Beauty ponders

Washing my hair is always something I'm not looking forward to, mainly because it is so time consuming... So when washing it I like to pamper it a bit longer, because what are those extra 10minutes when you're already spending an hour on it? Exactly, peanuts. I also use styling tools so my hair can become quite dry from time to time, a good mask or moisturizing conditioner is a must for me. MischaRocks is a Dutch brand, which I ran into thanks to a few beautyblogs and thanks to a contest I won these products and have been using them for the last few months...
MischaRocks is a relatively new brand on the block and they don't offer that much - yet. They have 2 hair care lines from which I tested the Pro Hy one - which is supposed to restore the protein in you hair. Both bottles contains 235ml. Packaging is simple with a clicksystem on top. Products pricing is ranged between 15-20euros, midranged, available in salons or online.
Ingredientwise both products contain perfume and have a very sweet scent, reminds me of candy. The shampoo contains SLS, so if you're not a fan of it - skip it. Texturewise both products are creamy and thick which sometimes leaves a problem with the clickdispenser. The shampoo is more runny and works fine, but the conditioner is thicker and gets a bit stuck in the clicker, leaving a small mess - see last picture. Maybe they are better of offering a tube for this product?

Then, lastly and most importantly, how does it perform? The shampoo cleans my hair effectively, it isn't anything special but it isn't bad either, qualifies in the 'normal' category to me. Then, the conditioner, which is of more importance to me. Even though it is quite thick and creamy it isn't enough for my hair. When I only use this every week I notice my hair becomes more dry. I can use this conditioner from time to time, but not for a longer period. My hair needs a 'boost' from time to time and this doesn't cover that boost, sadly (I guess it's more suitable for normal hair types?). Nevertheless I enjoy using these products and will finish them, but won't repurchase them - as I expect more from my hair care products.
The goods: sweet scent, thick & creamy texture, shampoo cleans effectively, simple packaging

The bads: clicker system isn't good for thick creams, conditioner isn't moisturizing enough, shampoo contains SLS, only available in salons or selected online shops

But, I already have new hair care products awaiting usage * just have to finish these first or I end up with way too many bottles open... do you get the feeling?

The alphabet-tag is popular in blogland and why not follow for once? If you care to know more about me, do read one! Otherwise, just wait for the next review which will come up soon (as I finally found my battery charger for my camera, it's been lost for more than a week but I found it today *yes!)

A. Age: 26, which always seems to surprise people as they estimate me a lot younger (which I do not mind)
B. Best friend: I have a few of them, but not too many and I try to see them as often as possible, friends are the best
C. Chore you hate: doing the dishes probably but washing comes as a close second
D. Dreamhouse: something with a garden for my dog(s) in a calm environment & if I can choose I would like a forest nearby for walking/running
E. Essential start of your day: a cup of coffee along with breakfast
F. Favorite color: dusty rose / beige
G. Gold or silver: silver
H. Height: 1,70 m
I. Instruments I play: none, a shame
J. Job Title (most recent): employee at a bank
K. Kids: none
L. Life is incomplete without: my family, dogs & friends
M. Music that you always listen to: lounge, RnB, pop
N. Nickname: none actually
O. Overnight hospital stays: none and let's keep it that way
P. Phobias or fears: classic spiders and a bit of heights
Q. Quote from a movie: “Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.” Oscar Wilde
R. Reason to smile: being happy, a good movie, shopping, the sun that shines, my dogs playing - random things
S. Siblings: one sister, Karolien
T. Time you wake up: I try to get up at 7:30, but I would rather sleep in if I can choose
U. Underwear: shorts or lace, preferably white - beige - pink
V. Very important date this year: my father's birthday who turns 50 this year
W. Worst habit: I have a hard time getting somewhere on time, I'm almost always late - not on purpose though
X. X-ray’s you’ve had done: my arm when I had an accident, it was broken and took me a few months before I could use it again
Y. Yummy food you make: I love soup and pudding
Z. Zoo animal: pinguin, it's a cool animal

You can use this tag as well, if you'd like. Hope you enjoyed my answers...!

