My summer BEAUTY favourites! #1

Better late than never, right?

Alright, time to roll up my sleeves and get down to (blogging) business: these are all the beauty products I've been loving to use during past summer!

Starting with the makeup bits:

The only bronzer I've been reaching for was (surprise!) the Soleil Tan de Chanel- aka Bronze Universel. Honestly, I can't fault it- it has a lovely texture and its colour matches my tanned skintone to the T. For my eye makeup, I've been solely relying on Groundwork Paintpot by Mac, a new entry in my makeup bag. It swatches one shade darker than my skin and achieves that off-the-runway soft haze around the eyes... So pretty!

As for my go-to lipsticks, my most used bright lippie was Maybelline's Vivid lipstick in 902-Fuchsia Flash*. For all you bright lipstick lovers out there, you must! check out Maybelline's Vivids range; some of them are actually brighter than what Mac has to offer! As for my nude lip of choice, it was Altered Beige by Mac which was part of the summer Temperature Rising collection. It's a no-fuss, easy to wear nude that gives some dimension to the lips thanks to its subtle sheen.

Another new product that I (over)used during summer was the #79 neon red nail polish by Marel. Lemme tell you this, it's the brightest -and prettiest- neon red nail polish you'll ever come across with a €3 price tag! I would urge you all to go buy it but alas, we're already past the beginning of autumn... The one I've been wearing on my toes is the Max Factor mini nail polish in 49-Fuchsia Salsa*. Although purples and violets aren't normally my thing, this little guy would definitely fit in my top 10 nail polish list!

Quite an achievement for a purple nail polish, if you ask me ;)

Lipstick Wardrobe's SUMMER wishlist!

Gah, I can't believe spring is gone already!
Predictions say it's going to be a scorching summer this year- excited much?

In all honesty, I'm not a summer kind of girl, though I'm determined to do my best and be 100% prepared for when showing (plenty of) skin is ultimately inevitable. If only breaking free from such insecurities was an easy task...

But that's another story ;)

So, here are a few of the things I have my eye on at the moment!

1. The Body Shop Spa Fit body scrub: one simply needs a good quality body scrub, come summer. This one is supposed to make skin look and feel firmer, plus it smells of citrus (score!). Although, being aware of a few reviews claiming it's not that exfoliating, I'll try my luck at asking for a sample...

2. A neon yellow nail polish: look at this picture of a french manicure with neon yellow tips- gorgeous! Surely there are dirt-cheap neon nail polishes out there, but I'd love to try the ones by China Glaze. Anyone know of a store that stocks China Glaze?

3. Maybelline Color Show nail polish, Go Go Green: if its promo pic is true to life
- green chartreuse - then I gotta have it!

Onto my lipstick lust list:

12 for 2012: LIPSTICK WARDROBE's favourites!

It's probably late to blog about last year's favourite products, my apologies!
Twas so hard to narrow them down to just 12- hence the delay...

2012 was pretty hectic, and I'm glad it's finally over. Despite all that, one of past year's positive aspects was that I managed to discover some great beauty products which have already gained a "staple" value in my collection. Here they are!

Surprisingly, 9 out of 12 are makeup related-
gee, someone needs to experiment more with skincare, body and hair stuff!

Citrus colognes will always have a special place in my heart. I've now come to use one every single time after the shower for a quick pick-me-up; 4711 cologne has been my favourite. Since its scent dissipates within 20 minutes, it means I'm the only one who can enjoy it while people around me don't notice I smell like a 80-year-old grandma! lol

I've also discovered one of the very best city sunscreens in the market, the -wait for it- Clarins UV Plus HP Day Screen High Protection. Brilliant for oily skin, non-greasy, and packed with antioxidants. If only it was a bit cheaper... The Body Shop Vineyard Peach body butter* is one of my recent addictions. There, I sait it! Seriously, I'll cry when TBS decides to discontinue the Vineyard Peach range, it smells exactly like the real thing!

Now for the makeup bits! Maybelline Fit Me foundation and concealer* were the absolute winners of 2012 and I'll definitely repurchase both. The foundation's finish is fresh and dewy, and the concealer has that peach undertone that suits my complexion to a T. The brush that I apply my foundation with is the Art Deco duo fibre brush; I've had it for more than 3 years now and it looks as good as new, so it deserves its place in this list ;)

As for the blush in the photo above, it's none other than The Body Shop blush in Toast, a versatile matte peach/tan colour that can be paired with any lipstick/eyeshadow combo. But whad'ya know, it's been discontinued! *sob sob*

Clarins UV Plus HP Day Screen High Protection review

Dear readers, if you have oily skin and have always had difficulty finding a good quality daily sunscreen, this post is dedicated to you!

Staying true to my summer resolution about wearing a cream with high SPF daily, I searched around and opted for this city sunscreen by Clarins. I've been using it about a month now- and for what it's worth, I found it approaches HG quality!!!

[If only for one little detail that I'll explain at the end of this post...]

As you may have encountered yourselves, having oily skin makes it so hard to find a sunscreen lotion that doesn't feel greasy or clog the pores, with both factors leading to excessive oiliness and acne breakouts. I'm happy to report I've come across an excellent solution to this problem!

Before I get on with this review, here's what you firstly need to know:

This product is not water-resistant, which means it can only be worn in the city. Also, it has almost zero moisturising properties, which makes it suitable to all skin types as long as a proper moisturiser is applied underneath.

Not your typical sunscreen lotion, eh?
Moving on to its pros...

Sun protection: has a high SPF 40 that covers both UVA and UVB rays. In particular, the "PA+++" inscription means it offers the highest protection possible from UVA rays that cause premature ageing and skin cancer. Please note that it carries only physical filters of mineral nature, not chemical. It also contains a powerful antioxidant that comes from organic cantaloupe melon, making it even more effective as an anti-ager.

