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TAG : Produsele preferate

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RO only:

Buna, fetelor!

Incepem saptamana cu un TAG foarte dragut creat de Iguanitza, referitor la produsele preferate. Desi am mai scris ceva asemanator, nu sunt aceleasi intrebari astfel ca nu ma repet (in totalitate).

Inainte de intrebari, sa va spun cateva lucruri despre mine:

Ten - deschis spre mediul, subton neutru; mixt, cu tendinte de ingrasare, pori dilatati si ceva puncte negre in zona nasului si barbiei, rareori imi apar si cosuri razlete;

Par - culoare naturala : saten inchis, vopsit: saten ciocolatiu;  intre drept si ondulat, fir subtire, tendinte de electrizare, scalp foarte sensibil, usor gras si predispus la iritatii;

Piele - normala cu zone foarte uscate pe maini si picioare in special pe calcaie.



1. Care este crema preferata de fata? De ce?

De vreo cateva luni folosesc cu succes in fiecare zi Paula's Choice Hydralight Shine-Free Mineral Complex SPF 30 Moisturizer. E usoara, intra repede in piele, nu lasa niciun fel de pelicula grasa sau albicioasa, lasa pielea foarte fina. E perfecta pentru tenul meu mixt, matifiaza zona T dar si hidrateaza acolo unde am portiuni uscate. O voi recumpara cu siguranta.

2. Care est rujul/glossul tau preferat?

In materie de rujuri, am multe descoperiri recente, dar cel mai des port pe buze o nuanta nude : Rimmel London Lasting Finish Lisptick in 240 Undressed. E nuanta nude perfecta pentru mine, nu-mi "sterge" buzele, ci le pune in evidenta, e combinatia perfecta de maro si putin roz. In plus merge la orice look.

Nu sunt o mare fana a gloss-urilor dar imi place mult NYX Butter Lipgloss in Strawberry Parfait. Se simte minunat, e usor, pigmentat si foarte hidratant. Are o aroma placuta, de capsuni si cred ca de aceea nu rezista mult pe buzele mele.

3. Buzele au nevoie de ingrijire, de hidratare - care este balsamul de buze care face minuni?

Cel mai bun balsam pentru mine este cu siguranta Herbosophy Lip Balm cu Shea Butter si Vitamina E. Nu are aroma, in schimb este foarte hidratant si placut la purtat.

4. O linie perfecta trasata cu un eyeliner negru este reusita daca avem unealta potrivita - care este tusul de ochi preferat?

Eyelinerul negru este ceea ce port aproape in fiecare zi si imi place sa incerc cat mai multe. Totusi preferatele mele sunt NYX Gel Liner & Smudger in Betty, Sleek Ink Pot si Maybelline Master Precise Liquid Liner. Iubesc eyelinerele gel, mi se par cel mai usor de trasat si cele mai rezistente, insa si Master Precise e foarte versatil si usor de aplicat.

5.  Care este rimelul care te-a impresionat si pe care l-ai recumpara mereu?

In materie de mascara, cred ca favoritul meu va ramane mereu Rimmel London Lash Accelerator Mascara. Nu, nu mi-au crescut genele de la el, nu s-au indesit, dar e foarte negru, nu se usuca si imi defineste genele foarte frumos. Mai imi plac mult si cele de la Maybelline: Colossal si The Falsies.

6. Care este produsul de par care face minuni?

Pana acum imi placeau mult sampoanele si mastile de la Wella, gama Brilliance. Acum am descoperit insa un sampon care imi place mai mult: Nature's Gate Biotin Straightening Shampoo. Urmeaza sa vad daca el va fi the one.

7. Care este parfumul tau preferat?

Acum nu il mai am, dar de ceva timp am simtit ca ma identific cu Armani Acqua di Gioia. E floral, dar fresh, nu foarte dulce, nu foarte tare... e perfect si e feminin.

8. Ai o oja preferata in momentul asta?

Cand scriu aticolul acesta, nu mi-am mai facut unghiile de mai bine de o saptamana, dar recunosc ca imi place foarte mult OPI Russian Navy si Rimmel London 60 Seconds Caramel Cupcake.

9. Care este produsul preferat pentru hidratarea corpului?

Sunt lenesa la capitolul aplicat crema de corp dar ma salveaza Nivea In-Shower Body Milk Almond Oil si uleiul Johnson's Baby pe care le aplic la dus.

10. Ai vreun gel de dus preferat?

Acum imi place mult Dove Creme Mousse Body Wash, e atat de fin, de cremos, nici nu mai folosesc altceva pentru hidratare. La capitolul geluri de dus, Dove e intotdeauna brandul meu preferat. Daca vreau ceva placut mirositor, folosesc si gelurile de la Balea cu afine si cu lamaie.

11. Care este primerul/baza de fard care te-a impresionat?

Am incercat multe, dar preferatul va fi mereu Too Faced Shadow Insurance Anticrease Eyeshadow Primer sau altrnativa lui, Lemon Drop. Functioneaza la fel de bine si cel de la ELF, si cel de la Radiant, dar la asta ma intorc de fiecare data.

12. Care sunt fardurile tale preferate?

Imi plac paletele de la Sleek, mai ales Au Naturel si Ultra Mats Darks V2 si mai nou ma joc des cu paleta Click You're It de la Smashbox. Alte farduri preferate mai sunt si cele de la Flormar (Pretty Compact Quads)...

13. Care este fondul de ten preferat?

Imi plac mai mult BB Cream-urile si CC Cream-urile, dar daca ar fi sa aleg un fond de ten as alege L'Oreal Mattemorphose Souffle Foundation in 200 Apricot Beige.

14. Acum ca am discutat despre produsele de machiaj, e timpul sa trecem la partea de demachiere. Care este demachiantul tau preferat?

Aici e simplu - pentru ochi si buze imi place mult Farmec Demachiant bifazic cu ulei de argan, indeparteaza usor orice produs waterproof. Pentru fata de obicei imi place sa incerc mai multe, acum imi place mult cel de la Garnier, Refreshing Cleansing Lotion. Se simte atat de bine pe fata...

