Tag: larkspur beauty

Beauty / Notre Dame Apothecary

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I’m often amazed with the wonderful things my talented friends do/create, and Montreal pal Stefanie Anderson is no exception. In 2014 Stef began studying Holistic Aromatherapy and from that was born her all-natural (and cruelty-free) essential oil based product line, Notre Dame Apothecary. My interest in skincare has really increased recently, so when Stef handed me her Balancing Facial Serum to try I was like a kid in a candy shop. I genuinely love this product, and I’m not saying that because Stef is a friend. Containing selected oils such as rosehips, jojoba, neroli, frankincense, geranium and roman chamomile, this product is liquid magic (imo).

While my skin is fairly blemish free most of the time, I do get zits right before my period and they tend to linger for much longer than I’d like. I had recently bought Mario Badescu Drying Lotion to help with the break outs, but honestly, I don’t love it as much as everyone else does, it’s okay, but it’s not amazing (everyones skin is different though). Stef gave me this right during the time when I was having a breakout, so that evening I applied the oil on it’s own – no drying lotion – and went to sleep. I awoke to a face that felt smooth, the redness of the zits had gone and they amazingly seemed less inflamed (ie., not painful). I now apply morning and night in place of a moisturizer and I think it works just as well, if not better, at keeping my face hydrated throughout the day. I was always weary of facial oils – I mean, it seems weird to put oil on your face – while my face does get fairly dry, I worried that oil would make it greasy and cause insane breakouts, but that is just not the case, at least for me. When I use this product I really feel like I am caring for my skin, and that gives me a real sense of gratification. Needless to say, it will be staying in my daily skincare routine, forevermore.

Follow Notre Dame Apothecary on FB and Instagram. 

Beauty / So Chaud by MAC

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The lipstick I wear most often – and probably my favourite shade of late – is So Chaud by MAC. I actually got this lipstick for free after bringing back some empties to MAC (for their recycling program) and I asked one of the gals there to suggest a colour to me (I’ve never been that great at picking lipstick shades for myself, it’s always just standard red), and she couldn’t have been more spot on in her pick. It’s a creamy matte lipstick in a red/orange shade, and while a lot of people find mattes drying, I don’t find this one to be that bad, but that’s just me. The red with orange undertones is oh so perfect for my skin tone, and I like that in low lighting it looks quite red, but in bright lighting it has a definite orange tint to it.

How I apply lipstick.
When I apply my lipstick I make sure to put some chapstick on first to help with any drying the lipstick may cause, and then I always outline with a lip liner in order to really bring out the shape of my lips and to have the most precise application. From there I just fill in my lips and then using a kleenex, I put that between my lips – giving it a little peck – to take off any excess lipstick, which I also think it helps to make it last longer. After that, I do one more application of my lipstick, and I’m done. Easy peasy.

Beauty / Brigitte Bardot Inspired Hair

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Brigitte Bardot has been a long time style and beauty icon for me, so I thought it was due time I try to emulate one of her iconic hairstyles. I actually ending up loving this look alot (you can see I sported it in my last style post), and I’ll probably end up doing it on a regular basis cause it’s so flippin’ cute and pretty easy to do in a pinch once you get the hang of it.
GET THE LOOK

1. Loosely tie your hair into a half pony tail high on the crown of your head. Make sure it is a bit loose so we can achieve that slight beehive look in the next step.
2. Holding your ponytail, push it forward creating a messy bump (or beehive) in the hair pulled back, and then fasten some bobby pins underneath the hive to hold the look in place.
3. To achieve a more messy look that is so very Bardot, pull some of the pieces ever so slightly on top of your head to add more volume to the beehive.
4. Tie a ribbon or piece of fabric of your choice into a bow around the pony tail – mandatory step for Brigitte Bardot goodness.
5. I used a straightening iron – but I’m sure a curling iron would do as well – to add a bit of texture and curl to the hair that is down and in your ponytail. (I treated my straightener just as I would a curling iron to curl it)
6. TEASE! tease the hair in the ponytail, tease the hair that is down. Give your hair that Bardot volume by, you guessed, teasing. (teasing is backcombing, if you are confused)
7. Since I have straight across bangs (fringe) and Miss Bardot has short, center parted bangs, I made sure to do my usual fringe styling routine, only this time I use my blow dryer to guide my fringe to the each side creating a part in them.

