First Impression - L'Oreal Go 360 Clean Facial Cleanser

Lately I have been itching to try an electronic facial cleanser like the Clarisonic or the new Olay Fresh Effects one. I mentioned this to my mother, hinting towards a possible birthday present in a few months (more for the Clarisonic which is a bit pricey) and she picked me up the L'Oreal Go 360 Clean Facial Cleanser to try first. For under $10, I figured it's worth a shot, even though I will likely still purchase the electronic Olay version in the near future (which retails for about $20 and is still a great alternative to the expensive Clarisonic). 

She purchased the Anti-Breakout formula, which is one of 4 and comes in the orange bottle. She's also been using it herself for about 2 weeks and said she noticed a lot of tiny blemishes and redness come to the surface of her skin at first, and now it is clearing up more overall - good signs! 

I used the cleanser yesterday and today, morning and night, and so far am liking how it works. It has a slightly cooling or tingly feeling when applying, which is not too strong but just enough to let you know it is cleansing your skin, which I like. There isn't much of a smell to the gel, and it comes out clear in color. The scrublet itself is alright - the bumps are small on most of it with a larger section at one end - personally, I can't feel much of a difference when using the different areas. It has a nice exfoliating feeling that isn't too extreme and I can definitely see it taking off all of my makeup. 

To use it, I run the scrublet under water, splash my face with water, add a small drop of cleanser, and work into my face in circular motions. It lathers quite well and doesn't take much to do the entire face. The scrublet is relatively easy to hold, but I found I do prefer to use it over the sink as when I tried it in the shower I found it a little harder to hold on to - which is one reason I think I would prefer the Olay or Clarisonic with a longer handle. 

After trying this formula for a few weeks I'll see how I feel about it - so far so good, but I may also try to use my regular Aveeno face wash with this scrublet and see if I notice a major difference from using my hands to lather in the shower and exfoliating afterwards. 

So far I haven't noticed a huge difference in my skin other than a few tiny bumps along the sides of my nose - which could be what Mom also experienced with bringing blemishes to the surface and ridding of the oils and dirt, or could be a regular breakout. I will update in a week or two and let you know how I'm liking the effects then :) For now, I think this is definitely a good low budget alternative if you are looking for a face regimen that includes a step up from wipes or cleansing with your hands. 

Makeup Monday - Forgotten Favorites

Remember a few weeks back when I shared my tips on how to spring clean your makeup collection? (Check it out here!) I mentioned to stay tuned for more... and here it is! Makeup Monday today is a challenge to you - to use those items that got pushed to the back and forgotten. 

Spring is the perfect time to pull out some of your more adventurous and bold makeup items, so don't be scared of that purple shadow you bought and never wore, or the blue liner you thought you could pull off and actually ended up looking a little too 80's ... they can be salvaged! Or maybe its as simple as using up that blush you loved last summer and totally forgot about. 

Here's a few "spring brights" makeup tutorials to get you started, from my newly discovered YouTube favourite, Shaaanxo. Aside from the amazing accent, she posts the most content out of everyone I follow and her daily looks are absolutely gorgeous and on spot every time! See a beautiful girly pink and purple look here and a standout eyeliner in yellow here to get a little inspiration for how to work the more hard to use products into your routine :) 

If you pull out any of your unused items to create a look - tweet me a picture! @_bluegardens, and follow me or strike up a convo while you're there :) 

Health Kick - Fast Fitness

I don't know if I'm just more aware of it happening or if there really has been a surge in healthy living lately, but everyone I know seems to be jumping on the exercise and healthy eating bandwagon and I gotta say, I love it! 

Today I want to share a few of my "Fast Fitness" tips - how I manage to fit in a workout on days I have little time, can't make it to the gym for one reason or another, or am just plain unmotivated. 

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If you just can't make it to the gym (or are pinching pennies by working out at home) it's still possible to fit in a full workout. My favourite things to do are to search YouTube or Tumblr for a new circuit to follow. Check out here, here and here on YouTube for some great videos to follow, and here and here on Tumblr for some of my favourite "fitblrs". There's also a ton of free apps you can download with video/picture info on loads of workouts! I like to save links or pictures to a folder on my phone so that I have quick access to tons of different workouts and can never use "I don't know what to do!" as an excuse.

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On kind of the same note - have an arsenal of moves you're comfortable with and can do easily with little or no equipment. I have a yoga mat, 2 sets of dumbbells and a medicine ball at home, but you really don't need anything at all! Think basic moves like squats, crunches, planks, wall sits, jumping jacks, lunges, pushups, dips - anything that uses your body weight for resistance and can also be more challenging by adding some dumbbells or a ball if you have them.

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When you don't have time to even fit in a half hour at home, do what you can, when you can! If you're doing homework give yourself breaks every now and then and do 10 or 15 squats or crunches to clear your head. Before you go to bed do squats while you brush your teeth, and hold a plank as long as you can before crawling under the covers. Do walking lunges around the kitchen while cooking, etc etc etc ... possibilities are endless! Just fit in whatever you can think of, any movement is good! 

What do you think, do-able quick fit tips? If you have any of your own to add leave a comment below! 

Makeup Monday - Spring Cleaning

Happy Monday! This week I thought I'd share some tips on how to clean up your makeup collection to make the transition to a new season. If you're anything like me, you have enough products to warrant dedicating a full set of items to each season... So let me share how I organize them and make sure to get the most out of everything you own!

Step 1 - Clean Up!

 - Remove empties -

This may seem like a no brainer, but it's easy to throw things back into a drawer/bag/shelf instead of the garbage if there's just that tiiiiiny bit left or if you want to remind yourself to buy a new one. Go through and remove all those well-loved products or anything that is broken beyond being able to use. I like to make a note on my phone or a post-it of products I want to repurchase so that I don't forget something that I really liked.

 - Remove the failures - 

You know what I mean - some products just plain don't work the way you want them to. Anything you know you absolutely won't use again goes in the trash too, there's no sense keeping the clutter. (Alternatively, places like Sephora are great for returns even if the product is open, or if it just didn't work for your skin tone or needs but is still a useable product pass it on to a friend!)

- Remove the past-due products - 

A lot of people don't know that most makeup has a "best by" date, and it's really important to take note of it! Check on the back of packaging for a small pot with a timeline inside, like 6M (months) (see below). Things like mascara are especially important to replace within this date as they are breeding grounds for nasty bacteria and can result in eye infections. Go through and throw out anything that's past it's prime! If you can't remember when you bought it, err on the side of safety - when in doubt, throw it out!

- Clean! - 

Now that you're down to a useable collection, take a little time to actually clean it up! Use a brush cleaner or baby shampoo to clean all of your brushes and lay them out to dry, wipe down any loose product, fingerprints or spills on palettes and products. Go through and wipe down your storage area or makeup bag as well - lots of dust and dirt builds up in the bottom, as well as loose bobby pins and who knows what else.

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Step 2 - Sort! 

You should be left with a clean, useable set of products! Now its time to organize to optimize use for a new season. I'll be talking about the winter-to-spring transition, but this applies to anything. Depending on how big your collection is you may want to sort by type or just go through everything at once.

I like to take everything out in sections because that's also how I have it organized in my drawers. Lay out all your products and evaluate what you have, and what you are going to use.

- Example - face products -

I tend to only use liquid foundation in the winter when I need more coverage to combat the redness and acne I get on dry weather. In the spring I lean towards powders and the summer just a tinted moisturizer and some concealer. When I replace my items back in the drawer, that means I put the liquid foundation towards the back, and move my spring foundation routine items up to the front. (This could be as simple as bringing out your "summer color" in foundation.) I also swap around some colors - move my brighter blushes to the front and bring out my darker shades of bronzer. Basically the idea is to make the relevant products the ones at the top/front of your collection so you can easily see and use them. Apply the same principle to eye and lip products - bring out colors you tend to wear more in the spring and move the winter shades a little further back.

