Healthy Sunbathing with Sunscreen

Spring has finally arrived in Germany and I think most countries enjoy some warmer days already. Since the beginning of spring is usually the start of sunbathing and so many people want to get the perfect tan as fast as possible, I thought it would be time to set the focus on sunscreen, to enjoy the tanning process on a healthier way.

I hope by now, you have heard already that the exposure to sun can be damaging to your skin. Sunburn is the most popular form of damage, but too much exposure to the sun can also lead to faster skin ageing (wrinkles) and skin cancer.

Too avoid all this, there are different things you can do.
Alone the wearing of clothes means protection from the sun to certain degrees. But, who wants to wear long sleeve shirts and jeans at the beach?
Another option is to stay in the shadow and not directly in the sun. I think most people don’t want to take a parasol with them and trees to lie under are very rare to find at the beach.
That leads to the only save option, the sunscreen, which you can find in various forms as lotions or sprays. That sounds easy, right? Just apply some cream and be good for the rest of the day. But there is more to know and it all starts with your skintype.
First compare your skin to the ones described in the 6 different categories below:

The Celtic Type

-very fair skin (almost no pigmentation)
-red or light-blonde hair
-green, blue or light-grey eyes
-freckels
=> Self-Protection Time: 10 min

The Nordic Type
-fair skin
-blonde or light-brown hair
-blue, green or grey eyes
-often freckles
=> Self-Protection Time: 10-20 min

The Mixed Type
-medium skintone
-dark or light-brown hair (very rarely light-blond or black)
-every eye color possible
-occasionaly freckles
=> Self-Protection Time: 20-30 min

The Mediterranean Type

-brownish or olive skintone (even if not tanned)
-brown eyes
-brown or black hair
-no freckles
=>Self-Protection Time: 30 min

Dark Skintype

-dark skintone often with greyish undertone
-dark eyes
-black hair
-no freckles
=> Self-Protection Time: 60 min

Black Skintype

-darkbrown or black skintone
-black eyes
-black hair
-no freckles
=> Self-Protection Time: Over 90 min

Now that you know in which category you belong, take a look at the Self-Protection Time at the bottom of your category. Naturally, your skin has an own level of protection against the influences of sun. That means,  you can stay in the direct sun without getting burned, as long as you stay in the time frame of your Self-Protection Factor/Time.

We are going to work with this value in a moment.

The next important step is to determine what ‘Sun-Protection-Factor’ (SPF) your sunscreen should have.

In general you can say,  the higher your Self-Protection Time, the less SPF needs to be included in your sunscreen. But this is just a minimum, you can always use a higher SPF.
Here is an example: If you are a ‘Nordic Type’ you should use SPF 20-25. A ‘Mixed Type’ should use minimum SPF 15, but if you are a ‘Black Skintype’ you’ll only need a minimum of SPF 4.

A false interpretation is to think, once you have your sunscreen on you can stay in the sun all day, if you just regularly reapply the cream. That’s wrong! There is a maximum time you can stay in the sun and be protected, which is lower/shorter than you might think.

If you’ve determined your skintype and you know the SPF of your sunscreen of choice,  you can easily calculate how long you can safely stay in the sun.

Self-Protection Time x SPF = Maximum time per day

 Let’s assume again, you are a ‘Nordic Type’ and apply a sunscreen with SPF 8, we come to the following conclusion:

20 min x SPF 8 = 160 min

I hope this was helpful and you feel more secure from now on during your relaxation in the sun.

Happy Sunbathing :-)

Becca - Velveteen Eye Palette

I was very surprised when I've found this palette in one of my 'Glossybox' a couple of month ago. Through previous videos I had seen, I knew I wanted to try something from this brand, but was not interested in paying such a huge price, so I decided to skip an entry on my wishlist.
I was one of the lucky girls who got this palette, which by the time, I had already forgotten about and was really happy to hold it in my hands.

