I love nail polish TAG

I wasn't actually asked to do this TAG, but since I am an incorrigible polishaholic - there is just no end to my lust or should I say craving for nail polish, I couldn't think of a more appropriate TAG for me to do than this one. I first saw this TAG a very long time ago, back in 2013 and unfortunately I can't remember on which lovely blog it was for me to give credit to that blog, but whoever it was - Thank you for inspiring me! I saved it for a rainy day, and today it's time to take the umbrella and wellies out and to dive deep into a big puddle of all things nail polish. Hope you enjoy it!

 

1. Favorite base coat? I like to use Orly's Bonder Rubberized Base Coat (£10.90) because once it dries is has a slightly sticky, tacky feel and the nail polish literally sticks to your nails, making the hold better and longer lasting. 

2. Favorite top coat? I don't have a favorite top coat as such since I like to experiment with different top coats that create different effects e.g. matte, sparkly etc, but the top coat that I have been using most recently is Seche's Vite Dry Fast Top Coat (£9.95). The Seche Vite Top Coat is famous for making nail polishes dry quicker than you can say Seche Vite, but since I don't really mind if it takes a few minutes for a nail polish to dry properly, it's a great excuse to have a latte and relax a little while - this isn't the main selling point for me. Instead I really like that Seche Vite helps the finish last a day longer than with other top coats, which is always a welcome thing.

3. Top 3 favorite nail polish brands? I guess this depends on what you're looking for - is it an amazing range of colors, long lasting wear, quick drying formula, wide brush or maybe even all of the above (yep, that would be little ol' demanding me)? Nevertheless, I immediately think of Zoya, Sally Hansen and Ciaté. There are a lot of good brands available on the high street, although they may not necessarily be the most popular or most mentioned brands in Blogiverse, but for me Zoya, Sally Hansen and Ciaté are playing in a different nail league altogether. They may not be the most affordable brands, but they are very moderately priced considering the excellent product quality you get.

4. How often do you paint your nails? As soon as a nail polish starts to chip. I don't care what anyone says; that it may be grungy or heroin chic to have chipped nails, I think it's absolutely AWFUL and if that means that I have to paint my nails more than once a day sometimes when I wear a polish of really poor quality (but the color is irresistible), then so be it - it only takes a few seconds and it looks like I actually care, which I DO!

5. Favorite neutral nail polish? I'm a bit of a peacock when it comes to nail polish and I love to use different colors regardless of whether they're light or dark, but neutral colors rarely excite me. I do have quite a few neutral shades, but I only wear them very rarely and the only one that I really love to wear and go back to somewhat regularly (a few times a year perhaps) is the YSL's 38 Gris Underground (£22) - a chic, stylish and understated cool grey that is about as neutral as it gets with me.

6. Pink or red nail polishes? Easy - red! Pink looks amazing on others, but personally I've never been very comfortable wearing pink nails and I much prefer any shade of red from vibrant intense fire engine red to dark, vampy and sophisticated blood red. 

7. Favorite finish (matte, glitter, etc.)? This is a very tricky one for me since nail effects is one of my beauty passions, but I would have to say that my absolute favourite is the Pixi dust, or sugared effect. I can't get enough of that matte, shimmery and unusual concrete glam look and I guess my more than 10 different bottles of this beautiful finish is evidence of that. 

8. Your go-to nail polish at the moment? As a polishaholic I can't honestly say that I have a go-to polish brand or even color. I chop and change colors and effects so often and I have very few specific shades that I call my favorites, but one of them is the incredible Blu from Zoya, which was one of the first nail polishes I ever reviewed on my blog in the post My new BNFF (Best Nail Friend Forever).    

 9. What's on your nails now? Believe it or not - NOTHING! I'm currently going through two weeks of nail detox, which I suffer through a couple of times a year to give my nails a well deserved break filled with TLC, showering them with attention using my go to nail care products; Lush Lemony Flutter Cuticle Butter (£6.50) which is fantastic for turning cuticles from frayed and dried into supple and nourished, and Sally Hansen's Miracle Nail Growth (£9.99), which actually DOES work. 

10. If you had nail polish line how would you name it? What a fantastic question! Since I'm a bit of a crazy cat lady I would call it Felin' Fine. I have it all worked out - the bottle would be in the shape of a cat, with little whiskers and a tail, and the top would be the cat's face with little pointy cat ears and two little gems as eyes and the color of the gems would differ between polish shades so that the eyes either matched or contrasted the polish color. I've put far too much thought into this.... scary...

This was so much fun to do and I'm more than a little tempted to give my Felin' Fine nail brand a go! I'm sure you'll be relieved to know that since I wasn't tagged to do this, I've decided that I won't nominate anyone in particular to join in either, but I really hope that it's inspired some of you enough to pick this cute TAG up - and if you do, please share the link since I would love to read your version of it! Have a wonderful relaxing Sunday and I'm back again tomorrow for more nail polish - after all it wouldn't be Monday if it wasn't Manic.

Life in letters TAG

TAGs can be a fun way to share a bit more about yourself and today I thought I would do the Life in letters TAG, which isn't the easiest TAG In the world to do since you go through the alphabet and give a fact about yourself that starts with each letter. It was quite a long time ago now that I was tagged by the lovely Jen from A little bit of Jen to do this, and it's been sitting in my draft for a little while since I only do one TAG a month - but better late than never and I hope you enjoy it!

A - I love ANIMALS to the point that I wouldn't even kill a mosquito, which is rather stupid of me especially since I'm allergic to mosquito bites and mozzies seem to love me.

