Brand Spotlight: Maison Jacynthe Makeup Review

Today we are getting back to basics with an old style of blog post that I haven't done in ages! If you're a new reader here, my brand spotlights consist of a little back story of the brand I'm trying, along with a make-up look using the various products the brand carries. 

Lucky me, I got the chance to review some new make-up goodies that have just released. Maison Jacynthe is a company based out of Quebec, Canada, that originates from the brand Les Soins de Jacynthe. The name of the company comes from the founder; Jacynthe Rene; a famous actress from Quebec, a writer of Jmagazine, and also a producer.

The brand itself focuses on providing cruelty free products, and being all natural.

I got the opportunity to choose three products, so I went with a blush, eyeshadow and lipstick.

Blush - 01 Romeo

I was a bit shocked to see how much darker this blush was in person. The colour payoff is absolutely amazing, and a little does go a long way. I thought the blush colour would be too dark for me, but with a light hand, it gives you a gorgeous, natural deep glow. Along with the great colour, the blush also has a very nice, natural scent to it. It's subtle and not at all overpowering.

Eyeshadow - 03 Italiano

The eyeshadow is super creamy and silky. It's easily blendable and easy to work with. A great all over the lid shade. 

Lipstick - 03 Garnet

The lipstick comes in a beautiful aluminum and wood casing, definitely showcasing the natural look. The shade I chose is a pretty strawberry pink with a frost finish. 

Here you can see the eyeshadow all over my lid, which I applied with my finger. The blush is the only thing on my cheek. 

Here is the overall look. Very simple and great for everyday.

You can check out the whole collection here.

Twitter | Youtube | Bloglovin These products were sent to me for reviewing purposes. All opinions are my own.

New H&M Beauty Department Haul + Swatches

I'm excited. Are you excited? Behold. H&M now has a BEAUTY DEPARTMENT! If you're from Toronto, H&M's new beauty department at the Toronto Eaton Centre has opened up on September 17th, and apparently, it is absolutely gorgeous! 

H&M will be offering 700 (wow) beauty products that include: make-up, haircare, body care, beauty tools, a premium line and a conscious line. They basically released anything related to beauty all at once! Amazing! 

I got the wonderful opportunity to receive and test out some of the make-up products in their new beauty department. Let me just say, everything looks quite chic and modern. Excuse the crappy background, I have been struggling with finding the perfect backdrop for my photos, and went with an off white scarf this time haha.

I find it amazing that they were able to launch so many products at the same time, so lets hope that the quality wasn't overlooked while they were working on all these new items. 

I think the packaging is very cute, chic and has a modern twist to it, which was what H&M was going for. They also plan to have seasonal and limited edition shade releases throughout the seasons, which is a nice edition to their regular line of products. I think one turn off that some people may have is the feel of the packaging. Yes, it looks very elegant and modern, but it feels a BIT cheap. I expected some weight to the products but the packaging is just very light plastic, and almost feels toy like. It's the inside that counts though, right? 

H&M Beauty True Matte Finishing Powder ($12.99)

H&M Beauty Pure Radiance Powder Blusher ($12.99)

H&M Beauty Cream Lip Colour ($12.99)

H&M Beauty Eye Colour Palette ($12.99)

H&M Beauty Nail Polish ($6.99)

The prices are very reasonable, and just about the same as drug store make-up. H&M has always offered low prices for clothing, and for their beauty department we definitely can expect the same. From what I've seen in the little magazine I also received, I don't believe anything is over $20 (don't quote me on that, I'll update this once I receive the correct info).

Stay tuned for the next few weeks for full reviews of each of the products I received. I also will be trying to go downtown next Thursday to snap a few pics of the new H&M Beauty Department in the Toronto Eaton Centre. Maybe I'll also pick up a few more products! I have my eyes on some brushes, maybe body lotions and matte lipsticks. 

Currently, I think the new Beauty Department has launched in the UK, and is only available in the Toronto Eaton Centre. I don't think it's anywhere else in Canada, yet!

(Updated: October 1, 2015):

As I said, here are some not so high quality photos of the H&M Beauty Department in the Toronto Eaton Centre. 

 As I hoped, the beauty department was absolutely stunning. The bright white fixtures and lights all around. Everything was absolutely perfect and still in place. Literally stocked to the brim with products.

Various eyeshadow single shades.

Finishing powders and blushes.

Skincare and body care.

Eye products.

Nail polishes galore.

