Posts from April 2014.

You're looking for ''...

Lightweight Bases Galore

April 30th  •  Posted in Beauty

Recently I’m all about lightweight foundations and bases as when it comes to makeup I don’t really like anything too heavy going on there, and I have to admit lightweight bases are always been my first choose – I seriously can’t remember an single time I decided to went for a full coverage foundation in my entire life. I went through a lot of tubes actually, but today I want to show you the ones that still have a firm role in my makeup life…

I don’t know about you, but I’m super sick of the whole BB cream kind of thing and I tend to steer away from every new BB or CC cream release, but I still have some noteworthed in my little “lightweight” drawer. The Gosh BB Cream* (€13,99) is been in there for a while now, but this is the base I go with in summertime usually as I have a slightly too dark shade for my pale winter skin which pairs amazingly with the light tan I get in summertime instead. This super light and impalpable base aims to be a foundation, primer and moisturizer all in one but I actually am really impressed of how easly it sinks into the skin (pretty reasonable as it’s water based) and how comfortable it is to wear even in the warmer months. The Bourjois 123 Perfect CC Cream (£6,50) is the most recent entry in my foundation stash, and I’m super impressed with this at the moment: it contains apricot pigments to conceal fatique signs, green pigments to contrast rednesses and white pigments to cover dark spots – this really has a very nice covering power but still being pretty natural and light on the skin and leaving a luminous complexion. This is my first choice on days when my skin looks a bit dull and I need to uniforme it and create a smooth texture.

Another water based foundation I really like right now is the & Other Stories Triple Moist Foundation (£15) which aims to have a super hydrating formula and leaving a very natural finish. I don’t know about the hydration – I’m not a dry skin girl so I rarely notice if a base product tend to keep my skin hydrated, but this for sure doesn’t make my skin oilier – but is really nice in keeping things pretty natural and light. It is slightly fragranced though, and if your skin is very sensitive like mine, you should consider wearing a primer underneath (not my favorite thing). It’s still very creamy but blend and absorb super easly.

My “top of the class” lightweight bases are two though, the Rouge Bunny Rouge Sketches on Water Tinted Moisturiser* (£34,58) and the L’Oreal Nude Magique Eau de Teint (£9,99), both water based foundations but with opposite finishes. The former is one my skin didn’t love at first as it caused a terrible breakout as soon as I tried it, but which is now super well loved as it leaves the most beautiful wet finish and smooth texture to the skin. This seems super thick when you apply it but it actually sinks into the skin pretty soon and gives a beautifully radiant complexion. It never looks cakey or feel sticky and it looks amazing in photos as well. The latter has been my go to winter foundation, which I actually still use if I’m looking for a super matte finish; it has the messiest packaging ever but a super nice and unique formula. It’s very lightweight and never feels too heavy on the skin, and once blended it leave a silky and matte finish I really love. This combination and oily skin friendly foundation applies better with the fingers, helps in uniforming the complexion, is truely buildable and goes on super easly as well.

One thing is for sure: I can’t go wrong with water based bases and I have a good stock now, but they still are my first choise when I have to buy new foundations. However these were my favorite lightweight base finds so far.

Which is your favorite lightweight base?

Tagged:  

Healthy antiox smoothie

April 28th  •  Posted in Recipe

I don’t know about you, but for me as soon as it comes spring I’m all about good juicy smoothies in the morning and afternoon as they are delicious and fresh but also pretty healthy. Also I’ve actually never been a big green tea fan, but I know it is the biggest source of anti oxidants out there – just a quick one: a cup of green tea seems to contain the same amount of anti oxidants as seven glasses of orange juice – and they always suggest to drink more than a cup a day. But really, I think green tea’s taste isn’t for everyone, but I just recently found out that for me the solution is mixing it with a good fruit smoothie…

This super quick and easy recipe was inspired by one of my favorite food app, Filibaba Smoothies, which proposes a very similar way to incorporate green tea in your diet, and I found it so clever that being that I always keep some green tea at home, I immediately decided to try to customize it and make something I would really enjoy. And to stay on track with the all antiox theme, I threw in a good mix of ingredients which all have antiox proprerties.

