Beauty - sparkleshinylove

Roxymandy March 24, 2015

My Visit to the Miracle 10 Boutique + How To Book Your Free Mini Facial & Dior Makeup Application!

This weekend I was invited to the Miracle 10 boutique for a skincare consultation and makeup application.

Miracle 10 is a cosmeceutical skincare line developed by The Plastic Surgery Skincare Clinic, located right next door to the Miracle 10 boutique in Toronto’s Yorkville neighbourhood. The Plastic Surgery Skincare Clinic is a leading, non-surgical skincare practice that began over 15 years ago.

The Miracle 10 boutique is a pretty place to hang out! Everything is a crisp white, and as soon as I walked in I was welcomed, offered a seat and a refreshment.

I had a skincare consultation, and together we figured out the best skincare regimen with the Miracle 10 products for me. I left with a package of Miracle 10 products that I will be trying for the next couple weeks, and I will report back in the blog what my results were. Spoiler alert – after one day of using them I looked in the mirror and thought my complexion looked fresh. I’m excited already!

Next up I had a 20 minute mini makeover with Dior Cosmetics courtesy of a makeup artist. I learned a lot of great tips along the way! One was that a great way to remove makeup that has gone astray (ie. a liquid liner line that went wonky) is to put eye cream on a q-tip and wipe it away. I would have never thought of that! Using Vaseline would remove all of your previously applied hard work, but an eye cream will just help you clean up a mess. Being delicate around the eyes is important as well since the skin is so thin, so gently removing mistakes with an eye cream is a great way to go.

The makeup artist also taught me that blue mascara can bring out someone’s eye colour when layered on top of black lashes. Using it on its own can be too much, but just adding it lashes that already have a black coat of mascara can really emphasize the color of your eyes.

I was really happy with the results of my makeover! At the end they even give me a spritz of my choice of Dior perfume.

Are you interested in visiting the Miracle 10 boutique as well? Right now Miracle 10 is doing a Spring Makeover Series. Between 1pm-5pm next Saturday you can make an appointment to receive a a free 20 minute makeover with Dior Cosmetics, and an express facial with one of the Miracle 10 skincare experts. Call or email the contact information below to book!

Stay tuned to the blog to see how my experience with Miracle 10 skincare progresses!

For more information on Miracle 10, visit their website at www.miracle10.com.

Roxymandy March 18, 2015

Review of First Aid Beauty’s Face Cleanser

I am horrible at taking my makeup off at the end of the day, yet I seem to love trying out different kinds of make up remover’s and cleansers! I guess subconsciously I am thinking that if I find the perfect one, maybe I will change my ways and actually wash my face properly.

It’s not that I don’t wash my face, but I don’t do a great job of wiping off all of my makeup.

For a couple weeks I have been using First Aid Beauty’s Face Cleanser with Fab Antioxidant Booster. First Aid Beauty (or FAB products) can be purchased a Sephora, or on their own website in Canada.

FAB products are free of harsh chemicals and known allergens, including parabens, phthalates, alcohol, fragrances and artificial dyes.

The promise of this product was to remove surface oils, make-up, dirt and grime. It also advertises that it’s safe for sensitive skin, which is good for me since I fit in to that category.

What does it smell like? Well nothing really. It does have a bit of a smell, and it wasn’t a particularly lovely one. It smelt a bit like a cleanser should I guess. Nothing floral, nothing overly offensive – it just smells like a product that would be called unscented.

It doesn’t take a lot for this FAB cleanser to work which is nice! It retails for $20 per bottle (USD), so it’s nice that it would seem to last a long time since you need very little to clean up. It was really gentle on my skin, and it didn’t leave any redness or irritation.

After using this product my face didn’t feel overly tight at all – just clean and cleansed.

Overall I liked it a lot, and I am definitely going to keep using it. Will it help me with motivating myself to clean my face thoroughly every night? Well, it will help a lot since it’s a great product, but can anything combat my night-time laziness? Probably not.

To learn more about this product, visit the FAB website here!

Roxymandy March 10, 2015

Keeping it Natural with Kiss My Face

Keeping things natural is a trend for some people, but some people really live by their principals when it comes to beauty products.

When I’m chooseing between two similar products, I personally like to pick the one that is animal cruelty free, and usually cost plays a factor as well.

The bonus is when those products I choose actually work!

I spent a week pampering myself with some really great Kiss My Face products that were sent to me, and it ended up being a great week with some great new finds.

First up I tried the Kiss My Face Whenever Shampoo. The smell was Green Tea and Lime, and it was a super strong scent! I’ve never had a shampoo with such a strong scent before. I’m the kind of girl who loves to layer scented body creams, body spray and perfume, so I liked that the scent from this shampoo filled up my bathroom.

