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Arlésienne EDT, a perfect Christmas gift

20. 12. 2016

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If you haven’t bought the perfect Christmas gift for your partner, dear family member or a friend yet, I may have a piece of advise for you! Most women love fragrances so why not surprise them with a gentle yet unique fragrance like the Arlésienne EDT by L’Occitane? I had not realized that my mom actually has the exact same fragrance up until I tried it out at home (hers came in a different bottle). Even when I smelled this fragrance for the first time, I had the feeling that I’ve encountered this scent not long before and my nose didn’t disappoint me! Arlesienne is perfectly blending musk and rose with violet and saffron which give this powdery fragrance some extra freshness. And although this is an EDT, I can assure you firsthand that Arlésienne is very long lasting! If you’re not thinking about a fragrance, you can still give some other products from the Arlésienne line a go, I saw some beautiful hand cream&lip gloss or body care sets, they would all make a wonderful gift.

However, if you are looking for a one-of-a-kind fragrance for men, I recommend checking out the Cedrat EDT. Cedrat and citrus notes are combined with woody base, thus creating a wonderful experience to its new owner! This line also offers several alternatives, such as aftershave products, shower and face gels and many others. All in all, a wide selection of products that will suite all tastes!

//Če za svojo partnerico, članico družine ali prijateljico še niste našli pravega darila, imam za vas majhen nasvet! Večina žensk obožuje dišave. Zakaj jih torej ne bi presenetili z nežno, a edinstveno toaletno vodico Arlésienne znamke L’Occitane? Dokler dišave nisem preizkusila doma, sploh nisem vedela, da ima moja mama točno to dišavo že nekaj mesecev (vendar v drugačni embalaži!). Vedela pa sem, da sem dišavo ne dolgo nazaj že vonjala, tako da me nos res ni izdal. Note mošusa in vrtnice se nežno mešajo z vijolico in žafranom, ki tej pudrasti dišavi dodajo še malo svežine. Čeprav gre za toaletno vodico, lahko iz lastnih izkušenj povem, da je izjemno obstojna! Če pa ne želite podariti dišave, lahko izberete tudi katere druge izdelke iz linije Arlésienne, v poslovalnicah sem videla prelepe sete kreme za roke in glosa za ustnice ter sete izdelkov za nego telesa, tudi to je izjemno lepo darilo.

Če pa iščete unikatno dišavo za moške, pa priporočam, da preverite tudi L’Occitanovo toaletno vodico za moške Cedrat. Note cedre, agrumov in lesne note bodo novega lastnika hitro popeljale v toplejše mesece! Tudi pri tej liniji se lahko namesto dišave odločite za nakup dezodoranta, izdelkov za nego po britju, gelov za prhanje in za obraz itd. Za vsakogar se torej nekaj najde!

Beauty

Glitter In The Air and Victorian Poetry

8. 11. 2016

In November, essence and Catrice are releasing several of their limited editions which I’m pretty excited about. My problem with new releases is the same every single time. I realise they are in drugstores days after the best products are already sold out! Not this time, because I got the opportunity to try out four products from collections Glitter in the air and Victorian Poetry.

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The main shades in the Essence Glitter in the air llimited edition are rose, green and plum with a metallic and glittery touch. This makes them perfect for all kinds of events we will be attending in December.

There are so many products to choose from! You can create an entire New Year’s Eve look with gorgeous metallic eye shadows, two diamond-shaped lip sticks as well as a blush and shimmer drops to round up your festive look. Essence did not forget about your nails, there are a grey and a rose as well as two glittery shades available in their nail polish limited edition. One product I would be eager to try out is the ultra strong nail polish remover, glittery manicure will surely be much easier to remove when time comes considering how difficult it is to take it off!

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On the other hand, the make up items in the Catrice Victorian Poetry limited edition are pretty extravagant and subtle. Colors vary from apricot, nude and grey to berry and the eye palette is much more captivating as it offers all of them! You can top your perfect eye look with a gorgeous grey matt powder liner AristoMATTic. If you’re a highlighting fan as myself, you should try out the highlighting pebbles Queen Victoria Is AmusedFor a pop of color you can apply an always-trendy deep red lipstick, such as Berry British.

What about the products I’ve tried so far?

