Brush Up on Summer Beauty Trends

I am a firm believer that regardless of the makeup collection in your cosmetic bag, a make or break factor when it comes to application is your brush set. For years, I would swipe my eyeshadow on using my finger and it would be an uneven application – and don’t get me started on lip gloss. With time, it was clear that the right tools made the world of a difference.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Quo brushes have been recommended to me by some of the most sought after makeup artists in the city. When the brand sent over their latest launch – a collection of synthetic fibre bristles – I was pumped to try. The brushes are cruelty-free and have the most natural feeling fibres, which elevate the application process. With more than 50 new brushes launched, and an Artistry line dedicated to professionals or makeup enthusiasts, it truly is a complete collection for everyone.

Some of my favourite brushes include the Full Fan which is great for broad strokes of bronzer or applying a highlighter for your summer glow, the Ultimate Powder for a finishing powder application and the Flat Shader for an easy swipe of shadow.

But of course they didn’t stop there. Quo launched the limited-edition summer collection with additions such as the Quo ombré face palette – a radiant blush and bronzer palette to help you get your glow on. The Transforming Lip Kit (I’m wearing Light Raspberry) is the perfect combo of matte lip gloss with a strobe addition to add on top. And last but not least, the Glow Beauty Oil. This is an item I LOVE for the warmer months. I’ve been applying this right out of the shower to lock in moisture or before heading out for date night. The extra shimmer on my legs, arms or décolletage is such an understated elegant look.

The new Quo brushes are available now at Shoppers Drug Mart and online here.

This post is sponsored by Quo Cosmetics. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

Spring Beauty Routine

Spring is almost around the corner, and while that’s hard to believe, I fully plan on being prepared in all matters of fashion, footwear and of course, beauty. With longer days, more sunlight, and golden glows returning to my look, I was more than happy to update my routine with some must-have products.

To sooth dry skin, I love the Quo Facial Primer Oil to ensure my skin is moisturized and perfectly primed for an even texture when it comes to my foundation. Just two drops is usually enough as a little goes a long way and means my bottle will get me through this entire season and more!

The Quo Highlight & Glow Palette is another favourite of mine. I add some luminosity to the sides of my eyes, down my nose and above my lip line to help accentuate a dewy look that’s fresh for spring. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, the Quo brush line might be my favourite part of the collection. The best piece of advice a MUA once told me was to invest in their brushes as they would see me through years of makeup application – and she was so right!

Favourite brushes: Quo Fan Brush and Quo Blush Brush

Next up for me is the Quo All In One Mascara. I love that the product comes in brown to accentuate my green eyes! From lifting to volumizing, this one-trick pony does it all to bring a wow factor to my lashes. I typically rely on two coats and a primer to get the dramatic look I often want to achieve. Since I tend to shy away from bold shadows and liner, bold lashes are my personal favourite.

And what’s a spring look without a pink pout? The shades in the Quo Lip Boost Plumping Gloss are divine. With perfect pink and lilac hues that tap into this season’s beauty trends, I mixed and matched two shades of pink to create this one-of-a-kind look.

Using primer oil, the highlight palette, dramatic mascara and a gloss for the perfect pink pout – I was able to pull together my go-to fresh face for spring just in time for the weather to hopefully catch up!

Disclaimer: This post was created in partnership with Quo Cosmetics and Shoppers Drug Mart but all opinions are my own. Quo Cosmetics is available for purchase nationwide at Shoppers Drug Mart stores and online.

Evening Glam with Quo Cosmetics

From date night to cocktails with the girls to holiday work parties, having a go-to glam look is every girl’s secret weapon. While I’m the first to admit I still haven’t mastered the smokey-eye – – even in my 30s – I do have quick routine that can take a day time look to evening appropriate in a few minutes!

I’m often running home after a 9-5, throwing on a simple dress, fun shoes, re-applying my makeup for evening time and bolting out the door. As much as I’d love to sit and spend 30 minutes on my look, it’s never much of an option so this is my real-life get out the door and go evening face! I’ll be using some of my favourites from the limited-edition Quo Holiday collection at Shoppers Drug Mart.

First things first: I always start with the eyes. A great base eye shadow I’ll use for the day is found in the Quo All About Eyes palette (I use the taupe colour – second row from the top and third from the right). I love their eye palettes available during the holiday season since I can test out new shades or colours I might be hesitant to try in a full size pot. (I’m actually itching to try a look with emerald green during the winter months!)

