A few weeks ago, Influenster sent me some free swag.
That’s right, they sent me a bag of chips to try.
Lays Poppables.
I would love to say that I tried them and loved them, but for real, my kids took the whole bag and ate them ALL before I had a moment to try them.
I guess that means they were good.
Here are their reviews.
A few years ago, a friend of mine tried selling me on using essential oils. I wanted nothing to do with it because I figured it was just another money-making gimmick that would be a waste of money (and we know how much I hate wasting money).
Needless to say, I moved on and forgot all about it.
Until one day when we were visiting family out-of-town. We were supposed to go to a theme park when Violet started crying, doubled over in pain in her gut. She ran to the bathroom and….I don’t need to tell you the rest. Except that she was in horrible pain and I didn’t know what to do. Every few minutes she was running back to the bathroom in tears. I didn’t even know if there was such a thing as Immodium or Pepto for kids, but I told Brian just to go find me something at the drugstore. My sister-in-law asked if she could first try something she had in her cupboard.
ZenGest.
Willing to try anything to help Violet, I agreed. She put one drop on her belly and literally within minutes, Violet was back to laughing, playing and ready to go. I was skeptical, though. She told me to put it on her belly every 2 hours for the rest of the day. When we returned, I figured the episode that morning was probably just a fluke and stopped putting the drops on her belly.
Sure enough, after 3 hours, she was back in the bathroom starting the whole thing all over again. I tried the drops and within minutes, she was fine again.
That was when I realized that there may be more to this whole essential oils thing.
I started buying everything I could, but quickly realized that I was spending money on oils that sounded good, but I just didn’t use. So, I evaluated what oils I loved and used constantly and now I just buy those.
Here are my favourite and most used oils/blends.
Easy Air
Respiratory Blend
I use this when we have stuffy noses. I put this in the diffuser at night and also a drop or 2 on the chest. I also use this when I travel. When the air in the plane feels stagnant and stuffy, I usually open the bottle and take a few whiffs (or if it’s really gross air, sometimes I put a tiny drop under my nose).
Citrus oils
I just put citrus because there’s something about diffusing citrus oils that invigorate your senses and wake up tired minds. My favourite citrus oils are grapefruit, orange, lime and lemon.
Deep Blue
This is a gym favourite! When you’ve worked out and your muscles are recovering, Deep Blue cools and relaxes them better than icy hot or anything like that. I keep a bottle of the rub in my gym bag. This is also great for those times when Aunt Flow comes to visit. A little soupy mix of FCO, geranium, peppermint and clary sage topped with Deep Blue and I quickly forget that there’s an angry contract negotiation business meeting happening inside my abdomen.
Peace
Have you ever just asked for peace and quiet before?
Yes.
All. The. Time.
I am generally a great sleeper. By that, I mean that I can hit my pillow and be deep in solemn slumber within seconds of closing my eyes. However, when I can’t, sleep eludes me like a missing puzzle piece.
It’s gone.
I used to mix Juniper Berry (very easily my favourite oil), Lavender, Grapefruit, Ylang Ylang and Vetiver when that would happen, but then doTERRA came out with an oil blend called Peace. I’m certain it’s the exact combo that I would mix because it smells exactly the same as my concoction. Anyway, this stuff is the bomb! (does that mean I’m old when I say things like that?) I would use this over a sleep aid any day!
ZenGest
If you read my story at the beginning of this post, you know exactly why I keep this around. This is also an oil I love to travel with because you never know when your gut is going to turn on you in a foreign country.
I do use other oils and blends, but these are my most used oils. There is one other blend that I put together, but it is a top-secret bedroom type oil (and one I wouldn’t want to go without)…send me a message if you want the low down on that oil.
I used to apply my foundation with my fingers. (That’s a no-no, right?)
Then I began using those triangle wedges, which I thought were the bomb!
One day, I overheard my sisters talking about how the new thing was to apply foundation with a brush.
I went out and bought one.
I only used it once because it didn’t blend anything and left my face looking like a construction site with tire grooves left in the mud.
Not cool.