That's it! The organizing part is pretty obvious but it does make a difference to consciously organize your collection to highlight products you use more often so that you aren't always digging around when you're trying to get ready in the morning. It's also a good way to remind yourself of products that may have gotten lost in the pile! (Stay tuned for more oh that next week...) Most importantly you now have a clean, up to date collection with no products that are past their best-before date, and can use everything safely and happily! And of course this makes a little room for new items as spring collections come out ... So go treat yourself to a new shade of lipstick or some bold eyeshadows, you deserve it!

Health Kick - Smoothie Sunday

Hey there! Today I want to share a few of my favourite not-so-secret-secrets for some delicious smoothie recipes. I drink smoothies at least once, sometimes up to three times a day, so I like to have lots of easy, quick and yummy ingredients on hand to blend up quickly on the go :) (And I mean quickly - my magic bullet was the best purchase I ever made! I love being able to just throw all my ingredients into the cup, blend it and go - without ever making too much or too little because the blender is your cup. Hello genius.) 

First off - fresh fruit. Obviously. I always try to have things like avocado, banana, kiwi, apples, oranges, clementines, etc in my fridge that can be quickly sliced up and thrown in the blender. (I usually put in up to half of an apple or orange and then slice the rest to eat while I'm blending the smoothie and prepping other ingredients.) Also grapes are great for adding flavour and don't need to be sliced!

Frozen fruit - even better in terms of simplicity. And for people anyone who tries to tell you that frozen fruit or veggies are bad for you - they are actually most times better because they are frozen right after the item is picked or harvested when it is at its peak nutritional value, and doesn't lose its nutrients with age like fresh fruit as it travels from your grocer to your fridge. I like to get the big mixed bags for variety - generally one of berries (blueberries, raspberries, strawberries) and one of the .. other items (strawberries, peaches, mangos, melons) - that way I can dump a handful in or pick through for specific flavours if I want. 

Canned/jar fruit - this can get tricky depending on what you're buying so just watch that it isn't something that is kept in a high sugar liquid base. I like to get things like grapefruit pre-cut in cans or jars because I'm kind of lazy and don't like cutting them up, and they last a lot longer than fresh ones. Plus throwing in a few slices from the jar along with a few scoops of the liquid adds even more flavour! Also good for peaches, mandarins, etc.

As a base I usually add both yogurt and either milk or juice, depending on what flavour I want and how thick I want my smoothie to be. I buy both the larger tubs of yogurt and the individual servings and either add a few spoonfuls or an entire individual cup. I usually stick to vanilla, strawberry or peach Greek yogurt. For juice I like to get pomegranate juice, V-8 fruit fusions, or any natural type of fruit juices - pretty much just grab whatevers on sale!

Extras ! To pump up the nutritional value I love to add spinach - either fresh, or pre-frozen. Just add a ton of spinach with some water to your blender and then freeze into an ice cube tray. I love using these spinach cubes not only in smoothies, but add them to stir fries, pasta sauce and much more - it packs a ton of spinach into just about anything! I do the same thing with avocados when I can buy them on sale or in bulk - add a bit of water and some lemon juice to prevent browning, blend,  and freeze it into tupperware containers - just take them out one at a time to keep in the fridge and add a few scoops to smoothies (and stir fries, and pasta sauce... etc etc! Also great to mix in with salad dressing to put on salads or wraps - it still feels like you're adding lots of dressing and getting all of the flavour, but with less calories and sodium intake!) Also for extra flavour experiment with peanut or almond butter, honey, agave syrup, cinnamon, or anything else you can think of!

Then all you have to do is grab a handful of these ingredients and go! Experiment with different combos to come up with yummy and nutritional smoothies for any time of day. Also, check out this site for some great info on when it is best to eat what ingredients to pack maximum results!

