Elizabeth Arden Eyeshadow

Hello lovelies!

In this weeks post I want to talk about a new favourite of mine: the Elizabeth Arden eyeshadow in the shade "Truffle 06". Some time back Ella from http://ellawashere.com was hosting a twitter giveaway and I was lucky enough to win - whoo!

First of I want to talk about the gorgeous packaging: the gold and silver make this product look so classy! And who doesn't love a nice packed product?

The eyeshadow itself is a lovely brown truffle shade, as the name suggests. It has a matte finish. This has a nice pigmentation, but it's also very buildable if you want to go for a deeper darker colour. It also blends really well.

I love using this swiped all over my lid, taken under my lower lash line and then blend everything out. This has become my go-to product for an everyday look, whenever I'm not wearing eyeliner.

Have you ever tried any Elizabeth Arden Eyeshadows before? If so what's your favourite shade? And what do you think of the one I got?

Have a lovely day,

xx Ann-Kathrin

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Travel Post: Amsterdam

Hello lovelies,

Today I want to show you some snapshots I took when I was in Amsterdam at the end of March.

Three of my friends and myself decided on a short city trip to Amsterdam. Unfortunately we didn't have the best weather, it actually was pretty horrible most of the time: rain and wind aren't great for sight seeing and exploring a new city! That's why I don't have too many photos, I didn't want to get my beloved camera wet and ruin it. I still managed to get some though, hope you enjoy!

We stayed in a hotel near Leidseplein which was really central and great to get to and from. The hotel though wasn't that great, it was really loud and small and not at all what we expected..

We started exploring the city wednesday afternoon, walking over the bridges over lots of canals just taking everything in and also on the hunt for some nice restaurant.

I think the canals look absolutely beautiful at night!

The next day we went to visit the Anne Frank House. We had to wait for one and a half hours to get in, so if you're planning on going there: better check your tickets online! It was really interesting but also depressing as you might guess.

After we had some lunch in a little cafe, we hoped on a tram to the Waterlooplein Flea Market. Unfortunately it started raining again so we hushed from one stall to the other, trying not to get too wet.

Our next stop was the Dam which is the town square. The streets near the Dam are great for shopping so that's what we did - of course haha

The next day we headed to the Museumsplein, where the famous Van Gogh Museum and the Rijksmuseum are located. We actually didn't go into the museums but we wanted to take a photo in front of the huge iamsterdam sign.

I've seen some photos on instagram recently how beautiful this looks at the moment with the water filled up and flowers floating around and I'm actually quite jealous! Nonetheless I really love these gloomy looking photos! What do you think? I also have some snaps on my instagram - annxkathrin if you'd like to follow me! 

And that's already all of my snaps! Our last day we just spend walking around the city, doing some shopping, sitting in coffee houses and going back to the airport to catch our flight back home.

I would love to go back to Amsterdam some time. It's a beautiful city with lots to see. I'm sure it's even prettier with the right weather so I might go back in summer and not in rainy march!

Have you ever been to Amsterdam? What did you go see and how did you like it? And how do you like my snaps?

Hope you have a lovely day,

xx Ann-Kathrin

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3 Sleek Eyeshadow Palettes

Hello lovelies!

I'm finally back again!

I'm such a lucky girl! A few months ago I received 3 beautiful Sleek eyeshadow palettes in the mail from the gorgeous Jade, who blogs over at www.skinsweet.co.uk. I've been reading her blog probably since she started it, so I was super chuffed to find out that I won her 1 Year Anniversary Giveaway!

The box Jade sent was a sparkly pre-christmas treat (so actually some time ago ha!) and the note she added was literally one of the sweetest I've ever received! I wanted to say Thank You once more :)

Now onto those palettes:

The first one is "Oh So Special" which has been on my wish list for some time now! It has 5 pretty shimmery shades alongside 7 matte ones. I especially love the look of those rosy-pinky hues. But I can imagine the glittery shades can jazz up every Night Out Make Up.

I do already own a "Au Naturel" palette but since my mirror broke off I'm happy to have a brand new one! I have already done a review on this palette a while back - so if you want, you can read that here.

