Listen to Lena

Perfecting the Art of Conversuasion

Canadian Pride

Sephora Celebrates Canadian Beauties

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I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that EVERY beauty-obsessed Canadian chick should have one of these:

“Just in time for summer, Sephora Collection launches the Sephora Canada Palette, a mini colour palette celebrating Sephora’s love for Canada. The palette offers a beautiful assortment of colours in a collectible mini palette that’s easy to take on-the-go with nine eyeshadows, four lip gloss shades and a blush.

The palette comes housed in an iconic Sephora shopping bag that can be hung from its chic red mini tie or carried in your bag when you are on the go. The cover art is inspired by the skylines of great Canadian cities from coast to coast.”

LOVE IT!

The shadows are a mix of matte and shimmer shades of pink, beige and khaki – perfect for a day look or a soft, smokey eye at night. As with most Sephora shadows, they can be worn wet or dry to create a variety of looks. Aren’t you loving the rose-tinged khaki on the bottom right? So romantic!

The Sephora Canada Palette is ONLY $18 ($60 value) and will be available for a limited time beginning next week at Sephora stores throughout Canada or by calling 1-877-SEPHORA.

Lena Loves this Palette For:

1. Any (and every) girlfriend’s birthday… or just because
2. A gift for Mother’s Day – which is just around the corner!
3. A gift for a hostess – especially if she’s hosting a Canada Day BBQ
4. For yourself, of course!

Let’s celebrate being Canadian… and being beautiful! xo

Less than 24 Hours to ENTER TO WIN!

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How quickly a month can zoom by!

There’s less than 24 hours remaining to enter the fabulous It’s One of A Kind! giveaways! Go on, support these amazing Canadian small businesses and be rewarded with some pretty sweet loot. I’ll be drawing for all winners tomorrow morning, so check back to see if you’re a lucky ducky!

Calling All Canadians ~ It’s One of A Kind!

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November is just around the corner, and it just happens to be my favourite month of the year! Why? Please circle the correct response:

a) It’s my husband’s birthday month
b) It marked the end of the first trimester (and morning sickness) with both my little guys
c) The One of A Kind Christmas Show returns!

If you answered c), you’re a fellow shopaholic!

This year, I’m inviting small Canadian businesses to participate in a series of giveaways called “It’s One of A Kind!” During the month of November, I’ll be posting mini-features on Canadian artisans with a giveaway for each one. It’s great exposure for fellow Canucks, and tons of chances to win for my readers! (You don’t necessarily have to be a merchant at the One of A Kind Christmas Show, but vendors will receive priority.)

Why am I doing this? 

I spend a lot of time giving ya’ll the heads up on sales, promos and deals from the big guys: popular retail and restaurant chains. But I simply don’t spend enough time tooting the horns of local businesses – and the owners who dedicate a large part of their lives to creating quality, unique, (and often delicious) products.

Home grown businesses not only offer local character and prosperity; they also build strong communities, link neighbors in economic and social relationships, and contribute to local causes.

And the distinctiveness! Small businesses produce products based – not on a national sales plan – but on their own interests and the needs of their local customers, which guarantees a much broader range of product choices. (Kind of like me, I suppose: I blog about the deals which I think will be interesting to my audience, rather than just throw on a multitude of nondescript sales. I’m a local business too!)

A very limited number of spots are available, so if you’re interested in participating, please send me an e-mail and I can forward you all the juicy details. There is NO CHARGE to participate.

Proud to be Canadian!

Balmshell: True Inspiration

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As part of the Toronto Beauty Bloggers Network, I enjoy fabulous invitations to some of the coolest beauty events happening in and around the city. Unfortunately, being very pregnant and juggling family life, I haven’t been able to take part in many of the recent events (though I’m hoping that will change once I welcome the little guy and restore some balance).

One event that I was really sad to miss was the Balmshell Beauty Bloggers event. Balmshell, a Canadian company, was created by identical twin sisters Jennifer and Fiona Lees.

