Makeup Routine

It's surprising how the right makeup products combination can make you feel amazing. Having said this, I am sure you all agree with me when I say that it's very difficult to find the perfect makeup routine. Sometimes, even though all the products are great, if one is not the right one for you, then the end result will not be that great.

How many times have you experienced a cakey face, flaky skin, not enough coverage and makeup melting after few hours? My answer is too many. So when I put together the new makeup products I bought in Vienna, and applied them in combination every morning for the past few months I was so over the moon by the flawless result I got that I couldn't not share my new makeup routine with you. I am also planning on posting a review of each single product mentioned in this post, so stay tuned for that.

My Makeup Routine

My current makeup routine involves the following products:

1. Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer Colour Correcting Adjust

2. Makeup Forever HD Foundation in shade 117

3. Astor Anti Shine Mattitude Shine Control Supermatte Powder in shade 002

4. Look by Bipa coverstick in the shade cold

5. Bobby Brown creamy concealer kit in shade porcelain and white

6. Manhattan Powder Rouge Tender Touch Blush in shade purple me on 39P

New makeup products I got while shopping in Vienna.

The above products together give me a flawless result with great coverage which still looks natural. The only problem is that my makeup starts melting after a few hours. Initially, I thought it was due to the hot weather, but now that it has gotten colder my makeup is still melting after few hours. I have also tried applying the above products followed by the Mist & Fix setting spray by Makeup Forever, but it doesn't help at all. I must also say that I almost never touch up my makeup with powder during the day, so that might be one explanation for my makeup melting off. A second explanation might be that I apply my foundation with my fingers; applying it with a brush might help it sink better into the pores and hence stay longer on my face. I am currently looking for a high end powder, hoping that using a better powder might reduce this problem. What about you: does your makeup melt off after few hours? Do you have any tips on how to avoid this? Share your comments below.




Here is a picture of me wearing the above products, taken in the morning before work. I decided to share a very basic makeup look as I will be sharing my work makeup looks in a separate post.

Have you found your perfect makeup routine? Or are you still looking for the right products?

STAY FAB

Waiting for Spring....

I don't know about you but I am extremely excited about Spring. I can't believe Spring will start in 10 days. This is definitely my favourite period of the year. The weather is starting to warm up and the days are sunny, brighter and longer. I am already day dreaming about all the outfits pairings I can come up with, now that the weather allows light layering. I can't wait to start going for long strolls along the coast or visit small villages and their local markets. 

Around this time of the year my husband and I love going out early, especially during the weekend, buying a sweet pastry for breakfast and eat it somewhere nice before we go for a walk. This is also the perfect time of the year for picnics, jogging, family outings, shopping and dining outdoors. And it's also Easter time which is the perfect holiday for all those of us who love chocolate and figolli. I also believe that Spring is the perfect season for getting inspired and being creative. 

While I am waiting for Spring, I decided to share few PRE-SPRING posts with you. These will range from outfits inspiration boards, outfit of the day pictures, recipes, fashion trends and much more. I hope you enjoy these months which are going to follow and make the most out of them, especially if you like me live in a country where Winters are cold and Summers are extremely hot.

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A good eyebrow kit....Essence Eyebrow Stylist Set Review

 Until very recently, I rarely filled in my eyebrows. The main reason was that I didn't have the right product, and when I would use any brown shadow to fill them in, I wouldn't like the result. At the beginning of 2013 I decided to buy an eyebrow kit, and I am really pleased with the one  I bought. It's cheap but does a great job. It's the Essence Eyebrow Stylist Set.

 

This eyebrow kit comes with 2 shades and a tiny eyebrow angled flat brush. I like both colours. While I use the darker shade to fill in any sparse areas when I want a more defined eyebrow, I like the lighter one for a more relaxed and natural result. These shades are very pigmented and last well for several hours, even without being set with an eyebrow gel. The brush is very handy, it has in my opinion the right size and allows a precise application. 

I definitely recommend this product for the low price and the good quality.

If you still do not fill in your eyebrows, I recommend you to give it a try. You will be amazed by how much of a difference it makes. When I fill in my eyebrows, I get more defined eyes and my entire face looks more put together.

Have you tried this product? If not, which eyebrow kit do you love?

