A hot AUSSIE makeover...

* I'm warning you guys, you're about to witness an awful lot of my mug!
  Guess my camera spared me this time and captured me in a presentable state ;) *

Right, back to the point of this entry. As the title suggests,
a couple of months ago me and some fellow bloggers took part in a fun meet-up held by Aussie, including a hot yoga class and a hair makeover. Needless to say, my transformation gets an A+: it was frumpy hair turned to sexy locks in a matter of minutes!

So, the event took place in Hot Yoga Athens, an out-of-the-ordinary workout place where you can attend hot yoga or hot pilates classes. I should inform you though, the "hot" aspect of the story is not referable to the instructors' looks (heck, they might be hot but I can't confirm it!); it merely indicates that the classes are practised in a heated room
of 40C. It's said that the hot, humid air during a hot yoga class helps the body to release more toxins and heal its injuries faster- which is great news, right?

Yet, it didn't lure the exercise hater in me to give it a try (too hardcore, man!), so I shamefully stayed outside watching the rest of the girls stretching and posing to yoga postures :(

     The heated room. You can tell it's hot in there by the foggy windows!

     Practising hot yoga...

An early Christmas whiff by the Body Shop!

Is there anyone who wouldn't love a bit of festive spirit ahead of December?
Personally, I'm all for it; if only we could celebrate Christmas for 3 months straight!

Like every year, the Body Shop launched their Christmas collection early in November. It's not only that the bodycare products have captured the holiday spirit spot-on, the new makeup range displays a definite improvement as well. You must step into a store to see, smell and touch all the uplifting Christmasy goodness!

Warning:
This is a picture-heavy post. All full of indulgent bodycare, makeup and nifty little treats.
Don't blame me if you grow any new lemmings after reading it!

 

The kind people at the Body Shop organised a fun bloggers' event where we were introduced to the new seasonal ranges, along with a glass of cranberry coctail and some yummy gingerbread bisquits. Goes without saying, I went nuts over the new makeup and body products- but the thing I enjoyed the most was the fun and optimistic atmosphere in the store, which is something that is missing a lot these days. Down with misery, I say!

So, what's to expect this time of year at the Body Shop?

What's new at The Body Shop?

It seems that the Body Shop is evolving into a considerable opponent among the brands of the beauty industry, competing with the very best on the market!

A couple of weeks ago, me and some fellow bloggers had the chance of getting familiarised with the new Fall product releases from the Body Shop. Taking into account the brand's revamp during past summer, it's safe to say that there's a whole lotta cool products we should be anticipating in winter ;)

Here's everything we witnessed that day:

First of all, the Body Shop is releasing the Vineyard Peach body range, a Limited-Edition collection of bodycare products with the best-ever, most yummy scent I've come across- no joke! Then, there's the new Scents of the World collection, that marks the re-entrance of probably the most longed for product from the old days, the perfume oils! There's also a couple of new skincare products that sound promising: the Tea Tree Pore Minimiser and the Nutriganics Drops of Youth serum.

But, wait: there's more!

Yiannis Marketakis & Max Factor at Makeup Lab!

Last week, I was lucky enough to be invited at Makeup Lab where Yiannis Marketakis, the exclusive ambassador of Max Factor Greece, presented to us a summer makeup trend using the newest Max Factor makeup products!

Needless to say, I was so freakin' excited through the whole time that I could barely keep a straight face and not burst into that awkward laughter that happens so effortlessly when you meet someone famous. Which I did anyway, the moment I met the man.
Yiannis, if you're reading this, I'm way cooler than that!!!

Awkwardness aside, here's everything that happened that day!

Makeup Lab is a modern art studio where Yiannis Marketakis holds makeup courses to professionals that wish to expand their techniques, as well as begginers that want to perfect their everyday makeup routine. It is situated in a neoclassical house in Psyrri, decorated in the most beautiful eclectic style.

Yiannis Marketakis presented to us a fun and colourful summer makeup look that pairs nicely with the neon fashion trend that's going on strong at the moment! It consists of iconic '80s elements such as bright eyeshadows, defined cheekbones, and blush worn high up to the temples (tip: it makes the eyes look more elongated!). Yiannis modernised the look with a clashing fucshia lipstick, dewy skin and smudged eyeliner only on the lower lashline.

Below I've made a photo guide with step-by-step instructions on how to recreate this look.
Take notes and feast your eyes!

    Aaand here's the final look on gorgeous model Konstantina!

Close-up of the makeup look: you can see the drama that brings to the eyes the attention on the lower lashline. The fucshia lips clash with the warm-toned eyeshadows and make the look a bit unexpected and more interesting. The cream blush has been brought up to the temples, so close to the eyes that it covers the outer corners: a fine little trick that elongates the eyes with minimum effort ;)

One thing I have to say about Yiannis Marketakis, is that he is truly an artist. I was amazed by how easy and obtainable were his intructions for this makeup look, so much so that I can't wait to give it a go myself! He was happy to answer all our questions and held absolytely no secrets. In a nutshell: he genuinely enjoys teaching.

