Beauty Trends | Geek Life: Augmenting Reality

Never fear, the right makeup and skincare products to look awesome always is here! Let's face it, "The Holidays" is absolutely synonymous to "OMG, I need sleep," and "Give me a Peppermint Chai Latte, skinny milk, one packet of honey, with ALL THE WHIPPED CREAM STAT." The busiest time of the year is an understatement, and it's not even your busy that may drive you to the nearest chic wine bar this week. It's everybody else's busy. It's while you reenact a bumper cars ride while you're trying to find that one store that moved from the middle of the mall. It's when you find yourself standing in line behind them and their 15 items, when you've got your one, and the customer at cash has a million questions about the return policy, and you just can't anymore. It's receiving yet another Christmas card in the mail, from one of those moms-on-the-ball, when you haven't even sourced out the family sweaters yet. It's tiring, and it shows, ugh. So, while I wish you all the time and chai lattes in the world, here are some helpful face-painting products to help you look like you've got it all in the bag, and wrapped up under the tree, and roasting in the oven. Burt's Bees One of my newest favourite things ever is [easyazon_link identifier="B014VZUH1G" locale="CA" nw="y" nf="y" tag="geewitsty-20" cart="n" cloak="n" localize="y" popups="y"]Burt's Bees Moisturizing Lipstick[/easyazon_link]. Especially in the winter, I usually hoard up on lip balm in all of my purses and coat pockets, as my lips get so very, painfully, dry. It's not pretty, at all. If you want to talk to me at a holiday party, just look for the nearest washroom, which is where I'll be trying to get my lips to not look like I've had a misfortunate moment with a cheese grater. This moisturizing lipstick cuts out the "middle man" of needing two or three tubes of lip product, by having the balm within the colourful tube of lipstick. Yes, the dream came true! You can have smooth, moisturized lips, simply by applying lipstick alone. It also means more room in your clutch for more important things, like your driver's license. [caption id="attachment_9826" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Burts Bees Sunset Cruise Lipstick[/caption] INGLOT I've recently become #INGLOTObsessed. They have all the colours, and shades, and quality product at affordable pricing, so I'm not stressing when wanting to add something new to my makeup palette. Up to this point, liquid foundation as always made me look either too pale or too tanned, and sometimes even grossly flakey, so I usually went without. In a matter of minutes, while sitting in the makeup chair at the INGLOT across from CF Eaton Centre in downtown Toronto, I was treated to a foundation that absolutely blew all others out of the water for me. Instant obsession. https://www.instagram.com/p/BNKQCEfAh47/ The obsession wasn't placed solely on the liquid foundation though. These three items are what cinched the deal for me. HD Corrective Primer: Green I've tried quite a few primers in my life, but none have had this level of perfect coverage, let alone one that helped my makeup truly last all day long! If you need a bit of help to look flawless in all kinds of light, I recommend you give this green stuff a shot. And if your skin is feeling particularly dry this season, simply mix the primer with your favourite moisturizer. [caption id="attachment_9836" align="aligncenter" width="203"] Skincare: INGLOT HD Green Primer[/caption] Some Would Even Say It Glowed My nose is sometimes redder than Rudolf's when it's super cold outside - like right now, ugh! I tend to need something extra to keep the red off my nose, and forehead, and chin, especially when family wants to take a thousand photos while I'm still a thawing icicle, brrrr! Green is the colour that is suitable for my skin and it's varying issues, but there are actually five different colours to choose from, all with differing abilities to improve the look of your skin, depending on your needs. Also, just last night? I was out celebrating my mom's birthday, and I got carded. When the dude looked at my card, he whistled. Whistled! As in musically implying, holy crap, you're that old?? I was left confused wondering if I should feel affronted on 37 being considered old, or all fluffy happy on looking younger than my little brother who didn't get carded, heh. INGLOT's Primer helps you look refreshed (and maybe a few years younger) for as long as you need it. Just make sure you have your ID on hand when you're out to party! If you take a look at INGLOT's website, you'll notice that the Primers are actually listed under "Skincare" instead of "Foundation" or "Concealer", as they each have properties to nourish your skin while being all awesome. False Lash Effect Mascara This mascara carries a great length and doesn't clot as much as other mascaras. It helps me look less tired, without getting tired of dealing with my lashes. [caption id="attachment_9837" align="aligncenter" width="251"] INGLOT False Lash Effect Mascara[/caption] I'm not sure about you, but I fight with mascara all the time... or used to, woot. It clumps up and makes my lashes move in directions that make me feel like I'll look all kinds of awkward for