STAY FAB

Catrice Concealer Palette....A Review

I have been wanting to purchase a good concealer palette for months, and I finally found one. It's cheap and has the perfect shades for my skin tone. I am talking about the Catrice Allround Concealer Palette.

As you know I have been raving about the Maybelline Affinitone concealer in shade 01 for years. After having repurchased it several times I decided to try a new one, and I went with the L'Oreal Paris Infallible Concealer. Since I don't like the latter at all, I was pretty happy to like this new concealer palette which is actually 1/3 of the L'Oreal concealer price. 

As you can see in the image above, this concealer palette comes in 5 shades: a green one for concealing redness, a pink one for under eye circles and any other blue veins showing on your face (especially if you are fair), a dark beige, a medium beige and a light beige. This is how I like to use them.

• I like to apply the pink shade under my eyes followed by the lightest shade which I also apply on my eyelids as a primer. This combination gives me a good result in terms of concealing my under eye area and also brightening it.
• I also use the lightest one to conceal any blemishes on the rest of my face as well as my redness.
• I use the dark beige to contour my cheeks and my nose.
• Although I am not currently making any use of the medium beige, this might be great for Summer if I decide to tan.
• I have only used the green one once and, while it wasn't bad, it's definitely my least favourite in the palette.

This concealer palette comes in cream form and I think that's why I like it so much. Lately, I have been noticing that my skin doesn't do well with very liquid products like my Vichy foundation and the L'Oreal Concealer. While these latter don't blend well, the creamy concealers in the Catrice palette have a consistency which makes them very easy to blend. I also get way fewer creases, especially under the eye.

Overall, I definitely recommend any of you to try this product- especially since it's under 4 euros. 

Have you tried the Catrice Allround Concealer Palette? Let me know if you like it?

STAY FAB

Favourite Lip Products for Fall

In this post I would like to share with you my favourite Fall lip products. While during Spring and Summer I tend to wear more lip glosses and brighter lipsticks, during the colder months I like to go for warmer and deeper colours. Below are images of my favourite lip products applied on my lips and also a picture of the product itself and its swatch. Many of these lip products however, do look darker in the packaging than on my lips both because of the light in which the pictures were taken and also because I tend to apply them lightly.

 24 Hour Matte Deborah Lipstick in shade 11

Rimmel Stay On Lip Liner Pencil in 021 Red Dynamite

Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick in 077 Asia

Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick in 166 Temptation

Elf Luscious Lipstick in Cherry Tarts

Rimmel Vinyl Gloss in Snog

Lady Lya lipstick in 09

Elf Luscious Lipstick in Ruby Slipper

Which are your favourite Fall lip products? Share them with us in the comments.

STAY FAB

October Favourites

This month I really feel like sharing my favorites with you. I think because October it's a transition month,  many of us are trying out new beauty products, fashion trends as well as foods and decor pieces. Hence the many favourites.

BEAUTY FAVOURITES: MAKEUP & SKINCARE

1. My Vichy Aera Teint Liquid Foundation (see review)

2. La Roche Posay Toleriane Soothing Protective Skincare Moisturizer for Normal to Combination Skin (review coming soon)

3. Lipsticks in general since throughout Summer I have been using lip glosses. I will soon be posting my favourite Fall lip products. 

4, Fast & Fuchsia Nail Polish by Rimmel

FAVOURITE PURCHASES

1. New handbag in a shade of red (I will soon be posting pictures)

2. Leather and crystals cushion cover for only 5 euros during a warehouse sale

3. New blender (review coming soon either on this or my food blog)

4. Pink sports padded bra for only 3.50 at a local market 

5. Tally Weijl multiple studs earrings pack for only 5 euros

6. Kitchen table centrepiece (Parisian inspired)

FAVOURITE FOODS

1.Carob powder (see my Halloween treats and Fall drink recipes)

2.Fresh Basil (many recipes coming soon)

3.Plums with my weetabix for breakfast

4.Homemade Mediterranean hummus (which I made twice with my new blender)

5.Homemade fresh egg pasta (if you want me to I can share my recipe; let me know in the comments)

