Review: Essence Wild Craft LE Duo Brush

Hi guys :)

Today I want to review Essence's Duo Brush from their Wild Craft LE.

Information:

• Essence Wild Craft LE September 2012
• Duo Brush 01 Fluffy Vests Dressed
• one side is a paddle-shaped powder brush, the other a stumpy eyeshadow brush
• costs 3,25 Euros
• has very soft hair

Application:

Now, I won't just list different positive and negative points here, because I tried both brush sides with different products and want to list a few application aspects.

The big side can be used to quite a few purposes. For foundation it's okay, but I think the bristles aren't tied close enough for a perfect result. For powder it works fine, I just find it a tiny bit too small. The paddle shape makes it easy to pick up and apply the powder. For blush it works nicely, too, I had no problems. And the last option is my favorite one: for bronzer. Since it's paddle-shaped it has a thin but long top side, and that is perfect for the hollows of your cheeks, to contour them with bronzer. That really is good! :)

The small side of the brush also has a few application possibilities. It's meant for eyeshadow, but I just find it's a too short for a real eye make-up. What I love it for, however, is highlights underneath my brow. It has the perfect shape for that. I also tried it with liquid concealer, and that was okay but it's also a tad too short. On small areas, like single little blemishes, it's great, though.

Positives:

• price
• soft hair
• easy to wash, doesn't cause any problems with that
• it's double-ended, so you always have both sides with you
• good versatile usage possibilities

Negatives:

• it's limited
• it's not as good for all purposes, also not the ones it's made for

After all, I have to say I'm a big fan of this brush. It's good for lots of kinds of usage, and when you travel you could just take this brush and it's pretty much all you need for a full-face make-up. I can definitely recommend it :)

What do you think of it?

xoxo, Misch

NOTD September 15th: Essence - The Boy Next Door

Hey there!
Today I want to show you Essence's The Boy Next Door, one of their new nail polishes.

The Boy Next Door is a blue creme, I think it's some kind of denim blue. It's super shiny.
Application was nice, it has a very squishy consistency. At first I had some cuticle dragging, but that was leveled out easily. I used 2 coats for the pictures.

I really like this shade of blue, it's not leaning green or anything and it's also not dark. Pretty shade, but also not the most unique one.
What do you think of it?
xoxo, Misch

Spotted: Catrice Hollywood's Fabulous 40ties LE

Hey there!
I just lately saw this new LE at my drugstore, and I'm pretty excited about it :) I'm talking about Catrice's Hollywood's Fabulous 40ties LE.
This LE contains 2 eyeshadow quads, 1 brow gel, 1 eyebrow lifter pencil, 4 lipsticks, 1 lip gloss top coat, 1 blush and 5 nail polishes. Here *click* you can find an overview of the products.
The eyeshadow quads come in natural and rather cool-toned shades. Some are shimmery, some matte, and I'm sure you could do lots of different looks with these. I decided had enough similar shades, so I didn't get them. As far as I can judge from the testers, they seemed to be pretty pigmented.
The eyebrow gel is supposed to be a bit tinted, but I couldn't tell the tint at the store. Don't need it.
The Eyebrow Lifter is a big pencil to add highlights around your eye. I think it's actually quite similar to Benefit HighBrow! The shade is a very light natural pink, and it's super creamy and opaque. I can't wait to use this one for my daily looks :)

here I blended it out

here I used it lightly underneath my brow, in my inner corner and on the water line

The lipsticks are all super pretty shades of red and pink, from very dark to nude. I found some even a little too dark! They're really pigmented and glide on, but I didn't get any of these.
The lip gloss top coat is supposed to add shine over any lip product, but I didn't need it.
The blush is super pretty! It's a mix of pressed and baked blush, I think the little sprinkles are the baked parts. It's a pink coral shade, and doesn't have any shimmer, it's matte. Pigmentation is good, and I love it :) This is gonna be great for every day :)

Last but not least, the nail polishes. Also all pinkish shades, super pretty. I could have bought them all :D I ended up deciding on one, C03 Marlene's Favorite, which is a pretty coral pink. Coral is really hard to me to pull off with my skin tone, but I think this has enough pink in it to look good :) It's a creme, 2 coats shown in the swatch. Nice consistency. The shade is very close to the blush's.

