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10 Things I've learned moving abroad

Hey there,

Exactly one year ago I moved to Ireland to complete a Bachelor of Arts in Business Studies specialized in Marketing at the Independent College in Dublin. It was truly a great experience, I'm so glad I had the opportunity to move to a different country, I've learned so much and today I wanted to share the things I've learned with you. 

Those things are very personal since they are related to my own experience living away from home at 20 while having anxiety. It might sound weird to people but for me 20 years old is quite a young age to move away from everything you know, your family, basically your life, and it was quite hard for me in the beginning. But it depends for everybody, and everybody learns different things and has different experiences. 


1) First of all, some people don't know how to live in community. 

Aka, living with other people, completely different than you, is really hard. When I was searching for a place to live, I knew that, being the person that I am, I wanted to live in a very calm and peaceful place. I literally would rather share an apartment with a 50 years old lady than with 20 years old student, just because I act like a 50 years old, sometimes. So I was sharing a lovely apartment with a lovely middle-aged lady. Everything was fine until a few months later when I came home from my Christmas break... Basically, I won't get into details, but she made my life a living hell... But at some point you just have to understand that people are different, and there are people who are disrespectful but you just have to live with it 'cause you can't change them or make them like you no matter how hard you try. You just have to accept it and ignore it.


2) You feel alone, a lot... but you survive.

You feel alone a lot, because you miss everything you left behind, and nobody understands how hard it gets sometimes. Some people think that just because "you're living the dream" so far from home in a cool place, you're not allowed to complain. But you are! Even for small things! You miss the country you left, you miss your family, your friends, every silly little things. And having anxiety I had a hard time making friends, so sometimes I felt very alone because I felt a little bit low and I felt like I couldn't talk to anyone. But in the end, you survive, because it's just a phase every one goes through. You just need to look at all the things that make you happy when you're away and all the things you're gonna miss once you move out.

3) You find your true self, grow up, and other people do too.  

Being the youngest one is not always easy because everyone wants to protect you, and once you move out, you don't know how to do anything since you're so used for everybody to do everything for you... I've learnt to be who I truly was, an happy person, happy to go to school, to walk out of the apartment in the morning, and just enjoy life, talking to random people in stores... Don't get me wrong, there were some times when I just felt down, I didn't want to talk to anybody, go out.  But I did grow up, eventually, I changed like everyone else. I learnt to be independent, and have my own little life as an adult. An experience like this changes everyone, the way they work, study or just live their life daily. 


4) The Shopping Diet. 

When you move away, you are alone! Alone, alone. There's no one to pay for your grocery shopping or the electricity and internet bills every month (Thank God water was free!!!!!). You learn to shop differently... No more shopping. No more buying things you don't really need! You find your priority and you allow yourself to get crazy one day a month for what's left on your budget. So yeah... I did a shopping detox. I didn't buy anything for weeks until I had payed everything I had to pay, I would allow myself some goodies one day a month with a small budget, like going to get a haircut...  


5) Learn more about your friends

You met people who are sometimes in the same situation as you are, being away from home, and you realize that they are just like you and sometimes they get sick of everything and want to drop everything out. You met the kind of persons you'll never forget, and you realized who your true friends are. In fact, there's nothing as good as moving far (far) away from home to finally see who your honest friends and "Best Friends Forever" are; who will be there for you no matter what.


6) Just because you can't cook, doesn't mean you have to eat pasta every night! 

In the beginning I ate a lot of pasta I admit... But at some point I just got tired of it and I wanted to cook real meal with vegetables! I thought that living away was the best occasion to learn how to cook nice dinner for when I would come back. So I learnt to appreciate things I wouldn't normally eat, but when you're broke and want to be healthy you stop being picky! 

