Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Bad, Blogger, Bad!

Hey Ladies!
Long time no chat! I have been absent for just over a week and I feel horrible. I feel like I get into blogging cycles- I either blog tones and tones in a short period of time, or I completely fall off the blogwagon for a while until I feel like something's missing.
I'm not going to moan and groan about a million excuses, but I was working a lot last week (for the last month for that matter). But, yesterday, Tuesday, was my last shift at work for a while. I told my manager that I was going to take all of September off so I can get a feel of my new school workload and schedule. I'm also going to be commuting 5 days a week to my school (about an hour each way) so I need to see when I am finding myself free to squeeze in some extra shifts at work. I don't start school until Sept 6th so I've decided that the time between now and the start of school will be my summer "me time". This Friday I am heading up north to go to my university roommates house, which is beautiful and right on the water, with all my other uni girls. I am so excited for tanning and sipping on cocktails all weekend!

I have some plans for some upcoming posts that I'm excited to start writing! Tell me, what is everyones' end of summer plans?

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Mac Studio Fix Powder review




The other day I stopped by the Mac counter. I wanted to get a replacement of one of my most purchased Mac products- the Mac Studio Fix Powder. This is my 3rd or 4th repurchase of this product- a definite holy grail item. It is so versatile. Sometime I use it to set my makeup, other times on lazy days I use it as my foundation. I have used Macs mineralized skin finish natural before I switched to this, and I much prefer this mainly for the fact that it has very good coverage for a powder. It is also great to carry in my purse for on-the-go touchups or oily spots. I also love the fact that it has the bottom compartment with a sponge for, again, on-the-go.
Previous times purchasing this product the girl matched my colour to an N5, which seemed to match me great. But this time I was matched to an NC40! When she said let me try NC40 I was like, "ummm I think that's going to be way to dark!" Although, surprisingly it fits! Keep in mind though I am nowhere near an NC40 in their foundation, so it's always best to go in and get matched in a store or at a counter rather than risking a shade disaster by purchasing online.
Have any of you girls tried Studio Fix Powder? Would you give it Holy Grail status? Let me know in the comments!
xx Jessica

Monday, August 15, 2011

Bag Love






For the last couple of months I have had my eyes peeled for the perfect school bag that I could carry my laptop, folders and other necessities, and look professional AND cute. A lot to ask of a bag but I think I've found her! On Friday my Mom and I went shopping and we just happened to walk into Danier Leather, a store I had never really been in before nor had the desire to. Although when I saw this bag I knew it was what I had been looking for, and it was on sale...double score!
It has its own padded compartment for my laptop with lots of extra room for my other things. It was a little bit more than I had initially wanted to spend, but my Mom made a good point that I should buy something of good quality that will last me and stand the test of everyday use. I'm loving it!
What are you girls planning on using as your school/work bag this fall?
P.S. Sorry for the less that perfect pictures. The last one is from their website. If anyone has any tips on taking good quality pictures I would LOVE to here them!

xx Jessica



Friday, August 12, 2011

Follow me on Twitter!!


Hey guys. I recently just created a twitter account for my blog. My username is @ruffsandtruffs .Send me your Twitter usernames so I can follow you guys too!

My Everyday Eye Makeup (Using Mac)



   


                                      



This is the eye routine that I use pretty much everyday. It is my go-to look and it literally takes me 4 minutes- tops. If I'm going out for dinner or something and want the look to be a little more dramatic I am just a little more heavy handed with the crease colour and switch out my brown eyeliner for black.
What I used and how I do it:

1: First I apply All That Glitters from Mac over the entirety of my lid and blending it out a little higher than my crease. If you own or have used this colour you know how absolutely wonderful and versatile it is. It is by far my favourite Mac eye shadow. A lot of times I just use it alone, putting a little more in my crease and it looks like I'm wearing more than one colour and I spent so much more time on my makeup than I actually did. PLUS it makes blue/green eyes *POP*!
2. Next, I apply Wedge from Mac in the crease with a fluffy blending brush. This shadow has a matte finish and is a perfect crease colour to compliment a more shimmery lid colour.
3. Recently I have become a huge fan of brown eye liner. It gives a much more softer and less harsh look over black, but stil defines your eyes beautifully. Here I used Maybelline's Unstoppable in "Cinnabar" and applied it to my lid and my waterline.
4. Finally, I finished of with a mascara. Here I used L'Oreal's Voluminous Carbon Black.

And there it is. It is seriously that simple to achieve a quick, yet pretty eye look super crazy fast without using tonnes or products.

What's your go-to eye look for work/school? I would love to see it!
xx Jessica

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Makeup (Re)Organization

If your a reader of my blog and I have read my previous post you are well aware that I am pretty stressed out at the moment with life in general. When I get into funks like this one way that I tend to cope it by cleaning, sorting, and organizing everything around me (which kind of makes me wish I were like this more often :S ). So my first victim of my cleaning/organizing hurricane was my makeup. As you can see in the first picture there really was no rhyme or reason to how I stored my makeup. I would try and keep it quasi organized, but eventually I would use it and just through it somewhere. 


I have had this train case for over 5 years. It was a present from my aunt for Christmas and it came with a bunch of bad quality makeup which I never really ended up using. BUT the train case itself is brilliant and I had never really thought to keep my makeup in it.
 Everything fits in nicely and neatly and there is a fairly deep bottom part that is perfect for bigger items that I can't fit in the trays or even brushes. I wouldn't use this for travelling- unless I was a makeup artist or Tammy Faye Baker. When I travel, or stay the night at my boyfriends I just take what I need and pop it in a smaller makeup bag and off I go.

How do you guys organize your makeup? I would love to see!
xx Jessica

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

So Stressed: Life Update

I have been the worst blogger known to bloggerdom for the last couple weeks. I have had so much stuff on my plate that I couldn't find the time, and quite honestly the motivation to do any posts.
As some of you might know (I've posted this in a few posts before) I am starting a post-graduate program starting this September. My campus is in Toronto and my original plan, and had been for the last year, was to move in with my University roommate in Toronto. VEEERY long story short, there was vast miscommunication between where we both wanted/needed location wise in the city to be near where we needed to be.
So, my new plan of action is to commute into Toronto everyday. I live about an hour outside of the city, which isn't too too bad, although the wild Canadian winters we tend to have scare the pants off me. The upside is that I will be saving thousands of dollars I would have wasted on rent AND I don't have to leave my boyfriend. Although now I have a whole new plate of worries like what if I am the only commuter in my program and I miss out on a lot of social aspects of the program (which it is a VERY social/group oriented program), along with the stress of traffic, commuting, parking, my sad old car... blah blah blah. You might be reading this thinking that this really isn't that stressful of a situation, but for me I am the kind of person who needs a solid plan far in advance, and this situation has been all over the place for the last couple of weeks. So yeah, that is my story of where I have been. I have so many blogs I need to catch up on!
I hope to have some new post up very soon!
xx Jessica

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

My New Favourite Thing

A birthday gift from my amazing boy:)Yes- she is finally mine!! 



Hard Candy Review


For those of you who can remember, Hard Candy used to be sold at Sephora and Ulta, but a few years ago it seemed to have disappeared off the face of the earth- until recently. The brand has relaunched their line at Walmart for ridiculously low prices, with a few items quickly gaining a cult-like following. 
I recently picked up two of their most popular items- their "Fox in a Box" blush/powder in the colour "Skinny Dipping and their "Glamofauge Heavy Duty Concealer" in Medium.

My thoughts of each:

Blush ($6): 
I actually really like this product. I don't use the two colours separately, but I swirl my brush in the box, mixing them together. The result is a highly pigmented peachy-coral colour, with a slight orange undertone. I have a medium skin tone and I find it very flattering, but I can also see it being very pretty on a fair complexion if it were applied with a very light hand. I also LOVE the packaging. It kind of reminds me of Benefit blush boxes. The only downside I can see in this product is the brush it comes with. Looks pretty, but kind of useless in my opinion. - for only $6 this is a steal!

Concealer ($6):
This product claims to cover everything from acne to tattoos- and it definitely does! Just like the name says, this is a VERY heavy duty concealer. You only need the smallest, tiniest, baby sized amount of this product to conceal anything. It is very, very thick. You have to be very careful with this product because it can look cakey very easily. I also would not suggest this product for under your eyes as it is so  thick that it will crease and look extra cakey. The onlt other downside is that there are only three colour options: light, medium and tan. I chose the medium because I tend to always be a medium shade, although I find it a bit too light. If I were to repurchase I would definitely go with the tan. 

bonus concealer pencil: 
great for quickly dotting on over a little blemish and patting in. Although, nowhere near the coverage of the Glamoflauge. 

Have any of you tried this product line? What do you think about it?







Saturday, July 30, 2011

Professional Work/School Fall Essentials

If your a reader of my blog than you know that come September I will be attending Post Grad studies in PR. PR is a very image conscious profession in which it is always important to present yourself in a professional way. During my orientation session it was stressed that we are to dress everyday to class as we would in a business atmosphere. This is a drastic change from the Ugg boots and sweats I would throw on before dragging myself to 9am lecture in University. Thus, I have found yet another reason to shop. REJOICE! 
These are a few items that I plan to purchase as new staple items in my wardrobe. For the most part they can be mixed and matched for a multitude of different outfits with a polished look.

The low-rise heel:
As much as I LOVE 4 inch heel (only being 5 foot 4) they are just not practical for every day use, especially taking the subway everyday.
http://www.myspringshoes.com/ca-eng/clearance/women/shoes/75345089-pel/95
 Classic Button-down:
I love the look of a crisp, white button up shirt. With so little effort it makes you look so polished and professional. I prefer fitted ones like this one rather than the popular "boyfriend" style. This is much more work appropriate.
http://bananarepublic.gapcanada.ca/browse/product.do?cid=51166&vid=1&pid=715604&scid=715604163
 The Trench Coat:
Even though this one is probably the least "essential" of all the other items I still want one so bad for fall! They are so classic and it goes with almost anything. I especially like trenches in their quintessential taupe colour. AND they remind me of spies, which are ALWAYS cool, duh.
http://www.asos.com/pgeproduct.aspx?iid=1637093


Pencil Skirt:
This is a definite work/school staple. Pencil skirts have been, and always will be in style for a reason. They are very flattering on many body shapes because they elongate your torso. 
http://www.victoriassecret.com/ss/Satellite?ProductID=1265546705342&c=Page&cid=1309521932127&pagename=vsdWrapper&search=true
 Dress Pants (or for my UK followers- trousers):
Again, these go without saying. A couple pairs of dress slacks are a must have. I prefer them in dark colours like black, navy and grey. This way they are a. more slimming, and b. you can have more fun with bright coloured tops.
http://www.victoriassecret.com/ss/Satellite?ProductID=1265547063469&c=Page&cid=1309521939147&pagename=vsdWrapper

Friday, July 29, 2011

Essie Wars: A Comparison and Review


Left: Vanity Fairest, Right: Fiji



At a quick glance at these two Essie Polishes they look almost identical, although, as you can see, on the nails they have two totally different looks. I already owned Fiji and just received Vanity Fairest for my birthday from a girlfriend. When I opened it I though, "Oh I already have Fiji" then looking at the label I saw it wasn't Fiji, and as I've come to realize quite different.

Fiji: This is a very popular nail polish colour, and for good reason. It is the quintessential opaque baby pink. Even though I love this polish there is a downside to it. It tends to be streaky and a bit hard to work with. Although, in the picture I applied it over a base coat and it seemed to apply a bit easier.

Vanity Fairest: This colour surprised me. I expected it to be opaque like Fiji, but as I applied by first swipes I quickly realized it is very, very sheer. It also has a very slight shimmer to it, so slight that you may not even notice it. The photos show the colour after three coats. The result is a very subtle and sheer pink. It almost gives a freshly manicured nail type look. It is quite different from Fiji, but I love it just the same.

Have you tried either of these polishes? Let me know in the comments below. Which one do you prefer?

Don't forget to Follow!
Love you girlies :)
Jessica

Thursday, July 28, 2011

10 Things You Probably Didn't Know About Me

photo from weheartit.com

1. I am a University graduate of English Language and Literature with a minor in Psychology. In September I will be beginning a Post Graduate program in Public Relations 
2. I have been with my lovely boyfriend for 5 years and I love him to bits
3. I am ADDICTED to sugar and candy
4. I am the middle child of three and the only girl
5. Reality tv is one of my guilty pleasure
6. I looooove diet coke...a little too much
7. During my gap year after uni I've been working as a waitress 
8. I "happy cry" all the time- emotionally touching commercials are the worst culprit :S
9. I love the Spice Girls and saw them during their reunion tour
10. I love nothing more than staying in and watching rom-coms and chick flicks

I tag everyone that reads this! I love reading other's posts like this!

xoxo Jessica

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Mac Lip Product Haul


I went to the Mac Store in Toronto last week with the intention of buying a new lipstick/lipgloss combo. I told the girl (who was immediately on me like white on rice- which I hate!) that I was looking for a coral-ish lip colour. I also told her I had very naturally dry lips so didn't want anything overly drying, like a matte. The products she tried on me were "Ravishing," a creamsheen, and "Richer," a Luster. I'm really liking the combo. It's bright, yet still warm and suites my blue eyes and skin tone.





I also use a lipliner in a colour similar to my own lip colour before I apply my lipstick. The Mac sales girl suggested it and I think it looks much better than by itself. The one I used here is from Covergirl.
What do you ladies think? What's your favorite lip combo at the moment?