 

Beauty / Daily Makeup Routine

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I get quite a few questions about what makeup I use, or how I do my insert word here ,so I thought it was about damn time I share. Originally, and the reason I had been holding off is, I wanted to make this in video format. But, I’m kind of a perfectionist and I watch a lot of amazing youtubers, so I sort of got in my head that I don’t want to make a video unless it is good quality. So one day, I hope, I will have the means to do that so you can hear my lil’ voice and we can connect in a different way. In the mean time, here is my daily makeup routine in picture format.

PRODUCTSSkin
+ Maybelline Dream Fresh BB cream light 100
+ MAC Studio Fix NW15
+ Rimmel Wake Me Up concealer in very fair
Cheeks and Lips
+ Revlon blusher in Melon-Drama
+ Revlon Photoready Skinlights face illuminator in 200 Pink Light
+ Burt’s Bees lipgloss in Evening Glow
Eyes and Eyebrows
+ Marcelle eyebrow pencil in Blondine
+ Lise Watier eyebrow shadow in blonde
+ Revlon Illuminance Cream Shadow in Skinlights
+ L’Oreal Telescopic Shocking Extensions Mascara
+ Revlon Colorstay liquid liner
Brushes
+ Zoeva 102 silk finish
+ 142 concealer buffer
+ 106 powder
+ 317 wing liner
+ 231 luxe petit crease
+ 127 luxe sheer cheekTo start (and my favourite part), I squeeze about a nickle size of my Maybelline BB cream on to the top of my hand and with my zoeva 102 brush I apply in circular motions all over my face, making sure I get as much coverage as possible and so it blends thoroughly. Next, I apply my concealer under my eyes and on any blemishes I may have (which I always do), blending with the 142 brush. I usually blend under my eyes with my fingers first, and then use my brush to buffer. To finish it off I use my MAC studio fix powder with the 106 brush all over my face to create a matte finish, which diminishes the shine that the bb cream causes. I have to say, I do like the dewy look that the bb cream creates, but I find my face feels incredibly greasy to the touch, which annoys me.
For my eyebrows, since they are pretty invisible (a ginger’s life), I first lightly outline my natural brow shape with an eyebrow pencil and then using my 317 brush and brow shadow I fill them in. To finish them off, using the brush on the opposite end of my brow pencil, I brush through my brows, evenly distributing the colour throughout, giving them a less harsh and more natural look.
Recently for my eyes, I’ve been using a cream shadow palette, which I like because it has all the neutral colours I enjoy wearing for a more natural look (and I also wanted to give cream shadow a go…my report, it is decent). Unfortunately, they don’t have a name for each colour in the palette (but the palette I’m using is called skinlights), so if you go off my third product photo, using my 231 brush and the second shade in, which is a light cream colour, I apply it right under my brows to give them a more lifted, awake look. On my lids I do a base of the fourth shade in, which is a flesh tone, and starting in the outer corner of my lids and blending inward and into the crease of my lid, to give an ever so slight smokey eye, I use the first colour, which is essentially brown with some golden tones.I’ve been doing a cat eye for years. I’m talking yeeeeears. I first learned how to do it when I was just a wee one because it was essential for stage makeup (I’ve been a dancer since I was 3, in case you didn’t know), so I feel at this point, I’m pretty well versed in the art of the winged liner…so I’ll share my secrets with you. To have my liner stay on as long as possible, I first use a pencil liner and then go over top of that with a liquid liner. This is also great because you can really straighten up those lines when going over it again with liquid. I start from the middle of my lid going outward and when I reach the outer corner where my two lids meet, I wing the liner up a bit, having it become even with my brows. After I will go to the inner corner of my eye, and turning the pencil on slight angle so I’m less heavy handed, I will make a thin line that joins to the line I have already made. From there I go over top of what I have just done with my liquid liner, in the same sort of process, only this is the time I really pay attention to steady my hands, and I’ll also play around with the thickness of the liner, ie., a thin line at the start that gradually becomes thicker near the end. And to finish my eyes off, I apply my mascara to the top lashes in an up and fanning out motion, creating that sort of doll-like effect, and I put a slight amount on my lower lashes just in the outer corners.
Next, using my 127 brush (my favourite one because I like the way white and pink look together) I apply my blusher. Because I don’t do any true contouring, I use blush as a sort of contour. So, I apply the blush on the apple of my cheeks, as well as my cheek bones (you know when you suck in your cheeks? ya, right in that spot). And to give my face a nice, bright look, I dab my liquid illuminator right above my blusher, on the cheek bones, which makes me feel angelic and wonderful.And last, but certainly not least, lip colour. Now, when I do really want to give my lips a punch, I use a true red lipstick (usually So Chaud by MAC), but since this is an everyday look, and I can’t be bothered to wear lipstick on the regular, I’m using my Burt’s Bees lipgloss. To be honest, I’m not a huge fan of glosses, especially strongly pigmented ones. I have quite thin lips, so a more pigmented shade of lipgloss I tend to steer away from because it just doesn’t look right, but since I like this colour a lot, I make it work for me. I just dab the gloss on with the applicator, and from there I blend it in with my finger, so instead of it looking like I added a glossy colour to my lips, it gives a more flushed sort of look, like hey, my lips are just naturally this rosy. how cute of me.
And that is my everyday make up. Sorry if there was a lot of writing…man is it ever hard to explain in writing how you apply make up! Also, all of this takes me about 15 minutes, so if you think this is too much work for everyday, think again. And if you have any other questions or things that need clarifying, please let me know. I may do a post that is more in depth about my favourite products I use regularly, so let me know if that is something you would be interested in.

