Blogging and Beauty New Years Resolutions

A little late but I thought it'd be interesting to share with you my New Years resolutions with regards to what matters the most here: blogging and beauty, so that you can hold me accountable :) I'm usually not great at making and keeping resolutions and reminiscing about the past; however, these past couple of months I've been thinking a lot more about my personal growth and what I could realistically try to improve - and here's what I came up with for 2013. Let's start with blogging goals, shall we?

1. Blogging more regularly.
Blogging often takes a back seat for me when life is feeling hectic or inspirations are running low. I will make a concentrated effort to post 2 to 3 times a week, including preplanning posts for busy times of the year like holidays and family visits.
2. Enhancing my creativity.
I believe most consistent bloggers tend to settle into a bit of a routine and forget about the creative aspect of their writing. I will harbor my creativity more by experimenting with different types of posts, e.g. more color-way or trend inspired articles. I will try to draw ideas from more aspects of my life, like literature and art.
3. Improving my photography.
I am always striving to get better at taking good photos for the blog and have a big backlog of photography books I would like to read in an attempt to work on my technical skills. In addition to that, I would like to experiment with lighting, prompts and backgrounds a lot more this year.

This was my husband's Christmas present to me: constant studio lights (what you're seeing are mostly the folded umbrella part with the tripods). They'll be so much fun playing around with!

4. No longer 'saving' blog post ideas for indefinite later.
I tend to mentally stash some of my better post ideas to use at a 'better' time, either because of laziness or the existing schedule. I think in order to cultivate my creativity, I would fare much better if I just used them right away - this also includes reviewing more products that I get to try and use, even if it's just a short and sweet summary of my thoughts. I tend to overcomplicate things - not every post needs to be a lenghty essay.
5. Starting a notebook dedicated to my blog.
Contrary to what you might think, I'm not glued to my PC 24/7, so if an idea pops up in the middle of the night, I need a little notebook to jot down my thoughts. Keeping a journal like that would not only help with organizing ideas so that I have plenty to choose from if I'm lacking inspiration but also help with my writing and project management skills.

This is the notebook I've bought for my blogging ideas - pretty cute, right?

6. Being more active in the community.
I love the social aspect of beauty blogging and all of my wonderful friends I've made by being a part of it, and I would like to give more by being more present on Twitter and also commenting more on my favorite blogs - it's so important to keep the discussion going!
7. Including you more in my personal life.
I appreciate you so much, my lovely readers, and you're already such a big part of my life that I think it's only fair to take you along with me in my day-to-day life. I've decided to start posting 'A Week in Photos' type of series so that you can see what I'm up to, it being beauty bits, food, books or anything fun or interesting that's worth sharing.

Phew, that was quite intense! Now for more superficial resolutions - beauty resolutions!
1. Focusing more on skincare than make-up in my everyday routine.
I tend to invest a lot more time and money in make-up rather than skincare and I want to change it around in 2013 to improve the health of my skin and my time management in the mornings. I've already revamped a lot of my skincare routine but I still need to work on perfecting a quick, everyday make-up look. I also need to pay a lot more attention to the skin on my body, including regular exfoliation and moisturizing.
2. Treating my skin in a more gentle and loving way.
To go along with my first beauty resolution, I really need to learn to love my skin more. This includes no picking and prodding, substituting harsh, stripping products with more hydrating products geared towards sensitive skin, removing my make-up as soon as I get home and finally being more consistent with my beauty routine.

A French pharmacie skincare haul is coming next!

3. Paying more attention to internal beauty.
I make this resolution every year but I really want to drink A LOT MORE water (I'm so bad at this, I just never get thirsty!), eat more veg and take my supplements more consistently; gotta love your fish oil!
4. Reducing my beauty stash.
For 2013, I've decided to do a no-buy for certain categories of products. I have so many back-ups of some skincare and make-up bits that I really shouldn't be buying any more of until they run out; but I think I will devote a separate post to that if you're interested. I also need to shop my stash more by rotating the products I own and I will also continue to focus on using up what I have with a special attention to samples and writing regular empties posts for the blog.

Well, I think that's it for now! I've already started implementing most of these resolutions and I feel a lot better by committing to do what I was planning on for a long time now. I think I may write a '2013 in review' type of thing at the end of December to see how I will have been keeping my blogging and beauty resolutions but I'm feeling very optimistic right now! Have you made any resolutions for 2013? What are they key things you'd like to focus on?

