Twinkling Hazel overall

Nordic winters may or may not be cold, this time it's not and thank God for small blessings - but they are always dark. Not very nice when one has only ordinary lighting in the apartment. Catching the light for shooting something becomes a sport itself. Following photos will be terrible, you have been warned.

Items used

Twinkling Hazel on eyelids, lips and cheeks

Today I tried to make a rather monochrome look - using the same The Conservatorie pigment in Twinkling Hazel on the eyes, cheeks and lips. Nice understated look but the piggie is a tad dark for me to be used as a blush - at least in this light it bothers me. Undertone, you see, is a bit orange and orange is definitely not my color when put anywhere else but eyelids or lips. Orange is a very nice color to be used on the eyelids - makes blue eyes pop.

At the moment I have quite a number of foundations to test, so am trying multiple ones in one go - something I can get away with only during winter. The Conservatorie's pressed foundation in Nude on the right cheek (my right, mind you) and loose mineral powder in Barely Beige on the left cheek. Forehead is all Jane Iredale's pressed mineral foundation in Warm Silk. Note to self - Nude will be ok during Summer but it's too dark for now - just look at the neck.

The Conservatorie's Barely Beige (not the matte version) is quite a good winter tone, on these pics it looks shinier then the others. Goes well with the neck - no color difference. Barely Beige also comes in a matte recipe but I felt that it was a bit drying so I took the non-matte one.

Jane Iredale's pressed foundation in Warm Silk (Starter kit in Fair) on the forehead and nose: tone-wise it's in between, a nice neutral/warm color. Consistency is very soft - pressed mineral foundations usually are - and brush should not be wielded too forcefully. My pan of The Conservatorie's Nude is an exception, it has a pressing flaw - it's rock hard and I have to scrape it with my nails to get the product loose. From all The Conservatorie pressed mineral foundations I have this is the only flawed one.

I contoured my cheekbones, temples and jawline with The Conservatorie's Milk Chocolate and highlighted apples of the cheek, nose, chin and  forehead with The Conservatories Pink Interference. Looking at the pics now I wonder whether highlighting is for me - I just look greasy. I did no fine work - so the areas around the nose and pimples are not concealed or worked upon - in this case the I made the bad lighting conditions work for me. :)

Täna testisin oma erinevaid mineraalpuudreid - laup ja mõlemad põsed on kõik eri tooni... heas valguses nõndamoodi ikka välja ei läheks küll :D. Twinkling hazel on veidi liiga oranž, silmadele sobib kuid põsed teeb veidi määrdunuks... Samas roosa oleks põskedele sobinud kuid silmad teinud palavikus küülikuks. Peamiselt  olid näppimisel The Conservatorie ja Jane Iredale asjad. Halba saab öelda vaid Manhattani ripsmetuši kohta, see on ikka paras jama sattunud seekord... Hiljem lisasin silamdele veidi matti pruuni lauvakku - tegi silmnäo veidi ruumilisemaks. Aga siis oli juba liiga pime, et piltide tegemisest unistadagi. 

e.l.f. Mineral lipsticks in Royal Red, Beautiful Berry and Prime Plum

I like e.l.f.'s mineral lipsticks, especially Rosy Raisin, the "my lips but better" tone. Now these here are much, much darker (warning - they look lighter on this photo).  Ingredients list is very nice to look at.

Prime Plum - Plum should be purple, no? Well, this one is dark brick-brown.

Royal Red - elegant deep cool-toned red but far too dark for me

Beautiful Berry - dark red, could also be described as a cross between Prime Plum and Royal Red - again not for me.

FOTD using Jane Iredale's starter kit in Fair

Tools:

Canvas:

Dream Tint in Light already applied

Result:

Warm Silk on the right cheek

Bisque on the left cheek

The kit contains two foundations in travel size: Bisque and Warm Silk, a rather dark blush Sheer Honey, a truly great concealer set Circle/Delete2, a mini lipstick (L.A. Just Kissed lip plumper), a slightly tinted makeup base cream Dream Tint and three brushes in the lower compartment of the box. All the products are used  here. In addition there's Mystikol powdered eyeliner and highlighter Dark Topaz on the eyes and my brand new Manhattan mascara (rant about that will follow soon). 

