Tried and True: My First Younique Order

Wowee!! I can't believe it's been 4 years since I last posted...a lot of things have changed in our lives - my love for makeup is not one of them!  I'm sorry it's been so long, but I promise that I'll be posting a lot more often, now that things have somewhat calmed in our realm.

Today, I'm going to be giving my Tried and True Review on a few things I picked up from Younique.

  I knew of Younique as the company that had the insanely good mascara!  Then I met Amanda, and was introduced to the world of Younique.  She explained to me that all the products are made with natural ingredients and that if I'm not satisfied with what I've purchased, they will refund me 100% - no questions asked.  They also have a foundation - not just the one for your face - that helps women affected by sexual abuse, which is something that a lot of us hold dear to our hearts.

Amanda is a shy girl from Northern Ontario that purchased the representative starter kit from Younique for her own personal use.  She wasn't planning on selling the products to anyone but her immediate family and friends, because the thought of selling to strangers caused her to become anxious.  Anyone who knows me, knows I'm the loudest, most annoying person in the whole wide world.  I started talking to her at our kids' dance classes and learned so much about her and her younique adventure.  She explained to me that she had just started out as a Younique Presenter and we talked about the MoodStruck Splash Liquid Lipstick she was wearing.  We talked about how the staying power was decent and how it didn't kiss/wipe off easily...so she let me try it.  I was able to wear the colour and take my puffers without the colour coming off on the mouthpiece...I was intrigued.

My first order consisted of the Moodstruck Epic Mascara, the Moodstruck Precision Pencil eyeliner in Perfect - Jet Black, the Moodstruck Splash Liquid Lipstick in Stellar - Beige Nude, as well as a pencil sharpener that works exceptionally well with plastic-barreled eyeliners.  My entire order came to a little less than $100 and arrived within a week!

I've been using these new items for a little over a month now and so let's get into the review...

Lets start with the Moodstruck Epic Mascara.  This mascara is the reason why I placed an order with Amanda.  I had only tried this mascara one other time, and really enjoyed the length and volume the mascara gave my lashes.

My lashes didn't clump, they were just absolutely stunning!  On days when I don't wear makeup, I'll put the mascara on, just to give my eyes a little oomph!  I recommend this mascara to everyone looking for length, volume and stunning curl.

Next is the Moodstruck Precision Pencil eyeliner in Perfect - a true Jet Black.  I'm not a fan of eyeliner, for the simple reason that I have extremely oily skin and have never - I mean NEVER - found an eyeliner that stays put, instead of running away from my eyes, making me look like a raccoon or a panda.  Amanda suggested I try this eyeliner and of course, if I didn't enjoy it, to return for a full refund.  What did I have to lose, right? This eyeliner surprised me.  I thought it was going to run off my face like everything else I've tried, but it stayed put...all day!  I was able to use it on my upper and lower lash lines, as well as my waterline.  This is now my go-to eyeliner only because I no longer have to re-apply midday and I don't have to wipe away the runaways.

Thirdly, I tried the Moodstruck Splash Liquid Lipstick in Stellar - a beautiful Nude Beige shade.  This colour is great for everyone.  I wasn't as impressed with this Splash, because it didn't have the same staying power as the Superior Splash that Amanda let me try at dance class.  It comes off on my coffee cup and my puffer chamber, but not as badly as other lipsticks.  I'm assuming it has a different formula than the Superior, as Stellar is not metallic or shiny, but more matte.  I will try this again, but maybe in a metallic formula, because the staying power WAS amazing.

If you are interested in trying out products from Younique, please feel free to visit Amanda's page at www.youniqueproducts.com/amandapeters and don't forget, if you have questions, Amanda is there to answer them for you!  She is knowledgeable on the products she sells and if there is something she doesn't know, she will find the answer for you!  Thanks Amanda for making my first experience a great one!

Well that's it for today, thanks for taking the time to read and as always, please like, comment and subscribe!  Have a great day!

Tried and True: Tresemme Fresh Start Waterless Foam Shampoo

Hi Everyone!  Today I have a Tried and True Review on the TreSemme Fresh Start Waterless Foam Shampoo.

The instructions for using this Waterless Foam Shampoo are as follows:
- Pump 2-3 times (for mid-length hair) into your hand.
- Spread product throughout hair with fingertips.
- Using a towel, gently rub your hair to remove any dirt and excess oil.
- Style as usual, if desired.



This was my hair before using the Waterless Foam Shampoo.  I already have my makeup on.



This is three pumps of Foam Shampoo.  I spread it throughout my hair...



