30 Aug 2012

Mini Smashbox haul

A few days ago I came across the glambox.com website and they were running a special with free delivery for this month and 50% off selected Smashbox products, so I obviously had to place an order :) I got 3 single eye shadows and a liquid liner (which was listed as "Jet set brown" on their website, but turned out to be the "Dark brown" I already have, but I really love it and the price was good, so no problem).
 The 3 eye shadows I got were, left to right: Torch, Honey and Sand
Torch looks amazing! Can't wait to try it. Honey was probably more yellow than I would have liked, but still looks like a workable colour. Sand is definitely more white than I'd prefer, a little too white to use as a highligter I feel, but we shall see, it might surprise. Pin It

29 Aug 2012

Lookfantastic

Whenever I say that I shop for beauty products online most people always mention Lookfantastic.com. I normally tend to favour Beautybay.com, but I started following Lookfantastic on Facebook recently and when they were having a special on my St.Tropez SPF I thought I would give them a try. 
They have free delivery and my package arrived after 7 days. Their packaging was fine, it arrived in a small box and was well protected, so the product was in perfect condition. Included was a small sample of a microfoliant from Dermalogica. I almost never receive samples of anything I can actually try (I have very sensitive skin and I can't use products that are heavily scented), so much to my surprise this stuff totally sounds like something I would considered purchasing myself, as it contains ingredients that I know work on my skin. So I am actually somewhat excited about trying out this sample.
 
I will definitely order from this site again, based on a good overall experience, but as I can't help to compare them with BeautyBay, I have to say that there are just a few things that annoy me a little. This is mostly to do with their website and its outlay. I find it hard to find the products I want on their site. If I click on a brand I would like the option of seeing everything they have and not having to click on different sub-categories, that incidentally too often have no products in them at all?? Also their selection, at least when it came to a lot of the brands that I favour, just wasn't that great. So for me, I know that unless they are having a sale or a specific special on something I use, BeautyBay will most likely remain my go-to for online shopping of beauty products, with Lookfantastic as a good back-up though :)
 
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28 Aug 2012

SOTD - Shoes Of The Day

I love my Tommy Hilfiger ballerina flats. With the big oversize bow and the striped fabric on the side I think they are super cute :)
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27 Aug 2012

Almond Oil aka The Miracle Product

I decided to try out almond oil last year after coming across this random article about a UK hand model who had tried out all these different hand products, but always went back to almond oil. I have always suffered from really dry cuticles, so I really noticed when she mentioned that using almond oil meant that she only need one product for her hands.
The reason that this truly is such a small miracle is that it can be used for anything and everything!Aside from the fact that you can actually pour this over your salad and eat it if you wanted, this oil is perfect as a body lotion, hand lotion, eye make-up remover, it is good at relieving irritated skin (razor bumps), some people use it as a "shaving cream" and others even claim that it helps to prevent stretch marks.
 
Personally I used it as my daily body and hand lotion as well as my eye make-up remover. Besides being really cheap in comparison to all the products I would otherwise be using, this is all natural. If you are concerned about parabens, perfume or other ingredients in the products you use on your skin it doesn't really get much better than this.
I suppose that any oil can be used, but I know that one of the reasons for almond oil being so popular is that it is a fairly thin oil and is absorbed into the skin relatively quickly. Also almond oil has almost no scent, where something olive oil instantly would make me think of food or cooking :)
As an eye make-up remover this stuff is amazing. Also considering that the under eye area is one of the most sensitive on the body, I doubt that you would find anything more gentle to remove your make-up with. As an added bonus I have heard people claim that their lashes have actually grown after they started using almond oil. I will say that I do feel like my lashes look fuller and more healthy.
 
So overall there is nothing bad to be said about this product! My only issue is that here in DK they sell it in a glass bottles and from personal experience I can confirm that breaking said bottle is not something I would recommend...the stuff gets everywhere and is almost impossible to clean up. So be careful with it, perhaps pour it into something else to use on a daily basis.

