New Year's Resolution

Notes to myself:

• Use your poor crosstrainer everyday! Not once a month!..
  
• Drink more water! (Honestly, I hate plain water! And I seem to forget counting those "required" glasses...)
• Read magazines you buy, or buy less magazines... which is impossible because you only buy 2 magazines per month. lol
  
• Spend less on makeup. Ask yourself "Do I really need all this stuff?" :)
  
• Start the new skin care regimen.
• Try Konad and water marbling!
• FOTD! :)
  

What's yours?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!

See you next year! :)

Ins and Outs December

Ins:

• Hauling! No comments! lol
  
• Nail polishes! I used to be a huge fan when I was 14-17, then it stopped for quite awhile (almost 10 years!), and now the whole "obsession" thing started again. :)
  
• Mineral eye shadows! It can never be too much green eye shadows, am I right? lol
• Holidays!

Outs:

• Dry hands! The condition of my hands in winter is really really bad. They're peeling to blood! GROSS!
• Skin issues! My acne-prone skin is a big mess right now.
  
• Barry M mascara. FAIL!
  
• The fact that time FLIEEEES! Sometimes I wish there could be at least 30 hours in a day! lol
• Waiting for orders to arrive! :)
• Problem in finding a new WEARABLE perfume! Check my Sense of Smell post, you'll get the idea.
  
• Snow! Am I the only person in the universe who hates snow? :/ I understand it's beautiful, but, man, it's dangerous! I almost broke my hand twice ("nice winter tradition") and can't count how many times I "just" slipped! And what about finding your car in the middle of "whiteout"? Winter is not my thing, definitely! lol
  
• Cold weather! -16C, me not happy! lol

What are yours?

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!!!!!

See you next week! :)

Sassy Minerals Haul

My last haul for this week! :) Still waiting for another one! :)

Charming and Tart (Sassy Minerals version of NARS Orgasm) blushes

Natural "light", flash

Charming and Tart (Sassy Minerals version of NARS Orgasm) blushes

Natural "light", no flash

Top row (from Left to Right): Trust Me (gorgeous!), Bad Attitude (super gorgeous!), Crown Jewels

Bottom row (L to R): Ruthless, Lyrical (both freebies)

Natural "light", flash, contrast added (to show the depth)

Top row (from Left to Right): Trust Me (gorgeous!), Bad Attitude (super gorgeous!), Crown Jewels

Bottom row (L to R): Ruthless, Lyrical (both freebies!)

Natural "light", flash

Primers, Foundations and Finishing Powders

Natural "light", flash

Primers, Foundations and Finishing Powders

Natural "light", no flash

 

Shipping charges depend on the number of samples you order (the more you order the less you pay for shipping, orders exceeding 50 USD are free of charge worldwide!). For my order (10 samples, plus 2 freebies!) it was 4,8 USD. Quite reasonable, isn't it?

Ordered on 4.12 (Friday), received on 16.12 (Wednesday, right after my Aromaleigh haul!). Fast enough!

My initial thoughts:

Huge variety of colours! All samples come in clear sealed (!!!) jars! Great pigmentation! And cost 0,75 USD each (doesn't matter if it's an eyeshadow, a blush or a foundation!). How cool is that?

Tried Primer and Finishing powder with my Everyday Minerals foundation a couple of times. Worked really well! Began to crease slightly (on my nose) in about 8 hours. Not bad, considering that my T-zone is getting oily sometimes.

Tested foundations on my jawline. Hmmm... what can I say? I was a little bit naive ordering Medium shades, cause these are definitely too dark for me! Gotta choose Light next time.

The only negative thing about these eyeshadows is the fact that these eyeshadows don't cooperate with Urban Decay PP. I have yet to investigate this problem. They begin to fade in about 4 hours and crease in about 8 hours (beating Aromaleigh by 2 hours!)! Yep, I tried Aromaleigh on my left eye and Sassy Minerals on my right eye twice! lol Not good! Haven't experienced this "non-longevity" with my "88 palette from China". Hmmm... :/

Have yet to try foundations (will stay at home! :) cause Medium is too dark for me!) and blushes.

I was thinking the other day, that I should probably stop using that "88 palette from China" (well, it's from Coastal Scents, but we all know that these palettes are easily accessible on Ebay!). Sadly, you can never be sure if the quality of these eyeshadows is good enough and if they are safe for your eyes. :/ So now I'm thinking of getting more eyeshadows from Sassy Minerals and others "alike" to replace my favourite shades from the palette. :)

Have you tried Sassy Minerals? What are your thoughts?

