Nicole by OPI: Drying Drops - for the "on-the-go" girl

I love it when I'm applying my final coat of nail polish and everything looks perfect. I stand back and gaze at the colour on my nails. I wave my hands in the air 2 times, hoping that it would increase the drying time. I blow on my nails, each and every one, hoping that the polish would dry quicker.
I then carefully read a magazine or attempt to go on my laptop. In the end, SOMETHING HAPPENS. One of my nails has speared polish on it! This drives me insane.

Since then, I have been extra careful with drying my nails to have the perfect manicure. To help speed the process of drying time, Nicole by OPI's Drying Drops have done the trick! This small bottle is found at Wal-Mart right beside the Justine Beiber nail polish collection (FYI, even though I do have Beiber Fever, I did not purchase his pack of purple nail polishes; they were not splurge worthy). The small bottle cost approximately $10 in Canadian.

The bottle contains 15 mL or 0.5 fl. oz of product. The instructions on the back says to apply 1-2 drops 1 minute after applying the final coat of your nail polish.

Long story short, this product does work. When applied accordingly (1-2 drops) after your final coat of polish, the drying drops thins out the polish an drys them within 5 minutes!

I have experimented with this. Even with 1 base coat, 3 coats of colour polish, one top coat and 1 drop of Drying Drops, my polish is smooth and shiny. After 5 mintues, the polish is dried!

This is perfect for the girls who are always "on-the-go" and don't have the time to wait 20-25 minutes waiting for their nails to completely dry. Or, it's also perfect for nail polish addicts (like me!).

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OPI's Mod About You

If you haven't heard, OPI's Mod About You is flashing everywhere on everyone's toes and nails this summer! On OPI's website, the colour is described as a "totally mod-ern light pink". More simply, this polish is the perfect milky pale pink colour.

Mod About You

With tan, glowly skin from the summer sun, it looks amazing on nails, and even more amazing on toes! Because the colour is a pale pink, the colour makes your skin tone look even more tanned!

I usually wear this colour on short, square-cut nails simply because this colour also makes your fingers look longer than usual. However, if you enjoy wearing colours on longer nails, go for it!

For this summer of 2011, grab a bottle of Mod About You from your local nail salon, and treat yourself to a mani and pedi with this gorgeous milky pale pink colour!
You will not regret it.

For those who are interested, I am currently wearing Essie's Topless & Barefoot. To see more about the colour and my opinion of the polish, check out my Essie's Topless & Barefoot review

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Essie's TOPLESS & BAREFOOT - the best nude

I know it's the summer, and normally, I would go for a bright colour, but who says you can't wear a nude colour polish loud and proud?!

I have found THE PERFECT nude polish: 

Essie's TOPLESS & BAREFOOT

Topless and Barefoot

It has been difficult looking for the right shade of nude for my nails, but with Essie's Topless & Barefoot, this polish has solved all my problems.... so far! On their website, it's described as a "barely there soft beige pink". Much more simply for you to picture, it's a nude colour polish!

With 1 coat, this polish is not streaky at all. With 2 coats, it becomes the perfect nude!

Tans come naturally during the summer, and with a nude colour polish, I promise you, you'll enjoy the nude colour contrasted against your tanned, golden skin!

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Laura Mercier OIL-FREE Foundation Primer

It's the time of the year again where the days are longer and applying make-up gets annoying when the sun is melting our faces! 

IT'S SUMMER TIME, LADIES

I want to share with you my new foundation love from Laura Mercier: their OIL FREE foundation primer. A primer is a lotion applied after our daily morning moisturizer and before our foundation application. A primer is not mandatory for any make-up application; it's a luxury to have!
However, if you have oily skin and acne prone skin, I highly suggest using a oil free foundation primer. A primer provides a smooth canvas for your make-up application, making sure that it's applied smoothly and thoroughly on your face. For individuals with oily and acne prone skin, a primer can control oil excretion. Less oil excretion means less shiny-ness on a hot, summer day!

Laura Mercier Oil Free Foundation Primer

This is my third bottle that I have purchased from Sephora, and I absolutely love Laura Mercier's oil free foundation. Although it is pricey ($40 Canadian), I think 1.7 fl. oz is plenty of product. Besides, you don't need a large amount for your face. A dime-size is enough to work magic! For me, the 1.7 fl oz lasts for about 3.5 months.

If you do not have oily skin, Laura Mercier also has different types of foundation primers designed for different types of skin: one of their famous primers also include Laura Mercier Hydrating Foundation Primer.

Definitely check out your nearest Sephora location to try a sample of foundation primer that is appropriate for your skin type.

For those who have tried it, how do you like the product?

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Physicians Formula: Valentine Themed Highlighter

I recently picked this product up from my local Shoppers Drug mart. It was approximately $20 Canadian (with tax).

Physicians Formula is a drugstore brand well known for their good quality products made especially for people with sensitive skin. I have tried a couple of items from their line, and because they more more expensive than most drugstore brands, their quality is definitely better. The product packaging is more durable than most and the formula applies better and lasts longer on your face.

To celebrate Valentine's Day, I picked up their newest item:  

Happy Booster: Glow & Mood Boosting Powder  

(in Translucent).

Bottom view of product

This powder comes in various other shades including Beige, Light Bronzer and Bronzer.
I got the lightest colour (Translucent) because I wasn't looking for a face powder; I was looking for more of a highlighter. The Beige colour could be used for powder, and the light and bronzer colours are darker powders that can be used for .... well, bronzer of course.

