BEAUTY | September 2024 Favourites

Press samples indicated with *

It has been FOREVER since I have done a monthly favourites post (I kid you not, it has probably been 10 years!), but I felt like sharing some products that I just have not been able to put down for the last month and half because it's possible you might feel the same!

NAILS | Sally Hansen x Reese's Halloween Nails #CBBxManiMonday

Purchased by me

I adore Halloween makeup collaborations probably even moreso than Christmas and and when I was lurking on Amazon the other night, I came across the Sally Hansen Insta-Dri collaboration with candy company Reese's! I thought this was one of the cutest collaborations for Halloween and ended up getting four shades from London Drugs - two of which I will share with you today!

SHEET MASK | VT Cosmetics Cica Reti-A All in One 3 Step Mask

Purchased by me

VT Cosmetics is not a new brand, but it has taken the skincare world by storm with their varying concentrations of Reedle Shot which I promise to review for you soon! Before starting Reedle Shot, I wanted to softly re-introduce myself to the brand starting with a series of new 3 step sheet masks (you know I LOVE a good multi-stepper!) the first of which focuses on soothing, smoothing and plumping.

NAILS | Wet n Wild Fantasy Makers in Purple Potion #CBBxManiMonday

Purchased by me

"Purchased by me". That's right, this polish was purchased exactly 13 years ago this month according to the haul post I did and while I did post a swatch back then, I literally took the photo in the DARK because this was the first WEEK I had been beauty blogging and didn't know any better! Back then, photography was somewhat secondary and it was more diary entry-like to have a beauty blog. When I go back and read both of those posts, I can't help but smile and feel so nostalgic about life, still being in my late 20s and having the beauty world as my oyster when it came to what to talk about. You could literally talk about anything - what you bought, what you wore, what you ate all in a blog post. Now, we have IG stories and TikTok to share our lives with and there isn't this slower sit-down style anymore.

SHEET MASK | The Creme Shop Roses are Red, Violets are Blue

 

Purchased by me

We are going back into the archives here with this Creme Shop mask as I have been a bit lazy on the sheet masking front this past week. When I want to review a new sheet mask for all of you, I try my best to write down all of my observations while the mask is on and then immediately after I remove it. All of that takes some mental effort and isn't quite as relaxing as just enjoying the sheet mask for what it is, but I am hoping the rest of this month will be a bit better in terms of enjoying my beauty products!

BEAUTY | August Ipsy Glam Bag "The Beauty Olympics"

Purchased by me

I promise I will be caught up for you all soon! My August Ipsy Glam Bag arrived at the end of August and it got a little busy for me with life and work, but I never stopped thinking about this Olympic-themed Glam Bag (how it is Olympic-themed, I have no idea...)! Incredibly, I have been enjoying many of the products in the August bag and may even buy one at FULL SIZE! 

NAILS | Let the Halloween Glitter Begin! #CBBxManiMonday

Press samples

This is my first week where I have some breathing room and time to catch up on things at work. I had today off after working Sunday (normally we are closed) for the most dreaded retail event of all time - INVENTORY! We decided that we would start at 8am and power through and we were mostly done around 12pm. The other manager and I stayed until 2pm as we were still looking into some discrepancies, but we were able to sort them out and all in all our Inventory was near perfect!

SHEET MASK | JM Solution Winnie the Pooh Barrier Calendula and Moisture Aloe Masks

Purchased by me

In October, I traditionally like to wear "printed masks" as a little tribute to Halloween and when it comes to realllly good printed masks, JM Solution's recent collaborations with Disney and Pokemon have made this task VERY easy! When I saw the Winnie the Pooh range, I started going into research mode of where I could get ALL of them!

NAILS | Dior Blue Star Swatch #CBBxManiMonday

Purchased by me

Today is bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S! Though it is a holiday here in BC and work is operating on holiday hours, I will be working a completely normal day from 9-6pm as we have a brand visit and Loss Prevention audit happening. They were scheduled by different countries/provinces that were not aware of Truth and Reconciliation Day hence what would normally have been a very chill day is now going to be a super packed "ON" day for me and the other manager!  

