Lovely Quotes #6

"I had rather attempt something great and fail,

Than to attempt nothing at all and succeed."

— Robert H. Schuller

"Success is not the key to happiness.

Happiness is the key to success.

If you love what you are doing

You will be successful."

— Albert Schweitzer

"Discipline is just choosing between

What you want now and

What you want most."

— Unknown

Pictures via weheartit.com

Lovely Quotes #5

Slow down and enjoy life.

It's not only the scenery you miss

By going too fast -

You also miss the sense

Of where you are going and why.

— Eddie Cantor

A positive attitude may not

Solve all your problems,

But it will annoy enough people

To make it worth the effort.

— Herm Albright

To love is to receive a glimpse of heaven.

— Karen Sunde

Pictures via weheartit.com

Lovely Quotes #4

No one is ready of a thing

Until he believes he can acquire it.

— Napoleon Hill

We do not know what we want

And yet we are responsible for what we are -

That is the fact.

— Jean-Paul Sartre

To love and the be loved is

To feel sun from both sides.

— David Viscott

Pictures via weheartit.com

Spring Time! Outfit + Eye Of The Day!

So guys, as today spring officially starts and the days get warmer and sunnier, I thought I might do a little post about it :)

I wore this cute floral blouse by H&M today which I'm absolutely obsessed with. It's colorful, flattery and literally screams spring. I paired it with a fleshtoned top (also by H&M) underneath and light blue skinny jeans (H&M as well). For shoes, I wore my lavender colored ballet flats (see them here).

My makeup routine is pretty simple in the morning as I still prefer sleep over contouring, highlighting and other fancy stuff like that. My usual look consists of black eyeliner on the outer two thirds of my upper lash line and very black lashes. Today, I wanted to give it a twist and so I picked out a purple eyeliner and applied it to that area just under my lower lash line. Then (fancy me!) I smudged some purple eyeshadow on top of it. This adds a nice pop of color, doesn't it?

Are you excited for spring as well?

Love,
Nathalie xx

Lovely Quotes #3

"The only people

who can change the world

Are the people who want to.

And not everybody does."

— Hugh MacLeod 

"Love is the triumph of

Imagination over intelligence."

— H. L. Mencken  

"Don't aim at success-

The more you aim at it

And make it a target,

The more you are going to miss it."

— Victor Frankl

Pictures via weheartit.com

Loads of Empties!

I know it seems crazy, but I actually managed it to use up ALL of my body lotions! This has done me proud because I'm usually waaaay to lazy to use this after my shower (my skin is normal, so I always feel like I don't really need it). But I did force myself to use more body lotion with the result that my skin is soft and smooth and nice. I will definitely keep on doing that!

So here are the empties:

Garnier Intensive 7 Days Body Lotion Mango, 400ml

I love everything about this body lotion. It moisturizes extremely well (and the moisture lasts a good 4-5 days!), it smells divine and it absorbs quickly.
Repurchase? Hell yes!

Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Moisturizing Body Lotion, 75ml each

I got these two samples last year and enjoyed using them up: They moisturize very well and absorb quickly. What I don't like so much is that they're pretty much scentless. But it's a very satisfying body lotion though!
Repurchase: No.

Do you have any empties right now?

Nathalie xx

What I Did Last Weekend

My blog is called "Adventures of a 17-year old" which might sound a little exaggerated but hands down: Who doesn't want a lil' drama? Throughout the weekend, I took pictures of what I did this weekend to share an "average" weekend of mine with you. Not too exciting, but maybe interesting to read though (I admit, I'm nosey myself!)

SATURDAY

8.30 AM: Getting up, taking a shower, having breakfast, getting hair & makeup done

10 AM: Driving to town, listening to Colbie Caillat on my iPod

10.30 AM: Buying magazines at the newspaper stand

11 AM: Buying some necessities at the drugstore (and sneaking around haha!)

11.30 AM: Reading the march issue of Vogue and picking up a few books at the public library

1 PM: Having lunch at home

2 PM: Vacuuming the apartment and cleaning it

3 PM: Reading some fashion magazines at home (and doing some other stuff)

7 PM: Having dinner

8 PM: Watching a movie on my laptop

SUNDAY

10 AM: Getting up, having breakfast, taking a bath

11 AM: Helping my mom in the kitchen

1 PM: Having lunch with the family

4 PM: Having coffee and cake while watching TV (winter sports)

Hazelnut cake... Nom nom nom!

