Empties #9

Naked Shine Hydrating Conditioner – an average product in my eyes. It’s ok for day to day use but I found it’s not enough to keep my hair constantly moisturized. But it’s ok in conjunction with an intensive once-a-week treatment.

Sephora Bath & Shower Gel Strawberry/Raspberry – it smells gorgeous and the packaging looks very chic on the bathroom shelf. But the product itself isn’t anything special – just a typical shower gel.

Liz Earle Gentle Face Exfoliator – I’m not that keen on gritty face exfoliators but this was really nice. Particles are very small and not abrasive. It left my skin feeling very soft. Only thing that confused me is that it’s called ‘gentle’ yet not suitable for sensitive skin. My skin is sensitive but not to extreme and I didn’t have any irritation problems using this.

Collection 2000 Big Fake Mascara – I didn’t use this at all. I bought this ages ago and not only I picked up brown instead of black (did that on more than one occasion) but also the mascara was already dry in the tube. I don’t think I would’ve liked it anyway as it’s got massive brush which I don’t like. That was a waste of £5.

Farmona Vanilla Body Wash Scrub – first of all I don’t understand the name of this product. It’s not a wash in any shape or form. It’s just a scrub, it does not lather. As a scrub I found it did the job very well but it’s not going on my faves list. I found it a bit harsh sometimes, scent is a bit chemical and it doesn’t leave that nice silky film on the skin afterwards (some people hate it but I love it).

Benefit Total Moisture Facial Cream – really, really nice product. Smells lovely, moisturizes well, sinks in rather quickly and doesn’t make the skin oily.

Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat – I would not paint my nails at all if not this. Speeds up the drying process by 90%, gives gorgeous shine, makes the polish last longer. Already re-purchased! Only complain – goes gloopy pretty quickly so it needs thinning liquid added from time to time.

Affinage White Ice Shampoo – perfect for blondes! It’s dark purple in colour and it actually stops the blond from fading/going yellow. It’s quite drying so I didn’t use it more than once every two weeks.

Eveline Olive Creamy Milk – lovely body lotion for summer. Very light in texture and scent. Fast absorbing and just well moisturizing for the summer. I love the pump too, very handy!

Sylwia x

Favourite Highlighters

Hello lovelies,

Here is a Guest Post I did for lovely Helen from HelenRambles On. Please check out her awesome blog.

Highlighters! Most of us beauty addicts love everything shiny and sparkly and could wear glitter all over on daily basis. As lovely as that idea is unfortunately we can’t really get away with it. Plus when it comes to our faces we’d rather look healthy and glowing than shiny and glittery.

I have tried quite a few highlighters and today I’m showing you my absolute-totally-worth-of-recommending favourites.

Mac Hang Loose Minaralize Blush – when I first saw this I thought someone must be mad to think I will put lilac on my cheeks. It turns out that whoever created this is a genius because in conjunction with pink it looks beautiful. It’s a blush/highlighter that gives that amazing glow especially when the sun hits it. It cannot be overdone. Few times I managed to apply what I thought way too much product(it’s just sooo pretty I couldn’t stop) but it still looked good.

Soap&Glory Glow All Out – this is my subtle sheen savior. You know those days when your skin looks dull and tired and you’re not quite sure how to fix it? Just swipe this goodness on top of your blush, a bit on the bridge of the nose and under the brow. Voila! It will look like radiance from within.

Benefit High Beam – definitely most natural looking highlighter I have tried so far. It’s in liquid form which gives it better lasting power and more blendability. I apply this on top of the foundation (top of the cheekbones) with a foundation brush. It may not be visible at first but throughout the day you will notice how beautiful and radiant your skin looks. It’s definitely one of those ‘no makeup’ makeup items.

Mac Vanilla Pigment – this is such a versatile product. It’s more sparkly than the above products but still day time appropriate. Alhou it can be used as a traditional highlighter (top of cheek bones, bridge of the nose, under the brow) I love to use it in the inner corner of my eyes. Sometimes even when I don’t wear any other eye makeup (by that I mean I just wear mascara :D). Something about the gold and pink sheen that makes the eyes look bright and awake.