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SODT - Shoes Of The Day

Black overly comfortable wedges from Primark. These are my go-to for days when I know I will be on my feet for a good part of the day, but still want the lift from a heel.
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25 Aug 2012

Sweet As Candy

Today I got the Wet n Wild trio in Sweet As Candy. I have been looking at this trio for a long time and after seeing a tutorial on You Tube using it, I finally caved and got it :)
Swatches
 
It is just such pretty colours and like always I have only good things to say about Wet n Wild. Their eye shadows are especially amazing, with good pigmentation and staying power. I also love their eye liner pencils, but what is really great about them is the price. This is one of the cheapest "drugstore" brands out there, but here low price certainly doesn't equal bad/low quality. Their eye shadows more than measure up to many high-end ones, so a definite favourite of mine.

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24 Aug 2012

SOTD - Shoes Of The Day

In keeping with the nautical theme from the other day, today's shoes are Tommy Hilfiger "Martha" boat shoes in soft pink, which I got last summer on a trip to Hamburg. Always a good classic choice and I think the colour is super cute.
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23 Aug 2012

Stormy Weather

I got my very first Deborah Lippmann nail varnish a few days ago in the colour Stormy Weather, a fantastic charcoal grey that will be perfect for A/W. I couldn't resist trying it out though and am totally in love with it. Two coats were enough to get the proper coverage, the drying time was satisfactory and so far it has not chiped (after 3 days) but some "wear" can be seen. So overall a good nail varnish and not my last from DL. 
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22 Aug 2012

SOTD - Shoes Of The Day

My trusted navy Fred Perry flats, great for that nautical inspired look. Super cute shoes that also happen to be flat and comfortable :)  
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Bath & Body Shop

I recently discovered Bath & Body Shop a UK website that sell my latest obsession, the I love...coconut & cream products. As they are not sold here in DK I am always on the lookout for online store to save the day. So after coming across Bath & Body Shop I thought I would give them a try.

 Thought that their packaging was super cute :)

Their prices are really excellent and even with the postage I had to pay from the UK to DK, it was cheaper than Nelly.com which have previously supplied me with my coconut fix.

I also decided to try something new, so I got the shower gel..it was £2 so I kind of had too :)
They list on their website that they ship to the European Union and that it can take 10-14 days for delivery to arrive, but my order got shipped on a Thursday and arrived Tuesday, so I was well impressed and will definitely be a repeat buyer. Besides I love... they also carry Bath & Body Works, Lip Smackers, EOS and Victoria Secret products to name a few. Pin It

21 Aug 2012

ELF - Eyes Lips Face

Eyes Lips Face, or ELF to those in the know, is a cosmetics brand with very budget-friendly prices. I have a few things from them including this palette containing 100 eye shadows! 

This palette has just about every colour you could ever want. 

 Here are a few swatched with some random colours:

I think this is a really great palette. Whenever I'm "missing" a colour for an eye look, I can always find it here. This is also a great beginners palette as it gives you the oppertunity to try out and experiment with so many different colours and find out what works for you. There is a good mix of matte and shimmer colours, but most on the matte side.
Most also have a fairly good colour pay off and good pigmentation. I will say that the staying power is GREATLY improved with an eye primer. Otherwise I find that these colours will not last all day, will crease a bit and that the colour pay off isn't as good. This is obviously not handy for travel, but prefect to keep at home as a go-to for that "missing" colour or for trying out different colours/looks to see how they suit you.
In Europe ELF products are not sold in stores, only online here. I can recomend signing up for their newsletter or following them on Facebook, as they do special offers almost weekly. I couldn't find this exact palette online anymore, but this one comes fairly close. Pin It

20 Aug 2012

New Beauty Bay goodies

Just received my latest delivery from Beauty Bay, a new Stila liquid eye liner with felt tip in dark brow and my first ever Deborah Lippmann nail varnish in Stormy Weather. The colour looks amazing, a charcoal grey, can't wait to try it!