B - I've been BLOGGING since July 2013 and have been amazed at the level of support and encouragement that I have received. Blogging is definitely a commitment that requires focus, thought and effort and getting lovely feedback and interacting with everyone in blogiverse, makes it all worth it!

C - My favorite tipple is CHAMPAGNE, and we usually end the week with a bottle or so. It's really tough having to do this weekly chore, but someone has to do it... 

D - I love to DANCE, especially salsa and tango 

E - I have always been very interested in ancient EGYPT so it was a dream come true when I got a chance to visit and see all the famous sights along the Nile and the Pyramides.

F - I have a very curious FELINE, or rather she has me... She's been my constant companion for 16 years and filled every single day with lots of fun and laughter - she's a senior, but you wouldn't know it to look at her. 

G - I'm a massive fan of GREY'S ANATOMY and have recently started to watch the series all the way from the beginning again. I just can't get enough of McDreamy, not to mention McSteamy...
H - I'm a neat and tidy person, but when it comes to all things beauty, actually change that to girly (clothes, makeup, shoes, bags, jewellery) I am a complete HOARDER, e.g. I think I could wear a different statement necklace every single day for the next 3 months. I should really speak to someone about that...
I - Even though I try to eat clean and healthy most of the time ICE CREAM is my biggest weakness and I've never really understood the concept of scoops... why? Just give me the whole tub!
J - My favorite food is JAPANESE and if I'm ever lucky enough to be able to visit Japan I have a feeling I'll spend a lot of my time there eating...
K - Since I love to read and always have a few books on the go, my KINDLE always comes with me wherever I go and since I got it, my bags are considerably lighter since I don't have to lug around stacks of books anymore.
L - I start every day with a cup of hot LEMON WATER and cayenne. It's brilliant for kick starting your metabolism, it detoxes and brightens your skin - not bad for such a humble drink! 
M - I'm ridiculously fond of animated films like MADAGASCAR and Ice Age and probably laugh more and louder than any of the kids in the cinema.

N - I am a NAIL POLISHAHOLIC. How can you tell, you ask? - well I own 284 nail polishes... say no more... (yes I did count them).
O - I've mentioned before that I'm a bit of a magpie and in addition to being attracted to anything sparkly I've genuinely always been fascinated by gems and stones, these little masterpieces of nature. My favorite gemstone is the precious OPAL, because of its incredible explosion of color and light.
P - I am a die hard fan of PILATES which I've been practising for as long as I can remember and I swear by it as a way to stay lean, strong and healthy.
Q - I love QUINOA, it's an amazingly useful protein rich grain that you can use for both sweet and savoury dishes.
R - My absolute favorite perfume ever (and that says a lot considering I'm a perfume collector) is REFLECTION from the Omani perfumier Amouage, and it's probably extra special to me since I associate it with my honeymoon - you can read a review of it in the Silver edition. 
S - As many of you may know I am SWEDISH but work brought me to the UK after I'd been traveling around a bit.
T - I love to TRAVEL and explore new places but I am a terrible traveller; I get car sick, sea sick and am to put it mildly a VERY nervous flyer. Bring on teleportation is what I say!

 U - I spent quite a lot of very happy years at UNIVERSITY, I absolutely LOVE learning new things and if it wasn't for that small thing called paying your bills, I would probably still be studying something obscure in a corner of a dusty faculty library somewhere.
V - Most of my life I've been a VEGETARIAN and although it's a personal choice that I wouldn't impose on anyone, I think I'm healthier for it. 
W - If I could have any job in the world, I would want to be a WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER
X - My favorite holiday of the year is X-mas, there's just nothing like it.
Y - In addition to doing pilates I also do YOGA. I find that it's a great combination and where Pilates adds a lot of strength, the yoga helps to stretch the muscles afterwards.
Z - One of the best experiences in my life was when I got to be a ZOO KEEPER for the day a few years ago working with tigers, leopards and lions. It was an incredible day being that close to these amazing animals that I'll never forget and a massive thank you to Him Indoors for arranging it.

Wow, certainly not the easiest TAG in the world to do, but I hope that you've learned a little bit more about me, and as I'm sure you've guessed I now need your help to keep this going. Everyone is welcome to join in, but I also specifically TAG the following and I hope you can join in:

Shubha from Blue Velvet Addict 

Siobhán from Make Up For Dolls 

May from La Vie en May 

Victoria from Florence and Mary 

Laura from Maquillage Magic

Have a great Sunday everyone and I'll see you tomorrow with a Manic.Monday post! Xx

Face Five Challenge

Last year I did a post that counted how many products I used every day (you can read it here), and at the time 11 out of the products I'd used that day were related to makeup. So when the lovely Lauren at Will Sing for Makeup tagged me to do this challenge which is about creating a full face look using only 5 items (how CRUEL is that) I had to think long and hard about what I was going to use, which wasn't easy since I had to follow these rules:

1. Use only 5 products to create a complete makeup look

2. Each different product counts as 1 product. Multipurpose products count as 1 product, such as Benetint, Bombshell the One Stick, Nars Multipurpose Stick. 
3. No palettes are allowed. No trios, quads or multi-shade palettes.
4. Tag Five others to complete the Face Five Challenge

The key to get through this TAG for me clearly was to find great multi purpose products, so let's have a look at what I came up with. First of all I quickly eliminated primers and makeup setting sprays and for a while I even toyed with the idea of not using a foundation since my skin has been behaving pretty well lately, however since I was asked to create a complete makeup look I guess foundation should be included. To make sure that I didn't need to use a concealer I needed a foundation with medium to full coverage and you probably won't be surprised to hear that I decided to go with my beloved YSL Forever Youth Liberator Foundation (£37). I love so many things about this foundation; that it gives super coverage and still feels so lovely and light on the skin, that it includes skin care elements that drip feed the skin throughout the day, the long wear and the subtle glow that it gives. Deciding on foundation was an easy choice, but after that it got a bit more tricky and I thought of all kinds of product combinations that would do what I needed - could I use mascara on my brows? would it work with using a lip chubby on my eyes?

