Review: Essence Smokey Eyes Brush

Hi there!
One of the products from the new Essence permanent line is the Smokey Eyes Brush. And here's my review on it!

It has a black handle with the name on it in purple, and it also has purple hair. The whole brush with the hair is about 15 cm long and it costs 1.25 Euros at most drugstores. 

The hair is really, really soft and also pretty dense. It's supposed to be used as a typical blending brush, but it's also really nice to apply an eyeshadow to either your crease or above it. I'd rather call it a round crease brush than a blending brush, for that it's just a little too tiny. Essence also recommends to use it as a smudger brush, but for that I prefer a real smudger or a pencil brush. 

It blends the eyeshadow colors nicely, and with it, you are able to apply certain colors as just a swipe, really lightly. You can even define your crease with this brush or blend the transition between lid and crease color, the size's perfect for that! The name "Smokey Eyes Brush" kinda hits the spot, it's perfect for smokey looks!
Washing's also no problem, it didn't lose any hair so far and it got perfectly clean with baby shampoo. 

It looked very similar to the Beliance round eyeshadow brush, but the one by Beliance is a little smaller and the hair is not as soft as the one by Essence. The Essence one is also fluffier.

I really recommend this brush, it's really inexpensive and great quality! Get it if you need a brush like this!
I'll see ya later!
xoxo, Misch

My Foundation Routine

Hello there!
After showing you my Hair routine and my Skincare routine, I am gonna show you another routine of mine: my foundation routine!

I have a few pimples and breakouts and all that kind of stuff, so I go for medium to high coverage. I don't do this whole face stuff all the time, but for example when I go out I want my face to look even. Before I do any step of this routine, I wash my face and apply my moisturizer. The steps I do are shown in this skincare routine post *click*. 


1. The first thing I do is apply my foundation all over my face, making it even. The foundation I use is the Astor Mattitude HD Foundation in the color 02 Porcelain (*click* for a review). I use either my fingers, the Beliance foundation brush or, most perferably, the Sigma F80 Brush *click for a review*, depending on what I'm on the mood for.

2. I do have dark circles and blemishes and stuff, so in case the foundation didn't cover them up, I use a concealer. It's the Maybelline Dream Mousse Concealer and I'm in the shade 04 rose beige, at least right now. Sometimes I switch it up with the Essence 3in1 concealer, in case I need a color corrector. *Click* here to get to know more about  a color corrector!

I apply it with either my fingers or the Beliance eyeshadow brush which is actually really good to apply concealer.


3. Then I set my face with my favorite powder, the CadeaVera powder in beige, and for that I use a powder brush from the Rossmann line For Your Beauty. I don't apply a lot of powder because I don't go for any more coverage, I just want to set it. I try to really work it into my skin and connect with the foundation, and that works really well with that brush, because it isn't so dense, so it gives more of a natural finish.

4. After that I apply my blush, bronzer and/or highlighter if I want to, and that's it.


What do you do for your foundation routine? I'd like to know!
xoxo, Misch

Review: Astor HD Mattitude Foundation

Hi guys,
even though I already found a foundation I like, the Nivea Ideal Finish Foundation which I reviewed here *click*. But since this one'll be discontinued soon and after I read some many good reviews about the Astor foundation on several blogs, I had to try it out :)

Information:
- called Astor HD Mattitude Foundation
- costs 8.99 Euros at most drugstores
- contains 30 ml
- has SPF 22
- is supposed to mattify your face really well and stay up to 16 hours
- available in 6 different shades

click onto the pic to enlarge it :)

Scent, color, coverage & consistency:
The foundation has a very strong scent, kinda floral and perfume-y. It's not really that great, and I wouldn't say it smells yummy, but for me it's okay. I'd say you smell it at the store, just in case you are sensitive to scents. There are quite a few colors available, pretty light ones, too. I'm in the shade 02 porcelain, which is darker than the Nivea Ideal Finish Foundation 02 Nude that I used before. It's a tiny bit too dark for me, but it actually adapts to my skin well. The coverage is not totally full, but it still covers a lot. I'd say it's full to medium coverage.
This is a liquid foundation, so the consistency is - well - liquid. But it's not runny or too thin.

right out of the pump

slightly applied

totally blended out

Application with the Beliance Foundation Brush:
I do like it this way, but it's my least favorite way to apply it from these 3 ways. It applies it nice and evenly, so it's fine :) The coverage is medium that way.

Application with my bare fingers:
It's very easy to apply it evenly with my fingers, you can blend it into your skin easily. But applying it this way means the coverage will be a little lighter, at least on me.

Application with the Sigma Flat Top Synthetic Kabuki F80 brush:
My favorite way :) Very easy to blend, and I especially like this brush, so it's perfect! Here is a review on it, *click*. The coverage is medium that way.

Finish & Wear:

It promises to stay for 16 hours and to minimize your pores. I can't say that it really lasts 16 hours, but it stays

pretty long, and when I apply it at 7 am and get home at 3 pm, it's still almost flawless, so really great last :)

It does minimize my pores a little bit, but you can only notice that when you look up close.
Since it's a mattifying foundation, it's not really suited for dry skin. I'd recommend to apply a good moisturizer before you add your foundation. It easily makes dry spots more visisble, so it's maybe not the best for dry skin. It has a very matte finish, even powdery, so I don't find you need to set it with powder.

Bottom Line:
I like this foundation a lot! I think I prefer it over the Nivea foundation I used to use. The finish and the wear is great, and I think it's just awesome!