15. Care sunt site-urile de unde iti cumperi produse cosmetice de incredere?

Sunt o mare iubitoare de shopping online, mai ales ca pe la noi nu prea se gasesc produsele pe care mi le doresc. Din Romania, comand des pe Makeup Shop si cateodata pe ELF. Din afara, imi plac mult Fragrance Direct, recent am descoperit StrawberryNETIherbCherry Culture si bineinteles good old Ebay. Imi doresc mult sa incerc si Feel Unique, ACW Cosmetics, Sigma Beauty, Beauty Joint si Makeup Geek.

Invit pe oricine sa preia TAG-ul, mi-ar placea sa citesc despre preferatele voastre!


Love at first brush

Review & Swatches: Pastel Professional Eyeshadow Palette #16 Chic

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Hi, girls!

Today I have some colors for you, as in colorful eyeshadow. Here it is the Pastel Professional Eyeshadow Palette in 16 Chic. If you haven't heard of Pastel Cosmetics before let me tell you it's a Turkish brand dating since 1938 but it entered our market a couple of years ago. I only bought eyeshadows  and an eyepencil from them, but they also have a nice range of nail polishes, powders, blushes, lipsticks etc.

I only have another mono eyeshadow and a duo one, which I like a lot so I wanted to choose also from their  larger palettes. Of course I had to choose some purple based, warmer colors.




Let's talk packaging first. It's kind of cheap and tacky looking, to be honest, with all the gold details but it's plastic nontheless. For the price, I won't complain too much, because I love the actual eyeshadows. It comes with a thin mirror and a double ended sponge applicator and brush which I'll never use.

There are 5 pressed eyeshadows pans, pretty large I might add, there are 2.2 g of product for each of them.




The formula differs from shade to shade, but mainly they are pretty creamy, very pigmented and very intense colors. There is some fall out, especially with the darker colors, but nothing too bad. They blend really well, I just wished there was a matte transition shade in here.

I always use primer before applying them, sometimes even a creamy base, depending on the look I want to achieve, but they last all day without fading away. They will crease without primer on oily lids so a primer is a must for these ones or just a creamy base.






The first shade is a white shimmery shade with large white glitter particles. This the most chalky shade in the bunch, lot of fall out especially the glitter, but can be work with. It's a nice internal eye corner highlighter.

The second shade is a cream peachy shade, also shimerry and with some glitter particles, but lesser than the white shade. It can be used in a various of combos, all over the lid, transitional shade, internal eye corner etc.


The third shade is a medium purple shade with pink undertone. There is some fine shimmer, no large glitter particles.

The fourth shade is a mettalic burgundy shade with copper undertone. Very intense, no large glitter particles.

The fifth shade is a medium mettalic golden-bronze shade. Very intense, no large glitter particles.


Overall, I feel this is a pretty useful palette, I use it often as the shades allow me to play with them for everyday looks but also for more dramatic ones. My favorite shades in here are the burgundy and the bronze shade (4&5).

You can find it online here or at Pastel counters (Romania) listed here. I can't remember the price, but I think it was around 6-7 euro.

Love at first brush

Review : E.L.F. Studio Lip Exfoliator

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Hello!

E.L.F. products are probably ones of the most inexpensive but yet good quality that are out there. Well, they're not really that inexpensive but they definitely are in the low-cost beauty items band wagoon. While I enjoy imensely their brush range, eye primer, eyeshadows and eyeliners, I only got just a couple lip products. One of them is the E.L.F. Lip Exfoliator, an item that's fairly unique out there, a lip exfoliator in the form of a lipstick. How convenient and cute is that?





I absolutely love the packaging and for that reason only I'd buy their lipsticks from the mineral line and the studio line. It's matte black, very sleek and elegant and it's not all from plastic, it's actually a thin metal material.



About the product itself, there isn't much to say other than it does its job really well. I find it very comfortable to apply, you just twist it than gently massage it into your lips, then you wipe off all the remainings and apply a lip balm to sooth your lips.

I can't believe how easy it is to apply it, if you're away and you have chapped lips and your lipstick would look just bad, you just take the 5 minutes to scrub your lips and then you're ready. So just keep it in your purse!

The texture is solid but still moist, with large brown sugar beads. Not only it removes dead cells but also it moisturises the lips really well. There is a very nice tingling sensation left after using this. And it tastes sweet as sugar!


I have it for more than 6 months and even after regular use (4-5 times a week) I barely scratched the surface, it's that longlasting. I tried also some other lip scrubs from Lush, even home made, but this one the easiest to use for lazy gals like me! And it's only 3$ on Iherb.com.

Love at first brush

Review : Yves Rocher Sebo Specific Ultra Mat Anti-Shine Moisturising Day Cream

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Hi, girls!

I didn't try out a lot of Yves Rocher products, I know many of you love their products, more since thay have awesome offers all the time on their website. But I was never really attracted by their products, odd enough considering I'm a makeup junkie :D. 

The Sebo Specific Ultra Mat Anti-Shine Moisturising Day Cream is the only skincare I tried from their line and when I've got it I was not using Paula's Choice skincare products, so I wanted a day moisturiser who will help me with my oily T-zone.



The packaging is nothing fancy, a 50 ml glass jar with plastic lid. The texture is very light, almost gel like and it has kind of a greenish color.  It does have a strong minty-herbal smell, so if you're not into strong smelling skincare items, than this day moisturiser might not be for you as it's very strong scented. It goes away eventually, but when you apply in, you'll surely feel it all the way.



It quickly enters the skin and it doesn't leave a grease sheen or a sticky feeling to your skin. It's also very refreshing, so it's great to use it in the mornings, it really wakes you up!

It claims to mattify the skin from morning till evening, to stop the shiny look on the oily areas of the face, all the while being a good daily moisturiser, even during those very hot summer days.

Unfortunately, I don't feel it does a lot for me as far as mattifying effect goes. I have combined skin and I don't deal with a lot of oily skin areas, just my T zone and my chin, but this moisturiser just didn't do it for me as I would have expected. I tend to get a little bit oily about 3-4 hours after applying it, even using a BB Cream/foundation for oily skin and a mattifying powder.

As a moisturiser, it goes on very good for my dry patches around my cheeks, but I can't use it alone as I feel it tends to make even more oily than I normally am! Another thing I don't like is that it doesn't have any SPF protection, which I find essential for a day cream. At least as far as I'm aware of, it doesn't say anything about it.