Once I’m home and prepping for evening, I’ll add a deep gold shimmer to the outer corners of my eyes –just a few strokes here and there. The Quo Matte N’ Metal Eye Shadow Palette has a great variety of colours in the nude and gold spectrum to achieve this.

The biggest difference which takes my look from day to night is eye liner. I’ll often go without or a simple flick at the outer edge of my eye during the day for a more natural look at the office. I rely heavily on a great nude shadow and double duty mascara to achieve this. For evenings or special occasions, I’ll heavy up on a dark brown liner to complement my eye colour. I like to add a cat eye edge to my eyes for additional drama. The Quo All About Eyes Kit not only has a great dark brown but a dark brass pencil shade as well that would look great lined on top of the dark brown for additional drama.

I don’t know about you but I find my hand tends to rest under my chin for most of the day which in turn often rubs away at my blush or bronzer come evening. Reapplying with the Quo Contour and Sculpt Palette bronzer is a breeze and made so much easier with their rose gold fan brush.

And last but not least: the lips! I’ve been really into coloured lip glosses lately and the Quo gloss lineup has the perfect mixture of nude and shimmer options. I actually layered the blush pink and shimmery-nude to achieve this look. The only thing left from here is to grab your coat, cell, keys and get going to the ball ;)

This post is in partnership with Quo Cosmetics and Shoppers Drug Mart. All opinions are my own.

Fall Beauty Routine with QUO Cosmetics

After recently posting my 5-minute morning routine on Instagram Stories, I received a ton of feedback to share more beauty content on the blog and my social channels. Truth be told, I’m always hesitant to share my go-to finds for makeup because I like to keep things simple when it comes to my everyday look. Well, turns out many of you feel the same way and are looking for tips and tricks to cut down on time in the morning and get out the door with a natural, glowing look.

With fall around the corner (errr, or so we think!), I thought I would share some updates I’m making to my everyday look by playing up more of the golden hues of my eyes, applying less bronzer, adding more blush and going a bit darker for my everyday lip colour.

The fall collection from Quo Cosmetics, available at Shoppers Drug Mart, has the perfect shades this season to help achieve this look. The Fire Clay eye shadow palette has so many of my favourite hues for fall – browns, beiges, shimmery neutrals and a few dark shades to take you from day to night in a pinch. Applying these with the Quo all over shadow brush was a breeze. I love that this brush can help apply shadow all over your eyelid as an easy swoop or create a smoky eye in the crease.

I love adding an extra swipe of pigmented colour (preferably in a lighter shade) in the creases of my eyes and above my lid, and will often use my finger to get a more dialed-up effect. The product has great pigment, so one swipe or a dab in the corner of your eye should be more than enough.

Since I haven’t completely lost my glow from summer (yet!), I’m still swiping on a fair amount of bronzer to give depth to the sides of my face. I’m not much of a contouring pro but I will outline the side of my face, and I used the bronzer shade in the Quo Dragon Bite palette. The Quo blush brush worked great to achieve this effect. I then used the same brush to quickly swipe blush from the same palette onto the apples of my cheeks.

While I love a good dewy look, I try not to overdo it and again, I find that dabbing the product onto the sides of your temple close to your eye can achieve the strobing effect without being too over the top. I used the highlighter in the Sweet Magnolia palette to achieve this look.

Last but not least – who can say no to a great shade of lipstick? I’m quite picky when it comes to my lip shades and my product. I’m not one to bust out a bold lipstick for the office. I’m usually sipping on coffee or water, gnawing on my pen or biting my nails, and I’m not one for reapplying throughout the day, so nude pinks are always my go-to. Nine times out of ten, I typically forget my lipstick at home, so reapplying doesn’t happen often which means I need products to take me from 8am-6pm. After testing 3 swatches, I opted for Seduce as my shade of choice. This product has the perfect velvety finish which makes for long-lasting colour that looks great even at the end of the day.

I might apply setting spray if I have time and voila – I’m running to the kitchen for my coffee and then out the door and jetting off to work. I hope you enjoyed this post. Be sure to visit your local Shoppers Drug Mart store to pick up any of the Quo products I used. And if you haven’t already heard, you can also buy Quo products online at Shopper’s new beauty e-commerce site.

This post is in partnership with Quo Cosmetics and Shoppers Drug Mart. All opinions are my own.