Products I've used up - February 2015

Treacle moon shower creme warm cinnamon nights

The packaging and the scent are wonderful. I really like the concept of the brand, I just do not love the product. When it comes to shower gel a lot of them make me break out. Sadly this was one of them. (I still used it on  my legs were my skin is a lot less sensitive.) It s rather expensive shower gel compared to other drugstore alternatives and does not moisturize my skin or anything like that. Needless to say I will not repurchase this.

Labello lip butter blueberry blush

I actually finished this lip balm the day after my January Products I've used up post went up. That is why there are actually two lip products in this one. I own way too many lip balms and I am trying now to use up most of them so that I am only left with Carmex (because I always want that around) to use on the go, one other for at home use and one to go into my gym bag. I love the labello / Nivea lip butters and I really like the blueberry scent. 

Maybelline Baby Lips Peach Kiss

There is such a big hype around the Maybelline Baby Lips. I can not fully support that. I like the packaging and I like the color of this particular one. For a lip balm in a stick version it is actually pretty good but compared to Carmex, the labello lip butters or eos lip balms I just cannot recommend it. It simply does not do enough.

Balea moisturizing sheet mask

I have used this before and I quite like it. It does not really have any long lasting effects on my skin but it does make it feel nice and soft after you apply it. Plus you look like you are about to commit a crime like rob a bank or something, so that's cool ;)

Tetesept Winter fairy tale bath salt

I still have back-ups. Oops. I might have bought a little too many of these but there are already new versions that I am dying to try! 

theBodyShop tea tree squeaky clean scrub

This is a though one. Every time I use it I love it but then I feel like I would not want to spent that much money on it again. It is not actually that crazy expensive but still. I think I will repurchase it at some point but not right now. W will see how much I miss it :P

Rival de Loop oil free make-up remover

This is pretty much a staple on this blog. I feel like I talk about it in every other post. I still love it and I already got two more back-ups.

I am super proud of the lip products I have used up. What did you use up this month?

Nail of the Day - Get The Blues

Catrice, Ultimate Nail Lacquer 55 Get The Blues

Basecoat: p2, Intensive Nail! Hardener

Topcoat: essence, studio nails, better than gel nails, top sealer

I am going out tonight and this is the first color I thought of when trying to decide what to put on my nails. What does it remind you of? - To me it just screams mermaid. 

Depending on the light it looks more green, blue or purple. The duochrome effect is not as 'strong' on the nails than it was in the bottle but it still looks great. I applied three coats but maybe two would do the job as well.

You can definitely see the brush strokes from applying it but in this case I think it just adds a cool texture to the polish.  

What are you wearing on your nails today?

LEGEND by Marie Lu - Book Review

LEGEND is the very first book I read in 2015. I hope it will not be the last and so in order for me to feel more motivated to read I have decided to write reviews on my blog.

PLEASE NO SPOILERS!!!

LEGEND is a dystopian novel by Marie Lu. It is told from two different perspectives: fifteen year old girl named June who is looking forward to a great and fast carrier in the military and a fifteen year old boy called Day, a criminal the government has been searching for for a long time.

I gave this book three stars on Goodreads. I do not really get the hype about LEGEND but maybe I would have enjoyed this book more when I was younger (maybe 14 to 16). To me the way the characters act is rather unrealistic. They change their opinion way too easily and 'the way they discover things' seems a little staged. I did enjoy the way the book was written but I did not relate to any of the characters (Tess is my favorite though). Ultimately that is why I do not think that I will pick up the sequel PRODIGY any time soon. Maybe when there is a movie coming out? ;)

Over all I am sorry to say that I would not necessarily recommend this book but maybe if you are younger it is a cool story to read from the perspective of somebody your own age.

What are your thoughts on the LEGEND? Please do not leave any spoilers in the comments!

BIG Drugstore HAUL

This a collective haul from the last few weeks. I bought a lot of products I have never used before so I am really excited to try them all out. 

 

Maybelline FIT me! concealer 15

This is the best concealer I have ever tried. It is also the lightest. Right now it is still a little two dark for me but when I blend it out it can still work. Since I cannot find a lighter shade of concealer anywhere I will just have to make it work. Other than color I like the coverage and the way you can blend.