I went back to using those trusted triangle wedges, thinking that would be the only thing I ever used from that point forward.
When I began watching makeup tutorials on YouTube, I learned that there was a better brush to apply your foundation. I tried it and loved it. My only problem was that sometimes my face looked like I used debris for foundation, especially in the winter months. It wasn’t until I realized that it was exfoliating my skin that I decided to look into other options.
This is where the term damp beauty sponge came trotting along into my life. I bought a beauty sponge and tried it out – running it under warm water until it had soaked up enough H2O to hydrate an elephant. That might be an exaggeration, but for real, I had no idea what I was doing the first time I used this technique.
So, should we apply our foundation with a brush – or a damp beauty sponge?
Brush
Pros – faster application, blends nicely, works well with fast-setting foundations
Cons – exfoliates during application, not the best for dry or sensitive skin
Damp Beauty Sponge
Pros – melds product into skin, leaves a flawless finish, great for sensitive skin
Cons – can breed bacteria if not cleansed/dried properly, slow application, doesn’t work the best with fast-setting foundations
We’ll go back to my question – brush or damp beauty sponge?
I say, ultimately it depends on factors such as skin type, foundation type, personal preference and the amount of time you have. As a matter of fact, I prefer the sponge, but the Becca foundation sets extremely fast, so unless I’m Speedy Gonzalez, it doesn’t blend well with the sponge – so I use a brush to erase any harsh lines I get.
What application method do you prefer? Let me know in the comments below.
**Please consult a physician/professional before starting a fitness routine. While this may work for me, it may not work for you.**
Did you know that you use your shoulder muscles to take off your shirt?
Also, you have muscles in your tush that are required to sit on the porcelain throne?
I’m sure I knew this, but it’s also possible that I’ve blocked out that first leg of my fitness journey when I started in 2016. Now I really know this.
This week marked my first full week back to the gym since my hiatus over the last 6 months.
I think it’s safe to say that I’m an all or nothing kind of a person. Which, usually means I go overboard with my workouts and expect immediate results. I don’t really recommend starting this way, but for me, if I start slow, I can’t gain enough momentum to keep me going. One thing I have changed this time around is that I’m only going to the gym 4 times a week. I have also exchanged my typical 2-hour session into a 1-hour one (sadly, this is probably because I don’t have my sisters to talk to).
Here are my basic starting stats:
Height: 5’7″
Weight: 130 lbs
Waist: 27″
My starting goals:
Schedule I followed this week:
Monday – Chest & Triceps
Tuesday – Back & Biceps
Wednesday – Legs
Thursday – Rest (mostly because I work 12 hours)
Friday – Shoulders
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – Rest
My final thoughts this week? I’m trying to figure out what weights I should use. I didn’t want to overdo it by lifting the same weights I did 6 months ago, but I also didn’t want to shortchange my progress by lifting too light. With that being said, by the end of the week, I realized that I still had a lot of muscle memory and could lift close to the weight I left off at.
I also didn’t do any ab workouts this week because I was trying to get back into the swing of things first. Working my abs takes extreme concentration because I don’t have much feeling in that area and that makes controlling those muscles difficult for me.
The other thing that I stand by is that the right supplements can really make a difference. BCAAs will help with endurance and pain by breaking up the lactic acid that builds up in your muscles following a workout. When I drink water during a workout, it takes about 5x the water for me to be able to handle the same workout I can do with BCAAs (this is my favourite). The other sups I take are fish oil (I call them my happy pills because they help with my mood) and sublingual B12 pills (I have a B12 deficiency, so these help with energy).
All in all, it was a great week and it felt so amazing to get back into a workout routine. I’m always adding to my list of motivational phrases to keep me pumped, so if you have any that work for you, leave me a comment and let me know.
If you read my July Empties post, you already know that I ran out of my beloved Too Faced foundation. I still haven’t had the time or extra pocket change to restock my favourite, so I’ve had to make do with other samples I had lying around from last year.
Ok, there’s a chance I’m procrastinating on buying a full-size foundation because my skin tone has been going through some interesting changes lately and my normal shade is starting to look orange on my skin…so I’m really hoping I can make these samples last until my skin tone levels out.