    Hand-crafted by Yiannis Marketakis! I bow to that...

But what I didn't know (and certainly wasn't prepared for it) is that Yiannis is a keen admirer and knowledgeable of arts; evidence of that fact are the beautiful head pieces and crowns that he's made himself, some of which are displayed in the studio. You must check out his artwork portfolio - prepare yourselves to see a fairytale of celebrities and models turned into dark gothic queens, sexy vixens, Gaga-esque figures and fallen emperors...

All in all, coming to Makeup Lab was such an amazing experience; I'm so glad I came to meet a man whose work I truly admire! I hope with this post you've gained some invaluable inspiration, like I did.

I was kindly given a makeup bag full of Max Factor goodies that Yiannis Marketakis personalised for each of us. I'll keep you posted on how I get along with each product!

Evi   xx

That's how the Body Shop rolls, baby!!!

Last week, I attended the much talked about bloggers' event at the Body Shop,
to celebrate their latest revamp. All I can say is: YES, YES, YES!!!

I cannot express my enthusiasm enough for that the Body Shop stepped up its game to better communicate its ethical heritage: now that competition has intensified and other companies have clinged to the natural and ethical bandwagon, it's not fair for the Body Shop to stay in the backround- since it was Annita Roddick who invented the "business with ethos" in the first place!

Not to mention, of course, the amazing products that the Body Shop has to offer- which I'm sick of raving over and over again all by myself! If a little revamp can make more people to re-familiarise with them, the better ;)

    New shelving pattern

    The Body Shop's newest perfumes...

    My favourite skincare range!

So, what's new at the Body Shop?
Let's take it all one-by-one:

1. New campaign
"Look good, feel good, do good" is the new slogan of the company. The idea behind it is to describe the brand's stragegy with clarity, so that the message is not confusing. Lily Cole has also been set as the brand's advocate! Her beautiful face will star on the Body Shop's new Summer makeup collection.

2. New PULSE stores
2000 stores have already been revamped: brighter and more eye-catchy than before, they have a special station in the middle of the store so as to encourage customers to test the Body Shop products, in a "test before you purchase" manner. There's also a new "community wall" that allows locals to see the latest charity activities in the area. FYI, the only greek Pulse store is located at Kolonaki.

3. New products!
Along with the new Summer makeup collection with Lily Cole, the new Beautifying Oils range has already cought everyone's attention: in short? Beauty in a bottle! Also, the ever so popular Body Butters have been revamped- but that's something to talk about in another blog post ;)

    My natural habitat, for obvious reasons ;)

    The Body Shop Summer 2012 makeup collection with Lily Cole

    Take a look at these LE Shimmer Cubes! Don't they look pretty?

     Argyrousa in action: we were asked to write down our favourite body products...


    ...and we hanged our notes on the "community wall";
    the most popular product is going to be donated to NGO Praxis. 

    Me in the middle, in serious posing action with Artemi and Sofia!

Other than the Body Shop news, I couldn't end this post without mentioning my excitement for meeting all those fellow beauty bloggers with which we've talked a lot through blogs and Twitter, but hadn't got to meet in person before! My girls, I'm glad we finally met and I hope we'll see each other again soon ;)

To conclude, it's heart warming to see a brand you're so fond of going back to its roots, and communicating its ethical message to a wider audience. I truly hope there will be a new era for the Body Shop- if nothing else, their amazing products do deserve some more love!

There's gonna be some more posts with the products we were kindly given at the event- and of course, the ones I picked out myself; I mean really, could I ever step into the Body Shop and come out empty handed? Nooo...

Evi   xx

Getting my skin sorted at Kiehl's

Time for a cruel assessment of my knowledge on skincare:
...
...
...

Basically, I have none! From now on, I'm considering myself a skincare noob. It only took 10'' for me to realise my utter incopetence on skincare issues and that instead, I should leave it to the experts...

I'm referring to the skin consultation that Kiehl's offers at its clients. Granted, I was invited because of my "beauty blogger" identity and yes, it did make me feel extra special and spoilt, but please note that this is not a bloggers' exclusive thing: anyone can have a skin consultation at Kiehl's- free of charge, no shopping obligations.

So, what is this skin consultation?
It's a quick & easy, 10'' business that calculates your accurate skintype. The Kiehl's sales assistant takes two specific pieces of paper and places one in your forehead (the area where skin gets oily) and the other on the cheeks (which are usually drier than the T-zone). You hold these little cards on your face for 10'' so that they can collect data, so to speak, and then you compare the results with a little diagram that shows the amount of nutrients that are evident in all skintypes: Oily, Normal to Oily, Normal, Normal to Dry, and Dry.

Why is it important to take this test?
I'll speak from my experience: imagine a skin that's dehydrated, flaky and uneven in texture. How would you describe it? Dry? Normal to Dry, I hear you say? Yep, that's what I thought too... However, as the consultation test proved, my skin falls under the Normal category. *making a (mental) happy-dance 'cause Kiehl's tells me I have the best skin possible!!!* That means: no more heavy moisturisers that can clog up my pores, yes to mild exfoliators to heal the flaky areas on my cheeks.

See?
Had I not taken this test, I would have carried on loading my skin with oily treatments and skipping exfoliators altogether- because you know, dry skin doesn't do well with exfoliators... Or, so I thought!

After my skintype profile, I was presented with the Kiehl's products that my skin currently needs to look its best; the highlights being the Overnight Biological Peel, which looks like a transparent mask that you're supposed to sleep on and then wake up with glowing skin, and the intriguing Midnight Recover Concentrate that is all ages/ skintypes appropriate that also works over-night to repair skin from within.

And of course, I got to test the uber popular among beauty blogs, the Kiehl's Avocado Eye Treatment- all I can say is, now I see why this eye cream is being raved about over and over again! Think of a luxuriously rich, but easily absorbed formula that helps to brighten the area under the eyes due to the green tint... This one, I have to make it mine!

Most of all, this experience made me realise the significance of knowing your skin and treating it with the proper skincare rut it needs. It's such a simple, almost cliche statement, but of the utmost importance!

I was also given a goodie bag at the end of my appointment with a few Kiehl's samples to try out- and I did a little shopping myself! So, expect to see more of the brand in my following posts ;)

If you do get a skin consultation at Kiehl's, which in fact I urge you to do, let me know about your experience as well!

Evi   xx

MAC Technique seminar!

@%F&;#!@%!!!
I've been trying to compose this post for three days now and not a single word comes out right! Goes to show you that writing about a Mac seminar is not as exciting as to actually participate in one... Nevertheless, if you're interested in finding out more info about the Mac Technique seminars, then read on!

The photos below are the face charts from the booklet we took home as loot ;)
Click to enlarge!

* I'll start by stating the most important bit: anyone can attend these seminars, free of charge! If you're a Mac lover, you'll feel "at home" with the Mac language spoken by the makeup artists; I consider myself a Mac newbie, so I faked some nodding action with every confusing term mentioned...

* The seminars take place on days the stores close at 5 pm; they start around 6 pm (coffee and little snacks included), and they last around 30'-45'.

*The spaces are very limited (I recall there were 10 of us there- tops!), so make sure you sign up early!

* You can select one of the 6-7 available seminars' scenarios. I went for the one with the latest makeup trends; we were explained by two lovely Mac makeup artists about the 4 big trends for this summer (shown in the pics). Each of them executed one face chart on attendants that modeled for this purpose.

* At the end of the seminar, all makeup artists were at our service to ask any silly little question that rose our mind- though according to them, we were one of the most quiet, non-demanding crowd they've come across... Oh well, we knew better than the rest!

* Last but not least, all attendants were able to shop with a 15% sale!!! Imagine that: an almost empty Mac store, browsing around with no supervision on your back, all makeup artists free to accommodate you personally- AND to spoil you even more, you're offered a 15% off purchase? In my book, that's a deal not to be missed- who doesn't want to be spoilt every now and then?

If there's anything to conclude to, it's encompassed in this statement: go sign up for a Mac Technique seminar asap!!! Even if you're not that accustomed to Mac, it's a great opportunity to see how makeup is professionally applied, plus it will definitely insipe you to experiment with what you already have.

Have you ever been to a Mac Technique, or any other beauty-related seminar?
Do share your experience!

Evi   xx

Kiehl's: some product reviews and an extra announcement...

For today's post, I thought of putting together some short reviews on the samples I got from Kiehl's two months ago ;)

Starting from my least favourite product and going up to my favourite...



Yerba Mate Tea lotion: please don't get me wrong, it's a lovely moisturiser for oily skin- it didn't break me out and it provided just as much moisture without my skin feeling greasy or tight. However, I can't find it on Kiehl's website so it might be discontinued, hence it's getting the first place of this countdown :(

Over-Night Biological Peel: I remember Lisa Eldridge mentioned in her skincare video that she loathes face exfoliants with scrubbing beads and that she herself uses an over-night exofiant with lactic acid from Dermalogica. This Biological Peel by Kiehl's is on the same line. It's meant to be used before bedtime and you're supposed to sleep with this on your face- but I guarantee you won't feel any itching or tugging or any kind of discomfort. This 5ml sachet lasted me for 10 generous applications and when I was through with it, my skin was a lot calmer and even in tone- plus I noticed a significant difference on my pores' size!

