L’Oreal Professional Serie Expert Silver shampoo vs Swiss O Par Silver shampoo

Unless you have warm blond colour you certainly fight that yellow braziness that takes over your nice cool tone blond within just few weeks after the colouration. Till last October I was blond and I really hated when it happened. Hair doesn’t look nice anymore and you feel like you need to colour it again. But colouring hair every 4 weeks is of course not a good idea (especially in case of light colours). So in order to keep the colour at its best, I used silver shampoo (which is not silver at all) every 4th wash. So far I tried these two I’m going to write about but there are few more on the market that I may try once I go back to blond (which I will, even after 10 months I cannot get used to dark hair).

Price: differs a lot, it depends where you buy these shampoos. L’Oreal Professional Expert Silver costs from 9 to 14€ for 250 ml. You can buy it either through your hairdresser, specialised hair stores or at websites like lookfantastic.com, Amazon, bg.strawberrynet.com, allbeauty.com. I remember paying 10€ for it but I don’t remember where I bought it. The best price is currently at allbeauty.com. Swiss O Par Silver shampoo costs also different prices. I bought mine in DM store in Slovakia and it was about 5€. German Amazon sells it for 8€ for example. So I paid double price for L’Oreal compared to Swiss O Par.

(right) L’Oreal Professional Serie Expert Silver shampoo, Swiss O Par Silver shampoo (left)

Colour and texture: both shampoos have the same colour- dark blue. What makes a difference is the texture. While L’Oreal shampoo has very thick creamy consistency, something like John Frieda shampoos, Swiss O Par is a very runny liquid.

Application and results: these silver shampoos are applied as regular shampoos (wet your hair and massage the shampoo into the hair, then rinse well). As said before I recommend using them every 4th wash. Don’t use it more often as they tend to dry hair. I notice that to deliver the same result, you need to use twice as much Swiss O Par shampoo as L’Oreal one (it takes 2 applications of Swiss O Par to get the same effect as with one L’Oreal application). Both shampoos remove braziness quite well, hair colour looks fresh and cool tone. I recommend using them regularly, if you don’t apply them for long time, they won’t be strong enough to get rid of all braziness and you’ll end up colouring your hair sooner than needed.

Final verdict: it depends on the personal choice because they deliver the same effect at the same price (you use double amount of Swiss O Par for half a price of L’Oreal). The question is if you are willing to order online and wait for delivery or rather buy it in the drugstore (if your drugstore carries Swiss O Par). Also, since you use small amount of product in case of L’Oreal, you don’t use up as many bottles as Swiss O Par so you don’t need to rebuy it very often and it’s healthier for the environment.

KIKO Ultimate Pen Long Wear eyeliner vs Bourjois Liner Feutre Very Long Lasting eyeliner

My favourite eyeliner used to be Revlon ColorStay Liquid pen eyeliner but it is so hard to get in Belgium that I’ve been trying some new eyeliners in order to replace it. I’ve been using KIKO and Bourjois for almost 2 months and I have very strong opinion about their quality I must say.

Price: KIKO costs 6,90€ and you can buy it either in stores in Italy, Spain or in some other European countries. If you live in Belgium, you can order it online at kikocosmetics.be. Bourjois costs 12,90€ in French Sephora but you can buy it in any drugstore probably for cheaper.

Colour: I bought both eyeliners in colour black; they were both well pigmented although I feel like Bourjois was slightly darker.

Bourjois Liner Feutre Very Long lasting eyeliner

Longevity: they both claim to be long-lasting and they both lasted on me for the whole day so no problem with that. What concerns the longevity of one pen; Bourjois had far more “juice” and lasted more than 2 weeks longer than the KIKO eyeliner. KIKO eyeliner didn’t “deal” well with the eyeshadows underneath while applying it and was skipping the line many times. I ended up using it only for the wing part.

