To make up or not to make up

Hi (healthy) co-beauty obsessed fans :)

Today's post is going to be slightly different...
No pictures, just pure raw writing on a blank canvas.
I was inspired to write this by a Youtube video and a certain TV show I saw yesterday.

If you've read my blog posts, they're mainly about how I like or dislike a product, or how much I suggest or don't suggest you to try out a certain product.

I have to admit, I may mention a lot of beauty products, but honesty (if you would really know me) you'd know I don't wear a lot of make up AT ALL. I'm all about the natural look. If I go out I do wear some eye brow powder, mascara, concealer and lip balm. If I'm going out I may add some eyeliner and blush. And if I'd stay in I wear lip balm, that's it.

I like make up, I do, very much. But, I don't feel comfortable wearing tons of make up.
Yes, I like to experiment, and yes, I like to put on some make up to see how it works, how long it lasts, ... but after a half an hour I'll be wiping it all away :D Just because, I like to let me skin breath and I dislike the feeling of make up sitting on my skin.

It's funny how make up can change lives.
When I was young and all my friends wore make up, I felt comfortable in my own skin without any make up. I would be the last one to put on some make up (to fit in) because it just wasn't me... It felt like putting stuff on my face to cover myself. No thank you.

Nowadays, I love make up. And I'm sure I own much more make up than all my friends together. But do I ever wear it? No. I know it's not healthy as well for splurging money on products I don't actually use.
On one hand, I want to be able to use it, so I can make my money's worth.
But on the other hand, I know people can actually get addicted to make up.

There are plenty of women (and men) who don't dare to walk out the door without wearing make up. Women who wear make up to exercise, to do chores around the house, to do groceries, ... Women who don't feel like themselves without any make up.

Come to think about it...

Are you one of them?

I know I'm not...yet. But I'm afraid that I'll be one of those women once I keep on using make up. Afraid of walking out that door, and be scared of looking the people in the eye because my eyelashes aren't curled, or terrified people will be staring at my red blemishes.

Let's be real: no one can be that superficial. Can they??

I know it can be different for those who have severe acne. I've heard stories about girls who are terrified of going out without make up because they're so self conscientious of their skin, and who end up being anti-social.
Honestly, I had acne when I hit puberty. A lot of acne, which left me with acne scars all over my face.
Sometimes I do look in the mirror and sometimes I can feel insecure as well. My advise for this? Get over it and try to live with it. It's a part from you now. If you feel secure enough from within, you won't even think about those acne scars anymore, which will give you instant confidence boosts! It'll make you think: hey, people actually like me for my personality, and not for my foundation or for my blush.

For those out there who can relate to me, make sure you have some makeupless time in the week, even if it's just for a few hours. It'll do you good, and believe me, your skin will be grateful to you as well.

For those who like a bit more make up than me... Try to go out without make up: walk around block for 5 minutes and go back. You'll notice that no one will make fun of you, no one will be staring at you for not wearing make up, no one will make a remark on it. Frankly, they wouldn't even notice because they're living their own lives.

I strongly advise young women to give this a go.
We all know that being conscience about how they look hits the younger generations as well. Unfortunately this generation is getting younger and younger.
Recently I overheard a little 6 years old girl asking her mom whether she looked fat in her dress or not. Honestly, it broke my heart a little...

Let's face it, the world is changing into a shallow place. Adding the media, peer pressure of looking good and insecurity tops it all off.

I'm not trying to be a hypocrite: I love make up, try this, try that versus don't wear make up, you're shallow.
Yes, I like make up. But, I don't need it to go through the day. I can live without it. Look at make up as a supplement, not as a requirement. Very cliche, but beauty is so much more than what we all see on the outside.

Have a wonderful day, I truly hope that this blog post has made you think twice before applying make up :)

Review: Clinique dramatically different moisturizing gel

Hi there!

Thanks for stopping by and give your eyeballs a treat by reading this review.
I'm sure you've heard of the Clinique dramatically different moisturizing gel. If you haven't, you're probably a beauty newb who's trying to find decent moisturizer.

