Hello ladies!

Before I start with the actual post I want to tell you that i will be missing for a few more days (as you've already noticed) due to the fact that i have to work on a project. Yeeeeey!!!!! Very happy me!!!! Haven't had many opportunities to actually use what i learned at the university so that's why i am very excited. Well, the problem is, everything is written in French and i have to translate it all and understand at the same time and between running errands for my dad, school and working on the project, i can hardly write something  :((( I have a lot of stuff to prepare, I am soooo far behind  but will try, little by little, to write all the posts. By the way, hope you like my new template :D 

So, as I told you some time ago, today I'm going to talk about my plan for getting my ass back in shape. There was a time, about 3 years ago, when i used to go rollerblading almost everyday (during summer time) and exercise regularly. If I would gain a few kilos they wouldn't show (now, even if I lose 1 kg you can see the difference in my legs) and cellulite was non-existent. I was skinny and feeling good. Actually, it wasn't the fact that I was skinny that made me feel good, because I don't mind that much the fact that now i have a little more junk in the trunk :D , it was the fact that my body was really toned.

So I planned to tone my body a little but I'm so used to the couch potato situation which makes it harder to mobilize. But, summer is near, I like my skirts and shorts to be as short  as possible, without being vulgar, plus, what girl doesn't want to look good in her bikini?!

 Let's talk first of all about my diet. It's kind of a weight watchers kind of diet meaning that I try not eat some foods but not that restrictiveness as  usual diets. So, I do not eat bread (but I don't eat it  in general), pork, wish I could not eat chicken as well since, nowadays, chicken is fatty as well, sweets, do not drink soft drinks, instead I do eat rice (huge fan of rice, i would eat it every day), drink lots of water and teas, in the mornings my favorite meal is yogurt with musli, nuts, fruits and a little bit of honey (perfect way to start the day) and I like to alternate with eggs. Aside that, it's just the usual, lots of vegetables and fruits. And once a week I have to allow myself some kind of a reward in the form of dark chocolate (Hello! My name is Sihaya and I am a choco-holic :D), Heidi with 85% cocoa is my favorite (any more cocoa than that and you can just skip the chocolate and go take a mouth-full of cocoa powder haha ).

Next would be my exercise routine. I was a very active person but not so much lately, among my favorite activities for exercising are rollerblading, tae bo and when i'm in the mood for something more relaxing and a little more stretching i go for pilates. My favorite tae bo workouts are from Billy Blanks, haven't tried other tae bo workouts but with Billy Blanks' variety i don't feel the need. As for pilates, i go for the Windsor cds. Oh, i almost forgot about the 8 minute workout for my abs (it's a little video), i do this too, it's very effective.


Before i start any tae bo workout i apply the Resveratrox cream (at the moment, but i use whatever anti cellulite cream i have at the time), wrap my upper legs, ass and abdomen in foil. I sweat and get a workout at the same time, what could be better? Well getting rid of the cellulite and losing weight without breaking a sweat... haha :D And another trick i use, to intensify the workout is use weights for my feet: 1 kg/leg for tae bo and half for pilates (1 kg would be too hard for me right now, maybe later). I try to do a tae bo routine 3 times/week and the rest of the days pilates.

Hm...and i guess that's all i can think about right now. This is my routine and it has worked before, i just have to stick to it. Hope it's helpful

What's your getting back in shape strategy?

BI-LAL-KAIFA

Hello ladies!

Finally we're gonna have some H&M!!! Tomorrow is the opening of the first H&M store in Romania Hurraaay! Anyone going to the opening say I! :) I was pretty excited and tried to abstain myself from any shopping this month (hence the lack of shopping posts) in order to save my money for H&M. I was pretty successful in abstaining but, as i browsed today through the Romanian site, noticed that many articles that i have lusted over are not available for us  :((( Buuuummer! I thought that i wouldn't be able to choose what to buy and that my first desire would be to get everything. But it wasn't that way :(((and i was able to make a list with the things I'd like to get. Thought of sharing it with you:







And the things i actually hope to score tomorrow:
 These shorts remind me of a pair of scalloped shorts from Queens Wardrobe that i was drooling over for some time now, so when i saw them i immediately knew they had to be mine.


And finally, i need your help: in order for me to have some money left to buy a pair of pants from Zara (because of course H&M doesn't have colored skinnies...grrr!!) i will be able to buy one of these rings.

