The sisterhood of beauty

I am the only person I know, out of all my family and friends, that is really into beauty. You know, the whole youtube, blog, twitter, beauty, skincare, hair, makeup community. And as much as I enjoy being a little part of that community, in the end, all of it is in the internet. And wouldn't it be nice to talk about beauty in real life? Have someone that helps you decide which blush colour looks better on you? Goes shopping with you? Just shares your passion? Well, I think, yes.

Also, image you get into a new class, meet the friends of your new boyfriend, start a new hobby, or in general, meet people you don't know. If you could just know if one of them is into beauty? Yes, if they wear a lot of makeup, that is a sign. But not a proof. If they ask you what lipstick you are wearing, that is a sign, but not a proof. I hope you see where I am going here, I just think it would be so nice to tell immediately if someone is a beauty or not.

So here is my idea. We need some sort of sign. A pendant for a necklace for example. Something that is known in the beauty community, that you can wear, something that shows everyone who knows about the meaning of it that you like beauty as well, but something that most other people would not think is something more than just a regular necklace. Because, honestly, I don't want to wear a necklace saying "Beautycommunity" or something like that, I don't want everyone that just walks by to know about what I love. Maybe something like a very stylised outlining of a lipstick? But if I meet new people, and someone wears the same necklace, we could start talking.

That obviously is no guarranty that you like that person. You may hate her. But at least you can try. And it makes it a bit easier I think to find a topic to talk about, to get some sort of communication or relationship going.

Buffing Collection

I love brushes. There you have it. I have tons of them, and I keep buying more. Today I want to talk a bit about a specific categorie, buffing brushes. Buffing brushes are the only kind of brush that I like for my base product. It is quick and leaves the nicest finish. Here is what I can choose from ever day:

L-R: Real Techniques Expert Face Brush, Sigma F84, Sigma F86, Sephora Mineral Powder brush, Real Techniques Buffing Brush, Zoeva #104

In the above picture I arranged them from the stiffest, densest, to the loosest, fluffiest. Basically, the denser, the higher the coverage you get with it. All of them are equally soft and are great quality. I always wash them after two uses with brush soap, and none of them has ever lost hairs or colour.

RT Expert Face, Sigma F84, Sigma F86

 The Expert Face Brush is the stiffest and tt is oval. I find myself not buffing with it, but use it more in strikes, it still leaves the foundation nicely blended in. The F84 is oval as well, but it is also slanted. Again, I don't really buff with it but just slide it down my face. The shape makes it really easy to get underneath the eye or on the eyelid (I like to put a bit of foundation there as well to conceal a bit of uneveness). The F86 is obviously perfect for small areas as well. I still find that this is the one that I reach for the least. I can't really explain why, but I don't like the way you need to use it if that makes sense.

Sephora Mineral Powder, RT Buffing, Zoeva #104

The Sephora brush is great. It is dense enough to give good coverage, but is bendable enough to really buff the product into the skin. The Buffing Brush is a lot less dense, and the circumference somewhat bigger. This is the one I reach for the most when I don't look for super heavy coverage. Lastly, the Zoeva one is even bigger. With this one, it takes about 20 seconds to apply foundation to your entire face which is quite useful sometimes. Because it gives less coverage and blends very well, I find I get the most natural coverage with this one. And it was my first one out of all of these, so I will always love it :)

Essie In Stitches

Hello hello!

I just quickly wanted to brag with my new nail polish: Essie in stitches:

In Reality it is a bit more brownish. And please excuse my super dry cuticles, my hands just can't stand cold weather!

I think this is a perfect fall colour. Redish, but not too bright. Goes with everything. Just two thin coats needed. Above it is already 3 days old and no chipping or tipwear what so ever. 

If it reminds someone of Angora Cardi by Essie, you are not alone. But (at least in the bottle) that one is quite a bit darker. The general colour however is pretty similar!

Hungry. Need to go.

How to make heels out of flip flops (kind of)

I have this problem. My feet are quite wide in the front, but small at the back. This means, if I want to wear ballet flats or high heels, I always flip out at the back, because I need to buy them so big, that they fit in the front. 

Here is what I did today. 

1. Cut two long strips of fabric. They should be about 1-1.2 meter long and about 4-5 cm wide. (As you can see on the picture, if you don't have fabric that's long enough, just put two pieces together)

2. Pin each of them right sides together lengthwise. As you do so, put a piece of string in the middle. Then sew along the long side, also sew the string to one of the short sides where it comes out.

3. Pull on the string to turn the tube inside out. Press.

4. Finish the edges. (I just wrapped thread around them, but maybe you want to add some beads?)

5. Go from this...

to this!

Or get creative with other ways to wrap them!

These are super simple and fast to do. They not just add a bit more to your outfit (match the colour to your shoes, your dress, your purse or do some colour blocking! Vary the width of the bands!) but also stop your feet from flipping out of your shoes. You can walk a lot easier and more sophisticated!

P.S.: I forgot to mention: it works better with non-stretchy fabric!

The three day make up bag

So I am at my parents house over the weekend, so I thought I share with you what makeup I brought with me. As always, it is a lot more than you actually need, but hey, I like to have a couple of options! :)

My go to foundation at the moment is Rimmel lasting finish foundation (see my review on it here). As I get fairer, I started mixing in some green face base, mine is from Alverde, to lighten it up and make it more yellow based! For concealer I have L'Oreal True Match in Vanilla for under the eye and on bigger areas of redness, and MAC Studio Fix in NW20 for blemishes. For powder I took the Essence mattifying compact powder in translucent, then NYX blush in Taupe for contouring and MAC Cream Colour Base in Pear for highlighting. I also brought two blushes, a neutral version (Sleek in Suede) and a slightly deeper, berry colour (Alverde Pastell Rosé). 

For eyeshadow bases I obviously could not stick with one, so I packed the Urban Decay Primer Potion and the Essence soft touch eyeshadow in my caddy in the wind from the A New League LE, which is a shimmery champagny colour. Catrice Eyeshadows in C'mon Chameleon! and My First Copperware Party for if I want a little bit of colour. Black eyeliner from Essence and a nude one from Rival de Loop. The mascara of choice is Catrice Lashes To Kill in ultra black. Last but not least: Rimmel Eyebrow Designer in Black-Brown and Essence clear Browgel. 

I am really into bright lips at the moment, so I chose NYX Round Lipstick in Doll and the Revlon kissable Balmstain in Crush. But I could not leave the house without a slightly less dramatic option, so Revlon Mauve it over lipstick hopped in as well, which is my "my lips but better shade". 

Lastly, I managed to reduce my growing brush collection to only six that where allowed to take the journey with me: Real Techniques Multi Task(powder, contour), Buffing (foundation), Detailer (lips) and Domed Shadow (concealer) Brush, Kosmetik Kosmo Rouge Rosi (blush) and Zoeva #225 (eyeshadow). The Real Techniques Brushes just arrived a couple of days ago, but so far I like them, and the case is very handy as well!

Food of the weekend

Okay, I don't know if I mentioned it before, but I am a bit food crazy. I love food :) And I love cooking. So here is what I did this weekend!

Friday: A plate of salad. I love doing that from time to time, it is not just healthy but also really delicious. Lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper. The dressing is from Sami from beautycrush on youtue. To make it not too healthy I added a big slice of wholegrain, buttered bread and two slices of smoked salmon. 

Saturday: Beef Rendang Curry with rice from the "Beginners get Sorted" book from Sortedfood! I love those guys and their recipes, and this is no exception. A tiny bit too hot for me, but the taste, mh, the taste...

Sunday: Filled Peppers. Basically, you just put some minced meat in a pan with some garlic, onion and chili, I added a tiny bit of cream cheese, fill it into halfed peppers and put it in the oven for 10-15 minutes. Super easy.

Later on Sunday: Baked Banana. Honey. Whipped Cream. A hint of cinamon. OMG.