Some new entries: skincare, accessories, and a concert ticket ;)

Hola, beautiful people!

Ahhh, I'm in such a bloody good mood these last few days, so much so that the excitement is killing me! Why, you might ask? Well, you'll see what I'm talking about at the end of this post. But before that, here's my most recent haul ;)

Starting with the skincare bits; are you ready for a bold statement?
Here goes:

I think I've finally found my HG skin saviour.

I'm dead serious, the Avene Cleanance K cream made my skin look practically flawless! Expect to see a whole 'nother post dedicated to this bad boy- I'll give you a little teaser info: it's a gentle chemical exfoliating treatment. I love it to bits!

I was also in need of a new everyday face wash with exfoliating micro-granules, so I opted for the Garnier Pure Active Daily Energising face scrub. This stuff has a fantastic fresh/zingy smell that wakes me up every morning! And then there's a couple of essentials from the Body Shop, namely the Vitamin E cream cleanser + Vitamin E eye cream,

both of which are repurchases. Hey, old habits die hard!

This is a Zara necklace which I bought yesterday, and I really need your help:
is it a keeper, or not?

See, I'm currently loving the "chiffon shirt, skinny jeans and a statement necklace" look, and Zara is the only place with eye-catching necklaces that don't cost the world. Yet, I'm not so sure about this purchase... I'm loving the looks of it, but how many times will I get to wear this mofo? What do you guys think?

A makeup haul! Art Deco, Revlon, Erre Due

Yet another mini haul with products I've collected over the past month.
Pretty frugal, as you can see... Hey ho, blame it on my tight budget ;)

In an attempt to rehabilitate my (unhealthy!) addiction to the Body Shop makeup range, I'm doing my best to show some love to drugstore brands that I have been overlooking in favour of "the disease". Judging by the outcome, I'm glad for this change!

To sum it up, every single product from the haul falls undoubtedly under the
pin-up inspired category. That's for having a huge crush on Dita Von Teese...

* Oh please, don't judge! The girl is a phenomenon of elegance, glamour and sensuality. Who wouldn't want to be in her shoes? It could be worse, though; imagine if I admitted I was infatuated with Kim K? Or -dear Lord- Nicki Minaj??? *

Still with me? Swell!

May I proudly present you the Art Deco Golden Vintage lipstick in Muse Red,
Dita's favourite classic red lipstick- her words, not mine... It's part of her 3rd limited-edition makeup collection that was launched during Christmas; boy, am I glad to get my hands on this lippie! It's a bright tomato red, closer to Lady Danger than the likes of Russian Red/Ruby Woo. Paid: €14,80

LIPSTICK WARDROBE's 2013 wishlist!

I'm probably one of those few people that don't believe in new year's resolutions;
making lists of any sort can be fun and I enjoy it, albeit not in this case.

Enforcing myself such new "rules" that have to be accomplished no-matter-what turns quickly into a stressful situation. And I won't have any of that this year, thank you very much! In fact, here is my one and only new year's resolution (kind of): to avoid stressing out as much as I can.

So, instead of making a list of promises I'm not willing to keep, I took notes of a few beauty products I'd like to look into until spring. Let's start, shall we?

1. Kiehl's Over-Night Biological Peel: this is meant to be some sort of a gentle chemical peel. I've used a sample of this in the past and loved it, but it kills me! that Kiehl's doesn't take part in the monthly 25% sales... Ugh!
2. Garnier Pure Active Fruit Energy Daily Energising Gel Scrub: to add up to the previous on-and-off exfoliator, a daily scrub should keep my skin glowing every single day. This one by Garnier contains Vitamin C and Salicylic Acid, two skincare ingredients I'm loving at the moment. I hear it smells divine!
3. The Body Shop Vitamin C Facial Radiance Capsules: notice the pattern? Vit C is going to be my best friend in 2013! Our skin needs as much anti-oxidant goodness as it can get.

4. Mac Media lipstick: I find dark burgundy lips to be a modern interpretation of the "statement lip" trend, which I love. Now that I'm planning to re-ombre my hair, I'd like to wear an alternative to the cherry-red lipstick that has become so mainstream lately...
5. Mac Veluxe Brow Liner: this seems to be a better deal than the Mac mechanical brow pencils- there's more product, a nifty little spoolie on the end, while it claims to offer a matte powdery finish. Want!
6. Mac 217 brush: I need to improve my skills on blending eyeshadows, and I won't compromise with a cheaper blending brush. 217, it is!
7. Mac Face and Body foundation: hopefully, after I've upgraded my skincare routine for my face to get an even tone, I'd love to try out a weightless foundation like Mac's Face and Body. I can always hope for the best, right?

My "Marni for H&M" shopping list

It's interesting that in late years, the minds behind H&M have decided to educate their customers about high-fashion houses; because to be honest, if it wasn't for this particular collaboration, I wouldn't have googled Marni to find out what the brand is all about...