Enter Becca Ultimate Coverage 24-Hour Foundation.
If my memory serves me correctly, last November I got a sample in the shade Buff (light/medium beige with neutral/yellow/golden undertones). I remember trying it once and my foundation turned out pretty cakey. I didn’t try to figure out why it looked like that; I just set it aside and moved on to the next sample I got.
So, fast forward to this past month. I wanted to film a video and needed to quickly do my makeup. For some reason, I grabbed the Becca sample and threw my face together. It turned out beautiful. It wasn’t cakey. It wasn’t too thick. It just looked flawless – on camera and in real life.
I decided to look into why I had very different results both times. Here are the results of my findings.
First things first.
Lighting.
You’re all going to judge me for this, but I’m cool with that. I didn’t have any other options. Here goes. I have always put on my makeup in my bedroom with the light off or in the car while Brian is driving.
Until. That is, until I started filming for YouTube. Then I started doing my makeup with all my filming lights on. What a world of difference light makes. That’s a whole other post all on its own. It was so much easier to apply an even layer and blend out my foundation when I could actually see where the product was going. Game changer.
Next, with this foundation, you literally need the tiniest amount ever. It is full coverage and a little goes a long way. The little Sephora sample I received will probably last me until school starts up again. When I tried it back in November, I used the same amount of product I use with other foundations. That’s a mistake. Remember, with this one, a little goes a long way.
So, those are my tips for making this foundation rock your look. Now let’s address the whole 24-hour thing.
Can I just ask, who in the world is staying up for 24 hours needing their makeup to be flawless that entire time? 24-hour foundation just doesn’t make sense to me.
However, I wore it for 19 hours on Thursday and the results were pretty great. Throughout the day and into the evening, I had people comment to me on it. Then, when I went to wash my makeup off (at 2am, after wearing it for 19 hours), it looked almost exactly how it looked when I first applied it.
So, although it wasn’t quite 24 hours and I probably won’t ever wear makeup that long, it stood up to the hot weather, wind in my face in my Jeep on the highway and every time I touched my face throughout the day/night.
Down to the real question. Will this replace my favourite foundation? No. Will this be added to my makeup collection as my other favourite? Yes. It’s ok to have more than one favourite, right?
Have you tried Becca Ultimate Coverage 24-Hour Foundation? Leave me a comment telling me your thoughts.
If there’s one thing that gets under my skin, it’s a bad face cream.
No? Ok, I’ll start that over.
There’s nothing worse than needing a drink of water on a hot day and just not being able to get to one. It leaves you parched, dry and feeling a bit like the Sahara.
On the flip side, a nice cold glass of ice water on a hot day refreshes every part of you like nothing else.
Lately my skin has been crying out for that extra touch of moisture. I haven’t been able to get by without a face cream, for which I’m actually grateful. I never used to use face cream because every one I tried left me feeling greasy and like I was wearing a mask that was suffocating me. It wasn’t until this past year that I tried a water-type cream and it revolutionized my skin care routine.
Here are the ones that I have tried and my thoughts on them.
Garnier
SkinActive Moisture Bomb
$16.97/75 ml
This moisturizer claims to be an antioxidant super moisturizer. I picked it up because the 50% off stick slapped on it caught my attention. Then I noticed it had hyaluronic acid in it. Since I’ve been on the hunt for a super hyaluronic acid cream, this sounded pretty good.
Can’t go wrong. Right?
Ok, so I don’t love this one and I don’t hate it. It has the consistency of sunscreen, looks like sunscreen and smells like sunscreen. Not necessarily a bad thing, but because of that, it left a slight film on my face. I wasn’t in love with the fact that it caused me to worry about clogging pores and budding acne. It didn’t, but I thought about it way too much. My skin actually did feel soft, hydrated and plumped to perfection. So, all in all, the end result was ok.
Glam Glow
Waterburst
$62/50 ml
I think I would have loved this one if it didn’t have such a strong smell. Don’t get me wrong, the smell brings me to a land of lollipops and sugar plums, but it makes me feel like I’m cheating on my diet when I apply it.