With no experience in the cosmetic industry and only the love of lip-gloss on their side, the sisters decided to take on the industry and with determination, hard work and a lot of style they turned their dream into a reality.

These self-described “cosmetic junkies”, followed their passion and entrepreneurial instinct and developed what they considered to be the perfect lip-gloss. After years of working with a cosmetic manufacturer they developed a formula using only the finest ingredients to produce a high-shine, moisturizing lip-gloss. It looks and feels fabulous.

One of my favourite beauty bloggers, Anjali Handa of Rock that Look, sat down with the sisters for a fabulous interview about the company, their products, and celebrity following! Of course, Balmshell lip glosses are all about the packaging –

The Balmshell glosses are not only non-sticky and extra moisturizing, but they come in the cutest packaging I’ve ever seen! These ladies truly hit the unique mark by incorporating fun and girly float art into their packaging. Check out their line of lip glosses on the Balmshell lip gloss page and click on the product of your choice to see the float art in action! The best part is each gloss comes with a key chain attachment – you can keep your float art even after the gloss is finished – genius!

To read her entire interview, click here.

I wanted to highlight my very favourite Q&A – one that provides oodles of inspiration, regardless of what industry you’re in, walk of life, or stage in your career. Check it out…

Anjali: To date, what has been Balmshell’s proudest moment?

Jenny: We have many, but this is a story that we always remember from the beginning.

“You only get in life what you have the courage to ask for”. Remember that quote. I was watching an Oprah Winfrey show and one audience member stood up and asked if Oprah would come and visit her small hometown. Everyone in the audience laughed because they assumed there was no way that Oprah would go. Two months later, Oprah dedicated a full show on visiting that small town. The woman was so shocked when Oprah arrived at her door with a TV crew. When asked why she obliged that audience member’s request, Oprah said “You only get in life what you have the courage to ask for.” I always remembered that.

A year after seeing that show, Fiona and I were in the process of deciding what our brand name would be. Fiona was reading an article about Gwyneth Paltrow titled “The Blonde Bombshell”. Starring at the name, we realized we could change the spelling to BALM (as in lip balm), and there it was, BALMSHELL, the perfect name for a cosmetic line. We went to trademark our perfect name, thinking it was not being used. To much disappointment, we learned that REVLON owned the name. Our lawyer was quick to advise us to think of another name. We had fallen in love with the name Balmshell. I started researching the U.S. trademark database and found that the trademark was going to expire in 6 months. I was so excited when I told my lawyer the fantastic news. However, he informed me that after the six months, Revlon still had an additional six month grace period. I was so upset. There was no way we could wait for a whole year for the name.

That’s when it dawned on me, “Why not just ask Revlon to drop the name?” Our lawyer laughed at me and said he could write a letter, but it would probably sit on a desk, never get opened, and it would be expensive to assemble (not to mention how much Revlon would charge, if they decided to give us the name). We wanted that name so badly. Then Fiona and I were reminded of that episode of the Oprah show and that quote that spoke so strongly to us. I decided to take matter in to my own hands, and call the Revlon trademark lawyer in New York, directly. I left a message explaining the situation. Two weeks went by and I had heard nothing. Then, one day while at work I got a call from John O’Shea (I will never forget his name). I gave him all the information and politely asked if Revlon would drop the name. He said he would look into it. Two days later, he called back. “Okay” he said, “Revlon will drop the name but it is going to cost you.” I held my breath and asked “How much?” He answered: “$100 US to transfer the name over.”

Two days later Revlon ended up dropping the trademark for us and we picked it up without spending a cent. Right away we went to register www.balmshell.com and of course it was taken. I called the owner, determined to not give up. I told the woman on the phone that we wanted the unused URL. She said that she was going to start a lip balm company, and that once the trademark had expired from Relvon she was going to pick it up. I explained to her that we now owned the name. She quickly looked it up the U.S. database and saw that we did indeed now own it. She then asked, “How did you get it?” I simply told her “I just asked”. So she handed over the website address.