My In-Flight Beauty Essentials

As you might know from my previous post, I was spending the Christmas holiday with my family at home - and home is Warsaw, Poland, at least15 hours of flight and exactly 9 hours time difference away from here. I'm sure anyone who has ever spent more than 2 hours on a plane knows how devastating the cabin air can be for one's skin and overall well-being - so imagine what I usually feel like by the time I reach our Warsaw Frederic Chopin airport. Which is why I've decided to put together a little S.O.S onboard beauty kit this time to take with me, and here's what's in it:

My in-flight routine is very much inspired by this video posted by Lisa Eldridge. I start by removing any face make-up I might be wearing to look more human at the airport, first by using a make-up removing wipe (a sample packet of Simple Cleansing Facial Wipes - I'm not a huge fan of wipes in general but they'll do in a pinch) and then by massaging a cream cleanser to get the last bits off; here I was using a sample of Dermalogica Ultracalming Cleanser and really liked how it made my skin feel. I leave my eyes alone - I was just wearing mascara at the time and wanted to avoid the hassle of getting it all off and then reapplying.

I then generally spritz my face with a toner; depicted is an Arcona toner but I was actually using some decanted Allafia toner in a little spray bottle. I am now all ready to apply my hydrating mask; here, as per Lisa's recommendation, I had a sample of Dermalogica Skin Hydrating Masque, which is pretty much invisible on the skin. Unfortunately, it's hydrating effect was also pretty invisible, as my skin was very tight and peeling badly by the time I reached Warsaw. I also keep a little tube of moisturizer for when I'm done with my mask, which I remove with my wipes again, as well as some hand cream and lip balm for added moisture.

I love that L'Occitane shea butter hand cream and this tiny tube is probably the cutest thing I've ever seen!

Just before landing, I apply some make-up to look a bit less tired. This time, I took with me a powder foundation (Physicians Formula Healthy Wear), a concealer I could use under my eyes and on blemishes (Becca Compact Concealer) and a tinted lip balm (Fresh Sugar in Passion).

Overall, I was pretty happy with what I packed in my little beauty kit but next time I would probably try to find a more effective face mask or even just use a good hydrating serum instead. The whole routine made me feel a lot more relaxed and I think I was looking a bit more fresh-faced at the end of our journey.

On a different note, I hope you guys are all well and happy in the new year and I'm sorry for my prolonged absence; I had big plans for blogging when I was away but family quality time had to take priority. I have however a lot of things planned out for you, starting with some personal and blogging New Years resolutions. Stay tuned!

Lipstick Bandits Secret Santa Look Swap!

And now for something completely different: Lipstick Bandits Make-up Look Swap! Back in October, it was decided that our Holiday installment would consist of swapping the participating Lipstick Bandits signature make-up looks, Secret Santa-style. And guess what, Rae, our Head Bandit, drew Larie of Eye Heart It for me!

Having met Larie in person (yay for Seattle-based beauty bloggers!), I was under no illusion that my features even remotely resemble hers (I would have loved to swap for that gorgeously smooth skin though!), so I decided to recreate a recent look she posted that was based on a Vietnamese editorial make-up she was inspired by (click!). I thought it was a good example of a glamorous Holiday eye look for monolids (which I obviously don't have) that could be easily adapted to suit a variety of eye shapes, and those red lips... I couldn't resist!

Our little secret swap allowed me to experiment with a couple things I rarely opt for in my everyday make-up routine. For once, I used a cool matte brown eyeshadow (Annabelle So Foxy) to make my brows a bit thicker. I also tried to copy the beautiful, defined almond shape of the eyeshadow but I think I failed in that regard; I just don't have enough space between the crease of my eyes and my brows. I also altered the shape of my liner on the upper lashline to make it a bit rounder and more flirty - Larie is a pro at this! I usually don't line my eyes all the way around but I was pleasantly surprised at how it looked on me; this made my eyes appear a lot more feline and coupled with the coppery and golden shades of the eyeshadow, I felt like a lioness.

I used my blush and bronzer in a more sculpting fashion by following the line under my cheekbones - I need to do this more often! For the lips, I tried accentuating my cupid's bow to mimick the model's lip shape, which I find added a bit of softness to the overall look. I kept the skin more satin by skipping the powder too.

And here's what I used, in case you're curious: Revlon Colorstay Foundation for Oily/Combination Skin in Ivory, Bobbi Brown Corrector in Porcelain Bisque for under the eyes and highlighting the center part of the face, Becca Compact Concealer in Sherbet on blemishes, The Body Shop Honey Bronzer in Fair(?) with NARS Douceur blush to contour.

For the eyes, I primed with NARS eye primer and then used Urban Decay Smog all over the lid blended out with Inglot eyeshadow no.405 Pearl, UD Virgin in the inner corner and under the brow, Fyrinnae Sacred on the lower lashline with a bit of UD Half-Baked. I used Clinique gel liner in black on my upper lashline and lower waterline and finished off with a good coat of Laura Mercier Full Blown Volume Lash Building Mascara in Black.