A new episod of me contemplating of getting something... this time it's a Babyliss make-up mirror - one with 3 different lights. Why I didn't need it before you might ask? After me moving the lighting in the bathroom has changed a lot and not in a positive way might I add. I can't find another room that is good enough so this mirror comes a close 2nd...

What do you think? Do you have a make-up mirror like this? Or other recommendations are always welcome!

My latest Avon order came in & I had almost forgotten about it because it was so tiny, off course some polish had to be in it...!
The 2 polishes are Deluxe Chocolate - a golden brown & Ruby Slippers - a shimmery red. Weird enough I don't own many red polishes, this is my 2nd or so? For whatever reason I'm not that attracted to the colour, but it can look stunning when going out. And lastly I bought a nice necklace, one for good luck because I could use some good luck in 2012 - let's hope that works out...!

My love for OPI is unconditional and goes way back... It's a brand which I'm very fond of because it applies so easily. The only downside is that they offer less neutral colours than let's say Essie. This dusty colour has been on my list for some time, but after purchasing it I never felt the urge to apply it, untill this week! I opened my neutrals box and was immediately drawn to this one.
Application goes like all OPI's, like a charm. I used 2 layers to get this desired effect. No streaks, but be sure to use small layers, it offers plenty of coverage with 2 small ones. Tipwear shows after 3 days, but no chips. The colour is a lovely dusty rose that can be worn all-year-round but suits fall/spring best in my opinion. I can definitely see why this is a popular colour and I'm sure I will get plenty of wear out of it (the right picture with flash is the most accurate colour)!
Which are your favourite OPI neutrals?

After my praise of Louis Widmer's deo spray I went ahead and ordered the crème & stick as well, thinking if one is good the other must be as well. But there are & always will be exceptions to this rule I guess. Because of the winter I started using the deo creme, adding my dry skin & winter together - this deo should be perfect for it. If only...
Packaging is sleek & simple - I prefer no-nonsense instead of over-the-top. There's a dop on top, you have to turn the bottom to get the creme product out of it - it almost 'jumps' out of the bottle - very funny. I used one twist for daily usage. It has a very very light scent, hardly noticeable. It doesn't irritate and glides on easily. It keeps me fresh & hydrated all day... Then what's wrong with it, you might ask? I only noticed after wanting to wash my clothes... I wore a black shirt and there were white stains all over it on the inside, off course from this product. I tried different fabrics but with the same effect - it keeps leaving stains (which you can wash out, that's true) & I'm way too scared the stains are visible on the outside when wearing something light or see-through. I tried using less product but that didn't help either...
I am a bit disappointed in this product, I expected more from it, definitely! Oh well, I still love the deo spray & will continue to use that one forever - not that particular one you know - as it doesn't have this problem.

I still have the dry stick to try out though, but first I'm sticking with this spray untill it's empty, then I'm willing to give the other one a shot!

Last week whilst throwing a few finished products into "the finished bin" I noticed it began getting a bit too crowded, so here's another episode of my finished stuff. The last one of 2011 as I emptied most products in that year... Again, mostly skincare, as my make-up - even my daily products - seem to last forever...!

• Tweezerman BrowMousse: ahh, HG, how I love you and will continue to repurchase you forever. I think I go through 2 of them a year? Best brow gel pricequalitywise in my opinion, a must to try if you haven't alread

• Tri-Aktiline Instant Deep Wrinkel Filler serum: I was able to buy this quite cheap with almost 50% off. I mainly bought it because of its ingredients, not because of its name. It contains some good antioxidants but I wasn't fully convinced by it, a review is on its way.

• Clarins Instant Light Complexion Perfector: I used this as a make-up base and while I like it, I'm not wowed by it. It's good, but also heavily fragranced. There must be better alternatives for this one I think.

