Empties

Hello,

it is the end of the month and I again used up a handful of products. I have to say that I enjoyed using most of them up and I'm about to finish a couple more but they will be featured in the next empties post.

First tube is  Essence colour arts eye shadow base. They had these available with the pigments in little pots but I wasn't really interested in those but I was looking for an eye shadow primer which would prolong my shadows. The texture of it was nice, not to liquid or to hard, just right and it was colorless and without shimmer. For my oily lids this product worked just okay, in combination with some shadows it lasted 7-8h but with most less. Last year in April I bought Artdeco primer which works so much better for me and since then I haven't used this one. I think it is time to toss this tube even though it is still full but since I'm not using it and I found better alternatives I can ditch it.

Second tube is Avon Foot Works scrub in a Cherry Ice scent. I love their limited edition scents and pretty much always I pick some but I don't use them on my feet (if I do it tickles me, I use piles on my feet) but on my face. I know, some people will be grossed about it but if you close your eyes and don't know that it is meant for the feet it makes sense. The scent is too nice for feet and there are plenty of  particles which makes exfoliating really easy, you don't need to press too hard but instead you massage it gently. I already miss this lovely scent but I'm replacing it with the papaya one.

Pencil s Essence Gel waterproof eye pencil in black. I remember I won it a couple of years ago (I wouldn't get the black one for myself) and I used it for a while but since I wasn't too impressed with it (on my hooded eyes it smudged and I just don't like pitch black color on my eyes) I put it on the side and now I wanted to start using it but the whole tip broke and fell out. Fortunately I have sharp reflexes and I caught it but the pencil itself is so hard and dry that I can't get much out of it so I'm tossing it. It is completely my fault, I know that I have way too many pencils so I'm making a point in using them up and not buying new ones until I use some.

In the back there are two more Etude House Royal honey sheet masks (I used one previously) and on the photo above is the actual mask (I was surprised at how well it fits my face, apparently it is very round). I'm still in love with the scent and this time I did noticed that my skin looked more plumped and hydrated (probably because I used two of them). I would like to point out that there is plenty of the liquid left after you take the saturated mask out and I have been using it as a liquid moisturizer which took me another four days of using one pack up completely. I think I will repurchase it again in the near future.

The last item is Melvita Lily's oil. It is supposed to help you fight against skin discolorations, hyperpigmentation, acne scars, restoring luminosity and radiance, for all of these I can verify. My skin has improved dramatically and I think the main reason is this 'miracle' oil. If you were wondering this is my second empty bottle of it and I already have backup of it and I will see if I will even need to buy the fourth bottle or my skin will look nearly perfect at this time next year.

Huh, that was a handful and at the same time so relaxing. Knowing that I'm using products and they work well for me is the best. After two weeks I will have another empties post and I'm afraid it will be bigger.



Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Project polish

Hello,

I think this will be the last project polish post for this year. Counting the bottle below, I have managed to use up 20 nail varnishes (not counting clear base and top coats) and I honestly think that is a lot since I can't remember when was the last time I used one before this year.

So, this is Essence LE Blossoms etc... varnish in the shade Forget me not. It had 7 ml of product and I have to admit it was one of my favorite colors but I had to use it up because the formula started to change and I wanted to enjoy in it while it lasted. I dedicated to it the whole post and if you are interested you can check it here.

I'm keeping the bottle for a little while and I will try to find something similar because I really loved this bright blue shade.

I decided to use up as many nail polishes this year as possible because I have way too many. When I started I didn't really know how many I will clear out so I picked 10 bottles and when I used one or two I replaced them with a new color. I didn't expect to love this project so much, I thought I will get bored soon but I didn't. I loved it so much that I decided to continue/start over next year. I already picked 10 'new' bottles which I will start panning and I will also keep the empty bottles so I at the end of the year I will have better perspective on what I achieved.

Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Winterberry and Shea

Hello,

these cooler days are perfect for some pampering or if you are short on time just do the regular routine and toss something luxurious or scented in.

I have been moisturizing my body with this Avon naturals shimmering lotion with Winterberry and Shea. There is another scent available, Warm Spice and Vanilla which is also great.

The lotion has two shades and you don't have to worry about it, when you squeeze the tube, both come out evenly with lots of golden shimmer. I normally don't like sparkle but this scent is so captivating that I had to buy backup of it, in fact this is my second tube of it already.
It has warmth to it derived from Shea butter but also a lot of fresh berries and this combo makes it a little unusual and very interesting. I don't think I smelled anything similar before so it is unique enough to justify purchasing some more.

When spread it does have a bit of a pink tone but it sinks in and doesn't leave skin tinted, the shimmer stays there and it transfer onto clothes as well, so if you don't like that then stay away from it but if you have the chance to sniff it I would say give it a go and maybe you will fell in love.
After using it for two to three weeks now my PJ and sheets already smell like this and make my sleep even more enjoyable.