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As I already mentioned, I got the opportunity to try out two products from the Glitter in the air collection by essence. The first item is the strobing blush and highlighter powder When in doubt, add glitter. This gorgeous lilac blush, or a blush topper even, will give you a soft flush of color and you don’t even have to add any highlighter to it, isn’t this great! I also received the eyebrow pomade pen in shade make your brow wow. I think this is such a versatile shade, it fits my brows very well. The thing is, you don’t have to be that precise with the pen as you can easily brush through and set everything in place.

The first item from the Catrice Victorian Poetry limited edition are the highlighting pebbles Queen Victoria is amused. They consist of rose and creamy pebbles which form a pretty rose glowI also received a lip stick in shade Berry British which I adore! At first, it seemed to be a usual burgundy red, but then I realised it has a lot of brown undertones. It looks amazing and perfect for this time of year. However, it does look uneven after an hour or two, so I have to monitor the situation all the time – but I’m willing to do that for gorgeous lips!

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All in all, both Glitter in the air as well as Victorian Poetry offer a wide range of products. I’m pretty sure everyone can find a few items to suit their needs and these four products will nicely fit into my current make up routine. Personally, I would love to give the grey matt powder liner a go and I’ll purchase it if I manage to find one at the drugstore. What about you, which products do would you like to try out?

Beauty

NOTD Alessandro in Baby Blue

29. 10. 2016

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To me, Alessandro has always been a symbol of high quality products and gorgeous shades. Although this cute small cosmetics pouch is transparent, it was hiding two nail polishes, a nail file and two hair bands which I couldn’t wait to get in my hands at home and try them out! I received the Alessandro nail polish in Baby Blue and the Depend silver glittery nail polish in Glittery Star. I can say without hesitation that both of them are my current favorite combination on the nails these weeks, especially because I love a nice, simple manicure! No surprise, two coats lasted for more than three day which is completely extraordinary in my case. Where did you say I can buy them?…

Favorites

September favorites ◊ 2016

6. 10. 2016

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Oh myyy, have the days become cold and short as well, sadly! I finally started to search for knitwear in the boxes full of winter clothes and I can’t wait to start wearing them, fall is probably my favorite season ♥ Let’s go through my September favorites, there are quite a few interesting bits I want to share with you guys.

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I have to begin with these cute plates from Mömax! They are called Shakti and there are several colors and styles available. I also like the Shiva edition, they look very classy as well. I would love to have our kitchen shelves full of such beautiful patterns! The next item that is, among others, very nice to look at is this cute fragrance! It’s the Rituals Eau d’orient, a very warm and intense eau de parfum with hints of pepper, incense and woody notes. All in all, perfect for this and the following season! I’ve also been using this Kiko Milano mauve lip pencil 711 all the time. It goes well with any type of make up and any combination of clothes, a real must-have piece if you’re looking for long-lasting solutions.

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I also have to mention the Depend GelLack permanent nail polish in shade Black Pearl. I don’t wear it by itself as it isn’t that opaque, but I love applying it at my nail tips when I wear black permanent nail polish to create an ombre-kind of look. I believe this is what stardust really looks like! ♥ Another lip product is the Coconut Lip Butter by The Body Shop, another staple item in my purse. There’s no point in repeating this is my must current must-have.

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Last but not least, I love my recently purchased jewellery, everything from cute bracelets, rings, earrings and above knuckle rings to this gorgeous blue stone necklace. I bought almost everything in the Six accessory store, and the earrings were bought in Primark. Plus, these two plates are a fantastic solution for storing rings or other small pieces of jewellery, I think it looks so trendy!

Beauty

Summer Kiko Milano haul

3. 10. 2016

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And here comes the last beauty-related post from my summer in Belgium! I planned doing this post in July shortly after purchasing all of these products and taking the pictures, but then I got another three or four more nail polishes. I therefore postponed writing about them until now and luckily, I can give you a more in-depth review of all of them, especially because I haven’t tried any of the Kiko Milano products before that.

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The best find were probably these Smart lip pencils, I went for three shades: a gorgeous mauve shade 711, a slightly pink/red shade 709 and a hot orange shade 705. They are quite creamy so I usually use them by themselves, the pigmentation is insane! Sometimes I add a lipstick in a similar shade on top to make it a bit more glossy, but otherwise I love them and they stay put for hours.

