A way to embrace your inner bronzed Goddess

It's now official, summer is on its way which means that it's time for a glamorous tan and a golden glow again, fake or not. You know me, I don't like rules and I think you should wear whatever you fancy without caring of the trends or seasons, but here's a fact; nothing is prettier than gold on a tan. Now, I'm no Jlo, if I do get a golden glow on my body easily, my face will always remain porcelain pale. So what ? Gold is like black; it suits everyone. I have brown eyes and I tend to often go for warm eyeshadows, as I think it's pretty flattering on a day-to-day basis, and although I definitely have my stack of golden dust, it's bronze that seems to have won over everyone's heart this season, and for a good reason; it's a stunner. Like gold, it warms up any complexion, bringing the best of any iris. Brunettes wear it like Goddess 'cause after all, it's in our genes but don't get confused, the Palm of the Bronze wear goes to blue eyes 'gal. Red coppery tones paired with cool eyes ? That's a winner every time. Lucky them. In the end, I think that anyone should have a bronze shadow, even though we often trade it for gold, our mistake.

Here's what I have to offer you today, if you haven't found your bronzy holy grail yet (well, even if you have); ever heard of MAC Tan pigment ? If not, let me introduce you. Tan, like suggested by it's name is a red-tone gold, also called bronze. Saying it's beautiful is understated, and trust me, I'm not that easily impressed. I am particularly fond of MAC pigments anyway, I think they always come up with such unique shades ! They're a bit pricey but will genuinely last you forever. Bronze is a common metallic shade and making it special ain't easy.

                              On the eyes: MAC paint pot in Constructivist as a base, followed by Urban 

                                      Decay Buck in the crease - Tan Pigment on top, MAC Soft and Gentle highlighter

                                      in the inner corners, Maybelline the Falsies mascara

Pigments are very versatile and take your eye-look to the next level effortlessly. They can be a bit scary at first, but don't be depressed if things get messy, there's nothing a touch of concealer can't fix. However, for safety measures, I'd recommend doing your eye make-up first, and then to move on to your face. You could also use a tissue and place it under your eye to prevent fall-outs. The cleverest thing to do is to wet your brush somehow, before picking your pigment up; I use MAC Fix +, but you could totally use eye drops or some plain water. This way, you'll have a much, much more pigmented, bold and metallic result and you're less likely to end up with glitter all over your face. 'Makes it all easier doesn't it?

It's time for all of us to let our inner bronzed Goddess out, to enjoy plenty of hot summer nights - and to glow, from the inside out.

xxx

M'

New York, New York

So, two months ago I had the privilege to turn 20 in the most exciting city of the world.

I'm sure you already know all about New York, either because you went yourself or because you're a fellow "Sex and the City" and "Gossip Girl" fan like myself *don't judge me, classics are classics *. I've never met someone who went home disappointed, and I was no exception. This city is totally overwhelming with its never-ending buildings, its thousands of yellow cabs, and its variety of sights...oh and its food. Do I even need to talk about New yorker shops ? Think of Oxford Street as a city and so much cheaper - God, my heart was so broken when coming back home to European shops. No need to say that damages were done...sorry not sorry.

The U.S, aka drugstore heaven (alright, Sephora heaven, too)

'Gotta love burgers eh? Last bite of heaven in Newark Airport

A good friend of mine (thanks, Athena!) recommended me the Tao and oh Lord, this one goes right up on the top of the list ! Best Asian restaurant ever - take me back?

Also, I went a bit crazy on Instagram (Vicky9469)

The highlight of our trip ? We got to see my well-missed cousin Marc, who's been a New yorker for quite some time now, hence the lack of opportunities to hang out. He met us for lunch on my birthday (I was a "IHop" virgin, let me tell you that one was unforgettable - American honey mustard, I love you dearly). He also invited us to an event, a Tango class in a cosy bar - we don't get to see that in Europe, do we ? I was amazed, the atmosphere, the people and damn, the Tango moves - very "Shall we dance". I was so proud of my cousin, as I didn't really get the chance to grow up with him, it's a totally different person I met in that IHop restaurant in Union Square, a grown-up handsome man who has some serious talents that I'd never had suspected!

The bar is called "Milonga Loca" if you're interested, I highly recommend it, their burgers and cocktails are to die for - and if you fancy a unique Tango experience, don't miss their Thursday lesson!

Thank you, New York - you were magical. I hope we'll meet again someday.


xxx

M'

How two : A brow routine that takes seconds

You know the drill, nowadays thing consists of bold defined eyebrows. The wilder the better. * yeah, Cara Delevigne, I'm looking at you*  If it isn't everyone's cup of tea, we should all at least admit that brows deserve some attention and no, a rough stroke of too soft and (often) too dark or too orange pencil/powder/liner DOESN'T do the job. Oh, and over-plucking isn't an option anymore. Please. 

