All Things Rose

I am a massive fan of rose, the scent, the color, the hydrating effect it adds to skincare products.  It's just something I naturally gravitate towards in a beauty product (or in a flower!).  I have accumulated quite the collection of Rose beauty products, so I thought I would share them with you!

I am without a doubt in love with the scent of roses, and that becomes quite obvious to someone once they see my perfume collection.  It's filled with rose scented perfumes, but my three perfumes that smell the most like rose? Zara Woman Rose EDT (€10),LUSH Imogen Rose Solid Perfume ($15.95), and Dolce & Gabanna Rose The One EDP ($98/ 2.5 fl. oz.).

Zara Woman Rose EDT is very light, but has the sweetness of rose without any powder in it.  I love wearing it in the summertime.  LUSH Imogen Rose is the solid form of roses, it smells as if I'm walking through a field of roses whenever I put it on.  I did an entire post on Imogen Rose, which you can read here.  Finally, Dolce & Gabanna Rose The One EDP, my first designer perfume and my favorite scent of all time, smells light like the Zara EDT, but has the deepness of Imogen Rose, but there is not any hint of powder in this amazing fragrance, it's just a beautiful rose scent with a bit of fruitiness to it.

Rose is also meant to be really hydrating when put in skincare, so I try and use skincare with roses in it whenever possible.  I don't have much, but I love the LUSH Eau Roma Water ($21.95), which is a rose water toner that I use day and night to hydrate my skin.  I also really like the L'Occitane Hand Cream in Rose 4 Reines ($10), which smells just like roses and pairs perfectly with any of my rose scented perfumes!

Left to Right:
Revlon Lipstick in Rose Velvet
Fresh Sugar Rose Lip Treatment
Burberry Lip Cover in No. 04 Rosewood 

Top to Bottom:
Burberry Lip Cover in No. 04 Rosewood
Fresh Sugar Rose Lip Treatment
Revlon Lipstick in Rose Velvet

I also am a fan of rose colored lipsticks and lip balms.  I love Revlon Lipstick in Rose Velvet (about $6), it's one of my favorite lipsticks, it's an orangey-brick red color that I think would flatter a lot of people!  I also really like the Fresh Sugar Rose Lip Treatment ($22.50), which gives of the slightest amount of color to the lips, but hydrates beautifully!  I also like the Burberry Lip Cover in No. 04 Rosewood ($30), which not only gives off an orangey-brick red color (but less orange than Revlon Lipstick in Rose Velvet), but also smells like roses!  All Burberry Beauty products smell like roses, which is something I love about the brand, as I could literally just sit there all day smelling my eyeshadows!

Left to Right:
Dior Rosy Glow Healthy Glow Awakening Blush
Burberry Sheer Eyeshadow in No. 09 Rosewood
Dior Shimmer Star 001 Rose Diamond

Next, I have a few more make-up bits that also consist of rose colors/scents: Dior Rosy Glow Healthy Glow Awakening Blush ($44), Burberry Sheer Eyeshadow in No. 09 Rosewood ($29), and Dior Shimmer Star 001 Rose Diamond ($44).  The Dior Rosy Glow Blush is really nice, as it reacts to your pH level (or something scientific like that) to give you the perfect rosy cheeks!  The Burberry Eyeshadow in Rosewood is a gorgeous pinky-purpley taupe color that I think would look good on just about anyone.  Also, just like the Burberry Lip Cover in No. 04 Rosewood, it smells like roses!  Finally, Dior Rose Diamond is a beautiful highlighter that gives off a rosy highlight to the cheeks.  You could potentially use it as your blush, but you would need to be careful of looking like a disco ball!  I think this highligher would look particularly gorgeous on people with cool skin-tones.

NEOM Complete Bliss and NEOM Sumptuous

To round this up, I have two candles I want to briefly mention: NEOM Complete Bliss and NEOM Sumptuous (see post here for full review), which run £15 each for the travel-sizes.  NEOM probably has the most luxurious range of candle scents on the market, both of these candles have gorgeous true rose scents that fill up the entire room. Complete Bliss is more of a true rose scent than Sumptuous, which has Neroli added to it for complexity and luxury.

Are you a fan of rose scents/skincare/colors? Or is it not for you?

You can read my most recent post here!

Best of Body-Care & Fragrance 2012!