These small brushes are soft and workable but already the concealer brush is sort of loose at the ferrule and the mini flat-top sheds like mad ever since I took it out of the box. I understand that wooden handles tend to have problems with shrinking but shedding was unexpected. Small domed blush brush is soft and has absolutely no faults - perfect for foundation application around the nose area. Cannot use it for blush though - I had to use my own blush brush because this one is simply too small and the product in this kit is much too pigmented  - clown makeup guaranteed. I will definitely keep it and it's sister concealer brush in my travel bag. Flat-top will probably stay in the drawer until someone else is willing to offer it a better home.

Brick-undertoned blush in this set is more like a bronzer for me - it does not bring flush to my cheeks, makes them rather muddy-looking instead. I am surprised they would put a blush this dark in the Fair set at all - usually it's something more wearable, bright sort of pink or so. Great thing is the Circle/Delete2 concealer set in highly blendable light cream and salmon. Both when used separately seem a bit off but when combined they leave a most natural result. This concealer is applied all over blemishes and also under the eyes.

Jane Iredale's pressed powders blend well and are buildable - they can provide complete coverage if needed, assuming you also use the makeup base and concealers provided in the kit - foundation sticks to the concealer already layered on the pimples and the only thing visible will be a little bump. I prefer Warm Silk at the moment - I still have some residual tan from my trip - am usually pale as a sheet this time of year :). Yellow undertones in these foundations help to tone down my usual redness.


Box and packaging are marvellous - the well-made box could later on be used for jewellery or other makeup items. It's abit big for travelling but it has all the necessities and will do a great job. After seeing other Jane Iredale items I have to say - they excel at packaging - all products look luxurious, my Makeupheaven magnetized palettes with pressed powder pans look quite industrial when compared :).


Mängisin oma tuliuue Jane Iredale komplektiga - tegu karbikesega, kus kaks minisuuruses pressitud meigipõhja, suht tume ja tellisekarva alatooniga põsepuna, imekena roosakaskuldne minihuulepulk, peitekreemikomplekt, meigialuskreem ning kolm minipintslit. Soovitan soojalt, algaja jaoks väga mugav komplekt, täismeigi tegemiseks läheb lisaks veel vaja vaid silmapliiatsit ning ripsmetušši.

A review long overdue - The Conservatorie's eyeshadow primer

Now this one has only one fault: needs heat to disperse well... Basically, to get a proper amount I have to stick my finger into the jar, move it there for a moment and my finger has grabbed the exact amount needed for one eyelid (problematic - I have exceptionally cold hands sometimes). Texture is waxy and color is orangey but wax grabs the pigments well and color does not matter anyway - that's what the eye-shadows are for.

I have also been using it as an under eye concealer and pimple concealer - true, it's too orange BUT it grabs mineral foundation as well as it grabs eyeshadows - so I'll just rub some on the pimples and then slide the foundation brush all over the face - fast and easy.

It does have a smell but it's very subtle and does not stink like e.l.f. primers or the Manhattan one. For 3,95 USD I'd say this product is available at a very good price. I have used it since September and have barely made a dent - please keep in mind I also use it when swatching pigments ;) much more comfortable then foiling them. Weird, I seem not to have a swatchpic of the primer itself - I'll have to remedy that soonish :)

This waxy product is packaged in a standard 10 gr per volume jar (8,5 gr of product as per label) and contains Caprylic/Capric Triglycerides, Apricot Kernel Oil, Safflower Oil H.O, Silica, Castor Oil, Tribehenin, Carnauba Wax, Phenoxyethanol, Kaolin, Calcium Carbonate. May contain: Mica, Titanium Dioxide, Iron Oxides. It's the cleanest primer I have owned so far. Phenoxyethanol - the preservative may have some evidence that it might be toxic but it's the only one in this mix.

Üldiselt - kiidan, teeb tööd hästi.  Ja kui keegi seda veel soovib, siis andke aga teada, ma panen teinekord tellimusse sisse. Odavam kui samalaadsed poodides. Ja kõige olulisem - ei haise :).

warm hands - blended like a dream

PS! Looking forward to try The Conservatorie's glitter glue that also came out recently :) I have some The Conservatorie glitters but am so far unable to use them properly - eyeshadow primer is not sticky enough for those shiny flaky buggers. Price looks really friendly - only $1,55 for a tube.

