REVIEW | COLGATE MAX WHITE CHARCOAL

All of us feel that our teeth could be a little whiter and a little brighter every now and again, am I right? 

Me, I drink a lot of coffee and even though I brush my teeth 3 times a day, I'm not able to avoid having my teeth stained. It doesn't bother me THAT much, but you know, if there's anything simple that I can do to help tone down the yellowness, I'll definitely give it a shot. I am not a huge fan of those treatments you can do at home -- you know, whitening strips or retainers with whitening goo. I prefer to keep my teeth white by brushing daily with a good whitening toothpaste.

BUT LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING -- Do you know how most whitening toothpaste, how they make your teeth whiter?? It's by scrubbing the surface of your teeth. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, however this information was passed to me by my concerned dentist: most of whitening toothpastes contain some sort of abrasive agent that literally sands the stains of your teeth surface of your teeth.most of the times you can even feel the abrasive agents if you rub the toothpaste between you index and thumb -- it feels like tiny particles of sand! And sanding of the top layer of your teeth -- the enamel -- can damage your teeth. This will make your teeth more pron to sensitivity to hot and cold. And no one wants that. Since my dentist told me this, I have been paying more attention to what tooth paste I buy, because I've always suffered with some light sensitivity and I deferentially don't want to make it any worse. But I do also still want to have whiter, brighter teeth!

The other day, while browsing the toothpaste section of my local supermarket -- as one does -- I found this toothpaste and it instantly piqued my curiosity! I bought it and started to use it right a way.

This is the COLGATE MAX WHITE CHARCOAL. It mentions "Gentle mineral scrubbing" and it says on the tube that it is "Clinically Proven to remove up to 100% of surface stains". Let's pay attention to this claim -- they do mention "surface stains" and do talk about scrubbing. So yeah, this goes right along with what my doctor told me. But hey, at least they are putting things as they are. It's right there on the box! You are going to scrub the surface of you teeth by using this product. They don't say it like this but you know, it's implied. So if you decide that you do want to use this type of toothpastes, you should be careful! Don't use it every day, just two or three times a week, don't apply too much pressure when brushing. And when you are not using this one, use a toothpaste rich in fluoride.  And this applies to pretty much EVERY WHITENING TOOTHPASTE OUT THERE -- including AP24 - the one that is super famous on social media with all the fake pics.

This one in particular has charcoal. And why is the advantage of charcoal? Well, activated charcoal is known for having the ability to bind to toxin, so it might well remove some of them from you teeth. The charcoal gives the tooth paste a jet black color making it look kind of scary for a product you put in your mouth. It tastes minty, just like regular toothpaste. You can feel de charcoal in it, which is in this case the abrasive substance that will scrub you teeth.

Have I been noticing any differences? Well kind of, but nothing very significative. I've been using this for the past two weeks but only when I brush my teeth at night, before bed. Once a day. ( In the morning and after lunch, I use my regular toothpaste). I feel like this will help me prevent new stains while slowly getting rid of old ones. I don't know if this makes any sense, or if it works, but hey -- that's how I roll. I believe that with a more frequent use you would be able to have better results, but the idea of damaging my teeth really scares me.

Have you tried any black whitening toothpaste? How was it? 

REVIEW [YOUZZ] | MYLABEL Q10 Day Face Cream

Not all products work for every skin type. And unfortunately, this time I got to try a product that did not work for me. When I got my hands on this product, I was super excited and eager to start using it!

This is the MyLabel Q10 Day Face Cream -- Q10 CREME DE ROSTO DIA -- with hyaluronic acid, vitamine E end the famous co-enzime Q10, It's targeted for skins over 30 years old and it's ready to help you prevent those inevitable fine lines that start to appear. 

I'm not 30 yet, but I am almost there, and I do include in my routine some anti-aging. This day-cream is supposed to keep you face all moisturized and nurtured, helping with elasticity and even helping in preventing sunspots.

It's beautiful and it feels so luxurious! It's pastel yellow, and it has a very light and smooth texture! It has a very intense sweet smell that, to be honest, I'm not very fond of, but that's just personal preference.

So what happen? Well, I don't know. But this product did not work for me. I feel like this product is TOO rich, and my skin usually doesn't do well to very rich products. It made me all oily and it made me break out like crazy. I never had acne, or a skin very pron to pimples. But I used this face-cream three days in a row and I was feeling super greasy all day long and I have break-outs on my chin and on my forehead. I was so greasy, that whenever I would just my fingers trough my forehead and I could fell all the grease in my fingers. As soon as I stopped using it, and went back to my regular routine, most of that yuckiness went away.

I'm so sad. I really wanted to love this product! 

But just because this din't work for me, it doesn't mean that it won't work for you! We are all different, our skins have different need and different responses to products and maybe this product is exactly what you skin needs!

It costs 2.99€ and you can find it at you local Continente -- if you are in Portugal, obviously.

