How has my make up bag changed this year

Well, it has changed. A LOT. Make up was my biggest obsession this year. I've started reading a lot of beauty bloggers and wanted to try almost all famous products. Now I have three eye shadow palettes (I used to have only one), more than 6 blushes, uncountable amount of lipsticks and empty wallet. Did I need all these things? No. I believe every woman can survive with only two lipsticks in her bag. But every time I felt sad or stressed I wanted to treat myself. Unfortunately, illusion of happiness of having new thing doesn't last too long and you find yourself constantly looking for something another to buy. In the end this shopaholic mania left me feeling guilty about spending too much. Next year I want to learn how to control my expenses.

In order to do so, I'm going to follow simple rules:

• I'll buy new make up products only in case if I run out of something. I have plenty of products to play with already. Got tired of your usual eye shadow palette? Try to create looks with shades that you don't use on regular basis (and don't lie that you don't have such shades - everyone has one or two that they don't use at all). Experiment with things that you already own.
• Focus on skincare and hair products that are affordable (of course only cruelty free and possibly vegan). Brands worth checking out: Urtekram (shampoos & conditioners), Sukin Organics (skincare, hair care), Natio (skincare), natural oils like Macadamia Oil, Avocado Oil, Coconut Oil, etc (for hair treatment).
• Avoid sales and impulsive buys. Ask yourself "Do I really need this?" all the time.
• Have budget for every month.
• Remember that not material things will make you happy, but people and interesting experiences.

The biggest step this year was learning about ugly side of beauty industry i.e. animal testing and trying to buy only from cruelty free companies. Next year I'll also try to cut my spending on brands that have non cruelty free parent companies, if 100% cruelty brands offer much better deals. In other words, next time my Urban Decay eye primer potion runs out, I'm buying shadow insurance primer from Too Faced, because hey, it's the same size as UD but much cheaper on beautybay.com (and beauty bloggers reviews tell me that quality doesn't differ much + Too Faced is 100% cruelty free).

Another big step was starting using sunscreens. Yeah, I know. I didn't used it even when I lived in Japan (and I tell you, Japanese sun is a killer for skin, especially during summer) :S Now I'm using it 365 days a year, because sun in the primary case of skin ageing and may lead to cancer.

What are yours beauty resolutions for next year?

November favorites

Nars Orgasm Blush is the most famous Nars blush and I don't believe there's anyone out there who hasn't heard about it once or twice. Early this year I followed the crowd and decided that I need "Orgasm" in my life too. After purchasing it I've been using it daily, but in summer I got Illamasqua Hussy to play with, so Orgasm was lost in the pile of cosmetics I own. But in November I got tired of bright makeup and wanted to create more natural looks, so here I am, loving Orgasm blush more than ever. In case you don't know, it's peachy pink with golden shimmer. It tends to look more pink than peachy on my skin. The pigmentation isn't very intense, so if you want the blush to show up on your cheeks you need to built the color up, but I don't see it as disadvantage, because one or two swipes will give you natural, healthy glow to your face (and I like to use it this way).

Urban Decay Naked Revolution Lipstick is a new acquisition to my makeup collection which I grabbed during sale on feelunique.com for €15. To tell the truth, I'm not fan of nude lipsticks, but I usually eat/drink a lot when I'm out with friends and bright lipsticks tend to leave marks on boyfriend's face + UD Revolution Lipstick in Naked was recommended as "perfect Autumn lipstick" by many bloggers on my bloglovin' feed, so I thought, why not to try something new? 

 Naked is warm pink nude color with opaque finish - it's like my own lip color, but better. It lasts about 4 hours and is very moisturizing which is a big plus during cold winter months. The package also looks very expensive and elegant - I love it! Urban Decay has always been like "eye shadow brand" for me, but I must admit they did quite a nice job on lipsticks too. Can't get enough of Naked ;)

Please note that both Nars and Urban Decay are cruelty free, but owned by parent companies who test on animals. Orgasm blush isn't suitable for vegans, since it contains lanolin, but Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick range is completely vegan. You can buy Nars blushes from here and UD lipsticks here.

What did you love in November?

Hurraw! Lip Balms in Chocolate & Vanilla Bean

Last week I got parcel from iherb.com with these two babies and I need to say that I'm totally in love! I have very dry, chapped lips which become only worse during cold weather (we have -12°C here at the moment, hello) and lip balm is essential tool for me to survive winter. 

Hurraw! lip balms are 100% cruelty free, vegan and made from "premium raw, organic and fair trade ingredients" (c). On each package you can also find the Leaping Bunny logo which confirms that no animals were harmed during production of these products. Speaking of the package, I like lip balms in tubes much more than in tins due to hygienic reasons. 

At iherb.com there are 21 different flavors to choose from - I bought classical Vanilla Bean and Chocolate lip balms. Both of them smell deliciously, especially Vanilla Bean one, it reminds me of vanilla ice-cream. But what most important that they provide really good moisture to my dry lips! I can stay without reapplying product for 2-3 hours - personally I find it as quite good result, because previously I used Badger Balm and it didn't help at all (my lips got dehydrated after 30 minutes).

Now I'm thinking about getting another flavors like Coconut, Chai spice and Tinted Black Cherry Balm, because hey, it's never enough of lip balms ;)

 

Have you ever tried Hurraw! lip balms? What do you think?

A/W wishlist

1. Too Faced Pink Leopard Bronzer (24.30 euro) - I have been lusting over this bronzer for ages! It's Too Faced cult product, shimmery pink bronzer with leopard print. I don't know why, but beautybay.com now retails Too Faced products for much cheaper price than it was before (plus free shipping!), so I would totally recommend checking it out. Unfortunately, Pink Leopard Bronzer isn't suitable for vegans, since it contains carmine (red coloring derived from the dried bodies of female beetles; personally I'm totally okay with it in my makeup), but Too Faced has a lot of vegan options and is 100% cruelty free.

