Where have I been?

Hello, everyone. ♡ I know I haven't posted here in a long time, and I'm sorry. The past two weeks have been quite busy and boring at the same time: we've had the air conditioning installed in our house last week, so I had to help my parents clean the whole apartment up - it was a mess! Then I spent this week at my grandma's house who lives in a very small mountain town and I only had access to a super slow internet connection there, so I spent my time watching Hugh Grant movies (I might be developing an insane addiction to that man) and buying overpriced stuff I don't need. 

My lack of posts is also due -believe it or not- to the fact that I have nothing to post about! I haven't been shopping in quite a long time and I seriously cannot wait to go to the mall on Tuesday and get my hands on some new beauty products. If you have any requests or ideas on posts I could write, please let me know! Regular reviews are hopefully coming next week. I've missed blogging so much!

Maybelline Color Whisper in Lust for Blush

I know, I know. The Maybelline Color Whispers have been out for months now, but hey - better late than never! I got mine, which is in the shade Lust for Blush, a couple months ago. The packaging looks so pretty, almost prettier than the Revlon Lip Butters (the Color Whispers are supposed to be dupes for those): the cursive font looks lovely, and I like the fact that the tube matches the actual shade of the lipstick. Unfortunately, the packaging is all I love about this product. Why? First of all, the shade is not the right one for me, but I guess that's my mistake. After all, there are 20 shades in the Color Whisper range, so I may have picked the only one that doesn't suit me! That's the bad side of shopping online. However, 'Lust for Blush' is a cool toned light pink and it reminds me of Topshop Innocent a bit - both don't suit me at all! All cool toned pinks make my teeth look yellower than they are, and I hate that. 

Moreover, I don't like the formula and finish. It has a creamy texture which settles in the fine lines of my lips, it's more opaque than my Revlon Lip Butters and L'Oreal Colour Riche Balm which I absolutely love, although it doesn't have any shimmer in it (which is nice). I feel like the product is sitting on the top of my lips - it's suffocating! 

I haven't tested this lipstick outside the house, so unfortunately I can't tell you about the lasting power. 

Maybe it's the fact that I picked the wrong shade that ruined the whole thing for me, but I don't like this product very much. What do you think about the Maybelline Color Whispers?

My Empties #2

I think I have accumulated enough rubbish since my previous empties post, so here I am with another collective review of the products I've recently used up!

I don't think I have reviewed the Lycia Micellar Water with Lotus Flower because it's not sold outside of Italy - however I think it's a very nice micellar water. It's gentle on the skin and it has a very pleasant scent. I like to use it on a cotton pad after removing my make-up, just to be sure that every residue of make-up is gone. The next product is the Avon Advance Techniques Moroccan Argan Oil mask, which you've heard me rave about in this post - I have loved it so much, but unfortunately I can't get my hands on it anymore unless I order it online. I would absolutely recommend it if you have dry or damaged hair in need of some extra hydration, and I would definitely purchase it again. The third product is the Avène Eau Thermale which I've reviewed a few months ago, and which I've already repurchased. It's a miracle product if you have irritated, sore skin - it will soothe it in minutes. I absolutely love it!

I've managed to get my hands on some Soap & Glory products, namely the Scrub of Your Life and the Clean, Girls body wash. The first product is a very nice scrub; I like it because it really exfoliates the skin and it ladders pretty well, unlike some exfoliators I've tried in the past; same thing for the body wash. 

Since I've reviewed the Avon Supershock mascara here, I've changed my mind about it. As most mascara, it got better with time and after a month or so of using it, I started liking it a lot. 

I use a nail wheel for  my nail polish posts - that must mean something about my actual nails! I have a very little nail bed but I don't like my nails to be long, so I always end up with having super short nails. I decided to try fake nails for once and I've posted the result on Instagram here and here. I absolutely loved the effect, but I'm not used to having long nails, so I removed them the day after :( I would definitely recommend the Essence French Click & Go Nails, applying them is foolproof!

My last empty product is a packet of Dove Beauty Cleansing wipes. I always like to try new types of make-up removing wipes - I think they all do the job pretty much the same way. These were nice, but didn't blow me off! 

Essence 'Always in my mint'

About two weeks ago I picked up a nail polish from the new Essence 'Me & my ice cream' collection, which is all about the pastel shades. Always in my mint is a lovely mint green colour, or a white with a tinge of mint green in it, I should say. It also has a light shimmer to it and although I've never tried it, the shade reminds me a lot of & Other Stories' Moire Green. 

I have seen other people's swatches of this nail polish and I don't know why, but it performs super sheer on me, so sheer that I can still see my nails underneath after three coats. I guess I could apply a white base underneath, but I simply don't want to - a good nail polish should be pigmented enough to be opaque in two coats. Moreover, the first two coats were kinda splotchy and the nail polish was hard to apply. I guess I can't ask a lot from a €3,29 product, but I've tried other nail polishes from Essence and they were way better than this one. 

I really wanted to like this nail polish, but I guess my quest to find a good pale mint green has to continue :( Have you tried Essence Always in my mint? What do you think about it? 

Avène Antirougeurs Anti-Redness Dermo-Cleansing Fluid

You'll all probably know by now that I've undergone a harsh dermatological treatment during the past winter, since I mention it in every other post here! However, since the skin is more exposed to the sun during Summer, I had to stop using the cleanser that my dermatologist gave me, which was rich in salicylic and glycolic acid. So, I got the Avène Antirougeurs Anti-Redness Dermo-Cleansing Fluid, a much more gentle product. All Avène product's first ingredient is Avène thermal water, which has soothing and calming properties (by the way, I've already reviewed the Avène Eau Thermale spray here) that my skin, I have discovered, really likes. 

The Avène Antirougeurs Anti-Redness Dermo-Cleansing Fluid comes in a 300ml bottle with a not very practical pump (it's kinda hard to push). However, the product itself has a gel texture; it has a nice fresh scent that is not overpowering in the slightest. I use it just like a regular cleanser - I wet my hands, get some of the product, apply it on my face in circular motions, and then rinse it off with water. Right after using it I notice that my skin looks way less red and definitely soothed. I love this cleanser because it purifies the skin without stripping all the oil from it and making it feel tight, which was exactly what I was looking for.  

I would definitely recommend the Avène Antirougeurs Anti-Redness Dermo-Cleansing Fluid to everyone that's maybe affected by rosacea or couperose, or who's just looking for a very gentle cleanser. 

Have you ever tried this product? What do you think about it?