MAKEUP | Urban Decay All Nighter Long Lasting Makeup Setting Spray (My Always and Forever)

Sample provided by Butterly

Call this an ode to one of the OG makeup products in my life, but after recently reviewing a sample of Urban Decay's All Nighter through the review platform Butterly, I decided that it was time I gave this product the honour of having an updated dedicated review! 

NAILS | Dior Montagne sur Le Noir

Purchased by me

I know this is ManiMonday even though it's Thursday and I am sorry about the delay! I have been really busy with work and just feeling like relaxing after a "socially engaging" week with both staff and clients. Today is my first day truly off and alone in the house and so far I have managed to do laundry, grocery shopping, make lunch and do some house budgeting. It's time for a nap!

SHEET MASK | Biorace Propolis Repair Mask

Press sample

I have been on my own with a new team member (who is thankfully intelligent) as the other manager is on vacation and I won't lie, it has been busy in terms of staying afloat with regards to administrative duties. I knew this was coming though so I had already mentally prepared last week to not get much of my personal stuff done as I needed to be available to help the team. As much as I wish the team could help each other, two senior members refuse to help or give such poor advice to newbies that no one wants to ask them anything and on a team of six people, that's 33% of the team... 

MAKEUP | Pixi Beauty Rose Treats Collection

Press samples

Rose, rose, rose! There are a few brands that do the whole "rose thing" well and Pixi is one of them with a complete range of products that use rose essence to prime, hydrate and refresh the skin. The Rose+ Collection will have you covered from skincare to colour cosmetics and has been one of my favourite collections from Pixi to date!

NAILS | Winter is Coming... #CBBxManiMonday

Some PR and one polish purchased by me 

I know in some provinces, it is still very much summer, but the temperatures have started dropping here in Vancouver and the dreaded rains have begun. I had my FIRST Starbucks PSL today and amazingly, it is actually only my SECOND PSL in my life! I am not a huge fan of cinnamon or spice in my coffee/tea so I really have to be craving it to get it and today was a day where I just had to have it! It was VERY satisfying and I enjoyed every last drop over an 8 hour period because that's how long it takes me to finish a coffee LOL! 

SHEET MASK | Filorga Time Filler and Hydra Filler Masks

Purchased by me

I am finally motoring through the sheet masks I picked up in Paris with today's instalment of Sheet Mask Sunday featuring the French brand Filorga! Known as a more "derm" brand for using ingredients normally used in injectables in topical applications, this wasn't a brand I started looking at until my "older years" as the price point is quite a bit higher and the products are more anti-aging focused. I had never seen the sheet masks before in Canada so obviously these ended up in my cart!

NAILS | Dior Triomphe Swatch #CBBxManiMonday

Purchased by me

My nails have yet to grow back for the design that I have been wanting to do, but luckily I managed to photograph this brand new polish from the Dior Fall 2024 Plan de Paris Collection! There are four polishes in total and I loved the shades enough to pick them ALL up so you will see them here in due time!

SHEET MASK | Eucerin Hyaluron Filler Mask

Purchased by me

Well, Happy Sunday! I just did my 5 days in a row and again, I don't know how those of you work M-F without wanting to collapse at the end of the week! I have to work pretty early tomorrow so I'm going to do my best to get as much done today as possible and have an early night like a proper grown up LOL. I have been slacking a little bit on the sheet masking as I have just been too tired to make note of what has been happening on my face! 

NAILS | Pencils for Back to School #CBBxManiMonday

 

Press samples

Even though I have long been out of school and do not have kids of my own to remind me that "Back to School" season is upon us, there is something about having been a student for so long that makes me feel like I am still part of the Back to School madness! I am sure I am not alone in this as many of us still have that recurring dream of showing up at an exam and it's the wrong room or day!

MAKEUP | Dior Forever Glow Star Filter

Purchased by me

One thing I have rediscovered this year with Dior is their complexion products. While trying to use up my old Dior foundations from years ago, I realized that some of the nicest face products I have in my collection are indeed from Dior which led me to purchase the new(ish) Forever Glow Star Filter.