I lined and filled the lips with NYX Plush Red lip liner, applied a coat of Milani Berry Rich on top and topped with Lancome Juicy Tubes for lots of glossiness.

Don't forget to check out other Lipstick Bandits' swap looks, including one inspired by my face...
Call It Beauty
Eye Heart It
Getting Cheeky
Glitter Geek
Makeup Morsels
Messy Wands
Musing on Beauty
My Funny Valentine
theNotice: a beauty blog‎
And a new Bandit this round: ChloeAsh‎

I also wanted to wish all of you who celebrate a very Merry Christmas - as you might know, I'm home with my family at last and I just couldn't have a better holiday season. In Poland, we traditionally unwrap our presents after a big dinner on Christmas Eve, which is today! I can't wait to see what everyone is going to find under the tree and I'm very excited for all the fun we're going to share. Again, Merry Christmas my lovely readers, and Larie - I hoped you liked your little Secret Santa!

Fyrinnae Week: Eyeshadow Swatches

As promised, a quick swatchathon to follow up my 'Breaking the Eyeshadow Rut' post. I can't help it, I just love photographing Fyrinnae eyeshadows, they're so sparkly and complex in their little pots - enlarge the photos to get the spangliness in all its glory. For more swatches of my older four shades, click here.

Starting with the lightest shades, left to right: Moon Child, a micro-glittery golden champagne, Crimson Ghost, a duochrome satiny pink, Kurisumasu!, a micro-glittery rosey tan and Tapir, a matte purpley brown.

My collection of Fyrinnae taupes: Sacred, a metallic antique gold, Envy Me, a duochrome shimmery cool brown with golden olive shift, Evocation, a subtly shimmery purpley taupe, Damn Paladins, a duochrome shimmery grey taupe with blue shift.

The darks: Purgatory, a warm brown with red shimmer, Steampunk, a purple taupe with multicolor shimmers, Madame and Eve's, a matte black with blue/teal/green/gold microglitters.

My favorites are still very much the taupe group but Purgatory and Steampunk were both pleasant surprises and quite easy to incorporate into a variety of looks. I like my little collection a lot and I think I'll continue buying Fyrinnae shadows because they are just beyond pretty and very unique - and they look like magic lava in macro photography.

Have you tried Fyrinnae eyeshadows? Which of your favorites do I need to put on my wishlist?

Fyrinnae Week: Breaking the Eyeshadow Rut

I have a new girl crush: Kate from Drivel About Frivol blog (click!). A couple weeks ago, she posted about how she was trying to break free from her usual neutral eye + rosy lip look by using her Fyrinnae eyeshadows. Firstly, I instantly love whichever idea that girl comes up with, secondly, I had some Fyrinnae mini pots laying around and then I ordered a couple more and thirdly, most of the time I am very much devoted to my make-up rut. So I joined in on the fun - let's see the results, shall we?

As a short (and quite obvious) disclaimer, obviously these looks are not very adventurous or unusual because... ahmm... I still very much had to go to work wearing them and I'm too lazy to make myself up on my days off. That, and my skillz need polishing. All looks were done using dry shadows over NARS eye primer.

Day 1. This is a bit of a cheat: I used Fyrinnae Envy Me, a taupe with green shift but finished off with Urban Decay Dark Horse in the crease and UD Virgin in the inner corner. An additional photo of this look was included in the NARS New Lover post (so that's what's on the lips, if you're curious!).

Day 2. All Fyrinnae! Crimson Ghost all over the lid, Moonchild in the inner corner, Tapir lightly in the crease and Purgatory used as a liner - I liked that a lot, see eye close-up at the end of the post. Plus, Lisa Eldridge-inspired posing with the hand. Lips were a soon to be reviewed new crayon thingy.

Day 3. Evocation on the lid, Steampunk in the outer corner, Crimson Ghost in the inner corner to highlight. Out of all the Fyrinnae taupes I own, Evocation is probably the most straightforward and easiest to wear. Nothing on the lips because I forgot.

Day 4. Kurisumasu! all over the lid with Moonchild in the inner corner and Evocation in the crease and khol pencil on the lashline. I was quite disappointed with Kurisumasu!, on my hand it swatches as a beautiful rosey tan but on my eyes, it's just a pale pink. Eh. Lips are Revlon 'Crush' Kissable Balm Stain.

Day 5. Sacred all over the lid with Purgatory very subtly in the crease, Moonchild in the inner corner. Sacred might be my number one Fyrinnae shadow, I just love how metallic this is - also, a perfect antique gold for palies like me. Nothing on the lips and weird lighting - sorry!