I really like the golden and coral stone one, it reminds me of the YSL arty ring (by the color combination) and i have really been into golden accessories lately but the silver and turquoise one is perfect with a pair of earrings that i have. Sooo...which one do you like most????

In the end, will the girls going to (at least one of) the openings please stand up? ;) What would you buy from H&M? I'm really really curious ;;)


Photo credit: H&M Romania


BI-LAL-KAIFA

Hello ladies!

So this was the first product of the 2 from Ivatherm that i got to test. I was very curious to see how the cream works so i used right that morning, after i got the package from the post office.

Now i promised that it's gonna be squams overload :) in this post. I have always had this problem during winter times but ever since my skin has gotten dryer, it's been a general problem. And it's always bugging me, and it made it harder for me to apply any kind of foundation (until i got my Colorstay).  That's why, when i accessed the Ivatherm site to choose the 2 products that i would like to try, and browsed through the problems, when i saw they had a cream for redness&squams i knew i had to choose it.

I feel obliged to specify that this was the reaction after the first use of this cream (leaving the other stuff for the actual review).

First of all, I want to talk about the packaging: I love it! I love face creams that come in a tube, it's hygienic (not getting your fingers in all the cream) and economical (perfect way to dose the quantity) at the same time. I like the information printed on it BUUUT i don't like the fact that the ingredients are not printed on the tube as well. I mean, yeah...they are on the box but who keeps it? Nobody. It's like when i did the review for the Vichy Essentieles cream but could get the ingredients because i threw away the box. So now i have kept the box especially for the review. Another thing i don't like is the perfume. Yeap, as printed on the box, the cream has perfume and you thought that since it has it, it might as well be a nice one. It's not that bad, but if it had say the perfume the micellar lotion has (flowery yet discrete and not irritating) it would be better. 

The cream itself has a dense texture yet not greasy and i always use a tiny pea-like drop for my forehead, nose and chin. I like that! Even if the total amount per tube is just 40 ml i can assure you it will last a long time for this quantity. I use it only in the morning but you can also use it at night if you feel the need.

I knew that i had to put this cream to the ultimate test: the foundation from hell :D Yeah...that's how i call it now...it's the Seventeen Time plus foundation. Now don't throw rocks at me please...bare with me! This foundation has been with me for many years in the past, through out high-school and my first 2 university years. It looked good, natural, no cakey-ness what so ever, the coverage was OK for me. And you can imagine that since i have used it for so long it hasn't caused me any problems. Then i had some problems with my face and gave up foundation, and after i resolved my problems and wanted to get back to my foundation, realised that it didn't work for me anymore. No matter what i did there would always be my forehead and nose squams popping up. That's why i now call it the foundation from hell :D.

So i used the cream for my forehead, nose, chin, left it for 10 minutes and then applied the foundation from hell. The result? Perfect! No squams anywhere. About the redness, it didn't do that much, but it's not that bad  lately and foundation usually solves the problem. I will tell you in the review about the long time results and also make the recommendation for the product.

To sum it up:
 - liking: package, texture, good first impression
 - not liking: no ingredients on the tube, the perfume


PS: will post better pictures tomorrow morning

LE: as promised, the pictures are here :)

BI-LAL-KAIFA

Hello ladies!

Alaltaieri am trecut prin Cora pt niste cumparaturi si am zis sa dau o raita si pe la raionul de cosmetice pt ca tot imi trebuia deodorant. Ajungand la deodorante am azut ca cei de la Garnier au o promotie: pt orice deodorant Garnier Invisi Mineral (spray, roll-on sau stick) primesti gratuit crema de corp Hidratare Intensiva (pt piele foarte uscata), cu actiune reparatoare in var 50 ml. Mi-a placut ideea pt ca eu folosesc aceasta crema si m-am gandit ca varianta de 50 ml pot s-o tin in geanta.
Pot sa va spun ca mi-a lasat o impresie buna, am dat 10,5 lei pe el si am ales varianta roll-on

Credit foto

BI-LAL-KAIFA

Hello ladies!

