Review: Sothys Paris Summer Chill Make-Up Collection (Spring/Summer 2019)

The Sothys Paris Spring/Summer 2019 Summer Chill Make-Up Collection draws inspiration from relaxing summer vibes for a Parisienne chic beauty look. 

Sothys, an avant-garde beauty expert, offers a line of innovative skin and body care as well as a makeup line with limited-edition collections inspired by the seasons. The Summer Chill collection features luminous nude shades that are complemented by fresh, vibrant tones of fuchsia and poppy. 

Review: Glo Skin Beauty

As a blogger, one of my yearly goals is to discover brands that align with my own values for business, beauty, skincare, ethics, and lifestyle. My first discovery of 2019 is Glo Skin Beauty. This brand really caught my attention because its products highlight natural beauty and promote confidence. For Glo Skin Beauty, makeup is an extension of skincare. As a result, the company’s professional skincare products are developed with active ingredients to promote healthy, youthful skin, and its mineral makeup formulations nourish, enhance, and protect all skin types.

Glo Skin Beauty also uses ingredients that are good for the skin and are safe for even the most sensitive skin; skincare products are paraben free, and beauty products are talc free. In addition, Glo Skin Beauty is cruelty free. It does not test on animals and is a PETA approved brand.

Since I am always in search of beauty products that enhance natural beauty, preserve skin health, and respect animals, I was very excited for the opportunity to try Glo Skin Beauty.

Review: Sothys Paris Echappée Parisienne Make-Up Collection (Fall/Winter 2019)

The Sothys Paris Fall/Winter 2019 Echappée Parisienne Make-Up Collection draws inspiration from the beautiful city of Paris for a glamorous and elegant beauty look.

Sothys, an avant-garde beauty expert, offers a line of innovative skin and body care as well as a makeup line with limited-edition collections inspired by the seasons. The Echappée Parisienne Collection features chic shades of rosewood, plum, and taupe.

Review: Sothys Paris Les Jardins Sothys Make-Up Collection (Spring/Summer 2018)

The Sothys Paris Spring/Summer 2018 Les Jardins Sothys Make-Up Collection draws inspiration from the heart of nature for a wild and radiant beauty look.

Sothys, an avant-garde beauty expert, offers a line of innovative skin and body care, as well as a makeup line with limited-edition collections inspired by the seasons. The Les Jardins Sothys collection launches today (March 5), and features fresh, floral colours such as sunny yellow, vibrant orange, radiant red, garden green, and midnight blue.

Review: Sothys Paris Reflet Make-Up Collection (Fall/Winter 2017)

The Sothys Paris Fall/Winter 2017 Reflet Make-Up Collection features refined and mysterious colours for a bold and sophisticated look.

Sothys, an avant-garde beauty expert, offers a line of innovative skin and body care, as well as a makeup line with limited-edition collections inspired by the seasons. I was lucky enough to test out four products from the Reflet Collection that create a beautiful, seductive reflection with shades of grey, plum, and red.

Review: Sothys Paris Instant Energizing Corrector (EE Cream)

So far, I have reviewed seasonal makeup collections and serums from Sothys Paris (you can read my reviews of these products in the Makeup Reviews and Skincare Reviews sections on my blog). Today, I’m sharing my thoughts on the Instant Energizing Corrector*, a product that is a makeup/skincare hybrid.

If you are unfamiliar with Sothys, it is an avant-garde beauty expert that produces products sold exclusively in beauty institutes and spas. This highly specialized brand has an extraordinary commitment to research and innovation, which is shown through its innovative line of luxurious skin and body care.

As the latest generation of Energy Enhancer (EE) cream, the Instant Energizing Corrector is a true representation of the company’s dedication to creating beauty advances. It contains encapsulated pigments to instantly target and correct visible imperfections while transforming during application to adapt to all skin tones.

Review + Swatches: Sigma Beauty Loose Shimmer & Glitter

Let’s start the weekend with something sparkly!

Today I’m sharing my thoughts on the new Loose Shimmer and Loose Glitter products from Sigma Beauty.