The seasons picks.

Missing is the lipstick display and the foundation display.

Are you interested in trying any beauty products from H&M?

These products were sent to me for reviewing and testing purposes.

All opinions are my own.

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Brand Spotlight: Beauty Origin Lab

Now this is something a little different than you usually see on my blog. I haven't written a brand spotlight post in a year maybe? Crazy. Been so caught up with beauty reviews, I've been neglecting other aspects of my blog! 

If you're new here, welcome! A brand spotlight post is a blog post where I focus on one particular brand, go into a little detail about the products they have, and review a range of their products as well. It's a great way to learn a little more about beauty brands out there, and what they have to offer. 

Today, I will be introducing you to Beauty Origin Lab. I've personally never heard of the brand itself, until they contacted me about a week ago. They were kind enough to send me a few of their products to review, and I shall be sharing my thoughts with you as always.

Background:

Beauty Origin Lab is a skin care company located in Toronto, Ontario (hey girl, heyyy). They produce a nice sized range of skin care products such as: 

• natural lip balms
• french clay masks
• silky natural body butters
• gentle body and face exfoliants
• and purifying cleansers with shea butter.

All their products are 100% natural and made with organic ingredients. 

This is probably one of the first times I've used all natural or organic products, and I was pretty worried how my skin would react to it. I have pretty sensitive skin that easily breaks out if I put something on it doesn't like (yes, my skin has a mind of its own). I mentioned my skin concerns to them in an email, and they were kind enough to send me products that wouldn't irritate sensitive skin. How wonderful of them! 

Geranium Body Cleanser ($31)

Surprisingly enough, I really love the scent of this cleanser. I'm usually not a huge fan of floral scents, but this cleanser actually smells wonderful. The smell is rather strong as first, but once you use it in the shower, the smell isn't overbearing, and almost soothing. 

This body cleanser doesn't produce much foam, so I ditched the loofa with this product. It's definitely more watery than your usual body gel/liquid soap, almost similar in density as a cleansing milk. It leaves your skin feeling clean and silky smooth once you hop out of the shower. 

They also have a rosemary body cleanser, a lavender face cleanser, and a chamomile face cleanser.

Chamomile Floral Water ($20)

This was suppose to be the product I was most excited for when I received the email on what products I would receive. Unfortunately it wasn't a favourite of mine. To my knowledge now, I'm not the biggest fan of the chamomile scent, but that's the only thing I really disliked about it. I used this product at the end of the day after removing my make-up. You're suppose to keep it refrigerated since there are no preservatives in there. I guess it could be a little of an annoyance to have to go down to your kitchen every time you wanted to use this product, but at the same time, why wouldn't you want to spritz a nice cooling liquid on your face on a hot summers evening? Besides the smell, I enjoyed using this product.

Along with chamomile, they have witch hazel, rose water, and lavender water as well.

Strawberry Natural Lip Balm ($4.50)

This was probably my most favourite product I got. I absolutely adore this lip balm. Its SUPER moisturizing (a little on the greasy feeling/glossy look if you're not into that, but I don't mind), and it's my favourite to use before I go to bed. I wake up and my lips feel amazing!! It also comes in vanilla, blueberry, cherry, raspberry, and coffee.

Revitalizing Mask with French Yellow Clay ($27)

I was recommended to try out this clay mask because I have sensitive skin. It's their mildest clay mask in their line of masks, and works great with sensitive skin. It cleans, detoxifies, draws out impurities and helps with the circulation of blood in your face. It has a very strong herbal scent, which I don't mind because it reminds me of a clay mask my mom would try on me when I was a child, and she would occasionally do facials for me for fun. Smells like nostalgia. 

I applied it all over my face and waited for it to dry. I tried to apply a thin-ish layer, which kind of worked out, and as it dried, it felt like my face was tightening up with it. 

Gross look at my pores on my nose. This is a pic of it almost dried.

I imagine seeing my pores so easily means that it really drew out the impurities in my deep pores. It was fairly easy to remove than most other clay masks I've tried in the past (the formula felt a lot lighter so it came off way easier), and my face didn't feel dried out at all. I didn't even feel like I had to moisturize after! My face felt fresh, supple and super clean.

If you're interested in purchasing any Beauty Origin Lab products, you can purchase it online on their website at: www.beautyoriginlab.ca 

They are currently only shipping to addresses in Canada. 

These products were sent to me for reviewing and testing purposes only.