Granted, the patterns in this collection are a bit crazy- but that's what Marni is all about, right? Personally, I don't do well with prints- especially on the upper part of my body. However, I managed to assort some items I'd love to see myself into- but the prices, ugh!!! I wish they were a little more affordable! I can't afford to risk €100 on a dress I might not want to wear the following year...

So, boring haul it is :(
This T-shirt lies on top of my shopping list:

Cotton T-shirt, €29,95: love-love-love its print! This would make an excellent addition for my short -but slowly growing!- collection of well-made, all-cotton T-shirts. The only thing I'm worried about is the black lining on the neck and sleeves, let's hope they won't leak black dye onto the white!

Now for the rest of the items I have my eye on, I'm still unsure whether I'll be buying any- nevertheless, here they are! As you can see, they don't look THAT much Marni-esque...
My point exactly!

1. Ankle-length trousers, €79,95
2. Leather/plastic necklace, €39,95
3. Silk shorts, €49,95
4. Leather bag, €79,95
5. 2-pack plastic bracelet, €29,95

Also, have you seen the men's collection? Every single piece looks so much more toned-down and just... wearable! Heck, they even come in friendlier prices!
Why, dear H&M, why do you favour the boys once again...

These items are what I'd love to see on a man:

1. Silk scarf, €19,95
2. Cotton shorts, €19,95
3. Striped blazer, €99
4. Shirt, €49,95
5. Drawstring bag, €39,95

So, what will you getting from this H&M launch?
Do you find the prints interesting or too "in-your-face"?

Evi   xx

What's in my bag?

'Twas about time I started uploading some tags I've been meaning to write down for the longest time ever!
I can be such a bad blogger sometimes, naughty Evi ;)

I'm starting with the ever so popular "What's in my bag?" tag-
though to be honest, you won't find anything exciting in my post-
read on...

So, the handbag I'm currently carrying around is this faux-leather satchel that I bought from H&M back in October for 30E. Now to put it bluntly,
I can't stand the looks of this thing!

See, when I first saw it I thought "haaaay, a Mulberry Alexa dupe for cheap? Bring it on!!!", then all through winter it was on every-freakin'-display in all H&M stores across Athens and well, it didn't take me much time to get over the initial thrill... But hey ho, that's the one I have ATM so it'll have to make do for this post :/

Inside my bag:

I always carry with me: tissues and wet wipes cause they're always handy and I'm a germ freak, a lighter for emergencies when I have to lend it to a cute stranger (never happens!), painkillers for the odd headache, my Ray-Bans (inside the case) and a white Wayfarer dupe from H&M, my humungous wallet from Zara that always sets off the anti-theft alarms when I walk into an Inditex store (FML...), the H&M nail polish I'm currently wearing (trying to fix my habit of chipped nails the easy way), a random Mac lipstick- this time it's Hue, a pressed powder for touch-ups throughout the day, memory sticks, my keys (notice the mini cooking whisk? aww...), my ancient cell phone that still goes strong, and a pen by Parker.

Not to mention the loads of receipts that nestle themselves deep inside the corners of the bag, the all-present Hondos Center plastic bag from my latest shopping spree and the numerous mint chewing gums- but such clutter wouldn't be too neat to snap it in a pic...

Hope you found it enjoyable? fun to read? sth along this line ;)
Thank you Irene for tagging me! Mwah xx
Feel free to do this tag or leave me your links if you've done it already!

Evi   xx

December 2011 favourites!

December was a month of rediscovering some long forgotten makeup products that I'd left unused for quite some time- or rather "shopping my stash", to quote Lollipop26 ;)

Guilts (of owning too much makeup) aside, I very much enjoyed this whole process of going through my collection, swatching this and that, and picking up a few products to add them to my everyday makeup basket! It almost felt as if I was in a cosmetics store shopping for new makeup acquisitions... But I digress.

Having a pink kick lately, no doubt!
This is the 4th customised Elf palette that I've filled with eyeshadows from the Body Shop- can't stress enough how much I love these! Wearing pink eyeshadow still feels a bit uncomfortable (wouldn't want to look like "girly girl" any time soon) but I'm getting there! Another rediscovery during past month was the pink Shimmer Waves compact by TBS; I've been loving to wear it as a highlighter or on its own, its shimmer is so fine and non obtrusive. Yet another underestimated product by the Body Shop!

I also got one step closer to the perfect lip combo for smokey eyes:
Mac Creme d' Nude lipstick topped with Au Naturale mineral lipgloss by Elf. To me, Creme d' Nude screams to be worn with lipgloss on top; this lipglass clone by Elf warms it up and gives it some dimension. Now I need a coordinating lip liner for some definition, recommendations are welcome ;)

Skincare wise, I've been wearing the Garnier BB cream* almost daily- given that it provides very low coverage and my skin is far from being flawless, I'm surprised that I've been opting for this one instead of my usual liquid foundation. Hmm, that's clearly an indicator to get a new one! The Aloe night cream by TBS healed my skin from some dry patches- finally, thank God! Now I'm thinking of purchasing the Aloe moisturiser with SPF to wear during the day.

