MAC Cosmetics - Retro Matte Liquid Lipcolour Simply Smoked

Matte reigns supreme

Hi everyone!

Back in January, MAC launched eight new Retro Matte Liquid Lip Colours to add to the existing 15 shades. With a combination of muted and deep tones and a liquid matte formula, MAC is really hitting the trend. 

A little round up before

Before diving in, I just wanted to give some thoughts I had after trying the shades from the first release. The formula was extremely dry, it left my lips feel like the desert. The darker shades applied really patchy and hard to build up, making it really hard to make them look nice on the lips . The applicator is really nice, it's not your classic foot applicator, it's a flat, teardrop shaped applicator, which is really easy to work with. My favorite shade was tailored to tease, which is a cool-toned, rather bright plum colour. 

If you want to read about the first release of the Retro Matte's, click on the picture below.

Why did you buy one again?

The reviews on the first release weren't that great, but everyone seemed to find their way to work with them. I will discuss mine further down.

I would've been surprised if MAC would release eight more shades, without doing something with the feedback of the make up lovers, so I decided to get one more of the new release. 

Simply smoked

I am a big fan of the matte lipstick in the shade Stone, so I decided to get a similar shade in the Retro Matte range. Judging from the tube, I picked out Simply Smoked. 

Simply Smoked is described is a neutral taupe color. And I must say I totally love it! I'm not sure if MAC has changed up the formula, or if the formula works really well with this pigment, but this shade is amazing! It really makes me want to try more shades again.

Here you see Stone and Simply Smoked swatched next to each other. As you can see, Stone has a slightly more red tone, while Simply Smoked has more grey tones in it.

How I make them work

First method: conditioner

- Make sure your lips are exfoliated, you can use premade scrubs (like Lush) or make it yourself with olive oil and sugar (which I do)

- Take care of your lips, use lip balm or lip conditioner regularly. I always do my lipstick last when I do my make up, so I have lip conditioner on the whole time while doing the rest of my make up. My favorite balm/conditioner is the MAC Lip Conditioner

- You can go in with an extra primer, but sometimes I feel like this makes your lips a bit too slippery, so be sure to wipe off any excess product before applying any lipstick

- Make sure your lips are dry

- Apply your lipstick evenly and work with it while still matte

Second method: gloss it up

Do you love the shade of your lipstick, but hate it being so dry on your lips? There's a simple hack!

I use the slightest bit of MAC clear Lip Glass Lip Gloss over the top, which will make the lipstick less dry and a little more glossy.

Facts

Retail price: €24,50

I hope you enjoyed this little update and review!

TTFN! Ta Ta For Now!

xo

Gaëtane

Food - Sticks 'n' Sushi - Covent Garden London

Sushi is fish in haute couture

Hi Mad Family!

Who doesn't love some delicious sushi? I know I do! While browsing the internet for a sushi restaurant in central London back 2014, I came across Sticks 'n Sushi at Covent Garden! The look of their website is very sleek and hipster, even a little mysterious. Without even looking through the menu, which is provided on their official website, we booked a table every year when we go to London every since.

Atmosphere & menu
This vivid restaurant has a really cosy feel to it, it actually feels like having dinner at your friends' place. All the staff are always extremely friendly and helpful they are just amazing! The have cosy sofas and really cool chair that are open on one side, so they are really easy to get at your table. We even sat right at the kitchen counter once! Isn't that so cool?!

To choose your food, you don't get your regular menu, you get a photo album! The quote inside says 'Look how it tastes. Words are good, pictures are better' and I think this is really such an original idea! So you literally see pictures of the different dishes with their names and main ingredients.

My favorite drink: Homemade lemonade!

Food

As the name of the restaurant indicates, the dishes of Sticks and Sushi or one of both. You can have the sticks by themselves, which are mostly meat, or in differents dishes. Same goes for the sushi. You can have maki, nigiri or sashimi separately, make your own combinations or pick out one of the sushi only dishes or combinations with sticks.

