Haul & Reviews: Vichy, Isadora

First off Vichy Aqualia Thermal serum. After reading quite a few positive reviews I got myself a bottle too (a review from Passing Fancy really prompted me to get it. You can find here review here.) I've been using it for a week now and I'm not going to be so generous with praises. Don't get me wrong, it is a great product, but it's not amazing. Let me begin with a description of my skin. I have a combination skin with some dry patches (mainly on the lower part of the forehead). I've had these dry patches for years now and no matter what moisturiser I used and how many times I exfoliated, they were still there. But with this serum they finally (!) started disappearing (there are still some left above one of my eyebrows), but the state is definitely improving. Another thing I noticed is how much better my foundation looks after application (Max Factor Liquid Illusion, just trying to use it up). Before I didn't even apply foundation on my forehead, simply because it really emphasized those dry areas (even with moisturiser underneath). However I don't find my skin being more dewy or looking more healthy. Maybe it just needs more time. The serum is very light so I like to apply my regular moisturiser on top (CadeaVera Young Fluid for normal to dry skin when I'm at home and Neutrogena Oil-free moisturiser when I'm in Ljubljana). It has a very light scent, which is difficult to describe, it's kind of typical chemist scent. I love the packaging, a nice glass bottle with a pump which dispenses the right amount of product (I use one pump for my face). Here it cost 18� something for 30 ml of product.

If you remember my Isadora Fanciful post, I said I'd love to have their Glow Stick if I could find it a bit cheaper. In fact I did :). Limoni sells it for outrageous 18-19�, I got mine in M�ller for 15,60 �. And I love it. It gives that gorgeous light flush and that great glow on the cheeks. I tried to get a picture of it on me but my camera hates me. I also saw the new collection Jungle Fever. The powder bronzer looked very nice, but the new Glow Stick looked very copper on me.

And the last thing is Wild rose oil from M�ller. I ''borrowed'' it from my brother (btw bro you're not getting it back). He bought it in his Roaccutanne era when his skin was incredibly dry and he found oils to be the best to fight the dryness. He got it as a replacement for Dr. Hauschka Normalizing Oil (which he loved) and strangely enough the scent is identical. I personally don't love it, but I don't hate it either (I'm one of those people who dislike the smell of roses. Weird I know). I've been using it for a week now and I have to say that my skin feels a lot softer. Another thing I like is that it absorbs relatively quickly. There are more oils available in M�ller (I know there's almond oil) and they cost about 5� for 100 ml, but I'm not sure.

 So I hope this post was at least a bit helpful. Have a great day!

Pupa Luminys Blush 07 and Essence 73 Replay

Pupa Luminys velvety baked blush 07 - I found these blushes in Limoni. Honestly, I had no idea Pupa has baked blushes that look similar to Mac's MSF. There are 6 shades available, 3 are bronze-golden shades, 06 was a pink with some purple (pink with a blue undertone), 07 is a pink and 08 is a bright coral but on my skin it looked very orange. These have a very luminous finish, however I actually didn't find them more luminous than Benefit's Coralista or NARS Orgasm. 07 looks like a mix of NARS Orgasm and Deep Throat on my skin tone, pink but with some peach, a fantastic shade for someone as pale as me. The packaging looks so cheap though. It's a mix of clear and milky plastic, honestly I would expect something like that from a blush for a couple of � and not for 20. However it's sturdy, you don't have the feeling that the lid might broke off at any moment. The little brush that comes with it (it's not in any of the pictures) is surprisingly useful. It lasted all day on me, it loses a bit of brightness, but still looks ok (as far as longevity goes Coralista wins hand down). All in all a great blush, but the packaging needs some upgrading.

Comparison of Benefit Coralista (the pretties blush ever), NARS Orgasm and Deep Throat and Pupa Luminys baked blush 07:

Pupa Luminys velvet blush swatches in sunlight on NC 15:

Replay is one of the new shades of Essence's Multi Dimension XXXL Shine nail polishes. It another turquoise/teal shade that I love. This one has more green in it than Essence You belong to me. I apologize for the shoddy application, the formula of the nail polish is very thick but that's not my main problem. The problem is in the top coat from the same brand which is horrible (but base coat is fine). It just doesn't dry like forever. I really miss my faithful Essie Good 2 Go.   

March Favorites

I've had a lot of favorites this month (the coloured words are links):

• Escada Taj Sunset - I loooove it! I even prefer it to Marine Groove. It's such a lovely summer fragrance.The most prominent note is mango and it's very sweet. 
• Orofluido - the scent is gorgeous, a mix of amber and vanilla. It just feels so luxurious. 
• L'Oreal Million Lashes - I really didn't find it anything special when I tried it for the first time. I guess it's one of those mascaras that just need some time. I love it now, it defines and lengthens and it works great on lower lashes too.
• Tana eyelash curler - An essential tool. These are the best curlers available here in Slovenia. They don't pinch (unlike Manhattan one's, those are horrible!) and have the best arch.
• E.l.f. blush in Shy - gorgeous pink shade, it really brightens your face.
• I've been wearing a lot of either a combination of Viva Gaga and Make up factory 47 or Gosh Darling & MUF 47.
• Essence Stay with me 02 My favorite milkshake - Great glosses, finally something that doesn't have shimmer and they smell so nice. The colour is gorgeous, a lovely peachy pink.
• UD Naked palette
• Essence 53 You Belong to me and Miss Sporty 370 nail polishes. Belong to me is a dupe for Essie's Mint Candy Apple (the latter is just a hint greener) but the application is so much easier.
• Refan's version of Chanel n.5 - It identical to the original and the staying power is amazing. I got this one for my mum, for my cousin I took Guilty (Gucci, again identical to the original with brilliant staying power) and Givenchy Organza for her friend (I didn't get anything for myself, lol). I put the sticker on myself, the bottles are quite plain actually. The list of all available dupe fragrances can be found here./ Ta mesec sem �la prvic v Refan (na Slovenski ulici) in sem za mami vzela Chanel n.5, za sestricno Guilty (Gucci) in za njeno prijateljico Organza (Givenchy) (zase nisem vzela nic). Vsi so identicni originalom in zdr�ijo neverjetno dolgo, na�pricala sem si jih na zapestje ob 11h, zdr�ali so do dokler se nisem �la stu�irat ob polnoci. Vonj se je obdr�al na rokavih od jopice, tako da glede obstojnost se bila kompletno �okirana. Za seznam vseh parfumov, ki ji imajo na voljo kliknite tukaj.

