SKINCARE: Battle of the Micellar Waters

Micellar waters, the true wonder child of skincare. For those who don't get skincare obsessed; micellar waters have been the big thing in the beauty world. The idea? A light liquid makeup remover that is powerful, but feels just like water and is perfect for sensitive skin.

I compared the three most popular, and easiest to get your hands on, miccelar waters. Read my review below!

Empties #6

Yes, exams are killing me right now. No, let's not talk about it. This quick blogpost is the sixth in its series, it's EMPTIES TIME! So to any new readers, I basically explain to you what products I've been using up and what my thoughts were on them. Let's get started. 

New skincare routine

I've never been the greatest skincare geek/lover/goddess, but since I've started my new job, I decided my teen years were officially over and it was time for me to embrace the fact that I needed to take more care of my skin (before it's too late?). 

A friend of mine has always been so much into skincare, that I took some of her advice and along with that, some of her skincare products. She uses them religiously and has flawless skin. We also have the exact same skin type so I set as a goal to never have pimples again and try to achieve a similar beautiful skin as my friend. 

This Vichy face wash is from the same Vichy Normaderm line as all my previous skincare items, and I really have been loving it. It cleans better than my Biotherm cleansing sample and leaves my skin feeling very fresh. 

I used to use La Roche-Posay products back in high school, so it was a trip down memory lane to pick up this Effaclar Mat moisturizer. So far so good. I've noticed that my skin is producing less oil.

I'm pretty scared to try this night cream from Vichy. Right now I'm still using up the night cream from the Vichy Normaderm line, even though I don't like it anymore. But this one has the word Aqua in it, which worries me... I hope I won't wake up shiny-faced every morning when I start using this *fingers crossed*.

I've been using this Lancôme Cleansing milk for a while now as well. It takes off my makeup very nicely, but does leave a greasy-looking residue on my face which I dislike. This means I'm still in the market for a cleansing milk. Anyone got any recommendations?

Of course, Bioderma Micellaire cleansing water. I've used up a tiny bottle of this before and really like that it takes off any residue of my Lancôme cleansing milk and any makeup that is left on my face.

I still have to try out this scrub as well, since I'm still using up my previous one - that I very much dislike, I'll fill you in later. Excited to use this!

I've been using my Tea Tree Toner water from Lush for almost a year now and still love it. It leaves my skin feeling fresh and hydrated without feeling oily!

This is my new skincare routine, which skincare products have you been trying out?

Xoxo,

Anine

Paris haul!

I picked up some goodies from my amazing trip in Paris! Look at the damage I did!

The first stop was Sephora. I picked up the Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer in Light. It’s supposed to be oil free and perfect for acne-prone or sensitive skin. It provides a smooth, matte finish. I specifically wanted to try it to make my makeup stay on longer.

I also wanted to pick up the Urban Decay All Nighter Setting spray. Unfortunately, it wasn’t in stock that day and I had to go to the big Sephora on the Champs-Elysées (which was INSANE). This setting spray should ‘keep your makeup looking gorgeously just applied for up to 16 hours, without melting, fading, or settling into fine lines.’ The result should be smoother-looking skin and of course makeup that lasts all day. That’s why I bought it.

I got this polish for free when I signed up for the Sephora membership card (which was free). I’ve already tried it and love it!

Then I went by the MAC store in the Quartier Latin. I exchanged my six back-to-mac products for a lipstick. Originally, I had other lipsticks on my list, but after three “Ce n’est pas en stock!” I decided to just go and look for lipsticks I liked, instead of looking for the names such as Patisserie or Cream Cup. I also picked up a blush.

I ended up with this lipsticks I would normally never go for: Chatterbox. Although I don’t usually like blue-toned pinks, this one just stole my heart and I’ve already worn it so much!

Then I also gave in and after almost a year of yearning for this blush, I purchased the MAC mineralize blush in Love Thing. It looks stunning in the pan and on the cheeks. The man at the counter said “Wouldn’t you like a pale pink better?” but I stubbornly wanted Love Thing.

how stunning is that!?

Then of course, last but not least, I got me some Bioderma. A lot of it. My boyfriend looked at me in doubt, but I explained how in the end, it would be a lot cheaper when stocking up in Paris. He understood and even helped me carry two damn litres of Bioderma. Now that’s true love.