Applicators (felt tip): KIKO has very thin felt tip applicator almost as thin as liquid eyeliners do so it was little bit hard to apply it on the lid and create thick line but it was far better at applying the wing. Bourjois has thick felt tip and it was easier to make a thick 60’s kind of eyeliner that I usually wear. Unfortunately the felt tip broke after 2 weeks and I could not do a precise line. I tried to cut the broken part but could not use it anymore to draw a wing only to draw the line on the lid.

KIKO Ultimate pen Long wear eyeliner

Final verdict: KIKO eyeliner was skipping the line and Bourjois eyeliner’s tip broke. At the end I had to use both of them at the same time to get the proper eyeliner look (Bourjois for the lid and KIKO for the wing). I think both eyeliners are quite a fail and I’m not going to repurchase any of them. I recently bought Yver Rocher and ARTDECO eyeliners so I will try them and definitely report back. I’m also planning to buy Maybelline and L’Oreal pen eyeliners as I’m determined to find a good drugstore replacement for that Revlon one.

Nivea Smooth Oil

It is almost summer and most of us don’t like to put any moisturiser on the body as the hot weather makes the creams feel sticky and slippery. However sun dries our skin and we should use something to hydrate it. During the day a moisturiser with high SPF is a must and for the night time one without SPF is better.
My favourite for summer time is Nivea smooth oil and here is a quick overview of what you get:

Price: I bought it in Slovakia, in DM drugstore for under 4€ (unfortunately I threw away the bottle so I don’t remember how much ml you get, but I think it was 200ml).

Smell: it has nice feminine scent, hint of Nivea classic cream perfume with floral base. I love this scent, it makes me feel very relax, it’s very comforting. The scent lasts quite long when I put it on in the evening I can still smell it in the morning. The scent is not overwhelming, nobody will smell it from the distance, it is very close and personal scent that only you know about.

Nivea Smooth Oil

Texture: it is oil but not a heavy one. It has almost liquid consistency; it is transparent, so it looks like water. Still, since it is oil, you can feel it’s a bit slippery. It is ok for me as it makes the application easier.

Hydration: it is focused on very dry skin and promises 24 hours hydration. After its application my skin felt very smooth just like it promises. It soaked into the skin fairly quickly considering that it is oil. It kept my skin hydrated for at least 15 hours (all night and part of the following day). As it is not heavy oil I recommend it for normal to oily skin girls for winter time and of course for girls with dry skin, like mine, for spring and summer time (in the winter I need something more “hard core” than this oil).

Final verdict: I love this body oil, its scent and hydration properties. I already used up one bottle and I’m definitely buying another one soon.

Back to basic: cream and liquid eyeshadows

Cream eyeshadows are generally not used very often since they have this image of too much work and not much of the staying power. For some of them it may be true but good cream eyeshadows can actually make an eye look fast and easy.

(from left to right) Milani Shadow eyez in Champagne toast and Cafe au lait, WjCoon Make it lasting colour stick in Rosa Quartz, NYX Jumbo eye pencil in Pots & Pan, Oyster and Purple velvet  

You can use cream eyeshadows for:

• Quick look when you don’t have much time, just use your finger and apply it to the lids and it’s done
• To intensify colour (in case your powder eyeshadow is not as pigmented as you’d like it to be)
• As a help to make a powder eyeshadow last longer
• As a sticky base for pigments and glitter
• Cream eyeshadows in very light colour (pearl white, light gold or silver, champagne) can be used as cream highlighter on your cheekbones, matt colour on the eyebrow bone and in inner part of the eye to brighten eye area

(from left to right) KIKO Vibrant eye pencil in 601, Boujois Metallic eyeliner in Noir effet miroir, Feuille de cuivre and Vert pepite, Maybelline Color show Crayon Khol in Chambray blue 

They come in different format, for example in pots (they tend to dry quicker than cream eyeshadows in other format and they are not super hygienic if you use fingers for application), as crayons (either thick crayons or skinny classic crayons, they have to be creamy enough to be smudged). Liquid eyeshadows usually come in tubes or concealer-like packaging with doe foot applicator.

