Get your Glow on!

Hello Friends,

Truth be told I'm not really a faker. What I mean by that, is that is that I'm not a huge fan of fake people, fake boobs or fake butts. But what I do like, is faking good skin. I'm really openminded when trying new products and methods and I recently read about how mixing your foundation and shimmer lotion works wonders at giving your skin that perfect glow. Hmmm... interesting. I'm always up for a challenge so let's give it a try! Ready, set, GLOW!

The tools:

Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturiser $55 CAD and Stila All Over Shimmer  approx. $25 CAD Available at Sephora

The Steps:

1) Moisturize and prime skin if needed (my primer of choice is Laura Mercier Hydrating primer).

2) Apply 3 parts of foundation/tinted moisturizer to 1/4 part of liquid luminizer (Benefit's High Beam would work well too) to the back of the hand like so:

3) Gently mix both like this:

4) Blend into face (you can use a brush or be a cheapie like me and just use your fingers):

My really bad photo attempt at showing you how to blend. Go ahead and laugh, I know that you want to.

5) Add some eye makeup, some lipgloss and a touch of blush and Voila:

The Result:

Glowing skin! Where have you been all my life??? Wow, I was really impressed of how subtle the shimmer is, and extremely happy that I didn't look like I belonged as a topless showgirl in Vegas. I think that the key is to just blend, blend, blend and if you think that you may have overdosed on the shimmer you can always use some powder to tone it down. I normally hate doing face shots for the blog but I was really happy with this look.This is perfect for those days where you want your skin to look a bit more awake, and really, there's nothing wrong with faking a good night's sleep. Now, faking orgasms, well, that's another story :)

So tell me, have you tried this shimmer/foundation trick yet? What other secrets can you share to keep your skin all glowy and healthy?


Thanks so much for reading, and have a fanastic Tuesday :)

Sephora is my crack!

Hello Friends,

Hope that you all had a great weekend! Mine was spent doing copious amounts of laundry, playing indoor frisbee with the little ones and watching the snow flakes fall outside my window. WTF- last time I checked it was April, not middle of November. Nevertheless, I still made time to go to the mall and what started as a simple trip to return an item at Zara's ended up with me spending most of the afternoon at Sephora's. And why you ask? Because it's Sephora's 15% off for V.I.B members! I can't resist a deal, so with the help of a very patient makeup artist (Iris, this is a shout out to you!) I left with a big smile on my face and a bag full of fun stuff:

Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer and Laura Mercier Hydrating Primer

I love, love, love this stuff. These two are for me a match made in heaven. The tinted moisturizer provides such nice, sheer coverage (you can layer on for additional coverage) and has SPF 20 in it so you don't feel guilty about 'forgetting' to put your sunscreen on. The primer works very well underneath the tinted moisturizer, it actually helps with shine and makes your tinted moisturizer (or any foundation) glide on nice and smooth. Not the cheapest products but a little goes a long way. A tube of each would last me almost 6 months!

Stila Eyeshadow Trio in Venus

I was in the market for an eyeshadow palette, however was smitten with this trio as it was pretty affordable and contains a base, crease and liner all in one adorable package. This would be great for travel! I am quite unadventurous when it comes to eyecolor and wanted a bit of a change from my usual neutral look. Actually, all of the eyeshadows I own are from Stila, they are heavily pigmented and they stay put all day. 

Nars Glossy Lip Pencil in New Lover

There's no question that I am a HUGE fan of Nars products. This is my first glossy pencil purchase (I do have their matte pencil in Cruella which is a great vampy red for those days where I'm feeling quite naughty). New Lover is a lot more subdued, a bit darker then my natural lip color and has these gold flecks that sparkle on your lips. This is perfect for those days where I'm on the go and need to do my lips on the subway. It's not drying as all and surprisingly moisturizing.

And here's a picture that I took right after my mini-makeover at Sephora with the Stila Venus eye shadow and the Nar's New Lover gloss stick:



So what about you? What do you think of my picks? Are you a huge Laura Mercier, Nars or Stila fan?




Sharon's Beauty Showcase- For Face

For Face by makemommychic on Polyvore.com

So this is the second series to my beauty showcase and in case you missed my last showcase on skincare, click here. This week it's all about face. It's the first thing that people notice about you (i think?) so here are my steps to faking a good complexion.


1) Laura Mercier Hydrating Primer: I had never used primer until a few months ago. Prior to using one, I always wondered why my makeup was fading faster than Kim Kardashian's singing career. As I am a huge fan of Laura Mercier products and her promise of 'flawless skin' I took a leap of faith and purchased this product and now am hooked. Makeup primers, much like paint primers, offer a smooth canvas for the skin, used after moisturizing and right before foundation. It helps to control shine, shrink pores and to help make your make up last through the workday. I really notice it's smoothing effect and love how my tinted moisturizer (mentioned below) glides on my face. I could do a whole review on this product, it's really a must have in my books.

2) Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer with SPF 20 (in sand): Love, Love, Love this product. Love the fact that it has SPF 20, Love the fact that  it sinks into my skin and covers alot of my imperfections and also LOVE the fact that a tube could last me more then 6 months as you don't need a lot to do the job. Even though this is called a  'moisturizer' per say I always moisturize, prime and then apply the product. I don't think that it would do a very good job moisturizing on it's own (as it's more of a light foundation) especially if your skin is on the drier side like mine is.

3) Nars Orgasm Stick: I love orgasms, and I love Nars, so this is a perfect combination for me :) All jokes aside, I love using this cheek/lip/eye color as a base for my Nars blushes - I just swipe some color from the stick onto my cheekbones and blend, blend, blend. The result is not dramatic, but more of a flushed natural look- the I just got laid look, and that's an awesome look, if you ask me.

4) Nars blushes (in Orgasm and Gina): Of all the blushes that I've ever tried I always keep coming back to Nars. They have staying power and can magically create cheek bones that I never new existed. Orgasm is their most popular (due to explanation above) and the color Gina looks like it's orange in the compact but when applied diagonally across my cheekbones makes my face look 5 pounds thinner. And that, to me, is a miracle :)

5) Nars Bronzer in Laguna: This is another best seller of Nars. When we think of bronzers we think tanned, summer, beach but this is the perfect color to wear to everyday if you want just that extra glow. Perfect for those days where you feel like your skin is pasty and you don't want to reach for that self-tanner. I like to apply it with a big fluffy brush and will sometimes apply it to my decollege and neck when I'm wearing a low cut top so that my skin color matches the whole way through.

6) Benefit's High Beam: This is usually the last step to my makeup. This product is a pinky color that adds just a touch of shimmer to your overall look. It isn't noticeable at first but depending on which way you stand in the light it gives you that extra 'je ne sais quoi'. It comes with a nailbrush like applicator and I like to apply it to the top of my cheekbones and just pat it gently so that it settles nicely into my skin.

What about you? What are your must have products for the face?

Tune in next week, where I will be discussing products for the eyes. Can hardly wait to share :)