Essence advent calendar XVI

Hello,

for the last day in the year I decided I will show you what is on my nails. It is jet another Essence nail polish in on of my favorite colors but did I liked it?

Essence What a grey-t night!

His name is What a grey-t night!  It is a light grey polish with fine pink/gold shimmer which is seen only in a strong light. The color is unique at least to me. I usually pair my grey polishes with something silver but this one totally convinced me that gold and grey goes hand in hand.

Essence What a grey-t night!

This is how this beauty looks on the nails. The warmth of the shimmer reminds me of the colorful sunset, right? This one is a total winner for me but the formula is not as great as expected. The problem I have with this one is that it doesn't dry completely. After half an hour or so I expect my nails to be completely dry but this one isn't, I'm seeing lots of dents in it. I bump with my nails a lot and everything shows on the surface, I even used my Avon liquid freeze which helped a bit but not completely. It is a real bummer because this one is one of the most beautiful polishes that I own.


Thank you for reading and have a nice New year

Coco Rose & Cherry Blossom

Hello,

today I decided to change things up a bit so I choose some lip products. This time there are two but from the same brand and line but still different from each other.

Figs & Rouge lip balms in Coco Rose and Cherry Blossom

I'm talking about Figs & Rouge lip balms. The one in the pink packaging with the flamingos is called Coco Rose and the color is blush pink. The scent is very specific, it smells like roses and it is spot on. It reminds me of the Alverde rose oil and honestly it feels so weird to apply it on my lips, it doesn't feel right. I keep thinking that it can't come in my mouth. Which is a problem since all of the lip products eventually ends up in my mouth.
The second one is called Cherry Blossom which actually smells like Haribo gummy bears and the shade is soft cherry. I haven't used it a lot but enough to see how different they are from each other.

Figs & Rouge lip balms in Coco Rose and Cherry Blossom swatch

First is Cherry Blossom. The shade is nice cherry red and it doesn't contain any glitter particles.
The second is Coco Rose, it is pale pink with tons of silver glitter. It is a bit oilier and that makes it softer, more liquid-y when it comes out of the tube.

Here you can see the shades better. They sheer out when  put them on lips. Cherry Blossom is slightly tinted and I like that. The Coco Rose first looks pink but on the lips it is clear with a lot of glitter which is a bit rough. I definitely feel it when I rub my lips together.

I just have to show you the packaging more up close. To me liquid lip products that comes in a tube are the most practical since you can apply them on the go, you just press the tube on the lip and smear it all over but here you can see that this is impossible. The opening is huge and you can't apply it straight from the tube. I put it on the back of my hand and apply it with my finger or a brush but when you are walking or on the bus you really don't have time to do it.

I was so excited to see them on sale since they aren't so cheap. I picked these two and I had high hopes. First the packaging is a total fail in my books, second Coco Rose scent reminds me of something else and I feel uncomfortable wearing it on my lips and the third complaint is the non existing color packed with rough glitter. I wish I wouldn't purchased this one. Thankfully I'm almost gone with it, I was mixing it with my body lotion just to use it up. On the other hand I quite like the Cherry Blossom. The packaging is of course the same but the color is nice. It is very softly red tinted  with no glitter. I will use this one with joy.

My review is mixed because the products differ from each other but mostly it is just a personal taste, maybe someone likes their lip balm to be full of glitter or doesn't like red tint. We are all different and like different stuff.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Essence advent calendar XV

Hello,

I'm back with another polish form this years Essence limited edition calendar. I have to say that I'm really impressed. So far I like all of the colors and I'm sure I will wear them often (or for as long until I will use them all up).

Essence Kiss under the mistletoe

This time I will introduce you to the dark green shade which is called Kiss under the mistletoe. I'm not a huge fan of greens but this one is so simple. Plain dark green that interestingly enough appeal to me. I can wear it on it's own or I already have a vision to top it off with silver chunky glitter.

Essence Kiss under the mistletoe

It' s pretty dark but not so much that it would look almost black and the cream finish is a joy to apply.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Essence advent calendar XIV

Hello,

nail polish posts continues. Today I have tricky color for you. This is the shade I naturally don't gravitate towards because it can look really weird on certain skin tones.

Essence Sweet caramel sweets

This one is called Sweet caramel sweets. It actually really looks like caramel. The finish is shiny and they didn't add shimmers which is great in my opinion. I think this type of warm nudes looks the best if it is left cream and plain.

