Essie Spaghetti Strap Review

My very first bottle of Essie! My mam got this for herself originally but she didn't like it, so I took it. I was really excited to try my very first bottle, having read soo many reviews and knowing soo many bloggers rave about this nail polish, I was determined to find out if all the hype was true.

First off, I adore the packaging- it's simple, the bottle contains a generous amount of polish, and the basic design with the white top really stands out and creates a classic 'Essie' bottle. However, during my flight back home, this did spill- it didn't create a mess as big as it could've, and the top was screwed on tight, so I don't know how it managed to spill, but clearly the packaging just isn't that safe.

Anyway, I really am pleased with the actual quality of the nail varnish itself. The polish is quite thick, and the brush glides it on to your nails smoothly and evenly. The formula isn't runny, which I like, but once you start coating a nail you have to be swift so the polish doesn't go in weird clumps as it takes shape on your nail. It usually takes me 2 coats in two applications to be happy enough with my nails, as the Essie nail polishes take a long time to dry and the third coat would probably end up not drying fully and peeling off. It takes my nails usually around 2o minutes to dry after application- so 10 minutes for 1 coat, which could be worse I suppose.

Lastly, I lovee the colour- it's such a pretty pastel pink, and looks soo pretty when its applied and dried. Without doing too much work with your hands, you could probably get away with 3 days of wear- however after showering I always notice some peeling around the edges, but if you put another coat on a day after application, it stays another 2 days. Please keep in mind I did try this polish out without a base or a top coat, so obviously they help your nail polish last longer. The polish also gives a really clean, almost gel-like shine.

One thing I did find a bit weird about this nail polish is the name- how does a baby pink remind you of a 'spaghetti strap' ? However, high end make up products usually have reaally strange names of shades (Nars, I'm looking at you).

All in all, I really like this nail varnish, and I'm really looking forward to buying more! Only when you bring down your prices Essie, because there's no way I'm paying 8.99e for a nail polish! Overall, I would rate this 7 and a half/10.

Thanks for reading!

Gaby x

Life Lately: May, June, July

I come back from all my summer adventures, and I realize- I never did my most recent life lately. So here it is! Just over 20 days late, what I've been up to, what products I've been loving and what I've been wearing over the past 3 months. Hope you enjoy!


Beauty

Eyeliners

I wear my winged liner more or less every day, and I'm always looking for new products and/or brushes that help me do it better. Ever since I bought the Essence Gel Liner in shade 01 midnight in paris, I was looking for a tiny angled brush that would help me get the flick right. However, this Flat Eyeliner Ecotools brush, which is quite thick, has been helping me to the job. It's perfect for any eyeliner application, and you can even use it on your waterline. To get the flick sharp and pointy, I use Essence's Superfine Eyeliner Pen and always keep it in my handbag for touch-ups.

Catrice+Essence Lipsticks

I love my red and pink lipsticks, and this combo is no exception. I picked this Catrice lipstick in shade marlene's favourite up simply because it is really moisturizing, matt and so beautifully 1940's Hollywood. The Kate Moss for Rimmel lippie in shade 05 is really similar to this, so I wanted some special element to spice my lips up when wearing this. The Essence 03 its peach not cherry lipstick stick, when applied to the inner lip on top of the Catrice, looks soo pretty.

Fashion

Lace Top

This super, super pretty top has a lace back with buttons down the middle, and it's vintage, believe it or not! I picked it up whilst thrift shopping one day- and I paid only 4 euros for this girly vintage Penneys piece. It's easily the most gorgeous top I own, and it rakes in compliments like nobody's business. Unfortunately, I ruined one of the sleeves with a too-hot iron, so now I just roll the sleeves.

Shift Dress

Another vintage Penneys piece! This dress is actually meant to be a bodycon, but it's a size 12, so it's like a shift dress on me. I love the tropical inspired floral symmetrical pattern- it's so suitable for summer and I've been wearing it lots in the hot weather. It's not too long for me either, which I like, because you can wear heels or sneakers with it, whatever you like.

 Denim Shorts

To tell the truth, I've never owned a pair of denim shorts before. My mother and myself were going through some old clothes in Vilnius, and I discovered some goodies- these shorts being one of them. They fit me like a glove, and they're not too short or long, but just a perfect length so you don't end up flashing half of the population.