50, 30 and 15 ml bottles/steklenicke:

Haul - Essence, John Frieda & Weleda

Essence Forget it! 3 in 1 concealer:

I tried this concealer just once. It's very pigmented. The beige side in way to dark for my skin tone, green side which is meant to counteract the redness looks almost white when applied and the pink (for covering dark circles) side might actually work as a nice very pale lip shade. I tried the green and pink shades on my pink circles. Both turned out very pale, even with concealer on top. I will keep trying to make it work, just adjusting the amount and so on. It costs around 2,5�.

Essence Stray with me lipglosses in 03 Candy Bar (a coral shade) and 04 Trendsetter (raspberry shade):

I already have the shade 02 My favorite milkshake (which I love) and I had 01 Me and My Ice cream. Swatches and review can be found here, I will add these two swatches to that post and some comparison pictures.

John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Shine Shock

I bought this after reading some very positive reviews on MUA. I tried a small amount on dry hair and I haven't noticed anything special, but the reviews say that it only works when applied on soaking wet hair. It's a thick gel with sparkles and it smell amazing, kind of coconuty (identical as the conditioner that I love).

IsaDora Fanciful (Spring 2011) - Lipsticks and Blush Swatches

 

This collection has been out for quite a while. I must have passed the display a dozen times and never really looked at it. Well the visual alone repelled me. But recently Dazzledust25 did a rave video about the Glow stick blush and Pink parfait lipstick, so I finally checked this collection out. Jelly Kiss gel lipstick are completely new. There are four shades available (51 Bare bliss, 52 Rose blush, 53 Pink parfait and 54 Lilac tulle), they all look bright but the formula is sheer and glossy. I think they are very similar to their Cream gloss stylos.

Glow stick blusher in 10 Rose bud is a shimmery rosey-coraly shade. A light application doesn't give much colour, but more  of a highlighting effect, however this doesn't mean you need to use loads for it to show up. The formula is very creamy and easy to blend. It's a gorgeous shade for lighter skin tones, it really brightens the face, but it's also way to expensive for the amount you get (something like those blushes from Rose Garden collection by Alverde). Here it's a bit over 18� (Limoni), maybe it's cheaper somewhere else, at least I hope it is, I would love to have it.

Essence Stay With Me Lip Glosses

I already swatched and reviewed the shade 01 Me & My Ice Cream (click for review)). As I wrote in the previous post Stay with me is a new line of lip glosses by Essence. I am liking these more and more. I got another shade called 02 My favourite milkshake which on me looks way prettier than 01, just because it's more peachy. I also have my eye on 03 Candy Bar which is a coraly-red shade. These are really good glosses, especially for the price (around 2.5 �).

So here are the swatches of both:

Edit:
I'm adding the swatches of shade 03 Candy Bar (coral) and 04 Trendsetter (raspberry)

Haul - New Lip Products From Essence

First of is the new shade of lipstick called 53 All About Cupcake, which is a pink slightly peachy shade, a beautiful neutral, everyday colour. Local Muller didn't have Coralize Me yet which is one of the new shades and interested me most. Swatches of shades 44 and 45 can be found here.

Prvi na vrsti je nov odtenek �minke 53 All About Cupcake, ki je roza z nekaj breskve, res lep nevtralen odtenek za vsak dan. Najbli�ji Muller �e ni imel odtenka Coralize Me, ki se �e zanima od novosti. Slike odtenkov 44 in 45 lahko najdete tu.

Stay with me is a new line of lipglosses, with 7 new shades. They introduce a new for of applicator, which I personally am not a fan of, but it works just fine. 01 Me & My Milkshake is a milky pink shade and a dupe of Nivea's Milkshake lipgloss and E.l.f.'s Bubble Gum. Staying power is average, they're not sticky, all in all just an average lipgloss, for the price a great product. The range of colour is nice, 02 My Favorite Milkshake is very similar to this one, just slightly peachier. They have a nice, faint fruity scent.

Stay with me so novi lipglosi v 7-ih odtenkih. Imajo novo vrsto aplikatorja, meni se kaj pretirano ne dopade, ampak deluje ok. 01 Me & My Milkshake je svetlo roza odtenek, identicen Nivejinemu Milkshake (btw Nivejina licila grejo iz prodaje) in E.l.f.-ovem Bubble Gum. Obstojnost je povprecna, niso lepljivi, v glavnem povprecni glosi, super za ceno. V�ec mi je izbor odtenkov, 02 My Favorite Milkshake je zelo podoben temu, le bolj breskov. Imajo rahel sadni vonj.

Essence also introduced a new shade of a lipliner called Coral Nude. I also purchased a shade Cute Pink and I previously owned Soft Rose.
Essence ima tudi nov odtenek liplinerja imenovan Coral Nude. Kupila sem �e odtenke Cute Pink, �e prej pa sem imela odtenek Soft Rose.