“You only get in life what you have the courage to ask for.” It is important to understand that we didn’t own the name “Balmshell” in the beginning. If Revlon said “no”, it didn’t matter as we had nothing to lose.

What a truly inspiring story! So the question is… what are YOU going to ask for today?

Canadians Rule My PVR

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Being a mommy and a preggo, I rarely (if ever) watch the telly at night. Life is just too jam-packed with evening events (I’m talking dinner, bath time and bed time, not fancy soirees) to catch my favourite shows at the correct time. Enter PVR – my beloved digital friend. For years I have been watching Y&R over breakfast and 90210 while Ryder naps.

Now even though I’m in my thirties, I can’t seem to let go of my addiction to Teen TV. And I’m not alone – I rolled on the floor laughing as I read friend Janice’s response to my “Thirty Two Things” birthday post –

Happy Birthday! OMG – about the Vampire Diaries – I had a dream I was Elena last night, and that I was having a torrid affair with Damon. Lol. Speaking of born days – I felt like a born-again teenager!

Bahaha! Girl, if I ever had such a sweet dream, I’d pummel the poor soul who woke me from my slumber.

Back to must-see Teen TV: have you noticed the whack of Canadian content? I can’t believe how many Canucks have infiltrated Tinseltown. Every show on my PVR is rich with actors from across the country, and I couldn’t be more pleased! Canadian pride baby!

Remember when Jason Priestley appeared on every Canadian entertainment show – not because he was decidedly talented or gorgeous, but because at the time, he was the only relevant teen “heartthrob” from the north? Today eTalk has their pick from a roster of HAWT celebs. Oh, how times have changed…

Here’s my tribute to both my fave teen shows and fave Canadian faces!

The Vampire Diaries

Nina Dobrev (Elena) – Girlfriend went to Ryerson University in Toronto. So did I. And had we ever crossed paths (unlikely since I’ve got 10 years on her) I would have definitely told her to pack her bags and head straight to LA. She is GORGEOUS and talented – love her.

Sara Canning (Jenna) – This Newfoundlander plays aunt/guardian to the Gilbert kids, and she’ll probably end up in the bed of that Blade-inspired vampire assassin. I think she’s a pretty great cross between sexy aunt/parental influence. Would love to see her storyline take off.

Dillon Casey (Noah) – Didn’t catch Dillon on VD? That’s okay, he was there for about 5 minutes, but did make a pseudo impact on the show. His character, Noah, worked with vamp Anna to open the tomb, and had this peculiar fascination with Elena – he was the creep in the hoodie who caused her car accident and turned up at the 50’s dance, taunting her. Dillon’s from Oakville, ON.

90210

Shenae Grimes (Annie) – No secret that this Brenda Walsh 2.0 is a Toronto-native; now they just have to do something with her dreadful season 2 hair. It looks like it hasn’t been washed since her Degrassi days!

Jessica Lowndes (Adrianna) – I can’t believe this gorgeous Nelly Furtado look-a-like is Canadian. Then again, since they both hail from BC, perhaps there’s something in the water? Taxi please! She was one of my least-favourite characters when the show first aired, but had completely won me over at the start of this season. However, her girl-on-girl storyline with Rumer Willis currently has me dry heaving.

Dustin Milligan (Ethan) – this is an honorable mention, cause we all know he’s gone, gone, gone! Ah well, the Yellowknife native snagged Jessica Stroup (Silver) in real life, so it was time well spent.

Melrose Place

Jessica Lucas (Riley) – Chickie is a crossover star! You may have first seen her on 90210 as undercover cop Kimberly who swaps spit with the English teacher, but then she became the teacher herself – portraying an elementary school TILF on Melrose. A BC native, the super-exotic actress is of Haitian and Pakistani descent.