Random

99 Ice Creams 

Unfortunately, I didn't eat as many as I usually do every summer, but I did enjoy every last piece of the ones I did have. One of my definite favourite things about Ireland is the 99 cones that taste amazing whether you're shivering by the sea side, or making your way through several on a hot day, I can't live without these!

Vero and Starbucks

Whilst having some time to kill in Stuttgart, I noticed a Starbucks and definately had to go in, having never (!) tried a starbucks before. I ordered a Frappe with strawberries and cream, and let me just say, I really did not expect it to be cold! I really enjoyed it though- can't believe we don't have that many Starbucks'es here.

Yes, another class drink Ireland probably hasn't got on offer. This is the Vero Cafe Fresh and Tasty- basically this is a drink where you choose a flavoured syrup and your transparent soft drink. For example, this one here is blueberry syrup and Sprite with loads of ice. Tasted delish, but my favourite one was the watermelon syrup and Russian Shwepps. The ingredients sound weird, but the drinks are actually mint!

Stuttgart+Vilnius

As you can tell from my last two blog posts, I've been doing some travelling lately and I visited Stuttgart, Germany and went on an annual visit to my hometown Vilnius in Lithuania. These trips were definitely my one of my highlights of the summer- it's so refreshing to get off the couch and just go see what the big colourful world out there has to offer. There is so many amazing places in the world, so many different ways of life and cultures, you can't lock yourself up in a small town and call it living, because what you're doing is the exact opposite.

Thanks so much for reading!

Gaby x

Vilnius '13

As you may or may not know, Vilnius is the capital of Lithuania, and is also my lovely hometown. I go back for a visit every year, every summer, for a couple of weeks and this year was no exception. I had an amazing time to say the least- every year I come back Vilnius seems more and more beautiful as it ages. My favourite part of it is the city center-  the old part of the city- not only because it's scattered with cobbled pave stones and white buildings, but because beside all these monuments you have skater boys and street dancers practicing their new moves or tricks- and if you're lucky, you might get a good glimpse or two of some veryyy gorgeous six packs haha!

Anyway, I took it to my own hands to photograph every aspect of this pretty city. I took some really good photos- and of course I'm going to share them with you! You might want to get a cup of tea or the biggest jar of Ben and Jerry's you have closest to you- this is going to be a looong post, but after all- this is my hometown.

I also apologize for the lack of recent posts- I did say I was going to be posting regularly  but I did get lazy and I took a break. Nevertheless, I am 'back' now, and I have lots of post ideas in mind so stay tuned!

This is where you get all of your skater boys and street dancers- around a statue

Perched on a wall in the middle of Old Town and drinking a Vero- best way to spend the day

Sitting on 'our' wall and this is the view- yes, life was good

Every sunny evening, this happens above the city's pretty skies

One of the days, I climed up to the top!

After climbing up a stupid hill thing in 37 degree heat, this was our view- a bridge seperating a city from its roots

Oh yes, I rode a horse

I love fairs that sell the most detailed and fragile souvenirs 

All of us! :)

I hope you enjoyed this blog post, and thanks for reading!

Gaby x

Stuttgart '13

This summer I've been doing bits of travelling and visiting new places, trying new things, all being really fun, but before heading off to Vilnius for our annual visit, we had to attend my sister's graduation first. It took place in the pretty, pretty town of Stuttgart in south of Germany, and I had never been in Deutschland before, so the entire experience was really new, exciting and adventurous.

In total we spend around 4 days in Stuttgart- Friday was wasted on trying to find the hotel, Saturday was the grad, Sunday we walked round in our exhausted states and 'explored' the city centre (which is huuge compared to Dublin's, by the way) and Monday we did a bit of retail therapy (hellooo acid and bleach wash skinnies) before heading off to Copenhagen to catch our connection to Vilnius. 

All in all, it was a really fun experience apart from a few glitches and things- however I wouldn't change any of it. I tried my first Starbucks (!), got to see my sister graduate college after what surely has been an exhausting four long years for her, realized how good I actually am at giving my dad directions from the GPS and practiced my German accent when buying things (all I really know is 'Hallo!' and 'Danke' haha). An unusual but fun weekend for sure!

It's so hard to condense down all the beautiful photos I took- however I tried to do my best. I hope you enjoyed, and thanks for reading!

Gaby x