The Balm - Off to Balm Springs!

Hello lovelys,

did everyone survive Friday, 13th all right?! I hope so! I had a pretty good day, actually, can't complain :)
Before summer hurries completely into autumn, I do my best to keep my warm spirits up! Last year I've been celebrating Thanksgiving with my wonderful friend and her amazing family in Palm Springs, California. We experienced an unforgettable couple of days. When I saw the cute retro-styled Balm Springs palette by The Balm I just got it as the name reminded me of that wonderful experience. I did not have a single look at what was in it at that point!!


When I unwrapped my palette and eye-shadow I collected from the store I was very amazed by the quality of the Overshadows- the sexpot series. Brilliant names (I've got the full sized If you're rich I'm single and the palette contained a mini version of no money, no honey) meet excellent quality!! The shadows are 100% mineral makeup that contain no other ingredients than Mica, Iron Oxides, and Titanium Dioxides - a dream come true! I use those all the time as my sensitive eyes (I wear contacts, too) get itchy and red sometimes by using too many conventional eye-products but not so with these! This is a definite 'yes' for the fab sex pots!! As for the other things in the palette - the Shady Lady shadow in shameless shana, the Pick-up Liner eyeliner in casanova, and the eye-shadow brush I must admit that I don't use them much. The shameless shana shadow works well, stays put and has a subtle sheen to it, so there's no reason to not use it regularly (memo to myself!). The pencil is good quality and the brush's small, both are fine for touch-ups on travels. At home I would use alternative kohls and brushes.

Below is my eye using only the products in the palette, sorry if the colors look too fair in the picture.
for color reference - no money, no honey is the same as Bare Escentuals' queen phillis!


What about you?! Did you buy make-up because of its packaging before? What do you think about the retro style?

Best, Sam xx

Official web page: http://www.thebalm.com

From Sophisticated to Bohemian... in no time!

Dear readers,

as much as I love to talk about make-up, fashion, and all things beautiful - sometimes I can't be bothered to spend all that much time doing my make-up routine. I remember one day in particular, when I had 2 hrs to have pictures taken in an old building looking as neat as possible and immediately after dancing on a roof top during sunset appearing all free and watching the world go by... I had no time to redo my make-up whatsoever, so I had a little thought beforehand on which cosmetic products might be working for both settings. Once applied, I could forget about "my face" and just focus on everything else...

So, which make-up style has a jolie and a gypsy in common?! I came up with this idea:


I used the Clarins Truly Matte Foundation (shade 02- pale ivory) and the Express Compact Foundation (shade 02- porcelain beige) and dotted some liquid blush from the Rouge Bunny Rouge Decadent Duo (color: enredo) on my cheeks. The gloss of the duo (color: samba) went on my lips, of course. For my eyes, I put on the gorgeous shimmering mauve mineral Overshadow by The Balm (shade: If you're rich, I'm single) all over the lid and into the crease. I lined and smudged my eyes with my favorite Benefit kohl pencil (color: sable). I knew that it was supposed to be a hot day and this kohl pencil could smear up in humid weather, so I let the liner dry a little and then put it on a second time before smudging it with the sponge tip. Please note that this pencil is discontinued. They got exchanged with the Benefit automatic liner duo pencils. I tested them when they first came out and I thought they were awful! They did not go evenly on my lash line and when I tried to smudge them they were gone immediately because their texture was way too creamy! So, I stocked up on the older ones before they disappeared :) To finish my look I put on 2 coats of the Benefit Bad Gal Lash mascara (in black). Et voilà!

This is kinda what it looked like in the end...

The clothes you see:
gyspy couture - Chacok (skirt/dress), Aubade (top)
jolie couture - Aubade (top), H&M (jacket), leggings- no idea which brand!


I had a fun day thanks to the awesome photographer Andrea Lavezzaro!

Are you surprised sometimes by how easy it is to change your outward appearance? What tells you more about a person? Their dress-code, or their behavior?
I have the feeling that everyone ultimately judges others by their words and actions but it takes a little while until we get a clear picture... in the meanwhile, we have no choice other than to "look" at each other... in the internet world this might be particularly hard but I'm eager to make a contribution to keep it a personal and fun place to hang out.
your gypsy xxx