Tips for no makeup days!

Our babies take up a LOT of our time and even though we wouldn't have it any other way, we don't always have the extra time that we used to for our usual primping. Whether you're too busy with baby or just like taking a break once in awhile from a face full of makeup, it's still nice to know that you can go out into public without a splotchy red complexion.
I've found some products that help with even-ing out my skin and combatting redness and dullness. Keep in mind that these may not help everyone as many of you have different skin types and problem areas than I do.
First and foremost, cleanse your skin! The last thing you wanna do is pile a bunch of products on top of the crap you put on your face the night before. I like using an exfoliator and then Bioderma Sebium H2O cleansing water because I feel like nothing wakes my skin up better.
Always, always moisturize. Even if you have oily skin like me it may still be dehydrated. The key is to find a moisturizer that works for you, specifically. Something with an SPF is always a good idea too! Lately I've been loving LaRoche Posay Skin-Perfecting Anti-Redness moisturizer. I find that its moisturizing enough to help my dry skin and not so greasy that it effects my oily skin. It has definitely helped combat my redness as well. Don't go buy this and expect your skin to be perfect immediately after using this product. The effects are amazing but you need to use it every day for at least a week to notice a difference. I have been going bonkers over Bioderma products lately. I use Sebium Pore Refiner all over my t-zone. Personally, I really don't buy in to product claims of shrinking your pores. I just really don't think its possible but this product is an excellent mattifier for oily skin. Next, I grab my Bioderma Sensibio Anti-redness cream and rub some of this on to my cheeks, where the majority of my redness is. This one is more of a short term, yet instant, remover of redness on your face. On the bottle it says that this works excellent as a makeup base (or primer) but the consistency is like a paste and I feel like it definitely does NOT live up to that claim. I do enjoy it for its main purpose of combatting redness, though. A hydrating eye cream is always key, too. I've been using a teeny tiny bit of Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Eye under my eyes in the AM. Yes, I know, it says "Night Repair" but I find using a very, very small amount of it is more effecting than using a normal amount of any other eye cream I've used. It's super rich but slightly greasy feeling so I cannot stress enough to only use a small amount for daytime or else your under eyes will look oily.
Lastly, but possibly one of the most important steps, I spray my face with Urban Decay DeSlick setting spray. It is a makeup setting spray but I've never found anything that has kept my oil at bay as well as this does. It is honestly THE absolute best product to invest in if you have oily skin. The regular size bottle lasted me over 6 months. Go buy it now.
I know it sounds like a lot of steps and, well, it sorta is but it probably took you longer to read this than to actually do it. Once you get yourself into a nice routine it will be like second nature to you. If you gotta choose between skincare and makeup because of a time crunch; always go with skincare! Your beautiful, healthy skin will thank you later!
I've always felt sort of self conscious about going out in public with a naked face because of my splotchy complexion but since I've started using these products my confidence has been boosted.
And, honestly sweethearts, there is nothing more beautiful than confidence!


Skin looking a little dull and lifeless? Sweep a little bit of MAC Mineralize SkinFinish in Soft and Gentle over your cheeks. Trust me, no one will know you cheated on the "no makeup" thing. Just a pretty, youthful glow!

MAC Archie's Girls Giveaway!! **CLOSED**

As I mentioned in my last post, the MAC store that I purchased my Archie's Girls at wasn't sure if they were going to be getting in the Flatter Me Pearlmatte powders. Well, they called me this past week and told me that they came in! I got two of them. One for me and one to give away! This was one of the more popular items from the collection and for those of you that weren't fortunate enough to get your hands on one, here's your opportunity! I'm going to be giving away one of these gorgeous beauty powders to a lucky winner!
Rules: make sure to follow ALL of the rules or you won't be considered entered into the contest! :)
1) must be 18 years of age or have your parents permission to enter
2) +1 this post on google
3) comment down below what your favorite beauty product of the moment is
4) add me to google+ circles or subscribe to my blog
5)You may comment once per day
This giveaway IS international and will be open for two weeks starting today. Ends on March 4th, 2013 at 11:59 pm. Winner will be chosen by random.org Best of luck!
This is not a sponsored giveaway. This was purchased with my own money.

MAC Archie's Girls haul + swatches!

On my way back to my real home on Friday I stopped in at MAC to pick up the stuff I preordered from the Archie's Girls collection. I did a bit of online reading about bloggers thoughts on the collection and it seemed like a lot of people were disappointed with it overall. I was a little worried but after picking it up and trying them out, I honestly don't know what the reason for disappointment was! I love everything I got, even the stuff I was a little worried about.
I got 2 Betty lipsticks and 1 Veronica lipstick and also 1 Betty blush. I am also getting the Pearlmatte in Flatter Me but they hasn't received their stock of it in yet when I was in the store.
Betty Bright lipstick
This is obviously from the Betty end of the collection. This is a muted-yet-bright coral/peach colour. I was worried about this one being too neon, bright and hard to wear. I thought it kinda might be comparable to the original Viva Glam Nicki but when I tried it on it was much more toned down. I find that if I wear it with a liner or mix it with a more neutral lipstick like Pure Zen it looks gorgeous. It's definitely a fun, girly, night out color. I can't wait to wear it again. It has a satin finish which basically means its not glossy at all but not quite matte.