Day 6. Damn Paladins all over with Madame's and Eve's Arcane Magic shade to darken the lashline, Crimson Ghost in the inner corner. You can't see the blue shift very well here but it's definitely there in real life. For some reason, I find Madame and Eve's extremely difficult to work with... and I'm not a fan of blues on me. I tried though. Lips are Bobbi Brown lip gloss in Bellini.

That's it, I took Sunday off (in reality, these were not done on consecutive days and I couldn't come up with a look no.7)! I quite liked the whole experiment but it was a lot more time-consuming than I anticipated... and a bit more messy too than using my usual pressed eyeshadow palettes. I will have swatches of all the Fyrinnae eyeshadows used in these looks coming next for you.

What do you do to break out of your make-up rut?

Holiday Sales Haul

I'd had my mind pretty made up that I wasn't going to buy anything during the Black Friday/ Cyber Monday sales - I didn't feel like I particularly needed anything and the things I wanted, I already put on my Christmas wishlist. But I just couldn't resist some of the bargains! Here's the damage:

I thought that Origins online store had one of the best deals floating around: $10 off $25 purchase + free shipping. I've been using a sample of their Drink-Up moisturizing mask for a couple weeks now, so I wanted to purchase that, and I also wanted to try the Clear Improvement charcoal mask. Origins offer these two products in the travel size (half of the normal tube) for $16 each so that was a fantastic buy.

Then, I was watching Ruth Crilly's (A Model Recommends) luxury Holiday gift guide video and she mentioned a beautifully packaged L'Occitane bath set. So, as you would, I casually wandered over to their website and found this gem: Almond Enchantment, reduced to $68 from $98 plus a $10 gift card and free shipping Cyber Monday deal. I just couldn't stop myself, it sounded so delicious and pampering! I've now already tried the Almond Shower Oil (after both me and Mr having spent at least 15 minutes trying to open the darn pump) and it feels wonderfully moisturizing on the skin and smells absolutely to die for; a must-have for winter. The gift set also came with a $15 of $55 coupon - I can already see myself picking some new treats up!

Actually, the first thing I purchased during the sales was the Bobbi Brown Corrector that I had my eye on for the longest time. They had a no minimum free shipping deal going on as well as a trio of deluxe samples + a mini lip gloss included with purchase. Unfortunately, the lip gloss shade doesn't really suit me but I will pass it on to my mum; I actually quite like the tiny little Bellini gloss that was included as well so it's all good.

Since I'm not a VIB at Sephora (although I have a strong feeling this is due to some technical error in my account - I think it's the fourth week now that I'm trying to resolve this issue with Sephora's customer service) I missed out on the sale earlier last month, which is why I then grabbed the opportunity to buy when they sent out their $15 off $50 cards last week. I only got two things I've had on my wishlist forever and ever: a Clarisonic replacement brush head and Laura Mercier Mineral Powder SPF 15 foundation. I will review at some point if it meets the expectations.

Lastly, my gifts with purchase and free samples - I did score quite a few! I used a code to get Sephora's Mystery Bag but overall was quite underwhelmed with the samples I received, especially compared to their earlier 'It Kit' release. I will do a review if anything stands out.

And that's it, I'm not buying any more beauty products until next year! Have you bought anything during the Holiday sales or are you waiting until Christmas? Tell me what you scored in the comments below!

Going Red for the Holidays!

Just a quick one today to share my new hair color; as you may guess from the title, I've gone more red for the Holidays! Can you tell I'm very excited?

If you'd like to know the specifics, this is an all-over red semi-permanent toner, not a permanent hair dye. I had a partial foil (highlights) done a couple months ago and my stylist used a coppery red toner afterwards too but it didn't take very well; interestingly enough, my hair lifts incredibly quickly but doesn't react very well to toning. Anyway, this time we didn't do a foil but only used the toner and left it on for about 30 minutes (normally you would leave it to process for no more than 10); and voila! The toner itself was from Redken and I believe it was a half and half mix of Chilli and Cayenne.

Also, you can observe my 10-minute make-up routine here in action. Supposedly, redheads pull off the 'no make-up make-up' look pretty well?

The semi-permanent color will eventually fade within about 6 weeks; I've already noticed a lot of color wash down the drain but the coppery tint is still definitely there. The upside is that my hair doesn't feel very damaged at all, it still looks glossy and soft. I really do like how vibrant my hair color seems now; I naturally have a red tinge to my medium blonde hair so this is just amping up my natural shade - it also seems to match my complexion pretty well.

Have you changed your 'do recently? Do you like introducing little changes to your look for the winter season?