I'll end this post with my boyfriend's gift for Christmas- a white gold necklace that can be worn in two ways. I like it, I'll wear it, I'm so grateful for Kostis who's spoiling me like this, but... I wish it was something I had chosen myself. Is it lame to ask him for a specific jewelry piece on my birthday in March? Answer me with a "no", please!

*Edit: forgot to mention the Garnier BB cream was sent to me for free. Oops!

So, what have you been loving during December?
It could be anything, be random!

Evi   xx

September favourites!

Hello my lovelies!

This is my first "monthly favourites" post, hope you enjoy!

...Family pic  =D

First off, during September I started layering my blushes and I love it! I found that the end result is more interesting than a swipe of one colour on the cheeks.

Favourite combination:

a matte coral as a base (Biotherm blush, left),

with a topping of a coral/gold shimmer (Seventeen blush in Coral, center- see my review here),

or a pinky/icy shimmer powder (The Body Shop Shimmer Waves in 02- Blush, right- see my review here).

My favourite makeup look that I wore during September was the easiest and quickest to do:

A little foundation and concealer,

eye primer and mascara,

a rosey cream blush (Manhattan Mousse Rouge in Apricot, left),

and a darker pink lipstick (Biotherm lipstick, discontinued).

I look pretty and polished in 5 minutes' time!

 

I also discovered a way to do the perfect smokey eye with brown eyeshadow!

You see, if you have brown eyes like me, you soon find out two things:

One, that you have to stay away from warm-toned eyeshadows, and

Two, that a smokey eye with brown eyeshadows doesn't really make brown eyes pop :(

But with a little experiment, I dished both of the above rules.

So, this is my improved version for a brown smokey eye:

a dark base on the lid (smudged black pencil, cream eyeliner, anything),

a cool-toned brown on top (The Body Shop eyeshadow in Chocolate, left),

a warm-toned medium brown in the crease (The Body Shop mineral eyeshadow in Bronzed Amber, right)

black eyeliner, mascara... and you're done!

See, I made a ridiculous demonstration on the back of my hand...

Seriously, it looks like a prehistoric creature living in the deep seas, lol!

Anyways, moving on:

During September I bought the Body Shop's blender brush (see my review here),

and Carbon eye pencil- the softest I've found, although not the blackest...

Nevertheless, love them both!

I also found a new use for my Korres lip butter stick:

wearing it on top the Erre Due Silky lip pencil in #61.

See? A nice sheer brown-nude shade, perfect for daytime.

Skincare-wise, my favourite product of the month has to be the Apivita exfoliating cream with olive and lavender. Its granules are from crushed olive stones and give a deep exfoliation, just how I like a proper face scrub to be!

It also contains Menthol -which gives a "cooling" feel on the skin- and Salicylic Acid -a big surprise, thumbs up Apivita!

Last but not least, the lovely fellow greek blogger Stella sent me this beautiful ring by Mark Jacobs from an older giveaway that I won. Thank you so much, girl!!!

 

Needless to say, I wear it every-single-day since I got it!

 

On the diameter of the ring it's inscribed the Latin phrase "Veritas Inlustrat", which probably means "Shining Truth". I'm not sure though, I've never had a Latin class!

I'd love to read you favourites of the month,
please share them below or post a link to your September favourites post ;)

Happy blogging and reading and commenting to everyone!

CBSG5861

I heart... hearts ;)

Hello my lovelies!

Are you ready for some Etsy cuteness?
Are you?

Yellow Bow Sprinkle Heart Earrings

Heart shaped Cupcake Ring with Chocolate

I Heart Doughnuts Pendant

Diet Coke Heart Necklace and Earrings set

Mint Green Appliqued Vest

Children's Hand Dyed Rainbow Heart Tie Dye T-shirt

Hand painted pattern Heart earrings

Creepin Heart Earrings

Heart-O-Meter Spinner Necklace Brass Ox

Blue Gingham Heart Stud Earrings

My Silver Heart Ring

Heart Shaped Locket

Victorian Locket Poison Ring

Felt and Zipper Heart Brooch

Blooming Red Heart Pillow

Red and Black Hearts Cushion Cover

Tea Love Knit Mug Cozy with Heart

Hearts and Love Tea Cozy

Heart shape Cake Magnet

Mosaic Quilted Heart Pin


And this is my take on heart-y accessories...

Heart b/w polka dot earrings, Accessorize

Massive leopard heart pendant, Pull & Bear

Which ones are your favourites? Mine would be the yellow earrings from the first pic, but I'm not sure I would wear them outside the safety of my house :(

Happy blogging and reading and commenting to everyone!

CBSG5861