I remember buying a lot of soups at first... That's a good start, trust me! But move to something more consistent, you can't eat soup for the rest of your life. Eating vegetables and "real meal" doesn't necessarily mean it has to be expensive food. Plus, money is made to be spent, you don't take your money to paradise or wherever. Would you rather have nice clothes or things you don't really need, and not eat, or eat real and good  diner and stay with the huge closet you already have? Uh? (Good question...) 


7) Packing is hard...

Moving in, moving hard, same deal... PACKING IS HARD. When you move to a different country you don't know what to bring so you bring everything.. Clothes you know you're not going to wear but need anyway, books you're never going to read etc. But as long as everything fit in the 4 suitcases, it's okay. You want to bring all your life with you, things you know are going to comfort you when you're away, especially if you're a girl. DON'T! It's okay, accept the fact that you don't need to bring your whole closet, and just be more objective over the things you're taking, do you really need those ? No I mean really? Do you?! Plus, think that the more you bring and pack, the less you can buy and bring back... (Not true, you can still buy a suitcase and have additional charges with the airline you're flying with... just saying...) 


8) It's time to face your fears... 

You're alone... you have to learn to kill a spider when you have to because no one's gonna do it for you. You have to learn to clean your entire apartment because it's infected with mold because unless you hire a maid, no one's going to do it for you...


9) Be independent but to some extent... 

Congratulations you have now learnt how to cook 3 meals a day, run your errands, do your laundry, clean your home, make your bed, decorate, pay for bills, run out of money... all of this while still attending school! I loved being independent, having my own life, my own habits and rituals. I miss it... so much. I just miss my life in Dublin actually...But there are some times when you still need your parents to help you out and it's okay! We all do. Especially when you still have 15 days to go before the end of the month and your credit card is not working... or when for some reason your wifi connection is not working... or you have no idea how to make the washing machine work... or your oven... 


10) Be open-minded, adapt, just live the experience! 

Living the experience in Dublin doesn't necessarily mean get drunk in Pubs or go out every night. I'm not that person. Living the experience for me was about talking to people, learning about their life, visiting a lot, discovering places that no one thinks of going, forget everything about stereotypes and prejudices, and having little rituals on Saturday afternoon in the city, or not, with my boyfriend. It's about creating your own habits, creating your own experience and not let anybody influence of affect you and the way you want to live your life away. It's about becoming or being the person you really want to be. 


Bonus: 
- It's okay not knowing the name of the streets of the small city you're living in, and to get lost sometimes. We don't get lost anyway, we wander in places we don't know. The best memories are the ones where you got lost and ended up having a great time.

- It's okay to spend hours at Starbuck and spent your whole shopping budget in hot chocolates, just 'cause it feels like home. 

- It's okay to ask for a student discount everywhere you go even though they only have 10% discount at Topshop and you know it. In the end, you're always broke so it doesn't hurt to ask... 

- It's okay to buy things you don't really need but comfort you... Mine were crazy looking socks witgjDonuts and other food, lots of Oreo Cupcakes and Hot Chocolate.... Candy on Halloween... Lots and lots of Nutella... For those days you feel depressed (but well dressed) but do not want to die of hunger. 

- It's okay not knowing what you're doing. Who does? I'm thinking about that time I had no internet connection, and did some stuff on the modem and I ended up getting internet connection (yes I'm truly a genius...).


Hope you like this post, don't forget to follow me on Blog Lovin if you want to stay tune when my future posts are live on Lipstick Road.

See you soon,

Love,

Elsa

PS: I'm reposting this post because I did some modifications. This post was originally posted on the 12th of September 2015! 

10 Tips for All of those Shopaholics Out There

Hey there,

First of all, hey I'm Elsa, I'm a 21, almost 22, years old Shopaholic (that's when you say "Hello Elsa") and I haven't bought anything since... 6 hours ago... Welcome to my club of Happy and Shameless Shopaholics. Here we don't judge, we learn from each others! We live by the fact that it's just simply cruel to leave a sweater behind when you know it will be happy forever in your closet among your other adopted sweaters! 

