• First Impressions with Kat Von D Saint & Sinner Perfume Samples

    July 31, 2017

    Hi Everyone!

    I received a complimentary VoxBox from Influenster Canada with samples of Kat Von D’s Saint and Sinner Perfumes (the little bottles look like poison vials). I was pleasantly surprised by how good they smelled. Apparently Kat Von D released the perfumes 10 years ago and brought them back. I can see why they were a cult favourite. I’m not good at describing scents and I don’t actually know what certain things in this perfume smell like, so I will just leave a description from Sephora.

    I personally prefer fruity or aquatic perfumes instead of floral. If you like vanilla scents, I think you’ll like SAINT and if you like a bit spicy, you’ll like SINNER. Let’s start with the sweet:

    SAINT20170721_230737

    • Fragrance Family: Floral
    • Scent Type:  Classic Floral
    • Key Notes: Vanilla, Musk, Jasmine

    Meet Saint- soft, alluring, and dreamy, this gourmand fragrance sweetens a bouquet of jasmine and tiaré flower with notes of mandarin, caramel, and sparling Mirabelle plum. Vanilla, sandalwood, and creamy musk build to the romance of the perfume. Saint shares the same floral soul as Sinner, with a sweet gourmand twist.

    SINNER20170721_230745

    • Fragrance Family: Warm & Spicy
    • Scent Type: Cool Spices
    • Key Notes: Patchouli, Wood, Cinnamon

    Kat Von D Beauty’s most requested collection of all time is returning at last and better than ever. Meet Sinner—dark, sultry, and empowering, this enticing fragrance sweetens a bouquet of jasmine and orange blossom with notes of vanilla, mandarin, and Mirabelle plum. Spicy cinnamon envelops white florals at the heart of the fragrance, while base notes of vetiver, patchouli, and wood form the deeper, darker nuances. Experience confidence in a bottle; Sinner is the fragrant embodiment of the edgy, unapologetic, and outspoken Kat Von D we know and love. Sinner shares the same floral soul as Saint, with a bold, spicy twist.

    The two scents can be worn alone or separately. For both, I liked when I had been wearing them for a few hours and absorbed into my skin and mixed with my natural oils. When I first put them on, they were both too powerful (too sweet or too spicy). I think Sinner would be a good unisex perfume/cologne. I love when guys wear spicy colognes. I used both separately and then together. When I mixed them, I noticed that the first fragrance I applied would be the more dominant smell, i.e. if I put Sinner on first, then it would be more spicy.

    RATING: 4/5

    I give it a 4/5 because both perfumes are a bit too strong for me when you first put them on. (Either a bit too sweet or a bit too spicy, but once I wore them for a few hours, and they mixed with my natural oils, I liked them because they were lighter).Thoughts: I’m not sure if I would buy Saint or Sinner, but I definitely recommend them to someone who likes the scents of either of the perfumes.

    What are your favourite perfumes?

    Love,

    jen

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  • Review | Revlon Mega Multiplier Mascara

    June 23, 2017

    Hi Everyone!

    I received a complimentary VoxBox from Influenster Canada with the Revlon Mega Multiplier Mascara in Blackened Brown (803)!

    I prefer using the darkest shade of mascara that they offer. So I would get the black or blackest black mascara from this line. A few times when I looked in the mirror, it almost looked like I had powder on my lashes or in certain lighting, my lashes looked gray because the blackened brown shade is too light for me. This is my first time using a Revlon mascara, but right away I liked the fact that it wasn’t a silicone brush and I liked the shapes of the mascara tube and the brush.

    The mascara tube is sort of almond shaped, so it’s easy to open (unlike the round ones which can be hard to grip). The top part with the wand is shiny while the bottom part is a matte black and feels a bit textured.

    My lashes look natural and there are no clumps. I like slightly tapered brushes that aren’t silicone for my top lashes. This is a great brush and I would definitely keep it to apply other mascaras. Since this is a (fiber) mascara that coats your lashes with tubes, I can definitely feel that there is something on my lashes.

    I prefer non-fiber mascaras for my everyday makeup look, but the fiber ones are good for some extra oomph for a night out.

    Are the claims true? Let’s see!

    Flake-free? I ran my finger along my lashes and no flakes or residue on my finger! (It does flake if you rub your eye, but if unprovoked, it shouldn’t flake just from blinking)

    Smudge-proof? I rubbed my eye and nothing smudged, although a few fiber flakes came off on my finger.

    Water Resistant? It doesn’t claim to be waterproof, but if you get caught outside when it starts raining lightly, you should be okay. As long as it’s dry, it won’t smudge if you use a setting spray. I splashed some cold water on my face and squeezed my eyes shut to see if any mascara would come off, it didn’t smudge. I splashed some more on my face and this time it smudged a bit, but easily came off with a qtip.