Creme de Corps Soy Milk & Honey Whipped body butter: omg, that's pure lush... I can't think of a better way to describe it! Its texture is really whipped, you can see the air bubbles in the jar! It applies so rich and silky on the skin- and its scent, oh goodness... Just addicting! The 226 g jar may be pretty expensive for a body moisturiser, though the "you get what you pay for" quote couldn't be more appropriate: this body butter feels expensive and smells expensive. In a good way, obviously ;)

Now for a special announcement:

I've been informed that Kiehl's is going to host a Christmas party at Hondos Center Kolonaki where all proceeds from sales will be going to charity! Yes, all proceeds; in this case, Kiehl's will be donating the raised sales' fund to the "Eliza" Society for the prevention of cruelty to children. AND the sales assistants of this event will be no other than hip personas like Giorgos Karamichos, Dimitris Skarmoutsos, Eleni Psychouli and my fave- Alex Kavvadias!!! AND if this wasn't enough, there's even going to be a choco-fountain!!! *drools and searches kitchen cupboard for leftover chocolate*

          Click to enlarge for more info!

I'm so gutted I won't be able to make it as I'm taking an early Christmas vacation (hehe), I'm depending on your feedback from this event! And if you do get to see Alex Kavvadias, please take some extra pictures for my behalf ;)

So, who's planning on going to Kiehl's Christmas party?
Are there any products from Kiehl's you'd recommend? Do share!

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Yves Saint Laurent Noël 2011 makeup collection

Last week in Attica Department Store, an interesting event took place: Fred Letailleur, European makeup artist for YSL, presented the new Yves Saint Laurent makeup collection for this Christmas, notably named

"Look Noël".

And I must say, I was charmed.

First and foremost, the makeup collection itself is indeed so inspiring; it captures the essense of the iconic YSL black tuxedo and all the fine fabrics that create different shades of black. Me, being a total-black-outfit fanatic, I fell for it right away.

The most exciting product of this makeup collection is the LE Black Tuxedo eyeshadow palette that contains 4 variations of black and a shimmering white in the middle. Wrapped around this palette is a black YSL "belt" that you can actually wear as a wrist cuff ;)

Other LE products in this collection: the White Tuxedo palette (complexion illuminator with silver, pink and violet hues) and the Black Manicure duo (one matte and one glossy).

The Noël makeup collection is completed with a few products from the YSL permanent makeup range, as shown below:

Personally, if I was to grab just one product from this collection, it would have to be the Black Tuxedo eyeshadow palette (slightly biased cause of the black wrist cuff, can you blame me?); the White Tuxedo didn't catch my fancy- I'd rather have a golden highlighter than a cool-toned powder. And I think I can dupe the black manicure shown on the promo pics with cheaper nail polishes, hehe

As for the rest non-LE products, my eyes were drawn to the new Rouge Pur Couture lipsticks- if you're a lipstick lover like me, let me tell you that you won't find such bold and yet sophisticated shades at Mac, and that's a fact; see, I could easily imagine a mature lady wearing the YSL #39 purple lipstick, but in no way could she go out of the house wearing Mac's Violetta...
I decided to wait for everyone else in the blogosphere to have their go on the Rouge Pur Coutures, so then I can do my homework with their swatches and pick out my favourite ;)



Fred Letailleur was so lovely!!! I wasn't expecting a world renowned makeup artist to be so down to earth and kind with all the inquiring people surrounding him and just... cute! Only thing I wanted was to pinch his cheeks! Aww...



He did 2 makeup looks on gorgeous models Adela and Katerina; I managed to take notes of his invaluable tips, so here they are:

* It's best to start with the most dramatic aspect on your makeup- be it a dark smokey eye or a vampy lip, so that you can adjust the rest of the makeup accordingly without overdoing it
* To make a smokey eye look more modern, it's best to bring the focus to the eyeshadow shape dragging it towards the temples, than to apply lots and lots of black eyeliner around the eye
* For an understated cheek, all you have to do is to use a darker shade of Touche Eclat to contour under the cheekbones, and apply a shimmering powder high on the cheeks in a "C" shape
* And as for lips, plum is the new red for this season (so true!)

All in all, it was an enjoyable event and I did get closer to the brand- although I have to say I feel like I've betrayed myself for enjoying a LE makeup collection... No, my feelings haven't shifted 180 degrees- I'm still not loving the fact that you can't repurchase a LE product, but I came to realise that such makeup collections are there not only to sell-sell-sell, but to inspire as well.

It's the same as with high fashion shows- you may not always be able to afford all the outfits worn at the catwalk, but they sure serve as a style inspiration. Non?

So, what are your thoughts on this YSL makeup collection?

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