Beauty – Page 28 – Leave it to Lea

KL Polish Review

June 12, 2017by Lea1 Comment

Hey guys! So today I will be giving my review on the KL Polish Spring collection nail polish. For those of you who do not know, KL Polish is a nail polish brand created by beauty Youtuber Kathleen Lights. I started watching Kathleen’s videos around December. She started her nail polish brand in Fall of 2016. I decided to buy three of her Spring Collection nail polishes for my birthday.

One nail polish is priced at $8.50 USD, which is roughly $11-something CAD. At that price I decided to only buy three nail polishes because I could not afford the whole collection. Now unfortunately because I am Canadian, I had to pay $8.95 for shipping. This with tax made my total order $38.93 which is roughly $50 CAD.

The website does warn that delivers to Canada take 2-4 weeks due to customs. I order my nail polish April 12 and received it May 5, which is a little more than 3 weeks.

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I got Miss Honey, Hug & Roll and Coconut Milk. I wore all nail polishes for two weeks to test out how they wear. Miss Honey is a warm melon hue which was opaque in two coats and wore really nicely. I found Miss Honey lasted the longest before chipping. Hug & Roll is probably my favourite colour because it is so unqiue. It has light lavender undertones and I got many compliments on this shade. Coconut Milk is creamy white shade. It is not a stark white, and therefore makes it more wearable. Coconut Milk took three coats to be opaque and also chipped the quickest.

Overall I do like these nail polishes. I would recommend them to anyone who is a nail enthusiate or is a big fan of Kathleen Lights. Unfortunately, the combination of price and shipping mean that I will probably not order the Summer Collection. If the exchange rate was better or the shipping time shorter I will reconsider because the quality is quite good.

I hope you guys enjoy this nail polish review!

xoxo

Lea

Beauty, Favourites

May Beauty Favourites

June 3, 2017by Lea4 Comments

Hey guys! So for the month of May I did not purchase many beauty products until the end of the month. So most of my favourites come from my Boxycharm this month!

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First is the Convertible Brow from The Brow Gal. I got this item in my Boxycharm so I won’t go into too much detail about it. I like it because it is easy to use and gives a variety of shades so I can create the perfect match to my brow shade.

Next is the Temptu Liquid Glow. I have never tried a liquid highlight before but I am now in love! This one by Temptu is more on the natural side, giving a subtle glow to my skin. I also find that this highlight does not emphasize texture on my skin as much as powder highlights. It also lasts all day! Really loving this highlight, I use every time I wear makeup!

I recently started using the Baby Lips lip balm by Maybelline and I have fallen in love with them again. It makes my lips feel moisturized by not too thick and goopy compared to some other lip balms. Also the coloured ones give a nice wash of colour to my lips. The only thing is that I do not like the scent. Otherwise loving this lip balm right now!

Another Maybelline product that I have been loving this month is the Fit Me Concealer. This is my first time using this concealer and I love it! It is really easy to blend out and lasts all day! It has medium coverage; it covers redness well but I find my dark circles peak through if I’m not using a colour corrector. I’ve only had this concealer for a week and a half but I am already in love!

Finally is the Crown Round Contour Brush from my Boxycharm. I personally use this brush for my foundation and I really enjoy it. I have never used a densely packed brush like this one but now I wan to try more! I find it gives a nice smooth finish and does not sheer out my foundation coverage. A nice cheaper option compared to the expensive Artis Brushes.

And those are my favourite beauty products for the month of May! I have a bunch of new makeup I am testing out for June so hopefully I will find some new favourites 🙂

xoxo

Lea

Beauty

How to Buy Lipstick Guide

May 24, 2017by LeaLeave a Comment

Hey guys! This post is inspired by a question my friend asked me the other day. She said “How do I buy a good lipstick?” While I personally spend hours online reading about makeup products before buying something, she was more curious on how to go to a store a select a good lipstick. So here are my five tips on how to buy a lipstick!

1. Decide between Drugstore or Department

It is easier to narrow down the search to one store. Department stores or places like Sephora are more expensive, but offer more variety and often have testers to try. Drugstores are cheaper but offer less selection. Some drugstores do offer testers so if you choose the drugstore route I definitely suggest going to places like Shoppers that offer testers.

2. Choose a Finish

Nowadays there is so much variety with lip products from lipsticks, lip glosses and liquid lipsticks. Even within the lipstick family there is matte, cream and satin finishes. Knowing what you’re looking for in your lipstick can help you select a finish. Generally, lip glosses help create fuller lips, liquid lipsticks are long lasting and cream and satin lipsticks are the most comfortable.

3. Choose a Colour

There are six major colour groups for lipsticks: pinks, reds, oranges/corals, purples, darks and nudes. What colour you choose is up to you. There is no ‘wrong’ colour, but it helps to pick a lipstick when you narrow down to one or two colours instead of looking at them all.

