Huuuge giveaway / Tattooed Tealady

Hello Muggles,

sorry for not posting anything for a while but I'm quite busy right now. University and new job confuse me a little. :)

Nevermind, I just wanted to tell you about a super huge giveaway, you can find and enter on: 

http://www.tattooedtealady.com/2012/08/super-big-international-giveaway.html

There are lots of Beauty and Skincare products, which are absolutely amazing and I think it's veeeery generous of Sophia to give them away. :)  

Well, yeah check out the giveaway and have a beautiful day. A new blog post is to come soon! :)

See you next time,
Hermione

Products I regret buying #1

Hello Muggles,

today I would like to talk about beauty products and I don't like and I regret buying.

Before I start I would like you to know that this is my opinion and it's totally okay if you don't agree with me. I don't want to offense anybody! I always considered these kinds of posts as very useful / helpful because you see the negative side of beauty products then and think about getting a product a little more. ;)


I hope you have fun! Let's get started...

# One

The first product I would like to talk about is the L.A. Girl Crème Lipstick in the shade Pure Ecstasy (3,95 €). The reason I bought this was it looked totally different on the page I ordered it as you can see here: 

                                                           

This is the colour I wanted - and I still want because I'm totally into those rosewood colours! - and which was titled "Pure Ecstasy". In this case I think it's obvious that these two colours don't match at all and I this is kind of rude.

But there's more. So not only the colour is not at all what it should be (you can see that it is the brightest orange / coral, which looks unbelievably bad with my pale skin and reddish hair!) - no, additionally it looks horrible on the lips!

It's so creasy and makes your lips look awful. It also doesn't get into the "inner" section of the lip, as you can see quite good on the picture above.

Urgh, it's just the most horrible lip product I ever owned! 

# Two

Next up there is the P2 All Day Matt Make Up in the shade 010 charming ivory (about 3-4 €), which is the first foundation I've ever bought. I really don't know why I chose a matte one because my skin is very dry and this had to go wrong. Well, I still sometimes use it as an alternative for concealer under my eyes and that's okay but for a real foundation it is simply too matte and also too dark for me. Although I already picked the lightest colour, it doesn't look right on my pale skin.

I hope you can see that it seems to be quite rosy-toned but the truth is that it's not at all! The strange thing is that I have rosy-toned skin on my face but slightly more yellow toned skin on my hands and arms; so when I swatched it, it looked all right. But after applying the foundation on my face it just looked as yellow as every other drugstore foundation, which I think is very sad! :(

# Three

Now let's get to eye shadows. I bought the Maybelline EyeStudio Intense Chic in Vivid Pinks / Roses Magnétiques for 7,95 € if I remember correctly. Predominantly I bought it for my ball / prom in school because I had a pastel pink dress and thought the eyeshadows would look nice with it. Unfortunately I couldn't swatch it because there were no samples and you couldn't open the eyeshadow "palette" because of that little stripe of tape you maybe can see on the upper picture. To be honest that was a mistake. For such a "high price" I thought I would get pigmented and pretty colours but the truth is this:

The first three colours almost look identical. Especially on the eye you can't make a difference between them. The pigmentation is lousy considering the cost! What's also strange is that the 2nd colour looks more bright and white than the 1st one. But not enough yet: The eyeshadows smudge and "crumble" a lot! This is why the packaging looks so dirty although I only used them twice. 

This product probably has been the most disappointing one! Pity!

# Four

The next product I've got for you is an eyeshadow as well. The quatro eyeshadow in 01 xoxo by essence promises "4 long-lasting, trendy eyeshadow shades for creating endless looks". 

I actually knew what I was doing. This one was only about 3 € and I was quite sure that I wouldn't be astonished by it's beauty because I only got it for a Halloween make up but nevertheless I think that it's not okay to sell such crap. Here's what they look swatched:

Again they are very shimmery but the pigmentation fails. I think the purple colour is the best by far but still not what I expect an eyeshadow to be. This product I also wouldn't recommend. ;)

# Five

I forget to put the last product on the picture at the top but still I would like to talk about it. I bought the Catrice Cosmetics Volume Plus+ Waterproof Mascara after seeing a Blogpost by a German Blogger and Youtuber. Klick here to get to Reni's Review about the Mascara. I think it looks super pretty on her, so I got it.

