Do you ever wear more than just one lip colour on you lips. Probably yes as a lot of women love putting a gloss over a lipstick to make their lips shinier and make them stand out more. But what about mixing two lipstick to get the right colour. I often put one lipstick over the other, mostly to tone down the first lipstick and make it more wearable for during the day( I have a love for strong, vibrant coloured lipsticks). Its also a great way to get your lipstick looking right on you. Some lipstick can be a little to cool toned on me so I often mix in a little orange to warm it up.

And as I was doing exactly that last week I discovered my perfect Autumn lip combo!! On that particular day I wanted to wear Revlon's Lipbutter in Raspberry pie as a lip stain so I just dabbed on the colour with my fingers, working it into my lips but I wasn't quite happy with the look and thought it might be a little to much for an everyday kind of look so I grabbed my new beloved nude lipstick Rimmel's Moisture Renew in Let's Get Naked and applied it quite generously on top. Out came a very nice wearable berry lip that suits my skin tone and looks really cool and I have been rocking this combo ever since.

How about you have you got a lip combo that works for you? Let me know I would love to hear from you!!

SMITTEN MITTENS

With Halloween and Bonfire night just around the corner and the time changing to winter time yesterday its not long now and we will be in full swing of winter. Time is flying by and even my children have been talking about Christmas for a while and have made their Christmas lists already with the odd adjustment of adding a few thing to it here and there. Normally at this time of the year I am also talking about Christmas already and get my act together and start buying things early. But not this year I have been slacking behind and I have a slight panic coming on whenever I hear the C word. Its so not like me but on thing that I have been doing is looking after my hands and nails.

When it gets colder outside my hand suffer more that usual. They get really dry and I almost have to moisturize them every time after I wash my hands. My nails on the other hand get stronger and are not as flaky and brittle as they normally are or maybe its just down to the fact that I am using more hand cream than usual.

I love hand cream, whenever I feel like I need some moisture on my hands and but some nice smelling, rich cream on them, its like a little pick me up and treat that lifts my spirit for a few seconds. Sounds maybe a little sad but in these cold month, anything that makes you feel good and picks up your mood is good in my books.

At the moment I have two favourite hand creams and they both have the floral scent in common. The first one is the Cath Kidston Rose Hand Cream. This hand cream is such a luxury, its very rich in its formula, with a lovely smell of roses and white amber. It leaves my hand super moisturized for a few hours and it has no parabens, sulphates or artificial colours making this a great natural product.

The other hand cream that I am currently using is the L Occitane Pivoine Flora Hand Cream. This is not as thick as the Cath Kidston one, which makes it the perfect cream to stick in your handbag and use on the go as it sink effortlessly into my skin, leaving a subtle shine to my hands without the greasiness. The cream has a lovely delicate flowery perfume of peonies, just divine!!

Another thing that I use on my nails especially is the OPI Avoplex Nail & Cuticle Oil. The oil really helps with keeping my cuticles in good condition and hydrating my nails. Since using it on a more regular basis I have seen a real difference in my nails. Not a broken nail in sight!!

 L Occitane Pivoine Flora Hand Cream £8

Cath Kidston Rose Hand Cream £10

OPI Avoplex Nail & Cuticle Oil £5.94

PERFECT SHADE OF RED

Ever since I got into make up I have been on the hunt for the perfect kind of red lipstick that suits my skin tone down to the T. I love that red lips, pale skin look a la Marilyn Monroe with just a a little liner on the eyes. Its just my style. I am not into edgy and ultra modern fashion but more of a classic, simple and chic kind of girl. And with that goes a nice classic red lip, well at least in my head.

I know a lot of girls only wear red lipstick on a special occasion or on a night out but I don't mind wearing red lips during the week as an everyday make up thing. I think its just the perfect accessorie when you are wearing a leather jacket and some nice black boots.

The only thing is that it can be ever so tricky to get the right shade for your skin tone. Some have pink undertones, some have blue or orange which makes it hard getting it right especially when they all look the same in the bullet.

