November 30, 2011

Nine West previews Spring 2012!

It was Spring 2012 preview time for Nine West last week and I must admit there is something weird about having to get bundled up to view warm weather shoe fashions!

And of course when I say Nine West, I also mean Rachel by Rachel Roy, Sam & Libby, Brian Atwood, Mootisies Tootsies, Jones New York, Bandolino, Easy Spirit, Joan & David, Circa Joan & David, Nine & Co., Nine West Vintage America, Boutique 9, Enzo Angiolini and AK Anne Klein - I'm exhausted just typing it all never mind looking at it all!

Here's what you'll be seeing next season:

Lots of sparkle - I absolutely adore the pink platform peep toed ones here!
Snake prints in bright colours!
Brights that make me want to sail away on a yacht!
Pinks
Blues and greens.
And so much beautiful orange - I'm a sucker for orange shoes!
Metallics - including another pair of peep toes to die for!
Colour blocking is still around and I love this bright blue with the black!
It's not spring without Nautical!
And check out the New Nudes - I love the pearly finish!
And of course Black & White
I am especially loving these romantic looking white lace ones!
One thing I really noticed for spring were all the cool details on the shoes - from an intricate wedge;
to a studded stiletto;
to a jeweled heel!
There are also some new things in the world of sneakers - Easy Spirit has a line of super lightweight and comfortable shoes coming in the spring - e360 -which feature: a stretch upper & sock lining to hug the foot for a custom-like fit; a gel cushion system; and a flexible and durable one-piece molded Elon outsole.
As well, Nine West is introducing their own line of fashion sneakers - I must admit, I'm loving the gold metallic ones! They also have their first fragrance coming in the spring - Love Fury - stay tuned for more info on that.
And if you've ever wondered if there is an artist out there who paints pictures of shoes, the answer is yes, Mark Schwartz who was on hand with some art he had done exclusively for Nine West - I don't have any shots of that - this one is from his website at http://highheeledart.blogspot.com - and it just amuses me as I've always said that I would eat shoes if I could!

I can't deny that looking at beautiful spring shoes has me ready to skip winter altogether and go straight to spring!

- Lisamarie -

Now when you're at Murale, you can have your Cake (Beauty) and eat it too!

What does one do when one loves the beauty industry, loves natural products and sees a glaring absence in the market? Well if one is Heather Reier, founder of Cake Beauty - you just go to your kitchen whip up a bunch of fantastic smelling products and start a company! Okay it probably wasn't quite that easy but when I met with her a couple of weeks ago to celebrate the line's launch at Murale, she looked so polished and calm, she made me believe it could be!

We chatted about the origins of the Canadian company - back in 2003, Heather was a product junkie (we can relate to that) who was tired of putting junk on herself and wanted things with natural ingredients, that smelled and felt good. Since they didn't exist in the marketplace what else was a girl to do but make them herself - from this, Cake Beauty was born!

And who better to ask about is her must have products from her line - it took a little bit of prodding since a mother doesn't like to reveal her favourite but she finally admitted to a Satin Sugar Hair Powder addiction - it's a talc free dry shampoo which enables her to only have to wash her hair every 4 days, it adds lasting volume and can also be used as a body powder - Heather went so far as to say that it changed her life and she gets nervous when she gets down to less then half a bottle of it left! Her favourite new product is her new (and first) fragrance - Indulge - which she let me smell and I have to agree, it's delicious!

We can expect new and exciting things coming from Cake in the first half of the year including a twist on her fave dry shampoo product but if you are looking for gifts or want to try the Cake line now, here are a couple of great gift sets that you should check out:
Holiday Handful - 3 x 100ml - $36 - Includes Milk Made - whole vanilla milk and baked raspberry, Vanilla Snow Woman - sweet vanilla cream and UnSweet - un-coloured and un-scented - hand creams blended with shea & mango butters, whole milk, marshmallow extract and just the right amount of glycerin to lock in moisture and protect your winter-worn hands
Winter Wonderlips - 3 x 11ml - $30 - in: vanilla frost - creamy pearl with opalescent shine; pink icicle - sheer pink with diamond sparkle; and gold glimmer - glistening nude - a golden sheen trio of creamy and delectably flavoured lip gloss will nourish and hydrate lips giving you a wash of colour and loads of shine. Blended with natural emollients and infused with antioxidants to leave your lips smooth, shimmering and looking winter wonderful all season long.
You'll now find the Cake Beauty line at Murale and you can still find it at Sephora, eBeauty.ca and cakebeauty.com - and if you're shopping at Cake Beauty online, be sure and take advantage of the Topbox 30% off Promo Code - TOPBOX when checking out!

- Lisamarie -

This week I'm obsessed with... Ojon Restorative Hair Treatment Plus!