#Youzz #YouzzPortugal #MyLabel #LoveMeMyLabel

REVIEW | GARNIER Ambre Solaire Sensitive Advanced Protecting and Hydrating Mist

SPF is very important in our lives. Regardless of being commuting to work in sunny Lisbon or sunbathing in the Caribbean, winter or summer, we know that sun protection should always be in our minds – and most importantly, in our skins!

But we all fail to re-apply, or even apply in the first place SPF because of its inconveniences: stickiness, heaviness and some times interference with your make up. I'm definitely guilty of that! I often don't apply sunscreen in the morning simply because it's an extra step and I don't want to get my hands all greasy.

So I have been on the hunt for the perfect sunscreen. One that takes little space, is easy to apply and that you can take away with you on a daily basis! And I think I've honestly found the most practical SPF around and perfect for us city folks that are always on the run -- and that can also be applied on top of makeup!

Garnier recently launched here in Portugal the Ambre Solaire Sensitive Advanced Face Protecting and Hydrating Mist with SPF 50 (what a mouthful!). A super light sunscreen that can actually go over makeup! 

It's truly amazing: super light and supper efficient. It dries instantly without a hint of heaviness, greasiness or stickiness in sight. And it comes in a tiny tube perfect for caring it around on you hand bag!

You just shake it well, close your eyes and mist away. It's a very fine mist that lightly covers you face, it does not leave a white cast on the skin, and it does not affect the makeup that you may have applied!

The product is defined for sensitive skins, and it has a very very VERY light floral fragrance that just goes away almost instantaneously. Also, because it's a mist, its application make you fell all refreshed! It feels really good when you are out in the sun and you apply this fresh product that not only cools you down but is also protecting your skin!

I've became a huge fan instantly. A handbag sized SPF50 spray that you can use to top up your sun protection is just perfect! It's super practical even if you have kids or you play a lot of outdoor sports! 

I would also recommend this product for man that have a bald-spot and don't want to apply regular sunscreen on their head -- because you know, hairs and all. Guys going bald usually have big issues with getting sun burned on the top of their head and I think this product would be just perfect for them! 

REVIEW | ORIFLAME Giordani Gold Iluminating Pears

If have been around for a while, you probably remember that I had - a long time a go - a sort of partnership with an Oriflame Consultant. She was a super nice girl, help me set up a giveaway and gave me few products to try. And at the time, I chose the products I wanted to try, and I chose products that I knew I wasn't going to be disappointed by. And I remember that the products were good, but just OK. Not mind-blowing, not life changing, just OK.

And a while back, a friend of my mom's showed me the catalog, and she pushed me into buying this and honestly -- What a waste of money!

These are the Giordani Gold Iluminating Pears. For what I noticed from the catalog -- and feel free to correct me if I'm wrong -- this Giordani Gold line is supposed to be Oriflame's high end line of products. They look more fancy and are more expensive. These light-diffusing multi-coloured pearls are hand-crafted in Italy and ideal for accentuating and freshening complexion -- or at least that's what the brand states.

-- without flash --

They are in fact, really pretty in their little black and gold jar. The pearls are in 4 different shades -- like color correcting shades -- ice-white, peach, green, purple and a nudy-shade. And the idea is that you swirl your brush around, pick up some products and apply it as a highlighter or even as an all over the face powder. But here's the thing -- I don't think that the glow is enough for it to be used as highlighter, and I think that all over the face it's just too much... You can see from the pictures I took. The one without flash -- it just casts a super with shadow on my skin, and on the one with flash you can see that it gives a really light glow only on some parts. And this was really fully packed on my harm. I masked a small area of my arm with little hear sticker so you can clearly see the difference where I've applied the product, and even though the glow is really pretty in the picture with flash, I hate how it looks in person! It just makes me look white pale. 

-- with flash --

This was not a cheap product -- yep, this thingy costs 31€! And I feel that, for THAT amount of money I could have bought a much better product, with higher quality and much better performance. I was already kind of expecting this, but yet I gave it benefit or the doubt and bought this product. I thought that because it was from the more premium line, it wouldn't be a failure, but I guess I was wrong.

What do you think?

New Nespresso Barista Creations [YOUZZ]

I am the type of girl who loves a nice warm latte or a yummy cappuccino in the morning. There's something just so heart-warming about the combination of coffee and milk, don't you think?

So when the time for buying a new Nespresso machine came I opted for one that would allow me to make this drinks at home. But even tho Nespresso has a couple of machines that let you heat or froth your milk, they don't have specific cups to use with milk. Well, they didn't have!

Nespresso just launched a new line called Barista Creations that allows to fix a latte, a cappuccino or a macchiato like a pro! These three new cups are going to be part of Nespresso's permanent offer --there are not just a special edition! -- and these were specially developed to be mixed in with milk!

- Chiaro: Inspired by the baristas of Brooklyn who value the natural sweetness of lighted roasted coffee, this smooth blend of Arabicas from Kenya and Indonesia, has a natural caramel and sweet biscuit notes.

