I can't believe it's already Friday.  Sorry for the lack of posts this week, it's been a little busy.  In exactly 1 week I'll be in CHINA!!  To say I'm excited is an understatement.  But this week has been filled with all the last minute details for the trip of a lifetime.  It's starting to finally sink in, that we will be on a plane for 13hours.... with a 3 year old.  I'm so scared, that with the time change and all, we could have a cranky girl on our hands.  She's a great traveler though.  She's been on a plane numerous times (my husband is a pilot) and we've been to Mexico 2x in the past year, so I'm sure she'll do fine.  But for some reason, I'm just nervous....  Wish us luck!  I've stocked up and all sorts of snack, have her Innotab packed with an abundance of extra batteries and all sorts of new books and games, and with movies on the plane, I'm sure it'll be fine :) Or at least I'm trying to convince myself of this....

  Now, enough with the rambling....  Today's 'Frugal Find' isn't just one product, but rather an entire cosmetic line.  I was first introduced to Essence last Summer when I was in Oregon and stumbled upon the line.  I fell in LOVE with the fact that everything in the line is under $5...  Yep, my kind of line.  I had seen reviews on different product from the line and figured I'd give em a try.

  The first product I picked up was the Multi Action False Lashes.  It gives full lashes and doesn't flake off like most fiberous mascara's.  I was sad when it was finished as the line wasn't yet available in Canada :(
  BUT, last week I finally found a Shoppers that was carrying the line.  So I picked up a bit if everything to try.  As you can see it the picture to the right, I picked up and tried out the #34 Walk of Fame nail polish right away!  I'm SO impressed with it that at $1.49 per polish, I'll be going back to get more.

  I'm also really pleased with the glosses and lipsticks too (also around $2.49),  I'll be getting a few more color's in the near future.

  Have you tried out any Essence Cosmetic products?  What are your favorite?
 

  They say the eyes are the windows to the soul...  and I believe that.  I think that if anything, your eyes are one of the easiest features to accentuate, even if its just with a good curl and coat of mascara. 

  My 'Frugal Find' today is one that I couldn't live without.  I use it EVERY day before I apply my mascara.   It's E.L.F. (eyes lips face) Essential Mechanical Eyelash Curler and guess what,... ITS A BUCK!!!! Yep, $1.  Hard to believe that something this cheap would actually work, but it does.  I actually find myself 99% of the time grabbing this one over my pricey Shu Uemura eye lash curler (which is also great BTW).
 It's so well made and very sturdy.  It has a nice curve to it which is great for all eye shapes and it has a silicone rubber pad that allows the appropriate amount of pressure to curl lashes naturally.
  If curling your lashes isn't part of your every day routine, I highly suggest splurging on this baby to help open up your eyes and allowing your soul to shine!  You won't be disappointed!

  I am a gloss girl through and through.  Sure, give me a great lipstick and I'll rock it, but I won't leave the house with out a coat of gloss (or tinted balm), it just makes me feel a little more 'put together'. 
  I was at the post office a few weeks ago, which also happens to be a Rexal and I stumbled upon the cosmetic section.... (by stumbled, I mean I always go to this post office as it has a cosmetic department :)  It was having a sale on there NYC Cosmetics.  Now, normally I pass on REALLY cheap makeup, but something was calling me to try one.  Boy, am I sure glad I did.  I picked up one of there Liquid Lip Shines in Fashion Avenue Fuchsia #579.  It's a beautiful bright color and ended up ONLY being $1.49  WHAT A STEAL!

  Now they 'claim' the benefits are pure pigments, 3D-effect shine, the lips feel moisturized creamy and soft texture and are non-sticky and I agree with most of their claims.  However, I find the color to be a bit sheerer then it looks.  I like this though as I prefer a suttle statement look on an daily basis.  The texture is nice, not necissarly moisturizing, but nice.  It has great shine, but doesn't last long, maybe 2 hours.  I do like though that the color sticks around after the shine is gone.

  I wouldn't quite call it a doe foot applicator, but more of an elongated doe foot.  It bends a bit while applying which makes it easier to apply it precisly.

  It's a beautiful Fuchsia, almost a Raspberry if you will.  It's sheer, but buildable.

  It gives a great pop of color and I'm sure it's going to be one of my favorite Summer colors.  If I find them on sale again, I will definatly be picking up a few more colors!

                  What are your favorite 'frugal' lip glosses?

   Who doesn't love finding great CHEAP beauty products.  I know I do!  So why not share what I've found and LOVE.  Every Friday I'll introduce a new 'Frugal Find' that really is worth every penny.

  I love soft hair!  But being that I blow dry, straighten and chemically treat my hair regularly, it doesn't always feel the healthiest.  So, about once a month I like to treat my hair to a good ol' mask.  I've tried a ton, both expensive and inexpensive.  My most recent fav is Loreal Re-Nutrition Deep Moisture Hair Mask.  At around $8 for 300ml, it'll last you a while.  Loreal suggests using the mask once a week, but I find it to be too rich, so I do it about once a month. 
  The smell is D-vine!  It smells like the beach, slightly coconutty/pinappley.  SUPER YUM!  I start out doing a deep cleanse shampoo (a small amount of your regular shampoo mixed with a good handful of Baking Soda.  Mix together and massage into your wet hair, letting it sit for about a minute).  Once I've rinsed that out, I apply a two finger scoop of the mask and apply it focusing on the ends.  Leave that in for 1-2 minutes and whala...  Healthy, moisturized soft hair.  For cheap. 

 Here's what Loreal has to say about it:

  Royal Jelly is an extract derived from nature and has been widely recognised as a ‘cure-all’ for many centuries. Ancient civilisations such as the Egyptians and Romans recognised the healing benefits of bee by-products.
Royal Jelly, nature’s superfood concentrate for the queen bee, conditions hair with the most essential nutrients leaving hair soft with high-gloss finish. It contains more than 10 essential nutrients, including : glycose, proteins, lipids, vitmamin-B, oligo-elements, animo acids, minerals, etc.

                       I highly recommend picking one up.  If you've tried it already, What do YOU think about it?