In the end I thought I would play it more safe and to go for a natural look using browns and corals. On my eyes I went for a Bourjois Little Round Pot Eyeshadow (£6.99) in shade 16 Orange Epicew, which is a lovely golden cinnamon color, and I love how it brings out blue eyes. The Little Round Pots are wonderful eye shadows bases - they are soft and easy to work with and you can be creative with the intensity of color using them wet or dry. I used the Rimmel Soft Khol Kajal Eye Pencil (£2.99) to line both the upper lid and the waterline. I really like using a brighter color on the waterline for a lovely contrast, but if I were to stick with the multi purpose product approach I don't think that my eye brows would look good in green or purple so in stead I went for the shade 011 Sable. It's a lovely soft and blendable texture and it's long lasting, which is always a plus when you wear it on the waterline. Since it's so soft it worked surprisingly well on my eye brows, although the color is a bit darker than I would usually go for. Mascara is a must wear for me if I'm going for a complete makeup look and since this 5 product look would be fairly natural and subtle I applied the YSL Babydoll Mascara (£24.50) in Brown for wonderful long, volumized lashed. I really love this mascara and the brush is great for reaching every single little lash which creates a very full and wide eyed look. 

Now I only had 1 more product left to use, but this was another easy decision for me since the last product I had in mind is a true 2-in-1 product - Benefit's Cha Cha Tint Lip and Cheek Stain (£24.50). When I first got this little product I thought the color was stunning but I was a bit worried about applying it. It's a creamy liquid tint that you blend into your cheeks but if you just take your take time and use tiny amounts to build the color up until it's right for you, it's very easy to use. The shade is a beautiful coral shade that sets into a lovely matte finish and it's very long lasting. I would usually only wear this on my cheeks since I prefer to use a very moisturising lip product, and although the color is very pretty, and if feel light when you apply it the formula isn't hydrating enough for me to wear as a lippy on regular basis. 

This was fun but surprisingly hard to do and I really had to plan which products I would use. The learning point I guess is that you can actually get by with fewer products - but why would you to yourself when there are so many goodies waiting to be tried out! As usual everyone is welcome to join in and I'd also love to see what the following lovelies can come up with using only 5 products:

Anoushka from Anoushka Loves

Catherine from Catherine Loves

Laura from Petit Moi Big World

Sarah from MyBeautySleuth

Shubha from Blue Velvet Addict

Have a wonderful day everyone! Xx

7 Deadly Sins of Beauty TAG

TAGs are a great way to break up the routine and content of a blog and it's so much fun to join in and share a bit more personal information about yourself since I tend to keep my content quite focused on different products. Saying that though I try to stick to only one TAG a month to keep a good balance, so if you have already tagged me for something and not seen my response yet - that will be why, so please just be patient with me, I haven't forgotten. This is exactly what happened with today's TAG - which I got from the lovely Ava from XOVINTAGEWAYOFLIFEXO, which is a great blog on beauty and fashion and Ava has such a wonderful sense of style and if you're not familiar with Ava's blog, you should definitely check it out. So let's go through this infamous group of 7, following the questions in the TAG:

1. Greed: What is your most inexpensive beauty item? What is your most expensive? The most inexpensive beauty item that I've used for ages and will continue to use for ages is the MUA bronzer (£1). It's an absolute steal - wonderful color, long lasting. I can't say anything negative about it. When I first saw this question I thought for sure that the most expensive proudct would be a perfume, but when I think about it - it's definitely the BaByliss Pro Perfect Curl (£149.99) It was an expensive product, but goodness me it's worth every single penny. It curls my hair with less tear than a wand or a tongue and the curls last for about 4 days on me... An incredible product.

2. Wrath: What beauty products do you have a love/hate relationship with? I realise that this might not be a popular choice but I'm going to say Essie nail polishes. I love the range of shades and that Essie constantly releases new interesting colors, but on my nails unfortunately the polishes start to chip almost the same day, which is a real shame. 

3. Gluttony: What are your most delicious beauty products? I have a fairly extensive perfume collection, in fact so many that perhaps this should fall under Greed instead, and I wear something different every single day. For me perfume is the icing on the cake, the beautiful bow on a gift that captures the look that you're going for and even on days when I may not be wearing any makeup at all, I'll always spray some perfume on.

4. Sloth: What beauty product do you neglect, due to laziness? For some reason I never seem to really use body scrubs. I have a few and my favorite is the fabulous Soap & Glory Breakfast scrub (£8) which is an amazing, wonderfully scented scrub and I do enjoy them, I just always skip that extra step in the shower.... pure laziness, I don't have any other excuse.

5. Pride: What beauty product gives you the most self confidence? This is quite an interesting question and I have to answer that on a more serious note. For me self confidence isn't about applying product or clothes, it comes from within; knowing who you are as a person, and being comfortable and happy with that and your abilities. Then you can enhance that and make yourself feel even better by wearing your favorite perfume or clothes or whatever. A product that is guaranteed to always pick me up and give me a little mood boost is colorful lipstick, and right now my favorite is the Tanya Burr lipgloss (£6.99) in Picnic in the park.

6. Lust: What attributes do you find most attractive in the opposite sex? We'll if we keep this at a more superficial level this is a very easy question for me. Scent is so important to me in everything and there's nothing like a well groomed man wearing a distinct scent that shows a lot of personality. 