PS Sassy Minerals don't repackage!

Aromaleigh Haul

Want some colour? Here it is! :)

My first Aromaleigh products (baggie samples with one exception).

On the left: 3 free eyeshadows (I chose myself) and 1 free lipbalm (they sent).

On the right: my order (so neatly packaged!)

Natural "light", no flash

Blushes: Nectar and Verve (Aromaleigh version of NARS Orgasm) (2 USD each)

Natural "light", flash

Eyeliner sealant (only available in full size) (4 USD), mineral foundation (2 USD),

finishing powder (2 USD) and lipbalm (sent for free).

Natural "light", flash

Green eyeshadows/eyeliners (1 USD, 0,75 USD or

0,5 USD - prices vary depending on the collection)

Natural "light", flash

Golden&dark eyeshadows/eyeliners (1 USD, 0,75 USD or

0,5 USD - prices vary depending on the collection)

Natural "light", flash

Golden&dark eyeshadows/eyeliners (1 USD, 0,75 USD or

0,5 USD - prices vary depending on the collection)

Natural "light", no flash

 Blue eyeshadows/eyeliners (1 USD, 0,75 USD or

0,5 USD - prices vary depending on the collection)

Natural "light", flash

Shipping was 5 USD plus 2,4 USD for insurance - quite reasonable, isn't it?

Ordered on 4.12 (Friday), received on 15.12 (Tuesday, right after my Everyday Minerals haul!). Fast enough!

My initial thoughts:

What a great choice of colours they have! I liked the creativity of the brand: lots of different collections with different themes and names. Great!

My favourite collections (in terms of pigmentation) are Bete Noire (Amarante is TO DIE FOR! :) ) and Pure Eyes Frost (Aloe and Loden are so pretty!). The only negative thing is the fact that these eyeshadows don't cooperate with Urban Decay PP. I have yet to investigate this problem. They begin to fade in about 2 hours and crease in about 6 hours! Not good! Haven't experienced this "non-longevity" with my "88 palette from China". Hmmm... :/

Lipbalm "Gingersnap" - I really liked the scent (kind of vanilla with mint?), but the staying power is not that great as is the consistency (it's kind of gritty in the begining), and I had trouble with lipstick application afterwards (didn't glide smoothly).

Eyeliner sealant - a little goes a LOOONG way. You really need the tiniest drop for one application. Tried it once - worked really well.

Have yet to try foundation, blushes and finishing powder.

Have you tried Aromaleigh? What are your thoughts?

PS Btw, check their promo codes (5 USD discount code for new customers available)!

PPS Big THANK YOU to Nea and Heather for making me addicted! lol

PPPS Aromaleigh don't repackage!

PPPPS To be continued! Stay tuned! :)

Everyday Minerals Haul

Let me introduce you my latest obsession - Mineral Makeup! Prepare yourself for future hauls, reviews and possible FOTDs. lol

I did it! Finally! Ordered some stuff from Everyday Minerals! :) I "waited" for almost a year to try those, and I am now kind of angry at myself that I didn't order earlier. They have changed so much! The 2 major differences being - elimination of choice in "Try me" (now you can choose from several ready made "try me" kits only) and elimination of different "value kits" (e.g., earlier you could "buy any 6 full size products for 32 USD", etc).

Without further ado, here is what I got:

Natural "light", no flash

Long Handled Kabuki brush (10 USD), Baby Flat Top brush (6 USD), "Try Me" Base FAIR (4 different shades in 4 different finishes, Free) and Finishing Dust sample (2,5 USD)

Shipping was 6,05 USD - quite reasonable, isn't it? I remember I paid the same price for the brushes and almost 15 USD for shipping in Coastal Scents. How naive! lol

Ordered on 3.12 (Thursday), received on 14.12 (Monday). Fast enough!

My initial thoughts:

Long Handled Kabuki brush - I am in love with these brushes! Now I see what this hype was (and still is?) about! These brushes are super soft and work really well! They blend perfectly and are capable of building up the coverage! My "old" brushes from Coastal Scents are EVIL scratchy ones, compared to these angels. lol

Baby Flat Top brush - it is SO tiny, yet so effective! :) Even my hubby liked it! He said it's so gentle on the skin (yep, he played with it a little bit, but didn't use any base products! lol)! :)

"Try Me" Base FAIR (samples with sifters!) My closest match (still not perfect though) is Golden Fair Matte base, others are too yellow for me. Coverage and staying power are pretty decent (I have a combination skin). I wore it twice for almost 10 hours long, looked quite ok. Have to test it further. I'll report back how it'll go.