I've uploaded this post months ago but I decided to update it with more actual things and as a continuous circle since I've already written about my Shopping diet, and my last Wish List.


The first step in dealing with your addiction is to admit you have one. I won't say that it's a "problem" like some people think. Loving to shop isn't a problem, it's a blessing! Who's gonna give the best Christmas presents if you don't take care of it and go out there and shop 'til you drop? Okay, sometimes it gets hard... Especially when you see the balance left on your bank account... Or when your credit card refuses to work when you're about to get the best deal ever... 

Trust me, I know... But as I said, I've learned and I've come up with some advices. And if you want to join the club, feel free to do so, I'll be so happy to welcome you, just click there.  


1) Thinking you have nothing to wear is not an excuse to shop! 

My Dad always says that I buy clothes because I'm too lazy to do my laundry (This is not true!). I'm a very complicated girl, and I tend to change my mind a lot, when it comes to style, makeup, Instagram's theme... So yes sometimes, I'm sick of everything I own in my closet and go into the "Nothing to wear" phase.  My "Nothing to Wear" issue has two cases: when I don't want to wear anything that I own, and just want something that I saw on someone, OR when I want to wear too much things and don't know what to choose... 

I have those days where I spend 30 minutes, if not even more, trying to find something to wear, and when I'm so fed up about the time I spend sitting in front of my closet, I go shopping. But trust me it's not solving the problem, because I'm gonna get sick of the things I bought 2 weeks later and go back to that dark place in the Nothing To Wear world...  My advice here is to look closely at what you own. Mix things, customize, accessorize, wear the thing as you want to wear it! At the end of the day it's about you feeling confident in your own clothes, own style and skin.


2) Just because something looks good on you doesn't mean you have to get it. It's not a matter of life or death... 

I remember this time when I tried a Christmassy sweater with penguins all over it from Topshop. Yep it looked good, yep it was cute and fun, but nope it wasn't worth the price, especially since I was not going to wear the sweater after Christmas. Sometimes you just need to step back and think about if and when you're going to wear or use the thing you're about to buy. Is it worth the price you're about to pay?  Give yourself some time to think, don't run to the cashier for something who looks like it has been made for you but you're never going to wear. 


3) Think before you buy. Don't ask yourself "Do you really need this?", because of course you do! 

Ask yourself the right questions! As I said above, it's not about "needing something" because deep down you know you don't need it, but you still want to get it. Shopaholics are really generous people, they don't just leave a piece of clothing behind. Okay, let's be serious now, just ask yourself, first of all, is it really reasonable to buy this or that? Will it affect your bank account or you mental well-being? Do you know the damages of a purchase you regret? I do... and it's days and days of guilt and anxiety. Make the right decision. 


4) Breathe in, breathe out, relax, don't take decision in a rush

Unless you're a 100% sure and confident about your purchase, don't rush! Take your time, think, focus, create little outfits in your head to make sure the thing you're about to buy is a "go for it". Tanya Burr said that she asks herself if she's going to wear the item she picked more than 30 times before she buys it. It doesn't matter if you stay an hour in the shop taking things and putting them back, as long as you're sure about your purchase. Ask for advices, send pictures to your friends, ask someone to come with you, ask someone who has an HONEST AND OBJECTIVE point of view. Yes, being objective and honest is important because you don't want to bring someone who's gonna tell you the color of the dress makes your eyes popped and ignore the fact that the cut of the dress looks awful. Also, don't bring someone, who tells you that "No this dress isn't short" when you can't even bend over. 


5) Look for the signs! 

Signs are everywhere, a 10% additional discount to an already 50% discount on a item is a sign, this item screams at you! Don't leave it behind! Also, your credit card not working is also a sign. Whether it's your credit card or the machine whose not working, it's not an excuse to get some cash, it's a sign you need to let go and get the hell out! 