7. Envy: What items would you most like to receive as a gift? Tricky one - I love getting perfumes, but scent is a very individual thing and it's difficult for someone else to buy you a perfume, unless you have been very specific about what you like, so a safe bet and much appreciated gift for me is luxury skincare.

As usual, everyone is welcome to join in, but I especially TAG the following:

Laura from Beyond Blush  

Rose Beauty 

Paige from Skin and Roses 

Emma from Miss Emma Charlotte 

Lauren from Daisy Drops

Hope you enjoyed this little TAG and have a great day everyone! Xx

Would you rather TAG - beauty edition

Happy Sunday everyone and I hope you've had a great weekend so far! Today it's TAG time, and it's the Would you rather TAG - beauty edition, that I was tagged for by the lovely Jacquelyn at The Little Scottish Corner a while back and it's kind of a cruel tag really since it forces you to choose between different beautiful beauty products. Such impossible choices shouldn't have to be made, but here we go:

1.) Would you rather lose all of your mascaras, eyeliners, lipsticks, and lipglosses or lose all of your palettes and eyeshadows?
I'm quite fortunate that I've got long eyelashes, the only problem is that they are blonde - VERY blonde, so you can barely see them, so for me mascara is an absolute staple product I wouldn't want to be without and as long as you've got mascara, eyeliner and a lippy, you're sorted for a sleek and put together look. So this choice is an easy one for me - you can take all my palettes and eyeshadows... but please don't... 
 
2.) Would you rather chop off all your hair or never be able to cut it again?
I had very short hair when I was very young and I think it's traumatised me in some way since I've since then always had long or very long hair, and since I'm in the middle of Operation Rapunzel, trying to grow it even longer, the answer is pretty clear - let it grow, let it grow, let it grow!

3.) Would you rather have a coral cheek or a pink cheek?
I'm naturally drawn to coral shades, both for lips and blushers. I just think it suits me best both when I have a tan and when my complexion is its usual almost pale blue for a warm, fresh and natural look. 

4.) If you had £1000 to spend, would you rather buy clothes or makeup?
Clothes, clothes and CLOTHES since I haven't got a thing to wear, at least I didn't when I opened my wardrobe this morning...

5.) Would you rather apply lipstick as eyeliner, or eyeliner as lipstick?
Well funny you should ask! You may know that Sleek has an amazing range of pencils in all kinds of shades and one of my favorites is in a dark red tone that I have seen used both as a lip pencil and as an eyeliner, and personally I use it as an eyeliner with a bronze or golden eyeshadow to emphasize my eyes.

6.) Would you rather only shop at MAC or Sephora?
Didn't even have to think about this one... I couldn't possibly commit to just one brand and I don't necessarily like everything that MAC has so it would need to be Sephora since they have more than just their own stuff.

7.) Would you rather only use one eyeshadow color or one lip color for the rest of your life?
To me a different lip color can really alter a look from casual to glam, natural to vampy and we all need a little variety to keep things interesting, so I would keep all my lipsticks and probably also get a few new ones and happily only wear one eye shadow for the rest of my life - as long as it's not an outrageous color.

8.) Would you rather wear winter clothes in summer or summer clothes in winter?
It's a tricky question for me since I love summer and the warmer it is, the better and I'm usually happiest when I'm deep in a desert somewhere, however my most favorite type of outfit is my autumn and winter uniform of leather leggings in varying colors, a jumper and a statement necklace and it's with great sadness that I pack away my leather trousers in the Summer. So I would need to say that I'll wear my winter clothes all year around - and sit in the shades...

9.) Would you rather have dark nails or bright nails all year round?
This is just mean, how could I possibly choose between dark or bright shades - there's a time and a place for both, but if I really had to decide it would be dark nails. 

10.) Would you rather give up your favorite lip product or your favorite eye product?
Favorite lip product because I have too many of them that you could argue that none of them are true real favorites, however my favorite mascara is definitely my favorite mascara, and it's staying right where it is in my makeup bag.

11.) Would you rather only be able to wear your hair in a ponytail or a messy bun?
Interesting question - I would have chosen a messy bun because I love it and it's so practical, however Him Indoors absolutely hates what he call my Pineapple, so for his sake it would need to be a ponytail.

12.) Would your rather never be able to paint your nails again or never use lipgloss?
I'll pass up on a lip gloss any day of the week - truth be told I very rarely use them, there are few that have an amazing non sticky formula and I'm too lazy to use lip glosses on top of a lip stick, so not a big sacrifice really to give this up. Don't even think about taking my nail polishes away from me.... I'll physically fight any one who dares to try!

13.) Would you rather shave your eyebrows and have none at all or sharpie them in everyday?
I have the same issuette with my eye brows as I do with my eyelashes, they have shape but they are so so blonde, and without adding color I basically look like Mona Lisa. It always surprises me how much eye brows do in terms of framing a face and there's absolutely no way EVER that I could be without noticeable eye brows and since I've had plenty of practice with adding color I'll go for the sharpie option - I'm sure it would get fashionable at one point or another and I could say I was leading the way with a new avant-garde look.

14.) Would you rather live without makeup or nail polish?
La La La La - sorry but I can't hear what you're saying, La La La La. It's a basic human right to have both!

So having been cruelly forced to make a lot of tough decisions, I'd like to hear what the following lovely bloggers would choose if they were put in this horrible position to have to make some tough choice:

Selina from Relationships.College.Love

Sarah from Mybeautysleuth

Emily from British Beauty Addict

Kim from Lipstick and Lightening

Kerry from Dull To Glam

As a beauty junkie I'm amazed that I've managed to get through this TAG and even though some decisions were easier to make than others, I'm still very glad this is in theory only - it is right..? PLEASE SAY it's in theory only!!!!!

