HAIR | 5 Heat Protectants I Use Everytime I Style My Hair

I never thought about how much I use heat protectant until I looked around and saw just how many bottles of the stuff I had and just how empty most of them alllmost were (I'm terrible at sticking to one)! If you have coloured hair, you will understand just how important using a heat protectant can be as it keeps colour in your hair for longer, but in general protects hair from damage from heat styling tools and UV light. A lot of protectants also hydrate, add shine and help to improve hair texture so even if you don't have coloured hair, this isn't a bad product to add to your haircare routine! 

Kerastase and Rene Furterer products are PR. Rest purchased by me.

NAILS | Inspired by Kerastase Serum Cicanuit #CBBxManiMonday

I had mentioned before that I was having a hard time finding inspiration for nail art which means I am looking EVERYWHERE for it now and I have been amazed at how pretty beauty product packaging is! I even looked at my Nespresso pod the other day and thought "Wow, this would make an incredible piece of nail art!" Today's package inspo comes from the bottle of Kerastase hair serum that I received in my November L'Oreal Luxe Box! When I saw the bottle, I instantly saw this gradient on my nails and I even think I may have done it for a past manicure! 

Press samples provided

HOLIDAYS | Kérastase PARIS Chroma Riche Holiday Set

You have no idea how annoyed I am with myself for not sharing MORE holiday gift sets with you all! Aren't there SO MANY good ones out there? Christmas is single-handedly the best time to get some amazing value sets. Every brand from drugstore to luxury seem to package up their bestsellers to make it oh-so-easy to find the perfect gift for ourselves or someone else! One look at the "K" in Kerastase and I immediately know they know their hair. I picked up my first Kerastase styling product in 2009 and was smitten, but wasn't sure which other products were best for me. Granted, I wasn't as into my hair back then and had really no reason to invest in haircare products. Honestly, unless hair is coloured, there really shouldn't be too much fuss! 

HAIR | Kerastase L'Incroyable Blowdry Miracle Reshapable Heat Lotion Review

I heat style my hair every couple of days as I prefer to wear my hair in curls ever since learning how to create them with a flat iron. Dark hair and a blonde balayage are constantly at odds to turn brassy so for the last 2 years I went from being a religious "wash my hair" girl to a every 2-3 days in order to preserve the blonde for as long as possible. Too much heat also makes the blonde fade more quickly which means that I style it ONCE and never touch it until the next wash. I'm sure some of you are wondering how I can get away with that which leads me to the Kerastase L'incroyable Blowdry* (150mL/$40.00 CDN), a heat protector and "reshapable heat lotion"! 

Topbox | Flare Beauty How-To Edition

So, yes this is a box that went on sale Black Friday of last year, but it was just such a great deal that I had to share! I haven’t pictured it here, but the original price of this Flare Topbox was $39.99, but on Black Friday this Topbox PLUS a limited edition men’s Topbox were collectively $50! Based on the contents of the Flare Topbox and how much I love Benefit’s Gimme Brow ($26.00 CDN) and the Stila Waterproof Eyeliner ($26.00 CDN), this was too good of a deal to pass up!

Loose Button Luxe Box | LOULOU Summer Edition

This summer’s Luxe Box wasn’t a surprise as we were all given the opportunity to upgrade to a variety of different boxes prior to ship out. For an extra $5, I decided to upgrade to the LOULOU edition mainly because there was going to be a Cake Beauty product that I had been wanting to try! I have a yearly subscription so while each quarter is $24, having to pay $29 for this Luxe box was quite the steal considering what I would be getting!

It’s Time for Sample Sundays Again!

Ah, what better way to start off 2013 than with choosing some samples to start the sample snowball going! I’m not going to go quite as crazy as before as I’m actually working on some massive full sized products that I have had for awhile (years!) and would prefer to see those emptied!

Skincare

1. Korres Wild Rose 24 Hour Moisturizing and Brightening Cream (20mL)

2. Bliss Triple Oxygen Instant Energizing Mask (10mL)

3. Mark Kay Oil Free Hydrating Gel (12g)

4. Balance Seawater Facial Mist (8mL)

5. Mark Kay Indulge Soothing Eye Gel (3g)

6. Pangea Organics Facial Cream (2mL x 2)

7. Korres Wild Rose Face and Eye Serum Brightening & Line Smoothing (20mL)

Hair

8 & 9. Tresemme Split Remedy Shampoo and Conditioner (9mL)

10. Global Goddess Shine Coconut Amla Revitalizing Hair Treatment (5mL x 2)

11. Kerastase Cristalliste Lumiere Liquide (3mL)

Bath and Body

12. Lucia Goat Milk and Linseed Soap (25g)

13. L’Occitane Bonne Mere Gentle Cream in Honey (15mL x 2)

14. L’Occitane Dry Skin Foot Cream (10mL)

15. Cuccio Naturale Butter in Pomegranate and Fig (9.24g)

Winter 2012 Loose Button Luxe Box

Aren’t Luxe Boxes are so much more exciting now that they make us wait for them! It’s true that patience truly does make the heart grow fonder! I liked my Fall Luxe Box, but when I saw what other girls had gotten I was less excited. For this season, I had no expectations and was pleasantly surprised. I loved everything I received as well as the slightly revised packaging with all the products being contained in a silky sachet with the Loose Button logo printed on the corner.