January 28, 2016

OPI x Hello Kitty Nail Polish Collection

Anyone who knows me knows that I love Hello Kitty and, in fact, it's not uncommon for me to receive numerous Hello Kitty items for any gift giving occasion (cards, balloons, Pez dispensers, first aid kits, stationery, mugs, calendars, earphones, a toaster... you name it). What can I say? I'm easy to shop for. So when I caught word of the new OPI x Hello Kitty Nail Polish Collection I knew this was going to be my dream collaboration. I mean, it combines two of my favourite things: Hello Kitty + nail polish!


OPI sent me the collection to play with and I literally could not contain my excitement when it arrived. The bottles are standard OPI bottles with their famous Pro Wide brush, but also feature a white plastic cover on the tops with a repeating Hello Kitty face pattern. Honestly, the packaging is not really that special because the plastic feels kind of cheap... kind of like the clear plastic you remove from beauty products when you open them. However, it does distinguish the Hello Kitty polishes from the rest of my OPI bottles, which is important when you own as much nail polish as I do.

Where this collection really shines (for me personally, anyway) is the names. OPI is always super creative when it comes to nail polish names but I feel they really outdid themselves with the Hello Kitty Collection. Everything is so damn cute!


Kitty White, which is Hello Kitty's full name, is a pearlescent silver-white. I'm wearing 3 coats here and it applies well, although these metallic shades aren't my favourite to wear. For some reason they just seem very "bridal" to me.


Let's Be Friends (Hello Kitty loves making new friends, obvi) is a very pale pink, bordering on white creme. It wasn't the easiest to work with but is a nice, classic colour.


Small + Cute = ♥ (argh, how cute is the name of this nail polish?) is a sweet and simple light pink. It applied pretty well considering the fact that shades this light often cause trouble and I'm only wearing 2 coats in my swatch.


Super Cute in Pink is a fun hybrid formula of creme + jelly ("crelly") which means it looks kind of squishy (but isn't in actuality). I love the colour and the effect.


Starry-Eyed For Dear Daniel, named after Hello Kitty's boyfriend, is a magenta glitter with a lot of dimension and a somewhat gritty texture. Because of this, I'd recommend a top coat not only for a smoother effect but because without one it is prone to chipping. For a glitter, the polish is quite dense and was opaque in only two coats.


Spoken From The Heart is my favourite polish in the collection. It's a bright pinky coral that I already know I'm going to be wearing a ton this summer. Plus, it applied like a dream. This is only 2 coats.


5 Apples Tall is named after Hello Kitty's height (did you know she also weighs 3 apples? ... I know, it makes total sense to me too, haha). This one has a similar formula to Spoken From The Heart, which means it applies perfectly. I'm not a big fan of red nail polish but this a really good one. It really does remind me of a juicy apple!


My Twin Mimmy, named after Hello Kitty's twin sister who wears a yellow bow, is one of the fun pops of colour in this collection. I love yellows and the application for this one isn't that bad. Just make sure to wait between coats to avoid streaks.


My Pal Joey is named after Hello Kitty's little mouse friend who just so happens to be blue. This is another standout in the collection. Application was great, and you only need 2 coats to reach opacity.


Charmmy & Sugar, named after Hello Kitty's pet cat (because she's a little girl, not a cat, remember?) and pet hamster, is an interesting foil/glitter. It reminds me a bit of some of the polishes in Essie's 2013 Encrusted Treasures Collection which I know was not for everybody. I don't mind it... it kind of reminds me of cotton candy.


Never Have Too Mani Friends! (props to OPI for this clever play on words) is a straight up solid black. Always good to have one of these in the collection but if you already have a black this is nothing special. Unless you want the special packaging and the adorable name, of course!

January 25, 2016

KENZO Tiger Sweatshirt

Wow, sorry for falling off the face of the blogging world this month... to be honest, this year has been off to a very rough start for me healthwise (I've been sick, quite literally, for the entirety of 2016). I try not to be all "woe is me" on the Internet but you guys, it has really sucked.

After 3+ weeks of misery (and sadly I'm still not feeling 100%), I did muster up a bit of energy to take some outfit pictures this past weekend because I really wanted to share my favourite Boxing Day purchase -- my new KENZO Tiger Sweatshirt! I have wanted one since 2013 when these were all the rage, in part because I apparently can't get enough of designer sweatshirts (see here and here) but also because my Chinese zodiac sign is the tiger and I've always had an affinity for the animal. To sweeten the deal, I got it for 50% off! Turns out that sometimes the wait is worth it.

Sweatshirt: KENZO (in grey and burgundy) / Jeans: Frame (here and here)
Shoes: Reebok x Sandro / Bag: Chanel

January 12, 2016

FOTD: Annabelle Smokey Nudes Eyeshadow Palette

Annabelle Cosmetics had a bunch of new releases last Fall (I know, I'm super late on this... bad beauty blogger...) including the Smokey Nudes Eyeshadow Palette, a new drugstore entry in the neutral palette game. There can never be enough of these, can there?


Smokey Nudes features 10 shadows in a range of warm and cool tones from light to dark, clearly aimed for maximum versatility. The texture is on the dry and powdery side, but this makes it easy to blend. I found the pigmentation to be decent though the shadows are not opaque enough if you're looking for a very dramatic effect. However, retailing for only $12.95 CAD, this is a great offering if you want a starter palette of neutral shades without the pricing of an Urban Decay Naked Palette.

In addition to Smokey Nudes, Annabelle released some other eye products that I was pretty excited to try out. The Instaglam Kajal is a 2-in-1 with a thick felt tip liner on one end and a twist-up kajal for the waterline on the other end.


And then there were the brow products! The Stay Sharp Long Wearing Brow Liner is a waterproof brow pencil with a twist (literally). The innovative cap sharpens the retractable pencil every time the cap is twisted back on and somehow keeps the shavings in there too. For a cheaper alternative to the Anastasia Brow Wiz (my current HG eyebrow pencil), the Skinny Brow Liner is quite impressive. The actual product is almost identical to the Brow Wiz, although the brow shaping comb at the end is kind of useless (the Brow Wiz has a spooly which is much more effective).


I used all of these products for the above FOTD and was able to achieve a very wearable neutral eye look (basically what I wear on the daily). Overall, I'd say these are some good drugstore alternatives to more pricier options, and from a lovely Canadian company to boot!

January 5, 2016

Athleisure

Happy New Year! Things are already getting back into full swing in work/life so I'm glad I took a little time to recharge over the holidays. Of course, it was also nice to fully enjoy some of my more casual clothing... as you know, I am a huge fan of the athleisure look (see here and here, for example). While dressing up is fun, sometimes you just want to be super comfy for those weekend brunches and long sunny walks along the Seawall.

P.S. Yes, I totally chopped off a bunch of hair!

Parka: TNA (Aritzia) / Tee: Lululemon / Sweatshirt: Adidas
Sweatpants: Wilfred Free (Aritzia) / Shoes: Nike (here)

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