4. Choose a Shade

While it is possible to wear a lipstick that does not match your skin tone, it will look more natural and effortless if it does. This is especially for reds and pinks. There are many ways to figure out your skin tone (Google is an excellent resource), I find the simplest method is to determine if you look better wearing gold or silver jewelry. If you prefer gold then you have a yellow/warm skin tone, silver means pink/cool and both is neutral. Yellow/warm skin tones work best with shades that have red undertone while pink/cool look best with shades that have a blue undertone. Neutral skin tones can rock either! Like I mentioned above, if you are still confused but how shades work, there are many excellent resources online to help you figure this out!

5. Pick Something Pretty

Of all the tips, I think this one is the most important. Pick something you like. You can ignore all the other tips as long as you follow this one. If you pick a lipstick that you think makes your skin tone perfectly but you feel meh towards then you’re never going to wear it! Pick a lipstick that you think looks pretty and that you want to wear every single day!

I hope you guys find this guide helpful! I had lots of fun thinking and writing about it!

xoxo

Lea

Beauty, Boxycharm

May Boxycharm

May 20, 2017May 6, 2020by Lea7 Comments

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The theme for this month’s Boxycharm is Makeup Is Art. I absolutely love this theme because I think it’s so true! My dad jokingly calls my makeup brushes my ‘paint brushes’! I truly believe that makeup really is a form of art and self expression so I love this theme. I also love everything I got in this month’s box!

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First, probably my favourite products I recieved this month is the Convertible Brow in 02 and Brow Brush by The Brow Gal. The Convertible Brow is a brow powder trio that can be used both wet and dry. I have never used a brow powder before but find this one really easy to use. It also comes with three shades so it fits a wider range of brow shades. The brow brush comes with a spoolie on one end and a nice angled brush on the other. The two products work really well together to create a nice every day brow. I will definitely continue to use this product! Price: $14.00 for the brush and $35.00 for the powder.

Next is the Crown Pro Round Contour Brush. This brush reminds me of the Artis brushes but for a much better price. The handle is kind of cheap but the brush hairs itself are soft and dense and work wonderfully! I personally use this brush to apply foundation instead of contour and find it does a fabulous job of seamlessly blending out my foundation. Great brush! Price: $24.99

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Next is the Highlight and Contour Palette by IBY Beauty. At first I really liked this product, but the more I used it the more meh I felt about it. There are a nice range of shades of warm versus cool tone but I find that there are quite similar. If you don’t have fair skin this would not work well for you. The contour shades only apply nicely if I set my face with powder before, something I usually do not have an issue with. Also I really like the highlight powders, but recently my face broke out right under by eyes, a place I rarely break out. I’m not 100% sure if it is because of this powder but just to be safe I have stopped using this powder to see if that helps. Overall I was initally impressed but now underwhelmed by the performance of this product. Price: $40.00

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Finally is the Liquid Glow by Temptu. This product was specially created for Boxycharm and can be applied by hand. I was expecting a blinding highlight with this product but I find it to be much more natural. It makes your skin look dewy and gives a golden glow. This highlight lasts all day, way longer compared to some powder highlights. I sometimes layer a powder highlight for a more blinding glow. I really like this highlight and I think it will be a good product for the summer. Price: $29.50

Overall price of the box is $142.49 USD. This was probably one of my favourites boxes I have received, I loved 4/5 products in the box! Excited for next month’s box 🙂

xoxo

Lea

Beauty

April Beauty Favourites

May 1, 2017by LeaLeave a Comment

Hey guys! Here are my favourite beauty products for the month of April. I cannot believe that April is over already! Exams definitely made it go by quicker. Because of exams I did not wear a lot of makeup – since I spent most of my days in the library – but here are the products that I did love this month!

My favourite product by far this month is the Ofra Highlight in Rodeo Drive. I got this highlight in this month’s Boxycharm. The highlight is very smooth and applies nicely on the skin. It also gives an insane highlight. This is very much a gold highlight but it works nicely on my skin. I also really enjoy this highlight in the inner corner of my eye. Sometimes I find that inner corner highlight can fade away quickly but this one stays all day. Totally recommend if you are looking for a blinding, gold highlight.

Next is the Tresemme Repair & Protect 7 Instant Hair Mask. I find that my hair has gotten dull and dry for colouring it, but this hair mask has helped revive my hair. I apply it once week and will leave it in my hair for a few minutes before rinsing it out. I find it makes my hair feel smooth and shinny for a few days after using it. Great hair product!

Next is the Mac Cosmestics Cremesheen Glass. I really enjoy the formula of these lip products! The website describes them as a mix between a lipstick and a lip gloss and I really do think that is true. It feels so comfortable on the lips and fades nicely through the day. It’s a pricey product but I feel like I will definitely wear it a lot!

A new-to-me foundation that I have been enjoying is the Milani Conceal + Perfect Foundation. The only issue I have with this foundation is the shades, I find that I am too dark for 01 but too pale for 02. I’m sure once I get a tan 02 will work fine but I currently have to mix 02 with a different foundation. I find the coverage and finish of this foundation really nice! I prefer to use a sponge to apply this foundation, but once I set it with a powder it lasts all day!