Before I start of rambling about this product, let me tell you something a little bit more about my skin.
As I hit puberty I had horrible skin (acne which left my face filled with acne scars..boooooo!). After having the worst skin period ever, my skin started too clear up with occasional break outs during that time of the month!
Nowadays I have a combination skin, meaning oily T-zone with normal cheeks but with dry patches here and there. If that's not a combination skin, then I'm absolutely clueless!

When buying a moisturizer, I mostly lean towards using a gel. Not only gives it a more cooling effect, gel is the only form of moisturizer that can handle my oily skin.

Let's go back to the product, shall we?

After using up myAquasource Moisturizing Skin Care Gel cream by Biotherm, I wanted something new since my skin got used to the Biotherm.

I've read so many reviews on the Clinique moisturizing gel, so I thought I'd give this one a go.

Clinique dramatically different moiturizing gel

• 125 ml (4.2 fl.oz.)
• combination oily to oily skin
• comes with a pump
• fragrance free

When I first started using this, I didn't really like it. It was kind of harsh on my skin, didn't moisturize enough having me to re-apply a second coat after 5 minutes, ...

I will use this bottle up, but I won't be repurchasing it.
I'm not sure whether this moisturizer is a bit too rough on my skin, but I do know my skin didn't really appreciate this Clinique product.

I'm already eying another moisturizer and cannot wait for it to give that one a try!
If you're interested in knowing which one I'm going to use, please leave a comment :)

Have a wonderful day you beauty lovers!

NOTW: Pandora

Hello hello everyone!

Zoya - Pandora

This week's NOTW is ...
a polish from the nail polish brand Zoya.

This nude color is from Zoya's summer collection 2011. They released a nude collection which consisted of 3 different shades of nudes.

Pandora is the more cooler shade of all three of them.

This has a light mauvy, ashy tone to it which makes it more wearable for me :)

Finding the right nude polish is not as easy as it looks like.
You have to make sure whether warm or cool tone suits you better. After figuring out the tone, you have to choose a nude from such a wide variety of colors. You can buy more than one, but let's face it ... you can't buy all of them (unfortunately) :)

Which nude polish do you like?

Products I've used up May '13

Hi everyone!

I'm back with another blog post. Today I'd like to talk to you beauties about the product I've used up, aka empties post :)

Let's work from the top down:

• Schwarzkopf Gliss Kur hair repair anti-klit spray

This is a spray which prevents knots in your hair and makes your hair silky smooth. It says it adds shine, I don't really notice any difference when spraying this in my hair, but it does makes it easier for me to brush through my hair after putting this in my damp hair.

You'll notice there's a little bit of a white solutions lying on top of the pink solutions. Just don't forget to give it a good shake before usage.

Good to know: I've used mine for about 2 years before using it all up, uhu!

• Clinique anti-blemish solutions clarifying lotion 

I think most of you know what this is. This is the step 2 from the Clinique 3 steps line for handling blemishes. I don't use this on a daily basis, because I think it would be to harsh for my skin should I use it every single day. In the end, it does dry out my skin, and I don't like that tucked feeling on my face.

I just put some on a cotton pad and sweep it all over my face. It makes sure to clear all dead surface cells and reduces excess oil that can cause unclogged pores (be gone impurities!).

You'll notice white powder on the bottom of the bottle, shake it until it dissolves into the lotion. The white powder is actually a medicine to treat acne. Good stuff? Hell yeah!

Good to know: Reduce usage if dry patches occur.

• Bioderma solution for sensitive skin

This has been a huge hit in Hong Kong before coming over to Belgium and the States.

I use this as my daily toner, if I need a more abrasive toner I'll use the Clinique one. But, this one is very gentle on the skin. It cleanses and removes my non-waterproof make up.
It's like putting water on your skin, only bottled in a fancy packaging :)

Put some on a cotton ball and sweep it over your face, as simple as that.

Good to know: this does NOT remove waterproof make up

• Biotherm Aquasource gel for normal to combination skin

This has been my HG for a few years.

It gives enough moisture but didn't make my face feel greasy, thanks to the gel formula. 

A very good moisturizer for the summer, not so much during the colder months.

Since I'm using another moisturizer for the moment, I won't be able to buy this immediately for the summer time!

• Fairy Drops Platinum mascara in waterproof formula

Holy moly guacemole, my HG mascara!