Loose Shimmer and Loose Glitter are powder products that work as an eyeshadow, a facial highlight, or an extra pop of sheen when mixed with a lipgloss. When used minimally, these products provide a subtle, shimmery finish, and when worn full strength, they give a foil-like appearance. The shimmer is dimensional and loose to create an ethereal effect. There are currently six shades of Loose Glitter and fourteen shades of Loose Shimmer. I was lucky enough to try three Loose Shimmer products in shades of bronze, pink, and champagne, and two Loose Glitter products in iridescent shades that look white in the pan but reflect pinks and purples on the skin. It’s also important to note that these products are free of parabens, sulfates, phthalates, and casein.

Read on for my review and to see swatches of these beautiful pigments.

Review: Sigma Beauty Highlight Expert Brush Set

I have a confession to make: I love makeup brushes, especially when they come in sets for performing specific beauty tasks. Over the years, I have collected quite a few brushes and brush kits, mainly from Sigma Beauty. If you are not familiar with Sigma, it’s a beauty brand that specializes in innovative makeup brushes, brush care, and cosmetics.

In 2016, I had the pleasure of reviewing the Nightlife By Camila Coelho Brush Set with its beautiful glitter handles inspired by the city lights from New York to Rio de Janeiro, and today, I’m sharing my thoughts on the Highlight Expert Brush Set*, which includes three uniquely engineered brushes designed to highlight the face. All three tools in this set work together to apply highlighter with the perfect strobe on high-points of the face from cheekbones to chin.

Read on to learn more about these must-have brushes for achieving highlight perfection.

Sothys Paris Désert Chic Make-Up Collection Review (Spring/Summer 2017)

The Sothys Paris Spring/Summer 2017 Désert Chic Make-Up Collection features warm colours inspired by the desert for a sun-kissed look.

Sothys, an avant-garde beauty expert, offers a line of innovative skin and body care, as well as a makeup line with limited-edition collections inspired by the seasons. I was lucky enough to test out three products from the Désert Chic Collection that illuminate the complexion with shades of sand, coral, and khaki.

Omorose Cosmetics Review

While I’m not much of a traveller, I love learning about beauty products from around the world. For this reason, I’m very excited to share my thoughts with you on products from Omorose, a cosmetics brand from Malaysia.

Terry, the company’s founder, is an experienced makeup artist committed to creating products that appeal to everyone and deliver exceptional results. He knew from the beginning that his cosmetics would represent a passion for life and the true beauty in people, so he named the company Omorose which means beautiful in Egyptian.

Not only do the products come in appealing packaging and a range of shades that flatter many skin tones, they also contain natural preservatives and are paraben, phenoxyethanol, phthalate, mineral oil, and animal ingredient free. In addition, they are not tested on animals.

Products from this line include BB sticks, finishing powder, blush, eyeshadow, lip balm, lip colour, and fancy false lashes. I tried products from the lip and cheek categories.

Sephora Haul + Mini Reviews

It’s been almost a year since my last Sephora haul, so I decided it was time to purchase a few new items to start off 2017.

Sothys Paris Baroque Make-Up Collection Review

Happy 2017, and welcome back to Writing Beauty!

After a busy December of posting about lots of wonderful brands that I discovered near the end of 2016, I took a month off to prepare for the winter 2017 lineup.

I’m starting the year by sharing my thoughts on Sothys Paris, a highly specialized beauty brand that exudes pure luxury.

Sothys, an avant-garde beauty expert, produces products sold exclusively in beauty institutes and spas. The company has a line of innovative skin and body care, as well as a makeup line with limited-edition collections inspired by the seasons. I was lucky enough to test out seven of their top picks from the Fall/Winter 2015-2016 Baroque Collection, and am excited to share my experiences with you. This collection is glowing with its glints of gold and iridescent accents.

Review: Sigma Beauty SigMagic Brushampoo

This month, I had the exciting opportunity to try out an innovative product from Sigma Beauty, the SigMagic Brushampoo*.