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SOTD - Shoes Of The Day

My trusted Tommy Hilfiger wedges. I have had these for years and nothing says summer to me like these. They are my go-to sandals as they simply work with everything and are super comfortable to wear. 
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19 Aug 2012

Stila Natural Beauty Eye Shadow Palette

This is one of my favourite palettes from Stila, that I got earlier this year on a trip to London. Stila is unfortunately not available in stores here in DK, but luckily both Beauty Bay and Look Fantastic carry the brand and ship here - for free.
I recently saw that this exact palette became available on BeautyBay.com so I thought I would do a little post on it.


It has a total of 13 colours, 6 matte and 7 shimmering, all very natural looking colours for more subtle and natural looks. This is a great palette for simple everyday looks, prefect for when less is more, but still giving you good options without being "boring".  


Here are the swatches for a closer look:
Top row left to right: pink sugar, blush, rosey, toffee, linen and vanilla
Bottom row left to right: sand, hazelnut, caramel, almond, amber, apricot and merlot

I do really love this palette, especially for those days when I just want a quick, natural look. Sand and hazelnut are probably my favourite go-to look from this palette along with amber and apricot. But I have to remeber this palette, because the colours are so natural and soft looking I tend to forget what it can do, which is create simple everyday looks that are still amazing :)
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17 Aug 2012

TGIF

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SOTD - Shoes Of The Day

These are probably my favourite pair of heels that I own. They are from Next and they are just fantastic.
Their awsomeness, apart from the brigt red colour obviously, comes from the fact that they have an actual rubber sole. You never see high heel shoes with rubber soles, for some reason they must all have this "smooth" sole that nearly almost always makes certain surfaces impossible to walk on. They are also part of Next's wide fit line, which is great for thoese of us who do not have slim feet. These have a heel that is approx. 8cm, but I feel like I could walk to the ends of the earth in these.

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16 Aug 2012

The Peter Pan collar

I am really loving the Peter Pan collar at the moment and have managed to accumulate a minor collection. 

This sleeveless lacy top from Asos in a light green colour I got on sale just before the summer. It's super cute and I am really happy with it, even if I was a little unsure about the colour at first.

This fantastic navy blue top from French Connection is my favourite. I have suppressed how much it was, but knowing FC it was probably something like £60! I absolutely love FC, but sometimes their prices are just ridiculous. But I just had to have this top and I wear it all the time, so.... :)

This cute bright red polkadot top is from Top Shop and I got it for free! Kind off anyway, I was getting some boots and the sales lady pointed out that they were having a 2 for 1 sale, so I took another look and found this little gem. I absolutely love it!

Nice light red "dress"shirt with hearts on from Primark. It has puffy sleeves and the print is lovely. It is great office wear but also great with jeans.

I may or may not have more items with the Peter Pan collar, but these 4 are definitely my favourites. Looking through the latest fashion magazines I am happy to see that the collar is part of the A/W trend, so my collection is likely to grow even bigger. Pin It

15 Aug 2012

SOTD - Shoes Of The Day

Lovely coral coloured pumps from Oasis. Prefect with white jeans and must have colour for Summer.
PS: No there is nothing wrong with your screen, there is a little speck of something on my one trouser leg...this is Murphy's Law, I am incapable of wearing anything white without eventually spilling something on it :)

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14 Aug 2012

Shopping in London

There are not many places I love more than London. I have been going there about 1-3 times a year since my early teens and I still get withdrawals if I go less than twice a year :) There is just something about the city that I will never get enough off and lucky for me getting there from Cph is fairly easy.


So as I premanently have London on the brain I though I would do a "little" post about my favourite places to shop. I mean most people know about Oxford Street, the high street mekka of London and that is a great place, but most of the time it is just super crowded so through the years I have just found a few alternatives.

Chelsea
And no, I am not talking about the football club! Chelsea is a posh area of Central London, but very much worth a visit with its more cosy feel, (VERY expensive) houses and in the 1960s-70s this was THE place for fashion and style. If you take the tube and get off at Sloan Square you will be right at the end of King's Road which has all the good high street shops and considerably less crowded than Oxford Street, so the perfect place to visit on the weekends if you are a crowd-free fan like me.

