Review: Essence "Next stop: Summer" lipstick and nail polish holder

The days are getting warmer and Essence are getting ready for summer with their new TE collection called »Next stop: Summer«. Last week I shared a preview of the collection with you and today I am here to share my thoughts after trying out the colour changing lipstick and nail polish holder.

Preview: ·essence ·TE Next stop: Summer

The weather right now does not seem too warm, but the summer is coming! Essence are here to help you prepare for it with ther newest LE collection called: »Next Stop: Summer«. The collection will be available from 17.5.

Disappointing Products of Year 2016

For me it's always been hard to criticize different products I try. When I find products that don't work for me, I usually put them aside and never talk about them rather than saying something bad about them. But, it is time I started talking about the items that I don't like as well. I was inspired by Mateja's post about the products that didn't work out for her, so I went through my stash and picked out everything that did not impress me.

Update your routine for FALL

Autumn is officially here. It's getting colder, the leaves are changing and all this is calling for a bit of a change in my everyday routine. I'm whipping up the dark lipsticks, rusty colored everything and doing everything I can to feel as cosy and snug as possible.

If you are looking for way to bring some autumnal vibes in to your look, here are some of my tips:

No makeup is complete without a proper base, and in the colder days I start reaching for foundations with higher coverage and longevity. Milani's Conceal+Perfect has been with me since the late summer, and it's been doing wonders for my makeup. For something that covers almost all imperfections and evens my skin tone, this is an extremely lightweight and at the same time very longwearing foundation. Pigmented enough that I don't really need a concealer for everyday use, this is the perfect foundation for those cold autumn mornings when you don't want to get out of you warm bed and end up putting your makeup on in a hurry.

These days I tend to skip on the bronzer and rather use some contouring powder to gently sculpt up the cheeks and add a bit of a very natural toned blush for some colour. The ArtDeco Contouring powder (mine is in the shade 21 dark chocolate) is just the right colour for sculpting the face and blends perfectly.

 Somewhere between a blush and a bronzer, the Matte Mania Blush from Misslyn's Beauty in Boots collection is ideal for adding some natural colour to the cheeks.

When it comes to eye makeup in the autumn, I start obsessing over the rusty orange-red shades that complete the look perfectly. If you already have a set of base eyeshadow that you like to use often, try finding a single eyeshadow or a mini palette of autumnal shades, that you can incorporate into your daily routine. The Perfect Match Eyeshadow trio in Gaucho Girl by Misslyn offers the most amazing orange-rust shade, a beautiful yellow-gold and a lovely chocolate brown shade. 

With colder days comes the smoky makeup look and I feel like it's the easiest to achieve that with a good eye pencil. For an affordable option, Essences Easy Glide & Waterproof in 01 blacklove and Longlasting Eye Pencil in 02 Hot Chocolate are my favourite go-to eye pencils. If you are more of a cat-eye liner look, the Sleek Dip-It eyeliner in 262 is longwearing and really easy to work with.

Brows are something I pay more attention to when it gets colder, as I like them to look a bit bolder and bushier. A while ago, I discovered the Sleek Eyebrow Stylist in Dark and it made doing my brows so much easier.

Long and defined lashes are a must for me throughout the year, but the ArtDeco Long Lashes mascara deserves a special autumnal shout out as it works magic on my lashes and looks gorgeous in my stash with it's rose gold packaging. Also, let's not forget a good set of eyelash curlers that make sure your lashes are looking their very best (and fit great into the whole rose-gold theme.)

Red, berry and dark bold lips are the items that take the centre stage in the autumn. For everyday use I still rely on my trusty nude shades, but for special occasions, you can't go wrong with a statement lip. 

Some of my favourites are: Sleek Matte Me in 1041 Vino Tinto with an incredible longwearing formula, Makeup Factory Mat Lip Fluid in 36 Wild Berry in a glorious shade, Catrice Ultimate Stay in 160 Don't Worry Be Berry in a classical lipstick form and lovely smooth formula, and Wet'n'Wild in Ravin Rasin for a fabulous budget option. 

For the nails, I always stick to berry shades or metallics. There are many amazing options at the drugstores, like Essence (52 Amazed by you) and Catrice (38 Vino Tinto, 94 It's A Very Berry Bash) and you can't really go wrong with Essie's Bahama Mama.

Autumn scent can be quite tricky as we are moving from warm sunny days to cold, darker winter months, but this year Avon collaborated with a renowned designer Kenzo Takada, to create Avon Life fragrance. Top notes are citruses, white tea, water lily and red apple; middle notes are violet, peony and Japanese cherry blossom; base notes are iris, patchouli and ambrette. A wonderful harmony of scents creates a sophisticated scent that works great in the crisp autumn air. The bottle design is absolutely gorgeous, and also do not forget to check out the version for men as well as it is absolutely wonderful.

At the end of a long, cold autumn day, there is nothing better than an evening of pampering. To remove even the toughest of matte lipsticks, liners or mascara, Garnier's Biphase Micellar Cleansing Water in oil is a great solution. It gets rid of any makeup and leaves my skin feeling clean but not stripped. 

A cozy, warm bath is always a highlight of my day and this years Lush Halloween collection smells glorious. One of my favourite scents are Pumpkin and Autumn Leaf bath bombs. 

As a final step at the end of the day is currently my obsession, the Sleepy body lotion by Lush. With notes of lavender and tonka, this light but moisturizing lotions gets me ready for sleep in no time. 

