Beauty things I LOVE on everyday basis: Lush, Bourjois, Too Faced, RMS Beauty, Artdeco...

Having a first, non-student job is stressful. My beauty routine quickly became condensed for early mornings so goodbye experiments, you'll have to wait until weekend. I finally see how cruical it is to have a solid array of makeup that serves well for 8+ hours. What's in my everyday drawer? Let's see.

SLO

Imam svojo prvo, pravcato ne-študentsko službo. In šele zdaj občutim pomanjkanje ur v samem dnevu. Kako zaboga bom zdaj preizkušala vse nove kose ličil (ki jih še vedno pridno dodajam)? Tedenska rotacija ličil včasih pomaga. Ampak raje podržim kakšne favorite malce dlje. Že več kot mesec ali dva ''zlorabljam'' ene in iste produkte...

6 Luxury Favorites I'm currently Adoring

Ultimate Spring Beauty Picks that never fail to Impress

It's time to bring out those vivid lipsticks we've all been saving up for Spring time. In fact, I have several different beauty items that tend to crawl on the surface of my makeup pile, when the air gets warmer.

All NEW Makeup on my Vanity: Sephora Haul, Drugstore & more

If you follow me on Instagram, you've probably noticed I've been enjoying my time in Spain. There's no better way than Valencia to merge beaches, aquarium, city break, beautiful architecture and shopping in one. Spain is like a meet point of all makeup around the world - from highly concentrated Sephora on every corner, to UK and European drugstores, up to Korean variety of Tony Moly. Sticking to Sephora, I've been excited to finally pick additional Too Faced pieces. I could say it's one of my favourite brands but it's a pain in the ass buying it online or finding their counter in Europe. Also, Kat Von D is exclusively sold in Sephora so I won't even lose words on that. 

High End Makeup Worth Your Money

High end makeup can cost an arm or a leg, especially if you're only a student or yet to be fully employed, working girl. Still, if you crave a pretty thing now and then, it's totally fine and you should be 100% happy with your newly picked makeup product at such a high price. Here's where I come around with my high end experiences - giving you some high end suggestions that are totally worth your hard earned money. I've only included categories in which I most certainly trust in - I have yet to discover perfect high end foundations or bronzers that are worth that extra splurge.

BRUSHES

Let's start with basics, brushes are definitely the best category to invest in some extra money. Good quality brushes will last for ages or a lifetime if you're maintaining them carefully and properly. Sigma is still my number one brush brand to relay upon as their brushes never disappoint with quality and high performance. I've been owning their Essential Kit (160$) for years now and my brushes are still spotless and beautiful as the first day. Extravaganza Face Kit 18K Gold (119,70$, quick look here) is a luxury version of normal Sigma sets but totally worth the investment on a long run. Still, I think beginners would be probably totally satisfied with their SigmaTech Essential Brush Set (122$, review here) as it's pretty affordable yet has the needed essential brushes for everyday. 3DHD line is perfect for effortless buffing of your liquid foundation and no wonder 3DHD Kabuki (24$) is crowned as Best Brush for 2015. I also recommend buying Sigma brushes when there's a special event or deal to get more out of your money. Monthly codes for 10% off (for October is SIGMAPINK) are also always updated.

CONCEALER

If we continue with base products, Clarins Instant Concealer (around  25€, Clarins counters) is an essential you won't regret. Generous amount of 15ml will last you for months with regular use. Formula offers medium coverage while the texture is so refined you can easily cover your under eye circles or larger areas with imperfections. No wonder it's a European classic and a serious Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer competitor with a lighter coverage. It comes in 4 different shades with different undertones to cover and revive tired eyes. Number 01 matches even the lightest skintypes. 

POWDER

Ah yes, the unbeatable and cult classic Guerlain Meteorites (around 50€, Guerlain counters). For some time, before even testing them out, Meteorites was just a pretty little collection of rainbow pearls for face. Trying them out, I've converted into a true Meteorites fan with rainbow pearl madness. It's true, classic Meteorites cost an arm and a leg together at about 50€ but rainbow pearls will probably last you for years at 25g amount. I'm no where near finishing my Meteorites even though they already updated their design and reformulated the product. It gives a glorious but subtle illuminating finish but also manages to prolong your foundation wear. It's a perfect fit for dry skin that looks dull and needs uplifting colour correction. On the other hand, Meteorites Compact (about 50€, Guerlain counters, review here) is definitely suitable for all skintypes as it manages to perfect skin texture and delicately mattifies for an airbrushed effect. They both are 100% worth the splurge, though Compact has only 7g which could be a huge downfall, and they both smell like violets. Basically, if you're rich or price doesn't matter to you, Compact Meteorites is the best powder on the beauty market. While original Meteorites have the best value for money and they're pretty illuminating and perfecting as well.