This skirt you had your eyes on for months is not on stock anymore but there's one size left on the mannequin and it's your size? It is a sign! The only size left for the white T-shirt you wanted to get is covered with foundations marking? That's a sign! Yes you can still clean it, but you don't pay for something that is damaged, right? Same thing here, you don't pay for something that is not clean and knit.

If you're not sure about an item you need to ask for someone advices. But if it's still not good enough for you, look for the signs. If there's no sign at all, just put it back, go back home, sleep on it, think about it for a few days and if you feel like you're sure about it, go for it! But if not, let go.


6) A good shopaholic knows when it's time to let go... 

A good shopaholic knows when it's time to stop and when it's the most reasonable time to let go. I think the greatest moment when you're a shopaholic is when you're capable to admit that "none of this is necessary" and you'll feel just as fine if you don't have this particular item in your life.

Let go because this skirt is definitely too short and too expensive, let go because this sweater you wanted for such a long time is way too small for you. Let go of that sweater you definitely won't wear, that you took in the first place because your shopping buddy was buying something and you didn't want to feel left out in all that shopping fun. Be reasonable, not because someone tells you to be but because you want to and you understand why it is important. And most importantly let go of those things that feel alone and left out in your closet. If you're not wearing them, they can make someone else happy. Also, let go of that discounted cashmere sweater! She clearly saw it before you! (Getting into a fight with someone for a clothing item, is clearly a sign that you shouldn't get it btw)


7) List, list, list!

I love to make lists. I make lists for anything and I love to write them on paper, on my phone, on a napkin, anywhere, anytime. I love lists! I feel like it's a great way to stay organized, whether it's organizing your day, or your shopping program. I make lists when I have some things in mind (stick in my mind for more than 2 weeks) that I really want to get, like lipsticks from Mac, or clothing items. It's similar to a Wish List, except that no one but you can see it, and that it's, thus, for yourself only. If you want to learn more about my Shopping diet and wish list you can go over here and here.


8) No need to feel guilty, what is done is done... Move on!

Feeling guilty is useless. If you regret buying something, and regret it so badly that you consider returning it, return it and move on (again, a memo for myself). Stop feeling guilty and anxious because you spent too much money on something that you (didn't need) thought you wanted but really didn't.  It's okay, there's no one to say "I told you so" except for yourself, and the "I told you so" phrase has really not point, but for the person, who tells you that, to feel superior. Forgive yourself, and just go on a shopping diet for awhile. 


9) Set yourself some limits and objectives, and let your credit card breathe! 

An objective is "not spending more than 80€ on this shopping trip" or "one Shop 'Til You Drop shopping session a month" or saying "If you buy this, you're not buying this or this".  Find what's working for you and your bank account. Be on a budget even when you don't really need to. It's great because it teaches you how to remain reasonable when it comes to shopping, and it makes you save money for something bigger and greater! 

My Boyfriend's sister, Clara, and myself have set ourselves a limit of not going to more than one "Shop till your Drop" shopping session. We have allowed ourselves one "crazy shopaholic moment" one time a month in our favorite stores. Okay it could work better for us, it's really hard to stick to it...


10) Shopping for others is not an excuse to get something for yourself... Unfortunately... 

I'm sorry, I know I've ruined all your hopes to get this new dress from Zara's new collection since you were going to get a present for your sister's birthday anyway... It was very and it is still very hard for me not to look at things for myself when I go shopping for someone. I mastered the art of shopping for someone as an excuse for shopping for myself. I went even farer, shopping for people at shops where I normally shop and where I'm sure to find something for myself... It's literally just an excuse to shop.

In those cases, if you have a limited budget like me, you have the choice to either get something amazing for someone you love OR to get something less awesome for that person and get something for you as well.  So when I go shopping for someone, I don't look at things I might like for myself, I look at things people might like as a gift. And if I end up looking at things for myself, I don't buy anything, I just keep it in mind for my monthly Shop 'til you Drop session, or for my personal Wish List.


