It’s 2018. I am so glad for 2017 to be finally done! It has been a long year. Even though it was a challenging year, there were some bright spots. Including some products that I fell in love with. This is my year-end review of the best beauty products 2017 that I tried. Most of these products are brand new to me and many were new products to the market. I fell in love with these products and will continue to reach for them in 2018. Some of these I have reviewed and some I have not. I will definitely be getting more detailed reviews soon!
We are already at the end of November! This year has flown. I am looking forward to 2018, but before we get there, there is some shopping to do. Thanksgiving in the US and hence the start of a frantic 6 week shopping season beginning with Black Friday. There is also Small Business Saturday, focused on supporting your local small businesses. It seems as though companies are starting earlier and earlier with the sales.
Here are some beauty and haircare sales that I think are interesting. I will continue to add as I discover more deals!
Before you start shopping, check out Honey and Ebates. Ebates gives you cash back on many of the places that you shop both online and in-stores. Honey scavenges for coupon codes and applies then automatically. This is not a sponsored post, but I do have affiliate links listed below. Feel free to sign up using my links, but you have no obligation to do so.
Affiilate Links
The following links are affiliate links. If you sign up using these links, I will get a small percentage of a purchase and/or referral credit. These links provide discounts or cashback, when available. There is no requirement or obligation to use these links. If you need more information, please see my Disclosure Policy.
Happy New Year!!! I hope that you have been enjoying 2017 so far! I have been more mindful to enjoy life a little bit more in this new year. More self-care, appreciation of life, and to be more bold. With that, I want to take a look back at all the best beauty products that I loved in 2016. These were my must-haves and I constantly repurchased them and will continue to remain in heavy rotation.
In the video below, I also give brief reviews and all the products mentioned are listed below.
If you like this post, make sure you sign up for my email newsletter by clicking HERE! Get the latest curated haircare/skincare news and see what beauty products that I loving at the moment!
Hey! So I have had this on my mind for months, years, now. I have always wondered why retail stores separated products specifically geared towards black consumers. Yes, black owned makeup brands. Why have an ‘ethnic’ aisle? I think this separation has made non-black people think that they could not use these products. People of colour have been using not-black specific brands for decades, even as companies still don’t produce foundation shade in the darker end of the spectrum. Certainly many people, who are non-black, have curly hair in need of moisture. Coincidentally, Jackie Aina, who I follow on YouTube issued a challenge to non-black makeup lovers to step outside of their comfort zone and try makeup brands that are black-owned.
There are even more makeup brands that have extended colour ranges that cater to medium to dark skin as well as lighter skintones, that are not black owned like blackUp Cosmetics, Sacha Cosmetics and Black Opal. Get out there, as a makeup lover, and look beyond the M.A.C. and the Covergirl and discover the makeup that we chocolate ladies and gents have been loving! You might be surprised!
In this tutorial, I mostly used black-owned brands and I tried to used products from companies that I did not think that were on the lips of every beauty blogger or magazine editor. There are more out there as well. Let me know, in the comments below, other brands that did not make my list.
Check out my video below and links to all the products mentioned are also listed.
And here’s the look! A beautiful gold, teal and turquoise. Perfect for a summer party or fete!
One of the reasons why I love New York City, especially in the summer, are all the cultural events that is happening in the different boroughs. There is something out there for everyone, from traditional to quirky to futuristic. Food events, arts, science, anything! One of the biggest and most prestigious events on the New York City social calendar is the Met Gala, held in early May. This year’s theme for the Met exhibition is ‘Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology’. How fashion designers combine or reconcile ancient hand-making traditions with modern machine-making technology.
Now before I go any further, you MUST see this exhibition!! It has been extended to September 5th at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and it is absolutely worth it! It is so well curated and put together. The fashion designs are phenomenal! Some designs are ready to wear and others are quite avant garde! My favourite were the designs from Alexander McQueen. The exhibit is sectioned into the métiers or specific types of professions/specialties in traditional haute couture design or craftsmanship, from featherwork to lacework to pleating. Some of the pieces were made by hand, cut, dyed and sown, while others were 3D printed. Being able to hand craft clothing is an incredible skill, and technology has the ability to take fashion into places that were could have only imagined. You can find out more about the métiers hereand here. I don’t want to spoil it for you all, so here are a few of my favourites.
Alexander McQueen
Dior
So a few weeks ago, on as part of the Met’s #MetFridays programme, there was a nail art event, held at the Met Store and featured the designs and work by nail artist Lady Fancy Nails and the polishes by Cirque Colors. I just learned that the Met collaborate with Cirque Colors and Olivia Kim to create a limited edition collection of 6 colours inspired by the #ManusxMachina collection. You know I can’t resist finding out about new brands and picked up one of the shades, Moon Dust. Cirque Colors is Big 3 Free and hand mixed in Brooklyn!
The Machina collection. Exclusively at the Met Store by Cirque Colors.
Moon Dust – Multi tonal colour hand mixed with real silver flecks!
So two of my friends and I went to the event on a balmy Friday summer evening and I loved it! Lady Fancy Nails is an amazing nail artist and I picked up some tips for nail design, but I was most impressed at her interpretation of the couture fashions using nails as her canvas. She’s really very good and loved the mix of creams and shimmers and she also incorporated other techniques and materials, like gold foil, negative space and different sizes of nail brushes. I loved her Chanel and McQueen designs the best. She has inspired me to get back into nail designs!
So check out her creations, and check out the Met exhibit before it closes.