    Removes easily with warm water? No eye makeup remover needed! Using warm water, it came off with little effort and unlike other mascaras, I didn’t get raccoon eyes trying to wash it off. I would avoid hot tubs or anywhere with steam.

    Plump and extend lashes for mega volume and extreme length? My lashes aren’t very long to begin with, but I can definitely tell that this mascara has added length and volume. Would I say MEGA volume and EXTREME length? No, but it’s definitely noticeable (the only way I will have long enough lashes to be noticeable in pics is if I wear false lashes).

    RATING: 5/5

    I give it a perfect score because it’s easy to take off and I love the brush. I just need to buy the darkest shade and I will love it even more!

    Thoughts: I really like this mascara! I like that it doesn’t flake and that you don’t need to use makeup remover to get it all off (I hate when I thought I took off all of my mascara and then after a shower, I find that I have raccoon eyes!)

    I always like to have a mix of high-end and drugstore products. I prefer to spend more on the skincare products like primers, moisturizers, toners, foundations and concealers. Since mascara can dry out fairly quickly and you’re not supposed to keep them for too long, I prefer to buy drugstore brands for mascaras. I tend to like drugstore brand mascara more anyways and this way I can buy a few for the same price as one designer brand. I only have high end mascaras because they were deluxe samples or a birthday present. Two of my favourite mascara brands are Maybelline and L’Oreal and it looks like I’ve just added Revlon to the mix!

    What are your fave brands of mascara? Do you prefer high-end or drugstore brand mascaras?

    Thanks to Influenster Canada for sending me this Revlon VoxBox!

    Have a great weekend!

    Love,

    jen

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  • Review | CoverGirl Total Tease Mascara & Katy Kat Eyeliner

    April 10, 2017

    Hi Everyone!

    I received a complimentary VoxBox from Influenster Canada which had CoverGirl’s Total Tease Mascara in Very Black and CoverGirl’s Katy Kat Eyeliner in Kitty Katdabra (KP04- black shimmer). I wore the mascara and eyeliner for a little over 8 hours yesterday and here’s my review of both products:

    I’ve tried the mascara twice now and I quite like it. The mascara tube is nice and big, it has ridges at the top, so it’s easy to open. The mascara comes with a silicone brush and has a tip at the end of the wand that you use to define your lashes even more. The Total Tease mascara makes my lashes feel natural (not stiff like some mascaras I’ve tried). It’s like I’m not wearing anything on them. The first time I tried the mascara, it was a bit clumpy, but that was my mistake. It was easily remedied by using a clean brush to comb out the clumps. My lashes still look natural, but just with an extra bit of oomph, especially for my bottom lashes. My bottom lashes aren’t super dark, but with the mascara, they were definitely more noticeable. For me, I prefer non-silicone brushes for my top lashes and silicone brush mascaras for my bottom lashes. I will give an exception for mascaras that I really like and would recommend…Total Tease is one of these. The Total Tease adds length and volume while looking natural.

    media-20180126wtwt222222Now, onto the Katy Kat Eyeliner in Kitty Katdabra. I can’t find the shade on the CoverGirl website, I don’t think it has been released yet. The Kitty Katdabra is a black liner with a bit of shimmer. It claims to be a high pigment formula with effortless application and lasts 8 hours. All three claims definitely held up for me. I wore it from 2pm to around 10pm yesterday. media-20180126twetIt is a pencil liner with a rubber smudge tip (I’m used to a foam smudge tip, so trying a rubber one was interesting). The liner glides on easily and helped create a smokey and slightly shimmery look that would be great for a night out. I did a cat eye on my lid and lined my waterline. I don’t really like the rubber smudge tip because the rubber didn’t glide across my lid as nicely as a foam tip would’ve. I just used a brush to smudge the eyeliner which worked well. The swatch below looks a bit brown/bronze under the lighting. I didn’t use any primer underneath.

    On one eye, I put Smashbox’s Shadow Primer, and the other eye I left bare. The primer definitely made a difference, so if you plan to apply it to your lids, make sure you don’t forget the primer! After 3 hours, the lid without primer was creased and I had to reapply the liner. The lid with shadow primer looked exactly like when I first applied it. The liner that was on my waterline was perfectly intact. By the 8th hour, the eyeliner was holding up well, it was a bit smudged under my eye, but that’s to be expected for wearing it so long. It looked like I had created that smokey look so it wasn’t smudged so much that it looked like raccoon or panda eyes. I would definitely buy this eyeliner, especially if it came in a brown or nude.

    RATING: 4/5

    I give both products 4/5 because the special tip at the end of the comb sometimes gets in my way. I feel like it doesn’t do much for my lashes and I’ve almost poked myself in the eye a few times. For the liner, I would prefer if it was a matte black instead of a glittery black. Glitter is hard to wash off and I’d only wear glittery eyeliner if I’m going out for the night.

    Love,

    jen

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