- Scuro: Taking inspiration from Melbourne baristas -- the masters of robust, but perfectly balanced tastes -- Scuro combines Arabicas from Colombia and Ethiopia roasted in very contrasting manners, to create an intense roasted coffee taste that balances perfectly with milk.

- Corto: This one was inspired by Spanish Baristas and their love for serving expresso with milk! It has a very strong flavor and a dense and creamy texture, perfect for those who prefer just a little bit of milk in their coffee.

Youzz sent me these to try, and I've been obsessed with making cappuccinos and cute lattes ever since. My machine heats up the milk to the perfect temperature -- hot but not too hot to the point where you can't drink it -- makes the most perfect foam and the coffee is just so tasteful! My favorite is the scuro with some sprinkles of coca-powder on top! Takes two minutes and makes me feel like I'm have a breakfast at a nice coffee-shop!

Youzz is a website where you can sing up to try out new things that come in the market and report your experience in your blog or on your social media. Yes, they send free stuff to try! Click HERE to sign up and become a Youzzer!

#Youzz #Youzzer #ManhasBaristaCreations

REVIEW | FLORMAR Color Palette Eye-shadow 006 Pink Desserts

I'm not very adventurous with eye-shadow. I usually don't go for very bold eye-shadow looks. I honestly like to keep things simple and in the neutrals.

I only own two eye-shadow pallets -- one from ColourPop and one from Zoeva. I love them, they are great and beautiful but they are both in the same color ranges. And I felt like I needed a pallet with more color to complemente those two that I already owned. But I also didn't want to invest a lot of money because I know that I'm not going to use it a whole lot. So I thought I would give Flormar a shot. Flormar products are usually very nice. I own bunch of their stuff, and nothing has let me down so far! But I had never tried any of their eye-shadows before. So, I picked up this little 5 shade pallet to try, with a range of pink colors. I always think that pinks look really well on my skin.

So this is the Color Palette Eye-shadow in shade 006 Pink Desserts. It's an eye shadow pallet, with 5 different shades. In this case, it has all the shades you would need to create a look -- a base shade, mid-range shades, and a really dark shade! Every shade is pearlized, they are shimmery, but not glittery. It has light reflecting pigments in its formula to add extra shine, and yes, you can totally notice those.

The pallet it self is nice, it has a nice weight to it. The box is made of a cheap plastic, much similar as their blushes and bronzes. 

The shadows are really nice, but not super super pigmented. But it's buildable. Even the white shows up really nice. I didn't really noticed any differences in the formula among the shadows, they all work pretty much the same... they are all easy to blend. However, the lighter shades have a lot of fall out! I mean, a LOT! 

The shades don't have names, but I've swatched them by order on my arm. I have the shadows fully packed on the stars, and then on the side I did try to kinda blend them and fade them so that you can see how they work in both situations. The color payoff is really nice, and I love the range of pinks. My favorite are definite the two darker ones! They are just lovely and I think they go really well with my skin tone. Also, I was really surprised how well the wight shows off! Gives a nice ice-y shine to a look and it can even be used as an inner corner highlighter. You can really see the pearlized shine of these shadows and how beautiful they are.

-- BTW, how adorable are these swatches?! I'm so proud ahah --

Overall, I feel like this is a really nice eye-shadow pallet, that I can get a lot of use of. It was fairly cheap but the quality of the shadows is far superior to many others of this price range that I've tried before. Totally recommend.

More on Flormar:
-- Extreme Matte Lipstick -- Terracota Blush-On -- Contour Trio --

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First Impressions | PHILIPS Lumea Prestige IPL for home use

Summer is coming you guys! And you know what this means? This means that we are all going to start shaving our legs like crazy-mad girls. I hate having to wax or shaving. I hate hair on my body and I've been wanting to go get a more permanent hair form of hair removal done. I've looked into a few options but they all involve appointments and having to be somewhere on a certain time, and I'm not good with that, so I've just been postponing it forever.

But recently, Philips contacted me and they asked me if I was willing to try an at-home IPL device! And of course I said yes and I was super excited to try this out! Permanent hair removal, at home? It sounds like heaven to me!

So far, I've done what we can call one session, where I used this device on my legs, underarms and bikini-line. Philips say you need 5 to 10 sessions to actually get rid of hair, but I really want to share my first impressions and this journey of hair removal.

So while ago, Philips came out with this super cool device -- called Lumea Prestige IPL. IPL stands for Intense Pulse Light and you've probably heard about this term associated with permanente hair removal. Owning a device like this is really nice, because you can do your own treatments, at your own time, your own pace, in the comfort of your home. Any time of day -- you can do it late at night while watching some TV, or on the weekend. It is just so much easier to be able to get your more permanent forms of hair removal done without having to make those commitments.

This devices is super easy to use and it comes with a little booklet that will help you understated all the details about the process and the product. It's really helpful and I advice you to read it because it explains everything you'll need to know.