Break is over

I think it's time for a comeback :). Trip was nice, end-of-yeat workstress still continues but that should be overlooked - stress has always been there and always will be - as long as people have to do something called "work". :S

And there's so much to write about! I have visited Jane Iredale and got their fairest foundation swatches, The Conservatorie sent me a parcel while I was away, LisaLise's moisturizers have not been properly reviewed yet, and then my own purchases from Meow, Lucy Minerals, The Conservatorie and TKB Trading need to be put up as well. Those TKB pigments have not been reviewed since August! I am truly lagging behind - and there's no shortage for material.

As for the trip - Mauritius was wonderful! It was not too warm yet and half of the days had some clouds which made the conditions very suitable for me. I only got sunburned once, managed to tan my face though so now it's darker then my body - but winter will take care of that.

And local tap water was a marvel: tap water in Tallinn is such crap compared to it. It left the skin smooth and hair shiny and I had no dandruff whatsoever. And when I drank it - it tasted sweet! None of that metallic-y aftertaste I'm so used to here. The water was rationed though - we were staying in the dry bit of the island.

I only wish I had more time the next time I go - I'd really like to visit some nature-reserve as well - to see the local flora (and perhaps some more fauna). This island has had other species introduced to it ever since it's first inhabitants arrived - palms from Cuba and lots of plants (I think so) from Thailand and Indonesia.  I'd really like to know what it looked like when the first inhabitants came. And I have to say - It's a paradise for bougainvilleas - they grow everywhere. All colors, all the time. So many blooming plants - unbelievably pretty.

Mangroves - another introduced species - brought in
to help protect the beaches from large waves.

Taking a little break...

... since am going on a little trip. Actually - already am on a little trip.
Have to comment on the Boots I visited - bloody difficult to find things, they are all grouped  by function rather then brand - can't find the Botanics moisturizer auntie wanted me to bring :S (ginger &smth). And Anu, the Toni&Guy Brunette shampoo seems to be either totally out of stock or they do not make it anymore, already 2 stores showed no sign of them. :S

Lumene Natural Code lipstick in Sweet Pink

I bought this in January! And then lost it... it was hiding in an old bag until now. So here is my long lost buddy swatched: 

Consistency is nice and creamy as expected, coverage is somewhat less - this is more a lip balm then a lipstick. Recently there have been signals, that these are no longer obtainable in larger department stores. Seems Lumene might discontinue them. What a shame.

This time the label came off well and lipstick itself looks nice too. I bought a lighter one because it seemed to me Mauve Rose makes my upper lip seem even narrower then it actually is - darker lipsticks have this annoying effect.

Head huulepulgad, päris hea meel oli, kui see ikkagi vanast käekotist välja ilmus :). Igapäevavärvina parem kui Mauve Rose.

The Conservatorie pressed mineral foundations in action

Before (this is how my skin looks without makeup):

After:

Fairly Light

After:

Fair

After:

Ivory

After:

Porcelain

Nude - cant remember which pics are of Nude (the darkest one that has a difficult consistence - too well pressed), I'll do them later. But I remember that Nude was the one with the best staying power. I think it's hard structure (less oil) helps it to stay put on my face. But it will definitely be too dark for winter because even now it has a pretty strong contrast with my face.
And here's Nude:

skin's gone quite bad recently...

Üldiselt vihkan ma tervet nägu näitavate piltide  postitamist aga eesmärk pühendab abinõu - kellelgil võib neid nahaswatche endale puudrit valides vägagi vaja minna. Rohkem on need pildid siiski mu enda jaoks.  Hetkel on Porcelain liiga hele - Fairly Light ja Nude meeldivad mulle enim - samas on talvel Porcelain just see, mida vaja - kaelaga pole erilist toonivahet juba praegu näha. Fair on kindlalt liiga roosa ning Ivory tundub kollasemat sorti olevat.

The Conservatorie shimmer eyeshadow trio in Mocha Splash

Am using The Conservatorie's pic as well because mine does not look so good (one small edge remained intact). I specifically asked The Conservatorie not to send a flawless product because I do not need the packaging to be flawless in order to review the content. I quite liked the shade I got when all 3 were mixed together.