That's pretty much it! Just a little prep time with a few ingredients when you buy your groceries makes a huge difference throughout the week - separating, cutting, freezing things for single use later makes it so easy to get the most of your food. For example, right now I'm sipping on a smoothie made up of vanilla greek yogurt, peach/mango V-8 juice, frozen peaches and mangos, fresh strawberries and grapes, pre-mixed avocado and spinach - and it took me about 3 minutes to grab all the ingredients and blend!

Hope these tips helped you out - leave a comment below if you have more or tell me what your favourite combo is :)

The End is Near...

Spring Fever 

...Of winter, that is! Here's a sneak peek into what I'll be sporting over the next few weeks as the snow melts and the sun starts to shine (I hope!) 

Style a chic pair of rubber boots with a simple outfit that balances comfort and style to keep from looking like a kid playing in puddles (however I totally suggest jumping in a few here and there, it's just as fun as you remember). Stripes and a few leather accents kick up the heat while staying practical for school or running errands, and the leather jacket is a perfect weight for the rising temperature and looks good zipped up against the wind or open for a more casual look. The earmuffs are an extra I like to keep in my car for those chilly mornings on the way to class before the sun warms up, and the moisturizer and lip chap are musts to ward off the last of that dry winter skin. Top it off with a bright lipstick and a pair of sunnies and you're good to go!

Nightstand Confessions

Take a mini dive into my room with my latest bedside favourites!

First of all, no night table is complete without a good book. Lately I've been reading "The Paris Wife" by Paula McLain,  which is about Ernest Hemingway and his wife Hadley. I'm only about halfway through but I love it! 

My favourite little mementos on my night stand are these Tiny Books from Prinstagram that I am beyond in love with. This is an amazing way to have a tangible version of your Instagram feed.

Look how cute and tiny they are! 

I've been leaving my "daytime" jewelry by my bed because its close to the door so I remember to put it on in the morning. This dainty little American Eagle necklace has been my go-to lately, it's a nice change from the super statement jewelry that's been so popular.

Of course I have to have some lip balm handy - these adorable Eos balls are tasty and smell amazing and are just too cute to say no to. (I have 4, oops!) 

A little handful of electronics live in the drawer - my Kobo reader, my external hard drive, my digital camera, and an extra phone cord - at arms reach while I'm on my computer in bed.

And for the ultimate relaxation when I go to sleep - I keep a few Bath and Body Works candles handy so I don't have to get up to blow them out :) 

5-Minute Makeup

Today I thought I'd do a quick makeup "tutorial" on my everyday look/"5 Minute" makeup routine. This is what I generally wear on a daily basis to school and work - I swap out the products for whatever I'm loving at the moment but these are my go-to items. If you've been keeping up with my "Must Have" posts all of these items should look very familiar - they're all tried and tested, true favourites. This is a great "no-makeup makeup" look for when you just need to look awake and a little put together without looking like you put in too much effort.

1.
Start off with a light foundation - Garnier's BB Cream is great for just evening out the skin tone and a tiny bit of coverage with a nice dewy, but not too oily finish. Apply a small amount with your fingers and blend out from the centre of the face. If I need some problem spots covered I'll swipe on the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind concealer, especially for under-eye circles, and if I know it's going to be a long day I'll set with a powder like Rimmel Stay Matte.

2.
Optional step but one I highly recommend for major impact - defining the brows. This step is what really brings together a makeup look and makes you look polished and put together - no one will ever guess you only spent 5 minutes getting ready. This e.l.f. duo is perfect for quick and easy application and the cream and powder combination lasts all day and holds your brows in place.

3.
Save time on the eyes by using a cream shadow in a universal shade like the Maybelline Color Tattoo pots in Tough as Taupe. Use your finger to blend the color mostly into the crease and bring it down with a light sweep over the lid - don't worry about it being perfect, a smudged messy look is good - the goal is to add just a bit of definition and depth to the eyes without looking like you spent forever on your eyeshadow. Just blend the color until you're happy and then move on to the next step!

