Vlogmas Day 1: December 1st - Part 2

Helloooo everyone! So here is Vlogmas Day 1 Part 2 where we decorate the tree!

Click here to Watch!

Stay tuned for more vlogs and don't forget to subscribe to my channel!

Hope you're all having a great day and don't forget to Put A Bow On....Vlogmas!

Amazing new products! Nars dupes featuring Vasanti!

Hello my lovely subscribers!

So it's a lovely Saturday afternoon and I was in the shopping mood. I recently ran out of my BareMinerals concealer and my Tarte amazonian clay concealer is a tad bit dark. I've been on a serious hunt for a new concealer (I love the BareMinerals one, great coverage but holy do I ever blow through that guy fast). I know this may come as a shock to you, but I've NEVER been in a Rexall drug store before. I know, I know, there's plenty of brands there such as The Balm, I mean, what am I doing with my life, right?

Anyway, so I decided to pop in. I went in determined to purchase Mary-Lou Manizer. I walk in expecting it to be a carbon copy of Target/Shoppers, but nope! I was overwhelmed with all of these brands that I've honestly never heard of.

So I quickly grab my Mary-Lou Manizer, but then I see this brand next to The Balm that I've never heard of called Vasanti. I died, not literally, obviously, or else I wouldn't be here. The first thing that caught my eye was the Face Base Powder Foundation. It looked really silky so I swatched it on the back of my hand.

the box that the Face Base comes in

Now I need to warn you that this is not an exaggeration whatsoever, so brace yourself. This face base, I kid you not, is a perfect dupe of Nars' powder foundation. It has the same creamy texture and great coverage. It literally covers seamlessly.

quick swatch of the powder 

So Nar's Powder Foundation runs at $65 CAD with 0.4 oz of product. Vasanti's Face Base Powder Foundation runs at $28 CAD with 0.38 oz of product. Pretty damn fancy, eh?

Now onto the packaging: it is in a sleek silver plastic compact with a large crisp mirror and a sponge for application. I personally like using my BareMinerals precision face powder brush, but to each his own.

packaging

I grabbed the shade V4. This shade has a yellow base (as I believe the majority if not all of the line has, so my apologies in advance if you have a beige or pink undertone). It is a perfect colour match, and I honestly couldn't be happier.

So the next Vasanti product that caught my eye was the Liquid Cover Up. It can be used as a foundation, under eye concealer, or complexion concealer. It is brightening, light weight, and oil-free.

packaging that the Liquid cover up comes in

It is in a tube, which is kind of strange, and there is a brush tip. I fell in love with this concealer because, much like the powder, it blends in seamlessly with your skin but gives great coverage.

Packaging of the product

brush tip of concealer

This concealer covered up my hyper-pigmentation with very little product. It was easy to blend and didn't cake up. Ugh, I'm just in heaven.

So I'm glad I took a chance on this Vasanti line. It's Canadian and run by women so WOOH for supporting a Canadian brand! I honestly bought these products based on how they looked in store, I didn't even look up on sites like Make Up Alley to see what others said. And I'm glad I did this because these are two really great products. I definitely will be trying more products from this line. If you're looking for an awesome powder foundation or liquid concealer then I highly encourage you to check out Vasanti!

Anyways, that's all for now! I hope you all have a lovely day and don't forget to put a bow on!

Hillary

Benefit POREfessional Agent Zero Shine Setting Powder! *New Product Alert*

New product alert!

If you have oily/combination skin and love looking matte without the cake face that sometimes comes along with it then keep reading. 

I'm sure you've tried Benefit's POREfessional primer, I mean, who hasn't? Well that gorgeous little gem now has a sister! Introducing Benefit's Agent Zero Shine. You might be wondering, what the heck is it? AND Does it actually stick to its claim?

Well if you want a quick review that will answer those questions then you can check out my YouTube channel where I give a 2 minute review. But for now, let's break this bad boy down.

I know what you're doing - you're looking at this thing and wondering what the heck it is. To be honest, I thought it would be a stick similar to Benefit's 15 hour wear primer and would be like a glue stick kinda guy that would eliminate shine. But nope!

