Best of 2013 Beauty : Yearly Favorites ♥

Hey everyone! First post of 2014, wheeee! Sorry for the lack of posts the last few days, I know I've been very consistent with posting at least every other day since this summer, but I just had to take a few days off to take my mind off of school and the stress of the holidays. Now that I have pretty much recuperated (I've been playing a lot of sims 3! Let me know in the comments if you're still into that game as well!), it's time for me to do my yearly favorites post! I've done one of these almost every year since I started blogging (apparently I missed 2012 for some reason) and I think it's really interesting to see how my tastes in makeup have evolved over the years. In case you're curious, you can check out my best of 2010 and 2011! Now let's get onto this year's favorites! 

♥ Brows ♥

2013 is the year that I started paying attention to my brows. While I'm still experimenting and I'm not too comfortable with bold brows yet, I have found at least two products that help my brows look more put togheter but still natural :

1) Maybelline Great Lash Clear Mascara : Great as a brow gel, but I also use it to tame my crazy baby hairs sometimes! It's super cheap as well.

2) Milani Brow Fix Brow Kit in Light : Perfect shade for my brows, it doesn't look powdery and it appears natural when applied. It's super inexpensive as well! Love it and been using it all lot this year. It's been in my monthly favorites countless times.

♥ Brushes and Tools ♥

While I'm obviously still very faithful to the Eco Tools brand, this year I have discovered makeup sponges and Real Techniques brushes. I won't list all the brush names here, because it would be too long and because they don't all have official names. The sponge is by Quo and it's 5$ at shopper's Drugmart! It's a steal and I love it! All the brushes are incredibly soft, pick up product well and don't shed. If you're curious about a particular brush in this picture, don't hesitate to contact me or leave a comment about it and I'll be glad to give you more detail!

♥ Face Powder Products 

1) NYC Sunny Bronzer : This one has been in three yearly favorites so far. It's pretty impressive considering the 2.97$ price tag! I've gone back and forth between this bronzer and others, but for some reason, I keep coming back to this. It looks effortless and subtle without ever looking orange.

2) ZA 2 Way Cake Foundation : This powder so finely milled that it hides your pores and smooths the skin making it look perfect. It blurs your imperfections, kind of like the Hourglass Ambient powder apparently does (haven't tried that, although I'd love to). I use it as powder over my foundation and it works great to set my makeup and keep it in place all day.

3) Stila Highlighting Duo in Kitten : I bought this because Shaaanxo kept raving about it in her videos and I've been following her forever. I have to agree with her, this highlighter is just perfect and I use it every time I wear makeup.

4) Benefit Hoola Bronzer : Too bad I'm probably never going to want to spend 30$ on a bronzer, because this bronzer just looks so gorgeous on. I mostly wear it in the summer time when I have a tan, since I'm so pale during the winter.

5) Rimmel London Blush in Bronze : I've always loved the Rimmel London blushes, but I used to prefer pinkier one called Pink Sugar. This year I've been more into bronzey cheeks because I feel they're more natural and subtle. This color just look beautiful on the cheeks.

6) Hard Candy Bronzer in Tiki : While the name may be misleading, this is actually a golden highlighter rather than a bronzer. This year was my first year playing with highlighters and this was the first one I ever got. It's an amazing golden shade that gives your face a beautiful healthy glow!

♥ Foundation and Concealer ♥

1) Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation : I've purchased this foundation because Tanya Burr kept raving about it. It's so beautiful and dewy, it's perfect for my dry skin! I love that it's got medium coverage and that it's super inexpensive. It gives a really radiant finish.

2) Maybelline Age Rewind Foundation : This foundation has a light to medium coverage. It doesn't cover so much that you can't see you natural skin underneath which I love especially if I'm going for a very natural look. It glides onto the skin and make it look hydrated even if you have dry patches. Love it!

3) Maybelline Mineral Power Concealer : I've been using this bad boy like crazy for over 2 year now. I prefer it during the summer time when my skin is more hydrated though. It covers really well.

