Products I've Used Up // January

A few months ago I decided to do Products I've Used Up posts every other month instead of once a month. Now I am starting to think maybe that wasn't such a good idea. This is a rather long posts about a lot of products and next time I am going to try and keep it shorter. Also, I have had to use new software to work on my images and I am not quite happy with it yet. It just takes time to figure all that out.

Carmex Classic Moisturizing Lip Balm: This is the most effective lip balm I have ever used. It helps with dry, chapped lips and it looks like a simple, clear lip gloss when you apply it. I have already repurchased this lip balm and I will probably do it again when I use up the next tube.

alverde Face Scrub with Apricot & Calendula for every skin type: I just wrote a review of this product that I will link here: click. Overall I really liked this face scrub and I already repurchased it.

alverde Eye Creme for every skin type: I have generally dry skin but the area around my eyes is especially sensitive. The eye creme that works best for me is this one by alverde. The company does do eye cremes especially made for dry skin but I still like this one the best. It is very moisturizing and sinks in quickly. The creme also does not irritate my skin and it is one of the most affordable eye creme I could find in the drugstore.

alverde Body Butter Macadamia Nut for very dry skin & alverde Limited Edition Fairy Tale Forest Body Butter Snow White: This is the most lovely body moisturizer I have ever used. I do not like the scent of macadamia nuts but I still loved this body butter. The Snow White body butter that was part of a limited edition miniature body butter set smells like apples. I usually like that scent but there is something sour about that scent that I do not like. It is my least favorite scent from the set but I am still very happy with the product. Alverde body butters are the most moisturizing but also the quickest body products to sink into the skin. On top of that Alverde body butters are usually vegan which is a great plus.

 

ISANA Creme Shower Limited Edition Forbidden Apple: This the best shower gel I have used in a while. The combination of apple and caramel is just lovely and I am looking forward to repurchasing this.

Fa Limited Edition Winter Love Blueberry Dream Shower Creme: This is a really long name for a simple shower gel. I liked the scent and I liked the overall product but I do not remember it as anything special. The one thing I really did not like was the packaging - it just looks a little cheap.

Guhl Deep Repair Conditioner: This is already my second bottle of this conditioner. I feel like I used up this product a lot quicker than I usually do but maybe I am just imagining that. I have dry hair and this conditioner takes great care of that. It also makes my hair a lot easier to brush through than if I do not use any conditioner on it.

Schwarzkopf Schmusekatze Anti-Frizz Lotion: I have been using this product for years. That in itself should tell you how much I like this lotion. The only reason I did not repurchase this product and will not recommend it anymore is that there are hormonal substances contained in it. I personally try to avoid those substances which is why I no longer want to use this product. I luckily happened to use the product up right when I found out about the hormonal substances so none of it will go to waste.

Dresdner Essenz Limited Edition Winter Magic Bath: I love taking baths in the winter time. This product had a wonderful apple caramel scent but it does not translate that well to the water. I would like the scent to be more intense but other than that I really liked this product.

 

essence Colour & Go Nail Polish 146 that's what I mint!: This was a very on trend nail polish a few years ago - a dupe for a more expensive essie nail polish. I try do go through all of my nail polishes at least once a year so I can sort out the once that have gone bad or maybe rediscover an old favorite. This is one of the polishes that has gone bad. The polish has separated and the consistency is simply no longer the same. I still really like the color but if you are looking for a similar polish I would recommend the Maybelline Super Stay Forever Strong Gel Nail Color 615 Mint for Life.

Garnier Eye-Make-Up Remover & Balea Shaving Gel Limited Edition Oriental Flower: Both of these products are regulars in my Products I've Used Up posts. I have repurchased them both multiple times and will probably do that again soon. There are different scents available of the Balea shaving gel and I personally prefer other scents to this floral one. The scent is just to heavy for my taste but that is simply a question of preference.

What products did you use up this month?