Overall, I don't think it's a bad product, I just can't bring it to help me with my oily skin issue. I like that the formula is very light, it moisturises, it's refreshing, I don't even mind the strong perfume, but I can't use it on its own. I currently use the Paula's Choice Hydralight Anti-Shine Mineral Complex SPF 30, but I'm still using this Yves Rocher moisturiser when I need it as I want to finish it.

I think it works good for those who have normal skin or just light combo skin, as it's a good moisturizer. If you're curious to try it,  you can find it online here at the price of around 10 Euro or in any of Yves Rocher stores.


Love at first brush

Review & Swatches: Sephora Waterprof Contour Eye Pencil 12HR Wear #24 Surfer Babe & 33 Love Affair

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Hi, girls!

I've only discovered Sephora's awesome waterproof long wearing eyeliners just recently and I'm soo impressed with them. I have them in two shades: 24 Surfer Babe and 33 Love Affair, and I plan to get more. I'm all about crazy eye pencil  colors so these are just up on my alley. 




The packaging is nothing out of this world, just your regular standard wood glossy black packaging eye pencil. The colored end is a nice touch, as I can find them really fast through my liners. These will need to be sharpen very often, so here's a downside as they are really creamy and a lot of the product goes to waste if applied dirrectly to the eye.


The formula is very creamy and smooth, easy to blend and to smudge and once it sets in, it won't go away anywhere. Actually these eyeliners are the only ones that can stay almost all day in my water line, my eyes get really watery so most eyeliners won't stay more than 1 hour. They glide on so easy, no need to build up the color too much. They are great on their own, as eyeliners, or as eyeshadow bases or in the water line.

I also love how crazy pigmented these are, I haven't had eyeliners that intense untill now. The color payoff is jus great.  They are shimmery colors, but with no large glitter particles, and they still look almost metallic.



24 Surfer Babe is a dark teal-navy shade, with very refined silver shimmer. I love using this for a dramatic thick liner look and in my water line.

33 Love Affair is deep purple plum shade, with a pearly finish. As I've stated in my previous monthly favorites, I love topping this with Sugar Plum from Avon for a nice, sparkly eye look. It also performes great as a base for my deep plum eyeshadows.






Overall, I am pretty much in awe with these liners from Sephora's line. They are extremely pigmented, very creamy and easy to work with and they won't smudge around your eyes. Not to mention the incredibly color range. I'll definitely purchase more of these babies!

These are available at Sephora, for the price of around 9 Euro (Romania). They are not dirty cheap, but I can't put them also in the high end eyeliners category. Besides, they are worth every penny!


Love at first brush

LOTD: Orange Tones

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Hi, girls!

Today I want to share with you a quick look I did yesterday when going out shopping. I was inspired by the sunny day to do a warm colorful eye look and a bright but still demure lip.Sorry for the dumb look in some of the photos, I actually have a problem with "selfies", I always make funny faces when taking photos of myself. Bare with me please and hopefully you enjoy the simple look!




Products used:

Face:

Rimmel London Fix & Perfect Pro Primer
L'Oreal Matte Morphose Souffle Foundation #200 Apricot Beige
ELF Contouring Blush & Bronzer #St. Lucia
Charles of the Ritz Custom Blended Powder #Light

Eyes:

Radiant Eyeshadow Base
NYX Jumbo Pencil #Milk (smudged all over the lid)
Old Avon Trend double ended eyeliner: golden bronze (applied as a base for the golden shade in the inner corner, on the lower lash line and in the water line)
Smashbox Click You're It Holiday Eye Palette: shades #9 (Orange, all over the lid and in the middle the lower lash line) and 10 (Golden, applied over 9 on inner third part of the lid, in the inner corner and on the inner third part of the lower lash line)
Sleek I-divine Au Naturel Eyeshadow Palette: shades #Nubuck (lightly applied in the crease), Cappuccino & Honeycomb (blended together on the browbone) and Nougat (highlight under the brows)
Flormar Pretty Compact Quartet Eyeshadow #P045: shade the brown shimmer (applied in the crease, the outer V and the outer third part of the lid)

Eyebrows:

W7 Style Eyes Brow & Lash Shaping Gel
ELF Eyebrow Kit #Medium: only the powder part

Lips:

Posibility Peppermint Ice Cream Lip Balm
Avon Ultra Color Matte Lipstick #Matte Rose


Love at first brush

Top 10 Fashion Item I Would Wear This Spring

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Happy Monday, ladies!

Let's take a brake from beauty and makeup today and let's some fashion item favorites for this spring. I've perused a little some online and offline stores in the last couple of days in the search of some new fresh garments in my spring wardrobe. I still have clothes from last years that I would totally wear again this spring, but I always like bring something new into my wardrobe. I'm not a shopping addict for nothing! :))

River Island Grey Leather-look waterfall Jacket

River Island Grey leather-look waterfall jacket


She Inside Light Green Pockets Front Open Mesh Stitch Sweater

Light Green Pockets Front Open Mesh Stitch Sweater Cardigan

Rebecca Minkoff Becky Jacket

Rebecca Minkoff Becky Jacket as seen on Kim Kardashian

Etoile Isabel Marant Max Plaid Shirt

Étoile Isabel Marant Max Plaid Shirt

Gianvito Rossi Wedge Sandals

GIANVITO ROSSI Wedge Sandals

Antik Batik Bowie Long Skirt

Antik Batik Bowie Long Skirt

Oasap Slim Fit Pure Color Shawl Collar Blazer

Slim Fit Pure Color Shawl Collar Blazer

Geometric Panel Necklace

Geometric Panel Necklace

Valentino Rockstud Patent-Leather Ballerinas

Valentino Rockstud Patent-Leather Ballerinas

Sportmax Code Bruna Floral Print Tailored Shorts

Sportmax Code Bruna Floral Print Tailored Shorts

What's your favorite spring items you would wear these months?


Love at first brush

Review: Too Faced Shadow Insurance Anti-Crease Eyeshadow Primer & Lemon Drop Color Correcting Eyeshadow Primer

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Hello, girls!

I'm sure you all have heard of the infamous TFSI or Too Faced Shadow Insurance primers as they are between the best that one can find in the market. Along with Urban Decay's Primer Potion, these babies are like the tip of the iceberg as far as eye primers go. I thought wether I should review them or not as there are a plethora of reviews/demos/swatches out there, but hey I love them for a long time so if you want to hear another opinion and a little demonstration, here it is.

