Insta Recap – Lucky In Love

Happy Sunday night honey beans!

I’m very excited to announce that I will be collaborating with Thyme Maternity throughout the remainder of my pregnancy to bring on some mom-to-be content and outfit posts! From hospital bag essentials to finding the perfect pair of preggo denim, stay tuned to catch my style/body evolution from month 7 through to 9. I’ll be publishing here of course, but also guest posting on Thyme’s Tummy Talks blog (if you want to be sure to not miss a beat, like my facebook fanpage for external link updates and postings).

I dropped in on their downtown location for my first experience and feel for maternity wear friday night (and will be revisiting their new stock switch-up this upcoming thursday evening). Can’t wait to see more of the differences, cuts, and functions offered – hoping to add a few more great staples to my wardrobe (stay tuned for my full recount – maternity shopping proved to be far more different than expected!).

Are you expecting and in need of some new wardrobe staples? Enter my Thyme Maternity giveaway! You could win a $200 shopping spree just in time for the holidays (one more day to enter before the contest closes – spread the word lovelies).

Glitter is getting the best of me (it always does this time of the year). With the city lights and ornaments all mounted, there’s nothing more magical than window shopping and bringing a little glitz of your own to the mix (especially amplified after dark). Nail polish and eyeshadow glitter satisfy my shine cravings quite nicely…

I’m on a wrapping rampage!

Been really enjoying all the glamour that comes with the season. Nights out with the man and family, taking my time to get ready, feel great, and experiment with new beauty looks. Just snapped up a great long sleeve little black dress from Thyme that I’m keeping for new years eve in Toronto, but have been working old non-maternity pieces the best I can up until this point (how my Herve Leger dress, above, still fits – I have no clue).

I feel so incredibly blessed with this pregnancy – truly. I’ve had every ounce of support, love, patience, and fun. I can honestly say that up until this point in my life, I’ve never felt better. Just goes to show how amazing community/family is. I’m beyond grateful, and can’t believe my good fortune. The most beautiful part of it all is that I know this is only the beginning of how good it’s going to get. Lucky, lucky girl.

Had the opportunity to dig in and try a few of the Sephora pro brushes this weekend, and am in love. Who knew a lash fan was the answer to clump-free application, or that the highlighting fan applied shimmer worthy of a JLo glow? Still have yet to play with the foundation and concealer brushes, but adore the definition the face blending brush provides (I used it as a contour replacement – wondrous!). Truth be told, as much as the many varieties of makeup artistry brushes intrigue me, I often doubt how worth it is to buy specialized brushes made for sole purposes. These definitely answered my doubts, and while not all beauty tools are created equal, there is definite value in owning a variety of star niche players. These babies are pricey wonders, but worth every penny.

Haven’t gotten a moment to dig into these divine YSL polishes (yeah, those gold flecks are a top coat), but have been enjoying night eye-pampering rituals that include the Lancome Absolue Yeux concentrate. Not quite sure what it does specifically at this point, but know that my skin has been enjoying the extra TLC as of late.

Can someone please remove all the Christmas temptation from all around me? It’s honestly getting to be somewhat enslaving giving in every time…

Pizza art! The man has picked up his painting passion and the house is full of his beautiful work. The only thing we fight about is me not letting him throw them out. He makes these beautiful expressions and before they even have a chance to dry, he breaks them in half and disposes of them. It’s heartbreaking (someone please talk some sense into him on my behalf).

I have now officially tried all three of these fun peel off Boscia masks, and love them all. The Luminizing Black Mask is a long time staple in my bathroom cabinet, but the Cool Blue and Bright White additions have been added bonuses to explore. I think the Bright White mask has actually taken first place in the list of my Boscia favourites with it’s thick creamy texture and amazing scent. I wouldn’t recommend these guys for the faint hearted looking for a relaxing face mask – the peel off pain can be quite intense if you have peach fuzz facial hair like me. If you’re a trooper though (and love smooth complexion aftermath), give one or all three a go. Your face will resurface calmed of redness and free of dead skin.

Tis’ the season for free printable holiday wrap! Google image search for quick visuals you can scan over, or visit Mini-eco (my go-to) for some fun geeky tech-inspired prints.

The Josie Maran argan oil line is really something special. Having already been a big fan of the 100% Pure Argan Oil drops, everything except the Argan Infinity Oil (I had to try this for myself) is getting re-gifted to my mother in law this season. And while it pains me to see them go, it gives me much more pleasure to be able to please one of the hardest people to shop for on my list. This very special lady is a naturopath, and very sensitive to the products she uses. A lover of all things organic, gluten-free, and all natural, she is not only a great supplier of the supplements and products I use and love on my blog, but also incredibly hard to pamper as a result! This line is something I’ve wanted to introduce to her for a long time now, and I can’t express how happy it makes me to show something new to the woman who is the one always introducing me to the qualities and benefits of her wellness-enhanced life.

Smokey eyes and individual falsies are making my beauty hit list this season. Stay tuned for some holiday looks soon to be posted on the Annabelle blog!