Winter glitters

The cold season approaches us, winter parties, full of good will and spirit, warmed up be a glass of wine or champagne. We start thinking of what dresses we are going to wear for Christmas or New Year Eve, or on any other occasion we get in the first wonderful winter month. This season also, glam sequin is in style, along with some more interesting combinations. A few bold ideas from Gucci, Prada and Versace are displayed below. Did you start thinking of what you are going to wear? 

Wishes...

Something small, rocking and very graphic, that fits perfectly in one's hand :)

Chanel Perfection Lumiere

Chanel - Fond de ten Perfection Lumiere - or the new number one in my top foundations. I didn't expect to be so thrilled, but I have to admit that there are some things about it, which took me by surprise:

- it has a very fine, silky and slightly powdered texture;

- with one layer you obtain medium cover and it's enough to cover minor skin issues; with 2 layers you can even solve medium skin problems;

- it's long lasting;

- it has a special finish, and this is the part I love most about it. Its semi-mat character confers a fresh, natural finish, while controlling along the day (in some way) the excess sebum;

- 030 beige shade it's just perfect for my skin and maintains its color throughout the day (there is no obvious oxidation). I have never met such a perfect compatibility with any other foundations.

In other words, bravo Chanel! My new number 1 :) 

Rate: 10/10.

Saint Laurent - Leather bracelet

I just love leather bracelets. Especially those ones, which have combined leather and metal. They seem to reflect something rebellious from inside us, while maintaining the necessary dash of elegance. The one from below is from Saint Laurent collection and is something quite special. I think it goes with almost 90% of all my outfits.

Saint Laurent Paris - Glam colors festival

Yves Saint Laurent -  He was definetely a fashion genius. Permanentely one step ahead of others, he brought into the fashion spot light, sequentially, the true living colors of diverse ethnic groups, casually combining organic with synthetic, innovating abstract forms finding their place next to classic pieces. He popularized the metallic bra (remember Madonna :)) and shoulder pad jackets. After his passing, the House changed its name from Yves Saint Laurent to Saint Laurent Paris. Current collections still reflect a part of his creative genius.

Inspirational autumn shoes

Daily wear: lovely high heeled almost nude colored shoes from Valentino. They don't look comfortable, but sure are inspirational through so much else (style, fabric, a.s.o)

 Evening wear: the pretty pink pair with rock insertions. They go with just about anything and inspire youth, dare, glam and girly at the same time.

Spring Summer 2014

Philip Lim  is one of the most popular designers of the moment. His spring-summer 2014 collection is inspired by simple, earthy solids. Or at least this is how he characterizes his entire collection. Materials inspire fluidity, interesting combinations of metallic elements with leather and silk, vibrant colors (yellow, green, blue) caught up in play with monchromes (white and black). 

Here comes an excerpt of the collection with some of the outfits I especially liked. Note: the last outfit I would wear at any time! :)

Autumn chic

6. This is the number of clothing articles which you need in order to be autumn chic. They are timeless objects, a safe combination, which can be worn at any time. Years 2000, 2010, 2020, 2030 a.s.o. You just add on a drop of perfume (Miss Dior or Pure Poison) and a more intense lipstick and.. voila, you're ready to go! :)

Fleurs dÓranger

Serge Lutens - Fleur dÓranger - we agreed that I'm into perfumes more than I should be. I don't even want to start counting the number of fragrances I'm currently using. There's barely enough space on my dresser for anything else :) However, since it's customary to use the phrase, "signature scent", I thought for a while of what that would be in my case. This perfume came to mind. Because I love the orange blossoms, for me, it's one of the most perfect perfumes I ever tried. Powerful and yet light, floral - musky - and something else, indeterminate. And very, very long lasting.  I spray two puffs in the morning, and late, in the evening, after a shower, you can still smell it, warm and delicate. For me, it's pure PERFECTION. It can be worn both in office as well as in the evening.

Rate 10/10.