Anyway, I hope you liked this blog post. Feel free to join the club and the great adventures of the Shopping Diet, we are nice and even though we don't have cupcakes, we do have some cute pictures of puppies and unicorns.

Don't forget to follow me on Blog Lovin so you'll know exactly when my next posts are coming!

I'll see you soon.

Love,

Elsa.




Another Spontaneous Weekend in Summer... Oh wait, it's Spring! // Photo Diary

Hey there,

Remember when my boyfriend and I decided to play spontaneous people and ended at the beach last Saturday? Well it's becoming an habit for us because on the next day we took the car and drove to the Kings and Queens place! This time, things got real because it was not planned at all. We both woke up late on Sunday morning, but when we looked at the sun shining outside, we got dressed and hit the road with music blasting out of the car and me singing out loud, yet again. Oh right, I forgot to tell you where we went, well we decided to visit the amazing gardens of Versailles. Back in September, we visited the castle with my family, it's quite a must see here in Paris, and you won't find a kid there that didn't visit Versailles with its school.




This time we found our way to the gardens under a sunny and hot weather similar to a lovely day in June. Our spontaneity got us to Versailles late, unfortunately, but luckily we skipped the queue because at that time of the day, aka 3:00 pm, all the tourists are already in the castle and not outside waiting to get in. We still had to queue to get 2 tickets for the garden because foolishly we thought we could just walk around the gardens for free, like we did in the castle, but no... €7 for a long walk through a fairy garden with not that much crowd.




The gardens are amazing but I'm just gonna be honest €14 for 2 is a little bit expensive, especially when you don't have that much time to enjoy the whole tour of the garden. If you have the whole day, great, enjoy walking around because it will literally take you 5 hours to walk around this beautiful place. But, if like us, you only have 2 hours because you woke up late and you don't want to spend the night there, well you just take your €7 tickets and get the most of it.





Originally, when I thought foolishly that the entrance to the gardens was going to be free, I thought we would just walk through the garden, enjoy the view, and then get to the Trianon, Small Trianon and the Queen's domain. BUT, when you pay for something you just want to "make profits out of it", like I'm not going to pay €14 just to cross a garden to get to some other places where the entrance is free. So we enjoyed our little walk through high trees, majestic fountains and ancient sculptures, to the sound of classical music, feeling like we were in the 17th Century.






It was a good walk, an amazing walk actually when you have this view. There was not that many people, which was weird since it was Sunday and the first good sunny day we got since the beginning of Spring. However, it was already 5:00 pm, clouds were coming our way, and we didn't want to leave too late, so we made our way toward the Trianon, the small Trianon, and the domain, originally what I came here for. The gardens are cool but the small Trianon's garden is amazing as well! Literally, it feels like walking into a different time, a different space, and it's just mind-blowing, the architecture, the ceilings, the art... everything.






And it was only the Trianon! When we got out of this prink treasure of architecture, I mean, just look at it? Isn't it pretty? Anyway, so we walked, and walked, and walked, to realize that we didn't feel like going to the Small Trianon, and would rather walk to the Queen's domain, with the farm, the flowers etc. Well, our spontaneity didn't plan what was coming for us. In fact, we quickly found out that you cannot go directly to the Queen's domain, you have to get in the small Trianon, pass the garden of the Trianon and then find your way toward the domain, aka you still have at least a 1 hour walk to go see the cute farm animals.




When it comes to this place, trust me, I'm like a child. I wanted to see that place, really really bad, because it is literally majestic and amazing, and it feels like a Disney movie in real life, only better. But sometimes the grown up inside of you takes the lead. And you realized that no matter how excited the child inside of you is, your feet and your headache tell you that you don't really want to walk that long in those shoes. Because it feels like your toes are already coming out of your boots! So when we realized on the map the distance between where we were, and where we wanted to go, we decided to pass on this one and just come back on another day. So we made our way back to the train station, tired and dying under grey clouds and that was the end of our #SundayFunday. 




