FAVOURITES June & July :)

Hey there! A super late favourites blog post is in order. The last one was a combo of May and June favourites, so I decided to cover most of the summer with a combo of June and July. Some summer inspired products, skincare and makeup I used for work as well as festivals and going out. Check my chosen ones out!

NEW IN March & April

Hello! A massive new in blog post is waiting for you! Springtime was super fast this year, I was working some more than usual and I also started a new blog - Sapphire's Lair, so I was kinda absent here on this one and missed posting regularly. Here are all my new in products that I bought or received in the past two months! I added short descriptions, futile attempts at keeping this blog post readable ! :P

NEW IN April :)

Hello! Another month gone by and I've been pretty good in April, I got some amazing stuff, treated myself with some more but for once I didn't go overboard! I did however try to test out a lot of product as much as I could and I hope May will be more productive regarding future posts and there should be quite a lot of them! Now lets see what I've been treating myself with this month!

Freedom Makeup Treats :)

Hello! Some of you have already wondered if I was ever going to post something about Freedom Professional London products and I have been wanting to for some time now, but actually just never managed to squize in this post as well. But I haven't forgotten about these products and I have managed to write a bit about these as well! :) I have tried out three products -  Pro 12 Audacious Mattes eyeshadow palette, Pro Butters Lipgloss in Pro Butters TGIF and Curl Mascara Pro Curve Mascara in Black.

First, let's talk a bit about  Pro Curve Mascara Black. It comes packaged in black tube with white writing on top. Contains 7 ml of product and costs about 2,95 euros at Ličila.si.  The wand is shaped crurvy but has short classic bristles, they are not rubber ones like with MaxFactor mascaras.  I like these bristles don't pick up too much of the product, as you can see only the end of the wand gathers some product that is best wiped away before application. I tend to poke my eyes and the area around my eyes with the end of the wand and smudge it all over so now I take precautions and wipe the excess product from the end of the wand. Also like the mascara is already the right consistency - not too wet or too dry! Sometimes with other brands I have problems that new mascaras are simply so wet they need some time and a couple of uses before they get just right. Anyway, this mascara didn't cause any panda effect, the only trouble I had with the downfall was already during application. Otherwise this mascara delivers curl and gives emphasis to your lashes with rich black colour, however my eyelashes need some more work - more lenght as well, some eyelash curlers and sometimes a lot of coats to get them a bit more thick looking. On the swatches I have not used any other mascara, just this one, no eyelash curler or any other help so you can see what mascara can do on it's own. You can also see some downfall that happened while applying (under lower lashline) - nothing major, can be easily removed with a cotton bud. As my lashes are really short they need some more help so I usually use this mascara in combination with Oriflame one as that one gives me some more length.

For lips I had the chance to try out Pro Butters Lipgloss in Pro Butters TGIF. This comes in a lovely silvery packaging and than when you open it you can see plastic tube with white top and silver writing. The bottom is transparent so you can see the shade clearly through! The applicator is classic doe foot, easy to use. This tube contains 7,5 ml of product and the price at Ličila.si is 3,95 euros. I find this price very reasonable, same goes for mascara, especially if you are on a budget or want to try out a shade you are not quite used to and don't yet know if you will love it or not. There are total 14 shades available, there are even shades that most of us are not used to wear on a daily basis - like black or blue, deep purple. I personally disagree with the title "lip gloss" as this is really more like a liquid lipstick. The texture of this lip product feels a bit rough and also seems a bit lumpy, you can see the pigment gathering together in red dots and the orange liquid around it. So I needed to really shake this and swirl the applicator inside to smash the lumps and mix them up again. The shade looks more like a bourdeaux straight from the bottle, but on the lips, at leats on me looks more berry than deep wine red. It's a very sultry, sexy shade perfect for fall makeup.  However I had some difficulties getting the shade even on my lips, not lumpy or patchy. It took me some time to apply it evenly and especially important - don't forget to really scrub well your lips before as if you have a dry spot, this lip product will emphasise it very much and it just won't look good. More or less I hoped the shade would really be this deep dark red as it is from the tube but to me this looks more berry red, still I like the shade and I find it suitable for my skin tone. The only thing that kinda drives me away from using this product is the hassle of application - there's just no way to apply this fully opaque without taking time and really working the colour in. And as I am a bit lazy that way I rather use other lip products that don't require so much attention. Another fact that I like about this lippie is that it's really strongly pigmented and leaves a lovely berry stain on the lips for hours after the full shade wore off. It doesn't survive eating or drinking completely, but it does leave a lovely stain :)

