Dec 13 - St. Lucia

Today it's Dec 13, a very special day in the Scandinavian calendar when we celebrate Lucia which is probably one of the most popular traditions throughout the year, and an important part of the overall Christmas festivities. Lucia is celebrated with a procession, a group of girls and boys dressed in white who sing traditional songs and it's lit by thousands of candles. The celebration has roots in both pagan and Christian myths, but mostly it's about the principle of light overcoming darkness. Lucia is seen as the Bringer of Light and since Dec 13 is the longest night of the year, the procession marks a turning point to show that lighter days will return soon - and during the dark winter in the north of Scandinavia where we only have sunlight for a few hrs every day, we really need a reminder that the darkest days of the year have passed. It's a beautiful, suggestive and moving tradition, and all over the country in more or less every work place and school - there will be a candle lit Lucia procession that most people will take time out to watch.

 Traditional Lucia procession

It might not be as dark in the winter time here in the UK as it is in Scandinavia, but today is still a turning point of the year and I'm looking ahead to warmer and lighter days, when it would be perfect to wear this beautiful and summery Essie nail polish (£7.99), appropriately named - St. Lucia. Essie must be one of the most famous and popular nail brands in the world and I'm fairly sure that a lot of that has to do with the fact that Essie has an amazing range of shades to choose from, each looking lovelier than the other. I think there are more than 70 of them from the lightest, most subtle natural shades to deep, rich and hearty shades. St. Lucia is a gorgeous creamy and delicate pale misty lilac, as if you've taken one single blueberry, squashed it and let it drip into a milkshake.

The formula is quite thin, and personally I can find it a bit difficult to work with it, especially if it's a lighter shade since they are more sheer and you might end up with streaking (in my case I always do with the first coat). I would have liked the formula to be just a little thicker to make it easier to apply the lighter shades, including St. Lucia particularly since the brush isn't very wide either. The brush is perhaps slightly more narrow than the average brush, and for me it works better with the less sheer shades, since you have to worry less about getting an even coverage. Even if the formula is a little thin, it dries quickly so you can quickly apply as many coats as you need to get a lovely finish and in the photo I'm wearing two coats, without the nails looking heavy.

 With Nails Inc Snowflake effect (surprise, surprise!) as accent nail 

Even though I've read reviews of Essie polishes lasting up to a week without any imperfections, and perhaps it depends on the shade but unfortunately St. Lucia only lasts up to about 2 days on me before it starts to chip a little. I have had this issue with lighter shades of Essie before, which is why I tend to mostly buy the more pigmented shades since they are not only easier to work with, but I also find that they wear a bit better - however this shade is so graceful and sublime that I'm not going to hold a grudge, although ideally I would have liked it to last longer. 

Where there are Scandinavians in the world, there will be Lucia celebrations tonight, and Him Indoors and I are actually going in to London to watch the procession at St. Paul's Cathedral, and I'm so looking forward to it. I wish you all Happy Lucia!

Winter temptations

Warning - if you are easily lead into temptation, you might want to stop reading about ... now! I'm sure I'm not the only one whose favourite drink at this time of year is hot chocolate, and after doing the Manic.Monday post on Sally Hansen's Haute Chocolate I was really in the mood for the real thing. There's nothing so cozy and comforting as coming home from a long walk in the cold, lighting some candles and then heat up from the inside with a nice cup of cocoa. Some people are really creative and make their own tasty hot chocolate from scratch in all kinds of yummy varieties and flavors, and I take my winter beanie off to them. But since I frankly can't be bothered with that and am more busy with deciding which nail polish to wear next, I turn to one of the great ready made powder versions that you can get from your local super market, or in specialist shops like Whittard or Hotel Chocolat. A while back I bought quite a few weird and wonderful hot chocolate flavors at a sale in Whittard which now are my occasional winter treat.

