What I have brought on holiday - makeup -

Since my last post wasn't really upbeat and anything makeup related, and this after all is a beauty blog here is my holiday makeup! As i'm in Cyprus it's bloody hot and HUMID, therefor what i have with me are just a few essential bits...

face wise:

-Guerlain Terracotta 4 seasons review here, a must have in the summertime because I don't tan very quickly and this helps giving that "sun-kissed" look everyone loves (at least I do...)

-MUFE HD Blush shade 6, in the summertime I find cream blushers to be up my street much more than powders and this bright pink shade just lifts up my face and gives it a really nice and put together finish.

-Estèe Lauder DayWear Plus multi protection tinted moisturizer, has an spf 15 in which is always good, even though I only use it in the evening because I swim a lot and snorkle and dive during the day so I find it would be a waste to use it during the day.

-Shiseido Accentuating Color Stick in the shade champagne flush which I like to use as an highlighter, I like to put it on the high point of my face to give it a bit of sheen, my favourite place to apply it are the bridge of the nose and above the brow bone the give it a bit of a lift!

On to the eyes:

As you can see I'm keeping it very simple on the eyes, as it's about 30° or more here I tend to get quite oily lids and normal eyeshadows would never last so I opted for this golden Shiseido hydro-powder shadow which is really sparkely and just gorgeous with a little bit of a tan, I mean gold simply sceams summer to me!
This product has been discontinued but I think they've re-launched them and they're now called shimmering cream eye color in the shade techno gold.

To define the lashline or to go for a full on cat-eyed look I brought along another Shiseido product, the accentuating cream eyliner, that I find to be the best out there! I've had it for three years and has not dried and it stays on like nothing else, this will always be my go to cream eyeliner ( I tried the maybelline lasting drama one but I find that it smudges and transfers ).

and now... LIPS!

I tend to keep it quite simple so I went for a pink toned (Revlon lip butter review here) and a more orange toned (Max Factor lipstic review here), and two glosses both by Chanel, one more red/berry colour which has no shimmer what so ever and is rather elegant and refined (too bad is discontinued) and the other Levres Scintillantes nude color for that extra bit of sparkle perfect for a summer night out!

here are some swatches...why does my arm always look so odd??

After this uber long post I shal wish you a good sunday and I hope I'll see you back soon!

Anna

bloglovin | twitter | facebook

Cyprus a little disappoinment

Here I am! As I  promised I 'm reporting back from Cyprus and I will say si far it's been a nice holiday with one big BUT... and that is that this island is full of trash... I generally don't like to write badly about places I travel to (and usually I have nothing to complain about) but this time it's different and I'll now explain why. In the north of Cyprus there are a few beaches that are turtle nesting sites and the little turtles are starting their journey called life as I'm typing. On these beaches come both green and loggerhea turtles to lay their eggs, and as you all know they're both listed as endengered species and are heavily protected.

Now I will show you s few pictures and I'm sure you'll be as surprised as me in discovering that some idiots like to go drifting between the turtles nests and that the beaches are basically dumping ground and really dirty! 

this is a structure used to signal and protect the turtle nests

little turtles rescued by the biologists! (they were very kind to show me!)

biologists working on the nests checking for everything to be all right...

idiot stuck in the sand after a drifiting session!(according to the biologists is not really uncommon)

See? are you just as shocked ad I was to see this? I know most of this trash comes from the sea and not from people that actually leave it on the beach but still, Why don't the locals keep them clean? why don't they organise groups of volounteers that once a month take tha time to clean it and keep it clean? These beaches are such a valuable treasure for not only the inhabitants of Cyprus, but the hole Planet! I spoke to the volounteers that were working there and some of them were Italian, sone Spanish other English and even they were really bitter about the whole situation. Another question is why are'nt these beaches closed for cars?Well, I think I've made my point... and if you want to spread the word feel free!

What I'm taking on holiday with me -skincare-

As you might now.. tomorrow I'm going on holiday and I'm so excited, so I decided to do a blog post all about hte skincare bits and pieces that I'm taking with me!

Starting at the top I have two of my favourite sunscreens both L'Oreal Solar Expertise anti wrincle and anti dark spots sunscreen SPF 30 to start off and than 15 for when I'll be a bit more tanned. I really like these sunscreen because they do their job really nicely, they don't feel greasey and most importantely they don't break me out, which is a huse deal for me because I have combination and acne prone skin and a couple of years ago I became a walking pimple thanks to an awful sunscreen and ended up taking antibiotis and all that jazz and it wasn't fun at all! Plus I hate the idea of having acne marks on my face for the rest of my life so using sonething that I know specificly addresses that issue is a big plus in my book.