Clarins Wake up Booster

Clarins Lotion Energizante Wake up Booster - being just a toner, do not expect miracle effects...although it sure convinced me to buy it, after using a sample. It's fresh, with a delicate texture. It's main advantages, from my point of view, are the fact that it's hydrating and its application gives your skin a certain luminosity. But then again, you can have hydrated skin by using a moisturizer, and luminosity..by so many other ways. It's not a necessary product, unless you actually use toner on a daily basis, in which case I certainly would recommend. 

Rate 10/10.

Superb, Dior

Superb, precious and pretentious! :)

Clarins - Eye Contour Gel

Clarins - Eye Contour Gel - Because in the last post I started writing about Clarins products, I'll continue with the eye contour gel I've tried. It targets eye puffiness and reducing dark circles. I used it under these circumstances and sadly I didn't notice any improvement. Problems were still there! It's true that it easily penetrates the skin and it's refreshing but it doesn't hydrate nor improve the look of the sensitive skin around the eyes. It may function in your case, under certain circumstances, or maybe helps reducing some smaller problems :). To cut it short, the end is that I wouldn't buy it again.

Rate: 5/10

Gel-cream or cream-cream?

Clarins Hydraquench Cream Gel - lately I've been starting to feel the express need of hydrating the skin, much more than before. Maybe I'm more sensitive or attentive to my skin's needs or maybe it's just that I'm growing older...or both, who can tell? :) The fact is that I've had the opportunity of testing the Gel-cream a while ago, just in the beginning of autumn. It was a nice surprise. The gel has a very fine texture, smoothly sinking into the skin. It's slightly perfumed, but this doesn't bother me at all (the smell is subtle and fresh). It reacts well in combination with my sun protection factor and foundation (which is an important pro). What I didn't like was that it's not hydrating enough..I mean, if you feel that your skin is still a little bit dry, then this cream is not sufficient for you and you may have to start compensating. Another minus is the absence of SPF. But again, this matter seems to be generalized when it comes to moisturizers, it's rather rare when you can find a good face cream with enough SPF.

Rate: 9/10

Wishes...

Giorgio Armani cosmetics are not easily found around this region, but generally they receive many praises. For this reason, I just haaaave to add the following two to my wish/testing list: fluid sheer and the palette from spring 2013 collection. :)

Have you tried them yet? If so, what do you think about them?

Elegant, Classic, Chanel (7)

Inimitable Mascara Waterproof - I owned it just once, some while ago. It didn't impress me with anything, and not because it wasn't suitable for me or irritated my eyes, but because it didn't feel to be very much different from LÓreal mascara...except for the price. I can confirm that it's resistant, with intense pigmentation and easy to use brush, it didn't clump on the eyelashes nor did it highlight them in any particular way. No remarkable effect.. I don't think I would re-buy it.

Rate 8/10.

Elegant, Classic, Chanel (6)

Chanel Coco - as I was saying in one of my previous posts, Coco is one of the remarcable-fragrances. Once you apply it, you can be sure it melts on you, holding you tightly in its warm embrace for the next following days. It's a very sharp perfume, with a surprising debut of strong notes of jasmine, coriander, rose and orange blossom. If you manage to survive the first 10 minutes, you have all the chances of enjoying what comes next. Base notes show off the majestic rose (but not the gentle suave smell you might be familiar with), mixed with sandalwood, labdanum, vanilla and tonka beans. The mixture of rose, sandalwood and vanilla last indefinitely on my skin...I think the smell gets impregnated at cellular level :)
Being that strong, it needs to be worn during colder/crisp weather (during summer it should be worn in the evenings). Anyway, generally I recommend this perfume only to those who can resist to strong-powerful scents, and for special occasions. I don't recommend wearing it to the office...for obvious reasons :).

Rate 10/10.