Wait, I just realized that it smells like the fruity, minty toothpaste that the dentist uses.
Besides the smell, the texture is nice and turns to a water-like consistency when applied. My face definitely felt hydrated after using this.
Tatcha
The Water Cream
$82/50 ml
The smell of this one reminds me of a day at the spa. It is definitely something that I love when it comes to skin care. The consistency is a bit of a thicker water-like texture, but definitely not heavy or pore clogging.
When I just opened up the jar to smell it again, I noticed that there was a tiny bit of product left in the lid. That makes me so happy!!
Lise Watier
Sublimessence
$116/46 ml
I don’t even know what this is supposed to be for, but let me tell you. I love the smell of it and the watery/serum type consistency is beautiful. When it dries down/absorbs, it doesn’t get tacky at all. I’ve been using this every day and my face constantly feels refreshed and rejuvenated! A friend gave this to me and I will definitely be looking into this product more!
Tarte
Mermaid Skin Hyaluronic H2O Serum
$55/50 ml
I feel like this one is similar to the Lise Watier serum, except the scent is ever so faint. The consistency is more of a serum than a cream and when applied, stays tacky for about 3-5 seconds. When it dries down, my face feels like it’s a new day with a clean, smooth slate to start with.
Dr. Jart+
Water Fuse Ultimate Hydro Gel
$48/50 ml
Agghhh! This is by far my favourite of all of the creams I’ve tested!! This one literally makes my skin feel like it is drinking a tall glass of ice water. The consistency is perfect, watery-gel-like perfection that has no residue, no stickiness and leaves my skin feeling like it can take on the world!
All in all, I’ve learned that skin care is expensive. However, good quality skin care is absolutely worth it. Leave me a comment letting me know if you think spending money on skin care is worth it.
When I have a plethora of pocket change, I will use the Lise Watier. Until then, I will add Dr. Jart+ Water Fuse to my skin care staples.
I LOVE shopping. I shop all the time. Constantly. Ever since the idea of online shopping became a thing for me, I now have the luxury of shopping at home, in my pjs, every day.
If only there was some sort of fund that allowed me to follow through and make all these purchases a reality.
Pocket change.
Until that happens, I’ll continue to be frugal with my coins and engage in fabulous thrift store finds (comment below if you’d like to see a post on thrifting fashion).
Ok, let’s get down to my favourite part of this blog – the part where I tell you that my husband, Brian actually did the leg work for this haul!
Yes, that’s right. I was at home working on filming a video while Brian took our son to his soccer tournament. In between the games, he went shopping. Unsolicited and unknown to me.
You know what? I loved what he bought me!
So, without further ado, here is what he bought.
Bench
Track Jacket in Black
Sweaters/jackets like this are a fall/winter staple in my wardrobe. I don’t even think Brian knew that I broke the zipper on my only other black sweater, so this was a great purchase. I think my favourite part of this sweater is the raised logo written across the back of the collar.
Bench
Hooded Workout Jacket in Grey
The zipper on this one goes slightly into the hood, so it will be great for chilly evening activities outside – like driving with the top off my Jeep. It also has reflective strips around the pockets and on the arms. The best part? Thumb holes. Yes, for some reason I just love thumb holes. I’m not entirely sure why since my arm length matched with my finger length usually prevents me from being able to utilize these features.
Puma
Workout Top in Soft Teal
For those who know Brian, you know that shopping at Puma is nothing new. We should probably own stock in the company because he loves it that much. No joke. So, this was no surprise. However, this is my favourite colour and the fit is what I like to wear – not too tight, but light and flowy. How does he know me so well?
Puma
Workout Tights in Grey/Soft Teal/Blue
Ok, once again, Puma. Shocker, I know. Maybe it’s the fact that I’ve been wearing the same 2 pairs of workout pants for the last 2 years, or maybe he just saw them and thought about how much I would not only use them, but absolutely love them because they are 100% me. I don’t know. Kudos to him though, because wow. People might not even recognize me at the gym now that I’ll be wearing something new (or colour for that matter).
