- - Lomography | Simple Use Reloadable Film Camera Review (Lomochrome Purple Edition) - -

Today I'm back with another Lomography-related post!

This post will be a two-in-one: a review of Lomography's Simple Use Camera and a brief review of the Lomochrome Purple film stock.

If you've been following me on Instagram, you'll know that a couple of months ago I acquired the Minolta SR-T 101, an analogue camera that shoots 35mm film. I have since tried different kinds of film stock (rolls of film) and am always keeping an eye out for more!

Even before getting the Minolta, I knew that one film stock I really wanted to try was the Lomochrome Purple. Lomochrome Purple is Lomography's homage to Kodak Aerochrome and EIR, two iconic infrared films. Like its predecessors, Lomochrome Purple distorts the colours of reality but it does this by painting your photographs in purple hues (see photos below).

- - Lomography | Lomo'Instant (Song's Palette) Review - -

2020 was a rough and isolating year for many of us. Ironically, it was also the year when I was able to make a number of meaningful new connections with people. What I started doing in 2020 that I had never done before was participating in polaroid exchanges with individuals all over the world who were passionate about instant photography.

I was able to identify early on that my favourite photographs were the ones that had a vignette effect (ie. a darkened perimeter). These photographs stood out to me because they had a different feel/mood than the photos I had been shooting with my Instax Mini 9.

For example, take a look at these photos:

- - Nature Collection | New Jeju Line Review - -

Hi everyone! How was the beginning of your week?

This past Saturday, I received an email from Nature Collection (aka The Face Shop) about their new Jeju products. Even though they didn't advertise it at the time, these products have actually been in Nature Collection stores since (I believe) early October.

It wasn't all in the email but from what I've seen in stores late last year, the new Jeju line includes: an aloe cleanser, a 3-step nose mask, a foam scrub (I believe I've seen the regular cleansing foam as well), a clay mask, and nose strips. I've got a few of these products for you today!

More after the jump: 

- - The Face Shop | Dr. Belmeur Lip Balm Duo Set Review - -

 

Happy Monday!

If you know me in person or if you've been reading this blog for a while, you might know that one of my favourite brands is The Face Shop. The Face Shop is owned by LG, so over the past few years you may have noticed that TFS started carrying a variety of sister brands in their stores (e.g. Fruits & Passion, Belif, VDL, and even Avon recently) in addition to The Face Shop products.

To have a name that better encompasses all these brands, The Face Shop (in the past two years or so) started changing the name of its stores over to Nature Collection. The reason I mention all of this is to try to clear up some confusion. If you ever see Nature Collection anywhere, know that it means The Face Shop (and vice versa). Hopefully this doesn't make you more confused, but please ask questions if it does! 😁

Read more after the jump:

- - ColourPop | Sailor Moon Pretty Guardian Shadow Palette Review - -

Hello again!

One of the things that made 2020 a little brighter for many anime fans (myself included) was the Sailor Moon x ColourPop collaboration that was released in February. The collection features 9 pieces: 2 glitter gels, 2 blushes, 4 liquid lipsticks (2 glossy & 2 matte), and an eyeshadow palette.

This has been ColourPop's most popular collection to date and it's easy to see why - many people grew up watching Sailor Moon. When I was younger, Sailor Moon was the inspiration behind many short stories and a small (totally unofficial) book I wrote. Nostalgia, take my money!

The Sailor Moon collection sold out (so quickly) a few times before I was able to purchase anything. Luckily, I was finally able to get my hands on the Pretty Guardian Shadow Palette and that is what I wanted to talk a little bit about today.

Read more after the jump!

- - Lush | "Outback Mate" Soap Review - -

A couple of weeks ago, I was a little shy of the $40 free shipping threshold on Lush's website. Without wanting to spend too much to get there, I decided to pick up a soap called Outback Mate for $6.95 CAD. I'm a big fan of soaps but I've never actually tried any of the ones from Lush, so this was exciting!

- - Monthly Empties | May 2020 - -

 
Happy Sunday! 😊

With the fresh start of a new month just around the corner, this seems like a great time to try something new! For the month of June I plan to publish posts on Sundays as well - I have just enough ideas to carry me through to the end of the month. 

It's an ambitious plan and life may get in the way, but we'll see how it goes!

A Monthly Empties post seems like an appropriate way to close off the current month. This series of posts is an opportunity for me to briefly review the products that I used up during a given month. In May, these are the products that I finished using:

- - Inkbox | "Yu Yi" Tattoo Review - -

Just between you and me (and my mom who's probably reading this - hi mom!), I have always wanted a tattoo. I find tattoos fascinating and I admire people who are brave enough to get them. For me, I think the reason why I haven't gotten a tattoo is because there is nothing that has so much significance for me right now that I would permanently want it on my body. That and my parents would probably disown me.

Luckily, there is a less scary, semi-permanent way to "try out" a tattoo!

- - Oceane | White Pearl Facial Peeling Gel - -

Happy Tuesday!

I haven't written anything about skincare in a while so I figured a good place to start would be with a product that helped improve my skin during this quarantine. I'm pretty diligent when it comes to face scrubs - I make sure to use one at least once a week. However, I typically prefer to use a stronger, gritty scrub rather than a peeling gel.

Why? Well, it's mostly because I had a horror story with a peeling gel once. 😅

- - ColourPop | "Liquid Courage" Crème Lux Lipstick: Review & Swatches - -

Hello! I hope the first month of 2020 is treating you well!

Following in the footsteps of my last post (it's been a while, I know) about ColourPop's Disney Designer Collection, I want to take a look at another one of ColourPop's products - their Crème Lux Lipstick.

Read the full review after the jump!

