July & August Favorites.

This year like the previous one I decided not to post my July favorites and post together my July and August favorite products in one post, just because at summertime I don't usually wear make up that often and also because the whole July I was experimenting with some new products that I got. I think now it's the perfect time to show you what I enjoyed the most this summer. Sorry in advance because this post contains too many pictures!

Frezyderm Face Foundation PF30 

 I've talked a lot about this foundation in my blog for more than a month, I really really like it! It's a foundation and a sunscreen in one, which is very convient because I didn't have to use 2 different products on my face. It's also good for oily skintypes and it stays on for hours!

  Benefit Boi-ing Concealer

This concealer really saved me the past moht because I had some bad skin days and I broke out a lot around my chin. This concealer is actually one of the best I've tried for covering pimples and redness! The shade #3 is the best for my skintone ( NC25) but under my eyes the #2 looks better, sometimes I like to mix both shades.

Seventeen Cafe Au Lait Matte Blusher

I've talked about this blush like a million times, I switched from a traditional bronzer to this and I'm very happy, it gives to my face a beautiful warm tanned look. I'm pretty sure I'll continue using this for the next few months a lot!

Essence Secret It-Girl Silky Touch Blush

This blush is the only I've been using for a little over a month, it's beautiful, pigmented, matte and peachy, what more could I ask? Propably one of the best peachy blushes that can be found in the drugstore, and it's so cheap!

Essence Dreaming Under a Cherry Tree quad

I didn't use much for my eye make this whole time besides a mascara, bust sometimes whenever I was feeling the need to use a little more color on my lids I used the peachy and the coral shade from this Essence palette. this palette was released with the Cherry Blossom Girl collection last fall, too bad it was limited edition.

Mac Pleasureseeker Lipstick

 One of Mac's most beautiful peachy lipsticks and it had to be a limited edition like pretty much all of their peachy ones. It's a sheer light peachy shade perfect for the summer, with a satin finish. This is my second tube of this lipstick, I used to have the one that it was first released back in 2008 with another limited edition collection, but for some reason it gone bad really quick.

Essence I'm Sailing Lipstick
This one from Essence is a little more coral peachy than Mac's Pleasureseeker and also more pigmented and glossy. I've mentioned it a couple of times in my blog, I love it and if I had to choose only one lipstick to wear all summer it would be this one. Unfortunately it was limited edition a couple of years ago.

Bare Escentuals Buxom Lipgloss in Kate
I don't usually wear lipglosses, but because it's summer sometimes I wanted a more juicy look on my lips, this one from Bare Escentuals is just perfect, because it has a light pink tint and it's very glossy, I wore it on top of my peachy lipsticks or sometimes on its own.

Real Techniques Blush and Setting Brushes
Since I got my Real Techniques brushes I've been using them all the time, but the blush and setting brushes are the ones that I love the most. I use the blush brush to apply my bronzers, occasionally I use it for blush too but I find that it applies the blush way too light for my liking. And the setting brush is just amazing, I use it to apply powder under my eyes to set my concealer, but I also love it for appying highlighter on my cheekbones and sometimes apply concealer under my eyes. This brush is so multipurpose that I seriously consider purchasing a second one soon!

Frezyderm Moisturizing 24H Hydrating Cream
This is the only face moisturizer I've been using for more than a month day and night and I'm very happy with it. My skin has been through many changes this summer, it went from oily to super dry and flaky with break outs, and back to oily and then just to normal, and this moisturizer really helped to control the hydration on my skin. The only problem is that whenever my skin was very dry and  flaky this moisturizer wasn't enough, but it's perfect when you have normal and mixed skintype.

Nivea Soft
Such a cult beauty product, and only this summer I realised just how awesome it is. At first I was using my mother's jar to moisturize my legs and feet and now after 2 months I've gone through 2 jars, a 200 and a 300 ml one, and I've already repurchased a big one. It hydrates my body very well without feeling sticky at all, it leaves a cooling sensation on my feet which is pretty amazing because most of the lotions and creams that I apply on my feet they feel so sticky and heavy, and I can't stand them. And when my face was in a bad situation I used this cream twice and I was amazed by how good it hydrates the skin without feeling oily. Such a multipurpose cream.

Herbal Essences Bee Strong Shampoo
From all the Herbal Essences shampoo that I've tried, and I've tried like most of them, this is the best one by far. If you have normal to dry hair you will love it. The rest of the Herbal Essences shampoos that I've tried can be drying, even the ones that are targeted for dry hair, but this one never did that, it leaves my hair soft and detangled. And even if I like to switch up my shampoos very often, I will come back to this one for sure.

Sunsilk Nourishing Oil Spray
I've already talked about this hair oil a lot, I've been using it a lot all summer and I love it. It's a mix of a hair oil and a leave in conditioner in a spray bottle. It's so practical you, can carry it around with you for a quick hair fix, or travel with it or even at the beach, it leaves my hair incredibly soft.