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I also decided to give their two mascaras a go. I chose the Volumeyes + Active Mascara and the Ultratech Mascara. The first one should give a lot of volume, whereas the second should define your lashes and make them longer as well as increase their volume. Two coats are applied on the picture (unfortunately, the focus was not cooperating at the time!) and I couldn’t be more disappointed by both of them. They are extremely clumpy and the applicators just don’t work in the way I want them to. I’m even more disappointed because I paid almost 10 € for the Volumeyes+ mascara and really expected much more.

A product that completely blew my mind is the Liquid Intense blue eyeliner. It is really easy to apply and to my surprise, it doesn’t smudge!! I can create a nice flick and not have to worry about having a ton of the product on the upper part of my eyelid in the afternoon. I also wear it on the picture above!

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Of course I couldn’t pass the nail polish section which is ah-mazing, may I add. I went for five shades of Nail Lacquer, a wine shade 243, bright red 239, lavender 332, pinkish red 361 and mint green 389. I love all of them, but their longevity isn’t all that great. Their formula could be compared to Catrice, it chips off a day after applying it so I’m not that amused.

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Last but not least, I have to show you my favorite highligher at the moment! It’s the 3D Light & Glow creamy highlighter. It was a bit pricey, around 8 €, but it does a great job. I think it was part of their The Beauty Games collection and there were two shades available, this one is the first and the lightest shade. It comes with a sponge applicator on the bottom, but I rather use my fingers to apply it. It consists of three different earth-toned shades which give a lovely golden sheen once mixed together. It looks gorgeous on the skin and the intensity is easily built. I love it!

To conclude, my investigation into Kiko Milano cometics is now complete and I can honestly say I love their lip liners, eyeliner and highlighter which have an amazing wear time and proved to be amazing products, especially considering their price. However, although they have an amazing selection of nail polish shades, I’m not that impressed by their quality. I also don’t like their mascaras and probably won’t try them again in a long time.

Nevertheless, I would love to see what you think about these products, especially if you really like some that I don’t!

Beauty

eBRAND and ANEMA Kozmetika – testing, testing, 1, 2, 3!

26. 3. 2016

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Med vsakim obiskom v kozmetičnem salonu sem si vedno želela, da bi si takšno pomirjujoče vzdušje, kjer tudi depilacija ni kaj preveč boleča, ustvarila tudi doma. Dišeče svečke in eterična olja žal niso dovolj, saj za enako dober rezultat potrebujemo tudi primerne pripomočke – nekaj, kar v navadni drogeriji žal težko dobimo. Lahko si predstavljate moje navdušenje, ko sem pred dobrim mesecem od podjetja ANEMA Kozmetika na dom prejela paketek s kar nekaj izdelki italijanske znamke eBrand. Primerni so predvsem za kozmetične salone, kot vidite, pa jih lahko uporabljamo tudi manj profesionalne uporabnice!

V paketu sta bila dva polna kompleta za depilacijo nog in nanašanje trajnega laka za nohte, prejela pa sem tudi podrobna navodila za uporabo.

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Tako sem dobila vosek (v prisrčnem roza odtenku!), sterilne lopatke za nanašanje voska, trakove za depilacijo in vlažilno kremo za po depilaciji. Ker grelca za vosek nimam, sem posodico segrela v vodni kopeli. Uporaba grelca je verjetno boljša, saj je zaradi enakomernega gretja temperatura voska ves čas enaka. Meni pa se je zato proti koncu depilacije malo shladil, vendar sem jo lahko normalno dokončala.

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Izdelek se ne more primerjati z depilacijskimi trakovi ali podobnimi voski, ki jih lahko kupimo v drogerijah. Lopatko enostavno pomočimo v vosek in ga enakomerno nanesemo na kožo. Že s prvim potegom so bile odstranjene prav vse dlačice, bolelo pa me je manj kot pri običajnih trakovih ali epilatorju (verjetno zato, ker resnično odstrani popolnoma vse). Za uporabo salonskega voska torej ne potrebujemo dragih naprav, temveč samo vodno kopel in nekaj osnovnih pripomočkov. Po uporabi sem nanesla še vlažilno kremo, ki je razdraženo kožo pomirila in ji vrnila vlago.