The Conservatorie has other surprises for us who have not visited for a while: now they also have pressed eyeshadows and I picked Mocha Splash for reviewing. The trio has one light color and two darker brown ones,  to me the two browns seem quite similar: one has a stronger silvery sheen and the other's a bit darker. It looks a bit different on Conservatorie's homepage.  

sry, lousy swatches - blame the light

Ingredients are skin friendly, product is pressed using coconut oil:

Mica, Zinc Stearate, Boron Nitride, Hydrated Silica, Caprylic Capric Triglycerides, Allantoin. May Contain ( /-): Iron Oxides, Titanium Dioxide, Ultramarines, Manganese Violet, Ferric Ferrocyanide, Carmine, Chromium Oxide Greens and Tin Oxide.

Colors are wearable and perfect for someone who likes sparkle and sheen but cannot leave the house all guns blazing: brown is a nice safe color. The middle one is a bit too pinkish yellow to be worn as a highlighter (better for someone with darker skin, I'd look weird) but it's very good when one's blending the crease color upwards. The staying power is excellent (keep in mind, this is a glittery product) and pigmentation leaves nothing to be wished for. The shadows are very soft and adhere well, one should be careful when dipping the brush into the pan - it's really very very soft.

 I believe the foundation used here is The Conservatorie's pressed mineral foundation in Porcelain.

Personally I'd recommend these but since the shimmer shadows seem a bit fragile, I'd also recommend to treat them with great care. Shimmery and glitter shadows are a pain to press - if anyone knows this it's me: put too much oil and you got oily gunk, put too little and the shadow will crumble at a fleajump.

I'd also like to recommend The Conservatorie's loose micas in the Mocha family - my personal favorite is Super Brilliant Mocha Mica. A sample for 1,35 $ you cannot go wrong. I have not had the time to go through my samples to see which micas the colors in these trios resemble the most but I'll add that information when I have a bit more time for dabbling. :)

If you have the cash and prefer your pigments pressed, get the pressed version - for more price-conscious people I'd warmly recommend the loose pigments. Trust me, they are nice. :)

LisaLise's Giveaway - pure body butter

Yesterday I had a nice surprise - a parcel in my mailbox. Those who follow LisaLise's blog already know that she has a giveaway spree going on: the last one was just the other week and since she had 8 sample sets to give away, the chances of winning were pretty good :). 

I actually feel bad for not promoting this giveaway more, the product sure deserves this. This time it was a set of Bare Basic Body Butters: both based on pure cocoa butter (that's why it's texture reminded me of white chocolate!), one with thistle oil and the other with hazelnut oil. LisaLise asked all the winners to agree to give feedback on the product afterwards so there will be another post after I have had the pleasure of using both of these.

My first impression - I started with thistle oil one - is that the butter absolutely melts in the skin - it disappears so quickly I can dress myself almost immediately afterwards. There is no recognizable scent and feel is great. My shins literally drunk it up. Although my face at first seemed to drink it up too, it has now (in an hour or so) become greasy again - I am a living oil refinery.  And it looks just like white chocolate!

And another thing - I absolutely loved the rose-water so LisaLise (so kind of her!) agreed to make a trade with me and I got this herbal hydrosol as well - this is custom made and based on organic melissa hydrosol, organic aloe vera glycerine, cucumber extract - and added a little bit of benzyl alcochol as a preservative.

This does not smell as flowery as the Pure Rose Hydrating Skin mist, it's distinctly more masculine and mossy, one could even say a "medicinal" scent. At the same time I have to say that rose mist's scent is  much stronger - the herbal one will be much easier to use in public places. Many younger people seem to think rose-scent too overwhelming and a bit too "grandma". ;)

As I sprayed my face I believe I tasted aloe - it was a familiar slightly bitter taste (gran used to make me eat aloe with honey when I was having another of my throat infections so am familiar with that). It should be excellent remedy against all the sunburns I am bound to get. I think I'll write more about it after my trip. :) I have high expectations.

There was also a juniper hydrosol sample in the parcel - instructions say it's great after a long day on my feet so this will also be accompanying me pretty soon :). I just hope the airport officials wont confiscate them -  they might think me a bit weird travelling with so many bottles full of suspicious liquids.

