Category: favourites

Thursday Favourites: December 26th

8 Comments
Ouai Scalp and Body Scrub

Hey friends!

Welcome to my LAST EVER Favourites post of the year — I can’t believe we’ve made it! I’ve been doing this segment weekly since I started my blog in May and I can already see such a difference in the quality of my writing over the course of the last few months alone. When I started my blog, I was really unsure where to start and what direction to take it in — I actually got my domain back in February and sat on it for a few months out of uncertainty.

However, as this year is coming to an end I’m really proud of how far my blog has come, the milestones I’ve reached, and how well I’ve kept up with a regular posting schedule. Thank you guys all so much for your support so far — every comment, message, post share, and more means so much to me. I really didn’t think this blog was going to take off at all when I started it, so every time I reach a goal of mine I really am touched by all your support. Thank you all so much, and fingers crossed I’m able to achieve new goals in the New Year!

For my last product of the year, I wanted to share a product I recently tried and loved — the Ouai Scalp And Body Scrub. As I mentioned a few weeks ago, Ouai is quickly becoming one of my favourite brands. I tried a sample box with my Sephora points a month or so back, and fell in love with all the products it contained (which really is a first for me — usually when I spend my points on a brand box at least one of the products ends up being something I really don’t care for). One of these products was the Scalp And Body Scrub — which I just recently purchased full-size.

Now, you guys already know I’m basically married to my Herbivore Botanicals Crushed Amethyst Body Polish — but for me, Ouai’s exfoliator has had a totally different purpose. Since it’s not just for body exfoliation, when I got the sample, I decided to give exfoliating my scalp a shot. I’m so glad I did, because I never realized what a difference it could make until I did it.

Not only has it had the results you would expect, such as decreased dandruff, it had benefits I never even considered. First of all, as soon as I even started shampooing, I could feel a huge difference. My hair felt so much lighter, and it made shampooing a much easier task. When I went to go blow dry my hair, I really started to notice the change. This scrub had cleared away all kinds of built-up residue I didn’t even notice I had. My hair felt so much lighter, and looked more voluminous that it had in forever.

I’ve since been using this stuff regularly, and I’m so happy I got the chance to try it. Exfoliating your scalp isn’t something that’s widely discussed, or something you’d really even consider. However, it really made a world of difference to my hair. Now that I’ve tried it, it’s safe to say I’ll never go back. Just for my newfound volume alone, I’m sold on scalp exfoliating for life.

Dandruff and residue getting you down? Check out Ouai’s Scalp And Body Scrub on their website or at Sephora!

I hope you all have a fantastic final week of 2019, and here’s to good vibes for 2020!

Love you all,

Meredith

Thursday Favourites: December 19th

10 Comments
Origin’s A Perfect World™ SPF 40 Age-Defense Moisturizer with White Tea

Happy Thursday y’all!

It may not feel like it in the dark and cloudy winter season, but sun protection is a huge part of maintaining healthy, youthful skin. Lately, I’ve been trying to change up my skin routines a little, in hopes of tailoring my morning and nighttime routines to fit both my skin’s and schedule’s needs a little better.

Generally, with skincare, it’s best to keep it simple in the morning and do all the heavy lifting at night. This is true for a couple reasons — first of all being if you intend to apply makeup, its best not to apply it to skin that’s oversaturated in serums and such. Some skin products don’t mix well with makeup, and may cause your makeup to fade or wipe off as the day goes on. Even if you aren’t wearing makeup, a lot of skincare products can appear oily after application, and may look a little strange if you don’t allow them time to properly absorb into your skin (as well, you may not reap all the benefits!). Not only that, but it’s better to rinse all the day’s dirt and pollutants out of your pores before sleeping to help keep your skin feeling fresh.

Amongst other changes to my routine, I switched up my morning moisturizer to ensure I get a little SPF to protect my skin from sun damage. Applying sunscreen to your face daily can be a pain — many sunscreen products can be irritating, greasy, or clog up your pores. However, UV damage can often cause your skin to age prematurely, and can cause a whole host of cosmetic and medical issues, ranging from hyperpigmentation to skin cancer. An easy way to get in daily SPF is to buy skin products and makeup that have SPF added to the product so you can forgo daily sunscreen application.