BLUSH

Packaging is a huge factor to notice a high end brand. While I utterly enjoy the luxurious packaging of YSL or Guerlain, Benefit (about 35€ a piece, Asos) is really good at concept ideas and unique shades of blushers. Benefit is the only blush brand with several shades in my blush collection. They look cute, every blush has a different scent and they perform with excellence. My favourites are Rockateur and Coralista but enjoy every single colour on it's own. I also owned Sugarbomb and Hoola but they weren't the best choice for my fair skintype. I admit, they are pretty addictive once you start collecting them. Coralista, Dandelion, Bella Bamba were reviewed here and Rockateur here.

EYESHADOW

I have only one single eyeshadow brand to mention. Burberry is hands down, the one and only when it comes to single eyeshadows. The texture of Burberry Eyeshadow (about 31€, FeelUnique) is perfectly buttery, highly pigmented with diverse colour range. All shades are unique and gorgeous for enhancing natural beauty of your eyes. I'm more than happy with my Pale Barley as it's a one of a kind camel shade with distinct, subtle shimmer. Worth every cent. More in depth review is here. Keep in mind that their quad eyeshadows supposedly don't have the same quality. 

Palette selection is much more wider in high end department. I have two brands to point out that are not necessarily high end brand but their palettes do come to around 50-58€ a piece, which is a lot if we put the total value of their eyeshadows on the side. My two total winners are Too Faced Chocolate Bar (57,90€, BeautyBay) palettes, they are absolutely superb despite funky design and concept. Shades are buttery smooth, highly pigmented and they smell like legit vanilla cocoa. An array of neutrals is just perfect and they both have a selection of mattes, shimmers and glitter shades. Semi Sweet Chocolate Bar is a more warm toned mix while original Chocolate Bar is heavy on burgundy shades and classic brown mattes.

This will not come as a surprise, but I also adore my Urban Decay Naked palettes (31,51€ for Naked Basics & 52€ for Naked palettes, FeelUnique). Naked, Naked 2, Naked 3 are an absolute must have. Naked Basics and Naked2 Basics, complimentary mattes, are also much more handy as you would thought in the first place. First and original Naked is full of basic bronze, matte browns and smokey shades. Quality and pigmentation is the best in the original. Naked 2 is on the other hand much more cooler, complex and unique. Naked 3 is a rose gold twist with an array of pinks, golds and coppers. Due to flattering hues, it's my favourite out of the bunch, but keep in mind that it has some sparkly shades with fallout. Naked Basics in particular has a mix of most useful matte shades, while Naked2 Basics has less intense mattes for shadow blending.

LIP PRODUCT

It's hard for me to pick out only one high end brand of lipsticks as I strive to try as many different brands as possible. But I had to point out my current favourite high end lipstick brand, it's probably Dior. Their textures and formulas are unbeatable and truly unique to the market. They are usually in the front line when it comes to new formulas and inventions. A solid pick are Dior Fluid Sticks (35€, Dior counters & online) and always intriguing, multitasking Cheek & Lip Tint (37€, Dior counters & online). Dior Addict (36€, Dior counters & online) and Addict Extreme (32€, Dior counters & online) also have a pleasant, comfortable texture with wide shade selection. Rouge Dior (36€, Dior counters & online) is a classic pick for a bolder shade and fully opaque color. My personal colour favourite is 786 Mysterious Mauve (review here), a unique buildable purple with blue sheen. Dior colour selection is out of this world and I'm pretty sure you'll find a perfect formula and shade at their counter.

Hope this post was helpful to you in any way. I'm especially pleased with Guerlain powders as they make all the difference to your face, while Clarins Instant Concealer is a pretty sweet deal at 15ml. Urban Decay and Too Faced palettes are already classics that shouldn't be missed out and they are all a good value for your money. Sigma brushes won't disappoint and will last a lifetime with good care. Not to be mistaken, these are not my only high end bits but rather products that are truly worth the extra mention. Who knows, maybe I'll do part 2 if this post turns out to be a successful one.