Sunsilk Sensational Curls Leave In Cream
One of the best curl creams that I've ever tried, and if there's any of you that has curly or wavy hair you should definitely try it. It creates the most beautiful and well defined curls, even more beautiful than the ones that a curling iron gives, because they're small loose but well defined at the same time! All summer I didn't use any heat on my hair, I was just using hair oil and this curl cream. And the best part is that it's ridiculously cheap, only 2.5 euros.



I know this post is way too long but I wanted to show you all the stuff that I've been enjoying the past couple of months. I want to know if you've tried any of these products and if you like them or not. Also what were your favorite summer products? Leave me a comment.

January Favorites.

So it's that time of the month, and the first favorites post for the 2013, I'm so happy! It's been two months since my last favorites post, and for some weird reason I don't have lots of products to show you. Please excuse the bad lighting at some of my photos, it was so hard for me to find good natural light this past week, but I did my best.

The Body Shop Seaweed Mattifying Day Cream
For two months straight I'm using this moisturizer and I've already finished the jar! I'm so surprised that I actually managed to finish a moisturizer, I never do that because most of them break me out, either right away or after a month of using them. I love how lightweight this gel moisturizer is, without feeling greasy, sometimes I find gel moisturizers not being as lightweight as they claim to be, but this one is perfect and works amazingly well under make up. I actually love it so much that I repurchased a jar, as you saw in my latest haul post here. If you have oily skin and you're looking for a basic moisturizer that costs less than 15 euros, you should try it!

Fresh Line Chocolate Body Milk
This is the only body lotion that I've been using this whole month, and just so you know I have lots of body lotions in my stash right now! I got it with the Chocolate and Vanilla set that I won at the Beauty Bloggers Event and I already did a small review here. It's very lightweight and it's perfect for those who don't have dry skin and don't like the heavy and sticky feeling of a body moisturizer on their bodies. It has the best texture for a summer body lotion, and it smells like pralines!

Stila In The Know Eyeshadow Palette
This palette was the best thing I purchased at Christmas! An eyeshadow palette full of matte neutral shades, I just couldn't ask for more! The best palette for everyday neutral looks for school or work, but you can also do dramatic sexy smokey eye looks with the darker shades because they're super pigmented! I'll do a review about this palette soon! The shades I use the most are Wind, Desert and Driftwood. Here are some swatches for you:

from left to right: Desert, Wind, Driftwood

Yves Saint Laurent Faux Cils Shocking Mascara
This is a sample of the mascara that I got as a freebie with a magazine a couple of months ago, I've been using it for a month now and I find it to be a very good mascara for giving length to the lashes. First of all I love the formula, it's neither too wet or too dry  it's something in between and it really holds my curl. It's not the mascara that will give to your lashes that false effect, but it makes my lashes look cute, and I say cute because it gives that "feather" look, I find it very girly! Too bad it's too expensive, over 30 euros, but if I'll find a good discount I may get it in full size.

La Roche Posay Respectissime Mascara
Yes, I included a second mascara to my monthly faves this time! I was sent this mascara by the company to test it out a few months ago but I didn't want to open it since I was using others at that time. Respectissime is suppose to give length and seperate your lashes, and it's perfect for those who have really sensitive eyes and for those who wear contacts. I have to agree that it does seperate really well but it doesn't give any length to my lashes what so ever! When I use it, my lashes look exactly as if I have no mascara on except a little more defined and blacker. Then why is in my favorites this month you may ask, that's because I find that Respectissime is one of the best mascaras I've ever used for my lower lashes! It has a tiny brush that allows you to apply mascara on the lower lashes very easy and without making a mess, which is something that most of us have serious problem with, huge mascara brushes are the worst of the lower lashes!

Here's a comparison picture between the brush of the YSL Faux Cils Shocking mascara, which is a normal sized mascara brush, and the one from the La Roche Posay mascara. See how slim and short Respectissime's brush is?

Mac Omega Eyeshadow
I actually use this eyeshadow for my brows. It's a light taupe brown shade, very similar to Mac's Lingering brow pencil, only a tone lighter. So for those who wear Lingering, you could also try Omega if you're looking for more of a natural look on your brows. I also noticed that it's quite similar to Naked eyeshadow from Urban Decay. I apply it with a Mac 208 brush which is an angled brush.

BareMinerals  Buxom Katie Lipgloss
Most of the times I have a love-hate releantionship with lipglosses, I like wearing them mostly at summertime, so for over 4 months I wasn't wearing any lip gloss at all, but this Buxom Katie one changed my mind. I got it at Christmas with the Buxom Time to Shine lipgloss set, as you can see it's not the full size. Katie is a very pretty baby pink shade with very fine silver shimmers and it is a little sticky. It gives a light cooling/tingling sensation to your lips, like a menthol lip balm, but it doesn't taste bad, it has a light vanilla taste. If I could use only one lipgloss from now on I'd be more than happy to use only this one!