Olin jälle LisaLise loosis õnnelik võitja - seekord postkastis kaks orgaanilist kehavõid - ja esimene mulje on väga hea. Iseenesest on mul veidi piinlik, et ma seda giveawayd rohkem ei promonud - aga kuulge, kes tahab oma võiduvõimalusi ise ja tahtlikult vähendada? Seekord oli 14 osalejat ja 8 võitjat! Kui selle lahke blogipidaja tooteid ise proovida soovitakse, küll siis ka follow-nupp ta blogis üles leitakse, mõtlesin mina. Iseenesest oli võitjate seas veel kaks eesti blogijat, nendegi kommentaare oleks põnev lugeda (Triin ja Kerli).

Toode on põhimõtteliselt puhas klopitud kakaovõi, millesse on parema pehmuse saavutamiseks lisatud kas siis ohakaõli või sarapuupähkliõli -  LisaLise eesmärk oli saada inimesed neid tooteid testima, otsustamaks, kumb versioon rohkem meeldib. Ma ei tuvastabnud kummalgi mingit erilist lõhna. Kehavõi ise näeb välja kui valge šokolaad - kaunikesti isuäratav.

Lisaks oli Lise nii armas, et pakkus välja vahetuse - minu kraam tema ürdihüdrosooli vastu - kuidas sain keelduda :)


PS! I definitely prefer the thistle oil version! Hazelnut oil has a cookie-smell when it warms up on my skin while Thistle has no recognizable  scent.

The Conservatorie's pressed mineral foundations

I have been eyeing these for quite some time now - always wanted to swatch them and compare to the loose mineral powders The Conservatorie has in it's inventory.  But I'd never have the cash to buy them all at full price just for swatching. The problem with buying cosmetics online is the risk the color might not suite at all and at almost 10 USD a piece it would not be a cheap experiment. These five here were sent to me by The Conservatorie so I could swatch and play with them. They have quite a big range on their homepage, totaling 24 shades altogether. I carefully picked the 5 lightest, afraid they'd all be too dark for me as it has been the case with The Conservatorie's loose mineral powders. To my utter surprise all of them are wearable - Nude seems a bit dark but even that one looks ok on my summer skin. I am quite happy.

I have to compliment The Conservatorie on the ingredients list - not bad at all (as befitting a MMU wholesaler no synthetic dyes, fragrances, preservatives etc):

Mica, Zinc Stearate, Zinc Oxide, Squalane, Fractioned Coconut oil, Lauryl Lysine, Allantoin, DL-alpha -tocopherol acetate, Grapefruit (Citrus racemosa) Extract , Origanum vulgare leaf extract, thymus vulgaris (thyme) extract, cinnamomum zeylancum bark extract, rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf extract, lavandula angustifolia (lavender) flower extract, hydrastis canadensis (golden seal) root extract May Contain ( /-) Titanium Dioxide, Iron Oxides, Chromium Oxide Greens, Ultramarines.

The amount of all the extracts here explain why the powder has a noticeable herbal smell when the package is first opened. By now it has faded but I quite liked the original scent. I would recommend this to most people but would advise persons with allergy prone or extremely sensitive skin to be careful - there are many ingredients here and should there be a reaction, it will be quite difficult to pinpoint the culprit. I think for MMU-novices with sensitive skin the loose version would be the safer bet.

The colors chosen were Porcelain (neutral, lightest of them all), Fairly Light (slightly darker, tad orangey), Fair (pinkish fair tone), Ivory (seems quite strong yellow) and Nude (darkest of the five, neutral). In the lower left corner is another testeé - The Conservatorie eye primer but that one deserves a separate post. 

I  asked The Conservatorie for product samples (just the pressed pans) because I do not need the cases - usually these powders come in quite solid looking black compacts.

Product is pressed in a standard 58mm pan and most of them seem to be tin (only Ivory was pressed into an aluminium pan) - which is wonderful news to all Z-palette owners out there. I think The Conservatorie would do well if they'd offer the pans as refills: many of us would prefer to buy the product cheaper (without the compact) and travel with one palette rather then several tiny containers. One StarsMakeupHaven large Z-palette can take 8 pressed powder pans - I imagine many a makeup artist's eyes would probably light up seeing this option.