Maybelline FIT me! powder 105 natural ivory

I own the Maybelline FIT me! concealer and foundation and know that right now they are too dark for my skin tone but I needed a new powder. My old one was translucent and I did not really like that. Back then I bought it because no powder was light enough but it does not give me the effect I want. Hopefully this new powder will. I only heard good things about the Maybelline FIT me! product range.I think they sell an even lighter version of this in the US but I cannot get my hands on that here in Europe. Other then that I love the packaging! I do not know whether I will actually use the sponge but I like the idea (and the mirror!).

essence I<3 NUDE eyeshadow 03 crème brûlée

I could have bought a lot more products from the new spring releases by essence but I held back! After reading all the good reviews and swatching it in store I  could not pass this up. I have not tried it yet but I imagine it looking amazing as a single shadow on the lid with a little highlight in the inner corner and simple eyeliner. I do not like 'normal' essence eyeshadows but the baked ones work great.

alverde moisturizing face mask wild rose shea butter for dry skin

I own other products from the alverde wild rose line and I do not like them all. I love the face oil but the moisturizer is not enough for my dry skin. Alverde products never make me break out or anything like that so when looking for a new face mask I automatically turned to this one.

Nivea long repair  shampoo

My hair is long and it needs to be repaired - so this is just perfect. I like Nivea shampoos in general and hopefully will be happy with this, too.

Nivea three in one cleansing fluid

This is supposed to cleans your skin, rove make-up and moisturize. We will see if it does all that...

Balea shaving gel blueberry love, Rival de Loop oil free eye-make-up remover, Isana nail polish remover

These are all evergreen products I repurchase all the time. It is the only eye-make-up remover that does not irritate my eyes. The nail polish remover works fine for me and I love the packaging and scent of the shaving gel. What is there more to say?


Do you guy know any really light face powders from the drugstore? Please let me know!

My favorite Valentine's Day things

Happy Valentine's Day!

I really love the idea of Valentine's Day. To me it is not a holiday but an excuse to wear pink on my nails and celebrate love by baking heart shaped cake and getting gifts for my boyfriend. If you are single on Valentine's Day there is nothing to be sad about - everyone has been single on Valentine'S Day before and there is no need to call it 'forever alone day' and get depressed. Love can be found in more places then just a relationship between you and your boyfriend/girlfriend.

I know Valentine's Day is about celebrating love and there should not be anything materialistic needed for that - but I still like wearing pinks and reds around that time. So I thought I would share my favorite things that get me in the Valentine's Day spirit!

Manhattan: Lotus Effect Nail Polish 46 D

Basecoat: p2, Intensive Nail! Hardener

Topcoat: essence, studio nails, better than gel nails, top sealer

I love this polish! It is such a happy color. You only need one coat of this and your nails look flawless. I usually wear this color in the summer time but what better occasion to wear bright pink in the winter than Valentine's Day?

essence long lasting lip stick 13 Love me!

I will admit the name made me want to include this. I really like the color for Valentine's Day because it is settle but definitely pink and not nude. I can generally recommend the essence long lasting lip sticks - they are great especially for the price.

I have to include Valentine's Day as my favorite romantic comedy movie! I ones saw it on Valentine's Day with another couple while my boyfriend was out of town. Not the best idea but other than that it is a fantastic movie. I have seen a few times already and I think I will watch again some time this week.

What are your plans for today? Anything special planned? ;)

Nail of the Day - I'm so aNude

Catrice, Ultimate Nail Lacquer 51 I'm so aNude

Basecoat: p2, Intensive Nail! Hardener

Topcoat: essence, studio nails, better than gel nails, top sealer

I am in a love-hate relationship with this polish. I do love the color very much and the settle shimmer is right up my alley. I had to apply four coats to get this finish and I am still not quite happy with it. You can still see the withe of the tips of my fingernails. In addition to that it simply looks uneven to me. You can only see that close up but it still bothers me. I simply own other light pink nail polishes that I like better - and they stay on my nails without chipping longer. In the end I have worn I'm in aNude with Kitch Me If You Can on top before and loved it! It stayed on my nails way longer and I only had to apply two coats since the glitter on top made the imperfections of the base color undetectable.

What are you wearing on your nails today?

Skin Care Routine for Dry Skin

Throughout the last year I have been on the hunt for skin care products that could help me deal with my suddenly super dry skin. Here is what I found.

