My favourite nail polishes for this summer

Today I want to show you some of my favourite nail polishes that I'll definitely be using a lot this summer! They're bright, except one, and all very summery to me! These shades always make me happy, so that's a good thing.

Sally Hansen Diamond Strength Nail Polish - Something New
Let's start with this pretty orange shade! This shade is in theme with the World Cup, as it is the national colour of the Netherlands! I really love this nail polish, as it isn't just bright orange, there's also a bit of pink in it, which makes it slightly more on the coral side. The formula of this nail polish is really easy to work with, but it is not very opaque. Even when I've put on 3 coats, the nail still shines through a bit. The good part is that it dries quickly and stays on pretty long. Nail polishes in general don't last very long on my nails, but this one probably stays on the longest out of all of these.

Barry M Nail Polish - Raspberry
This one has to be my holy grail nail polish (yes, I said it). I always grab this one when I need a quick and beautiful manicure. It makes my hands look so much better and feminine. To me, this is a very classic looking red, but it also suits my skin tone as it is also a plum(ish) colour. I really like the formula of these, they are quick drying nail polishes and this colour goes on opaque in one coat!

Catrice Nail Polish - It's All I Can Blue
First of all, I love the name! Catrice always has these quirky names, they make me smile! Now this shade always gets a lot of attention whenever I'm wearing it. It's a very bright in-your-face blue colour, which I love. The brushes of these nail polishes are great because they are quite big, so very easy to work with. The formula doesn't last very long on my nails, though, but maybe the problem can be solved with a good top coat (I'm still looking for "the one", any recommendations?). This one goes opaque in two coats.

Essie Nail Polish - Mint Candy Apple 
I remember when this shade got a lot of attention a few years back, which is very understandable, because it's the nicest mint shade I've come across so far! I don't wear this a lot, but do really love it, so I really should use it more often! The formula of Essie nail polishes is quite thin, I believe, which can make it a bit difficult to work with. I don't really like how well it lasts on me, so again you need a good top coat with this one.

L'Oreal Paris Nail Polish - Nouvelle Vague
This last nail polish is also the latest addition to my collection. It is a very soft lilac shade, that is really unusual. The colour isn't very bright, it definitely is more white than purple, but still very lovely. This nail polish surprised me, as the formula is really thick and opaque! Very often, these light shades are very hard to work with, but this one is beautiful! Easy to work with, lasts quite long and dries pretty quickly!


These were all of my favourite summer nail polishes! I'm definitely on the hunt for a nice pink one, as I don't really have one yet!

What are your favourite nail polishes for this summer?

Quick little beauty haul

This morning the postman delivered the small package from Feelunique.com that I'd been waiting for all week. I was so excited about it, so I thought I share it with you!

Because I got 15% off, I finally caved and bought the Daniel Sandler Watercolour Liquid Blush in Cherub. I'd heard so much about this and really wanted to try it myself! The other thing that I finally purchased was the Tanya Burr Lipgloss, made by the famous beauty youtuber and blogger Tanya herself! I wanted to try this out ever since it came out, but never got round to buying it and I don't know why. I didn't know which one to choose, because I love all of the shades, but finally went for "Picknick in the Park". I'd seen it on Tanya and other youtubers a couple of times and it always looked great!

I'll be giving these product a go in the next couple of days, so you can expect to see a review on them soon! Hope you liked this quick little post!


Have you tried these products already? Do you have any other products I should try?

Smelling like garlic: Lush Cosmetic Warrior

A few years ago, Lush stores came to the Netherlands too. I was very excited about it, especially when I read a tweet that said they were looking to get a store set up near my hometown! However, a year or so later, still not a word about that. Now I've kind of given up the idea of having a Lush store 15 minutes away. That said, I think it's actually better, because it wouldn't be good for my bank account.

Now on to the actual subject of this post; the Cosmetic Warrior Mask! I bought it when I was in Utrecht, after going out for the night with a few friends of mine. The store in Utrecht stocks almost everything Lush has, I think. The only downside to the stores in the Netherlands is that the prices are much higher than in the UK.  So for example, I paid €11,65 for this mask, where as I would have paid around €7,80 (6,25 pounds) in the UK. But of course, it is understandable, as the products have to be shipped from England to the stores in the Netherlands.



























Lush says the Cosmetic Warrior mask is "a gentle and balancing fresh face mask with antibacterial tea tree and fresh garlic working together to cleanse. Fresh green grapes clean and cool the skin, whilst free range eggs tighten its texture and antimicrobial honey leaves it soft and moisturised." And I have to say, I completely agree with this! I bought this mask because I suffered from a lot of breakouts, but didn't want the mask to be drying, as I have dry skin already. I had high hopes for this mask, because it has honey in it, which I love and tea tree as well, which has helped my skin before in the past. Luckily, just like Lush promised me, it didn't dry out my skin at all and it cleared my skin after a few uses! I wouldn't say it really moisturized my skin, as I needed to use a moisturizer afterwards, but the honey did make my skin feel very soft! And I have to say, my skin has been looking healthier and a bit more glowy lately, and I think this mask is one of the reasons for it! Of course the downside to the Lush masks is that it only lasts 3 weeks and then you have to throw it out, but I still think it's worth it as a little treat for yourself once in a while! And I always try to use it at least once a week, so I get good use out of it.