There are some flavors that work better in combination with chocolate than others and for me ginger, cinnamon and chilli are definitely at the top of the list. As you may have gathered from other posts I love spicy food and to experiment with different flavors, and that also extends to drinks. Adding ginger to hot chocolate adds a warm, piquant sweet zing to it, but it's by no means spicy hot as such or overpowering. It's perfect to decorate with a couple of thin slices of crystallized ginger to bring out the sweetness of the chocolate, it might sound strange, but well it's well worth trying. Cinnamon is another spice that adds a subtle, soft warm depth and since it's bitter and sweet at the same time, it works perfectly with chocolate without being too distinct. I love to combine cinnamon hot chocolate with something nutty and crunchy, e.g. crocante or toasted nuts to add a little extra to it and toasted nuts in the winter time are just lovely.

Last in the line up is the most interesting flavor - lime and chilli hot chocolate, but perhaps not one for those with less adventurous taste buds. Using hot chocolate and chilli together is not as novel a combination as you might think, in fact it dates back to the aztec civilisation where strong beer-like chilli hot chocolate was used as we use champagne today - to celebrate special occasions and it was also part of important ceremonies. The chilli definitely adds a kick, but it's not a burning hot sensation and it's more of a heat that develops, and the lime cools and refreshes at the same time - this is a quintessentially Mexican flavor which very addictive. Since the chilli brings out the bitterness of chocolate more than anything, it works really well to add some sweetness, e.g. marshmallows or M&Ms as decorations to tone down that bitterness.

 Guess what is in each mug?

Lime & Chilli hot chocolate, whipped cream and mini marshmallows

Cinnamon hot chocolate, whipped cream, sprinkle of cinnamon and toasted chopped hazelnuts

I'm not that big a hot chocolate lover that I will ever replace champagne with it, but I do enjoy the occasional decadent and naughty excess of chocolate with lashes of cream and scrumptious toppings. Feel free to blame me for any accidental intake of hot chocolate that might happen today - just enjoy every sip of it and I assume FULL responsibility!

Ciaté advent calendar: Dec 6 to 10

Last week I showed you the first round of nail polishes from the amazing Ciaté advent calendar, and it's time again to catch up and see what was behind the doors from Dec 6 to Dec 10. I was quite happy with the first few nail polishes although I did say that I wanted a bit more variety when it comes to the shades, but this week I think it's been a really lovely mix of shades with everything from the delicate to the metallic:

Dec 6 - Sugar Plum: A lovely creamy light and girly violet that makes me think of Spring and Summer, but I will also experiment with this using the Nails Inc Snowflake Effect top coat.

Dec 7 - Fir for a Queen: A cool, metallic chrome for a sleek contemporary look.

Dec 8 - Kiss Chase: A beautiful soft genuine bubblegum pink for a playful flirtatious look

Dec 9 - Pillowfight: A wonderful feminine soft gray with a lilac undertone, which would be a great option for a neutral nail. 

Dec 10 - Speed coat: Top coat to help your nails dry within 60 seconds (not shown in the swatches)

 From left to right in artificial light:

Sugar Plum
Fit for a Queen
Kiss Chase
Pillowfight

From left to right in natural light:

Sugar Plum
Fit for a Queen
Kiss Chase
Pillowfight

All these shades are lovely and I would definitely wear everyone of them but my favourite amongst these ones is Kiss Chase. I'm not usually big on pink nails for me but this shade has a warm undertone and it's a more grown up version of pink, so soon you might see me sport a pink pinky!

Fairy Christmas!

Christmas time is a great time of year to pick up wonderful gift sets and limited edition collections and when it comes to Lush it is Snow Fairy time. If you read my Lush bath times post, you'll know that a gianormous Snow Fairy Shower Gel (£10.95) has made its way into my bathroom, and it was almost with fanfare and fireworks that I after weeks of longing finally premiere used it this year on Dec 1. It must have been at least more than 5 years ago, that I first tried a tiny bottle of Snow Fairy shower gel and it wasn't love at first sniff - it was complete ADDICTION. This year you can get your annual fairy fix not only from the classic shower gel, but also in a Snow Fairy sparkle bar and a limited edition EdT - YEEAAYY, is all I say!!!

Snow Fairy is a completely unique scent, and if you were to use just one single word to describe it I would say - pink, not only because of the packaging but also because of other associations with it. It's a fruity, fresh and crisp but sweet scent that makes you think of candy floss, bubblegum, and juicy colorful fruit drops. There is also a very light hint of musk, which adds warmth and femininity to it and keeps it from being sickly sweet or syrupy.