Finishing Dust (sample with sifter!) - transparent. The same story as with Golden Fair Matte base. Will report back some other day.

Overall, I am very pleased with my order! I definitely will order more brushes after holidays! And I highly recommend these brushes over Coastal Scents ones (for instance)! :)

Have you tried EDM? What are your thoughts?

Share the love: Mongoose

I'm continuing my "tradition" of non-beauty related posts for the weekends.

I love animals! Especially baby animals. All babies are so cute, aren't they? :)

May I present to you... baby mongooses! :)

These little guys were born in the beginning of summer in 2008 in the Helsinki Zoo. They're so fun to watch!

 "Where is everyone?"

"What's the deal, man?"

"What? What? What? We're in!"

Hope you enjoyed! :)

To be continued! Stay tuned! :)

HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND! :)

5 guys I used to like

This tag (I tagged myself though lol) looked like fun! Ready? Ok, here we go! :)

1. Johnny Depp. I first saw him in "Don Juan DeMarco" movie in 1994 (haven't seen it? you HAVE TO!). His best look EVER! IMO! I still like him though. He's one of my favourite actors, followed by Leonardo DiCaprio. :)

"Prepare to be seduced by the greatest lover of all time." So true! :)

 

Oh my!..

2 and 3. Brad Pitt as Loui and Tom Cruise as Lestat in "Interview with the Vampire". This is when my little obsession with vampires started! lol Btw, Antonio Banderas as Armand looks super cool too! ;)

Can I have two, please? lol

4. Peter Andre. Yep, there was a time I was really into him! :)

The body to die for? :)

5. Ville Valo (HIM, Finnish "love metal" band). I still like HIM music! :)

Those eyes! The only guy who can wear makeup and look stunning! lol

PS Guys with long hair ROCK! :) Ok, ok, I agree, Peter was a mistake! lol

What's your choice? :)

Sense of Smell

If you read my earlier posts, you might have noticed that I'm very sensitive to smells, to perfumes to be exact. The "normal" scents don't irritate my nose most of the time, but when it comes to skin care, makeup or perfume - I can hardly deal with the product if the smell is offensive (to my nose). The thing is that I don't get headaches, or any other "side effects", but I just can't stand all those scents/perfumes.
 

This "problem" leads to my long-time journey to finding a suitable perfume. I've been using the same perfume (Naomi Campbell "Mystery") since 2003, when it first hit the stores. Ever since, no matter how hard I try (checking perfume counters all the time), I can't find anything pleasant and wearable. It's a big mystery to me. I guess there is something really mysterious in the wonderful combination of powdery vanilla ("played by" tonka bean and sandalwood) and flowers ("played by" bitter orange, bergamot, plum and hibiscus), that took my heart away. :)

Why do I worry that much I hear you asking? The thing is that Mystery is being discontinued in 2008 and is Sold Out almost everywhere on the web. If only I knew it before! Why is it always so unfair? You seemed to find your HG, and suddenly it's being discontinued! :/ I'm on a constant mission now. I still have time (2 bottles of Mystery), but what if I won't find anything?


I like the smells of fresh strawberries, vanilla, coconut (The Body Shop version is the best so far IMO), oranges, peaches, coffee (even though I don't drink it!). But I can't imagine myself wearing this kind of smell. lol You know what I mean, don't you? :)

I was and still am wondering, how girls can change their perfumes all the time and have more than 3 perfumes in their "wearable collections"... I envy you! lol


I currently have 4 perfumes (Naomi Campbell Mystery, The Body Shop Japanese Cherry Blossom, Burberry Summer and Giorgio Armani She Remix). I don't want to mention the ones I had and didn't like (my mom is a proud owner of those rejected perfumes lol). And even these perfumes I bought after long "investigations"... And guess what? I wear only NC! The other 3 just "sit" and wait when I'll change my mind. lol


The question of the day is:

Am I too picky, or is my sense of smell is so different and weird?! :) Anyone with the same "problem"? :)

PS Funnily enough I like choosing perfume for my hubby! Male perfumes are so much more fun! lol
PPS Nope, I wouldn't wear male perfume myself! lol

