Tokyo Milk Dark

I am a true fan of the morbid, curiosity shops (my favorite still being a tiny shop in London that my friend Lucie took us to), black, dark, guns, dead people... basically if anything is weird or disgusting, I want to be a part of it.

Picture from blog.homewerx.ca

During a weekend scour of vintage shops on 7th Avenue, I stumbled across this new Dark line from Tokyo Milk.

Sirens and Saints is the only store carrying this currently, and I couldn't stop myself from making a purchase. I previously posted about the Dead Sexy bubble bath and travel candle that I bought from the Tokyo Milk line, but this new Dark line takes it to a whole new level!
With scent names like "La Vie La Mort", "Bulletproof", "Tainted Love" and "Arsenic", it seems that these are right up every creepy girl's alley! And let me tell you, I am one creepy girl that loves to smell good!
The matte black bottles of perfume are emblazoned with white images such as skeleton keys, guns and delicate bugs.
I chose a Shea butter hand cream in scent number 62, Tainted Love. It comes in a draw string black canvas bag with the same logos screen printed on it. The fragrance notes for Tainted Love are dark vanilla bean, orchid, white tea and sandalwood. The lotion is creamy and smooth, but not too greasy. It melts into my hands pretty quickly, and my hands are left behind with a delicious, flowery but dangerous scent.
I can imagine that this would be the perfume and hand cream of Morticia Addams (the original, NOT Angelica Houston!)

Beautiful, right?
After payday, I'll be heading back to get some perfume, and start my collection. I also noticed that the line also has lip elixirs, so it looks like I'll be heading to the Tokyo Milk website soon to get mine! With flavors like salted caramel, clove cigarette and sexy noir, I am just going to reaffirm my lip gloss obsession.

See you on the dark side, lovelies.

Fresh Sugar Rose Tinted Lip Treatment

I am a hoarder of all things lip gloss/stick related. Any time I am in a department store, or Sephora, I'm perusing the tubes of lipstick, eyeing the glosses, and imagining that the PERFECT one is just hiding somewhere. Check my handbag and you'll find too many lipsticks for one person to constantly carry around. Check my makeup shelf at home, and you'll think I robbed a store! There are TOO many different textures, packaging, flavors, colors.... I just can't pass them up.

This lip "treatment" as it's called (and though I agree, it's somewhere between a gloss and a stick) is amazingly attractive just to look at and to touch. The matte metallic case that screws closed (great for traveling!) is cold to the touch. When you unscrew the lid, a bright red chubby little stick is ready to save your lips! The smell is a mix between roses and cherries (I can't quite decide which one), and leaves a hint of pinkish-red color. It is not too sticky, and not at all shiny, but really does wonders for your lips. Mine were dry and peeling, and within a couple days of use, they were hydrated and soft again! The added bonus of this is that it has SPF15!

Here is the description from Sephora's website:
Fresh Sugar Rosé Tinted Lip Treatment SPF 15 is everything you love about the original Sugar Lip Treatment SPF 15, but now you get the added benefit of a natural rosé tint that provides buildable color. With one slick, this stick provides immediate hydration and smoothness—instantly soothing cracked or chapped lips and diminishing the appearance of fine lines. It provides SPF 15 UVA/UVB protection to shield your lips from the damaging effects of the sun and delivers a hint of tint for a natural, universally-flattering look. It's packed in a travel-friendly, screw-top tube.


At about $22, this stuff isn't cheap, but I can feel a difference, and love everything that this treatment does for me.
Get yours here!

M.A.C. Studio Fix Powder Plus Foundation

I have long been on the prowl for the perfect pressed powder. My skin is oily, I have large pores... blah, blah, blah. As I'm getting older, I really am starting to notice that my skin is changing, and aside from making me want to set up a microderm appointment, it is even more motivation to find great makeup.
I want coverage, but not cake. I want smooth, but not a mannequin face. I've tried every pressed powder out there, from Cover Girl to Chanel, with nothing really giving me hope.
Then it dawned on me; M.A.C. has amazing eye shadows, glorious glosses, and highly pigmented liners. Why not give the pressed powder a try? When I walk by the M.A.C. store, I see the ladies working in there with their perfect faces, their smoky eyes, arches brows, sculpted cheeks and diamond-shiny lips... they look... perfect. Is it just how they're made? Is it just the makeup? Is it a combination of both?