I have two of them to review for you today: Too Faced Shadow Insurance Anti-Crease Eye Shadow Primer and Too Faced Shadow Insurance Lemon Drop Color Correcting Eyeshadow Primer. They are basically similar with the difference that Lemon Drop also corrects eye lids color and neutralizes any vein color, discoloration or pigmentation on your lids so that the "canvas" on which you apply the eyeshadows is perfect.






The packaging is very girly looking, in pastel colored squeezing tubes. I consider Too Faced to be in the high end beauty category so the packaging really reflects that. The tubes contain 11 g of product which is enough for almost an year of daily using, that's how long it'll last you as the tiniest amount on each eye will sufice.

I love the fact these come out in squeezing tubes as the is no contact with air or you don't have to put your hands inside, so that's hygienic. Moreover, you can actually take out almost everything that's inside which has always been a struggle with wand tube primers such as UDPD or ELF Eye Primer.

The dosage orifices are very tiny so that insures that only a small quantity will came out so there's no waste of product.



Now let's talk about the actual primer inside. I definitely won't sing an ode to eye primers and how they have revolutionized makeup over the years, making you eyeshadows say longer in place with no creasing, smudging or moving around, even though they are definitely worth one. As I was saying in the begining of this article, TFSI primers are really the best ones out there even for people with very oily lids. I for one don't have a huge problem with oily lids but there are many shadows that crease on me without a primer.

Even people with dry skin should use eye primer as it not only insures that eye makeup won't crease or fade throughout the day but it intensify the colors you put on and make your average looking eyeshadows pop on your eyes.

The Lemon Drop version has a very thin formula, it's light yellow and it blends out to almost nothing on the skin, it just leaves behind a refined shimmery sheen and a very smooth and velvety sensation. I also help with skintone correcting as it neutralizes any green/blue visible veins, discoloration, pigmentation or other small imperfections. After applying it, I only wait a minute before applying eyeshadows and not only they won't crease all day long, but also this works also as a base and make them a lot brighter and visible. The sheen it left behind doesn't interfere with the matte eyeshadows finish.

This will make my eye makeup stay in place for at least 10-12 hours but I wear it even longer and only minor creasing happened so for me this my holly grail eye primer ever.



The original one is little ticker in consistancy and it's skintone like. It doesn't leave behind a sheen as Lemon Drop but it covers pretty well any color imperfections you might have on your eyelids.

It lasts just as long as Lemon Drop, all day long, no creasing or smudging and it also intensify the eyeshadows. Between the two, I like Lemon Drop a little better as I feel it makes eyeshadows pop a little more than this one, but for me both are some awsome eye primers and I'll never be without them.



Here's a little demonstration with some dark eyeshadows (and chalky) on top of the two primers so see how they perform by intensifying the shades. It's clear that these primers bring out the best even of your worst formula eyeshadows.

Left: eyeshadow on bare skin, right: eyeshadow on TFSI Lemon Drop

Left: eyeshadow on bare skin, right: eyeshadow on TFSI Original

These are not very cheap, but they are definitely worth the price as they last for almost an year. In Romania at Sephora, they cost about 17 Euro, but on Too Faced website they are at price of 20$. Not too much considering how much you get from them. I give these an A+ with no hesitation and I am pretty picky when it comes to eye primers, I have a few dissapointments I would talk about soon.


Love at first brush

Review & Swatches: Smashbox "Click You're It" Eye Holiday Palette

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Hi, ladies!

Here's one of my new loves in the beauty department, Smashbox "Click You're It" Eye Holiday Palette. I know this is not a new product by any means, I've been eyeing around for some time and then I saw it on StrawberryNet in January, it was around 12 Euro on sales. That was a great deal as this palette retails for around 37 Euro (49 $)! It's actually my first Smashbox product ever and I dare say I want to try out more of their stuff.





The palette consists of 15 pressed eyeshadows, 12 shimmery ones with just 3  matte shades and 5 cream eyeshadows/eyeliners. There was also a mini primer, but this palette came without it. There is also a large mirror and  a booklet with some eye looks that can be achieved with this palette.


The packaging is cute but nothing fancy, a bright red cardboard case. It's kind of big but sturdy enough to bring it along for travelling.



I was very impressed with the quality of  the eyeshadow, they are all pigmented, easy to blend, and very soft and smooth, almost like butter. The color pay off is great for all the shades and there is some fall out, but nothing too disturbing.

I love that there is such a great variety of colors in here, the matte nude colors are great as a base eye color, I just wished there was also a matte brown transition shade for smokey eyes looks. The cream shades were a nice discovery as they are not dry at all, but very creamy and pigmented. They are great as gel eyeliners also, love them.





The shades doesn't have names, just numbers, but that works just as good to identify them. Let's see the pressed eyeshadow swatches:

1, 2, 3, 4, 5

1 is a light pale pink matte shade.
2 is a shimmery rose pink shade.
3 is a satiny light grey/silver shade.
4 is a light pale peach nude matte shade.
5 is a light pale beige vanilla matte shade.

1, 2, 3, 4, 5

6, 7, 8, 9, 10

6, 7, 8, 9, 10

6 is a mettalic rose gold shade.
7 is a deep berry wine shimmery shade.
8 is a dark grey charcoal shimmery shade.
9 is a medium orange shimmery shade.
10 is a shimmery yellow gold shade.

11, 12, 13, 14, 15

11, 12, 13, 14, 15

11 is dark taupe-brown shimmery shade.
12 is deep mauve/plum mettalic shade with brown undertone.
13 is a dark navy shimerry blue shade.
14 is a mettalic bronze copper shade.
15 is a mettalic dark forest green shade with golden undertone.

And now onto the cream eyeshadows/eyeliners:

20,16,17,18,19

20,16,17,18,19

16 is dark deep purple plum shade.
17 is jet black shade.
18 is a navy blue shade.
19 is a dark chocolate brown shade.
20 is warm gold shade.

Overall, I can only say that love this palette, I was pleasantly surprised by the great quality in the shadows, the great color selection and their pigmentation. And the creams are just amazing as a base or as liners, so smooth and creamy. My favorites shades are 4, 7, 9, 12, 16, 18 and 19!

This can be still found on StrawberryNET, but it's not on sale anymore, and I also saw it on Ebay and ACW Cosmetics. The prices vary but with a little luck, you might get at a great price still and keep in mid that this is almost a 250$ value! How cool is that?


