SKINCARE | Clarins Cryo-Flash Cream Cold Face Mask

 

Press sample

I was at an event for Clarins last week and it dawned on me that this was the first skincare brand I actively started using when I turned 21. I remember going into Shoppers Drug Mart on West Broadway and saying that my skin was now suddenly feeling very dry. I was recommended a Clarins Comfort Cream and from there I moved my way into the Multi-Active collection. I would never have thought I would get to explore more from the brand through their press list, but I am grateful that I will be able to grow old with this brand and hopefully continue to share their products here or in some form of virtual space. One of their newest launches is the Cryo-Flash Cream Cold Face Mask ($90.00 CDN), a mask that utilizes the anti-aging effects of cold therapy. While this isn't a treatment I have ever had done, I was extremely curious as to just how cold this mask was going to feel!   

NAILS | Purple Polka Dots #CBBxManiMonday

Press samples 

I said last week that I was running out of ideas for Peach Fuzz nails and then I was also getting really tired of seeing peach on me so here we are at PURPLE. Thank goodness for a free for all theme because I just needed to see a different colour on me! Ever since starting my #AGemADay New Year's resolution at work (I post ONE jewelry item on my work IG each day as a reminder to myself to engage with the product I am so fortunate to be around) I have been much more aware of what colour my nails are as I sometimes end up wearing or holding coloured gemstones. I want my hand and the jewels to look coordinated!

SHEET MASK | The Creme Shop x Hello Kitty Apple-y Ever After Printed Essence Sheet Mask

Purchased by me

This mask was supposed to be for October as it had the PERFECT Fall theme, but when my skin started to seriously act up after coming back from Paris and even prior to leaving (likely due to stress), I called it quits temporarily on all non-essential skincare. My sheet masks lay untouched for months until the end of December when I felt comfortable enough to try putting my skin through the rigours of a multi-step routine again. Luckily, I know that The Creme Shop has always sat well with my skin and I could not WAIT to try on this super cute, printed Hello Kitty mask!

NAILS | Sally Hansen Insta-Dri x Sesame Street Am I Not Adora-blue? Swatch

Purchased by me

I have always had a soft spot for blue nail polishes and though I feel like I have enough now to cover most of my favourite combinations, the other soft spot I have is for Sesame Street! I mean, who wouldn't?  

HAIR | Virtue vs. The Inkey List Scalp Exfoliant (Luxe vs. Reasonably Priced)

Purchased by me

Back in 2019, I got into scalp exfoliation and did a review of the Kristin Ess Bubble Mask and Scalp Scrub (here) as they were interesting products at the time with "entertaining" textures. They still are very unique ways of getting rid of scalp buildup, but I did find them a bit cumbersome to use at times even if they did the job. Last year, I was introduced to two scalp exfoliants - one fairly expensive and one relatively inexpensive so I decided to buy both and see how they compared to each other! Let the battle begin between Virtue and The Inkey List!

BODY | Maelys B-Flex Arm Cream, B-Tight Booty Mask and B-Flat Belly Cream

Press samples

I originally started off this Maelys review with "new to Shoppers Drug Mart", but in typical Jayne style, this month actually marks the 1 year anniversary of Maelys launching in Canada! Pronounced "my-lees", this is a body care brand with a sassy attitude when it comes to their products which is what caught my attention! I think we have all seen body sculpting/slimming products before, but what I found fun about Maelys was their concept of "Hey, it's OK if you just want to look hot just for you!" and a motto of "For the Love of Bod" which some might find sacriligious, but like I said, this brand caught my attention! 

NAILS | Neon Peach Fuzz #CBBxManiMonday

Some press samples 

I am running out of Peach Fuzz options. There are some ideas online that I have seen ranging from literal peaches to sponging on orange in the middle of a bare nail which I think looks like your nail is bleeding underneath depending on how intense of an orange you use. I got a bit desperate and looked to glitter polishes as my saviour and lo and behold, I did find one! The now gone, Rainbow Honey has saved me once more! I took this company for granted and just thought they would be around forever, but honestly so many of my favourite nail brands have disappeared over the years which has taught me to "never subscribe to anything that charges my credit card automatically" and to "assume my order might take a really long time to show up". All of these things have happened before!  

SHEET MASK | Huangjisoo Centella Repairing and Tea Tree Soothing Mask

 

Purchased by me

I have been absolutely dying to try and review these masks for awhile after seeing Huangjisoo's attractive packaging on Instagram, but the masks were a bit hard to find for us Canadians. I was just about to buy them on Amazon when they ended up showing up in my FaceTory subscription a few years ago and now I have finally experienced why people were talking about these sheet masks so much!

NAILS | OPI The Future Is You Swatch #MidWeekMani

Press sample

It is Day 2 of a very snowy Vancouver with all of us waking up to 20cm of snow plus more falling! What I love about snow days is how quiet it is. No one is going anywhere and sound gets muffled. It also looks extra romantic at night because it still looks light outside because the white of the snow gets reflected. I may also be looking at this with rose-tinted glasses because I was off yesterday and today so no having to struggle with getting into work for me!

MAKEUP | Bobbi Brown Long Wear Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow Sticks

Press samples

I know, I know. I am can't really call myself a "beauty blogger" anymore because WHERE are the makeup posts?? I ask myself that all the time and I am still having a hard time getting "dolled up" on my days off with nowhere to go. If I were smart, I would use the days that I go into work to document my journey with makeup, but I don't do that (anymore) for two reasons - the first being that I never seem to have enough time to take photos because I always get caught up doing something else that eats into my morning time and the second being that my work makeup is nowhere near as glam as blog makeup. Photos for the blog and social media need LASHES which if I don't have on the Falscara wisps, makeup kind of looks "wah wah" in photos. This leads me to say probably for the umpteenth time that I am not a morning person and makeup needs to be foolproof and fast! 