FAVOURITE PLACES

1. Sliema at night

2. Mdina on Sunday morning

3. Zurrieq market

4. Piccolo Padre restaurant (for the charming decor but not for the food)

5. Zara (I could spend a day looking at and trying on clothes)

6. Blue Grotto for the view

7. Orienta warehouse sale (was full of bargains)

8. Taqali Farmers' Market (I enjoy it every time)

FAVOURITE OUFITS

1. White sequin skirt

2. Fall OOTD

3. Fall Monochromatic Outfit

4. Fall Layering

5. Christian Dior Inspired

FAVOURITE WEBSITES & YOU TUBE CHANNELS

1.Free tv video

3.Le floof tv

4.The style diet

5.Brit pop life

OTHER FAVOURITES

1. My Kettler cross trainer

2. My grey cotton blazer (see outfits above)

3. My black H&M cross body bag (see outfits above)

4. My patent black flats (see outfits above)

5. Jane by Design (unfortunately no season 2)

6. Photoshop book (review coming later)

7. Giving maths revision lessons

8. Michael Kors watches

This month my favourites have been grouped under categories to make it easier for you to go through the post. Feel free to share your own favourites in the comments and Happy Halloween!

STAY FAB

Fall Skincare and Makeup Haul

Last Saturday I had a really nice day with my husband. To make the day even better I spent the morning doing some shopping, and I must say it was a successful one. I finally got things I really needed to get for a long time but which I have been postponing and I also got 2 things I fell in love with, a small one and a bigger one. I will share with you the small one in this post together with the rest of my haul (except for some underwear I bought but which I am definitely not going to show you). I will share with you the other thing I got in another post.

If you are interested in seeing what I wore on my shopping day, you can check this post. Below are the things I bought. 

What I got:

Toleriane Soothing Protective Skincare (for normal to combination intolerant skin)

L'Oreal Paris Infallible Concealer in shade 015 Porcelain

The Body Shop Foundation Brush

Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick in 166 Temptation

After the whole Summer spent without a moisturizer since it was so hot and sticky to apply one, I really needed to get one. And the above one was the only option I had since all my other choices were not available. Since my Maybelline Affinitone concealer (Review here) is almost empty, I needed to buy another concealer so I decided to try a new one. After sampling on my wrist various drugstore concealers I ended up buying the above one because it seemed the best option among the ones available. I have also been looking for a foundation brush for a while. I wanted to purchase one by Max Factor but I ended up buying this Body Shop one. It looks and feels soft so I hope it also works well. I will definitely give you a review on each of the above three products. And finally but not least, I bought myself a beautiful lipstick in a gorgeous deep red colour. I am really looking forward to wearing this, also because I am really loving all the wine, burgundy and other shades of deep red this Fall.

If you want to know which is the other thing I fell in love with and bought keep your eyes open for the next posts.

STAY FAB

FALL WINTER 2012 2013 MAKEUP TRENDS

For this week's Sunday post, I have decided to take a break from fashion and talk about makeup trends for the coming seasons. Obviously, in reality it's practically impossible to separate fashion from beauty and makeup especially when the makeup trends we are looking at are those seen on the Runway for FALL and WINTER 2012 2013. With that said, let's look into few pictures which should make us understand the main trends for the colder seasons makeup and thus provide us with the needed or wanted inspiration.

MAKEUP TREND 1: DARK WINE RED LIPS

 Etro and Bibhu Mohapatra

In my opinion, the dark red lip is the main makeup trend for the coming seasons. And is also my favourite one because I believe it's a very appropriate look for the colder months. I think with most women's kin being  back to pale or at least lighter than during Summer, this darker lip is really a nice complement especially when paired with light and bright almost highlighted but yet simple eyes and a deep pink to red blush. As you can see in the images above and below, stylists like Etro Bibhu Mohapatra, Christian Siriano, Gucci , Bottega Veneta and many others chose a dark lip to go with the Fall Winter collections.

Christian Siriano

Gucci

The images show us that we can easily choose either a darker or a lighter shade of wine red, maroon as well as plum like the one used by Bottega Veneta.

 Bottega Veneta

MAKEUP TREND 2: BRIGHT RED LIPS

Cacharel

Marc by Marc Jacobs

A similar trend to the dark red lip is the one featuring bright red lipstick. The similarity lies in the fact that both trends focus on the dark and bright lip respectively, leaving the eyes looking almost bare. The key is to apply flawless foundation and concealer, highlight your eyes as well as your cheek bones so as to achieve a glowing natural pale face with almost no visible cheek colour.