Oh, Oh, Oh lipstick
Also from the Betty line, I, again, was apprehensive about this one. It looks downright scary in the tube. It looks like a dark brown with gold shimmer but then when swatched it comes out a gorgeous sheer plum with a little bit of gold shimmer. It looks so beautiful on the lips. Definitely an every day shade of lipstick. The only thing is that I wish it came out in the fall because its a perfect fall looking shade. It has a lustre finish so its sheer and a bit glossy.

Ronnie Red lipstick
I knew I was going to love this one. I don't wear red lips often but this is definitely going to be my go-to red lip. It's a very vibrant bright red that's kinda pinkish. It makes your teeth look like celebrity-white. I feel like a pinup girl with this shade on. I must add though, make sure this is the lipstick that you want to wear when you put it on because it is super long lasting and will stain your lips! It has a matte finish but to me it doesn't look completely matte. It does have a tiny bit of shine. Maybe like a satin.

Cream Soda blush
I freakin' love any peachy, orange or coral blush. I did have my heart set on the Flatter me Pearlmatte powder but when they told me that they weren't sure if they would be getting any in I settled for this one. I am still going to get that one but I'm glad I have this in my collection. It's a gorgeous muted peachy colour and its suuuuuuppperrr pigmented. I wasn't expecting that so when I first put it on I had to go back over with my powder brush to sheer it out. I love it because even though its peach it's not too bright and it's perfect for every day.

With my order I also picked up my sisters stuff. She got the lipglass in Strawberry Malt and the Cheers My Dear pigment. I didn't wanna stick my fingers in her stuff to swatch for you but I can say that I snuck a peek and I'm almost wishing I would have grabbed a few more things. Her lipglass would have gone perfect with my Ronnie Red lipstick!
I know they're all sold out online but if you somehow have a chance to get your hands on some of this collection I'd highly recommend it!

Also, when I went to MAC, I did my first back2mac! If you're unfamiliar, MAC has a recycling program where if you bring back 6 empties then you get a free lipstick! I was in a hurry and I wish I would have had time to really check them out but in the end I'm happy with the shade I picked. I ended up choosing Angel which the last said was one of the best sellers at MAC it's a nice every day light pink. I think I'll love it more in summer when I have a bit more of a tan but it looks super nice paired with my MAC boldly bare lip liner.

January Rants and Raves

I can't get over how fast time is flying by. My baby is already 10 months old and in a few short months I'll be a Mrs. It's really reminding me just how precious time is and I want to make the most of this year.
I want to share with you a few of the material things that have been putting a smile on my face this month. But, of course, there can be no good without evil so without further adieu...

Rant #1
Eyeko Skinny Mini liquid eyeliner.
I bought this in a set with the Skinny Brush mascara. I like the mascara if im going for the "no make-up make-up" look but that's about it. I loved this eyeliner when I first bought it. That lasted for about two weeks. The tip started to dry out and tug at my eyelids whenever I tried to use it. It seemed to be especially bad if I was wearing any eyeshadow with any shimmer or glitter. I don't know about you but I think a good eyeliner should last more than a few weeks. It is totally un-usable for me now. Sad.

