It´s a nice tradition to bring home something for your loved one when you´ve been away for a while. I got the Chanel Rouge Noir nail polish nicely wrapped in paper with a sweet little note.

His mother had also sent me a few things, three vintage scarves and a collar.

Finally things can get back to normal again, starting with the traditional Saturday shopping tomorrow.

I got a new dress today and celebrated by getting Chanel´s Hydrabase Rouge Noir lipstick. It´s a nice change from my Barcelona Red and gives a more dramatic look. I believe it´s cutting the bangs that is making me wear lipstick so often all of a sudden. My eyes are hidden under my hair and no matter how much eye makeup I wear, it hardly makes a difference. Lipstick however…

I spent a small fortune on hair products today. On impulse I stopped by a hairdresser telling them about my hair problems, how it´s dry and brittle but also gets greasy really fast. I really never could figure out what to go for and nothing seemed to work. So they suggested a combination of different hair products from Redken. I got the Redken All Soft shampoo and conditioner, and for occasional use, the Redken Scalp Relief shampoo. All together it ended up being quite pricey, but they were sweet and gave me a hair dryer for free, so it didn´t feel too bad. So far I can only report that my hair feels different, I noticed it the moment I put the shampoo in the hair. The last time I spent a little money on hair products it was from Kérastase after reading great reviews online. I didn´t however notice anything different compared to the low price products I have used before. I am hoping today´s little investment will give me less hair problems and hair that will stay fresh for longer!

Several of you have asked what kind of make-up I wear, so here it is. Not all of this is in my daily routine as I usually don´t bother with foundation and all of that. On a busy day I´ll only wear concealer, pressed powder, mascara, a light eye shadow and blush. If I´m going all out, this is it.

Estée Lauder Spotlight skin tone perfector (base before foundation), Estée Lauder Individualist foundation, YSL compact powder, YSL touche éclat (concealer), Sebastian eye brow trio, Chanel powder blush in Sphère (I´d like a different color), Lancôme Hypnôse mascara, Lancôme Liner design (eye liner), Shu Uemura lash curler, old Body Shop blush brush, Sephora eye shadow brushes, MAC eye shadows in girlie satin, smut velvet and shroom satin, Chanel lipstick in barcelona red, Clinique superbalm lipgloss and nail polish, often either Chanel or Nubar.

All of these are products I am very pleased with and that I have ended up with after a lot of testing so I can happily recommend every single thing in here. What I would like to find is the perfect mascara (there´s always something wrong with them), the perfect color blush and more eye shadow colors (I tend to only wear pink, brownish grey and black).

The massive black eyeliner like Amy Winehouse wears seems to be turning into a trend. I never would have guessed seeing that it´s quite out of the ordinary.

On my way home today I ended up getting a black liquid eyeliner. The inspiration wasn´t Amy Winehouse though, but Cleopatra as my new haircut kind of reminded me of her.

I got the Lancôme Liner Design, which I was told by the sales woman at the first shop I went to, was sold out all over town because it was so good. I did find it the next shop I went to though so I´m not sure if she was being sincere. It is however very good, the color is much more saturated than the one I tried from Chanel, and the felt tip makes it really easy to put on.

I mentioned that I need to have my hair cut and now I have made an appointment for next week and I need to decide what to do. My original plan was to have it thinned and go for a 70´s straight look, more of the hippie style, as I think it will go well with my summer wardrobe. It´s not too big a change either, basically what I´ve always had anyway, only my hair is a little thicker. After cutting off a bunch of my hair it´s too short for that…

But since I´ve worn my hair the same way my entire life, I thought it was about time to try something new. A short hairdo with long bangs is an option. It might be too different and too scary though, and it will be limit my options considerably.

So I thought of bangs. They´re everywhere and that´s what bothers me, but then I thought about combining that with the 70´s look and go for really heavy bangs with rounded edges.

The thing is I´ve always been really boring when it comes to my hair and some advice would be very appreciated. Maybe you have completely different ideas? Or maybe there are hairdressers out there that might have an idea of what would go well with both my face and style.

After more than two years of blogging, I have never had a guest blogger here, so it´s time for the first one out. Vicky is a freelance writer, relationship and beauty expert, and soon-to-be writer. She dishes out beauty, dating, and fashion advice in GotACrush.com and here´s a great article from her on 10 cosmetic products you should´t live without. After the first five, press “more” to read the rest.