It was an amazing day, and I got a few things out of it. First, always trust the spontaneous person inside of you, because a little spontaneity never hurt anybody. Second, this Zara shirt is definitely one of my Spring must have even though it looks like the cutest pyjama shirt ever; and last but not least, those shoes were definitely not made for walking but they are adorable. The details of this outfit are just below by the way.

I hope you liked this post. I'll see you soon, but until next time, you can follow me on Instagram, because I'm really active up there, and you can also follow me on Blog Lovin so you'll know exactly when I post something. 

Love,

Elsa. 

Hat: Urban Outfitters 
Pink Trench Coat: Paul and Joe, previous collection
Polka dots Shirt: Zara
Black "leather" Joni Jeans: Topshop 
Low boots: Mark and Spencer
Bag: Redherring from Debenhams
Sunglasses: Marc by Marc Jacobs
Lipstick: Ruby Woo from Mac

A perfect Automnal day at the Beach... Oh wait, it's Spring! // Photo Diary

Hey there,

As part of my "Do Something that are not going Shopping or looking at your phone" resolutions, my boyfriend, Louis, and I decided to do something spontaneous this weekend... So we went to the beach! What we thought would be an exciting hot and sunny day at the beach of Normandie, North of France, was not quite what we expected, but we still had a great day under the clouds of a cool November day... I mean April... 


We left early in the morning, and after a 2 hours drive through the loveliest and craziest-named towns, with the loudest playlist blasting from the car, we arrived in the cute town of "Le Treport", just in time for Lunch time for myself and a break for my boyfriend from me singing out loud "What do your mean" from Justin Bieber, and dancing for Snapchat videos to "Make me like you" from Gwen Stefanie. Luckily, the sun was there, and it felt like Spring. 


Quickly after lunch, our hopes vanished... Once we went out of the restaurant, it was cloudy, windy and cold. We still found our way to the beach, and we wandered around, taking photographs, having fun, and feeling cold... but you know what? Who cares? Because it still was fun and cool to walk around an unknown town, talking to nice people, buying local food and just feel so far from home even though it was not that far. 



Sometimes you just need some time away from home and everything you know, a little unplanned vacation for the weekend. So you take your boots, your coat, you hat, your camera and you just drive until you hit the beach. I'm only kidding because of course, we did plan this trip, a little bit though, the day before... Like adults but not quite adults. 




I mean, the weather was supposed to be nice for the whole weekend, we didn't want to stay-in, yet again, and we thought we deserved our little getaway. We wanted to feel like tourists again, and for my part, I wanted to see cliffs! I wanted to feel like a kid again, the excitement of getting to someplace new, of eating sugar all day, sleeping in the car, blasting songs out of the car, and dancing in the streets like a crazy girl. 





You know it's weird since I lived in Ireland for a year, and I did not see any cliffs for the whole year I was there. Mainly because I was lazy and I guess I did not live my Irish experience to the fullest, some would say. But anyway, living in France has its advantages, just a 2 hours drive, and boom! Cliffs everywhere! Big, majestic cliffs everywhere you look! And a bonus, the beach, with its rocks, and the relaxing feeling of walking on small rocks with your shoes. 




Because Louis and I are pretty wild people, we decided to go up the cliffs, so we took this railway, they call it a funicular, and before we could get to the top, the rain hit us... Of course, we did not plan this. And staying outside while it's raining, is not as fun as kids imagine, especially when it's that windy and that cold. It felt like Fall in April. It didn't rain for too long, just while we were trying to enjoy the view from the cliff, and as we were walking back to the car. 