What attracted me most to this product was their packing. If you have seen Physicians Formula, their packaging is nothing SPECTACULAR. However, their newest Happy Booster has the cutest packaging that I had to purchase it! It comes in a cute, metallic hot pink package with cute hearts as the powder.
The product has 2 separate sections. The top is the powder, while the bottom section has a mirror and comes with a small brush applicator.

Happy Booster: Glow & Mood Boosting Powder in Translucent colour

According to Physicians Formula's website, Happy Booster does the following:

• Ultra-smooth, perfecting powder in a complementary palette of color blends together to even out skin tone with a flawless radiance. 
• Vibrant pink heart gives cheeks a healthy pop of color.
• Infused with our Happy Boost Blend, featuring Happy Skin and Euphoryl, natural plant extracts which have been shown to promote a feeling of happiness by mimicking the effect of Endorphins and helping protect the skin from environmental stress.
• The sweet scent of Violet provides a feeling of joy each time you apply.
• Hypoallergenic
• Paraben free
• Dermatologist approved & Non-Comedogenic.

Keep in mind that I purchased the lightest colour because I wanted to use this product as a highlighter (NOT FACE POWDER!)
Because there are various, shiny colours in the packaging, it was a perfect blend for a highlighter for my face. However, their claim with their "Happy Boost Blend" featuring Euphoryl to promote a feeling of happiness is just an exaggeration. I mean, feeling upset one minute and applying the product on your face, is not going to turn your frown upside down! (it's going to take more than Euphoryl and natural plant extracts to do that!)

Their promotion of saying that their product has a scent of Violet is accurate! The smell is pleasant and very light. And no, people will not be able to smell the Violet scent if you have the product on your face (for those silly bugs who are wondering).

The packaging is extra cute because it does come with a small applicator brush that's pink and red (Valentine Day themed!). Although the brush is not exactly the best quality brush out there, it does apply the product effectively! With the brush included, it's a more convenient way of applying the product when you're going out.

Brush applicator located on the bottom section of the product

I am not entirely sure if this product is a limited edition just for Valentine's Day! However, on their website, it says nothing of the sort, so hopefully it is a permanent item in their line. If you do get the chance, definitely take a swatch from Physicians Formula's latest product.

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Carrie Bradshaw

"The most exciting, challenging, significant relationship of all is the one you have with yourself. And if you find someone to love the you that you love... well, that's just fabulous!"

- Carrie Bradshaw

GARNIER Skin Renew: Anti-puff eye roller

As a University or college student, you would probably understand that drinking coffee is a daily routine, and that you are totally deprived from sleep!! This is especially during midterm and exam season.

What I hate the most is waking up in the morning, after 4-5.5 hours of sleep, and finding those dreaded, dark, puffy under eye circles!! Come on, it's embarrassing to admit, but everyone does get those once in a while...

A good moisturizing concealer can hide those dark imperfections, but when you have puffy under eye circles, using concealer doesn't really help decrease the puffiness.

I have heard amazing reviews on Garnier Skin Renew: anti-puff roller. At my local Shoppers Drugmart (or it could be found at Wal-Mart), this product costs about $25 (Canadian with tax). If you haven't ever seen the bottle, it is quite small, with only 15 mL of product. I was NOT going to pay $25 for 15 mL of product. NO WAY... this product was not worth it.

However, one weekend, Shoppers Drugmart had a sale on all Garnier products, where they were all 40% OFF! The first thing I did that morning was head to Shoppers Drug mart and grabbed 2 packages of the anti-puff eye roller; I wanted to make sure that the local drugstore had the product before anyone else got their hands on them.

Hasn't anyone heard of the famous quote where "the early bird gets the worm?" 

The anti-puff eye roller reduces the look of puffiness and dark circles for refreshes, awakened eyes
 (according to the packaging). The product also has a hydrating ingredient, Pro-Vitamin B5 and caffeine that diminishes the look of puffiness.
With continued use of the product, the package claims that it will reduce the appearance of dark circles and the degree of puffiness (results when using Skin Renew anti-puff eye roller twice a day).

The packaging is simple. Garnier's classic green packing. The tube holds the 15 mL of product. The unique part of this product that received so much rave was their massage roller.

Massaging Roller

When first applied, the product is extremely re freshening for your eyes; it doesn't burn or irritate your eyes though. The product has no particular scent to it, and it dispenses from the massaging roller when you roll the product under and around your eyes. The package does suggest using it twice a day (once in the morning and once at night), but I tend to use it only once in the morning. At night, I use a more hydrating lotion for my eyes.
I usually apply this product in the morning right after I've finished washing my face, before make-up application. Making sure that your eyes are hydrated ensures smoother application of your under-eye concealer!

In terms of decreasing puffiness and under eye darkness, you obviously won't expect drastic changes the very next day. I've been using this product for 1.5 months now, and I do see results! As well, because it has Pro-Vitamin B5 for hydration, I've noticed that applying concealer is easier and it lasts longer throughout the day.

Original packaging with product right beside it

This product is definitely a must have if you are not willing to spend loads of money on high-end eye makeup. Some products from drugstores work just as well and they're more affordable!
University or college students who are suffering from dreaded, tired looks should definitely try this product out!

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