Review: 'Yes Please' by Amy Poehler

Hey everyone!

I hope you’re enjoying my brand new look, I know I am! I’ve decided that the first post to grace the pages of my swanky new blog is going to be a review of Amy Poehler’s ‘Yes Please’.

Amy’s book covers her life told in no real chronological order. She covers all aspects of her life and experiences. It’s a really no holds barred look through Amy’s eyes. She’s brutally honest about everything including herself, while retaining the sense of humour that has taken her so far in her career.

First let’s talk about the style that the book was printed in. It’s big and glossy. It’s got lots of photos and other things from Amy’s life. She has added two-page spread colourful pages with quotes to break up the sections in the book, which I find really cool. It’s a nice way of seguing into the next part. My personal favourite is “Short people do not like to be picked up”, which immediately precedes the chapter ‘The Russians are Coming’. And for those of you who are wondering, yes it’s true, we do not like to be picked up.

I cannot tell a lie, I almost judged this book by its cover. It’s so big and glossy that I was worried that it might lack substance. I love Amy Poehler, but I was worried about how her talent and sense of humour would translate into a memoir of sorts. I am the first to admit how wrong I was. Although this might not be perfectly written it is by no means a difficult read. She’s witty, honest funny and serious, sometimes all at once. I especially loved reading about her early comedy days, when she was discovering her footing and testing the waters.

Amy makes herself so relatable throughout the book. I love that her stories aren’t chronological order, but rather are told as they relate to the previous one. They’re funny but each one comes with a message of its own that you can take and do what you will with. She’s inspiring in a real way, not in an unattainable way like so many others we have come across.

Overall I really enjoyed this book. I’ve been really in to reading memoirs from funny smart women lately and this definitely fits that bill. Next book review should be ‘Wild’ by Cheryl Strayed so stayed tuned!

February Favourites

Welcome to a slightly belated February Favourites! Please forgive the lack of photos in this month’s post. If I’m completely honest, I’m typing this at 11:18pm and really don’t want to get up and set up the little corner I use to take the pics. I’ll be more prepared next time. Scouts honour!

Let’s get into the good stuff!

NARS SHEER GLOW FOUNDATION (SIBERIA):

After trying quite a few different foundations over the month I came to truly appreciate Sheer Glow and the way it treats me. This foundation doesn’t ever fail me. I can apply it however I want. Sometimes I’m lazy and just use my fingers, other time I like a dense buffing brush, then there are the times I like a looser brush and of course we can’t forget the almighty blending sponge (both the Beauty Blender and the RT Miracle Complexion Sponge). I just love this stuff. I’m now onto my second bottle and the couple of months I went without it sucked. I’m just glad I finally realised my true feelings for this little bad boy before I wasted more money on others that will never measure up.

TOO FACED NATURAL EYES PALETTE:

This has been my go to palette since I bought it. The colours are so beautiful and pigmented. I love that it has a great balance of finishes so you can create amazing day-night looks. I’ve even been using the darkest matte brown shade to fill in my brows, which says a lot because I usually prefer the gel method of brow filling. This is just an amazing palette!

TOO FACED MILK CHOCOLATE SOLEIL BRONZER:

Yep, another Too Faced product. This stuff is great. I love the finish it leaves and the colour is spot on for my pale complexion. It’s not too orangy, reddish or ashy. It gives my face colour and dimension without looking like my foundation it just too dark for me. Oh and the smell!! It’s everything something made from cocoa powder should smell like!

TOO FACE HANGOVER PRIMER:

Last Too Faced product I swear! I really like this stuff. I was a bit unsure of it at first (as I’ll discuss in the upcoming review), but I’m definitely enjoying it now. It’s nice and hydrating. Plus I love the coconutty scent it has. It makes my skin feel glowy and rejuvenated.

CIRCA HOME PEAR & LIME SCENTED SOY CANDLE:

I had a sample of this a while ago and after Christmas I use some of my present money to pick a full sized one up. I absolutely love the smell of this. I smelled all of the other ones like this that they had in stock and I honestly didn’t really like any of them. There’s just something about the Pear & Lime that is so yummy to smell. I can’t even describe the scent, mainly because I suck at describing scents, but trust me it smell delicious!

VERONICA MARS BOXSET:

I must have been living under a big fat rock, because up until last month I had never seen even one episode of this show. I’d been wanting to watch the movie for ages, but figured I’d need to be familiar with the show first. Once I finally got around to watching it I couldn’t stop. I’m pretty sure I watch all three seasons and the movie in about two weeks. I was obsessed. Who am I kidding, I’m still obsessed. After all, wasn’t it me downstairs tonight watching all the episodes again with my sister, who coincidentally is now addicted too. I feel like the embodiment of that Big Bang Theory Penny meme. You know the one… Oh my God, I need help!

Review: NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation

This is only going to be a short one today because my relationship with the NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation was just that: short. Sorry about the lack of photo, it wasn’t in my house long enough for a photo-shoot!

I was first given the wrong colour of this foundation, and had to track down the proper shade. It was a rocky beginning. The day after I tracked down the right shade I had the opportunity to try it out.

Guys… I can’t even begin to tell you how awful it was on my skin! It went patchy and flaky. I applied it three different ways. I applied with just moisturiser, with moisturiser and my Too Faced Hangover primer (review coming very soon) and also with my Savvy Smooth Finish primer on top of double the amount of moisturiser and nothing prevented the dry grossness that the foundation created on my face. I wouldn’t even wear it outside. It felt like a mask on my face. Almost like a clay mask. It accentuated my dryness that much. I’ve never had a foundation do this ever. Not even a matte one, let alone one that claims to be luminous like this one.

I read and watched so many raves on this stuff and I was so excited to try it for myself. One of my favourite foundations of all time is the NARS Sheer Glow. It is the liquid foundations that I expect all others to strive towards, so it seemed like a no-brainer that the new NARS one would at least come close. Now here I sit in utter defeat and disappointment.

I can’t attest to whether or not it actually lasts the amount of time it claims to, how it wears throughout the day or anything like that. Like I said, I couldn’t bring myself to go outside looking the way it made me look, so I removed it immediately and went out and bought the foundation I should have got in the first place, a new bottle of the Sheer Glow.

I’m not sure what it was about my skin that cause such a bad finish to the foundation. Honestly I was so surprised and I truly believe that most people will probably love it. I think I just wasn’t meant to have it in my life. I will say this: definitely get a sample of this if you can. It’s one thing to try it on in store with their skincare products, but it’s another to take it home and see how it works with your own skincare and primers, etc. ‘Try before you buy’ is a saying for a reason!