Look Good Without Make-Up

When we're out and about, we always want to look and feel our best. This is no exception at home! So your boyfriend is coming over to spend the night. You want to look good, but what's the point of putting on make-up if your just going to sit around at home and eventually go to sleep?

Thankfully, there are a few tricks to refreshing your look that don't involve powders and liners. Here are a few things you can try:

1) Freshen' up! You can either cleanse your face or spritz on a little thermal water to plump up your skin and get it glowing.

Vichy Eau Thermale ($13)

2) Brush your teeth - plaque builds up on your teeth throughout the day and god knows what else is stuck between your teeth, so give them a quick brush. Your teeth will thank you for it, and your breath will be fresher too! Tip: scrub in a circular motion along your lips for gentle exfoliation.

Mine's the purple one :)

4) Comb your hair: One of my favourite Sex and the City quotes by Carrie: "Well girlfriend needs to run a comb through her hair - she has company". Indeed, simply brushing your hair can make a huge difference. And if boyfriends wants to run his fingers through your hair, he'll be happy you did it too.

Go get started!

5) Grooming is super important when you're not wearing make-up. We rely on make-up to fill our eyebrows, to make our eyes look bigger. We can achieve those looks that au-naturel! Tweezing eyebrows, plucking those strays and using and eyebrow brush can help tidy things up. 

Easy-peasy!

6) Eye cream! Concealer works great for hiding dark circles, but a good eye cream can help brighten things up and smooth out fine lines - it's a good habit to start wearing eye cream anyway to wear off signs of aging - hey, we're never too young!

Dermaglow Advanced Eye Therapy ($50)

7) Curl your lashes - okay so this one is a bit of a cheat. Eyelash curlers are a make-up tool, but if you use it on it's own without applying mascara afterwards, there is no make-up involved! I personally cannot live without my eyelash curler, it makes your eye looks more open and awake and your lashes look beautiful. It's not cheating, really I swear!

My baby

8) Vaseline. Everyone has a tub of vaseline lying around somewhere in their house! Apply a little to your lips to give them a boost of moisture and... little trick, dab a small amount on your eyelashes! It makes them look thicker and also helps keep them soft. Apparently, it helps them grow as well. Bonus!!

An oldie but goodie!

9) Moisture Moisture Moisture! There is more than looking good than just your physical appearance. The texture of your skin can add to your natural beauty. Rub on a little moisturizer and you will be feeling soft in no time!

I recommend this Strawberry & Papaya lotion from Shoppers Drugmart, it's absolutely divine!

10) Accessories. These are not necessary but can add a little flair to your natural look. Hairbows, headbands, whatever you feel like!

American Apparel ($14)

Et voila! You now look fresh and fabulous without an ounce of make-up one your face.

You know what that means - it's cuddle time!!

Morgsy

Eradikate

We all get that occasional zit that turns up unexpectedly and,if you're anything like me, always at the worst time. Wether big or small, we just want the damn thing off our face!

One of the many joys (cause there are many) of being a woman is that hormonal acne - yep, those little guys tend to pop up most around that time of the month. I unfortunately was not blessed, like some, with perfect skin (sigh!). Over the years I have bought a ton, and I mean a TON of acne products that claim to to clear up acne and keep it at bay. The truth is, products like benzoyl peroxide and salicylic dry out your skin like crazy. They work - better for some than others - but they are definitely not ideal.

Come in EradiKate. I purchased this product off a whim at Sephora, I had never heard of it, didn't know if it was any good but decided to try it anyway. Here is a little breakdown of the product.

EradiKate by Kate Sommerville ($22)

 Basically this is a sulfur product. Sulfur has long been used as a drying agent to treat acne - the highest percentage sold on the market is of %10, which is the sulfur percentage of this Kate Sommerville product. It comes in a small container with a 'do not shake' label on top. This is because there are two different solutions within the bottle: at the bottom you will find the pink sediments (the actual sulfur product) with a clear liquid on top. The clear liquid is simply there to prevent the pink liquid from drying out.

How it works: take a q-tip and dip it through the clear liquid and into the pink liquid, You should get a fair amount  of product on the q-tip. You can then apply the product directly to your zit(s) or whiteheads! This product is meant to be used overnight as it dries pink on the skin. Leave it on, and wash off in the morning.

Sulfur is said to have a bit of a rotten egg smell to it, I don't find this true with this particular product. It does have a fairly strong scent, but it wears off quickly.

What I like about Eradikate is that it is applied directly to the pimple. Unlike benzoyl peroxide, which you end up applying on and around the area, this does not dry out the surrounding skin. Very little of the product is actually needed in order for it to be effective!

If you're like me, you end up poking and picking at your zits. With EradiKate, it's out of sight out of mind. Not only will it dry out your pimple (and it does this very well!) it will also heal faster since you aren't touching it.

