Tested: Noyah Cosmetics Lipsticks (Hazelnut Cream, Deeply in Mauve) &Lip Gloss ( Malbec , Summertime Peach )

The lipstick kick I've been on recently has driven me to venture out to discover new brands.  I noticed Noyah Cosmetics on Instagram with their interesting bamboo packaging.  The flowers on the packaging reminded me of the sakura flowers from Japan.  Intrigue set in and I decided to see if the formulation and performance of their products were as unique as their packaging.  I was hesitant to judge a book by its cover, but thank goodness I did.  Noyah Cosmetics hits it out of the park with pigmentation, packaging, and performance.

Collectively Curated: Red Apple Lipsticks ( Audrey, Vogue, Maven Mauve, Gypsy Soul, Naughty, Rallye Balm )

Anyone who happens to see my Instagram will know that I'm very particular to lipsticks.  I'm definitely a mascara and lipstick kind of girl, but, there are only so many mascaras you can own at once!  With lipsticks, I'm able to explore a different world of possibilities every day and that is what I love so much about them.  I've tried many a high end lipstick brand back in the day, but I've never come across a formula quite as nourishing as Red Apple Lipstick's formula.  After I bought two lipsticks (Audrey and Gypsy Soul) during their buy-two-for-the-price-of-one sale, I decided to sign up for their blogger program and was generously sent two more.  I've tried various formulations from them due to this, and let me just say, the hype around Red Apple Lipstick is real.

Collectively Curated Honest Beauty Review Part 2: Oily Trial Kit, Everything Primer, Magic Balm, Even Brighter Everyday Moisturizer, Younger Face Deep Hydration Cream

Today, I'm bringing you the long-awaited part 2 to my Honest Beauty Collectively Curated Series! I'll be focusing on skincare and how I've gotten along with many of their products that are targeted towards blemish prone, oily skin.  These reviews are the cumulation of 1-2 months of testing (save for the Magic Balm and the Younger Face Moisturizer) and I truly believe I've gotten a good grasp of how well these products have worked for my skin.  There've been some hits, there've been some misses, and I'll be documenting all of my experiences below!

Tested: Antipodes Aura Manuka Honey Mask

I've always loved masking because it has always felt like the most luxurious process of the self-care ritual that I call skincare.  I've recently become reliant on masking ever since I started frequenting downtown Los Angeles with its dirt, grime, and polluted air.  My ultimate dilemma was that, while I had many clay masks that I loved to draw out impurities, I didn't own a moisturizing mask.  I've known about Antipodes for a while as Essie from Essiebutton raved about them a while ago and I also know that Nic from OrgaNic Obsessions loves their face oil.  Due to these fellow bloggers, my trust in the brand grew and I decided to take the leap to order the highly talked about Aura Manuka Mask from the line.  It was quite difficult to track it down at a somewhat reasonable price, but I managed to use a promo code for Naturismo (a European natural beauty store) and I was well on my way to happy skin after a click of a button (thank goodness for the internet).  I've included my thoughts below on this holy grail mask that happens to calm my breakouts like no tomorrow.

Tested: WOODLOT Nourishing Soap Bars ( Original Charcoal, Recharge), Coconut Wax Blend Candles (Cascadia, Flora), & Calming Mist (Rose & Palo Santo)

I've a little secret that I've been keeping from you guys.  I'm addicted to candles and pretty much all kinds of bits and bobs that make a home feel homier.  You guys are more familiar with the side of me that loves clean skincare. If a brand merges both of my addictions in such an aesthetically pleasing way, you can bet I would be eager to give it a test run and report it here for you to read.  When Woodlot, a Canadian brand specializing in home, bath, and body products, contacted me to see if I was interested in testing their products, I eagerly jumped on the opportunity.  Not only did I admire their story (original steeped in family tradition while keeping future generations in mind), I was also very impressed with their clean, unisex aesthetic.  As I waited for the mail, I hoped that the quality and performance of their products would be as luxe as their packaging.  I wasn't just satisfied, I was blown away.

Tested: Beauty Heroes Box September: Kahina Giving Beauty Eye Serum & Facial Lotion

I love a good subscription box but I hate the feeling of waiting for goodies only to be met with fillers.  You can imagine, then, that I was wary of signing up for Beauty Heroes, a new green subscription box.  It first piqued my interest when I saw all of the quality full-sized products my fellow green beauty bloggers were getting in the mail.  I decided to wait a bit so that I could make a conscious decision if this box was worth the commitment.   Then, l'amour et la musique from Youtube became an ambassador for the box and generously offered a coupon code for her viewers which was too good not to jump on.  The point of all of this is to serve as a background to the skepticism that I had up until I opened my first box from them containing two products from Kahina Giving Beauty (a brand I had been itching to test).  I am completely blown away by the selection and quality of Beauty Heroes and you can bet I’ll be a subscriber for a while.  These two products, the eye serum and facial lotion, have also been quick favorites in my beauty collection.  Read on to see how I’ve gotten along with these products!