TK Maxx
This is an "outlet" chain store that sell brand name clothing/bags/shoes for very attractive prices. There is one in the Hammersmith area, but I much perfer the one on High Street Kensington. Just take the tube to that same station and keep right once you come out of the station. It is just a 5min walk and this is the place to score Reebook and Nike workout tops for £8! 

Westfield London
This fairly new shopping centre at Shepherd's Bush has literally EVERYTHING, there is Jimmy Choo, Gucci and Mulberry as well as H&M, Zara and Top Shop, the list goes on. Personally I think that their Boots, with the largest make up department I have ever seen, is every shopper's wet dream :) So on a rainy day in London this place is perfect, there is also a cinema and a million different places to eat. Take the tube to Shepherd's Bush and it is a 2min walk to the centre.

Bicester Village Outlet
This outlet is located about 2 hours outside of London. It has all the high-end brands as well as a few high street brands. The place is built like a small cosy village (hence the name) and each little house is a different shop. All of it is outside, so if at all possible try to pick a non-rainy day.
They run a Shopping Express, a luxury coach, that picks up across from a hotel right by Marbel Arch and takes you back as well. It is super easy and conveniet and they give out a 10% voucher that can be used at the outlet which, if you spend enough, will pay for the coach trip! The Shopping Express can be booked online, where they also guide you if you prefer to take the train.







Primark
I have mentioned this store in a previous post and their flagship store on Oxford Street near Marbel Arch is definitely worth a visit. But I mean it when I say come as early as possible, preferably when they open because after about 10am the place becomes a small disaster zone and the line to the changing room is unreal. The reason is that their stuff is VERY budget friendly. They do basic tank tops and t-shirts for £2, leggings for £2.5, dresses for £10-15. They really follow the recent trends, so if you are a slave to fashion and on a budget this is the place. The quality matches the price, but don't let it put you off as you can find some really great things there.

Covent Garden
Also offers a good choice when it comes to high street shops and also just a really nice area to walk around. There is the market in the middle, but I find that the small streets leading away from there have some cool shops. If you have a sweet tooth a visit to the Primrose Bakery is a must. They have the most lovely cup cakes you could ever want.

Notting Hill
And the whole area around it is nice and cosy to walk around in and see some interesting shops. Portobello Road is a must for some, I personally prefer to go on weekdays as to avoid the (in)famous market. There are just too many people, so I like to go when you can enjoy the area in a more "peaceful" atmosphere. Leadning away from there is Westbourn Grove which is a really cool street with loads of shops different to all the the high street and brand names that you find elsewhere.


Queensway
The area around Bayswater and Paddington is booming with hotels and it is where I normally stay when I am in London. On Queensway there are some high street shops and a lot of different restaurant and fast food places. At the end of the road you will find Whiteleys, a small shopping centre that also has a cinema at the top floor.
I like to stay in this area because it is a little less crowded, but you can still have food, shopping or a film within walking distance and without having to go into the city. There are also two tube stations, Queensway and Bayswater, giving you super good access to 3 different underground lines. Finally Hyde Park is also right there which is also a must when in the English capital.


London is massive and there are so many places to go, but these are just a few of my favourites, but wherever you go London is a fantastic place that has something for everybody :)



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13 Aug 2012

We're almost there

Only about 2 weeks till the new Chanel colours hit the stores. So to pass the time we shall enjoy Ming 471, that my mum got a local flea market for a steal. I have not been able to find it in any stores, nor is it listed on the Chanel website, so am not sure if this was a limited edition or just not released in Europe, so for now I sneak on a coat or two whenever my mum isn't looking :)




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12 Aug 2012

In between brush cleaning

I try to clean my make up brushes about every two weeks (with brush cleanser and water), but I don't always have time to do it or time to wait for them to dry. So in between the proper cleaning I use alcoholic swabs as a quick way to keep them at least somewhat clean.