With IPL technology gentle pulses of light are applied to the skin and absorbed by the hair root. The lighter the skin and darker the hair the better the pulses of light are absorbed. The pulses of light stimulate the follicle to go into a Resting Phase  and as a consequence the hair sheds naturally and hair regrowth is prevented. It's recommended four to five treatments, every treatment two weeks apart and than afterwords a follow-up phase, with touch-ups every four to eight weeks. I think that with this sort of treatments, you really need to be consistent. One session is not going to give you any results! Not every single follicle is going to be affected by that one treatment so you need to do the treatments consistently over time to make sure that you get all the hair follicles. It will eventually start coming back, and that's why you need to do the maintenance stages that Philips recommends as well.

Dark skin is not suitable for IPL, because there needs to be a contrast between the hair and your skin tone -- because the darker colors will absorb more light, and if your skin is the same color as you hair, the light pulse will be absorbed by the whole area, not only just that little string of hair, and it won't have enough intensity to affect the follicle. By this same reason, this technique won't work if you have really light hairs. Therefore, the very first thing you need to do before starting to use this product is a skin test. The skin test will tell you what is the intensity that you'll need to use your device on. To do the test, you need to press the button with the magnifying glass and hold the device against your skin in the area that you are intending to use it. The recommended intensity will start to flash -- for me, it's intensity 4 -- and to accept and tell the device you are ready to use it you need to press the little check button. If you would like to use a lesser intensity, that's totally OK, you can just use the little arrows to go up and down and select the intensity that you are comfortable with.

The next step is to actually get on with the real hair removal. You take the device and you press it against your skin. If the device is correctly positioned, the is a light on the back, that will go on and you can press the trigger button positioned on the handle. You will see a bright flash and that's it.

The device comes with four different attachments, specially shaped for different parts of the body -- one for large areas, like legs and arms, one for your face, one for your armpits and one for your bikini area. It comes with a battery but in my experience one full battery is not enough for you do to one session but it does work plugged in, so I recommend you do that instead. You can use this device on you face, I haven't because I was scared it would could burn my face but I definitely want to try it.

And now the really important question that I know you are all wondering -- what did it feel like?  Honestly, it's, in my experience, completely pain-free, however you do feel something. You feel a pulse, and a little heat. But no pain what so ever. Not even on my arm pits or my bikini area. I was thinking that maybe I would need to lower the intensity for the areas, but there was no need for that.

I've only done one session, and I can't yet say it works but I know that this technology in general works and the fact that you can do it at home is just perfect. I'll keep using it and I'll keep you updated. And if you have any questions or tips about this product, please leave me a comment!

REVIEW | SEPHORA PILLOW BATTLE Body Mist & Exfoliating Body Granita

I used to be a huge fan of Sephora bath products. I don't know if you remember but Sephora used to have a rainbow wall of bath products! They had five or six types of products, from shower gel, body scrub, moisturizer, hand-wash, hand-cream, and they had like 12 different scents of each product and each scent corresponded to a different color. So you would go to the store and you would see a wall of perfectly lined up colors of products, from lighter to dark. Picking a scent was the hardest thing in life!

But recently when Senhora revamped their own products, they got rid of all this huge mess of colors and scents and they launched only a few products. They still have 6 different scents, but this is way less than they used to have before, of course all color coded. And on my last trip to Senhora, I thought that these smelled so good that I had to bring them with me!

This line is composed by a few different products --  a body mist, an exfoliating boy granita, fresh moisturizing body milk, fizzing cubes and fizzing stars, nurishing shower balm and a melting shower jelly. As far of scents go, they have 6 available online -- although I'm pretty sure my Sephora only had 3 when I got these -- Rollin' Morning, Pillow Battle, Let's Have Fun, Beach Vibes and Moonlight Swim.

I got the Pillow Battle because I honestly absolutely loved the scent, and of curse because it's this cute pastel pink. And I got the exfoliating body granita, because I used to be OBSESSED with Sephoras's body scrubs. And because I absolutely loved the scent so much, I also got the body mist. And I honestly wish I could share this scent with you -- It's fresh and cozy, slightly sweet but not too much. It smells of clean sheets and relaxation.

I was actually very intrigued with this granita. I never heard of anything like this. But it's basically a scrubbing jelly. It fells like gelatin and it has this small red-ish beads to scrub away all your death skin. And yep, I really liked it -- as you can see I have used it quite a bit! It makes my skin all smooth and leves it smelling amazing. I particularly like to used it when I shower at night, because it really leaves a nice light scent on my skin and on my bathroom!

The body mist, well, it's a body mist. I works almost like a perfume but it's lighter. The smell doesn't linger for as long as a perfume would, but it feels really good on my skin. I've also sprayed on my bathroom towel and it just fills my bathroom with this cozy smell that is just so comforting!

REVIEW | CIEN Aqua Rich Daily Exfoliating Facial Wash

Lidl's famous daily face wash has a new packaging! The product is the same -- it looks, the same, it feels the same, it smell the same. But the package is now this light teal color, super cute and fresh looking.