5 PM: Organizing school stuff and doing homework

6 PM: Editing drafts and writing new blog posts

7 PM: Having dinner

8 PM: Watching TV

Haha, that was probably one of the laziest and most boring weekends ever, but that's just how it is! Normally, I meet my friends in town and sometimes I also go out, but this weekend was just plain and simple.

Nathalie xxx

Lovely Quotes #2

"Be yourself,

Everyone else is already taken."

— Oscar Wilde

"I never think of the future -

It comes soon enough."

— Albert Einstein

"You have enemies? Good.
That means you've stood up for something,
sometime in your life."
— Winston Churchill


Pictures via weheartit.com

Everyday Eye Makeup: Quick, Easy and Crease-free!

Hey lovelies!

Today I went through my collection, found some lovely eyeshadows and fell in love with them again. So I just created a very quick makeup look this morning and thought I would show it to you! The best thing about this look is: it doesn't crease on me (and I have very oily lids!).

So to keep it short and sweet, here's how to get the look:

1. Apply an eye primer all over you lid to make your shadows last all day.
2. Take a shimmery beige cream shadow and put it all over your lid.
3. Use a big shader brush and swipe some light beige shadow with a pearl finish over the cream shadow.
4. Take a big fluffy brush and contour your crease with a matte medium brown eye shadow.
5. Line your upper lash line with a chocolate brown eyeliner (and use it to slightly darken your lower lash line as well).
6. Curl your lashes and apply your favorite mascara.

That's it! You can do this look in five minutes and you will look absolutely gorgeous wherever you go that day!

Extra tip: Use a rosy blush on your cheeks and a light pink lipstain on your lips to add some color to your face.

I hope you enjoyed this look!

Love,
Nathalie x

February Favorites: Makeup, TV, Apps and more!

My first monthly favorites post ever! Hope you all have been doing well this past month, I know I'm a little late with this post, but better late than never, haha. I didn't have too many beauty favorites as I usually follow my routine using the same products, but I thought I'd mention a few of them and try to incorporate other favorites that are not so much related with makeup or beauty.

MAKEUP

Starting with makeup, I'd love to mention these three products that I have been using a lot lately:

Rimmel Powder Blush Pink Sugar
I like to switch up my blushes so that I will make use of each of them and I recently digged this out of my container again and loved it! Gives me a nice flush with a bit of shimmer to it.

Rimmel Match Perfection Concealer Classic Beige
Brilliant for undereye circles, especially for the heavy ones I suffer from due to a lack of sleep (yep, school is hard). It covers them and also brightenes my undereye area and overall makes me look like I just slept for 12 hours!

Maybelline Moisture Extreme Pinky Beige
I've been raving about this and wearing it a zillion times (see my blogpost here). The perfect nude that doesn't wash you out and adds a bit of color to your lips. Love!

NAIL POLISHES

Whooops...

I've bought a couple of these essnce nail poilshes in Feb because the colors really appealed to me and for €1.29 you can't say know I guess! I even got the two left ones on sale for €0.99! The lasting power of these is nothing to rave about, but with a decent top coat, they survive a good 3-4 days.
Colors from top to bottom: Dress for a moment, No more drama (both discontinued), Walk on air

CELL PHONE

I don't wanna portrait my actual phone, but here you have the packaging, I think that should be enough. I got this 2 or 3 days ago ("Why the hell is she featuring this in her february favorites then?!"), but I absolutely love this, so I just have to feature it :)

APP

The picture is from here

Of course: WHAT'S APP! How can you not love that feeling of being with your friends all the time and being able to chat about silly things?! Not to mention the smileys! I'm officially addicted.

SHOES

I don't feel like wearing Converse all the time, and when it's getting warmer, I like to switch to ballet flats as they're a little more romantic and so comfy and light! I got these lavender flats in a german department store on sale last year (10 bucks, ain't that a bargain?) and now that they're a little worn, I wanna wear them all the time.