4) Garnier Skin Renew Roll On Tinted Eye Treated : This was a recommendation for one of  Alexfashionbeauty's video on Youtube. A few months back she shared that she was using this concealer in her summer routine and I just had to try it. I love the very thin consistensy and the cooling effect on the under eyes. It's perfect for light coverage, espeically if you tend to have cakeyness under your eyes like I do.

♥ Liner and Lashes ♥

1) Ardell Lashes : Particularly  the 120 demi lashes, the wispies lashes and the 315 accent lashes. They look beautiful on and are very comfortable.

2) Bewitched (?) Black Liquid Liner : I got this in Thailand and I'm not exactly sure of the brand or anything but I've used this liner non-stop for the whole first half of 2013. It's super black and a little shiny and it looks very nice.

3) E.l.f. Black Liquid Liner : This is the liquid liner that I've been using for most of 2013. It's very black and the tip of the brush is so fine that you have a lot of control when applying this. It's kind of sheer on the first swipe which some might not like, but I enjoy since it's more forgiving if you make a mistake.

4) Milani Liquid'eye liner pencil in black : so black, so creamy, doesn't pull at your eyes, stays on forever and is only 6$. What else could I ask for in a liner?

5) Rimmel Liner in Nude : Not many drugstore brands make nude liners at the moment so when I saw this I was really excited. Not only is it a unique drugstore offering, but it's also creamy and looks very nice on the waterline. It instantly makes your eyes pop!

6) Cover Girl Clump Crusher Mascara :  I've been using this mascara almost exclusively since last January. It's separating, lengthening and volumizing and as the name suggests, it doesn't clump up even if you build it up. I haven't found anything that comes close to this, it's so much better than anything else I've tried that I'm kind of wondering why I keep buying other mascaras.

7) Duo Clear Lash Glue : In 2013, I've also started wearing false lashes. At first, I was kind of discouraged because the glue that comes with some lashes was really irritating my eyes and I thought I simply couldn't wear them. That's until I tried the duo glue, which doesn't irritate my eyes and is super easy to use!

♥ Lip Products ♥

As you can see, I'm still obsessed with lip balm this year!

1) NYX Butter Gloss in

2) NYX Mega Shine Lipgloss in Beige : Definitely not a beige color, more like a really natural pinky color. It looks beautiful, and it's super pigmented. It smells like sweet cherries which I really love.

3) Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Stain in Honey : Love the smell, love the balmy and shiny texture and love the fact that it leaves a stain behind. One of the only product that do not look horrendous on my awful chapped lips.

4) Maybelline Babylips Lip balms : I love all of them, but the shades pictured are the ones I tend to go for the most!

5) Sally Hansen Lip balm : super slippery, kind of glossy, light and the smell is nice. Maybe not everyone's cup of tea, but I love them! I finished two of them.

6) Sofltips Pure Lip Balm : Probably discontinued, but I stocked up a while back so I'm still using these. My all time favorite balms. Kind of reminds me of the Sally Hansen balms but even glossier!

♥ Eyes ♥

1) NYX Jumbo Pencils in Milk and Yogourt : perfect bases for your eyeshadows. Milk is perfect for any colorful look (although I find it a little drying) and yogourt is amazing for all my natural everyday looks.

2) Stila in the Light Palette : always a favorite. It has everything I need in term of everyday natural looks. The shades are pigmented and look amazing applied.

3) Darling Girl Cosmetics Shadows : I love all the ones I got, but the one pictured is called Lucky. It's a white color with a strong green shift that is accentuated when applied either over green or a dark color. For some reason this color has been very handy in many looks I have done this year. The quality of the Darling Girl Cosmetics shadows is outstanding and I just cannot get enough.

4) Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad to The Bronze : this is so convenient. I like it applied by itself or underneath my taupe or bronze shadows which are the ones I gravitate most towards. Been using it a lot for the past few months.

5) Urban Decay Primer Potion : Second tube of this and I already have a backup waiting for me. I wear it everytime I use eyeshadow and never experience creasing. Love it!

6) Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette : I got this palette at the beginning of the year following the craze on Youtube around the Naked Palettes. The hype was totally justified and I've been using this palette non stop all year. I love the cool toned neutrals, the packaging, the out-of-this-world pigmentation, everything!

♥ Runner Ups - Honorable Mentions - New Favorites ♥

This category is dedicated to new finds, products that are of amazing quality, but that I don't use on a day to day basis, or products that are quickly becoming favorites, but that I feel that I haven't used enough yet to dub as yearly favorites.

1) L'Oréal Infallible Shadow in Amber Rush : Love the texture, love the color, but only had it a couple weeks. I can definitely see this become a regular in my makeup routine though.

2) CoverGirl Stay Fabulous Foundation : Another product I haven't had long enough to justify adding to the list. I love it using the quo foundation sponge. It looks flawless, but not overdone.

3) Maybelline FIT Me Foundation : I'm not a 100% sure about this one yet. It looks great so far, but I need to give it some more time to be certain of how I feel about it.

4) Naked 1 and Naked 3 Palettes : One is surprising (the 1st one) this other, not so much (the 3rd). While many have had the Naked 1 Palette forever, I only got it for Christmas this year thanks to my incredibly sweet and thoughtful boyfriend. Which means I got it only a few weeks after I got the Naked 3. Since I got both of these in December, even though I'm obsessed with them already, I feel like it wouldn't be completely fair to include them in a yearly favorite post, hence why they are in this category.

5) Quo Glamour Box Palette : I love everything about this palette so far, but haven't had the occasion to play with it enough yet. Fast becoming one of my favorites though.

6) Sephora Pencil Liner : This one is in a Forest Green shade, but I've swatched a bunch in store and all of them looked amazing. I don't use this regularly because of the color, but the color range is mind blowing (17 shades I think), the price is right (11$ vs 26$ for Urban Decay Liners), they are super creamy, but set really well so that they don't budge.

7) NYX Slide On Pencils : Again, I have this in an Electric Blue Shade, so I don't use this that often, but it's an amazingly creamy and budge proof eyeliner. It's 10$ at target and the color range is pretty great. I kind of want a bronze shade from this line.

8) NYX Studio Liquid Liner : This one is in coffee, but I also have one in a deep blue shade which I adore. They are super opaque (not always the case with colored liners), they don't flake (also not always the case) and they don't sting your eyes (do I need to say it again?). I love these. So far, I only have colors that I don't necessarily wear on a daily basis, but I'm loving the coffee shade more and more, especially paired with the Naked 3 Palette. May very well become a staple look for me in 2014!

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That's it for my 2013 Yearly favorites! This post was crazy long! I'm really sorry about that and thank you for sticking around if you're still with me! I guess I just had a bunch of things to say about everything. They're the products I've been crazy over for this whole year afterall... Actually, I've tried to keep things as short as possible because I feel like I could have rambled even longer about every single product if I hadn't stopped myself!

Let me know what you're favorite, go-to products were this year! Did you also enjoy any of the products on this list? Let me know in the comments! Thank you so much for reading :)

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Drugstore and High end Bronzers Review

Hey everyone! My friend from French Gypsy has recently asked me to review the Rimmel Natural Bronzer on my Facebook page so I decided to review it for you all. In fact, I decided that I would review all the bronzers that I own for you all so that I can review them while I compare them!

All the bronzers I own are drugstore except for a deluxe sample from Benefit that I got at Sephora.

The bronzers I'm reviewing today

Wet n Wild - Bikini Contest

Color : The color of this bronzer is quite dark. It almost has a mahogany color to it. It's a dark reddish brown basically. A lot darker than any other bronzers that I own. I would say that it might be a bit too dark for fair skin tones like me, unless you are very careful not to over-apply.

Texture : Like most Wet n Wild products, the powder is very soft and buttery. 

Finish : This bronzer has a definite sheen to it. It's less noticeable when blended out, but you still have a sort of reflective quality to it. It wouldn't be a good choice for contouring, but it looks nice to warm up the complexion during summer time.

