Showing posts with label betsey johnson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label betsey johnson. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Monthly Favourites: May 2014

May was a whirlwind of a month over here at Facepalm base (aka the comfy overstuffed couch in my living room); this month I returned to school after a five year hiatus - I do not remembering being a student being so difficult! How do normal people juggle work, school and having a social life?! With that being said there's been some awesome discoveries this month, particularly in the skin care department!

Fragrance

Molecule 01 by Escentric Molecules. I got it! I finally got it! If you don't know what I'm so excited about you clearly haven't read this post yet! Pete, my amazing boyfriend got this for me as a birthday gift and I have been wearing it non-stop since. It's a really unique fragrance, more of a social experiment than a perfume but it layers amazingly with all of my other fragrances.

During a recent trip to Sephora with a girlfriend she was adamant that a smell a little rollerball from a company I'd never heard of and never given a second glance to before but holy hell am I glad she was so adamant! Vanille Coco by Comptoir Sud Pacifique is AMAZING! Seriously guys, it's like vanilla sugar and coconut had a baby; a sexy. sexy baby. The only was I can explain this fragrance without getting a little too risqué is to say it's like a romp through your wildest fantasies. With a shirtless Ryan Gosling by your side...

Skincare
Between work and school work I've had a hard time unwinding at the end of the day but Aromatherapy Associates Relax Body and Massage Oil has definitely been helping with this. I make my self a nice hot cuppa and slather my body in this wonderfully relaxing oil and curl up with a book (or Netflix if my brain is fried post studying) and have a little me time at the end of a hectic day.



Oskia Renaissance Cleansing Gel has been my saviour this month, I wrote a review on it here so I won't go too much into detail but I love it so much I've added the Oskia Renaissance Mask and Oskia Micro Exfoliating Balm to my Cult Beauty wishlist!

Lavanille's The Healthy Deodorant; armpits have skin so this is part of skincare, right?! I know like it seems like a bit of a random thing to have in my monthly favourites but this stuff is seriously awesome. I'm not really a sweaty person so I steer clear of antiperspirants (also, the thought of something stopping my body from what it is designed to naturally do kinda freaks me out) and this deodorant has filled the void in my underarms life. My armpits are super soft and wonderfully scented now, just in case you were wondering!

With all of the late night studying sessions and early mornings for work I figured it was time to pull double duty; I've been applying My Beauty Diary Dark Circles Intensive Eye Care Masks in the evenings and leaving them on while I study and so far the lack of sleep hasn't been showing in the mornings!

Bits and Bobs


Life: My birthday was on May 1st and I had a week full of celebrations with friends and family including dinner with my closest friends at my favourite local vegetarian restaurant Padmanadi's and a super cute Betsey Johnson watch from my mother!
Tea of the Month: Pomegranate & Acai Berry Tea Lemonade (mix 1/3 cup lemon juice with 6 cups of brewed Pomegranate Rooibos & Acai Berry Tea by The English Tea Company, sweetened to taste and served over ice) 
Book of the Month: This will probably be my last book of the month for a while as reading for pleasure is quickly becoming a thing of the past unfortunately. This month I re-read an old favourite that I read annually; Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, no matter how many times I've read it I always find myself completely engrossed and moved by the book.
Netflix Obession of the Month: North & South, I binged watched this mini-series not once, not twice but THREE times during this month it was so good. I won't go into too much details as not to ruin anything but let's just say it's yet another British period drama and if you like Austen you'll love this romance filled mini-series.
Blogger/Vlogger of the Month: So my blogger/vlogger of the month is usually a beauty account but I recently stumbled upon SmarterEveryDay on YouTube and I'm hooked! Destin from SmarterEveryDay takes scientific principles that are usually quite dry and hard to understand and makes them easy and interesting (see: slow motion cats and How Houdini died)

Monthly Dose of Crazy Dog Lady:


I've been informed that for being the crazy dog lady that I am my mutts never seem to make it on the blog; so the newest addition to monthly favourites is the best dog photos of the month!

Meet the Mutts: Joe is my big boy, he is a 3 year old Rottie X that I adopted from Second Chance Animal Rescue Society back in July of 2011 and Reece is my little trouble maker. She is a 2 year old Pitbull X that first came to me as an emergency foster  back in October of 2012 while I was fostering dogs for Whitecourt Homeless Animal Rescue Foundation, her and Joe bonded immediately. She had Parvo and got really sick and spent awhile at the vet trying to fight the deadly virus off. Joe paced listlessly while she was gone; when she came home, she never left again.

What have you lovelies been loving this month?

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Friday, April 18, 2014

My Fragrance Affair

It's no secret I have a fragrance obsession, at this point I guess it's almost on the verge of a hoarding problem so I figured I would show you guys what I've stocked up on, and talk a little bit about the science of perfume (yeah, I'm a nerd, get over it!)



I first got into perfume at a really young age because my older sister was always wearing Calvin Klein's Obsession and being the little sister I wanted to be just like her, so I pestered my mum for years to let me wear perfume (sneaking into my sisters room to use hers as well, shh....) and finally for Christmas one year, I was about 13 I think, I opened my very own bottle of Obsession and it's all been down hill from there...

