fact that to him staying at home is not as exciting for him as it is for me. So, to be good partners in life, I said that we should have a plan every Sunday to go out and see a movie, have a date OUTSIDE or for the last three Sundays finally plan out our apartment and what furniture to get!

SKINCARE | Hot and Icy with the Boscia Thermal Black Charcoal and Cryosea Firming Icy-Cold Cleansers

Products provided by PR

I have been in a very involved relationship with my cleansers the last couple of months. I don't often review cleansers mainly because there isn't much variety in terms of what I can say about them, but that doesn't stop me from shopping through my stash and hand-selecting what kind of texture or scent I feel like experiencing! Recently, I started taking my double cleansing REAL serious and have been joyfully testing out various duos of oil cleanser + second cleanser! An interesting cleanser duo that has entered my rotation are the Boscia Thermal Black Charcoal and Cryosea Firming Icy-Cold Cleansers!

NAILS | Bright May Florals #CBBxManiMonday

Nail polishes provided by PR 

May has finally come and our CBBxManiMonday theme is - you guessed it, florals! Flowers are always so much fun to do as the colour combinations are endless and can be interpreted in so many different ways. I was in the mood for brights as we head into warmer weather and was inspired by this pin from The Nail Trail! Keep reading to find out which shades I used to create this bright, happy and very Spring-like manicure!

SHEET MASK | DAF (Drawing a Fragrance) V7 Vita Pearl Mask

My FaceTory subscription introduced me to so many cool sheet masks some of them having the prettiest packaging that North American brands still have not come close to! Today's #SheetMaskSunday is one of those sexy masks so let's give it up for the DAF V7 Vita Pearl Mask!

Included in my FaceTory subscription