Fashion & Beauty

Shifting Fashion Gears for Fall

Monday, September 27th, 2010

Fall is all about shifting.  Shifting of seasons from warm to cool, switching of schedules from holidays to school, and shifting of wardrobes from summer to fall.  It’s a major time of transition and sometimes it’s all a little overwhelming, but often it’s refreshing.  It’s nice to pull out the box of winter clothes and discover things you forgot about or to head out for some shopping to add a few new pieces to your wardrobe.

The most obvious change I see in stores is the switch from bright, sunny colors to colors that are rich looking and deeper in tone.  More than ever, I’ve noticed a huge surge of gray as the new black and soft and neutral pinks, camels and mauves to match those grays.

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Skin Solutions Beyond the Spa

Saturday, September 11th, 2010

Spa treatments are great.  I enjoy the relaxing atmosphere, the trickling fountains, soothing music and low lights.  It’s a nice place to go every now and then, but let’s be honest, sometimes the type of skin problem that we have isn’t really getting addressed with a treatment like a basic facial.

As we get older, problems ranging from age spots and deep wrinkles to rosacea and loss of elasticity become more apparent.  Before we even get to the point of age related concerns, men, women and teens may be experiencing problems with acne, excessive sweating or the need for hair removal.

This is not to say or suggest that you stop going to the spa; I definitely won’t.

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Day to Night Makeup

Tuesday, August 17th, 2010

When I head out for the day, it’s rare that I bring makeup with me for re-application. I guess I’m the type of person that believes that if your makeup is applied well at the start of the day and with quality products, there should be little reason or need to re-apply it later on.  Gym workouts, sudden downpours and pies in the face excluded, your makeup should stay put.

But when you finish your work day and start to turn your attention to your evening plans, it’s a great time to turn up the va va voom on your existing makeup with a few, fairly simple upgrades.  This is where a mini makeup kit in your purse definitely comes in handy.

Now I say all this assuming that you took a little time at the start of your day to apply a clean and fresh daytime look.  I don’t consider myself to be a “chipper” morning person, but I do make the time to apply some makeup before I leave for work.  It helps me feel polished, pretty and professional.  

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Summer Hair

Sunday, August 1st, 2010

Summertime is great for so many reasons… barbeques with friends, amazing fresh fruit, vacations abroad or beach days close to home.  When it comes to taking care of and styling your hair in the summer, it’s hard not to fall flat rather than being fab. My hair is naturally curly and on a humid day, I can actually feel it expand into something resembling a poodle’s fur.  Pretty for a poodle, yes. Pretty for a dinner out with girlfriends, not so much.

Managing the mane and keeping it stylish is one thing, but protecting it in a variety of conditions is another, so we’ve tapped into our resources of experts to give you some great styling tips for the summer.  

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Man Feet

Tuesday, July 20th, 2010

Hey guys!  Guess what?   Your feet, in general, are not so nice to look at!  Not because they are big burly “man feet”, but because you haven’t looked after them all winter, or ever, and now summer is here and you’re showing them in public on a fairly regular basis.

Don’t worry, this doesn’t mean that we love you any less.  It just means that we’d like to stage a mild intervention on behalf of your feet.  Think about it for a minute.  Your feet support all those muscles you carry around each day, they take you to and from your job, they run you around the sports field and they are the first things you kick up when you’ve got a cold beverage in hand.  Don’t you think they deserve a little extra attention?

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Embrace Bathing Suit Shopping This Year!

Saturday, July 10th, 2010

Is there anyone who likes bathing suit shopping?  If you have a “perfect” body and no qualms about parading it in a skintight barely-there suit, then congratulations to you.

If, however, you find yourself in the same boat as the rest of us mere mortals when it comes to bathing suits, then I have a proposal for you.  You know all the years you’ve spent cringing when you think about having to expose your bod in the heat of summer?  Well, this is the year to take back the lakes!  Take back the beaches, the backyards, the swimming pools! Take back the carefree years of not thinking about what your body looks like, but what it can do!  And I’m going to tell you 3 things that will help you find the joy in bathing suits again!

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Mineral Makeup Unearthed

Tuesday, July 6th, 2010

As a Makeup Artist, I find it hard to wrap my head around the concept of using powder based products only.  I’ve trained with and consistently applied cream and liquid based foundations, concealers, eye shadows and blushes for years now.  In my logical mind, powder has always been used to set makeup, control shine and add color after the initial liquid products have been applied.

It should be no surprise then, that mineral makeup has not been something I’ve been drawn to or interested in, despite the major buzz it’s received in recent years.  Like most people, I am sometimes skeptical to buy new products.  I don’t want to be “out” the money for it and stuck with a product I won’t use.  

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Lashes For Miles… and Then Some!

Monday, June 21st, 2010

Lashes.  Long, thick, gorgeous ones, to be exact.  The type of lashes you see on mascara commercials, but just can’t seem to get with your own mascara, no matter how many coats you apply.  These are the lashes we all want and at the moment, I have!  How can you get these too?  I’m so glad you asked!

In a beautiful and spa-like room in South Surrey, Cara from Lululash provides amazing, natural looking eyelash extensions.  Unlike strip lashes or individual lashes that you can buy in stores and apply yourself, but have a visible base that you can see, these are synthetic hairs that are glued separately to each of your own eyelashes one by one to give you length and volume all at once.

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I’m Melting!

Monday, June 7th, 2010

“I’m melting! Melting! Oh, what a world! What a world! Oooooh, look out! I’m going! Oooooh! Ooooooh!”  While this phrase may bring you memories of The Wicked Witch of the West from the Wizard of Oz, those words were actually the thoughts going through my mind one hot August afternoon a few years ago.

I was at an outdoor wedding, waiting for the arrival of the bride (my friend) and not only were my thighs actually sticking to each other, but I was on the verge of getting the Whitney Houston upper lip sweat.  No joke!  It was not pretty. 

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Get Your Glow On, The Safe (and Sunless) Way!

Wednesday, May 26th, 2010

I love having a beachy, tropical glow to my skin from a tan.  It makes me feel healthy and confident and less in need of so much makeup.  Like many other people, however, I don’t love the harmful side effects that come from being in the sun or using a tanning bed.  Wrinkles and skin cancer, to name just a few, are things I definitely want to avoid.  So I was thrilled to hear about a mobile airbrush tanning service that comes to you and provides you with natural color for a lot less than what you’d pay to go somewhere hot and tropical to get those same results.

Envy Sunless Mobile Tanning is a Fraser Valley company that will travel to you to provide you with the airbrush service.  Airbrush tanning has been around for quite some time, but the mobile service is a convenient way for customers to experience the treatment in the comfort of their own home at a time that works best for them.

Believe me, this is not just a service for fitness competitors or contestants on Dancing with the Stars.  

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