February Obsessions...

I thought I would make a quick post of some things that I am loving for the month of February. I love sharing my discovers with you all. Check them out below... 

Though I am close, I have not yet finished this book. Can I say that Grace Helbig is not only a genius but fabulously saucy. Her humor is so on point and she is incredibly relatable. This book is insightful and frank, which I find refreshing. There is a lot to be learnt from this book and I would recommend it to anyone. 

Graces Guide 

I am finally escaping student living of basement apartments and under code buildings. I am moving into a condo with my sister in a couple of weeks. I am so excited and cannot stop buying things! I will most definitely be doing a home decor haul once I am all moved in. But I did want to share with you all this gorgeous clock. The frame of this clock is a gorgeous blush pink. It was also very reasonably priced and is from Edinburgh Clock Co. 

I got these adorable Kate Spade bow earrings from a friend and I am completely taken with them. 

Skinny Mini Bow Studs

I have had a Pandora bracelet for a couple of years now but more recently have become obsessed with buying charms. Of course, this isn't the greatest obsession for a struggling student... But I cannot help myself. I adore the floral themed charms and my favorite has to be the rose garden (pink). 

Pandora

I feel as if most girls in the beauty blogging industry love Lush. I am no exception to this; I love Lush. I am hooked on this natural exfoliate at the moment. (There bath bombs are also... the bomb)

Lush

I got this gorgeous Fossil watch from my sister for Christmas; I love pairing it with my Pandora bracelet. Since getting this watch I have spent a lot of time browsing this website in classes. And I now have more then a few bookmarked on my computer... 

Fossil

I have blogged about this perfume in the past. Just recently, I have become more obsessed with perfumes. Through all of the different scents I have tried, this one will forever be my favorite. 

Si by Giogio Aramani

Hair SOS: Rescue Products...

As I mentioned in my New Year, New Resolutions post, I am on a mission for healthy hair. I have done so many awful things to my hair over the years and it has most definitely caught up with me. I was in major need of a hair SOS. I am desperate to grow out my locks for summer, so I have been shying away from cutting my hair. No matter how many times people recommend this, I will not do it. But I have been offered some other awesome advice on my mission for healthier hair. The most popular advice given is protein and lots of it. Any shampoo, conditioner, or treatment with loads of keratin is what I was recommended. So, I wanted to share with all of you some of the products I have found along the way. I hope you enjoy and please feel free to comment if you have any advice for me. I'd love to hear it! 

This is an amazing hair strengthening product. This shampoo and conditioning duo is designed specifically for damaged, weakened hair and split ends. I have been using this product for a week now and my hair is so silky soft. I am very impressed with this product, it may be the best I have ever used. I will say that this product is a bit expensive for the size of the bottle. But in my opinion, totally worth it. 

I have to admit, I have never been one to use a heat protector on my hair. Which is horrible considering in the past I would constantly use heat on my hair. Someone recently recommended this product to me and I was a little resistant at first. My reasoning; I hate leave-in treatments. In the past I have found different treatments to leave my hair feeling dirty or sticky. Desperate for healthier hair I decided to give it a try and I am glad I did. I love this product! It absolutely does not leave my hair feeling gross or sticky but rather the opposite. It adds a nice shine, smoothness and yes, softness to my hair. The best part, it is really affordable!  

I picked up this mismatched pairing at a local Sally Beauty Supply store. It was recommended to me by someone who was working there. They suggested I use this mismatched combination to work on the two major issues with my hair. The shampoo is moisturizing to help replenish my dry, broken hair. And the conditioner is smoothing and infused with keratin for protein. I did see improvement in my hair using these products but they did not leave my hair feeling as soft as I would like. 

This is another leave in treatment that I was recommended. After showering I will leave this treatment in for a couple hours or even all night. I use this treatment once a week and absolutely love my hair after. My hair is so shiny and silky smooth. This product does wonders for my hair and would highly recommend it. 

-Vicki 

New Products: Face

What better time to start a new face regimen, then the beginning of a brand new year. There are a bunch of different products I have been curious to try lately and I've been picking up a few things here & there. With the winter upon us, I am finding my face to be extremely dry. Even with my regular face regimen, this dryness will not subside. So, I have recently been on the hunt for new face products and I thought I would share with you some products I am excited to try. I've heard great things about all these products and hope that they will help out with my dry skin. If you have tried any of these products before, be sure to comment! And of course, I will be posting reviews on each of the products soon.. 

I have been wanting to try a new exfoliate for awhile now. This is a relatively new product and I have heard nothing but good things about it. It is infused with Southernwood, which is an active natural that helps block out what's not good for your skin and keep what is. 

It has been a cold winter her in Canada and my skin has become really dry. This is another Aveeno product that I have head all good things about. I am excited to try this moisturizer paired with the night cream and exfoliate. What I appreciate about this product is that it has a SPF of 30 which is important, even in winter. 

This is another product from the Aveeno Fresh Essential product line. I have never been one to use both a day & night cream. But in my research I have found the benefits of using both a day & night cream. This formula helps to replenish the natural moisture barrier of your skin while you sleep. Which was a huge selling point for my dry and flaky skin. 