Tested: Gressa Lumiere Luminous Complexion Fluid ( Amelia)

It is a fact that without blush, I don't quite look human.  I owe a lot to blush to say the least.  I've recently converted to cream blush recently to elevate that glow from within factor and that (along with some very convincing pictures from my favorite bloggers) is what spurred me to test out the Gressa Lumiere liquid blush in Amelia.  You see, I had a phase a few years back when all I would wear was peachy orange blush.  In the summer, it gave me a bright pop of color. In the winter, I didn't care that it defied seasonal color laws of beauty because, hey, orange just worked really well to brighten up my complexion and I was not going to give it up and look like a white walker from Game of Thrones.  I have since gravitated towards more pink hues for my cheeks but one swipe of Amelia has completely re-instilled the faith in orange and I may never go back!

[GIVEAWAY] Tested: pureSOL Konjac Facial Sponge & Body Sponge (Original)

I've always been a huge fan of konjac sponges ever since I gave up the Clarisonic ages ago.  The thing is, I've always had an issue with how quickly the sponges deteriorated whenever I used them daily.  The past konjac sponges that I have used have all ripped and shredded after a month or two of use and the constant wringing of the sponge post-use usually ripped the sponge quite quickly.  Enter pureSOL, who reached out to ask if I'd like to test their sponges and I swear my shower game has never been the same.  These sponges truly hold up to daily wear and tear and I'm excited to try their other formulations once these have come to the end of their lifespan!  Read on to see why I'm so obsessed!

Tested: Yoshimomo Black Magic Charcoal Cleanser

Cleansers are always such a tricky purchase for me to make.  On one hand, I like cleansers that leave my skin feeling squeaky clean, but on the other, I find that most of those face washes dry my skin out.    That is why I always try to sample cleansers first before making a committed purchase.  Well, I didn't sample this cleanser at all before buying it (though offering a small sample size would be nice).  I'd developed naive confidence in the brand after reading their plethora of rave reviews and decided to bite the bullet to purchase one of their best selling products.  I also saw that Nic of OrgaNic Obsessions loved the the line which factored quite heavily in my decision to purchase.  I was left astounded and I've got so many reasons to tout this product as one of the best cleansers I've ever used.  

Collectively Curated: Honest Beauty Review Part 1: Everything Tinted Moisturizer Oil-free spf 20 in Creme, Luminizing Powder in Midnight Reflection, Eyeshadow Trio in Sable Brown

Excited is a major understatement for my feelings toward the launch of Honest Beauty by Jessica Alba.  Alba is a major woman crush of mine, but don't worry, I'll be documenting my unbiased opinions on the makeup products that I've ordered thus far.  Let me just say that, even with my woman crush aside, these products deliver on a level that I had never imagined with an easily accessible price point.  I love finely milled powders, I love comfortable tinted moisturizers with more coverage than just complexion evening properties, I love wearable neutral eyeshadows that stay put, and these three products have knocked it out of the park in all of these categories.  I'll be covering shade matching, performance, and pricing in this post so grab your cup of tea and let's talk(it's going to be a long one).

Tested: 100% Pure Herbal Detox Mask

I love a good detox especially because of all of the dirt and grime I'm exposed to when I am downtown.  I was keen to try the new masks released by 100 Percent Pure so I managed to find a store where I could sample both the detox and aqua masks.  As you can see, the detox mask was the clear winner for me and I've found that this has been one of my favorite detox masks to date!  It's effective, it smells great, and, let's be honest, it's absolute fun to walk around the house scaring others with your green faced self!  Read on to see why I reach for this mask as my go-to detox method!

Comparison: 100% Pure Fruit Pigmented Mascara (Black Tea) VS Maracuja Mascara (Black Tea)

The Lengthening mascara from 100% pure has always been my stand-out favorite ever since I started testing all natural mascaras.  It's no surprise, then, that I was over the moon when they announced their new Maracuja formulation to add to their mascara lineup.  I was able to snag this up during the 100% Pure Friends & Family and have been testing it against it's older sibling! Before we continue, I'll just say that I love both of the formulations but do have a personal preference.  Read on, wide-eyed viewer!

First Impressions: Pacifica Stunning Brows

Eyebrows have been a defining thing for me for these past few years.  My journey began when I first learned how to shape them to my desired shape and naturally continued to trial and error with several brow waxes, powders, and pencils.  I've settled on my preference for brow pencils, but something's always felt missing.  You see, I've always had longer eyebrows and(while I'm fine with that) they tend to stick out more than I'd like!  Enter Pacifica's new Stunning Brows to help with my unruly needs!  This is my first brow gloss and I'm just going to go ahead and say that I've been blown away! Details are below, and as per usual, discounts as well!

