***

Happy holidays, everyone!

Ilusaid pühi kõigile!

One Of My Favorites: Lancome La Base Pro

Hi sweethearts!
Once again, I have to apologize for the lack of posts - there's so much going on with both school and my personal life, I just needed to take some time off and come online mostly for completing my schoolwork. The exam session is nearing rapidly (I have my Spanish exam today and another one on Friday, and the session is just starting out! Wish me luck.) so it's been a bit hectic, and frankly, I've been kind of panicky for the past couple of days. I'll try to catch up with all of your posts over the next couple of days and the weekend and leave comments!
However, I'm back and I have a review in store for you!

Image from lancome.ca

Lancome La Base Pro

It's my favorite primer. Lancome describes it as: "For gorgeous, picture-perfect makeup like a pro, this primer promises a smooth, radiant, canvas for a flawless makeup look. Lancôme’s exclusive Elasto-Smooth™ technology refines skin’s texture and diffuses light to visibly reduce imperfections with a satiny-soft finish. Makeup glides on effortlessly and color stays truer and more vibrant for that right-off-the-runway, air-brushed look that lasts until you take it off. Oil-free."

Like most primers, it's meant to be applied under the makeup, after the serum (if you happen to use it) and moisturizer.

The packaging: It's simple, sleek and elegant. One thing I'm a bit worried about is that it's a glass bottle, and I'm seriously afraid of breaking them. I've gone through three of them, and never broken any of them, so I guess my fears are a bit unreasonable. It has a pump dispenser, which is a great thing, in my opinion, because it keeps the product inside bacteria-free, and is less messy. You can also easily control how much product you want to dispense. One thing, though - when you're almost used the product up, it can be very tricky to get the remaining out. I've resorted to unscrewing the pump and using the thingy inside the bottle (using highly technical terms here, as you can see) to scrape the primer off the walls inside. It has worked great so far, but it's a bit too much work. 

The texture: It's very slick, kind of slimy, even. I remember being a bit grossed out when I first tried it. However, I think the texture helps with the application - it goes on like a dream, but you should make sure you don't pump out too much of the product, because in reality, you only need just a little bit to cover your face. I imagine using too much of primer would have negative consequences. 

It's colorless, so you don't have to worry about matching your skintone, and doesn't have a scent - as far as I could tell, at least.

Finish: After I've applied the primer, my skin seems to be more even and more matte. It doesn't make it completely shine-free, I still have a subtle glow, but personally, I don't really mind, because I find the really matte look to be a bit unnatural. My foundation goes on a lot better than without it. It also seems to prevent oxidization, which is always a plus!

Oil control: I have to admit, it isn't the best at controlling oil production, however, I have to say that I definitely see a difference when I don't use the primer and when I do. With it, in most cases my skin looks glowy and dewy. Without it, in most cases I end up looking greasy by midday.

Price: A bit steep, especially in Estonia, where most beauty products tend to be twice the price they are in the US, for example. You can get it for 42 USD at Sephora.

To sum up: I wouldn't say that my makeup looks airbrushed after using La Base Pro, but it does look good and last a great deal longer than without it. I love the satin finish and and the simple packaging. It doesn't break me out, I don't have to match my skintone and I barely feel it on. What more could you ask for? As far as I'm concerned, the only drawback is the price. 

7/10

Eestikeelne tõlge lingile klõpsates!

15 Things About Me.

So I was reading The 6 Inch Stilettos and I saw a great survey-type thing. Since my blog is really new, I though you should know at least some things about the writer.