The sushi dishes are definitely my favorite! Below I will show you some pictures of the dishes, and will list the names & prices (subject to change) with the pictures if I can find them back!
Enjoy!

Upgrade option: sushi plate

Shake tataki of salmon

Upgrade option: sushi plate

Upgrade option: sushi plate

Upgrade option: sticks plate

Mini Maki Maki (2015)

Sashimi, sister of sushi (2015)

Tuna Tartare (2016) - £9,80

Salmon tartare (2016) - £8,20

Sashimi - The Sister of Sushi - £36 (2016)

Maki Maki - £45 (2016)

Info

http://www.sticksnsushi.co.uk
Locations: Covent Garden, Canary Wharf, Cambridge, Wimbledon & Greenwich
Price range
- Drinks: From £1,5 (for unlimited water per person)
- Food: Starters (Bites) from around £3, Main Dishes from around £9, individual rolls from around £2  (subject to change)

I hope you enjoy this little review & photo report! Are you hungry yet?
What is your favorite restaurant to have sushi?

TTFN! Ta Ta For Now!
xx
Gaëtane

Make Up - Urban Decay Full Spectrum Eyeshadow Palette

Hi Mad Family!

Time to talk about some make up! This month, Urban Decay Belgium launched the Full Spectrum Eyeshadow Palette. I know in some other countries this will probably have launched earlier, but because it's brand new to me, that's why I still want to share it with you! 

Price & availability

$55 (US) - £43 (UK) - €54 (BE)

In Belgium, this is only available at Ici Paris XL

Limited Edition

Description

The packaging looks very sleek, and maybe even futuristic with the lining details. It has the UD Jewel in it, featuring the same colors as the eyeshadow inside. It has a full size mirror in the flip up lid.

The full spectrum palette consists of 21 shades, a mix of shimmering and matte ones. It's arranged in 7 ombré trios. Pink - Orange - Yellow - Green - Blue - Purple - White/Black
There are 18 brand new shades and three recurring shades that were exclusive to previous palettes

Seeing the colors, this palette is for you daredevils who like color or like to experiment with something new. It has a double ended brush included: one side is the Tapered Crease Brush, the other end is the Shadow brush.

The Shades include:

- Pinks:     Alchemy (deep fuchsia satin) - Gossip (bright metallic pink with pearl) - Paranoia (soft metallic blue-pink)

- Oranges: Warning (deep metallic copper) - Seize (bright metallic coral with pearl) - Jones (metallic orange with pearl)

- Yellows:  Midnight Blaze (black matte with yellow/gold pearl) - Calavera (bright yellow matte) - Goldmine (metallic yellow-gold)

- Greens:    Hundred (deep metallic forest green) - Hatter (vibrant green with sparkle) - Mean (bright metallic lime green)

- Blues:      Minx (deep navy matte with pearl) - Blindsided (bright teal blue matte with pearl) - Metamorphosis (vibrant periwinkle with microsparkle)

- Purples:   Delirious (deep plum matte with pearl) - Sketch (metallic medium purple) - Faded (lavender with gold shimmer)

- Greys:     Plantonic (black matte with iridescent glitter) - Iced (oyster silver with shimmer) - Bump (white matte)

I swatched all the colors on my arm. The top of the swatch has the Urban Decay Primer Potion Original under it, the lower part is just on my skin. (Swatches in order per trio top to bottom)

Judging the swatches only two colors were slightly disappointing in my opinion. First of Goldmine, which is swatched between the bold yellow Calavera and the dark green Hundred, Goldmine has been featured before in the Urban Decay XX Vice Ltd Reloaded, and is better quality in that palette in my opinion. The one in the Full Spectrum seems a bit powdery and not really pigmented, it just has the golden glitter, while when I swatch it from the Vice Palette it is just gold all over, as I will show you in the picture below.

Goldmine 2x: Left Vice Palette & Right Full Spectrum

The second color that is slightly disappointing to me is the lavender with gold shimmer shade, called Faded. I don't know what to think. My purple heart bleeds when swatching this, it is patchy and has just big chunks of gold glitter, it's just not fully there.