Well, I want it. I want to look like I could be going somewhere fabulous, all the time. Even when I'm just going to Safeway!
I explained my list of wishes to my M.A.C. consultant and she quickly responds, "What you want is Studio Fix. It's like a foundation, like a powder, coverage, perfect."




M.A.C. Studio Fix Powder Plus Foundation


The compact is heavy duty. It's matte black and fat. Delicious. The sponge is in a separate flip-up compartment underneath the pressed powder and the mirror. I like when they keep it separate - it helps the oil from the sponge not to sit on your powder, and make it messy.

And the coverage; amazing. I haven't tried it on its own, but only over my foundation so far. It really smooths and evens things out, and hides my pores and shine! I can reapply during the day without it getting thick, and it even helps to cover darkness under my eyes. At a price of $26.50, I would say it is definitely worth the cost. The amount of powder in the compact is above average, and with the coverage it provides, you don't have to reapply as often as more sheer powders.

See my picture below, about an hour after applying the pressed powder. And please forgive the dressing room photo... it had great light in there!

I think I have found the champion. For now.

Get it!

Onward and upward, ladies!

Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Anti-Chip Top Coat

Ladies, ladies, ladies... chipped and messy manicures are so 5th grade. But who has the time to sit around, blowing on your hands in order to keep your freshly painted fingers perfect? No one! I'm not one to get regular manicures, so my "tool kit" at home is filled with all the latest and greatest colors, base coats, topcoats, manicure sticks, files, etc. Even thinking about the entire process of taking off polish, trimming and filing nails, doing a base coat, painting however many coats it takes, doing a topcoat, and waiting for it all to dry just EXHAUSTS me.

This little red bottle of wonderful magical goo is the answer!
Do all the manicure steps, to the extent that you normally do. Wait two minutes, then apply this topcoat over wet-ish polish. In 30 seconds, your nails are truly dry to the touch.
Like, dry to the point where I could go pee, AND unzip my jeans myself, without messing up my nails! It is actually sort of amazing, and makes the whole home-manicure process so much easier! The topcoat is very shiny, and helps the polish not to chip. I am currently wearing Chanel Black Satin on my fingers (you know how I love Chanel, but think it's absolute crap when it comes to staying power!), and have had this color on since Saturday (it's now Thursday) with no touch ups in the mean time!

My nails do not still look as perfect as day one of course, but I guarantee that without the use of the Insta-Dri topcoat, they would've been chipped by Sunday. Right now, I have no chips, just some growth at the cuticle, and they could use a little more shine.
At around $7 at the drugstore, this is TOTALLY worth it to use every time you paint your fingers or toes. It will extend the life of any polish you choose to wear and will help to keep your manicure looking better, longer!


From the Sally Hansen website:
Dries ANY Nail Color in 30 Seconds!
Keeps manicures beautiful up to 10 days!
Exclusive Acrylic Polymer Complex helps get you out of the door in a flash - just 30 seconds to set!
High gloss superior shine.
Double UV filters shield manicure from fading and discoloring.
Helps resist chipping.
Salon Tested - Dermatologist Tested.
Special Ingredients:
Exclusive Acrylic Polymer Complex, Complex UV Filters for brilliant shine and protection.

Keep being lovely!

The New Year is here!

Embarking on a new year, we are inspired to make changes, be healthier, be nicer, be stronger... ah, who am I kidding? I just want to eat delicious food and spend money on makeup!
We've had the discussion before about my puny eyelashes, false lashes, and mascaras that work and don't work. When I saw the commercial for Rimmel's new mascara called "Lash Accelerator", I was pretty excited to try it.

The ad says: Lash Accelerator Mascara is our first mascara that actually helps to promote the natural growth of beautifully long, remarkably strong lashes. Instantly, your lashes look up to 80% longer, but then after 30 days of continued use, they’ll appear up to 117% longer! Our exclusive GROW-LASH complex, features Procapil® which works to strengthen lashes' roots and also contains natural lash enhancing ingredients such as, biotin, keratin, and bamboo extract which help to reinforce, restore and moisturize your lashes.