Then there is the problem of your lip shape as well, darker red lipsticks can make small lips look even smaller, so if you are not blessed in that department its best to go for a lipstick that has orange undertones in it. The orange helps make your lips appear fuller and more plump.

But if you are lucky and have nice full lips than that is not something you have to worry about.

So over the years in my hunt for my perfect red lips I have tried many lipsticks but few have stayed and I am still on the look out for my go to, no fuss red lipstick that suits my fair/medium skin tone. 

The closest I have come so far is Mac's Ruby Woo lipstick, this is just a lovely red lipstick with pink undertones which seems to look best on me and last super long on my lips making them look nice, even after its worn down a bit. 

The second one that I wear on a regular basis and looks good on is the YSL Rouge Volupte Shine in No 4. I love how moisturizing this lipstick is as to a lot of other red lipsticks. The only thing is that it's not as long lasting because of the formula but its super easy to apply and you don't really need a lip pencil to draw out a shape.

The other YSL lip colour that I have is a more blue toned Lipstick and is from the Rouge Pur Couture line. Is a lovely lipstick for pale blondes with cool undertones in their skin. I have more warm undertones to my skin which makes the lipstick look not as nice on me as on others but I still wear it on night out when I like my lips to stand out.

The last one is the Bobby Brown's Lip Color in No 10 Red. This is a classic red shade with a lovely shine to it but I just don't seem to be reaching enough for it. I thinks it's down to the fact that it is slightly to dark for me and makes my lips look smaller than they are. I have to use a lip pencil with it and draw out my natural lip line to make my lips look fuller which makes it more of a going out lipstick as to an everyday one. And that is what I am after. 

If you have any recommendation or want to share your favourite lip colour with me please let me know in the comment section below. I can't wait to hear from all of you!!!

 Mac Ruby Woo £15 

YSL RougePur Couture £25

Bobby Brown Lip Color #10 £19

YSL Rouge Volupte Shine #4 £24

HAPPY WEEKEND!!!

DOVE NOURISHING OIL CARE REGENERATING MASK

Dove Nourishing Oil Care Regenerating Mask £4.59

Dove promises : A revolutionary lightweight blend of argan, coconut and almond oils rich in vitamins E and F. This intensive treatment nourishes even extremely dry hair to smooth up to 100% of roughness and frizz control.

I have to say when it comes to hair products I can be very critical. I am sure a lot of you have dried so many hair products out there and not really seen an improvement or any kind of change in your hair. Normally I would gravitate to the more expensive salon ranges just because I have seen better results with them, but lately I have been trying out some of the more affordable hair care brands. 

The Dove Nourishing Oil Care Regenerating Mask was one of them. I love Dove but I have never tried any of their hair care products. But the other day as I was doing my weekly shop I saw this on offer and I thought why not give it a go. I was lucky as it was the last one left on the shelf and I have not been disappointed.

This mask feels ever so rich and luxurious and its a sheer joy putting it onto my hair. It has that typical Dove kind of scent that I come to love over the years and the blend of different types of oils helps my hair to feel super soft and strong. I really saw a difference in my hair and the mask didn't feel heavy on my very fine hair.

I use the mask about once a week for about 20 min in wet hair. Rinse and you will be left with bouncy, healthy hair that you will love.  

What do you think? Have you tried any of the Dove hair care range?? I certainly want to try some more of their products!

YANKEE CANDLE MERRY MARSHMALLOW

Another candle review, I know, but I just can't seem to help myself. Every time I pass any kind of candle display I have to stop and smell them all. The other day I had a good reason to stop by at the Yankee Candle Shop as my friends birthday was fast approaching. She just moved house and I thought what better gift for a new house than a candle that makes you fell like home. And of course while I was there I had to pick up one for myself. As I was smelling all the Christmas candles one scent really stood out to me, Yankee Candle Merry Marshmallow.

This is such a wonderful scent of sweet vanilla and marshmallow. I have never smelt or seen a marshmallow candle before and I don't think there is anything like it out their. Its fluffy, sweet and gooey!!! Sounds more like a dessert, well it kind of is. It made my house smell like a sweet shop but not at all to overpowering. Its actually quite a simple kind of smell with no spice elements thrown in like so many other Christmas candles often do.

