FOTD: Purple Smokey Eye + NEWS: Dior Hydra Life BB Cream is Coming to Belgium!

Hey everyone,

Today I’m sharing the look I did on Monday with you. This is a little bolder than what I would normally wear, but since I was on a beauty blogger mission to Givenchy, I thought it was the perfect excuse!

For my eyes, I started out by putting Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-on Eyeliner in Rockstar as my base. Since I don’t own a synthetic smudger brush (or any smaller synthetic brush. I don’t think natural brushes will quite rise to the challenge here), I used my ring finger to blend out the edges. It would have been cleaner and more precise with a brush though. And then I blended Urban Decay Purple Haze all over my lids, going lighter the higher I went. I highlighted my inner corners and the inner third of my lids with MAC All That Glitters. I then proceeded to lining my eyes with a gel liner before smudging the line out with the third color from the left in my Clinique Plum Seduction quad (I’ve owned it for about 8 years now. I’m still madly in love with the colors, but the quality of this quad is no longer satisfactory after trying the better eyeshadows I have). Some mascara later I was done!

You can definitely make this more dramatic by using a black base, and/or blending some black eyeshadow into the outer corners. However, it was after all daytime, and I didn’t want to really scare the passers-by!

For my lips I had the most genius idea. Since I can’t really wear Incognito on its own, I layered it over Chanel Rouge Coco Mademoiselle. That turned out to take the color down a notch and gave me nice nude-pink lips!

For the rest of my face, I used some Tarte Blissful and Bobbi Brown Bali Brown. Voila, it is not super tricky, and even though it’s not office-appropriate, I wouldn’t say it’s too shocking to wear this during daytime (or maybe it’s me).

Here are a couple more pictures so you can see it better (psst I saw the fluff in my hair only afterwards. Sorry about that!):

I was wearing my first Lavand dress (which is pretty significant since it started my Lavand addiction lol). The neckline doesn’t work with a necklace, so I wore a pair of earrings instead. I’ve owned them for a long time, but I still love them a lot!

In other news, Dior Hydra Life BB Cream is coming to Belgium! It will be available from April 18th. Here are the promotional images if you’re curious:

According to Dior, the Hydra Life BB Cream targets young women (aged 18-30. *gasps* In a couple of years I’ll fall out of this category lol) who want a one-step product that will give them a radiant glow and preserves the youth of their skin. I can’t really say more at the moment, because I still need to test it out, and base makeup takes longer than for example a mascara. I will definitely let you know what I think though!

That’s it for today, dear peeps! I am going to review the Erborian BB cream and Fairy Drops Platinum Mascara for you before the end of the week since these two are highly-requested. I have many photos that are taken and products I have finished testing, but I still need time to sit down, sift through the photos, and write the reviews out. There are also so much I’m still testing out, so please bear with me. I do also have a work deadline to meet by the end of the month!

Would you wear a colorful eye look like this at daytime? What are the BB Creams you have tried and liked/disliked? If I have very up-to-date PR information about something I will be testing out, would you want to see it or do you prefer to just wait till I’m ready to report my experience? Please let me know. Your opinions are more than important to me!

Sunny, your beauty culture translator xx

FOTD: Feels like Spring with Wet n’ Wild Comfort Zone, Urban Decay Lucky, MAC Sunday Afternoon, Dior Addict Extreme Plaza

Hey everyone,

TGIF! What are your plans for the weekend? Do you have anything planned?

Yesterday my bestie HM was in town, and I quickly slapped on some makeup before going out to play. Do note that these pictures were taken about 8 hours after application, so despite the fact that it held up very well, it wasn’t as neat as it was freshly applied. My apologies!

For my eyes, I used the left column of Wet n’ Wild Comfort Zone. I pretty much followed the instructions, only with the Browbone shade for my inner corners and Definer shade to smudge out my lower lash line. My brow bones were highlighted with Bobbi Brown Bone as usual, and lower lash line was lined with Urban Decay Lucky. I thought the copper shade of Lucky would make good friends with the coppery Crease shade of the palette.

I had MAC Sunday Afternoon on my cheeks, because I thought it’d work pretty well with Dior Addict Extreme Plaza. I used the matte part for blush and the shimmery strip for highlighting. I like it better this way than when all the colors are mixed together! I took a photo of my lips too. Remember I said the Addict Extremes could be built up throughout the day? This is how Plaza looks after a couple of reapplications. It is not opaque, but it is for sure not as sheer as it is upon the first application either!

Just a couple more pictures so you could get a better idea.

I had a minimal amount of foundation on, just blended a tiny bit in my T-zone and a little in the center of my face. I also had some Bobbi Brown Illuminating Bronzing Powder in Bali Brown all over my face. In person it gives a pretty tan/glow (but I used a VERY light hand), but in pictures it doesn’t show up too well (that or it was because it faded after 8 hours). I’ve also been testing out the Fairy Drops Platinum mascara. I will for sure review it soon on the blog, so keep your eyes peeled!

That’s it for today! There are a million things I want to show and share with you, but at the moment I’m trying to meet a deadline, so my hands are tied. Hopefully I can get it out of my way today and blog a bit more this weekend!