I look angry because I feel like my hair still looks like it did BEFORE I put the Foam Shampoo in my hair.  I actually put this in my hair and mixed it thoroughly.  Then I was like, wtf is going on here, I look gross.  So I re-read the bottle and somehow, I missed the part about rubbing the towel through your hair to get rid of excess oil and dirt.  So I tried that...



I was surprised at how well it got rid of excess oil.  I have very oily hair and skin.



My hair is starting to look better, now I'm going to start styling it.  My hair doesn't look greasy at all.



Almost done my hair...



This is my finished look.  My hair looks great!  I'm impressed.  I didn't notice til after I used it, that the TreSemme Fresh Start Waterless Foam Shampoo is recommended for Curly/Dry hair.  Both of which I DO NOT have...I find it worked well and smelled great - a citrus-y smell.



This is a photo of me - 6 hours later - and my hair still looked great!

Let me know if you've tried TreSemme's Waterless Foam Shampoo or tell me which Waterless Foam/Dry Shampoo is your favourite!

Thanks for visiting, please comment and subscribe and lots of love to you all.

- Channie

Tried and True: Garnier Fructis Style Sleek & Shine Blow Dry Perfection Brushing Smoothing Kit

Hello Everyone!

We had a lot of snow fall on Saturday, so my husband was at work most of the day.  I like to play with makeup and beauty products while my husband is at work.  I decided to play with the Garnier Fructis Style SLEEK & SHINE Blow Dry Perfection Brushing Smoothing Kit. Now that is a mouthful!  I purchased this smoothing kit at my local Dollarama for $3.

 

 

The box contained a pair of disposable gloves, instructions, as well as the 20-min Snooth-It Serum (tube 1) and the Heat-Activated Perfect-It Cream (tube 2).

 

 
The instructions start off by telling you to shampoo your hair as you normally would.  DO NOT condition your hair and then towel dry.  Here's a shot of me with my shampoo hairdo!

Then the instructions tell us to open the 20-min Smooth-It Serum (tube 1) but be EXTREMELY careful not to spill it as it is very liquid-y.  It is a runny gel that smells like perm solution - it stinks!
 

 
It then says to apply the serum to your hair focusing on the mid-lengths and ends of hair.  This is what your hair looks like after you've applied the serum. Leave the serum on your hair for 20 minutes - 30 minutes if your hair is resistant, like mine. Then, you rinse it out and towel dry your hair again. 

 

Once you've towel dried your hair, the instructions tell you to apply enough of the Heat-Activated Perfect-It Cream (tube 2) to lightly coat the hair from root to tip.

 

 

 My hair felt heavy and slimy, greasy.  I was skeptical as you can see from the look on my face.

 

 

Once the Perfect-It Cream is evenly distributed through your hair, you must blow your hair dry.

 

 

This is the final result.  My hair was smooth and free of frizz.  However, the top of my head was super greasy looking.  The Perfect-It Cream must have been concentrated in this area, as it feels sticky and tacky. I do like the end result, except for the top of my hair.

 

I would most definitely try this again, and perhaps not put so much of the Perfect-It Cream on the top of my head.  It deserves a second chance.

 

Thanks for visiting, please comment, subscribe and visit often.  Lots of Love!

 

-Channie



What have you tried? Makeup Remover Wipes

Hello Everyone!

Today is going to be a short post...

In the last couple of weeks, I have been using many different types of Makeup Remover Wipes and I was just wondering if anyone else has tried them.

I mentioned in 'My Merry Christmas Haul' that I enjoy stopping in the Travel Section of Department Stores and Pharmacies.  You can always find sample size products to try out, before you commit to buying the full-sized product.

These Balea 3 in 1 Cleansing Cloths were purchased at Shoppers Drug Mart.  They are the softest cloths that I have ever used and they are well saturated with cleansing solution.  They smell strong of some sort of tropical/fruity smell.  They did well to remove my makeup.

These Neutrogena All-in-One Make-up Removing Cleansing Wipes have been a recent favourite.  When I need to get rid of my makeup quickly, I almost always grab for these. They smell nice and feel great on the face.

Next, are the Equate (Walmart Brand) Exfoliating Cleansing Towelettes.  These are great for removing facial makeup like foundation and blush because the cloths are dual-textured.  One side is rough and is to be used as an exfoliating cloth, while the other side smooth - much more gentle for your eyes.

These IntensivEye Anti-Wrinkle Eye Pads were purchased from Winners.  They smell fantastic and did a pretty good job with my mascara.  They did dry up very quickly and now I have about half the wipes left, but they are bone dry.  I may have to google instructions on how to revive dried-out makeup remover wipes.

