LoveFresh

Oh so Pretty

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Though we blog about everything here at RAOP, our team isn’t exactly what you’d call a group of beauty experts. If we’re being totally honest with you guys we’re just as lost as you when it comes to cuticle maintenance and “strobing”. That said we know a good product when we see one, and nothing beats good + cruelty free in our books.

The year isn’t quite over yet, but we’ve made so many amazing beauty discoveries over the course of 2016, and we couldn’t wait to share some of our favourites! The best part? Every brand on this list is cruelty free and vegan friendly, which makes them beautiful inside and out!

1. Annabelle //

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By far the most affordable brand on our list, Annabelle is a super accessible way to shop cruelty-free beauty if you’re scooping up some new products at the drug store. Our current picks are their mascaras and lip liner pencils.

2. Tata Harper //

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We recently went to a Tata Harper breakfast where we had the pleasure of meeting Tata herself, and honestly if you’ve seen that woman’s amazing skin you’ve probably already rushed out to buy her entire all-natural skincare collection!

3. Love Fresh //

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Handmade right here in Toronto, Lovefresh has incredible scents like Key Lime Coconut, and we can’t get enough of their awesome pink pomegranate sugar scrub!

4. Too Faced //

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Sometimes it’s impossible not to judge a book by its cover, especially when the cover looks *this* good! Too Faced always has us melting over their adorable pink sparkly products, and their new holiday-scented palettes basically have us in little puddles on the floor!

5. Charlotte Tilbury //

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Rose gold and delicate details? Yes please! Charlotte Tilbury is one of the only luxury cosmetic brands that guarantees 100% cruelty free ingredients… and it’s all just so pretttyyyy!

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Dear DiaryOh so Pretty

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Just in the knick of time- our June edit is here! I know May was in the beginning of the month, but I figure end of month works too if it means I get more time to test and review products properly. Better for both of us, right?

This month’s roundup of RAOP Picks (aka my favourite finds of the month) is almost all within the exact same colour scheme, and primarily beauty-based. Perhaps it was the fun YSL events I attended over the past 30 days, or our #RAOPpowderroom project that spurred the beauty cabinet upgrade, but I’m definitely really feeling these beautiful products for the summer:

1. YSL Beauty

I don’t know what happened, but YSL really swept me off my feet over the past few weeks. I had the pleasure of attending a special breakfast to celebrate their Mon Paris fragrance launch, and the love affair really grew from there. My top picks? Touche Eclat Blur Primer and Vinyl Couture Mascara in gold.

2. Lovefresh

Locally made with Love, this brand is all natural, cruelty-free, and they have the best natural deodorants in the game! Also, How cute is this pink body scrub?

3. Sonix Sunglasses

Hello new fave sunglasses brand!The packaging from Sonix is unreal cute, and I love their fun use of colour in the frames.

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4. Cherry Pick Statement Jewellery

Who doesn’t need a good statement necklace? Cherry Pick is my go-to place to shop for sparkles of all sorts.

5. Tocca

I’ve always been a huge fan of the TOCCA candles and the unique way they name them and give them little “stories” to tell, but their line has really hit it out of the park recently! I can’t even wrap my head around how much I love the idea of a hair fragrance (coming soon!)

6. Repetto Ballet Flats

I picked up these flats on my trip to Nice, and they immediately became a new must have. Their comfortable, classy, and go with everything- plus they’re made by a legit ballet shoe company in Paris!

7. Davines Your Hair Assistant

We already know how much I adore Davines (they’re generally the online haircare brand I use), and this new collection’s pretty blush and black packaging really won me over. If you get a chance to sniff this line, prepare to swoon!

8. Eternally in Amber Hair accessories

The perfect addition to my pristine haircare routine, these tortoiseshell combs are as useful as they are beautiful.

Dear Diary

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Random Acts of Pastel and Bicyclette are always dreaming up new adventures, and social media is a massive part of what we do on a daily basis. We love snapping Instagram photos and updating our Pinterest feeds, and over the past year or so we’ve worked together to grow our brands, both on the personal blogging front, and the business promotion front. After the success of our first Get Social Workshop in October, we’ve decided to share our knowledge about this fun way to promote yourself again. In case you haven’t guessed already, we’re hosting our second Social Media Workshop next month!

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As small business owners, freelancers, creatives, and makers, we use social media tools on a daily basis to share what we’re up to and communicate with our followers. It’s a way for us to connect, to offer a peek behind the scenes, and share our personal style and aesthetic, which in turn helps build a brand- all the while inspiring ourselves and others through the process of doing so.

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Each different platform holds value in its own way, and when you bring all of them together to build a cohesive online presence, you’ll really start to see them working for you. Because social media varies so much from person to person, It’s really about finding the balance that works best for you and allows you to be authentic and genuine, while still getting your brand out there.

We’ll be offering a 2 hour seminar led by Alyssa (Random Acts of Pastel) and Paige (Bicyclette) mid-March that goes over each of these platforms and provides tips and tools to manage each one effectively to make them work for you and/or your business, all while establishing your brand in the online world.

We will be covering pre-planned key topics and points, but we also want the workshop to feel collaborative and open, so we invite you to bring any specific questions you may have with you, and we’ll be sure to cover them in our discussion. We’ll also be offering scones and jam from Kitten and the Bear, treats from Bake Shoppe and hot beverages from Sloane Tea, a photo booth where you can get your ‘gram on, and special swag bags with all sorts of amazing surprise goodies from favourite companies like Ban.do, Fresh Tangerine, LoveFresh, and more!

When //
Saturday, March 21st from 10 am – 12 pm

Where //
Studio B, 882A Queen St. West

Cost //
$15o

What //We’ll go over key social media platforms – Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest – how to optimize content (including sizing guidelines, etc), and what the pros and cons of each are; the process of taking photos on your phone (including editing and captioning); tools and tricks; telling stories and building a lifestyle brand through photos. And that’s just the beginning!

Interested? Sign up here!

Please note, tickets are non-refundable.