Major Haul of the Summer!

I know, I know. It's been quite a while since I was last here and posting. If you haven't done so, check out my vlogs for when I'm not working and what I've been up to! Don't fret, vlogs aren't the only thing I'm doing this summer. When I'm not at work or I'm on my way to work, I've been shopping (what else is new, right?) So, I've accumulated quite a bit of items and decided to make a huge post about them!

MAKE UP
So, on the make up/cosmetics front, I've purchased quite a bit of items, all thanks to new products and/or shopping with Ashley from Flux & Xoulis!

Eyes

1. L'Oreal Voluminous Miss Manga Waterproof Mascara in Blackest Black, $12.99. 

After trying a few L'Oreal mascaras, I was pretty hesitant on trying this one because once again, it's a L'Oreal mascara, and I'm not the biggest fan. But after seeing it all throughout the week at Shoppers Drug Mart, on sale for $6.99 from its regular price of $12.99, I decided to add it to my shopping list. Also, thanks to Ashley from Flux & Xoulis for trying it first and claiming its one of her 'favourites,' which gave me the final push to actually try it and get it. I will admit that it's not my favourite mascara but it is decent. It's also a plus for me that it's waterproof.

2. Maybelline Pumped Up Colossal Waterproof Mascara in Classic Black, $9.99. 

I own both the waterproof and non-waterproof mascara for this since it was on clearance for $5.99 at Shoppers Drug Mart because the location I go to was going through renovations so they had a lot of stuff on clear out. I've wanted this ever since it first came out and I'm liking how it applies on so far, it's pretty much like the Mega Plush, which, as you may know is one of my favourites but the wand for this isn't as flexible.

3. Urban Decay Ink for Eyes in Perversion, $24. 

I got this when it was first released at Sephora, it is quite a splurge but it's waterproof. I've heard many mixed reviews on the Stila Stay All Day liner, so I decided to try this instead. I definitely like it a lot and it's very similar to the Maybelline Liner Precise that I'm always using, I feel that this UD liner is much easier to get product out than with the Maybelline one.

4. The Face Shop Lovely Me: Design My Eyebrow in Brown, $4. 

I decided to finally purchase items from The Face Shop during one of the shopping trips Ashley and I went on. We had browsed around before and were both taken aback from the cheap prices, but after hearing good reviews on their products, we decided to purchase a few items. I've been looking for an eyebrow pencil for a while and after trying the Hourglass one, I was a fan on the design but not on the price. Finding this, for $33 cheaper than the Hourglass one was godsend. It works exactly as well as the Hourglass one and is much cheaper with more colour selection. 

Cheeks

Urban Decay Naked Flushed in Streak, $35. 

I remember when this first came out in one shade, I thought to myself "why would anyone get that?!" And well, now that there are a total of 4 shades, here I am. I had heard many good things for the shade Native, but settled on Streak after trying out the shades in store. I'm more of a matte person than a shimmer and glitter person, which explains why I would choose something with a matte bronzer. I also really like the shade for the blush since it's not as bright as the one in Native. I'm really liking that it's an all in one and is much more compact than my Nars X Guy Bourdin cheek palette, which makes it so much easier for me to carry around this summer!

Lips

1. Revlon Lip Butter in Wild Watermelon, $8.99. 

I already own two of these (Candy Apple & Juicy Papaya) but couldn't resist when they went on sale for $5.99 at Shoppers Drug Mart, I'm really like corals and bright pink-reds, so I settled on Wild Watermelon since it's pretty bright but not a super attention grabbing colour, I really like that they moisturize the lips and are so easy to apply on and use.

2. Revlon Lip Butter in Tutti Frutti, $8.99. 

Beside the favourite, 'Peach Parfait,' I had heard many good things about Tutti Frutti, and since there's no shimmer or glitter, I decided that it'd be a nice subtle shade for myself. It's not super bright and attention grabbing like Candy Apple and Wild Watermelon but it's a good everyday shade.