Shaun Sipos (David) – Who knew Brad Pitt Jr. is from Victoria, BC?! He is so freakin’ adorable! He’s also 28 years old, making him slightly less cradle-robbing than most of the hotties on TV today. I love him with Lauren, but that storyline yo-yos too many times for my liking.

Glee

Cory Monteith (Finn) – He’s the kind of teen I’d definitely be crushing on back in high school (even though he’s actually almost 30). Born in Calgary but raised in Vancouver, did you know that his first job was a Wal-Mart people greeter? Um, a far cry from the 102-year old who greets me at my local store! Although one thing that makes him decidedly less attractive to me is the fact that he dropped out of school in ninth grade.

Jessalyn Gilsig (Terri) – Psycho blonde is a Frenchie! Hailing from Montréal, she became the girl we loved to hate – married to hunky Mr. Schuester, faking her pregnancy, and trying to steal Quinn’s baby. She’s now alone and sad – and I seriously hope she’s not written out. Things are much more interesting with her around!

Patrick Gallagher (Ken) – Another BC native, this Chinese/Irish actor landed the part of every one’s favourite football coach who’ll forever be waiting in the wings for Ms. Pillsbury. Ken’s costume consists of small shorts, long socks, tight T-shirts and a fanny pack. Sexy!

Victor Garber (Mr. Schuester) – Who didn’t love Victor as the shipbuilder in Titanic? He was just as adorable in the third episode of Glee, portraying Will’s father. I really hope they bring him back for another cameo!

Well, that’s all for now friends. I believe I have exhausted my list of Canadian content :) Very quickly, Anna Paquin appears on True Blood, Enrico Colantoni and Hugh Dillon star in Flashpoint, James Tupper was on Men in Trees and now stars in Mercy, and of course Sandra Oh does Grey’s Anatomy and Evangeline Lilly does Lost.

Oh Canada!

One Bulb at a Time…

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The lovely and wise Maria forwarded this e-mail to me a few days ago, and though I had encountered the story before, I thought it was a wonderful reminder about the importance of buying Canadian made. You too may have come across this message, but perhaps take a few moments to read it again – and read your labels as well.

“A physics teacher in high school once told his students that while one grasshopper on the railroad tracks wouldn’t slow a train very much, a billion of them would. With that thought in mind, read the following…

One Bulb at a Time

Check this out. I can verify this because I was in Lowe’s the other day for some reason and just for the fun of it I was looking at the hose attachments. They were all made in China. The next day I was in Home Hardware and just for the fun of it I checked the hose attachments there. They were made in Canada. Start looking.

In our current economic situation, every little thing we buy or do affects someone else – even their job. So, after reading this email, I think this lady is on the right track . Let’s get behind her!

She said:

My grandson likes Hershey’s candy. I noticed, though, that it is marked made in Mexico now. I do not buy it any more. My favorite toothpaste Colgate is made in Mexico now. I have switched to Crest. You have to read the labels on everything.

This past weekend I was at Walmart. I needed 60W light bulbs. I was in the light bulb aisle, and right next to the GE brand I normally buy was an off brand labeled, “Everyday Value.” I picked up both types of bulbs and compared the stats – they were the same except for the price. The GE bulbs were more money than the Everyday Value brand but the thing that surprised me the most was the fact that GE was made in MEXICO and the Everyday Value brand was made – get ready for this – in Canada by a company in Ontario.

So throw out the myth that you can not find products you use every day that are made right here.

My challenge to you is to start reading the labels when you shop for everyday things and see what you can find that is made in Canada – the job you save may be your own or your neighbour’s!

If you accept the challenge, pass this on to others in your address book so we can all start buying Canadian, one light bulb at a time! Let’s get with the program . . . . help our fellow Canadians keep their jobs and create more jobs here in Canada.