I decided to break up my 'Best of Beauty 2012' into a three-part series, as it would have been unbelievably long  if I would have put them all together.  So, I'm starting out the series with my Best of Body-Care & Fragrance from last year!

This year, I discovered the Laura Mercier skincare and I fell in love with it, despite the steep price.  When I was in London in September, I stumbled upon the Laura Mercier skincare section in Space NK and spent a good 10 minutes smelling every product and then another 10 minutes trying to decide which Body Butter I wanted to get.  Every scent smells amazing, but I ended up going for the Laura Mercier Almond Coconut Milk Body Butter (£26/$35).  I use it after I shower and it is really moisturizing and the scent lingers, as well.  It's really great for the wintertime, as the scent is heavy and it also mixes well with most winter scents (it smells particularly nice with Burberry Brit EDP, as they smell quite similar!).  I love this scent so much that I ended up dreaming about it the night after I got it, so I went back to Space NK the next day and bought the matching hand cream, the Laura Mercier Almond Coconut Milk Hand Crème (£13/$15).  It's just as moisturizing and great smelling as the Body Butter and all of my friends always ask to borrow it because it smells so nice!

As for perfume, I couldn't choose just one, so I chose my favorite Spring/Summer scent and my favorite Fall/Winter one.  In the Spring/Summer, I always wear Dolce & Gabanna Rose The One (2.5 fl. oz. for $98).  It is my favorite scent of all time, it's rose scented without being too strong or too mature.  It was actually the first designer perfume I ever bought (about 3 or 4 years ago) and I've repurchased this a couple of times since, because I can't live without it! My favorite Fall/Winter perfume of 2012 has to be Dolce & Gabanna Pour Femme (25ml for €60), which was re-released this past year and I don't think I can live without it.  It's fruity, but deep at the same time.  I will definitely be repurchasing that once I run out (even though it's ridiculously expensive)!

I also had to include my favorite candles of the year.  I am slightly candle-obsessed and could spend all of my money on candles without a second glance.  I think they make me feel at home when I'm somewhere, especially when they fill up the entire room with their scent.  While I was in London in September, I picked up multiple NEOM Candles (Real Luxury, Sumptuous, and Complete Bliss) (£15 each for the travel sizes) and I fell in love with the quality of the candles.  They fill up the room even when they're not lit!  My favorite out of the three, though, has to be Sumptuous, which smells really floraly (Rose and Neroli), but has some depth to it, as well.  Even though they don't sell NEOM Candles in the US or in Germany, I will find a way to repurchase this once I run out (maybe another little trip to England?).  My other favorite candle of the year was Bath & Body Works Mahogany Teakwood ($20).  I got a little one of this in August, right before I moved to Germany and I fell in love with the way it smells.  I used it up really quickly, but hopefully it'll be re-released next Fall!  It smells like an Abercrombie & Fitch store, but not overpowering (like the actual store does), it's fantastic!

I hope you enjoyed the first part of this series :) You can check out my most recent post here!

January Beauty Wishlist

This year, I decided to budget my beauty spending and I've already spent my January allowance - oops! So, as I can't buy any of these lovely things this month, I thought I would write a wishlist and hopeful

ly I'll be able to get a few of these things in the next few months!

1. Hourglass Visionaire Eye Shadow Duo in Gypsy ($38) - I want this mostly for the really cool packaging, but I did research this duo a bit, already and apparently the quality is really good!
2. MAC Lipstick in Costa Chic ($15) - Spring/Summer is coming and I decided I want a summery lipstick to celebrate it, and I think this is it!
3. CHANEL Chance Eau Tendre EDT ($68) - I've wanted this for about a year, so I think I'll invest in it in a few months :)
4. NARS Laguna Bronzer ($34) - This is a cult favorite and I've been wanting to try it for a while, unfortunately they don't sell NARS Cosmetics anywhere in Germany, except online :(
5. Burberry Lip Mist in No. 02 Copper ($30) - I've wanted to try the lip mists for a long time and I think this would be really nice color for the summer!

Do you anything in particular on your wishlists? Anything I should add to mine?

I hope you enjoyed this post :) You can read my last one here!

NOTD: Nails Inc. Baker Street

Despite the fact that Winter technically just started a few weeks ago, I am already craving Spring and Summer! So, I've opted to paint my nails a color that I usually reserve for the summer months to get myself into the spirit (albeit about 3 months too early).

