December 30, 2011

Nail Love: Star Light, Star Bright...



I wanted to create a look for this week's Nail Love that is elegant yet whimsical to ring in the New Year. I spied this beautiful blue colour at Sephora that was perfect for the look. Even the name was perfect: "Countdown to the Kiss"!

Inspiration from Pinterest









These wonderful images are from Pinterest


Under: Sephora in Countdown to the Kiss
Nail Deco Stars from Daiso
The Face Shop Nail Stone in 01

I couldn't pick it up on my camera but there are actually light blue/teal-ish glitter in the polish - reminds me of the blue paint on cars. It's so beautiful and I can't stop looking at it, so I'm pretty disappointed that after many attempts, I still can't get it to show up on camera! If you have a Sephora near you, definitely go check it out! 

I was really inspired by my New Year's Eve outfit and was glad to see that the nail decos I bought many years ago have come in handy. Don't the stars look so cute?

I hope you guys have enjoyed this week's Nail Love! I'm so excited for New Year's Eve and optimistic for 2012 - I hope you all have a wonderful New Year's Eve and a Happy New Year!!

A teaser for my New Year's Eve outfit :)

p.s. Thank you so much for all your lovely, wonderful, awesome comments! You have no idea how happy I was to see that you guys liked my last couple posts!! As it's year-end right now, I am a little swamped but I promise I will definitely get back to all of you!! I can't wait to see all your blogs, so definitely leave your links! xoXO!

December 28, 2011

Holiday Series - 4 Looks

I had some spare time the other day and decided to do 4 of my holiday looks. They are not so dramatic because I've never been able to do those dramatic looks, but these are looks that I would do on myself. Hope you enjoy :)
For a simple night of celebration - sometimes I just want to stay in and avoid the crazy crowds and traffic. This is my look if I stay in with family, comfy and cozy. I kept my hair straight and just have base makeup on with simple eyeliner. I love my new oversized sweater, it's in the softest, coziest shade of blue. It might not show up very well, but there are little pearls dotted throughout the sweater, so cute ♥

Base: Skin79 The Oriental Gold BB Cream
Concealer: Make Up For Ever HD Concealer
Brows: Cosmagic Lock in Brow in Light Brown
Brows: Shiseido Maquillage Brown and Shadow Compact in 20
Eyeliner: Kate Super Sharp Liquid Eyeliner in Brown
Sweater and Bow: From China
For a romantic night of celebration with my boyfriend. I love this lace top from H&M, especially the sheer sleeves. For my hair, I have curled it with a curling iron, and then kind of softly teased it for extra volume at the bottom. I have also ran the curling iron through my bangs for a puffy, mushroom-like bang shape. For my makeup, I have added a deep brown shadow on my eyes, and have used it to create a winged shadow towards the outside. I have add peach blush on the apples of the cheeks and brushed the remaining over the bridge of my nose to create a soft, flushed glow.

All products above, plus:
Eyeshadow: MAC Eyeshadow in Brown Down
Mascara: Dolly Wink Volume Mascara
Blush: Burberry Light Glow in No.06 Tangerine Blush
Lipstick: Burberry Lip Cover in No.02 Cameo
Lace Top: H&M
Hair: Pearl necklace I clipped with bobby pins
Bracelet: Gift from my sister from Krakow
For a casual night of celebration with friends - roasting chestnuts and s'mores by the fireplace and hot chocolate bar in the kitchen. I have extended and darkened my eyeline wing with black liquid eyeliner and have switched to pink blush with a raspberry lip.

All products above, except for blush and lipstick, plus:
Eyeliner: Kate Super Sharp Liquid Eyeliner in Black
Mascara: Fairydrops Scandal Queen Mascara
Blush: Dior Blush in 829 Rose Dragée/A Touch of Blush
Lip: Sephora Color Play 5-in-1 Palette, the red lip colour
For a party night of celebration! My bangs are pinned up with a cute bow ♥ I have drawn a line above my eye crease to add more of a shape to my eyes and paired it with a nude lip. Bubbly accessories are added for a fun look, perfect for a night of dancing!

All products above, except for blush and lip, plus:
Eyeshadow: Dior 5 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette in 173 Night Butterfly, the black glitter shade
Fake Eyelashes: Daiso
Necklace: From Hong Kong
Pearl Bracelet: From Japan
Chunky Chains Bracelet: American Eagle necklace
Bow: H&M

I hope you have enjoyed these looks! How did you do your makeup for special holiday events?

December 25, 2011

Merry Christmas!







How great does Mariah Carey look in this video??


"It's that time of year when the world falls in love" :)
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays ♥
Hope everyone has a lovely day, eat lots of food, and gets lots of presents!
☆*゚ ゜゚*☆*゚ ゜゚*☆*゚ ゜゚*☆*゚ ゜゚*☆*゚ ゜゚*☆*゚ ゜゚*☆*゚ ゜゚*☆*゚ ゜゚*☆*゚ ゜゚*☆*゚ ゜゚*☆

December 24, 2011

Holiday Series - Chocolate Crinkles ♥

Christmas time means eating lots of baked goods ♥ I looooove to bake, and have loved it since I was a kid watching my mom from the kitchen counter. This year I decided to make Chocolate Crinkles. They are undoubtedly Christmas and look so pretty - it's ok if they crack, because you want them to!

The recipe I used is here. I would say I recommend it, simply because the texture is divine, so fudgy and softly chewy. However, next time I make it, I would consider adding more of a chocolate flavour and less sugar, because these were kind of too sweet and not chocolately enough for me. Otherwise, it's so easy and fun to make and yummy to eat :)


I only have a picture of the batter after we've mixed it, because before this it was chunky and runny at the same time and.... just not so appetizing for the eye.


After chilling for 4 hours, the batter is ready..........


to be dropped onto icing sugar.........


and rolled into balls!


My boyfriend doing a very good job :)


Ready for the oven!

Now pictures cannot possibly do the baking process justice, so I have taken many photos and my sis has nicely made them into gifs so that you can experience what my favourite part of making chocolate crinkles is:


IS THAT NOT AWESOME.

HERE'S ANOTHER ONE:


These ones we made smaller so the effect is not so dramatic, but they're so cute! These are all in the span of about 10 minutes. I love watching it, my boyfriend makes fun of me because I sit next to the oven like it was the TV and concentrate on it like nothing else.

Here's them out of the oven, I just love the crackling and the dark chocolate against the white powdered sugar snow!





December 23, 2011

Nail Love: Snowflake Kisses


I wanted something cute and Winter inspired for my Christmas weekend, so here are my Snowflake-kissed nails! I used nail stickers for the snowflakes and that is what makes this look so easy. I've opened received most of my presents already, so I'm just looking forward to a (hopefully) relaxing weekend with my loved ones.


Here are some images to get you into the gift-giving (or gift-opening, rather) mood! I adore pretty wrapped presents, and the simple colours of whites, beiges, and golds are a luxurious and whimsical palette.

Inspiration from Pinterest










These wonderful images are from Pinterest

Under: Revlon French Tip White
Tip: Anna Sui 709

Merry Christmas and happy holidays! Hope you all get lovely presents and have a wonderful, relaxing time with your loved ones!