If President Obama insists on a “Made in America” policy, which is commendable of him to support American workers, we should do likewise. BUY CANADIAN! Read the labels. Support Canadian jobs.”

LOVE Canadian Made!

Toronto: One of A Kind Art Show

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It’s my favourite time of year. The weather is getting warmer, the birds are singing, and it’s once again time for the Spring One of a Kind Art Show!

I’ve been faithfully attending both the Spring and Christmas shows for years now – it’s just so me. Handmade items, Canadian artisans, unique (ahem, “one of a kind”) pieces and tons of exciting vendors and products. I don’t believe I’ve ever left a show empty handed – on the contrary, I usually have both arms full of goodies (and a very populated Visa statement).

This year, Catherine from Sailorgirl Jewelry graciously sent me a couple of tickets for admission, so I had even more reason to look forward to the event! The show started yesterday and you can bet I was there as soon as the doors opened :)

One of my first stops, naturally, was Sailorgirl Jewelry. I’ve featured Catherine’s pieces on my blog before (I discovered her for the first time at the 2006 show) but quickly realized once again, you really have to see her work in person to appreciate the vibrancy and ingenuity.


I couldn’t resist grabbing the Grass and Sky Sputnik Pendant for myself – the colours just popped out at me and I LOVE the way it so perfectly compliments my persona!

“Can you believe it used to be a faux pas to wear blue and green together? Look how fabulous these colours are! This super cute pendant will make everyone smile just looking at it, you’ll laugh all day long with this on.

My hands made these beads. There is no paint on any of my beads, just glass upon glass upon glass. I use Moretti (Effetre) glass, a little CIM and occasionally Vetrofond. All my beads are kiln annealed, thoroughly cleaned and inspected.”

Next, it was on to The Monster Factory, where I’ve been collecting monsters since 2004. At first, I fell in love with their ugly cuteness, and then I reasoned that one day my children would play with them. I was right – Ryder absolutely loves all his monsters (I think he’s up to 14 – spoiled lil’ kiddo)! So to keep with tradition, we picked up a new one (Mr. Creeps) as an Easter present for him. Now this monster is so new he isn’t on their website yet, so I’ll have to provide his description for you:

“Don’t let Mr. Creep’s self-confidence fool you. He is NOT always right.”

At between $35-$55 a pop, they’re not cheap. But I can assure you that Ryder has bitten, pulled, jumped on and kicked the daylights out of his monsters, and they look as good as new. The quality is impeccable – ALL the Monster Factory plush toys are sewn by hand and reinforced for durability and longevity.

Since Mike is on a curry kick, we also stopped by Himalaya Gourmet and picked up three new sauces: Tikka, Butter and Hot Bengal. I love cheating with Himalaya Gourmet sauces – the flavours are authentic, the ingredients are all natural, and they don’t taste “Canadianized” – something that your average PC and VH sauces tend to do. They’re so close to the real thing, you’ll think you’re at your favourite Indian restaurant.


Of course, we stopped by many other exhibitors and scored a lot of other wonderful handmade products… but in keeping with tradition and not completely revealing my shopaholic ways (my mom will be calling me up in about 2 minutes to ask me what else I bought…) I’ll just end my shopping summary here. However, I will share a few of my favourite artisans to visit:

All Things Jill
BabyWrappers
Bamboo Lily
Bruce County Nut & Fudge Co.
Domistyle Inc.
Foxy Originals
Mally Designs Ltd.
The Bean Ladies
Tracy’s Wine Jellies

The show runs until Sunday, April 4th (open on Good Friday and Easter Sunday). If you’re looking for something to do this long weekend, why not check out the show? You’ll LOVE it!

Click here for more information on the One of A Kind Art Show.

*Update* Fab reader Jennifer found a coupon for $3 off admission to the OOAK show on the Monster Factory website! Thanks for sharing Jennifer – and two days left to enjoy the show!

Click here for coupon.