How To: Style Printed Culottes

I recently bought a really cute pair of shorts from Forever 21+. After I bought them I started seeing shorts like them all over the place. This type of shorts are called culottes. The style dates back to middle ages, when they were worn by male nobility. In slightly more recent times they were worn by women for horseback riding, and now they're back in style for a less utilitarian purpose.

These particular shorts are no longer available but cute printed culottes are available in many places, such as here, here, and here!

I love these shorts because they're a break from the usual short, tight shorts I usually go for, but also different from my plentiful supply of skirts. They're super comfortable and there are so many options for wearing them.

Here are a few of my favourite ideas:

click here to shop this look

click here to shop this look

click here to shop this look

Review: Pixi Powders

I've been eyeing the Pixi shelf ever since Target came to Canada. The branding, the packaging, the products, all spoke to me. The prices however, did not. So now since Target Canada is closing it's doors, and all beauty products are 40% off, I decided to pick up a couple of things.

After missing out on the MAC Cinderella Beauty Powder, I've been looking into a bunch of finishing powders. There have been a lot that have piqued my interest, but most of them are a little on the expensive side. But at $15 a pop after liquidation discounts, these two from Pixi seemed a little more in my price range.

(left: all over magic, right: flawless finishing powder)

There's a lot a love about these products. The packaging is sturdy plastic, they open easily and close with a satisfying click. It doesn't hurt that it's all also my favourite colour, green. The powders themselves are soft and silky.

"All-Over Magic is a multi-purpose silky powder palette for a sophisticated sheen on eyes, cheeks, face, or body" The powder blends beautifully. I was worried it would be too bronzey for my skin tone, especially because I chose it over the rose coloured one, but instead just gave my skin a subtle glow, like I had a really good night's sleep. It's subtle, and it doesn't pick up very well on camera, but it's a noticeable difference in person.

"Flawless Finishing Powder is a suit-all, translucent, velvet finish powder for all skin types." This powder was a little less impressive, but mostly just after using the other one. Due to the slight shimmer of the powder, I expected a more brightening effect. Instead the powder was more mattifying, and the shimmer wasn't noticeable once the powder was applied to my skin. The lack of brightening just made me all the more glad that I picked up both products.

Flawless Finishing Powder

All Over Magic

Colourpop Order + Review

So McKenna and my roommate and I made a Colourpop order recently and yesterday it came in the mail. I ordered a lip liner, a lipstick and a blush. I already have a couple of their lipsticks (or lippie stix as they call them) and I really like them.

This is the first time I've ordered myself, or ordered to my house at least. I was pleasantly surprised by the adorable packaging and the personalized card with joke. It was also full of foam to keep all the makeup safe which was great. 

I got the lipstick in Lumiere, a neutral, the pencil in Leather, a bright purple to go with my Leather lipstick, and the blush in Mochi, a bright, matte pink. 

(left to right: Mochi, Leather, Lumiere)

The blushes have kind of a strange consistency. I've been told they have a similar formula to their shadows, but I haven't tried those. They're very soft and creamy, and they build very well. I was nervous at first, as I tend to prefer powder blushes to cream blushes, but this one was surprisingly easy to use. I used my Real Techniques blush brush, but I think I want to try it out with a few different brushes to see what works best. 

The blush lasted 8 hours for me, which was as long as I wore it. I think next time I'll wear it without bronzer, I think this shade of pink would be better on it's own. I feel like the brightness didn't photograph well, it is so so pink.

 As far as the lipsticks go, Lumiere is going to be a great everyday colour for me. It's sort of a "My Lips But Better" kind of shade. They smell really nice, it's sort of a sugary smell, but not quite the MAC vanilla. Colourpop's mattes are more of a satin matte than a true matte, but I tend to prefer that. 

They're not super long wearing, which is fine for the more neutral shades but a little annoying for the brighter ones. I find they last about five hours, but often come off when you're eating or drinking. I don't mind reapplying so it's not a huge deal to me, you just want to make sure to bring it along with you if you're going out. 

The Colourpop pencils are nice. I'm not surprised so many beauty bloggers use them on their own. They apply matte, and they take a fairly steady hand to apply neatly and evenly, but with a little effort they can provide full coverage. I would prefer a twist up to a sharpenable pencil, but I do like that it's not a wooden pencil. 

It also looks great with the matching lipstick. 

Overall I'm really happy with all the stuff I got, though I'm a little disappointed I made the order just before the spring collection was released. I have my eye on Tootsie, which has been described as a dupe for Lime Crime Cashmere and I'm always up for that, but some pictures of it look closer to Colorpop's own Lumiere or Brink, so I'm not sure. 

