Link Love #1

I've read many blog posts about things that people are loving online, so I decided to give it a try.

Shopping/Wearing 

I’m currently obsessed with this scarf from Zara. I got the Maroon one. It’s so comfy and warm. I love the colour and the zig-zag pattern. I’ve already started wearing it now but it’s going to be perfect in winter to add some colour to my black winter coat.

I’m also loving these J.Crew snap-front Pixie pants. I've always wanted a pair of Pixie pants because they've been raved about for years but I never liked the fact that they zip up at the back. Since these ones tie at the front I decided to take a change and order them. I took a big risk by ordering them online (since there is no J.Crew here) but I was familiar with their sizing from going to their store in Florida. They fit perfectly. I definitely understand why these have such a cult following. They’re the best of both worlds: they look like pants with the comfort of leggings. I almost don’t even want to take them off. 

This sweater from Reitmans is currently my favourite sweater and I want to buy it in the red shade as well. It’s so comfortable but it makes your outfit look polished at the same time. I’m loving everything at Reitmans right now. I’ve always liked their clothes but this season it seems like they really stepped up their game in the fashion world. 

The Antipodes Aura Manuka Honey mask is probably my favourite thing that I’ve put on my face in the past week. I first used it when I was taking a study break. It just took away all my stress and made me feel calm. It smells amazing and leaves your skin feeling refreshed. The hype around this product is extremely accurate. It may be pricy but it’s worth it. 

Colourpop have recently launched their Creme Gel Liners and Colours and I may have ordered way more then I actually need. My makeup collection is always lacking in the eyeliner category because I don’t wear it often. The shade selection sucked me in and they look just as pigmented as high end brand eyeliners. When I was in high school I wore eyeliner every single day whether it was black, purple or teal. Granted, I wore too much of it, but once I got to college I just stopped wearing it (maybe it’s because of the all-nighters). Hopefully this purchase will force me to rediscover my love of eyeliner. 

Watching

I’ve been watching Asian Dramas on Viki and Drama Fever. My current favourite K-dramas are Sassy GoGo/Cheer Up! (the male and female lead is my new OTP) and She Was Pretty. My favourite Taiwanese Drama at the moment is Love Cuisine and I’ve also started watching Taste of Love. I feel like too many dramas are centred around food. I’m not complaining because Asian cuisine is delicious; but, watching dramas tends to make me hungry. Additionally, the problem with watching dramas that are currently airing is the agony of waiting for new episodes/english subs. 

I also enjoyed watching Sense of Self: Estée Lalonde where Ingrid went to Estée’s house and we got to see things that she loves based on the five senses. I’ve been watching both Ingrid and Estée for a long time. Seeing them in a video together just feels like two of my friends are talking to me. Estée loves awesome things (maple syrup, yaaassss). 

Reading 

9 Must-Have Maybelline Products Launching in 2016. Beautezine has me excited for Maybelline’s upcoming launches. 

Wishlist 

Charlotte Tillbury Matte Revolution lipsticks in Very Victoria and Love Liberty 

Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed Champagne Glow Palette 

NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Damned (I blame Anna)
Chanel Illusion D'ombre in Mirage (Blame Anna again).

This scarf from Topshop that Lily Pebbles wears all the time.

This sweater from J.Crew, which is sadly sold out in my size. 

These Christmas Countdown planner stickers from LimeandMortar.

Have a great week! 

Sincerely, JoJo.♥

September Beauty & Lifestyle Favorites!

September has felt like a really long month for me. School and reading has taken over my life. I've been spending any of my free time watching Asian dramas. I haven't had much time to discover many beauty products because I've been wearing the same makeup almost everyday. Here are my September favorites.

Chanel Rouge Coco Ultra Hydrating Lip Colour in Adrienne 
This lipstick is probably the most luxurious lipstick purchase I've ever made. I 100% blame Anna from ViviannaDoesMakeup for this purchase. It's basically the more sophisticated version of MAC Patisserie. While Patisserie is more pink under toned,  Adrienne is has a peach undertone. It's a perfect everyday nude lipstick. I would say that the shade would be in between MAC Patisserie and Velvet Teddy because it's similar to Patisserie but it more warm toned but it's not as dark as Velvet Teddy. The formula is creamy but sheer. I find that it wears well on me. The only issue I have with it is that it has a light floral scent. It's not overpowering but no one mentions that this lipstick has a scent. It can be a little drying on the lips too. If you love MAC Patisserie but want to go a step up you should definitely try Adrienne. This is a pricey lipstick, but I justified it because it's a shade that I can wear for any occasion.

Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-hour Blush in Exposed 
I basically wear this blush every single day because it's easy. You can just slap it on even when you're in a hurry and it looks good. It's the perfect neutral blush. It's not too brown and not too pink. It's matte and lasts all day. It's the perfect blush for people who are afraid of blush. It's also great when you need a little wash of color so that you don't pale like a ghost. It's very pigmented so you only need a tiny amount. I think this blush is worth the price and it's a shade that everyone should have in their collection.

Lifestyle Favorites

TV Shows

She Was Pretty Yes, I'm continuing the theme of being obsessed with k-dramas. I started watching it because the plot sounded interesting and it was all over tumblr. I just hate that I have to wait for new episodes ever week. Choi Siwon's character is my favorite. He's the reason I keep watching it. The actual story is giving me anxiety. Kim Hye Jin's first love Ji Seoung Jun doesn't know that she's his childhood best friend because she made her best friend, Min Ha Ri pretend to be her because she doesn't think that she's pretty anymore and she didn't want to deceive his image of her. But then he ends up being her boss. He's starting to notice that her behaviour is similar to the his first love and the girl that he thinks is Hye Jin has the complete opposite personality as the Hye Jin he knew. So he's confused. And then, in yesterday's episode (episode 6) Ha Ri did something that basically violates the best friend/girl code.

On the Wings of Love
I found out about this show on tumblr. It's a filipino teleserye. It's very hard to find the episodes with english subtitles and I have to wait a long time for them. Anyways, the story is about a girl named Leah who goes from the Philippines to San Francisco. When her visa is about to expire she has a green-card marriage to Clark, her ex-boyfriend's cousin. At first Leah and Clark hate each other but then they become friends and start to develop feelings for each other. I ship Leah and Clark so much. The story is realistic because everything that happens is something that can actually occur in daily life. They said it would be a light series. They lied! Every episode breaks my heart into a million pieces for these two characters. P.S. Jigs is the most annoying character ever written! Every time he speaks I'm annoyed with him.

Music
Per te ci sarò - Il Volo (probably the best song they've ever sung)
Tornerà L'Amore - Il Volo (simply a beautiful song)
Il Volo released a new album at the end of the most, well three versions of it (Italian, Spanish and international versions), which basically means I have three times the songs to be obsessed with. Any song that they sing sounds amazing. I really want to see them in concert.

Radio - CNBLUE It's Korean. I don't understand most of the words but their sound is amazing and Jong-hyun is probably the best guitar player I've ever heard. It also helps that all four guys are really good looking.

Food
Butternut Squash and Pancetta Penne Gennaro Contaldo is one of the most entertaining people to watch. His recipes are so simple but extremely delicious.  I love pasta, I love pancetta and I enjoy butternut squash.This pasta dish is one of the best things I ever ate. I can't even describe how good it is. All I know is that you NEED to try it.

Sincerely, JoJo. ♥

August Beauty & Lifestyle Favorites!

The month of August flew by. Then September came and school started, and I forgot about my monthly favorites.

MAC 217 Eyeshadow Brush
I've heard about this eyeshadow brush ever since I first started watching beauty videos. This brush gets so much hype and many brushes are comparable to it. I was always hesitant about buying it because it's not cheap. I also hesitated to buy it because it's not the softest brush out there. Now that I own it I understand why this product gets so much recognition. I think it's the best eyeshadow brush I've ever used. It makes blending eyeshadow extremely easy. It's almost effortless because it feels like the brush does the work for you. You can just lightly swirl it around and it blends your eyeshadow so fast. My eyeshadow turns out looking better than it does when I don't use this brush. This has proved to me that MAC brushes are worth the investment.

Rimmel Blush in Santa Rose 
This is one of the first blushes I ever bought. It's always had a special place in my heart.  I love this blush because it looks so natural but it brightens your complexion. I would describe the shade as a pale peach. For a long time I couldn't get a hold of this blush and I was so upset about it. I ended up buying from FeelUnique because this particular shade seems like it's no longer available in Canada. If you can get your hands on it buy it.

Sephora Solid Brush Cleaner
I've always used Dove soap to clean my makeup brushes because it always did a good job of cleaning them. I always thought that specific crush cleansers would have the effect as my Dove soap. I heard a few rave reviews on the Sephora Solid Brush Cleaner. At first I thought $17 was too much for a soap to clean my makeup brushes. I decided to try it because it's formulated with argan oil. Once I used it I realized that the hype surrounding this product are accurate. It makes cleaning my brush so much faster than usual. I also feel like it helps my brushes to dry faster.  I like that it comes with a little silicone disk that helps with the washing of the brushes. I'm quite happy with this purchase.

