Catrice Cosmetics Appreciation

I have actually sworn to myself not to buy anything before my trip to the United States since clothes and beauty products are much cheaper there, but I have a really good excuse: Catrice Cosmetics are not sold in the US and I grew really fond of them lately! Plus they are really cheap compared to other brands like Maybelline, L'Oréal or even MAC Cosmetics. In the past few weeks I acquired their foundation, pressed powder, camouflage cream, two primers, eyebrow set and the three mascaras shown in the picture, and I use all of them on an everyday basis.

I will start to talk about their face make-up. On the top left, you can see the Photo Finish 18h Liquid Foundation (I am using the shade 020 Rosy Beige). I get really unsure when it comes to picking a new foundation. My Maybelline Super Stay 24h Make-Up has been a total disappointment especially for the price, so I decided to search for a new one. I immediately thought about Catrice, so I have spent one evening scrolling through hundreds of reviews of this product (yes, I do have that much spare time lately) and then decided to go for it. I have to say it was one of the best decision I made about make-up, it has a medium coverage and makes my skin look soft and smooth with an oil-free solution. When it comes to the Camouflage Cream (bottom left), I might have bought a too dark shade (030 Rosy Beige) because I went after the name and not the number. Nevermind that, it covers up perfectly while blending with my skin tone and is also works fine as concealer. Bianca has recommended using primers to me so I totally went for it and chose the Prime and Fine Eyeshadow Base and the Prime and Fine Smoothing Refiner for invisible pores and lines. I am impressed by how long my eyeshadow stays in places without wandering to the crease with this product! As you can see I have used the facial primer already but I haven't seen any results worth talking about yet. My latest acquisition is the All Matt Plus Shine Control Powder I haven't used much yet because unfortunately I am too tanned. I will let you know about how it works.

As you can see the eyeshadows palettes on the left and on the right side are a bit older and used up. The left one isn't even sold anymore and the right one, the Absolute Nude Eyeshadow Palette, is my absolute favorite combination of colors of all time, I actually wear it every day. In the middle there is the Eye Brow Set, and the colors in my picture are much closer to reality than the ones on the website! I am totally happy about the small tweezer and the small brush and comb combination, they work really fine and the darker color merges with the one of my eyebrows.

This pictures shows perfectly that I am a fan of big brushes. I am certain that the bigger the brush the bigger the volume and I have not been proven wrong yet. The Better Than False Lashes Mascara in ultra black on the left reminds me a lot of my Maybelline Volum' Express Colossal Mascara, that I entirely used up some days ago, but this one is a much cheaper version. So is The Giant Extreme Volume Mascara, although the brush itself is too big to get to the outer corner and color the tinier hair, which is a bit of a disappointment. The Glamour Doll Volume Mascara on the right has been in my make-up treasure for a while now and I use it to define and brush my lashes.

Last but not least: Catrice nail polishes. I don't own many but the colors are beautiful and quick-drying, f.l.t.r: 07 Genius in a Bottle, 090 Karl Says Très Chic, 03 Papa Don't Peach, 810 ACid/DC and 620 Captain Sparrow's Boat. The peach and yellow-green-ish one were gifts from Bianca. I recommend applying a base coat for all of them, especially for ACid/DC. I love shadowy-color-changing effect of the first one from the left and the shimmery metallic look of the two ones on the right. I am not that much into orange but I cannot deny that it is a perfect color for summer, but what I am is a fan of pink/red tones so the Ultimate Nude pink shade is  totally my type. It says "new brush" but this is a really old version of this nail polish so now it's the normal Catrice nail polish brush.

I am aware that this post is quite long but I wanted to share with you the love I have for this brand. I can recommend any product they have. Day after day I fall in love with the items I own even more and I use most of them daily. Do you have any brand you canot go without?

B's ''What's in my Make-up Bag''

Hi everyone!