Unfortunately it doesn't work for me at all! After using it for the first time my lashes felt extremely heavy and I only applied two coats maximum! It also makes my lashes stick together, so it looks like you only have five several lashes - and this is what makes me not like it. When using a Mascara I want full and voluminous lashes not five thick single one. :/ 

                                       

I tried to take a good picture but this one is the only one that turned out okay. In reality this looks much worse! But we also have to talk about the good things: I took this picture after wearing the Mascara for about eight hours - and they still look the same as after applying them. I think Catrice did a fine job with that! :)

***

So that was it. I hope you can take any use of it (although these products are probably only available in or around Germany) and had some fun!

Please leave a comment saying, which products you regret buying or wouldn't recommend! :)

See you next time,

Hermione

Tips for School (A-levels) #1 - Choose the right courses!

Hey everyone,

now that I finished school and will start going to University in October I would like to tell you how I managed school or A-levels quite well. :)

***

First I have to say that I didn't know anyone when I started A-levels because the year before I worked in a primary school and didn't go to school myself, so I did not start A-levels with my usual classmates.

I'm not 100 % sure about the school system in your country but in Germany it is quite simple:
- There are four years of primary school, after which you (and your marks) can decide which secondary school you will visit.
- Usually there are six years of secondary school. After those you can either start working or do your A-levels. 
- You can do your A-levels on grammar school or on a comprehensive school. It takes three years (lately there are schools, where you can do them in two years as well) and after one year you have to decide which two advanced courses you will choose. (In my school you could decide between German, English and Mathematics - you had to take one of them - plus Biologie, Art and Education. I chose English and Art but right now I would probably go for English + German or Education... but I will talk about that later. ;))

Well, as I said I didn't know anyone and found it quite hard to be surrounded by strangers all day long. I'm horribly shy and had some problems to connect with people but in the end it all worked out and I had some fun years. :)

I thought of doing a post including 10 tips at once but then I decided to separate them, so here is School-Tip #1 (if they don't conform to your opinion / experiences this is totally fine - I just want to be a little help to those, who have problems and maybe they can profit from what I say ;)):

#1) Choose the right courses! 

  -> There always is a huge offer of courses you can choose but I think it is the best to choose those you're really interested in! Most people take courses only because their friends take them and they can't identify with it at all and get problems. Every bad course mark will be visible on your certificate and we in Germany have to collect poins while doing A-levels and the points will turn into your grade point average on your last certificate, which won't look that good if you weren't successful. ;)
Combined with that it is even more important to choose the right advanced courses. You have to spend loads and loads of time dealing with it that it has to be something you enjoy or even love. I made the mistake to chose Art although I can't draw... my marks in Art always were good though but this is not enough for taking an advanced course in it. I'm very interested in history of art but it's just not everything you do. :/  In the end I think the best choice for me would have been German because I'm good at languages in general, I love to read & write and it's more theoratical (which I am good at).
Just think about your choices and I recommend to talk to your teachers. ;)

There will be nine more tips in the next nine weeks, so please keep your eyes open and leave me a comment, saying if this is helpful for you or you like / dislike the idea in general! :)

#2: Be organized (02.09.12)
#3: Do your homework (07.09.12)
#4: Ask questions (14.09.12)
#5: Talk to your teachers (21.09.12)
#6: Take breaks (28.09.12)
#7: Form study-groups (05.10.12)
#8: Read the lectures (12.10.12)
#9: Repeat before exams (19.10.12)
#10: Eat / Drink enough ;) (26.10.12)

I hoped you had fun!

See you next time,
Hermione

BEAUTY TAG! :)

Hello Muggles, 

today I would like to do another TAG about Skincare and Make Up (Beauty), which I found here.