This is why I recently started trying out Origin’s A Perfect World™ SPF 40 Age-Defense Moisturizer with White Tea. Not only does it feel great knowing its high SPF content is protecting my skin from UV damage, it comes packed with all kinds of benefits important to morning skin care. It includes all sorts of antioxidants and environmental pollution protection, all while being formulated without over 50 harmful ingredients and being oil-free (!!!).

While I’ve only been using this product for a couple of weeks now, I’m already so in love. The oil-free aspect means it doesn’t mess up any makeup I apply on top following moisturizing. As well, this stuff is SUPER hydrating — which my poor, dry skin is pretty excited about. Overall, I’m really glad I made the switch. I still use my Clinique moisturizer religiously every night (we all know how much I love it). However, I feel a lot better knowing I’ve finally found a smart way to incorporate SPF into my morning routine.

Trying to avoid sun damage, but don’t know how? Be sure to check out Origin’s moisturizer for a little added protection!

As always, hope you guys are absolutely killing this week. We’re less than one week out until Christmas, so if you’re still stuck on Christmas shopping, be sure to check out my Holiday Gift Guide for self-care, skincare, and makeup gift ideas!

Much love and happy Thursday y’all!

Xo,

Meredith

Thursday Favourites: December 12th

6 Comments
Dr Jart+ Shake and Shot Rubber Masks

Hey y’all! Happy Thursday!

Winter is in full swing, and I know just as well as anyone else this season’s weather can be hard on your skin. No matter where you are, the switch to colder, or drier, weather can really do some damage. Not only that, but sometimes the cloudy, grey days can be a real bummer.

If you or your skin is needing a little pick-me-up, though, look no further! This week, I’m going to be sharing with you all one of my all-time favourite single-use masks by Dr. Jart+ — the Shake And Shot Rubber Masks!

These masks really combine fun, trendy skin care and results. Rubber masks were all the rage a while back — and for good reason. These masks are not only super interesting to mix up yourself, but they also provide something sheet masks don’t — they actually conform perfectly to the shape of your face. I really do love the simplicity of sheet masks, but sometimes I find they fit your face so poorly they end up being annoying to wear and drip product everywhere. It ends up kind of deterring me from using them — while I love the results they give and how easy it is to go purchase one targeted to your skins immediate needs, actually using them sort of drives me nuts.

With careful application, however, these rubber masks can provide all the benefits of a sheet mask, minus all the mess. They dry quickly enough that you shouldn’t have to worry about them dripping everywhere, plus peeling them off is beyond satisfying.

However, the most important part is that these masks seriously work wonders for your skin. Every time I’ve used them, I’ve been blown away by the results. You can see clear, immediate changes after one single use — so while they are a little pricey for a single-use mask, they’re well worth it. I usually purchase these before special events or holidays, as I know whatever problems my skin has been suffering before will be cleared up with these masks better than any other mask product I own — leaving my looking my best when I need to.

If you’ve been needing a little self-care pampering and an effective single use mask lately, be sure to check out these masks on Sephora! They come in a wide range of formulas, including Hydro (Moisturizing), Brightening, Firming, Soothing, Pore Minimizing and Purifying! (If you were wondering, Hydro and Brightening are 100% my all-time faves.)

Hope you guys are all having a lovely week, and be sure to stay tuned for next Thursday’s product!

Much love,

Meredith

Thursday Favourites: December 5th

6 Comments
Ouai’s Super Dry Shampoo

Hey everyone!

For my first favourites post of the month, I’ve decided to share with you all Ouai’s Extra Dry Shampoo. Ouai has quickly become one of my new favourite brands — I already took interest to them after receiving their Leave-In Conditioner in my Spring FabFitFun box, but especially after trying more of their products recently — it’s safe to say I’m in love.

December can be a busy month — with the Holidays coming up and the end of the semester for many of you in school, it’s easy to fall behind. If you’re too busy with trying to achieve your goals before 2020 to keep up with your regular hair-wash schedule (we’ve all been there, I won’t judge) dry shampoo can be a real godsend.

I’ve always had a bit of a love/hate relationship with dry shampoo — I often find it either is incredibly powdery and noticeable, or does absolutely nothing at all. Seriously, there’s nothing more frustrating than deciding to forgo washing your hair to save time only to have your dry shampoo change absolutely nothing about your greasy stands. It’s one of my all-time greatest pet peeves.

I’ve gone through all sorts of brands of dry shampoos over the years — I’ve never bought the same brand twice. I was always hoping the next one I’d try would suddenly change everything, but after a couple of years I kinda started to give up on the concept I’d ever find a great dry shampoo. That is, until I bought Ouai’s Extra Dry Shampoo!