I really like the idea of this palette, although it is a bit out of my comfort zone. But I do think it's a nice addiction to my collection because it has the big bold colors that I'd never buy seperately and I can't wait to try out some out there eye looks with this palette!

Are you planning on picking this us? Let me know in the comments!

TTFN! Ta Ta For Now!
xo Gaëtane

Disneyland Paris & Food - Auberge de Cendrillon Review

Hi Mad Family!

Ready to go to the ball? Today I will be talking about the character dining experience in Auberge de Cendrillon at Disneyland Paris! Auberge de Cendrillon is one of the three Character dining experiences in Disneyland Paris and to be honest the most posh and expensive one out of the trio. Auberge de Cendrillon is located behind our lovely castle, and is the home to the Disney Princesses.

About
The Auberge is considered a table service restaurant with character experience. The whole restaurant is themed to Cinderella, with tapestries and paintings from the movie, her carriage is even outside in the courtyard. You can choose between a seating at noon (from 12 till 4.30) or in the evening (18.00 - ..., in Winter when the park closes earlier, there might be no evening seating).
This restaurant is definitely one you should book in advance as it's always fully booked. Even if you decide to book it when you've already arrived for your stay at Disneyland Paris, you might be disappointed because it will probably be full.
Personally, my favorite seating time is in the early afternoon, because the restaurant feels more quiet then.

Prices

Adult:     €69,99
Child:     €39,99
Birthday cake: €27
Half Board Premium, Full Board Lunch Premium and Full Board Dinner are accepted.
You might have to pay up to the voucher for the drinks.

Food

The menu consists of a three-course meal with a cocktail included.
For starters and main course you can choose out of 4 or f5 options, which are generally meat, fish and vegetarian.
For desserts there are usually two options, which vary depending on the season
For children they offer a three course menu too, with more 'simple' versions of the adult dishes.

The food is definitely on the more sophisticated side, but all the times I've been there it is really delicious and fresh and served with care.

I will not put food pictures, as all dishes we had have changed in the meantime.

Characters
The Character Experience is Princess Themed, of course. Suzy & Perla will guide you to your table until the royal guests arrive. Usually, one royal couple and two more princesses. Arriving in the restaurant, they will dance first and then will make their way to your table. Depending on the day the princes and princesses attending might differ. Cinderella is almost always there and the most regular royal guests are Snow White and Aurora (Sleeping Beauty), but also Tiana, Ariel and Rapunzel occasionally visit the Auberge.
Here are some of the royal guests of honour we met during our lunch/dinner. I will put mostly pictures of the couples, but please note that you will normally meet only one couple when you eat there and two princesses on their own.

 

 

 

Aurora is her blue dress, since 2015 she only wears the pink one anymore

 

 

 

The Riff Off: Inventions or Auberge?
Well, the choice is completely up to you! But if you have a hard time deciding, I will put some arguments here to maybe help you make your decision.

Venue: Both Inventions have their own charm. Both are busy when they are fully booked. Personally Inventions feels a bit more quiet to me even if it's fully booked, while Auberge feels more crowded easily. I think this might be due to the fact that Inventions has more compartment, while Auberge has larger seating areas. Downside on Inventions is of course people run around all the time to go and get food, which can sometimes result in lots of people being with you in photos.

Food: If you are a picky eater, Inventions might be better for you. Because Inventions is a buffet formula, you are more likely to find something you like and so have more worth for your money food-wise.

Characters: If the Disney Princesses are your absolute favorite, the Auberge is your place to be! If you are more a fan of Mickey & friends or what to spot a rarer character, I'd opt for Inventions. Just looking at the number of characters you meet, you meet 6 characters at the Auberge, of which 4 facecharacters and Suzy & Perla. The number of characters at Inventions differs a lot depending on that day's theme, I've done with character numbers between 7 and 13 and up to 17 on special occasions (which are usually more expensive). Lately, Inventions Brunch themes also have Disney Princess ones, which are the perfect combo.
Note:  Themes for Inventions are only on Sundays and lunch doesn't always have characters (it depends on the season), so be sure to ask when you make your reservation.