Thankful for Blogger friends TAG

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you all enjoyed the New Year celebrations and since this is the first post in 2014 - the start of a new year in so many ways, it felt as if it's just the perfect time to do the Thankful for Blogger friends TAG that I was nominated for. The first part of it tells you a little bit about my approach to blogging and some thoughts about blogging in general, and the second part gives you a few more facts about myself and I hope you enjoy it!

 Blogging and I:

1. How long have you been blogging? Almost 6 months, my first post went up in July 2013 - it's been an absolutely amazing time and I've got to know some wonderful positive and encouraging people along the way.

2. Are there any bloggers who helped you out/encouraged you when you first started your blog? Well, it depends on what you mean. I have a very positive experience of the blogger community, I've always received a lot of support and encouraging feedback from others and I try to do the same for others, but I also do believe that progress is in proportion to the effort you invest in your blog.

3. What Social Media has given you the most traffic to your blog? Is there a platform that you don’t use? Since not all social media give you a statistical overview of traffic, it's really difficult to say which platform is the most efficient one, but at the moment I promote my blog on Google+, Facebook and Twitter. I'm not currently on Instagram since it's not compatible with my Blackberry, but I'm very excited to be upgrading my phone in April and to start using Instagram, which I think will be great fun, especially since my friends call me the Happy Snapper - so after April you can expect to see a lot more from me.

  4. How often do you post? Do you have a regular schedule? I post every day, unless I'm away on holiday or doing something that forces me to do it less frequently for a short while.

5. Where do you blog? From my home office.

6. What camera do you use? What photo editing software do you use? I have a Panasonic Lumix FZ 28 that comes with me everywhere I go, but I don't use any photo editing software and it's definitely an area that I'd like to explore a bit more to create interesting effects with photos.

7. How did you come up with your blog name? As soon as I decided that I was going to try blogging I actually came up with the name more or less right away. I knew I wanted to use something with candle in the title since I love my candles, and after trying on a couple of names for size I settled very quickly on Makeup by Candlelight. 

8. Do you do any regular “series” posts on your blog? Yes, I have some posts that I do regularly throughout the month, and this year I'll also be introducing some new concepts which I'm very excited about.

 9. What draws you to a blog? For me it's very important that a blog expresses a well formed, balanced and genuine personal point of view, e.g. I don't mind reading a negative review of a product as long as it's clear why the product disappointed. I also really appreciate blogs where you feel that a lot of thought has gone into it and which uses quality photos taken by the blogger.

10. What turns you off of a blog? We all have different styles, which is also all part of the charms with blogs and I while I really do appreciate and know that blogging takes a lot of time, the only thing I don't like is when there's a lack of content, or the post is just one or two sentences - there are other social media that you can use for that. For me it doesn't matter how often there are new posts on a blog, as long as they have content that actually says something. I guess it's all about the quality, not the quantity.

11. How many blogs do you subscribe to? Are they all beauty related? I read several different kinds of blogs (food, lifestyle, fashion, beauty, travel), because it's like having the world at your fingertips and you can experience things through others almost as if you were there too - well, almost... But I also think it's important as a blogger to keep your finger on the pulse of what goes on in Blogiverse in general and I want to continue to learn as much as I can from the amazingly talented bloggers out there so I can keep developing my own style.

 12. When do you generally read blogs? In the morning before work, and also in the evening after work to catch up with the blogging day

 13. What is your favorite/least favourite type of post, and why? I don't really have a favourite or least favourite type of post and I'm curious to read about anything from mascaras, to recipes a book review or pets. For me it's again all about the content and that there's a clear point of view behind it.

Some facts about me:

1. Where do you live? Tell us a bit about your city! I'm based in Winchester in the south of England about 1 hr from London. It's a beautiful quaint university city that has a gorgeous cathedral and lots of interesting historical things to see - Winchester was even the capital of old Saxon England in the 7th century. 

2. What about your home? I'm the first to admit that my personal style can be a bit OTT, but our home is completely the opposite - it's minimalist and very inspired by my Scandinavian roots so it has big windows to let in lots of light, white walls, wooden floors and is very paired down. 

3. Single or taken? Very happily married and celebrating 5 years anniversary in August.

4. Do you have children? No, just my fluffy 4 legged feline baby

5. Do you have pets? Well, we have a temperamental and proud tortoise shell cat, but the way she sees it - SHE has us, not the other way around... after all, Him Indoors and I are just ground staff...

6. Do you have a “day job”? Yes, very much so.

7. How tall are you? I'm an Amazonian 5.4 (a bit over 160 cms)

8. Do you have siblings? Unfortunately not, although I have always wanted an older brother - perhaps I can find one on eBay...

9. 3 words to describe yourself. Organised, Inquisitive, Animal lover

10. Who is your style icon, and why? This probably sounds really boring but I don't actually have a style icon and I take my inspiration from lots of different and unexpected places and people, but there are certain fashion houses and designers that I naturally gravitate towards and find very inspirational e.g. Gucci or Dolce & Gabbana - and from that you can probably tell that I'm not afraid of standing out when it comes to clothes!