The shower gel has a lovely rich texture and feels very creamy to use and it works up a generous pearlescent lather. It has a gorgeous pink strawberry smoothie color and can also be used to wash your hair. Even though I am the biggest Snow Fairy lover in the world I have to say that I find the shower gel a little bit harsh on the skin and so although my skin smells beautiful of Snow Fairy it feels quite tight after I've used it which is why I wouldn't use this on my hair. However, that isn't going to stop me from using the shower gel anyway, but when I use Lush shower gels a lot like I will do now in December I definitely need the thickest, richest body butter I can find to keep my skin soft and hydrated.

Since my skin is a bit thirsty after using the shower gel, it's a great time to also use the Snow Fairy Sparkle Bar (£4.95). It's a cute, neon pink little snow angel which is essentially a massage bar containing nourishing butters like shea, murumuru and cupuacu from the Amazon rainforest. You heat it up between your hands, rub it all over your skin and you'll be left with a pink looking oily texture that you massage into the skin, making your skin feel so moisturised and smooth. In addition to the gorgeous scent of Snow Fairy it has an added light saltiness to it that reminds me a bit of liquorice and it's a wonderful balance to the candy sweetness. When you've used the bar enough to get just beneath the pink coating, you'll reach the glitter centre which will leave a beautiful trail of glitter on your skin when you rub it all over - perfect for use on your arms and legs before slipping into a lovely little party dress.

When I got the Lush newsletter that they now have some of their most loved scents in limited edition perfumes as well, I immediately went on line and bought Snow Fairy EdT (£25 for 30 ml) - in fact, I got two of them. I was a bit worried that it wouldn't live up to my expectations, but it smells exactly the same way as the shower gel, if not a little yummier even and I just wish it lasted a little bit longer (staying power is about 3-4 hrs), but since I've got two bottles of it I can be generous and keep spraying it on throughout the day. For me Snow Fairy is perfect for wear in the winter time since the cold weather really brings out the crisp and youthful sweetness in it. I've worn this every day since I got it and I can't get enough of it - this year I'm definitely having a very fairy Christmas!

Manic.Monday: Haute Chocolate

Not only is it a Monday, it's Manic as usual, but it's also in the run up to Christmas so the mania is worse than ever. I thought I was fairly well prepared but I still feel as if time is running away from me. Well if it is, then at least may nails can look fab while the mania is increasing. I've shown a couple of polishes from Sally Hansen's Complete Salon Manicure Formula previously and today we have another true winter beauty. As I've mentioned before this formula combines five different nail care products in the one formula; base coat, strengthener, growth treatment, top coat and of course whatever beautiful color you've bought which in this case is the very wintery Haute Chocolate (£6.99) that makes me think of decadent hot chocolate with whipped cream and a sprinkle of chopped roasted hazelnuts.

The first times I tried this polish I still felt sceptical about how well all these claims worked and I used to use both a separate base and top coat, however having tested this a few times without the separate products I am now completely comfortable and trust this formula to be long lasting and high shiny without having to use anything extra. I was most worried that not protecting my nails with a base coat would cause discolourations, but it hasn't, not even when wearing very strong colors like e.g. Fiery Island. I've also mentioned before that the brush is one of the best ones you can use. It's very wide and you easily get great opaque coverage without having to use lots of strokes, which I find usually causes some streaking in the finish. Even though you do get a lovely opaque look using just one coat, to me sticking to just one coat depends entirely on which shade I'm using and when it's more metallic or shimmery I like to wear two coats. In the photo I've used two coats as a base to really bring out the metallic almost mirror like effect in the finished look.

From left to right (in natural light):

Sally Hansen - Haute Chocolate

Sally Hansen - Haute Chocolate with Nails Inc Snowflake effect

Sally Hansen - Haute Chocolate with Ciaté Snow Globe

 From left to right (in artificial light):

Sally Hansen - Haute Chocolate

Sally Hansen - Haute Chocolate with Nails Inc Snowflake effect

Sally Hansen - Haute Chocolate with Ciaté Snow Globe 

 

Today's shade Haute Chocolate is a wonderful warm and discrete slightly plum tainted metallic chocolate brown and it's not just the name that is perfect for the season. To me this shade is a muted and sophisticated option to the traditionally very bright Christmas shades that also works well with different effect top coats. In the photos I've applied one coat of my current absolute favourite - Nails Inc Snowflake for that powdery, newly fallen snow look and also Ciaté's opalescent light catching Snow Globe and I think they are both suitable for lovely and subtle party looks.