Application : Because the powder is very soft, a lot of product transfers onto your brush during application, which means that you have to be careful and tap your brush of any excess product. Also, the bronzer is very pigmented, so a little goes a long way. Other than that, it blends out nicely and easily.

Packaging : The packaging of this bronzer is probably my least favorite part of this product. It's so much bigger than any of my other powders. It doesn't fit anywhere. To make it worse, the top is domed, which makes it impossible to stack it with other products. 

Price : 4$

Overall : A nice bronzer that is very affordable, but too dark for me. Also, because it is shimmery, I can't use it everyday. I hate the packaging. 6/10

Benefit - Hoola

Color : This one is a lot less orange in tone than any of the other bronzers. It's a flattering medium brown that I think would suit most skin types if applied properly.

Texture : Hoola, just like the Wet n Wild bronzer, is a very soft and buttery powder.

Finish : It's completly matte, great for contouring if you're fair.

Application : It's very easy to apply and quite pigmented. It applies evenly and blending is easy and quick.

Packaging : Can't really speak for this one, since I have a deluxe sample of it. Therefore, I don't have the actual packaging to review. I know the full size comes in a cardboard cube shaped box, but I've never owned one.

Price : 36$

Overall : Probably my favorite bronzer that I own, but it's far too expensive for my budget. I don't think I will be repurchasing after I finish this sample. 9/10

Marcelle - Tropical Bronze

Color : It's lighter than the other two bronzers I have mentionned before, and also has slightly more of an orange tinge to it.

Texture : It's a bit more powdery than the other two bronzers, but the texture is still quite nice.

Finish : Glittery in the pan, less noticeably so on the skin.

Application : Applies kind of sheer and a bit patchy. Needs to be built up to get the full color payoff. You need to work a bit more with this one to get it even and nicely blended.

Packaging : I like the packaging. It's easy to open and to store. I like the square pan and the sun imprint in the powder.

Price : 12$

Overall : I think that for the price, it's not as good as other bronzers, but it's still a good bronzer. 7/10

Rimmel - Natural Bronzer - Sun Glow

Color : Like the Marcelle bronzer, the Rimmel Natural Bronzer is more of an orangey toned bronzer. It's not too dark so it can be worn even if you have a pale complexion.

Texture : Very soft and buttery.

Finish : This is the most shimmery of the bunch. It has a very noticeable glow to it, even once blended out on the skin. It's nice for a glowy summer look, but might not be the best choice in the winter months.

Application : Since the powder is so soft and pigmented, it applies very nicely. It's easy to blend out and you only need a little bit to see results.

Packaging : I like the round packaging that Rimmel has for their powders because it looks quite nice and it's easy to store in my makeup collection. It is not the most practical though. It doesn't have a mirror and the top doesn't close that tightly meaning that it could open in your bag if you're not careful.

Price : 5$

Overall : I like the shimmer in this one. It's not as easy to wear because of it, but it's perfect for a bronzed goddess kind of look. The color suits my skin tone and really warms it up. Will definitely be using it in the future! 8/10

NYC - Sunny

Color : While very subtle, the color is not too orangey or dark and it looks very nice on the skin. It's easy to pull off, especially if you're fair or uncertain about experimenting with bronzers.

Texture : It's a bit less buttery than other bronzer I have reviewed, but it's also not as powdery as some others. It's somewhere in between.

Finish : Completely matte, a rare find for such a good price at the drugstore!

Application : This one applies the most sheer of all the bronzers I have reviewed today. It can also be a little patchy if you're not careful. You have to build it up if you want to have a more dramatic effect. It is, however, great for beginners, because it's so sheer. It gives a really subtle effect and it's kind of hard to over-do it.

Packaging : The packaging looks and feels kind of cheap and it doesn't withstand time very well. However, it closes very tightly and has a mirror included which is a bonus.