CLOTHING

I got this scarf at H&M at the end of January and nearly wore this every single day in February. I love that it's feeling so silky and flowy and plus, it makes the simple t-shirt, jeans and flats outfit look more polished and girly.

TV SHOW

The picture is from here

That has to be "The City" for this month, I watched both seasons during my 1-week holiday in the middle of February and I'm kinda sad that there isn't a third season actually! The mix of love, intrigues and fashion is so addictive!

What are your favorites this month? Leave them in the comments if you want to!

Love,
Nathalie xx

Monday Questionnaire: 27th February, 2012

I remeber having done one of this questionnaires last year, and to kick off this week, I figured I would maybe do one again?

via weheartit.com

1.) Mood?
Actually amazing! Got great results in school and my "social life" is going well, too.

2.) What did you eat for breakfast this morning?
I had one bake roll w/ low fat cream cheese and some jelly on one side and some Nutella on the other side :-) And of course a cup of coffee (can't live without it)!

3.) What is the weather like today?
It's getting better, the temperature was OK (around 10°C), but it's still a bit grey and winter-ish. Can't wait for spring!

4.) Current nail polish?
essence "Walk on air". See The Daily Nail here.

5.) What ring setting do you keep your cell phone on at night: loud or silent? (Or the phone completely off?)
I keep it on silent, but it vibrates when I get a text message.

6.) Current Outfit?
Blue skinny jeans, black t-shirt, red sweat vest, floral printed scarf. Pretty simple!

7.) What is your favorite Disney movie?
Cinderella! I've always been that kind of dreamy girl and probably will always be.

8.) Can you whistle using your fingers?
Unfortunately, I can't.

9.) When doing laundry, do your separate loads /lights/darks, delicates, etc.) or throw everything together?
 I separate everything, that's what my mom always told me to do and so I do now.

10.) Weekly goals
Write the newspaper article, get some school stuff done, watch the last two Harry Potter movies.

What are you up to this week?

Love,
Nathalie xxx

The Daily Nail: essence "Walk On Air"

Shown: 1x base coat, 2x essence colour & go, 1x top coat

essence Colour & Go Walk On Air

I haven't done a Daily Nail post for ages, but as I'm in a hurry right now, this is going to be a very quick post. I found this nail polish on my last shopping trip: essence recently added some new colors to their collection and this royal, electric blue totally got me that I just had to buy it.
Colour & Go nail polishes go on quite sheer, so they absolutely require a second coat as well as a good top coat to protect them from chipping (which they LOVE doing!).

What are you wearing on your nails right now?

Love,
Nathalie x

Maybelline Moisture Extreme

I've started purchasing lipsticks last year (at the age of 16!) as I always loved lip gloss way more. But 2011, I decided that it was my #1 task to find amazing nude lipsticks to replace my ever present glosses (of which I was kinda tired). Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy wearing gloss, but now that I've found lipsticks like the Maybelline Moisture Extreme, I'm drawn to lipsticks WAY more.

PACKAGING

 Moisture Extreme lipsticks come in solid packagings which are whether metallic red or beige colored.

COLOR

I'm reviewing "Pinky beige" which I would describe as a beige nude with a generous amount of pink to it. To me, this is the most beautiful nude color I own at the moment. It's very neutral but does not completely wash you out and make you look more dead than alive. Hence is the perfect addition to your everyday makeup as it adds a tiny pop of color to your face (as I said, tiny!). Pinky Beige is part of the "Natural Nudes" Range.

 FORMULA

The formula of these lipsticks is wonderful, it glides on better than any chapstick I have (no lie!) and deeply moisturizes your lips (and yet it's so pigmented!). It almost leaves a glossy finish while feeling super soft on the lips.

ALL IN ALL

My new obsession. I've swatched a couple of other shades and I'm dying to get my hands on them as every single one of them is truly beautiful.

Love,

Nathalie x

P.S.: For further information, check out Adrienne's review.

Finished Product #3: p2 perfect look kajal

p2 perfect look! kajal 020 brown

I'm a sucker for dark brown eye pencils, I use them everyday to line my lower lash line and sometimes also to line my upper lash line. It's just a great alternative for black which I don't like to wear all the time.