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare // Book Review

Lately I have been reading books that I knew nothing about other than the genre and that other people on the internet (I sound so old here) had recommended them. I actually love reading like that. I generally never read the synopsis on the back of the book anymore because there are just way to many spoilers contained in that. There is nothing like starting to read a story and knowing absolutely nothing about what to expect. To me it adds a lot to the experience and that is precisely why I am so conflicted about writing book reviews. There is a delicate balance necessary between simply recommending the book and actually telling people what it is about so they know whether it is of any interest to them. This is me trying to do exactly that:

Clarissa Clare has written a lot of books by now and they all take place in the same world (as far as I know). The world that Clare has created is a big part of what I enjoy about her work. Clockwork Angel is the first book in the The Infernal Devices trilogy but it is not the first book Cassandra Clare has ever written set in this universe of demons, werewolves, and shadowhunters. I read the The Mortal Instruments before I read this novel but in my opinion it does not matter what series you decide to start with. One thing I would definitely not recommend doing is watching the movie / TV show adaptations of her work before you start reading because they both contain a unbelievable amount of spoilers while still being nothing like the books (it can be very confusing). Don't even watch the trailers.

This particular story is set in 19th century London and you follow the main character Theresa Gray as she arrives there from New York. That is about all I want to tell you before you start reading. I know it is not much but I will try to keep the rest of this review as abstract as possible to keep the possible spoilers to an absolute minimum.

Cassandra Clare is amazing at creating worlds, characters and over all atmosphere. To me there is something very distinct about her writing style. Her stories have a lot of twists and turns and even though I find it sometimes a little too easy to see whats coming next I only ever see it coming two pages before it happens and not right form the beginning (does that makes sense?). Something else I want to add here is that after starting to write this review before I started reading the second instalment in the The Infernal Devices I have changed my opinion a lot about this book. I have not finished the second book yet but all I want to say is that even though there a lot of (to me) YA cliches in this story they turn out not cliche at all.

Like I said I have not finished this series yet (let alone the second book) but I already feel like I can make the following statement: When I finished the first book I had this weird feeling of something missing in this story and I could not pinpoint it until I started the second book. I almost feel like this is one massive book and not three individual ones. I like the first book more the more I read of the second because so many things from that story make more sense now. I am not quite sure I managed to put into words what I mean but I hope it makes sense to you.

Overall this is a great YA, supernatural series and please do not let the movie or TV show keep you from reading Cassandra Clare's books. The characters in this book a lovely and let me tell you: there is absolutely nothing in this book that does not happen for a reason. I love how well thought out Clare's books are and I here the finally of this series is as satisfying as it gets for finales. I am really looking forward to that!

What is your favorite YA, supernatural series?

Alverde Face Scrub // Review

The Alverde Apricot & Calendula Face Scrub for every skin type is the only face scrub I ever used up and repurchsed. They have changed the packaning since I bought my first bottle but the product itself has not changed. I simply forgot to include this product in my Best Products of 2016 post because it had definitely earned a spot in that list.

The scrub is gentle but still effective. It does not dry out my skin but I still apply moisturizer after using it. I now use this scrub about every other day or at least twice a week. It really helps clear out my skin and I can definitely tell a difference in my skin the next morning after using it. I have dry skin and this scrub also helps with getting rid of dry skin patches without drying out my skin even more.

I would definitley recommend this scrub for anyone with dry skin because it is hard to find a scrub that works with that skin type. This is one of the few procuts I would actually think to work with pretty much every skin type (like the product claims it does).

What is your favorite face scrub?

Nail of the Day // Two Million Dollar Crème Brulée

I have posted about both of these nail polishes before. The Astor Perfect Stay Gel Shine Nail Polish in the color 502/302 Crème Brulée is definitely one of my most worn nail polishes of the year - if not the most worn.

