REVIEW: Tarte of Giving Collector’s Set & Travel Bag

Tarte Cosmetics has done it AGAIN with another WINNER with their Gift Sets. This set comes 34 items but I technically count it as 15 and retails for C$71 and is worth C$588! That works out to be $4.73 per ONE ITEM!! If I haven't sold you on it yet, buckle up. If I have... smooth sailing from here ;) 

Includes: 

• 20 x .07 oz Limited-Edition Amazonian Clay Eye Shadows

• 8 x .059 oz Deluxe Maracuja Lipglosses

• 0.23 oz Deluxe Pure Maracuja Oil

• 0.08 oz Deluxe Maracuja C-Brighter Eye Treatment

• 0.05 oz Deluxe Limited-Edition Amazonian 12-Hour Clay Blush in Memorable

• 0.17 oz Deluxe Cheek Stain in Flush

• 0.16 oz Deluxe Lights, Camera, Lashes 4-In-1 Mascara

• Travel Makeup Bag

Amazonian Clay Eye Shadows: 

20 BEAUTIFUL stunning, sleek packaging which divides the palette into four. Each of the four sections has a dark liner colour, highlighter, all over lid, defining shade and crease color. They make it easy by pairing it for you to create SO many looks. The formula on these of course lives up to to the name as it delivers soft, buttery tones on your eyelids. It is easy to apply, not much fallout but again some shades are chalky so blend away! These eye shadows do not crease on the eyelids and i recommend to wear it with a primer so it lasts longer and the colours are more vibrant! 

Maracuja Lipglosses

ADORABLE packaging, small, easy and on the go! None of these come with names unfortunately.. They are however buildable! So you can wear it sheer or opaque! As a girl we need options.. and lots of them!  They don't have a particular scent to them either. 

Pure Maracuja Oil

Easy to incorporate to your routine! Just a few drops of this to your skin and it absorbs it like air! You find a long term effect where your skin looks better after several uses. 

Maracuja C-Brighter Eye Treatment

LOVE THIS STUFF! Totally recharges my big bags under my eyes and moisturizes it. I usually apply this in the AM and Evening.

Amazonian 12-Hour Clay Blush in Memorable

Super long wearing! Looks frosty but its a soft mix of mauve and pink with a plum undertone and it applies with a nice glow. Very flattering for many skin types as well. 

Cheek Stain in Flush

Where do I start with this... Except the fact that I LOVE IT! It is a gel/cream consistency and super moisturizing, blends easy, looks natural and great colour pay off! 

Lights, Camera, Lashes 4-In-1 Mascara

A lengthening, curling, volumizing and conditioning mascara. One of Tarte's most popular mascara's and now you can try the trial version! It gives incredibly full lashes but doesn't hold a curl for too long. 

FINAL VERDICT: 

All in all this is a great way to dip your toe into the pool and try out the Tarte Cosmetics Brand! Definitely recommend it! Super affordable and a great Christmas present to your loved ones! This is so versatile and you do not have to second guess about this baby! 

If you want to hear me ramble on about it Watch this! =) 

Saturation Saturdays! How to save Money During the Holidays.

I think I may have had too much caffeine coming up with that title name.. Definition of Saturation as always in the English world has so many different meanings. In this case I am using colour saturation... Which is the intensity and precision of a colour.... which led me to think of how Saturation is all about the details! SO.. I come to you with advice pieces and other such that I feel fits in this segment.... Random? Tell me about it.

SO Recently, a friend and I have been planning a trip to LA cause I feel like it is my go to, second home and place to be. The people are so friendly down there and its of course bigger than Vancouver. You always go up! ON POINT, we have been trying to save money more. SO I enlisted my girlfriends to have a house rotation of cooks.. Let me explain. In the fall time it is incredibly cold and rainy here. Just the other day we hit -4 C and that's about 25 F, the last thing I want to do is leave my cozy warm house to do ANYTHING.

