hat + leggings: aritzia

coat: GU

bag + shoes: zara

loved this little lounge area. all the magazines were great reads as well as the books on the book shelf (pictured below)

*photo c/o of mindset brain gym

another cute little lounge area to chill, drink kombucha, or snap a photo for instagram ;)

stillness rooms - you can book these for 25 minute sessions where you are given a bose noise cancelling headset and you get to meditate solo. 

guided group meditation rooms. this room was so comforting and inviting, and the teachers were all very nice and made my experience pleasant.

*photos c/o of mindset brain gym. they offer kombucha on tap as well as tea bags and water.

loved the entire art gallery downstairs. these are two of the ones I liked most because of their positive messages and go-getter attitude. 

have you ever tried meditating or would you? drop a line or DM me :) tooodles

when it comes to skincare tips and tricks, there's always so much to learn even when you think you've got it all figured out. I've been seeing the same facialist for the past few years but while she was on vacation, I ended up finding another incredible facialist who gave me such good skincare advice!  the main takeaway was that hydration is key. I think we all know this, but she heavily emphasized this even for those with acne prone skin and acne scars, who often skip out on hydration and lean more towards products that dry out pimples. hydration actually plays a major role in the healing process so you may want to consider breaking up with benzoyl peroxide and choosing more natural ingredients, like aloe vera and rosehip seed oil to heal your skin. I've always relied on benzoyl peroxide but I cut it out last month and only used aloe vera, rosehip seed oil and argan oil and so far I'm noticing my skin looks so much more healthy and plump! 

another major part of my skincare routine is masks. sheet masks give great short-term results and are good for makeup prep but I rely heavily on sleeping masks for the real deal. 

I've always been a big fan of laneige's water sleeping mask, and I still find it to be one of my HG beauty products to this day. combine that with their lip sleeping mask and the water bank moisture cream, and you're good as gold.  

below is a typical day for my winter skincare routine, in addition to a sheet mask about 3x a week :) 

daytime:

rinse face with cold water

Holika Holika 99% Aloe Soothing Gel + Neostrata Bionic Face Cream

Biore UV Aqua Rich Watery Essence SPF50+/PA++++

nighttime:

double cleanse: DHC Deep Cleansing Oil + Eminence Organics Firm Skin Acai Cleanser

switch between: LANEIGE Water Bank Moisture Cream or The Ordinary 100% Organic Cold-pressed Moroccan Argan Oil

LANEIGE Water Sleeping Mask

LANEIGE Lip Sleeping Mask (Berry)

what does your winter skincare regimen consist of? x 

happppy new year!! over the holiday break I finally had time to draft up some long overdue beauty reviews and to sit around testing out new products for hours/days without guilt of 'wasting time'. starting off 2019, I wanted to do a review on these glamglow masks that I've collected over the last few years (thanks to my sister in law!) and I know there's soo much hype over this product so I wanted to see if it was really living up to it. I have acne prone skin so I was pretty excited to try these clearing treatments that everyone raves about. 

Firstly - this 4 piece gift set was from Sephora last year - 1) Supermud Clearing Treatment (white) 2) Gravitymud Firming Treatment (purple) 3) Youthmud Tinglexfoliate Treatment (black) 4) Thirstymud Hydrating Treatment (blue). The blue/black/purple bottles may look small but they have actually lasted me a VERY long time. A little goes a long way, so picking up a gift set is a good way to test them all out if you're unsure of what will work for you!

1) Supermud Clearing Treatment (white bottle) - It goes on light grey at first, is pretty easy to apply despite its thickness, and hardens within 5 minutes, turning into a patchy darker grey. Its quite amusing to look at hehe my whole face was stiff under the mask and I kept it on for about 20 minutes before washing off. One con I have to mention though, is that getting the mask off is a huge, messy hassle. It stains the sink and towels and you have to wash those thoroughly to get them out. It is altogether just too time consuming. The final results were good, not great. I did not find that this solved any long term skin woes (acne, oily skin) but I did like how my skin felt softer and cleaner in the short term. I like to use this mask if I'm prepping for a night out and want my makeup application to look more flawless.

- 5 minutes later - 

2) Gravitymud Firming Treatment (purple) - this mask is the prettiest one out of the bunch imo lol I love the shimmery silver and it goes on really smoothly. I left it on for 20 minutes and peeled it off. Much easier to remove than the first mask, and peeling things is always fun :) unfortunately though, I don't feel like this did anything for my skin. I didn't see any changes and don't think my skin looked or felt any firmer than before I applied it. The fact that this product ranges from $30-99 per bottle is insane?? 

3) Youthmud Tinglexfoliate Treatment (black)

Like the Supermud Clearing Treatment, this is kind of a mess to wash off lol and I'm not even a lazy person when it comes to skincare. What I do like though is the grittiness of this exfoliator because pretty much all exfoliators I've tried are not strong enough. This also means that its probably not ideal for those with sensitive skin because it does feel quite harsh and tingly. I left it on for about 15 minutes and post-wash, I did notice my skin was somewhat brighter and lighter feeling after. The texture of my skin felt more bouncy too! With that being said, I'm still 50/50 with this mask so I'll probably update you guys again later...

4) Thirstymud Hydrating Treatment (blue) - I didn't take a selfie with this treatment because it goes on clear so there's really nothing to see lol but I can say that it has a really nice sweet coconut scent to it and left my skin feeling soft and moisturized. But as with all the other masks, I don't think this is worth the hefty price tag. I have plenty of other masks that hydrate equally well, or better, at a much lower price.

5) Powermud Dualcleanse Treatment (green) - I forgot to take a selfie with this one and I already finished using it oops! But it more or less goes on pretty faint, and looks like Flashmud Brightening (see picture below in #6) except it is a mud to oil formula. It's got a more gentle grit to it and would likely be better suited for sensitive skin. My skin texture felt more soft and bouncy after leaving on for 20 minutes. I like the idea of using this once or twice a week to just reset my skin and remove all the makeup, oil and pollution off my face.  

6) Flashmud Brightening Treatment (orange) - I applied this mask for 20 minutes again, and washed it off with warm water and a towel. It came off much easier than the Supermud Clearing Treatment and wasn't as messy to deal with. I did feel like this did a pretty good job at brightening and whitening my skin, and it left my face feeling soft. It wasn't overly drying either. The texture and grittiness of this mask reminds me of the Tinglexfoliate Treatment, but less gritty, more gentle. This one may be better for those with sensitive skin that still want some exfoliation. 

In conclusion - do I think GlamGlow is worth the hype?? I'm 70% no and 30% yes lol not everything worked for me and if they did work for me, I can't justify that it was the best or most life-changing, that I would shell out $70-100 each for, because I know of other brands that give me better results and are the same price or less expensive. I feel like I'll probably get alot of hate from saying that because they have so many loyal fans but Im just being honest! lol anyways this post is getting too long. signing off, thx for joining :) x

Bag: Madewell (Shopbop)

Cardigan: Oak + Fort

Pants: Zara