Want to read more about the brunches? Click the photo:

 

 I hope you enjoyed this post, leave a comment if you did!

TTFN! Ta Ta For Now!
xo
Gaëtane

Skincare Review - L'oréal Paris - Pure Clay Face Masks

Pure Clay Your Way

Hi Mad Family!

Today I'm back with a new Beauty post! About a month ago, I discover these new face masks from L'oréal Paris tried them out for a bit, so now I can give you my honest opinion about it along with the official info provided by L'oréal!

The Collection

This new release consists of three brand new Clay Face masks. Each kind is a blend of three pure clays along with a unique natural ingredient with a specific target to help your skin.

The Masks

The masks retail at less than 10 euros per pot, each pot can be used up to 10 times.

Pure Clay Purity Mask

This is the light green mask. It has eucalyptus which works deep into the pores of your skin. L'oréal says it mattifies oily, skiny skin. 

Efficiency: purifying and mattifying

My opinion: This one is my favorite if you want to clean your skin, but not in a very intense way. This one is the most gently one out. I have dry skin and it gives just the right amount of intensity in purifying, without leaving my skin extra dry. It leaves my skin feeling soft and still nourished even tho it's a 'clearing' mask. I like to use this mask all over the face when I want to gently clean out my skin, or just on the cheeks when I combine with the others, when I feel like my skin needs a more thorough clean.

Pure Clay Detox Mask

This is the dark grey mask. It has Charcoal as the working ingredient to draw out impurities out of the skin and clarify normal, congested skin.

Efficiency: detoxifying and clarifying

My opinion: This one is definitely more intense for the skin, but this is my favorite out of all three. After it dries down, you can clearly see where the mask pull out impurities out of your skin. I like to use this in areas where I have black heads.

Pure Clay Glow Mask

This is the red mask. It has Red Algae as the working ingredient to exfoliate your skin, to illuminate dull, uneven skin tone.

Efficiency: exfoliating and smoothing

My opinion: This is my least favorite of all, even though this is a gentle exfoliating mask compared to other scrubs and stuff. I like to use it in areas where I have active breakouts, for me that's my mouth area where I tend to have breakouts most frequently. If you have very oily skin, this might turn out your favorite!

How to use / How I use them

Make sure you start with clean skin.

Take some of the product out of the pot, preferably with a scooper and not with your fingers (but I'm guilty to using my fingers too) and apply evenly to the skin. You can use one kind of mask all over your face or combine them the way you want/need for your skin. Leave the mask on for 5 to 10 minutes and they tend to dry down completely (the red one dries less in my opinion) in that time. Take a warm washing cloth and remove the mask with circular motions. Make sure to rinse the cloth regularly while taking the mask off. L'oréal states you can use these masks up to 3 times a week, but with my sensitive skin one time is more than enough, because they are quite intense after all

My favorite way to use them

- Detox Mask (grey): on the T-zone, down and around the nose

- Purity Mask (green): on the cheeks

- Glow Mask (red): around my mouth

*this is just the way I like to use them, you can mix and match how you want*

Are you planning on picking one of these masks up? Leave a comment down below!

TTFN! Ta Ta For Now!

xo

Gaëtane

Make Up - Urban Decay - Lipstick is my Vice

Too much vice is never enough

Hi Mad Family!

I still remember the press release by Urban Decay coming out: they were going to relaunch their existing lipstick range and were going to be added shades to reach a huge launch of 100 lipstick shades! Yes 100 shades! Which girl wouldn't swoon away by the thought of that?