Moving on we have Liz Earle little sample sizes of their Brightening treatment mask,  Gentle Face exfoliator, Enirgising body scrub, which I all equally love and I hope I'll use them up while away and I believe I will repuchase the full size bottles of the brightening tretment mask because it's really unique and fast acting and I don't think I would find somethig quite similar here.

After that we have Avenè soothing moisture mask, Triacneal and their basic moisturiser which I've already talked about a few times and I really love it! The only product I'm not too sure about is the triacneal, I don't think it does much but I still want to use it up because it's quite pricy and maybe I'll like it eventually. 

Further right we have the Bionike defence sun sun lotion, low protection which I'll use in the evening when I'll try to tan a bit more but still in a safe way (my muym has all the higher factors in her suitcase so I'll also have a factor 50 and 30 with me)

Under that we have the well known ( where would I go without it?) Liz Earle Clense and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser with the muslin cloth.

In the centre is a haircare product that I wanted to include because I bought it today for only 3.60€, and it's the Pantene 2 minutes intensive repair mask which I can't wait to try, I usually really like Pantene product therefor I have high hopes on this one.

I'm bringing along Caudalie beauty elixir and see if the smell will eventually grow on me.

And last but not least is my most exciting product: Clarins After sun moisturizer Self tanning. I bought this after reading and watching all the good things Vivianna from Vivianna does makeup had to say about it, and sice I tend to really like most of the things she likes I really hope this little product will make my tan come out more and last longer too (since my whole family gets really dark while when I come back home people ask me if i went on holiday with them or not...story of my life!)

and this is it!!! i'm sure I'll toss a few more things in my luggage before tomorrow but these are the main things! sorry if this post was a bit long (I was thinking about maybe filming a video on it??? we'll see..)

have a great weekend and holiday if you're going somewhere!

Anna

bloglovin | twitter | facebook

Prepping legs for holiday

This is my secret (well...not so sectren anymore..) weapon for getting my legs ready for a nice holiday where I'll be showing them all the time is the Sea Solt Coconut Body Polish from Malie.

As I mentioned in previouse posts I really like to prep my skin for spring and summer through body brushing and moisturizing but I think scrubbing is one extra special treat I give my legs before a nice holiday and this my friends is the best scrub that has crossed my path so far. The sea solt in it does a brilliant job at exfoliating while the coconut oil acts a treat for moisturizing the skin leaving a nice soft oily (but in a good way) residue on the skin that sinks in in a few minutes nourishing the skin.

Malie is an organic brand developed on Kauai, HI that works with nature to provide us with the best quality ingredients to help our body and soul. I love the whole concept behing this brand and I thank my friend Tom soo much for sending this body polish all the way to Italy! If you live in the US you can buy their products online here. If I'll ever be lucky enough to go back to Hawaii I'll definitely buy a few bits from their range.

I tried to be concised and streight to the point, let me know if you're familiar with this brand and which things from them are your favourites and if you have a favourite body polish or scrub you could not live without!!

Anna

bloglovin | twitter | facebook

IN & OUT

I know I've been absent for a couple of weeks, but this july has been a nightmere and I needed time to get back to being my happy self and step away from all the sadness that has characterised this past few days, so thanks for still visiting my blog!

IN:

-summer storms, this month has been raining every single evening and every single night and I love to sllep with my window open listening to the sound of the rain and the thunders...

-eating my home grown cherry tomatoes and strawberries! thsi year my mum and I have organised the balcony so that we have tomatoes, strawberries, basil, mint and rosemary plants in the vases, I find it really satisfactory watching the little tomatoes I watered for quite some times turn from green to red and the little strawnerry flower evolve into tiny red fruits!

-getting ready to go on holyday! Hurray!! God knows how much I need it... I'll be in Cyprus for 10 days soaking up the sun and preparing for my september session of exams!! I can't wait to play pool, relax by the swimming pool, go snorkeling, eat plenty of fish and blog away ( aparently we'll have free wifi connection so I'll try to blog from there)

OUT:

-nothing lasts forever...maybe...

-breaking out due to humidity, it's not fun at all! let's just jope this phase doesn't last very long, I have graduation parties to attend! ;)

hope you're all ahving a fantastic monday!

Anna

bloglovin | twitter | facebook

New Necklace

I recived this necklace as a gift from my mum, and I thought this was the best gift I had ever recived. This little roses are made with magazines pages by young girl in Mozambico who fight every day in order to recive an education. This association called "A scuola di solidarietà" focuses on preparing and forming a new class of highly qualified teacher who can provide these girls with a stong education that can make a huge difference in their lives.

This associacion was founded in 1993, and so far it has trained 34 teachers that now offer their services to 3700 kids. From 2009 this association has also offered scholarships to high achieving students. Unfortunately this association does not have a website but if you wish to know more or maybe even contribute here is and email adress you can contact : ramgia1@dnet.it

have a great day!

Anna

bloglovin | twitter | facebook