Price : As you can see, this bronzer has been well loved. It was my first bronzer ever, because of the incredible price point. 2.79$

Overall : While it's not the best bronzer in terms of application, the fact that it is a nice color, very inexpensive and matte makes it one of my favorite bronzers, even today. 8/10

Comparison swatches

 That's it for today's review! I hope it has been helpful for all of you looking for a new bronzer! Let me know what you thought of this, would you like more comparison reviews like this one in the future? Also, let me know if there is any other bronzers I should try!

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What's In My Travel Makeup Bag

Having moved to Quebec City for university, I have to go back and forth between Montreal and Quebec City quite a lot since my parents and friends are there.

Since it's a three hour drive, I will usually go from anywhere between a weekend to over a week, which means I have to pack some makeup if I want to wear any while I'm there.

First of, this is my makeup bag :

I Love the pretty pink color and the zebra print. I got this at the dollar store (bargain! :D) and it fits an inredible amount of stuff! ♥

And here is all that I carry. It's quite  a lot of stuff considering I don't wear makeup everyday, but I like having the option. :)

Here is a list of the products in case you are interested!

3 Wet n Wild trios : Walking on Eggshells, Silent Treatment and Getting Sunburnt
1 Maybelline BB Cream (the tiny mint colored tube) - My main foundation at the moment
1 Urban Decay Primer Potion
1 ZA Powder foundation compact
1 Rimmel Stay Matte powder
1 Rimmel Blush in Pink Sugar
1 Milani Blush in Coralina
1 Canmake cream blush
1 Maybelline Mineral Power Concealler
2 Nyx Round lipsticks : Fig and B52
1 Maybelline Baby lips Lip Balm
5 Eco Tools brushes : Mineral powder, large shadow, 2 blending, small shadow and angled liner
2 Maybelline Mascaras : Colossal and One by One
1 Nyx Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk
1 Nyx Eye Pencil in White
1 Milani Liquif'eye pencil in black (this stuff is AMAZING)
1 black liquid liner (from 7-11 in Thailand)
1 Hoola Bronzer Sample
1  Maybelline Gel Liner in blackest black
1 pair of tweezers

Mini Sephora Haul : Benefit Tan About Town

I've been planning in my mind the cosmetics and toiletries for my next backpacking trip lately. (which will most likely take place at the end of june through the end of august) I was trying to figure out how to minize everything even more. Even though I already only bring travel sized products, I was thinking of ways to combine so, to bring formulas that take less space etc. I've actually had quite a few really useful ideas in the process. I'll most likely make a post soon about some tips on reducing the weight and size of your toiletry bag without bringing less products. For backpacking, it's especially important since you carry everything on your back. However, I still want to be able to have all my hair, face and shower things.

Anyway, I'm rambling here. Where I'm going with this is actually that while I was thinking about what products to bring and how to make them as small as possible, I started wondering about the makeup I would bring. I've pretty much decided on only a couple products and it's pretty minimal already, but I really want it to be as compact as possible. I mainly wanted to reduce the size of the mascara and bronzer I'm planning on packing because if I'm being realistic, there is no way I would go through a whole powder and mascara in two months anyway. I really want to bring just the exact amount I need. I went on Sephora.com (they have a new site by the way, love it!) and saw this really cheap Benefit set (always wanted to try Benefit products!) called Tan About Town. It was only 15$ and includes a deluxe sample size of their famous mascara Bad Gal, a deluxe sample size of their also well-known bronzer Hoola and a deluxe sample size of their compact cream to powder foundation Some kind of Gorgeous (not my color at the moment, but I might consider packing it for when I have a tan during the trip).

It's a cheap way to try out new products and see if I like them. It also feels like a treat since I never purchase high end makeup. I'll have a great mascara and powder bronzer with me for the days I want to be a little more made up during my trip.

The lady at the register also gave me a couple free perfume samples which I thought was very sweet. I'm not very fond of either scent though. One is very spicy and the other very floral. I tend to prefer sweet and slightly spicy exotic scents more, so this isn't really the kind of perfume I usually go for. I'll probably give them to my mom so she can try them out in case she likes them!