No English tonight, sorry! But if you are interested in reading this feel free to use the traslation tool on the right bar.Thanks for understanding :*

Banuiesc ca o stiti toate pe Joice, este cea mai tare. De ce? Pey, pentru ca m-a nomializat si pe mine, duh! haha Anyways, ii multumesc mult pt tag, kisses and hugs for you honey! Aveam cu totul altceva planificat pentru blog astazi, dar mi-au cam fost date peste cap planurile. Voiam initial sa scriu cate ceva legat de planul meu pt a reintra in forma fizica optima, pt ca de ceva timp sunt o leguma si nu e bine. Dar e tarziu deja asa ca ma apuc de tag, ca de asta scap repede, si tot il primisesm cam de mult timp si nu-l onorasem.



BI-LAL-KAIFA

Hello ladies!

It has been a long time since my last obsessions post so i thought it would be the perfect time to tell you a little something about one of the trends for this S/S season and do the obsessions post. It's a killing two birds with one stone kind of  a situation.

But, until we get to color blocking, i want to show you something that our middle school arts teacher/class master taught us. It's helpful, not only for the color blocking trend, but in make up as well, as i will explain below. So...there are 3 primary colors: red, yellow and blue. If you have these 3 colors, you can combine them and get whatever color you desire. Keep in mind: white and black are not colors!!! Now, moving on, if you combine the primary colors, two at a time, you get your secondary colors: orange, green and purple.

This is the drawing our teacher always made and i find it very useful. Now, let me now tell you about the complimentary colors, the combinations that always work the best. They consist in one primary color and one secondary color. Let's start with red for example, its complimentary color is green (e.g. the red tulips, don't they look stunning?), the secondary color obtained with the other 2 primary ones. Blue goes with orange, yellow with purple. So, when trying to combine colors, you can start from here and then let your imagination take over.

I've told you that this is useful for make up as well. Think about concealer...what do you use for neutralising redness? Well a green concealer of course, do you see where I'm getting at? If you take a look at the drawing, you'll notice that green and red are on opposite sides, and that's why one neutralizes the other. Or for the under-eye circles you use yellow, can't find an example for the blue-orange combination but i think you get it now. Think about Newton's law: action and reaction! Yeah yeah, I'm a physics freak i know... haha...but i can't help it :D

Another interesting fact about this drawing: if you start with red, reading the colors clockwise, add indigo between blue and purple, what do you get? The order of colors in the rainbow. Did you know that?

I'm finished with the drawing and now I'll talk about the color blocking trend. The idea is to get pieces in solid, bright blocks of color and combine them. I find it a playful trend that allows your imagination to run wild, coming up with new and interesting combinations. Think about this: have you ever thought about a color combination but didn't use it because you thought that it won't work? Well, here's perfect excuse to go back, and try it, wear it. I'll start with some runway photos, and i couldn't not include some Jil Sander and Gucci looks:


If i think about it, last S/S season it was all about neutrals, for me, and maybe a little blue here and there, but not in a very bright and bold tone. I was fed up with color and wished my closet had been fuuullll of neutral colored clothes. It went on during the F/W season as well. But, now, after seeing all that lovely combinations of colors on the fashion blogs that i follow, colors are starting to grow back on me. So, what did i do? Went by my dad's and dag in my closet for the long forgotten colored clothes. And here's what has been dug up:


Don't they look nice...all the pretty colors...in a rainbowy order...;;) Notice anything off about it? I did, i don't have anything orange! And the little rainbow of clothes is incomplete :((( I have to get something orange and some red skinny pants (the red ones i have are flared and can't wear them except with 10 cm heels, that i do not wear very often). Oh, and yesterday you might say i wore a color blocking outfit, in the pictures taken with me opening the Ivatherm package haha

I was telling you about the nice color blocking outfits overload lately, and i want to show, give you some ideas. Starting with the lovely Emilie, from My little fashion diary:




And the other selection i have is from the well known Chiara, The blonde salad:



I know this might not be an everyday kind of outfit but if you're looking for an outfit that will make you stand out, this might be the perfect thing, especially here in Romania :D. I'll try to take pictures in the future with the outfit that i wore yesterday and got lots of scanning type of stares :))

So...what do you think about this trend? Would you wear it?

BI-LAL-KAIFA

Hello ladies!