HAIR | Going Vibrant Violet!

 

So, I did a bit of a thing last week. After being blonde for the last four years, I suddenly felt the urge to change up my hair. Drastically! I went a bit darker last year by opting for "mushroom blonde" and after seeing an Instagram post on Toby Does Hair (he did my hair last year) for "Vibrant Violet"in July, I immediately felt the need to have this hair! 

NAILS | OPI Scorpio Seduction Swatch #CBBxManiMonday

Press sample

The theme for this week is supposed to be "Brights", but I have a good reason for going somewhat vampy for today and that is because my nails and fingers are dyed purple from getting my hair dyed purple last Thursday. Basically everytime I run my hands through my hair or blow dry, I am still getting purple on my hands and nails so I figured it was easier just to pick a nail polish colour that matched my hair until the dye stopped leaching!

SHEET MASK | Pixi Aftersun Soothing Infusion Sheet Mask

 

Press sample

I honestly have no idea where this last week went, but all I can say is that summer is ending too quickly and that even though I have enjoyed it, I still can't believe I haven't gotten a chance to do all the things I wanted to do. I think a big part of it was that there were a number of weeks where it was REALLY hot and humid so when the conditions are like that, you kind of just want to be lazy and not do too many house things. 

NAILS | Cirque Colors Mushroom Kingdom Thermal Swatch #CBBxManiMonday

Purchased by me

I had a super busy weekend where I think for two of those days I didn't even have nail polish on because I couldn't decide on what polish to wear! I had booked some time off on Saturday for a friend's BBQ and then I went to the Vancouver Gem Show on Sunday. Monday I also happened to have off and went to afternoon tea at Holts Cafe with a friend so all in all, my days off have been filled with many GOOD things, but it just leaves less time for blogging because I often end up napping after any social activity!

SHEET MASK | JM Solution x Pokemon Stamp In Allantoin Mask

Purchased by me 

I can never resist a printed mask let alone a POKEMON printed mask! JM Solution is nailing it with these collaborations so when I saw that Oceanbuy.ca had a few of the Pokemon masks, I "got 'em all!"

SKINCARE | Paula's Choice Summer SPF Heroes

Press samples

Truthfully, I wanted to have a sunscreen post up for you all the way back in June, but as we are supposed to be wearing sunscreen year round, I guess sunscreen is applicable from January to December! Paula's Choice recently added to their SPF family and I had the extreme pleasure of testing two of them which have turned out to be two of the nicest sunscreen formulations to have graced my face!

NAILS | China Pattern-Inspired #CBBxManiMonday

Press samples

August is going by WAY too quickly for me as I am not quite ready to think about Back to School season (even though I haven't been a student for over 10 years!). It's amazing how Back to School will forever stick with you long into your adult years. One thing I have been seeing A LOT of this summer is the blue floral print on white on dresses and bags and thought I would try it out on my nails!

SHEET MASK | Sephora Collection Purifying and Clarifying Mask

 

Purchased by me

I have had a really nice three day weekend having worked the Stat Holiday earlier this week and it has truly been SO nice. I feel like even though it's the summer, I have been workin' real hard and I'm trying to enjoy some of the summer before we head into Fall and then inevitably CHRISTMAS. It really creeps up on you and especially in the world of retail, we start thinking of the holiday season in September! It has been nice to catch up on some house and blog things and while I have been busy at home, I am a true homebody so I love it.

NAILS | OPI Brown to Earth Swatch

 

Happy weekend! I am writing this live which almost NEVER happens because it is Saturday and in the world of retail, I so rarely get this day off as it is often the busiest. This will be a bit brief as I sadly only have this one photo of OPI Brown to Earth, which the most perfect shade of dark chocolate. I bring this out quite often during the Fall months as it is such a cozy brown that works with a lot of Fall designs.

