HAPPY B-DAY, ESSENCE!

 

Essence, my absolutely favorite drugstore brand ever, is celebrating their 15th birthday! If you know my story, I haven’t really gotten into make-up until a couple of years ago so I don’t own any »vintage« Essence myself, but when I was going through my make-up collection and picking out Essence products, there was no denying it: I truly am an Essence make-up junkie.

Essence, ki je moja daleč najljubša drogerijska znamka, letos praznuje že petnajsti rojstni dan! Če poznaš mojo zgodbo, potem veš, da sem se za make-up začela resneje zanimati šele nekaj let nazaj. Posledično nimam nobenih »vintage« Essence izdelkov, vendar pa sem ob pregledu svoje zbirke ugotovila, da se kljub temu brez težav lahko označim za Essence odvisnico.

 

When thinking about how to best congratulate Essence on reaching this milestone, I first thought about writing a poem (no joke!) but after some attempts realized that I’ve been out of high-school for too long since my rhyming wasn’t really working all that great. But I am good with words, so while you take a look at some photos of my Essence collections, you will also find A-Z attributes that remind me of the brand.

Ko sem razmišljala, kako naj Essence čestitam ob tem velikem mejniku, sem najprej pomislila, da jim napišem pesem (brez heca!), vendar pa je očitno od mojih srednješolskih dni res preteklo že kar nekaj vode in moje rime nekako ne padejo tja, kamor bi morale. Kljub temu pa še vedno rada pišem, zato lahko med naslednjimi fotografijami moje Essence kolekcije najdeš moje A-Z asociacije na blagovno znamko Essence. V slovenščini so sicer začetne črke nekoliko drugačne, vendar pa bistvo ostaja enako.

AVAILABILITY: it’s available in drugstores around the country and on various online stores (like Click2Chic and Licila.si). It’s also available in many, many countries around the world. DOSTOPNA: znamka je dostopna v drogerijah po celi Sloveniji in različnih spletnih trgovinah (kot Click2Chic in Licila.si). Dostopna je tudi v mnogih državah po svetu.

BALANCED: the price to quality ratio is probably the best you will find in any of the drugstore brands. URAVNOTEŽENA: razmerje med ceno in kakovostjo je verjetno najboljše od vseh drogerijskih znamk pri nas.

CONFIDENT: when thinking of Essence, I often think of young women trying out make-up for the first time and finding their confidence in it. SAMOZAVESTNA: ko razmišljam o znamki Essence, pogosto pomislim na mlada dekleta, ki šele začenjajo spoznavati make-up in v njem najdejo samozavest.

DESIGN: I don’t necessarily love the design of all the regular editions, but the limited editions packaging are always super fun and adventurous. DIZAJN: priznam, da nisem najbolj navdušena čisto nad vsemi embalažami iz redne kolekcije, vendar pa so embalaže pri omejenih izdajah vedno zabavne in polne domišljije.

EFFICIENT:  while I might prefer other brands in some make-up categories, I know that I could easily just own Essence products and live happily. UČINKOVITA: čeprav pri določenih kategorijah ličil raje posežem po kakšni drugi znamki, bi prav lahko živela samo z Essence izdelki in bi bila prav srečna.

FUNNY: they always amuse me with the names of their products – that’s the first thing I look at in PR materials. They also tricked me this year on April Fools Day (I will get you back!) ZABAVNA: z imeni svojih izdelkov me vedno zabavajo – pravzaprav je to prva stvar, ki jo vedno pogledam v PR materialih. Letos so me prav grdo nahecali tudi za prvi april (kar jim bom vsekakor vrnila, šminke z okusom pomfrija, pajade!)
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Essence SS 2017 and other new products (review&swatches)

Essence has been bringing it lately – really following the latest trends while at the same time making sure that the quality of the products remains solid. And as I mention every single time – with Essence, you really can’t beat the price. I think that the latest SS 2017 release got me more excited than any other I’ve seen before. I noticed a new (and full!) stand in Muller and of course grabbed a couple of products and the next day, Essence Slovenia kindly sent me a couple of bits and pieces as well. If you’re interested to see what I’d recommend, keep on reading!

Essence zadnje čase res pozitivno preseneča – sledijo najnovejšim trendom, obenem pa še vedno skrbijo za dobro kakovost izdelkov. Poleg tega je pri znamki Essence pomembna tudi cenovna dostopnost. Mislim, da se še nobene spremembe pri Essence nisem tako razveselila kot nove linije pomlad/poletje 2017. Novo (in dobro založeno!) stojalo sem opazila v Mullerju in hitro izbrala nekaj izdelkov, naslednji dan pa sem od Essence Slovenija prejela še paketek z nekaj novostmi. Če te zanima, kaj ti vsekakor priporočam, beri naprej!

Essence Instant Matt super long-lasting foundation (4,40€, shade Ivory) unfortunately isn’t for me. It really is a mattifying foundation which doesn’t sit well with my dry patches. I tried to wear it with a silicone primer but unfortunately it caked really badly everywhere where my skin is dry. It’s a medium coverage finish and available in three colors – Ivory (rose undertone), Sand (warm undertone) and Vanilla (dark). I would recommend this if you have oily skin and need something to keep that in check.

