SOTW: From Roses

From Roses // Fences

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Xen-Tan Weekly Self Tan Lotion

Being new to the world of tanning, I wanted to try a brand ive heard many rave about, figuring it would have good results. I opted for the Dark Lotion Weekly Self-tan as it had good reviews. I also got a mitt for smooth, even application. 

I was a little afraid upon opening the bottle to the colour of melted chocolate(!), but just as it says, it leaves a natural olive under-toned tan to the skin. It looks like you've just come back from a tropical vacation on the beach for a week. Score. It doesnt look too dramatic on my previously ghastly white skin, and im sure this would work for most skin tones. The mitt really does help for a nice even result. It takes about three hours to see results, although I recommend applying before bed just to prevent walking around with blotchy or streaky skin if any mishaps.

This Week Im Loving.. #7

This week I started using some new body products from Naturally Upper Canada. Ive never heard of the brand but they had a deal on in Home Outfitters so I thought I would give them a try. I got both the Hand and Body Lotion and Wash in Cranberry Moro Orange. They smell really nice and have been a real treat to slather myself in. The scent doesnt really last long on the skin though, which a disappointment. For makeup application, ive been really liking blending my concealer in with the Sigma Precision Angle P84 brush. Its a dense, soft brush that can be used in any of the small areas of the face, but I really like it specifically for the eye area. The angle shape works makes it really easy to apply and properly blend concealer in the inner portion of the eye as well as under. Another brush from Sigma is the Small Duo Fibre F55. I use this for cream blush or more so for applying a hilighter. It may not be the right brush for hilighting, but its worked well for me anyhow. For a soft glow to the skin, ive been liking Elf's blush in Candid Coral. The peachy colour with the slight gold shimmer gives the skin a luminous look in the sun and is so pretty for the warmer days. Lastly, since ive been trying not to use my straightener on my hair as much and just let my natural wave do what it wants (more so on days when im not going anywhere), the John Frieda Frizz Ease Secret Weapon Finishing Cream has been a staple. I put a small amount in my hands, rub together and lightly pat down the length of my hair to tame frizz. It doesnt make the hair sticky or anything, which is what I really like. It really has been my "secret weapon". This is only a little sample but im going to be picking up a full size very soon.

SOTW: Here Now

Here Now // Sean Bones

 

Empties #9

Tigi Bed Head Uran Antidotes Recovery Level 2 Shampoo + Conditioner
I got this last summer and Ive enjoyed using it, but as someone who likes to try new things, I got bored of it after a while. I was using other shampoos along with it but over the last month or two I decided to just use it up and then go onto my other shampoos. It smells like fruity goodness and leaves my hair really soft. I would buy again but probably not for a while.

Poractiv Sheer Tint Moisture 
This has never been a match for my skin, as im sure you can tell. Its way to dark and ive never actually used it so im not sure why I felt the need to keep it around. Its so old that the colour is going off and I honestly dont know where it came from because ive never used proactiv.

Herbal Essences Totally Twisted Mousse
I got this back when I was in highschool, I dont even know how long ive had it. It smells nice but never really did anything for my wavy hair. Time to throw it away because I dont want to look at it.

Treseme Heat Protectant
Everyoine always raves about this stuff, claiming its the best heat protectant for your hair. I got this maybe a year or more ago and I was never a fan. It made my hair feel dirty and greasy so it wasnt something I wanted to use. Its about half gone and I think its time to stop trying to like it and just throw it away.

Loreal Sublime Bronze Spray 
This one actually comes with a funny story. A few years beack when I was getting everything ready for my prom, I thought id get some colour on my skin by sitting outside. I ended up with the worst tan lines  you can imagine. My arms had odd blotches around the shoulder, and to this day I still have no idea how that happened. Because I was wearing a strapless dress, it was going to look awful basically. My mom went out and bought this telling me to try and even it out. It didnt really do much to help and the colour was more on the orange side. I ended up trying a professional spray tan and looked so unbelievably dark I wanted to cry, that when I got home I scrubed my body for like twenty minutes to get it all off. I went to the prom with slightly darker skin and even more obvious blotches (see photo below). It was awful. Overall, I wasnt a fan of this.