First Impressions: Pacifica Super Powder Supernatural Eyeshadow Trio (Stone, Cold, Fox) & Natural Eye Pencil (Fringe)

Recently, I've been on the lookout for a small compact eyeshadow duo or trio to carry on my travels.  The criteria was that it would be lightweight, easy to apply, and not too expensive.  I found those criteria to be met with the Pacifica Super Powder Supernatural Eyeshadow Trio.  This is a fairly new release from Pacifica and I purchased this in the shade Stone, Cold, Fox.  The shades looked promising from the image I had seen online and with one click I was on my way to testing out my first ever clean eyeshadow palette.  The excitement was real.  Along with that, I purchased my first ever natural eyeliner from Pacifica in Fringe with high hopes that it would be my answer to finding a great top AND bottom liner that would not smudge on me.  The results are below as well as a deal to save on your cosmetic purchases!

[CCC] Current Curated Collection: Highlight + Shade

Call me late, but I've only recently started figuring out how to highlight and shade my face.  This isn't to say that I'm particularly good at it, but I've found that highlighting really brings out the face in an emphasized 3-dimensional way and shading really helps to slim down the face(I don't quite use it for a defined contour).  I've collected my favorites in this field to do a comparison and review!  These are quality products that I really believe are a worthwhile investment and I'm also including tips on how to score these products at a lower price below!

Tested: Juice Beauty Blemish Clearing Powder

I've had a sudden increase in the number of "face friends" within the past two weeks that I can only logically attribute to a change in my diet(whether it be eating out more often or anther cause).  It seemed like perfect timing to bust out a review on this Juice Beauty Blemish Clearing Powder that I've had for a few months.  I originally bought this as a setting powder of sorts but have since reduced the use of this to just spot-treating on the areas with spots.  This powder is good enough for me to attempt to ration for its functionality, ease-of-use, and the great results it has given me.  This is a master-multi-tasker that has been saving my skin for the past two weeks.

Tested: Herbivore Botanicals Coco Body Polish

I just don't have the time to really indulge in a bath ritual these days.  My personal method to combat this is to use a body scrub about once or twice a week to really keep me from having those bath withdrawals.  This Coco Rose body polish is my first time testing out any product from the Herbivore Botanicals brand.  I fell in love immediately upon opening the package when I was greeted by a waft of coconut and rose notes.  The rest was history.  Let's just say that my initial impressions have set high expectations for the rest of the brand. 

Tested: Onomie Bright Concealing Elixir ( Trotula )

I've always struggled with the right sleep-wake balance throughout my life.  I'm attributing this to being in school for almost 3/4th of my life thus far and just not catching enough sleep.  The little present that this lifestyle has left me are the two prominent circles under my eyes that I have to face everyday as I apply my makeup.  I've been looking for another heavier coverage option for an under eye concealer since I had run out of my old under eye concealer.  I'm so glad that I discovered Onomie and am even more impressed that they were able to offer such an amazing deal to sample their products before buying($3 sample with the $3 going back to purchase of first item).  This is a company that really stands behind the effectiveness of their product and isn't afraid to back it up.  The entire ethos of the company is deep rooted in the successful merge of skincare and makeup through plant-based and lab-based technology to create safe products without compromising efficacy.   How curious is it that I am turning to a company that is so well-studied to help with the exact problem that I've encountered through so much studying? Read on for a detailed breakdown of my thoughts and raves!

Initial Impressions: 100% Pure Mattifying Primer w/ Vitamins &Antioxidants

I've been in an almost exclusive relationship with 100% Pure lately!  I'm attributing it to their recent friends & family sale(which I gladly participated in) and their heavy hitter releases.  Before I start, I really feel the need to post out that I've never been a primer kind of girl.  I tried Benefit's Porefessional years ago and have shuddered in fear of all primers ever since the great Breakout Wars of 2013.  I've related primers to a feeling of suffocation on the skin ever since that time.  I did, however, decide to take a chance and test out the new mattifying primer from 100% Pure ever since I read rave reviews on it from happy customers who posted their hauls on Instagram.  I'm truly, truly glad I did because it has upped my makeup game immensely especially in the heat of the summer.

Initial Impression: 100 Percent Pure Caffeine Mask

There are a few things I always look for in a mask such as ability to even the complexion, hydration level, and soothing properties.  I was immediately drawn to the Caffeine Mask that 100% Pure recently released due to its clean ingredients and claims that it would solve all of my masking needs!  The last straw that broke my will and instigated my purchase was the fact that this mask was a hydrogel mask unlike its fellow cloth-like brethren.  I cannot explain how much I've been wanting to try a hydrogel mask but I can now whole-heartedly say that I am definitely on the hydrogel bandwagon!  I've already ordered the 5-pack from the 100% Pure Friends and Family sale and I've decided to sing all of my praises below!