These Merida Face/Eye Cleansing Wipes are my absolute favourite.  I bought these at my local Dollarama store for...yup, you guessed it - $1.25!  These are the strongest wipes I have ever used. I almost always rip my makeup remover wipes when I'm cleaning my face (I must be rough or something).  But these are fantastic!  And they are super saturated with solution, plus they smell citrus-y!  Yum yum!

Hard Candy Take It Off Makeup Remover Wipes were part of the 'Hard Candy 13 Piece Holiday Best Of' kit, which was given to me for my birthday.  These wipes are well saturated, and smell great. They work really well, too!

So that's all for my collection of Makeup Remover Wipes...what brands do you prefer?  Which would you recommend?

Thanks for visiting, please subscribe, comment and visit often.  Lots of Love.

- Channie

My Merry Christmas Haul!

I never realized when I got married, that Christmas would be such a wild time for me.

Every other year, we alternate families to dine with on Christmas Day.  This year, Dinner is going to be at his Aunt's house.  Because we all have in-laws that also need to be visited, we usually open our gifts on Christmas Eve or Boxing Day.

Here's a sneak peek at what I received for Christmas this year!

Clinique Great Skin Home and Away kit for skin types 1 and 2.

This kit came with a full-size and travel-size bottle of Liquid Facial Soap Mild, a full-size and travel-size bottle of Clarifying Lotion 2, a full-size and travel-size bottle of Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion +.  It all came in a cute little makeup bag.

 

 

I also received the Conair You Reel Tourmaline Ceramic 2-N-1 Styler.  I got it because it was pink (I won't lie), and because it came with a diffuser and a concentrator - I'm assuming this is where the 2-N-1 Styler part comes in. I liked it because it had a reel-in cord for easy storage.  I'm disappointed that there is no loop to hang the blow dryer from.  I hang my styling tools beside my stand-up mirror and with this one, I cannot. Oh! And it's super loud!  All three of my animals went running when I turned it on.

 

My Mother-In-Law bought me this fantastic Laptop Manicure Salon.  Essentially, it's a bean bag with a tabletop, to do your nails.  Handy to use when watching TV and wanting to paint your nails.

This is what the Laptop Manicure Pillow looks like.  I filled it up with random nail items I have used over the holidays.

My Mother-In-Law also purchased these makeup items for me.  On the far left, ALMAY intense i-color in bold nudes for hazel eyes.  Next, the Maybelline New York The Falsies BIG EYES Volum' Express in brownish black.  This is a dual brush mascara.  A regular mascara brush for your upper lashes and a smaller brush for your lower lashes.  Then, we have two lipsticks from Rimmel Lasting Finish.  The first lipstick pictured, is in the colour 264 Coffee Shimmer.  On the far right, is the colour 006 Pink Blush.  I think I will really enjoy these items.  Thanks MOL!

 I tried for about 2 weeks, to purchase the Urban Decay Naked 3 palette, but every time I visited the Sephora website, it was out of stock.

So, I talked to a very dear friend of mine, who purchased this palette at her local Sephora store, then shipped it to me (I'm about 5.5 hours from her).  It arrived just in time for my birthday!

These colours are so easy to work with.  I have trouble using my Naked palette because I find the shadows are difficult to work with.  Not these...

This is by far my favourite of the three Naked Palettes.  I may have to purchase a backup of this one!

Next, is the Eye Studio Sampler from Shoppers Drug Mart.  It comes with 7 mini-sized tubes of Mascara, plus a bottle of Bourgeois Eye Makeup Remover - Ideal for Waterproof Makeup.  Apparently. this stuff removes your eye makeup in one sweep.  This sampler kit also comes with a gift certificate to purchase a full-size tube of whichever Mascara you prefer.

From top to bottom: Clarins Wonder Perfect Mascara, Shiseido Perfect Mascara Full Definition, Benefit BADgal Lash Mascara, Elizabeth Arden Beautiful Color Lash Enhancing Mascara, Smashbox Photo Op Eye Brightening Mascara, Lacome Hypnose Drama.  On the right hand side is the bottle of Bourgeois Express Eye Makeup Remover.

There will be Tried and True Reviews done for this Sampler Kit.  I've only tried the Benefit BADgal Lash so far...