Bath Market Vanilla Hand Cream
This stuff was pretty in expensive. I was in need of a hand cream because as a stylist your hands are in and out of water, etc so they get dry easily. I picked it up on a whim and thought why not give it a try. I do love the scent of vanilla. But unfortunately this had the most sickly sweet scent it gave me a headache. The scent of icing is not something to be worn. I regret not smelling it before purchasing but at least it was cheap.

The Body Shop Shea Shower Cream
This is a lovely body wash. Because its a cream, its more moisturising then a gel, so it doesnt strip everything from your skin. Great for dry skin, especially in the the winter months when its cold and your skin gets tight and uncomfortable. Ill be getting this again for next winter. A definite recommendation.

The Body Shop Shea Mini Body Butter
Not my favourite body butters, but it does leave the skin feeling nice and soft. The shea scent is a lovely, and it lasts on the skin unlike alot of other body products.

Prestige Liquid Liner
I got this a while back when my beloved Annabelle liner was sold out. It was a nice liner but the brush like applicator was harder to work with then the felt tip im used to.

Wet N Wild Natural Wear Tinted Balm in 102
Either im blind of the lighting in the store was really bad because this is the ugliest colour ive ever bought. It is the shimmeriestt/frostiest colour ive ever seen and is an odd pinky purple shade. It might have been okay without all the frost added in. I dont know what they were thinking making this, and I dont know what I was thinking buying it.

Perfume sample and random body spray 
Not sure how many years this J Lo perfume sample is. It doesnt even smell nice. Why so I have you?! The body spray came in a little set with a hand cream and body wash inside a super cute makeup bag, which is the oly reason why I bought it. Its a really sweet scent and not something id ever wear.

Avon Purple Mini Mascara
My aunt got me this and I really did like it, but I never really had a place to wear a bright purple mascara. It didnt get much use unfortunately but I didnt enjoy the look of it.

Avon Moisture Effective Eye Makeup Remover Lotion
My holy grail eyemakeup remove that im used for years. Ive talked about this many times so I wont go to much into it. It doesnt irritate or sting my eyes and gets all my mascara and eyeliner off super easily.

Thats everything ive used up lately, and I leave you with a photo of my terrible blotchy skin.

Revlon Photoready BB Cream

BB creams seem to be a love/hate thing. This is the second ive tried and while theyre not my favourite base, I do like them. I am a big fan of the Revlon Photoready foundation, so I had a feeling this would be a good one to try. Part of the reason I picked it up was because they had a better colour range than the Marcelle one I have and like, but its a tad too dark for me. 

I got the colour light, which is a perfect match for my skin. It has a light, natural coverage but gives the skin a beautiful glow. It applies easily and is light weight on the skin, making this a great summer product. On days where I dont want a lot of coverage or im not really wearing any makeup, this is my go to product. I wouldnt recommend this to cover anything up as it doesnt give nearly enough coverage; BB creams arent supposed to anyway. Overall, I like this for lazy days, but I wouldnt recommend it for everyday wear unless you have no problems with your skin. 

Essie Ballet Slippers

Ive always been a nail bitter, but over the past few years ive been trying my best to rid the habit. I have somewhat long nails for a short amount of time, a few weeks to months, before I start one by one biting them back off again. I hate the look of unpainted nails on me, so for years ive been wearing a Sally Hansen polish in Pink Whisper on my short stubs to make my hands look a little nicer without drawing too much attention to them. That polish got all gloopy and hard to use, so I went on a hunt for a similar shade from Essie and found Ballet Slippers, which is basically an exact dupe, but doesnt require as many coats to be opaque and seems to last longer aswell. It is a soft off white pink, the kind of pink theyd use for a french manicure maybe. Its a great colour for something like a formal event, an interview, etc. Im really happy I found this and im sure this is going to get plenty of use.