Winter skin care favorites!

Hello!

I wonder how everyone takes care of skin in winter - it can be so rough on our delicate skin (T_T). Here in Poland we have temperature from -5C to -25C degrees... Serious freezer situation. D:

I guard my skin from all this winter by using a couple creams every day.

Below are some of my favorites!

WELEDA Skin Food cream

Oh, how I love it!! It is full of natural oils and smells like citrus fruit (mostly grapefruit/lemon to me) and it`s just like a soft warm blanket for skin! I like to apply a lot at night and just go to sleep like that - I wake up with soft, moisturized skin! (*___*) I love it! In summer I would never do that, but now I also use it in daytime, under makeup - just a thin layer and not on my forehead, because I think it would make my fringe oily. It works great. :)

You can also use it on you whole body, especially dry spots like knees, elbow, feet.

Vitacreme B12

It`s a great light cream that feels like it`s treating my skin and curing it. Blemishes, dry skin, acne marks - it helps to remove them faster and also moisturizes. It`s light and has a pleasant rose smell. (^_^*) You can also use it on cold burned/sun burned skin, on your elbows, etc. I already wrote about it HERE!

BABA DE CARACOL snail cream

Well, I dunno, the fad, the snail cream. Actually I`m not even sure there is snail secretion in this one (??), but anyway it hydrates quite well but has shady ingriedients (lots of parabens and mineral oil). I`m not crazy about it, but I`ll use it all anyway. It creates a sort of a veil on my skin, absorbs quickly and it great for layering with other creams I mention here. :D Actually I also have night version of this one too and I like it too. I won`t repurchase though. I found a way better snail extract cream with actual snail extract in it (Velvetin) and I can buy it in the natural products pharmacy right around the corner. (^_^)

IWOSTIN Hydratia Eye cream

From a Polish brand like La Roche-Posay or Avene - we also have natural springs with wonderful healthy water here in Poland, and Iwostin uses it to make really good cosmetics! (http://www.iwostin.pl/) Recently they added hydrating eye cream to their skin care line so I went and got it! I was using Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Eye Recovery Complex, but I`ve run out and it`s kinda pricy, so I decided why not try the 5 times cheaper but still great Iwostin eye cream? ;D I like it and feel it works well. 

OXY5 and OXY10 (benzoyl peroxide acne treatment)

I decide to try it after seeing Gossmakeupartist`s acne treatment advice video! (^0^*) It dries out skin soooooo bad! XD But it really works on acne! I only apply it at night, only on my trouble areas (jaw, hairline, etc), at first I used OXY5 because the stronger one cause irritation, but now I got used to it and I can use both. It does nothing after one use, but after using it regularly I see a big difference! If you have trouble with acne why not try this? I will repurchase and continue using it. :)

What is your winter skincare?? Share your beauty secrets with me, ok?
Kisses! :D

MAC Dare You lipstick review & swatches

Hello again! I`m on a roll~ :D

Recently I really really love this one lipstick: DARE YOU from MAC! I got it because I had 6 empty containers from mac and decided I`ll get myself a dark lipstick. Didn`t decide on the color before, just went into the store and kept looking and comparing colors for 10 minutes and decided, THIS IS IT. And I was right, I LOOOOVE this lipstick!!

OK, lets just go straight to swatches and all.

Bare lips and lip balm.

Half applied - I didn`t use a lip liner, because I don`t even own one for this color. I read that MAC Brick would work good with this color? Any other recommendations?

Applied. It`s a bit messy, but I like to apply it a bit over my lip line and then just smudge it a bit with a finger or a q-tip. It`s that shiny because of the lip balm, but it has its own shine too~ I love the finish. It feels super comfortable and noisturising on lips.

Color in the tube and on the lips. :)

And my whole face with the lipstick.

I really recommend You go and try out a dark lipstick right now: dark red, dark violet/purple, brown-red colors, it looks soooo hot! Here I leave you with some dark lipstick inspiration! Ta-da!

Leighton Meester and Ed Westwick for Elle

Carmen Kass by Miles Aldridge for Vogue Italia March 2011

Rihanna

Michelle Trachtenberg

Travel blog: Kyoto & fake maiko & hydrangea blossom

Hello!!

I decided to post a travel blog kind of post. :) In 2008~2009 I was actually on a scholarship in Japan for a year, it was an amazing experience! I also got to travel then. And since I was at Osaka University, I went to nearby Kyoto quite often. This day, during hydrangea blooming season, my friend Beth from Poland, was in Kyoto with her friends, so we met up to go and see Kiyomizudera and Koudaiji together. 

Hydrangea (ajisai) in Kyoto.

In Kyoto there is a shop, Studio Shiki, specializing in dressing women up and doing their makeup, so they look like the famous geishas (well, maikos in this case) from Kawaramachi. There are a couple of "plans" to choose from, you can just dress up and have your photo taken or you can go outside and have a stroll or even a professional photoshoot - of course then the price is significantly higher. 

My friends just took photos in the studio, but we met some Japanese ladies walking around Kiyomizudera, and they were asked for photos by everyone (even fake tourist maiko are a big attraction, also for the Japanese, you can see a bunch of school kids asking them for photos too). :)

They told me a random jinx: if you have "fat" ears, it means you will be rich. You can also cheat destiny, by massaging your ears, so they become bigger, and you, by consequence, will become richer. XD

 Later we visited the beautiful Koudaiji temple, located close to Kiyomizudera. It is famous for it`S beautiful pond, best to see in autumn at night, when the momiji leaves are reflected in the water. It looks really beautiful. In summer months, you can enjoy the cool shadows of a bamboo forest they have there too. Overall it is a really lovely temple to visit! One of my favourites. :)

 So, that`s it! Maybe I can post more travel blogs like this, who knows?
That was me, reporting from the past XD That`s how I looked then.

Bye for now! :D