If you guys read the beauty section of my blog, you'll know that I love watching YouTube for makeup tutorials. I also have YouTube to blame for my new found makeup obsession. When a chance to meet with Tati Westbrook of GlamLifeGuru came up, I jumped on it! I met Tati at the Four Seasons in Yorkville, bright and early at 8am. She walked into the room glowing for such an early morning meeting. Clearly I need to watch more of her channel because this girl's makeup game is STRONG!

We chatted about her new collection, exclusive to Birchbox, called Love Of Color. She walked us through the formulas and the shades she developed. Staying power and wearability is a big deal to Tati and it really shows. Just read my review below. ;)

Even through my eyes, Tati's LOC collection is a dream come true in terms of hard work and determination. She started her YouTube channel 5 years ago and now has over 826K subscribers (myself included), and over 101 million views, and now, her own makeup line. Congrats Tati! Can't wait to see what's to come next!

xo, Nathalie

ONE & DONE SHADOW STICKS
I love these shadow sticks! Smudge these around your lids quickly because they'll set in 30 seconds time, and won't budge! You can layer them on as you would a regular shadow but the advantage here is that they're easier to play with (in my opinion anyway). I tried using these shadows without a primer to test the staying power and they failed. I have oily skin and without a primer my makeup just comes right off. Someone with normal to dry skin would probably be okay sans primer, but not me. Overall, I love these and if I could recommend only two colours, they'd be Day Trip and Nite Owl. They work beautifully together and on their own. Regardless of what shades you pick up, the whole colour collection is made to work seamlessly together so I don't think you'll be disappointed.

• ON POINT: shimmery champagne.
• DAY TRIP: shimmer rich gold with orange undertones.
• IMPRESS ME: a beautiful coppery shade with mauve undertones.
• SMOKE SCREEN: shimmery steel.
• NITE OWL: a beautiful aubergine iridescent shade.

VIBRANT MATTE LIPSTICKS
The formulas of these lipsticks are creamy, matte and non-drying. You can ditch the lipliners with these, but after testing the staying power, I feel much more confident in using them with a liner. If there's only one lipstick you can buy these seasons, I'd recommend Glam Life. It's so beautiful and flattering and really makes a statement!

• FIRST KISS: The perfect nude.
  The perfect nude for all skin tones! Tati swatched this on the back of my hand and I was immediately impressed with how pretty it looked against my olive skin. Nudes are the most difficult colour for me to wear, and while most people feel outside of their element wearing red, I feel outside of my element in nude lipstick. As pretty as this one is, I use it to tone down oranges or browns and I want a more subtle lip. I just can't do a full nude.
• WILDEST DREAM: A flattering cool red.
  This vibrant red is a dream come true! It's a cooler red than I'm used to with some blue undertones, but it's still very flattering with my olive skin. 
• GLAM LIFE: Bordeaux luxe.
  Where has this colour been my whole life? I think Tati really hit a "home run" with this shade. It's a beautiful deep burgundy shade that is perfect for this time of year. I got tons of compliments when I wore it for the first time but I found the staying power wasn't the greatest on me. I've been using it with NYX's Auburn lip liner to help it last even after my morning coffee. It's comparable to Chanel's Rivoli, but Tati's Glam Life is much, much better! 

Thank you Birchbox for hooking me up with the LOC Ultimate Collection. Like always, opinions listed on my blog are my own.
I'll update the post shortly with colour swatches so stay tuned.