Diorskin Rosy Glow

Diorskin Rosy Glow - finally, I can say that I've crossed something more from my beauty wish list! I don't remember what it was exactly that I liked about this blush when I first tried it, but it stuck with me and kept thinking that I neeeeed it! I purchased it recently, and it quickly became a favorite, as I started using it almost exclusively. One layer and the skin looks discretely invigorated, in the most natural manner. One more layer and you suddenly accentuate a hint of a more obvious pink on the cheekbones. It's as natural as it can be, very delicate, without shiny particles (at least from what I noticed), and the shade (unique), by its versatile nature, it's suitable to many types of skin. It's very resistant throughout the day, similar to the other sibling- blush, Diorblush. The only disadvantage is the price..like for all Dior products actually. :)
Rate 10/10.

Mario Badescu Cellufirm Drops

Mario Badescu Cellufirm Drops - there is nothing in this world that sounds more promising to women than eternal skin youth and beauty. The very name of this wonder serum seems to offer just that. Key words such as - cellular firming drops - ensure that your skin, challenged by the passing of time, will find a trustful ally  in these green droplets. Hmm... let's see if that's truly the case.

I've been using the serum for over a month now and I can draw some conclusions. I'll start by mentioning that I have not been using it according to the indications provided by the producer, in combination with a hydrating cream. I've been using it over another serum, which left my skin too dry, in the morning. So I used it in a combination of 2 light products, which seemed to be suited to my complexion. I didn't apply 4-5 drops, as the producer indicated, but only 2 and I think this is the right amount for my skin. It offered the hydration that my skin needed for an entire day, without the disgraceful shine. The skin became visibly more elastic, with an improved firmness. It blended well with my favorite sun protection cream (Bioderma) and is an excellent makeup base. 

As a conclusion I can say that this is quite a nice serum, which I would recommend to those of you with a rather dry skin. Quality-price indicator is a reasonable one. The main disadvantage is that is does not have SPF and consequently you need to further apply an additional sun screen cream.

Rate 9/10.

Summer mornings

Absolutely all weekend mornings should start with small delights...such as a great big warm cup of coffee and..pancakes with fresh cottage sour cream cheese, ice cream, raspberry jam or honey with whole nuts..yummm!! :)

Chanel Coco Noir

I remember that some time ago, reading of the newly launched perfume, Coco Noir, I got the impression that it's a stronger version of Coco...or, the already consecrated fragrance (as I will comment in a future post)  is a very strong perfume, with powerful individual floral-oriental notes. Great question mark was raised, related to Chanel decision of launching an even more overwhelming fragrance than Coco! ..until today, when I had the opportunity of testing it.
Myself and Chanel fragrances have a very good chemistry, as far as I could conclude. The fragrance stuck to my wrist, and I noticed that in fact, it oscillates between Coco and Coco Mademoiselle, being slightly softer than both of them. Top and middle notes are very much similar to Coco Mademoiselle, but base notes make Coco Noir a more oriental fragrance ..very resistant, gorgeous! It's already on my wishlist! :)

Rate 10/10.

Shiseido Benefiance Eye Cream

I'm very reluctant in what concerns eye creams. I have very sensitive eyes and to me, the majority of creams I've tried so far only created problems rather than fixing skin dehydration..meaning that in short time after applying it, I would get some sort of irritated and watering eyes. And squinting because of soreness is not really something you'd want to experience (quite the opposite effect of eye wrinkle correction, right?). :)
On the other hand, I cannot really say that I am confident in a different effect of eye creams vs. regular face creams. Even so, I kept on trying, because who knows what I may come across at some point :).
The last eye cream I tested was Shiseido Benefiance, one of the very few eye creams which I was not afraid to apply a second or a third time. This one has not created any problems at all. I sunk in the skin easily, hydrating very well the fine skin around the eyes. Skin elasticity seemed to be improve visibly even after a few applications in my case. I have to admit that I don't know whether in the end, the cream is indeed anti-aging (as it intends to be), firstly because I haven't used it for a long time and secondly because I have no noticeable wrinkles to be improved.
Rate 9/10.

