Loose Button | Fall 2014 Luxe Box

This is one beauty box that is actually in the right season! I have actually skipped the summer one for now and may or may not post it later if anyone wants to see what I received. For now, I was actually quite pleased with what I received in my Fall 2014 Loose Button Luxe Box and didn’t want to wait too long to share with you all!

Jayne’s August Favourites

I actually had quite a number of favourites for August, but I feel like if I list too many it gets somewhat confusing as each item loses its “pedestal-like” status as a “favourite”. I have some gems that I have definitely been consistently reaching for over the last month and possibly even now in September so they must be pretty awesome.

Loose Button Luxe Box | Winter 2013

Now that our Spring Luxe Boxes are about to shipped, I think it’s time for you all to know what I received in my Winter Luxe Box! It arrived around the time I moved and was promptly forgotten about as I didn’t find it particularly awesome seeing as how it was a December Luxe Box. Maybe my holiday expectations were a little too high?

Luxe Box | Fall 2013 Edition

Once again, the Loose Button Luxe Box has creeped up on me! I always forget about it because of its quarterly delivery, but the products inside are always so luxe that I get so excited when I know it’s coming! I didn’t think I’d enjoy the quarterly subscription, but I think the Luxe Box works MUCH better this way and the product selection is much more consistent than when I first signed up 2 years ago. For the Fall Luxe Box, I opted for the Shu Uemura upgrade for an extra $7 as I was just too curious about the Cleansing Oil Shampoo! The rest of the box was pretty good too so read on to find out more about it!

Review and Swatches of The Balm Balmbini Palette Vol.2

With their smokin’ hot pinup girls and more recently, debonair Matt, theBalm has got to have some of the cutest, most entertainingly packaged products I have ever seen! Their palettes should make their way into every girl’s makeup collection as I find that it is almost like owning a piece of art.

I have to be honest, I got this palette in July of 2012 and have had these pictures sitting on Dropbox since then, but that’s not to say that this isn’t a fantastic palette. I originally had wanted Volume 1, but was sold of out them at the time so Volume 2 it was!

November 2012 Ipsy Bag

What?! Yet another beauty bag to add to the midst?! That’s right, if you’re a Michelle Phan fan like me, you have probably been tracking when this bag was going to be released in Canada. When it was finally announced at the beginning of November that us Canadians would finally have access, I hesitated at first because I needed to assess how crazy I was for subbing to a sixth beauty service, but it was Margo from Citygirl who gave me the final push ;-) Let’s have a look inside shall we?

My Go-To Bronzing Products for Summer!

1. Lise Watier Sun Smart Tinted Universal UV Shield SPF 30

This is chemical sunscreen free (making this a physical sunscreen and is great for those with sensitive skin) as well as oil and paraben-free. This is a cream that can be used alone or on top of moisturizer to give your face a slightly tinted natural-looking glow. It feels similar to makeup primer in that it gives your skin a velvety smooth surface and is non-greasy while providing UV protection. On my days off when I just want to step out and go for a walk, I really don’t like wearing a lot of makeup so this has been a great way to give my face some colour, even out my skin tone a little and protect me from UV rays. As far as I know, there is only one shade. The other Lise Watier Sun Smart UV Shield is untinted.

I know, it looks so scary and dark right about here! Just keep blending and blending!!

Here it is fully blended all over my hand. See, it’s not so bad!

2. Pur Minerals Pur Rocks

I have had this same box of Pur Rocks for probably three years now? There were significantly more rocks when I first got this, but I’ve lost quite a few through over-zealous blush swirling! These Pur Rocks are an assortment of different shades of browns and dark pinks and is one of those blush/bronzer type products that give more of bronzed glow as opposed to the pink of a blush. When I’m a bit more tanned, I often use this in place of a blush as it suits my skin tone much more. 

3. Benefit Bronzing Powder in Hoola

I’m sure I don’t need to go into much explanation for this Benefit favourite! I picked this up because I wanted a way to look tanned without any shimmer involved. This has also been a great bronzer for contouring my face. Hoola applies evenly and is very blendable.

4. theBalm Betty –Lou Manizer

I had originally picked this up before Hoola for contouring and highlighting purposes, but I found it to be too shimmery. Instead, I’ve been using it on my cheeks and as an eye shadow which gives me the perfect bronzed goddess look! I think I might also have to pick Mary Lou-Manizer for my highlighting purposes!

5. The Body Shop Brilliance Powder in Shimmer Bronze

I picked this up last summer from The Body Shop. It’s your classic all-over shimmer powder that’s great for the face and body. I always have to remember not to use the brush in the same areas over and over again because the sparkles can reach critical levels!

Any other products that I should add to my bronzing must-haves for summer?

Jayne’s Birthday Giveaway!

Today is Canada Day and also the day I turn 29 aka “one more year of being able to wear Aritizia booty shorts!”. I wanted to celebrate by doing a giveaway to say thank you for following, commenting and most importantly, for the amazing friendships that have come about! Over the Memorial Day weekend, the Balm website had an AMAZING promotion for the Shady Lady palettes – 3 palettes for the price of 1! One palette is $39.50 USD so getting three was just a crazy deal, but I realized I really didn’t need three palettes so why not give one away?!

In my Birthday Giveaway one lucky person will win: the Balm Shady Lady Palette Vol.3, Color Club Wing Fling and Daisy Does It from this summer’s Take Wing Collection and The Body Shop’s Beautifying Oil in Cocoa Butter! See below for a closer look at the Shady Lady palette!

*This giveaway is open to all residents of North America and ends on July 31/2012*

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review–the Balm Plump Your Pucker Sheer and Tinted Gloss

I have just begun my foray into the world of the Balm and everything from their packaging to their saucy product names to the actual product quality has me falling in love!

I recently picked up a Plump your Pucker Sheer and Tinted Gloss ($15 USD) in Cocoa My Coconut (hehe…) which is formulated with menthol and vitamin C and promises to increase circulation as well as reduce the appearance of fine lines. The formula  also features a special ingredient called “Maxi-lip” that is supposed to hydrate your lips while making them look more plump. I wonder which ingredient in the list you really are!

Packaging: This is a standard lip gloss tube with a doe-foot applicator. Nothing too crazy. This isn’t the cutest of the Balm packaging as their blushes and shadows come in much more racy packaging.

Scent: Minty! It also actually smells more like milk chocolate than like coconut and I thought that the scent was a standard for all of the lip glosses, but when I went to London Drugs to have a sniff of Squeeze My Lemons, it smelled like minty lemons! Every colour smells different!

Formula: As you can see, there is some decent colour payoff and I absolutely love the minty tingle on my lips! It’s not uncomfortable though, like Duwop Venom. That stuff is brutal! No wonder your lips look bigger. It’s because of inflammation! Cocoa My Coconut is a beautiful nude that I’ve actually been wearing everyday this week because I’ve been loving it that much. In terms of coverage, it is a true gloss, not one that has the colour opacity of a lipstick like Lancome’s creme La Laque Fever lip glosses. Now, I haven’t really noticed that my lips have gotten any more plump thanks to “Maxi-lip” so I feel like it’s more of a marketing thing…regardless, I thought the formula was good.

Final Verdict: There are 10 other colours in 10 wonderfully delectable scents so this certainly isn’t going to be my last Plump Your Pucker! I have to admit that a big part of the appeal for me is the minty fresh feeling on my lips and the fact that it smells like dessert! Nonetheless, this is a great gloss and I do recommend it, but if you don’t care for sensation or scent, you probably already have a gloss like this that costs less, so then I’d say give it a pass.

Has anyone tried any other Plump Your Puckers?