Introducing Nude by Nature in Canada- Swatches on DARK skin

I love discovering new brands. Especially when they’re going to be in places that I frequent. Shopper’s Drug Mart just got an exclusive new brand called Nude by Nature.
They’re Australia's #1 Mineral Makeup brand.

Five things that I wish I knew about Lash extensions

I know I'm totally getting annoying talking about my lash extension experience.... But I really miss them! Currently.. saving money is the goal. So things will have to be sacrificed. There is a lot that I wish I knew before I became so addicted.

Maybelline- Total Temptation Makeup Collection + PICS

As I state almost every day(tears), I have given up wearing lash extensions until 2019. I’ve pretty much been wearing them straight on and off since the middle of 2015 (when I got married). 

I’m not gonna lie I miss how easy and effortless it was getting ready in the morning or having to attend an event was. I hardly had to do anything. I'd fix my brows, eyeliner, find good lip colour and I was set. But personally.... it all comes down to having to spend quite a few dollars a month. Which ends up being $1000+. I could go on a vacation with all that cash! 

Anyways back to the point, I have been on the hunt for a good mascara for a while! One brand that always is on top of the drugstore lash game is ALWAYS Maybelline. If I’ve ever been in bind "lash wise" I was always able to go to Shopper's Drug Mart -find a Maybelline mascara that works. 

Today's mascara of the day is from their Total Temptation Collection-Total Temptation Mascara ($7.96 CAN Walmart). First off !!!! Let me say this brush is REALLY really nice! I know for a while we could not get away from seeing plastic bristles on every mascara wand. Which I’m still a fan of but nothing beats a good old-fashioned bristles.

NYX liquid suede Brown girl friendly swatches

As a woman of colour, finding a good nude used to be the biggest hassle. People would either give me a colour that was extremely light or unflattering for my skin tone. Or I would get a colour that is too dark and did not complement me. One brand which has been making awesome browns lip colours for all skin tones is NYX. Plus you can find it at your local drugstore! You do not have to make a special online order or wait till IMATS to get what you want anymore. All you have to do is hit up Shoppers Drug Mart to test out some samples or find great Canadian beauty blog (like myself) which for the swatches and names that you should look out for.

BITE BEAUTY Agave three-step lip regimen

I’m putting it ALL out there.... this is the driest winter EVER! I literally have a humidifier going off 24/7 but I’m still having some lip issues. When I practice "good" lip care, honestly everything is perfect. But when I’m having an off day-everything goes LEFT.
But finally I have three products that do the job!

You always have to ask yourself what’s your main goal with EVERY beauty product. Mine is kissable and presentable lips. Okay forget kissable.... Presentable is key right now! I want to be able to wear my matte liquid lipsticks without any peeling! I want to be able to carry on a conversation without wondering if the person is staring at my lips! I know not alone out here! I’m so happy that I had opportunity to try out some extremely popular products from Bite Beauty. I actually shared the products on Instagram and had a reader tell me that she’s been trying to get her hands on all three products for a while but it’s always sold out at Sephora.

Let me show you all the three-step series that currently keeping my lips hydrated!

Guest Post: Aura Mugler Eau De Parfum

Last month, I attended the latest fragrance launch by the Mugler brand called Aura Mugler. The event space was transformed into a serene forest escape. There were stations setup throughout the venue that invited attendees to try out Aura Mugler, it's associated products, have faux tattoos of the bottle applied and even have your makeup touched up! It was a great event that allowed attendees to immerse themselves into the scent.

Smashbox Bawse Deep Red: Always on Liquid Lipstick & Swatch

This statement is going to be weird to some people... but as a woman of colour I was very afraid of red lipsticks. I remember when I was experimenting and my mom used to tell me that those were not her favourite colours on me. If I listened to her I would’ve probably stopped wearing them but you know my social media family out there always told me that it looked great!
So I continued to try more colours.

Let me start off by saying liquid lipsticks over traditional lipsticks any day. This was my first time trying anything from Smashbox in a while (like 2010).

So I was excited to try out the Always on liquid lipstick in Bawse ($28.00 CAN) ** (which I received in a goodie bag from a blog event in 2017).

My Spiced Life Contributor: Eseeri

It's 2018, time for a new contributor on the blog. I love having contributors because:

 -It exposes you all to new people. 

-Helps me share more content.

- Fun to see a new prospective!

Eseeri is a Canadian beauty and lifestyle blogger. She's been blogging for a few years about all things related to beauty, health and fitness, and travel. Her passion for developing lifestyle content stems from her drive of being the best version of herself and she encourages her readers to do the same by sharing helpful tips on travel, and healthy lifestyle habits. 

In her downtime she loves traveling, reading inspirational books, connecting with friends, scouring social media for inspiration, recording YouTube videos and of course shopping!

MySpicedLife: Best of 2017 Beauty

I truly cannot believe how quickly 2017 has come and gone.
I’m not sure if it was the best year beauty wise but I did find some gems along the way.
Please let me know if you have tried any of these products below!

All of these products deserve the "MySpicedLife: Best of 2017" stamp of approval. 

Protect Your Blog + Be Stay Cyber safe on your social media accounts

On this day in 2014, I woke up to write and discovered my blog was gone! A bit of a back story, someone tried to hack my blogger account. So as a precaution, blogger put my account on hold. I had to jump through hoops to get it back... That day I vowed to upgrade my passwords and become more conscious what I post online.

There are 4 tips to keep you cyber safe as an influencer.

Holiday: Gift sharing + Stocking stuffers for you and others

One of the best things about Holiday makeup?? 

You get to sample a little bit of everything. 

Which is good but what if you find a great set that doesn't have everything you want. 

My solution...

Go halvies with someone & share the love. 