This stuff is truly amazing — it does come out super powdery at first, which I was worried about when I first sprayed it on. However, Unlike a lot of other dry shampoos, it actually turns invisible as it absorbs all the grease in your hair, meaning it actually works. I’ve finally seemed to find a dry shampoo that walked the fine line between not being a gross, powdery mess that left obvious residue all over my dark hair, as well as actually doing it’s job.

This dry shampoo is even better than that though — it smells FANTASTIC, and it leaves my hair feeling like it’s actually freshly washed. We all love how dry shampoo can help greasy hair pass as not that dirty, but this dry shampoo goes above and beyond. It actually makes your hair feel really clean — no one will ever know you missed a day in your hair wash schedule!

If this sounds like the dry shampoo you’ve been needing to get through the holiday season, you can find it on Ouai or at Sephora.

I hope you’re all having a lovely start to the month! If you’ve been enjoying my Holiday Gift Guide series so far, be sure to stay tuned for the third and final segment this Sunday! (And if you haven’t caught up and are getting a little desperate for gift ideas, be sure to check out Part One and Part Two!)

20 more days until Christmas and just 27 days until the New Year — it’s hustle season everyone! Go out there and achieve any last goals you need to make this year feel like it’s been a successful one.

Xo,

Meredith

Thursday Favourites: November 28th

14 Comments
Tarte Creaseless Concealer

Happy Thursday everyone!!

Hope you’ve all been having a great week! Personally, I’m super excited about today — it officially marks 24 days until I’m off to Toronto for the start of my winter holidays! Which, most importantly, means I’m starting my advent calendar!!! This year, instead of counting down until Christmas, I’m counting down the days until my vacation — both because I’m so excited for it and because it seems a little silly to waste valuable suitcase space carrying it around for the four days before Christmas.

This is so off topic but I just wanted to show you how cute this advent calendar is!!! While I do love coffee a whole lot, if I had to choose, I would pick tea over coffee any day. I’m just loving this David’s Tea advent calendar, both because I get to test out 24 new flavours AND count down the days until my winter getaway! I love getting David’s Tea packages like this, since it allows me to test such a wide range of their endless flavours. If you’re feeling inspired to forgo daily chocolates this year, you still have a few days before December starts to grab a calendar of your own! (You can check them out online at David’s Tea here!)

Anyways, back to the star of today’s Favourites post — the Tarte Creaseless Concealer! Okay, I know I promised this post so, so long ago, but it’s finally here! (Better late than never, right?). I’ve gone through a whole lot of concealer brands in my lifetime, and every time I swore I had found the best brand ever and I’d never switch. However, this time around I’m actually serious about it.

Tarte is incredibly well known for their concealers, especially their Shape Tape concealer — which surprisingly, I’ve never tried. (I’m probably going to at some point, since it’s Tarte’s most popular concealer. I just love their Creaseless Concealer so much I don’t feel the need to waste money on any other concealer products — but we’ll see). However, I can vouch for the fact they’re considered “America’s Number One Concealer Brand” for good reason — this stuff is unreal. As much as NARS is one of my all-time favourite brands, I resorted to buying their concealer (once a go-to for me) a few months ago when Tarte was fresh out of stock, and the difference was insane. (NARS does have great concealer, for the record — it’s just that Tarte’s concealers are REALLY next level).

This concealer, while rather thick, is incredibly lightweight. It covers absolutely ANY blemish or discolouration with a single coat, and it really lasts. They aren’t joking about it being creaseless, either — I know I’ve complained about my naturally dark and baggy under eye area countless times on my blog, but I’ve never found a product that conceals them as seamlessly as this one does. Plus it blends fantastically — I often use tinted moisturizer instead of foundation, and even though my concealer is so much thicker in consistency it blends flawlessly.

If you’re worried about having a very textured under eye area — don’t worry, I struggle with this too. This concealer does do a good job of concealing textured areas, and certainly doesn’t define them as some products can often do. Basically, this stuff is magic — I don’t even know how else to put it.

If this sounds like the perfect concealer for you, check it out on Tarte or at Sephora!

I hope you’re all having a fantastic week! Be sure to stay tuned for the second part of my Holiday Gift Guide series coming this Sunday. I’m so excited about this weeks theme, I can’t wait to share it with y’all!

Xo,

Meredith