Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Facial Care Review

This is a post I've been postponing for way too long and I'm really really sorry to all those of you who've been asking.

This is gonna be simple: a list of facial products that I use on the daily and really recommend to those with super-dooper sensitive skin like mine. You can rest asure that these products bring no harm at all, otherwise they would've been incompatible with my daily routine.


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Этот пост я очень долго откладывала - и за это прошу прощения у тех, кто так долго его просил.

Постараюсь свести "писанину" к минимуму: ниже приведен перечень средств по уходу за лицом, которыми я пользуюсь каждый день. Эти средства я рекомендую не самым счастливым, увы, обладательницам столь же чувствительной кожи, как у меня, подверженной покраснениям от любых внешних факторов. Можно быть абсолютно уверенными, что раз эти средства подходят для моей кожи - значит они абсолютно безвредны.


CLEANSING - ОЧИЩЕНИЕ


1. L'Occitane Organic Angelica Cleansing Gel / L'Occitane Очищающий гель для лица Ангелика




An amazing super-lightweight formula that cleanses your skin and leaves it moisturized and fresh. The best cleansing/washing product I've come across so far!
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Потрясающее очень легкое средство для умывания, после которого вообще как таковое отсутствует ощущение "стянутости" лица. Ничего лучше пока не пробовала! Волшебно:)

2. La Prairie Foam Cleanser / La Prairie Очищающая пенка-люкс



An expensive product as compared to the L'Occitane one, but absolutely amazing as well. If you can afford it - you definitely should!
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Более дорогостоящее средство по сравнению с L'Occitane, но оно стоит каждого рубля! Если Вы можете его попробовать - обязательно сделайте это. Кремообразная текстура и божественное ощущение шелковистости кожи.


TONING - ТОНИЗИРОВАНИЕ


3. L'Occitane Organic Angelica Face Toner / L'Occitane Увлажняющий тоник для лица Ангелика




Just like the Cleansing gel above, this toner feels like it has come from a magic universe far away from here. It smells like heaven and feels on the skin like heaven. A real treasure!
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Вслед за гелем для умывания, тоник из линии "Ангелика" просто нереально увлажняет и позволяет при желании даже не использовать увлажняющий крем. Лично я так и делаю летом, когда не нужно ни намека на жирный блеск - этого тоника более, чем достаточно для увлажнения кожи. Очередная находка!

MAKE-UP REMOVING - СНЯТИЕ МАКИЯЖА


4.  La Roche-Posay PHYSIO Cleansing Milk / La Roche-Posay Очищающее молочко Физио


Before I say anything about this Cleansing Milk I want to mention that this is not the best product of such that I've come across. There was some super-genlte Cleansing gel by Kenzoki that I bought in Duty Free by accident once that absolutely took my breath away. I didn't think it was some rare species so when it finished I threw the bottle away... and I have never seen in for sale since. Not even their official site seems to know about it... There's the "Rice Steam" line which offers a "Velvety Wash" gentle soft cleanser that looks exacty like what I had, but it is a face wash, not a cleansing gel... Or did I misuse it for all that time?! If applied onto a cotton pad it removes eye make-up like Harry Potters wand would've done! 

Anyway, this Cleansing milk does the job as perfectly as any other cleansing milk would have done it, except for the fact that it has passed my skin test and there's no irritation whatsoever. 100% safe!

Это молочко смывает косметику точно так же, как любое другое молочко для снятия макияжа - я уверена - за тем лишь исключением, что оно прошло "тест на вшивость" и моя кожа "приняла" его безоговорочно! Оно абсолютно безопасно даже для самой чувствительной кожи, глаза и кожа вокруг них не краснеют, и на утро Вы не проснетесь с черными кругами вокруг глаз от несмытой косметики. Отличное средство!

MOISTURIZING - УВЛАЖНЕНИЕ




Simply the best face cream out there, probably - but so-o-ometi-i-imes it tingles a little on my skin. Happens once in a lifetime, at all other times I thank God I came across this heavenly skin treatment. Turns out I'm not the only one in love with it out there - you should definitely give it a try and you can thank me later. Lightweight and yet very nourishing. No stickiness. No shiny forehead. It's truly amazing!