P.S. It's been a long while since I last posted anything. There were a lot of thing going on in my life that I do not wish to get into, but this year hasn't really been the best. Hopefully, I can at least end it on a positive note. However, I am back, excited for fall, excited for tomorrow's 2. beauty bloggers conference in Ljubljana and most of all excited to be blogging again! 

See you in my next post!

Rawr,

your Beautysaur 

Review and Swatches: Essence the Beach house & Catrice Sound of Silence

It's been forever since I last posted anything on here and I've missed blogging like crazy. Due to uni work, jobs and personal life, there simply was no time left for this. However, I now managed to grab a few minutes to write the review I've been planning to do for the longest time.

Essence and Catrice presented their summer collections that are coming out in June and July and I was lucky enough to receive a few bits to try out.

Preview: Essence LE The Beach House

 "Everything is better at the beach! Clear blue skies and the endless open space of the ocean: essence will be experiencing some unforgettable moments down by the sea with the trend edition “the "beach house” from mid June until mid July 2016. 

Aquatic turquoise and petrol, sandy shades, off-white and pink as well as coral as contrasting colours create a light, summery make-up look. Four nail polishes with maritime effects like the “water shine” finish ensure cool styles and the beach glow fluid provides sunshine girls with a light tan. And to make sure that all beach beauties don’t have to go without their favorite products when they are out and about, there’s a mini beach bag with plenty of room for essential beauty pieces. 

Every summer writes its own story, especially when you spend it with your best friends… and Essence!  "

New in my beauty stash #16: Spring Picks

 Spring is not only a beginning of a new year, but also a time when all the makeup brand come up with new exciting releases and what else could a beauty blogger do than try at least a few of them? 

Preview: Essence LE Little Eyebrow Monsters

 Flashy brows! Brows are leading the Beauty Top List this season and should be accentuated and eye-catching. With the right shape, they highlight the eyes and give any make-up style an individual touch. The new essence trend edition “little eyebrow monsters” provides girls with everything they need for perfectly defined wow-brows from April until May 2016. The collection includes care products and cute tweezers for preparation, an eyebrow & highlighter set and practical helpers like stencils in three different shapes for fabulous “look at me” brows. Brow Wow… with essence!

Preview: Essence LE Lights of Orient

Oriental beauty express! Let essence take you on an exciting journey into the world of 1001 Arabian Nights with the new trend edition “lights of orient” from mid April to mid May 2016 and dive into the oriental culture. 

The pulsating bustle around the souks, desert landscapes with magnificent Bedouin tents and the temperamental rhythm of the belly dancers – the unique flair fascinates all visitors. And the oriental look with deep black eyeliner and golden highlights is also impressive. The colour scheme of this bronzing edition is as warm as the Arabian sun with cream, gold, copper and various nuances of red. 

There are many treasures just waiting to be discovered, including a beautiful bronzer in an oriental design with a matt bronzing texture and shimmering golden powder in the center. The matt lipsticks in trendy oxblood as well as two additional red tones and the golden body tattoos are particularly eye-catching on tanned skin. The body splash with a warm, floral fragrance provides a boost of freshness on hot, sunny days. essence loves… arabian nights!

Haul: A few pieces from Essence SS'16

Every year Essence come out with some new pieces to add to their permanent collection and each year there are a few bits that I can't pass. This year I managed to restrain myself to just a few that really caught my eye and here are the ones that I chose:

Preview: Wake Up Spring! by Essence

This spring, Essence is coming out with a gorgeous spring inspired collection, packed with vibrant colours and gorgeous designs. The collection will be available through March and April 2016.

Preview: Essence Valentine -Who Cares? TE + First Impressions

In the season when everybody starts thinking about love and romance, Essence remind us that it's not all about finding true love and that you can have so much fun with your friends as well. Focusing on girl power and friendship, the collection if fun, edgy and trendy, perfect for a young teen.

The collection will be available in February this year. 

Blogmas Day 12: Essence Advent Calendar 1-12

Twelve days of December have already gone by and I can't quite believe it. I've been opening my Essence advent calendar each day, and today I'm here to show you what was hiding behind the first 12 doors:

Blogmas Day 9: Festive Palettes on a Budget

With all the festivities going on in December it can be hard to come up with different makeup looks to for every occasion. It's always helpful to have a good eyeshade palette that combines a mixture of neutral matte and shimmery products that can carry you through the day and night makeup looks. 

Preview: Love Joy Care LE by Essence

This December, Essence have you covered with all the supplies necessary to have a great slumber party with your best friend. Cute pamering products with adorable designs are perfect to share with a friend. The collection will be available through December 2015.

Preview: Winter? Wonderful! LE by Essence

Winter is coming and Essence is more than ready with their new LE collection, full of beautyful shades and nourishing cozy products.

Essence: Merry Berry -haul & swatches-

As you might have figured by now, I am absolutely, utterly and undeniably obsessed with Christmas. Keeping that in might, you might be able to understand why I fell in love with every single product in the Essence Merry Berry LE the moment I saw it.

Preview: Merry Berry by Essence

It's not a secret that Christmas is my favorite time of the year. As much as I am trying to resist from getting into Christmas spirit too soon, the brands are already well prepared for this festive season. Today I am presenting you the Essence LE Merry Berry with gorgeous berry and gold shades for perfect Christmas makeup.

July Favorites 2015

It's practically the end of August and I'm only now finding time to write my July favorites. I am completely swamped with studying and I spend all my days in front of my table. Even though I spent most of July makeup-free, there were a few items that grabbed my attention the most last month. Because of the heat, I completely gave up any face makeup, but couldn't completely give up on lipsticks and mascara.

Preview: Essence LE Make Me Pretty

 The collection will be available from August to September 2015.