Before I tell you my thoughts on the product, I want to let you in on a little secret: I don’t deep clean my brushes nearly enough, and by nearly enough I mean almost never. With the brush cleansers that I’ve used in the past, it took quite a while to remove all colour from the brushes, the brushes were slow to dry, and they always felt like they were left with a residue no matter how long I rinsed them. So, I gave up on deep cleansing and resorted to a quick spot-cleaning routine that left me with dull, partially-clean brushes that were not performing to their full potential.

Luckily, I found a solution for my brush-cleaning issues the day that I received my bottle of Brushampoo.

Review: Sigma Beauty Nightlife by Camila Coelho Powder Blush in Hot Spot

I’m going to let you in on a little secret and tell you that some days (ok, most days), the only makeup I leave the house wearing is blush. As a pale-skinned gal, a swipe of blush can magically transform my skin from dull and pasty to energized and glowy. For this reason, I have quite the blush collection and am always excited to try new blushes.

This month, I’m lucky enough to have the opportunity to review Sigma Beauty’s Nightlife by Camila Coelho Powder Blush in Hot Spot*. As you can see from the photo above, the outer packaging has a beautiful, textured finish made of silver and blue glitter. This design is unique to the Nightlife Collection and is inspired by the city lights from New York to Rio de Janeiro.

Review: Sigma Beauty Nightlife by Camila Coelho Brush Set - Glitter Handles

This month, I had the wonderful opportunity to review a new product from Sigma Beauty, the Nightlife by Camila Coelho Brush Set with Glitter Handles*. If you have been reading my blog for a while, you know that Sigma brushes and I go way back. In fact, my first large brush purchase was the Sigma Mr. Bunny Essential Brush Kit (see my post on it HERE). I purchased it back in 2012 and have used it every day since. The brushes are so well crafted that they can last for years if they’re well taken care of.

The Nightlife Brush Set contains five of Sigma’s best-selling brushes (two face brushes and 3 eye brushes) that feature limited edition sparkle handles inspired by the city lights from New York to Rio de Janeiro.

Let’s take a look at this dazzling brush set...

Review: ColourPop Puppy Love Super Shock Eyeshadow

I don’t purchase eyeshadows very often, but I was drawn to this one from ColourPop due to its beautiful colour and charity connection.

As you may already know from reading my blog, I’m an animal lover. I donate to animal charities often and was so excited to find out that all proceeds from the sale of ColourPop’s Super Shock Eyeshadow in Puppy Love will be donated to Best Friends Animal Society to help make L.A. a no-kill city (NKLA). I think that this is a great initiative and a worthy cause to support.

This was my first ColourPop purchase, and I was very impressed with the transaction process. Since I’m in Canada, I was a bit hesitant to order this $5 eyeshadow since the shipping was $12.73. However, since I was a first time customer, I received a $5 discount code which helped. Shipping was also very quick. I received the shadow in about four business days. It was securely packaged and came with a thank-you card from ColourPop.