Overall, I really like this product. It is a little pricey but it does last a long time. I find it dried out the acne lesion faster that other products out there with fewer side effects such as redness and peeling.

So if your out there looking for a good spot treatment, I suggest giving EradiKate a try!

Morgsy

Split-End Remedies

At age 16, I decided to grow out my hair. I wanted it to be long - not just past the shoulders long, I wanted it to reach halfway down my back kind of long. I'd seen so many people with beautiful, long locks and wanted those for myself!

For the past few years, I've been struggling to grow out my hair. I've been told the best way to go about it is to get frequent haircuts. As much as I know this is true, I just can't bring myself to do it! Everytime I feel I have made progress, I get that 'little trim' to get rid of those nasty split ends. But they never just trim you hair, do they? That's because, according to about 95% of hairdressers out there, those 3 1/2 inches they removed was all 'dead'. If you're like me and trying to grow out your hair, 3 1/2 inches is a BIG deal!

So how do you avoid these unfortunate events? Yes, you can stop seeing a hairdresser. But will this really help? You're best bet is to keep your hair as healthy as you can. This way you will a) have to hit up the hair salon less frequently and b) lose less of that precious hair whenever you do go.

That being said, here are 3 products that can help keep you ends hydrated and healthy.

Left to Right: Moroccan Oil ($45), Biosilk 'Silk Therapy' ($18), Jojoba Oil ($14)

Moroccan Oil: I personally LOVE this product. The texture, the scent - it's one of my favourites. I apply it to damp and even dry hair and it leaves it feeling silky smooth! When used regularly, it has really helped with my split ends. It softens them and prevents further damage. The only downside of this product is the price - it is a little expensive. However, a little goes a long way. A few pumps of the oil is enough to cover the ends of your hair. I definitely plan on repurchasing this product,

Biosilk: I have had this product for a long time, even before I discovered Moroccan Oil. If you're looking for something a little cheaper but that still works well, I would go with Biolsilk. This is not an oil. The texture of this product is quite nice, like it says it the name, it feels like liquid silk. It has a nice scent to it too! It isn't quite as moisturizing as the Moroccan Oil but is definitely a close second. This product works best on wet or damp hair - not so much on dry hair. If you're looking for something to mend your split ends but don't like how greasy Moroccan Oil can be, Biosilk may be a match for you. I need to use a little more of this product to achieve the results I desire.

Jojoba Oil: I recently purchased this product from the acne.org website. Initially, I was using this product as a moisturizer for my face (I mix a few drops in with my daily moisturizer). I decided to give it a try in my hair. Jojoba Oil can be applied from root to tip, either in the shower (massaging in the product and then rinsing it out) or afterwards (leaving the product in). I found I needed a lot of this product to give my hair the moisture it needed - and it ended up looking pretty greasy. I would recommend this as a hair mask. If you know you will be staying in for the night, you can apply a (generous) amount to your hair - depending on your hair type you may wish to just apply to to your ends or to your entire hair - and leave it in. You can put your hair in a bun since it will be quite oily. Leave the oil in your hair for a few hours or even over night, then wash it out. Your hair will feel soft and smooth!

There are natural remedies for your hair as well - avocado, olive oil, depending on the amount of time you have and your budget, the are plenty of treatments available to suit your needs.

Morgs

I'm the kind of person who like to dip my feet into everything. When it comes to my style, my music, my friends - I've always been a little all over the map. I could never use one word to define myself: one day I may wear head to toe black with my Dr. Martens and the next a cutesie little button-up shirt with pearl earrings - that's just me!

I really do believe we can have it all. Who says you need to stick to one genre of music, or one trend of clothing? At the end of the day, you should really just wear what you like. Most of the time, by mixing things up, you'll discover your own unique blend and personal style... that's the best of 'em all.

I'm what you'd call a cosmetic freak. I go to Shopper Drug Mart to buy toothpaste and leave the store with a variety of scented moisturizers, face washes...you name it, I've bought it. What can I say, I'm addicted. I'm always searching for that miracle product that will fix all my problems and turn my life around! Over time, I have accumulated quite a variety of products: hair products, skin, nail care, you name it! I'll sometimes come accross products that I don't even remember having purchased, or used for that matter. So what to do with all this stuff? Which ones worked and did what they said they would, which failed miserably, and which can I not live without?

Behind My Bathroom door is a little peak into what's hiding behind my medicine cabinet - or well, in my case, in the drawers and shelves within my bathroom. From the tried and true to the I-wish-I-had-never-laid-eyes-on-you - I will give you my personal reviews of OTC (over-the-counter) products, online products, brand - name products and more.

My getting ready spot

And like I said before - I like to dip my toes into a little bit of everything, so I may wander outside the bathroom walls occasionally and talk about the new pair of shoes I'm just totally obsessed with (I know I said I was a cosmetic freak - but shoes, shoes are my other weakness, or at least..one...of...my...other weaknesses!! )

That's it for now!

Morgsy