(from left to right) Maybelline Eye Studio Color Tattoo in Pink gold, Physicians Formula Custom Eye enhancing Gel CreamLiner for brow eyes, Bourjois Ombre a paupiere liquide in Beige metallique

Tips and tricks for easier application:

• If you have very oily lids use eyeshadow primer underneath cream eyeshadow 
• Use fingers or brush with synthetic bristles as they don’t soak as much product as brushes with natural bristles and they blend creams better (see the picture for examples) 
• Colourful gel eyeliners can be used the same way as cream eyeshadows, for example for smoky eye look use dark brown, blue or purple as a base and apply powder eyeshadow over it 
• Look for long-lasting eyeshadows, they can serve not only as cream eyeshadow but also as eyeshadow primer 
• Bright colours can make a natural eye look more exciting (apply cream colour eyeshadow under water line and smudge it) 
• If black eyeliner seems to be harsh for you, you can use dark purple, brown, blue cream eyeshadow instead (use thin brush used for gel eyeliners) 
• Don’t put too much of the cream eyeshadow otherwise it will crease even if it’s long-lasting, let it sit for few seconds and wipe away the access with finger 

(from left to right) Sigma F70, Real Techniques Domed shadow brush, Sedona Lace 312

My favourites:

Higher end:

• MAC paint pot (in MAC stores) 
• MAKEUP FOREVER Acqua cream (in Sephora) 
• Chanel Illusion D’Ombre (in Sephora or in perfumeries where they sell Chanel)

With drugstore price:

• Maybelline Eye Studio Color tattoo 24hours (in any drugstore) 
• Milani Shadow eyez (in drugstores in USA, but also at http://www.cherryculture.com) 
• Rimmel ScandalEyes Shadow stick (in any drugstore)

St.Tropez Bronzed Glow set review

Here is another review on self-tanning products; a St.Tropez set that I bought on allbeauty.com, UK based internet shop. This set cost 15,56€ which is excellent price considering that you get 120 ml of St.Tropez mousse self-tanner (currently at 17, 91€), 120 ml of Body polish (a scrub, costing 7,97€) and 120 ml of Body moisturiser (200 ml costs 10,98€). Although the set is not available now, products are available separately at this website and the prices are better than in shops.

St.Tropez Bronzed Glow set

ST.TROPEZ BRONZING MOUSSE

Smell: it didn’t have strong self-tanner smell; there was a hint of floral scent when applying it but it all didn’t linger for too long.

Application: the consistency of the product is a mousse, and for me, it applied the easiest with a self-tanning mitt. First I had a drugstore mitt that wasn’t good quality, it soaked a lot of product in and it was hard to spread. I thought it might be the product itself that is faulty but when I changed the mitt (I used Vita Liberata, 6€ in French Sephora or 5€ in perfumeries in Slovakia) the product spread beautifully. It has a colour indicator so you see where you apply it and also for this reason it wasn’t streaky, even when I didn’t pay attention as much as usually. I think this self-tanner is very suitable for beginners.

Colour: it gave nice tan with hint of olive undertone so no orange tan at all. The colour looked very natural. After 1 application the skin colour went up by 1-2 shades, after 2nd application up to 3 shades (my skin colour is light warm, NW15-20 in MAC).

Longevity and shading: it lasted very long; I was actually surprised that I could still see the colour after 7 days. It started fading on 8-9th day and it wasn’t patchy. I let it fade without scrubbing just to see how it goes and after 13 days there were few patches. It was a bit extreme to let it fade for such a long time, especially since it was hard to remove it at the end. So I definitely would scrub the “leftovers” after few days of shading in order to avoid patches. One bottle will last about 10 applications which mean 5 weeks for me (2 applications to get the colour I want).

(from left to right) St.Tropez Body polish, St.Tropez Body moisturiser, St.Tropez Bronzing mousse

ST.TROPEZ BODY POLISH (TAN OPTIMISER SERIES) 

I’m usually very sceptical about scrubs as I think they are waste of money. I use loofah mitt (organic Egyptian loofah that you can buy in a drugstore for few bucks) that works well with my regular shower gel. Since the scrub was part of the kit I used it to test it out.