After a small walk through streets that felt like out of space, with houses coming from a fairytale and building out of Mary Poppins' world, we decided to be spontaneous people again. So we took our map, the GPS and the car, and drove through small road to get to another cute town. When I fell asleep on the car, I realized it was maybe the time to stop for a minute and just enjoy our time out. We stopped at the loveliest place, to enjoy hot chocolates and crèpes, because you know, it's what you do when it's Fall but really it's Spring. 


Our second and last stop was Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, another cute city by the Baie de Somme. Ouh-là-là, we've got some french going on there. It's a lovely city, but we were in quite a rush and I don't think we got the full of this town. We walked a lot because there's so much to see there and we felt just like kids again trying to figure out our way around with no maps but just our intuition. You want to go everywhere at the same time, and run to see what this town has to offer and because you only have an hour to walk around before you have to rush to your car. 



It's refreshing and relaxing to be so far but so close to home as well. It's a totally different landscape but not that far from where I live. It felt nice because you're so far from everything that causes you stress and anxiety. I forgot where I was for a minute, and when and for what I needed to go back. I just felt good, happy and thankful. 


I'll see you soon, but until next time, you can follow me on Instagram, because I'm really active up there, and you can also follow me on Blog Lovin so you'll know exactly when I post something on LipstickRoad.

Love,

Elsa. 

Hat : Urban Outfitters 
Oversized Coat: Heartloom 
Grey Sweater: Brandy Melville 
Destroyed Skinny Jeans: Zara 
Low Boots: Mark and Spencers
Bag: Redherring from Debenhams 
Lipstick: Charlotte from Nars




Those Beauty Bits coming right down from Paradise // Beauty Favorites

Hey there,

Lately I've been accumulating amazing beauty bits in my drawers. Don't worry, I did not go crazy, and spend tons of money at Sephora, those things are products that I've been using since January but being the busy bee (just kidding) that I am, I couldn't find time to talk to you about it. So today, I'm writing quite a short post about my last beauty obsessions, I say last, because I'm sure by now you all know how crazy obsessed I am with makeup, skincare and other beauty products. I have no shame! Well that's not true actually... I do feel shame when I see the balance on my bank account... Oopsie? Those are investments! Did you see my face? Of course I need a new foundation! Do you feel my hair? This lotion was a matter of life or death! Of course I'm only kidding.


Before going any further, I would like to warn you that those are quite pricy items so beware. Those are not the kind of things I can afford in one monthly shopping trip. Now that you're warned, let's get into it.

1) Urban Decay Naked Foundation
I wrote about it in my S.O.S Skincare latest post but I didn't get too much into it because I was saving this beauty for a special post. And here it is folks! As you may or may not know, I bought this when my face was breaking out like crazy and I was in much need of a lighter foundation. I looked at the reviews on Sephora.com before buying it and they didn't really blow me away. I was concerned by the fact that the coverage seemed light. I decided to give it a go because one of my friends recommended it to me. I couldn't be happier, the foundation is light and feels so nice on the skin, but the coverage is medium and easy to build into the skin. It feels like a moisturizer, and it's amazing. One big drop of product covers any blemishes and redness, and it's quite long lasting, I'll say it takes me 5 to 6 hours before I need to do some touch-ups. The first day I used this, one of my friends even told me that I looked flawless and my skin was so luminous. So I highly recommend this one! 

2) Nars Narsissist Cheek Studio Palette
This must be my most precious and favorite thing in my makeup drawer. From the moment I laid my eyes on it I fell in love with it. It's amazing, very pricy but amazing. This palette has one bronzer, one highlighter, one contour blush, and 4 different blushes in limited editions. Yes, 4!!!!! It's so practical I can't deal with it. For my trip to the Caribbean, I only took this palette with my foundation for my face, and it just sealed the deal for night time. I'm never been so happy with makeup. The contour blush is great, it really defines the face, and the bronzer feels like your face just got hit by Summer and sunshine. The 4 blushes are very pretty as well, you have a light sparkly pink, which I mostly use as a highlighter on the top of my cheeks or well my face is so contoured I don't feel like wearing blush. It also has a light sparkly pinky coral that I use for a softer look, a deeper coral for a more define look, and finally a deep pink that I love as well, very Disney Princess. The highlighter is also great, not too sparkly, quite soft and nice. The thing that I adore about this palette, is the pigmentation! It's mind-blowing! Everything looks great on the face, and makes your face looks more define, and it lasts all day too!