My husband bought this bottle of Pink Sugar for me when we were in Toronto a couple months ago.  I wrapped it up as soon as we got home - to assure myself that I wouldn't open it before Christmas!  You can certainly appreciate how upset I was when this particular gift went missing Christmas Eve.  The bag carrying all of our gifts ripped when we were loading the car, and therefore all I could picture was this gift sitting in the driveway, waiting to be rescued by the next person walking by the house.  Needless to say, I was wrong, it was on the living room floor.  This fragrance smells great!

 
My Mother-In-Law also gave me a gift card for Walmart.  She knows I love shopping there.  I bought these beauties - plus two pairs of jeans and a really nice top. Thanks again MOL!
 

 
This is CoverGirl's Ultimate Finish Liquid Make-up in 410 Classic Ivory.  I haven't used this since high school.  Love the face I'm pulling, hahaha.
 

 
Next, is Physicians Formula Shimmer Strips Custom Eye Enhancing Shadow & Liner in Nude.  I was going to buy this at Target with another gift card, but I'm glad I didn't...it was less expensive at Walmart - by half the price of Target! 
 

 
I had a hard time using these.  The colour didn't look even on my lids, it was hard to apply.  I may have better luck using them wet.  I will have a review later.
 

 
I also picked up the Hard Candy Top Ten Eyeshadow Collection in Naturally Gorgeous.
 

 
These colours are well pigmented.  I'm excited to play a little more with these shadows.  I do have another one of these palettes in Feelin' Blue.
 

 
These were on sale by 50% so, essentially I got one for free.  They are Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter.  My mom also purchased one in the colour Sweet Tart.
 

 
The Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter on the left is the shade 047 Pink Lemonade.  It's a lot lighter in person.  It's a beautiful pink neutral shade.  The one of the right is in 063 Wild Watermelon.  This is the most gorgeous vivid shade of red that is a little darker than Cherry Red.  It's absolutely beautiful!

 
I received a gift card for Target from my husband.  I purchased a few different brands as well as things I wouldn't normally buy myself.
 

 

I purchased Neutrogena All-in-One Make-up Removing Cleansing Wipes from the travel section at Target.  I like visiting this section every once in a while, you can find things that are sample size and try them out before purchasing the full-size version.  These are great at removing makeup.

 

 
Next, is the Maybelline New York Fit Me! Blush in Medium Pink.  It's a beautiful dusty warm pink shade.
 

 
This is my first Sonia Kashuk product.  There were a few other things that piqued my interest.  This is Sonia Kashuk's eye palette in Perfectly Neutral - 10. 
 

 
I did a few swatches with no primer and I have to say I'm extremely impressed.  I'm going to have to play with these a little more.  Sounds like an all-nighter to me.
 

 
I noticed a few NYX products at Target.  The first I picked up is the Retractable Eye Liner in 03 Aqua Green. 
 

 
This is a beautiful Turquoise shade.  And once it sets - about a minute - it stays put!
 

 
This is NYX Retractable Eye Liner in 02 Black.
 

 
I'm wearing the black on my waterline and tightline and it hasn't moved. This may become a new favourite.
 

 
I grabbed this as soon as I saw it on display.  NYX Eye Shadow Base is one of my favourite primers.  It makes bright colours POP!  It barely creases - unless you've had your makeup on for like 8 hours.
 

 
This comes in white and skin colour.  I purchased the white because it works better with bright colours than the skin colour one does.
 

 
And of course, I had to purchase this Fuzzy Coat nail polish in 300 Peach Fuzz by Sally Hansen.  This makes your nails look like a fuzzy sweater.  I'm painting my nails purple with this fuzzy coat over it for my New Year's Eve look.
 

 
And last but not least, I received a few products from The Body Shop.  These were given to me by my husband's Aunt.  We spent Christmas Dinner with her and family.
 

 
First off, I received the Honeymania Body Butter.  This smells like honey and wildflowers.  It's a lovely scent. 
 

 

I also received the Pink Grapefruit Body Butter.  This smells so much like grapefruit to me.  It smells real.  Grapefruit are one of my favourite fruits.
 

 
Then, I received the Honeymania Cream Body Scrub.  This smells just like the lotion - honey and wildflowers.  I am going to be taking this into my next shower.
 

 
This is a classic favourite of mine, I've been showering with this since high school.  The Body Shop is known for its Pink Grapefruit Shower Gel.  This has the perfect pick-me-up scent - it wakes me up and smells wonderful.

So this is it for my Christmas Haul!  I apologize for the lengthy post, but I wanted to show you all my goodies and give you a glimpse of what's to come. Also, a big thank you to my family for getting me such awesome gifts, it was overwhelming and real nice of you all.

Thanks for visiting, subscribing and keep visitng often.  Lots of love.

- Channie