Essence Instant Matt super long-lasting foundation (4,40€, odtenek Ivory) je tekoča podlaga, ki pa na žalost ni primerna za mene. Ima srednjo prekrivnost in res lep mat zaključek, vendar pa se je meni prijela na suhe predele obraza in se tam vidno zgostila. Priporočam ti jo, v kolikor imaš mastno kožo in želiš to težavo odpraviti. Podlaga je na razpolago samo v treh barvah  – Ivory (roza podton), Sand (rumen, topel podton) in Vanilla (temnejši odtenek).
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Empties ***** Porabljeni izdelki

Empties ***** Porabljeni izdelki

First empties in 2017! I’ve been stacking up the empty products in a closet and only yesterday I realized that the little bag was overflowing. I know I promised the Maybelline Cushion Foundation review for this week – but we’ll need a bit of sun in this gloomy Ljubljana so I can take some good photos. Until then, enjoy these empties to tie you over!

Prva objava o porabljenih izdelkih v letu 2017! Vse izdelke sem hranila v omari in šele včeraj sem ugotovila, da je vrečka že čisto polna. Vem, da sem za ta teden obljubila tudi oceno Maybelline Cushion Foundation, ampak za dobre fotografije bo moralo v Ljubljani posijati vsaj malo sonca. Zato upam, da boš lažje počakala med tem, ko prebiraš ocene mojih “lepotnih smeti”.

I’ve been really good with my skincare lately – so good in fact, that I’ve used up quite a few of my favorite products. The Caudalie Micellar Cleansing water (organic grape water and chamomile) isn’t strong enough to remove all my make-up so I used it for second cleaning after removing most of the make-up from my face already. I really enjoyed the dispenser and the nice, soft smell. Caudalie is a natural, eco friendly brand that I really appreciate. I would buy it again. Next up is one of my favorite cleansing milks ever – La Bri floral cleansing milk. I already did a review so read more about it *here* – but I can honestly say that it’s one of the best skin products I’ve ever used in my life. The same goes for Bocassy Clean&Tone tonic (with aloe vera, green tea and marigold – read a full review *here*). This tonic has a funny smell and color, but I felt like it really hydrated and replenished my skin. Another product I’d definitely repurchase. Last but not least, I used up the Ombia hyaluron activator. I must say that I’ve noticed a definite improvement in my skin after a couple of weeks – there was definitely fewer dry patches than before. I’ve now switched to hyaluronic gel from Ombia and I’ll report on that soon.

Zadnje čase se res trudim za svojo kožo in posledično tudi izdelke porabljam veliko hitreje. Caudalie Micelarna čistilna vodica (z organsko grozdno vodo in kamilico) sicer ni bila dovolj močna, da bi odstranila ves moj make-up, zato sem jo uporabljala kot drugi korak po odstranitvi večine ličil. Všeč mi je priročno pakiranje in nežen, blag vonj. Caudalie je naravna, okolju prijazna znamka in to cenim, zato bi izdelek spet kupila. La Bri cvetilno čistilno mleko je eden mojih najljubših izdelkov za nego kože vseh časov. Kratko oceno sem že napisala in jo lahko prebereš *tukaj*, na kratko pa lahko rečem, da gre res za odličen izdelek. Enako velja za Bocassy Clean&Tone tonik (z aloe vero, zelenim čajem in ognjičem – celotna ocena te čaka *tukaj*). Ta tonik ima nekoliko hecno barvo in vonj, vendar pa se mi je zdelo, da je res lepo nahranil in obnovil mojo kožo. Tudi to je izdelek, ki ga bom ponovno kupila. Nenazadnje se je med porabljenimi znašel tudi Ombia aktivator hialuronske kisline. Že po nekaj tednih uporabe sem opazila očitno razliko, saj je bilo na moji koži manj suhih predelov kot običajno. Sedaj sem ga zamenjala za Ombia hialuronski gel, o katerem bom več napisala ob drugi priložnosti.

I’ve really been into foaming shower gels recently and I used up two of them in the past months – Ritual Zensation and Artdeco Senses Asian Spa. I like them because I need a really tiny amount and they do all the work for me, dispensing soft foam directly into my hands. I would have liked the Senses Spa gel even more if I could get all of the product out of it (especially regarding the price!) – I think there’s at least fifth remaining in there but pressing it doesn’t work anymore. Both of these gels smelled fantastic, but I’ll probably look for something new to try out. Stenders Salt Scrub (Rose) was a semi-gentle salt peel with pieces of rose in it. I liked using it a lot but I must say that it left a right mess in the bath tub every time – it’s very oily and the pieces of roses stuck everywhere. I also used it way past its expiration date which is only 3 months after opening – this makes me think that it really is a natural product. I didn’t have the same issues with Body Shop Pink Grapefruit Body scrub-gelee which is very soft, but more importantly, smells like a freshly squeezed grapefruit. If I ever find it again, I’ll definitely repurchase it. I wrote a bit about Just intimate gel *here* already, but I’ll repeat myself – it’s the only gel for intimate care I’ll ever use because it’s gentle and doesn’t have any weird chemicals in it. I definitely won’t repurchase the Stenders Melon shower gel which was OK as far as shower gels go, but the fruity smell was way to overpowering for me.