Now, I agree not all of us can/want to spend hours on our make-up in the morning, nor lose some precious time with our beloved bed. You can skip foundation if you feel like it. Eyeliner isn't necessary on a day to day basis. Oh and lipstick is an option really. Skip it all if you wish, but don't neglect your brows (or your concealer, but you know your limits right?). Would you go out without your underwear ? (I know, I know, some of us would, do, whatever). My point is, not only are your brow right in the middle of your face, but they define your whole look. Try to do a bold smokey eye without adding mascara. Not so fancy ha? Dull, undefined eyebrows washes you out. The danger is that roughly made "bad" eyebrows are no better than no eyebrows at all, that's why you should be careful and chose your allies -aka your pen, pencil, powder, whatever is your thing, wisely. I'm not here to dictate you the ten miraculous steps to perfect brows (what are they anyway?) - nah, I'm here to save you time right ? That's when this baby come in handy; he's called Gimme Brow and is another genius product from Benefit. I'd almost say it's life-changing. Almost. 

We aren't all blessed with naturally full brows, and mastering the perfect shape is a matter of years, I'll give you that. But to me, this product should please pretty much anyone. The concept is brilliant, it's one of those tinted brow gel that defines your brow if you're too lazy to use anything else, or at least fix them so they don't go 'cray 'cray during the day. The plus of this one ? It has fibers in it. Yeah, fibers, like in those magical mascaras that fool people into thinking you're wearing falsies. False brow it is then ? Yes, but in a good way. It looks pretty natural, adds just the right amount of color, hold them in place pretty well and make them look so much fuller than they actually are. Two different shades are available, I use the light one even though I'm almost a brunette and find it to be the perfect shade, cool toned, dark enough but not too bold. The best part is that it takes no more than 10 seconds to do both of your brows and you really can't go wrong with it, I promise. Good brows in a bottle, I'm telling you.

No more excuses ya'll, get those bad boys on ! 

xxx

M'

Review - L'Oréal True Match foundation

Aloha ! Long time no see ! The past few weeks have been hectic quite literally; a new exam session is dangerously approaching and I've been to New-York for my birthday. Yep, you read well. NEW YORK. N-E-W Y-O-R-K. Oh dear. Let me tell you, my credit card will remember that one. New York has always been a big dream of mine, but I was pretty excited about going to the U.S in general as the last time I went I was a ten year old kid. Damn long time ago. Ever since I started following beauty Vloggers on Youtube I've been fascinated with Americans and their oh-so-enviable CVS/Walgreens/Ulta hauls. Actually, I was so excited about american drugstores that Walgreens was our first stop and my birthday-mood not helping, I did one of my biggest haul ever...

Enough rambling, you've probably guessed by the title that this post is all about the over hyped True Match foundation. Again, I'm very late on this one, but I have my reasons (kinda?). First of all, if you're a Swiss fellow like myself, you'll know that we only have a few shades available around here - and by "a few shades" I mean the lightest one is three to four shades too dark for me... Second of all, the prices here are ridiculous in comparison to American prices; 20 something swiss francs (= more or less 22$) for a drugstore foundation that might break me out...yeah, let's address that issue; I'm a total foundation snob as some will say. Not that I love spending way to much money on those fancy high-end glasses bottles, but I've always had the (wrong?) idea that drugstores products are more likely to break you out (which isn't entirely wrong really, but hey, let's play fair). That's when I spotted the True Match, in no less that around 6 shades in THREE different tones (warm, neutral and cool). I've never come across anything like this before, it was quite overwhelming. Of course, I went for the lightest shade, in the warm category - the so called W1. Let me tell you it is a true match.

I've once heard someone say it was a pretty good dupe for Giorgio Armani Luminous silk foundation and that's exactly what it is; a buildable medium to full coverage, a glowy satin-y finish not too shiny but not flat either and well, take it from an oily gal', it doesn't move. I barely had to set it and as I didn't want to ruin the finish I simply added the tiniest amount of Hourglass Ambient lighting powder  on top and that was it. I'd say it's one of those foundations that get better and better throughout the day - always glowy, never greasy. Plus, as it says on the bottle, it is super blendable so you can totally wear it during the day or build it up for a flawless night-time look. That babe just does it all.

I haven't anything bad to say about it really, except that I wish they were all sold with the pump (have I miss something here ? Are you supposed to buy it separately or something?) and that I could find my shade in Switzerland but hey, that'd be too easy 'ha? I'd say if you manage to find the right shade for you (which shouldn't be too much of a problem if you're from the UK or US) go and get it. Yeah, you'll thank me later.

xxx

M'