11. 3 favorite bands or musicians. Adele, Emily Sande, Mindy Gledhill

12. 3 favorite movies. I love to watch films and have many favourites that I'll watch over and over again so this is a very difficult question for me, and also since I have a serious as well as a childish side I have to list 3 films for each I think; Shawshank Redemption, The Usual Suspects and Edward Scissorhands (who doesn't like a bit of Tim Burton's slightly skewed view of reality). And then we have the childish, bouncy side of me that loves films like How to Train Your Dragon (Toothless reminds me of my cat!), Ice Age and Madagascar and when we go to the cinema I seem to always laugh even louder than the kids.... hrmm... 

 

 13. 3 favorite books. The Pickwick Papers, 1984 and The Brothers Karamazov

14. 3 random/weird facts about you.

- I have named every car I have ever owned and so far I've been the proud owner of Frog, Sheep, Fox, Shark and Squirrel... I'm sure it's not just me doing this...
- I'm a complete addict to news and absolutely have to have SKY or another news channel on in the background all through the day so that I'm in touch with what goes on in the world. I think it's a side effect of working from home full time.

- I don't eat any type of meat or poultry - if you insist on putting a label on my way of eating it would be pescetarian, and no I didn't just make that word up...

It was really fun to do this TAG since it made me really think about what I appreciate and want from a blog. As usual, anyone is welcome to join in, but I also TAG the following:

Zara from Bows and Pearls

Ruby from Total Modisch

Rochelle & Natasha from Next Route Style

Christie from It's Christie Friday

Bess from bess // fashion, beauty, lifestyle

I'm back as usual again already tomorrow with a new post and I hope we all have a great 2014! Xx

Sunshine award

I've had the great honor of being nominated for the Sunshine award by some lovely bloggers; Lucy - The New Northerner, Evi - Evi the Fashionista, Maya - It's a Femme Life, Carly - Sunday's Grace, Jacquelyn - The Little Scottish Corner, Elli - According to Ellie, Yasmin - Be You... and Amy - Face it Amy. The Sunshine award is given to “bloggers who are positive and creatively inspire others in the blogosphere.” and I'm very happy and proud that they thought of me.

Since I received a lot of questions I will however do a modified Sunshine award: I'll give 5 facts about myself, give answers to 11 questions which are a mix of all the different questions I've received and I'll ask 11 new questions for 5 lovely bloggers that I nominate. 

What's to know about little ol' me then... :

1. I love to read cook books, recipes and menus. There's something about reading about the flavors, imagining them and almost tasting them in your mind before you eat them.... is that weird? 

2. I play the piano

3.I have been on 2 flights that were both struck by lightning - no wonder I don't like flying!

4. I used to be a jeep safari driver in Greece

5. I absolutely love to dance and am usually the first and the last person on the dance floor, and I particularly love doing latin

My answers to a mix of 11 questions from lovely bloggers:

1. What did you want to be when you grew up? That actually changed a lot as I got older, but the very first thing I wanted to be was a geologist. I've always been fascinated by stones and gems, in other words I was a magpie already as a child and it was probably the bling I was after!

2. In your opinion what is the funniest word to say? Octopus!!!!! I don't know why, but it always makes me smile.

3. What is your favorite Christmas movie? I think everyone in the UK will know this one - The Snowman. If you've never seen it, it's about a boy who makes a snowman and in the night he comes to life and they go off on a wonderful adventure together but in the morning the the boy wakes up again back in his bed the snowman has melted away. It's the most lovely and slightly sad film with haunting music and Christmas just isn't the same without it. I love it so much I've even seen this as a ballet - 3 times...

4. Have you ever walked out on a film? Several times - life is far too short to lose 2.5 hrs on something you really don't like. I don't like films with excessive gore and splatter when it doesn't really add anything to the story so one film that I walked out of was Sin City.

5. If you could live in any era in history, when would it be? The 1920's - I love love LOVE art deco and just look at the amazing flapper dresses and cute little fascinators, what's not to like?

6. If you could interview anyone (I mean serious Piers Morgan style interview) who would it be? Nelson Mandela

7. One place in the world you really want to go? The North pole - the landscape is just astounding and humbling and I think it would be a once in a life time experience.

8. False nails or real nails? Definitely real nails. I would use nail press on's if I had really short nails and just wanted to hide them away while they were growing, but using glue and things like can be really bad for your nails.

9.  Gold or silver? I wear both, and I think it all depends on the outfit and it's fun to contrast rather than match cool shades in an outfit with gold and the other way around.

 10. If you could have one superpower, what superpower would you want to have? Easy!!! I would want to be able to fly so I don't have to worry about getting on an airplane.

 11. What is your most favorite thing to eat? This is so difficult because I love to try different types of food, but I'm actually going to say roasted butternut squash risotto with blue cheese, which is one of Him Indoors' favorite recipes. Not only is it absolutely delicious, but having someone prepare and cook a home-made meal for you is a treat, it's so relaxing and enjoyable. All I need to do now is show Him Indoors where the dish washer is as well...

My 11 questions: 

1. What's your favourite type of food and why?

2. What do you like to do in your spare time?

3. Heels or flats?

4. Which make up brand do you own most product from?

5.If you could be someone else for the day - who would you be?

6. Lush or The Body Shop?

7. Who's had most influence on who you are as a person today?

8. What's your favourite book?

9. If you could only by one single thing next time you go shopping, what would it be?

10. Starbucks or Costa?

11. Where are you going on your next holiday?

.... and I nominate the following bloggers to join in:

Laura from Pink Frenzy

Shiraz from Misunderstood Princesses

Tamanna from Tiny Small Wonders  

Kim from Kim's Beauty Drawer

Shubha from Blue Velvet Addict

Have a great day everyone! Xx

The Winter TAG

As it's definitely winter time, I'm doing a version of a TAG today that I wanted to wait and do until December and I had hoped that there would actually be some snow when I did but, never mind - wishful thinking! I was tagged by the lovely Emma from The Jolly Fashionista and Gail from Fabulousso 40s to do the Winter TAG and share with you some of my favourite things about this lovely season.