Urban Decay only became available in Belgium in April 2015 at Ici Paris XL, but only in certain bigger stores. My fellow make up addicted friends had told me 5 million times before: you have to try Urban Decay it's great! But for some reason and also because it was hard to get, I never really bothered. I always kept track off their releases and at the end of last year, when they released the Gwen Stefani collab, I picked up the products from that range and fell in love with the brand (which is hard to admit as a former hard core MAC junkie). It was hard not to pick up any of the lipsticks then, because the word for the relaunch was already out. So I saved up a fair bit of money to have a big haul when the new lipsticks launched.

Information

The relaunch consisted of 100 shades (some of them already existing, most of them new ones) in 6 different finishes: mega matte, comfort matte, cream, metallized, sheer and sheer shimmer. Alongside, they launched 52 24/7 glide on lip pencils matching the shades. Are you impressed yet? Well, it gets better! They also launched an app for smartphones where you can take a selfie without any lipstick on and try on all shades, swiping left/right for like/dislike. It's basically Tinder for lipstick. 

The Official Urban Decay website: Lipstick is my vice!

In Belgium available at Ici Paris XL: Vice in Belgium

Get the app: search for Vice Lipstick in Google Play or App Store

A little review
The budget I pulled out for this haul, allowed me a fair amount. So in advance, I made a list of the shades I really wanted to pick up. In the end I also picked up the Ultimate Ozone Primer, which is really a must have primer in my opinion! It is amazing and helps your lipstick last a long time, even when eating or drinking.

I picked up 19 shades in total, with at least one of each finish. Going from nudes over purples, to the really out there blue and black.

I took picture of every shade individually, but posting all those pictures would make this post extremely long. So I have selected some group ones. The packaging is really beautiful black with a sliced up lipstick on the front and says VICE in golden lettering. There's a sticker with the name of the shade and a representative of the color inside on the side. I do feel that the actual color in the bullet is slightly different, but at least you can see what shade is inside without having to open the whole thing. The bullets themselves are very sleek and are silver with a golden bottom. When I first opened a packaging, I did struggle a bit to open them, as the base is really small to grab on, but when you get used to that, that's totally no problem. One slight issue I've had a few times carrying these in my handbag and having to go through an X-Ray, I get stopped and asked to take them out and show them to security, probably because they are so metallic and hard to distinguish in an X-Ray.

I had watched a ton of YouTube videos with swatches before deciding which shades to get. The main thing for me to make a decision was that the colors had to be different from the MAC lipsticks I already had. Knowing me, I did end up with some purples similar to ones I already had, but you can't have enough purple lipsticks!

Top row: Backtalk (Comfort Matte) - Violate (cream) - Peyote (Metallized)
Second row: Frenemy (cream) - Amulet (Metallized) - Perversion (Comfort Matte) - Heroine (Comfort Matte)
Third row: Rapture (cream) - Conspiracy (Metallized) - Blackmail (Comfort Matte) - Liquid (Sheer)
Fourth row: Pandemonium (Mega Matte) - Afterdark (Comfort Matte) - Venom (cream) - Bad Blood (Comfort Matte)
Fifth row: Jawbreaker (Mega Matte) - Twitch (cream) - Bittersweet (Comfort Matte) - Seismic (sheer shimmer) - 

Generally, I can say I am really happy with this haul! The shades I picked up are amazing! They are so pigmented, are long lasting and are very hydrating for the lips (even the matte ones)! I have used every single one of them multiple times already. The only two finishes that I'm not a fan of, which is totally personal, are the sheer and sheer shimmer. I had picked up Seismic (Sheer Shimmer) & Liquid (Sheer) and they are just not my cup of tea. I like the out there very outstanding colors, so when I have lipstick on, I want them pigmented. These two are just a bit to transparant on their own, but I do like them as a glossy layer over one of the matte purples. I am definitely planning on picking up some more shades!

The Nudes: Peyote (Metallized) - Violate (cream) - Backtalk (Comfort Matte) - Rapture (cream)

Have you already splurged on some of these lipsticks? Or did you get tempted reading this post? Which one is your favorite? Feel free to leave a comment!

TTFN! Ta Ta For Now!

xo

Gaëtane