the rest of the night. INGLOT's False Lash Effect Mascara helps me add the effect I want in about a minute, and then I can move on to the rest of my look, without having to futz and worry over each individual lash. It's a time saver, and helps me actually look like I know how to apply makeup like a grownup. And when you pull off a wide-eyed look with the right mascara, people aren't going to point out how tired you look. FREEDOM SYSTEM Palettes This is a super stocking stuffer idea for makeup-loving teens and adults alike. One thing that makes me feel guilty about makeup is the overabundance of packaging material. Not just the plastics and cardboard boxes the makeup comes wrapped in, but the palette containers as well. [caption id="attachment_9848" align="aligncenter" width="864"] INGLOT Freedom System Palettes: so many to choose from![/caption] INGLOTs has found the way to make me feel less guilty though, by creating reusable pallets. I have one right now, but I foresee picking up a few more as my collection grows. The Freedom System four pallet for eyeshadow seems to be all kinds of popular, so if you see one in stock, pick it up! INGLOT has all kinds of gorgeous colours to choose from, so you're going to find those bright-eyed shades that you love most, anywhere from neutrals to absolutely wild, without compromise. And, look! SALE!! https://www.instagram.com/p/BN2o2D9DO9b/ THE BODY SHOP Body Butter with Your Name on It One of the coolest stuffers that will appear in the Lynne Family stockings this year is The Body Shop body butters, all with our names printed on top. On-the-ball is just within reach, woot. [caption id="attachment_9839" align="aligncenter" width="600"] The Body Shop Body Butter with Personalized Label[/caption] I may have already dug into mine. Shhhhh! I couldn't help it. Thanks to this dry, cold weather, I have saved myself from the pain of chapped skin, which means I don't have a pinched look for a resting face. Also the Satsuma scent is always soothing for me during the winter season, mmm. Need something more hardcore for your hands? Totally check out The Body Shop's HEMP collection. Both Jay and I dig that stuff when our hands get mistaken for alligator scales. Yuck. Matte Kajal White Eyeliner While my makeup bag is mostly all INGLOT now, I cannot live without the Matte Kajal white eyeliner. I wear it all year long, but it's especially fun during the holidays. It's so easy to apply, and gives you a great wide-eyed-totally-awake-I-wasn't-snoring-that's-so-not-drool-ew look when used around the inner crease of your lids. [caption id="attachment_9831" align="aligncenter" width="191"] The Body Shop Matte Kajal White Eyeliner[/caption] You can also apply white eyeliner to the middle of your lid, before the eyeshadow, for a secondary, lighter shade that will truly pop (and stick around even longer.) It's a great way to create a gradient of colour for your eyes, while only using one or two shades. All Kinds of Nail Art Weird, but true, non-chipped nails make you look like you've got everything under control. And you do, you so do. A great way to never show chipped nails, is to dazzle them with press-ons, or stickers. There are some beautiful choices out there that don't signal a FAKE! vibe, so choose what's more comfortable for you and laugh while your family and friends regale on how it took them a whole hour just to get a simple manicure last week. Here are some of my faves for the season, that will have your ready in a matter of minutes: Impress Manicure Okay, so this particular set, Dancing Queens, might only be available in the States. *pout* I haven't yet found them at my local retailer (Walmart), but they are so flipping pretty, I had to share them anyway. #WANT What I can tell you of these press on nails, is that they don't feel or look like press ons. You'll receive a ton of nail sizes in your kit, to ensure that each one fits your sizing properly and they'll get you through your day looking just as flawless as the moment you put them on. Impress keeps improving on the glue they use to keep these nails strong, and I've been able to wear my faves for up to a week now. https://www.instagram.com/p/BJQkHmAjqhi/ While rushing from one business event to another, I've actually added all ten nails on while zooming across the city by subway. They are truly easy to apply, and can be done in 10 minutes if you're short on time. Jamberry Nails Jamberry always has some exciting nail stickers (wraps) to look chic all season long. Absolutely loving these sets right now. Check out their site and find yourself a local Jamberry expert, or heck, if you love them so much, become an expert yourself! [caption id="attachment_9844" align="aligncenter" width="766"] Favourite Jamberry nail wraps for the holidays.[/caption] https://www.instagram.com/p/BKXBG3NgV6A/ Be Merry Well, there are my favourite items to look all Happy & Merry, even if all I want to do is build a fireplace (I don't have one, le sigh,) and curl up with a comic book or three, from my ever growing list of must reads. What are your favourite makeup products or tricks? Always love finding something new! Disclaimer: Some of these products were sent to me for review. All opinions are my own.

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