Saturday 25 April 2015

La Roche-Posay physiological micellar solution (with La Roche-Posay thermal spring water)

In my February Favourites (here) I mentioned a couple of new beauty products that became a part of my daily routine and wowed me! Among them, there was a new micellar solution that I tried from La Roche-Posay. Since it was mentioned in my Favourites before, you already know the tone of this review but if you want to find out more about the product itself, just keep on reading.


La Roche-Posay physiological micellar solution is ment for sensitive skin and it gently cleanses face, eyes and lips. It is paraben-free, non comedogenic and it doesn't contain alcohol, colours or soap.


It comes in a clear, plastic bottle with a cap on top (which closes well so it is good for traveling), with only a few blue LRP details. It comes in two sizes, mine is 400 ml/13.5 fl.oz. and costs around 108 kn (about 14 Euros/10 GBP/15 $), and a smaller 200 ml bottle which costs 81 kn (about 10 Euros/7 GBP/11 $). I got mine as a Christmas present.


I don't know why, but I was not planning to try out this micellar solution, although LRP really has many great products! I guess that after an army of micellar solutions that I already tested Vichy (review), Bioderma (review) which were great , Gatineu- which was craaazy expensive, awful and stung my eyes, from a more high-end range and after finding a great one from Garnier (review) in a drugstore range, I probably thought that micellar solutions chapter was closed, but boy, was I wrong?! LRP micellar solution is fantastic and, to me, perhaps even a little bit better than Bioderma's version.


It is great for removing makeup at the end of the day, even from more sensitive parts of the face like eyes and lips. I also didn't notice any scent, it didn't sting my eyes at all and I was able to remove waterproof mascara with it as well. Just use Lisa Eldrige method, which you all probably know by now, but I am going to write it again. Take a cotton pad soaked in this micellar solution or makeup remover of your choice and put it on your closed eyes. Hold it there for a while and then with gentle motions remove the makeup. The time you hold it on your eyes will help the product to dissolve the formula of your makeup. Although you don't have to wash your face after this micellar solution, I do. For me, micellar solutions (this included) are just a step in my routine, and I use them solely for removing makeup but after them I always wash my face, use a toner and follow with my oils, creams or serums. But I can say that this product acted well on my combination to oily skin and it didn't irritate it or dried it out on any areas of my face, even on my more sensitive eye area. 

list of ingredients
For me, this is an amazing product which I would recommend you all to try! I didn't buy a new bottle yet, because I have some Garnier ones that I have to finish first, but I will definitely buy LRP micellar solution again!

Have you tried this micellar solution? If yes, how did you like it? Which is your favourite LRP product?

Tell me...

Love, beautyandbrains007


For Croatian version of this post click here

Thursday 23 April 2015

I've been busy... My Empties from March 2015.

After my last Favourites post (here), it is that special time of the month again, when I write about my Empties. Actually, a bit later than usual but I just had to publish this post now. I don't know if any of you remember that I mentioned a huge Empties post from the last six months of 2014.?! I started working on it, wrote a huge part of it and then one weekend my Mom went to my place when I was away, saw three bins of empty cosmetic pots and tubes and that was the end of my post.... It went away with a garbage truck. Of course, I didn't make photos of all of that "junk" before. So, the moral of this story is to write your montly Empties post regularly :)! 


Most of my last month's Empties are every day hygiene and beauty products. One of them is a travel size Molton Brown shower gel which came in my January's Lookfantastic Beauty Box (here). I am thinking about writing a quick review on it, just to kind of let you know how some of these (Beauty Box) products performed for me. They often aren't a cheap choices, so maybe some of you would be interested in it? I wasn't too thrilled with this product but my photos of it turned out great! I also used up a home made Hello Kitty organic soap which my friend made for me. I was very happy with it, and it was super cute <3! She made me her version of lavender bath bombs and I used up one of them. It was very, very good as well. So, THANK YOU D.!


My Lush Ultimate Shine solid shampoo (shampoo bar) which has its own review here, is also done. It was good but I am not sure if I will buy it again. A travel size Balea body milk also went to history. I used it as a hand cream and it was OK, a bit more greasy than I like my hand cream to be, but I generally really like Balea products! And the last from this category  is one of my all time favourites, Nivea Fresh roll on! I love it, went through numerous bottles of it and now I changed it up, but just a bit. I bought Nivea roll on again but a Powder Touch version.



I used up two hair products. One old school Head & Shoulders shampoo that I always have in my bathroom. I wash my hair once a week with it to avoid dandruff. Honestly, I don't know the last time that I had problems with my scalp? The other one is a different kind of shampoo and at this moment my favourite dry shampoo- Batiste Strength & Shine dry shampoo, which is phenomenal!!! My hair tends to be greasy so having an option for lazy or stressful days is great! I highly recommend it.