Essence Sweet caramel sweets

And here is another picture to show you how it looks on the nail on the bright light. I actually can't wait to wear it and to see if it really looks that good on me.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Essence advent calendar XIII

Hello,

just a quick post today. We had such a lovely weather with lots of sun today and I decided to take some photos. Especially to capture the beautiful colors of certain nail polishes.

Essence Berry-tale

This is Essence Berry-tale. In the bottle it looks a bit darker with some shimmer but when you apply it this happens.

Essence Berry-tale

Especially on the sun this fella glows like a light bulb. The shimmer is so reflective and catches everyone's attention. I have a felling this one will be used up pretty fast because I will be wearing it non stop.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

My first highlighter

Hello,

I was never into highlighters simply because my skin is naturally oily and I never liked to much shine on my mug but I started playing around with this idea because highlighter is very popular among girls and if you apply it right it looks amazing. Just recently I stumble across this product and sample was out to try the product and I was impressed at how beautiful it looked on my hand. I thought I can play with it and if it turns out to be too much for my cheeks I can still use it as an eye shadow, right?

Terra Naturi face & body shimmer powder in Golden highlight

This is Terra Naturi face & body shimmer powder in Golden highlight. The packaging is rather simple, brown with a clear top so you can see how beautiful it is.

The product is marbled and each piece is unique in its pattern. I didn't pay much attention how it looked, I just took the one at the back (sometimes nasty girls open brand new products to test them even if there is sample provided).

Terra Naturi face & body shimmer powder in Golden highlight

If you take a closer look at the second photo you can see that on one side the product is more bronze/gold and the other side is more white so this is how it looks if I don't mix them together (I can use them individually on my cheeks or eyes).

But if you mix them together and bled them you get this beautiful glow. Like I said I don't like too intense stuff and this one sheers out beautifully and still manages to leave skin looking healthy and glowing without the necessary shimmer.
It only comes in one shade, 7 g packaging and it costs only 3,99 €.

I'm very happy with this purchase, I love using it on top of my blushes or focusing on top of my cheeks and also as an eye shadow.
I tried lip balm from them and it impressed me so much that I'm thinking of repurchasing and now this product swing me of my feet. I think I will have to try more products from them for sure.

Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Cheek chalk

Hello,

today I will show you the blush that made me realize that I love cream textures. I find it much easier to apply cream product on my cheeks than powder one. I like using my fingers and blend it with my fingertips. Even if I over do it I just pat it until I get to desired tone/opacity.

Skin Food Cheek chalk Rose Peach

This cute little pot is from Skin Food and it is called Cheek chalk. Mine is in the shade Rose Peach (there is also pink version called Rose Pink and coral one named Rose Orange).

On the skin it is beautiful. I think peach shades on the cheeks makes you look healthier (especially if you are as pale as I am). This one also gives radiance because of the subtle golden shine which can be seen when you move your head (or on swatches you can see it on the second picture). When worn, it looks like I have applied highlighter. I think it is very easy to use and also it doesn't take to much time in the morning.

Skin Food Cheek chalk sponge

It comes with little sponge which is usable. I rub it into the actual blush and dab on the skin. The third time I washed it this happened. Little holes appeared, it looks like rats started eating it but I don't have pets (my flat is actually pretty small and I think I would notice if I would have a roommate). Now I tossed it and I'm not sure how to use this blush. The pot is small and my nails are long. Maybe I will try with another random sponge or I will invest in a little stippling brush that will fit into small opening.

I love everything about this blush. The shade is great, color payoff is on point, golden shimmer build in highlight is magnificent, small pot is convenient to travel around but the sponge that comes with it is crap. Well, I won't let this inconvenience put me down and I will soon find a way how to use it properly.

Thank you for reading and have a nice day 

Essence advent calendar XII

Hello,

today  have a really quick post for you. For the holidays I wanted to have fresh manicure and that is what I did.

Essence My wish list

Here is another Essence nail polish. The shade is called My wish list. I thought it will be sheer but it turned out to be completely opaque. I used three coats just to get nice even application.

Essence My wish list

It is really light almost white and it was so hard to get it right on the camera. It dried glossy and I like it like that.
I'm left with 9 more polishes (5 base ones and 4 toppers). I can see at least three remain top coats could work on top of this delicate hue. You can expect an updated version soon.

I wish you all lovely holidays.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Lavender again

Hello,

lavender is one of my favorite scents so it is not a surprise that I buy pretty much everything that smells like it. Here I have another Krasna product and this time it is a massage oil.