Did you try out this foundation, too?
I'll see you later!
xoxo, Misch

September 2010 Favorites

Hey guys,

September's already over and now it's really getting fall - grey and rainy outside, but really cozy inside: it's time for spending the evenings in front of the TV, drinking a cup of hot tea:) I love love love this season so much

Evian facial spray - this stuff is so amazing :) it moisturizes, refreshes and cares my skin so well, and the mist is so fine. I used it several times a day, and I'm almost out of it :( I'll get a new one, though :)

TheBodyShop Born Lippy lipbalm in raspberry - I really like this lip balm, it tastes great, cares my lips and gives a nice pink shine. Definitely a fav.

Yves Rocher Aquarelles Vegetales Perfume - Y'all know that I love this scent so much - and I still do :) I used it a lot during this month.

Essence Soft Matt eyeshadow in 03 Silky Smooth - School started again for me this month and so I had to do a lot of nude looks everday and this eyeshadow was my go-to color. It's a matte chocolate brown, perfect to fill in my eyebrows, to darken up my outer corner or to simply shade my crease. This color is so convenient!

Beliance Foundation Brush - This brush is perfect to apply my foundation, I really like it!

Jesse's Girl Enamel in Garnet - This is such a perfect color for fall :) it looks very similar to Chanel Rouge Noir and I love it

p2 nail polish thinner - I had a lot of problems with too thick nail polishes this month and this one helped me a lot.

My Uggs - These aren't real Ugg Boots, but I still love them. So cute shoes :)

McDonalds Mocha Frappe - I love McDonalds Mocha Frappe so much (I kinda love everything in this post...), it tastes so amazing

So guys, these were my favs for the month of September. What were yours?

xoxo, Misch

Haul :) I know I'm bad...

Hey everyone,

today I have a haul for you. Yes, was in Munich again and simply couldn't resist...I know I'm bad!

But now, let's get into the products:

p2 perfect face! make-up fixing spray - It was the only thing for the new permanent line that I was able to get; all of the other stuff was sold out ;P Crazy, huh? It has a light citruc-y smell and I like it so far.

MNY Basic is chic LE eyeshadow in 602A - I read on a blog that it was similar to MAC Satin Taupe so I decided to give it a try; I like the color.

Alverde baked eyeshadow in 06 intensive turquoise - The color is really pretty and it was on sale; unfortunately it already broke in my bag; I should be more careful, I guess :P

Essence Denim Wanted LE geleyeliner in 01 vintage style - finally got it! :) like it.

NYX Jumbo Eyeshadow Pencil in Yogurt - I love NXY Jumbo Eyeshadow Pencils and this color is really pretty.

Beliance Eyeshadow Brush flat and round - I already own their Foundation Brush and I really like them; I was actually planning to get a Powder Brush, but I didn't like it.

Evian Eau Minerale Naturelle Facial Spray - Love it! Perfect to refresh you face!

I'm sorry I don't have any swatches for you, but it was too dark for that! I might add some tomorrow :)

I hope you liked this post and I'll see you guys soon!

xoxo, Misch

Nivea Ideal Finish Foundation Review + Use It Up! Product 3

Hi dear readers,

I told you I got the Nivea Beaute Ideal Finish Foundation in this haul, and I thought you might want to hear my thoughts on it!

Basic information:

It claims to give an ideal, even teint and to be longlasting. The foundation is oil-free and non-comedogenic (that means it won't clog your pores). According to the website, it has SPF 8 and contains Vitamine E. It costs something between 6.95 and 9.95 Euros, depending on where you buy it and it's available in 6 different colors. I'm using the color 02 Nude. It's supposed to give high coverage.

It comes in a tube that is in a natural color with a blue bottom and blue text.

Here you can find it on the website.

Consistency and scent:

The consistency isn't really that liquid, it's more creamy, but still very light and easy to apply. It has a light scent, I'd describe it as a typical lotion/foundation scent. The smell is very light and only noticeable on the face in the first few minutes.

Application and coverage:

The foundation is easy to blend out and it doesn't get streaky, but it does sort of stick to the hair on you face, you want to make sure that it doesn't look weird. I applied it with my fingers and with two different brushes.

With my fingers it was really easy to blend it out and to achieve and even teint. The coverage was not really that high, I still had to use concealer, but if you are fine with medium coverage, this will work for you.

Then I applied it with the Essence Blush Brush.

Yeah, I know, it's a blush brush, but it worked really well! The coverage was now high, I didn't have to use any concealer, although I had some pimples and blackheads. The only downside to this was that I had to use more product, because the bristles of the brush seemed to absord more product than they gave to the skin.

The second brush I used was the Beliance Foundation Brush

(available at Douglas and very inexpensive!) and this one was really good, too! It gave the same even look as the Essence Blush Brush did, and it gave high coverage, too, but this one didn't absorb that much product!

So I prefer to apply it with the Beliance Brush.

Finish and wear:

It looks really even and gives high coverage and it looks a bit powder-y, so you might not even have to set it with powder.

I reallt lasted all day long without fading too much. It doesn't get greasy or oily over the day (even with my oily skin!) and it's still there at the end of the day.

Bottom line:

I really like this foundation! It didn't cause me any break-outs and it gives a nice evne teint with high coverage, so I'm totally happy with it. I don't know if you can really call it ideal, but that's different for every person.

What do you think? Have you already tried this one? Would you like to give it a try? Tell me!

Project Use It Up!: I finished my Peach Body Butter from TheBodyShop today.

I love this one, so I'll repurchase it soon, but not before I finished Project Use It Up!

Okay guys, I'll see y'all soon! Bye, Misch