Before I start I would like to tag the people below and of course everybody else, who would like to do it...:

http://www.alaurentoherself.com/

http://belfastbeautylove.blogspot.com/

http://brightershade2107.blogspot.com/

http://emzoo.blogspot.com/

http://frowardfashion.blogspot.com/

http://hannahjustyne.blogspot.com/

http://helenrambleson.blogspot.com/

http://rosee-petals.blogspot.com/

http://sophierosehearts.blogspot.com/

http://www.tattooedtealady.com/

http://thebeautymist.blogspot.com/

http://themaibug.blogspot.com/

http://vividiorquue.blogspot.com/

http://judysbeautyblog.blogspot.com/

SKINCARE

-How many times do you wash your face daily? 
About two times. When it's as hot as it has been recently I do it more often.

-What skin type do you have? (dry,oily,combo)
I have dry skin.

-What is your current facial wash?
I currently use the "Balea Soft Washing Cream" for dry and sensitive skin.

-Do you exfoliate?
Yes, about once a week.

-What brand do you use?
AOK for my face and just an Palmolive Shower Gel + Peeling for my body.

-What moisturizer do you use?
As I am testing the "Nivea" Pure & Natural Moisturizer at the moment I only use this one. Otherwise I use the "Nivea" Daycream for dry and sensitive skin or the "bebe" one for sensitive skin as well.

-Do you have freckles?
Yes and I think I get a new one every day. :D

-Do you use eye cream?
No because I haven't found one that convinced me... or my purse. ;)

-Do you or did you have acne prone skin?
No, I had like 5 spots in my whole life. :')

-Did you ever have to use Pro-activ?
No.

MAKE-UP

-What foundation do you use?
I haven't found a skin-suiting foundation yet. I sometimes use the "bebe" tinted moisturizer for fair skin but that's all.

-How about concealer?
Same here. Sometimes I divert my P2 foundation from its intended use by taking it as an alternative for concealer because I wouldn't use it at all otherwise.

-Do you know your undertone color?
On my face it's pink, which maybe sounds nice but it's impossible to find a nice foundation. :/

-What do you think of fake eyelashes?
I wouldn't use them although I have quite short lashes but it's just a little too much for me personally. But they can look great and I like to see people wearing subtle ones. :)

-Did you know that you are suppose to change your mascara every 3 months?
No, not really. On the packaging it actually says you can use them for 12 months... I would never be able to use a mascara up in 3 months to be honest. :D

-What brand of mascara do you use?
Essence or Manhattan at the moment.

-Sephora or MAC?
Unfortunately I don't own any product of each brand but I'm definitely more interested in MAC things... as you can see on my wish list. :'D

-Do you have a MAC Pro-card?
Nope.

-What makeup tools do you use in make up application?
I use an eyelash curler and brush and also an eyebrow brush on a quite daily base. :)

-Do you use make-up base/primer for the eyes?
No. If I use eyeshadow I just put some foundation on the lid.

-For the face?
Nope.

-What is your favorite eyeshadow (color or shade)?
I like loads of rosey, plummy, reddish shades with my blue eyes. :)

-Do you use pencil or liquid eyeliner?
I use a pencil eyeliner.

-How often do you poke your eyes with an eyeliner pencil?
Didn't happen to me yet. Lucky me. :D

-What do you think of pigment eyeshadows?
Don't like them. It's just an enormous mess.

-Do you use mineral makeup?
Nope.

-What is your favorite lipstick?
I like all kinds of rosey-red colours but I don't have a true favourite yet.

-How about lipgloss?
To be honest I don't like or use lipgloss. It drives me insane. :D

-What is your favorite blush to use?
At the moment I'm using the "essence" fruity blush sorbet in the shade 01 smoothie operator, which smells super nice and looks fine as well. :)

-Do you buy your makeup on ebay?
Sometimes I do but only if it's a new product.

-Do you like drugstore makeup?
I think that actually everything I use is from a drugstore because I just started to be really into Make Up and I also don't have the money for high end products. :/

-Do you go to CCO's? (cosmetic company outlets)
No, I don't even know what it is. :')

-Did you ever consider taking make-up classes?
Not really. At the moment Make Up isn't that important for me. I'll stay with watching pixiwoo and others on Youtube. :)

-Are you clumsy in putting on makeup?
Not that much actually.