This weekend I am feeling a little bummed out with some things going on at work that are beyond my control, but will affect myself and the team in the end. I am in this mental state of re-evaluation which does not feel good, but I have some options to proceed with which might make me feel better. I am just feeling horrifically undervalued at this point and I realize that I have to do what is best for me even if it means other people aren't happy. If I have learned anything this year is that the only people who watch out for me are myself and my husband. It will be an interesting year and while I feel I have the mental capacity to handle it, I just know that it will be unpleasant. I am just hoping to clear my head this weekend and be somewhat productive in other areas of my life in the hopes of feeling better for the upcoming future.

Have a good weekend everyone and I will see you all later!

MAKEUP | Perricone MD No Makeup Lip Oil with Swatches

Press samples

Lip oils are ALL the rage now and though I tell myself that the six I have are enough, I still find myself adding to my collection as I discover new textures, colours and my weakness - scents! Though these were press samples, I could not help but get overly excited for the Perricone MD No Makeup Lip Oils as I still remember when the No Makeup series launched and it was still somewhat novel for a true skincare brand to get into the makeup game.

NAILS | Man, It's a Hot One! #CBBxManiMonday

Press samples

I feel like I can relax now that I have worked a whole week without my other manager. I feel like I can never get any of my client stuff done when I am alone because the team tends to need support that is now falling solely on my instead of divided between the two of us. We used to have a Floor Manager dedicated to helping the sales team, but she left recently and so we are having to recalibrate our energy and resources. I think what makes me sad about our current team is that two senior members of the team always need help AND refuse to help others or give them terrible or wrong answers so the rest of the team has been forced to rely on us for proper guidance. I always live in fear whenever a new hire starts because they just don't know who to trust and you can't be the crazy manager who says negative things about their own staff. I'm not in charge of hiring or firing so sometimes I also feel like I am just working with the cards I've been dealt. Anyway, somehow I managed to find it in me to put on some nail polish yesterday ONLY because I know how much better I feel whenever I have fresh nails!

BEAUTY | July Ipsy Glam Bag "Passport to Glow"

 

Purchased by me

July is over and we are now halfway through the summer which is CRAZY! My July Ipsy Glam Bag actually arrived pretty quickly and even arrived a full week before the other girl in my building received hers LOL! This month's bag was not bad with some new products that I have been experimenting with and enjoying. Let's get into it!

SHEET MASK | Kocostar Waffle Mask in Ice Cream, Honey and Strawberry

Purchased by me

It is the long weekend and while I worked yesterday and will work the holiday Monday, it still feels like I get to benefit from this extra long weekend as well as Monday is a short day, late start and overall more chill than regular days. I also start working 4 days/week this month in order to use up some vacation days and have a better work/life balance. If only I could continue that schedule, but in the world of retail that just isn't realistic!

NAILS | OPI Feelin' Capricorny Swatch #MidWeekMani

Press sample

My week of stress is almost over! Actually, it hasn't been as bad as I thought it would be even though it did have its share of client issues (of course, never my fault). For some reason, I was just in this headspace of truly believing that I could make everything better and that "nothing was beyond my abilities". It was a great feeling and I hope happens to me more often than not!

HAIR | Marc Anthony Hydra Lock Collection

Press samples

I am always chasing moisture when it comes to my hair as it has always been so dry and coarse even before I started colouring it, but there has always been a fine line between hydration and losing what precious volume at the roots I have. This area is where the Marc Anthony Hydra Lock Collection took some figuring out for me because I felt like I just couldn't have it all. 

NAILS | Inspired by My June Ipsy Glam Bag #CBBxManiMonday

Press samples

I just got back home from a lovely facial with Dior at Holt Renfrew and I feel SO relaxed that I want to have a nap, but as I work the next five days in a row without my other manager, something tells me that I am going to feel like total crap by the time this week is over. Well, at least I will have pretty nails because I am really happy with how these "inspired by my Ipsy bag" nails turned out!

SHEET MASK | When Beauty Vegan "Simply When" Collection

Purchased by me

Recently, I was doing a little bit of shopping while waiting for a prescription at London Drugs and came across this collection of vegan When Beauty sheet masks. When Beauty makes a number of different sheet masks and this collection in particular is all Vegan Certified by the Korea Agency of Vegan Certification and Services Inc. I picked up all five masks in this collection and because the masks differed only very slightly from each other, I will just do some quick little summaries of the masks for you!  

