Mini haul

Still dating back to my Aachen trip, I got the MaxFactor eyebrow pencil, in hazel, my all time favourite, and two things of the current limited edition by Catrice Nymphelia - lipgloss in Nymph's glow and Lashes to Kill Mascara Black-Green Eye-Opening Effect Mascara - because I love the black one so much :-).

The lipgloss is the only disappointing bit, it has an uneven consistency and I actually really dislike the colour...I would not recommend buying it.

Catrice Perfect Adapt Concealer

There are so many products trying to copy the success of YSL Touche Eclat that it now watered down to Catrice, too. I support the idea, but unfortunately, this concealer is far from being useful...it has very sheer coverage, it is difficult to blend and the pump is useless in providing you with just the right amount...definitely do not recommend buying this.

 

 

Catrice Made to Stay Longlasting Eyeshadow in 010 and 040

Two recent additions to my collection of creamy eyeshadows - 040 Lord of the Blings and 010 Pearly Habour. I actually prefer the first one, as it has a great light cool-toned golden colour...

 

Catrice NailLaquer in 580 Blues Brother Vol. II

Think midnight in Paris colour, it could not be more perfect!

 

 

Battle of the primers - L'Oreal Magic Perfecting Base vs Catrice Prime and Fine Smoothing Refiner

Given that I have an oily complexion, I have been on the look-out for a good primer to stop the excess oil shining through my makeup. I have tried quite a few of them and I finally settled for L'Oreal Magic Perfecting Base. However, I am very happy to share news with you, there is a better alternative!

L'Oreal Magic Perfecting Base is on the pricey side, it can cost anything up to 20 EUR, the prices really vary from Di, Kruidvat (cheapest) to Inno (most expensive), the best deal is by Ryanair when you fly :-). They are both the pretty much the same size, 15 ml or 0,5 oz with L'Oreal and 14 g or 0,49 oz with Catrice. Only Catrice costs 4,99 EUR...no brainer.

They are both of light pink colour, really blendable and leave your skin super smooth. However, L'Oreal can be a bit trick to work with (I often find that makeup is dragged along with the primer, no such danger with Catrice). The biggest surprise is that Catrice primer keeps my skin shine-free, a thing I completely gave up on, so I am very pleased with how it performs. I absolutely recommend that you try it out, I love it!

Catrice Made to Stay Longlasting Eyeshadow in 060 and 020

I was absolutely blown away by Essence Ballerina Backstage Eye Soufflés in 01 dance the swan lake and 02 pas des copper, so I was eager try the longlasting eyeshadows by Catrice. There are 6 shades on offer. Eventually I decided to go for 020 Jennifer's Rush and 060 Romans Gone Bad (Kruidvat, 2,79 EUR each).

 

 

The pigmentation is strong, when you apply them (always use a primer first) they dry to a satin finish. I use them as a base for other eyeshadows but you can surely wear them on their own, they are really pretty, metallic and dramatic :-).

Catrice Prime and Fine smoothing refiner

"Base for an instantly refined, smooth and soft skin appearance. Makes pores and lines invisible."

So much for the promises. It will not make any lines or wrinkles disappear, but it will smoothen out your skin, giving it an incredibly pampered feeling. It costs 4,99 EUR for 14 g, at Kruidvat. I think they were aiming for a battle with L'Oreal's smoothing resurfacing primer (cca 16 EUR for 15 mil).

The product has a light pink colour and the skin soaks it up quickly without a trace - actually much faster than the L'Oreal primer, making it a perfect canvas for the makeup application. It will not stop the shine coming through, though, but I still it is a nice and effective primer.

Catrice Ultimate NailLaquer in 550 Marilyn & Me

Even though this colour is named after the iconic Marilyn, it was another beloved girl that I thought of when I saw it - Dorothy in Wizzard of Oz and her sparkly red shoes...absolutely fascinating shade...enter the fairyland :-P

Catrice kohl Kajal in 060 Don't be mean to green

Catrice kohl kajal pencils are wonderful, soft enough on your eyes with excellent longevity, beautiful colour selection and impecabble payoff. A must for any makeup addict :-)

My current nail polish favourites

Catrice Ultimate NailLAQUER 580 Blues Brother Vol. II and 550 Marilyn & Me

Catrice Ultimate Colour lipstick in 130 Frozen rose

 

If you are looking for a cheap, moisturizing lipstick with a nice smell, here is my tip: Catrice ultimate colour, my chosen shade is 130 frozen rose. Love it!

Limited Edition “Bohemia” by CATRICE

All the way from September to October, we should be able to buy products from bohemian inspired limited edition. Though, for me personally, there is not really any outstanding product.

Catrice Kohl Kajal in 100 Name it As You Like!

It has taken me quite a long time to find a perfect blend of grey and brown colour in a kajal pencil. In fact, this colours is so difficult to describe that even Catrice call it: Name it As You Like! :-) Leaving the name aside, it is a very soft, easily transferable kohl pencil (it claims to be precise and smooth and it is!). 1,1 g and I think it cost around 2,50 EUR. Bargain! Be warned, however, this pencil is VERY smooth, so you might find it creasing (unless you use a primer) and it will be disappearing quickly after sharpening. I still love it.

 

Catrice Limited Edition Modern Muse

And yet another beautiful limited edition by Catrice, this time inspired by Bridget Bardot, so you can go wrong there :-).

Catrice Limited Edition Out of Space

For the months of June and July, Catrice prepared a limited edition called Out of Space. It is sparkling with cosmic colours and textures, so it entirely up to you which one you choose. (Catrice site: The deep blue of our planet meets star-like metallic effects and opens up a galaxy full unique looks with spherical gold and silver shades – this summer stands for futuristic trends that are out of this world!)

However, this LE has not been available in Brussels yet, I only saw PAPAGENA collection at Kruidvat. Hopefully it will arrive soon!

 

 

 

 

 



Catrice Papagena blush stick in C01 Tigerlily

It was very exciting to see the new Papagena collection at my local Kruidvat, so I immediately checked it out. Originally, I was eyeing the gold nuggets, but in reality, they are EXTREMELY shimmery, sparkly and quite dark to be honest, which I would never be able to pull off on my skin, such a shame.

I stopped myself from buying the eyeshadows, even though they looked really pretty and swatched well in the shop. It was the same for nail polishes and see-through lipstick/glosses. However, what I did get and definitely HAD to buy was a blush stick (I think it was 3,45 EUR), I did not own a blush stick before. You have a choice of orange tinge Tigerlily or pinky Bird of paradise (this had really poor pay off). Hence I bought Tigerlily.

When you swatch it, it had a nice, not too strong pigmentation, which can be an advantage in a blush, if you tend to overdo it. Unfortunaly, the application on the cheeks is pretty sheer and it gives a rather blotchy, uneven colour distribution and it is hard to build up the colour. Luckily, there is no strange smell to the product. It is so disappointing, because this collection looked so promising. Overall, I would not recommend buying neither of the blush sticks.

Kruidvat minihaul

Just a couple of things I got at a recent visit to Kruidvat - a set of individual eyelashes (45 lashes in 2 sizes, 6 EUR), blush stick Papagena Limited Edition in CO01 tigerlily, I think it was 3,99EUR, Catrice volume mascara, 3,99 EUR and a nail polish in 130 Lucky in Lilac, 2,49 EUR. If you buy 3 Catrice products at Kruidvat, you get a 25 % discount, so I basically got the nail polish for free :-)

Catrice 130 Lucky In Lilac nail polish

Being a huge fan of Catrice nail polishes, here is the 130 Lucky in Lilac, 2 coats (Kruidvat, 2,49 EUR).