Scrub contains very small particles and there are densely present in the cream base. It scrubs very well, particles not being too harsh on the skin. The Scrub is not drying so even girls with dry skin can use it. It smells little bit like shaving products for men. First it didn’t bother me but by the end of the bottle I had enough of it (especially since the lotion has the same aroma). I also used this scrub on the face and it did a good job there as well, scrubbing it well and not drying it at all. Overall, it is very good scrub, although expensive one, and I may buy it again, just for my face.

ST.TROPEZ BODY MOISTURISER (TAN OPTIMISER SERIES)

Lotion has medium liquid consistency, so not too thick or thin, for me the perfect consistency for spring or autumn (if you have normal to dry skin at that period). It spreads easily on the skin and soaks quite quickly. It is not sticky or greasy, you can get dressed almost immediately after its application. Skin was very soft and silky to the touch, stayed moisturised for at least 12 hours. As I mentioned in scrub description, it has that smell that reminds me of products for men and it didn’t bother me at the beginning, later on I wasn’t a big fan anymore. I really liked this moisturiser as the skin was very soft to the touch and I think it really helped to extent the tan wear (my tan lasted 7 days before it started fading!). I may buy the lotion again but not too often as I don’t love the scent.

Final verdict: so far the St.Tropez bronzing mousse is the best self-tanner I’ve tried and I will buy it again once I test few others that I bought. I actually bought other St.Tropez products just because this self-tanner was so good (I will let you know if they are as good as this mousse). I know it is not the cheapest one and you have to order it online (if you live in Belgium) but it is high quality, it lasts quite long, it has nice colour and it is easy to apply. Scrub and lotion are also very nice. If I see this set on allbeauty.com again I will snap it right away as the ratio quality- price is unbeatable.

Bourjois BB cream Bronzer 8 in 1 review

I wrote on Monday about Soleil Tan de Chanel and Bourjois Paris Bronzing Primer (review here) and this BB cream could have been part of that post but it was already too long so I decided to review it separately. It is somewhat different from the other 2 products and I definitely didn't want to skip reviewing it.

Price: 13,90€ for 30 ml (in French Sephora) or any drugstore where they sell Bourjois (also at asos.com).

Smell: it is part of the chocolate collection just like Bourjois Bronzing primer so it has light chocolate scent.

Colour: the same as the Bourjois bronzing primer or Chanel bronzer, so light warm colour, well pigmented and therefore suitable for light/medium/darker skin tone.

Texture and finish: it is a thicker liquid, it has similar texture to regular BB creams, it is not very luminous but definitely adds little bit of glow to the skin so I think girls with oily skin can still enjoy this product as much as girls with dry skin.

Application: you can use fingers or brush with synthetic bristles, under or over cream/liquid foundation and under the powder. Put few dots wherever you want and blend well.

I tried few different methods of application:

Firstly, I used it alone to bronze my face (I only had regular BB cream underneath that I use instead of daily moisturizer). It gave my face beautiful glow, it really looked like I was suntanned and I can see myself using it when creating natural "no makeup" look.
Then, I used it the same way as Chanel or Bourjois cream bronzer, so I put it over the foundation to bronze my skin and it looked nice as well, little bit more defined as if I put it under the foundation.
Lastly, I mixed it with a foundation (foundation that was too light for me) and it gave warmer colour to that foundation (colour may vary according to the foundation you use). I expected to achieve some glow on my skin but it didn’t do that so it is not my favourite use of this product.

Bourjois BB cream Bronzer 8 in 1

Longevity: last 4-5 hours (over the foundation and under the powder), didn't disrupt the foundation when mixed with it. One bottle will last you forever since you need just little bit of product.