Beauty / Pre-Raphaelite Hair & Makeup

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I quite often get compared to the women in Pre-Raphaelite paintings, solely based on the fact that I have long red hair and pale skin (I’ll take it though!). So it only felt like a natural and fun challenge to really and truly try to emulate the beautiful women from those paintings. This actually ended up being extremely enjoyable for me. When I was a teenager, I absolutely loved makeup ( I still do) – I’d try out different styles, colours, you name it – the crazier the better. But as I got older I fell into a routine with my makeup, and rarely change it up, so it was fun for me to look at images from Brotherhood’s art and recreate the hair and makeup.

If you are interested in recreating this look, I have written a wee tutorial at the end.
To get this look:

Hair
The wavy, crimpy red hair is probably the most discernible feature of the Pre-Raphaelite look. To achieve the waves I used my hair straightener. I sectioned my hair with an elastic, working from the bottom of my head to the top to ensure I get all the hair as wavy as possible. Take a section from your hair and using you straightener, clamp it near your scalp and turn the straightener towards your head and hold for a few seconds, then pull the straightener down the hair ever so slightly and this time turn the straightener away from your head. Your hand should be doing a sort of rocking motion that is folding the hair under itself and over itself. Repeat this all the way down, until all of your hair is done and wavy baby. Also, to keep the look as authentic as possible I center parted and crimped my fringe since most of the girls from the paintings do not have a fringe.

Makeup
The Pre-Raphaelite look is a pale one, with glowing skin and slightly dark, sunken eyes with a rosey-red lip. I used this image as my guide. To create this look I did my normal bb cream/concealer/pressed powder routine, and instead of adding blush, I used a light shimmery cream shadow on my cheek bones with my finger in a dabbing motion. For my brows, I tried to make them a bit thinner than usual (although maybe not successful) – I use an angle brush and shadow for my brows and a pencil to sharpen them. For the eyes, I used a mix of a neutral flesh tone shadow and a white shadow on my lid to create a light, glowing base. To create the sunken look I used a mix of brown shadow and blush pink shadow and blended around my top the lid and under my bottom lid, creating a sickly, but striking look. I finished off the eyes with my angle brush and black shadow along the top lid, creating a faint eyeliner. For the lips I used my favourite red “So Chaud” by Mac, although a little less tomato red and more rosey red colour would feel more authentic, but we work with what we got.