Overall I can see this candle become one of those scent that you look forward to burning in Autumn/Winter time to set the mood for Christmas!!!

BAREFOOT IN BARCELONA

  Since my nails have been in a fairly good condition lately (due to my new hair and skin supplements) I thought I would start painting them on a more regular basis. I have to admit I am not a woman that has to have polished nails all the time, I am simply to lazy to change my nail colour weekly. But still I love how my nails look when they are freshly manicured and painted.

This week I was feeling like putting a nude colour back onto my nails again. The colour I am talking about is OPI's Barefoot in Barcelona. If I remember correctly Laura ( or Lollipop26 as I think of her) from buy now blog later used to rave about this nail polish a lot. Being an avid follower of hers I wanted to own this polish and see for myself if I liked it as much as her.And to no surprise I did.

Its a lovely nude with light brown undertones to it which looks really nice and classy. Wearing it makes me feel quite grown up (not that I can not say I am not grown up with 28) and sophisticated. It's an easy classic  nail polish that can be worn with almost any outfit.

What do you think, do you like wearing nude nail polish and what are your favourite nail colours of the moment?

PURPLE PATCH

Last Tuesday I was in town and as always popped into my local Boots to have a little browse through the make up aisle to see what's new out there. On my list to go and get where the new Rimmel Moisture Renew Lipsticks, after I saw their new ad on TV I really wanted it to try the new formula and see for myself. I got the colour # Let's get naked and as the name suggest its a lovely nude colour that is easy to wear as an every day kind of lipstick. For the moisture part, I don't think they live up to the claim exactly, it's not a sheer lipstick that feels like a balm on you lips but more of a traditional lipstick with a high pigmentation. I can see myself wearing this quite a lot as its so easy to apply and its a good lasting lipstick.

Another thing I picked up was the new Nude Magique Eau De Teint Foundation from Loreal. I have heard so much good about this foundation!! I have only used it for 2 days now but I can already see why everybody is talking about this. This foundation is bang on trend with its lightweight silky formula making applying it a breeze. I use my fingers and a little bit goes a long way, it was a real surprise to me how little I was using as I can get a little carried away sometimes with foundations. 

I also really like the packaging, a little glass bottle that looks like a perfume bottle, it only comes with 20 ml of product but if you consider how little I was using, this will last you as long as any other 50ml foundation would last you.

I can see a review coming up on this foundation soon!!!

CHESTNUT SOUP

Last weekend I had some friends over for dinner and I made them this lovely velvety, earthy soup for a started. Everybody loved it and I was quite surprised that they never had this lovely soup before.

Back in Germany when I was growing up, we had a big chestnut tree in our village and everybody was collecting them to bring home for their mum to make some lovely chestnut soup.

For me its the perfect soup on a cold day when you come home and need something warm in your tummy!!

Ingredients:

500g fresh or vac packed chestnuts

1 large potato

2 medium onions

1 garlic clove

2 celery sticks

1.5 l vegetable stock

1 bay leaf 

knob of butter

150~200ml single cream

salt and pepper

Directions:

 I used fresh unpeeled chestnuts because I feel they taste the best but if you ever had to peel a few chestnuts you know how tricky it can be to get the skin off. There are lot of of methods on how to peel them and everybody has their own technique even I used to roast them in the oven and then peel them but not anymore. I found a much better method that works brilliant for me and doesn't take long. 

What I do is, I make a cross on each chestnut and then put them in two's or three's into boiling hot water for about 1 min at the time. Then take them out and while they are still boiling hot rub them with a towel and you will see the skin comes off ever so easy.

On to the soup!!!

1. In a saucepan, melt the butter and fry the onions, garlic and celery till soft but not coloured.
2. Add the potato and all of the chestnuts, vegetable stock and bay leaf 
3. Boil, the simmer for 30 minutes and season with salt and pepper
4. Once the potato is soft, remove the bay leaf and blitz with a hand blender till smooth   
5. Stir in the cream and check the seasoning
6. Serve with a dollop of cream or croutons, use parsley for some decoration                       

 VOILA

Have you ever tied chestnut soup. If you have please let me know if you liked it and if you haven't then what are you waiting for, grab yourself some lovely chestnuts and get cooking!!!