- - ColourPop | Disney Designer Collection Review - -

A little while ago, the stars aligned - not only was ColourPop's Disney Designer Collection back in stock, but there was also free international shipping with no minimum! ⭐

The Disney Collection launched at the end of September 2018 and it sold out several times before I finally got the chance to pick up a few items. Lucky for you readers - as I write this post - the Disney Designer Collection is fully stocked and still available! The collection features the following Disney princess-inspired cosmetics:

• An eyeshadow palette
• 6 lipsticks
• 6 eyeshadows
• 3 lip glosses
• 2 highlighters

Although the entire collection is beautiful, what really caught my eye were three eyeshadows and one lip gloss - all of which I was able to pick up when the collection was back in stock. It's these four items that I'm going to take a closer look at right now...

Check out the full review right after the jump!

- - Cuter Cuticles | First Order: Review - -

Just over a week ago, one of my favourite people, Rebecca, told me about Cuter Cuticles, an Oshawa-based indie brand that sells inexpensive nail care products in the form of cuticle oils, butters, and other miscellaneous goodies! Sammy, the owner of Cuter Cuticles, is a nail art lover. After needing a solution to heal and moisturize her nails and cuticles, she decided to create her own products - with a delicious twist!

Naturally, after checking out the items in her shop I was instantly in "shut up and take my money!" mode. I didn't go too crazy with my first order, but I did pick up a few things that caught my eye and which I want to talk about today.

- - L'Occitane | New Shea Butter Collection Review - -

Back in January, L'Occitane (pronounced "Lox-ee-tahn"), one of my favourite fragrance/skincare/body care brands, expanded their world-famous shea butter line!

The shea line is perhaps the most popular series of products at L'Occitane because it's the most nourishing yet it's the least fragranced. But more than that, the shea butter that L'Occitane uses in their products is ethically sourced from Burkina Faso in West Africa, where the company has a long-standing partnership with the women there. You can read more about L'Occitane's shea butter supply chain and its relationship with the people of Burkina Faso here.

For today's post, there are 5 new shea butter products to show you and I'm excited to do that right after the jump!
 

- - Monthly Empties | January 2017 - -

A new year means a new series of Monthly Empty posts! ...even if they are coming out a bit late. 😅

I loved pretty much all of the products that I finished in January, so you'll see a lot of hearts beside each item. Read more right after the jump:

- - Super Snaps | Spectrum Retro Snaps Review - -

A few weeks prior to Valentine's Day I started looking for some sort of unique gift for my significant other.

At one point I remembered that I had come across a website a while back that allowed you to upload photos and get them printed in polaroid form. That's pretty cool, right? Clearly Super Snaps (formerly known as Square Snaps) was the perfect gift option!

I ended up placing an order and I'm excited to share with you today how the photos turned out! More after the jump...

- - L'Occitane | Joyeuses Fêtes Voyage Set Review - -

Last week L'Occitane released their Holiday 2016 collection. This is super exciting news for anyone who has been waiting on that famous L'Occitane Advent Calendar to finally be released! Along with the Advent Calendar, L'Occitane also introduced a number of gift sets from their best-selling product lines - Shea Butter, Almond, and Lavender. These sets cost $65 and up. They're pretty good value for what you get inside, but they're definitely not the least expensive out there.

Luckily, L'Occitane did release a number of smaller gift packages that are totally affordable and just as great in quality as the bigger sets. In fact, if you ever go into a L'Occitane boutique check out one set in particular: the Joyeuses Fêtes Voyage Set. I'm going to tell you a little more about it today.

- - A.H.C. Climax Water Pool Cleanser Review - -

You might be thinking right now - what a random thing to have...a pool cleanser.

That's exactly what I thought when I received the A.H.C. Climax Water Pool Cleanser in a Memebox (Global #17) some time ago. It turned out that this item in my box was actually a makeup remover! I'm only now getting around to using it and that's why today I wanted to share with you my thoughts, my experience, and more information about this curious product.

Read further after the jump!

- - ModCloth | Stylish Surprise Shoes Review | August 2016 - -

So it turns out that this year I got to participate in not one but TWO ModCloth Stylish Surprises! The last Stylish Surprise was back in April and the latest one was last month.

A Stylish Surprise is a chance to get some sort of mystery item from ModCloth, which is (in my opinion) the best place for indie fashion, accessories, home decor, and miscellaneous goodies. There are a number of S.S. categories you can choose from (accessories, dresses, shoes, apparel) and they range from $5 - $20 (USD). As the item is a surprise, you don't know what you're getting until the package is at your doorstep!

I usually try stick to the "shoes" category and today I wanted to briefly show you guys what I received a few weeks back. Check out the photos after the jump!

- - Monthly Empties | May 2016 - -

These days it seems like the best platform to follow me on is Instagram, so for those of you who follow me on there, you may have already seen my May empties. Forgive me while I do a bit of catching up on here!

- - Colour Pop | (4) Ultra Matte Lips & (1) Ultra Satin Lips Review - -

A few months ago one of my co-workers came to work really excited! You see, the evening before she was at a restaurant, and there was a woman there who was wearing a red lipstick which didn't budge AT ALL throughout her meal. It turned out that the woman had on one of Colour Pop's Ultra Matte Lips (super pigmented, long-lasting lip gloss).

I had never heard of Colour Pop before and I was intrigued by a lip product that could truly last through a meal, so I decided to order a few lip glosses. The prices are very good ($6.00 USD), but there are sooo many shades that it's a bit overwhelming!

After going back and forth, the shades I ended up getting were: 4 Ultra Matte Lips (Lumière 2, Avenue, Dr. M, and Bumble) and 1 Ultra Satin Lip (London Fog). In this post I'm going to briefly show you each of them: