Instagram Round Up #7

Hello loves!

It has been a while since my last Instagram round up so here I am with another one.

I like these little posts, they show off some stuff that maybe you don't see if you don't follow me on Instagram which you should be @briannarue

Top left to bottom right

Today's makeup, natural outdoor lighting is the best for any photo.

Recent blog post about the elf brow gel. Read here

A Subculture look, very fall-esque.

Teal liner (Not proud of how this turned out, I will be redoing it)

Feeling blue. I've been living for blue shades on the eyes recently.

The whole blue themed look

Drop your instagram below for me to check out!

♥
Bri

Please follow me on Bloglovin

Scrub of Happiness

 

Hello loves!

Boy, is it a dreary winter day outside right now. As we all know winter is the season for dry skin even for those who may not have dry skin throughout the rest of the year.

I'm a big believer in exfoliation, at least once a week for the face and a couple times a week for the body. I won't lie I usually stick to Lush for most of my luxury bath products but I was in Bath & Body Works and they had new products which of course immediately caught my eye.

They had a whole new line up of aromatherapy products. I'm skeptical when it comes to aromatherapy. I don't truly believe a scent alone can uplift your mood. Regardless, I picked up the "Happiness" Smoothing Body Scrub featuring notes of bergamot & mandarin. Bergamot is supposed to create a sense of well being where as mandarin supposedly helps boost your mood. While I didn't notice a mood change while using it, it's a great exfoliating scrub.

I wish I had a body brush to use with it but I just rub it all over my body in circular motions with my hand making sure every inch of my skin is exfoliated to get rid of any pesky dry flakes I may have. After I'm covered toes to shoulders, I rinse it off with hot water. It leaves your skin feeling silky smooth and smelling strongly of oranges. I don't mind the scent but for those sensitive to smells maybe steer clear as it is strongly scented as are most of Bath & Body Works products.

What do you use to exfoliate?

♥

Bri

Please follow me on Bloglovin

Love of the Week

 

 Good afternoon loves!

I hope you're all having a wonderful day.

I've been obsessed with trying to perfect my brows these days. I'll admit I'm a newbie when it comes to brows and have only just started dabbling in the world of brow products. For the longest time I'd use powder to fill them but I'd never set them. A huge mistake on my part leading to brown smudges above and below my brows, not a good look. Off on a hunt to find a clear gel to set them with I stumbled into a Wal Mart that had a huge selection of elf products.

Elf is a wonderfully affordable brand that I've had good luck with through the years. This brow gel was only two dollars. I couldn't pass up something that cheap especially if the outcome was so bad that it was tossed to the trash at least I didn't spend a fortune right?

There is a brow side and eyelash side. I use both for my brows as I don't see the need for gel in my lashes. There's a lot of product on the spoolie when it's pulled out but I wipe off the excess and brush it through my brows creating the shape I want and it sets them flawlessly for the whole day. For two dollars this in amazing product that does what it says, your brows won't budge all day. Just out of curiosity I might try some in the high end range but after using this I don't see why anyone would spend more than two dollars if you don't have to.

Thank you elf for this perfect brow gel at such an outstanding price.

What's your favorite brow product?

♥

Bri

Please follow on Bloglovin

A Gloss I Don't Hate

 

 Good morning loves!

Anastasia is one of my favorite brands. They make nothing but fabulous products, albeit the Subculture drama....Read my full thoughts here.

I hate glosses. I don't like the sticky texture as I'm constantly pulling my hair off my lips it seems and overall I just prefer a more matte look. If I wanted something creamier I would choose a cream lipstick over a gloss any day of the week. 

When I was a makeup newbie I picked this up thinking it was one of the ABH Liquid lips little to my knowledge it was a gloss. Of course, I didn't discover that until getting home and pulling it out of the bag.

I was in Edmonton at the time and was headed to the Beyonce concert with no lip color to speak of so instead of returning this, I gave it a shot because I wasn't about to go to a concert with a full face and no lip color.

Well, ABH did it, they created a gloss I don't hate. In fact...I might be tempted to try more in the range. The shade I picked up is "Undressed"

The formula is thick, I don't think I've ever tried a gloss with such a thick formula. It's extremely pigmented to boot. These two factors alone in my opinion make it more of a creamy lipstick. I've never seen a gloss with such deep pigment. The only difference between this and her liquid lips is the shiny finish and that's about it.

I just prefer to have color on my lips, I don't see the point of a gloss other than to add the shine.

Do you prefer gloss or lipstick?

♥

Bri

Please follow me on Bloglovin

Urban Decay Wishes

Hello loves!

A wish list post for you today as I've put myself on a spending ban. (we'll see how long it lasts)

Urban Decay, a brand we all know and love. I'll be honest, I've tried very little from them. I own the original Naked, Naked 3 and Naked Heat. That's as far as I've gone with Urban Decay so I created this little wish list of some other products I'd like to try out.

Naked Ultimate Basics - Sam Ravndahl loves this and I trust any product she raves about. I don't see this on Sephora anymore but it is on the UD website. I already know I like UD shadows so I couldn't imagine being disappointed in this.

Liquid Moondust Shadow - I only own one other liquid shadow and its from NYX. I feel like this would give any look the extra pop it needs. Vega is a stunning blue and the one I'd be most likely to pick up.

Vice Lip Toppers - These are gorgeous. Now, I'm not really a fan of glitter lips but these are giving me life. They may actually turn me into someone who doesn't wear mattes all day, everyday.


Heavy Metal Liners - I want to play with glitter more. Is that theme coming across yet?

Glide on Lip Pencil - Okay, I mean if you haven't noticed yet I\m a total lip junkie so all lip products are up my alley.

All Nighter Concealer - I've heard nothing but raving reviews on this. The only thing putting me off buying this is full coverage is usually not the best for dry skin but it's a worth a shot.

UD X Kristen Leanne Kaleidoscope Dream Palette - When I first saw this I was underwhelmed but the swatches got me. Those colors are not like anything else I've seen in other palettes and I honestly have very little color in my shadow collection. It's mostly nudes.

What's your favorite UD product?

♥
Bri

Please follow me on Bloglovin

Top 5 - Nude Lips

 Hello loves!

As you all know I'm more of a dark lip fan but that doesn't mean I don't own some nudes. In fact I'll be the first to admit that the nude collection is constantly growing. Today I wanted to share with you my current top five, almost all of which are drug store.

Being fair skinned it's hard to find a nude that doesn't make me look like a washed out zombie but I've narrowed it down to my five favorites.

{left to right - Maybelline Peach Buff, Rimmel Kate Moss 40, Rimmel Nude Delight, Tarte Birthday Suit & Rimmel Kate Moss 42}

 Maybelline Peach Buff -  After looking at the swatch, I'm debating whether or not would this would be classified as a pink. Either way, it goes on smooth doesn't dry out the lips and works with a variety of looks.

Rimmel Kate Moss Nude 40 - I'm a huge fan of the Kate Moss range of lipsticks. Aside from the nude range I own almost all the colors. These are affordable, easy to wear and easy to apply. This i a tad too light but looks fantastic mixed with a darker nude. 

Rimmel Moisture Renew in Nude Delight - Usually brown toned nudes don't mesh well my skin tone but I have no issues with this one and again being on the darker side it looks better than lighter nudes which wash me out.

Tarte Birthday Suit - A recent addition to my collection. But fast becoming a firm favorite. It's the perfect combo of a dark lip and a nude at the same time. Not only that but it's matte and I love a matte lip!

Rimmel Kate Moss 42 - This one is the perfect nude color for me, not too pink nor brown. Strikes the perfect balance for my pale pale self.

What's your favorite nude?

♥

Bri

Please follow me on Bloglovin

elf contour brush

 

Hello loves!

Sunday, the last day of the weekend and the day before heading back to work. The most bittersweet day of the week. 

Christmas morning was full of glee as I unwrapped this little gem. The elf contour kit which not only included a nice size contour kit but a full size brush as well.

Almost all my brushes are elf so I was excited to see a new addition to my ever growing collection.

The elf contour brush is perfectly shaped for carving out those cheekbones with a sharp contour. The bristles are densely packed and extremely soft. A lot of people complained about shedding with this but I've had absolutely no issues.

This is more fit for a sharp contour, I find it quite difficult to blend out product with due to it's shape. I'll use this to apply the powder/cream and then I'll go in and blend with my elf angled blush brush to create a softer look.

What brand do you use for brushes?

♥

Bri

Please follow on Bloglovin

Zoo Lights - Calgary | AB

 

Good morning loves.

Before Christmas a group of friends & I headed over to the big city to see the annual lights the Calgary Zoo hosts every year.

I used to go every year as a kid as I grew up in Calgary and was in girl scouts so every year we would do activities all over the city. I've been having a rough go lately so I wanted to look back on a night of happiness and laughter.

This year the lights were Alice in Wonderland themed. Spot the clock tree and the Cheshire Cat.

We even got a tea party and Santa picture!

Unfortunately the lighting was not in our favor so those will not be posted.

Another cool thing they had was a rink set up in the middle of the zoo offering free skating!

All the proceeds of Zoo Lights went towards helping animal conservation. So not only do you get a fun night out, you're helping the animals as well.

What activities have you done lately?

♥

Bri

Please follow me on Bloglovin

Haul #2

Hello loves!

Well, it's the first day back at work for me and I am struggling through it. I hope you all had a lovely holiday and a fantastic New Years Eve. 

Of course, another haul because I can't control myself. 

As I mentioned previously my mom always gets me an Aritzia gift card for Christmas. Now, any Canadian folk know that Aritzia is not a cheap store so I only was able to pick up three things.

I got a turtleneck (my first one in a LONG time). Also from Aritzia I got a cute lace bralette and a camisole. 

You can't go to the mall and not drop by Sephora. I picked up one of the Gen Nude Liquid Lipsticks from BareMinerals in the shade Swank. This is the first item from BareMinerals that I've ever tried and I have to say so far so good. Becca had highlighters on sale so I picked up one in the shade "rose Quartz" Becca is again another brand I've never tried but let me tell you, this highlighter swatched is stunning and has a beautiful pink reflect!

On to the boring items, I needed foundation and concealer. I picked up another tube of the Maybelline Fit Me Concealer and then a new foundation to try out. I got the Photo Focus foundation from Wet 'N' Wild which I've seen a lot of people rave about so I'm excited to give it a shot and update you guys!

What was your favorite Christmas present?

♥

Bri 

Please follow me on Bloglovin