I am leaving for Finland early on tuesday morning, and because I need a little time off, won't be taking my macbook with me. Tomorrow is my boyfriend's little brother's birthday, and because we're really good friends, I have spent the last two days shopping for presents and making a huuuuuge pass-the-parcel! I also bought a gorgeous pair of black and white tribal print hareem trousers with cuffed ankles which are so great for relaxing and perfect for the last days of hot weather because of the light and floaty material. Since I'm leaving on tuesday, I thought I would try to squeeze in one or two more posts before being MIA for a week, so I decided to do a little "what's in my make-up bag" post. Relevant, since that will be the bare necessities I will take with me to Finland because I want to travel super light.

Here are my bare essentials:
Short blusher brush: I use this for contouring, to apply bronzer, to buff foundation in case I need to reapply during the day an to blend my blush or apply highlighter to my cheekbones.

Benefit "Sugarbomb" Lipgloss: I usually really dislike lipglosses, as I nearly always find them incredibly sticky, get my hair caught in it, and find it drying on my lips. This one, however, blows my mind. It has a subtle sparkle and the color is very "your lips but better" kind of dark-pink nude. Lovely to just throw on and go, and it definitely adds a little glamorous sheen to your lips. Plus it smells de-li-cious.

MAC "Creme In Your Coffee": my favorite lipstick by MAC. I have naturally very light lips, so this is an essential for me to look alive haha! It's a dark red/pink-ish nude and because it is a cremesheen, it's incredibly moisturizing. This has been in my make-up bag non-stop, so I need to re-buy this soon.

MAC "Creme Cup": This is a recent acquisition of mine, and since it's a cremesheen as well, it's super moisturizing too. The color is more a light-pink kind of nude, very girly and gorgeous in summer. 

Maybelline Great Lash Separating Mascara: I use this in combination with another mascara for length and volume, because I'm typically not too fond of plastic wands. This however is pretty great because it separates my lashes like nothing else I've ever tried, and with a topcoat my lashes look great!

Maybelline Fit Me Powder: I love this powder. It adapts to your skintone, gives a nice matte finish and stays in place all day long. Definitely recommend (and as you can see, I need to buy it again really soon.)

Chanel Pencil Sharpener: self explanatory. I use this for my brow pencil, my kohl, and my white eye-liner which I use in my waterline for a bigger-eye effect.

Chanel "Allure" Eau de Toilette Sample: I like to always  have a small sample of one of my favorite perfumes in my make-up bag, so I can retouch during the day without having to carry the full size in my handbag. This one is sweet and summery and absolutely lovely.

Benefit "High Beam" Highlighter: again, I like to carry smaller or sample sizes of my favorite products to make my make-up bag lighter. This is one of my absolute favorite ever products. It's creamy and gives the most gorgeous dewy look. I use it on the back of my nose, my brow bones and my cheeks.

Maybelline LumiTouch Highlighting Concealer: did I mention I am pretty fond of Maybelline products? This is great because it conceals my dark circles under my eyes as well as uneven pigment spots really well, and gives a nice "awake" effect in photographs. Staple piece in my make-up bag.

Maybelline Matte Mousse Foundation in "Ivory": I have been loving this product, because I can use it without any primer (it glides on really well), I don't even need to use a brush because it's very easy to apply evenly, and I don't need to use any setting powder as it has a great matte finish. All in one!

MAC Blusher brush: I use this for contour powder, blush and highlighting powder.

MAC "Expensive Pink" Eyeshadow: Lovely when you want a light but slightly sparkly eye to wear with a more dominant (for ex. purple or red) lipstick for a gorgeous evening look.

MAC "Brulé" Eyeshadow: my favorite MAC eyeshadow. Gorgeous slightly matte, slightly satin-y finish, light creamy/nude-y color. Great for a neutral-nude eye and a more bold lip.

MAC "Bronze" Eyeshadow: bronze-y brown eyeshadow, which is great for a brown smokey eye or to use in the crease for every day wear.

Hema Eyebrow Gel in Brown: this is just a supermarket product, but it's actually a great brow gel, with a slight tint. It's super easy to use and you can just pop it on and go without too much of a fuss.