This is a very basic skin care routine. I am only talking about products that I use every single day. Of course I do face masks or exfoliate my skin but since I have not found a holy grail product yet I have not included any here. My skin is generally very dry, sensitive and does not absorb product easily.

Rival deLoop Clean & Care oil free eye make-up remover 

Most of the time I only wear eye make-up and a little bit of concealer under my eyes so I only use eye make-up remover on a day to day basis. This one is by far my favorite one. I have tried Balea, Garnier and other brands and they all make my eyes burn. This does not dry out my eye area too much while still getting rid of mascara, eye shadow and eyeliner.  

alverde eye creme for every skin type

I have tried a lot of different eye cremes in the past year and none of them worked for me. This again is the only one I found that does not irritate my skin and still moisturizes enough. There is no eye creme by alverde that is especially made for dry skin but if there ever will be I would love to try t.

Weleda Skin Food for dry skin

This is the most amazing skin care discovery of 2014! I use this every night and I would not want to miss it. I only use it at night because it takes a while to sink into you skin. If you want to know more about it you can check out the review I wrote right here: click.

alverde face oil wild rose for dry skin

This is the newest addition to my skin care routine. I use this in the morning after I took a shower and my skin is still wet. You only need a few drops and massage it into your skin. It does not take long to sink into your skin and after I got dressed and blowdried my hair I continue to use the next product:

alverde intensive repair avocado moisturizer for very dry skin

Here is what annoys me about alverde: this is the one and only product from the skin care range of alverde for very dry skin! Come on, one product?! Please do more! Other than that I really like it. Throughout the cold past months I added this on top of the face oil but maybe it will be enough on its own in the summer time? Anyway, I really love this product. I like the scent of avocado and I have never had a moisturizer with a consistency like this one. It almost feels like it absorbs into your skin the second it touches it. My skin loves this stuff.

Do you have any skin care product recommendations for dry skin? I am always looking for new ideas!

Nail of the Day - Two Million Dollar Baby

 

Catrice, Ultimate Nail Lacquer Effect Coat 41 Two Million Dollar Baby 

Base Color: Catrice, Ultimate Nail Lacquer 60 Out Of The Dark

Basecoat: p2, Intensive Nail! Hardener

Topcoat: essence, studio nails, better than gel nails, top sealer

I got this polishes in a set. I have worn Out Of The Dark on its own before and did a blogpost about it: click here. This time I only applied one coat of the base color and one thicker coat of the glitter topcoat. Two Million Dollar Baby basically has the same effect as Kitch Me If You Can. There are big silver metallic flakes mixed with darker golden little shimmer particles. The two different kinds of sparkle give the polish a lot more dimension in my opinion. In the bottle Two Million Dollar Baby looks like  a golden glitter polish but on you nails you cannot really tell if its gold or silver.

What are you wearing on your nails today?

January Favorites - everything pink

Somehow I have been really into pink products lately :P Looking at this products it does actually get me into the Valentine's day spirit.

Guhl Shampoo for long hair
I am sorry this bottle looks so horrible but it has been in my shower for some time now. I do not expect a shampoo to do a lot. All I want is that it is not drying, keeps my hair clean for two days and that is it. I do not think this shampoo helped my hair get longer or anything like that (but then again I did not expect it to) but it was great at anything else. I am definitely trying out more Guhl shampoos!

alverde body butter in Vintage Rose for very dry skin
This is not a surprise is it? I have sworn off body lotion ever since I tried alverde body butters. I am not the biggest fan of roses but this scent is amazing. The consistency is a little weird. It is almost solid but as soon as it touches your skin it almost melts into it. It is strange but wonderful.

theBodyShop Early-harvest Raspberry Body Scrub

I have loved the blueberry version of this and now I love the raspberry one. It smells amazing and does it's job beautifully. On top of that it is a fair trade product which is why I am perfectly willing to pay a higher price than I would for normal drugstore product.  

Catrice Ultimate Nail Laquer Effect Coat 45 Kitch Me If You Can

Best nail polish purchase in a long time! I love the effect, the color, everything! Do I need to praise it any more than I already have? I don't think so...

labello lip butter blueberry blush

I used this product up the day after I posted my last 'Products I've used up'. This has been in previous favorites posts but I had to mention it again since I have used it multiple times a day every single day. 

Thanks for reading! Please tell me your thoughts on the products. What are your favorites this month?