PRODUCT SMACKDOWN CONCEALERS

Today I want to share with you some of my thoughts on three concealers that I have used over the last months. I thought it would be a good idea comparing three products to each other and finding the best out of them. The ones I will be comparing is the Mac Select Moisturecover Concealer, Maybelline The Eraser Eye Concealer and Collection 2000 Lasting perfection Concealer. All of them have been much talk about and I want to let you know what I think performed the best out of all of them.

I hope you will like my Product Smackdown and will let me know what you think. I am planning on doing more of these.

But for now let's get on with the review!!

MAC Select Moisturecover Concealer

Rating ★★★☆☆

This was one my first high end concealers that I bought. It has a very nice opaque consistency which is great for covering up under eye cycles and keeping your eye area lovely moisturised throughout the day. The doe foot applicator makes it very easy to apply the concealer where ever you need to and it blends effortlessly into the skin. The concealer is more for the under eyes that for spots as it doesn't last that long on the skin because of the moisture it gives.

The £15 price tag makes this quite a pricey products as you only get 5ml in the tube and that's why I only gave it 3 out of 5 stars. I feel like there are similar concealers out there that do the same thing and feel almost identical, too.

COLLECTION 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer

Rating ★★★★☆

I think this must be one of the most hyped up concealers out there. And yes I have to say that I can understand why. This concealer is very similar to the Mac one as it has the same kind of opaque coverage and the same doe foot applicator to apply your concealer with. It is not as moisturising as the Mac Concealer which makes this better to apply onto blemishes but its can be a little bit tricky to blend it into the skin. You have to blend straight away because once its set it won't budge, which bring me on to the next thing. Staying Power!! This little baby will last you all day long and will not make you look cakey as some other concealer can make you look when you wear it all day.

Price wise, this is an absolute winner, it only cost £3.99 for 5ml and I don't think there is anything like it out there for the same kind of price.

This was a though choice but I only gave it 4 stars because I sometimes found it hard to blend into my skin, making it look like I was wearing make up and also I couldn't get all the product out because of the way the tube is designed. But other than that its a great concealer ( it nearly made it number one but I just liked the next one even more)

WINNER

MAYBELLINE The Eraser Eye Concealer

Rating ★★★★★

Yes this is my winner, it might come as a surprise to you but I just love this concealer so much. For me it just ticks all the boxes.OK were to start?

First of all I love the consistency! It is a light weight concealer that is just so easy to blend into the skin. It is the best thing for my blemishes and dark spots as it hides them so nicely. Just a few swipes and they are gone. Because of its lightweight it looks like skin and also last on my oily skin throughout the day without looking blotchy. It is great for under eyes circles, hiding them effortlessly and brightening your complexion. As the name says erases them 

;-))

The Eraser cost £7.99 for 6.8 ml, so you get a little more as the other concealers and because of the twist collar design you can get all the product out of the tube.

The only thing I am in conflict with  is the sponge applicator, on hand I love how easy you can apply the concealer with the sponge but on the other hand I know that a sponge is a breeding ground for bacteria. I can only think that maybe spraying it with some alcohol every now and then will help the bacteria from growing.

If you haven't tried this concealer yet I really recommend you try it out for yourself, I am sure you will like it just as much as I do.

So there you have it, my thoughts on concealers. I would like to know what your favourite concealer is of the moment?

Leave me a comment and follow me!!

REVIEW KERASTASE RESISTANCE CIMENT THERMIQUE TREATMENT

Kerastase says: Heat -activated reconstructing milk for damage, brittle hair, for use with styling irons or hairdryers. Erosion level 1-2-3-4 
Strengthens the hair fibre internally
Protects the surface of the hair
Smooths hair from root to tip
Hair is firm supple and energised

I kind of have a love hate relationship with my hair. I like my natural hair colour on me and how its suits me so well but I just don't like the texture and how thin it often looks. My hair is super fine and thin and trying to style my hair so that it looks nice can be super hard. I haven't coloured my hair in 2 years as I was sick of all the dry and brittle hair that I got from years of dying it. So I thought I would let my natural hair colour grow out and I will get super nice glossy hair, right? Wrong!!