I am wearing my usual base coat Perfect Nail Hardener by p2 and two coats of the Astor nail polish. On top of that I applied one thick coat of the Catrice Ultimate Nail Lacquer Effect Coat in 41 Two Million Dollar Baby. This top coat is a beautiful glittery polish that mainly gold but in certain light it appears silver. I adore this combination of the darker nude and the metallic glitter.

What are you favorite nail polish combinations right now?

Dove Nutritive Solutions Oil Care Spray // Review

At the end of last year my mum told me about the Tox Fox App and I downloaded that app. With the app you can scan products and it tell you whether there are hormonal substances contained in said product. After I scanned all my products I was relieved that there were not many among them that contained those hormonal substances but one of the ones that did was the Schwarzkopf Got2be Schmusekatze Anti-Frizz Lotion. As a replacement I got the Dove Nutritive Solutions Oil Care Spray as my new leave in conditioner. It is not an exact replacement of the old product but it keeps my hair moisturized like the Got2be product did.

I never would have thought I would but I actually prefer the Dove Nutritive Solutions Oil Care Spray to the Schwarzkopf Got2be Schmusekatze Anti-Frizz Lotion. I have really knotty hair that is hard to brush through and honestly nothing helps like this spray does. I usually always use conditioner because I need it to be able to brush my hair after I washed it but when I use this product I do not even have to do that. Of course I still use conditioner to take care of my hair but when I only take a quick shower I no longer have to. The spray makes brushing my hair so much easier I would not want to miss this product anymore.

It also moisturizes my hair and keeps it soft and shiny. I also like the way the product is applied. You just shake the bottle up so the two separate liquids mix and then you spray it on your wet hair. It is a fine, even mist  that is easy to distribute.

Overall I would recommend this product for anyone that has problems brushing their hair. The spray also moisturizes my dry hair well and I can tell a difference if I do not use this on my hair.

What is your favorite leave in conditioner?

Best Products of 2016 // Favorites

Happy New Year!

Hello 2017! I am very excited about the new year and everything that will come with it. At the end of the old year and the beginning of the new it is always fun to look back on what happened in the past 365 days. On my blog I like to look back on my favorite products of the year.

My boyfriend got me the Fleur de Force Eyeshadow Quad 020 Lunar Rose as a gift and I just love this quad. They are by far my most used eye shadows of the year. The qualit is brlliant and the color combination is simply wondeful.

The other make up product I discovered in the 2016 that I wouldo not want to miss anymore is the Catrice Liquid Camouflage Concealer 010 Porcelain. I use concealer everytime I do my make up (like I guess everyone does) so it is an essential product in my routine. I am as pale as a vampire which means that it is hard to find products in the drugstore that actually fit my skin tone. To be honest I would like this concealer to be even lighter than it already is but so far it is still the best match I ever found.

On of my resolutions for 2016 was not to by more than five nail polishes - I only bought three and two of those three are now part of my yearly favorites! Both Astor nail polishes and the Maybelline polish are great quality. The color is opaque and they last as long as I want my nail polish to last. All of these things are good but what I ike the most about this polishes are the colors. The Astor Perfect Stay Gel Shine Nail Polish 502/302 Crème Brulée is the perfect darker nude with rose undertones. The Astor Quick & Shine Nail Polish in 502 Hot Chocolate Season has a really unsual shimmer to it. The dark metallic polish is a mix between gold and silver and the name actually describes it perfectly. The Maybelline Forever Strong Professional Rouge Couture 287 Midnight Red is the only nail polish I ever repurchased. It is a deep, dark red shade that can last over a week on my nails and it definitely deserved a spot in this list.

One of the biggest rediscoveries of the year for me was the Alverde Wid Rose Facial Oil. I have generally dry skin but it gets even worse in the winter time and this is the best day time moisturizer to help with that. At night I still use the Weleda Skin Food moisturizer but the oil sinks in quicker so I use the Alverde facial oil in the morning.

What are your favorite products of 2016?