What are your favourite highlighters?

Sylwia x 

Essie Love & Acceptance

Super quick nail post today.

Here is Essie Love & Acceptance from Wedding 2012 collection. I am not getting married but still love this colour. It’s a pastel lilac/gray shade and I feel like this is going to become one of my favourites.

On some other note, I have started 50 Shades Darker and struggling to get through it …. Not sure if I will make an attempt on finishing it.

Hope you’re having a good week so far!

Sylwia x

Neon Orange Drop Hem Dress

I got this dress back in April when visiting my family in Poland from shop called Re-reserved (anyone heard of it?). I really wanted a drop hem dress at the time and loved the simplicity of this one.

I wasn’t too convinced about the colour at first but only this or black were an option in stock.I didn’t want black for summer. Hoping it will magically change its colour to beautiful coral I took the orange one to try on.
How surprised I was when saw myself in the mirror. It goes so well with my skin tone! It makes my skin look healthy and not as pale as it is (I was gonna say ‘makes me look tanned’ but let’s face it – I never look tanned. Even when I am tanned it just looks like my natural not pale skin :D). Plus it is not extremely bright neon shade... it’s more like pastel neon (ha ha) or it could be gray lining that tones it down a notch.

Skinny gold belt that came with the dress grew on me too and together with nude sandals it all looks simple yet chic.

*Dress – Re-reserved
*Clutch – Asos
*Shoes – Lasocki (polish brand)

Your thoughts on neon?

Sylwia x

Deep cleanse those pores!

It feels so nice to write in here again. I am sorry for my long absence and hope you didn’t give up on me. The reason for my absence is 50 shades of gray, I could not get away from this book! … Not really! I'm joking!…. I did read it but I don’t think it lives up to the massive hype. I will post a review when I finish the whole trilogy.
I am back now and will be blogging regularly again so let’s get down to business.

I love deep cleansing masks and creams. Using them regularly has helped my skin a great deal and things like blackheads are kept at bay. I highly recommend adding deep cleansing to your routine and I guarantee you will see the difference in your skins condition.

My absolute favourites:

*Soap&Glory No Clogs Allowed – this is one of those self-heating products so is nicest to use in the winter when you need a bit of coziness and comfort. Nonetheless it works perfect all year round. It exfoliates and invigorates the pores leaving the skin literally squeaky clean. Results seen instantly!

*Alpha Hydrox AHA Souffle – this glycolic acid cream is serious heavy duty stuff. It stings and cannot be applied on damaged skin (picked spots etc). SPF 15 or higher needs to be applied prior to sun exposure. It’s best to use it as a night cream for about a week or two (depending on the skin condition) and awesome results are guaranteed. After that it can be applied once or twice a week as an extra treatment.

Trying out at the moment:

*KAESO Dead Sea Mud Mask – nothing revolutionary here. It leaves the skin feeling soft but doesn’t instantly clear it out. It’s a nice treatment when used regularly twice a week but no miracles.

*The Body Shop Blue Corn 3-in-1 Mask – I don’t like massive gritty bits in it – they feel way too abrasive. There definitely is noticeable difference in the skin condition (i.e. less blackheads) after the use but to me it’s too harsh to use twice a week.

Are any of you fans of deep cleansing? If yes, what’s your favourite product?

Sylwia x

Abi O BeauBronz Sunless Tanning

In one of my posts earlier on this year I mentioned that I struggled to find a nice self-tanner for my face. It became even harder to hunt one down when I decided to use more natural products.

Someone must have been reading my mind because about three weeks ago I’ve been asked if I would like to try Abi O BeauBronz Natural Tanning Products. So off course I said yes!

There are two products from the range I’ve been using for couple of weeks now and it’s safe to say that my search for a face tanner is over.