• Pai Anti-ageing eye cream: another Pai product and yes, I like this one too. But again the pricing is very steep, 30euros for 10ml - say what?? A review will also follow describing why I like it and why I hate its price tag.

• Louis Widmer deo creme: I bought this one because I love their spray and thought this creme would be perfect during the winter for my dry skin. But, sadly, it has not lived up to its expectation and I will not repurchase it nor recommend it for various reasons. Again, a review is on its way (yes, I'm writing a lot!).

• Batiste Boho dry shampoo: dry shampoo = my fringe loves it & I have been trying all of Batiste's range. This is the same product but just with a different fragrance. I will continue to purchase their dry shampoos, they work well and aren't too expensive. I'm also getting other people hooked on this, it's amazing how little people know the existance of dry shampoo...!

• La Roche Posay Hydraphase UV riche: my favourite day cream with an SPF of 20. I already started my new pump, this is becoming an HG of me. Perfect for dry sensitive skins, which I'll explain in the review coming up.

• Paula's Choice Resist 5% AHA: I love exfoliators and more specifically AHA's. I bought the set of these AHA's being the 5% daily and 10% weekly one. I enjoyed using this one, will put a review and most likely it is on the repurchase list.

• Bioderma Sensibio H2O: I love this make-up remover and I've already said my praise, repurchase this one forever

• Joico K-Pak shampoo: I've been using the whole K-PAK line from Joico & now I have finally finished this shampoo. Joico offers big bottles and the K-Pak line is really worth looking into, I enjoyed using it a lot - though not a review yet.

• Avon Bubble Bath: yet again another bath product from Avon, this time in the scent "Strawberries & cream", this was also a limited version - it was ok but maybe a bit too sweet for my taste!

That was quite a lot now - I'm so proud of me... *goes off to purchase new items*

A couple of months ago I did a big Pai order, mainly because of getting a free eye cream along with it when purchasing a toner. Getting something for free -especially since particular eye cream costs around 30euros- is always a good reason for purchasing. Pai offers 2 different toners: one for combination skin & one for dry skin. I, obviously, bought the one for dry skin which is called "orange blossom".
Let me start by saying this toner is small, small being 50ml but with a spray on top of it. It comes in a heavy milk glass bottle and is as luxurious as it seems. Pai definitely knows how to pack their products: all of them look luxurious and are packed so their ingredients remain active - this means pumps/sprays all the way. This particular toner costs around 35euros and can be purchased on their own website or in other various webshops, though the price remains more or less the same.

Toners either come with an opening to use with a cotton pad or with a spray. I haven't still figured out which one I prefer but... I do know that most sprays I've used in the past are either too strong or too light or simply don't work properly where you only have half your face covered or your entire bathroom. That's not the case with this spray, it spreads a light mist and covers a large area of your face. Thumbs up for spray & packaging.
But a spray means nothing if the product inside it doesn't do its job. And this product does its job. I've been using it for 4months twice a day - quite long considering it's 50ml - and I wished I didn't like it so much. It never irritated my skin in any way and it works really soothing. It has a light orange blossom scent, but I hardly noticed it. After spraying I let it dry naturally, which doesn't take too long and I noticed my skin is less dry than before I used this product.
The goods: good spray, ingredients (no alcohol), works soothing, doesn't irritate, good on dry skin

The bads: only 50ml, pricing - damnit!

This is such a lovely toner, but one with a heavy price tag. I do like it a lot, but I'm not sure whether I can justify its benefits by its price for 50ml. I may repurchase it in the future, still contemplating...! Surely wish they would make bigger bottles of it! If your wallet can afford it, try it - I think you'll love it as well!

Today the new year has begun and I wish all my readers the best for 2012. I hope you have all been able to celebrate & had a good time! My 2012 is already filled with good intentions, or I should actually say one good intention... and that is bringing more happiness into my life. Do share your good intentions, if you have any...!