Don't forget to follow my blog
xoxo
Jessica

Monday, July 25, 2011

Small Sephora Haul

Hi girlies! I hope you had a wonderful weekend! 
Today is my birthday and this past weekend I celebrated it with all of my friends. On Friday my friends and I set up an outdoor movie night and watched bad teen 80s and 90s movies and had a midnight swim in my friends pond. Then on Saturday I had people over for drinks and then went out dancing. I am so grateful for all of the loving people in my life.

On Friday during the day I went browsing at Sephora, mostly because I wanted to redeem my Sephora insider bday present. :) I picked up a Sephora by O.P.I gold sparkly topcoat in "Only Gold for Me". I love it- it has large and small chunks of glitter and looks gorg over my bright pink polish underneath. 

For the month of July the Sephora bday gift is a delicious smell bath gel from Philosophy appropriately titled, "Happy Birthday, Beautiful". It smells like a freshly baked vanilla birthday cake. YUM.

I hope everyone else had a great weekend! :)
xoxo Jessica

PS make my birthday wish come true and follow me? :)




Saturday, July 23, 2011

John Frieda Go Blonder Lightening Spray Review

Now, before I begin I just want to start off by saying I was extremely scared to try this product. I envisioned watching my brown roots turn bright orange right before my eyes. Luckily this was not the case. The packaging says that this product is for blondes only, although I have medium brown hair and it worked amazingly on my hair- although please use this product as your own risk.

As you can see in the first picture (please ignore my dirty hair) my roots are fairly dark. I started by taking newly my newly washed hair and sectioning it into 2 inch sections and sprayed the product just on my roots trying my best to get everywhere. Then, I dried my hair as usual focusing more on my roots, as this product is HEAT activated.



These are my results after just one use, even though the package says you will see results after 3-5 uses. Although, I think I might have been a little heavy handed with the nozzle and used a bit too much than recommended- but I LOVE the results! The only small complaint I have about this product is that it made my hair very very dry feeling (it's main ingredient is hydrogen peroxide), but I quickly solved this problem by sleeping with a deep conditioning masque on my hair and it was back to normal in a couple days.


Have any of you tried out this product? Let me know in the comments your experience with it!
Don't forget to follow :)

xoxo Jessica

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Spreading the Love: Favorite Blogs

Photo from weheartit

Hey ladies, I recently saw a post written by Katie on her blog: Blueberries "n" Strawberries about some of her favorite new blogs. This gave me the idea of doing a similar post of some of my favorite blogs to read in general. I love posts like this because it helps others discover awesome blogs that you maybe would have gone undiscovered, and also because it helps support fellow bloggers- it's all about positivity and spreading the love :) Here they are in no particular order:

1. Blueberries 'n' Strawberries I'll start the list off with Katie because she was the one who inspired me to write this post. She always has great reviews and posts, and her blog layout is sooo cute. It makes me smile every time I click on her new posts

2. Gaby's Beauty Blog - I love Gaby's blog, and I LOVE that she's a fellow Canadian. She always does amazing reviews, great hauls, and she always hosts contests and giveaways. Her blog is definitely worth checking out.

3. Pammy Blogs Beauty- Pam's blog was one of the first beauty blogs I stumbled upon. She always has great reviews on many different products and lots of awesome tips

4. Rachinald - Rachael, like myself, id pretty new to blogging, but she is definitely off to a great start! SHe has a clean, simple layout, great pics, and great posts

5. Sofia's Journal - You know those bloggers that when they pop up on your dashboard you get super excited and read right away?... this is exactly how I feel about Sofia's blog, and I'm sure you will too. SHe blogs about a variety of different topics, and always seems so positive!

6. Which Way to Wonderland -I love Hannah's blog because she always blogs about interesting things, and she blogs consistently. She also has recently started a series of blogs in which she interviews other bloggers- I LOVE this idea.

7. With Love, Freckles - Just by reading Lauren's blog I can tell I would definitely be her real like bff if we ever met in person (no creepiness intended lol). She has amazing style and is so beautiful.

8.Superficial Girls - I have only recently became a follower of Carlinn's blog and I am SO happy I found it! She has AMAZING style and always puts together the best outfits. She currently lives in Malta and her pictures are always outstanding. You NEED to check out her blog, you won't regret it!

Let me know of any other blogs that you guys love, or better yet, write a post like this yourself! Spread the love <3

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Currently Loving: Stacked Wrists


I love the look of stacked wrists. I've noticed this trend is exploding this summer- and the beautiful thing is that it is so inexpensive and easy to achieve such a great look. I've even gotten into making my own bracelets, the old-school friendship style made of of embroidery thread.

In the photo from left to right: H&M Bracelet, Seiko watch, leather bracelet from a flea market, turquoise bracelet from a trip to Cuba, Turquoise ring from H&M

What do you guys think?

xoxo Jessica
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