On the two photos above I hope you can see the sparkle, the cream has completely sunk in but the skin is left glowing.

I'm so happy that they came back with them because they are Winter exclusive scents and I bought mine last year already but they are back but probably not for too long.
I used one tube of the Winter Spice and Vanilla and I did liked it but it wasn't anything special. The main and only scent that I could pick up was Vanilla and I can get the same scent in other lotions and I can avoid shimmer but with this scent I just can't. It is a rare, special scent that I like very much and the shimmer just doesn't bother me that much and probably I will repurchase it after I'm done with this and the backup tube.



Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Flirty Fall

Hello,

I have been contacted by lovely people at Adore Me to do a favorites for fall #flirtyfallflatlay (thank you for a great idea for a post). Since they are a lingerie company with gorgeous pieces I included one of my special undergarments but I spiced it up with some of my favorite lip products.

If you go on their page you can take a quiz to determine your style but even if you have everything settled down, it is fun to do it and it is a must to take a look at their Pinterest page because it is full of inspiration.
I mostly wear comfortable pieces, cotton any some microfibre for no lines, the most simple and basic pieces. I put function and comfort before anything else but I do have some special pieces like the lacy balconette bra on the photo above. Whenever I wear it it boosts up my confidence, it makes me feel powerful like I can conquer the world. For some people shoes makes them feel that way but for me it is a powerful lip, flirty lashes and nice underwear. I never flash it because I wear it for myself, for my pleasure and joy.

I included this Catrice Ultimate Colour lipstick in the shade Kiss me if you can (already discontinued), I had a feeling that I'm gonna love this shade so I bought one backup but this little numb is the first tube and I still love it. This color looks so good on me, quite close to perfection but it does have some little silver shimmer but on the lips it isn't so obvious so I'm okay with it. On the swatch photo you will see that it is barely there.

The gloss is from Avon ultra glazewear absolute line in the Renewing Rose shade which is one of my all time favorites glosses. I love the cushion-y almost balm like texture with a lot of shine and nice color payoff, the color is shimmer free and this particular mauve color is perfect for me. There is just a little bit left in the tube and it will soon be gone so I have to get a new tube.

Here I swatched the gloss first and lipstick afterwards. I sometimes wear them separately but often I layer them and I get a lovely natural looking pink lip with a glossy moisturizing feeling.

So, thank you Adore Me for this invitation to participate in the#flirtyfallflatlay and your good work to empower ladies all over the world with designer looking undergarments.



Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Citrus and Verbena cooling deodorant

Hello,

my sister is constantly looking for a more natural alternative to usual deodorants and so far they all broke her out or didn't work at all. She had high hopes for this one but after a week or two it started to irritate her skin so she asked me if I want to try it. I said sure, wiped the top layer and start using it.

It is L'occitane Citrus Verbena cooling deodorant without alcohol or aluminum salts. It comes in a twist up packaging and the product is very soft and you can feel how it melts into your skin once it touches it.
It holds standard 50 g of product.

It contains an organic Verbena extracts from Corsica and Lemon oil from Sicily (if you were interested where they get their ingredients). I can testify that the scent really is gorgeous. It is citrus-y fresh but at the same time you can get warmer, flowery notes from Verbena. I haven't test it in the most 'problematic' months such as Summer but so far it works for me. I try to exercise every day and my armpit stay relatively fresh which is a big plus and even bigger one is that I'm using it for almost a full month and I don't have any bad reaction to it. Apparently my skin there isn't as sensitive as my sisters is.

So to conclude, I love the scent, it keeps me fresh, it doesn't irritate my skin... you would thought that I found my perfect deodorant, right? Did you checked the price tag? It costs 16,80 €. I don't know about you but for me money still doesn't grow on trees and I don't know what I will do after I finish it up, I guess we will see.



Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Petit Aqua

Hello,

I know I have been absent for a while and I can only hope I will get better, I will try. For today I prepared one of my newest BB creams. These Holika Holika Petit BB's are so inexpensive and so good, its unbelievable.

So, this is Holika Holika Petit Aqua which comes in light, grass green tube with an SPF 25.

To better show the color I swatched it alongside with two other BB creams. The first one is super popular Missha perfect cover in the lightest shade no. 13 and the last one is another Holika Holika Petit but in the Clearing version, they only come in one shade.

They are applied in the same order, Missha is first and the lightest, the coverage is not the best but it is light enough for me. Second is today's star HH Aqua which is a little dark at first and with a rather neutral undertone. The coverage is very good and it dries to an almost matte finish which is rare for Asian market. To make it work I have to mix it with something lighter and yellow toned to match me. The last swatch is made with it's sister Clearing, it is much more yellow toned, the coverage is similar, medium to high but it doesn't dry so matte.

