Daily Beauty tips

    Bourjois Cream Blush 01 Nude Velvet I've been doing 'the cream blush as a base plus powder blush on top' to make sure that the colour lasts as long as possible for a while now. I use this one, which is favourite cream blush, as a base because it goes particularly well with Catrice's Rose Royce. It's has that silicone dry-to-the-touch/almost powdery type of finish, which ensures that the powder blush doesn't stick on top in patches rather it blends over smoothly.   Catrice Defining Blush 020 Rose Royce My favourite blush at the moment. It's a natural nude-pink shade that works with any look and never looks overdone. The flush it gives is so pretty! Catrice's blushes are fantastic - really pigmented and last so long on the cheeks.  NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Chantilly I finally found a concealer that matches me perfectly when I'm at my palest. The formula is super creamy, the coverage is almost full (pretty much identical to Collection's ...

There is a new kid on the Labello's Fruity Shine block. Peach version joined the family which already includes Strawberry , Cherry and in some countries also Guava, while Dragon fruit and Pomegranate mysteriously disappeared. I did make an unidentified high pitch sound when I first saw it, since I absolutely love peach scented products. For those who are confused about the name Labello, it's just how Nivea's lip balms are called in this part of the world. To the best of my knowledge this version doesn't exist under the Nivea name. The peach version has a hint of colour on the lips just as the rest of the Fruity Shine lip balms. This one is, obviously, a peach shade but with tiny gold shimmer , except that the shimmer doesn't show on the lips. The colour pay-off is minimal, but still noticeable, especially if you go to town with it. The finish is shiny . The scent is divine! Just like peach yoghurt and very similar to The Body Shop Vineyard Peach body butter tha...

Back in my early teens, when I first got into hair care, Tigi's Oatmeal & Honey shampoo and conditioner  together with Tigi's Curl Rock Amplifier were staples in my bathroom for years. I bought several supersizes (750 ml) in a row and then the Oatmeal & Honey line got discontinued. They finally repackaged it last year and added a hair mask. Of course, I couldn't resist trying it out. Texture:  it's a typical hair mask that is neither too thin nor too thick. If I remember the texture of the old conditioner correctly, this is thicker, though not by much. It's similar in texture to L'Oreal's Ever Riche mask and a bunch of others. Scent:  This has a super strong scent . It's probably the strongest smelling hair product I've tried. I've said before that it smells like Christmas and it does - like drinking mulled wine and nibbling on gingerbreads. The two strongest notes are cinnamon and clove plus there's a bit of honey thrown in as well...

When I bought Rimmel's Kate Matte lipstick in 107 , which I wore pretty much every day all winter, I instantly went on a search for a matching lip pencil, since 107 is one of the most difficult colours to apply nicely. The problem is not in the formula, but in the colour - every mistake shows. Based on my Google search I decided on a lip pencil also by Rimmel, called Black Tulip . Colour: when I was looking for a matching lip pencil in our drugstores, they all looked too brown. I hoped that with Black Tulip this wouldn't be the case, but unfortunately it has some strong brown tones in it. Basically it's a deep burgundy-brown shade , darker than Rimmel's 107, but closer to Rimmel's Apocalips in Eclipse except more brown. Worn alone on the lips, I'm must admit, I'm not a fan of this shade and I also don't like the Black Tulip all over the lips with Rimmel's 107 on top combo as it makes it look too dark. But it works well just as a "fixer" i...

I don't normally do anything as stupid and shell out 26€ for a concealer, though it has happened before ( YSL Anti-Cernes multi-action concealer , which is lovely might I add and was 5€ cheaper back in 2006) , but being super pale means finding a matching shade is about as rare as hen's teeth. So I treated myself for my birthday with the lightest concealer I have found to date - NARS Radiant creamy concealer in Chantilly. Right off the bat I noticed how similar it is to Collection's Lasting Perfection concealer , especially for something that costs about a fifth of the price of NARS' concealer (or a little less than a half for someone like me who has to order it on eBay) . But more about the comparison later in the post. Texture: S uper creamy, pigmented and very blendable , though it needs something underneath that has a bit of moisture be it a moisturiser or a moisturising foundation. Dry, matte skin won't allow this to spread and blend as nicely, resulting in i...