Rant #2
Sephora online.
Ugh. I love the convenience of shopping online. Sephora online is really great too because there is way more stuff online than in the store closest to me. Actually ordering from them is just a bit annoying. Most sites have a deal where if you spend over a certain amount then you get free shipping. I love this because then I can upgrade to overnight or express (patience isn't a virtue I possess) for only like 5 bucks. Sephora has the same deal but, because they use some weird middle man shipping company called BorderFree, they don't give you the express shipping option. You're given a tracking number for them shipping a big shipment to Borderfree and then you have about a week or more of waiting until they send you a new tracking number for your specific order. I didn't know this and I had sent Sephora an email asking why it was taking so long and why I hadn't heard anything about my order in over a week. I got a generic response stating that my package had just reached their border facility and I should be receiving an email soon. I mean, I get that they're probably busy but if you have absolute crap for shipping options with a period of a week or more with no possible way of checking the status of something you just paid good money for, then they should expect some customers grievances. I even emailed BorderFree twice but never heard anything back. And if that's not enough, they send it Canada post regular mail. That takes another week or more. Naturally, after waiting this long already, when I tracked my package online and saw that it was "on truck for delivery" I was super excited. I'm in my temporary home right now in Alberta and I live in a little new development of townhouses. I see the Canada Post delivery man in our complex-thing every day through my front window so I opened mine up wide so I could watch for him while I played with my daughter. I saw him pull in and stood up to go to the door but he didn't slow down or stop here. I thought "okay, he's probably just going around here and he'll come on his way back". Waited. Waited. And then I saw him drive right past again and leave our condos. K, what? I checked my package online and it said that a delivery was attempted. Hmm... I was right here near the door all day. There's no way I could have missed it. I checked for the card they are supposed to leave when they "attempt delivery". Nothing there. I got worried that maybe it was dropped off at someone else's house so I phoned Canada Post customer service. Don't even get me started on that ridiculous experience. Actually finding the phone number was hard. Cracking the code of menu options to finally be able to speak to a living, breathing human being? Nearly freaking impossible. All I got from the lady I spoke to was "well the driver probably just figured you wouldn't be home, he's done his route before 1pm every day you can pick it up after that". Okay, let me get this straight. This guys job is to drive around and DELIVER packages and he only works till 1pm every day and he can't even walk 5 steps to my door to leave a notification card?? I realize that this may sound lazy on my part but when I pay someone to deliver something to me and I make sure I stay home all day so I don't miss it I expect it to be delivered to me. I really want to have to pack up my baby and carry her into a store and then try to juggle her and a box back out while trying to keep her from reaching out and knocking all the crap off of their shelves? Last but not least; it's winter...in Canada. Also, more specifically, it's January... In Canada! I really wanna drag my ass out into THAT to pick up a box I paid to have delivered? No, thank you. I had ordered something from MAC the same day. The next morning I opened my door to a wonderful FedEx driver who was all smiles when he handed me my package. Some of the things I had purchased were back ordered. I ended up getting 3 separate packages from them and they ALL arrived here before my Sephora order did. Needless to say, I probably won't be ordering anything from Sephora's online store anytime soon.
Phew! Deep breaths. Seeing as that was such a long rant, I'm gonna leave it to just that. On to the smiles!

Rave #1
MAC online shipping. Already been explained but I need to add that it is just fantastic. Order it early enough on the day and its here by the next afternoon. Good effing job.

Rave #2
Naked Basics Palette
I've already done a review on this so I won't waste too much of your time on this. Great colour payoff, super versatile shades and fantastic compact size making it the perfect travel palette. If you like neutrals, this is for you.

Rave #3
Baby Mum-Mum banana flavored rice rusks.
Long name. Emily loves her little banana puffs. They are made from rice too and they are a great little treat for her because she doesn't have any teeth yet and they basically dissolve in her mouth. They're really good for helping her hone her hand-eye coordination but she's getting pretty pro at it and she makes those little cookies disappear pretty quickly. I wanted something that required a little more effort so that I could pop her in her highchair with something that would keep her attention for long enough so I can get the dishes done. These are perfect. They are pretty well the same thing as the puffs but in a long flat cookie shape. I love that I can now have a couple minutes of "gettin sh*t done" without having to worry about her climbing all over every elevated surface in the house and getting hurt. Also, they are packaged in twos inside the box so this makes them perfect for tossing in your handbag if you're going out with your baby.

Rave #4
Essie nail polish in Muchi, Muchi and Sand Tropez.
The first is a super cute soft baby pink that really reminds me of spring. The colour isn't near as opaque as I'd like it to be but after a few coats it looked really nice and has lasted me 3 or 4 days without chipping which is really good for how hard I am on my hands. Sand Tropez is a really nice almost nude tan colour. It reminds me of summer. This one was opaque and only needed two coats to look really great. This shade feels a little more sophisticated.

Rave #5
L'oreal Infallible The Super Slim liquid eyeliner.
When my Eyeko liner failed me I went looking for a good drugstore alternative. I've used the Infalliable pencil liner for years so I thought I'd give this a shot. It's perfect! It is a super inky black just like I love and the tip is really skinny and long which makes lining my eyes a breeze. I would definitely recommend this to a makeup noob because it really is foolproof.

Rave #6
Bioderma Sebium H2O micellaire cleansing water.
Oh. My. God. I can't get enough of this stuff. I pump some on to a cotton pad and use it every night to remove my face makeup and then every morning after exfoliating. It honestly feels like my skin just took a big drink of water. It's just so gentle and refreshing on my skin. I've never experienced any sort of makeup remover or cleanser like it. It basically just feels like you're wiping your face with nice smelling water and it is unbelievably effective.  Your skin WILL feel the cleanest its ever felt after you use this. Go get some, now. :)

Lipstick of the month:
Definitely, definitely has to be creme cup by MAC. I held off from getting this shade for so long because I thought it would look too pale on me and wash me out but I can't get enough of it. It's pretty much become my every day lippie.

A couple days ago I phoned in and pre ordered a couple things from the MAC Archie's Girls collection. MAC puts out about a million new limited edition collections every year and few have really demanded my attention but my brother, sister and I were pretty much obsessed with Archie comics when we were kids so I couldn't pass this up! Fingers crossed ill be able to pick it up on Friday when I'm on my way back to my home. I'll post swatches and reviews soon!

Oh, and hey! If you ever feel like it you can always drop me a line at sarahlouisenickelboard@gmail.com
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