1. I can watch just about every type of movie but horror movies. The rare times I've seen one, I've always had nightmares or serious trouble falling asleep.
2. I love football (or soccer, if you're American). I think it's a great game and even though I can't play it well, I enjoy watching it. My favorite teams are Real Madrid, Olympique Lyonnais and Arsenal. The two other sports I love are tennis and figure skating.
3. The only sport I can play kind of well is field hockey. We used to play it at school in PE classes and it was really the only sports game I liked playing.
4. I started wearing make up when I was around fifteen. I still laugh when I see pictures from that time.
5. I love writing and I'd love to publish a book someday. Also, I'd like to write articles to Vogue. I know, it's kind of a stereotypical thing amongst beauty bloggers, but I truly enjoy reading the articles there and I'd like to contribute someday.
6. My plan is to work as a publicist. PR is a field that interests me very much (especially sports PR) and I hope that I'll get a job/internship in the field next summer.
7. I find Middle-Eastern culture inspiring and their music soothing. 
8. A boy drew a portrait of me a couple of years ago. 
9. I'm more or less fluent in Estonian and English and can speak some Russian (actually, people have said that when speaking Estonian, I tend to have a slight Russian accent, haha). I'm studying Spanish now and I'm kind of amazed how fast I'm learning it. 
10. I love listening to foreign music (especially French and Spanish) and translating the lyrics so I can understand the words. It's great for two things: I've discovered loads of good artists this way and I can learn new words in different languages. 
11. My favorite flowers are roses and orchids.
12. I make notes whenever I read fashion magazines (I'm also obsessed with post-its, pink ones are the best). I don't necessarily follow every single trend, but I like to keep an eye on how the fashion is constantly changing and making notes makes it so easy!
13. I have never used blush. 
14. This summer I donated a bunch of my books to a small local library. They were so happy!
15. My eyes are dark blue with a bit of green and brown, which makes it hard for people to guess my eye color. 

So that's it! If you'd like, fill out the survey - I think they're fun to read.

One of my favorites: Lace

Lace is something that I've absolutely LOVED for ages. I remember being enchanted by a lacy dress my mother occasionally wore and the lace details of the cuffs on one of her blazers.

I think it's the combination of the daintiness of it and the dedication and hard work that goes into the process of creating even a small piece of it (if we're talking about handmade lace). It is a difficult craft and I admire the people who have taken the time to learn it properly and perfect it. I was once taught the art of needle lace, and I remember being so proud of being able to create something so beautiful, even though it didn't look very delicate like lace should be.

Image from: wikipedia.org

Now lace on clothes or even made into a clothing item is tricky to do - it's incredibly easy to make it look cheap or like a table-cloth. I like challenges, however, and that's why lace always keeps catching my eye in stores, now more than ever, because I keep browsing the stores for party dresses for this season (even though I don't have that many parties to attend - but hey, who says you can't dress up just for yourself?). I have picked a few of my favorite finds:

Image from: saksfifthavenue.com

Valentino Lace One Shoulder Dress - USD 3990/ EUR 3152

Okay, I know. This is probably out of everyone's price range, unless you already own a yacht or two and plan to attend most of the prestigious New Year's parties you've been invited to or you're Carrie Bradshaw (she's always been admired for her shoe collection, but I think her clothes were quirky, but equally fabulous). But seriously, if I could afford it, I'd buy it in a heartbeat - I find it to be one of the best examples of lace done well.
PS. I also adore the D&G Lace Strapless Dress for the same reason, plus it comes in such a gorgeous shade of red.

 Image from: nordstrom.com

Sue Wong Ribbon Lace Sheath Dress - USD 338

It's a bit more affordably priced than the previous two dresses I showed you, and it's so-so-so gorgeous! You can zoom in on the details of this dress on Nordstrom's website (link above) and as far as I could see, the lace looked great. It probably is quite heavy, because of all the beading and the amount of the ribbon lace - just thought I would mention it, because the first time I tried on a similar dress, I was actually quite surprised by it.

Now that I've tortured you with more or less expensive dresses (I know I mentally torture myself every time I browse through Saks' dresses section, yet I keep doing it. Ah, the wonders of being a woman!), I've decided to find something slightly more affordable. I said that lace is tricky to do, and part of it is because cheap lace can look... well, cheap. It is definitely not a rule, and you can score an wonderful piece that doesn't break your bank and makes you look great. That being said, I think your best bet is to see and feel it in person, because I think we all know that pictures can be a bit deceiving. 

Image from: asos.com

 Pepe Jeans Wasted Lace Dress - 94.82 USD /EUR 68.42

Image from: asos.com

Oasis Laid On Lace Dress - 137.92 USD/ 99.52 EUR

So I think they're pretty affordable - certainly beat everything I saw today when I went shopping at my local stores. It seems to me that the first model is wearing a size that's slightly off - it should fit a bit tighter at the waist, but nevertheless, would be a gorgeous party dress for the season. Also, asos.com has free shipping right now - yes, worldwide! I hope I'll manage to order a couple of things from there while the offer lasts.

Remember me saying that cheap lace (plus a weird cut) can look unflattering? Well, here's an example:

 Image from: asos.com

I am a firm believer that, if styled right, denim can look great with lace. This is definitely not the way. I won't even give a link to it.

Are you a fan of lace? What style of party dresses you like? 

Eestikeelne tõlge homme!