Texture: as mentioned before, it's suitable to all skin types- however, it performs its best on oily complexions, as it's oil-free and has a runny texture that gets spread on the skin like a dream! Now, I'll be honest with you: it does feel like sunscreen, which is unavoidable because of its physical filters. However, once it's fully absorbed after a couple of minutes, it feels as almost nothing! Makeup goes beautifully on top, this sunscreen won't rub off a bit.

   Its little flaws:
* It leaves a slight white film on the skin- but again, it's inevitable
* Packaging looks cheap; sister told me it looks like a shampoo sample!

But, my biggest let-down is its price!!! €40+ for 30ml of product is way too much, and considering I use it whenever I head out in the sun and always take it down my neck and decolette, this thing goes out really fast... It's only been a month and the bottle is already half-empty!

Overlooking its hefty price, this Clarins sunscreen lotion is to me like a wish came true! As much as I've looked around for affordable alternatives, I had no luck: the only comparable options I've come across were by Shiseido and Kiehl's... So, until I find a less costly city sunscreen, I'll stick to this one!

Now, tell me: what sunscreen lotion do you wear daily?
Would you consider paying more than €40 for a face sunscreen?

Evi   xx

May '12 favourites.

Surprise, surprise! Hear this:

There will be no makeup products featured in this monthly favourites post- purely because I don't want to bore you with how much I enjoy using Bronze Universel, the Shimmer Cubes or my Mac lipsticks.

For a change, this post contains only bodycare products with a bit of skincare.
Enjoy!

The Vaseline Aloe Fresh body lotion was my favourite rediscovery during May: this has got be my most "bought over again" body lotion! I love everything about it: its fresh scent, the light-feeling hydration it offers, plus its price-to-quality ratio is unbeatable. I'll probably do a post on summer body lotions and show you some of my favourites ;)

I also tried the Bioten Cellufight Drainage gel* and lemme tell you this: it works! Sure, it won't help if you don't exfoliate the areas with cellulite, or you don't eat healthily/ drink enough water, but it does help that little extra. Everything counts at taming the cellulite beast! If you're interested in the Bioten Cellufight range, I've done a full review on this article at Beautytalk.gr.

If you're Greek, you'll recognise the last item in the above pic: that's right, one of past month's favourites was the cult Myrto Lemon cologne! I wasn't planning on featuring this product at all, until ladyd made a post about it so I thought "screw pretences, I like it and I'm gonna give it some blog love"! Now, don't get me wrong- as much as I love citrus colognes, I don't go out and about wearing this thing; I only put it on after shower and the scent quickly evaporates.

You might remember that I desperately wanted a nice city sunscreen; that's why I picked out this Clarins Day Screen. I must write a full review on this; it definitely made me feel safer to step out in the sunlight with this potion on my face! Mac Strobe cream was a permanent fixture in my makeup routine during May, I think it deserves its own post as well! Let me know which review would you like to see tomorrow- the Clarins sunscreen or the Strobe cream?

On another note...

...I decided to sell my Mac 130 brush.
As much as I tried to love it, I simply can't. It would be a shame to keep it in my collection and let it collect dust, when someone else might find it usable. So, before this baby finds its way to ebay, I'm presenting it here: if anyone is interested in buying this, please contact me at lipstickwardrobe@gmail.com ;)

So, which review should be up next? Clarins or Mac?
Are there any Myrto cologne fans out there?

* The Bioten Cellufight gel was provided by the company for free. I'm not affiliated with Bioten and I wasn't compensated for mentioning it on this blog. The only reason I'm showing it is because I like it! Sharing my honest opinions, as always. My loyalty is to my readers ;)

Evi   xx

My Spring/Summer wishlist: part 2

Oh God, I've finally come to that stage where I'm putting together wishlists with high-end products only; THE END IS NEAR!!! Seriously now, it seems I'm having a €€€ kick lately, I'm hoping it's just a phase- otherwise my wallet will mutiny against me and I won't blame it!

To be fair though, this is more like a this or that list.
So, not all hope is lost! lol

You might remember from my previous wishlist that I had my eye on the Vit C Daily Moisturiser with spf 30 by the Body Shop. Thank goodness I checked the tester before purchasing it- as soon as I applied a tiny amount on my hand, it rubbed off in pieces! Enough is enough, I'm done with crappy day creams; I've decided to finally invest in a proper, well thought and technologically up-to-date daily sunscreen. After a little search online, I came up with two options: the Shiseido Urban Environment Oil-Free UV Protector is brand new and sounds very promising: it's water resistant (so it's going to hold well during the hot summer weather), it's invisible on the skin and has a broad spectrum of 42 PA+++. The Clarins UV Plus HP Day Screen High Protection has more or less the same claims as the Shiseido one, but I'd rather go with the pebble-like packaging of Shiseido than that of Clarins!

I've been also tempted by some purrrty eyeshadows- namely the Burberry Sheer Eyeshadow in Pale Barley and the Chanel Illusion d'Ombre in Illusoire. About the latter, I'll test it in-store; if it swatches too purpley for my liking, I'll be saving myself the €30+. The Pale Barley eyeshadow, omg... I need this in my life! 'Nuff said ;)

And of course, the biggest temptation of the moment: high-end lip products. Sigh, where do I start? I want a YSL lippie so bad- don't know whether it's going to be a Rouge Volupte or the new Vernis a Levres but I'm so getting one! Lipgloss-wise, I've been eyeing the lovely Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfectors that have that spongey applicator like my beloved Elf Luscious Liquid lipstick! And lastly, gimmicky or not, the Dior Lip Glow is my current lip balm crush!

So, what have you been lusting over lately?
Do share your spring/summer wishists, I'd love to read 'em!

Evi   xx