Fragrancedirect haul

Fragrancedirect is one of those e-shops, where you can buy your desired perfume or makeup item (also discontinued!) much cheaper than from you local store! If only I knew about this website prior to spending 40 + something EUR on my Burberry Summer... Thankfully, I discovered it before I was almost ready to spend my other 40 EUR on Sarah Jessica Parker Covet Pure Bloom. Guess what? I bought it for 10 EUR (incl. shipping)! And I didn't feel sorry when I felt it wasn't "my thing". :)

On to the latest "haul" (actually these are two of my latest hauls combined together). Here is what I got:

1. St. Moriz Instant Self Tanning Mousse - pretty nice shade, but pretty messy application (it's better to apply it wearing gloves, or be EXTREMELY quick, otherwise you'll end up with brownish hands!)

2. YSL Rouge Pur in Nr. 138 Rose Orchidee. Would I buy it for 31 EUR? Nope. What about 10 EUR? Why not? lol Classic pink shade. looks quite bright for my liking, but let's see. Haven't tried it yet.
Update: Tried it a couple of hours ago. It's too bright for me. Hopefuly, my mom will like it! :)

3. Lancome Color Fever Shine in Nr. 335 Coral Cruise. Sheer shiny baby pink shade. Very natural looking! The only disturbing thing is a pretty strong raspberry scent.

4. Giorgio Armani EDP She Remix. Soft&fresh flowery scent with a spicy note. I'm still thinking should I keep it, or should I give it to my mom instead? huh... :)

5. And last but not least, my all-time favourite Maybelline Lash Stylist in Nr. 602 Brownish Black (see the picture below). It's being discontinued for quite a while. Hopefully, it's still of the same quality!

YSL Rouge Pur in Nr. 138 Rose Orchidee, Lancome Color Fever Shine in Nr. 335 Coral Cruise (Why does it always happen to my beloved lipsticks! How do I always manage to get these ugly dents? :/ I even don't press much, I am always so gentle with my little precious... :) )

Lancome Color Fever Shine in Nr. 335 Coral Cruise, YSL Rouge Pur in Nr. 138 Rose Orchidee

Maybelline Lash Stylist in Nr. 602 Brownish Black

OPI Your Royal Shyness

Natural light, flash

Natural light

Note: These pictures were taken in autumn. Hence, the bad quality is here again. lol Consider this as a review only. :)

15 ml (0,5 oz), exp. date: 36 months after opening, made in USA.

From Princess Charming collection, 2007.

Contains Toluene and Formaldehyde Resin (black label!). You can get the improved version without Toluene but still with Formaldehyde Resin (green label) if you are lucky enough. I got mine in June from 8ty8beauty. In the same order I got OPI My Daddy's the King (from the same collection) with a green label, so you'll never know what to expect! :/

Colour: pale peachy-pink-beige. Nude! :)

Finish: pearly shimmer-frost (quite difficult to describe).

Application: pretty smooth application (a little bit streaky - brush strokes, still manageable though), 2 coats is enough for a full coverage.

Retail price: ranges between 5 USD - 15 EUR.

Pros: versatile shade, perfect coverage, pretty easy application, nice brush.
Cons: not 3 Big Free, a little bit streaky (brush strokes), the fact that it's so expensive here!

PS Very wearable and versatile shade! Have to go to the office and party (or wedding?) on the same day? Here is the solution! :)

Nail decoration haul

One sunny day (September was quite sunny here :) ) I decided to try painting on my nails instead of painting on paper only. :) A couple of weeks ago I finally received my Ebay order. Here is what I got (copy-pasted these weird "names" from Ebay):

"Dappen dish for color mixing nail art palette" (set of 2)

These plastic dishes are very handy when it comes to mixing several shades together, or when painting own nails (so that you don't have to constantly open-close the bottle).

"Round nail art display practice wheel" (set of 10)

I already had the same set of "display practice wheel" prior to this order. It is extremely helpful in organising nail polish collection, in layering different shades and in trying out new designs/styles/ideas before making "the full hand mani".