Nails Inc. Baker Street

I'm a massive fan of the Nails Inc. Formulation and Baker Street is no exception.  It applies really easily (and in only one coat!) and lasts for ages.  I also love the color, it's so bright and fun, it's been cheering me up from the non-stop rain that Germany seems to be getting!

I bought this at Boots in London last summer for about £11, but it's also available at Sephora for only $9.50, which I think it definitely reasonable considering the great quality! 

Am I the only one that already has Spring Fever? Or is anyone else craving a bit of sunshine and warmth?

You can check out my last post here!

December 2012 Beauty Favorites

I took a little break from the blogging world, but after a month of computer issues and world-travelling, I'm back in Germany and I'm ready to get back to business!

I thought I'd kick off the new year with a small (being a relative term) post about my December Beauty Favorites.  I've kept to the same foundation routine since about September/October, so I don't want to keep mentioning the same products over and over again, so these are just the products that I integrated into my everyday Make-up/skincare routines.

Eyes & Face:

I don't stray from my eye make-up routine at all, except for my eyeshadow, which changes all the time.  However, this month, I stuck to one eyeshadow throughout the entire month: Burberry Sheer Eyeshadow in No. 09 Rosewood.  It is such a gorgeous shade, a kind of rosey/purpley taupe color that I think could suit anyone, whether dark or light, warm-toned or cool-toned!  It's pricey at $29, but you get a lot of product and I know it'll last me for quite a long time.

I decided to cut back on the products I use on my cheeks, so instead of using a contour color, a blush, and a highlighter, I made myself choose between the three.  I ended up going for a bronzer, my only bronzer: Laura Mercier Bronzer in Golden Bronze.  It's a shimmery bronzer, so it covers both bases for a bronzer and a highlighter, which I love!  It's also a great bronzer for people with pale skin (i.e. me) as it isn't super orange (although it looks so in the pan), it just gives a slight tan to the cheeks, making those of us with ghost-white skin a chance at looking alive :) I bought this from Sephora for $34.

Lips:

I found myself in MAC at the beginning of the month and left with this shade, Capricious.  It's a lustre finish, so it's definitely wearable during the day, but it can be built up, as well.  It's a gorgeous red-plum shade with a subtle gold shimmer, that doesn't transfer to the lips.  I sometimes find it hard to pull off plum, but this works perfectly with my skin tone! I bought this for €19.

On days when I wasn't feeling up to wearing lipstick, I opted for the Korres Lip Butter in Plum.  Like I said, I sometimes find it hard to pull off plum, and this is no exception.  However, this really only stains your lips, so I found it easier to work with than a full blown plum lipstick.  I bought this at www.feelunique.com for about $10. 

Perfume:

I wore Burberry Body Rose Gold EDP for the first half of the month, I've already done a review on this (see post here), so I won't go into it too much, but I love this scent, it's gorgeous! I bought this at Duty Free at London Heathrow for £60.

During the second half of the month, I was in the U.S. for the holidays, so I needed to bring something travel friendly with me, so I brought my usual travel-scent: CHANEL Coco Mademoiselle EDP.  I fell in love with this scent, it's gorgeous, not too girly, but also not too woody.  I definitely think it could be worn anytime of the year, and anytime I wear it, I get compliments, I highly recommend it!  I bought mine at the CHANEL Pop-Up store in Covent Garden for £46.

I hope you enjoyed this post and I hope everyone had really nice holidays and a great new year :)

November Favorites!

December is here! So, I thought I would start off the month with my monthly favorites of November.

Let's jump right in, here are all of my favorites this month!  It's not as much as usual, but I've still been loving everything from my October Favorites, as well.

Skincare and Perfume:

Clarins SPF 30 Sun Wrinkle Control Cream For Face - €28

I was in the market for a new Facial Sunscreen and I was browsing through my options at the Kaufhof in Frankfurt, and I just decided to go with this one from Clarins.  I've never tried anything from Clarins before, but I'm really impressed with this!  It doesn't have that awful sunscreen smell, that I hate, but it still gives great protection, as well.