And last but not least I got the "Vintage Romance Palette". First off can we please appreciate the amazing names for the shades? This is filled with lots a beautiful shimmery shades. In fact it contains only three matte hues. 

Do you own any of these palettes yourself? Which one out of all the Sleek palettes is your personal favourite?
And once again please check out Jade's blog and if you don't follow her already give her a cheeky follow!

xx Ann-Kathrin

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Spanish Beauty Haul

Hey lovelies,

As you might have seen on my instagram or twitter feed (@annxkathrin - cheeky selfpromo) or know from my Travel Make Up Bag post I've been to Spain over New Years. And whilst I was there I obviously couldn't resist buying some beauty bits. So here is a little Haul for you!

The only thing that isn't lip-related in this little haul is one of the Rimmel London 60 Seconds Nail Polish in the colour  "825 Sky High" which is a gorgeous turquoise shade. This will be perfect for summer!

I didn't even know they had Sephora in Spain but when I came aross their counter in El Corte Inglés I spent quite some time there. I had a close look at all of their offers and finally settled on a lipstick. This is a Sephora Rouge Cream lipstick in the shade "Oh, oh!" which is a lovely muted pinky brown. I'm loving the formular, it glides on smoothly and has a lovely colour pay-off.

Next up I managed to get my hands on one of the oh-so-famous Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet lipsticks. I got the shade "02 Frambourjoise". I like the packaging, the applicator and especially the colour. I just think the smell is a bit of a put-off! Other than that it's great and a long-lasting pop of colour.

I also picked up a Rimmel Lasting Finish by Kate Moss lipstick in the colour "03" which is a lovely nude shade. I love the creamy formular and this lippy smells really nice!

top to bottom: Rimmel Lasting Finish by Kate Moss "03", Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet "02 Frambourjoise" & Sephora Rouge Cream "Oh, oh!"

What do you think of the products I got? Have you tried any of them yourself?

xx Ann-Kathrin

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Clothes Haul

Hello lovlies,

Today I've got my very first Clothes Haul for you! I usually buy some clothes here and there but haven't been on a real shopping splurge for aaages! But last friday I went to the mall and took advantage of the Sales going on in stores. So here comes a monochrome-heavy haul:

I bought this beautiful white shirt in Mango. I love the black detail on the front and also that it has a little hook on top of the collar, so you can either have leave it open or hooked up. Also the shirt is a really nice material and I feel like some business woman wearing it! It was on sale for 11,99€.

Next up I went into Zara where I found another white shirt! The sleeves are like a 3/4 length, it's made out of a nice light material and also a bit see-through. This is also a sale item and it was 19,99€.

I also got these black High Waist Jeggins with a side zip. They look really smart and I think I'll be wearing them for work. I was shocked (and also really happy) that I fit into a size 36 without any problem (I usually wear a 38 or 40)! This just shows how stretchy these are. And they were reduced from about 25€ down to 9,99€!

In Pull&Bear I found this Tshirt for 3,99€ and fell in love: look at this cute mermaid-kitty! It's really soft and I can't stop going "aaaaw" when looking at the cat face - yes I'm 20 haha!

I got myself a new fake leather jacket in a store called "My Fashion Club". I love the gold zips and you can't really go wrong with a simple leather jacket. This was 29,99€

The next stop was Primark: I actually just went in for that black Fedora (8€) but while in there I found some other bits I liked! This mint green ribbed jumper is super cosy and great for the cool weather we're still having brrr. Also it was an absolute bargain for only 5€.

I also bought a new bag for everyday wear: this black one has some cute details and I can wear it as a cross body bag or just on one shoulder. This one was 10€.

And this little black bag (5€) is great for going out, I owned a similar one before so this was kind of a repurchase! 

And for the last purchase I actually went back once more cause I just couldn't leave them: these gorgeous black boots from Springfield! They have a warm lining inside so I won't get cold when wearing them. Again I love the gold details and they are really comfortable. Also they were such a bargain for only 19,99€!