Now to the product itself. Pressed mineral powders do not agree with me - I have very oily skin, personally I prefer the loose version because it handles the greasiness much better. When pressing mineral foundation a binder is needed - usually some kind of an oil - here it's squalane and fractioned coconut oil. Since the product contains oil and my face also produces a lot of oil it's no wonder my makeup will start to run by mid-day (it was the same with Everyday Minerals pressed foundations). But on the other hand it's godsend for people with dry skin, for whom the loose versions might be much too drying. Coverage is medium but can be upped with some primer.

With the exception of Nude (which does not want to rub off for some reason, I've actually scratched it to get the powder out of the pan) all the pressed powders are very creamy and one should use light hand when loading the brush.They are not completely matte nor are they shiny - they have a slight sheen but it's not exactly noticeable. They were a devil to swatch so I finally gave up and used them over primer:

Horizontal stripes above are the loose mineral foundations in Barely Beige, Barely Beige matte, Barely Golden and Barely Golden matte - the lightest loose mineral powders The Conservatorie offers. Barely Beige is a bit too pink for my liking but of the loose ones it's the only one I can get away with during winter. I'd very much like The Conservatorie to offer a loose mineral foundation in fair neutral olive tone as well (hint, hint). Porcelain seems actually pretty close to the desired shade but since it's pressed I'll have to wait a decade or two for my skin to stop producing so much oil.

Sain testimiseks The Conservatorie pressitud mineraalpuudreid - siin nende kohta ka arvustus. Sobivad kuivemapoolsele nahale ning lõpuks ometi on olemas ka heledaid toone! Hind on minu meelest ok, 10 USD pole paha ja lisaks leidub teisigi asju, mida ostukorvi panna, et tellimise miinimummaksumus kokku saada - nagu alati, oleks sealt tellides mõistlik koopereeruda ja pakk maksude vältimiseks nt hoopis Soome tellida.

Ilublogija lemmik

(This is an Estonian tag - about beauty related stuff one uses)

Eesti ilublogijad said Ilu Sõnumi messi korraldajatelt palve üles kirjutada nende lemmiktooted jumestuse, keha- ning juuksehoolduse ja küünte vallas.

Mina olen rott st et püüan leida võimalikult taskukohaseid variante ning samas ka võimalikult väheste toodetega hakkama saada. Seetõttu on mu kasutatavad tooted enamuses odavad ning igaühele kättesaadavad.

Alustame nahahooldusest: õlid! Ei ole multifuntsionaalsemat kosmeetikatoodet kui õli: sobib (pikematele ja rikutud) juustele juukse-maskiks, naha niisutamiseks, koorimiseks, meigieemaldamiseks jne. Igaks otstarbeks võib kasutada erinevat aga samas võib vabalt ka lihtsalt oliivõlipudelit kusagil käeulatuses hoida. Minu lemmik on jojobiõli, mida kasutan nii näo- kui keha niisutamiseks. Näole kasutan seda siiski rohkem talvel, sest suvel tahaks kergemaid tooteid. Nahapuhastuseks oli mul pikka aega Joigi näopuhastusõli kuid kui too lõpuks otsa sai, asendasin tavalise oliivõliga: õli näkku, veidi soodat, veidi hõõrumist ning swammiga õli-soodasegu nahalt jälle maha. Hoiatan, et see meetod on vägagi abrasiivne ning tundliku naha puhul tuleks sooda ja hõõrumine kindlasti vahele jätta. Isegi kasutan seda vaid kord nädalas, igapäevaselt pesen nägu vee ja mikrokiudlapiga.

Õlid meigieemalduses: ripsmetušš sulab ripsmetelt kui võluväel, ainuke halb omadus on see, et pärast läheb mitu niisutatud vatipatja selleks, et õli silmade ümbrusest eemaldada. Sobib igasugune vedelam õli, paksemat riitsinusõli võib pärast pigem profülaktiliselt ripsmetele kanda.

Kreemid: Hauschka roosikreem, see paksem - kuigi kallis, paar testrituubi kulub talve jooksul väsinud ja ketendava naha turgutamiseks ära.
Juba mõnda aega kasutan vahelduseks ka Dr. Schelleri ökokreeme - kerge konsistentsiga ja mõnusad ning sageli Rimides ning Selverites alla hinnatud. Kevadeks-suveks-sügiseks väga head.