Love at first brush

Review & Swatches: Sleek Eau La La Liner #Venom & Tonic

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Hello!

I've picked these two Sleek Eau La La Liner in Venom and Tonic during Black Friday back in November and I only started to get more use out of them only recently and I like them quite a bit. They claim to be "highly pigmented, rich, creamy pencils. This extremely long-staying formula is ideal for blending, smudging and defining."




They need sharpening, being in a pencil form. The packaging is your normal wooden mat black pencil with colored caps at the end as they are to be quickly recognized. I like that they are bigger and slimmer than normal eye pencils, you get a total of 1.9 g of product.


The formula is indeed very creamy, they glide on smoothly and without efort. But as all creamy eyeliners, they require to be often sharpening as the tip goes away rapidly.

They blend out nicely, without streaks and they set in very quickly, so you need to work fast with them. I've been using them as base for some similar eyeshadows and I loved how vibrant the colors look on top of them.

In terms of pigmentation, I feel that they are indeed very color saturated, especially Venom, but I would have liked that Tonic would be a little more intense. I feel that's just too creamy and the intense color doesn't really translates to eye lid. It's a good thing they are buildable though.

I use them also as eyeliners on upper lid and in my water line and I'm impressed with their staying power, after all they are waterproof. Again, I would have liked that Tonic would be a little more pigmented and vibrant, but I can work with it.

Venom might look like a scary color for eye using, but it's actually very good as lip liner for deeper lipsticks shade. I used it both on my eyes and on my lips and I love it, it stays on for a long time without fading or creasing, it's great as a base!

Tonic, Venom

Tonic is a metallic teal shade with golden undertone.
Venom is dark berry red  shade.


Overall, I think these liners are great to have in one's makeup collection as they really are multitasking, depending on the colors, you can use them on eyes, lips or eyebrows. I also love the staying power and how well they blend. I'm actually thinking to try out some more colors from this line as I know I'll get a lot of uses out of them.

You can them online at Sleek's website for the price of 7.49$ or at Makeup Shop's website (Romania) for the price of around 6 Euro. Pretty good prices for a product that does so many thnigs, don't you think?


Love at first brush

Review: Wella Professionals Calm Sensitive Shampoo

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Happy Friday, everyone!

I was telling you in a couple of weeks ago that I was experiencing some issues with my hair, more specifically with my scalp, and my previous shampoo from Wella Professionals Brilliance for thin, coloured hair wasn't doing it for me anymore. So the simple  solution was changing my shampoo with more delicate one, the Wella Professionals Calm Sensitive Shampoo, designed for those that deal with sensitive scalp, irritations, flaking, hair loss etc.



I've never had scalp issues before, but for some reason the Brilliance Shampoo from the same brand had become way too strong for my hair and scalp and I started to gradually get irritations on some areas of my scalp, some flaking and I've noticed also an increasing loss of hair. And with all my carefull haircare routine, my hair wasn't as shiny and healthy looking as before.

I've noticed the change after using the shampoo for the first time, as the itching and flakiness stopped at once. I haven't notice if it did stop my hair loss as I used a specific treatment for that problem, but it's very possible that the shampoo also have a positive effect on that also.


Being adressed for sensitive scalp, there is no perfume in this shampoo, so the smell is not exactly great, it's a little chimical, but nothing too offensive. It also doesn't make a lot of foam so I use a little more than other shampoos or I lather my hair twice to get it clean and squeaky. I feel it doesn't do a great job on cleansing your hair as other shampoos do, but it does the job to clean very good the scalp.

I love the sensation I get after washing my hair, my scalp feels so fresh and relaxed. I also like that it leaves my hair very soft and shiny and manageable. This would be a great product to use daily for those whowash their hair everyday (not me though), as it's very delicate with one's hair and scalp and it doesn't fade the color if you dye your hair.


The packaging is the same as for all shampoos in Wella Professionals line, I like the dosage system and the fact it's easy to use. I only find this at 250 ml bottles and it lasted me for about 2 months. Pretty good!

As all Wella's products, this can be purchased in salons, I've got from Abatte, online or in some stores with haircare products. The prices differ from location to location, I've got it for around 8 Euro, so it's not dirt cheap but also not high end, it's a good price for what you get.

Love at first brush

This Weekend I love...#20

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Hello, ladies!

Last week I skipped the This Weekend I love... posts as I didn't have enough time to research my current cravings. Rest assured, it doesn't mean I don't have any! In fact, I might have splurge a little bit and ask a friend of mine who currently lives in USA to order a rather huge amount of beauty stuff from Ulta.com. Wanna see what I'm going to get when she'll come for vacation in summer? Read on!































Love at first brush

I don't usually wear high heels but if I'd wore...

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...than they would definitely be the famous Christian Louboutins. Me and high heels don't get along. At all. I know how sexy they look, how beautifully they can transform a woman's body and any outfit by that matter, but sadly the ocasional ordeal they put me through when I man up and wear them make me oversee them every time when I choose something to put on my feet. There are some kind of high heeled shoes and sandals that actually are not incredibly hard for me to wear but when it comes to sexy, painfully looking, very high heeled pumps, it's a no-no for me.

My feet are so sensible that almost every kind of shoes, ballerinas, sandals, boots, you name it, make my feet hurt at least the first time. So heels are not exactly my cup of tea. Not to mention that I walk pretty funny in them.

But I'll stop feeling sorry for myself right now and dream about some beautiful, state-of-art shoes, sexy, killer shoes. So I give some of the Louboutin pumps that I would totally wear. If I could.

120 So Kate Ayers Pumps

Christian Louboutin So Kate 120 ayers pumps 


Pigalle 120 Glossed Python Pumps

Christian Louboutin Pigalle 120 glossed python pumps

Grolili Cross-Strap Patent Pumps

Grolili Cross-Strap Patent Pump, Nude - Christian Louboutin

Palais Royal Trepointe Shoes

Christian Louboutin Palais Royal Trepointe

Canassone 100 Buckled Sued and Leather Ankle Boots

Christian Louboutin Canassone 100 buckled suede and leather ankle boots

Bianca Patent Leather Pumps

Christian Louboutin Patent Bianca

Cardamona Sandals

Christian Louboutin Cardamona

Lady Highness Suede Mary Jane Platform Pumps

Christian Louboutin Lady Highness Suede Mary Jane Platform Pumps

Apostrophy Sling Pumps

Christian Louboutin Apostrophy Sling

Jane Vendome Pumps

Christian Louboutin Jane Vendome

Ograde Pumps

Christian Louboutin Ograde

 
Love at first brush

Statement Necklaces That I Would Wear This Spring

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Hi, lovelies!