Once I get my long-waited Essie Matte about you, I'll reorganise my wheels! :)

"Design pen painting brush dotting tool nail art set" (set of 16)

There is pretty good variety of different brushes in this set. It would be nice to have even smaller brushes (for tiny details) though. Bristles are quite dense, but not as good as your usual nail polish brush. I'd say these brushes are more difficult to navigate. I thought it would be much easier to draw something on the nail. I was wrong! It's not the same as just painting on paper! Why are my nails so small? lol

PS You can check my first try under "Christmas nails" title

China Glaze Emerald Sparkle (with a little something :) )

Remember my Candy Cane Christmas nails? I decided they were too bright for me, so I chose CG Emerald Sparkle to join the company of the tiny mistletoe (I considered it to be quite modest). :)

Artificial light, flash

Artificial light, flash

Let me introduce you my "fully-emerald sparkled" right hand! :)
Natural light, flash

Natural light. Finally, some decent shot without a flash! Yay!:) Check the warmth (well, it's THIS warm under the certain light) and depth of this green!

Note: My hands are super dry (usual problem in winter!). I'm still on a mission to find my HG hand cream!

14 ml (0,5 oz), exp. date: 36 months after opening, made in USA.

Loves You Snow Much collection. Holiday 2008 (original), re-release in 2009.

Nail lacquer with hardeners (Kaolin/China clay).
Seems to be 3 Big free.

Colour: dark rich green jelly base with a bunch of bright green glitter. It is more of a warm tone green. It indeed looks like a gemstone. It kind of glows from within. And it sparkles! :) Stunning!

Finish: glitter.

Application: pretty smooth application (a little bit runny consistency, but nothing serious), 2 coats is enough for a full coverage.

Retail price: 2,5 USD - 11 EUR.

Pros: gorgeous shade, cute bottle (!), perfect coverage, nice brush (could be rounder though), big 3 free.
Cons: pretty strong smell, a little bit runny consistency, time-consuming removal process (hey, it's GLITTER!) - try foil-cotton ball method, the fact that it's so expensive here!

PS GORGEOUS! A MUST-HAVE, especially if you like GREEN! :)

PPS If the starry night were green (for the unknown reason) it'd look like Emerald Sparkle! lol

Share the love: Squirrel 2

I'm continuing my "tradition" of non-beauty related posts for the weekends.

If you read the previous story about our "adopted" squirrel, you might recall I said I adore squirrels ever since. :)

Here is another little "Show'n'tell" story.

One day (in March, 2009) I was "checking" the weather from our kitchen's window. And what did I see? Yep, right! Crouching squirrel! :) The little fellow was looking for something under the roof of the opposite house. It looks so cute, but I do understand that it was probably looking for food, or making a mess?.. Quite sad, isn't it? At least it looked healthy. I really hope so!
 

Spidersquirrel? :) 

Batsquirrel? :)

 

Supersquirrel! lol (btw, it's snow on the background! In the middle of March!)

Hope you enjoyed! :)

To be continued! Stay tuned! :)

HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND! :)

PS I took these pictures through the window. Hence, they are so blurry.

Get to know each other

 Hello everyone! How are you? :) Thank you for following! I really appreciate it! You are awesome! :)


This tag is walking around the "blogosphere" for quite a while. The rule is "simple" - answer with one word. But everyone seems to break the main rule. :) And, to be honest it's so much more fun to read the full answers.

Note: I answered these questions yesterday evening. This post was "scheduled at". :)

1. Where is your phone? On the table.
2. Your hair? Back to its natural colour, IMO pretty boring medium blonde, planning to change it soon into something brighter.
3. Your Mom? Extremely funny, friendly, simply the best! :)
4. Your Dad? Extremely nice.
5. Your favorite meal? Hmmm... sushi, please? :)
6. Your last dream? Don't remember.
7. What do you like to drink? Green tea with fresh lemon.
8. Your dream? Happy world. Peace and Love! :)
9. In what room are you? Kitchen.
10. Your hobby? Reading! "The Host", anyone? :)
11. What are you afraid of? Death.
12. Last travel? London.
13. Where were you last night? At home.

14. Something you are not? Fool.

15. Muffins? Chocolate.
16. Wishlist? Too long. :)
17. Where did you grow up? Lithuania.
18. Last thing you did? Talked to my mum (Skype is a good thing! :) ).
19. What are you wearing? T-shirt and trousers.
20. Your television? We don't have TV. 3 computers is enough. lol
21. Your pet(s)? Don't have any, but I would be happy to have a dog or a cat, or both. :)
22. Your friends? All over the world.
23. Your life? Normal. :)
24. Your temper? It depends.
25. Do you miss someone? My family!
26. Your car? Ford Mondeo. Thinking of buying a new one!
27. Something you don't bring with you? Where? What? What do you mean? lol
28. Your favorite shop? Citymarket (for food), Sokos (for makeup), Top Shop (for clothes), Selfridges (in my dreams lol).
29. Your favorite color? Black for clothes, green for nails and eyes, sky blue - to enjoy. :)
30. Last time you laughed? Several minutes ago (my mom makes me laugh all the time).
31. Last time you cried? On Saturday. The story was in news. Don't want to write about it, it was too freaking scary and sad. :(
32. Your best friend? Mom and hubby.
33. A place where you can go again and again? Home.
34. Facebook? Yep.
35. Favorite place to eat? Japanese restaurants! And... sometimes... Hesburger (Finnish McDonald's)! :)

What are your answers? Let me know! :)

Christmas nails

The other day I finally decided to try my nail decoration set (will write about it later) I bought a couple of weeks ago.

Promise not to laugh! :)

 

 

All the colours are shimmery. Hence, they look so washed out. :/ Yep, artificial light and flash again. :)

The inspiration: candy cane and mistletoe (obviously :) ).

What I used:

1. Poshe Fast drying base coat.

2. Mavala Nail color cream in Nr. 49 White (2 coats). Honestly, it's the worst polish I own! Brush strokes are everywhere! And the brush is difficult to "navigate"!

3. IsaDora Wonder Nail Extra long lasting Quick Dry in Nr. 620 Sparkling Diamonds as a top coat (check my review if you're interested) (1 coat).

4. Poshe Fast drying top coat.

5. So called "Dappen dish for color mixing" and 2 different brushes from nail design set.

6. China Glaze Emerald Sparkle - for leaves.

7. Rimmel 60 seconds Vinyl stars nail polish in Nr. 627 Movie Star - for stripes and "berries".

PS No Konad, because I don't have one! lol

All the painting was quite time-consuming, because the polish was drying out VERY quickly (if only it would act like that on my nails! lol) on that "dish", so I had to open-close the bottle quite often. I usually don't spend that much time on doing my nails. :) But I just had to finish this!

It looks so sweet and girly, totally "not me". :) Nevertheless I'm quite pleased with my first attempt, especially with a tiny mistletoe. :) *thinking of something else to try!*

Color Club in Nr. 852 Revvvolution

 

 Check the "rainbow" effect!

All the pictures were taken under the natural "daylight" (pretty dark) with a flash. Still trying to figure out how our camera works in macro mode under the "no light". This time my hubby participated (yep, he was and is quite surprised by all this "taking picture of my nails" thing lol). The major problem is "not enough bright light" (we have energy saving lamps all over our place). I bet you've seen this polish a bunch of times, so consider my NOTD as a review only. :)

15 ml (0,5 oz), exp. date: no info, made in USA.

Femme Fatale Collection. Spring 2009.

Seems to be 3 Big free.

Colour: dark charcoal gray with holographic (rainbow!) shimmer. The rainbow effect is SO cool! We (me and my hubby) kept staring at the "light-play" the whole weekend (exaggerating a little bit lol)! It doesn't seem black to me (even under the worst light) because of all the silvery holographic shimmer.

Finish: shimmer.

Application: smooth application if you'll be quick, because it begins to dry pretty quickly. In case you're not quick enough, you might deal with unevenness. 2 coats is enough for a full coverage.

Retail price: starting from 2,5 USD.

Pros: unique shade, cute bottle (!), perfect coverage, nice brush, big 3 free.
Cons: a little bit tricky application, the fact that it's not available here!

PS The name says it all. :) It's a revvvolution in my pretty modest nail polish stash! :) Go and grab it if you haven't already, because it's OOS pretty much all the time! A MUST-HAVE, especially if you're into heavy music. :)

PPS Can't comment on the lasting power of the polish itself, because I have a Poshe fast drying top coat, but it looks pretty good (with a minimum tip wear) after 4 days of "intensive" wear. By "intensive" I mean: cleaning, washing, bathing. :)

What's in my bag?

I LOVE watching/reading posts about "What's in my bag", collections of nail polishes or makeup! One day I decided to take a picture of my "precious". lol

Here it is...

Marc O'Polo bag

Shame on me, but I have no idea what's the material. Thick nylon perhaps? All I know it's not leather. :) The zippers, rings and buttons are made of really heavy and cold (!) steel.