Пожалуй, лучший крем для лица на сегодняшнем рынке доступных средств по уходу за лицом. Признаюсь, пару раз лицо каааапельку от него щипало, и это меня очень удивило, но в принципе на 99,99999% тест на совместимость с чувствительной кожей этот крем прошел. Ооочень нежная легкая текстура, не оставляет после себя никакого блеска на лице, а запах...!!! Обязательно, ОБЯЗАТЕЛЬНО попробуйте его. Между прочим, столь же идеально подходит мужчинам - проверено:)

6. L'Occitane Ultra Gentle Moisturizer / L'Occitane Нежный крем Карите



Numbers 5 and 6 here are in a permanent state of war for the face cream place on my cosmetics shelf. I could never tell you which one I love more because they are so similarly brilliant. The only special thing about this cream is that it has never ever stung my face or harmed it in any way - I believe it is even more gentle than the La Roche Posay one above. And this is a cream to begin with, not more of a fluid like number 5. So when times get rough and you feel your skin is in need of some extra nourishing yet wants to be luxuriously flawless - go for the L'Occitane. It will leave you breathless.

Сложно сказать, какой из двух вышеприведенных кремов мой любимый. Я постоянно их чередую, дабы "не привыкала кожа" (говорят, так надо делать со всем, включая шампуни, маски и вообще любые средства для лица/тела/волос), но надо отдать должное этому крему от L'Occitane: от него кожу не щиплет вообще никогда. Также отмечу, что, в отличие от "флюидного" La Roche Posay, это все же именно крем, который очень сильно увлажняет кожу, в то же время не придавая ей ни ощущения тяжести, ни липкости, ни блеска. Лучшего в зимнее время года Вы своей коже предложить просто не сможете - попробуйте и убедитесь сами:)



Hope this was useful:) 
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Надеюсь, пригодится:)



xoxo



Monday, January 28, 2013

Bring It On

These last few weeks have been really busy for us at Shu Means Love - with all that gorgeous new stuff that we had in store for our customers. I am really happy to see the little "family-run" on-line store of mine to steadily grow, step by step, whereas at the beginning I had no idea where this was gonna take me or if the idea will survive at all.

I would like to thank everyone who supported me and those who are now proud members of the Shu Means Love family. Lots of love to y'all!:)

Below are a few of my favorite pictures from the "new campaign" shoot (yeah-yeah, I know, that sounds way too posh for the reality, but still...) that I'd like to share with you, the rest can be found here:





xoxo,
Alina








 




Step by step, eh?...





Wednesday, January 23, 2013

She Takes My Breath Away


...and that she does with style. 

A girl I got to know only a little while ago. First a great friend of mine Zino (you saw him and his cooking kills here) showed me his sister on Instagram (@lataria_e GO CHECK HER OUT!!!) and I knew it was love at first sight.

I do have this habit of falling in love with some girls at first sight. Why, don't you?.... (boys, don't give me that look...again)

So she did this photoshoot with some of my Shu Means Love stuff. And she rocks it better than any Nasty Gal. Bracelets, anklets, gold belt below are all from my on-line shop:)

Enjoy. And Liza - thanks;) 
















Wednesday, January 16, 2013

HAPPY NEW YEAR...B-LATED:)

This post was supposed to be my last 2012 post, but "upon an unfortunate series of events" I only received the photos yesterday.

I was planning on a cool "let 2013 begin" speech with lots of smart-ass thoughts on what I wish you all, but now that it's the 16th of January somehow that plan sounds silly. So let me just say that I am super-dooper excited for 2013 and what life shall bring. I am as never before open to the opportunities it keeps on sending me, so I can only guess what person I shall be a year from now. And God does that excite me...:)

Anyway, thanks for entering 2013 with me. The stats on this blog make me smile and believe in myself whenever I feel down. So seriously. Thanks.

As to this dress I'm about to show you... I never got to wear it for New Year's. But oh well. Who cares? It made for a crazy blog post:-D

It's from Michael Costello. He was featured on Project Runway season 8, finishing in 4th place, and he was a Project Runway All-Star season 1 finalist - and that's just an intro. Only God knows how I came across his Instagram account - but then again, I follow eight hundred people there so I occasionally come across all sorts of cool stuff (you should definitely try that, too). So after a little voting I set up in social networks to help me choose between two dresses, I ordered it and it got tailored for me by Michael himself (or so they say). Oh the honor...

I love it. I love every single thing about it. It's my version of the dream dress Keira Knightley wore in the Atonement movie. Remember that one? Yeah... Yeah.

So here is his site - http://www.michaelcostellocouture.com . Enjoy.

And seriously? I really do wish you a very very happy 2013 year:)

Photographs taken by Kirill Kireev (thank you, you're the best!)





















... and a funny one if your face has become too serious:)





Wearing:
Dress - Michael Costello Couture
Gold Ankle Cuffs - Shu Means Love
Heels - Christian Louboutin
Ring - custom made in Bali