SHEET MASK | Special Edition Mary Kay 2-Step Hydrating Sheet Mask

Press sample

I am so glad sheet masks are still in because even though I have far too many for any human, my eyes still light up when I see a new mask being released! I was not expecting Mary Kay to create another sheet mask as their biocellulose one is QUITE nice, but I welcomed with open arms the new special edition 2-Step Hydrating Sheet Mask which is one of those "poppable" masks to ensure the freshest mask possible!

MAKEUP | Mary Kay Silky Setting Powders

Press samples

I cannot stand feeling or looking even the least bit shiny when I get ready in the mornings and for the longest time, I thought that I would just have to live with it never thinking that setting powders could have helped me. Now, that I know how useful they are, I am quite particular about the ones I use and the word "silky" is most definitely on my checklist! 

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.   

NAILS | Leafy Greens #CBBxManiMonday

I saw a post on Instagram today from a nail tech who posted that if any of her clients wanted leaf nail art, that they were fresh outta luck because she hates leaves! I feel I don't do enough leaves on my nails and though I feel like we are now closer to Christmas than Fall, I've only done one set of leaf nails so this will be my second and last! 

Polishes provided are press samples

MAKEUP | New Mary Kay Summer 2021 Collection

This is the first summer specific beauty collection I have featured here and it feels kind of nice! As I write this, it is a GORGEOUS and sunny day in Vancouver with the temperatures sitting at a comfortable 26 degrees complete with light breeze. Nothing like being in a heat dome AT ALL! My reward for finishing this post will be to sit on the patio with my new book "Midnight Library" in my sundress, hat and sunscreen (of course!), but for now let's dive into some new summer products from Mary Kay!

PR samples

MAKEUP | Mary Kay Limited Edition Lip Kits

Last month I posted in this space 17x which is actually the most that I have blogged since last September when I was on vacation! While I know blogging is seen as a bit old school now compared to the micro-blogging world of Instagram, I was just having a conversation with my husband where as this will always be a space I enjoy coming to. Moreso than Instagram or other social media because I feel like I have contributed something concrete that can be referenced and Googled. There have been times where I KNOW I have done a mini review on Instagram of a product, but I can't quite remember when I did it and having to scroll through my feed for what feels like an eternity is one of my biggest pet peeves! Having said all that, makeup used to excite me and be a big part of my life and as our world slowly inches back to some level of "masklessness", I can feel my excitement for makeup growing although a few colleagues of mine, whom I work with daily, refuse to get vaccinated because they think the vaccine is harmful so it's very possible that in my work place, I will have to stay masked. For now, I will play with pretty lipsticks and do full makeup looks only on days off!

PR samples

HOLIDAY | Mary Kay Gift Sets and Holiday Fun

Something I have been doing a lot of this year is going through my blog posts and Instagram stories at the beginning of the pandemic to see what I was thinking and my state of mind. I have also been going through blog posts from this time last year when Christmas was "as per normal" and man was I A LOT more stressed! Living the full retail holiday life, balancing dinners and outings had me really exhausted and as terrible as this year has been, this has also been the LEAST stressed I have been in probably over 10 years and it has felt FANTASTIC to let my brain veg and to not give a flying f*** about clients who come at you and forget that the pandemic has changed EVERYTHING. Still, it has been a relatively busy month and as much as I have wanted to blog more, I have been taking my nights and days off very slow and easy which is part of the reason why this Mary Kay post is coming a little later than I would like, but the items were too cute not to share with you all!

Press samples

MAKEUP | Mary Kay Intuitive pH Lip Balms

These Intuitive pH Lip Balms arrived as a beautiful care package from the Mary Kay Canada team during the height of Quarantine and I didn't use them that often until I started going out a bit more and just wanted to wear a tinted lip balm underneath my mask. It's funny how you tell yourself that it doesn't matter what you are wearing on your lips if no one is going to see them, but it totally DOES matter to me! I like knowing that my lips look perfectly blushed and pink underneath probably because I don't have the nicest natural lip colour (I am SO pale) and short of lip tattooing (I have considered it, but I am scared of the swelling and healing!), a pH activated lip balm sounded like the perfect way of hydrating my lips while giving them some much needed colour.