For a cup of smoothie you will need:

  • A frozen banana
  • An apple
  • The juice of one lemon
  • 1/2 cup of green tea

First things first, I sliced the banana into pieces and put it in the freezer for one or two hours before starting preparing my smoothie so that the banana will be cold and almost frozen and will make your smoothie super resfreshing. Then I prepared 1/2 cup of green tea and let it cool for half an hour to avoid my smoothie to come out too warm, and finally I peeled my apple and cutted into pieces. Now it’s time to start blending and mixing and using a blender I firstly blended together the banana and lemon juice, then added the apple and lastly the green tea. I blended it very well for a few minutes as I didn’t want any big fruit pieces going on in there and then served it into a cute jam jar with two colored straws.

I’m not even a big fan of banana smoothies usually but this is seriously delicious, creamy, refreshing and amazing and I keep drinking and preparing it everyday since when I discovered it. This doesn’t taste like green tea at all, and if you have a big blender I would suggest to prepare a good dose of it and serve it for breakfast to your family or store in the fridge and drink it within one or two days whenever you desire. You can also add a bit of sugar to your taste if you want, but I generally go without it as there’s still the sweetness of an entire apple in there. Hopefully you will enjoy this delicious but healthy smoothie too!

Will you try this recipe? Which is your favorite smoothie flavor?

Tagged:  

Handbag Essentials

April 25th  •  Posted in Lifestyle

There was a time when I used to bring with me only big, wide, ginormous handbags, but that time is definitely gone as now I only carry little bags which look a lot cuter in my opinion but are also pretty comfortable and not too bulky as a big bag. I recently got an even smaller bag and I had to halve my bag contents and completely minimize it, so I thought I could share my handbag essentials today…

First of all my new navy blue tote bag is the Vintage and Casual Tote Bag* (£11.88) from Sammydress which is such a cute and good quality little bag with the prettiest vintage brown details and a lot of wide pockets in the inside to keep everything very organized which I definitely love. This is the perfect size for my necessities as I can store all the things I need to carry with me when I go out and even more and it’s actually not too big nor too small. I love the brown details and that this pairs amazingly with the majority of my wardrobe, and even though I wasn’t too sure about getting it in blue, it turned out being a good choise as this is a bit of a change instead of my usual brown or black bags I use to go with in wintertime.

In the biggest compartment I always carry my Topshop wallet which my boyfriend bought me when we was in London and which I’m totally in love with. This is such a big wallet for a little bag, I know, but one thing with me is every wallet is always too little for my taste and for what I need to carry, so I need to go for a big one and make sure it fits it all. Also I always have in there a good old hand sanitizer as I’m a hygienic freak, a few little Ikea wooden pencils I got after a few Ikea trips, my Firmoo Brown Round Sunglasses* (£28.98) and my on-the-go camera which I recently decided to bring always with me to capture every little moment I want to remeber and maybe post on here too. Essentials to me are also my little Harrods Folk Floral Pocket Shopper Bag (£4,95) which comes very useful if I’m out and I need another cute bag to carry anything else I could have bought, and my little Accessorize Heart Mirror (£7), because, you know, a girl needs her mirror everywhere.

In the inside little pocket I always carry a handful of H&M Black Hair Elastics (£1.50) which are my all time favorite because they lasts forever and come pretty useful if you have long hair, but also a little old hair clip probably from Accessorize and my old Apple earphones, whilst in the bigger front pocket I always keep handy things I want to easly find like my super handy H&M Hand Wipes and Halo Moist Toilet Tissue Wipes (£1.09), but also a little jar I keep in there for when I’m out for some beauty shopping and need to ask a sample. This is such a staple in my handbag as I always hate when I get the wrong foundation or concealer shade, and the best way to avoid that is testing the product out before buying it maybe under a different light from the one in the shop, and maybe at home on my own. Little pots like this are super handy but also very affordable – you can find some here.

As for makeup I always carry around a few products to touch up any smudginess during the day, and for this purpose the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer (£22) is always my best bet as it is super high coverage but lightweight and looks always natural, plus it’s super easy to blend out with your fingers which is a must when it comes to on-the-go makeup. Also I keep in there the lip product I applied that day before going out, and at the moment I have two, the Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick in Lovelight (£15) and the Maria Galland Color Pencil in 200 Pamplemousse Rosé* which are both two pink and shimmery lip shades I’m loving wearing at the moment.

Something I need to get in the upcoming future is a cute and little notepad to be kept in my bag for any on-the-go idea to be written down, and a little makeup bag maybe where to put the makeup I carry with me and avoid it get lost in there.

What about your handbag essentials?

Tagged: