My Drugstore Beauty Faves

I've been using a LOT of beauty products bought from stores like London Drugs and Superstore lately (mostly makeup) and I thought I'd share some of my favorites with you. These items will not break the bank AND they work!

Repeat Drug Store Buys

As much as I appreciate higher-end beauty products - hello MAC and Sephora - I love a good drug store buy. Here are all the items I purchase over and over again, without the heavy price tag ; )

What's In My Bag

So I've always enjoyed other bloggers' "What's In My Bag?" posts, call me nose-y but there's just something about wanting to know what other women put in their purse! Make-up? Glitter? Tampons? Sushi? I've never done a WIMB post and I've been blogging for over three years so I thought, "Why the heck not?" Except what's in my bag (a Marc by Marc Jacobs Classic Q Natasha) might be boring compared to others...but here goes!

At the end of every year, I go to Chapters and purchase the same moleskin day timer in the same color (pink). Of course the year on the front is always different.  I don't use my phone to type notes in or jot down appointments, I like writing things down on paper and I also use highlighters to remind me of special occasions and of course, a pen. I always carry a Tide To Go pen, too, since I'm a clutzy eater and drop or spill things on my clothes frequently. I always wear Burt's Bee's Lip Balm and I always have my business cards with me, you never know who you're going to run into at the dentist.

You may think this is weird but it's not, I assure you, because a really good friend of mine does this too - I put all of my cards - my credit card, debit card, my license, health care card, etc. every card and money into an American Apparel zipper pouch. I just stuff everything in there, there are no sections to organize anything in this little pouch but it works for me! All of the cards I use frequently are either at the front or the back for easy access. The shades are my Jessica Simpson sunglasses that I got in Vegas a couple of years ago. I also have Maybelline Dream Mousse blush and NYX Lip Gloss on hand, as well as my keys and my iPhone. I don't have a cute iPhone case because a few months ago I dropped my cell into a pool while on vacation and damaged it so as soon as I got a new phone, I immediately bought a protective water-proof cover. It's grey. And super boring.

Missing in these photos: A Larabar to snack on (I had already eaten one that day), Kleenex (who wants to see Kleenex in this post?) and hand lotion which I forgot to include. Hand lotion is pretty much a given because I live in such a dry climate.

What's in your bag? Let me know in the comment section below! 

 

What's In My Makeup Bag

I don't know about you, but I love seeing what other bloggers/celebrities/my friends have in their makeup bags. Call me snoopy. Surprisingly, in the 3 years I've been writing Marie a la Mode, I've never done a "What's in my bag/makeup bag?" post so I thought it was time! These are just a few items I use on a regular basis and have to have when traveling.

L-R Starting fromt the top left row: 

Revlon Colorstay Whipped Foundation 240 Natural Beige - smooth like butter! I only use foundation on special occasions or when I'm going to be photographed, like for outfit posts.

NARS Copacabana Illuminator - I mix this with my Colorstay foundation and it gives me a nice, luminous glow. Yes, "luminous."

MAC Studio Fix C2 - I've been using this since I was 14. It's a powder and foundation in one but it's not cake-y.

NYX Super Skinny Marker in Carbon Black - I'm not good at putting on normal liquid liner, it's usually a war between me and the liner and the liner always wins, with the black ink ending halfway up my eyelid. I don't have a steady hand but with this, it's easy to apply and it lasts all day.

Clinique Lash Doubling Mascara in Black - This mascara really lengthens and extends my eyelashes. (Just like Pilates and my limbs!)

MAC Pro Longwear Concealer - I've used this for years. To see a review click, here. (I compare it to Cle de Peau's $70 concealer.)

NARS Orgasm Blush - My all-time favorite blush. I love the color and it looks good on any skin tone. It's popular for a reason!

ILIA Lipstick in Shell Shock - My friend Janis got this for me for Christmas and I love the color. Sorry you can't see it in this photo! In Edmonton you can buy ILIA lipsticks at LUX Beauty Boutique.

Burt's Bees Beeswax Lip Balm - An everyday staple. Very soothing and all-natural.

NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Stockholm - Very creamy but very matte and the color is gorgeous. It goes great with the NARS Orgasm blush.

MAC Eyeshadow in Vanilla - I always use this, on it's own or as a base underneath darker colors. It doesn't crack or cake on the eyelid.

Body Shop Eye Shadow in 07 - A great color to use for contouring.

What's in your makeup bag? Let me know in the comment section below!

**CONTEST CLOSED** London Drugs New Product Review and a GIVEAWAY!!!!

Ok, I can hardly contain my excitement! A couple of weeks ago London Drugs sent me a bunch of new cosmetics they carry (including lots of NYX products which I couldn't find easily in Canada until now!) to try out and they sent me an extra package to give away to one of my lucky readers! That's right, one of you will win all the items featured above, a cosmetics package worth over $120! But before I get into that, I thought I'd do a quick review of each of the products.