Givenchy Dahlia Noir Eau De Perfum
I got this perfume last year as a gift, and I've been waiting since now to start using it again because it's definitely a winter perfume, musky/powdery and warm, very sexy I would say! I love the design of the bottle, very simple yet elegant.




I hope you liked my favorites this time and you didn't find them boring. I can't wait to read what were your favorites for the January! Let me know!

Sophia
xoxo

Collective Christmas Haul (Stila, bareMinerals, China Glaze, Vichy, Mac, Taylor Swift)

 

I think it was about time to show you what I hauled for Christmas! I got most of these stuff online, some of them were purchased on Black Friday but my post office was so slow and I received them 10 days ago! I was also waiting for another package from Lush to arrive so I can show you all the things that I purchased but it literally just arrived so I didn't have the time to take pictures. I may do a seperate post, only with my Lush goodies! So let's start!

Taylor Swift Wonderstruck Perfume Set

As I mentioned in my Christmas beauty wishlist post , every Christmas I like to buy a perfume, this year I was planning to buy Vera Wang's Lovestruck, but I saw this set at Feelunique for only 18 euros and I said why not! You get a 30ml bottle of the perfume plus a small 5 ml one, and the body lotion! 

I've read really good reviews about this perfume and since it's not available in Greece, buying it online was my only option. But it's a risk buying a perfume you haven't smell before, there's always a chance that you may not like it, and now that I smelled it I'm still not quite sure if I like it or not, but them again I've used it only twice! It's a little heavy and a sweet perfume, but a unique one for sure! At first it caused me a headache, but in the past I've had perfumes that I couldn't stand and then later I loved! So who knows, I may eventually get used to the scent!

Stila In The Know Eye Shadow Palette

This eye shadow palette is the highlight of my haul! Before November I've never even heard of this palette, and I think it was released last spring! But I was watching a Youtube video from ARose186 , and I suddenly started lemming it like crazy!

 It's a palette with only matte eyeshadows, and let me tell you it's so hard to find an eye shadow palette in the market with only matte eyeshadows, I think Too Faced has one but the colors are too cool toned for me. Amazing quality and pigmentation, all the colors are so pretty and neutral, perfect for subtle everyday looks or even intense night looks! Plus you get a full size Stila Smudge Stick Eye Liner in Halfmoon, it's a dark grey color, very creamy and long lasting!

 

 I got the palette from BeautyBay for 25 euros on Black Friday when they offered a 20% off. It normally  retails for 32 euros, in my opinion it's a really good price for 10 high quality eyeshadows and a full size eye pencil. I may also get the In The Light palette in the future,which contains one of my HG eye shadows ever, Kitten!

bareMinerals Buxom Time To Shine Lip Collection

I was lemming this lipgloss kit for a while now, it was also in my Christmas Beauty Wishlist. It contains 6 different Buxom liglosses, with 2 different textures, 4 of them are Lip Polishes which have shimmers, and 2 of them are Lip Creams with no shimmers at all. Buxom lipglosses are supposed to be lip plumpers, I haven't notice if my lips look more plumpy with these on or not, but let me tell you if you haven't try them before the first time you do it feels so weird! It's like you put ice on your lips and that sensation does not leave until you remove the whole lipgloss from your lips!

The one I use the most is the White Russian because it's a milky pink with cream texture and can be used on top of any lipstick! Katie is also my favorite which is light peachy pink with shimmers and Berry Blast which is a gorgeous berry color with no shimmers, perfect for the winter! I have to mention that they are a little bit sticky, mostly the Lip Polishes, but not as much as the Mac lipglasses are.

Vichy Normaderm 3 in 1 Cleanser + Scrub + Mask

I got this exfoliator/mask 2 weeks ago from the drugstore, I was looking for a good salycylic acid mask for a while now, and this one from Vichy had really good reviews. I got it mostly to use it on my nose and chin area where I have the main problem with my break outs, and make my pores look smaller and clearer! I've used it 3 times, I haven't notice any difference on my pores yet, but I like the natural clear finish it leaves on my skin afterwards!

Mac Omega Eye Shadow

I was looking for an eye shadow to use on my brows, that would have the exact same shade as my HG eye pencil from Mac, Lingering. I was told that Mac's Omega eye shadow is very similar to it so I went for it. I have to say that it's a tone lighter than Lingering but still in the same cool tone family, because I hate to use warm toned shades on my brows. I love the soft look it gives on my brows for an everyday use!

China Glaze Merry Berry and Champagne Kisses

I got these 2 shades from the new China Glaze Joy Holiday collection through Ebay. Merry Berry is a gorgeous and very sophisticated dark berry shade with a cream finish, a perfect shade for fall and winter!

Champagne Kisses, which I showed you in my Christmas NOTD here, is a rose gold glitter nail polish, very festive, very Christmassy, I love it!!

So that was my Christmas Haul, I hope you liked it! Have you try any of these products? 

What did you get for Christmas? Let me know!

Sophia

xoxo