And those are my beauty favourites for this month! I am super excited for May because now I will have more time to wear makeup 🙂

xoxo

Lea

Beauty, Boxycharm

April Boxycharm!

April 29, 2017May 6, 2020by LeaLeave a Comment

Hey guys! Here is my April Boxycharm, this month’s theme is Boxy Glow.

First item is the Measurable Difference Concealer Palette. I am personally not a big fan of more solid concealers, I prefer liquid ones. On no-makeup days I will just wear concealer on bare skin, and I find that this concealer just does not look blended on bare skin. It worked better on top of foundation. I will say there is a wide shade range, so this is a decent item to get in a box. Overall not my favourite item but that’s just because of concealer preference. Price: $19.99

Next is the PUR 3-piece Blending Sponge Kit. After a month of testing out this makeup sponge I am still undecided as to whether or not I like these sponges. First thing that throws me off is that when you went it, I find the sponge does not expand much and does not get much softer. It also soaks up a lot of product when using it. It does a good job of blending out my foundation or cream products, and I also find the point good for applying setting powder under my eyes. But I find that it does a patchy job of blending out my concealer under my eyes. It’s an okay sponge, but it’s nice that we get three in the box! Price: $36.00 for three sponges

Next is a Lip Gloss in the shade Plato’s Cave by the Allegory Store. Okay, so I have applied this lip gloss on my lips but I have never worn it. The shade is a rich chocolaty brown. I personally feel like I have chocolate smeared all over my lips when I apply this shade. The gloss itself is good. It applies nicely, smells good. It took two coats to get a nice opacity. I just can’t wear this colour in a gloss – now if it was matte maybe I would wear this but I just have no figured out how to wear this shade this month. Price: $15.00

Next is my favourite item, the Rodeo Drive Highlighter by OFRA Cosmetics. This is probably one of my favourite items I have received in my Boxycharm box. I can honestly not think of a thing I do not like about this highlight. It’s a beautiful shade, applies nicely, looks good on my cheekbones and in the inner corner of my eyes, and lasts all day! Honestly it’s a 10/10 product and I would recommend this highlight to everyone. Price: $35.00

Finally is the Hairgurt Smoothing Yogurt Shampoo by Project Beauty. This product smells amazing. If I could I would eat it. It does a good job of cleaning my hair, but I find it does not make it as smooth or shinny compared to other shampoos. I’m going to continue using it while I have it, but I probably would not repurchase it. Price: $10.00

Overall, I am really divided on this box. I really loved the highlight but a lot of the products were quite meh this month. Overall price of the box: $115.99 USD

And that’s this month’s Boxycharm!

xoxo

Lea

Beauty

Winter Beauty Empties

April 25, 2017by LeaLeave a Comment

Hey guys! So I am now done school and back home for the summer. So here are my beauty empties I collected over the past couple months.

First is the St Ives Green Tea Cleanser. I used this in the shower to wash my face and body when I was not doing a scrub. It smelled really good. I’m unsure if it really bad a difference for my skin but it smells really good. Would I repurchase this product? I actually was going to repurchase it but I couldn’t find it in my drugstore so I decided to try a different cleanser instead.

Next is the Sephora Waterproof Eye Makeup Remover. Now I know not everyone is not a fan of oily makeup remover, but I find they are the best at removing mascara and eyeliner. I have been using the Sephora brand one for awhile and I find that is does a good job. It leaves behind a little oily residue but it does away as soon as I wash my face. Would I repurchase this product? Yes, I have repurchased this product many times because I find it’s a relatively cheap remover but it does a good job.

The next product is the Sephora Collection Long-Lasting 24 HR Wear Eye Liner. This is actually my favourite black eyeliner. It is a middle range price but it is high performance. It has a brush applicator that I find easy to use. It has a matte finish and I find it lasts all day. I highly recommend this eyeliner! Would I repurchase this product? I’ve mentioned this in another blog post but I accidentally bought the wrong eyeliner when trying to repurchase this product! Oops! I probably will eventually repurchase this product.

I have two Anastasia Beverly Hills brow products. The first is the Perfect Brow Pencil, which I have sharpened right down till the end. The other is the Brow Wiz. I like both of these brow products but for different reasons. The Brow Pencil I find is really good at quickly adding some colour to my sparse parts – it’s really good for an everyday brow. The Brow Wiz is really good at creating precise brow hairs for a bold eyebrow. Would I repurchase this product? I do not have enough money to buy both so I decided to get the Brow Wiz. I find I can with a lighter hand I can do any everyday brow and a bold brow, while the brow pencil I find it harder to get a bold eyebrow.

Finally is the Colour Revilatizer Shampoo by Tresumme. I love this shampoo. It cleans by hair and makes it smooth and silky while helping keep my colour vibrant. I have not tried a shampoo by Tresumme that I do not like. Would I repurchase this product? YES!

These are all my product empties! I’m going to try and do these kinds of posts probably every three to four months because it takes me awhile to finish products. Hope you guys found this helpful!

xoxo

Lea