Matte Liquid Lipsticks

Longevity, precise application and fully matte effect are the main reasons why everyone love a good matte liquid lipstick. Lipglosses lost their charm a few years (or a decade) ago while with new trend, matte tubes of lipstick seem to overtake beauty industry for a good period of time. Eating, drinking and kissing without smudging and bullet-proof formula makes a girl's dream come true. Without any worries about having a lipstick on your teeth, liquid matte formulas are nowadays also stick-free. Remember early Revlon Colorstay long lasting ''lipstick glosses''? Those were a true pain to wear as they were super tacky while also peel off the lips in pieces. Not anymore. Welcome to the new era of comfortable matte liquid lipsticks!

Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet (12,95€) are still my top choice for comfortable matte lips. There's not a single similar product that would provide velvety matte finish but still feel like you're wearing almost nothing. As for longevity these aren't the most long wearing nude shades but they deliver a good amount of wear. Darker colours can stick a lot longer. My top favourite is definitely Nude-ist, a flattering rose nude. So Hap'pink, Happy Nude Year and Don't Pink of it are three out of four new additional shades that are unfortunately not available in Slovenia. Shades tend to settle into matte finish after a few additional minutes, I apologise for my unsettled, freshly applied swatches. You can find Bourjois in almost any European drugstore while you can still shop internationally on FeelUnique, LookFantastic and Asos. You can read a more indepth review and swatches here.

L.A. Girl Matte Flat Finish Pigment Gloss (3,99$) range is my second top favourite brand for matte lips with extended longevity. They are truly opaque with one swipe, extra matte when settled, don't peel off and leave an outstanding impression. For the price these are definitely a steal and I can't recommend them warmly enough. As there might be some formula trouble with lighter, white-based shades I haven't had any problems with my 3 picks.They stay on for the entire day, don't smudge and fade evenly. Dreamy is similar to my Mac Oxblood (LE) lipstick (review here), a warm peachy nude on fair skin tones, Timeless is a good dupe for Mac Flat Out Fabulous with neon purple-pink. Rebel is one of a kind grape colour with a balanced warmth (wore it in my older post here). Highly recommend. Keep in mind these are a tiny bit sticky with drying. Sticky feeling slowly fades with wear. You can buy them on Ebay or BeautyJoint.

Menow Long Lasting Gloss (1,18$) from Ebay sparked up my attention solely for being good dupe shades for Lime Crime Velvetines and Mateja's review. I instantly snapped shade 18 as it is a good dupe for ever so famous Lime Crime Cashmere. It's truly a wonderful taupe-rose-nude. Number 33 is supposedly compared to Lime Crime Wicked, a darkened red. Colour 30 was just a random mistake as it's too warm toned and brown for my taste. If I dedicate a minute or two to formula, these aren't the best matte lipglosses I've come across. They do wear a couple of hours but slowly start to peel off unevenly upon eating or drinking. Any sort of oil will leave you with a bare spot on your lips. Also, hard to remove or touch up. Formula is not trust worthy but okay for smaller errands. Also, I'm not too keen of not knowing ingredients and it's origin. I might toss out shade 30 and 33. All in all, great for experimenting with colours but nothing majorly impressive. They are slightly sticky upon application.

Too Faced Melted Liquified Lipstick (23,60€) in Melted Marshmallow is not entirely matte. It delivers more of a velvet/satin/creamy finish to your lips. Still it's comfortable without any extra moving or smudging. I truly enjoy this product as it also has a sponge tip applicator, smells delicious and has a good colour payoff. You can definitely find more affordable options but if you're eyeing this particular product I would recommend it. Melted Marshmallow in particular is a baby pink with warm undertones. You can buy Too Faced internationally on Beauty Bay.

I've recently snapped a Makeup Factory Mat Lip Fluid (about 14,50€) from their recent Mat Wanted Collection but Mat Lip Fluids also became a part of standard assortment at Muller (under Artdeco brand). You can snap up 6 different colours along with bold colours and dark nude. Violet Mauve at about 14,50€ left me feeling restless until I finally cave in. It's a wonderful dusky violet mauve with ashy undertones. Formula is slightly more liquidy than the usual liquid lipsticks and also a bit harder to apply. I usually tend to use it with a corresponding lipliner. Violet Mauve stays on my lips for approximately 4-5 hours. It's dermatologically approved so no worries about unpleasant ingredients.

Sephora Cream Lip Stain (around 12€) in #13 Marvelous Mauve was on my wishlist due to high rating and good impressions. First thing that I've noticed is the scent. It's actually pleasantly scented with vanilla which is a nice change in matte liquid lipstick sphere. Also, shade is to die for due to warm mauve tones. It's pleasant on the lips, non-sticky and long lasting as Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvets. Easy application is just another bonus. A great, solid lip product if you're venturing into liquid lipsticks.