BEAUTY | June 2024 Ipsy Glam Bag

 

Purchased by me

June's Ipsy Glam Bag came slightly delayed as according to tracking it was just hanging out in New Jersey for a few weeks before finally showing up at my door. There is another person in my building who also receives a monthly Glam Bag so I kind of use her deliveries as a guide for mine and when hers showed up 2 weeks before mine I got concerned. Ipsy customer service was quite reassuring and to use their exact wording "We got you!" when I expressed concern about my Glam Bag going missing!

NAILS | Dior Riviera Swatch #MidWeekMani

Press sample

I feel like I am still recovering from last week. I feel a bit more energized today, but this week has been a bit busy with family visiting (so good to see them after so long though!) and continually playing that game of catch up at work. Also, it's the end of July. We are HALFWAY through summer? How did THAT happen? Was I on vacation a whole month ago? Where has the time gone, seriously?!

SKINCARE | Naturium Has Arrived in Canada!

Press samples except the Niacinamide Cleansing Gelee

It has been ages since I have done a full routine skincare review, but the time has come and it's a GOOD one! Naturium has finally landed in Canada at Shoppers Drug Mart and I am ALL OVER IT! I have almost a full routine here (I didn't receive the Vitamin C until recently) and I cannot get enough of it! I have been using Naturium for almost 2 months straight and I am ready to share my thoughts on a few of the products I was able to try!

NAILS | Bridgerton Nail Art #CBBxManiMonday

Press samples

I started watching the show Bridgerton for the FIRST time while I was on staycation a few weeks ago and I am HOOKED! I was so invested in Simon and Daphne that I thought I couldn't let them go for Season 2, but Anthony and Kate are now my FAVOURITE! I am almost done Season 3, but I have been resisting watching the last two episodes because I don't want it to be over! I even watched Queen Charlotte which was so sad, but sweet. Suffice it to say, I get the hype and now I want more!

SHEET MASK | Pixi Beauty Vitamin C Sheet Mask

Press sample

As expected, my last blog post was five days ago after I had said that I had a crazy week where I worked for the next five days. I am all "socialed out" after having two very long social days plus a not-so-nice one last week and I can tell you that on Saturday at work, I pretty much did paperwork in the office all day because I didn't have the energy to see anyone. The other manager also felt the same as we were both out together and we pretty much counted down the hours of the day until we could leave. I like the content of my job, but sometimes you just need a break. Luckily, for August I have asked to use one vacation day per week so I work 3-4 days for all of August which is really nice! It will give me a chance to enjoy the summer and take things a bit more slowly. 

NAILS | Bright Circles #CBBxManiMonday

Press samples

The only reason there is a timely CBBxManiMonday post today is because I am OFF. I know that I will want to die when I have to work the next 5 days in a row which I am not used to, but I hope that I will survive the week with grace. No matter how much I say to myself that I won't get tired, I'm pretty much dead by Day 4 and it's hard to find the energy to do anything outside of going to work. I honestly don't know how anyone has the energy to go out and see people or do anything extracurricular after work because I am always a zombie. I also have a summer charity gala this week so that will be a bit of a zap on my introverted social reserves, but I think it will be fun.

SHEET MASK | Genabelle PDRN Rejuvenating Mask and Glutathione Brightening Ampoule Mask

Gift with purchase

It is Sunday and I am SO HAPPY about it! I have been super busy at work in both good and bad ways and I have found myself longing for spending time at home and on my patio in the sun. I feel like life is too short and I wish I could work part-time just for the summer to enjoy the weather! 

MAKEUP | Dior Forever Glow Maximizers in Rosy and Pink

Purchased by me

I mentioned in a previous post that Dior is my go-to brand this year for beauty as well as fashion and jewelry as I rediscovered the brand while I was on stress leave earlier this year and realized just how goddamn nice their products were! Now, that I am spending my own money and not on a press list for the brand, I have enjoyed saving up and getting things that have caught my attention as well as honestly enjoying some VIP treatment because of my shift in spending. I have actually purchased quite a bit of brand new makeup from Dior in the last few months and happily playing with everything. One of the newest products that has been getting quite a bit of attention are the Dior Forever Glow Maximizers as they are the first Dior liquid highlighters!