-Name a makeup crime that you hate?
I can't stand people, who have a strong tan (or just too much dark foundation) using light pink lipstick. Urrrrgh! :'D

-Do you like colorful shades of makeup (lipstick,eyeshadow) or neutral ones?
I prefer the neutral ones but lipstick can be really bright sometimes.

-Which celebrity always has great make up?
Hm, that's hard because I don't deal with celebritys that much but right now I would go for Emma Watson.

-If you could leave the house using just ONE make up item,what would you use?
Can't decide between Mascara or my Eyebrow-Pencil (because my brows are a mess :/).

-Could you ever leave the house without any makeup on?
Yes, no problem!

-Do you think you look good even without any makeup on?
Unfortunately I'm not that confident about my looks and Make Up doesn't change that. I just try to accept the way I look because actually I cannot change it and I'm not superficial enough to make me look different by using tons of Make Up.

-In your opinion, what is the BEST makeup line?
Oh I'm too new to choose one!

-What do you think of Makeup??
I start to like it more and more because it's just a fun and creative thing. I don't like the "superficial" aspect about it as I said before and I don't think that people should wear Make Up to look prettier or different from what they really look like. I hope you know what I mean... it's hard because there's just so much to say. Maybe I will do another Blog post about it. :)

See you next time,

Hermione

Cologne (GamesCom + Dome)

Hello Muggles,

as I said before I went to this years GamesCom, which is a huge (video-)game fair, on Thursday.

Unfortunately this year it was quite boring. There haven't been any super interesting new games and the fact that Nintendo didn't show up this time made me a little upset. Actually there is not much to say except that there were a lot more people than the last couple of times I went there... and it was hot and often a little stinky. :D

I will just show you some pictures - enjoy! :)

Look, who we met. :)

I love Yoshi! He's the cutest and I actually bought a little
one for my key, which you can see down below. :)

The shoes!! o.o She was exhausted, I can tell!

This is my key 2.0 :) With little Lego-Hermione and Yoshi on it. *.*

Of course, my boyfriend HAD to take a picture with these beauties!


***


So after GamesCom being a little disappointing, we (my boyfriend, nephew and another friend of ours) decided to visit Colognes city centre to get something to eat and enjoy the sun. :)

This is what you can see of the Dome of Cologne when being at the fair.

And this is what it looks like when you leave the central station. There are always many interesting people in front of it, so if you're in Cologne you obviously have to visit the dome but also watch the many, many freaky people around it! :D

Here's another one... it just looks so creepy because the Dome is massively huge and you always look up to it, which makes the whole thing veeery frightening! ;)

This is a part from the inside - very pretty and impressive!

Impressive, as I just said. You can't believe how big and detailed and gold this "picture" is... and it's in 3D, too! Trendsetting artists, hu? xD

This is probably the strangest thing ever... The remains of the three Magi are supposed to be in there if I got this correctly. I'm not religious at all, so please don't see it as an offense if I'm not that convinced.

***

 Sooo, that was it from my exciting day in Cologne! I think there will be more posts about this pretty city, as I am going to be a student there very soon. :)

I hope you liked this post and found it interesting - leave a comment, if you'd like to, please! :)

See you next time,
Hermione

Sunday Favourite(s) #5

Hello Muggles,

time runs fast and I can't believe that it's Sunday again, which means I have to pick another Sunday Favourite. 

It was quite simple this time - my 5th Sunday Favourite will simply be the weather right now. :) I really hoped that summer would show up, after all it's already August. Everyone of you, who lives in Europe should know that the last few days have been super hot and sunny and I personally enjoy this a lot! 
I remember when I was a child we had those hot and sunny days every single summer holiday but this last summer just sucked. I mean, last week I wore my winter parka because the weather was lousy!

I'm a horrible Blogger and didn't take any pictures today, so this post will be rather empty. :( Hope you liked it anyways. ;)

Leave me a comment saying if you like hot summer days or not if you'd like to! :)

See you next time,
Hermione

Products I've used up #1

Hello Muggles,

I never thought that I would be able to do an "Empties" post but obviously I can now! :)
There are some products I used up and I would like to talk about everyone of it.

