Carmen Bota

Just so you know, I am a beauty junkie. That means I like trying out new products, even though I end up regretting that 70% of the time. But in the rest of 30% of my time, I am happy to find out that some of the products I bought in a heartbeat were not lost cases, but happy endings. 

Of course, I will always, always invest more in my skin so that I won't have to invest too much in my makeup, haha. But there are some essentials, like those from today, that I use on an everyday basis so finding the perfect ones takes time and patience. And courage, because experimenting can be quite a challenge sometimes.

So, first things first, we went to Sinaia for a few days last week. There was an event and I 'accidentaly' put on too much of my favourite perfume, Possess by Oriflame. And that was it. I had to buy a new bottle because I never felt so connected to another perfume up until now. I just feel that it suits my personality very much.

The sunblock I've used on an everyday basis for the past few weeks is Bioderma ABCDerm SPF50. I switched to this one because it has mineral filters instead of chemicals one that used to break me out. I want to do a full review on it, because there are some interesting things to say about how it behaves.

Glyco-A from Isis Pharma was really hard to find in my town. I've been using it for about two weeks now and my face was a disaster for the first few days. I had, what I call, 'an under construction face'. I read many reviews and it can lead to some breakouts in the first days of use and that is normal when you use a 12% AHA product. I'm gonna review it separately.

Because I love sunkissed skin soooooo much, I decided to buy from Amazon two bottles of Dove Summer Glow (Medium to Dark skin). It was love at first...sniff! It smells really delicious and fresh and I hope it will be my year-round saviour. I thoght it would be the nicest, easiest way to achieve that glow. I've used it a few times up until now and it's fine so far!

Maybelline Baby Lips is the cutest product ever! I love the packaging, I love the formula, I love the smell and I love it all! It does moisturize the lips, although when it's really cold outside it doesn't provide enough moisture. But otherwise it's great.

Garnier Mineral InvisiDry Anti-Perspirant is my new discovery. I like staying fresh all the time so an effective deodorant is a must. This one has won my heart from the first uses. It smells fresh and really does it's job.

L'Oreal Telescopic mascara is my new fave, but I should probably try and get the review done! It's a perfect mascara for lenghtening, trust me!

What's your everyday hairstyle?

I like using oils on my face, but not more than a month or so. Why is that? Because I usually break out like crazy after a few weeks and then I have to 'recover'. I have to say that I've tried many oils on my face and that happened every single time. That is why I never thought that this would make any difference at all, but I ordered it anyway because I was convinced to do so by the reviews on the internet. They were so good that I though 'let's see what's the fuss about this' and bang. A few days later it was mine.

I've been using the Pai Bioregenerate Rosehip Oil for the past few months and I think it's great. In one word, great. It's lightweight, moisturizing, perfect for a face that has occasional breakouts. It's actually great on my pimples, because they seem to heal faster. I like a product that has that effect on my skin. I started using it at night but in no time I started using it twice a day, as my regular moisturizer: before my sunblock and at night as my night moisturizer. I'm happy to report that my skin is at it's best. It's well moisturized, mostly clear (hormones) and basically happy. Using a face oil for such a long time didn't appeal to me because they are all pefect for about a month and then I start breaking out like I'm 12, but it's not the case with this one. It's definitely not a cheap product, but I think it's worth saving for. As I was saying, I got this about two months ago and I only used up half a bottle. I think it will last me about 2-3 more months, that only if I find a good moisturizer for the day and keep this for the night only.

This has certanly became my favourite skincare product. Now for the packaging. I really like the bottle, I think it's classy and hygienic at the same time. I usually use 4-5 drops for my entire face, applied on damp skin. That way I make sure all the oil is absorbed, instead of staying at the surface of my skin. One thing I also tried with the oil is mixing 2-3 drops in my sunblock and I liked what it turned out. My sunblock looked much better on my skin and my skin overall looked better. One night I also gave myself a facial massage using this oil and I loved the effect! I would say it's perfect for everyday use and worth the money. 

As you can see, the color is quite orange but it looks colorless once applied on the skin. The texture is really pleasant, the skin feels instantly smooth and relaxed. Some may find the smell unepleasant, but I don't mind it taking into consideration the effects.

Will I repurchase? 90% yes. If I have money by the time I finish this bottle, I will.

I bought it from http://www.paiskincare.com/

...with my own money.

Have you tried it?

e.l.f. Eyebrow Kit in Light

L'Oreal Telescopic Extra-Black Mascara

Melkior Lipstick (reviewed here)

What do you think? Have you used any of these products?

When it comes to red lipstick, I'm very picky. I always try to find the best shade that would suit my skin tone, because it's easy to go wrong with red shades. Choosing the best lipstick, especially the red one, is a very serious job. Makeup, in fapt, is a very serious job for a girl. However, as you can probably know, I am a 'red lipstick' girl. I never felt comfortable wearing nudes or pinks, but I do have a lot to say about the red ones. Maybe that is also because my eye makeup is always so simple and I always tend to go out for the natural makeup face even when I go to a party or a ceremony. So my lips have to stand out because if they don't I look dead.

What do you think?

Terrible, terrible long name for a sunblock. One thing I never miss in the morning is my SPF. We all know that it can prevent premature aging, in fact I knew this for years but I never thought about trying a higher SPF than 15-20. Big mistake because that kind of SPF is too low to protect anything. What made me buy LRP Anthelios XL were two things: big SPF and my relationship with LRP products. At first I was going to buy the mineral version, but of course you can never find exactly what you're looking for, so I ended up with this one instead because I needed a high SPF and couldn't bare to go out without it. So I bought the fluid version, which is more like a lotion. Although it's color is white, it doesn't leave a white cast on the skin which I like.This is a fragrance-free, paraben free, non-comedogenic and water resistant product. The bottle has to be well shaken before use. It is kinda moisturizing and did not made my face oilier that it already was. It sounds perfect up until now, isn't it? Well one thing I don't like about this sunblock is the one ingredient I ran away from for years: alcohol denat. This ingredient can be irritating and I am not sure if I can blame my new pimples on this product or not, but anyway... The thing with alcohol denat is quite a controverse, so I'm not gonna get into details, but if you have sensitive skin this may not be for you. Overall, I like the light formula of this product, the fact that it's moisturizing yet not leaving my face oily, and I also appreciate the high SPF. What I don't appreciate is the irritating ingredient mentioned above. I'm gonna leave below the full list of ingredients for you.

Important detail: this is a product that has chemical filters.

To sum up, 2014 was unpredictable. Lots of changes happened, both in my personal and professional life. I started out this blog as a passion for makeup, but now I see that it took be almost three years to find the right path and basically to understand what I like to write about. And that is reviews and things about products. Here are the ones I discovered and loved in 2014.