Face

1. Korres White Tea Facial Fluid Gel Cleanser, $26. 

I really wish I jumped on the Korres bandwagon much earlier because it's pretty much impossible to find Korres in Toronto. After Sephora stopped selling their products, I found them at selected Shoppers Drug Mart locations and couldn't even get my hands on the Milk Proteins Foaming Cream Cleanser, but upon researching, the White Tea Facial Fluid Gel Cleanser didn't get bad reviews, so I decided to give it a try. I'm really liking the smell, it's really soft and nice for summer. Plus, you don't need to use a lot and it doesn't dry out the face but leaves it clean feeling and soft.

2. The Face Shop Volcanic Clay Nose Strip with Aloe, $1. 

The Face Shop is THE place to go for cheap but good quality face products. I've used the Bioré nose strips and don't really think they do much but for the price I'm paying for the amount I get, I'm pretty positive that The Face Shop sells much better value ones. They sell them individually or in a package. I settled on getting individual ones because I wasn't sure if I'd like them or not. I got one with aloe because it'd soothe the skin and wouldn't be too harsh.

3. The Face Shop Volcanic Clay Nose Strip with Charcoal, $1. 

After going to Iceland in January of 2013, I fell in love with using charcoal and having it as an ingredient in face products. It should be no surprise that I decided to get this nose strip as well since it's got charcoal in it and would be a nice exfoliant.

Hair

1. Bumble and Bumble Surf Spray, $29.50. 

If you know me pretty well, you'd know that I'm a beach gal and I love anything related to the ocean and beach. I've never been able to deal with my natural hair (straight at the top with wavy kinks at the bottom), so I settled on purchasing a travel size bottle of this stuff since so many people rave about it, and well, here I am with the full size. It definitely works better with damp hair, but I like that it doesn't give my hair a huge crunch and doesn't completely dry it out, which many surf spray products do. It also smells good!

2. Bumble and Bumble Prep Spray, $8.50. 

I have yet to try this because I'm not done using my Living Proof Prime Style Extender, but don't fret, the day will come soon when I'm using this! I settled on a travel size because I have no idea how much I'll like this. It's pretty much a primer for your hair before you start styling it.

3. Nume Classic 25mm Wand, $145. 

Nume has been a brand that I've been dying to try out, all thanks to the many YouTube videos I watch and all the gurus that use it and rave about it! It's also a known fact, that their sales are ridiculous and they have so many discounts! Trust me, when I say that I would pay full price for this (I got it on a BOGO sale). This wand heats up so fast and is so easy to use, PLUS it comes with a glove to protect yourself from burning your fingers! I'm able to create waves, which was pretty hard for me to do before with my Conair hair curler. I totally recommend this product for anyone who's looking for a good hair tool to use!

4. Neutrogena Anti-Residue Shampoo, $13.50. 

This is also a big favourite of many people who like to clean their hair from all the products and gunk build up in their hair. I don't use many products in my hair but feel that once in a while, I need to rid my hair from anything that has been built up in it. I usually use this once a week and you can definitely feel that your hair has been stripped of all the yucky stuff that's been collected throughout the times you've washed your hair! This is part of my 'hair growing' routine and I think it's going well so far!

Clothing

1. Babaton Gavin Coat, in Royal Navy, $225.

I've been looking for a new spring/fall jacket for a while and settled on this one since it has a water-repellant coating and wasn't like all the jackets that I've ever had before. It's also something different from what I see from everyone on campus at school. I chose a navy colour because it's not as serious as black and the other colour was a military green and I've already got a canvas jacket in that colour. I know the price is a bit steep, so I decided to wait until it went on sale (bless Aritzia for their private sales of 20-40% off).

2. Wilfred Free Anmari Dress, in Heather Tempest, $60.

This dress material has been made into so many different styles and cuts of dresses at Aritzia and I never really understood the hype until I found a cut/style that I actually liked and tried on the dress. It's a super soft and stretchy fabric, which is totally amazing. I'm loving the cut at the top, right above the chest but under the collar bone area. This dress hugs your body in every way which makes it so amazing! Once again, I purchased it during the Aritzia sale, now if only I got my hands on the other colours before they were all sold out...