Sunny, your beauty culture translator xx

Swatch & Review: Dior Addict Extreme Takes You from Day to Night, from Girl Next Door to Femme Fatale in Incognito (316), Plaza (476), Lucky (536), Riviera (639)

Hey everybody,

Happy Sunday! I hope you’re having a good one! Spring is on full-blast in Belgium, and it’s hard not to want to twirl around or wear a nice bright lipstick!

If you’re still looking for a perfect spring lipstick, I’m here to show you four Dior Addict Extreme candidates including Incognito, Plaza, Lucky, and Riviera!

Incognito (316) is a pinky beige nude. Let me just say it is next to impossible to find a nude that doesn’t wash me out, but Incognito is nearly there. I think with darker eyes and some blush I will be able to make it work!

Plaza (476) is a mauvy pink. This is a shade that I quite unexpectedly fell in love with, and it pairs oh-so-well with MAC Sunday Afternoon!

Lucky is a cool-toned red. I thought I would look horrible with one, but with the glossiness and sheerness I can actually manage! With that said, if you want to experiment with a color that you usually shy away from, I think this range is a good jumping board because nothing is too opaque or stark!

Riviera virtually curls my toes! It’s an almost neon tangerine when you build it up throughout the day, but otherwise it’s just a friendly, juicy orange.

See, isn’t it a shade that makes you want to make some noise?

Now the arm swatch in case you want to see it as well:

Packaging-wise these definitely live up to what you would expect from a luxury makeup brand. The dark blue plastic cape and the silver part look very elegant together. It is slightly chunkier than an average lipstick, but no detail about Addict Extreme doesn't speak class! It has a faint perfumery scent like most luxury lipstick, but it is not very strong and is hardly noticeable after application. The formula is sheer and glossy. In one pass they give you a sheer layer of color. However, you can definitely blot it out and add a second one if you want more impact. The texture is absolutely adorable. It glides on beautifully without tugging, sinking into fine lines, or looking uneven. In fact, it feels better than most lip balms I have tried, and they are very moisturizing. I have spent the past week or so wearing only these, and at the end of the day my lips are always soft and supple. It’s quite an achievement considering my lips tend to dry out fast without a balm! Wear time isn't the forte of Addict Extreme. The glossy balmy feeling disappears after about two hours or so. However, the pigment stays even after food and drinks. The BEAUTIFUL part of this lipstick is the fact that with the long-lasting pigment, if you reapply the color just adds up. Imagine waking up in the morning and wanting something easy, Addict Extreme has you covered. If you want to go more dramatic by the end of the day, perhaps for a hot date or a girls’ night out, Addict Extreme STILL has you covered. If you carry one in your bag you’re ready for everything! Removing is also easy-breezy, not a bloody battle which is amazing considering how well the pigment lasts!

Bottom line: If you’re looking for opaque colors, skip Dior Addict Extreme. If you’re looking for a lipstick with an excellent formula, incredible versatility, and cheerful color range, then you should definitely look into it!

What do you think? Have you tried any Dior Addict Extremes? Is there anything that caught your eye?

Sunny, your beauty culture translator

PS: I have worn Riviera (both the Addict Extreme and Vernis) in this FOTD/NOTD if you would like to see. I will definitely do more so keep your eyes peeled! Also, the swatch/review of the Vernis is coming soon so you can look forward to that!

Disclosure: The products mentioned in this review are sent by the PR for my consideration. All opinions are honest and my own. I am in no way compensated for this review. I have always been, and will always be committed ONLY to my readers.

FOTD: First Day of Spring Featuring Urban Decay Naked2, MAC Added Goodness, Dior Riviera & NOTD Riviera + Hunger Games

Hey everyone!

I had a fun day in Antwerp yesterday with follow bloggers dining, walking around, and attending the Caudalie blogger event. I will give you all the information as soon as possible, but for the moment please excuse this tired girl to just show you her FOTD and NOTD!

Eyes: Naked2
Chopper on two thirds of my lids, and Snakebite to contour. I also dragged Snakebite into my imaginary crease, though the effect is a bit more dramatic than what I would normally do possibly because I was using the brush that came with the palette.
I lined both my upper and lower lash lines with MAC Added Goodness, smudged out with Busted.

Cheeks and rest of the face:
Cargo Rome, Estee Lauder Bronze Goddess

Lips:
Dior Addict Extreme 639 Riviera (just so you know, I wore one layer of this in the pictures so the color is sheer)

Here are some more photos so you can get a better look:

I wore Dior Vernis Riviera 537 on my nails, so I took a photo in which you can see my matching lips and nails:

I have some Dior Vernis and Dior Addict Extremes for review. I will try my best to get the posts ready ASAP, so keep your eyes peeled!

Something else that matches my nails is my current read, Mockingjay, the last book of the Hunger Games trilogy:

The movie came out in Belgium yesterday, and from what I heard it’s a must-see that doesn’t stray far from the book (I think I would enjoy that). I am super busy this week though, so I probably won’t get to see it till Sunday!

What do you think? Are you digging Riviera (I’ll show you how it looks when it is layered a little in the swatch/review post. It could get very bright!)? Have you read The Hunger Games? Are you getting excited about the movie like I am?

Sunny, your beauty culture translator xx