This is the second February in a row that I'm all over this body spray. I'm talking, of course, about Victoria's Secret Coconut Passion and it might surprise you to learn that it doesn't actually smell all that coconuty at all. This is not a scent I'd wear to the beach or associate with summer. Not at all. This is actually a very warm and snugly scent that's more appropriate for winter . I tend to change my fragrances a lot depending on my mood and I sprayed this very liberally one day just because it was the nearest thing around me. I then started writing another post and all of a sudden I started smelling home-made cookies . You know those yummy vanilla crescents ? Sniffing the air thinking that some miracle occurred and someone brought me cookies, I then realised it's me that smells so good. I smelled just like cookies. Which is cool in my book and I don't care what anyone says. It usually smells a bit sharper on me, a more perfumey vanilla with a hi...

Herbal Essence Bee Strong Conditioner This is surprisingly good for a drugstore conditioner and it's so affordable at only 2.45€ per bottle. I love the effect of it, the scent is nice and it moisturises my dry, coarse hair very well. My only real gripe is the packaging because when it's about to run out, you need Hercules' strength to get the rest of the product out (hence why mine in cut in the middle). I know there is a pot version available, which I'd prefer, but it's not sold in my country. Repurchase: Yes. John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Moisturising Conditioner An absolutely lovely conditioner that I have been repurchasing for years and have rarely been without a tube of this in my bathroom. In fact, I currently have a 500 ml bottle of this with a pump . Repurchase: Yes. Dove Nourishing Oil Care Express Treatment Conditioner (a.k.a. Dove Oil Care Nährplege 1 Minute Kur-Spülung) I used up another one of these - I must have gone through at least a dozen tubes ...

A lot of empties accumulated in my bags in the past couple of months (two bags of them to be exact). In fact, there are so many of them that I'll do two separate posts about them, otherwise this would be way too long. So if you see a product in the first picture and you can find it here, fret not, it'll be in the second part. The blue text are links to the original reviews or first impressions if you want to know more about the products. L'Oreal Age Perfect Toner with Vitamin C  I haven't used it up yet as I still have some left, it's just in a spray bottle because the original packaging is  rubbish. I like this as a spray toner since it doesn't feel like your applying nothing, rather it feels sufficiently moisturising and it also contains vitamin C. The scent is among the stronger ones and it's difficult to describe in any other way than chemical, but I like it. If I apply this with a cotton pad around the eyes, it burns a bit, but this is not the case whe...

There is something inherently cool about Nuxe. They may be a pharmacy brand, but they're elegant and chic and you love to display their products on the vanity. There is no secret that I adore some of their products, for one I've been using Huile Prodigieuse every day as a face moisturiser for almost three years. Nuxe also has a subsidiary brand called Bio Beauté, a line of organic cosmetics, which prides itself on using juicy bio fruit to make their products. So it's not surprising that Bio Beauté by Nuxe Lip Balm with apricot butter*  has one of the most mouthwatering fruity scent ever as it smells just like ripe pears we grow in our orchard. The product is a creamy lip gloss that nourishes the lips. If you ever had any of the L'Occitane lip glosses you'll know what I kind of texture I mean. It says it's for dry or chapped lips and I have neither (one of the lucky girls here) , but I feel like this might not be enough for healing chapped lips, though it...

essence bloom me up! tools!  available in March 2014 big eyeshadow brushes  1.59€.  applicators 1.39€.  duo eyebrow styler 2.69€. eyelash curler 3.29€ concealer sponge 3.29€ make up sponge 4.39€ big powder brush 3.29€ blush brush 3.29€ kabuki 4.39€ brush bag 3.79€ pocket hair brush 1.99€ Looks very interesting, doesn't it? I'd have that mint brush just because it's mint. I'm so shallow. essence bloom me up! TE   available in March 2014 eyeshadows in 01 bloomylicious, 02 rose it up! in 03 blow my mint. 2.19€ duo eyepencil 2.19€ lipstick in 01 rose it up! in 02 chaising lacy. 2.19€ blush stick in 01 chaising lacy in 02 blooming tender. 2.79€  shimmer powder in 01 rose it up! 3.59€.  nail polish in 01 blow my mint, 02 lovely lavender, 03 blooming tender in 04 chaising lacy. 1.99€ nail lace stickers 1.59€ hair band 1.59€ I love all the nail polishes, though considering these things sell like hot cakes, I doubt I'll manage to get them. ...