Please excuse the horrible phone quality, I already had my camera packed away - ops

Writing up this post I realize that I actually haven't splurged too bad. So I might go back soon and buy some more things!

What do you think of the things I got? What have you been buying recently?

xx Ann-Kathrin

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ASTOR Eye Set

Hello everybody!

Today I want to show you one of my recent purchases from a trip to my local drugstore: a Duo for big & beautiful eyes from Astor!

This was on offer for a little less than 10€ and since I'm always on the hunt for a great eyeliner I thought why not try this one out and get a mascara with it?!

The 24h Perfect Stay Style Muse Eye Liner has a huge felt tip pen applicator. It's supposed to give an ultra thick striking bold look. At first I wasn't too sure about the big applicator but I think it's fine for just a line on the upper lid. It get's really tricky when it comes to a cat flick though.

The thing that really disappointed me was the colour intensity! I was hoping for a dark jet black line. You get that when first applying it, but somehow the colour fades quite quickly, and you are left with an uneven black colour. And going over it again and again just makes it look messier.

The Big & Beauitful Style Muse Mascara has a weirdly shaped and twisted wand which I thought would make the application tricky. It does take some practice to not get it everywhere but I actually really like it. It has a great formular, doesn't clump the lashes together plus it's super black. I also like that it makes my lashes look that bit longer!

So if you're thinking about purchasing either one of these products, I'd say definitely go for the mascara. And let me know if you do!

Have you ever tried products from Astor? If so what would you recommend I try?

xx Ann-Kathrin

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Travel Make Up Bag

Hello lovelies!

I'm back with a new post in the new year! Happy (late) 2015! I just came back from my holiday break in Spain where I also "celebrated" New Years Eve (meaning: I stayed in my hotel room because I was feeling poorly!). Today I thought I'd show you what make up I took with me on my holidays. Hope you enjoy!

First of look at my cute bag! My mum's co-worker designed and made this herself and I'm absolutely in love with it. I don't know what it is but lately I've been obsessed with deer prints so this one is my new fav!

 For an even base I took my Bourjois 123 Perfect CC Cream with me. I just repurchased this as my old one, that I bought back in June, ran out - can't believe it actually lasted me that long. I've done a review on this here! I apply this with my ebeline makeup sponge. Next up is my new favourite concealer: the Maybelline FitMe concealer in the shade 15! This is super creamy, gives great coverage and stays put throughout the day.

I fill in my brows with the IQ Cosmetics Eyebrow Pencil in the brown shade and then go over them with the Maybelline Brow Drama in Dark Blond. I've recently dyed my brows and find that this combo works best on my now darker brows!

I took only two eyeshadows with me: a light champagne shade from GOSH, this is "01" from an old gift set that I once got from my Secret Santa. And a brown shimmery shade from essence with the name  "09 Get Ready!". I should probably bin both of them because of their expiration date - but up until now they've been fine. To make them last longer I used my Pro-Base Eye Primer from Makeup Academy (review here).

The next product is the Look by Bipa Eyeliner Liquid: I picked this up for my Halloween makeup (instagram photo here - follow me if you fancy) which it was fine for, but for an everyday cat flick it definitely isn't my favourite as it smudges easily, so I don't think I'll be repurchasing it!

I curl my lashes with the ebelin eyelash curlers and then coat them with the Maybelline Volum' Express The Falsies Flared Mascara (that's the german name on the product for you ;D). Sometimes I go over them again with the essence I Love Extreme Crazy Volume Mascara for some extra drama.

To finish off I powder my face with the Real Techniques Powder Brush and Bourjois Healthy Balance Powder in "55 Beige Foncé" and slightly contour my face with my favourite bronzer MUA Mosaic Powder in "Natural Glow" (read my review here) and a brush from superdrug.

And that's all the makeup I took with me on holiday - excluded the lipsticks in my handbag, if you want to see those just let me know in the comments below! I hope you have a great day!

Also there is still some time to enter my MAC lipstick giveaway - check it out here!

xx Ann-Kathrin

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