Caudalie Vinosource S.O.S. Thirst Quenching Serum

I've been working through my never-ending stock of serum samples and I've finally reached this one.  I use it after I tone, both in morning and evening, and I can say that this is the best serum I've tried yet! After I wash my face and tone, my skin feels a bit tight and this really makes my skin feel hydrated.  Plus, it's only €28 (as compared to the $48 they charge in the US!), so I've definitely been convinced to buy the full-size of this once I run out!

Dolce & Gabanna Pour Femme EDP 25 ml - €60

I am officially obsessed with this scent.  This was recently re-released by Dolce & Gabanna, and after I smelled it at Douglas, it had to be mine!  I ended up using half of the bottle in just November, which is terrible considering the ghastly price :( It smells like winter and raspberries (if that makes sense) and it's a very grown-up, sexy scent!

Make-Up:

Urban Decay Naked Palette - $50

I bought this palette back in August and it hasn't received much love since I bought it, so this month, I decided to try and use it more and I ended up falling in love with it!  I mostly stuck to the neutral colors, as they make perfect day-time eye looks.

This was my most-used combination of the month: Virgin and Naked.  I put Virgin all over the lid, and put Naked in the crease and then used Virgin again as a highlight for under my browbone and in the inner corner of my eye.

Dior Shimmer Star 002 Amber Diamond - $44

I had been skipping highlighting for the past few months, not feeling the need to highlight when I was just going to school, but this month that all changed.  I could see that my skin was looking a bit dull due to the Winter-haze, so I pulled this baby out and didn't look back! It gives a beautiful glow to the cheekbones, and really makes a difference to the overall look!

Hopefully, you can see the beautiful highlight that is Dior Amber Diamond, worth every penny!

Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler - £20

I bought this at Space NK when I was in London in September.  I had never owned an eyelash curler before, so this was me branching out.  I used it a bit in October, but it was hard for me to remember to add it to my daily routine.  However, in November, I really broke these in and now they are habitual and I really don't think I could live without the beautiful curl they give!

Burberry Lip Cover No. 14 Prune - £23

I also bought this while I was in London (at the John Lewis on Oxford Street) in September.  I was feeling really brave at the beginning of November and decided to use this gorgeous, vampy color quite a lot.  It's a beautiful dark purpley-red, sort of an oxblood color, if you will.  It's definitely not for the faint-hearted, but it's definitely worth a swatch! Very perfect for a night-time look or during these winter months!  

MAC Matte Lipstick 'Velvet Teddy' - $15

This is my final favorite of the month!  Although, I was loving the dark, vampy lip this month, I wasn't always up for that look, so on the days that I wasn't feeling as confident about rocking that look, I went for this lipstick.  I actually used to hate this lipstick, finding it to be too orange-based.  It is a beigey-orangey-nude color, but I actually decided it looked quite nice with my skin, about as nude as it's going to get with me!

So, that's it for my November Favorites.  I hope you enjoyed the post! 

You can check out my most recent post here :)

Christmas Skincare/Haircare Wishlist

The third and final Christmas Wishlist!

Ojon Rare Blend Oil Total Hair Therapy - $35

My Hair has been looking a bit dull lately, so I thought this would help to boost it's shine and make it look healthier!

Bioderma Crealine H20 Micelle Solution - approx. $30/€18

I have heard SO MUCH about this stuff, I've been wanting to try this for ages.  My make-up remover is running out and I desperately need to replace it.  Unfortunately, it's difficult to get outside of France :( Thankfully, a friend of mine is going to Paris this weekend, so maybe he'll be nice and pick this up for me!

Caudalie Vinosource SOS Thirst Quenching Serum - $48

I've had samples of this before and I love it!  I really want the full size as I think it'd be a great serum for the dry, cold winter that will be hitting soon.

Emma Hardie Amazing Face Cleansing Balm - $48

I've heard a lot about this from Youtubers and Bloggers and I really want to try it out!  However, I really don't need another cleanser, so this will have to wait until I run out of my current one.

Origins GinZing Refreshing Eye Cream - $30

I am not a fan of my current Eye Cream, so I've been looking for one to replace it, and this one has got to be it!  I've tried it before, but for some reason I didn't buy it, hopefully I'll have it soon, though :)

Laura Mercier Crème de Pistache Soufflé Body Cream - $55

I am a major fan of Laura Mercier Skincare and I know this smells amazing - it will be mine!

I hope you enjoyed this post :)  Anything I've missed on my wishlist?

You can check out my last two wishlist posts here and here!