3. Talula Alyssa Blouse, in Winter Melon, $40.

My sister was in need of business casual clothing and since I apparently have more of a fashion sense than she does, I settled on a camisole that could be worn on a regular basis or with business apparel. (To be honest, I'd probably wear this more). I'm liking the material, it's super soft and has adjustable straps as well as tiered layers at the bottom to add some sort of wow factor since it's simple but not too simple. Its a silky fabric, but realistically, it's just polyester. 

4. Abercrombie & Fitch High-Waisted Denim Shorts, with crochet sides, $56.

Forgot the name of these shorts and its regular price but they're already sold out. Something I'm really disliking is the lack in stitching quality on the crochet sections. I threw it in the wash and right away, the threads loosened up and now the crochet is coming apart, so I need to stitch it back onto the shorts. I'm happy I purchased these when they were on sale because they're definitely not worth the regular price if this is going to happen.

5. Lululemon Speed Short *2-Way Stretch*, in Spray Dye White Blue Tropics/Black, $54.

I'm a big fan of running and exercising in general and have fallen in love with the Lululemon Speed Shorts. I love that there's a liner inside and that they fit amazing and have a great stretch. They're totally comfortable and I wear them as lounge shorts sometimes. I've had no problems with mine thus far, and would definitely pay full price for these.

Miscellaneous

1. D&G 3 L'Impératrice Perfume, $85.

I'm not a big perfume or scents person but hey, a girl should at least own a perfume. So I decided to finally look for a scent that could be called 'mine.' The visit to Sephora was during the Beauty Insiders/ 3x the points on fragrances, but the trip actually gave me such a headache on the amount of scents I had to smell, we had to leave the store and go back after a break. Originally, I had wanted something by Marc Jacobs because I thought all the scents smelled good but thanks to one of the workers at Sephora, he was able to find me something that was a subtle but sweet smell. This perfume is very fruity smelling with slight hints of sandalwood, which, is something that I'm really liking.

2. The Face Shop Face It: Milk Calcium Nail Pack, $2. 

I thought it was weird that nail masks exist, but my nails have never been in the best shape after I stopped biting them, and for $2, why not try this out. It comes with 10 little covers for your nails and you leave it on for about 10-15 minutes before removing them and having your nails absorb the leftover product. I'm looking forward to trying this out.

This concludes, my haul that I've accumulated thus far. I'm sure that there will definitely be more throughout this summer, but I'm sorry that I've been MIA for quite a while. There will be a "What I'm Liking This Month" post and video coming soon after I've filmed a video for this haul, which should be up in a few days. But until then, make sure to check out my vlogs!

Stay tuned and have a great Summer!

- h.

Vlogging

So lately, I've been MIA, I admit. Well, actually, A LOT MIA. To be honest, I finished exams and moved back home for the summer and have been caught up getting back into working 4 days a week and acquiring a second job, also, I just began summer school on Monday, so that also happened.

But, don't fret! I've begun vlogging! The channel for my vlogs is.... https://www.youtube.com/user/hwonggglogs. Ashley from Flux&Xoulis and I are hanging out tomorrow (or today...whichever, Wednesday is for you) and we'll be vlogging our day, and a few haul or April Favourites video! I just need to figure out a good day for me to film and edit and still manage school and two jobs this summer! I'll also be travelling, so I'm excited to show everyone my adventures and all that jazz! 

Attending my first concert of the summer this Friday! City & Colour is playing at the Air Canada Centre and I've got floor tickets!! Can't wait to document that! 

Stay tuned!

- h.

Hair Growth

For the past few months, I've been dying the bottom layer of my hair (the part that's bleached) a horrendous amount of times. This, in addition to me straightening my hair practically everyday took quite a big toll on my hair and the ends became ridiculously dry and damaged, not to mention filled with split ends!

So, when I had the opportunity to go home before my exams began, my first trip was to the hair dresser's to get a hair trim! I know a hair trim isn't much but I didn't want that much chopped off but I wanted most of my split ends to be gone! 

I've always hated having 'awkward' length hair, which for me is from the shoulder to just a bit below the shoulder, my hair never seems to cooperate when it's at that length and tends to irritate me to no end. So, even though this happens now, I've decided to refrain from using heat on my hair (only used it twice since the hair trim!). 