I really love this mask, and I'll definitely buy it again when I get the change! If you have dry skin, like me, I can really recommend this for when your skin needs a bit of a "pick me up"!

What are your favourite Lush masks? Or do you have another favourite mask that's not from Lush?

A must-have for your workouts: Nike Pro Sports Bra

About a year ago, I decided I had to come off the couch and start working out. I've never really loved working out and never hated it either, but since I stopped playing soccer a few months before that (I was in a soccer team for over 5 years), I hadn't replaced it with anything else. Because I missed the exercise, I signed up at the gym at my Uni. With a friend, I started doing classes, like Zumba or Body workout, which I really enjoyed. What bothered me, though, was wearing a bra during those exercises. It feels horrible to wear when you have to jump around.

I decided I needed a good sports bra. At the time, I didn't know anything about them at all (I still don't, to be honest), and had no idea what would be a good one for me. What I did find out soon enough is that when it comes to sports bras, you shouldn't go for the cheapest option. When you are going to invest in something like that, you'd better buy something that lasts and actually works. The cheapest ones don't support at all, so why wear it? However, I didn't have the money to buy the supposedly best bras they sell here in the Netherlands, so had to go for something in the middle. Then I came across this lovely, bright pink sports bra, that I wanted to have instantly; the Nike Pro Sport bra(€30). After trying it on, comparing it with cheaper and more expensive alternatives and having a little chat with the lady from the store, I decided that this was the bra I wanted. I bought a size M, while I usually buy things size L. It fits nicely, but quite tight, which I like because then I know it will keep everything in place! The lady told me it has to fit this way, because you don't want it to move. So if you were to try a new sports bra, definitely compare different sizes to see which fits best. A size down might fit even better then your normal size, even though that already seems to fit well.

After using it regularly for a year, I can say I definitely love this! As you can see, I've even bought a second one a couple of weeks ago! It's stayed in the same shape it had when I bought it and I've put it in the drying machine loads of times. The material is quite thick and supports enough, but doesn't feel too hot or suffocating at all (if you know what I mean by that). It also doesn't get wet (hence the "dry fit" on the side) and doesn't feel like you're sweating loads when you have it on. I did have to get used to the feeling of wearing a sports bra, because it is tight and feels very different from a normal bra, as it pushes your boobs into your chest instead of pushing them up. After I got used to it, I didn't have any issues with it at all. All in all, I can really recommend this sports bra and if you're on the hunt for one, definitely try this one out! They also got them with cute prints and in other bright colours!

Do you wear a sports bra when you workout? What kind?

The do-it-all cream: Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream

The Elizabeth Eight Hour Cream is a well-known product in the beauty world. It can be seen as a classic and a must-have, which isn't strange as it is really a multitask product. I've been using the Eight Hour Cream for two years, and thought it would be a great product to write about for my first ever (real) blogpost!

The first time I used this, I was blown away by the effect it had. At the time, I had the driest, most painful lips I had ever had and this solved the problem almost immediately. It instantly felt soothing and I knew it would do a lot of good. I know this sounds like I'm romanticizing the moment, but this really is the truth. After I used it a few times, the dry patches on my lips (sounds gross, I know, sorry) had disappeared and my lips felt soft again.

The cream is great for your lips, but it also amazing for many other things. In the past, I've used this for my elbows, scratches on my hand, my cuticles and other dry areas on my body. It's also great as a highlighter on top of makeup, or so I've read, because I've yet to try that out! It seems a bit scary to put a very creamy product on top of your foundation, but today I saw great pictures in a magazine were the Eight Hour Cream was used as a highlighter. I have to say, it looked stunning. It gave the most gorgeous dewy and fresh look! So I know what I'll be doing the next time I'm putting makeup on my face!  

The two products I have from the Eight Hour Cream products are the Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Lip Protectant (which I can't find online) and the Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Skin Protectant. I only use it on my lips before I go to sleep, because I don't want them to get used to it too much and I don't want to use it up too quickly as this is quite an expensive cream. But if you ask me if it's worth its price, then I would definitely say yes! It has so many purposes and is so effective, that I couldn't live without it. I wouldn't now what to do if I didn't have this on hand on a cold winter's day. I think my lips wouldn't survive that...

The only downside to this product, yes, there is one, is the packaging of the Lip Protectant. When the tin is opened and closed many times, it becomes stiff and is hard to close and open. My first tin got stuck, and wouldn't open, no matter how hard I tried. In the end, I became so desperate that I used a screwdriver to get it to open again... But it must be said that when you handle the tin with care, and don't go smashing the lid on every time you use it, it will be fine and your tin should last.

Have you tried the Eight Hour Cream already? What did you think of it? Or do you have any other recommendations that are less expensive or maybe better (I would be suprised!)?

A little introduction

Hello everyone!

As you can see, this is my first blogpost ever! Actually I'm not completely honest with you, this is the first blogpost for this blog. I started a blog about two years ago, but didn't really know what to write about, so kind of forgot about it.

However, after spending the next two years thinking about starting again quite regularly, I've finally decided to do it. I am finally, really, starting with blogging. Why? Because I want to write about the books I read, the food I eat, the makeup I use, and much more. I want to make nice(ish) pictures of my days and put them in a nice little blogpost, so I can share it with others.

For now, I don't really know what kind of blog this will be, but I'll find out about that later, I'm sure!
I hope you will enjoy the things that I write about and that they'll be helpful!

Merel