Twist the lid off and what do you see? Holes, you see holes...(but seriously). Are you confused yet? Well you shouldn't be because the title of this blog clearly states 'setting powder' so you're probably 18 steps ahead of me here. So let's just jump to the next step.

Okay so next step: dump the powder into the lid. You will notice that the powder does not look white, it has a nude look to it (much like it's sister- the primer, yupp, I just made a benefit family). 

Next step! Make sure you twist  the top so that you close the holes - or else  you'll end up with a hot mess. Twist the bottom of the container to unleash the kabuki brush.

Just in case you were a little lost, you give the bottom a twisteroo and this magical surprise comes out. It's like the kitty surprise of make up (except there's only one surprise so there's no risk of getting screwed over with only 2 kitties instead of 4, if you are totally lost then you're either 1. too young or 2. a boy but this Buzzfeed article will explain and is incredibly nostalgic if you're a 90's girl).

Hello Kabuki! Okay, so that little plastic sleeve? Pop that guy down.

Okay, now you're cooking with fire. Time to try the powder out!

Take the Kabuki and swish it in the lid. I suggest singing one quick round of Jingle Bells to ensure that all the powder is blended into the kabuki (yay Christmas spirit!). After that, you are ready to apply! I suggest rolling the powder into your skin rather than brushing it on. This is especially important for oily skin because it will ensure that the powder  gets into your pores to suck up the oil and will make it last longer. This will also keep the powder from moving or lifting your foundation and concealer.

And this is my lovely face after 4 hours in a sweaty night club. If I don't have a matte primer on (I had the POREfessional sisterhood on my face) then my face would be a disco ball right now. But as you can see, you do not see your reflection on my forehead. 

Case closed. Benefit was right - there is zero shine and an added bonus of zero cake face. Am I an oily hot mess? You will never know now! I somehow managed to dance the night away, sweating my everything off and managed to walk into my apartment at the end of the night with my make up still in tact. How many times can you say that? Because I've certainly had moments where I look in a mirror at the end of the night and say "Oh my god I'm a disco ball raccoon!" It happens, especially when you decide that having a couple glasses of wine while you get ready is a good idea (it's never a good idea). 

Anyways, that's all for now! Keep your eyes peeled for this product this January (2014). I have one more product that I will be reviewing in the next week that will also be coming out this January - can anyone guess what it is?

Hope you all have a Merry Christmas (if you celebrate Christmas, and if you don't, then I hope you have a lovely New Year's, and if you don't celebrate New Year's then have a grand day!)

Don't forget to put a bow on,

Hillary

Nail Polish Haul (...I have a problem...)

So I've been on a huge nail polish kick lately. Why? Because I feel completely maxed out on make up, skincare, and fragrance. My nails are still recovering from my shellac experience where they put acrylic tips on (why did I do that again? ugh) so I just want to make them pretty again.

My awesome friend/sorority sister Liz shared the most amazing (yet terrible) information with my yesterday (p.s you can check out her blog here). She let me know that http://www.nailpolishcanada.com had major sales on a bunch of nail polish AND there was free shipping. I tried to resist the urge but it was pretty much impossible.

I've heard a lot of beauty bloggers talk about Deborah Lippmann nail polishes and could never seem to find them in Canada (and it's a blessing in disguise - these polishes are $20+). They are currently getting rid of the brand (for whatever reason) and the polishes are around $13. I know, I know, $13 is pretty steep for a polish. But I'm so sick of spending anywhere from 6-12 dollars on a polish and having it chip or completely peel off. I have yet to hear a negative review about DL polishes so I figured, why not give it a go?

I only ordered them today but I will do a follow up review later showing the colours and the pigment on my nails (and maybe a follow up showing how it holds up after a week). Anyway, onward to the colours!

So the first colour I grabbed is called "Whatever Lola Wants". It's from the collection that Deborah Lippmann paired up with Kelly Ripa for. I'm hoping that the polish is soft and gives a nice pink iridescence to my nails.

The second colour is called 'Purple Rain'. My hopes are that it is a lavender colour with a pearl finish.