 What are your favourite things about Winter?

So much, I don't even know where to begin. All the beautiful Christmas lights and decorations (and dear neighbors - NO, a giant plastic Santa on the roof doesn't count), which make everything look nice and cozy. I love the freezing cold, clear frosty evenings - perfect for star gazing with a cup of hot chocolate, but I also like dressing up in the most sequin heavy little number I've got in my wardrobe to go out, or snuggling up with Him Indoors and the cat at the end of each day. 
What is your favourite Winter outfit? This is an easy one for me since it's more or less my Winter uniform. My beloved leather leggings that I have missed sooo much over summer, a fluffy or textured jumper, a chunky sparkly statement necklace, faux fur coat, shoe boots with killer heels and one of my cute handbags.
What is your favourite Winter food? Christmas food - yum, yum.
Favourite Winter drink? It's a close call between gingerbread latte (skinny and decaf of course, so you could ask yourself, what the point is really... ) or hot peppermint chocolate with lashings of whipped cream - oh how naughty...
What is your dream way to spend a Winter's day? A long walk in completely snow covered forests and fields with my loved ones, and then coming home, lighting all the candles and fireplace and and have some Glögg  (Swedish red wine based hot drink with orange, cinnamon, cloves, brandy, almonds and raisins) in front of the TV!
How do you like to do your make-up in the Winter?   Well, if you read my post on What's in my autumn makeup bag, you'll know that previous years I haven't really changed my makeup that much with the seasons, but this year I've really tried to introduce some new colors. So I'm embracing my pale skin (yep all the tan from Summer is gone - boo...) and have added some dark red, raspberry and purple shades to emphasize my blue eyes and I've also opted for some darker plum lip chubbys.
What are you hoping Santa brings you?
I could say a Chanel bag, because it is The Bag to have - but to be completely honest it doesn't really matter what it is, as long as it's been picked with a lot of thought behind it and love.
What are the first three things that remind you of Winter? 1. The first frost on a seriously cold evening that glistens like diamonds on the ground 2. The early dark evenings 3. Supermarkets displaying Christmas things already before Halloween - seriously, what's that all about?! Let's celebrate one thing at a time!
What is your favourite Winter song? As strange as it may sound since I'm a die hard Christmas fan, but I really REALLY don't like most of what's played on the radio during Christmas or Winter, but saying that I do like a crooner like Michael Bublé or Bing Crosby doing a classic piece or for that matter Jeminy Cricket singing When you wish upon a star. That's when Christmas starts for me.
What is your favourite Winter memory? My obvious choice would be all the Christmases I've spent with loved ones, but I also have very vivid memories of making snow lanterns in the garden, putting little tea lights in them, and how beautiful it looked after dark. 
What is your favourite Winter scent? I love warm spicy but fresh scents as a contrast to the cold outside so it would need to be Apple & Cinnamon or Ginger, raisins & nuts.

Finish this sentence... If I could have one wish this Christmas it would be... 

I know this is very much on a serious note, but I wish we all take a moment to think about people and animals less fortunate than we are and give something back, either via a charity, non profit organisation or through volunteering time for others.    

Anyone who feels inspired is of course welcome to do this TAG, but I also specifically TAG the following beauties:

Gemma from Duggy Dimples

Jodie from Life of Jodie

Amber from Amber Types

Jacquelyn from The Little Scottish Corner

Styla Petite

Have a wonderful winter day everyone! Xx

I love makeup TAG

Makeup - it's amazing what you can do with it, and for me the only rule is that there are no rules. Fair enough we may not all want to show off a pirate zombie face every day of year - Halloween is quite enough, but we may not want to always use neutral shades either. That's the beauty of it, makeup all depends on how you feel and what you want to portray at that particular moment and when there are so many fabulous products to choose from in all price ranges - no wonder that so many of us are a little bit addicted to it.

I've been meaning to do this TAG for a while now that tells you a little bit about how I feel about makeup, and a massive thank you to the lovely Kate (Kate Spitz) who tagged me for this, you have to go and check out her blog!

Let's get to the questions then:

1. When did you begin loving makeup?

Well, my love for beauty and make up started at a very early age, but it was kind of a slow burner. Under my mother's supervision I started to play around with the usual stuff - mascara, eyeshadow and lip gloss around 14, but I didn't get into the "heavier stuff" like foundations and blushers until a few years later, and it's not until I was about 20 that my love developed into a real passion. And if I take after my grand mother at all, I will still have that interest, curiosity and joy when I'm well over 100. I do hope they give discounts to seniors in Boots...

2. How do you feel without makeup?

To me makeup isn't about hiding, it's about enhancing, having fun and expressing yourself. I have no problem at all in going out without any makeup whatsoever and probably do so a few times a week. Saying that though, it's probably nicer for others if I do wear a little bit of color (or as Him Indoors says: "Put my eyebrows on") - so I almost see it as a public service to wear a bit of makeup, and I'm only too happy to help!

3. What do you like about makeup?

The possibilities! You can completely change your appearance and persona just by changing a few colors and products.You don't have to be an expert in applying makeup to enjoy it and have fun with it, it's something that everyone can do in a way that suits them and every single look is unique and equally interesting. 

