January and February Empties

Hello Ladies,

I'm sorry for the long absence. I could say that my recent beauty blogging drama kept me away, but  that's not true. It's more like I'm going through my every-few-month low right now, and I should be ok in a week or two. I mean, I haven't wore makeup AT ALL in over a week! Got ID'ed at Waitrose though, so maybe I should go makeup less more often huh?

So to get myself back on track I'm posting something nice and easy and what doesn't require too much of thinking, otherwise known as finished products post. I got myself a new storage thing for the bathroom so now I can keep track of all the empty bottles much easier, and now they just seem to pile up so fast!

Mittens is investigating the new smell

1. DeadSeaSource De-Tox Seaweed Salt Scrub
Love this stuff. Can I say that again? LOVE THIS STUFF!! Sadly I can't use it when my husband is around cuz the weirdo hates the smell. I really don't get why, he was right there with me when I bought it and approved the smell, but when I actually used it he said it makes him gag. *sad face* So I can only use it when he is gone. Next time he goes away for few month I'll be buying another one. I love it because not only it scrubs very well, but afterward it leaves my skin feeling very moisturized and soft. I think it's because of the oil that's in there, and because of that I usually tap the moisture off with the towel instead of rubbing. I love the smell too, regardless of what my husband says lol.

Mittens is at it again :)

2. VICHY Purete Thermale One Step Cleanser
Boots is having their 3 for 2 sale again and I'm having a hard time resisting buying more of this and other thermal water stuff. Sadly, being unemployed I gotta watch how I spend, plus I also have other cleansers that I need to use first. But fear not, once I ran out I will go out and buy more of this because it love it. It removes the makeup very well and leaves my skin feeling very clean and fresh.

3. Simple Kind to Eyes Eye-Makeup Remover
I am on a quest to find the perfect (for me) eye makeup remover and I bought the sample size to try. I'm not that impressed. It removed my eye makeup, but I think it could be better so I'm still on lookout for something else.  Even after holding cotton pads to my eyes for over a minute, I still had traces (a lot) of eye makeup and I don't even wear anything waterproof.

4. Batiste Dry Shampoo in Tropical and Boho
I regret not buying more of those when Superdrug had their sale, because these are lifesavers for me! I will be buying and buying them, although I don't particularly care for the ones above because of their smell. I like Blush the most so I'll just stick with it from now on.  

5. Aussie Take the Heat Leave-in Spray
Another product that I will be buying over and over again. It smells great and doesn't weight my hair down and protects it from heat. Perfect in my book :)

6. Botanics Soothing Eye Makeup Remover
After reading raving reviews about this eye makeup remover I decided to give it a try. To me it's OK, it's about the same as Simple Eye Makeup Remover except this works a little better. Still I will be looking for a better one, but if I'm in a pinch I can always come back to this.

7. fcuk Body Polish
Am I the only one that starts giggling when first glancing at the brand name? I bought this on offer along with Ted Baker Sugar Scrub a while back, but just now got to use it up. And I used the whole thing up in one time, but guess that's not that surprising. Entire thing is only 50ml and it supposed to cover my whole body. So I gave myself a nice 'polish' and pamper. I didn't notice too much of a difference, maybe because it is too fine and I like a good scrub. I might buy it again.

8. Ted Baker Invigorating Sugar Scrub
I used this as a facial scrub, although I suppose it is not. But it didn't say not to use it on face, only said not to get it in my eyes. I love the subtle smell and the texture. It gave me a great scrub and didn't irritate my face (but things rarely irritate my face to be fair). I will definitely buying it again, but I really wish it came in a bigger size. No matter how many Boots I check all I see is this travel size tube.

9. Simple Regeneration Age Resisting Eye Cream
I guess it worked because I didn't notice much difference in my eye area but I'm not sure what the "age resisting" part supposed to do. I think my under eye area was moisturized, but that's about it. I won't be purchasing this again since I'm trying other eye creams from Simple right now.

10. AHAVA Mineral Foot Cream
Ever since my cousin brought me AHAVA's hand cream from Israel I've been in love with everything AHAVA. I had this travel size tube for over 2 years but it was lost in my kimono room and only recently found. I love everything about this, the smell, how it sinks into my skin without feeling oily and how soft it makes my feet feel. Too bad it's on the expensive (for me) side, but given a chance I will buy more.

So what stuff did you recently finish? Leave a link to your blog in the comment, or just tell me. I would love to read about it :)

~ Lyuba

My Favorite Products from 2010

Hello everyone,

This post is a little late, but I have a (very poor) excuse - I absolutely hate taking and then editing photos haha. Not a good thing for a beauty blogger don't you think?