I ended up really liking it but it is a bummer that it is not a bit more yellow toned but that still doesn't stop me from using it. I'm mixing it with something else and get a pretty close match. Now I already own three out of the five tubes from revamped Petit line and eventually I want to try all of them. For the price you really get a lot. I'm impressed.



Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Empties

Hello,

these empties are a little more empty this time but on some of the items I have been working for a really long time so I'm really happy to finaly see them here.

The big pot is Balea hazelnut body butter. I already dedicated the whole post to it here. As I predicted I almost got sick of the scent while using it at the beginning of the year so I simply stopped using it. When the weather got cooler I decided to use it again and I loved it but probably I won't repurchase it again because I still have around 30 pots/tubes/bottles of body moisturizers that I have to go through.

The next pot is Melvita Shea butter with argan oil. I used it on dryer parts of my body, especially around the eyes (only at night) and around the nose. I liked it, especially because it had lemon grass scent even though they don't name it. I think Melvita discontinued it but I can find some Shea butter from other brands for less.

 Fuchsia Fever, Garnet Shimmer &  Rosey Gold

First lipstick is from Avon color rich moisture seduction line (I had to google it because it is so old I couldn't remember) in the shade Fuchsia Fever, which is as the name suggests bright fuchsia pink with a cream finish. I find this lipstick very moisturizing and super pigmented, if they would still be around I would pick some more shades, preferably in more toned down colors. When it was still full it looked really nice because the balm wasn't completely mixed in but it created swirling/marble effect but it was still very pigmented. I liked everything about it except I got over the color, I'm just not into brights anymore but I wore this one as a stain which made the progress  really slow but now I finally came to an end.

Next is also Avon color rich moisture seduction lipstick Garnet Shimmer but only a sample size. It is a warm red shade with golden shimmer. I liked this shade better than the Fuchsia Fever but I disliked the overload of shimmer. I didn't used it up completely because I detected some weird plasticky scent and I thought that it just isn't worth it.

The last lipstick sample belong to Avon 24k gold line and mine is in the shade Rosey Gold. I honestly don't even remember when they discontinued this line so you know that this is old but the color looks nice. It is the last swatch and this shade is fabulous and unique. The color on my lips looked slightly peachy with this beautiful golden sheen, not a frost. I wish they would came back with this line or finish because I would get some full sized lipsticks.



Thank you for reading and have a nice day

restocking with Avon

Hello,

this past Avon catalog had me at hello. My list was getting longer and longer but my finances couldn't back it up so I had to reduce to a reasonable amount. I still went overboard but I think I did good.

I'm stuck with Skin 79 eye cream, I don't want to toss it away so I will use it once or twice a week but I had to buy new eye cream to use on most days. There was a nice deal within Anew line but I had to get two items and I decided to get two eye creams. Top one is from Nutri-advance line and the other one is Reversalist with dual system (I already had this one in the past and I remember I liked it). In the pot there is a cream and on top is a peachy/salmon toned reflective cream which works as a concealer.
In the clearskin tube is pore penetrating gel cleanser, I'm about to finish my current face wash and I still have two other bottles but this one was so inexpensive and anything appropriate for acne prone skin screams my name so I had to have it.
The last item is Naturals radiance rose toner. I had one of the Naturals toners which I loved but they discontinued it rather fast and I'm still looking for alternative, this one convinced me with a lovely rose scent and rose extracts make wonders on my sensitive skin. I will report back if this one will be as affective as I hope it will be.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Pink Watermelon

Hello,

are you a fan of Avon? I know I am. My mom has been with them since I was in elementary and I remember bringing catalogs with me and selling stuff to my friends and teachers ;) It was the first make-up that I started with and being with the brand for so long I know what works for me and I simply can't miss any new releases (soon they will come out with new lipsticks which reminds me of a line they used to have, but we will have to wait a little).

This baby is not new by any means but I thought some people might appreciate some swatches. It is Avon ultra glazewear lip gloss in the shade Pink Watermelon.

It is very pigmented, hot but on the cooler side pink.

Not to forget about the excessive shimmer in different colors, so it sparkles like crazy. It is definitely not for the shy. Me? Yes, I am shy and not adventurous at all but I didn't return it when I had the chance. I wanted to get a bit bolder and did I? Well, I have this gloss for two years and I haven't used not even a quarter of it. You decide.

My goal is to use it or toss it by the end of next year, I will try to pair it with lighter lipsticks to tone down the color a bit and sometimes I will just put my brave hat on and wing it.

The formula is the same as it is with other ultra glazewear glosses. It feels light and not sticky, it lasts for about two hours at least on me and it leaves my lips moisturized. I can't complain it's just the overload of shimmer and it is the wrong color for me.



Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Pearly Golden Beige

Hello,

lately I had some light issues. It has been so dark and gloomy outside which made taking decent photos almost impossible, even though, today when I woke up in the morning and it was snowing it got a bit lighter and I could took some swatch photos of one of my latest eye shadows.

It is Kiko wet and dry shadow in the color Pearly Golden Beige. The packaging is black with a transparent lid and a magnetic closure.

The name, Pearly Golden Beige,  is very descriptive and correct. They managed to capture the essence of this particular shade in these three words.

I'm not completely happy with this photo but it was the best (I mentioned bad weather in the beginning) out of the bunch. In person this shadow is even more shimmery then here. First swatch is made on bare skin, dry, (it does not just blends in with my skin tone but it shines like a diamond, the wet version has more of a glow than sparkle) and second is wet and you can see that the intensity builds up. In really life it is glowing and it is very obvious shadow. It is not for shy people and when it comes to the neutrals I'm okay with some high voltage shimmery shades all over the lid. I feel very flirty and pretty with this shade all over the lid and some big lashes so when I blink it catches the light. I have been pairing it with the other Kiko shade Matte Beaver Brown in the crease and this shimmery one all over the lid and it is the look I can't get enough. I don't care for dark plums, smokey grey's and vibrant orangey shades which are supposed to be appropriate now in the Autumn, these two Kiko shadows are my perfect duo for all year round not just for now.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

It is called Beaver

Hello,

my sister recently bought me some eye shadows and she has such good taste, at least for me. We have very similar taste in eye shadows, so when she gets me something I instantly know I will like it.

I got this Kiko Matte Beaver Brown shadow in round pot. I like the name (every time I use it I imagine little furry beavers ;) and the shade.

It is brown but cool toned, something that I don't have in my collection and the finish is properly matte as the name suggests.

Here is a swatch on my hand. This shadow is very poorly pigmented (I used primer to get this opacity) and I get that some people don't like that. I find this shade to be perfect for my crease and I prefer to slowly build color and avoid 'I got punched in the eye' effect. Big fluffy brush picks a little product at the time but I get a lot of control in return.
I love this shade and if it would have more color payoff I wouldn't like it that much. For me it is perfect and I have to thank my sister one more time for pick this beaver   ;)



Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Essence: Glitter in the air, preview

Hello,

I recently got this very interesting preview from Essence. I like to post the most interesting LE, well, at least the ones that interest me the most. This collection spoke to me even though there are a lot of items that don't interest me but the ones that caught my eye...

metallic eye shadow
The cream eye shadows, which can be easily applied with the fingers and blended, provide a highly metallic finish. Available in 01 dream on !, 02 smile! You're beautiful and 03 mirror, mirror on the wall.


2 in 1 metallic eye liner
The duo pens which allows you to create party styles and more subtle looks in the colors green, plum or rose gold. Available in 01 be the jewel on my crown! and 02 be the twinkle in my eye!


eye brow pen pomade
Thanks to the waxy texture the pen easily fills in eyebrows. The universal color suits many shades of brown. Available in 01 make your brow wow!


velvet lipstick
The lipstick tip is diamond shaped and creates silky-matte lips in dark plum or soft rosewood. Available in 01 life is too short for boring lipstick and 02 can't buy love, but lipstick.


one for all shimmer drops
Thanks to the shimmer drops the face and body can shine with a touch of gold. They can be worn alone or mixed with other foundation / day cream / body lotion. Available in 01 a little shimmer never hurts.


strobing blush and highlighter powder
Light-reflecting pigments of the baked powder highlight accentuate the higher points of the face and give a nice glow. Available in 01 when in doubt, add glitter.

strobing brush
The ergonomic heart shape adapts to any face and is ideal for applying blush and highlighter. Available in 01 leave sparkles wherever you go!.


nail polish
The effect paints the nails for the next party perfect scene! Available in 01 hey gorgeous!, 02 live.love.shine!, 03 too glam to give a damn and 04 born to sparkle.

nail polish remover
This nail polish remover is even better than the regular formula, thanks to an innovative gel formulation. Available in 01 a new manicure is a new beginning.

Essence isn't afraid of colors or shimmers and this LE is not an exception. They will offer different products mostly in various green and pink shades with lots of glow and glitter. At the end of the year a lot of people gets bolder and not just in make-up department, it is the end of an era and there is still so much to do. It is time when we toss our safety blankets and allow ourselves to fly, glitter and unusual colors reflect our carefree spirit and shows the world that we don't take ourselves too seriously. 

I will try to get my hands on some glow providing products (shimmer drops, metallic eye shadows, blush).

Thank you for reading and have a  nice day