Krasna lavender massage oil

It smells lovely, just like lavender. I add it in my less scented body lotions or the ones that already smell like lavender to make them stronger. I like how moisturized my skin feels after I applied oil all over it. It is such a calming and comforting scent that makes me fall asleep much faster and when I wake up I can still smell it on my sheets.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Tuesday shopping

Hello,

today I went on a hunt to see the Catrice eye shadow palette from the Treasure trove limited edition. Of course I was too late. Not only it was apparently sold out but there was already new one called Rough luxury. Some stuff looked nice but nothing too excited. So at the end I got two necessities and two bonus products.

Neutrogena oil-free moisturizer, Himalaya Purifying Neem foaming face wash, Terra Naturi face and body highlighter, Terra Naturi body lotion in pomegranate

I was so happy to see the Neutrogena oil-free moisturizer on sale. It is my favorite and I already wrote review about it. It is a dream for oily and dehydrated skin.

Next I have Himalaya Purifying Neem foaming face wash.  I already finished one bottle and since it was 50% off I bought it even though I have a couple of other face washes I have to go through. I remember loving it and this was good enough to buy more.

At the moment I'm using up my Terra Naturi lip balm and since I can't say enough good stuff about it I decided to try some other products. This face and body highlighter caught my eye. It looks beautiful on the skin but I will give him some time and I will report back with more in depth review.

The last product is also by Terry Naturi and it is their limited edition body lotion in pomegranate scent. I can also smell some spices and oranges in the background. I think it will be lovely on the skin.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Essence advent calendar XI

Hello,

today was such a gloomy day that I decided to make it better with a new manicure. I decided to go with the festive red shade.

Essence Rudolph's favorite

This dark red shade is called Rudolph's favorite. It has a cream finish and applies like a dream. I like dark red polishes and this one is my cup of tea. I have something similar already but I don't mind, it will only encourage me to wear it more often.

I had to use the flash so it looks a bit brighter than in real life. It leans on the darker side. I used two coats and everything looks smooth and even.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Magical Tea Tree

Hello,

I decided for today to post something completely different. I don't want to bore you to death with nail polish and also I don't change it every day. I haven't posted anything acne related jet and today is the day.
I don't have nice skin and it all started when I moved to the capital and started with college. Now it is calming down and I have to admit there are several different products and diet involved but today I will talk about tea tree. People were always suggesting me to start using products with tea tree but I couldn't find any in the drugstore (I'm getting blind). A month or two ago I decided that now it is the time to finally find something and start using. I came across with these two products.

Alkmene tea tree toner

This is Alkmene tea tree toner. I found it in the local drugstore and it has typical scent which doesn't bother me. I pour a little on the cotton pad and pat in on problematic areas. I can do it in the morning and night. I noticed that acne started to clear up faster and now when I feel something is starting to grow I soak it with this toner and it calms my skin.

A'pieu Nonco tea tree oil

The second product I swear by is this A'pieu Nonco tea tree oil. I take a drop or two and apply it on top of my night cream. In conjunction with the toner it really helps. I feel that the oily consistency stays on the skin longer and fights with 'monsters' overnight.

I'm glad that I finally picked something out and that my skin responds so well to it.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Essence advent calendar X

Hello,

here I have another beautiful color to show it to you. I love wearing grey or lavender toned nails and this color, when you look the bottle seems like it combines both shades. I have two or three polishes that are a perfect mix of those two shades and I have to say that they are my absolute favorite.

Essence My dear reindeer

This beauty is Essence My dear reindeer. On the photo you can see that it is not completely grey, it has lavender hues in it as well. Unfortunately they don't transfer that well on the nails. Mostly it looks just grey but since I like grey nails (I don't find grey color to be boring at all) I like it a lot. I compared it with other similar ones in my stash and I couldn't find anything similar.

Essence My dear reindeer

When I was applying it it surprised me that it dried matte. Somehow I didn't liked it and also what happens with pretty much all of my mattes is that they apply a bit uneven and they look bumpy not smooth. It bugged me so much that I applied shiny top coat which conceals unevenness.
I'm really happy with the color but I wish they would make the regular formula (not matte).


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Chemical scrub

Hello,

today I will introduce you my favorite type of scrubs. We all know mechanical scrubs which contains sharp particles that exfoliate our face but there are also chemical ones that contains enzymes which are causing chemical reactions and are exfoliating without rough particles. They contain fruit enzymes, naturally we can find them in papaya fruit (I have jet to try this home made recipe where you make a mush out of papaya and apply it to the skin to exfoliate it naturally).

