Carbon Coco Ultimate Carbon Kit: Teeth Whitening with Activated Charcoal

With the sheer amount of photos that will inevitably be taken, weddings are always a good excuse to work on your appearance, from hitting the gym more often to growing your hair longer for a fancy hairstyle (both of which I've been doing myself). Another thing I'm working on: teeth whitening thanks to Carbon Coco!

A while back, the company sent over their Ultimate Carbon Kit for me to try out. The star of the kit is Carbon Coco's Activated Charcoal Tooth Polish. A finely milled black powder, it's an oxidized version of charcoal with a hint of bentonite clay and lemon myrtle that supposedly whitens and polishes teeth without any chemicals or bad-for-you ingredients.

To use, you wet the toothbrush (conveniently made with dark bristles to avoid staining) and dip it in the powder. Brush in small circles for 2-3 minutes, spit out and rinse. The powder is odourless and tasteless but the sensation is a bit weird at first. You can feel the powder on your teeth, but it's not gritty and shouldn't cause any sensitivity.

The powder is followed up with the Activated Charcoal Toothpaste, which is also black in colour but foams up. I don't usually like spearmint flavours but this toothpaste was actually quite refreshing once I got past the strangeness of my teeth looking black while I brushed. Thankfully it does all rinse clear. The toothpaste acts as a protectant from staining to maintain your pearly whites.

Pretty easy to use, right? The main caveat I would give to anyone interested in trying these products is that they can get messy if you're not careful. The first time I tried the Tooth Polish, I accidentally used too much and got black powder all over my bathroom sink and counter. You only need to use a tiny bit of powder so once I got the hang of it, the mess factor was no longer an issue.

As for the whitening capabilities, my teeth are already pretty white but I have noticed they do seem brighter. The results are great for only 7-14 days of use (the recommended course).

Overall, I definitely prefer the Carbon Coco system over other more conventional at-home whitening products like Crest White Strips. I love not having to worry about harsh chemicals and potential tooth sensitivity, plus I need to brush my teeth anyway so it doesn't add much extra time to my night time routine.

The Ultimate Carbon Kit is super reasonably priced (on sale now for $59.95)... just make sure you factor in shipping time from Australia since it does take a while to get to North America.

CLEAN Fresh Linens

Sometimes there really is nothing better than the scent of fresh linens and no company that does simple, nostalgic fragrances better than CLEAN. The aptly named Fresh Linens is new for Spring 2018, made with top notes of Clean Sheet Accord, Asian Pear, and Clementine, mid notes of Rain Lily, Lady Orchid, Blonde Woods, and base notes of Skin Musk, Sandalwood, and Smooth Amber.

Perfumer Claude Dir explains:

"Inspired by the softness of fresh cotton linens on a sunny weekend morning, this fragrance evokes memories of lying wrapped in bed for hours, feeling the warm sun shine through your window and a light breeze tickle your skin as you rest, relax, and daydream.

When creating Fresh Linens, I was trying to capture that perfect moment when you have just changed the sheets on your bed and you slip in post-shower. The bed feels extra cool and crisp."

Housed in CLEAN's standard rectangular glass bottle, this time made in a matte yellow, Fresh Linens is a crisp unisex scent with a bite of citrus (although clementine is the only citrus note featured, it smells a bit lemon-y to me). I can see it being perfect for the warmer weather when you want to wear something fresh and light. As with all of CLEAN's perfumes, you can also layer it with any number of other CLEAN offerings, such as the infamous Skin or Warm Cotton.

Find it at Sephora for $95 CAD (60 mL).

Engagement Shoot Portraits

With our wedding date slowly creeping up, my fiancé and I had our engagement shoot with our amazing photographer, Sara Rogers, about a week ago. We picked Whytecliff Park in West Vancouver as the location since we often spend time there if we miss the ferry when we are heading up to the cabin in the summer.

Being the over-prepared type of person that I am, I actually had my outfit ready for months in advance. I think I ordered this dress last Fall in anticipation for our shoot and I've got to say, it was totally worth it... the photos turned out better than we could have imagined and we can't wait to have some printed and framed for our home. Sara also took a few portrait shots of me which means I can now share the look with you!

Dress: Love Verity / Boots: Sam Edelman (here)