Yes.. Halvies is totally a real word. I have a great example in packaging sometimes there is like 12 lipstick shades and only six of them will work for me which means of the other six won’t. I can either regift them as stocking stuffers or since I won’t have seas with someone we can totally spell split up the colours that work for me and the colours that work for her so that everybody’s a winner. 

Quo Liquid Lipstick Bar ($20) can be found at Shopper's Drug Mart.

Is Double Cleansing for you?

After a good girls night or a fun date night to muster up the energy to take off your make up is non-existent. In my younger days, I do remember nights not taking off my make up. Please don’t judge me! Thankfully, I had amazing skin that time so it did not impact me.

There are many ways to fully get your make up off which unfortunately do take up time... but honestly it’s worth it. One thing, I will never give up on is make up wipes. But I'm going to be honest, that there are some wipes that do not fully do the job in one wipe. Those CHEAP ones that are ALWAYS on SALE! Stay away from them. Most of the time, those cheaper wipes only get off the first layer of make up. What about your sunscreen, primer, moisturizer or serum? There is still residue left over. Don't leave me- wet a rag and wipe your face.

So here is where double cleansing comes into play...

Holiday: Beauty Advent Calendar Love

Oh, it’s time ladies! This is probably one of my favourite times of year for make up. My issue is always when to buy. One of the cons about gift sets/advent calendars is that if it really popular... it sells out quick! When I was new to the make up game, I would always wait until it was closer to Christmas to actually go out and purchase the item. Guess what? It was gone by then. 

I finally had the opportunity to get two Beauty Advent for the first time this year! 

The Winter Wonderland advent calendar from Sephora Collection ($56 CAN) 

was the first one I opened. 

Best Sephora Collection Holiday Picks Under $15

Budget is the main word I see coming out of a lot of people’s mouth this season. And you know what? I don’t blame them! For me, I rather get more products for my buck. So instead of getting someone one gift for $50- I rather put together multiple items. I say this all the time but one of the best hidden gems at Sephora is their Sephora collection. 

I was actually sent a few Sephora collection Holiday goodies and I picked five products which I feel any beauty lover would be grateful for!

My Fall Beauty Picks from Murale

It’s time to switch up your skin care routine! With the air getting drier- I'm sorry to tell you but your skin is starting to lack moisture. That leads to cracking and peeling skin. 

NOTHING that I’m trying to have in my life! Lol

A few months back I went to a Murale FALL event. For my USA readers, "Murale stores have an offering of prestige products like hair care, fragrance, cosmetics, skincare plus bath & body." I was introduced to some new brands and was reacquainted with some brands that I know and love. I was also sent home with a healthy bag full of products to try out. 

Guest Post: ECOTOOLS Polishing Cleansing Cloths

I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to thoroughly cleanse your face every night whether you are a heavy makeup wearer or not. I typically double cleanse. First, I remove my makeup with a makeup wipes followed by a cleansing balm/oil and then a regular cleanser using just my hands.

Regular thorough cleansing:

• Is essential to keeping your skin looking radiant and healthy.
• Helps your treatments (serums, oils, etc) to work properly
• Helps maintain proper pore size
• Encourages proper skin hydration and prevents the production of excess oils

While makeup wipes have been my tried and true tool for removing that first layer oil makeup, oil, dirt of the day, cost wise they can add up and they can be wasteful for the environment - especially when you are using more than one wipe every night (like I do) to get the job done.

Enter my discovery of ECOTOOLS Polishing Cleansing Cloths.

Long Weekend Vacation Prep - Body Edition

Where do I start! Preparing yourself for a vacation is truly a serious task. Like within 48 hours before I left for Jamaica: I got lash extensions, brow treading, a Brazilian (insert the tear emoji) plus a manicure and pedicure. But although a lot of this stuff required a salon. That includes wait times. For ladies who have NO time for that- A lot of things can be done at home to save money/time!

Especially if your just doing a long weekend getaway!

Guest Post: Why You Need a Tinted Primer

I love a good primer. Some may even call me a little bit of a primer junkie. I have tried all types from drugstore to high end. If you haven’t been using a primer, you are truly missing out. A good primer can make or break the how your makeup look once applied whether you’re keeping it light with a BB cream or doing full face, full coverage glam.

Many people skip out on this step because they don’t believe they need one or don’t think it is worth the investment. For those who don’t believe, you need a primer because:

• It helps makeup to go on smoother
• It conceals your pores
• It helps your makeup last longer
• It helps smooth/blur out imperfections

There are so many primers on the market to address certain skin types. Primers for mature skin, dry skin, sensitive skin, mattifying primers and primers with illuminating properties for that extra glow.

Flashing?!?! Is the DERMAFLASH Facial Exfoliating Device for you?

I cant even begin to tell you how many times an email for an interesting device pops up into my inbox. Then I ask about it and it's USA only. REALLY! 
Flat out.. If it's not available here.... I'm not covering it. 

I don't know if it's me or not but once you hear about a product- it's everywhere! I remember seeing an old video of Taraji P. Henson's MUA using the tool on her before the Grammy's. Guess what?? It was the DERMAFLASH device!  A few weeks ago, I got an email saying the DERMAFLASH was available in Canada.

So I had to do some inquiries about it before I jumped the gun.

Thankfully, I got some answers from DERMAFLASH and I'm sharing them for people like me who have questions!

Hydration is KEY! New Laneige Skin Care

Let's talk skin care! I've really been REALLY into skin care lately. After coming back from Jamaica my skin has totally changed consistency. Now it requires more hydration. I've actually been using a few brands that have my skin looking MUCH better!

Back in 2016, I started my year out with these Laneige classics. 

Now come and see what I upgraded to!