Don't get me wrong it is much stronger and healthier than what it was before ( I can actually run a brush through without breaking a ton of hair and getting stuck) but I still haven't got the shine and smooth texture that I was hoping for.

My new hair texture looks kind of curly and feels more wiry than smooth and soft. And it is a really pain blow drying it because every time I do it ends up looking like a frizzy ball and dull.

I also have tried letting it air dry in the hope that my hair will behave and look more smooth but no it looked even worse. I am kind of at my wits end.

In a bet to get my hair in a better condition I recently invested in some salon branded Kerastase products. And one of the main products that stood out was the Kerastase Resistance Ciment Thermique Leave in Treatment.
Its a lovely treatment that you put into just washed, wet hair and then style as normal. It has the ability to strengthen your hair by recreating the intercellular structure of the hair fibre and then when you heat activate it with you hair dryer or straighteners it seals the ingredients into your hair, making it more resilient and strong.

Sound good and I have to say it does really help with my hair making it less frizzy and manageable. My hair feels much stronger and healthier. I would really recommend it to you if you have bleached or dyed your hair and the ends fell dry and fragile. I only bought a 50ml sample size but it will last me for some time, so I am sure if you were to buy a full size it can easily last you for more than 5 month.

Over all I think this is a great product all round. Its all what I have been looking for for quite some time and I will be buying the full size when I run out.

Have you got a superstar hair product that outshines all the rest or can not be without?
Let me know I would be interested to hear from you!!

HAPPY WEEKEND !!

INSTYLE MAGAZINE GIFT

New monthly magazines are out and I am an avid reader of INSTYLE magazine. So as I was filling up my car at the petrol station today I saw that my beloved magazine came with some lovely REN skincare trial sizes. Oh my, I love when the magazine freebies are spot on with what I want to try out. Especially REN skincare has been on my wish list for a while and its not just one little sample its three!!!

The magazine comes with REN Evercalm Global Protection Day Cream 10ml, REN Vita Mineral Active 7 Eye Gel 1ml and REN Evercalm Gentle Cleansing Milk 10ml. 

I think its a lovely set and I am really keen to try the eye gel, I have got a little bit of an obsession with eye creams lately.

 Anyway I am happy to try them all out and let you know how I got on with them, but in the main time if you want to try for yourself, you can get INSTYLE magazine for only £2 this month. Not bad, yeh?

SPICY CANDLES

  Well it looks like Autumn is finally here and I have been enjoying my time with being at home, cooking for the family, having friends over and snuggling up on the sofa with my hubby. When its getting colder outside I always have this need of making my house cosy and wanting to be all relaxed indoors. I don't know what it is but there is just something very appealing to me with being inside and putting some lovely candles on, cuppa tea in one hand and watching a film all snuggled up on the sofa. I am sure I am not the only one, even my kids don't want to go outside and play anymore. Or maybe they got that from me, haha. 

Anyway I thought I would all let you know about some resent finds that I made in the last week or so.
As you all know one of my favourite shops to stop by when I am in town is TK Maxx ( or TJ Maxx for all you American readers) and the need to satisfy my nesting and making my house more cosy feeling, I headed straight to the home section to find some lovely scented candles. I love candles, there is just something about them that makes you feel relaxed and they really set the mood for a chilled night in.

TK Maxx have a huge selection of candles and it took me at least 10 min to decide with candles I was going to get. I normally go for spiced candles and this time was no exception. I got a soy spiced pumpkin candle and a roasted spice candle, both of them were only £5.99 for 400ml, not bad if you consider some other candles like Yankee Candles can cost you up to £17 for a medium sized jar and I can honestly say that the quality is the same. Over all I am very happy with my finds and I have a feeling that I will be back to get some more. No need anymore of spending a lot of money on candles unless I become weak and spend some money on a Jo Malone candle, they are truly out of this world good.

Do you love candles as much as I do??? I would love to know what kind of scents you normally go for and what your favourite candles are.