Honestly, this mascara makes my stubborn short lashes look like I'm wearing false eye lashes!

You'll notice that the brush has a curvy wand, this lifts my eye lashes to make them even more curly.

It gives volume, lengthens them thanks to the fibers in it, but still gives a very natural look to the eye...A-MA-ZING!

I use the one in waterproof formula because if I don't use waterproof I'll end up with raccoon eyes. Sexy, I know!

• Lancôme bi-facil double action eye makeup remover 

Bi-Facil is one of the most known eye make up removers in the beauty industry. Notice that there are 2 different parts in the bottle: a more deep blue (oil) and a light blue (toner). You should shake the bottle to let the 2 mix and then put it on a cotton pad before pressing it against your eye. 

People say this doesn't leave any greasy film on the eyes, but I do notice that it does when you reach the end of the bottle. It may be normal, but I don't think this (rather expensive) eye make up remover.

I must admit that it does a good job, but it's not like that this is the only one eye make up remover that works. I've had cheaper versions that do the job as well.

Good to know: Get eye make up removers with both oil and toner, it makes the taking off your waterproof make up much easier!

• Colgate Max White One

Who doesn't want whiter teeth? I thought so...

I gave this Colgate tooth paste a try, but unfortunately this has let me down. Not only didn't I notice any difference in my teeth shade but sometimes it left my mouth not as fresh as I would like it to be.

I will not be repurchasing this one fore sure, which is a shame because I do like the other plain Colgate tooth pastes.

• EOS organic lip balm smooth sphere in pomegranate raspberry 

 

I learned about the EOS products thanks to make up vids on Youtube. These are probably one the most cute lip balms ever. Are they that good? Not really. It's not very moisturizing, but I'm a sucker for packaging and as soon as I smelled the scent, I was sold!

These come on different scents and yes, I have them all...

• EOS hand lotion in berry blossom

Another product from the same line; the EOS hand lotion. As you can see on the picture it says: paraben- free. Yay for anything which is free of parabens.

You have to admit that this hand lotion looks quite adorable, but man oh man, wait until you get a sniff of this hand lotion. It smells heavenly! And it doesn't only smell good, no no, it makes your hand soft as a baby's bottom!

It doesn't leave any greasy film on your hand and it moisturizes as hell. Hands down, one of the best hand lotions I've ever used.




I'm sorry I didn't put pictures up that I've taken myself, but I've thrown most of the products out the door before realizing I could write a blog post about it.

I'll try to collect them from now on makes it more personal :)

Comment below if you liked this post and tell me what empties would you repurchase?

NOTW: 808

Hellooooo everyone!

Guess what day it is? Yup, mani day!!

This week I put some 808 by a Belgian drugstore brand called HEMA. It's a baby pink color, gorgeous I tell ya, GOR-GEOUS! :)

If you look at it clearly, I put a sticker on my ring finger. (Combining 2 trend in one mani? BAM!)
As I can't hide my love from people wearing glasses (love nerdy looks!), I decided to one of my finger. I'm making the nerd in me coming out haha!

I already mentioned I like HEMA's polishes; they're cheap, have a good variety in colors, have a creamy texture and are quite longlasting. What more do you want from a nail polish?

After rocking the strawberry look, I decided to keep it more subtle but still have something special...

Hope you all like this look! Tell me, what do your funky nail looks like?

NOTW: strawberry

Hi beauty lovers!

Time for another NOTW!
This week I experimented abit and came up with the following look:

You're probably wondering how I got the idea of drawing strawberries on my nails...


It all started with me borrowing Bourjois So Lacque Glossy Nail Lacquer in 04 Amande. It's a mint green which is almost pistachio-like. The polish is quite creamy and glossy, and I must say that this isn't a bad drugstore polish at all.

I planned on doing an altered french manicure, but with green tips. Weird? No worries, I shared the same thoughts :)

Afterward I added some coral (Catrice's CO2 Walk On Air) to make it less boring.

After looking at my coral nails with green tips, it made me think of strawberries, hence the black dots.

Honestly, this kind of mani's aren't my cup of tea. I just like experimenting and then take it off to put a more subtle color on the nails.

If you like these kidn of mani's, let me know and just maybe, I'll do more creative mani's! :)