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Za nanos permanentnega laka pa sem prejela brezkislinski primer, podlak, nadlak in črn lak za nohte Rebel, dve pilici (eno za predpripravo nohta na postopek, drugo za lažje odstranjevanje), tri palčke za obnohtno kožico, celulozne blazinice za nanos odstranjevalca ter dve 250ml embalaži odstranjevalca. Svojo UV-lučko sem kupila lani, tako da imam s permanentnimi laki že nekaj izkušenj.

Sama sem si izbrala črnega, ker že nekaj časa zaman iščem dober črn lak za nohte. Pri postopku sem sledila navodilom za uporabo, še pred nanosom podlaka pa sem nanesla brezkislinski primer, ki ga prej nisem uporabljala. Deloval naj bi kot neke vrste lepilo med nohtom in podlakom in tako podaljšal obstojnost. Dve plasti črnega laka sta bili dovolj za popolno prekrivnost. Končni izgled nohtov je popoln, saj imajo tisti pravi glossy effect, ki ga je pohvalil celo moj fant!

Glede obstojnosti lahko iskreno povem, da so obstojnejši kot laki Depend (in so samo nekaj evrov dražji), vendar morate vedeti, da imam izredno slabe nohte in o tem sem govorila tudi z zaposleno z Anema Kozmetike. Lak bi moral biti obstojen vsaj 20 dni, pri meni pa je že en teden veliko, saj se mi po nekaj dneh vedno odkruši kakšen del laka s konic nohtov – verjetno zato, ker se mi nohti plastijo skoraj do tretjine. Na tem področju imam torej še nekaj dela, ampak danes imam lak nanešen že 9. dan in popravila sem samo en odkrušen delček na palcu. Verjetno bo zdržal še nekaj dni! Odstranjevanje je enako kot pri drugih trajnih lakih, celulozno blazinico enostavno pomočimo v odstranjevalec in z alu-folijo zavijemo okrog nohtka. Po desetih minutah z leseno palčko lak odstranimo, sama pa nato nohte najraje namažem s kokosovim oljem. Takšni so torej nohti po devetih dneh:

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Iskreno povedano nisem pričakovala tako dobrih rezultatov. Resnično se vidi, da so izdelki namenjeni profesionalni uporabi, in dejstvo, da lahko do njih dostopamo prav vse, se mi zdi resnično imenitno. Tega depilacijskega voska verjetno ne bom še ponovno kupila, saj me bolj zanimajo voski v diskih, za katere ne potrebujemo nobenih trakov in so primerni tudi za depilacijo po drugih delih telesa. Zagotovo pa si bom še enkrat ogledala ostale odtenke lakov za nohte, saj so glede na kakovost v primerjavi z ostalimi trajnimi laki res cenovno ugodni (15 ml stane 9,67 EUR).

Vse izdelke lahko najdete na spletni strani http://www.ebrandestetika.si/, naročanje pa je mogoče tako prek spleta kot prek telefona. ANEMA Kozmetiki se še enkrat zahvaljujem za sodelovanje, prejela sem več dobrih nasvetov glede svojih težav z nohti, izdelke pa bom z velikim veseljem uporabljala še naprej!

Če vas o eBrand permanentnih lakih zanima več, si lahko preberete tudi Tamarino objavo na blogu Cherry Colors, preizkusila pa je res prikupen permanentni lak v koralnem odtenku Tibet.

Around a month ago a Slovene company Anema Kozmetika kindly sent me a package full of eBrand Cosmetics goodies. Just a few introductory wordseBrand is an Italian-based beauty company that offers a wide range of high-quality beauty products. They are mainly used in beauty salons, but are available for the wider public as well. My package contained two whole sets, one for leg waxing (a pot of wax (I warmed it up in a water bath), wooden spatulas, a package of strips and a hydrating cream) and the other for permanent manicure (non-acid primer, basecoat, topcoat, black permanent nail polish in shade Rebel, cellulose nail pad role and two 250 ml nail polish removers, I already had a UV-light at home).

After a month’s worth testing, I can finally say that these products completely exceeded my expectations. The leg wax literally removed all the hair from my legs and this is why I believe it is much less painful than using ordinary strips or epilator. The hydrating cream I used afterwards calmed the skin down and didn’t cause any redness or irritation. As for the permanent manicure, I really like how the finished nails look like, so glossy and chic! It is supposed to stay on the nails for at least 20 days and I believe this can be achieved for those who have healthy nails in general. Mine are insanely brittle and just one week is a lot in my case. Today is the ninth day with the permanent nail polish on and only one small part chipped off, but that’s all because my nails peel off all the time.