One thing I love maybe just as much as makeup is statement necklaces. Big, fun, chunky, colorful pieces that goes with with the most simple white T-shirt, but also with a sexy party dress. Here are some of my choices for this spring.

TOPSHOP Chunky Chain Pineapple Necklace

TOPSHOP Chunky Chain Pineapple Necklace 

Raga Bead Drop Necklace

Raga Bead Drop Necklace

Elizabeth Cole Gold-plated Swarovski crystal necklace

Elizabeth Cole Gold-plated Swarovski crystal necklace 

Miss Selfridge Romance Bead Cover Necklace

Miss Selfridge Romance Bead Cover Necklace 

Pull & Bear Coral Necklace

Pull & Bear Coral Necklace 

Make a State-mint Necklace

Make a State-mint Necklace 

Ribbon Bead Necklace

Ribbon Bead Necklace 

J.Crew Beaded stone necklace

J.Crew Beaded stone necklace 

Cara Couture Layered Statement Necklace

Cara Couture Layered Statement Necklace 

Love at first brush

NOTD, Review & Swatches: Rimmel London 60 Seconds Nail Polish #710 Alaska

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Hi, girls!

On Sunday I painted my nails after about a month of no manis, just thought to give my nails a break. Anyway I didn't do anything fancy, just donned one of Rimmel London's 60 Seconds Nail Polishes in 710 Alaska. After so many dark manis, wearing a light nude on your freshly short nails can be really refreshing.



I used 1 coat of my Nail Nurse Nail Base & Top Coat, 2 coats of Alaska and 1 coat of Revlon Liquid Quick Dry. As we can see, even with 2 coats, Alaska is pretty sheer and streaky, I had a somewhat hard time making it work.

I own many polishes from the 60 Seconds line and I feel that there are big differences as far as the formula goes. Some of them are very opaque and even, but others are more sheer and liquidy. All in all, I still like it though.


Alaska is a nude white cream, sheer and kind of streaky. It still gives a demure and classy look to one's nails, especially if they're short.





What's your favorite nude nail polishes for spring?

Love at first brush

Empties #3

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Hi, girls!

Believe it or not, I've got empties again and I don't know how I managed to finish so many products in only 2 months since my last empties post. I'm sooo proud of myself! Ok, some of these are expired and really old products that needed to be thrown but they still counts, don't they?






First of all, makeup products!



  • L'Oreal Matte Morphose Souffle Foundation #200 Apricot Beige - Those who read me know that this is one of my favorite foundation, I already opened a new one. It's a mousse type foundation, very light and natural looking, it's not cakey or erase-like matte foundation. I love it!
  • Rimmel London Wake Me Up Foundation #003 True Ivory - I have been trying to finish it for some time and I finally did. I won't say much because I have a review coming up, but I loved it a lot, it made me look dewy and glowing but not shiny because of my oily skin, which is a first for me as I run from all dewy face stuff. 
  • Garnier BB Cream Miracle Skin Perfector Daily 5-in-1 Moisturizer #Medium - I had this for a while since the version for oily skin wasn't on the market. For me it was OK though it made me a little oily throughout the day, maybe just a little too heavy texture for a BB Cream. I much prefer the version for oily to combo skin.
  • Oriflame Beauty Absolute Concelear For Eyes #Gold - Again, I had this for a while and I didn't exactly enjoyed it so it expired. I don't have big dark circles, but I felt this concealer had no cover power, it was too watery and runny and it had too much shimmer for an undereye concelear. I mean it brightened a little my undereye area, but my dark circles were very much visible.
  • Avon Stick Concealer - All the writting on this one is completely erased so I have no idea how this is called or what shade I had. But I really liked it, it was very creamy adn blendable and the cover power was pretty amazing. 


  • Avon Arabian Glow Bronzing Pearls - These are by no mean finished, but I had them for a really long time, so it's time to say goodbye. I really like them for a soft glowy bronze or even for contouring my face very lightly as they weren't very intense.


  • ELF Cream Eyeliner #Coffee and Black - After many attempts to revive them, they become a mess so I have to throw them away. I wrote a review for them back in June, last year, you can check it here.
  • Avon Super Shock Max Mascara - This is one af my favorite mascaras from Avon. The brush is similar to Maybelline's Collosal and it gave my poor short lashes lots and lots of volume.
  • Rimmel London Lash Accelerator Mascara #Extreme Black - You know by now how much I love this mascara, I love the texture, the brush and it's such an intense black. I already have a new one.
  • Oriflame Hollywood Black Lace Eyeliner - This was a special edition, similar with the normal eyeliner stylos from the normal line. I liked it quite a bit, very intense black shade but the tip broke off rather quickly.
  • Oriflame Eye Liner Stylo #Brown - Man, I loved this felt tip eyeliner so much I broke its tip. It was the perfect intense brown shade, great for neutral day looks. I would buy it again for sure!
  • ELF Wet Gloss Lash & Brow Clear Mascara - I used both ends for holding my eyebrows in place and it really did a heck of a job. Great and very inexpensive!


  • Dr. Soleil Hydra Plus 3-in-1 Cleansing Milk - I reviewed it here and I liked it a lot. It cleans the face very good leaving behind a refreshing feeling.
  • Nivea Visage Acqua Sensation Invigorating Cleansing Gel - I received it as a gift some time ago and I loved using it in the morning as it was so refreshening. It did dried out a little my cheeks though.
  • Nivea Double Effect Eye Makeup Remover - Review here. It was quite efficient, though it did burn out a little my eyes.
  • Bioten exfoliating cleanser with honey and apricot seeds - Review here. It was a good face scrub but right now I'm using a more efficient one from Freeman so I won't repurchase it.
  • Vichy Normaderm Deep Cleansing Purifying Gel - Review here. You know how much I raved about this cleanser, it's my holly grail, I love it and my boyfriend started using it also. Actually he threw away my last empty bottle by mistake (he doesn't understand why I keep all the junk around the house :)))) ) so therefore I'm putting my current one here for this article's sake. 
  • Elmiplant Skin Moisture 24 H Cream - This one is a must! So fresh and clean smelling, it's a great moisturizer to use at night or during day. It has no SPF so I have to use it in the morning together with my Paula's Choice Hydralight Shine Free SPF 30 Moisturiser. Actually it's an all-purpose face cream.
  • Oriflame Optimals Matte Touch Day Gel Cream - It was a good day cream, it mattified a little but I felt it was not as good at this as I would have liked. I stopped using it as it started to smell different. I'd probably repurchase it for using during winter when I don't need a strong mattifying cream.