Since the hair trim, I feel that my hair has grown quite a bit and is much healthier than it was before! What I've changed in my hair care routine is, I've begun massaging my scalp while in the shower, not with my finger nails but with the pads of my fingers (which, would be the opposite side of your nails), this doesn't scratch the scalp but massages it and doesn't damage it. Something else I've begun to do is only apply shampoo to the roots of my hair, and massage it into my scalp. This also saves a lot of shampoo because the shampoo will flow down your hair and clean the rest of your hair at the tips when you rinse it out! With conditioner, I do the opposite, I only apply it at the bottom half of my hair and comb it through to make sure that every strand of hair has conditioner on it! This also decreases the amount of conditioner used and by only applying it to the bottom half of your hair, it reduces the gunk build up on your scalp!

After showering, I usually towel dry my hair and while it's still damp, I apply Living Proof's Prime Style Extender hair primer, you can use this either before styling or just by itself. I feel that by using this, it tames my hair much more and makes it look much healthier! Since I can't really use hair oils as it irritates my neck, this is the next best thing!

When it comes to styling, if I do feel like doing any sort of styling, I usually braid my hair or apply Bumble & Bumble's Surf Spray when my hair is still damp as it holds the spray much better. Most of the time, I just go out with my natural hair down if it doesn't irritate me too much or put it up in a bun. Even when I'm itching to use heat appliances, I hold back because my main goal right now is to grow out my hair and not to damage it as much and slow down the process of my hair growth.

I hope this sort of helped and encouraged any of you guys who want to grow out your hair! I'll most likely do an update at the end of the summer since that's when I plan on dying my hair tips one last time before I trim my hair!

Until next time!

- h.

Animal-Testing Companies

It always saddens me when articles about animals being used as tests for cosmetic brands. I didn't really know how many brands actually tested on animals until I saw Peta2 tweet about their article showing which companies tested on animals and which ones didn't. Now, I'm not going to say that I don't have any cosmetics that are by companies that test on animals because that would be a lie. But, it's sad to see how many companies that are so high class, actually test on animals and still have such a high reputation.

A few years ago, Lush ran a campaign to show how torturous it could be for an animal to be used as a test subject by using a volunteer (a human) and displayed what she had to undergo when cosmetic brands were testing products on her. It was shown to the public on Oxford Street in London which is the biggest shopping strip in London (well, the most famous). 

For more information, I've attached a link to the Peta2 page where you can find more information on which brands test on animals and which ones don't, as well as the DailyMailUK article on Lush's Animal Testing protest.

Peta2's Animal Testing/Non-Animal Testing Brands:
http://features.peta2.com/shopcrueltyfree/index.aspx

DailyMailUK's Lush Animal Testing Protest:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2134555/Lush-animal-testing-protest-Woman-subjected-experiments-horrified-shoppers.html

A new YouTube, video will be up in a few days for the ending of 'March Madness,' this will include my second haul and birthday celebration presents that I received!

Until then,
- h.

Huge Haul! PLUS, YouTube Video Out Now!!

Hey Guys!!

I know I've been away for quite a while and not a lot of YouTube videos have been made! I have one recorded, I just haven't found the time to edit it! But, don't fret! Hell week at school is over now and all I have to worry about is final exams! So until, that comes around the corner...I'll be posting and updating everything!

A while back, I did a huge haul over a weekend, and well I've finally found the time to share with you guys what I got!

If you guys, don't feel like reading this wordy and lengthy article, here's the 14.5 minute long YouTube video! (It's long, I'm sorry.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i239G0gXN1U

Starting with hair products, I have a tendency to buy a lot of hair products, specifically conditioners and just use whatever shampoo I have at home because I don't feel like they make that big a difference.

Organix Sea Mineral Moisture, Moisture Surge Deep Treatment & Conditioner, $10.49.

I actually got this when the new Organix products came out, it's got quite the seaweed/kelp smell to it and I feel that the conditioner and deep treatment are both moisturizing. They both manage to make my hair really soft whereas, Dove products just clean my hair but don't soften it or anything. This usually retails for about $10.49 Canadian at Shoppers but often goes on sale for $6.99 - $7.99. I believe it's original price at Target and Wal-Mart is about $7.99. This line also consists of the shampoo and the shimmering weightless moisture replenisher hair spray.