The next colour is called "Let's Go Crazy". It is a polish from their Fall 2012 collection. The glitter polishes are what first got me with this brand. I don't know what the heck it is, but they just look so good!

The next polish I got was the Umbrella Waterproof Top Coat. I know what you're thinking - why the heck does a nail polish need to be 'waterproof' - isn't it already? Well apparently not so much. The coat says it is waterproof and UV-resistant with a high shine. It brings oxygen to the nail to makes it chip resistant. I am still on the search for a good top coat so I'm hoping this little gem doesn't disappoint.

And last but not least, I grabbed some colours to do nail art with. There's this one brand called 'Art Club' that carries nail polishes with the long thin brush (so that you can draw on your nails precisely). They had a set of 8 pastel colours for $33 - so I definitely couldn't resist! The colours are: Pastel Blue, Lilac, Lavender, Sky Blue, Pink Pastel, Mint, Natural and a top coat sealer.

I had my nails done recently with a bow (yes, I know I know) and I've been dying to recreate the look at home. So I'm hoping that the Art Club colours do not let me down - I will definitely do a review and a tutorial with them once they come.

bows on bows on bows

So that's all the excitement from my purchases. I could resist discounted nail polish with free shipping. Keep your eyes peeled for my tutorials/review. I will be posting the videos on my YouTube Channel, my Twitter, as well as the written portion here :).

I hope you all have a lovely Monday, and don't forget to put a bow on!

xo Hill

But seriously - Who Am I?

Hello World! My name is Hillary and I am a puppy addict, a bow enthusiast, and a Youtuber/Blogger (I guess you could say that). If you haven't stumbled upon my blog, YouTube channel, or my social media before then let me give you a quick run down of what you can expect.

Click here for my YouTube Channel

If I was to choose 3 words to describe myself then I'd say: tenacious, passionate, and resilient (all in the best way possible). I'm a highly energetic individual, a lot of my friends know me as the fun spontaneous friend that is always in for an adventure (but actually, I've been woken up in the middle of the night by friends to go have a snow ball fight at 2 am, bake cookies, or go jump on the next door neighbour's trampoline). I'm an optimist, and I believe that there is good in every person and every situation in life. 

I have plenty of passions in life. I absolutely love my pets and would do absolutely anything for them, I love to paint, I absolutely love music (especially the Foo Fighters- Dave Grohl is amazing), I love DIY's (I mean I have to, being a sorority girl and all), and I LOVE trying new things. I actually made a bucket list with one of my friends last summer to ensure that we made the most of it and tried something new every day (and I highly suggest doing it - it was so fun! Maybe I'll do a summer bucket list video?)

I am extremely passionate about beauty products - I have this thing where if I'm going to know something then I have to research it extensively and legitimately understand what I'm talking about. I don't like giving people advice or speaking about something if I'm unsure or don't feel like I have enough information. Therefore, I can assure you that I have researched every product extensively before I share my thoughts on it (whether that be here for my YouTube channel). That being said, I'm not perfect, and I'm always open to hearing your opinion and advice. 

I don't really want to peg my channel as a 'beauty channel' or myself as a 'beauty guru'. I think that's kind of silly because I feel like I'm pigeon holed. We're all plastic (not barbie plastic!). What do I mean by this? I mean that we are ever-changing. You are who you are, but don't let that stop you from exploring new opportunities and further developing who you are.

I don't want to close doors to where I may take this blog or my YouTube channel in the future. I'm not saying I'm going to stray and be inconsistent, that definitely is not the case. I'm just saying that I want to take my infectious happiness and share it with the world - and how I share it will be driven by what currently makes me happy and what you (yes you reading this right now) want me to talk about. This isn't just a one way street of me blabbing at a camera and tickling the keys of my laptop. This is a conversation - a friendship if you will. 

All I know is that my channel will always have beauty (inside AND out - let's be serious here), DIYs, gluten free (and vegan!) cooking, fashion, and important life advice (but like actual advice, seriously). So if that sounds like your cup of loose leaf tea then feel free to subscribe to me here and subscribe to my YouTube channel.

Have a lovely day and don't forget to put a bow on (because you're a prize)

Xo Hill