  • Oriflame Discover Phuket Exotic Paradise Body Scrub - I had this in my bath cabinet for almost an year so I finally got to finish it. It's a nice fruity fresh flavour, with tiny blue and yellow exfolianting beads. I look forward to repurchase it again!
  • Nivea In-Shower Body Milk Almond Oil - I already restocked with the new Shea Butter version so that's one sign I really love them. Such a great invention for lazy gals such as myself!
  • Yves Rocher Jardins du Monde Brazilian Coffee Beans Shower Cream - I know everyody raves about this shower gel, how nice it smells, how moisturing it is etc., but I was not really impressed. Yes, it smells just like grounded coffee, very strongly I might add, but for me it's just too much, it's too sweet. I might try some other flavours but this one for me is a pass.
  • My Body Ocean Salt Peeling Magnolia - Very inexpensive but so very much proficient. It did a great job scrubing all dead cells and leaving the skin so smooth and refreshed. I will definitely repurchase it again.
  • Garnier Mineral Invisible 48 Hr Roll On Deodorant - I love Garnier deodorants, but this one didn't quite did it for me as it didn't last properly all day as I've expected. 
  • Lady Speed Stick Stainguard Deodorant - every Empties I do contains at least one of these deodorants as I love them a lot. It keeps me dry all day long and the perfume is subtle but sooo long lasting.
  • Thai Spa Cocoa Body Scrub - Review here. Me+cocoa butter=LOVE, so you can imagine how much I enjoyed this little guy here! It smells divine and it looks just like brown sugar frosting.
  • Gioia Hotel Cedarwood Shower Gel - This is a wash gel small size that I've took from a hotel in Firenze, Italia and I recently found in an old bag :)). So I had to try it and it smells soo good, like cedarwood, cinnamon and vanilla. I wish I could buy this somewhere, but sadly that's impossible:(!


  • Wella Professionals Calm Sensitive Shampoo - Review here. Last week I was writting about this shampoo and now it's done. For the moment, I won't repurchase it as I started a new shampoo from Nature's Gate, but I liked it nontheless.
  • Balea Repair + Phlege Express Oil Hair Treatment - I'm loving these one-application hair treatments from Balea, there are so intense and really makes a difference. This one smoothens my hair and it makes it look healthy and shiny. And no split ends in sight!


  • Byphase Makeup Removing Wipes with almond oil - Those used to be my favorites before trying out the ones from Balea. I still like them, they are very efficient and nice smelling. Maybe a little too dry.
  • Septona Makeup Removing Wipes with chamomile - These are so wet and great for a quick brush cleaning in the mornings! I don't use them on the face but they smell really nice.
  • Makeup Removing Cotton Pads : Cora, Care, Ebelin and random ones - I go through these like nobody's business, they are a necessity. The one's from Cora are great, I already restock on them.
  • Balea Bademomente Orange Bath Salt - You know I love these bath salts from Balea and this orange flavoured one was no exception. Great one!

Love at first brush

Review : Rimmel London Exaggerate Undercover Shadow Primer

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Hi, girls!

Today I'll talk about Rimmel London Exaggerate Undercover Shadow Primer, purchased from Fragrance Direct and which I was very curious to try out. This eye primer wasn't released in Romania or at least I haven't seen it at all. I'm loving most of my Rimmel London's beauty items I have so I had high expectations for this primer which sadly let me down. Badly!





First things first, let's talk packaging. It's very pretty, stark white with doe foot applicator and orange cap. I mean it looks good and makes you thing that this is definitely good stuff.



Unlike my other primers, this one is white with tiny little sparkles which gives a very beuatiful luminozity to your eyes. Unfortunately, it doesn't do what it should do because it creases like hell on my eyelids in about an hour after I put my makeup on. And I don't even have extremely oily lids. Hell, my eyeshadows don't crease that much on their own, it's this primer that crease them!

I really, really wanted to like it and make it work, so I even waited for 5 minutes after applying it before putting the eyeshadows to insure it dried out. No use, it's pointless!


I mean, it's such a waste because it could have been a great product. Just look how intense and vibrant the eyeshadow looks on top of it. There isn't much more to say, as unfortunately this primer doesn't do its job right. I'm not saying it won't work for you, but if you have even slightly oily lids then I wouldn't reccomand it as it does more wrong than good. Sorry Rimmel London, this primer is a total miss!



Love at first brush

This Weekend I love...#21

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Happy Monday, everyone!

For this last day of March, I have some pretty exciting new cravings to talk about! Since my friend from USA spoiled me with me with some Ulta goodies, I now find myself wanting more and more items that are not available in Europe and pretty hard to purchase. Some of these products are from Makeup Geek, a fairly new cosmetic brand created by Marlena, a Youtube beauty guru and from the hype created around her products, especially her eyeshadows, I get that they are pretty good, both in quality and price. Most of her eyeshadows are dupes after MAC's shades, some of them even better, at a fraction of MAC price, 5.99$. Wanna see some of my favorites? Read on!

Eyeshadows:

Beaches & Cream




Peach Smoothie



Creme Brulee



Frappe



Cinderella



Moondust



Cocoa Bear



Shimma Shimma



Homecoming



Last Dance



Bitten



Taupe Notch



Neptune



Burlesque



Drama Queen



Envy



Mermaid



Dirty Martini



Lemon Drop



Mango Tango



Mercury



Galaxy



These eyeshadows come mostly in pans that can be placed in Z palettes or you can buy complete palettes, all available at Makeup Geek website. Now let's see some swatches of these beauties:

















Pigments:

Blitz



Nightlife



Enchanted



Birthday Wish



Kryptonite



Utopia



Insomnia



Vegas Lights



Swatches:







Gel Liners:

Fame



Electric



Amethyst



Rave



Immortal



Twinkle



Swatches:




*None of the photos in this article belong to me, they are all property of Makeup Geek's website.