When Brian came home and showed me his finds, my heart was tickled. Gifts are fun and always welcome from him, but that wasn’t even what I loved about this. I love the fact that he thinks of me, that he knows me and that he gets excited when he surprises me.
I normally want to wait for these types of posts until the beginning of the month and then I can share all of my favourites.
However.
July has been one of those months that I’m scraping the bottom of the barrel on a few makeup staples. So, I thought writing this out might help me decide how, when and if I’m repurchasing or not.
I will probably do a favourites blog in a few weeks because there’s already a handful of products that I discovered in July!
Tarte Shape Tape
Light-Medium
Everyone talks about how Tarte Shape Tape is their holy grail – and it definitely has been a tried-and-true staple in my makeup routine. It is full-coverage and is perfect for those under-eye dramas that present themselves after a few nights of no sleep or crying till the cows come home…or every. day. life. It’s not greasy, doesn’t crease and lasts all day. I simply love it.
The cons? I can’t buy it at a physical store in Canada, which makes swatching the product an out-of-country, $$ exchange, kilometers to miles kind of an ordeal. Also, I can tell there is still product at the bottom of the tube, but the wand can’t reach it.
Ok, down to the nitty-gritty. Would I repurchase it? Yes and no. I am going to try Too Faced Born This Way Multi-Use Sculpting Concealer and if it gives me the same results, I’ll probably switch. You know, because Canada.
Too Faced Born This Way Foundation
Natural Beige
One hundred percent. This is 100% my favourite all-time foundation. I talk about it all the time. I just don’t know another foundation that gives me results like this one. It blends easily and creates a flawless finish that lasts forever. for ever. I can go swimming with this, bask in the sunshine and it is still in tact after all that (obviously as long as I don’t wipe it away with a towel or something). One of the things I love about it is that I don’t even need a lot of product (I don’t even use a full pump) to achieve maximum results.
The cons? I don’t have this on tap at my full disposal. That’s it.
Back to the nitty-gritty. Would I repurchase? Yes. A thousand times, yes. And then again for good measure.
Annabelle Lip Liner
Buff
I don’t know if this technically is an empty, but it’s almost to the point where I can’t sharpen it anymore, so I’m going with calling it an empty. This is my favourite lip liner for a few reasons. First, it’s a great nude. It matches my natural lips so I can line them with it regardless of the colour lipstick I use. Also, it has lasted me a long time – I’m guessing longer than a year or two.
Would I repurchase? Yep. As a matter of fact, I’m heading out to the drug store and might just pick up another today…
Alright, so there weren’t that many empties, but they’re kind of a big deal because if I repurchase them, I’d be spending over $100 Canadian. That’s a pretty penny. Comment below if you think I should drop that like it’s pocket change (it is, isn’t it?).
Life doesn’t always go the way we think it should. Sometimes it even feels like the twilight zone.
Handling the hiccups and the poop that tries to bury you can be downright overwhelming at times.
I am so grateful for my faith in God because I know He is faithful and will see me through any circumstance – no matter how intense it is.
Today I posted a little heart to heart – hopefully it helps even one person who watches.
My friend, Sarah and I thought it would be fun to film a video where we picked a picture for each other to recreate on camera.
I’m not going to lie, I wasn’t sure how it would turn out because I’m still fairly basic when it comes to doing my makeup.
However!!
We had the best time filming this. I mean, my camera turned off in the middle of filming more times than I can count. My camera battery died not just once, but twice. My dog kept trying to get our attention (mostly because he loves Sarah and he thinks he’s the next best thing). All in all, we laughed and worked with the products we had to recreate the looks we chose, and it worked.
We originally set a timer for 30 minutes, but as you will see in the video, we just silenced the timer and went on with the video. I’m fairly certain I have about 2 full hours of footage.
Then, at the end, we decided it would be so much fun to do a Disney Villain makeup challenge. We may or may not have filmed one. Comment below if you think we should do this!
So, before I post our challenge video, I’ll say that friends last a lifetime. Cherish those friends who are faithful and stand by your side – they are truly valuable.
Rowena Francis 