My monthly make-up basket - July 2016

Originally, I was planning on doing two make-up baskets per month, but let’s face it, even I don’t have that much make-up to constantly swap items, so I am afraid that it would become rather boring. Instead, I’ll be doing this once a month and doing some additional reviews on the Monday I now have free to post whatever I like :)

So here are some of the products that I’ll be using and hopefully loving for the next few weeks.

Starting with the face, I’ll still be using the L’Oreal Infallible primer, but I actually bought the foundation to go along with it – the L’Oreal Infallible 24h-matte (in shade Sand). I hear that the combination works well together so I’m excited to give it a go.  The shade of foundation is perhaps a tad too dark at the moment, but as I’m typing this from my seaside vacation, I’m sure that will probably change in a couple of days or so.

MONDAY MADNESS: NBB (New Bits and Bobs) for May 2016

 I’ve been shopping online quite a lot in the past few months, since I was basically tied to the couch for the last couple of weeks of my pregnancy and have not left the house for the first month much. 

Basically what I’m trying to say is that the products you see above were not all bought in May, but I’ll try to keep up from now on with my monthly shopping report. I also completely forgot about my Lancome Juicy Shaker since it’s been in my purse ever since I’ve gotten it, but I think I’ll be writing a separate post about it very soon. I should also mention a present from Licila.si – the Freedom Brush Bath that I’ve already reviewed in a post you can read here.

Revlon Parfumerie nail enamel - Lime Basil review

Hello beauties. I hope you are enjoying the first proper days of sunshine and warmth - I actually had my first coffee outside in 2015 yesterday and I loved every minute of it. 

Anyway, I though I would do a review of a polish I found while browsing in Müller (about 7€) the other day - the Revlon Parfumerie nail enamel in the color Lime Basil. 

I was once told that a person should learn a new fact every day. So my fact of today is the difference between nail lacquer and nail enamel. Nail lacquer supposedly dries from the inside and leaves a dull finish, while the nail enamel dries from the outside and then hardens. Also, the latter is supposed to last longer on the nails.

Anyway, back to the actual polish. I didn't own a shade like this before and I was really attracted by it, but the bottle itself, the name and the promise of a perfume combined with nails was the real selling point for me. 

Now the thing is, when seeing the name, I thought that the nail polish will smell really nice on its own. Nope. It is supposed to develop the fragrance when you put it on your nails! It would be nice if that was written somewhere on the bottle. I really didn't smell anything, though.

Holiday wishlist

Yes, I know, December and Christmas are stil far, far away, but somehow the Christmas spirit always catches me unprepared way before it is supposed to – and once I get overall excited about something, it's hard for me to stop obsessing. 

In the past weeks, I have seen some Youtube videos and read some blogs about the Christmas or »Holiday« editions from several high-end companies like Urban Decay, Benefit, Stila and so forth. These are normally value sets tricking you into buying them by saying you're only going to pay something like $45 for $200 value. Now i KNOW it's not true, but that reasonable part of my brain somehow goes on vacation in December. I did not care last year, but I definitely do care this year. And since I've just booked some plane tickets to visit a country that has Sephora stores in December, I know that I'm not going to be able to resist picking up at least a few products. Hence the wishlist. But this wishlist also includes some items that can be bought over here or in EU stores (hinting heavily to my most loyal reader of all). :)

Number one on my list is definitely the Sephora Favorites – Superstars. It contains many of the items I have been wanting to try for sooo long and some that I have tried and absolutely love. 

 

It is priced at $75 and apparently worth $225. I did my own calculations based on the number of full-size products and deluxe samples and came to $222 so yes, the calculation is legit. It contains the Anastasia Brow Wiz (full size – 21 $), Benefit POREfessional (deluxe sample – about 10 $), Benefit They're real mascara (deluxe sample – about $5), Bumble & Bumble Surf Spray (travel size, about $15), Chloe Rollerball (full size - $25), Formula X Nail color in Ignite (full size – about $11), Fresh Sugar Rose Tinted lip treatment (deluxe sample – about $12), Josie Maran 100 % Pure Argan oil (travel size, about $16), Nars blush in Orgasm (full size - $30), Smashbox Camera ready BB Cream (full size - $40), Stila Stay All Day liquid eye liner (full size - $20) and Urban Decay eyeshadow in Sin (full size - $18). I am excited about just about everything in this package, I think the colors would all work for me and I am getting my hands on this one! There are so many brands in this set that I haven't even tried yet that I'm sure it is well worth the money. 

Another set I really, I really want is the Josie Maran Winter Dream Argan Skincare Collection. This is not a steal as the Superstars, it's priced at $39 with $68 value so I'm not even going to calculate this one to extensively. 

It contains everything you could possibly need for your skincare routine – cleansing oil, hydrating treatment, pure argan oil (which I use and is absolutely fabulous), intensive creamy oil, daily moisturizer with SPF of 47 and as a special bonus, a hand creams. This brand is all natural and I would love to try the products. 

The third set that I will most likely be tempted to snatch in Sephora is the First Aid Beauty – Cheers to fab skin set, priced at $48 for $100 value. I did my calculations on this one and again came to a very similar number, so I am satisfied :)  I have purhcased a few items from this brand on my last USA trip for my mother and she absolutely loves them so I really want to give them a go as well. 

This set contains a face cleanser, facial radiance pads (which are basically used to tone your skin and also have a brightening effect), repair cream, repair lip therapy and eye duty triple remedy (which is one of the products that my mother now swears by and even says it is better than the La Prarie eye cream). On a sidenote, my skin has been acting really weird lately so I think it's about time I treat it to something nice. 

Moving on to the products I would like to try and are as previously mentioned available to us all. First up, the Revlon ColorStay Moisture Stain. 

 What color, you ask? ALL OF THEM. They all seem absolutely fabulous. Having read so much about these puppies, they would be a welcome additon to my collection.

Next up, the Bourjois Healthy Mix serum Foundation. All the bloggers are raving about this and there must be something magical about this. 

 If you're thinking about sending it to me for Christmas, the best shade for me would probably be Vanille ;)

Last up is something that I really need and will probably get for myself this holiday season. I recently dyed my hair from blonde to brown with some sombre highlights and although it is looking fab, my new hairstylist was completely upset with me regarding the condition of my hair. Apparently, the blonde highlights did not exactly help my hair to be healthier. So they need help and they need it now. 

She suggested Paul Mitchell which made my heart stop since I am aware of the prices. But suffering is probably necessary for beauty, even if the only thing suffering is my wallet :)

I am DYING to know what is on your beauty wishlist for this holiday season. Let me know (and give me some more ideas). 

Until next time, stay beautiful, stay awesome!