2. Lime Crime Red Velvet & Suedeberry Velvetines - I've recently learned that Lime Crime has acquired The Leaping Bunny logo. As you may know, The Leaping Bunny is one of the most reliable source for cruelty free shopping, because all brands listed by The Leaping Bunny are checked thoroughly and brand needs to pay a lot of money every year to use their logo (read more about difference between Peta.org and The Leaping Bunny at Cruelty Free Kitty). Since now I'm certain that Lime Crime is cruelty free, I'm thinking about getting their famous velvetines (liquid lipsticks with matte finish) in Red Velvet and Suedeberry. Love-Makeup.co.uk stocks it for 17 euro each + about 5 euro of shipping.

3. Shiro Cosmetics Eyeshadows - 100% vegan and cruelty free handmade makeup inspired by different books/movies. The best present for you geeky friend! (or geeky yourself) Their Game of Thrones eyeshadows collection is gorgeous beyond words, I want almost all shades! Totally getting Hodor, Little Bird (Sansa Stark), Mother of Dragons (Daenerys), No Men Like Me (Jaime) and Valar Morghulis (Arya) shades. I think that Little Bird is possible to use as blush since it's matte mauve/beige-pink color. Girl on Fire, Huntress and Rebellion from Hunger Games collection are also so so beautiful ♥♥♥

What are you lusting for this Autumn/Winter?

Idun Minerals Marleen lip gloss

It's been a while since my last post and I'm very sorry for abandoning this blog, especially after getting so many new followers (thank you!). I took too many shifts this month at work, so every time I come home, I'm so exhausted that all I want to do is to sleep or watch another tv-show :/ I'll have much more time in December, so hopefully many new posts are coming.

Despite tough schedule, I managed to go on one day cruise to Stockholm, Sweden, where I bought Idun Minerals lip gloss in Marleen. Idun Minerals is Swedish brand which produces mineral cosmetics and is sold at local pharmacies (I got mine at Aptotekat Korpen in Old Town area). I haven't contacted them myself, but according to this post they seem to be cruelty free. They have variety of lip glosses, blushes, mascaras, eye shadows... everything has very pretty and feminine package, especially powder products.

Idun Minerals lip gloss in Marleen has beautiful strawberry pink color (reddish pink?). It contains no shimmer at all and its finish is something between opaque and translucent. Longevity of Marleen is about 2-3 hours (if you don't eat or drink it will last longer), but you can easily re-apply with its very convenient lip brush. It has smell of rose, but it doesn't bother me at all and as you know, I'm very sensitive to strong smells. I received so many compliments on how good I look since I've started using this lip gloss, so definitely worth cheking out if you're in Sweden. :D

Current

- I've finally finished reading Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games trilogy. I love books which can capture your attention from the first page to the end - I couldn't stop reading The Hunger Games until it was last page of the third book. I also watched two movies yesterday - it was okay, but the original was better, because when you read it's like you actually live character's lives, feel their emotions (I actually was the same terrified as Katniss when she was thrown into arena for the first time). I don't know, but usually books leave much bigger impression on me than movies or tv-shows.

- Got Illamasqua Nail Varnish in Creator just in time for Halloween. It's beautiful black with golden glitter in it. Applies easily and dries out quickly. Can't say anything about removing it, because I used it only one time and it's still on my nails. Cruelty free and the most expensive nail polish in my small collection (15 euro with discount, wtf).

- Since A/W lip colors are very popular in beauty bloggers community lately I gave in and bought myself Make Up Store matte lipstick in 401. It's dark plum color and application is quite difficult because you need to have an ideal lips. Lip scrub (I use e.l.f. exfoliator) + lip transparent pencil (e.l.f. Lip lock) + lip brush + lipstick from the tube + blotting lips with a tissue = this is a formula to get a great look with this product (takes some time). I'll post more swatch photos later.

- Natural deodorants don't work for me. I tried both solid and liquid Crystal deodorant and it made me more smelly and sweaty than ever. I ordered travel size of Schmidt's Natural Deodorant from their etsy store, but since I'll sweat to death waiting for parcel from USA to reach Estonia, I've decided to buy deodorant from non cruelty free company. It wasn't an easy decision and I'm still feeling guilty :(

Review: e.l.f. Daily Brush Cleaner

I always clean my brushes with shampoo + hair conditioner mix once in a week, but I was curious about this e.l.f. product, so it eventually ended up in my card while shopping online on their UK website. You know, I love e.l.f. for being cruelty free and affordable brand who produces good quality products, but ugh, this thing made me very disappointed. Why?

• I followed instructions written on the package: sprayed Brush Cleaner over the brush bristles and wiped brush onto clean tissue. At first I kinda liked that it smells like DKNY Be Delicious perfume, but when the smell stayed in my room for hours giving me a headache, I thought that this is getting out of hands. Don't get me wrong, I tried to ventilate my room by opening window, but even now I can smell it. 
• While the product doesn't promise to make brushes fully clean, I didn't except it to have such small cleaning effect. Some of my brushes still have eye shadow powder on it :/

Also it contains parabens in it, when Avalon Organics Shampoo which I use for cleaning my brushes doesn't. Cruelty free bloggers from #cfbloggers chat are also suggesting to try cleaning brushes with Dr. Bonner liquid soaps. We don't have it in Estonia, but I might be getting one from asos or feelunique.com.

Will I repurchase Daily Brush Cleaner again? No. Sorry e.l.f., but I stick to my usual cleaning routine.

What do you think about this product?