Even tho I really like this face wash, it has been a while since I'd bought it. I was using up some other products that I had bought, but none of them compares to this one -- The Cien's Aqua Rich Daily Exfoliating Facial Wash.

I like to wash my face, and I like to wash my face with something abrasive. I don't feel clean if don't scrub away every little piece of dead skin. And this also applies to the rest of my body. This face wash has micro-beads that do a really good job gently exfoliating you face, helping you to get rid of any death skin and dirt that you may have accumulated during the day.

Also, this is super cheap - 1.85€! It's the cheapest you can find. It's a gel-like consistency, with some blue exfoliating beads. It smells really nice and fresh and really makes you feel clean and nurtured.

I know that sometimes this type of washes are not very practical. You need to wet you face, apply the product wash it off, and that feels like A LOT OF WORK. But I think this is awesome to use in the shower. Your face is already wet, and the steam and the hot water helps open your pores and release all the gunk in there. 

And yes, I know that micro-beads are not that good for the environment, but you can beat this price. Lush has a bunch of really good scrubs, with all natural ingredients but they are super expensive. The only thing I can recommend that is as good as this, at this price point is the ACH.BRITO Pumice Stone Soap  -- a soap bar with pumice stone dust. It's amazing. 

Also on this topic:

-- My favorite Cien products -- My favorite Lush products -- 

REVIEW | NIVEA Peel-off Urban Skin Detox Mask Mattify

I'm always looking for face-masks that are cheap and easy to do, that don't take too long to dry and don't make a huge mess. I really enjoy doing a face mask, at the end of the day, right before getting into the shower. It's a good ritual that helps me relax after a long hard day. And I really like the  Nivea 1 Minute Urban Detox Masks. So the other day when I saw this one I knew I had to pick it up and try it out. 

This is the Urban Skin Detox Peel-Off Mask. It's a mattifying mask, with Black Rice and Green Tea Extract and it claims to remove dead skin and traces of urban pollution, minimize the appearance of pores and remove excess shine and oiliness.

Similarly to the Pore Minimizer, this mask has a gel-like consistency -- it even smells a little bit like hair gel, which is kind of weird --  and it's black. But it's not as black as those peel-off charcoal face masks, because it's very shear. 

This mask is very simple to apply and it doesn't make a mess. I usually squirt out an almond size amount on the back of my hand, and I use a little synthetic brush or just my fingers to apply an even layer all over my face, avoiding my eye area, eyebrows and lips. Because of its consistency the mask stays pretty much where you putt it doesn't drip or slide, so you can actual go one with you life while you wait for it to dry. It didn't stained my brush or my nails and it didn't make my sink all black! It was really easy to wash off the brush, putting the brush under running water was enough. The mask takes  15 to 20 minutes than you can peel it off. 

Because this mask has this opaque black, it makes you look like your face very dirty. And it will make super noticeable any facial hair you might have! So definitely do not use this if you are planning a pampering night with your SO.

You'll know that the face mask is dry because its texture actually changes -- this is pretty standard for a peel-off face mask -- you will feel like it is pulling your face, and if you try to open your mouth you will feel it resisting the movement. At this point the mask will feel very rubbery and when you don't feel any wet spots you know it's ready to come off. Taking the mask off was very easy -- and sometimes these masks do not come out in one attempt, or leave patches on you face but this one came out really easily. When the mask is fully dry, the edges start do pull away from the skin and you can actually roll them up until enough has lifted off you you to grab it with your fingers and slowly peel it off. It's really satisfying to do this.

If any pieces of mask are left behind, you can just wash them off with a cloth and some warm water.

I always say this when I am reviewing a skin care product but don't expect to see amazing instant results, because that doesn't happen. I didn't really noticed anything with the size of my pores but I did noticed that my skin was really matte. It felt like the oils were really stripped off my skin -- specially in my t-zone. And I was really happy about that. My skin felt clean, oil-free and healthy.

REVIEW | NIVEA Make up remover for the shower -- DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY

A while ago, while I was picking up my regular bathroom supplies I noticed a product that I'd never seen before. The NEW yellow label caught my eye and made me really curious about this product --  A Makeup removing product to use IN THE SHOWER. Being the lazy girl that I am, I never take off my make up before getting into the shower. I just go straight in, take a shower like I normal would -- this includes washing my face with whatever face wash I'm using at the time. And usually when I get out and dry my face with a towel, all my make up ends up on that towel because the face wash didn't really did a good job removing it. We've all been there, don't lie! On a daily basis I don't wear a lot of make up -- just concealer, brow-stuff and mascara. And usually getting out the mascara is what gives me more trouble. If it's not completely off it goes all over my towel.  And make up is so hard to remove from clothes that I absolutely thought that this product could be a life safer.

The instructions on the bottle make it sound pretty straight forward -- they suggest you should apply the product to your face directly with circular motions, rinse it thoroughly and all the make up is gone.

