Dear Diary

A few weeks ago we got an email from our girl Maram at Lush HQ asking if we’d be into a tour of the Lush factory here in Toronto, and though we weren’t sure what was in store we eagerly replied “yes!”

This past Tuesday we woke up early, hopped in a cab half awake, and headed to Etobicoke. Walking into the factory was like walking into a massive cloud of scent perfection- think Lush store level x 1000! We quickly started the tour, exploring everything from the bath bomb mixing room, to the labelling section and soap department. We tried our hand at pressing bath bombs, mixing fresh masks, and even covered ourselves with special lustres in the glitter room!

Last but not least we entered the bubble room, a giant open space packed with people hand shaping and prepping the bubble bars and bubbleroons that we all know and love. We got a quick tutorial on making up the mixture, then practiced shaping our own bars with all the other employees (who seemed mildly entertained by our lack of skill).

We left the factory smelling like Lush, with bags full of somewhat-deformed product that we had attempted to make ourselves. The best part about the whole experience was learning more about Lush as a company- whole avocados get hand cut into their products, funds are given to local sustainable farmers so they can meet the company’s demands whenever possible, and everyone putting the products together seemed genuinely passionate about what they were doing. Paired with their very public devotion to the fight against animal testing, Lush’s values have really made me a die-hard fan of their amazing natural products.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to take a very colourful bath…

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Dear Diary

Ah, February! Love is in the air, and I couldn’t feel more lucky to have so much of it in my life! Don’t worry though, I’m not going to be rambling on about some horrible fairytale romance story: today I’m confessing my love for some super special products!

Before I started beauty blogging, I really had a bare minimum cosmetics collections. I went shopping once a year at Sephora to restock my 5 essentials (eyeliner, mascara, blush, concealer and neutral beige shadow), and that was about it. I loved the pretty look of products, but I never really got into having fun with my beauty routine.

When I started writing for XO Vain, everything changed. Suddenly I couldn’t stop buying beauty products, and companies were actually sending me new products to try too! My cosmetics collection tripled in size over the span of a few weeks, and continues to grow almost daily.

I’ve been super lucky to try so many different products over the past few months, but a few have really stood out in my mind. They’re the products I’ve really come to rely on, to cherish; they’re the products I love!

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From left to right, Too Faced Lip Injection Colour Bomb in “Candy Burst”, Rodin Olio Lusso Lip Balm, Lush Bubblegum lip scrub

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Davines Hair Refresher Dry Shampoo, Davines OI Hair Oil

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Econeco Makeup Rouge Blush Pearls, NARS Orgasm Blush

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Province Apothecary Skincare

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Butter London “Fairy Cake”, Deborah Lippmann “Stairway to Heaven”, Chanel “Frisson”

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Too Faced Pro Essential Teddy Bear Fur Vegan Brushes

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Too Faced Bulletproof Brows, Rose De Versailles Liquid Liner Pen, Buxom Mascara

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Davines Alchemic Red Shampoo and Conditioner

Photos by Brianne Burnell