FASHION | My Obsession with Vivaia Shoes (I Fell For the Instagram Ad and I'm Glad I Did!)

Purchased by me

Don't you hate it when the Instagram ads get you? It takes me a long time to actually buy something from an ad I have seen as I like to read reviews first and with Vivaia, I was probably getting fed those ads on Instagram for a solid year before committing to a purchase. I watched and read numerous reviews and it looked like overall, people were happy with the quality and how they looked on the feet. I was looking specifically for a work shoe that I could comfortably wear for 8-10 hours and wouldn't you know? I found some! Though this post only shows three pairs of Vivaias, I actually now have SIX pairs!  

NAILS | Peach Fuzz 3D Dots #CBBxManiMonday

Press samples

Here is my next Pantone Peach Fuzz attempt and I think it turned out alright! I am glad I did this manicure before this cold started to kick my ass because after sleeping poorly last night from the freezing temperatures in my apartment (the heat was on the fritz) and feeling bloated from the sniffling and coughing, I woke up feeling like total crap. I was delightfully sandwiched by Buster and Harper in my sleep so I ended up feeling quite toasty in the end!

SHEET MASK | Healing Bird Botanical Face Masks in Ultra Moisture Coconut and Elasticity Jojoba

Press samples 

These Healing Bird sheet masks were sent to me as part of the Beauteque subscription box and I had never heard of the brand prior to that. It turns out, Healing Bird is most well-known for their body and hair products and I don't even know if they still make these sheet masks now...see there I go again with taking too long to review stuff and then it just vanishes! I have to say that this doesn't happen nearly as often with Western brands! Maybe the packaging changes a bit, but the products still exist years later! Regardless, if you still visit this space of mine on the Internet, you probably aren't here for the latest in skincare and beauty anymore, but instead for my charming personality. Right?

NAILS | OPI Infinite Shine Kiss My Aries Swatch #MidWeekMani

Press sample 

I wore this manicure the week before Christmas because it truly is a festive holiday red! Though this was from the Fall Big Zodiac Energy collection, I totally think that "Kiss My Aries" is the perfect Christmas red with how much fire it has in it AND this was a one coater! Like, what?! I have used this shade a few times in my manicures since receiving the collection and it is one of my FAVOURITE reds to use. It also works for Lunar New Year, so I might keep it out for next month as well!

HAIR | L'Oreal Colorista Spray in Silver 01

Press sample

It is amazing what you discover when you go through old photos! This is a post that I started three years ago and just never got around to finishing! When the L'Oreal Colorista Sprays first launched, it was the era of unicorn hair and as a way to spare my fragile colour-treated hair, this was a fun way to get the lavender balayage I always wanted or in today's case, be SILVER! 

NAILS | Peach Fuzz and Purple #CBBxManiMonday

Press samples

Peach Fuzz - described by Pantone as "a delicate shade that sits between pink and orange. It sounds lovely enough to eat and yet this is a shade that looks positively awful on me and it is the Pantone colour of 2024 AND marks the 25th anniversary of the Pantone colour program! 

SHEET MASK | Duft & Doft Hydra Soother Deep Hydration Mask

Purchased by me 

We have made it through our first week of 2024! Do we remember much? Or were some of you still on Christmas vacation? My husband's work isn't officially back until tomorrow and traffic in the mornings has seemed lighter than usual so I think that is probably the case for a large chunk of the population, but not for me! I have put in my 4 days of work (thank goodness we are still closed on New Year's Day) and I am tired. I suspect the next couple of weeks this month are going to be unfortunately quite stressful for myself and the team and I honestly don't know how I plan on dealing with it. I am a bit scared that I might not handle it well or want to run away. I guess we shall see how I do and whether I find a way to deal with the stress. Luckily, there is always sheet masking and hopefully my skin will not betray me like it has the last couple of months, but then again it was probably my body's way of telling me to be kinder to myself!

LIFESTYLE | Reflecting Back on 2023

Well, hello there and here we are looking back on 2023! I will say that this was by far the fastest year I have experienced! Personally, a lot happened for me that made everything whiz by in a flash! Though I don't expect you to read through what happened in my life every month of 2023, I find doing these types of posts valuable just for my mental well-being especially when I feel like I can't remember exactly what happened in March or May. I'd like to think that I was still conducting my life in a valuable way and maybe it allows you all to know more about me and how perfectly boring my life is. In a good way of course!

NAILS | Happy New Year! I Am "Feelin' Libra-ted"! #CBBxManiMonday

Press sample

HAPPY NEW YEAR everyone! We made it! This year seemed to fly by so quickly especially in the latter portion as it felt like I was gearing up to go to Paris, then I went to Paris, recovered from Paris, then came the Christmas holiday rush at work which I have only started catching up to now. Thankfully, January tends to be a good time to do all of these things and clients are generally fairly understanding about delays and such. We have an "Anything Goes" theme for January, so my plan for the rest of the month is to focus on the new Pantone colour of the year - Peach Fuzz! It is classically a terrible colour on me ESPECIALLY on my hands, BUT we are going to find ways to make it work! Kind of like when chefs are given a weird ingredient to work with and the goal is to see how "creative" you can be!