 PR gifted

SKINCARE | The Ecocertified Mary Kay Naturally Collection

I have been struggling to write this review for months now and not because the products are boring by any means, but over the years I have found it really hard to sit down and pump out multi-product posts unless they are round-ups. Gone are the days when I had the focus to to do skincare reviews so now when I do, it's because I like the brand and/or have found something interesting to chat about. Today's it's both reasons as I was truly excited and happy for Mary Kay when they launched their COSMOS Natural certified by ECOCERT Mary Kay Naturally collection last Fall as having this third party certification means a checklist of things to fulfill like environmentally friendly production and processing, no GMOs, no petrochemicals, recyclable packaging and a responsible use of resources. It's also not just the brand that gets the certification, but EACH product so you might come across a brand that only has a couple of products certified as it does cost quite a bit to have done. I always get excited when I see that ECOCERT stamp on a product so when this collection landed at my doorstep, I couldn't wait to give each product a whirl! 

PR gifted

MAKEUP | Mary Kay Spring 2020 Collection

I unboxed the Mary Kay Spring collection back in February on Instagram and quite honestly, was not sure if I would ever get to play with it let alone feature it here because of my work schedule as we were wrapping up the end of the fiscal, but things have changed and here I am on what is one of the longest blog post runs I have had since last year! I have NO IDEA how many people are reading, whether they are even on their computers or phones, or better yet reading blogs, but I have found that I often go back to past entries and feel so nostalgic because I am immediately transported back to that time in my life and often times feel relieved to have moved past a certain point! Hopefully, that will be the case with now and the next few months when I look back at Cosmetic Proof later on. I will also have a whackload of content for reference so that sort of satisfies the "gotta get this out there" side of me, but I hope you know that I only talk about things on here that are of interest to me and if anything, the last year has been very much focused on products I enjoy as opposed to what the masses do. Obviously that might mean lower viewership, but it's hard enough to get noticed now even if you do all the right things so I've pretty much just focused on being a little selfish and just talking about what excites me. Now, that I've done my daily monologue we can move on to the real matter at hand - the makeup!

 PR gifted

MAKEUP | Mary Kay Fall 2019 Collection with Makeup Look

I can't believe I used to be able to do makeup looks every week AND blog about them while working full-time. I have been run off my feet probably the whole year at this point always playing catch up and while I used to have a bit of energy to blog at night, I haven't been able to do so in months. Though I wear makeup everyday for work and a full face of it at that, I haven't really played with a full makeup look since I was on staycation back in September. I don't think that's going to change a whole lot for the remainder of the year as things just keep getting busier and I am now overcapacity at work so if anything, like many bloggers, it's possible you will see less of me because I will be sleeping!

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MAKEUP | Mary Kay Timewise Matte 3D Foundation

You know what I have just noticed? It seems that I only have blog reviews for foundation every summer despite switching things up during the colder months as well. Maybe summer just feels like a good time to do it, but for the last 3 years that seems to be the trend for me so in keeping with old habits, here is my review for the new Mary Kay Timewise Matte 3D Foundation! 

PR samples

SKINCARE | Mary Kay TimeWise Repair Lifting Bio-cellulose Mask #31DaysofSheetMasks

Bio-cellulose. When it comes to sheet masks, this material is pure luxury.  Derived from coconut water, these masks feel disturbingly similar to moist skin and are the ultimate in moisture restoration because of the material which lends to a near perfect fit to the face. I used my first bio-cellulose mask when I got the full on flu in January of 2016 (I remember because I rarely get colds, let alone the flu) and was so hot and uncomfortable that I wanted something cold on my face. I don't think I thought much about the skincare benefits at the time, but what I do remember was how bio-cellulose mimicked the texture of my skin! I was actually quite surprised when Mary Kay went the route of bio-cellulose masks late last year because sheet masks are one thing, but going with bio-cellulose is seriously stepping it up!