The Layers of a Fragrance

Let's talk a little bit about the science of perfume so my fragrancy jargon isn't lost on you; a perfume is fundamentally made up of three layers:

Top Notes: These are usually what you smell first and make up the majority of the scent, they're usually quite strong but tend to recede after about 10-15 minutes.

Middle Notes: After the top notes have gracefully bowed out this is when you'll really begin to smell the middle notes (or heart notes as I've heard them called and we all know I love every thing heart related!) These acts like a transition from the top notes to the base notes, not quite as strong as a top note but instead of fading away all together they tend to melt into the base notes.

Base Notes: This is the foundation of your fragrance, long after the others have faded away the loyal base note still lingers on.

The Body Sprays



Body sprays are a nice addition to your fragrance collection because they allow you to layer your fragrances without adding so much perfume that you get a headache. They're also a great way to freshen up your scent on the go and usually a much more budget friendly option.
  • VS Vanilla Lace - Top notes of Vanilla & a base of Musk
  • VS Love Spell - Top notes of Cherry Blossom & a base of Peach
  • VS Amber Romance - Top notes of Amber & a base note of crème anglaise
  • B&BW Snow Kissed Berry - Top notes of Juniper and Cranberry & base notes of Amber  and White Musk
  • VS Passionate Kisses - Top notes of Cherry & a base of Vanilla, Amber and Musk
  • B&BW Dark KissTop notes: Bergamot, Incense, Mirabelle Plum, Black Raspberry, mid notes: Amber, Burgundy Rose, Geranium, Peony, base notes: Dark Vanilla Bean, Labdanum, Vetiver, Balsam and Musk
  • VS Ravishing Love - Top notes of Blackberry, a heart of lilac and base notes of aloe and chamomile 


I tend to stock up on my body sprays whenever Victoria's Secret or Bath & Body Works has a sale one...

The Little Guys



These wee perfumes I picked up from Victoria's Secret ages ago and they're perfect to keep in your purse or for traveling, they provide more of a scent pay off than a body spray but still not quite as much as some of the more high end perfumes and are still very budget friendly.

  • Love SpellTop notes of Cherry Blossom & a base note Peach
  • Secret Craving - Top notes of Black currant & a base note of Vanilla
  • Coconut Passion - Top notes of Coconut, mid notes of Lily of the Valley and base notes of Vanilla
  • Amber RomanceTop notes of Amber & a base note of crème anglaise


The Fresh Scents


  • Vera Wang's Princess - Top notes of Water Lily, Apple, Mandarin and Apricot, heart notes of Guava, Tuberose and Cacao with a base of Vanilla, Amber and Wood. (This particular treasure made my March Favourite's List)
  • Katy Perry's Meow - Top notes of tangerine, pear, jasmine and gardenia, heart of honeysuckle, lily of the valley and orange blossom with a rich base of amber, vanilla, sandalwood and musk.
  • B&BW Midnight Pomegranate - Top notes of Pomegranate, Citrus, Dewberry, Anise, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, heart of  Blackberry, Jasmine, Raspberry, paired with a Base of Musk, Sandalwood, Vanilla, Tobacco and Patchouli.
  • Betsey Johnson by Betsey Johnson - Opening with Top notes of grapefruit, pear, black currant and tangerine, a heart of freesia, lily of the valley and red apple, while the base finishes with cedarwood, sandalwood, praline, amber and musks.


The Warm Scents


  • Fragonard's Fleur de Vanille - Opens with fresh vanilla flower, melts into a heart of vanilla, ylang-ylang, heliotrope and rose and finishes with a cozy base of chocolate, cacao and musk. (I've also been using and abusing this fragrance so much lately it landed a spot along side Princess last month)
  • Calvin Klein's Obsession - Top notes are composed of mandarin orange, vanilla, peach, basil, bergamot and lemon; the heart is rich with coriander, sandalwood, orange blossom, jasmine, oakmoss, cedar and rose; and the base notes are amber, musk, civet, vanilla, vetiver and incense.
  • Katy Perry's Purr - top notes of peach, apple, gardenia and bamboo with the heart of jasmine, freesia and Bulgarian rose and the base of vanilla orchid, sandalwood, white amber, coconut and musk.
  • Tokyo Milk Dark's Bittersweet - A very prominent top note of cacao, a creamy heart of cake flour and osmanthus, finishing with a base of musk.
  • B&BW Dark Kiss - Top notes: Bergamot, Incense, Mirabelle Plum, Black Raspberry, mid notes: Amber, Burgundy Rose, Geranium, Peony, base notes: Dark Vanilla Bean, Labdanum, Vetiver, Sensual Balsam, Musks
  • Nuxe's Prodigieux Le Parfum - Top notes are orange blossom, bergamot, mandarin orange and orange; middle notes are rose, magnolia and gardenia; base notes are vanilla, coconut milk and pebbles.
  • Tokyo Milk Dark's Tainted Love - Top notes of orchid and tea with a base of sandalwood and vanilla.

One of my favourite fragrance websites is Fragrantica; it lists the notes, reviews, where you can purchase it and recommends other fragrances you may like based on a particular perfume.

What are some of your guys' favourite fragrances you think I should check out?