left: full shade, right: stain, one swipe only

And the third product I have been testing - Pro 12 Audacious Mattes eyeshadow palette. The packaging is simple, plastic black bottoms and transparent top, so you can see the shades right away. It includes one double sided applucator, each side with a sponge. I never really used this applicator but it still got dirty as the shades seem to be a bit more dusty. It constains 12 grams and  once opened lasts for the next 12 moths, though I admit I keep my eyeshadow palettes for a lot longer! I am really not great at throwing makeup away, especially if I see it's actually still good. It includes 12 shades for a really low price - at Ličila.si you can get this palette for 5,95 euros. The shades are decorated with a print, sort of a copy for NARS Dual Intensity palette style. All shades are matte, as the name already suggests. The shades are very similar, so the variety is not really that large. The intention of this palette is to offer you different shades of beige/brown shades, different shades for brow bone highlight and transition shades, but honestly once applied and smudged some shades look very similar and you can not really say which ones I am wearing. All the shades are very gentle, powdery, creamy - so perfect for everyday use, especially for someone who doesn't want a very strong eye look or if your work regulations don't allow you wearing bolder shades. So these are perfect for office wear or  just everyday makeup looks. These shades are very soft and velvety, but be careful not to apply them with a too damp brush as they tend to clump. They are also very dusty and keeping this palette clean is near to impossible. The pigmentation of the shades is mostly good, with some exceptions where the shades are simply soo light that no amount of building them up can actually get you to achieve the shade in the palette. Some even claim this palette includes a shimmery shade, second one in the first top row - but it's not really shimmery, it's actually just a bit more smooth and has more satin finish than matte.  Lasting power depends on the shades you use and the primer you use. The first time I have tried this one I was really dissapointed, as I used Urban Decay primer and expected this to look good and last well, what really happened was that all three shades blended and melted on my lids into one brown-ish shade that started to fade after two hours of wear. I was really surprised as I had no idea what went wrong. So next time I used Catrice primer and other shades and it worked just fine, lasted more than half a day, shades stayed put, no melting and blending and disappearing. The next couple of uses were actually great, nothing to complain about, just a nice everday palette. So I still have no idea what happened on my first try, but it seems I have chosen exactly those three shades that were the least pigmented in the palette. So I will say this palette is lovely if you are just getting into eyeshadows, or just need something gentle and suitable for every day, or you are experimenting and don't want to pay a lot of money for something you are not sure yet you will even like. But if you are a makeup lover, especially an eyeshadow palette hoarder, this palette might leave you uninterested. I have a couple of shades I really love to use and I like to mix them in with other eyeshadows or palettes. From the first row I have no favourites, all are ok, but mostly I use them in the inner corner or brow bone. If I had to point out one shade that interests me the most it's the last one, the yellow-vanilla like shade, I like to use to blend out edges :) The second row is more interesting to me, especially like the first more pinkish beige shade and the last one that reminds me more of a milk chocolate. The last, third row offers the darkest shades and I really love the first three in the row as they are each a bit different hue of brown and perfect for creating brown smokey eyes look.

The swatches are made without any primer, just layers of shades to get them to show on camera. I have swatches in columns, from left to right, not in rows.

I hope this post was helpful to you! If you liked it please leave a comment, subscribe, like and such or just share this post forward!

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Thanks for reading!