Love at first brush

Favorites of the moment (March 2014)

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Well, hello again, ladies!

You know the drill, end of the moment, time for favorites! Now as I'm writting this post, I actually figured that I don't have as many favorites as I would have thought for March. I tried a lot of new items in the past couple of weeks, I even rediscovered some old ones but I didn't quite get around to using them enough to include them in my monthly favorites. Anyhow, here's what I've been loving lately!



Haircare:


As I was mentioning in some of my previous posts, I have changed my hair routine again and included some new items that actually work very good. One major change was changing the Wella shampoos I've been using for the last couple of years with Nature's Gate Biotin Strenghtening Shampoo. Now, this is not 100% natural, though it's paraben free and sulfate free, but I've seen good changes in my hair. It makes my hair thicker and more shiny, it gives some volume and the itchyness is gone. Review coming soon!

Another change in my hair routine was trying out Dove Nourishing Oil Care Weightless Nutri-Oils Daily Treatment Conditioner. It makes my hair soo smooth and shiny, no more frizzy hair for me! Looking forward to purchase the normal size tube.

Skin & Bodycare:


I've rediscovered in my stash Alverde Bodyspray Grapefruit & Bambus, very fresh and fruity for this time of the year. It just screams spring for me. I love to put it on after shower in the morning and rubbing it into the skin.

I'm back into the micellar water bandwagoon with Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water. After I stayed away from micellar cleansers for a while, I saw this on sale and I bought it to see if it compares to L'Oreal version I had before. And it's great! Not only the bottle is huge, 400 ml, which will last me forever, but it's actually great at removing makeup with little aid. It takes even eyemakeup when I don't have eyeliner on in just a few swipes.

Cora Maxi Oval Makeup Removing Pads are probably the best ones I used untill now. They're big enough for me and so fluffy they won't brake appart after a couple of wipes.

Makeup:


In the first days of March I've bought this Fix & Perfect Pro Primer from Rimmel London and I've been using it every day since under my makeup. I can feel it really makes a difference as it makes my pores smaller and more blurry and it does mattify a little my skin. My foundation does look better and blends in easily since using this one to prime my face.

I had to mention realTecniques Blush Brush as it's the most soft and fluffy face brush I've touched! It applies blush as a dream with verry little effort whatsoever and it picks just the right amount of product so that you won't look clowny or to really work to put some color to the cheeks. Using a light hand with this one is the trick!


Cherry Culture Lime Lip Balm is my new favorite lip product. It smells so good, as lemons and limes, and it's so moisturising. What can I tell you, I'm sniffing it right now!

Milani Statement Lipstick in Nude Creme is a new addition, but it's the perfect pink nude for my skintone. It smells as watermellon and it goes on so creamy and moisturising, but still very opaque! Great stuff!

Another lip combo I've been sporting for a couple of outings this month was Just Cosmetics Soft Liner Pencil #15 + Rimmel London Kate Moss Matte Lipstick #107. I've been really trying to step up from my comfort zone and try out new lip colors and this dark one is actually very complementing with my pale skintone.



For the eyes, I've been redicovering my ELF Eye Transformer Eyeshadow Kit which I've been neglecting for quite a while. I actually brought myself to use it in various ways: as standalone eyeshadows, mixed with other eyeshadows to transform them, over eyeliners to brighten them up, as highlights etc.

I've been trying also some more colorful eyelooks lately so La Colors 5 Metallic Eyeshadows Palette in Circus Circus was one of my favorites to use, especially the blue and the green shades.

Farmasi Silky Touch Matte Eyeshadow #05 is a very soft nude beige shade, that I love to use all over my lid for tone correcting or for blending in harsh edges. It's very smooth and pigmented, great for everyday use!



In March I've been really using the Rimmel London Scandaleyes Retro Glam Mascara and I quite like it. At first, the brush seemed too big for my lashes and it clumped them pretty ugly, but I think now it had dried out a bit and it works a lot better, it gives great volume and texture and no more clumping and making my lashes look like a giant spider.

NYX Wonder Pencil in Dark was another of my this month's favorites, I've been using it daily in my water line. It brightens up so beautifully every eye look and I hate putting black into my water line as it makes my eyes very tiny. 

Milani Nude Creme, Just Cosmetics Pencil 15, Rimmel London Kate Moss 107

Milani Statement Lipstick #Nude Creme

Just Cosmetics Soft Liner #15 + Rimmel London Kate Moss Matte Lipstick 107
*sorry about the dark streaky bits in my lips, I was having an incredible bad dry lip day!

These were my favorites for the month of March and I would love to hear what were your best findings or rediscoveries for the first month of Spring.

Love at first brush

Flat Shoes Wishlist

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Hi, girls! Happy Fools Day!

Have you been fooled today? I haven't...yet! Anyway today I'll do a top of my favorite flat shoes  that are on my wishlist.

Belle by Sigerson Morrison Sable Ankle Strap Flats


Belle by Sigerson Morrison Sable Ankle Strap Flats


Toms Orange Palm Trees Classic Flat Shoes


Toms Orange Palm Trees Classic Flat Shoes

Circus by Sam Edelman Lena Flat


Circus by Sam Edelman Lena Flat

Cute Cubed Flat in Green


Cute Cubed Flat in Green

ALDO Orange Flat Pointed Ankle Strap Shoes


Aldo Orange Flat Pointed Ankle Strap Shoes

Women's Quinn Quilted Ballerina Flat, Newpert Navy


Women's Quinn Quilted Ballerina Flat, Newpert Navy

Adam Tucker 'Sangria' Flat


Adam Tucker 'Sangria' Flat

ASOS LADYBUG Pointed Ballet Flats


Asos LADYBUG Pointed Ballet Flats

Vince Camuto 'Benningly' Patent Leather Ballet Flat


Vince Camuto 'Benningly' Patent Leather Ballet Flat

REPETTO Grey Patent Leather Cendrillon Ballerina Flats


REPETTO Grey Patent Leather Cendrillon Ballerina Flats

Laceful Landing Flat


Laceful Landing Flat


DOLCE & GABBANA slingback ballerinas


DOLCE & GABBANA slingback ballerinas


Love at first brush
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