Meigipõhjana on pikaaegseks lemmikuks Everyday Minerals'i mineraalpuuder toonis Olive Fair (semi-matte retseptuur). Jätab kerge kuma ning ühtlustab nahatooni. Üldjuhul on tuhkja nahatooniga inimestel väga raske endale sobivat jumestuspõhja leida, ükskõik kas siis vedelat või puuderjat, kõik on kas tugevalt kollased või oranžid. EDMi oliivi-sari on just meiesugustele, "nagu-kruusatee-kuumal-päeval" hallikaskollaka nahaga kartulitele. Alternatiivi sellele pole just kerge leida.

Kõigile võibolla ei sobi puuderjas toode silmade alla kuid ma olen siiamaani EDMi Pearl Sunlightiga täitsa rahul, kahjuks pole seda viimasel ajal kodulehel enam näha - nagu kõik pikaajalised EDMi kasutajad teavad - see firma pole kuigi usaldusväärne, tooted kaovad müügilt ning koostised muutuvad etteteatamata. Kuna helendustoodet kulub vähe, on mul uue lemmiku leidmiseks veel oma kenad 3 aastat. 

Silmameigialusena olen aastaid Manhattani silmameigi aluskreemi kasutanud - töötab ja veel kaunis hästi. Hind on lausa super! Viimasel ajal on selle lõhn siiski häirima hakanud - tootel on ebameeldiv sünteetiline hais ning ka pakend pole suurem asi - tüütu on pärast seda kreemi küünte alt välja koukida ja üldse - tuubis olles ei kuivaks toode nii kiiresti ära ka. Otsin hetkel uut.

Huulepulkadest olen jäänud truuks e.l.f.'i mineraalhuulepulgale Rosy Raisin - ideaalne "oma-huuled-kuid-parem" toon, kerge kreemjas pruunikasroosa. Lumene Natural Code sari on samuti väga hea - ilusad värvid, hea lõhn ja mõnus kreemjas koostis. Sellest sarjast siiski pole õnnestunud leida mõnusat igapäevatooni - valisin liiga erksad roosad.

flat-top puudripintsel on mul juba pikalt - ja ikka veel sama hea kui uus,
ainult vart olen korra liimima pidanud

Meigivahenditest on (vähemalt hinna/kvaliteedi suhtelt) parimad e.l.f.'i Studio sarja sünteetilised meigipintslid, selle raha eest Eesti poodidest juba naljalt nii head pintslit ei saa. Pehmed ja funktsionaalsed. Need on juba pea tervel mu sõpruskonnal ja aina küsitakse juurde. Samas on e.l.f.'il ka tõsised kvaliteediprobleemid - üks viiest on mingi veaga - sealt pintslite ostmine on kui loterii. Aga kui veab, siis veab korralikult ja kaotuse korral pole mahavisatud raha kuigi suur. e.l.f.'is shoppamiseks tuleb aega valida: 20% allahindlus on tavaline kuid esineb ka 33% ning isegi 50% allahindlusi - viimasel juhul soovitan kindlasti 11- osaline pintslikomplekt ära võtta.

Ripsmetušš - Lumene, see sinine ja tihendav - ei haise, hea suur aplikaator ning mõnus vedel koostis. Kui endal on ripsmematerjali piisavalt siis aitab tegelikult igasugune vähegi tušimoodi tušš - Lumene konsistents on tavaliselt vedelamapoolne ning mis minu jaoks olulisim - ei haise ning ei aja silmi sügelema. Boonusena - taskukohane ja sageli ka allahindluses. Imet ei tee kuid töötab. Ja rohkemat ma sellelt ei soovigi.

Mis veel igaühe meigikotis peaks kindlasti olema - hele silmapliiats silma alumisele ripsmejoonele kandmiseks - avab silmad hetkega ja jätab mõnusa värske mulje. Mul NYX'i Milk aga sobib igasugune hele kreemjas silmapliiats.

