Check out Winners, you'll be surprised with what you can find!

I always wanted to buy a big oval mirror like the one i posted above. If you have tried to shop for one, you'll notice they are usually quite pricey items. I bought mine for $10 at Winners. That is a major bargain, mine was 50% off, bought it during a sale. I first got the idea to check out Winners for a mirror from my sister, she got hers for $20, also a great bargain. It's really worth the money, with the obvious reason being that a bigger mirror captures your hair (helps when you're trying to do your hair and make up at the same spot like i do).

Another normally pricey item I found at Winners was Rapidlash. This item is usually very pricey, but at Winners you can get it for as much as 30% less. I can't really say whether Rapidlash works or not, you're suppose to use it consistently but i haven't, i don't really see any obvious visible changes though. However, many people have claimed it works..

DIY: Semi-permanent lashes

Picture 1: What you'll need

Picture 2: Applying Glue

Picture 3: Half done

Picture 4: Fully done

Picture 5: Adhesive Remover

What are semi permanent lashes?
These are individual false lashes that you glue on top of your real lashes. When you're done, it looks as good as the false strip lashes. The difference between false strip lashes and these individual semi permanent lashes is that these lashes last not just one night/day but at least an entire week.
What makes this option so awesome?
- Lasts long (usually 2 weeks with good maintenance it could last longer). And usually not all of them fall off at once, individual lashes will start to get loose and fall off, you can replace these ones regularly when it happens and that way you won't have to do it all over again at once.
- Looks more natural then false strip lashes - strip lashes usually require more glue and looks fake that way, moreover, strip lashes are usually more dramatic, with these individual lashes there are two options: short and medium length ones and if you venture out of the Ardell brand (which i have showcased) you can even choose more variations in lengths
- Saves you time every day - you no longer have to curl your lashes and put on mascara everyday, skip that step because you already have beautiful lashes
What you'll need: (see picture 1)
(1) A pack of individual lashes - i use Duralash by Ardell in Flare Medium Black, you can buy this at any drug store, you can buy it from Walmart (cheapest) or Rexall PharmaPlus. At Shoppers Drug Mart they don't sell Ardell but they sell Quo brand lashes which are slightly more expensive (and i also like them less)
(2) Ardell Lash Tite Adhesive
(3) An angled Tweezer
The steps it takes: (refer to the pictures, sorry there's a limited amount)
(1) On the adhesive box it will instruct you to pour some glue over foil paper i believe in order to dab the glue on your lashes. I don't do that, i find that highly unnecessary. First thing you should do is use your tweezer (or fingers but it's easier to use the tweezers), aim for the TIP where the lashes all meet (the part that's stuck to the packaging - see picture 2) if you don't aim to pull the lashes off at that spot you'll ruin your false lash. If you pull the false lash with a tweezer from the ends or somewhere else often times the lash will twist and ruin itself, i still make this mistake sometimes..
- I usually pull out a bunch of individual lashes and place them on the table and then you can grip the lash however you feel comfortable
(2) open the lid of the adhesive and tilt the jar so you can reach the glue, once it's close to the edge dab your lash with glue (look at picture 3)
(3) close one eye and start from either the middle or the front and place the false lash above your lash as close as possible to the roots of your real lashes. Remember, some of my friends make this mistake, do not try to just glue the lashes to the skin on your eyes, glue it to the root of your real lashes, otherwise the lash will just fall off when you wash your face
(4) After you successfully get this lash on (if you're a beginner this might be a little frustrating because the adhesive is very liquidy) wait maybe 30 seconds for it to dry a bit then work on the next one til you get your entire eye (look at picture 4 for half done eye and picture 5 for final results)
How do i remove it?
If you want to remove a lash you may need a product called Quo Individual Eyelash Adhesive Remover, you can buy this from Shoppers Drug Mart.
(1) Tilt the jar sideways and pinch the body of the jar and some of the product's liquid will come out use your finger and rub that on the root of your lash where you glued it.. this will make it easier for you to remove it..it'll be oily.
(2) Try not to yank your lashes out this will pull your real lashes. Instead close your eyes and try to rub the lash off away from your eyes slowly.
- Sometimes you may not even need the adhesive remover because it's loose enough to slide it off your real lash.
Disadvantages of semi permanent lashes:
- What i get most frustrated about is the lashes move because the adhesive doesn't keep it in place as well after a few days, your lashes start to clump together.
- Even with adhesive remover sometimes it's glued so tightly on your real lashes that if you tries to remove your false lash it will yank your real ones out. It's frustrating.. but i guess that's the price of beauty?

Why isn't there a video instead?
I am a beginner in video making, the quality of the video isn't that good. I will consider trying again if people are truly interested in seeing one.

Have fun with Glitter Nail Art

The idea: If you feel like your nails are too dull with just colour nail polish add some glitter!
Glitter nail polish is awesome. It is easy to apply and extremely versatile. You can apply it on the tip of your nails just like I did to make a french manicure design but with glitter. Best of all, you don't need the precision in nail painting like you do with white nail polish in the french manicure. It makes using glitter nail polish so much easier and faster. You can also go for the disco ball look and paint your entire nails with the glitter nail polish, it's eye catching and very pretty. If you want to be even more adventurous buy colour glitter nail polish! Pink and gold is very popular and easy to obtain.
I used: base: OPI in Kyoto Pearl - just like the name implies, it's a white pearl colour, for the glitter tips: OPI in Crown me already! 