Love, UniqaPoly


*PR product

NEW IN August :)

Hello! And another month has passed... It has been a really good month, I had some time off, went on vacations and more or less relaxed. The big bonus is also all the new collaborations and new opportunities that have happened meanwhile.. most of them unexpectedly... I did a tiny bit of shopping but I still ended up with a bunch of amazing products, so let's get started :)

One of my first purchases was this amazingly smelling Kozmetika Afrodita Pistachio cream shower gel! I haven't gotten around yet to actually testing it, but I did have a chance to sniff it properly and it looks like a very promising product! The second purchase was this really surprisingly good Borotalco Original Deo Roll On that not only smells nice but actually helps me with not having a bad odor or sweating so much! I wonder why I haven't tried this product sooner as it has really impressed me! This was followed by a couple of repurchases - Labello Pure&Natural Olive &Lemon lip balm, which I have had for ages and seems to have grown on me so much that even with 20 or more lip balms already at home I can not live without this one :P And some more repurchases - Balea Aqua Tuchmaske and Balea Totes Meer maske. So far I have only had one test with the Aqua mask and I really liked it so I got myself two more, the concept of applying a hydrating cloth to your face has impressed me once tested and I believe I will be repurchasing these some more. The other Totes meer maske is also an already very well known product and really works well on my oils skin.

And some makeup bits! I have treated myself with a tiny package of Bourjois goodies, that were actually three for the price of one and were really a good deal, even though these are the old products, meaning the ones they don't offer at regular stands anymore. I really liked this mix as it was summery and light, I wore the light blue nail polish for almost three weeks straight! And teh contents of the bag - Bourjois Effet 3D gloss 8H long lasting shade 11, Bourjois 1 Seconde gel texture nail polish 08 Bleu water, Bourjois 1 Seconde Vernis&Nail enamel top-coat silver leaf effect. Anyway, Bourjois is one of my favoruite makeup brands and I knew the purchase was a win for me! I have also indulged in some Lancôme goodies, even thou they are both mini - I have treated myself with  Lip Lover 316 Rose Attrape- Coeur and Le Crayon Khol 01 Noir. Haven't tested them out yet, but I hope they will work for me :)

I was really lucky this month as I have won three different giveaways! Can you believe that? I was really surprised and in one of them  I have received Himalaya Herbals Purifying Neem Face Wash,  Purifying Neem Foaming face wash and Purifying Neem Mask. I haven't tested it yet and I will not open these products for some time now as I have others that I have to test first, but I have never had anything for face by this brand and am looking forward to trying it out.

Another of the giveaway prizes I have won was consisting of four products - BH cosmetics Floral Blush Duo, Essence Fun Fair nail polish 01 You're Mint-blowing, Bebe Young Care intensive care lip balm and Oriflame The ONE 5-in-1 Colour Stylist Cream gloss in Pink charm. I have won these lovely products at another slovenian beuaty blogger that really loves makeup so much she decided to start her own blog! You can go check her out here on her blog, called My Little Wonderland Blog or on her Facebook page. :) I have already started testing and using both lip products and I am liking the both ;)

My third giveaway prize was this lovely Ziaja natural olive body butter + testers! I Haven't started using any of these yet, but I do have quite a lot of testers now to use up and these are Sensitive firming night cream, Cocoa butter cream, Goat's milk day cream, Goat's milk hand cream, Natural olive cream and Natural olive eye cream. I most looking forward to trying out the olive body butter hand cream testers ;)

This month I have also been able to start a new collaboration with NOÉMIE Cosmetics and I have never heard of them before but they were so kind to send me such a lovely bunch of products to test. I have been testing their  Purifying Toning Lotion,  Purifying Cleansing Gel,  Gentle Exfoliating Cream and Sebo - corrective cream during August and you can expect a review in the first part of September :) So far I have really been liking the toning lotion and cleansing gel, as well as exfoliating cream - really gentle helpers to keep my skin soft and clean.

From a brand that is now already well known in Slovenian stores and to other beauty bloggers, called AlpStories,  I have also received three lovely products to try out! I have received Organic Shampoo Aloe Vera, Cleansing gel with Sage & Mint and Tea Tree Oil Face Cream. According to my skin type and skin problems these two products seemed best for me and I have read so many positive reviews for their cleansing gel! The same goes for the Tea tree oil cream, which I am also really looking forward to testing out and hopefully it will work with my skin well. I haven't heard much abouth their shampoos yet but I have already begun testing it and I must say it really surprised me as it gives me more volume than any other shampoo I had in a long time. Also it doesn't foam at all, so I always wonder if I am actually washing my hair or not and if I should add some more shampoo, but so far this has been a very good hair product!