It seems like every day there is a new cosmetic product that’s out on the market and it can become very difficult to keep up on the latest styles, little own deciphering which one looks best on you.

Luckily, there are 10 key cosmetic products that every woman should own, as these are what will really enhance your natural beauty and get you looking your best.

While it’s fine to try out a variety of different colours and effects with your make-up, try and keep these ten pieces relatively constant to ensure you always look great.

A Lengthening Black Mascara

When you ask the vast majority of men what the one thing they notice when they look at a woman is, you’ll often receive ‘her eyes’ as your response.

Using a good lengthening black mascara will help enhance the look of your eyelashes, which creates that eye opening appearance that will get you noticed.

A White Eye Liner

White eye liner can really work wonders for your eyes if you use it at the very inner corner. By placing a small white line there, regardless of whether you carry it around to the outer corner, you can again make your eyes appear larger and give you a more awake look.

Since white will work well with almost any colour of eye shadow, you can use it with all the looks you are trying to create. Don’t be afraid to use another eye liner colour as well, just keep the white liner area limited to the very innermost part of the eye.

Some Shine-Free Powder

Having some shine-free powder that you can carry around with you when your face starts to get shiny is a great way to keep your look matte, preventing an oily appearance.

Do make sure you don’t overdo the shadow though, otherwise you’ll get a ‘caked’ on look. Just gently dab it with a puff over the areas that cause problems (usually the T-zone).

Lightly Coloured Lip Gloss

Gone are the days when you want to sport deep, matte lips. Now, the definition of kissable lips is a slightly wetter look, giving a full and supple appearance.

If you prefer to wear a lipstick, place just a dab of gloss in the very centre of the lips. This will give your pout a hint of shine, while still allowing the stronger lipstick colour to show through.

If you’d prefer to just go with a gloss, rub it all across the length of your lips, being sure it’s evenly distributed.

A Good Make-Up Remover

Next, just as important as creating the right make-up look is removing that make-up look from your face. Having a good quality make-up remover is essential for keeping your skin clear from blemishes and for preventing fine lines.

Be sure to use it every day without fail and you should soon start to notice a real improvement in your appearance.

(more…)

When we were getting ready to move into our new place, investing in a lot of new furniture to make everything perfect, I felt I had to accommodate that with a few new skin care and makeup products. All of which I ordered off StrawberryNet as it´s much cheaper than in stores here, and the shipping is free. I´ll share the best of the items with you when I´ve had the time to test them out.

A good cleanser was one of the things I wanted to invest a little in. After thorough investigation on the Internet, I came across Dermalogica Essential Cleansing Solution. During winter I always get very dry skin and I have to moisturize all the time to look the least bit fresh. This cleanser was supposed to be good for dry skin. That would be killing two birds with one stone! After testing it for a couple of weeks, my skin does feel a lot smoother! I don´t even moisturizer these days, as that is one of the next things I have to get. But with this result it´s not even any rush!

Just before the weekend I received the new Diesel Fuel for life fragrances, both his and hers. I opened the femme fragrance first and I loved the little knit “jacket”. The fragrance it self was a little summery and fresh. I tried it at the office and people commented that it smelled nice. I was supposed to save the homme bottle for later to give it to my husband, but I couldn´t wait and opened it too. I was so thrilled when I saw how well the two bottles matches one another, one feminine and one masculine. It´s like you have to get both as they belong together. The male fragrance is not too masculine, not too flashy, as they often tend to be. Rather it´s just a nice and subtle smell that my male test panel seemed to love. The fragrance also comes in a limited edition with gold jewelry, but I love these bottles the most.

I love make-up brushes. I´ve often been tempted to spend a lot of money on good brushes but so far my brushes from Body Shop have had to do, and it´s not that cheap either when you´re getting a few at a time. While I´ve been content with them, due to their profile, they´re not made out of real animal hair. Through Coutorture I was lucky enough to receive a smokey eye kit from Sephora. The kit comes in a gunmetal faux leather case with 5 different brushes, the basics of brushes you´ll need really, along with a mascara. These brushes are something else. So soft and they look and feel so professional. I am no expert on makeup, that´s for sure, but I am so happy with these new brushes. It makes it extra fun to lay my makeup when having great equipment. The kit isn´t expensive either, for $42 you get most brushes you´ll need, and they do of course also sell separate brushes. This one though contains a step by step manual for the perfect smokey eye.

I want a blue nail polish to go with nude and soft pink garments. Problem is all the blue lacquers I have come across so far have glitter in them. Image is from Costume.

I got a package from Chanel today due the new fragrance Coco Mademoiselle. A 7,5 ml sample of the perfume came in a beautiful box with pictures of Keira Knightley who fronts the campaign in with a CD containing photos, behind the scenes shots and more. While I’ve never been a perfume girl and all the perfumes I own are gifts from former boyfriends, Coco Mademoiselle is perfection. It’s ladylike, but not in that old lady way. It’s heavy and fresh at the same time. It’s the kind of perfume I would never wear with jeans and sneakers, it’s one of those perfumes that requires an evening gown and a fur stole. I’ll put it in the best way I can: It’s Chanel. Ahh, if I only owned a beautiful red dress like the one Keira is wearing in the ads I would put it on and spray Coco Mademoiselle all over. Instead I´ll save it for a nice occasion.

I wrote a post about my beauty favorites almost two years ago, but since then I’ve come across a few new favorites. While I then was a student and mostly bought cheap brands, I now put a little extra money in it, and most of the time it’s worth it.

I don’t use foundation on a daily basis, this is mostly for nights out or when I want to look my absolute best. After doing a little investigation I ended up with Estèe Lauder Individualist Natural Finish Makeup. It´s a little darker than my skin tone, something I’ve avoided in the past, but this one evens out so nicely and the result is great without looking unnatural.

From the same brand I also got a primer, the Estèe Lauder Skin Tone Perfector. It’s a base that you put on before the foundation. It evens out the skin tone and makes the makeup last longer and makes it easier to apply. I tested the product on one of my hands to compare with the other, and it really works. Those areas that are a little red get toned down and it gives a nice glow prior to applying the rest of the makeup.

It was a friend of mine who introduced me to YSL Radiant Touch. I’ve had a hard time finding concealers before, and no matter what I bought, they always seemed magically disappear within no time. After testing hers I tried it out once more in the store along with a bunch of other things, and after wiping it all of with a tissue, the YSL Radiant Touch was the only one that stuck even then. Since then it’s become one of the most valued beaty products I own.

Since I was already shopping from YSL I also got their compact powder, YSL Poudre Compacte. Here I have several favorites, and I’ve used Estèe Lauder for a long time, so the main reason why I got this is because of the nice box. The powder is super smooth and looks very natural.

Among my old favorites is Max Factor Eyeshadow Earth Spirits which I´ve used almost daily for nearly ten years. I have eye shadows from Chanel, Rimmel, Clinique and many more, but it beats them all. It´s super easy to apply and it lasts for ever. I usually apply it with a moist brush for even better result.

I ended up spending a great deal of money today, but they were all necessary things that I had planned to get, so there were no silly impulse buys.

At H&M I got nude underwear which can be really practical when wearing light colored clothing. This is actually my first push-up bra in years; I normally don´t wear them. This one “pushed up” so much that I ended leaving the regular bra behind!

At Zara I got a pair of grey patent leather booties on sale. Ok, so I made one impulse buy, but they were too cheap not to get and I really could use something like that when it gets coulder outside.

At last I got some makeup from Estée Lauder, Skin Tone Perfector and Natural Finish Makeup, along with a few samples. One of them went missing on the way home, but I guess it´s in one of the other bags.

Finally I´ve warmed up to purple! I got such an overdose of it when I was younger that even though purple has been frequent in years of fall collections, I haven´t been able to wear much of it. But today I got a purple clutch on H&M, and I even looked at a purple scarf! I also got my all time favorite eye shadow, Max Factor´s Burnt Bark. I´ve worn it daily for about 10 years! I do use other eye shadows once in a while, but I always fall back on that one. I also got Loreal´s 2 in 1 milk & toner make-up remover. I´ll let you know if I love it. And at last a two pack of black tights at H&M. Lately mine seem to get holes everywhere.