I use DK brand Neutral, because they are 100% parfume and pareben free, but mostly because they are the ones I already keep in my bag for my hands. You can use any brand available, but they should contian alcohol to disinfect and clean the brushes. 3 swabs are normally enough to get through all my brushes.

I use one swab for all the eye brushes. Just take the dirty brushes and carefully wipe them on the swab. Try not to push too hard when doing this as we don't want the brush to loose it's shape.
I have about 8 face brushes, so with the final 2 swabs I fold them in half and use one side for one brush, turning it over for each new brush. 

Keep in mind that this will not leave the brushes as clean as when you use the brush cleanser and water, but it will keep them going a little longer in between.

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10 Aug 2012

New essential reading material

Just got the September issues of Elle UK & Maria Claire UK and just in time for the weekend :) 
The reason I generally get the UK editions of the different magazines is first of all that the style of fashion is fairly similar to DK and therefore there is a greater chance that I can find similar styles in the stores here. Secondly most of the brands (clothing/shoes/make up/etc.) that are highlighted in these magazines are available here or can be found on several websites that ship to DK, which is still not the case for many US based websites/brands.


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I love...I love...I love...

It is safe to say that I LOVE this exfoliating shower smoothie in Coconut & Cream! Not enough good things can be said about this product, even though I tried my best in an earlier post .
I love... products are not sold in DK, but I found that I can get them through Nelly.com, so now all is right with the world. Only minor setback is that the shipping they choose to use here is one that does not cover actual delivery to your door. You have to go to your local postoffice to pick up your package. I actually wouldn't mind paying a bit more to aviod that and have it delivered directly to the address I provided :)

UPDATE: I have now discovered that there are other types of shipment, so next time I shall remember to read the small print. Pin It

9 Aug 2012

LiQWD gold

Or at least you would think so at the price! No, LiQWD is fantastic, it is just really pricy. I was at my lovely hair dressers yesterday having my hair cut and coloured, but I also needed to stock up on my LiQWD volumizing spray.
Besides being expensive this is an amazing product. I have used it for about 2 years now and have no plans to stop in the near future.
I have super fine hair and keep it short ( i.e. pixi cut, think Michelle William and Ginnifer Goodwin) so I need all the volume and structure I can get.
I also use their other styling product called SLiQWD which is a gel-like product and I use their volumizing shampoo and conditioner as well. So all in all, for my hair I only use their products :) 
All their stuff is based on the Nano-Hydrosphere technology and if you read about their products it sounds like they can more or less walk on water ;)
Like I said I love their products, they do wonders for my hair and the smell is AMAZING and I guess I don't know much (anything) about nano-tecnology, but I am always just a little bit "sceptical" when it comes to the claims of haircare and beauty products in general. And while LiQWD products are great, I personally find them to be a little more "of this world" than the packaging might suggests ;) 

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Shoes Of The Day - SOTD

Todays shoes are cute pink pumps from Faith. The colour alone puts you in a good mood :)
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8 Aug 2012

What's in my (gym) make up bag

3 times a week I take a morning class at the local gym, which means that I have to haul all my make up with me, so I thought I would do a little "What's in my make up bag" post.

I use my grey/black Marimekko bag, that is a good size for "traveling". 

For my face I use Tromborg Mineral foundation in Vanilla, which I apply with a kabuki brush from Sigma, Garnier's anti-dark circles for under the eyes and then finally the Urban Decay Primer Potion (original)

I use Calvin Klein eye shadow in vanilla cream (as a highlight), my favourite Wet n' Wild trio Walking on Eggshells, Stila eye shadow in Espresso for the outer coner and for my brows and then Tromborg blush in Peach

Lastly I use the Jemma Kidd lipstick in Peach, Benefit mascara Bad gal in Deep Brown, Smashbox liquid liner in Dark Brown, Smashbox eye beam brightner and MAC pencil in Coffee

Here are the brushes I used, most are from Sigma, one is from Elf and the red one is from DK brand Nilens Jord

And yes, that all fits into the bag...a little snug perhaps, but as long as it can still zip up it's all good :)
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