Elegant, Classic, Chanel (5)

Eau Premiere - personally, I never did manage wearing Chanel No.5 without being a little sick in the beginning. After an hour or so, the perfume became more bearable, but first few moments are crucial and you can end up being sick an entire day, thanks to those heavy top notes. This is why I was glad when its lighter version, Eau Premiere, was released. Top notes are predominantly floral, but they still hold in some 50% of the strength of the initial fragrance. Ylang-ylang and neroli flower notes vanish relatively fast this leaves my skin with a predominant smell of roses and jasmine, mixed with sandalwood. On me, it can last up to 6-8 hours, being quite persistent, which brings me to pointing out that, despite me calling it a "light" perfume, next to others, it can be quite heavy! Consequently, I would recommend caution when wearing it to the office.

Rate 8/10.

Pudre universelle compacte - it's without any doubt the first powder which I enjoyed using, without being extra careful...meaning the only thing you need to pay attention to is the right shade. In other aspects, the powder has a very fine texture, an excellent matte finish and covers lightly the skin, gently unifying its color. It's the first powder ever which I liked in a particular manner. At the end of the day, you don't have to worry that it gathered up in the skin's fine lines or that it was soaked in sebum and began to shine. Consequently, there is no way you can be wrong with this product, and I recommend it to everyone who can go past its prohibitive price. :)

Rate 10/10.

Elegant, Classic, Chanel (4)

Allure Sensuelle - Allure's younger brother is my favorite of these two. The notes are far better structured, and after the first sensation, represented by citric notes, you can sense the dominant middle and base notes, which are far more oriental and woody, based on patchouli, sandalwood and amber. Its persistence is formidable and is only equaled (in my case at least) by Jungle and Angel. It can be worn in cold or cooler days, and in the evening rather than in the morning. It's not a perfume for the sensible, so I recommend caution in case you intend to wear it at the office! :)

Rate 10/10.    

Beaute Initiale Eye - from Beaute Initiale range of products, is a moisturizer meant to prevent signs of eye fatigue and dark circles. The product comes in form of a pink gel and offers a light hydration, somewhat improving the appearance of fine lines and the color of the area beneath the eye. The packaging facilitates the right product dosage and application. It's an excellent makeup base. Minuses: it seemed that in my case it wasn't hydrating enough over the day and I also noticed a slight eye irritation. Another minus is obvious: its price :)
Rate 8/10.

Elegant, Classic, Chanel (3)

Allure - the fragrance that surrounds you with the sweetest and enjoyable notes. The perfume debuts with energizing citric notes, but is shortly followed by the oriental enriched vanilla aroma  which makes you inhale insatiably any whiff of this perfume...or at least this is its effect on me. It is without a doubt one of the most resistant fragrances I ever had, in my top 5. It can be worn especially in cooler days, casual or at the office.

Rate 10/10

Rouge Coco - I "worked" hard at finishing this lipstick. I didn't really like the color and with this occasion I learned not to go with close-to-lip shades again. I was saying in previous posts that I had a similar experience with a Dior lipstick and it became clear to me that good lipsticks need to have a shade that "says something" instead of just staying quietly and unnoticed in my makeup bag. Otherwise, I have nothing to comment on. Very good resistance, hydrating, with a very subtle shine, and I would recommend it to anyone who wants to "invest" some money and try out a good lipstick. :)
Rate 10/10

Spring begins with you..

There was no way of posting anything up to this moment, and the reason is ...see it for yourselves! :)
Pure beauty..

As we adapt to this brand new life together, we'll find the time to also keep writing in this blog. Our cosmetic universe just got considerably richer, if we take into account baby creams and lotions, right? :p

Valentine's

And because today it's Valentine's Day, we need to start preparing, right?!
1. We start with total relaxation

2. We continue with the beautifully scented bath

3. Next comes makeup, of course! :)

4. Hmm..what to wear, what to wear?!

5. Shoes..tough decision

And we start thinking about what comes next...first is chocolate!

And maybe some delicious dinner...

...in a special place!

What are your Valentine's traditions, if you have any that is?! :)