         

Garnier Fructis: De-Constructed Beach Chic Sea Salt Spray, $5-6.

Moving on to the new Garnier Fructis: De-constructed Beach Chic Sea Salt Spray, I was really excited for this as I'm always on the lookout for sea salt sprays because, I love having that wavy hair (mine's a mix of wavy and straight, it is not fun.) Anyways, the smell was decent, nothing I couldn't handle but the spray did absolutely nothing to my hair besides dry it out (got that sea salt effect, going for me). My hair stayed the same minus the texture. It's a good thing that I bought this on sale for $3.49 Canadian at Shoppers because otherwise, I would've been so mad. I believe, it usually retails for about $5-6.

Manic Panic Semi-Permanent: Hair Colour in Voodoo Blue & Hot Hot Pink, $14.99.

If you know me, then you'll know that I have a layer of bleached hair that's grown out so much, it basically just looks like I ombre-d my hair (I didn't.) So, while waiting for it to grow out enough for me to get it all cut off and still have a decent length for hair, I've decided to dye it. My go to for hair dye is always Manic Panic since it's vegan and semi-permanent. The one I always get, when I do decide to dye my hair is the shade 'Hot Hot Pink,' I really like the result that shows up on my hair and the shade it turns to when it's fading, an orangey-pink (sunset, ya know wha I'm sayin'?) Since my hair isn't totally bleached white and striped of colour, it's a natural orangish brown. Recently, I decided to finally test out blue in my hair. I've always wanted to be one of those girls with long dark hair (I have the long part, just not the dark) with the blue streak going down. So I finally got blue dye and MAY have accidentally swallowed some dye because it go on my dinner when I was in the middle of dying my hair...don't worry, its vegan with no chemicals, so no I didn't die. Just a recommendation though, DRINK LOTS OF WATER. Last term, I accidentally got krazy glue on my tongue and chugged so much water. But hey, if I can survive, I'm sure you can too.

My hair turned out teal and I was satisfied with it but I missed out on some parts of hair that still looked puke green to me, so I re-dyed it the next day. Currently it's back to teal, but that's because I haven't had the time to re-dye it. Maybe tomorrow night...I got the Voodoo Blue at Sally's for about $12, and the Hot Hot Pink one at Shoppers for $14.99, they don't go on sale often :(

MOVING ON...

I got the randomest item ever, so I guess this is where I'll post it. 

L'Occitane Shea Butter One Minute Hand Scrub, $24.

Recently L'Occitane did a promotion for a free trio sample of their top selling hand creams, and along with that was a 15-20% off discount for their store. I figured, it'd be worth it since they probably don't do much sales and they're pretty pricy to begin with so I caved and bought the L'Occitane One Minute Hand Scrub (why? my hands were dry at the time, it was also winter and cold). It looks really oily but that's because the scrub is sunken at the bottom and you need to mix it for it to look more like a scrub. I really like it and thought it was very moisturizing, it definitely got rid of the dry flakes on my hands due to the cold, winter weather!

From the random tangent to all the other things I bought, we'll start off with face, then going towards eyes and ending with lips!

Urban Decay: Naked Skin HD Loose Finishing Powder, $40.

My friend, Ashley from Flux & Xoulis had me for Kris Kringle this past Christmas and had never gotten me my gift for the longest time because everytime I said I wanted something, I would usually buy it for myself before anyone had the chance to do so. So the last time I was home, we were out shopping together and finally concluded that there was no way for her to get me a gift unless I was the one that chose it! So I finally settled on the Urban Decay Naked Skin HD Loose Finishing Powder. I chose this because it'd be a super light coverage for my lazy days (which is pretty much everyday) and that it'd be much easier to manage, as with foundation, I have to squeeze it out onto my hand and blah blah blah. Such a long process and I ain't got time for that in the morning. So far, I'm really enjoying it! It's really nice and makes my face look clearer than without anything (which isn't that bad to begin with). It costs $40 at both Sephora and Shoppers, if it were up to me, I'd get it at Sephora for the BI/VIB points but Ashley works at Shoppers so...there's that.