NAILS | I've Got Stars In My Eyes #CBBxManiMonday

Sally Hansen nail polish is a press sample

I do not think I have done real nail art in awhile and I thought I would get to it this weekend, but with our Vancouver heatwave and us not getting AC yet, the thought of sitting and painting my nails while my bum sticks to my chair was just unthinkable this weekend. I also felt completely braindead in terms of inspiration, but I feel like it might be time to redo some old designs with different colours as summer brights are my favourite theme. I haven't done a beach theme in awhile, so maybe it's time I do that?

MAKEUP | Marcelle Lip Loving Matte Comfort Liquid Lipstick

Press samples

I know that as we get older, matte lip products are not the most flattering unless you have a little "lip plumper" help, but truthfully as much as I love glossy lips, they never last when I am at work because of the AC. They constantly dry out and I find myself having to reapply because they feel so dry, but generally the colour ends up vanishing because I get too busy with other things to go back to my office and reapply my lipgloss which has left me with sticking to matte lipsticks purely for longevity. As today is International Lipstick Day, it felt like the perfect opportunity to share the Marcelle Lip Loving Matte Comfort Liquid Lipsticks!

NAILS | Biosculpture Dust at Dusk Swatch #MidWeekMani

Press samples

Sigh, my staycation is over and what a beautiful week off it was! Beautiful weather and lots of Bridgerton! Having never seen the show before, I have watched seasons 1, 2, Queen Charlotte and now I am two episodes away from finishing season 3! It has been an amazing rollercoaster of emotions and drama and I want to rewatch everything once it's all over since I went through it so quickly! I thought I could not watch a new couple after Daphne and Simon, but Kanthony are my favourite!

SKINCARE | #OOTD Beauty Skincare Routine

This is a sponsored post.

I am always excited to try a new skincare routine and as I have gotten older, I am naturally a bit more selective about what I put on my face. While I enjoy my luxury skincare items, efficiency, ingredients and results are still the priority and when it comes to all three of these, Korean skincare always seems to knock it out of the park in addition to being affordable! I was recently introduced to #OOTD Beauty, a vegan Korean skincare brand, with products catering to all skin types and ingredients that are both kind to the skin and planet. Whether you are dealing with dry skin, oily skin, or looking for anti-aging solutions, #OOTD Beauty offers a range of products that deliver visible improvements.

NAILS | Trust Fund Beauty Gossip Mag Swatch #CBBxManiMonday

Press sample

Ok ok, so my excuse for posting my nails late this week is because it was ma birthday this weekend! I turned 41 yesterday and had a great time doing it! I feel a lot better about 41 than 40. 40 felt a little uncomfortable and I was scared, but this time around there was nothing but just looking forward to having the time to celebrate even though I was on my own on my actual birthday. It actually felt nice to have a birthday that was purely on my own terms. I could get up whenever, leave the house whenever, take a nap, have dinner whenever. It was great!

SHEET MASK | Farm Skin Superfood Salad for Skin in Nourishing, Revitalizing, Balancing and Strengthening

 

Press samples

Bonjour toute le monde! With this week starting my staycation, do you think I will get my act together to catch up and schedule blog posts? Who knows? Getting a cold over the weekend definitely put a cramp in my plans of productivity and enjoying the summer, but I can feel it moving quickly so hopefully by the end of the week when I have activities planned, I will be good to go! 

NAILS | Morgan Taylor Got Some Altitude Swatch

Press sample

It's my birthday week and what have I decided to do? Well, in two days I have now watched season 1 of Bridgerton as I had yet to jump on the bandwagon and I LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT! Daphne and Simon's journey had me crying every episode right up until the end! I have also been taking some time to paint my nails some very bright summer colours and Morgan Taylor has once again wowed me when it comes to colour payoff and formula!