Do you own any of these items yourself? How do you like them?

Xoxo,

Anine

Paris shopping list

Today, I’m leaving on a four-day trip to the amazing city that is Paris. For the last weeks I’ve been working to save up some sort of budget so I could at least make a few purchases whilst being in the city of blinding lights!

We all know Paris is known for its amazing farmacies. Apparently a world of magical skincare products unfolds when arriving in a Parisian farmacy. I also want to check out a Sephora and a Muji store where I might/maybe/kind of make some purchases *looks innocently*. Keep on reading to see what’s on my Paris Wishlist!

1. Bioderma H20 Solution Miccelaire -- 500 ml €8,75/500mlx2 €15,90

2. Muji 5 drawer box -- €30

3. MAC lipstick in Patisserie – €18.50

4. SMASHBOX Photo finish unificateur de teint léger/face primer --12ml: €14,5/30ml: €31,5

5. Caudelie Beauty Elixer – (Don’t know the price in Paris, online it's 100ml/€33.65)

6. Urban Decay De-slick setting spray -- €24       

A short explanation why I chose these products: Basically I’m stocking up on Bioderma since Paris is the mothership of Bioderma and so it is much cheaper!

I have been wanting the 5 drawer set from Muji for a very long time but am still in doubt if I want to buy it or not... 

I can’t pick up Urban Decay or Smashbox in Belgium, except if it’s a webshop. It'll be nice to check these products out at Sephora Paris!

I would also like to try the Caudelie beauty elixer and I’m back-to-maccing my empty products and trading them for a free lip product, since we can’t back-to-mac in Belgium. I think I'm going to choose Patisserie since it’s a french name and I want to use it to remember this trip to Paris (I know, pretty childish right).

Have you tried any of these products? What products would you recommend I pick up from Paris?

Xoxo,

Anine

Empties #1

It was about time for a first empties post! Empties are the products you use up. Since you've used them all up, you know quite well if you like them, if they work like they're supposed to and if you'd repurchase them.

I've collected these empty items in the last months:

  

Let's start off simple. The first item I used up is this base coat from the Dutch drugstore Hema. It's cheap and it worked just fine. Since I've never used anything besides this, it's not relevant to compare this.

I also ran out of my MAC Oil control lotion, that I use as my daily moisturizer. I started using this about a year ago and it definately helps to control the oil in my skin. I always thought I had oily skin, but since I started using the MAC Oil control lotion, I know that actually I have a combination skin since only my T-zone gets oily. This is probably my second bottle of it, and I've already used a fair amount of my repurchased one. It's still going strong!

 This Maybelline the Falsies Volume Express Mascara has been gone for a while and I've had several tubes of it. It's the best mascara I've used so far, but I won't be repurchasing it for a while, since I'm testing out a lot of new ones. I do think I will eventually go back to this one.

My Vichy Normaderm exfoliating gel has gone too *snif snif*... I loved it, it left my skin pretty much spotless (which is extremely rare for me). I have a lot of samples and exfoliators I need to try out, but after that, I will definately be repurchasing this.

The Vichy solution micellaire is from the same Normaderm line as the exfoliator. I liked this, but tried out the Bioderma one afterwards and simply liked that better. I still have a second bottle of this have to use up though. 

So naturally, here is the small Bioderma Sensible H²0 Solution Micellaire bottle. I tried it out and loved it. On my trip to Paris I will be stocking up! This is the one for sensitive skin and it worked perfectly, but I know that there's also one for oily skin in this line. However, from the online reviews it seems to be less effective. Have you tried both? What do you think I should try?

I also finished this L'Oréal Elnett Satin Hair spray for extra volume. I love it and have been using it for a long time. It doesn't make my hair crunchy, it gives it that extra *Ooomph* that my hair needs in the morning. Will be repurchasing this.

And last but not least, I've used up this Urban Decay Naked skin foundation in color 3.0 a few months ago. I liked the light to medium coverage and easy application very much, but was disappointed by the staying power. This shouldn't be the case when you buy a more high-end foundation. I am very interested to see if the Revlon Nearly Naked (which is supposed to be the drugstore dupe) stays on longer? They don't seem to be selling it in Belgium, though. But I won't be repurchasing the Naked Skin foundation.

Have you used any of these products? Which ones did you like and dislike?

Xoxo,
Anine