After the first swatches out of excitement, I loved the shades and wanted to try a makeup immedeately. I got to the point where I've tried all the shades except for 'Barbarelly', which is a matte black. So far I was really happy about the colours and their quality, but that quickly changed once 'Barbarelly' was on my brush.
Somehow this shade is just not working, the colour pay off is little to not noticable and an evenly looking application is not possible. After that first unsuccessful trial I decided to try it again with a tiny amount of water and use it as a cake liner, it certainly worked better than the dry application, but it still was not at all a good result.
I don't know what exactly this shade is meant for, but the consistency is so dry and densely pressed into the pot, that the idea of an cake liner is the only ourpose I could think of.
I stopped thinking about this black shade and just used the other colours, which are really nice neutral colors, even though they have the tendancy to create some fall off.

Now, let me show you the colors in detail...

Becca - Velveteen Eye Palette
ORGANZA

Becca - Velveteen Eye Palette
LUREX

Becca - Velveteen Eye Palette
CHINTZ

Becca - Velveteen Eye Palette
SHANTUNG

Becca - Velveteen Eye Palette
BARBARELLA



For a neutral makeup I actually really like to use the colors in this palette, but honestly I don't think that I would repurchase this one, or think about getting an addition palette with different shades. The colours are nice to work with, but still I find this palette too pricey.

Let me know what you think about the quality, if you already own it. I'm really interested in hearing what your experiences were with 'Barbarella'.

I'm back with my Top 10 Beauty Products

I’m back from my long YouTube/Blog-Break and I want to get started again with all the Beauty-Talk I’ve missed so much. To find back in the flow I thought it would be appropriate to tell you something about my favorite beauty products. This post is about my ultimate favorites of the last year. To be more precisely: It’s my Top 10. With these products I’ve spend a lot of time in the morning to get ready or before I was going out to a party.

On YouTube you can also see a video with me talking about my favs (*click*).

Here they are:

Cetaphil-Moisturizer

Cetaphil Moisturizer

Even though the packaging is not one of my favorites the subject matter sure is. I have neurodermatitis since I’m little, it got less troubling over the years, but still I have to deal with it. Rosacea is a rather new condition my skin is showing in addition to my generally sensitive skin. All those parameters make it necessary to carefully pick products I want to apply to my face. This thick cream was probably one of the best choices I made beauty-wise. Since the very first application my skin was happy with the moisturizer and never showed any type of irritation or allergy and the dryness is under control. If my skin is in urgent need for whatever reason, I know this is going to calm the itching and alike.


Laura Mercier-Hydrating Primer

Laura Mercier-Hydrating Primer

A year ago I knew nothing about primers, except of you apply them prior to your foundation and supposable make the foundation last longer. This information was not enough to create a level of interest, making me think I need to try one. I have to thank the nice Sephora Girl from Times Square in NY (I think Stephanie was her name) for literally throwing the little sample pot of the Hydrating Primer in my shopping basket. She knew I would love it and she was right. It makes my skin feel so good, I’m talking about soft, smooth and moist and that feeling lasts all day long. Even on my foundation free days I still like to apply the primer, since it diminishes my redness already a tiny bit. In combination with the foundation it makes my skin look nicely dewy and even.
I really don’t want to miss my primer again and I will always reserve a space for it in my makeup bag.


Laura Mercier-Moisturizing Foundation

Laura Mercier-Moisturizing Foundation

For the first couple of weeks if not month, I’ve used this foundation without the mentioned primer and was already in love with it. That’s why I know it’s not just the primer making me think that this is my personal ‘Holy Grale’ product. The chronic dryness of my skin often causes cakey areas once most of the foundations are on. If the dryness is not the problem then the redness usually is. The redness on my cheeks, chin and nose is another challenge, which requires high coverage.
My previous foundations were able to handle just one of my problems and often made me breakout in addition.
This foundation has changed my life, even if it sounds dramatic it is nothing but the truth. Dryness is not a matter anymore, the redness is mostly covered (as long as it is not one of those bad skin days) and I’ve never discovered any allergy or irritation so far.