After all, I'm impressed! I'm super happy with this LE! I could have bought everything right away, but I was reasonable. And I even think the pink shades work for fall, they're all dusty enough not to be bright. So pretty :) And everything in this LE looks great together!
What do you think of it? Are you as smitten as I am?
xoxo, Misch

NOTD September 13th: Essence - Stuck On You

Hey there!
Today I want to show you one of Essence's new polishes, Stuck On You.

Stuck On You is a deep blue-toned purple with gray undertones and silver shimmer particles. It dries a little darker than it looks in the bottle.
Application was great, Stuck On You is so opaque! I barely needed a second coat, but I did it anyway :D It's also not too thick, considering the consistency.

I really like this shade! It's super pretty, looks good for fall :)
What do you think of it?
xoxo, Misch

Book Review: Numbers by Rachel Ward

Hey there!
I just recently finished this book I've been reading, Numbers by Rachel Ward, and thought it might be nice to write a book review :)

The main character in Numbers is Jem, who has a special ability: when she looks somebody into the eye, she sees a number. And that number is the date of the person's death. That's pretty much all you need to know about it, and this is also the main topic. Around this thing of her seeing dates of death, there are of course things happening to her and a friend of hers. It's getting super exciting and it's really not what you expect right away, I don't want to give anything away! :D
I really liked how the main character is not your average good novel hero: Jem's 15, she's socially awkward, has this ability to see death dates and a history that makes her the person she is. She's poor, a kid in foster care, and doesn't want to do what she's told by anyone else, she doesn't care about a lot of things. She's one of those teenagers no one wants to be in contact with because they just seem bad, but that's not all about her character. The book's written from her perspective.
You get right into the story, and some things only become clear to you when you go on reading. You can always feel with the characters, I never found it confusing. Even though it's fiction, it never feels totally bizarre or unrealistic. I was able to read it really quickly, there aren't tons of thinking needed to stick to the story. It's a good book in my opinion, I like how it's emotional, a little thrilling - but not in a way you get afraid - and has a love story part. It's a nice pleasure read, not something I'm head over heels for, but I enjoyed it.
Did anyone of you read it?
xoxo, Misch

NOTD September 10th: China Glaze - Outta Bounds

Hey there!
Today I want to show you China Glaze's Outta Bounds!

Outta Bounds is a deep blue-toned green with a strong silver shimmer, almost metallic or like a frost, but not quite. To me it's a very cool-toned emerald shade of green, which is nice for fall. Think sultry and rich jewel tones :) In direct sunlight it's so glowy, I love that :)
Application was good, the formula is really nice. I ended up doing 3 coats because I didn't want any signs of unevenness to be visible.

I've owned this China Glaze polish for quite a while now, it was the first one I ever got from them! And I like it a lot, it's super pretty :) It's been part of the China Glaze line for years, and I think it should still be easy to get it :)
What do you think of Outta Bounds?
xoxo, Misch

Review: Rival de Loop Aqua Spray

Hey guys,
today I want to review Rival de Loop's Aqua Spray, which I already mentioned in my August Favorites.

Information:

• Rival de Loop Aqua Spray Aloe Vera
• available at Rossmann
• contains 75ml
• costs 1,25 Euros
• is basically water in a bottle with a small diffuser to spray it onto your face
• is supposed to vitalize, hydrate and refresh your face
• you can use it whenever you like, also over make-up

Positives:

• price
• Aloe Vera as a good moisturizing ingredient
• very small diffuser that makes the mist super fine
• easy to be used
• refreshes nicely, especially when it's hot
• soaks in quickly
• it doesn't make your face wet, it's just a soft mist
• you can use it over make-up without smudging it
• it doesn't dry out, it moisturizes lightly

Negatives:

• availability
• it's not really that moisturizing and rich, so don't expect it to take care of very dry skin

After all, I'm a big fan of this Aqua Spray. During the summer I keep it in my purse all the time, it's just perfect for a refreshment on the go. I think that everyone can use this, no matter what type of skin. It doesn't do any miracles to your skin, but it's a nice product.

What do you think of these facial sprays?

xoxo, Misch