4. Three Holy Grail Makeup Products:

As unbelievable as it might sound, I don't actually have any Holy Grail products when it comes to makeup. For skin care - oh yes, got loads of those! But since I like to experiment with makeup using  different products, different brands, different shades, I swap and change my products so often that none, or very VERY few of them ever get that status with me. So you'll have to settle for three products that I LOVE to wear and that make me feel fantastic:

1. YSL Youth Liberator Serum Foundation - adds an amazing radiance and keeps your skin flawless all day long, just what every girl needs. And that's the only YSL product I will mention since I did my Fave 5 on YSL yesterday... 

2.  Dior Eyeshadows - doesn't matter which of the lovely palettes you choose, the shades are delicate, luminous and stunning.

3. Rimmel Apocalips - this creamy formula gives a wonderful glossy satin finish. I have several shades but I still LOVE Celestial (an intense dusky old fashioned pink) more than any of the others.

I hope you enjoyed this post and I especially TAG the following gorgeous bloggers to join in, but if you enjoyed it feel free to do the TAG - the more the merrier, and don't forget to send me the link:

Siobhán - Makeup For Dolls

 Srinjla - Women's Stuff

Emma - Fab Head To Toe

Chanelle Jade - Chanelle Jade

Amelie - All Things Glitter And Beauty

Have a great day everyone! Xx

Beauty TAG! Skin care

TAGs - they are fun to do because you get to know bloggers a little bit more and it also makes you think about some things when you look at the questions, and they are not always straight forward to answer. Every time I'm lucky enough to get tagged I'm very grateful that someone has thought about me, and I will always join in. However, I also try to keep my content balanced so it may be a while before I do the tag. Quite a while back I was tagged by the sweet Michelle from Virgos and Kisses, to do a TAG about Skin care, which I'm passionate about so this was so much fun to do. Let's have a look at what Michelle asked:

Describe your skin care routine in 5 words?
Cleanse, Exfoliate, Nourish, Moisturise, Pampering. Even though my morning routine is a little bit different from my evening routine, and Is quite often - it's all based on these principles. Personally I also believe a lot in the actual experience of your skin care routine. If you enjoy the textures and the scents, it'll almost boost the effects - you'll feel great and relaxed, and it'll show outwards!

What's your skin type?
My skin is actually normal to combination, but like a lot of other people it tends to get dehydrated for lots of reasons; part of it is genetic, the weather, sitting in from of a computer screen all day long, air conditioning, general well being and sometimes it's even caused by certain skin care products. That means that the majority of my skin care products focus on retaining or restoring moisturise to the skin and for me some of the best brands for dehydrated skin are Gatineau, Caudalie, Estée Lauder and Clarins.

Top blemish zapper?
Aftershave! I don't often get blemishes, but on the other hand when I do - they tend to be bad and enough to ruin my day. So when I notice that something is brewing, I'll take a little bit of aftershave (it has to be something with a high alcohol %) on a cotton top and treat that area a few times a day followed by a dab of a rich moisturiser to avoid the area getting dried out. Fortunately Him Indoors has a nice selection of lovely after shave to borrow from and actually some of them are really wearable for women too!

Face wipes, yay or nay?
Njaay... I wouldn't use face wipes on an every day basis, and personally I prefer to have separate products for a gentle good cleanse that's adopted for specific needs e.g. eye make up remover, cleanser, toner etc and I don't see how different types of needs can be met in just one product. However if you're traveling or if you can't be bothered with a micellar water or cleansing solution and cotton pad, it's very practical, quick and easy to use facial wipes.

Toner, yay or nay?
Definitely! it's one of the beauty products I started to use, I still remember my first basic trio of products: Cleansing lotion, Purifying toner and a Moisturiser. I like to use a toner and for me it's like making absolutely sure that you remove every particle of makeup that you've used. I also like that it makes the skin feel very refreshed between cleansing and moisturising and it's also lovely to use a facial spray at this stage.

High-end skin care or high-end makeup?
I do have make up favourites from premium brands, that I wouldn't want to be without, but there is also an excellent range of more purse friendly makeup options on the high street, with great pigmentation and shades. So for me I'm more willing to splurge on high end skin care and I actually think of it as an investment. That doesn't mean that only high-end skin care is worth getting. We all know that we pay more for premium brands, not always because of how effective they are but because of the label, the packaging and the marketing - which all add to the price tag. If you strip out those costs, you'll get a different price and there are definitely budget brands that have lovely products, e.g. Garnier. For me it's not necessarily about using high-end or not, I think we all have a mix of products in our cabinets and drawers, but what it is about is getting the basics right. If you don't treat your skin well - it doesn't matter how much money you spend on makeup, since you'll only try to cover your skin rather than enhancing it, and the make up won't look as lovely as it could. 

What's the most unusual skin care product you've tried?
Since I love to try new products I have a long list of things to choose from, but it would need to be a face mask. It wasn't the texture or the sensation as such that made it unusual, it was that one of the  main ingredients was bee venom. It was supposed to deeply hydrate and rejuvenate the cells as well as help with scars. I don't know if it actually did that, but since bee venom has a plumping effect the skin did look nicely hydrated and smooth, which of course will help to smooth out any imperfections. 

Tell us your top skin care tip:
Sleep, sleep, sleep. Him Indoors jokingly calls me the Champion of sleep, but it's a well known fact that sleep is essential not just for general well being, but for the cells to regenerate. It's also the time when your skin is most receptive to treatments and creams, which is why a lot of products intended to be used overnight are richer than products intended for day wear. So make sure you get your Zzzeds.

Thank you again to Michelle for tagging me and to keep this going, I'm passing this on to the following lovely bloggers, who you must go and check out:

Lucy from the New Northerner

Rachael from All the Little Things

L from Maquillage magic

Jackie from Beautify

Ambi from Ambi Fashion

Have a wonderful day everyone! Xx