But I do know I will be ordering more from Colourpop. 

Spring Playlist

1. Reflections - MisterWives
2. Froot - Marina and the Diamonds
3. Our Own House - MisterWives
4. Jackrabbit - San Fermin
5. Push Pull - Purity Ring
6. Cecilia and the Satellite - Andrew McMahon
7. Better Man - Leon Bridges
8. I Am A Heart - Hey Ocean
9. Rain - Bishop Allen
10. Clean - Taylor Swift

listen on 8tracks here

Spring Shopping Haul

Today I went shopping with my friend Robyn. I only picked up a few things, but I got so many samples that I figured this was a haul big enough to merit sharing. 

Forever 21 Lace Top: I just finished sewing a 3/4 circle skirt last night, and I needed something to go with it. It's midi length and pink, so I wanted something dainty and soft, and this fits the bill perfectly.

Elizabeth and James Nirvana Black (and White): I've mentioned here a couple of times that I was looking for a new perfume. Last time I went to Sephora I tested Nirvana Black and I've been thinking about it ever since so I picked up the rollerball of it today. Then after mentioning I hadn't tried Nirvana White, they made me up a sample! I'm so excited to start wearing it, it smells so so good. 

Philosophy Purity Made Simple Cleanser: I swore by this stuff in high school but I stopped using it after a while because it doesn't smell very nice. Which I know is a small price to pay for a effective face product but the actual price tag didn't help—it's a pretty expensive product. But I'm excited to give it another chance. 

Lovely Me:Ex You & Face Blusher in 09 Cinnamon Dream: I have a highlighter from this brand that I got from McKenna for Christmas and I love it. And I've been looking for a contouring shade that leans more toward neutral than warm or cool undertones, so I'm hoping this will do that. I'm planning to test it over the next few days and get a review up ASAP. 

The Face Shop Mango Seed Cleanser, Lotion and Eye Cream: My favourite thing about The Face Shop is the free samples. They're always plentiful and they're always great. I can't wait to try these out, mango is one of my favourite scents. 

Have you bought anything new and exciting lately?

How To: Rock a Bold Lip

Maybe you want to make it feel summer with a neon pink liptstick, maybe you're just opening your eyes to the beautiful – and slightly unconventional – colour range offered by indie brands, or maybe you're still not over the fall/winter vampy lip trend (I know I'm not)  There are a lot of reasons to rock a bold lip this time of year.

Step one is prep.

Bold colours draw a lot of attention to your lips, so I recommend a lip exfoliator or scrub. You can make your own scrub at home or buy one like from Lush or Bite Beauty. My product of choice is the elf Lip Exfoliator (as pictured above), because it's so easy and mess free to use.

I also recommend a primer or a balm, to keep your lips hydrated and the lipstick on.

Step two is a little harder: confidence. I hear it from my friends all the time:

"I could never wear that colour!"
"Green lipstick would look terrible on me!"
"You're so much braver than I am!"

And okay, maybe when it comes to makeup, the last one is true, but it hasn't always been that way. I used to be afraid to wear red lipstick. I would put it on and then take it straight off. It felt like a lie, like I wasn't allowed to wear it because I wasn't cool enough or sophisticated enough. I wore it sometimes for special occasions, but I was more comfortable in pinks.

Then someone taught me a trick: if you put on lipstick and you don't like it immediately, give it a few minutes. I don't know what the science or logic behind it is, but it helped me a lot. For the first time, I was giving myself the chance to be a little more out there, if only a small one. And from there I was less and less afraid to try new colours.

Soon I was buying more and more "adventurous" lip colours, and feeling good about it. I bought a lot of dark colours and I felt like that was the peak for me, the wildest lip colours I would ever own.

And then I watched an ItsMyRayeReye video called Bright Spring Lip Colours and not only did she show off some amazing, exciting colours, she also opened up a whole new world to me: eye products as lip products. Within a few days I was walking through Sally Beauty and saw the most beautiful blue cream eyeshadow for under a dollar.

And that led to this:

Which led to buying this:

Which led to getting two green lipsticks for Christmas:

But wearing bright lipstick is more than just feeling good enough to buy it and put it on. It's about standing up straighter, putting on a smile, and being prepared to face the day with just an extra little bit of self expression on your face. 

And as the wise lady at Inglot said to me: "I don't know why people are so afraid of bright makeup, it's not plastic surgery if you don't like it you can just wipe it off." So try something new, and if you don't like it, just wipe it off and try something else. And prepare for compliments from strangers, people are always impressed when you wear out of the ordinary makeup.