The next step: Colour correctors for flawless skin

Color Correcting title

Suffer from redness? What about dullness? Dark circles?

As much as we all wish we could walk around and look airbrushed, it takes some work.  Sure, we all can look amazing on Instagram, but at the end of the day, when you wash it all off, there might be some redness around your nose, and dark circles under your eyes. As makeup is getting more advanced, brands are coming out with new innovative products to get rid of pesky skin problems.

You may have seen them in stores.  Green and purple concealers and palettes that look more like an artist’s arsenal of colours as opposed to something you would put on your face.  You may have already seen YouTube videos of girls putting red lipstick under their eyes to cancel out any darkness.

Enter the colour correcting palettes.  Sephora actually had a whole week promoting these products a couple weeks back, and loads of brands are coming out with new lines specifically for colour correcting.

Lise Watier and NYX

I’ve had some colour correcting and concealing palettes in my collection for a while, and since I actually don’t have that many skin problems, I don’t usually reach for them.  If you suffer from skin imperfections though, I would definitely look into investing into one of these miracle worker palettes.  NYX makes one for C$13.99  and Lise Watier has one for C$35, so you don’t need to invest a ton of money to get correcting.

I got to play around recently with the new Sephora x Pantone Universe Correct + Conceal Palette.  This guy, which retails for C$61, comes two shades, light/medium and medium/dark.  Since I’m so fair, I got the light/medium one, which has 15 correcting and concealing shades, as well as a booklet which walks you through what each shade does.

Graphs IMG_5141

Each palette helps to eliminate skin concerns. There’s a shade for brightening, eliminating redness, dark circles and dark spots, purple tones, dullness, and neutralizing dark circles and dark spots. There is also eight different shades of concealers, so this is great for yearly use as your skin typically turns colours as the seasons change (for example, we are usually darker in the summer than in the winter).

Since this is a collaboration with Pantone Universe, each shade is a different Pantone shade. The case is also the same size and model as the Pantone Universe Modern Watercolours Eyeshadow Palette, except that this one is a plain white case, no colour, except for the Sephora + Pantone Universe logo.

Colour Correcting swatches I gave this palette a try on the weekend. I don’t have a lot of issues with my skin, but I do have some redness down my nose and purple tones at the outer edges of my eyes. I took shade six, the green, and blended it down my nose and under my eyes, I also used shade 12, the yellow, on the outer edges of my eyes to eliminate redness and purple tones. Since these have a thicker consistency, I do recommend taking a light hand with them since they do blend out quite nice.  I was watching some YouTube reviews on this product and I found people saying that they were too opaque, however, I didn’t find that. The green blended out nicely and once I applied my foundation over top (the Sephora Collection Wonderful Cushion foundation, which has a light finish), I couldn’t tell that I have green underneath there. After applying my foundation, I applied one of the concealer shades, which were nice and thick, and then set everything with a powder and finished my makeup.

If you are really into colour correcting, I would look into purchasing a colour correcting palette. The Sephora one is quite comprehensive and large (and not to mention pricey), but lots of brands are offering them now (like I said earlier, the NYX one retails for $13.99). If you have one specific issue, such as redness, you can also just purchase a green colour correcting fluid. It’s one more step in your makeup application, but totally worth it if you have some major skin concerns.

Also, kind of related, if you are in the Winnipeg area, I’m hosting a Contouring Beauty Clinic at London Drugs St. Vital this Wednesday, March 16.  The 6:30 p.m. workshop is sold out, but the 7:15 p.m. slot still has two openings.  Best part is it’s totally free!  You can sign up via Eventbrite.

Have you tried your hand at colour correcting yet?

Please note, products sent by PR. All opinions are my own.

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Lashes + nails: New products from Kiss!

Title When you get the same amount of nail polish and mascaras to try out as I do, you always have to be prepared. I would love to get some acrylic nails and eyelash extensions, but A) it can be an expensive habit to maintain and B) I’m always swatching new nail polishes or trying on new mascaras. That’s where fake lashes and nails come in handy.