OPI Nailpolish- Alter Ego

OPI Nailpolish in 'Alter Ego'

Those nailpolishes are popular enough, so that I can leave out the quality aspect. I’m concentrating on this one particular shade called Alter Ego. This is the perfect neutral everyday color for every nail event. It adds color to your fingers, without being too intense in any way. Actually I do prefer opaque polishes, however this is not one of those, probably that is the reason why I do apply two coats on each nail.
I’ve experienced that this combination of a babypink-beige color matches every outfit and every occasion as well, without being just a boring understatement. This clearly has been my most worn color of the last year.


Bobbi Brown-Bronzing Powder

Bobbi Brown-Bronzing Powder in 'Golden Light'

This bronzer is available in various shades and this is one of the reason why I’m so happy with it. Most of the bronzers are way too dark to get along with my fair skin, without creating an embarrassing fake tan effect. My shade of choice is ‘Golden Light’, which is the lightest shade, but exactly right for me.
Another reason for making this one of my favorites is the absence of glitter/shimmer. If you are going for the holiday bronzed look ala J.Lo this is not what you will achieve with this bronzer. I prefer to use bronzer to add some contours to my face and somehow make it appear a little slimmer and that purpose requires a matte shade rather than a glowy powder.


Clinique-Lash Doubling Mascara

Clinique-Lash Doubling Mascara

This is my favorite mascara for many years already! No matter how often I try a new one, they never fascinate me enough to make me stop using the ‘Lash Doubling Mascara’. I do like to add some volume to my lashes to make them look fuller, which works great with this mascara. As an extra bonus I can add some length to my lashes as well, which is something you can’t be sad about. My lashes are nicely separated and curled and will stay this way through the entire day. For those of you (and me) with sensitive eyes, this is an “irritation free” mascara, not causing any redness.


Clinique-High Impact Lipstick in Pink Style

Clinique-High Impact Lipstick in 'Pink Style'
(this color looks less red in reality)

Again, this is something for an easy everyday look, where you don’t want to experiment much, but still want to look nicely made up. I was searching for such an allrounder for a long time and concentrated on the drugstore variety, which wasn’t too successful. I ended up getting this pricier version, because it was exactly what I was searching for. It’s one of those safe colors, matching every eye makeup or outfit you’ve put together.
There is another reason why this is a special lipstick to me. Have you noticed the packaging? I feel very feminine every time I’m putting it on since it looks so elegant, like it jumped out of an old classic movie with Liz Taylor.
Another important fact: Of all the lipsticks I’ve tried this one is lasting the longest on my lips, but is not drying at all.


Mac Eyesahdow-Carbon

MAC Eyesahdow in 'Carbon'

One of the “Must Haves” in a makeup collection in my opinion is this eyeshadow. You just need to have a matte black eyeshadow and this by far is the best. I use it on a daily basis instead of an eyeliner to do the tidelining technique along my lashline. I prefer this black over all the others I’ve tried before, because it actually looks black once applied and not just like a really dark grey, it’s not creating any fall off problems and it is easier to blend than usual black eyeshadows.


Mac-Liquid Cool Powder in Honey Rose

MAC-Liquid Cool Powder in 'Honey Rose'

A highlighter is probably not something you necessarily need to have, but if you want one it’s important to find the right one, which I did. Highlighter for the eyes is a rather easy thing to look for, but to find one for your cheekbones can be difficult. The problem that I was regularly facing, was looking like a glitterball, because the highlighter decided to move all over my face and not just stay put on my cheekbones. This loose powder is completely different, probably because it actually works like a cream. Don’t get confused it is a powder, but the name tells you that it is a special formulated powder. It feels cool and moist on the skin and is easy to blend to get a nice sunkissed glow.


Urban Decay-Naked Palette

Urban Decay-Naked Palette

This is something you are seeing everywhere, but for a good reason and since you probably own this palette too, I can keep this part short.

I love it!

I’ve used this palette probably on 300 days of the last year, since the included colors are so easy to work with and the possible combinations are endless. My favorite and most used colors are Virgin, Naked, Buck and Toasted.

Looking back at my ‘Beauty Developments’ I would consider 2011 as a successful year and I hope 2012 continues the same way.

I hope you enjoyed reading this post and liked the products.

Let me know what your favorites were?

Have a nice day, Beauties.