4.
Some people may be shocked I included a gel-liner in my 5-minute favourites... but trust me! Use a pencil or liquid liner instead if you're more comfortable applying them, but once you're used to using gel it is the easiest thing in the world to do. I love it for a understated look because it is so easy to use a small angle brush to just smudge the liner into the upper and lower lash lines - adding volume to your lashes without even looking like you applied liner.  The same look can be achieved with a pencil but I find a brush so much easier to work with. Just press the brush as close to your lash line as possible and smudge it a tiny bit to darken the base of the lashes - again, messy and imperfect is fine, don't aim for a perfect line! Try it out, you'll thank me.

5.
Mascara, mascara, mascara. I tend to use Falsies on the top and Great Lash on the bottom just because of the size of the brushes - grab your favourite and apply 2-3 coats.

6.
Finally, don't forget blush! Again, a cream product saves time - just swipe on the apples of your cheeks toward your temples with your fingers and blend well for a natural, dewy flush.

When you're done just apply your favourite lip product and you're out the door!

Let me know in the comments what your staples are for a quick everyday look! xo

Beauty Bests - Eyes

Part 3 in my Beauty Bests series - my favourite, eyes! 

I think it's safe to say the eyes section of my makeup collection is the most extensive part, and these are the cream of the crop. This covers everyday looks as well as nighttime shades and is generally the basics I choose to travel with or reach for on a daily basis.

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First off - eyeshadow! 

My latest favourites were actually kind of surprising to me, as I have never been a huge fan of cream eyeshadows. Maybellines Color Tattoo formula totally blew me away and my collection is slowly growing to include as many shades as I can get my hands on. 

These three are my top picks for a range of wearable day or night looks. 

Tough as Taupe is an easy everyday color I usually blend into my crease or swipe on by itself. It can go on fairly dark but blends easily to make it easy to wear alone or use as a base for powder shadows. The best thing about these is that live up to their long wear promises and don't crease or fade at all. Tough as Taupe is also a pretty good dupe for "Tease" from Naked2.

Pomegranate Punk is a newer purchase for me but quickly became a favourite - its the perfect shade for the plum trends that have been everywhere this winter and it makes a gorgeous base for a variation on a smokey eye if you're looking for something a little different than the regular browns and blacks. 

Finally the new Metallic line in Barely Branded - I have been waiting for these shades to arrive in Canada and I was not disappointed. This is a beautiful shimmery color that is gorgeous alone or as a highlight and is so versatile.

My daily go-to when I don't have a lot of time or when I want a foolproof school look is the Too Faced Naked Eye palette. This is perfect for creating "no makeup" looks with all the natural shades, and contains some beautiful darker shades as well. Satin Sheets, the baby pink, is my absolute favourite color to highlight the inner corner of the eye - it has a hint of golden shimmer that is so pretty as a highlight.

 

Of course, any eye post would be incomplete without the holy grail Urban Decay Naked palettes. I have Naked 2 and my roommate has Naked 1 so we swap back and forth, but I have to say if forced to choose - I'd go with 2. Bootycall is my favourite eyeshadow ever, and this entire palette is just so versatile, is great quality, perfect formula and color payoff and really just anything you could ask for. Plus, the brush that it comes with is great, making this the perfect traveling companion to cut down on products.

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On to brows! These are really the only brow products I use aside from a setting gel (lately I've been using Anastasia Brow Gel) and they've done me well. Most days I use a pencil but I also reach for the powder/cream duo pretty regularly. 

For the price, you can't beat e.l.f's Eyebrow Kit (shown in Ash). As you can tell by how messy and worn this is, this is a well loved product :) 

 

For a little more defined look I go with this Femme Couture pencil in the lightest blonde colour. 

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Now for my favourite product - eyeliner! For liquid liners I prefer a pen-style applicator like the Joe Fresh fine tip below, which makes a winged look super easy. My everyday liner is the Maybelline Unstoppable pencil - super easy to use, twist up so no sharpening necessary, and great for tight lining as well as fairly blendable for a smudged look. For gel liner the holy grail is definitely the Maybelline Eye Studio pots - last all day, easy to apply, and creamy jet black finish. 

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Last but not least - mascaras. I tend to layer mascaras so these 4 get used in any and all combinations, but they're all formulas I've repurchased multiple times and can't live without. In order as shown below:

 - Benefit "They're Real" - does it all. Really worth the price.

-Maybelline "Great Lash - Lots of Lashes" - tiny brush, great for separation and lower lashes.

-Maybelline "Falsies Flared" - volume volume volume.

-Maybelline "Lash Stiletto Voluptuous" - Length and definition.

(Obviously Maybelline is at the top of my charts for mascara! They just have unbeatable products especially for drugstore prices)

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Anything I missed? What must-have eye products do you swear by? Leave a comment below! 

Beauty Bests - Face

Continuing in my favourites series - face! I will admit I don't have or use a ton of face products, for a few reasons. A - I never really like the way full coverage foundations look on me because I have freckles and don't like to cover them. B - I have really dry skin year round so tinted moisturizers or just a touch of concealer don't stick to that as much and C - I don't have a lot of problem areas so concealers generally do the trick for me anyway.

When I do want a full coverage look, I use Maybelline FIT Me liquid foundation in a mix of shades 110 and 115.

I also have a few BB creams I use on a semi-regular basis but I haven't found one I truly love yet. I have 3 drugstore versions but I think the next purchase I make will be the Smashbox one - or is there a better one I should try? Leave a comment below!

For now - here's what I use daily for a light coverage routine plus a few of my top blush options.

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As I said, I generally stick to just concealer. I've tried a ton and since my skin is so fair I have a harder time than I'd think finding a shade to compliment me... This is the best I've found, hands down. I've gone through about 5 tubes of this Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Undereye Concealer. This is the "Brightener" shade and I use it both for my under eye area and to conceal any spots or redness (generally just my chin and around my nose). The formulas great and it stays on forever, I have no complaints about this one. 

Most days that's all I use, but if I'm going to be out for a long time and a little extra coverage and staying power, I top it off with Rimmel's Stay Matte pressed powder. 

If I have a little extra time or am going out I add a bit of bronzer - for $1 these E.L.F. bronzers are well worth the money. I have the shades "Luminance" and "Sun Kissed" and alternate between then (Luminance is more of a highlighter but works in the winter pretty well on my pale skin. They're not muddy and give just the right hint of warmth.

E.L.F. bronzer in Sun Kissed

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Onto blush! I pretty much rotate through these three equally, you can't go wrong with any of them.

Maybelline's Dream Bouncy Blushes got pretty mixed reviews when they came out - cool formula! Great idea! Not so great in practice! 

However - I really love them, you just have to go light with the brush and blend, blend, blend. I use a mini kabuki brush with this, pick up just a tiny bit of product, and just buff it into my cheeks to build up the color - the pigmentation is great and and long as you blend it out well it looks gorgeous.

Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blush in Peach Satin

Before Dream Bouncy there was Dream Mousse - I absolutely loved these and have been coveting this shade since they discontinued them. Oddly enough its Peach Satin, the same shade as the Bouncy formula above, but I find this one to be a much lighter peach shade compared to a bit darker pink in the Bouncy packaging. The Mousse formula is also lot easier to blend out and doesn't take the time or concentration of the Bouncy blushes. 

Maybelline Dream Mousse Blush in Peach Satin

Best for last - the holy grail of blushes, NARS Orgasm. No introduction necessary, this is hands down the most flattering and universal shade I have ever used. It goes with literally any eye and lip combo I ever wear, is the most gorgeous flushed/sunkissed/shimmery combo.. I could rave forever. It's just honestly 100% worth the money. 

 

NARS blush in Orgasm 

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And one last step - for final touches if I'm going out or have a long day, I set my makeup with the Urban Decay All Nighter spray. Hairspray for your face! Amazing. 

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It's not much but that's my face routine! Keep an eye out for eyes next week and leave a comment below with your favourite face products!