I also tried the Big Body Shampoo, and that’s something my hair could definitely use. My hair is very fine which didn’t use to bother me because I loved having my hair as straight as possible, but lately I’ve wanted more volume.

Again the scent was very strong (this time Lavender and Chamomile), and this scent lasted in my hair the next day. The shampoo did add some body to my hair, and my hair was also left very soft. Works for me!

Kiss My Face hair care products are formulated with Argan Oil, which adds moisture and shine to your hair. It also helps retain moisture and improves elasticity to help prevent breakage.

If you know me, you know that I have a slight lipgloss addiction. I usually have three or four on me at one time, and I’m not exaggerating.

I also have quite a few allergies, so I have a few issues with lip glosses that have anything but natural ingredients in them.

I was pretty sure I wouldn’t like the Kiss My Face Organic Passion Fruit Lip Balm because I am more into lip glosses than lip balms.

I always find that lip balm’s don’t give me enough moisture.

This one passed the test though – it gave off a lot of moisture and didn’t dry out my lips. I was really surprised – I truly didn’t expect to like it.

The lip balm is also gluten free, has no artificial fragrances or flavours, no parabins and no Phthalates. It has now officially joined my other four lip glosses in my purse.

My test for the Kiss My Face Active Life Stick Sport deodorant was a Pilates class, and a soccer game. I’m for sure a sweaty gal on a good day, so I pretty much re-apply deodorant all day long. I’m a bit obsessive about it really!

I got through both my Pilates class and the soccer game without smelling badly, so that was a good thing. I am honestly not sure how long this deoderant would last without re-applying because I couldn’t break the habit of putting more on every couple of hours. Clearly I have not only a lip gloss addiction, but also a deoderant addiction, so if I’m going to overindulge at least it’s with all-natural products.

As for the soap, I sort of ended up losing that to my husband! He said he liked it a lot, and it smelled good, but as for a description that’s about all he gave me. It was good (his words), and it smelled good, so he was happy. Guys are so simple.

Kiss My Face is a cruelty-free company, and never tests on animals. All of their products are paraben-free, phthalate-free, SLS free, and are free from dyes and synthetic colors.

They are also very affordable products!

To learn more about Kiss My Face and their products, check out their website here!

Roxymandy March 5, 2015

My Love for the Tangle Teezer

I received the Tangle Teezer for review last week, and at first I didn’t expect much from this little brush. Incredibly, 10 Tangle Teezers are sold globally every minute, so something had to be amazing about this brush!

It has a very sleek design! Not only is it pretty to look at, but it’s compact and fits easily inside my smallest bag.

But what exactly sets it apart from other brushes? I have had the same compact brush for a few years now, and I thought it was working just fine.

When I finally tried the Tangle Teezer, I understood what the hype was.

The bristles are very fine, so it felt like a lovely scalp massage each time I brushed my hair. That was a bit different than what I was used to with my regular brush. I also didn’t get my hair tangled at all while brushing. I have very fine hair, so this is normally a problem for me.

One thing I really loved that wasn’t an advertised perk of the brush was that it combatted my static issue. I have a static problem with my hair all winter, and when I brush my hair it automatically stands on end. With this brush that just didn’t happen. I was really surprised since that wasn’t one of the claims this brush made. Loved this perk!

At this point that other brush I was using previously has been left at home while I carry my new Tangle Teezer around in my purse. I was really surprised I liked it so much because it just seemed like another brush at first glance. I realized after using it I loved the bristles, I loved that it didn’t get tangled in my hair and kept it knot-free, that it was nice and compact, and no static!

It also has a removable click-on cover as part of the design to make sure the teeth don’t get any fluff or dirt in it.

It is also a great teaser as well. I used it to tease my hair into a ponytail and it did a great job at giving me some much needed volume.

The Tangle Teezer Compact Styler line is available at Sephora in 4 colours: Pink Sizzle, Feline Groovy, Gold Rush and Rockstar Black ($25 CND).

For more information on the Tangle Teezer, visit their website here.

Roxymandy March 4, 2015

The Almay Good Beautiful Morning Giveaway!

If you have been reading the blog, you would remember this lovely event I went to a few weeks ago that Almay hosted where I learned about some pretty amazing products.

I also posted about how I got morning ready in minutes with these products, and loved the results!

Now it’s your turn to get morning ready in minutes with Almay.

One lucky sparkleshinylove reader can win all of the products I used to get morning ready with Almay! The winner would receive a customized package to match their skin tone and eye colour.

Everything seen here in this photo below would be included in the prize package, and I have made it super easy for you to win! Just comment below this post saying “I want to win!”, and that’s it, you are entered!

This contest is open to Canadian residents, one entry per person. The contest begins at 10:00am on Wednesday, March 4th, 2015 and ends on Wednesday, March 11th, 2015. The winner will be announced on Wednesday March 11th on the blog!

Thank you to everyone who enters, and good luck!