Size: medium size - perfect for my minimalism. :) It has 4 pockets (2 big ones and 2 small ones on the sides) on the outside, and 3 medium size pockets on the inside.

Colour: black, obviously. :)

Perfect for autumn, winter... in other words perfect for any day when I wear a coat or a trench (I'm obsessed with coats and trenches...). I prefer a classy style with a little "heavy metal" twist. :)

I just ADORE this bag.

Got bored? lol Ok, so here is what was in my bag the day I took these pictures.

 

Not much stuff, huh? :)

I told you I am quite a minimalist ("Less is more", blah blah blah :) ). And I like to organise everything. :) On to the details... Starting from the left (purse) and going clockwise.

1. My black faux/patent leather purse (in the left corner). I bought it in 2003, I can still remember the approximate date, because it was the month we started dating with my hubby (mehhh, he is everywhere! lol). It was dirty cheap! I can't remember exactly, but I guess it was something around 5 EUR! It has loads of pockets and 3 big compartments. DREAM! I bought several more purses since that time, but I still come back to this one all the time.

2. Lambi Balsam tissue handkerchifs with Aloe Vera.

3. Glass nail file. It is my first and the only glass nail file. I've been using it since the day I bought it. And believe me, it was a long time ago! If I remember correctly I bought it in 1998! Even though I broke it in 2003 (yep, I remember the date because of my hubby, see "the story about my purse"), it's still perfect! Have no idea what is the brand... :/ I understand it's a little bit ugly but I love it anyway! :)

4. Blue round mirror. I have several purse size mirrors, but still carry the ugliest one with me... I got it in 2002 (yep, I value good things :) ).

5. Lumene eyebrow Eyebrow Graphics pencil in Grey Brown 2. I carry this little one around for emergencies (what if I "remove"/smudge my brow accidentaly? :) I've mentioned already - my eyebrows are really fair!).

6. Labello CareGloss&Shine lip gloss in Natural. My balm "on the go". Moisturises, makes my lips shiny, but I can hardly deal with the flavour/scent (too freaking sweet).

7. Clinique Superbalm moisturizing gloss (mini size - 5 ml) in 09 Currant. The colour is not that scary as it seems, it's very very sheer, but can brighten up the lip colour. I can easily deal with the plastic "non-perfume" "cliniquesh" scent. :)

8. Wrigley's Extra (also known as Orbit in some other countries) Strawberry flavoured sugarfree gum (xylitol). One of my favourites. I don't really like the mint ones, I prefer something "mildly sweet". My favourite gum is Orbit Wild Strawberry White, but we don't have it in Finland. I buy it "in bulk" when I go to the Baltic states. :)

9. Läkerol Licorice Persimon sugarfree pastilles. The second favourite from Läkerol is Pitaya (with strawberry pieces) sugafree pastilles. Yum! :)

10. Unika Mini organiser-notebook. This model has the best page layout IMO. I don't like to use electronic organisers, it's so much easier just to take a pen and write everything down sometimes. :) PS You probably can hardly tell, but there is a tree (on the hill) on the cover. And it's BLACK! Love black! :)

11. Just a simple pen with the best blue ink shade ever. :)

12. Max Factor PanStick in 12 True Beige for covering emergencies "on the go". I usually carry my mineral powder and a brush just in case, but at the time the picture was taken I've just returned from the shopping trip, so it wasn't necessary to be "fully-loaded". :)

13. Tea Tree Facial Oil Blotting Paper - just in case. It's not special though.

14. Hand freshener. I have loads of these stuff from different trips. I usually carry a mini bottle of a hand sanitizer but for the shopping trip one tissue is enough. :)

15. Travelling card.  Had to change it last week. Why did they decided to change these travel cards? It was such a nice blue card, and now it's light green with a bus on it!