Lifestyle Favorites

TV
I've spent my summer watching a lot of K-dramas. I don't understand Korean but I decided to watch Secret Garden after hearing my friend rave about it. It was on Netflix and I ended up marathoning it. Since then I've become obsessed with K-dramas. My favorites at the moment are: Secret Garden, Tomorrow's Cantabile, Witch's Romance, and Sensory Couple. They're highly addictive. Once you start watching one you can't stop.

Music
My Everything - Owl City
Listen To My Heart - Melody Day
You've Fallen For Me - Jung Yong Hwa

Sincerely, JoJo.♥

July Beauty Favorites!

I honestly can't believe that July is already over. It feels like the month just started. This summer is going by way too fast for my liking. Anyways, here are some products that I've been loving this month.

Batiste Dry Shampoo
I've heard about this product for years. I'm pretty sure everyone and their mother has tried this product and I'm probably the last person to try it. I was hesitant about trying this dry shampoo because I heard it leaves a white cast on dark hair. It can leave a white cast but I use it at night and I don't notice any white cast in the morning. This is the best dry shampoo that I've ever tried because it instantly makes my hair look like it's been freshly washed. I'm extremely happy with the results of this dry shampoo.

Colourpop Super Shock Cheek in Between The Sheets 
I was never a big fan of creme blushes because they always look like they never set on me. The Colourpop blushes are amazing because they're kind of like a creme to powder product. Once the product sets it's not going anywhere and lasts all day. When I take off my makeup after a long day of wearing this blush it still looks like I just applied it. A little goes a very long way because it is extremely pigmented. I like applying it with a stippling brush or a beauty blender. Between The Sheets is a neutral pink shade. I wish I could buy every single shade in the range.

theBalm Mary Lou Manizer
This highlighter has been raved about all over youtube and beauty blogs for years. I was always afraid to try it because it's an intense highlight. I'm so glad that I tried it because it looks beautiful when worn. All the hype surrounding this product is true. I would describe the colour as a champagne gold leaning more towards gold. I like to wear it as a highlighter and eyeshadow. When worn as eyeshadow it just pops on your eyelids. It's so pigmented and you need to use a light hand with it, especially if you're fair like me. I don't know why I went this long without having this product in my makeup stash.

Sincerely, JoJo.♥

July Lifestyle Favorites!

I know I posted about my lifestyle favorites less than two weeks ago, but I have more things that need a mention.

Erin Condren Life Planner
I've always loved planners. There something special about writing down things that you need to accomplish and then ticking them off once they're done. What I love about the Erin Condren planners is that the covers are customizable, which allows you to have a personalized planner. I chose the vertical layout because I like the idea of organizing my day in a sort of list form. I've had it for a little over a week now and I'm already having a great time decorating the pages. I've found that decorating and planning my days out has become therapeutic for me, and I enjoy doing it at night. I'm so excited to use it for school. If you would like one click here for $10 off your first purchase. They ship internationally. Their shipping to Canada is almost $20 so the $10 off really helps.

Books
A Love Like Ours by Becky Wade
I love Becky Wade's books. From the moment I finished her first book My Stubborn Heart (which I think everyone needs to read) I knew that she was an author that would produce great things. I've read all of her books so far and I've loved every single one. You can tell that she writes from the heart. Every character was carefully crafted and you instantly love them. This book is the third book in her Porter Family series and it doesn't disappoint. A Love Like Ours is the story of Jake and Lyndie. They were childhood best friends. Jake always protected Lyndie and went along with all her wild ideas. They got separated because Lyndie moved away. Years later they meet again and everything is different. Throughout the entire story you find yourself rooting for them. This book made me laugh, cry, angry, and joyful. If you like a good love story and this book is one to read.

Music
Every Giant Will Fall - Rend Collective
Rend Collective is one of my favorite bands. Their music speaks to your soul. Their latest single Every Giant Will Fall is simply amazing. Though there's pain within the plan / There is victory in the end / Your love in my battle cry. I can't even describe how wonderful it is. Just go listen to it.

TV
I'm still loving Teen Wolf. Liam and Hayden is my new OTP. They're just adorable!

Food
Strawberry Chia Seed Jam This jam is really good, you only need three ingredients and doesn't take long to make. If you love strawberries, chia seeds and honey or maple syrup you'll definitely want to try this.

Sincerely, JoJo. ♥