First, there is something unspectecular: Toothpaste!

I would love to have white teeth (my natural teeth colour isn't that flattering) but I don't use any toothpaste, which says it makes your teeth white because there is fluoride in every single one I know!  Unfortunately many people say it's healthy and it's good for your teeth but that's not true! Fluoride is a toxic substance, which was given to the jewish people during World War II to make them abulic and easy to control and now I should believe that it helps me when getting in touch with it while brushing my teeth or even while drinking it (there are many countries that have fluoride in their drinking water - officially Germany is not one of them but I'm not sure about it)? 
For me it just doesn't make sense at all and long story short: This is why I'm using the Lavera Toothpaste, which doesn't contain fluoride and which you can by in health-food shops (in Germany). It costs 1,99 Euro, so maybe slightly more expensive than the average toothpaste but it's worth it for me.


The next two items are shower gels. I didn't use them up alone but my boyfriend helped me. Not that he would have his own shower gel, if you know what I mean. ;D
They both were very cheap because I don't see any sense in buying an expensive shower gel if a cheaper one does the same job. ;) To be perfectly honest, the only expensive shower gel I ever owned (it was one by Yves Rocher, which I got as a gift by my boyfriend's mother) gave me some unpretty rushes and irritated my skin immensely!
So, the first one is the Balea Shower Gel Sensitive with Aloe Vera and on the packaging it says that it's especially mild and protects your skin from drying out. I got it because my skin is super dry and well, it's fine. Doesn't work wonders but what do you expect? I'm okay with it as long as it makes my skin feel fresh and clean and that definitely worked. ;) The scent is all right; it basically smells like a normal soap.
The second one is the NutriSkin Intensive Clereshing Shower Gel by Fa. There's a tiny story behind this one... last year I went to the Netherlands with my sister, her husband and their children for holiday. I then got the Fa Shower Gel because it smells like peaches (this was the only reason) and I love peachy scents. While using it I wasn't really impressed. It's okay but the peach scent doesn't really work out that nice on my skin, which might sound strange. Nevertheless I actually only bought the second one, which you can see on the picture above, because it reminded me so much on that holiday and that's just nice. :) All in all I'm not a super fan of it and I wouldn't recommend or repurchase it... except for nostalgic reasons. :D

Now we have some more interesting things.
First, there are Cleansing Wipes by bebe. I got the ones for dry skin and on the packaging it says that they even remove waterproof makeup, moisturize your skin and they're extra mild on your eyes. 
I really liked them! They really did remove my waterproof Mascara (which I also used up) and my skin seemed to like them basically. ;) The only thing I didn't like that much was that they were very wet. I often took one wipe out of the packaging and left it outside for some time so that it dried a little. Right now I'm using the ones for normal skin (same brand) because you got them for free when buying a moisturizer and they aren't that wet but perfect! Nonetheless I will repurchase them after using up my cleansing wipes for normal skin.
Next, there is my favourite mascara ever. It's the Essence No Limits Mascara in waterproof... and it was cheap as hell! I'm not sure about the exact price but it has to be something like 2 Euros. This was actually the first Mascara in my life I really used almost everyday. My lashes are not very long and curly, so I'm always looking for some extra length and volume. The Essence Mascara isn't the perfect one for that but for an everyday eye-makeup it does a lovely job! Your lashes do not stick together at all and the products also doesn't clump. It's perfect if you're in a hurry and you need a product you can really rely on. I will definitely buy this one again and do a precise review (with pictures and comparisons to other Mascara).