16. My keys with a silver heart (a present from my best friend) and a LED-light (yep, it's sometimes dark here! lol) keychains. I have several keychains and can't resist buying new ones. :)

17. Wooden hair comb. I usually carry a smaller version of my natural bristle hairbrush but not this time.

And that's it! :)

Holographic glittery gothic Skittles nails

What a name I came up with! lol

Actually, it's not a NOTD. It's just me playing with my new toys! :) Couldn't wait to try them out. So, here are my reactions after I tried them on (check the initial reactions on my "8ty8beauty haul Nr.2"):

 

Index - CC Revvvolution is playing the "white skittle" (cause it looks light in my picture): it's a little less holographic (rainbow!) than Wild at Heart, and it's more dark charcoal gray-silver than black! At least to my eyes (energy saving lamps don't help much :) ). It reminded me of OPI Suzi Skis in the Pyrenees Suede version with a top coat. The good thing is I didn't order Suzi, the bad thing is that I want OPI My Private Jet. It seems darker in the pictures. Is it darker and black in a real life? I've heard also that there are two different versions. I'd like to have a holo version. Need to check the retailers... Or maybe I'll just skip it and will enjoy the beauty of this one. :)

Middle - CG Side-Saddle is playing the "red skittle": this colour is strange but still pretty nice! I love it! By "strange" I mean that it appears to be dark chocolate with golden shimmer in a real life, appears deep shimmery burgundy on my crappy pictures (still figuring out how to use that macro thing and artificial light... imagining my hubby's face when I'll ask him how to properly use those functions... for taking pictures of my nails... lol), and finally it appears (well, actually disappears would be the right word in this case) violet (!) on the cotton ball (during the removal process, obviously)!

Ring - CG Emerald Sparkle is playing the "green skittle": now I see the dark green base under all that amount of green glitter in my bottle! This is the most gorgeous green nail polish I've came across (not that I saw loads in a real life...)! I now totally understand Scrangie's "back up" thingy! :) I was thinking of ordering Nubar Greener, but now I can't decide wheather I need 3 deep greens... I already had one deep green Wet'n'Wild Erie (check my review) polish prior to CG...

Pinkie - CC Wild at Heart is playing the "purple skittle": I'm not really a fan of bright purples, but this one is just AWESOME! No comments! :)

Common WOWs: cute bottles, nice brushes, smooth application (CG Side-Saddle has a little bit runny consistency though, but is still manageable). I love all these shades! They're all so different from each other and I love them all equally! Hmmm... Emerald Sparkle a little bit more, but don't tell the others! :)

PS And! These are my first ever China Glaze, Color Club, holographic and intense glitter polishes! Man, I need more! lol

PPS It's our giant lemon tree on the background. She is beautiful. :)

PPPS My hands look SOOO dry because they just hate cold weather! :/

Share the love: Squirrel

I decided to incorporate non-beauty related posts just for fun. I'm planning to post them ("scheduled at") during the weekends.

Here is my first "Show'n'tell". Hope you'll enjoy! :)

This story takes place in spring 2008.

One early evening I was waiting for my hubby outside our house to come and pick me up for a shopping trip. Then I suddenly saw a little something moving towards me. Imagine my surprise when I saw a little baby squirrel! Before that moment I've never seen a squirrel THIS close. Although we have lots of squirrels near our place and in Finland overall, I was never lucky enough to see them closer than 15 meters.

So this little guy came so close, I could actually touch him! I sat down and wanted to see him closer, but he suddenly ran away. For a moment I couldn't believe my eyes and thought I might have been dreaming. In 2 minutes my hubby came and we tried to search for our new little friend. We were worried that as he is so small he could have lost his mommy (it makes me wanna cry). But he disappeared, and we left.

The next morning (Saturday) I went out on our balcony and guess what? The guy from the restaurant near our place was sitting on the grass and playing with that same baby squirrel! Hubby went to join the guy. The squirrel didn't want to try any nuts he brought. The guy told that he found the squirrel inside one of the storage rooms and offered us to take it to our place and to call to the zoo.

Ok, to make the long story short - the squirrel was about 2-3 weeks old, and his little nose was "covered" with dried blood. Apparently he fell out from the nest and came to people. We were advised to raise it on our own with a kind help of one enthusiast who raised several baby squirrels on her own.

We became the proud parents to this baby squirrel. He ate only the milk for kittens for several days, later began trying out seeds, nuts and berries. He was extremely cuddly and liked to sit in our hands. He was falling asleep on my knees or on my hands (I was putting him into the nest we made for him). Two weeks after the day we found him, we had to set him free (otherwise he wouldn't be able to adapt himself). Btw, he changed SO MUCH during these 2 weeks.

It was a great experience! And we'll always remember him! I really hope he is fine and he found his family!

"I'm so cute and cuddly! Let's play!" :)

 

"I'm tired." (sleeping on my legs) Check how fluffy he is!

I've always loved squirrels but after this experience I ADORE them with all my heart! :)

To be continued! Stay tuned! :)

HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND!:)