Thakoon

Cacharel

As you can notice from the images above, Cacharel used a deeper and slightly darker red while Marc by Marc Jacobs, Thakoon and Rick Owens opted for a more orange red one. 

MAKEUP TREND 3: NATURAL LOOK

Chanel

Chloe

Many stylists also went for a much more natural makeup look, keeping both the eyes and lips fairly simple. So if you are scared of wearing bright or dark red lips, this should be a much more wearable trend for you. From the images, you can see that each designer opted for different shades and undertones while they all kept the look natural. Chloe went more on the peachy side, Chanel used more nudes, Erdem opted for a very natural pink and both Elie Saab and Jil Sander went for darker pink on the lips. For what concerns the eyes they all kept them simple with some light shading.

Erdem

Jil Sander

Elie Saab

MAKEUP TREND 4: NEW WAYS TO APPLY EYE LINER

Erdem

For those of you who love experimenting with their makeup and want to achieve a more modern edgy look this is the right trend to try. It implies playing with your eyes using your black liquid eye liner as well as a gel one if you prefer the latter. Erdem, Rachel Comey and BCBG each show us a different approach.

Rachel Comey

BCBG

MAKEUP TREND 5: DARKER EYES & A MORE CONTOURED FACE

Burberry

Those of you who like to be tanned all year round will love this makeup look featured by Burberry. The darker eyes in general are a great makeup look for night outs. Whether you use brown or black there are various options, few of them lighter and others darker, for you to try.

Jill Stuart

Diane Von Furstenberg

Givenchy

Lanvin

Versace

Below is one last makeup look I want to feature in this post. It's by Rebecca Minkoff and although it is a relatively dark eye look it's not as dark as the ones above. Moreover, it's more intricate and involves more colours. So if you like to play with colours but want to keep it appropriate for the colder months you can try this intricate purple look.

Rebecca Minkoff

So which makeup trend is your favourite one? Let me know in the comments below, and if you have more trends to share don't forget to add them too.

STAY FAB

ELF Luscious Liquid Lipstick, Black Licorice Cream Shadow and Shy Blush

I have already posted a review on few ELF products, which you can find here if you haven't read it yet. Since I liked the products mentioned in my first post so much, I kept buying more especially because they are so inexpensive and good quality, at least for their low price. I haven't had any reaction so that made me like this brand even more. Last Friday I bought 3 more Elf cosmetic products and used them all together for the makeup look I wore that same night which will be featured in one of the coming posts. These products are gorgeous and that's why I wanted to share them with you. So here they are...

Elf Natural Radiance Blusher in Shy 2301, Duo Eye Shadow Cream in Black Licorice 7106, and the Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Perfect ink 2119.

I am going to start from my favourite one, although I love them all. This is the perfect lip product for me. It's a lipstick and lipgloss in one product and it works great. It makes your lips soft and smooth while you apply it, gives them colour and makes them a little shiny but not too much. This formulation makes this product perfect for both day and night. It lasts a good amount of time and it's super easy to apply. Its application is not streaky as the Hypershine gloss which I reviewed in post 1. The colour perfect pink is gorgeous and it's a new addition to my lips product. I had lighter and darker more muted pinks but not this kind of bright pink which I love on my skin because it's bright but not too bright, as you can see below.

In this makeup look I am wearing all the 3 products reviewed

The cream shadow in silver and black is a great product to have in my opinion as it serves different functions. It can act as a base for smokey eyes. But surprisingly, being creamy, the black shadow can also be used as an eye liner. Although in very hot weather it might melt easily, I used it both on my lower and upper lash line and I loved the way it applies and the way it looks. It's super easy to apply and it's cheap when compared to most gel eye liners. 

Finally but not least, is the blusher in the colour shy which is a sort of baby muted pink although it looks slightly darker in the image above. I didn't have this shade of pink blush in my collection and I really like it. It goes nicely with many makeup looks and gives a natural bright colour to the cheeks especially for my skin tone. 

Each of this product was only 2 euros at my local supermarket. I am really satisfied with Elf products so far and I am looking forward to try more. What about you: do you like ELF? Which is your favourite product? Let me know in the comments below.

STAY FAB