Well ... honestly that didn't quite work for me. Yes, it release some of the make up but nothing that my regular face-wash wouldn't do. It didn't to any magic with the mascara -- it ran all around my eyes, giving me pretty huge panda eyes...

But dying to make this product work, the next day I decided to try it out with a sponge that I often use to exfoliate my skin. I squirted some product onto the sponge and tried to remove my make up with with it. And yes, this got me some better results -- most of the make up was gone, and it got transferred to the sponge, and no panda eyes. But I don't think this success is the work of the product as much as it is the work of the sponge, because I think I would get exactly the same result with any other product combined with that sponge. 

Not everything is bad. As all Nivea products, it smells really nice, it has a hint of that classical blue tin Nivea cream smell.  I love the texture, it's something in between a cream and gel, super smooth and easy to apply.

The new label actually is misleading. That label, combined with the fact that I've never seen any ads for this product made me think that this was in fact a new thing on the market, but no. After some research I found some reviews from 2016 but I'm pretty sure that I'd never heard of this before! I think that this product never worked as intend and Nivea just kept it on the selves so that suckers like me would still buy it. It sounded too good to be true. Don't waste your money.

REVIEW | LANCÔME Bronze and Glow Pallet

It has been a while since I've actually reviewed a make-up product here on the blog. 

And honestly, I've had this product for while on my make up bag, I've used it a lot, but I've simply forgotten to talk about. In fact this has been one my staples since I got it, I use it every-time I do my make up and I absolutely love it.

This is the Lancôme Bronze and Glow Pallet in shade 02 Your Pink Glow Shot and it's from their 2018 Summer Collection. I know, It's mid winter and I'm talking about a product launched in the summer... But hear me out! This is definitely the perfect product to give your face some color on cold winter days. Unfortunately it was limited-edition, and yes mine is broken. I don't know how it happens. I bought it -- it was perfect --  I got home, it was wrecked. I cried for three weeks. I tried to fix it, and even tho it has those ugly cracks, it works perfectly fine.

This is a 2-in-1 highlighter and bronzer pallet that will give you that sun-kissed look that we all want keep after summer ends. 

The first thing that jumped at me? It's size! It's huge. It's a really big compact, with a really nice big mirror, and of the cutest abstract swirly art on the top. It's such a beautiful piece to own and to display on your vanity. The product it self is divided into 4 shades -- two highlighters and two bronzers. All four shades are shimmery, in order to give you that really glowy look. As far as pigmentation, it's perfect. Neither too much nor too little. The product is really easy to pick up and you definitely can either mix the colors or use them individually. I usually mix both bronzers, and use the highlighters separately. However, mixing the 4 shades all together gives a really sublime, bronzed and glow look, like if you had just spent all afternoon in the sun. The pink highlighter is definitely my favorite. It gives me just a little bit of color and glow, without making me 

As far as the price goes, well, this was not a cheap product -- all Lancôme is a luxury brand, and luxury products are expensive. But when you hold the compact in your hands you can feel that it is quality product. You feel the luxury. It doesn't have a weird smell. The package feels very high quality, it has some weight to it. All these little details make such a difference. 

REVIEW | Bio-Oil

Ever since I've started going to the gym more often I am much more concerned about giving my skin everything it needs to accompany the rest of my body while getting in shape.

I know I'm pron to get stretch-marks. I've had stretch-marks on my hips and butt since I was about 12. And because of that I decided to bring back an old friend that, honesty, I've missed a lot -- Bio-oil.  

This is not the first time you hear me talk about his product, and I bet it definitely wont be the last. I wrote a post telling how great it is in 2015 ...Way before everybody starting to talk about it, and before everyone went crazy about it. And my opinion remains the same! But let me remind me of what it is and what it does.

Bio-oil is well known for being a wonder product against stretch marks, scars and other skin marks that we all have and hate.  As I said, I deal with a lot of stretch-marks on my hips / butt. And I know what they are not going away -- it is impossible to get completely rid of stretch marks, BUT this product really helps in preventing new ones from forming and it helps reduce the appearance of the existing ones.

Bio-Oil it's what we call a dry-oil. This just means that it at first it feels like an oil, but after you rub it in it is quickly absorbed without leaving any trace of residue -- it leaves you skin looking silky and smooth. It's very smooth and lightweight, and it smells really nice.

Personally I've never had any problems but be aware that this is an oil and it may stain your clothes, so be careful when applying it and handling it.
I've had it in my gym bag and I always apply it after showering and after applying my Vaseline Spray Body Lotion, and this combination leaves my skin feeling nurtured, smooth and amazing.

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REVIEW | LIERAC Body-Slim Minceur Globale

In case you haven't noticed, I've been dragging my lazy ass to the gym whenever I can.

I've wrote about this before. I don't think I'm fat, I just want to be healthier. I spend all day sitting down and I feel like that takes a tole on my body... 

I'm drinking more water, trying to eat better, and exercising of course. And even tho I'm seeing results -- I can see that my abs are more defined I still felt like some extra help is welcome. 