3) Bumble and Bumble BB Straight Blow Dry 
I first bought this as a travel sized blow dry helper before flying out to Martinique, and I'm sure some of you know that I love my travel sized Bumble and Bumble haircare products! I've never heard about this Blow Dry Haircare before, but I thought I'll give it a go for the vacation. It's an amazing blow dry products, I've tested a lot in the past, and trust me, nothing is as amazing as this one! It's easy to apply and doesn't leave my hair greasy, when I blow dry my hair, my hair feels nice, and it smells nice as well, it's shiny and soft for the next 3 days until I need to wash it.  Moreover, once my hair is straight, it stays straight! I don't even need hairspray with this! Crazy. 

4) Mac Retro Matte Liquid Lipcolour 
One of my friends told me about those new liquid lipstick from Mac, but being disappointed by Makeup Forever ones before, I quickly said "No thanks I'll pass", but when she came to class on the next wearing this amazing deep red matte lipstick on her lips, I was like "Where did you get that?!". When she showed me the two retro matte liquid lipsticks she got from Mac, it was clear in my head that I needed one. So I went to Mac, happy and confident I would find the same deep red, and a light nude one... Ahaha what a fail... Of course, the lipsticks were a success, and they quickly ran out of it. I did find a red/orange lipstick though, and I'm pretty content with it. The color is great for the summer, and although the texture is quite matte and dry, it does not feel that dry on the lips. It stays on like crazy, even when you eat, drink or kiss! It's not as easy as a real lipstick to apply because it dries quickly but it feels good on the lips and it looks amazing! Also, I feel like it dries slowly, compare to the Makeup Forever ones, and you still do some quick touch ups when applied. 


5) Alterna Caviar Repair Hair Mask 
I love the Alterna Caviar Repair line, they are Sulfates free, and only good to your hair. Again, very pricy but my hair has never felt so nice. I've really noticed a big difference since using Caviar Repair, my hair is shiny, soft, and looks less damaged. I mostly use the shampoo and conditionner but before flying out to the Caribbean I bought the travel-sized hair mask (#obsessedwithtravelsize). I started using it when I came back from the Caribbean, because you know I'm so logical I buy things for vacation that I don't use on vacation... I love it so much, it really feels like it's curing my hair. I also love the smell of it. I apply it all over my hair and leave it for 5 minutes or more before I rinse it. It's truly amazing.

6) Nars Satin Lip Pencil 
You know I'm a big fan of Nars, especially their lipsticks. I keep telling everyone I know that Nars' lipsticks are amazing! It's pricy but honestly it's the one makeup brand that is actually worth it. I would rather spend €30 something on a lipstick from Nars than one from Chanel or Dior, because trust me I know. Anyway, I wanted to try their lip pencil for awhile. The first one I got was from their Velvet Matte lip pencil, and I got a nude shade that I'm really happy with. However, I came across this fuchsia shade, and it was so pretty, I bought it. One thing I love about Nars is the name they give to their lipsticks. The one that I got is called Luxembourg, as I said it's a pigmented fuchsia shade, very creamy/satin but with a matte finish. It's easy to apply because it's a pencil, and it stays on nicely and forever.  



That's it for today's post, I hope you liked it, and found it useful if you wanted to try a high-end product. Let me know. 

I'll see you soon, but until next time, you can follow me on Instagram, because I'm really active up there, and you can also follow me on Blog Lovin so you'll know exactly when I post something on LipstickRoad.

Love,

Elsa.