Peneči geli za prhanje bodo očitno postali moja šibkost, saj sem v zadnjih dveh mesecih porabila kar dva  –Rituals Zensation in Senses Asian Spa znamke Artdeco. Všeč mi je, ker potrebujem res majhno količino, hkrati pa se mi ni treba truditi, ampak mi kar embalaža sama postreže s peno. Po drugi strani bi mi bilo predvsem pri Senses gelu všeč, če bi ven dobila vse, kar je v steklenički – občutek imam namreč, da je notri ostala kakšna petina izdelka. Oba gela sta imela prijeten vonj, vendar pa bom verjetno sedaj poiskala še kakšen drug peneči gel za prhanje. Stenders Salt Scrub (Vrtnica) je srednje nežen solni piling s koščki vrtnice, ki sem ga z veseljem uporabljala, moram pa reči, da je v tušu pustil za sabo pravo razdejanje, saj je zelo masten in koščki so bili prilepljeni povsod. Vsekakor sem ga uporabljala veliko predolgo, saj je njegov rok po odprtju samo tri mesece, kar mi da misliti, da gre res za dober, naraven proizvod. Po drugi strani te težave nisem imela s Pink Grapefruit body scrub-gelee znamke Body Shop. Sam piling s tem izdelkom je bil res nežen, ampak mislim, da vonj ne bi pustil ravnodušne nobene ženske, saj diši ravno tako, kot sveže prerezana grenivka. Če ga bom še kje zasledila, ga bom z veseljem kupila. O intimnem gelu Just sem že pisala *tu* – je edini, ki ga uporabljam, saj se mi zdi res nežen in primeren za intimno nego, zato ga bom še kupila. Vsekakor pa ne bom ponovila nakupa Stenders Melon gela za prhanje, ki je bil sicer kot gel za tuširanje čisto uporaben, vendar mi je bil njegov vonj veliko presladek, tudi v poletnih dneh, kaj šele zdaj pozimi. View Post

Adventni koledarji 2016

Objava samo v slovenščini?! Tako je, drage moje – tokrat samo v slovenščini, saj je namenjena prav nam, slovenskim odvisnicam od vsega lepega. In kaj je lepše, kot dan za dnem odpirati mala vratca čudovitih adventnih koledarjev, za katerimi pa se ne skriva čokolada, ampak lepotno darilce?

Lani je bilo na slovenskem trgu na voljo nekaj adventnih koledarjev, letos pa jih je prava poplava. Sama sem že izbrala svojega – spremljaj me na Instagramu @low_maintenance_beauty, kjer bom dnevno objavljala, kaj me tisti dan pričakalo za vratci. Poleg presenečenja (in dejstva, da tako mogoče prišparam kakšno kilo špehca na račun vseh čokoladic) mi je najbolj všeč, da adventni koledarji res ponujajo dobro vrednost za svojo ceno, poleg tega pa so v njih pogosto skriti tudi izdelki, ki jih same morda ne bi izbrale, a nas lahko navdušijo!

Ker je bila Nika z Beautyfull blog bolj pridna od mene in je podobno objavo že napisala, te najprej pošiljam k njej (*klik*) na ogled koledarjev Le Couvent des Minimes, Lush, L’Occitane, Essence in Alessandro. Potem pa si le preberi mojo objavo še naprej, saj sem jih sama odkrila še kar nekaj! Čeprav niso na voljo v Sloveniji, imaš še cel teden, tako da bodo verjetno še ravno pravi čas prispeli do tebe!


Če si velika navdušenka nad laki za nohte, potem je pravi zate Ciate Mini Mani Month koledar. Dobiš ga lahko na Feel Unique, pri čemer pa se zavedaj, da boš morala plačati DHL dostavo. Osnovna cena je 64 €, v njem pa se poleg 18 lakov za nohte skriva še nekaj drugih uporabnih presenečenj. View Post

BEAUTIFUL PINK OCTOBER (Slovenian beauty bloggers collaboration)

Why pink, you might ask? Sure, there is nothing pink about it if you look at the nature – all golds and greens and yellows everywhere you look. But the color pink is tied to the month of October in a different way.

In the month of October, me and my fellow Slovenian beauty bloggers want to remind every girl, mother, woman, sister out there that none of us are safe from the danger of breast cancer that is commonly connected to the pink bow, like the one in the photo below.

I want to remind you that self-checking is important. Early detection is key to successful treatments! Ideally, you would check your breasts every month, about 7-10 days into your monthly cycle. On this webpage (click!) you can read more about how to check yourself and can also download an app that will remind you to check your breasts and show you exactly how you do it.

Remember that not every change in the breasts means malignant cancer, so if you feel something, there is no reason to panic! Talk to your doctor and together you will choose the right way to proceed. I am knocking on wood, though, that none of us will ever have to go through that!
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