PR sample

FAVOURITES | My Current Top 7 Lip Balms

I have forgotten how much fun it is to do round-ups! They are quite liberating and let's face it guys, do you REALLY want to read a WHOLE post about one little lip balm? Unless the lip balm is glittery, bubbles or changes colour, I dunno if I'd even be that interested in writing the damn post! Originally, I had just five lip balms to share with you, but I couldn't decide on just five. Since the beauty world likes odd numbers for favourites (hello numbers 1, 5, 11 or 13!) I have upped the number of favourite lip balms to lucky number seven!

Some PR samples featured

BODY | Mary Kay Satin Body White Tea and Citrus Collection

With Mother's Day coming up, I am always on the prowl for things my mom would enjoy and growing up, she was always a big fan of body lotions, potions and floral smelling things. I remember getting her a rose Lush bath bomb as a kid and I am pretty sure she never used it, but kept it unused like a sack of potpourri. The new Mary Kay Satin Body Collection is definitely one that made me think of my mom because not only does it quench your thirst for floral, but it perks up the senses too!

PR samples

NAILS | Mary Kay Fall Nail Lacquers #ManiMonday

I try hard not to do too many vampy looking manicures during the Fall season and I was grateful for October to kind of break up the monotony and give a bit of colour to the manicures I had planned, but that's not to say that I don't appreciate a good set of Fall purples like these limited edition lacquers from the Mary Kay Fall makeup collection!

MAKEUP | Mary Kay Summer Time Jewel Look with Swatches

Typically, summer looks are all about fairly neutral shades because it's all about showcasing that bronzed goddess glow. It's kind of nice because I feel like I can be a bit lazier in the summer months because heavy foundation and eye makeup just don't feel comfortable. I have already been living in ultra light foundation with SPF this month and it feels pretty good to be wearing less on my face. One thing I rarely do in the summer is pull out colour so when I saw that the new collection from Mary Kay focused on emerald jewel tones I was intrigued as to how I could make it work because I can definitely say that I have never thought of green as a summer shade!

MAKEUP LOOK | Mary Kay Light, Reinvented Spring 2017 Collection

Doesn't the Mary Kay Light, Reinvented collection summarize everything your brain knows as "Spring"? This limited edition collection has got its pinks, pastels and then a wee bit of drama. Of course, I had to try the nail polishes first (here) so now it's time for the face stuff! 

NAILS | Hello Spring Gradient! #ManiMonday

It is SO CLOSE to Spring officially making its way into our lives and yet most of Canada is still freezing. Vancouver has had snow in March and then the other day my windshield wiper broke off in the rain as it had been frozen before. Thankfully it was on the passenger side, but the blade flew off while I was on the highway and into the car beside me. I was so embarrassed!

Nothing signals the beginning of Spring like new colour cosmetics and Mary Kay Light, Reinvented collection is one of real beauty consisting of new spring-inspired lip oils, eyeshadow palettes and of course nail polishes! 

MAKEUP LOOK | Mary Kay Limited Edition Pure Dimensions Eye Palettes in Maui Gardens, Paris Starlight and Moroccan Dunes

You can totally tell by my hair colour that I have been taking my own sweet time with posting these makeup looks! Granted, I plan on going through a few more hair colours before I hit blonde again! My hair is pretty green/blue right now and it is surprisingly hard to maintain. I think I liked my hair in these photos more because it was a little easier to match with things. Right now, I find myself clashing with my own clothing!

While I was purple and blue, I was totally digging the the more dramatic eyeshadow shades and while there are indeed three Mary Kay Pure Dimensions Eyeshadow Palettes ($46.00 CDN each), I was most drawn to one (even though I now secretly love them all!). If you haven't had the opportunity to try Mary Kay eyeshadows, they truly are a surprise because the quality rivals a number of big brands. I don't know what I was expecting the first time I tried Mary Kay eyeshadows 10 years ago, but even back then I was not expecting the quality I experienced!