The last thing I used up is the Schwarzkopf "schauma" Cotton Fresh Dry Shampoo. It is supposed to give your hair an extra day of freshness without washing them. You only have to spray a little on your hair parts, let it dry and brush it out. 
Now, I've got some problems with this one. This is probably the third can I bought and it always worked fine but the last couple of times it didn't. Does anyone know why that is so? There's just no difference in my hair after using the dry shampoo, which makes me mad. In the end I'm glad that it's empty because now I can look for another one. Any recommendations? :)
Oh, and before I forget: I hate the scent of this one! It smells like lemons but in a cleaning agent kind of way. Urgs, it always makes me think of super clean toilets - but this is not what I want to think about after using dry shampoo! ;)




Okay, that is it. Sorry if this post was a little too long but I just have to say a lot about everything (and I could say even more). :D

I hope you liked it! Leave me a comment down below and follow me if you haven't already - that would make me haaaaappy! :)

Oh and let me know if you are interested in a guest post! ;)

See you next time,
Hermione

xx

This or That? - Beauty TAG

Hello Muggles,

today I saw that Emily from emzoo.blogspot.com did the "This or That Beauty TAG" and because she tagged everyone, who didn't do this TAG before I'm going to do it now. :)

Hope you have fun - and I will tag everyone, as well. Leave me a comment if you did the TAG on your Blog! :)

Makeup

Blush or Bronzer? - Blush.

Lip Gloss or Lipstick - Lipstick - I actually don't own any Lip Gloss at all. :')

Eyeliner or Mascara? - Mascara

Foundation or Concealer? - Concealer

Neutral or Colour Eye Shadow? - Neutral Eye Shadow

Pressed or Loose Eye Shadows? - Pressed Eye Shadows

Brushes or Sponges? - Brushes 

Nails

OPI or China Glaze? - OPI

Long or Short? - Short! I hate my nails getting to long - they look strange and it feels disgusting... I might be a little strange with that. :D 

Acrylic or Natural? - Natural

Brights or Darks? - Probably darks.

Flower or No Flower? - I thought I would always say flower... but not on my nails, no. 

Body

Perfume or Body Splash?- Perfume

Lotion or Body Butter?- Lotion

Body Wash or Soap?- Body wash

Lush or other bath company?- Lush! I love Lush! :)

Fashion

Jeans or Sweat Pants? - Jeans

Long Sleeve or Short?- Hm, difficult. I often wear a long-sleeved shirt with a normal shirt above.

Dresses or Skirts?- Dresses

Stripes or Plaid?- Plaid, I would say.

Flip Flops or Sandals? - Neither this nor that! :/

Scarves or Hats? - Scarves

Studs or Dangly Earrings? - Studs

Necklaces or Bracelets ?- Hm... I don't like jewelry that much but I would go for bracelets.

Heels or Flats?- Flats 

Cowboy Boots or Riding Boots? - Riding Boots

Jacket or Hoodie? - Hoodie 

Forever 21 or Charlotte Russe? - To be honest I had to google Charlotte Russe... so I will go to Forever 21 although I wouldn't shop there as well.

Abercrombie or Hollister? - I just notice that I have no clue about fashion brands. o.o

Saks 5th or Nordstrom? - see above...

Hair

Curly or Straight?- My hair isn't straight but it also isn't curly - which sucks. If I could decide I would probably choose long curls.

Bun or Ponytail?- Depends. I love buns but my hair is "not enough" for a good looking one, so in the end I often choose the ponytail. :)

Bobby pins or Butterfly Clips? - Bobby Pins

Hair Spray or Gel? - Hair Spray

Light or Dark? - Difficult... I love dark hair with pale skin but otherwise I would go for light.

Long or Short? - I use to wear my hair medium length but I would love to have a haircut like Meg (lipssofacto.com)!

Side Sweep Bangs or Full Bangs? - Side Sweep Bangs because my hair just doesn't want me to have full bangs. :( 

Up or Down? - Mostly Down

Random 

Rain or Shine? - Shine

Summer or Winter? - Summer

Fall or Spring? - Spring

Chocolate or Vanilla? - Chocolate... most of the time.

East Coast or West Coast? - Are we talking about America? Because if so I don't give a s*** honestly. Uhhh, that was mean! :D

Okay, dokay - so that was it. Often my answers were similar to Emilys, which is quite interesting. And I noticed that I don't know any fashion brands, which makes me think! :')

I hope you enjoyed it a little and do the TAG yourself.

Check out Emilys Blog and my previous posts, as well because there are plenty already! :)

See you next time,

Hermione