This formula is very long lasting and on me it'll definitely last without any need to retouch for about 5-6 days and it's also easy to remove, even with the different effect top coats. I can't mention enough what a great nail polish this is and I would highly recommend that you try one of their amazing shades. All of a sudden I'm in the mood for some hot chocolate... I wonder why?

700 followers giveaway

A few days ago I reached 700 followers on Bloglovin' which for me is absolutely amazing. The first post I ever wrote went up at the start of July this year, exactly 5 months ago, and since then it's been quite a journey. I've learned an awful lot during this time, but I still consider myself a newcomer to all of this and since the blog also continues to evolve your comments are so important to help steer me in the right direction. I'm so thankful for the wonderful comments you leave and the fantastic support you've given me and it just encourages me to keep on blogging. I want to celebrate this milestone with a winter themed giveaway of some lovely Bourjois products.

The theme for these items is Iconic Glam, and the box contains 4 full sized Bourjois product that you can create this Hollywood inspired beautiful winter look with: 

Smokey Eyes Trio Eye Shadow in Gris Dandy

 So Laque Ultra Shine Nail Enamel in Rouge Escaprin

Volume Glamour Max Holidays Mascara in Black

Effet 3D Lipgloss in Rouge Democratic

The giveaway will be open until Dec 18, and I'll announce the winner on the 19th, and by then I will also have notified the winner before. This giveaway is only open to the UK, but I will hold an international giveaway when I reach my next milestone. I can't express enough how much I appreciate everyone who reads, comments and tweets about Makeup By Candlelight, so I'll just say a simple THANK YOU, and good luck to those who enter the raffle!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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

Ciaté advent calendar - Dec 1 to 5

There have been a lot of amazing beauty advent calendars this year, and as tempting as some of them have been I already knew that I was going to get the Ciaté calendar. As an incorrigible polish-aholic this was the obvious choice for me and since I got so many beautiful shades and beads for my caviar collection in last year's calendar, it was a very easy decision for me. Instead of doing daily posts about the mini polishes I thought I would do a summary every week of what Father Ciaté has given me this year. Today we'll look at what was behind the doors from Dec 1 to Dec 5.

Dec 1 - Snow Globe: A clear polish with holographic speckles for a beautiful opalescent, shimmery look. Perfect for a festive top coat.

Dec 2 - Boudoir: A true festive vibrant red with a lovely luxurious satin finish.

Dec 3 - Hopscotch: A bright, fun and lively slightly burned mandarin orange with lovely opaque depth

Dec 4 - Miss Mistletoe: Loose shimmering sequins in gold and pink that create a textured party look. Easy to apply on a base shade, but difficult to get the excess that you brush off back in the bottle...

Dec 5 - Encore: A muted, deep carrot orange that's very autumnal

Snow Glow, Boudoir, Hopscotch, Miss Mistletoe, Encore

 From left to right in natural light:

Snow Globe

Boudoir

Boudoir with Snow Globe as a top coat
Hopscotch
Miss Mistletoe
Encore

 

From left to right in artificial light:

Snow Globe

Boudoir

Boudoir with Snow Globe as a top coat
Hopscotch
Miss Mistletoe
Encore

An OK selection of polishes so far although there's been an emphasis on reds and oranges, and personally I would have wanted to see more variety in the colors. Saying that though - and I even surprise myself by saying this, my favourite so far is actually Encore. I really like the idea of using this as an alternative to muted browns and dark reds and I think it would look lovely as a contrasting nail to e.g. a vivid purple or a bright azure blue outfit. Which of the shades so far do you like the most?

Baby, it's cold outside...

I don't think it'll come as a surprise to anyone when I say that I'm not just a beauty junkie I have other cravings too. It almost goes without saying that I'm completely addicted to fashion, clothes, shoes, bags, accessories and jewellery as well - I guess you could say that I'm an equal opportunist when it comes to beauty and fashion. For a while now I have been thinking about introducing more fashion related posts every now and then, and when I asked you guys about it on Twitter I got some very nice and encouraging messages back from many of you. So this is a first for me, an outfit post and I hope you'll enjoy it!