Ojon Restorative Hair Treatment Plus - 100ml - $37 - a rich balm that melts into a nourishing serum to make it easy to spread through dry hair to repair cuticle damage, instantly restore hydration and shine and strengthen hair to help prevent future breakage. Contains: Ojon Oil - rich in essential lipids which penetrates deep within the hair shaft to repair and seal the cuticle and helps to build up hair's natural resistance to future damage and restores the look and feel of virgin hair; and Rouge Oleifera - extracted from the fruit that surrounds each Ojon nut and has a high concentration of antioxidants and essential lipids.

So I'm just going to put this out there - I stopped using the Ojon treatment several years ago because I just couldn't stomach the smell - I had a hard time putting a finger on exactly what it smelled like, the closest comparison I can come up with is slightly rancid peanut butter and since the smell was interfering with my enjoyment of peanut butter cups I had to make a choice - obviously chocolate and peanut butter won, duh! Not to say I didn't like the results, it really was an awesome treatment but part of beauty treatments is the sensory enjoyment of them and my nose was not loving it no matter how good my hair looked afterwards! So when I heard that Ojon had changed the scent I was so hopeful that I would be able to have the treatment I loved without the stench. I'm happy to report that the new scent is very light and totally unoffensive! My hair is soft and silky and birds are no longer attracted to it, all is right with the world!

Here's how you use it: just scoop out a teaspoon or so into the palm of your hand and warm it by rubbing it between your hands until it becomes an oil then you just run it through your hair and scalp and repeat those steps until your hair is fully saturated. Then you comb it though and let it penetrate for 20 minutes before washing it out. For very damaged hair you can use the heat from a hairdryer on low for 5 minutes, leave it on overnight or my special trick when my hair looks fried is to pop a plastic bag on my head and look like a dork for a couple of hours - when I wash it off, hair nirvana!

Score your own at Sephora, sephora.com, Murale, The Shopping Channel - www.theshoppingchannel.com eBeauty.ca and www.ojon.com

- Lisamarie -

November 29, 2011

Yves Saint Laurent Spring Look 2012 - Candy Face

This spring YSL brings you shades that are fresh and beautiful with melting textures and transparent effects that bring colour to your face that's sweet enough to eat!
Vinyl Candy Palette - $68 - Limited Edition - inspired by a box of candy overflowing with irresistible colours and textures - violet, pink blackcurrant and gooseberry - reminiscent of sugar-coated rock candies. 2 pearly eye shadows - raspberry and lilac subtly infused with pearly pigments and 2 satiny eye shadows - blackcurrant and rose petals.
Ombres 5 Lumieres No 13 - $74 - Limited Edition - if your spring requires a pastel palette, look no further!
Voile de Blush - $40 - Limited Edition - No 1 - Carmine Veil - bright candy apple red, No 2 - Coral Veil - bursting-with-health apricot, No 3 - Pink Veil - sparkling pink - syrup colours in a water-based gel with a jelly texture. With a high concentration of water and a gelling agent that act together to create a supple, cool, intangible film that assures fresh, long-lasting colour with tiny mother-of-pearl sparkles that add a delicate radiance. I fell in love with cream blushes last year so I like the sounds of these!
Rouge Volupte Perle - $38 - Limited Edition - No 113 - Iridescent Burgundy, No 114 - Sparkling Fuchsia, No 115 - Shimmering Coral, No 116 - Milky Pink
Duo Manucure Couture - $32 - Limited Edition - No 7 - Brown/Green,
Duo Manucure Couture - $32 - Limited Edition - No 8 - Pink/Orange
Golden Gloss - $40 - No 49 - Golden Violet, No 50 - Golden Peach - new regular colours.

Available Feburary at Holt Renfrew and selected The Bay and Murale stores. The Candy Palette will also be available at selected Sephora stores.

Is it spring yet?

- Lisamarie -

These coffee products from 100% Pure, LUSH, Pacifica and Hard Candy prove that it's not just for drinking anymore!

100% Pure Organic Coffee Bean Caffeine Eye Cream - 29ml - $25 - reduces puffiness, dark circles, fine lines and wrinkles as well as hydrates and firms skin. Formulated with potent anti-aging vitamins, antioxidants and nourishing oils, it contains anti-inflammatory, caffeine-rich ingredients that noticeably awaken the eye area and reduce the look of swelling and discolouration. 100% natural, vegan and gluten-free. Available at www.100percentpure.ca and www.eBeauty.ca
LUSH Latte Lip Tint - 10g - $8.95 - if you're looking for a light coloured tint you'll love this moisturizing lip balm with a hint of fair trade coffee flavouring to give you a pick me up whenever you need it! Also contains a blend of almond oil, organic jojoba oil and Japan wax for light feeling moisture and Icing sugar, vanilla powder and vanilla absolute to give it a delicious latte aroma.
Pacifica Kona Coffee & Sugar Detox Whole Body Scrub - 368g - $32 - this 100% vegan scrub is full of powerhouse tropical ingredients including coconut oil, sugar, and sea salt, to exfoliate, smooth, and promote radiant, brighter skin with an additional jolt of caffeine! Available at Sephora.
Hard Candy Glossaholic Rise & Shine - $5 - and let's not forget my old favourite - if you like sparkles and a Coffee Crisp scent then you will want to check out this gloss at your local Walmart!