All in all, I really liked the products and I am a living example that these beauty-salon products can be used at home even by those who are not professionals in that area! This was a very brief summary of my Slovene review, if you have any additional questions about any of the products, please do not hesitate to ask!

* Although I received these products for free, all opinions expressed
are
my honest opinions based on my personal experience.
Beauty

Micellar waters everywhere, which one should you choose?

7. 2. 2016

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After two years, I can finally say I’m an experienced micellar water user. My initial presumption was that these are completely overrated, but now I admit I was completely wrong. I’ll go through all five micellar waters I’ve tried so far and let you know a bit more about each one of them!

My first micellar water ever is the Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water All in one. You can never forget your first, they say, and in this case this is absolutely true. This is by far the best micellar water I have tried. It removes all of the makeup quickly and doesn’t leave any residue. In addition, this one never irritated my eyes nor it had any particular taste. The oval packaging prevents the bottle from falling over, which is a big plus. Definitely a wonderful product, a 400 ml bottle costs around €6. I will repurchase it soon!

The L’Oréal Skin Perfection Micellar Water turned out to be less favorite because it doesn’t remove the makeup as thoroughly as the one from Garnier. The job was still done at the end, but I needed to work it out a bit more. What probably irritated me the most with this product is its packaging: it looks so cute in its rectangular bottle, but the fact is that it is insanely clumsy. Or am I, the fact is that I managed to turn it over a few times and almost spilled some water out (practice makes perfect, I always caught it at the end!). It is a few Euros more expensive than the one from Garnier (around €5 for 200 ml).

The Mixa Micellar Water is specifically made for sensitive skin that gets irritated quickly. This is not the case with me so I cannot say it for sure, but it is a great product. For me, this one stands somewhere between the Garnier and L’Oréal micellar waters, so it is a bit less effective as the Garnier one, but still very similar to the L’Oréal. Plus, if it really doesn’t irritate sensitive skin, this one would be a perfect choice for those who suffer from reactive skin. This one is in the same price range, you can purchase it for around €7 (400 ml).

 In autumn, one of the Bioderma beauty advisers at the pharmacy gave me a few samples and one of them was also the oh-so-famous Bioderma Micellar Water. This brand is also the one that invented micellar water suitable for sensitive skin in the first place! All beauty lovers swear by this product and I must admit, it is really good, but also quite expensive. A 250 ml water costs around €12 and to be honest, there is nothing too special about it when compared to the Garnier. It removes the makeup just as well without any residue. The only thing that shocked me is its taste!! Removing your lipstick is not as fabulous with this micellar water, I was surprised every single time and started using other products to cleanse my lips in the end.

The last micellar water I’ve tried so far is the Inell Eau Micellaire by E.Leclerc’s brand Marque Repere. This was a completely blind buy as I purchased it just because it costs around €2 and I know E.Leclerc’s products are not that bad at all, regardless of their low price. I was partially right, this cleanser for dry and sensitive skin could just as well be on a par with slightly more expensive products – you have to work it out a bit more and you also need a bigger amount of the product to remove all the makeup (the water somewhat gets lost and has to be reapplied), especially when it comes to mascara. I will use it up, but probably won’t repurchase it again.

The verdict? After closely comparing the five micellar waters, I can say with full confidence that the Garnier’s product is the best to go for. It wins in absolutely every aspect: it removes the makeup in a very efficient way, leaves no residue on your face, doesn’t irritate your eyes and has no taste. However, if you want to invest a bit more money into a more luxurious product, you should definitely go for the Bioderma micellar water, but there is nothing so special about this one that the Garnier wouldn’t provide, plus it has a bitter taste. What I also like is that Bioderma has a smaller travel-sized packaging, which comes in handy when you’re on the go.
As for L’Oréal and Mixa, the two products are good as well and I would love to use them again at one point, but I won’t repurchase them straight away. With Inell’s product, you get what you pay for: a cleanser that does remove the makeup, but is much harder to work with.

To conclude, micellar waters are much more efficient at removing your makeup than any other product, so if you haven’t decided to try them yet, give them a go and I’m sure you’ll get to love them just as I did!