lancôme & essence - haul & review

What I purchased today:

-lancôme laque liner (yes, I got it) (25 euros, I actually got it for 15)
-essence jelly baby nail polish in bubblegum (LE) (1.25 euros)
-essence arctic lights eyeshadow & highlighter duo in ray of lilac (LE) (2.45 euros)

The nail polish is in a really pretty candy color, I love it. But it was so cheap, so I was in doubt. But I have to say I was surprised. It has a kind of jelly formula, which applies very easily and evenly. But after one coat I was a little disappointed, it didn't cover at all and the colour looked poor. I decided to go for a second coat, which I usually don't like to do. I mess up everything with a second coat. But this is really idiot-proof. The second coat glides on so smoothly and it's a huge difference! The result are super glossy and juicy candy-nails.

The eyeshadow seams to be a little disappointing, the pigmentation is bad, what I expected it to be, but the consistency is really weird. It crumbles and doesn't apply properly. I guess I'll give it another try anyways.

The laque liner seems to be pretty much what I have been looking for. It has a thin tip, which I like because I always make a thin line. Also it is glossy and it stays on forever. So this is my new favourite eyeliner I guess. Yay!

I tried to take pictures but it is too dark outside so I'll post them tomorrow.

So here you go:

handcream comparison

Since I am running out if my l'occitane shea butter handcream, I got this one by lavera (German organic brand) today. I figured they are quite similar: Both are the same amount (30ml; travel size), both are based on shea butter and both contain almond. So why not compare them?

There's quite a price difference between them. The l'occitane one was 12 or 14 sFr., I'm not sure. But pretty expensive for such a small size. The one by lavera was only 2.50 sFr..
The packaging of the l'occitane one with it's retro look is a little nicer, I think, while tha lavera looks really neutral and clean. One important fact to me is the cab. The l'occitane cream has a small black cab that you have to screw on on the tiny top. So you really have to concentrate. I have dropped this cab so many times on the bus/train and it pissed me off. These are travel size products, they're supposed to be practical, right? The lavera cream has a large click-on cab that is attached. Huge plus.
Now to what you're actually buying, the INCI. They're both pretty thick creams, packed with shea butter. Perfect for the never ending winter. The lavera is certified organic, so it's free of paraffin, parabens and other chemicals. The l'occitane contains a lot of natural ingridients as well, but also paraffin and stuff.
The smell of the l'occitane ist pretty popular, it smells really 'creamy', if you know what I mean... The lavera has a fruity scent, you can smell the almond and the essential oils. In the end it's a
matter of taste.

Here's my summary: (sorry it turned out so small and blurry)

I think I will be repurchasing the one by lavera, simply because they're really similiar but this one is so much cheaper. Hope you enjoyed the little review.

Dianne Brill Lip Lingerie

I really have been wanting a light, peachy lipstick. I watched Fafinettex3's MAC haul and she got a MAC lipstick in "Shy Girl". That was kinda the colour I wanted and I looked around a bit at different brands who else has something like this. Finally I found some beautyful lipstick colours (and the cutest packagings & sexiest names) at Dianne Brill. Here's what I picked up:

Dianne Brill Lip Lingerie lipstick in "Thigh-High Nylons"

image by diannebrill.com

Ain't the packaging cute?

Here it looks darker than it actually is:

Here it looks sparkling but it doesn't contain any shimmer at all. It's just glossy.

The lady in the store told me, that these are not gonna dry out your lips and they're supposed to be really long-lasting. So we'll see. I am really happy with the colour and the consistency of it though.

I apologize for the poor photos but my camera is not here and these are made with my phone.

What do you think about Dianne Brill products?

A little update: I still love this lipstick, I think it's a great product. But it is pretty perfumed and if that bothers you, this might not be for you. I have to say that this might be a reason for me, not to buy any dianne brill lipsticks anymore, if I can find the kind of what I want without a strong scent.

It doesn't smell bad, I just taste and smell it when I wear it and I don't like that so much.

The smell reminds me of the old generation of lipsticks, those ones that I used to steal from my mom when I was little, before the whole non-perfumed wave started.

haul full of bargains

Here's a little haul of the things that I purchased in the past week. Everything together cost about 6 euros. Pretty cool, huh?

update

Hi everyone and sorry for neglecting my blog in the past week. I have been really busy with school. Here's what I wanted to tell you: I am so in love with my new NARS eyeshadows, they're all gorgeaous. The lip lacquer ist not really what I expected it to be, but still it is a nice colour for nude lips. Here's some photos.

From left to right: Night Clubbing, Tibet, Ashes to Ashes, Ondine, Cairo

lip lacquer in Chelsea Girls:

discovered

I don't own anything from lancôme I think. I actually had the hypnôse mascara before, it was ok, but not too exciting.
But doesn't this look promising?
Right now I'm using a cheap drugstore eyeliner by p2 which I got about 6 months ago to practice. I might be ready for something new, because the one I'm using is mat and I would like something more shiny. This one by lancôme is supposed to be high shine. Yay!
It's available in black and in a sparkling white highlighter color, which you're supposed to use as a topcoat. That means you have to buy both and layer them, you know. ;)

I will check it out and let you know.

image by lancome.de

another beautyfool day

Today I jumped into my local drugstore (dm) to pick up a few things for my mom. To make it clear, I didn't have the intention to buy anything for me. But there it was. The anticipated esprit cosmetics rack. I knew it was coming up but since it hasn't been there the past weeks I didn't have it in mind.
Some stuff seems too expensive for what it is but I really wanted a foundation brush and this one is supposed to be quite good and the polishes are really small but they have such pretty colors. They have dups of a lot of Chanel polishes like blue satin, rouge noir, lilac sky... (I bought this one for my cousin)
I'm really excited to try out Pastel Sparkle, I really dislike regular pastels. You know, those which were on in the 90's... But this one has gold sparkles! LOVE!

I also have plans what else to buy. There's an eye shadow brush for about 6 euro (wasn't available yet) and I kinda set an eye on a 'Natural Care Brush on Powder'. It's a (mineral?) powder with a brush on top of it, I know it's not very innovative but I decided that I need this in my purse. It's perfect for a long day at school. Plus it's ecocert and organic cosmetics make my heart melt.

Here's what I picked up:

Smoothie Rose polish & foundation brush

Pastel Sparkle & Smoothie Rose polishes

Smoothie Rose on my nails (it's a pearlized lilac-pink color, the photo doesn't show how pretty it is!)

foundation brush: 9.99 euro
small nail polish: 2.99 euro


If you want to know more about Esprit Cosmetics or see all the products & some reviews, check out paddy's blog http://www.innenundaussen.blogspot.com/. You'll also find a lot of information about German drugstore products.

Nars order

Since I don't have a Nars counter close, I always kind of compare prices of Nars products in the US and in the UK, where I order. Today, I surprisingly ran into this 10% off code from hqhair.com (they're UK based). In case you want to know, the code is CRUNCH and I don't know when it expires. Here's my little order:

In case you're wondering, this is a lip lacquer. I plan to wear it underneath my Striptease lipgloss to create more intense nude lips.

Images by hqhair.com

Nars

It's about time to talk about my favourite brand at the moment. I already have some stuff but my wishlist is endless. These two I really want to get:

Highlighter 'Albatross'

Bronzer 'Laguna'

images by kissandmakupny.com