Product Review: EOS Lip Balm

I'm sure most of you have seen this popular EOS Lip balm around lately. It use to be unavailable to purchase in Canada but now it's available in most retail stores and online. I actually bought mine at Indigo.

The selling point: eos lip balm is 95% organic, 100% natural, and paraben and petrolatum free
Flavours in Canada: summer fruit, sweet mint, honey suckle honey dew
Price: $3.99
Why I love it: Cute packaging, very smooth and easy to apply, smells great
Disadvantages: Bulky, hard to carry in your pockets
Moisturizing your lips: I love lip balm and I have experimented plenty before including the popular Burts Bee, Blistex, etc. This is probably my favourite. My friends love it too. Btw, Vaseline does an excellent job moisturizing your lips too and it's multi-purpose! 

My daily makeup routine

1. Cream - i am not picky at all, lately i've been using Clinique dramatically different moisturizing lotion. It's very light and absorbs into your skin quite quickly. 

2. Foundation - also not very picky, lately i've tried Benefit's Some kind of Gorgeous foundation, it's solid but creamy, you use a sponge (already supplied) to apply it on (let me know if you want a picture of it opened). I really like this foundation so far but it's quite pricey. I would recommend trying drug store brands that offer a similar product. I apply foundation sparingly - you don't want to create a cakey look by applying too much. Only apply it to uneven skin tone. 

3. Powder - not picky either, lately i've been using Make up forever dust powder. It's pretty good, but also expensive. My sister gives me a lot of make up, if it wasn't for her I would probably opt for a drug store brand. Don't over apply or you'll get a powdery look. Powder is best for putting your foundation in place and taking away shine. The worst mistake you can make is buying the wrong shade! Too light or too dark looks silly!

4. Concealer - only on blemishes or dark eye bags. If used excessively it can make your face look cakey. My favorite concealer is Lancome Protective Undereye Concealer. It is probably the best concealer i've used in terms of cover up ability. It just takes a little dab so it lasts quite long.

5. Eyeliner - here is where i am EXTREMELY picky. I only use MAC fluidline in shade: blacktrack. It is awesome. Ever since i've used it, i couldn't switch over to anything else. I apply it directly above my eyes, so close to the lash line, and i apply it below my eye. You need a narrow thin brush to apply it on.
Why I love it: It doesn't smudge much, it doesn't rub off easily, it's very dark, it's less fake than liquid eye liner, and it lasts long. One jar can last you several months! It's around $20, worth every penny.

6. Eyeshadow - I would say Lancome makes pretty good eye shadow. I use light brown and then use a little dark brown on top to create a shadow. A thicker brush for the light brown and a thin and narrow one for the dark brown.

7. Mascara - I don't curl my lashes because i have semi permanent lashes. It's convenient and very pretty, i will write another post about that shortly. I really like mascara with comb brushes for my bottom lashes, it captures all my little lashes. I apply a coat of Rimmel  Lash Maxxx, i think they might've discontinued it, but other comb brushes work just as well. Afterwards, i apply a second layer of mascara on my bottom lashes, usually a plumping one to make my sparse bottom lashes thicker. Right now, i'm using Revlon Grow Luscious Plumping. It does the job.

8. Blush - I apply a bronzer on my cheeks first, lately i've been using a MAC darker shade powder for this task, i like it because i don't like the shimmer in most bronzers. The powder is more natural because it blends  like powder. Then, I apply on a pink blush (on top of my bronzer), it creates a really nice natural tone. I really like bareMinerals. I use shade Cheerful. It's a dust powder blush. I apply my bronzer and blush with a medium size blush brush by MAC, any brush would work really...

And i'm done! This really doesn't take that long - about 15 minutes if i'm listening to music and doing it slowly. If you do it everyday like me, it becomes a routine and it doesn't even feel like "work."

Let me know if you want pictures of the individual items or more info, happy to provide it!

"There are no ugly girls, just lazy ones."

Celebrities are very appealing to the human eye. But have you ever seen celebs without their make up or hair done, walking around with shlumpy clothes? All of a sudden they just look average. Make up, doing their hair, nice fitting clothes, and perhaps some photo shopping turn them from average to beauty queens. A lot of girls get help from make up. Make up, if done really well can significantly enhance your existing features. 

For example, 

• black eye liner and mascara can make your eyes look several times bigger. 
• Blush and bronzers can add "life" to your face. 
• Concealer or foundation can hide your blemishes and even out your skin tone. 
• Powder can take away shine and also even your skin tone or hide light blemishes.
  
  However, all of this takes time and some girls just don't want to bother, so these girls are considered to be "lazy." And this is what the quote is referring to. Girls who seem not as pretty mainly because they don't put in the effort to put themselves together as well as other girls do.  

Katie Holmes