       

Lush: Mint Julips Lip Scrub & Dark Angels Face Scrub, $9.95 & $12.95.

I decided to pay a visit to Lush when I was at Eaton Centre one day because I've always been interested in the idea of natural ingredients and what not. I'm a bit skeptical on the whole thing and the price but, I was interested in trying something new and was in dire need of a good face and lip scrub. I had heard a lot of hype about the 'Bubblegum' lip scrub, but sweets is not really my thing, so I did some research and found that 'Mint Julips' was a mint chocolate kind of flavour, so I was definitely down for that, PLUS, YOU CAN LICK OFF THE EXCESS! Second, I needed a face scrub that wasn't drying and one that wouldn't break me out with acne. I spoke to the staff and she recommended me either the 'Ocean Salt' or 'Dark Angels,' I tried both and concluded that 'Dark Angels' was nicer. Its made of Moroccan lava clay, avocado oil, charcoal powder and brown sugar. It definitely has a strong liquorice smell but if you don't mind that, then you're good to go! It clears up my excess oil and doesn't create more during the day. It also doesn't dry out my skin, so that's really nice! The staff member at Lush was also nice enough to provide me with a sample size of 'Ocean Salt,' I still have yet to test that one out. Both of these products are a bit on the pricy side because they're all natural and what not, which is good for a splurge once in a while! You don't need much of the face scrub when using it and I definitely don't use much of the lip scrub on my lips, so it'll last you a while! 

Revlon: Photoready 3D Volume Mascara, ~ $10

As usual, I'm always on the hunt for new mascaras and had come across this one as it was on sale and I like how the brush is separated and is a fibre one. The mascara barely clumps and I'm really happy with it. No surprise that it doesn't hold my curled lashes up though, I always need to use waterproof formula mascaras for that (thanks for my being Asian). But yeah, I'm really happy with this, it'd be great if a waterproof one was created! I purchased it at Shoppers for about $6.99, it usually retails for about $10 or a bit more, I believe.

 Lorac Pro Eyeshadow Palette, $42.

A cult favourite of everyone who's ever owned this, the coveted Lorac Pro palette! I finally got my hands on it after Sephora stopped selling them and the Lorac cosmetics site doesn't ship to Canada. I somehow managed to finally get it (praising my friends that live in the USA and go to school in Canada), if you're wondering how, I finally found a site that took a Canadian billing address and would ship to USA. And, I have a friend at university that lives in the States, so I shipped it to her place and got her to bring it back for me! (Long process, I know) Anyways, is it a surprise that I'm in love with it? It's so well pigmented and you can literally do everything with this palette! There's a whole row of matte shades and a whole bottom row of shimmer shades, I use this as an eyebrow filler and combine shades for smoky eye. 

Revlon: Colourburst Lip Butter (Candy Apple), Super Lustrous Lipstick (Coralberry), 

& Colourburst Lip Butter (Juicy Papaya), $5-10.

I've heard so many good things about the Revlon Colourburst Lip Butters and of course I got the cult favourite 'Peach Parfait,' sadly, I didn't like it because of the shimmer, so there I go again, not liking a lot of cult favourites (haha...) Anyways, I've finally gotten into the phase of liking lip products, and am the biggest fan when it comes to reddish shades! My going out/everyday (common day, at least) lip butter is definitely 'Candy Apple,' not only is it moisturizing but definitely gives your lips a pop of colour! I've only ever swatched the lipstick in 'Coralberry,' I'm trying to get more into corals and nude shades right now. But one of the closest lip butters I have closest to my lip's natural shade is 'Juicy Papaya.' These two lip butters are the least shimmery and definitely moisturizing, I really enjoy them! I put the price range as $5-10 because I really don't remember the retail price and it definitely varies with where it was purchased. I purchased all three of these when they were on sale for $6.

This concludes my 'huge haul,' if you'd rather watch a video of this, it'll be uploaded soon on my YouTube channel, HiLarious. I should be editing the video tomorrow so it'll be online at night!

Until then, 

- h.