All opinions are my own.

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Brand Spotlight: Flower Beauty

Hello guys! Today I am featuring a new brand to my fellow Canadians; Flower Beauty. I'm sure many of you have already heard of it from other Youtubers, but it has finally arrived in Canada, and I'm excited!

The Brand:
Flower Beauty Makeup and Cosmetics was founded by Drew Barrymore, and their philosophy is to provide high end beauty products at a low end price. They do this by not advertising. Many beauty brands out there spend loads of money on advertising, meaning that their product prices rise to pay for those costs. Drew herself promotes the products and in return it allows the company to focus their time and efforts on formula and packaging. All their products are made in the USA and are not tested on animals. What I love about this brand is that they have already have a large collection of make-up and beauty products, from foundations, lipsticks, brushes, and even eyeshadow palettes! If you're interested in purchasing anything from the Flower Beauty line, and live in Canada, you can now purchase them at most Walmart locations and Walmart.ca! Let us dig in to the goodies I picked up!

My Flower Beauty Haul! 

Flower Baby Glow Blush/Bronzer Duo in "BD4 - Sunkissed and Single" ($9.98)

 Can I just say, that the packaging is absolutely adorable? I love rose gold and white together, so you bet I was sold on packaging. I am a blush and bronzer girl so I had to pick up this duo. Let me tell you, it doesn't disappoint. Its highly pigmented, and not too chalky. A little goes a long way with this product. I picked the darkest shade because I felt the bronzer wasn't as orange as the other shades, and the pink is very coral and bright. This is definitely a great summer duo. 

Up Close:

 It appears that the colours both have a wee bit of shimmer, but its barely noticeable when I apply it on my face.

Flower Beauty Sheer Up Lip Tint "Airy Orchid" ($7.98)

 I originally thought I was purchasing the Velvet Lip Chubbies and was very disappointed that this one was in the wrong place and I didn't read the packaging right! Luckily this lip tint is absolutely gorgeous and its not too sheer! The colour pay off is still good, it looks more like a lip gloss to me! Except for the fact it isn't sticky like a lip gloss. 

Flower Zoom-In Ultimate 3-in-1 Mascara in "Intense Black" ($7.98)

 Unfortunately for me, this mascara was a miss. As stated in the name, it's a 3 in one mascara. That's right, you can lengthen, curl, and volumize your lashes with this one mascara. How you say? Well, the brush can be changed into three different types of brushes! 

For example:

With a twist of the lid, you can change the shape of the mascara brush! As amazing as it sounds, the idea was great, but it was not greatly executed. Maybe it's just their formula, but the mascara doesn't have a wow factor for me. 

Flower Nail'd It Nail Lacquer in "Berry Begonia" ($4.98)

 I'm a fan of berry colours and I am a fan of dark nail polish. I have yet to try this product, but for 5 bucks, you can't go wrong! The packaging reminds me of ELF nail polishes, and those ones work pretty well. 

Flower Lighten Up Brightening Concealer in "Beige" ($7.98)

 I wanted to love this concealer, but I don't. It's not THAT bad, it just doesn't work well, for me at least. It does do a great job brightening and highlighting parts of my face (cheeks, under eyes, eyebrow bone), but I wanted the concealer to cover my imperfections and huge pimples!! This concealer just didn't cover my pimples well at all. It came off way too easily even though I applied on layer after layer. It works great for highlighting, but not as a concealer. 

Flower On Your Mark Liquid Eyeliner in "Black" ($6.98)

 It might have been just the first time I swatched it but this eyeliner wasn't very black at all! It was kind of transparent, which was disappointing. Unfortunately I don't know where I misplaced the eyeliner and it sucks, I just bought it too! I think I used it once on Black Friday, but otherwise I don't remember where it is now and now I'm moved into a new house, so it could be anywhere. Well, from what I know from the two times I got to try it, it's not very black, and I loveeeeeee my eyeliners. Not for me!

Swatches low light:

Under brighter lights:

Overall, I feel that the products in the Flower Beauty line are pretty hit or miss. There was a product I really loved (the blush/bronzer duo) and some that were just disappointing (concealer,eyeliner). There are still so many other products I need to try before I can fully give my opinion on the brand, but for now, I feel like I love the message Drew Barrymore is giving, and I absolutely love the packaging and product line the brand carries. 

What are your thoughts on the Flower Beauty brand? 

Do you have any favourite products from the line? Let me know!

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