King’s day

It’s King’s day in The Netherlands! I didn’t have time to buy an orange shirt. So here’s my version of orange!

Happy King’s day!
Maria xoxo

L’Oreal True Match Foundation review

I used the L’Oreal’s True match foundation like 10 odd years ago, and I’ve recently purchased it. I remember that I stopped using it because in the end of the day, I never had any foundation left on my face. But that’s defo not the case any more with the new formula.

Texture and finish

After all those years, of course, they have changed the formula…. to the better… Oh my…. When I applied it for the first time, I was overwhelmed by how soft and blendable it is. I only need one pump to cover my whole face (and a little left for the areas that need a little extra), and I just use my fingers to apply. Usually, I always powder my face, but I haven’t done it with this one. The True Match leaves a semi-matte finish meaning that it would be good for oily/oily-combination skin. So be careful if you have dry skin!

Wearing the L’Oreal True Match foundation in shade N6 on the right side of my face. Excuse me for the horrible brows!

Coverage

I would say that it’s gives a medium coverage. It looks very light on my face because I applied a very thin layer. Why cover everything up now that my acne scars are fading? You can easily build it up. I dab on more around my nose, under my eyes, and the cheek area where I have many blemishes. It works really well, especially when you don’t have a whole lot of time in the morning to fumble around with concealers and all that.

Shades

As you probably know, the True Match line has a myriad of shades! But bare in mind that as soon as you’re outside of the States, there are usually only a few to choose from. I ended up with the N6. I’d wish I could have chosen the W6 though. “N” stands for neutral and “W” for warm. I have yellow-toned skin, so I usually go for the “W”‘s.

It sounds funny, but when I apply the N6 to my face, it doesn’t look quite yellow enough. But when I put it on my hand, it seems very yellow.

I haven’t been at the MAC counter to check my shade for a long time, but I think I’m down to an NC 35 or 37 – just for comparison.

Summary

I love it! It feels super nice and light on the skin. I only spend a few secs to apply it with my fingers, and the coverage is really good. I want to try out the W6 to see whether that one would be too yellow for me though.

As for the price, I bought it on sale for around 11€. I would say that this foundation is super affordable, and totally worth the price!

Have you tried this foundation before? Which shade do you use and what MAC shade are you?

Maria xoxo

 

I was at my brows…

Referring to my last post and the brows I wasn’t too satisfied with… well… my bf thought he wanted to fix it. So here we go…

So I thought I would repay his kind offer, and I fixed his eyebrows as well…..

What do you girls think? Which one of us did a better job?

FYI… Products used: Rimmel eyebrow pencil in dark brown on me, and the same on Anthony plus the Milani Tint Pen in dark brown.

Happy Easter everyone 🙂

Maria xoxo

 

Quick MOTD

Had to run out of the door. Got ready in literally 1 min. Wearing L’oreal True Match foundation. ELF baked blush. NYX lip butter. Brows are horrible Haha

Eco Friendly Living eye makeup remover

I always use waterproof mascara, so a good eye makeup remover is very important for me. I swear by the L’Oreal Gentle Waterproof Eye Makeup Remover – I have been using it for more than 10 years! However, sometimes I get curious to try out other eye makeup removers and see how they work out. I have tried an Elizabeth Arden one, and currently bought the one from Nivea, but today I’m reviewing the Eco Friendly Living eye makeup remover.

What attracted me to this product was that the ingredients are all-natural and organic. It’s just a mixture of oils – and I thought oil is what I need to remove waterproof makeup anyway. I bought it on etsy! Unfortunately this thing hasn’t worked very well for me. It’s just very… oily… and I’m not used to the consistency – I get oil everywhere, and it gets on my contacts so that’s defo not good. Besides, it is not removing my waterproof eye makeup as effectively as the L’Oreal one… I usually pour my remover on a cotton pad, put it on my eye for a few seconds, and then start pat the makeup off.

The Eco Friendly Living remover is just not working well for me, so instead of keeping it in the drawer or chuck it out – I use it for when I wash my brushes. It is very effective to wash brushes with an oil as it will get rid of the stubborn makeup (especially foundation) in the brushes. I let the brushes soak in a mixture of this remover, some water and a little bit of shampoo. And then I wash them again with shampoo to get rid of all the oil. You can use this tip for any other makeup removing products that you regret buying..

What is your favourite eye makeup remover?

Maria xoxo

Nailtiques formula 2

I realised it’s been more than 2 weeks ago I have blogged. I have been super busy, and my living situation is not ideal right now, so all my stuff is shuffed into small makeup bags, so I haven’t been playing around with different products lately.

My nails have always been soft, peeled and chipped. I have tried out many different products and I keep moisturising my cuticles but nothing has worked as well as my newly discovered wonder product! Yes, with Nailtiques formula 2, I can now have a few millimetres of nails that are looking pretty and non-chipped!

I was quite sceptical in the beginning. People rave about OPI Envy, but that one actually made my nails worse. So after that episode, I haven’t really been very keen on trying this kind of nail strengthener. My Nailtiques formula 2 arrived 3 weeks ago, and I have been following the instructions religiously; you’re supposed to apply a layer every day, and remove it once a week with a remover with acetone.

The smell is very strong, and you should avoid touching the cuticles. The brush is really nice and application is very easy. They say that it’s packed with hydrolized keratin, gelatin and calcium – all ingredients that strengthen nails. But how can I just put on a layer of stuff and my nails just turn hard and stop chipping and splitting? I’m thinking that it must contain some strong chemicals, but what the heck… it’s working and how can it hurt me???

I have never had nails looking this fine, and I’m so excited that I can finally put nail polishes on my long nails. Well… not that long – I just like to have a few millimetres as you see on the picture.

It has been 3 weeks for me now (you can see on the above picture how much I’ve used), and I will decrease the use and see how that goes. They say that Nailtiques formula 2 can be worn under nail polishes.

My Nailtiques formula 2 was bought on beautybay.com. Usually I don’t like to buy things on their page because the prices are quite steep as you don’t have to pay shipping fee. I couldn’t really figure out where else to get it, so I just bought it for 18€. Very expensive, but in my opinion worth it. I give this bottle full points. I love it and will continue using it!

You can view their official website here.

Have you tried it? Do you have a nail wonder product?

Maria xoxo

Addition – warning:

I did some extra research after I wrote this post. On Makeupalley, it has got 4,5 lipsticks (out of 5) of 195 reviews, and on amazon 4,5 stars (out of 5) of 89 reviews. I just want to point out that one should be careful with the Nailtiques formula 2 regardless. Some people have experienced scary conditions such as pain and nails starting to loosen from the nail beds. And just when I removed it today, my fingers are throbbing a little, and the nail bed of my left middle finger is a little bit loose. I though it was because I banged it into something while I was doing the dishes. So I went on the internet and did some extra research and found out that some people have had some bad side effects. It is no doubt some strong chemicals I’m putting on my nails, and will be much more careful with it. I’m thinking of using it once a week from now on – that should be okay.