Sephora Haul + Mini Reviews

I’m on the search for a hand cream that will actually hydrate and protect my hands during the dry winter months. I’ve tried many products over the years and still haven’t found a miracle hand care product. After trying out what the drugstore has to offer, I ventured to Sephora’s website and ordered a few products that I’ve been curious about. I’ve included mini reviews below on the ones I have tried so far.
(clockwise from left to right)
1. Jack Black Industrial Strength Hand Healer – This is a sample tube that I got using the promo code YOURGIFT. I may consider purchasing the full size version of this hand cream in the future because it really is amazing. It leaves my hands feeling hydrated and protected without any greasiness. The smell is a bit medicinal but it fades quickly. Even though the full size tube is a bit pricey, I think it would last a long time since a little goes a long way with this product.
2. Tocca Beauty Crema da Mano Hand Cream in Cleopatra – I decided to try out this product because it had good reviews on the Sephora site and it was only $10. It has a pleasant clean citrus scent, but I have not tried the product yet since I’m still working on the Jack Black sample.
3. Sephora Collection Bunette in Brown – This is the second bunette that I have ordered. The first time I ordered one I was sent the blonde version instead. I tried it anyway and was so impressed. I have very fine, medium-length hair with layers. I could never get the donut bun makers to work and gave up on wearing my hair in buns until a friend with a similar hair type suggested that I try a bunette. Even with the blonde version there was no bunette showing and it was so easy to use (it worked on one try unlike the donut!). It lasted all day and I only needed one hair pin to hold everything together. With the donut, I needed about 10. I ordered a bunette in brown this time around just in case Sephora discontinues them at some point. If you have hair like mine and have trouble making buns, I recommend trying this out; they are only $5 right now!
4. First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream – This is a repurchase for me. I mentioned this product in my Skin Care Routine post. Basically, I use it as a neck cream to hydrate and to calm eczema and irritation. I have been using it for almost a year and the skin on my neck is now flawless. Before I started using it, I wore scarves indoors because I was embarrassed by the blotchy red inflammation on my neck. Needless to say, I recommend this if you are still searching for something to keep eczema under control.
5. Lavanila The Healthy Deodorant – I ordered the travel size version of this product in the Pure Vanilla scent. I have been using it for a couple weeks. Since it’s winter, I can’t really tell how well it will work during the hot summer months. So far, I think it works well and I like that it is free of harsh chemicals.
6. L'Occitane The Secret To Beautiful Hands Ornament – I have been wanting to try out this company’s hand care products, so I ordered this item from the holiday line because it was less expensive than ordering a tube from the regular line containing the same amount of product (1 oz.). I will try this out once I have finished my Jack Black sample.
7. Living Proof Prime Style Extender – This is one of the three free samples that I received with my order. I have not tried it yet but I really like other products from the Living Proof line, especially the Perfect Hair Day shampoo and conditioner.
8. Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blush in Fearless – I chose this sample because I love the Tarte blushes and use them daily. This shade gives my pale skin the most beautiful, delicate pink flush. It is very pigmented though so I have to be careful with it.
9. Stella McCartney Stella Fragrance – I had trouble choosing a third sample so I opted for this one to give to my mom since she likes fragrance samples. This fragrance contains notes of rose, peony flower, mandarin, rose absolute, and amber.
Have you tried any of these products? What are your thoughts on them? What is the best hand care product that you have tried?

Mini Sephora Haul + Reviews (Tarte Blissful & Urban Decay Naked Basics)

I have another Sephora haul to share with you today. I usually read lots of reviews before purchasing a product to make sure that I will love it and won’t need to return it. I feel bad returning makeup since I know that it usually has to be sent back to the company and disposed of. The two products that I purchased in this haul are items that I have wanted for a long time. I purchased them a while ago and had time to try them out, so I have included reviews below.

The first item is one of Tarte’s Amazonian Clay blushes in the shade Blissful which is described as a shimmering warm peach. Despite the description, there is no shimmer in this product. It’s a warm matte coral peachy pink shade. I have a cool complexion and was worried that this colour wouldn’t work for me, but I actually really like it. It warms up my cool, pale complexion a bit, but it is not overpowering or too bright. In fact, it takes much longer to build this colour than some of my other Tarte blushes. It’s almost as though this blush is packed so tightly in the pan that it’s harder to pick up the product on my brush. This isn’t really a problem for me though since I like to have control over how much I’m putting on. I like to use this on days when I want to brighten my complexion and look very fresh and awake, so I usually pair it with my Revlon lip butter in Papaya and the peach side of my MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Blonde as a cheek highlight and eyeshadow. It gives me that peaches and cream look. Overall, I really like it and recommend it to those looking for a subtle pop of peach.

The other product that I purchased is the Naked Basics Palette from Urban Decay. I never got into collecting palettes from UD’s naked line. I do really love my Naked 2 palette but skipped the first Naked palette since the colours looked too dark and too warm. I tend to wear very light shadows that make my eyes look naturally bright. I did try out Naked 3 but found that the shadows all had red or pink undertones which did not complement my complexion and actually irritated my eyes. I think that the Naked 3 palette was the only makeup item that I have ever returned. I was very disappointed since I really thought that I would enjoy it. After I returned it, I avoided wearing eyeshadow for quite a while. Then I decided that I would buy a palette containing only light shades without too much shimmer. After lots of research, I discovered Naked Basics. This is the perfect palette for me. I can create many different looks with it and my eyes never feel overdone. I don’t use the black all that often but I use all of the other shades quite a bit. My favourite thing to do is use my ring finger to pat W.O.S. on my lids. It’s a creamy matte shade so it covers all the veins in my lids and gives my eyes a more awake look without revealing that I’m wearing makeup. For an easy, subtle look, I like to use W.O.S or Foxy as a lid colour, Venus as an inner corner and brow highlight, and Naked 2 as a crease colour. When I want to go a bit darker, I add a bit of Faint to the outer corner. If I’m feeling really bold, I’ll line my top lashes with Crave.  Overall, I’m so impressed with this palette and recommend it to anyone who likes to wear very natural looking eye looks.
What do you think of this little haul? Have you tried any of these products? What are your thoughts on them? Do you recommend any other products from Tarte or Urban Decay?