So my final verdict sounds something like this: If you're looking for comfortable velvet finish try Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet. If you need a long lasting, budge proof formula with flat matte finish and affordable price, L.A. Girl Matte Glosses are the right choice. These two lines are my top two choices. As for the others, Menow is okay for discovering your matte shades but not the best formula while Makeup Factory and Too Faced deliver high quality product but are a tad more expensive than other options. Sephora Cream Lip Stain is a another great alternative if you're nearby Sephora store. 

Etude House Liquid Lips - Alternative for Too Faced Melted Lipstick

This year is marked with liquid lipsticks. From matte to glossy versions, products are flying off the beauty shelves. In particular, Too Faced nailed a creamy-mousse type of formula with their Melted Long Wear Lipsticks. Creamy to matte finish is easy to apply yet it sets throughout the entire day, leaving you careless about your bright lipstick. Etude House Color In Liquid Lips offers the same comfort and durability with a fraction of the price. And cuter packaging. 

Etude House Liquid Lips offers an entire rainbow of colours, you can choose within 20 youthful shades. With a massive color selection, Liquid Lips also give off high coverage and pigments. This is not a gloss, it's highly pigmented creamy lipstick in a gloss tube. Texture is getting better and better from the minute you've applied lipstick on your lips. Formula is indeed, really comparable with Too Faced version. Product applies creamy (almost watery) but slowly transfers into a matte version within hours. Basically, when the time passes, you're slowly left with pigments while initial creaminess gradually fades away.  After that, you're left with the most even light stain. In my case, PK005, is a light neutral baby pink. You can probably imagine lighter shades don't leave much of a stain but still...there's left a hint of pastel pink hue.

Applicator is shaped as a heart which makes application effortless and precise. PK005 Pink in Dolly is indeed a neutral baby pink with a hint of white but still super wearable on lighter skintones. Color looks in person a bit more warm and neutral than on my (lightened) swatches. Longevity is pretty impressive for a nude pink - around 4-6 hours without eating or drinking. Product is in no way sticky or unpleasant to wear. It's actually lightweight and watery but still adhering enough. Scent is also an extra bonus point since all Liquid Lips smell like grape soda, yum!

As always, Etude House never disappoints and I congratulate them for another successful formula.
In fact, I'm highly impressed with this little gem. I expected it to be a bit more liquid with a gloss finish but it surprised me with adhering ability and creaminess. I approve Etude House Color In Liquid Lips and recommend picking up one of their shades. For 9,98$, this lipstick is almost cheap as chips. Negative aspects? I'd like to experience even better longevity. 

You can check out other colors from Liquid Lips range here. Korean makeup is fairly priced and sold on Jolse.com with free worldwide shipping.

Beauty Haul - The Body Shop, MAC, Too Faced, YSL, Bourjois, SteamCream

Obviously I need to take a break from buying beauty items but I can always find 100 and 1 reason to shop. I was really sticking to my project pan products and I've finished up over 15 makeup items over last two months. Having a blast with my summer project pan/s I wasn't really buying any stuff through the summer (well, let's pretend London Haul didn't happen). This time around I had 2 reasons to splurge: a) finished up a bunch of makeup and gave a bag of items to my friends and family and b) I was abroad a lot so I got products we can't get here. Oh...makes me feel a bit better to find justifying reasons.

The Body Shop was never one of my favorite stores. I found everything pricey yet I wasn't too keen on whole body skincare and their packaging. After I've finally finished up my Raspberry Lip balm (it took me whole 3 years) I realised you get your money's worth with their products. And trying to be all environmental made me rethink the brand - although not too sure if they're totally cruelty-free and if they sell in China - but it's a start. Nevertheless I had my eye on their Cocoa Body Butter, Brazil Nut Bodyspray, Chocomania Lip butter and Honey Bronzer. Needless to say I got extra bits with my splurge (Beautifying Oil and Chocomania Body Scrub) and a small stroke after seeing total price. Feeling Fall I suppose!

Austria trip always starts with Mac Cosmetics. I was planning to get Velvet Teddy lipstick since I'm craving a bolder, darker brown nude with taupe hues but they were out of stock. Assistant suggested me Viva Glam 2 which is a medium brown nude with mauve undertones. I was afraid it would look too nude on me but it turns out it's a perfect darker brown/taupe lipstick for my pale skintone. And it's a Satin which makes me even happier (hello longevity). I also couldn't resist Up the Amp which is a blue-toned medium purple with hints of mauve and grey. Looks terrifying but it's really wearable as a grape toned-down color.