 

 Jacket: Sainsbury's // Sequin jumper & Shorts & Shoe boots: H&M // Fleece leggings: Primark // Baker Boy hat & Owl necklace: Accessorize // Gem fingerless gloves: Dorothy Perkins // Bag: Jimmy Choo

"Baby it's cold outside...." yes, but it's still not that cold so if you wear a warm enough jumper, then even at the beginning of December you only need a thin parka or barbour type jacket like this khaki colored belted one from Sainsburys - a right bargain, and perfect for those not so sure days since it can easily be folded up into nothing and put away in a bag. Under the jacket I'm wearing a long sleeved white knitted harlequin patterned jumper with scattered white sequins. It's a great everyday top with a little extra something, and I think it works really well to pair it down with these checked shorts in cinnamon brown, black and taupe and I've added my cute owl necklace for a bit of personality. To keep warm I've got the best black cozy leggings ever since they are fleeced on the inside - a must have if you want to show off your pins in winter time. The shoe boots are so comfy because of the chunky high heel, and they work both for casual and more dressy styles. I'm keeping warm with my beloved knitted Baker Boy hat, cute cream colored fingerless gloves with little sparkles on them - perfect for days when you're out taking photographs. Since I usually have my camera with me everywhere, it fits perfectly with everything else I need in my black Jimmy Choo bag, an amazing gift from Him Indoors on our first wedding anniversary.  

As you know, your comments are really important to me, so please let know what you think of this first attempt at an outfit post, and if this is something you would like to see more of in 2014. Have a wonderful day everyone! Xx

The scent of Christmas

What does Christmas smell like? Well, I think the answer to that is different for everyone but for me it has several different scents. There's the warm soft, spicy, citrus scent of food, drinks and goodies, there's the aromatic, deep green and earthy scent of the Christmas tree and there's the dry, cold, clean smell of snow. When I stocked up on candles for the month to come, this is exactly the mix of scents that I tried to capture, so let's have a look at what I ended up with.

There are several great candle makers that come up with wonderful tempting scents but my favourite brand is Lily-Flame Candles. Ever since I stumbled on my first candle in Waitrose - Fairy Dust, which I must have used about 10 of this year..., I've been a great fan and have tried quite a few candles from their range. Lily-Flame do scented tins in different sizes, candles in a glass and reed diffusers, but I especially like the scented tins. They have a super range of scents with something for everyone, and the candle in each tin looks so pretty with marshmallow type decorations in different colors - good enough to eat actually. The scented tins are very reasonably priced at £8.50 and for that you'll get about 35 hrs of burn time and they burn exceptionally well, not leaving a crater in the middle with lots of waste on the sides.

Jack Frost is a gorgeous cool, sparkling crisp and ever so slightly sweet scent of lemon grass and musk, and for me it makes me think about sunny, cold and snowy Boxing day when you've been out for a long walk and you come into the warmth to eat some more yummy food - oh.... I can't wait... 

From cool and crisp to something completely different with Winter Wood. It's a very distinct, warm aromatic and strong but fresh scent of Christmas tree and pine cones. I hadn't tried this candle before and I am a little bit apprehensive since in the tin it almost smells a little bit like a soapy bubble bath, but fingers crossed it'll warm up more forrest and less soap. 

Now we come to the more homely, foodie scents, starting with Christmas Spice - a warm, and aromatic hearty mix of cinnamon and ground cloves which creates a very spicy, almost slightly oriental smokey scent. This to me is the night before Christmas - you're all snuggled up in your best Christmas leggings and jumper in front of the fireplace with a Christmas tree, having mulled wine and mince pies.

The last candle is also of a foodie kind, smelling just like a scrumptious Christmas dessert. Festive Cheer has rich chocolate, roasted nuts and almonds, and spicy but sweet gingerbread. It's a wonderful piquant and very slightly peppery smell.

These are all very different but they're also all of them comforting, and reassuring in their own way. It'll be lovely to have the different scents of Christmas filling the house. I wonder which candle I should start with...?