And now this amazingly large pile of Oriflame products! Not to worry, these were sent to me in three different packages, but still I did not expect all these goodies will be for me all in one month! However I am very grateful for the chance to collaborate with Oriflame as I have for several months now and even other products that were not sent to me for review purposes that I had teh chance to try have really impressed me. In general, the whole brand really impressed me. Not all products are amazing and some have more flaws than other but in general this has become one of my favourite brands of makeup and cosmetics, especially the Giordani Gold collection and The ONE makeup products. So this month I have received these lovely bits to try - The ONE 5-in-1 Colour Stylist Cream gloss French Beige,  Giordani Gold  Youth Full Gloss in Lavander,  Swedish Spa Purifying Face mask,  Eleo Hair mask,  Eleo Protecting Oil ideal for colour treated hair, Giordani Gold Bronzing pearls in Natural Radiance. I have already started testing most of these products and will be, hopefully, reviewing them in the month to come. 

Another collaboration that came unexpectedly right this month is with Caudalie and DermEden. I have received a couple of products by Caudalie and testers as well as testers od DermEden, which I have not known before. I have received - Caudalie Paris Vinosource Riche intense moisture rescue cream, Caudalie Paris Polyphenol anti-wrinkle eye & lip cream, Caudalie Paris Hand and nail cream,  testers - Divine oil, Vinoperfect radiance serum, Instant detox mask, Vinoperfect radiance tinted moisturizer, Divine legs tinted body lotion and DermEden testers - Night protocole face intense anti-aging,  D-day Protocole daily defense universal cream. So far I have only been able to test the hand cream and oh my god, I am in love! I have never liked a product so fast! I do get in love with lip products, but with skincare products it always took me some more time. With this hand cream love happened like magic and I adore it! For the rest I can not comment yet as I have not tested yet, but it looks really promising. So far I have only had one Caudalie product, their Beauty Elixir and you can read review here ;)

Another new collaboration that happened this month was with a brand I have never heard before, called HerBio and I have received their AHA Fruit Peeling Mask. I have already started testing this product and it's really as the name suggests, very fruity. Also interesting info is that this brand is local, from Slovenia, more specific from Žalec and the concept of their products and the whole brand is natural cosmetics, herbs, oils, gentle products with longterm effects. Also they don't test on animals. So far I am intrigued, will see how the product works for me :)

By the end of the month I have also had a chance at a new collaboration, this time with a brand well known in the beauty world, called Aussie. I have received three products to test - Aussie Miracle Shine shampoo, Aussie Miracle Moist conditioner, Aussie 3 Minute Miracle reconstructor deep conditioner. I have wanted to try anything from them for a very long time, they were on my wishlist for years now, but they were never available in Slovenia and now that they are I never got to Muller store to check them out so.. as time passed this opportunity presented itself and I am really excited to see how these will work on my hair! I have heard many positive reviews and comments for the 3 Minute Miracle reconstructor, so I hope it will work for me as well.

Just before the end of the month I have received another lovely surprise from Ličila.si, those of you who read me regulary already know I have collaborated with them before. This time they were so kind to send me new Freedom Cosmetics products! I have been spoiled with Pro 12 Audacious Mattes eyeshadow palette,  Pro Butters Lipgloss in shade Pro Butters TGIF and Curl Mascara. For all Slovenian readers they have a special discount code you can use up till the end of October - FREEDOM15! You can use this code on all Freedom Makeup products!

The last package that surprised me this month was from  another brand I have already collaborated with, it's from Dvorec Trebnik and I was lucky to be able to try out products from their new collection dt - Sparkle star haur&body oil, Energy tonic face&body mist, Juicy Orange shower gel and Berry pepper cream for tired legs&feet! I have not tested these yet, but I am really looking forward to! Lately Dvorec Trebnik products impressed me and some are really really amazing products, you can read the latest review here.

So now you know which reviews to expect in the coming month or two and also there are still some products I haven't reviewed yet as I didn't have time yet, but I am catching up on reviews and testing out and such so stay tuned if you're interested! :)

Thanks for reading!

Love, UniqaPoly