This eye pencil is a nice deeper brown, not to chocolatey, rather slightly reddish. It has a very creamy and soft texture which makes it perfect for smudging. I enjoyed using this and yet did not repurchase as I was looking for a deeper brown (and a stickier consistency).

Have you finished any products recently?

Love,

Nathalie x

Get Healthy Week: Day 2

This is day 2 and it's not going to be as good as Day 1. I made club sandwiches for lunch and Mac'n'Cheese for dinner. BUT: I did exercise!

BREAKFAST:
• 1 bowl of homemade Bircher Muesli (375 calories)
• 1 cup of coffee w/ sweeteners and low fat milk (10 calories)

LUNCH:
• 2 club sandwiches (700 calories)
• 1 glass of ice tea (60 calories)

IN BETWEEN:
• 4 glasses of water
• 50g of red grapes (40 calories)
• 1 chocolate cookie (95 calories)

DINNER:
• Mac'n'Cheese!!! (Oh my, I don't wanna know the amount of calories!)

IN BETWEEN:
• 4 glasses of water

Total: I'd estimate a good 2000 calories. I'm not devastated though because that's actually the amount of calories a teen should eat (but you know, not on a diet). Anyway, tomorrow is getting better!

Nathalie xo

Get Healthy Week: Day 1

As I promised, I'm starting with my food diary today; I'm not going to leave anything out. Feel free to give my tips or to punish me for eating something bad. Just kidding, haha! But I always appreciate comments :)

BREAKFAST:
• 2 homemade waffles (2 x 250 calories)
• 100g of low fat yoghurt (65 calories)
• a few cherries (30 calories)
• a cup of coffee w/ low fat milk and sweeteners (10 calories)

IN BETWEEN:
• 1 glass of ice tea (60 calories)
• 3 glasses of water

LUNCH:
• 1 bowl of homemade vegetable soup (90 calories)
• 1/2 sausage (170 calories)

IN BETWEEN:
• 3 glasses of water
• 100g of red grapes (75 calories)
• 1 chocolate cookie (75 calories)

DINNER:
• 1 slice of multi-grain bread w/ some low fat cream cheese (150 calories)
• 1 yoghurt (150 calories)

IN BETWEEN:
• 1 apple (50 calories)

Total: 1425 calories

I'm satisfied, I'd say this is a pretty good start into this week. If I can keep it on that level, it's going to make a difference (maybe I can even lower this?)

xo Nathalie

Get Healthy Week

OK, I gotta admit something: I became very lazy when it comes to healthy eating. Of course I could use excuses like "Oh, I was so stressed at school" or "I just couldn't do it any other way" but you know: If there's a will there's a way. That's why I thought that this one-week school break might actually just be perfect for eating healthier and feeling better (and also: working out more!).

So from tomorrow, I'm going to document everything I eat on my blog (and I will try to figure out the calories, just to involve some calculus, haha)

I got some rules of thumb made for this experiment, here they are:
• No carbs for dinner
• No snacks like crisps
• If I have a snack in the afternoon (like a piece of cake which I'm trying to avoid), I'll have one yoghurt for dinner
• I'll drink eight glasses of water a day (and no soft drinks)
• One apple a day (+ some more fruit like grapes or mandarines)
• One mug of coffee a day (not more)
• One mug of tea a day (best would be green tea I guess)
• Try to go to the gym, if not possible, do some pilates and yoga at home

I hope I'm able to manage this, but on the other hand: I'm highly motivated!

Love,
Nathalie xo

Best & Worst: Makeup/Hair Looks

Best makeup and hair looks from 2/12/2012 until 02/18/2012.

BEST

• Adele (Of course! But you already knew that)

The picture is from here

We all know that Adele is currently like the most amazing and beautiful and everything person on this planet, so this is just eyecandy for you. Flawless face, sharped eyeliner and perfect red lips. Need to say more?

• Carrie Underwood

The picture is from here

Carrie is always looking extremely gorgeous, but at the Grammys this year, she seriously kicked it. This is perfection: just look at those feathery false lashes! And the effortless hair! No, I'm not jealous...well, maybe a little.

• Miley Cyrus (Oh yeah!)