I have my fair share of lashes and press-on nails (actually I totally hoard them), and if you’re a long-time reader of my blog, you’ll know I absolutely love Kiss and Broadway Nails (they are actually the same company). Not only are they affordable, but for being a drugstore brand, they are actually really well made and look way more expensive and natural than other cheaper lashes and nails out there.

About a month back, I was perusing my favourite beauty blogs and saw that Kiss actually came out with a new style of lashes. I absolutely love their EZ lashes and the starter kit (they are my lash of choice), so naturally I had to get my hands on the Blooming lashes (C$7.99). Available in five different styles, these feature a multi-angle technology that delivers flourishing layers of lashes in a single band. To translate that, I believe they give the effect of multiple layers of lashes, but all in a single lash. They add volume, length and depth.

blooming lash Beer and after

I got the model Peony, which is one of their fullest models. They definitely added some major volume and flirtiness to my eyes. Hands down, these are a going-out lash.  They are also incredibly soft and easy to apply since the band is so flexible. These don’t come with glue, but I highly recommend the Strip Lash Adhesive with Aloe by Kiss, which I find to be much better than the Duo lash adhesive (and I’m not just saying that because this post is about Kiss products, I find the lash stays on way better with this particular glue).

Now for nails, since I’m always painting my tips, I unfortunately have to rock a natural nail more often than I like. For special events or trips though I’ll often put on some press ons. I’ve tried many different kinds and brands, but I do find the Kiss ones to be some of the best out there.

The newest addition to the false nail lineup are the Salon Acrylic French Manicure, which come in eight different styles of French nails (the big difference is in the shape of the nail. I got the French Ovals, which make my nails and hands look super long and just so much nicer). Acrylic-infused technology delivers a flawless French manicure that’s two-times stronger than other brands.  Each pack comes with 28 nails in 14 sizes, as well as glue, a mini file, and a manicure stick.  This particular style is a medium length, making it somewhat simple to do the everyday tasks in my life (although having long nails definitely takes some getting used to). They are said to stick on your nails for seven days, although I often find I have to keep the glue handy since some will pop off (one actually popped off the day I applied them, but for the most part, the rest of them have stayed put).

I do find this particular nail kit to be much more durable and harder than other ones out there (especially the Broadway Nails ones – which is a subsidiary of Kiss). I know French nails aren’t for everyone, but they are a nice staple nail look and you can definitely paint any polish over these.

nails

Although I was sent these products by the company to try out, I’m not being paid by them to talk about how much I love their products.  I genuinely really like their products and since they are a drugstore brand, the affordability of their lashes and nails are amazing compared to the quality they have (I prefer their lashes over more expensive brands like MAC, Make Up For Ever, etc.). If you are looking for some great false lashes or nails, definitely look into Kiss products.

What is your favourite false lash and nail brand?

Please note, this post contains products sent by PR.  All opinions are my own.

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Smooth luxury: A week with the 2016 Lincoln MKX

lincoln title

When one gets the chance to test drive a luxury vehicle for a week, you don’t pass up that opportunity.

Last week I got to cruise around town in the brand-new 2016 Lincoln MKX.  I’ve had test driving opportunities in the past with Ford Canada, and if you are a car enthusiast, you’ll know that Lincoln Motor Co. is the luxurious older sibling in the Ford family. Now if you aren’t really a car person, the MKX is an SUV, similar in size to the Honda CRV. Since I drive a Honda Civic, it took me a little time getting used to sheer size of this vehicle (it was weird getting back into my Civic earlier this week since it seemed so small and lighter than the MKX).