I have been on a hunt for a new liquid foundation the last couple of months. I have kind of played the field when it comes to foundation and have never found one that I can see myself settling down with. I decided to splurge and try the Even Better foundation from Clinique. I have to admit, it was worth the money. The great thing about this product is a little bit goes a long way. The coverage is amazing and leaves my skin looking incredibly even all day long. I don't know if I could ever stray from this product, it is amazing! 

I am a big fan of Sally Beauty Supply stores. This is a relatively recent discovery for me. They have an amazing selection of both hair and beauty products. I stumbled across this finishing powder and thought I would give it a try. I am very impressed by this product and the natural glow it finishes my face with. 

I am a big fan of highlighters and have grown sick of my benefit liquid highlighter. This is another product that I picked up at Sally's and I am really excited to try it. 

I have had my eye on this palette from Benefit for a while now. I am not a huge fan of wearing eye shadow everyday and usually reserve it for going out. But I have wanted something easy and natural looking for everyday. I am excited to try this out! 

-Vicki 

New Year, New Resolutions

I cannot believe how quickly 2014 came to a close. It was a truly amazing year for me; but I have a feeling 2015 will be even better. It is amazing to look at the progress that you can make in just one year. It is this progress that is motivating me to make 2015 the best yet! 

I was lucky enough to spend New Years in Niagara Falls with some of my closest friends. A small, low-key celebration that included dinner at the Copacabana and some gambling at the casino. 

                                       

Like so many other people out there, I am a sucker for New Years resolutions. Every year I am sure to make a small list of things that I want to accomplish by years end. Some resolutions will be kept and obviously some will be forgotten. So, I wanted to share some of my New Years resolutions with you all and maybe you can share some of yours with me!

Healthy Hair: Over the years I have treated my hair pretty badly. Everything from neglected split ends to accidental chemical haircuts. So this year, I want to give my hair a break. I've invested in some good quality hair care products to help me reach my goal of long, shiny, healthy hair. 

(Products that I will be sure to share with all of you soon.)

Healthy Lifestyle: I made some huge changes in 2014. At the forefront of all these changes was losing 60 pounds. I can honestly say that I have never felt better about myself. My second New Years resolution is to continue to live an active, healthy lifestyle. 

Keep A Journal: This resolution has probably been on my list for the last four years. As a student it is hard to make time to unwind and write. But I personally think there are so many benefits to keeping a journal. And besides, how fun would it be to read your journal years from now and reflect on how much you've grown and what you've accomplished. (Well, hopefully)

These are just a few of the changes I want to make in my life heading into 2015. So tell me, what are some of yours? 

REVIEW: Flower Beauty

Flower Beauty is a make-up line that highlights affordability and quality. Flower's philosophy is that you should not have to spend a lot of money for good quality products. That's a philosophy I like! I love beauty products but I am often discouraged by prices.

When I first discovered Flower I was really excited to try out some of their stuff. With an A-list actress behind the brand like Drew Barrymore, I figured the products would have to be half-ways decent.

When it comes to face products (foundation, powders, concealers etc.) I am more willing to spend money on higher-end products. Due to how affordable the Flower brand is I decided to try both a foundation and powder. As well, I picked up an eye brow pencil, lip chubby, and mascara.

Check out my review of these products below!

My camera has kind of been acting up lately, so these pictures are not of the greatest quality. (Sorry!!) 

I actually love this eyebrow pencil. I have thick eyebrows naturally so I only use brow pencils for minor enhancements. I find the application smooth and you do not have to be heavy handed with this pencil. It is definitely a great pencil for someone looking for only minor eyebrow tweaking. 

I decided to try out the Flower beauty foundation because their prices are really decent. When it comes to skin products I usually vouch for higher end products. Although I think that this product has great coverage, I find it hard to work with. I have relatively dry skin and I found this foundation difficult to apply and blend. 

I am a huge, huge fan of lip products. I am generally pretty loyal to any and all Rimmel lipsticks. But I adore this lip chubby by Flower. This is by far my favourite product of theirs. I find this lip chubby smooth in application and the result to be matte. I do wish they had more of a selection of colours, maybe in time. 

When it comes to mascaras I generally go with whatever is cheapest. But, that hasn't always worked out for me. I think this mascara adds great volume and doesn't clump. This mascara claims to be a 3-1, with a brush that you can manually twist. By twisting the brush you are supposed to achieve three different looks; volumizing, curling, and lengthening. Honestly, I do not see much of a difference between the three setting. But I do think it's worth a try, especially considering the pricing. 

As I previously stated I do not generally cheap out on skin products. But I did want to try out this Flower powder. I do not have much to say about this particular product because it's not very good. It provides very minimal coverage and the application is not very good at all. 

Overall, I find these products to be generally pretty good. Flower beauty offers a lot more products that I am definitely going to give a try. Once I do, I will be sure to create another review on this brand. I will most likely be re-purchasing both the lip chubby and the eyebrow pencil. (Highly recommend!)

Thanks for reading! If you have tried out any of Flower beauty's products let me know what you think in the comments below!