Sephora Haul + Mini Reviews

A while ago, I placed a little online Sephora order to try out a few products that I had been curious about. I have had some time to try some of them so I included mini reviews below.

The first items that I purchased are these mini bottles of Living Proof Full Shampoo and Conditioner. The salon that I go to used these products on my hair once and I really liked the results. I opted for the smaller bottles in case I wasn’t happy with the products after using them for a few weeks. While I love the fact that this combination gives my hair volume and keeps it cleaner for longer, I will not purchase it again. The biggest problem though is the fact that these products create volume and thickness by creating texture in the hair. This texture created horrible tangles in my straight, fine hair. Specifically, the hair at the back of my head near the nape of my neck always had huge clumps of tangles in it while I was using these products. I have since switched to other Living Proof products which don’t cause the same problems. It is a bit sad though because I loved the volume that these products add to the hair.

Next is one of the Make Up For Ever HD blushes in shade #210 (Cool Pink). This is a beautiful pink shade that really compliments my pale complexion. While it is a cool pink, I think that it is also very neutral and would work on warmer skin tones too. The cream formula of this blush is wonderful.It glides over the skin very evenly and looks very natural. There is no shimmer in this blush which is nice for a change. I was inspired to try this shade after purchasing a more peachy shade back in the summer (#215 – Flamingo Pink). I loved the formula so much that I wanted to try a pink shade too. While these HD blushes are a bit pricey, a little really does go a long way.

I picked up another pink blush as well—the Tarte Deluxe Cheek Stain in Energy. This is one of those products that goes on clear and changes colour with your skin chemistry to create a flattering shade for your unique skin tone. It creates a nice, light pink shade on my cheeks and the product feels very light and comfortable on the skin. It leaves a very natural, dewy finish. While I do like this product, I never really seem to reach for it. I think that is because the pink shade is similar to many that I already own. The mini tube and easy application make it perfect for travel though.

The last two items are a Hand Healer from Jack Black and some Shiseido eyelash curler pads. The Hand Healer was a deluxe sample that I added during checkout. I thought it would be a good product to have on hand (literally!) for winter. The eyelash curler pads are just extras that I picked up for when my current one wears out.
Out of this haul, my favourite product is the MUFE blush. What’s yours?

Sigma Haul + Review: P82 and F84

Since I’ve been adding more cream-based makeup products to my collection, I thought it was time to purchase some new brushes from Sigma that would help me apply these products properly.

First is the P82 Precision Round brush. I ordered this brush to use for applying cream shadows since I don’t really like dipping my finger into the little pots of product—its unsanitary and messy. Since this brush is made with dense Synthetic Sigmax fibres, it applies cream shadow in the same way that a fingertip could. So far I am very impressed with it since it makes application so much cleaner, faster, and easier.

Next, I purchased the F84 Angled Kabuki for cream blush application. It actually caught my attention because I was having a very difficult time finding a brush to apply my Make Up For Ever Second Skin Cream Blush. This brush works perfectly and it keeps my fingers clean so that I don’t need to wash them before finishing the rest of my makeup. It has Synthetic Sigmax fibres as well which are dense and blend cream blush to a natural finish. The angled fibres make it easy to pick up the product from the flat pan.
Overall, I’m really enjoying both brushes and highly recommend them for cream product application.
*This post contains affiliate links; however, all products were purchased by me and all opinions expressed are honest and are my own.*