Aloe vera

Hello,

today I have a green product for you. I'm a huge fan of aloe vera, it is so practical and great for pretty much everything. I usually buy it from the brand Fruit of the Nature but the other day I saw this in my drugstore for a fraction of price.

Kräuterhof aloe vera gel

It is from a brand called Kräuterhof and the gel inside is green. This one also have a scent, I guess it smells natural, green but also a bit fruity. The minute I got home I tried it on. I cleaned my face and applied it. After 5 minutes or so, my face started to feel itchy and hot, I checked myself in the mirror and I was red as a tomato. I don't think I ever had such a bad reaction so fast. I also used it on my neck and chest area but it was fine, it is just my face that is so sensitive.

Next time I will spent a little more and get a superb products that works for me. I will still use this one, I guess I can use it on my legs after shaving or on my hair as a hair gel to tame those annoying flyaways.

Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Coffee and Cream

Hello,

today I have to show you the last item from Benecos. I bought a lot of products from them a while ago and this palette somehow just didn't got its turn until now.

Benecos natural eye shadow palette Coffee and Cream

Benecos natural eye shadow palette in Coffee and Cream contains four neutral shades, great for beginners or just fans of neutral looks, like myself.

This color scheme attracted me the most, they also have the purple quad if you are a fan of those colors. The finishes vary from shade to shade, there are matte, sateen and shimmery shades included. The pigmentation is great, swatches were made only with two swipes except for the first cream shade, that one I had to layer a bit in order to show up but the reason is also my pale complexion.

Benecos natural eye shadow palette Coffee and Cream

First off white/cream color is matte and a little chalky but nothing too bad. On my skin it barely shows up but I use it as a base on top of a sticky base and it works perfectly.
Next we have warm bronze borderline orange-y shade with almost metallic finish, it contains small shimmer which makes this shadow shine but I usually blend it out a lot and it looks almost like it has sateen finish.
The third is my favorite. Warm nude which looks like nothing special in the pan but on the skin it is fantastic. It deepens my skin tone just for a shade and adds beautiful sateen finish which I love so much. I wish they would make this shade in a single packaging because I have a feeling I will go through it super fast.
The last dark neutral brown is also matte and pigmentation is superb. I mostly use it instead of liner and I love how it warms up the eye opposed to the usual grey pencil.

If you expected, like I did, that this palette will lack pigmentation or it would be overly shimmery or glittery you would be wrong. On the swatches above the shades maybe don't look like anything special but they look amazing on the eye. I did all kinds of different looks using only this palette and I loved them all. This palette is great in my opinion and I love using it.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Empties

Hello,

today is the last day of June and I thought it is great time to get rid of some empty packaging. I started with this type of posts earlier this month and I might continue with them twice a month since I hate keeping empty packaging for to long. This time I managed to clear out seven items.

First we have Avon Color Trend lip balm in Refreshing Pear. This was available a couple of years ago, I remember really liking this one so I bought this backup. My opinion changed a bit, it had a nice pear/lime scent and while it was green it was clear on the lips but it did had some random glitter in it which was completely unnecessary if you ask me. It was nice moisturizing balm but sometimes a bit sticky.

Next to it is A'pieu NonCo Tea Tree oil, I have been using it religiously ever since I got it last year and I loved it. My breakouts reduced and skin got much clearer. The packaging is opaque so I didn't realize how much I used it up, one day it was just gone. I already ordered a new bottle but will have to wait for it till it gets here. I wrote about it here.

I finished another body lotion and this time it is Avon Perceive. I reviewed the scent here. It was lovely scented, average lotion. I have been using it every single day and my skin was moisturized and soft but I don't know how it would handle with very dry skin. I already repurchased this scent but I will wait a couple of months till I start using it again.

I used up a body wash, this one is from I love... brand in a Honey Almond scent. The smell is authentic Honey with a bit of Almond warmth to it. Pure joy to use it until I actually started using it in the shower. The consistency is a bit thin so you have to be careful not to spill it. It doesn't foam much but I still had a feeling it cleaned my body, the issue I had with it is the scent development. In the bottle it smells divine, mixed with water it smells plastic-y and fake. I admit, I have been pouring with it just to finish it as soon as possible. I for sure won't repurchase it and if I'm not mistaken they aren't that cheap to begin with.

In the orange tin is Agatha Ruiz de la Prada lip balm in Tropical scent. I wrote about it here and you can see that I really didn't like it. I mostly used it on my hands and that is the reason why it was finished up so fast.

Avon lipstick Baby Lips

In the little tube is Avon sample lipstick in Baby Lips. It is so old that I don't even remember which line it belonged and Avon for sure don't sell it anymore. In the swatch above you can see the color and I have to say this is the perfect pink for me. If it would be available I would repurchase it in the full size but I'm not that lucky. It is medium pink, with buildable consistency, no glitter or shimmer but it is glossy and moisturizing. Pure love.

And the last bottle I finished was also from Avon, Planet SPA mediterranean olive hot oil. The instructions says that you have to put it a hot water for a minute, than you step in the shower and apply oil on wet hair and leave it on for another minute. After that you continue with your normal routine. I noticed that my hair looked better after using it but I didn't liked to put something moisturizing on 'dirty' hair. I have my routine which is, washing my hair with shampoo twice and then I put conditioner, mask or some kind of treatment on while my hair are already clean. This messed up with my routine and even if it would still be available I wouldn't repurchase it (the mask from the same line in the big pot is also amazing and is already on my list).

This was quite a lot of products are writing but I like doing them. I can always go back and read my thoughts about particular items and see if I liked them or not, if I should repurchase it or not.



Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Project polish

Hello,

it is the end of the month and I managed to clear out two more polishes.

Essence Fateful Desire & Be Optimistic!

It is pure coincidence that they are both old Essence nail varnishes. The beautiful red is called Fateful Desire and frosty orange is Be Optimistic!

This red shade is one of my favorite. It is slightly darker than true red and also cool toned. It suits my skin tone very well and if it would be still available I would repurchase it for sure.
Next, we have frosty, warm, bright orange. This is the only orange nail polish in my collection and I remember I got it in a swap, I would never buy shade like this. I tried it once but it really isn't my cup of tea so I'm tossing it for good.
This year I completed ten bottles of nail polish and I'm still counting. I have another six months ahead...


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Time to compare

Hello,

the last few posts have all been dedicated to Avon products and for today I have another one. I showed you the new Glow lipsticks and while the shades weren't that bad I disliked the formula but I found something very similar already in my stash...

Avon Ultra Color Latte & Glow Nude Sand

They are both Avon lipsticks, first is Ultra Color in the shade Latte and second is Avon Glow Nude Sand. They don't look like exact dupes in the tube but they seemed similar enough to compare them side by side.

Avon Ultra Color Latte & Glow Nude Sand

They both have cream finish but aren't completely matte. First swatched is Latte and it looks a bit lighter and more neutral toned than Nude Sand which comes off more orange-y toned. On the lips you can barely tell the difference but I like Latte much more because it doesn't have to much warmth in it.

Avon Ultra Color Rich Country Rose & Glow Caribbean Coral

Next we have the battle of brights. First is Avon Ultra Color Rich (mine is in the old packaging and the name used to be a bit longer but when they were repackaging them they kept the shade and I believe it is the same) in the shade Country Rose and second is Avon Glow Caribbean Coral.

Avon Ultra Color Rich Country Rose & Glow Caribbean Coral

Country Rose is more red and Caribbean Coral has more coral-orange tone to it but what made me think of potential dupes is the finish. They both contain that silver, cool toned glow which visually makes my lips look fuller. While the shades can't be mistaken for each other, they are enough similar for me.

There are no dupes here but if you don't want to have gazillion lipsticks (I think I came to my senses and I will try to be more aware while buying new lip products because I already have so many and I don't want them to go bad) I think if you already have one of each you don't need the other one.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Caribbean Coral

Hello,

today I'm showing you the last item I got from Avon Glow collection, did I save the best for the last?

Avon Glow lip stylo Caribbean Coral

Avon Glow lip stylo in Caribbean Coral. I really like this elongated packaging compared to normal chubbier lipstick cases, it seems more elegant.

This is the actual product and as you can see it has some lines in it and it looks like it contains some shimmer.

It looks completely different than Nude Sand which has cream finish and falls a bit flat. This shade has dimension with silver particles which creates glow and visually plumps the lips.

Avon Glow lip stylo Caribbean Coral

I tried one more time and photographed it on my lips, some would say it has a frost finish but I always shiver when I hear that, it has such a bad reputation, doesn't it? Well, whatever the finish I think it is very flattering, when the light naturally reflects from the center of my lips and makes them look fuller without layering gazilion product.
I think the shade is beautiful. To me it doesn't look to coral but like a washed out red.
But how does it wear? What is the formula? Well, I'm sad to say but it is the same as it was with the nude one. When I try to reapply it gets all gross and sticky and icky. I had to remove all of the remaining pigment and apply fresh layer, that worked but can I be bothered? No, I can't.

Sorry Avon but I'm returning both shades, they are lovely but the formula of these just didn't work for me.


Thank you for reading and have a nice day

Warm Coral

Hello,

we are having such a nice sunny days and I felt the need to continue with this theme on the blog as well. Let's dive into the Summer with some more glowing products.

Avon Glow bronzing pearls Warm Coral

Avon really prepared a nice treat for us with this years Glow collection. Today I want to show you bronzing pearls in Warm Coral. The packaging is really nice, I remember these pearls used to come in huge pots but they minimized them and made them easier to travel with.

Avon Glow bronzing pearls Warm Coral

This is how they look like. You can spot three different colors in there and what surprised me is how little pearls is in there. They cover the bottom and it looks like they tossed just a couple on top, you don't even get two full rows of pearls. A little disappointing but then again, will I be able to finish them up this Summer? Probably not.

I thought it would be fun to swatch all three colors separately and on the last, fourth swatch you can see all of the colors mixed together.
The lightest shade is very shimmery and yellow toned cream color.
Next is the bright coral shade which also contains some shimmer.
Last is the warm toned brown with no shimmer.
All together give warm bronze shade with a sateen glow, I don't know where the shimmer went but it is not seen on the skin.When it is applied on the cheeks it just shines from within. I wish it would be a little less warm but still, it is a beautiful shade.

Here you can maybe see the mixed colors better and also the lack of shimmer. They are very pigmented and it is very easy to overdo the color, so I have to be very careful.
This is my very first bronzer and I'm very happy with it. I love the glow it gives to my cheeks and the color is really lovely, when I use it on my face I try to use very light hand so in person isn't as orange and unnatural looking. For me it also works as a nice eye shadow and I like how it works against my blue eyes and at the same time it also doesn't look like I'm wearing to much make-up because the color is the same on the eyes and on the cheeks. I like that, sometimes I use the same lipstick on the lips and on the cheeks or at least use something very close in terms of color.







Thank you for reading and have a nice day