As always I went into Yves Rocher (Austria) to get my mom's favorite perfume Evidence. My eyes instantly spotted a new collection with supposedly their Holiday Collection. I'm not sure how is this possible but I got a preview for the upcoming holidays. I couldn't find any images nor posts about it so I guess I'm lucky? Only french Yves Rocher has this scent already on their website. It's a mini size of Caramel Pear Eau de Toilette which smells really fruity and sweet. Pear is really strong at the beginning but after a while caramel notes start to shine. If you're expecting a strong caramel scent, you'll be disappointed. I think I also saw candles, body lotion and shower gel.

Okay, I've got a good reason for Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette. I sold over 10 high-end items that I didn't use anymore and treated myself to this beauty. It's currently my favorite palette of all time, beats all my Naked/s and other brands. It's gorgeous inside and outside, smells like chocolate/vanilla and pigmentation is astonishing. No fall-out which is remarkable for me because I '' grew up'' my eyeshadow collection based mostly on Urban Decay. Eyeshadows are extremely wearable and you get 6 matte shadows which is impressive. With each application I can smell chocolate which makes me happy, sadly enough. It's pretty addictive, I must say. So happy to have you, Chocolate Bar! I highly, highly recommend this palette from the bottom of my heart.

Not gonna lie, I love all sorts of lipbalms. They are easy to use up and variety of scents just makes it easier to become a balm hoarder. I'm super happy with my Labello Macadamia&Vanilla and Caramel Cream so why the heck not...I got myself a Blueberry Blush and Coconut. Both smell wonderful and not artificial at all. In Croatia I also spotted Rosal with new coloured lipbalms, similar to Babylips. They are fully pigmented and I could categorise them as half-lipsticks. Coral Candy is definitely worth a try.

My trip to Croatia also got me a new unintentional YSL Glossy Stain #16 Pourpre Preview. Price was reduced over half because of ruined outside packaging. So far I'm not too impressed but it's similar to Dior Fluid Stick with less ''grip''. It's a beautiful vibrant grape purple that's comfortable to wear. Packaging is quite lame for YSL.

Bourjois came out with new Rouge Edition 12 hours lipsticks that are matte in texture but stay on the lips for good 5-6 hours. I definitely wouldn't claim they're extra longlasting, especially not for 12 hours. I got shade 31# Beige Shooting which is my perfect rose nude color. I actually took this color to Mac to find a similar color but with more brown tones for my perfect 90's lipstick. Bourjois Color Edition 24h eyeshadow in 03 Petale de glace was unfortunately not released in Slovenia but it's a beautiful rose-shell cream shadow for every day. 

Etude House Snow White BB Cream is just a repackaged Precious Mineral BB Cream from their permanent line. Since this BB cream is pretty popular I thought I would give it a go in Princess Happy Ending limited edition packaging. It comes in two shades and the lightest N02 matches my skin perfectly. It's not grey but still light enough. Gives medium coverage and has a satin finish. Like!

Daisy Dream by Marc Jacobs was a gift for my birthday. Scent is similar to normal Daisy (my sister's favorite) but has a bit more freshness/clean scent to it. It lacks that almost bitter/sour ending but you can still notice citrus notes. It's definitely more clean and fruity scent at first. You need to bond with Marc Jacobs perfumes - at least in my experience. I'm always on the fence with Marc Jacobs scents but after a month I always fell in love and experience more in depth notes. Is that weird? Marc Jacobs Dot was almost a love-hate relationship at first but now I can't imagine Spring without it. It's my staple. Same with this one, nothing extraordinary after first few sniffs but grows on you after time.

I'm a true believer of SteamCream. Both, me and my sister bought their jar of happiness a while ago and we're not looking back. It's another staple in my stash for my night routine. I use it sparingly on my face and neck. It's so rich and natural you can almost detect every single ingredient. Not to mention it's a sister company of Lush. Truly one and only cream I'm not worried about nasty ingredients and it's also effective. I would highly recommend it for dry, sensitive and mature skin. I've shared my experience with SteamCream team and they kindly offered me a new jar of goodness in a Fall themed can. Review will be up soon.

Uniq One Hair Treatment and The O spiral hair elastics were a gift from a good friend. She knows I like to color my hair a lot but I'm not too worried about the damage. So what better way to treat my hair than with all in one product? I had Uniq One cream before and it's okay for taming frizz, hair ends and add additional treatment. However I do use it sparingly since it can make your hair greasy.

Let me know if you're interested in any of these items! I will do a more indepth review.