sparkleshinylove - A lifestyle blog for girls who love a little sparkle!

Roxymandy July 8, 2015

My Visit to Sweetgrass Spa

This Sunday I indulged a little and visited sweetgrass spa in Toronto.

It’s a women’s only spa located in Toronto on Queen Street East, and it is part of Verity which is a private women’s club.

Verity is also connected to the Ivy boutique hotel, and George Restaurant.

The women’s club, hotel, restaurant and spa are all located in a restored 1850’s chocolate factory, so the building has a lot of character. Although Verity and the spa are for women only, accommodations and access to the restaurant are open to men.

The spa is in the lower level of the building, and it was very serine. The change rooms included lockers with fluffy towels, robes, slippers, and even a fresh tooth brush and tooth paste. There were showers in the same area, and a large vanity area for freshening up.

The lounge area was lit with chandeliers and candles, and had plenty of seating areas so you had the opportunity to relax on your own, or gossip with girlfriends in a group.

There were plenty of winding hallways leading to other treatment areas, and everything was so pretty!

They offer services such as manicures, pedicures, facials, massages, body wraps, hair removal, and even eyelash extensions.

You can also enjoy their Hydrotherapies on site for free with any spa package, or service valued at $100 and over. You can also purchase a single Hydrotherapy visit for $50 and it includes access to the lockers, spa lounge, refreshment bar, Jacuzzi, infrared sauna and ozonated swimming pool.

The pool and Jacuzzi are in a completely separate area surrounded by lounge chairs, and the room is temperate controlled so it is nice and warm.

The manicure and pedicure area overlooks the pool, and that is where I had a manicure.

The nail products are by OPI, and I had a lovely relaxing manicure service. When I was done it was rather nice to lounge by the pool with no boys around!

It was a very relaxing visit, and I’m looking forward to heading back.

For more information on sweetgrass spa, visit them here!

Roxymandy July 7, 2015

Review of Vichy Ideal Body Serum-Milk

Oh I love a good lotion! I slather lotion on in the morning and at night, and especially after a long day outside or after a hot shower to replenish my skin. I go through a lot of lotion as well – it’s something I love to indulge in. I have a closet full of them actually! I have a little lotion department store in my linen closet. My husband is a little less enthusiastic about my “stash” of lotion taking up a whole shelf in the closet, but as usual he let’s it slide for the sake of my happiness.

Once I tried Vichy Ideal Body Serum-Milk, I pushed all of the other lotions out of the way and this has been my go-to for weeks. I am obsessed with it, and I am so sad to almost be out of it!

For Ideal Body Serum-Milk, Vichy used active ingredients traditionally used in face care for this formula to help women obtain fabulous skin quality on the body. Hyaluronic Acid and LHA were combined with 10 fundamental oils to provide firmer, smoother and more radiant skin.

First of all the smell is amazing! It’s quite a strong smell which was just fine with me, and I could smell roses and peaches in the scent. I think it’s one of the prettiest smelling scents in a lotion I have tried. It’s almost a peach coloured lotion, and it has a bit of a shimmer to it as well.

Is it a body milk, or a serum? Well, it’s both! The consistency was between the two categories, hence the name. It absorbs quickly into the skin, and feels very light and airy.

It is an amazing moisturizer. It promises to give firmer, smoother and more radiant skin. I found that my skin did look a bit more radiant (I’m sure the shimmer in the lotion helped with this!) and I absolutely felt like my skin was smoother. As for firmness, I would likely need to give it more than a few weeks to make that determination.

For best results you should apply it just after the shower when you have damp skin to lock in moisture.

For those with sensitive skin it is Paraben-free and hypoallergenic.

Will I buy this product again? Absolutely! I love it. It smells amazing, and does a great job of moisturizing my skin. It feels like a luxury just to apply it.

I have tried a few Vichy products recently, and this one again is a great one to add to my beauty arsenal!

For more information on Vichy Ideal Body Serum-milk, visit the Vichy website here!

Disclaimer: This product was provided to me for review, but all opinions are fabulously my own.

Roxymandy July 6, 2015

Summer Maxi Dresses

I’m a short girl, so maxi dresses can be hard for me to wear, but I really do love them in the summer. Some are nice and flowy, and and can give you the airflow you need to stay nice and cool on a hot summer day.

For me, most of the time I need to wear heels or wedges because of my height, but every once in a while I get lucky and can wear flats with one of these dresses. I love this one I’m wearing the photos because the lines make me appear much taller than I am! I’m only 5’3 so this isn’t an easy illusion to create.

Here is the dress I am wearing in the photos here. As you can see, the model is wearing flats because she is a tall model-type gal, unlike myself!

Sometimes maxi dresses are a nice change from all of that summer skin we show off this time of year. Footwear and the bag you wear with it really change the vibe of the whole outfit. Flip flops dress everything down, but a great heel can totally change the look of a dress.

Here are a few more of my favourite maxi dresses in stores right now!