Balea's Enzyme peeling

I was also too lazy to make it my own so I went to the store and bough it. This is Balea's Enzyme peeling. A year or two ago they had it in different packaging (white and pink with a lady on the front, I loved that one and repurchased it several times). Apparently this is the new version and so I bought it. It still smells fruity and nice. The texture is very creamy and it is quite easy to disperse it all over. I leave it on for 5 minutes as recommended and then I rinse it off. My skin is a bit red because it is super sensitive but redness calm down after a while. My complaint is that this doesn't work. My skin doesn't feel scrubbed or baby soft. It feels like I haven't done anything. It was cheap but I still feel like I thrown my money away.

Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Essence advent calendar IX

Hello,

as promised I will show you today jet another upgraded version. Both polishes comes from this years advent calendar. I don't even remember if Essence had this last year, if it did I didn't even noticed.

Essence The Night of Magic

This baby was used as a base, it is called The Night of magic. I used strong light to show you that the color of this polish is blue and not black. Honestly when it is applied on the nails it looks black and I wasn't happy with that so added fun topper.

Essence North Pole Princess

I used this cutie. It is called North Pole Princess, at first I wasn't sure because I don't really wear this type of glitters but I decided that I will give him a chance. I know that on the photo you can't really see what is going on and also when you see it in person you don't see much.

Essence The Night of Magic & North Pole Princess

And voila, this is the result. I quite like it. The top coat ( North Pole Princess) really has jelly base and looks very shiny and juicy. It the base there are tons of clear hexagonal glitters that worn on top of a black color just changes the texture, to me it looks like snake skin, right?
Next time I will try it with lighter base and I bet it will look very whimsical.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Essence advent calendar VIII

Hello,

my nails are already shining in another color. I really liked the previous metallic shade but since there are a lot of other colors in the calendar that I haven't touched I decided to swap it with something darker.

Essence The night of magic

I just had to include the photo with this saying on it. I can't but agree that the girl is only helpless while her nail polish is drying.

Essence The night of magic

Here on this photo it is more obvious that this baby is dark blue and not black. It is called The night of magic (and the night is very dark  ;).

Essence The night of magic

On the nails it also looks almost black and since I'm not a huge fan on black or near black polishes I don't think I will leave it like that for long. Probably tomorrow I will update you with some decoration on them.
I'm not sure how obvious it is that it doesn't dry super shiny, it is not matte but I would say something in the middle. It applied like a dream and two coats are enough for perfection.

I love the formula but I only wish that they would made it more obvious blue.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

lavender, cedar and orange

Hello,

in the title I left you a little hint of the product I'm going to talk about today. It is a crucial product especially now in the winter time when our hands get severely dehydrated and skin started to crack. To prevent all that we have to use hand creams, good ones and today I will introduce you one of my favorites.

Krasna hand cream

This is Krasna hand cream. It contains lavender, cedar and orange among other ingredients  but these three also give the scent. To me it is a lovely mix. One of my all time favorite scents is lavender (all of the Krasna products include it, that is the reason I love this brand so much) but here they mixed it with cedar and it comes off refreshing. It reminde me of home because we have cedar trees around our house but also the cedar scent is typical for Mediterranean where we spent our summer holidays. At the end you get a hint of orange which warms the scent and makes it more winter appropriate.
The texture is lightweight and it absorbs fast. The skin is not left greasy but soft and nourished.
This bottle contains 100 ml and costs around 10€. It is not cheap but if I take in observation just how much I love the scent and that it really helps my skin. When I do the math it pays off and I will definitely repurchased it.

Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Essence advent calendar VIII

Hello,

today I'm wearing gorgeous color on my nails. It is so shiny that I can't focus on anything else than my digits.

Essence Do you hear the jingle bells?

This is also limited edition color that comes only in the advent calendar. It is called Do you hear the jingle bells? There are a lot of similar colors floating around but I always found them to be too yellow toned or there were obvious brush marks. I liked it on other people but I couldn't picture it on my self. My sister has similar color from Catrice (I'm pretty sure it is long discontinued) and I love that one, so I have been looking for something similar. I would say that this one comes close but it is probably a bit more bronze toned.

Essence Do you hear the jingle bells? 

I included two photos of the same polish just to show how different it can look. On the second photo it looks a bit washed out but it is just because I was standing right in front of the window and natural light washed it out a bit but it is still highly metallic and shiny.
Does anyone else have problems with opening those tiny bottles? I find out that all of them are screwed so tightly I can open them up after 5-10 minutes or trying really hard.

Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Comparison of the two eye shadows

Hello,

today I decided for something more colorful. It has been a while since I posted something eye related.
I wanted to show you my favorite and the most recently bought golden eye shadow.

Alverde mono eye shadow in Elegant Beige & ARTDECO long-wear eye shadow Satin Gold

In the round green pan there is Alverde mono eye shadow in Elegant Beige. The finish is sateen and almost metallic looking. The color itself is neutral almost cool looking.

The second one is ARTDECO long-wear eye shadow Satin Gold from the limited edition called Art Couture. I like the slightly more shimmery finish but the shade is not my favorite. To me it is a smidge too yellow.

My eyes are grey/blue and I like the contrast that the golden eye shadow gives. It adds more dimension and warmth to my cooler eye color.

For me the Alverde one is the winner. I love the buttery soft texture and the color. The other day I wanted to check which colors they also have and noticed that they already discontinued this beauty and other shades that they offer didn't really got my attention (thank God because I really  don't need more shadows).


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Peachy Rose swatch

Hello,

today I'm also skipping NOTD post simply because I don't have time to switch my nail polish color. I started with a new job and I'm adjusting to the new timeline. Still I have super exciting product for you. I wanted to try something from the new H&M beauty line and my sister surprised me with a blush. I've been wearing it a lot and now I feel I can share my thoughts about it.

H&M beauty Pure velvet cream blusher Peachy Rose

This is how the box looks like and I think I don't need to explain to much that I kept the box. It looks luxurious and makes me happy to open up the drawl and see it even though I don't keep the product inside.

H&M beauty Pure velvet cream blusher Peachy Rose

This is the actual packaging. White hexagonal with golden logo (it is my favorite color combo on make-up products). All of the cream blushers comes in white and the powder blushes are housed in black packaging.

H&M beauty Pure velvet cream blusher Peachy Rose

I have to give my sister a high five to choose probably the best shade that exist for my skin type. It is called Peachy Rose and it is definitely rosy with just a hint of peach undertones (my favorite are actually peachy or coral blushes but this dusty color totally got me). It is crazy pigmented but so easy to blend out, even a total beginner could do it (I'm a total rookie when it comes to blushes and I find it super easy to work with it). 

H&M beauty Pure velvet cream blusher Peachy Rose swatch

This is rather heavy swatch on the back of my hand, you can see the beautiful color better. It doesn't have any glitter or shimmer particles but it has this glow, probably because of its structure-creaminess. I swirl my finger in it and dot it on my cheeks than blend them out with patting. I only use my fingers because I'm just used to do most of my make-up like that. My fingers are my personal brushes. 

I got into blushes a month or two ago, before I never wore it. I even didn't know where exactly to apply it but now I got so much joy and bought or got 6 different blushes on a whim. This one sky rocked to the top pretty much the first time I used it. Partially because of the color and second even bigger reason is because it is so damn easy to use it and it blends so effortlessly plus it does last all day long.

Thank you for reading and have a nice day 

Mystery Mauve

Hello,

here is my favorite lip liner. I'm still a rookie at lining my lips so I tried to choose from the Avon brochure the most neutral color for myself.

Avon glimmerstick lip liner in Mystery Mauve

This is Avon glimmerstick lip liner in Mystery Mauve. It is retractable and surprisingly easy to use. If you don't press to much you can get really natural look but if you go with full force you get a strong brown/mauve lip.

The tip is even, round but when I apply it I do it under certain angle so now it looks tilted but it helps me get that precision I want. As I mention above I love this formula, it completely melts with the lips and it looks matte but not too dry (if you want to wear it on its own it looks great but eventually your lips will get dry if you don't use lip balm). I always apply lipstick on top because I don't like the look of the lip liner on its own. What I wanted to say is that the lipstick glides over like butter and it definitely prolongs the wear. This baby convinced me that lip liners aren't outdated but actually very useful.

Avon glimmerstick lip liner in Mystery Mauve swatch

This color looks quite natural on me if I apply thin coat but on the days when I feel like wearing plum lipstick this really makes the best base for it. I also have a lot of bright pink lipsticks (I had a phase with them) but now I just don't fell like wearing fuchsia pink lips so I just dab it on top of this muted colored liner and the colors mesh together so nicely.

I'm definitely sold on the whole lip liner idea and especially the ones from Avon. In the future I will probably pick another shade to have more versatility, maybe more nude or pink version.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day