First of all, I'm truly sorry for not posting in such a long time, it has been a combination of factors that led to my long absence but i will try to post regularly from now on (hopefully)...bare with me pls ;;)

So, remember when i told you about being chosen for the Trender WOM Ivatherm campaign? If you don't, you have the link :)) Today i went to the post office and got my goodies and i will reveal them to you...ha ha :D The first thought that popped into my head this morning was: "i have to go and get my Ivatherm goodies at once". So i jumped real quick out of bed got dressed then left. Half an hour later i was back home all excited with the package in hand and camera in my dad's :)))

Now, have i made you curious enough about what products did i choose? Drum rolls........still.....
The products that i chose were the IVADERMASEB cream for redness and squams and RESVERATROX Anti-cellulite lotion. How did i get to chose these items? Even with their large selection of products, i got to thinking about what are the 2 things that bother me most and want to improve. So i immediately thought about the redness and squams...oh the squams...did i complained enough about them until now? I sure don't think so...and I'm going to complain about them some more in the future (when I'll publish the review for the Ivadermaseb cream it will be squams overload)  :P. And the second thing that has been bothering me, but didn't tell you until now is my cellulite. It's not bad, and that's why i didn't choose the Forte version of the lotion, but i want to whip my ass into shape (literally :P) and this lotion is like the kick that i need to get back to exercising  because i am reeeeaaaaaally obsessed with my shorts during summer and want to look my best.

In the end I'll leave you with some pictures (not very good ones but lighting was the last thing on my mind at the time, if you get what i mean? ;) ). Do you like my dad's working area? The perfect decor :))))




Will come back with first impressions about the products.

 BI-LAL-KAIFA

Hello ladies!




 BI-LAL-KAIFA

Hello ladies!

Hello ladies!

Ieri m-am oprit prin Cora Lujerului si am intrat din curiozitate la Marionnaud. Am vazut standul YSL, si am intrebat cat costa Touche Eclat, pt ca stiu cat de apreciat e etc. Vanzatoarea mi-a zis ca au chiar la oferta cu 40% reducere pt cea mai deschisa nuanta. Pretul intreg era cam 130 ron, 78 cu reducere. Mi s-a parut foarte interesant si m-am gandit sa va anunt. Nu stiu daca este valabila oferta si in alte magazine Marionnaud dar daca va tenteaza puteti sa incercati. Eu nu mi l-am luat pt ca nu-mi trebuie, nu am probleme cu cearcanele (inca). Am pus si poza ca sa vedeti cum arata nuanta, cam rozalie. Nah, daca tot zicea Joice de Karla Sugar, am nimerit (fara sa caut in mod special) peste swatch-uri facute de ea.

LE: m-am gandit sa va mai zic ca era un cos plin de produse reduse 40% doar ca nu m-am mai uitat si la restul. Dar mai parca am ochit eu niste rujuri YSL, si nu numai

BI-LAL-KAIFA

Hello ladies!

Yesterday was very busy for me and didn't get to check my emails when i got home. Just went to bed so you can imagine my surprise and enthusiasm this morning when i read my email from Trender, telling me that I've been selected to participate in Ivatherm's Word of Mouth campaign. Soooooooo excited and happy! Jumping up and down like a little kid in the candy store :) To my international readers (as few as you are) Ivatherm is the first Romanian brand of dermocosmetics, made with Herculane thermal water. 

Didn't tested any products yet, although i did buy the micellar lotion, but as previously said, i am saving it for warmer times. So i am very very curious and can't wait for the package to arrive! We had to choose 2 products that we would like to test and was thinking of telling you what i chose, but i think I'll just show you when i get my package. Hurraaaaay! Not in a million years did i think that i would be chosen for the campaign (with my "luck" and all) so you can imagine my surprise.

In other news, have to stop by my dad's place any time soon, in order to retrieve the package with the samples from Gerovital. In the form they said i would receive the samples in about 3 weeks but, they arrived few days after. to my surprise. I'm liking very much how our Romanian brands have started to think about their PR and taking measures accordingly. I am very happy that we can now compare campaigns done by, say, L'Oreal (Vichy, La Roche Posay)  with campaigns done by our brands. I sure wish and hope that Gerovital and Ana Aslan brands reach the level of appreciation they once had (pre 1989).

BI-LAL-KAIFA

Hello ladies!


By now i guess you all know about this tag, you've seen it on most of the blogs, and now it's my turn :D Though i just did the February faves post, i think it's an interesting tag, loved to see what the other bloggers are using, maybe I'll get inspired and find an interesting product. So...i guess...let's start...