I've done some research on products that help your lashes grow, such as Latisse. At over $100/tube, and word from my eye doctor that it only works as long as you're actually using it, it's hard to believe that a $7 tube of mascara could do the same thing! I definitely had to try it.
The brush is short, and on the smaller side, and easily picked up a lot of mascara on it when getting ready to apply. After applying, I really wasn't impressed with the results. I didn't see the "80% longer" look that was claimed in the ads. I went on with my day, hoping that by the time I got home, I'd somehow have fluttery long eyelashes that would make everyone jealous! I didn't!
Instead, the mascara smudged and was below my eyes - this is something I HATE. 
But what to do with this brand new tube of mascara? Rather than waste it, I tried applying it on top of my current mascara (Maybelline Falsies), and actually got GREAT results. My lashes were fanned out, looked longer, black and yummy... and no smudging all day. I wouldn't buy the Lash Accelerator again, just because it's not worth it to me since I will really only use it as a top coat mascara. Being that Rimmel is from London, I really want to get great results from their products (love you GB!), but just haven't found one that delivers yet. More searching to be done!


Hope you all have a great 3-day weekend, and get to try something new! Please feel free to send me an email if there are any products you'd like me to review - I'll do my best to get to them all!


Now, off to work out, and get a pizza. What a perfect combination. <3

Farouk Systems CHI 1-inch Ceramic Flat Iron

As flat irons go, I haven't found a "mid-range" flat iron to suit my needs. I can easily find one for $30 at Target, or find them for $100 and up at a specialty store, but no in between prices.
I have always wondered, what is the difference between such a cheap flat iron, and a really expensive one? Is there REALLY a difference? I mean, it's two hot plates that you squeeze together to straighten your hair. What could the big difference really be?
I have always gone with my gut and and purchased the cheapest version at Target, and never thought much about it.
That all changed when I got a coupon from Beauty Brands that showed this:

White flat iron? Yes, please. Skull and cross bones on the flat iron? YES PLEASE. I purchased the CHI Ceramic Flat Iron and never looked back. Here's the difference between this, and the cheaper ones at Target; when you iron your hair with the CHI, it is smooth. It doesn't pull, and doesn't feel rough. There are no heat settings on the CHI - only "on" and "off". Well, wait a minute, I want to select the hottest setting for my hair, just like I did with my Target flat iron. This doesn't exist in CHI land. "On" equals the hottest setting available. The warning tag says you can burn your eyes out, and also that people in Canada are not allowed to use these. Not sure exactly why CHI is OK with Americans burning their eyes out, and not Canadians, but that's another discussion for another time.
Higher heat equals less time in your hair, equals less damage. The smoothness of the ceramic plates means your hair isn't stretched out and then ironed, with also equals less damage. And the thermal carrying case that they come with is amazing. You actually CAN flat iron your hair, unplug, and throw it in the bag. This is especially helpful when I've been traveling and have to pack up - no more waiting for the flat iron to cool off.
The power cord also swivels, and is very long, so it's easy to maneuver, and flat iron wherever you need to.
I can also create tousled flat iron "curls" which give a beachy, rocker look.
I definitely recommend using a protective spray before flat ironing, as the heat is very high. CHI makes their own spray, and also a leave in protectant, and I've used both with great results.
The CHI flat irons also come with a one year warranty, so save your box and receipt. I've searched eBay and found quite a few CHI flat irons for much cheaper, but the risk of that is that you don't have the warranty. If you're OK with that though, you can get a less expensive one online, and have a really great flat iron!
I would definitely recommend not scrimping when it comes to your flat iron - it's for your looks, and for the health of your hair!
Have a beautiful day, lovelies.

Neutrogena Body Oil in Light Sesame

Winter is brutal on my skin, and although I like a heavy cream lotion as much as the next girl, I don't love that it never seems to soak in, and my arms and legs feel "slippery" and sticky all day.
In the winter time, I will itch my legs until they bleed if allowed. I've even been known to use my boar bristle brush to scratch my legs, because they itch so bad!
So what's a girl to do?

Enter Neutrogena Body Oil in Light Sesame. I remember my mom having this on her bathroom counter, and I'd occasionally steal a squirt of it, feeling both luxurious and sneaky at the same time.
It has a light fresh scent, and I apply it to my arms and legs right after drying off from my shower. If you apply when your skin is still a little bit damp, the oil soaks right in, and truly moisturizes all day. It isn't smelly enough to compete with any perfume, but you could use only this, and smell the fragrance throughout the day.
At under $10, the oil is affordable and lasts forever. I think you'll be surprised at how well it moisturizes, without leaving a slippery or sticky feeling. No more brushing my legs until they bleed! Hallelujah!