As for my face care, I again went through a bottle of Olival's toner from their immortelle line. I talk so much about their products that I think there is no other way to go than writing a review on them. There are lots and lots of reviews about these products but I think mine will be welcome, too. After all, I keep raving about them... Another product that I go on and on about are Balea cotton pads. I used up two packages and can't say enough about them. If you will have a chance to try them, please do. I don't think you'll be sorry. And the last face product that I went through is my Murad Oil Free Skin Perfecting Lotion that I loved and wrote about here and here.


I didn't go through a lot of makeup. I only finished two mascaras, one drugstore, Maybelline One by One, and one high-end, Armani Eyes to Kill. I was thrilled with One by One mascara when it first appeared on the market but now I think that its formula isn't the same. It is not as lasting anymore and it crumbles below my eyes during the day. Eyes to Kill mascara was better on that topic but it surprised me how dry the formula was from the beginning. I wasn't sure what I thought about it, so I never wrote a review on it, and I still don't know what to say?!


The last Empties in this post are my dietary supplements. I went through a bottle of Aloe Vera juice that I drink every day and through a packaging of My Vitamins Vitamin C dissolvable tablets (also from one of the Lookfantastic Beauty Boxes, I wrote about them here). I liked both of them and they are probably my "beauty comes from within" helpers.



And that was it for my last month's Empties? How did you do? 


Tell me...

Love, beautyandbrains007


For Croatian version of this post click here.

Monday 6 April 2015

My March 2015. favourites

Last year I wasn't regular with the posts on my blog, favourites included. Then, at the end of the year I felt sad that I don't have a clear insight in my favourite makeup, beauty products in general, accessories and happy moments, so I decided that they will become monthly posts in 2015., which is why I am writing and you are reading about them again.


To begin with, all of my Febraury favourites (link) were equally loved during March, except  for the Revlon Balm Stain in the shade Crush. I still love it but this month I wore a more natural lip. My choice was again Revlon Balm Stain but in the shade Honey. These balm stains are really good, they are easy to apply, last well and I obviously chose good colours for myself. I already reviewed them, so you can read more about them here. 


Otherwise than that my makeup was same old same old, because I had a really bad cold. I religiously used my Hourglass Radiant Magenta blush (review) and Chanel Illusoire eyeshadow (review), but my main concerne was to get back on my feet and keep my skin healthy.


For makeup removal I stayed loyal to my ALPHA-H Balancing Cleanser With Aloe Vera. I LOVE THIS PRODUCT!!! and still owe you a review for it, which is coming soon. This tube is almost gone but I am not panicking because a new one is already waiting for its turn. And when my face was clean, I used my Caudalie products from Polyphenol (C15) line, a serum for day and face oil before going to bed. I am planning to write a review for these two also but was waiting to try them out for a longer period of time. Although I was sick and didn't get enough sleep, my skin really looked great and I actually got many compliments for it. In my opinion, I have mainly these three to thank. And the last but not the least was my Nuxe Reve de Miel lip balm, that made my lips look and feel healthy and which I will also review, eventhough it seems that everyone wrote about it before me.


It seems that this whole post has a "Cold theme" but to be honest I was really sick and exhausted, had a temperature but still went to work (had to), so these were my really faithful little helpers to make me look more normal and fairly polished. Batiste Strength & Shine dry shampoo was also one of them. It allowed me to wash my hair less frequently and still made me look nice. It makes me laugh to write this, but I will. Of course, I will review it! :D I will.


I will only mention Lactacyd emulsion for fine intimate care as my favourite because it really is and was my favourite, but because of the nature of this product, I will leave it at that, which concludes my March beauty favourites!


But, I have one more non-beauty favourite that I really wanted to mention. I watched an amazing play at Gavella theatre in Zagreb which is called August in Osage county (Kolovoz u okrugu Osage)... Phenomenal play which I almost didn't see because of the fact that it lasts for almost three hours.  That sounded frightening after a long day of work, but this play is so worthy of your time that I urge you to see it if you are in Zagreb and understand Croatian.


It doesn't have a light theme. In fact it is very serious, speaks about a dysfunctional family with A LOT of hidden skeletons in the closet, and makes you think about your life and your choices, and how they affect people around you. Although the story isn't filled with flowers and butterflies, you will still laugh. Actors in this play are amazing, especially Anja Šovagović Despot who, in my opinion, stole the show. She was perfect! I don't think that she has much in common with Violet Weston who she acts, but she completely transformed herself into Violet Weston on the stage. I never noticed that she ever thought about how Anja looks on the stage, it was like Anja stayed at home and Violet came to tell us her story. In the end the whole audience congratulated the actors for their amazing performances with an applause and my eyes teared up for no particular reason?!


And in the end, I wish a HAPPY EASTER to everyone who celebrates it and I am saying goodbye to March. April, I am so happy to see you here! Welcome!

Love, beautyandbrains007