Soft Sun Self Tan For English Roses – just like the name suggests this gives light to medium colour to the skin. I’ve got very light complexion and found this colour perfect. It looks very natural and it’s not at all orange-y. It’s a gelish kind of formula but not tinted so needs to be well blended. Saying that, it blends beautifully, it doesn’t sink in too fast nor too slow, gives just enough time to work it into the skin. Another thing I love about it is the scent. It smells of roses! None of that horrible scent most of the tanning products have.

Gadual Tanner To Extend Your Tan – this one didn’t work on my face very well. I didn’t really notice the colour of my tan lingering for any longer than it normally would. I presume reason for that is thorough cleansing I do each night. I use hot cloth cleanser with muslin cloth which does light exfoliation and the gradual tan hasn’t got the time to develop on the skin. This one also smells lovely and has that gelish formula which I really like so I will be using it on my body.

Both products can be used on face or body. I’ve been using it on the face simply because I don’t want to use it up to fast :D But I will definitely purchase a big bottle for my body at some stage :)

Another thing I wanted to add is that none of these products broke me out which has been happening with a lot in the past when I used self-tanners on my face.

You can find the product and lots of advice on tanning on their website http://beaubronz.co.uk/ or http://www.feelunique.com/brands/abi-o(free delivery here!)


Sylwia x

How to prevent your makeup from melting

My skin becomes pretty oily during the summer and it’s a challenge to keep my makeup looking nice and fresh all day.
Over the years I have learnt a few things that help to keep it on for a little longer without melting off my face. Here are my tips and I hope you’ll find them helpful.

Bioderma Anti-Shien Fluid, Clarins Daily Energizer Cream, Garnier Skin Sensitive Moisturizer

*Moisturizer – this is an important part for me.
In the morning I make sure to use light mattifying product designated for oily/combo skin type. I currently use Bioderma Sebium Mat which matifies my skin but doesn’t dry it out. It really is a great base for under makeup. I’ve also been using Clarins Daily Energizer Cream which I found has mattifying properties but again isn’t drying at all, it gives my skin refreshing boost in the morning.
My skin needs a bit more moisture during the night but I still don’t want anything heavy. Recently I’ve been using Garnier Skin Sensitive Moisturizer which is really nice. Moisturizes and soothes my skin after a long day, It doesn’t clog the pores; I wake up looking fresh rather than oily.

Pharmaceris Tinted Moisturizer, Mac Face & Body, Nars Sheer Glow, Hakuro H52

*Foundation – I try to pick one with light formula and coverage. The less there is on the face, the less can melt. I use higher coverage if I need it but I stick to one rule no matter what foundation I’m using: Less is more. I apply thinnest layer possible and buff it in with kabuki type brush. Avoid using your fingers because their warmth will encourage the pores to produce more oil. Above are the products I've been loving recently.

Une Breeezy Cheeks Blush, Stila Convetrible Color, Mac Mineralize Skinfinish, Revlon Matte Lipstick, Natural Collection Moisture Shine (this one is on a matte side).

*Make sure to powder! I’ve been loving Mac Mineralize Skinfinish Natural for the summer. It doesn’t take away the dewy finish of the foundation and it has pretty good staying power. Use a puff to dab the powder all over your face. This helps it stick to the skin and stay for longer.
*Use combo cream + powder for everything. Light layer of cream blusher, then powder blusher. Cream/liquid eyeliner, then top it up with same coloured eyeshadow. Just remember to apply all of your cream products first and then you powders, things might end up looking cakey otherwise.
*Primers aren’t always the answer. I personally found them useless no matter what kind or brand I’ve tried. I always feel they just add another unnecessary layer to my routine and do nothing. They work for many people but consider putting it away, investing in mattifying moisturizer instead and see if it works better for you. It surly does for me.
*Use matte lipsticks. These guys are saviors in the hot weather. Far less likely to feather out of your lips than shiny lipstick or lipgloss. I feel a lot better without sticky stuff on my lips in blazing sunshine.
*Stay away from highlighters – I know we all want to look fresh and glowy but oily skin will produce enough sebum to give us just that. We don’t want to add any shine to that.


Please leave a comment below if you've got any tips and tricks of your own. I would love to learn more!

Sylwia x