For me, 2010 was a year of discoveries. Not necessary of products that were released in 2010, but of beauty products in general. Up until few month ago, I wasn't even THAT into makeup and everything related. Sure I applied make up, but it was always the same boring thing. I also did not realize the importance of good skin care regime, but at least now I'm proud to say that I pay attention to my skin at lot more.

You might also notice that my favorite products are sort of random, and I'm missing some things (like lipstick and shampoos/conditioners, etc..) but that's because I just started looking and still have to find THAT one great thing. I am pretty sure that 2011 post will be a lot longer and more organized. :)  

Here is the list (in no particular order):

The Body Shop Lip Scrub
Up until couple month ago I didn't even know that lip scrubs existed!! Then I read couple of blogs recommending this and I had to get it for myself.  I love how moisturizing it is, even if it's a scrub, and after every use my lips feel oh so nice :) I also love that this is put in a lipstick tube, as I absolutely hate lip products that require me to use my fingers (like balms). That's the reason I haven't tried any other lip scrubs.

Simple Skincare Range
Yes, I love the WHOLE range! I discovered the Light Moisturizer and the Soothing Toner earlier this year, but after starting to pay attention more to my skin I branched out and tried other stuff. And so far I love everything I tried. I recommend this range to all my American friends here in UK, as well as sending some stuff as gifts to my friends back in US.

Vichi Purete Thermale 3 in 1 One Step Cleanser
I decided to try this range after reading some great reviews and was hooked instantly. Now my skin is by no means sensitive, but I love how gentle and soothing this cleanser it. After using it, my skin feels so soft and smooth. Another brand I recommend to anyone willing to listen to me. ;P

Aussie Take the Heat Leave-in Spray
I had a pretty mediocre experience with Aussie in US when I tried their shampoo and conditioner. Not sure if the stuff in US are different, who knows. I like this leave-in spray because of its smell and of course for protection reasons. I don't straighten my hair often, only after I wash it so spraying this nice smelling stuff feels like a treat. Because I like it so much, I bought 2 more as backups (on offer in Boots right now), and I think I will try more stuff from the range in the future.

EcoTools brushes
It is more of a re-discovery than discovery for me because I first bought them in 2008 or 2009, but I didn't know how to properly use brushes at the time so I was not too impressed. When I picked them up again this year, I was in LOVE. The brushes pictured about are the ones I use every day, but they all came from 3 different sets as well as individual one that I got as a gift. The three smaller brushes came from 2 sets I ordered online from ULTA.com. I've never seen them in any stores in UK, so I don't think they are available here. :( I use tiny kabuki brush for my blush, travel powder brush for foundation, travel 'blush' (I think) brush for setting my concealer. The rest I think are pretty self explanatory. And yes, that is my kitty trying to steal one of the brushes. She even succeeded for a whole 3 seconds!

Sleek palettes
I only pictures two of them, STORM and SUNSET, because those are the ones I use right now. But I love Sleek makeup and wish I would have found out about it earlier, then I would have gotten some of limited edition palettes that came out before November lol. So far I have Storm, Sunset, Circus, Good/Bad Girl, Sparkle, Original, and Acid. My friends in US got some of those as Christmas gifts this year. :)

No7 Exceptional Definition Mascara
I don't like mascaras, to me they are a necessary evil to make my eyes look good. I still don't like them even after discovering this one, and I double I'll ever like mascaras. However this one is just great! It gives me volume and definition without clumping, just a perfect natural-but-better look that I love. I will be buying another one this weekend because I got one of those vouchers from Boots.

Collection 2000 Extreme 24 Hour Felt Tip Liners
Ever since I tried these, I can't go back to using pencil liners. Actually not entirely true haha, because I've rarely used pencil liners because I could never get them to work for me. With these lining my eyes became fool proof, and I can do any kind of lines with ease. So far I've got every color and back ups for them.

NYX Eyebrow Cake Powder in Auburn/Red
I really don't know how I EVER lived without this. If I had to pick one product as my number 1 most important discovery, it would be this. My eyebrows are so light that you can barely see them so I have to draw them on/fill them in to make my face look "normal", especially with my love for red hair. Before discovering this I used an eyebrow pencil to fill them in, and although it did a decent job I wasn't really happy with the look. Enter the NYX Eyebrow Cake Powder in Auburn/Red. Not only my eyebrow drawing skills significantly improved after using this, but the colors are so perfect for me that I've got lots of people give me big eyes and say they thought my eyebrows were natural. Score bit time!

Rimmel Stay Matte pressed powder in Transparent
Yup, until few month ago I never set my foundation and concealer with powder, but everything changed after I got this. It works wonders for me, especially since my skin is normal (I think, gotta go and do one of those fancy skin analysis things sometimes to make sure lol) and doesn't get that oily. After applying this powder, I don't even have to do any touch ups. Or I could of course, but working at the post office makes me not care as much haha.

What are your 2010 favorites or new discoveries?

~ Lyuba