Revlon Colorstay Whipped Creme Makeup 24 hrs 240 Natural Beige (not available yet at London Drugs but will be very soon). This medium-coverage foundation is as smooth as butter, I couldn't believe how easy it was to apply and blend. And it did stay on for hours, without caking. This is my new favorite foundation, hands down.

 See? Smooth like butter and literally as soft as cashmere! Love this stuff!

I was also impressed with ALMAY's Wake Up Liquid Makeup with SPF 20 in 030 Naked $16.99 - it also blends easily and I love that it has a SPF of 20 for sun protection. I'd say it's a medium-coverage foundation. I prefer the Revlon Whipped Creme to the ALMAY foundation though, simply because it gave me more of a flawless finish and the Revlon foundation is much smoother to apply. But if you want sun protection in your foundation, the ALMAY one I recommend. I was really impressed with both, especially how long-lasting they were. The NYX HD Studio Photogenic Primer $17.99 is a high definition, mineral-enriched, talc-free, paraben-free primer. It's a little hard to apply - it's sort of a tough, white liquid that you really need to blend well so you don't end up with a white cast on your face. That being said, once applied evenly, I found it minimized my pores and gave my face a nice glow. I believe this primer helped to keep my foundation on all day as well, which is what a primer should do.

(Don't mind the hair.) I'm wearing NYX HD Studio Photogenic Primer and ALMAY Wake Up Liquid Makeup foundation. (For under my eyes I used these products.) Picture was not edited in any way although I should have done something to my lips because they're so dry! But anyways...

NYX Nude Matte Shadow NMS04 in Maybe Later $8.99. A neutral color, this eyeshadow doubles as an eyebrow color for me which is a bonus. It has a very silky texture but I find you need an eyeshadow primer before applying it for long-lasting wear. NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in 601 Black in Bean and NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in 604 in Milk $5.99. These are eye shadows and eyeliners in one. Very creamy and easy to blend. You can use the milk color as an eye shadow base which will enhance your eye shadow color.

L'OREAL Voluminous Power 24H Mascara in Black with Collagen Spheres + Mega Brush $11.99. I loved the volume this mascara gave my lashes, it didn't leave them with smudges or clumps either. I prefer this mascara to the NYX Boudoir Le Chick Flick Waterproof Lashes Mascara in Black $8.99 just because I'm not a huge fan of waterproof mascara in general, I find those difficult to remove at the end of the day. NYX Super SKINNY Eye Marker in Carbon Black $10.99. The micro-fine felt tip helps this liner to go on easily and is smudge-proof. This is a great MAC Penultimate Eye Liner dupe, in my opinion.

Marc Jacobs fragrance samples: Lola, Daisy and Daisy Eau So Fresh. My 'signature scent' - the perfume I've been wearing for the past two years - is Lola, I wear it every day and never get sick of it. I love the Daisy and Daisy Eau So Fresh scents as well, you can never go wrong with Marc Jacobs perfume! (Or a Marc Jacobs purse for that matter.)

NYX Xtreme Lip Cream in Spicy  $8.99.  I love this! Like the tube says, "it's not lipstick, nor is it gloss," it's like a whipped cream, I love the texture of it and the color is gorgeous. Great pigmentation! NYX Xtreme Soft Matte Lip Cream in Stockholm $8.99. Extremely silky and a beautiful nude color, I've been wearing this shade every day since it came in the mail. Big fan of this color.  NYX Roll On Shimmer for Eyes, Face and Body in RES14 Salmon $7.99. A loose powder with shimmer and glitter, you can roll this on for a night out on the town for extra sparkle ; ).

A simple look I created in less than 10 minutes using some of the products: NYX Nude Matte Shadow on my lids and eyebrows, NYX Super SKINNY Eye Marker in Carbon Black, L'OREAL Voluminous Power 24H Mascara in Black with Collagen Spheres + Mega Brush and NYX Xtreme Soft Matte Lip Cream in Stockholm. (The blush I'm wearing is NARS Orgasm, which isn't featured.) My base is the same as the first pic, above.

Okay, so here's how to enter the giveaway:

***This contest is open to Canadian and US residents only. I apologize to my other international readers who do not qualify : (. I do have an international giveaway going on right now that anyone can enter, click here to enter to win a $100 gift card to So Pretty Jewelry.

MANDATORY ENTRY: Leave a comment in the comment section below this post saying you would like to enter the giveaway and leave your email address so I can contact you if you win.

For extra entries:

• Follow LDCosmetics on Twitter here (+1 extra entry)
  
• Follow me on Twitter here (+1 extra entry)
• 'Like' me on Facebook here (+2 extra entries)
• Follow me on Google Friend Connect or Bloglovin' (+1 extra entry)
• Tweet about this giveaway saying " Enter to win a @NyxCosmetics package plus more from from @LDCosmetics and @marielamode http://www.mariealamode.blogspot.com/2012/08/london-drugs-new-product-review-and.html "  (+2 extra entries. Please make sure you include the link to this post in your tweet.)

***Please let me know in your comment how many entries you qualify for! Thank you : )

Contest will be open for two weeks and a winner will be chosen randomly using random.org. Good Luck!