The picture is from here

I absolutely love Miley's new haircut, these short layers frame her face so well. I also love the dip dye! I don't think something like that would ever look good on me, but it definitely does on her.

WORST

• Rihanna (Oh girl!)

The picture is from here

Besides the fact that her dress was showing off quite a lot, her hair was a mess. The first thing that came my mind when I saw it was "OMG, she looks like a cockerspaniel!". Pleeeease, get your hair dyed and cut Riri. Oh, and what I almost forgot: her makeup is fine, can't say anything bad against smokey eyes and a pale pink lip.

• Lindsay Lohan (as always?!)

The picture is from here

I somehow feel sorry about putting her in this section, but I don't have a choice. Her overly platin blonde hair looks pretty damaged and then...where's the makeup? I can detect some improvements like evened out skin, but what's going on with the eyes? Even I put much more effort in my makeup (and I'm only going to school or what)!

What were your hits and misses this week?

xo,

Nathalie

Mini HAUL: Eyelash Curlers, Lush...

I'm having a mini vacation next week (YAY!) and so today I went to school for only 3 hours of class. It's a tradition to go to town with your friends afterwards, and my girlies and I did. I actually wanted to get way more things, but then I ended up buying these few beauty items.

• Beliance Eyelash Curler
I repurchased this, my old one started to squeeze my lashes and make them fall out :(. I had had it for a year or so, I guess you can't expect too much.

• Balea Clear-Up Strips
I'm having some massive issues with my face at the moment and so I was is terrible need of some strips to remove all the blackheads I have.

• Balea Aqua Sheet Mask
I keep on repurchasing this over and over again: It moisturizes my skin perfectly making it soft and smooth and super hydrated. Plus the smell is really nice!

• p2 Cuticle Softener Gel
My cuticles are a serious mess at the moment, completely dried out and cracked (even though I always use hand cream, cuticle cream and stuff). So during my vacation, I will have plenty of time to recover them and make them look nice and beautiful again.

• LUSH Fresh Farmacy Sample
My oily skin is breaking out at the moment, not to much, but in a way that calls for extra treatment. I stopped by the new LUSH shop in my town and picked up a sample of this face soap. I hope this is going to turn my skin for the better! Review coming soon.


What did you recently buy?

Love,
Nathalie x

Shopping List Ideas #1 / Feb. 16, 2012

There are a few goodies that I'm really wanting right now, so I thought I'd share a few of them! You should know that I actually have a Word document on my computer where I write down all the things I'm interested in. I constantly update the list (I kick some out again) and after purchasing a product, I'll cross it out.


Here are some extracts:


NYX 10 Color Eyeshadow Palette Caviar & Bubbles

The picture is from here

This is one of the most beautiful everyday eyeshadow palettes EVER. 10 colors that work together in any combination plus, the quality of NYX eyeshadows is (almost) unbeatable. They glide on so smoothly and the pigmentation is outstanding!
Price: $8.50 / £ 10 / €10, available online and in drugstores/perfumeries


NYX Cream Blush Natural

The picture is from here

Talking about NYX, their cream blushes got me totally hooked! Everyone's raving about this color calling the perfect shade for anytime, so I wanna get my hands on this.
Price: $6.75 / £5.50 / €8.95, available online and in drugstores/perfumeries


MAC Paint Pot Painterly

The picture is from here

I know that this is probably THE eyeshadow base for anyone that enjoys makeup, but I'm still kinda struggling with the price tag. This might sound super crazy, and though I plan to get this somewhere special...maybe during my Paris trip in June? Until then, I surely have the money!
Price: $17.50 / £13.50 / €21, available online and in perfumeries


Korres Lip Butter Quince

The picture is from here

I actually wanted to purchase this on feelunique.com, but they're completely out of stock, and so I left my email with them so they can notice me when it's back. I recently became addicted to lip butters and now that spring is coming, the tinted ones caught my attention.

Price: $12 / £5.40 / €7.50, available online (and in stores I guess?)


Random Stuff I want:
• a pair of light blue jeans
• a new pair of black ballet flats (mine are completely worn out!)
• Hair oil (as it makes your hair so smooth and shiny)


What's on your list?


Love,
Nathalie x