Free People New Romantics Dream Caravan Dress

Club Monaco Brynn Maxi Dress

Rip Curl Sundial Halter Dress

Banana Republic Tiered Patio Dress

Dynamite Halter Maxi Dress with Cut Out

Forever 21 Button Floral Maxi

Roxymandy July 3, 2015

Review of the Dermalogica Skin Kit for Oily Skin

One major skin issue has always really plagued me, and I have forever been on the hunt for the perfect skincare product to solve it – I have oily skin.

I hate it when people ask what skin type I have. Doesn’t oily skin sound like a terrible answer? Well it’s my answer and I’d really like to switch skin types of that’s ok!

I had never used Dermalogica before, and the best place for me to start with this new brand was the Dermalogica Skin Kit – Oily

The kit included a Dermal Clay Cleanser (1.7 oz), Multi-Active Toner (1.7 oz), Oil Control Lotion (0.75 oz), Skin Prep Scrub (0.75 oz), Total Eye Care (0.1 oz), PreCleanse (sample), Skin Refining Masque (sample).

For best results I used the kit morning and night, and the kit had a full regimen of what I needed.

The Clay Cleanser was my favourite from the kit. It really felt like it woke my skin up! It had a minty fresh sent that made my skin tingle. It removed my eye makeup as well.

The Multi-Active Toner was AMAZING! The instructions said to close your eyes and spray it over your face, but I preferred to do it with a cotton ball, and it felt like it was soaking up all of the oil in my face.

The Skin Prep Scrub gently exfoliated my face, and made it nice and smooth. I really should exfoliate more often!

The Oil Control Lotion required very little for each application – the coverage was amazing! It did not make my face greasy or oily at all.

When it came to the Total Eye Care, again it seemed like a little went a long way. This kit is meant to last one month, and it’s a great way to try the whole regimen to see what works for you.

After using these products there was an immediate difference compared to other skincare products I have used because there was no sheen to my face. My face seemed completely clean and oil free instantly.

It was pretty shocking the difference this skincare line made to my oily skin. I saw results after my first application – I couldn’t believe it. It really improved my oily T-Zone.

I was also having a minor breakout when I started the Dermalogica Skin Kit, and it cleared it up in only a couple days. Huge bonus!

Do I sound like a big fan of the Dermalogica Skin Kit? I am – I had heard great things about Dermalogica, but after trying it I was amazed to find that the skincare line kept all of its promises.

The kit included one-time samples of the Dermalogica PreCleanse & Skin Refining Masque as well which I would like to purchase to see what their long-term benefits are. I really liked the way the Skin Refining Mask made my skin feel.

For more details on the Dermalogica Skin Kit – Oily, visit their website here!

Disclaimer: This product was provided to me for review, but all opinions are fabulously my own.

Roxymandy July 1, 2015

Amopé Pedi Perfect Review for Chick Advisor!

If you follow me on the blog or on Instagram, you know I am a girl who loves the spa. I love to bounce around to different locations to indulge in a little pampering – especially pedicures.

When I can’t make it to the spa, I often do my own pedicures at home. I probably change my nail polish every other week, and I have a kit with all kinds of files, creams, lotions and pumice stones to do my own pedicure.

When Chick Advisor said they were sending me the Amopé Pedi Perfect Electric Foot File, I was obviously excited, but a little nervous too. How would this contraption work into my home pedicure routine? The idea of using something battery powered was a little intimidating, but I soon realized that this tool was exactly what I needed.

The Amopé Pedi Perfect Electronic Foot File is an electric hard skin remover for the professional removal of hard and tough skin at home. It is battery operated, and the average price is $49.99.

Compared to using other foot files, the Amopé Pedi Perfect blows them all away. Who want’s to do manual labour on your feet when this device easily files my feet? It made them so soft in seconds! The instructions say to keep the device moving, and not to focus on one part of the foot for longer than 3 seconds. I followed the instructions precisely, and I found that in only a few seconds my feet were super soft. I was sure I couldn’t get them that soft if I had used a pumice stone.

It was much easier to operate than I anticipated. It’s very easy to turn on and off, and it just needed to be smooth across my feet in the areas I wanted to remove callouses and dry spots. It was very quick as well – I was done so quickly that I wasn’t sure how I lived without this device before!

One of my major pet peeves is having dry heels. They look horrible in sandals, so I am always trying smooth my heels before I go out. It is so much faster to use the Amopé Pedi Perfect just before heading out the door!

I am in love with this product. If you love to do home pedicures like I do, then you really need to get a hold of the Amopé Pedi Perfect. I had no idea I would love it this much!

To see more honest reviews on this product, visit Chick Advisor here, or check out the hashtag #BarefootBeautiful on social media channels!

Disclaimer: Although I received this product for review, all opinions are fabulously my own.

First Day of Summer!

Party Pants

My Favourite Colour

Cold in Plaid

My Visit to Sweetgrass Spa

Review of Vichy Ideal Body Serum-Milk

Summer Maxi Dresses

Review of the Dermalogica Skin Kit for Oily Skin

Amopé Pedi Perfect Review for Chick Advisor!