review

Okay, let’s finally talk about UV light and gel nail polish. I’m a big sceptic when it comes not-too-natural techniques in beauty (well, foundations are far from natural, but you probably understand my point) and UV lights are no exception. However, my schedule was so hectic in the spring that I just couldn’t bear the thought of doing my nails every other day (and being without any nail polish just doesn’t do the trick for me, excusez-moi!). My natural reaction to such thoughts are impulsive purchases and this is exactly what happened – I saw that Lidl would be retailing UV lights the next day and I kindly asked my sister (or rather told her to run there first thing in the morning) to get one for me.

It was only after the purchase that I started thinking about what potential harmful side-effects can be and so on and so forth. Let me just say that I wasn’t that impressed with what I read (and what I saw, some allergy pictures are just horrifying), but there were some research studies which indicated that the use of UV light is not that harmful at all if not used all the time – and you can always use a sunscreen with a high SPF on your hands before starting the process, just in case. I WAS SOLD!! I immediately went to DM and decided to try Depend GelLack products. I currently have a base coat and topcoat along with three different shades, a gorgeous red Ferrari Red G036, a more violet shade in Raspberry Red G005, and a white one in shade French White G031.

(Depend GelLack, Raspberry Red G005 – and a memory of a yummy homemade ice cream)

It is probably needless to say that I love it so far. This technique has saved me so much time and I don’t love to use it just on my hands, but also on my toes! As I said, I tried the Depend GelLack products, which are supposed to last up to three weeks. In my experience, it lasts up to 5 or 6 days – but my nails are insanely brittle, so I suppose that up to a week is still a good job. I also got one gel nail polish from SensatioNail in pinky shade love bite and this one is much better, it holds on for about a week, but is quite expensive – SensatioNail nail polish retails at around    € 18 per bottle in Müller whereas GelLack retails at around € 5 in DM. The only thing that bothers me is that the removing process is quite damaging for the nail – the upper part of the nails gets very dry so I use a lot of nail oils and creams after I remove the nail polish and it works just fine.

All in all, the use of gel nail polish is a great choice for special occasions or when you wouldn’t find time for doing nails several times a week. Nonetheless, I would not recommend it using it every single time as soaking the nails in acetone will make the nails very brittle and one can also increase the possibility of skin cancer (and we don’t want that!). Well, these are just my thoughts, but I would love to hear some of your experience!

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This is the first regular polish I’ve been loving since my UV-light nail polish obsession. Rimmel London‘s products never disappoint me and this one is no exception. I chose a violet shade called Go Wild-er-ness from the Rita Ora 60 Seconds Super Shine collection. It dries really quickly and its improved chip-resistant formula may be really working – I applied three layers and it didn’t chip for four days!

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This is only my fourth empties post, but worry not – I’ve used much more over the months, haha! I actually completely forgot about saving the products, I probably finished six shampoos and conditioners since then, I go through them like candy. In general, hair products are on my everyday to-do list, just like foundations and other absolutely necessary products I slather on my face. As I have mentioned countless times before, Batiste dry shampoos are constantly saving my life. Their formula is the best I’ve tried so far and there is no visible stain after the use. Plus, they started selling it at Müller (at least in Ljubljana), if I’m not mistaken, and have three formulas, one for blondes and two for brunettes – it is not much, but it is definitely better than nothing!  I’ve already repurchased it ♥

I got the Maybelline Superstay Better Skin foundation in shade Sand 30 for Christmas and it was way too dark for me at the time. However, I tried it again in spring and it surprisingly matched my skin tone! This is a great foundation for its price, it is very buildable and has a high coverage. The only negative side is the fact that a lot of product is left in the bottle and I cannot get it out! A screwdriver my help with that, haha! I already ordered another bottle from Asos (and it was on sale, what a day!).

As for mascaras, I’m very picky and I rarely find a mascara that really amazes me. However, this Maybelline the Colossal Volum’ Express mascara is amazing, it lengthens my lashes like no other mascara and makes them very intense. Plus, I always recommend this one when friends ask me which one to get! I will not repurchase it right away because I have literally a ton of other mascaras I have to use up, but I will in the future!

Although I perceive Yves Rocher as a genius shower gel retailer, they obviously make wonderful fragrances as well. I’ve always had good experiences with their eaux de parfum and Tendre Jasmin is no exception. I dedicated a whole post to it last year, you can take a look here. This fragrance brings back so many memories and I’m really annoyed that there is only a spritz or two left in the bottle. Plus, this size (15 ml) is just perfect for throwing it in a bag if you’re in a hurry. I will have to buy another one soon!

I’m a huge hand cream user and I use up at least five different hand creams per year and although I generally like Mixa products, I’m not sure about this Intense Nourishment hand cream. The scent is very light and nice, but a thin film stays on the skin after the use. It is not oily, but the feeling is very peculiar. Now that I’m thinking about it, I had the same experience with one of the Neutrogena’s hand creams for very dry skin a few years ago. I don’t know, the formula for intense care may have to do something with it. Nevertheless, it is a nice product and I may buy another formula in the future.

And now we have two hair treatments that I’m not that particularly fond of. First is the L’Oréal Elseve strengthening spray which should provide easy combing, fortify the whole length of hair and shouldn’t weight hair down. Well, if I’m completely honest, this product is completely useless for my hair. I didn’t have the slightest feeling that combing was easier even if I sprayed it like mad, and the hair wasn’t any less prone to splitting after use. I don’t know, this may help those with brittle hair, but mine is very healthy and this product didn’t make any difference. I won’t repurchase it.

And the second hair product is the Alverde repair fluid, which is just fine. I usually applied it on wet hair before blow-drying it, but I cannot say it made my hair any healthier. The only plus side is that this is a bit more natural product. I still swear that plain, cold pressed argan oil is best for providing moisture and keeping hair healthy. I won’t repurchase this one either.

Oh, and I almost forgot about the best face scrub ever, the Balea peeling cream with aloe vera. This is probably my third tube, I love it! These exfoliating particles are so effective, they remove all the dry patches and make the skin really soft. I use it once or twice a week in the evening so the skin can regenerate during my sleep. I really recommend it and it is already on my buy-immediately-or-else list!

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