As you know, I've started to take Cellulase Pears, and in addition to that I started using a sculpting cream.

I asked around which one I should get, and of course my favorite pharmacist -- Mr. O Pinguim Sem Asas -- recommended me this one - LIERAC's Body-Slim Minceur Globale

I've been told that this is a starting out product -- which means that it is the ideal product if you want to start battling cellulite and you want to actually see some results.

I've been using it for a while now -- my tube is actually almost over --  and yes, I can definitely tell a difference! 

It's texture is really nice -- it's a very lightweight pink lotion. Really easy to apply. It feels very silky, not too tick or creamy. It dries down really fast -- and it doesn't leave any stickiness or wet feeling. 

And the smell -- I love the smell! It has a slightly medicinal smell, not too intense, with a hint of raspberry. And after you apply it to your body it almost changes to a very light fresh fruity scent. I like it!

But to make the most out of this product, you have to be careful on how you apply it and what you do with it. You can't just lightly rub it in and hope for the best, because that won't work. To really make it work, you'll have to:

- Apply the product at the end of the day, after the shower --  I usually do it after the gym.

- Exfoliate your skin at least once a week to help improve the penetration of the product

- Massaging the product in to insure good penetration, stimulation of circulation and to help release the fat cells. Oh, and when I say massage, I mean self-inflicted torture with my knuckles on my tights. And yes, I've been told that this is supposed to hurt. This type of product can't just be smeared on you skin! You have to work it in.

- Drink a lot of water to help with the draining

- Exercise. As much as possible.

Honestly, I am always a bit skeptical about this sort of products and I can't really say if it is this product, the Cellulase Pearls, the exercise or just the combination of it all. But yes, I'm seeing good results! I have less dimples on my butt and that curve that goes from the begging of the leg to the butt is much smoother and defined. But yes, less cellulite that's for sure.


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LUSH | Favorites

I know I'm always raving about Lush products. I like that they are natural, I like the concept of the brand, I love that they are package free. But you know, there are a lot of products from Lush that I don't really care for. There are a few Lush products that are a staple in my bathroom, but there were a lot of them that I've tried and hated.

I'm weird with smells. And we all know that not all Lush products smell amazing.  But there are a few that smell like heaven and that I absolutely love.

In terms of smell of a bath product -- I like products with a fresh smell, that smell like clean, so I always go for the things that smell like lavender, lemon, or cotton. And my favorite Lush products are products that make me feel relaxed and clean, and that don't have a weird smell.

And no, this does not include bath-bombs or bubble bars. Even tho I've tried a few, I din't really enjoyed them that much. I believe that it kinda of goes against the brand's concept regarding ecological and sustainability issues. Why would you fill up a bath tube with water just to make it cute...? It's a waste of water and honestly think it goes against the whole eco-friendly thing.

-- NEW Shampoo Bar --

I've tried different shampoo bars over the years, but the  NEW Shampoo Bar has always been my favorite.It smells like cinnamon and clove and it is suppose to help with hair-fall and breakage. It comes with no packaging and it used to have an actual stick of cinnamon embedded on one of the sides, but it doesn't anymore. Now it comes with a cute and important message.

It's pretty simple to use -- I just use it like if I was using a regular bar of soap, but on my hair. It ladders up pretty easily and it makes a really cute pink foam that makes your hair smell amazing. And I've also noticed that with this shampoo my hair absolves less water -- I don't know why, or how, I just know that I feel like at the end of the shower my hair is not as wet as it is when I use other types of shampoo.

-- Serendipity Soap --

Serendipity Soap it's my favorite soap bar from Lush. Honestly, I think I hate the smell of most of them. But this  one smells like heaven.

It's a soap --  a regular soap bar --  that smells like lavender. Showering with this soap is really relaxing, and the whole bathroom gets filled with this comforting lavender smell. It does something that I like -- makes me feel completely clean, like all the oils and dirt were completely removed from my skin.

-- Enzymion Face Moisturizer --

Usually I'm not the biggest fan of moisturizers. I like very light  products, that get absorbed really quickly. And the Enzymion Face Moisturizer is exactly like that. It has a very fresh smell, and it is very very fluid. It has a completely mat finish and it's not oily or sticky. 

It's an expensive product but a little but goes a long way -- because it is so fluid, just a small amount it's more than enough for your face.

-- Mint Julips Lip Scrub --

I'm a bit crazy with exfoliation. I like to scrub all the dead skin of my body. Including off my lips. When I had braces, my lips were always dry and disgusting, so I began exfoliating them. The Mint Julips Lip Scrub was my best friend. It's a sugar scrub that you can actually eat -- it's just sugar and oils. All Lush's lip scrubs are sugar based and they just change the flavor. My favorite is this one -- that smells like mint and it leaves a nice tingling feeling on my lips.

-- Sandstone Soap --

And still on scrubbing products -- I absolutely love this Sandstone Soap. It's my latest obsession... It's the scrubbiest soap that Lush makes. It is made of sand. Like beach sand. After using this, your bathtub will look like a beach... It's rough, but it really scrubs you off. 