Now to the parts that matter. I could go into detail about the engine (2.7L EcoBoost® V6 for the model I had) or about the horsepower (335 @ 5,500, again, for the model I was testing), but let’s be real here, the only thing I really cared about were the interior features.  After test driving the Ford Explorer and discovering the magic of the heating steering wheel, that was at the top of my list of priorities. In fact it was the first question I asked the PR rep.  But hey, when the weather is minus 30 degrees and you have bags to carry, a set of keys, and a dog, there is no time for mittens, so that’s where the steering wheel comes in.  But then I found out about a feature which will trump all other features…. Massage seats.  Yes my friends, driver and passenger seats that massage your back and bum while you drive. It’s not an urban legend, it actually exists (actually my boyfriend was telling me about his friend’s car that has that months ago but I thought he was lying).

lincoln start entertainment Open door IMG_8073

Obviously the first thing I did when I jumped in the driver seat was reach beside the seat and press a little button that turned on the massagers (or, as Lincoln calls it, the Active Motion), which, combined with the heated seats feature, made me want to sit in that car forever with the engine running. I didn’t have to actually go anywhere, I just wanted the massage. The warm, comfortable, soothing massage…..

Less I digress… The car also has tons of other cool features as well. Looking for a gear shifter? Not in the Lincoln MKX! Instead there’s buttons you press to put it in park, drive, reverse, etc., which take some getting used to.  There’s also a button to open the glove box, cause you know, you don’t want to put too much stress on that back that’s currently receiving a massage.. Although I do have to say that you manually have to shut the glove box, so I feel like that kinda defeats the purpose…

For such a large car, the Lincoln really does give you a comfortable ride. It also has all the bells and whistles for a safe ride.  This is the first Lincoln to offer a feature that may help avoid or lessen the severity of some frontal crashes, with the Pre-Collision Assist with Pedestrian Detection. It also features adaptive cruise control, which uses sensors to detect when traffic in front of the vehicle slows, as well as a lane-keeping system (the steering wheel vibrates when drivers are straying from their lane). In addition, it has that nifty feature where it will park itself, which I didn’t try out this time around (I failed miserably when I tried it in the Ford Explorer – it didn’t seem to want to catch on to park itself). It also features a backup camera (which is pretty standard nowadays anyways), as well as a 360-degree camera with enhanced park assist. This is that weird feature which shows you a 360-degree view of your camera from on top. I’ve often wondered how this works exactly, and apparently the front camera sits behind the Lincoln Star badge.  When in park, drive, or natural and the button is pushed, the Lincoln Star badge moves out about one inch and tilts up to deploy the available front camera.

Other cool features that I loved were the ambient lighting in the interior during the night. It’s like a trendy loungy blue shade, which if you crank up the music and pass around some (virgin, of course) drinks will have you feeling like you’re in ‘da club (okay, not really, but the ambient blue shade was super cool). Also, when you unlock the car it flashes a Lincoln welcome mat on the ground. So unnecessary, but so cool. Seriously, it was one of those things that you only see in luxury vehicles. Like whose idea was it to come up with that?

car front camera front dash welcome mat

Finally, have you ever been driving and you’re like “what’s the speed limit even?” The Lincoln actually displays the speed limit in the dashboard so it takes away all the guessing.

Overall, I had an amazing time with the 2016 Lincoln MKX, so much so that I didn’t want to give it back! The only downside I noticed was that the gas tank only lasted me a week (which is pretty standard for an SUV). Also, much to my dismay since I loved it so much, was that the Active Motion in the driver’s seat (aka the massagers) pretty much stopped working after the first day. I even tried playing with the settings, making them max, but alas, I could hardly feel the massagers, whereas the passenger seat worked fine. I don’t think this is typical of each particular car though, I think I just got a bad model. At least I got to experience it the first night…

drive standing with car

The particular model I tried out retails for over $65K, but the Lincoln MKX starts at C$47,000. If you’re looking for a luxury SUV, seriously give this one a thought.

Have you tried the 2016 Lincoln MKX?

Please note, I received no compensation for this post aside from the car for a week. All opinions are my own.

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