Do you have any fave coffee products that we should know about?

- Lisamarie -

GOSH - Fossil Grey, Rusty and Black Passion polish swatches!

I can't help but love the GOSH Urban Jungle Winter collection polishes - they're so sparkly yet edgy which is so me! Check out the swatches and see if they might be you too:
Fossil Grey - smokey grey with a slight shimmer
Rusty - is well, rust with lots of shimmer
Black Passion - black with shimmer

Do you love the winter polishes as much as I do? Then make sure you go enter the GOSH contest to win them (as well as the rest of the winter collection) - you can enter here!

- Lisamarie -

November 28, 2011

Mascara Monday - shu uemura Ultimate Natural Mascara

shu uemura Ultimate Natural Mascara is the latest and greatest from the Ultimate Eye Essentials collection and promises an extremely natural, clean and separate finish with powerful curl holding ability and without smudging or flaking. I liked the sounds of that because even with all the mascaras out now that are meant to add super duper volume and a false lash effect, I am still a fan of a more natural look.

Right off, I liked the brush, it's fairly skinny which makes it much easier to get at all my lashes including the bottom ones!
No mascara on the right, 2 coats on the left - best part, no lash comb needed as it was never clumpy!
2 coats on each side - the small brush is a winner in my books, easy to maneuver and didn't brush up against my skin so no smears to clean up.
One of the mascara's claims to fame is the special waxes it contains to create a strong curl -  it's not a crazy huge curl but this is still the best one that I have gotten strictly from a mascara without having to do any weird things with the brush while I applied it.

- Lisamarie -

Help for stretchmarks from Mederma, Nip + Fab and Palmer's!

After 3 pregnancies and losing 100 pounds, there isn't anyone better to test out stretch mark creams then our very own Christelle - so enjoy her rare appearance as she gives you the run down on what she's tried:


Mederma Stretch Marks Therapy - 150g - $39.99  
The treatment is applied morning and evening and massaged in a circular motion on the affected areas. The scent is fairly light and pleasant and thankfully the cream is not greasy since you have to apply it twice a day for at least 4 weeks. My skin definitely visibly improved after a few weeks.
Available in Canada at Walmart, Shopper’s Drug Mart, Loblaws, London Drugs, Pharma Plus and other drug stores nationwide.

Nip + Fab Multi-Fix Oil - 100ml - $14.95
This oil is super light, practically odorless and super moisturizing. It takes just a few applications to improve skin's texture. Available exclusively at Shoppers Drug Mart.


Palmer's Skin Therapy Oil - 150ml - $13.99 
Like the previous oil, the Palmer's skin therapy oil helps with  improving your skin's texture. I like to mix these oils with a conventional body lotion for an easier application.

All of these products approved the appearance of my stretch marks to one degree or another but of course nothing will actually get rid of them entirely so just don't expect miracles!












-Christelle-

Bling and Glow with Annabelle and Marcelle for Holiday 2011!

Annabelle Bling offers you all the holiday colour and sparkle you could ever ask for!
Bling Me Out Eyeshadow Palette - $17.99 - with 10 eyeshadows in shades from neutral to bright in the cutest little glitzy case that also contains a mirror and 2 double ended applicators.
Gel Glitter Palette in Glitzy Gurlz - $11.49 - fine glitter in a gel base can be used all over or as a liner.
Rouge Velours in Merry Berry - $9.49 - the best part of this berry coloured lipstick is the cap which isn't shown but has a giant glittery diamond coloured gem on it!
Now that you're blinged, it's time for Marcelle to get you glowing!
Golden Glow Moisturizing Cream - 50ml - $18.25 - with golden light reflecting pigments to instantly boost radiance and make your complexion look radiant at the same time hydrating the skin with a light, non-greasy cream. Meant to be used on your face and decolletage and I don't see any reason you can't use it on your arms and legs to should you be so inclined!
Lux Diamond Liquid Eyeliner in Solid Gold and Pure Silver - $11.95 - can be used alone or to add a touch of sparkle to your regular liner.

All limited edition and available now for your holiday pleasure!

- Lisamarie -