What concerns the claims on the bottle:

1. Evens skin tone (only where I put it which is not all my face, so if you don’t have flawless skin, you might need something underneath it to do this job properly) 
2. Sheer tint (I agree) 
3. Boosts radiance (it adds some glow but not as much as regular cream highlighters) 
4. 16-hour moisturisation (I didn’t feel difference with or without it) 
5. Smoothes skin (I didn’t notice difference; it didn’t smooth my skin like silicone primers) 
6. Prolongs tan (I don’t suntan so I didn’t test this claim) 
7. SPF 15 (since I don’t put it all over the face I definitely have to wear other product with SPF) 
8. Refreshing sensation (I didn’t feel anything extra refreshing on my face). 

Final verdict: I think this product is really multifunctional and with so many uses, affordable price and good bronzing colour I will definitely get good use of it, even more than the use of Chanel or Bourjois cream bronzer. I think I will give Bourjois cream bronzer to one of my friends and keep just the Chanel cream bronzer and this Bourjois BB cream/bronzer.

Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel vs Bourjois Paris Bronzing Primer

It is no secret that brands belonging to the same cosmetic group share patents, products formula and that they introduce similar products on the market. It is especially true for Chanel and Bourjois. For example, they share the same formula of foundations (all their foundations have the same smell and very often you can tell with Chanel foundation correspond to Bourjois one), the same formula for blushes and so on. So of course I was very curious to see that Bourjois came out with Bronzing primer that looked like potential dupe for very expensive Soleil Tan de Chanel.

(left) Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel, Bourjois Bronzing primer (right)

Price:
Chanel: 39,50 € for 30g (price in French Sephora) but you can buy it wherever they sell Chanel.
Bourjois: 12€ for 18 ml (price in French Sephora) or any drugstore where they sell Bourjois (also at asos.com).

Smell:

Chanel has light floral scent similar to the scent of Chanel foundations.
Bourjois smells little bit like chocolate, it was introduced as part of cocoa collection (this theme is beautifully represented on the packaging as well).

Colour: they both have the same colour, it is light warm brown. Bourjois seems to be more pigmented than Chanel one so it is suitable even for medium/darker skin tones. Chanel is lighter in the colour, it suits well light skin tones, it is buildable little bit so the medium skin tone could possibly use it but if your skin is darker than medium I don't think you’ll like it.

(left) Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel, Bourjois Bronzing primer (right)

Texture and finish:
Chanel is very light thin cream; it dries to semi-matt finish, looks very natural on the skin.
Bourjois is thick cream, it dries to matt finish, I'm not sure if it contains silicone or not but one of the advised uses is to apply it as primer to smooth the skin, so the texture is definitely different from the Chanel one.

(left) Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel, Bourjois Bronzing primer (right)

Application: you can apply both products with fingers or brush with synthetic bristles. Apply it under or over the liquid or cream foundation and only under the powder.

Chanel: I use it mainly over the foundation as it is more visible. Since it has warm colour I use it for bronzing my face. It looks very natural, better than powder bronzer, so girls who don't like wearing too much make up would definitely enjoy it. As the colour is not too pigmented it is a good cream bronzer for beginners as well.

Bourjois: I tried using it as suggested, as the smoothing base under the makeup which looked odd (like I was over-tanned) but then when I put foundation over it; it didn’t look tan at all. It smoothed my skin but so does any primer with silicone so I don't think its potential is fully used this way. I also applied it alone to bronze my face and it looked nice (of course apply it only where the sun would naturally hit/tan you). But I think its best use is to put it over the foundation like Chanel one, creating more defined look as it is more pigmented. You just need to apply few dots where you want it and blend it well. Since it is very pigmented, you have to be careful not to overdo it, so I would not recommend it to total beginners.

Longevity: both last about the same, 4-5 hours (when worn over the foundation and under the powder). In both cases you don't need too much products to apply so one product will last you for 2 years at least.

Final verdict: both products are very good quality and although there are not totally the same (different texture and pigmentation), they are great alternatives especially if you are price concerned. When I bought Chanel cream bronzer Bourjois one wasn't on the market yet so there wasn't comparable product for me (in term of quality, place to get it and better price). It was very unfortunate that the Bourjois introduced its product few months after my buy because I would definitely buy it over the Chanel, mainly because of the huge price difference.