It is an awesome product BUT it's expensive and you can find cheaper ones on the market that do the same thing, but once in a while I like splurge on this one.


Have you tried any of this products? What's YOUR favorite Lush product? Let me know all in the comments!

More on Lush:

| Saving money on Lush | Rose Jam Bubbleroon Bubble-Bar | NEW Shampoo Bar |

REVIEW | BENEFIT Brow Contour Pro

Being such a lazy ass girl, I'm always looking for products that make my life easy. And when I saw this product on Benefit's Instagram I've been dying to get my hands on it. And of course also , the whole cute 90's multi-color pen look, completely sold it for me.

Let me introduce you to the Brow Contour PRO. It's a 4-in-1 product that has everything you need to make your brows looking all perfect and awesome. The fact that it is the size of a pen makes it super practical and perfect for traveling.

This product is designed to be extremely easy to use -- You always start at the lighter shade, and if you look at the top of the pen, you can see the little harrows that show you where to go next.

This lighter shade goes on the front of the brow -- up until the higher point. Here, you should click your pen and switch to the darker shade. This one is supposed to go on the tail of you brow -- but I always do a few flicks in the middle section as well to make it blend better. I also use a spooly to even out the product everything and avoid any hash lines.

After that it comes the clean up -- with the definer shade. This is basically a concealer with which you literally draw around you brows to make'em all sharp. You do need to blend it because it makes a very defined line --  I use my fingers but when I tried this out at benefit boutique they used a sponge applicator to blend it. 

The last step is the highlighter. You basically paint the highlighter on your brow bone, blend it a little, and that's it.

I've been loving this product mainly because of the convinice of only taking one thing with me.

Because it's a 4-in-1 product, you have to settle for the shades that come in it. In my case, the dark colors are OK, but I think that the concealer is too orange and too close to the highlighter shade. And I guess that this is the big disadvantage of this product -- you can't really mix and match shades to make it work better for you. I also kinda of wish it came also with a spooly or a little brow brush, because you do need to work the product into your brows somehow. Oh and yes, this is the perfect product for you to start with if you are not used to do your brows. The tips are all very small and the product is super soft, and super easy to apply and blend. It's precise enough for an every-day look.

REVIEW | LUSH Enzymion Facial Moisturizer

You know how when you go to Lush and they always offer you a sample of a product you want?

Well, on one of these occasions I asked for a a sample of a face moisturizer. The girl there asked me a few questions about my skin -- I told her that I have oily t-zone and usually some dry patches. And gave me a sample of their Enzymion Facial Moisturizer. I tried and used every drop of that sample. I loved it so much that I had to go back and buy the full pot.

This product is just awesomeness in a black pot. It's a really gentle face cream, that replenishes moisture without oiliness, while living a matte finish. It's really light and fluid, with almost watery texture which is great if you -- like me -- don't like to feel that sticky feeling that some moisturizers leave. 

It has a very fresh, clean smell, because in every pot cont a whole fresh lemon, some papaya, light oils and cocoa butter. The Fresh fruit contains enzymes and and alpha hydrozyc acid that helps remove dead skin cell and makes your skin looks bright while controlling the oiliness.

Because of how fluid this is, it's absorbed very fast and it it sits well under make-up. It easily doubles as an primer with how matte the finish is. This product is target for people with oily skin, however it works perfectly on my combination skin. 

It is a pricey item -- this little pot costs 22€ if I'm not mistaken. I know the pot looks really small but with this product a little really goes a long way... just a really small amount is enough for your entire face and neck. AND... this pot pancaking allows you to use every last drop of the product. 

More on Lush:

-- Saving money on Lush -- Rose Jam Bubbleroon Bubble-Bar -- NEW Shampoo Bar -- 

REVIEW | L'OREAL Life's a Peach Blush

My favorite shade of blush for the summer is peachy-orange. I think it's the perfect complement for a summer bronzed and glowy skin. And honestly, this Life's a Peach blush is now one of my favorites right now.

This golden-peachy-orange blush is supposedly suitable for all skin tones, offering you a super natural warm peachy-bronze flush coloring to your cheeks. It is the absolutely perfect shade for those no-makeup days. Perfect for a summer day out.

As soon as you open the little compact, you feel a sweet peachy sent, which I'm not a big fan of, but it's bearable. Smells like candy almost. The actual compact thingy feels kinda of cheap, almost like make up for kids, when compared with some other more expensive blushes I own. It’s really bulky. It opens on both sides and one end you have the product and on the other side you have a mirror and a small brush, that completely reminds me of the little brushes that come with all the Benefit blushes.

This has been my staple for this summer. I apply it with big fluffy powder brush on my cheeks, towards my temples. It just gives me a nice glow to my checks and it looks amazing combined with the Bronzer from my Flormar Trio Contour Palette and my CHANEL Rouge Allure Lipstick. It makes me feel glow, confidant and beautiful. Isn’t that perfect?