Viimane parim leid oli pritspudelis hüdrosool - eeterlike õlide tootmisjääk. Suurepärane nahavärskendaja ja meigikinnitaja. Mineraalmeigi kasutajatele imho asendamatu abivahend - ei saa aru, kuidas nii kaua ilma selleta hakkama sain :). Teinekord ikka juhtub, et puuder ja nahk ei saa läbi - siis tuleb "jahussekastetud" efektist lahtisaamiseks vaid veidi hüdrosooli nahale piserdada ja õrnalt pintsliga üle tupsutada - jääb hetkega ühtlane ja loomulik. Neid peaks olema ka odavamalt saada kui siin pildil olev toode, seda tootegruppi hakkan nüüd meie looduspoodidest otsima.

Siin on veel ka Karolina,  Grete ning  Liisi lemmikud.

I got lucky at LisaLise's Hydrosol Skin mist giveaway!

I have not advertised but I was one of the 6 who got lucky on LisaLise's Hydrosol Skin Mist giveaway and now has a wonderful new friend - my very own Pure Rose Hydrating Skin Mist. Timing could not have more perfect - we had a minor heatwave  and I got to test this out in really hard circumstances (my glass box of an office had some 35 degrees in it - even lifting a hand made me sweat). Thank you, Lise!

I've never before used misting my makeup much  - only sometimes, when my makeup looked well and truly cakey did I  grab the plaything I use to mist my plants and misted my own face as well.  It's not as nice as when using this product - this one has an added bonus to it - a wonderful aroma.

What is an hydrosol? For explaining that I am going to use a picture from LisaLise's blog:

When producing essential oils (boiling plants and then cooling the steam) one ends up with water and oil - hydrosol and the thin layer of essential oil on top of it. Though essential oils are the main goal here, throwing out the water while keeping the "baby" would be a silly thing to do - hydrosol also retains those beneficial effects the essential oil has though in remarkably lesser concentration. Basically a wonderful skin tonic :).  (Lise will correct me if I got this wrong :))

Lise produces these for herself and family and friends and you can also order one from her, here. After having such a good time with the Rose skin mist, I am seriously thinking about getting the Herbal one as well. They are custom made and you get to pick your own favorites. :) As it happens I am going away soon, to a rather warm place (no, not to hell) and I think a refresher such as this will be desperately needed. :) Also: winter is coming - and office air looses all humidity - I have a hunch I will be grasping for it during winter as well.

click to biggify in order to meet the visitor
from the planet of the apes

 I'd like to share one more reason I love this product so much. A problem all loose powder mineral makeup users are bound to face at some point (and what liquid foundation users probably never notice): realization that even though you are female, you do have facial hair, lots of it, and it all shows up on the pics. Making the face moist and stippling it with your foundation brush helps a lot. This process is a lot more pleasant if the product used also smells nice and looks after your skin.

And - for all people who have difficulties getting up in the morning - you will not believe the effect spraying your face has when still groggy - instant alertness! Warmly recommend. :D

Ma võitsin! Esimest korda elus osutusin giveaways väljavalituks - ja nüüd on mul üks looduskosmeetika pärl endal olemas, LisLise Pure Rose hydrating Skin Mist. Luksuslik toode ja hind on kaunis karm kuid mõtlen, et peaks ühe sellise veel juurde tellima, Herbali. Ma olen ahvivaimustuses ja seda ei juhtu just sageli - iseenesest on toode ülilihtne kuid kasutusvõimalused kaunis laialdased: värskendaja, meigikinnitaja, nahatoonik - kõik ühes. Kui oled rikas, siis tasub täitsa vaadata. Vaesemad peavad alternatiive otsima hakkama - võibolla leiab midagi sarnast ka meie apteekidest või looduskosmeetikapoodidest. Ma arvan, et selle ostu pean siiski veel ära tegema. Päris palju variante tuleb ette, kui otsingusse panna lillevesi või hüdrosool.

Here's another tribute to Lise - the packaging was amazingly neat :) and posted on Friday it arrived in Tallinn by Monday. Well done, Danish and Estonian mail services!
Bottle itself is sturdy plastic and has a protective cap over the pulverizer (?). When sprayed there are no big drops, it all comes out in even mist.

PS! Lise is currently holding another giveaway - samples of her Bare Basic Body Butter. There will be  8 lucky winners this time:). To participate leave a comment under her blog post and agree, that you will give her feedback on the product should you be the lucky winner. Guess who's already listed ;)