So I proposed to my girlfriends that each weekend/week we would go to each other's houses and we would all take turns cooking an appetizer, entree and dessert. Then while the night was young we could still go out and shop, hit a club, go to a bar or stay in and bake, watch movies, play games etc.

We were easily spending over $100 a night altogether going out to dine! Drinking alcoholic beverages alone take up more than half our tab. Remember restaurants mark up their alcohol and sell this to you because it is easier to persuade you for another drink thank more food.

By cooking our own meals, we know what we put into it, which in the long run is healthier and we saved money! By gathering a group of your girlfriends it is way easier and less peer pressure to spend more and you can save it towards trips or presents.

This was a salad and entree my girlfriend made for us!

Keep Smiling!!! =)


xxxx,
Melissa

P.S. It challenges you to try new recipes!
P.S.S. You can also make it a competition if you want! Have a prize at the end... That usually motivates me ;)

This is the raspberry chocolate chip muffin that we made the rainy day we stayed in....

Skinny Raspberry and Chocolate Whole Wheat Muffins

Hey beautiful faces :) 

This recipe was adapted to give those health nuts a cheat snack, but its crazy healthy! The original recipe that I adapted it from you can find here. This all started because a friend and I are CRAZY for Cobs.. They have this Raspberry white chocolate scone that is divine. Below I have modified the recipe to cut the sugar and use more natural sweeteners. 

It was so close to being vegan than I decided to add Greek yogurt. Regardless you can make a lot of substitutions! 

This will easily make 12! 

Ingredients: 

• 2 cups whole wheat flour 
• 1/2 cup white flour 
• 1 teaspoon baking soda 
• Pinch of salt 
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon 
• 1/4 cup of honey 
• 1/4 cup of brown sugar (light or dark brown sugar will do!) 
• 1 Ripe Banana mashed
• 1/4 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt (or any yogurt) 
• 1 cup apple sauce 
• 1 cup milk (almond, soy, cow's or rice milk) 
• 1/4 of semi-sweet chocolate chips OR dark chips 
• 1/4 of white chocolate chips OR yogurt chips 
• 1 cup of raspberries (Fresh or Frozen) 

Instructions: 

1. Preheat oven to 325F. Spray muffin tins with nonstick spray. You can use muffin liners but it will stick. 
2. In a large bowl, sift all dry ingredients together: Flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon together. 
3. In another bowl, whisk honey and brown sugar together until it is thick and creamy texture with no lumps. Add the mashed banana, yogurt and apple sauce. 
4. Combine the wet and dry ingredients and fold it altogether. The consistency will be thick that is when you add the milk slowly to mix the ingredients together. The milk provides a thinning effect while keeping the mixture thick. 
5. Fold in the chocolate chips and or yogurt chips and then the raspberries last. Do not over mix batter or it will be tough dry muffins! 
6. Place the batter into the muffin tins and bake for 18-20 minutes and make sure to poke a toothpick in the centre of the muffin to see if it runs clean. 

ENJOY!! Let me know how well it works out!!! 

Keep Smiling!!
xxx
Melissa

New Schedule for Fall 2013

Hey Beautiful People =)

SO I am just getting the hang of things. I love so many things in life and wanted to share my experiences with all of you. I recently decided to upload videos on YouTube, I am absolutely no expert in beauty. I just enjoy talking about things I am passionate about. I wanted to also add the blog for those who didn't want to watch the videos and wanted to see written explanations of why I love certain things. 

This blog will be about everything and my personal views and opinions of life! From hair, to food, to lifestyle to beauty to fashion to fitness to my general opinions on life. You will see all kinds of things! 

Everyone is always curious about what is going on in my head as I am full of imagination and randomness. I'm sure as I get the gist of things my blog will change and grow as I learn new things as well! I am such a strong believer in growing as a person and to better myself. I think this is a great way to track your personal growth and see how far you have come. 

I have many exciting plans and projects coming up! With a busy fall schedule coming, I am currently taking a full load at university and working part-time at three different places. I am nearing the end of my semester but I do love documenting my life.

Thanks for taking this journey with me :)

Keep Smiling!

xxxx
Melissa