The threesome that saved my skin

In my younger teenage years (not that i'm that old already with eighteen) i never really paid attention to skincare. And at the beginning of the year my skin wasn't in a good condition. I don't know if it was the colder weather in Canada or my skincare routine or the lack of one, but my skin was looking dull and dehydrated. I freaked a bit out when i saw some lines on my forehead and cried in my head, that i lost my nice young skin with the age of eighteen. Drama aside, i got into skincare. Read and watched a lot about skincare and bought quite a few products. And i sticked to my skincare routine everyday, every single day. I didn't skip a day, ever. And it saved my skin. My skin looks better than ever before and it made me realize that i should never skip skincare routines ever again (some evenings i do though, shame on me).

You will probably know the three products i will mention now, but i just have to mention them again. Sorry for that.

The serum that gives you an instantly umph of hydration is the Body Shop Vitamin-E Moisture Serum. At first i only used it in the morning under my moisturiser, but now i also use it in the evening. After cleansing my face i slap a pump all over my face. It is quite cooling on your skin and it calms my skin a bit down. It is supposed to help the moisture get deeper into your skin (if that's even possible...) and lock it into your skin. One thing i know is that it helps to moisturise my skin and keep it that way longer.

Next step i only use in the evening (for now) is the Body Shop Vitamin-E Overnight Serum-in-Oil. I use 6-8 drops of it and sweep it all over my skin. It is more of a oil formula, but isn't too heavy on the skin. You can use it under your moisturiser like i do or you can mix it with your moisturiser and apply it then. It's not heavy at all and sinks into the skin quite quick and it nourishes the skin so good and makes it all look healthy and glowy. Love it!

Last but not least my favorite moisturiser the Clinique Moisture Surge (full review here). It is more a gel than a cream and it goes on so smooth, it sinks in within minutes. It feels light on the skin and my skin drinks it up like nothing else. Some evenings i apply a light layer and sometimes i apply a thicker layer and let it sink in over night. I have to buy a new pot of this soon, because i am more than halfway through my first one.

Those three together completely changed my skin. It looks so healthy and plump and glowy, i can't believe it when i look into the mirror. My skin never ever looked that good before and i won't part with those before something even better comes my way. If you need the ultimate hydration kick and want your skin to look healthier than i definitely recommend those three products.

Do you have any favorite skincare products?

Topics you will read about here from now on

There were quite a few changes with dots in gold this month and there will be a few more next month. I thought about what i want to do with my blog, where i want to go and what i want to blog about. There are a lot of topics i am interested in, but i couldn't decide which ones i want to write about the most. Some of the topics that i thought would work didn't and some i craved for writing about.

No worries, Beauty will always be the main theme of dots in gold, but the changes will affect the other sub themes i will write about in the future.

The second main theme on this blog will be Travel. There won't be a schedule how often i post about travel, but there will be a few posts here and there, when i have something to write about. I am definitely excited for that, because i love to travel and see the world and i also love to read blopgposts about what to do there, what to eat and also tips on where to stay etc..

Fitness and Books won't be included at all or if than just because i really want to share something with you, so there won't be a monthly fitness post or the read books category (i only did one post anyway haha) anymore.

Fashion bibs and bobs will be included at some point, not sure when though, but it won't be a big focus. There probably won't be any Outfit posts, rather the lifestyle like posts (Hauls, seasonal wardrobe staples, etc.). So stay tuned for that.

Another theme that won't be a major one, but a regular one will be Food. I love Food (especially baking) and i love to make it. Baking recipes, Vegetarian dishes and some healthy food ideas will be featured here and there.

I hope you are as excited about the changes and are not to sad that the Fitness and Book category will be more or less gone from dots in gold.

If you have any post recommandations let me know please!

Dewy makeup look

It's spring time and that means that the products to achieve a dewy makeup look are coming out of the drawer again and get slapped on my face. 

To correct any uneven skincolour and to give my skin a bit of radiance and glow i apply the Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector. This also moisturises your skin a bit. Then i mix the Body Shop Radiant Highlighter with the Maybelline Fit Me Foundation on the back of my hand and apply it with a buffing brush on my face. Then i draw a triangle under each eye with the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser and blend the concealer in with a makeup sponge. To achieve the skin like finish i go with the damp makeup sponge in dabbing motions all over my face to blend in the foundation seamlessly. You can use some bronzer to warm up your face or for contour if you like.

Now when the base is done i go in with a blush. A coraly shimmery option would be the Milani Baked Blush in 02 Rose D'Oro. A bit of fresh colour for your cheeks to make you look more awake. 

Last but not least the Revlon Lipbutter in Peach Parfait. Now you can do any eyelook you want or just apply your favorite mascara and your good to go.

Do you like the dewy makeup look? Or what look do you go for in the spring?

your lips but better lipsticks

What would the world of beautyproducts be without the your-lips-but-better coloured lipsticks? A quick sweep over the lips and your lips look better than before without having to check on the colour and the fear of the awkward faded lipstick. It's just so easy and that's the reason why i love them. I have a lot of your-lips-but-better coloured lipsticks and today i will show you my top 3.

//THE GLOSSY ONE
This is the first colour i bought of the Maybelline Color Elixirs (725 Caramel Infused) and it won't the last one. A creamy gloss, that feels nice and smooth on the lips and has a colour pigmentation i never expected to be there. It's a gloss right... Doesn't dry out your lips at all and leaves a slight tint on the lips after the gloss wore off. For a gloss it's quite longlasting and this is probably my favorite of the three.

//THE MATTE ONE
The Milani lipstick in 25 naturally chic is the matte one of the three. It can be a bit drying on your lips, so i moisturise my lips before to work against this a bit. Because it's a matte formula it is longlasting and it has a good pigmentation. One thing that puts me off though is the smeel. It smeels like a candystore, but in a too sweet too unnatural way. The smell fades after a few minutes otherwise i couldn't wear this lipstick...

//THE CREAMY ONE
You may have seen me rave about those lipsticks here. The colour 07 natural beauty is the perfect your-lips-but-better colour and the first one i owned. So this lipstick is responsible for the whole obsession. Creamy formula, not at all drying on the lips and longlasting, what is there more to say? And it's a bargain. So go and buy it (:D).

What is your favorite your-lips-but-better lipstick?

current most braided hairstyles

I don't know what it is with braids an summer weather. They just match perfectly. The last few weeks were warmer and sunnier then i am used to in march/april. I think of you peeps in the rainy cloudy Germany! So i was tired of the good old ponytail, messy bun or open hair so i tried a few braided hairstyles.
 

//THE BRAIDED PONYTAIL

Still a ponytail, but a bit different then the normal old one. Just through your hair up into a ponytail, braid it, loosen it up a bit and secure it with a clear elastic. Done. It is still the loved ponytail, but it looks like you but a bit more effort into it.

//THE TWO FISHTAIL BRAIDS
I don't remember the last time i wore two braids. Maybe with twelve? Maybe even younger? But instead of the normal three-strand braid you do a fishtail braid. It doesn't look like the schoolgirl coming from school (or the Britney Spierce touch...). It is a bit more grown up, but i feel like the twelve year old me again with those two braids. Just part your hair into two parts and braid each part into a fishtail braid. Secure it with a elastic and i like to pull the strand a bit out, to make the braids look more volumnious.

//THE MESSY SIDE DOUBLE BRAID

I copied this look from Fleur de Force's "Braided Hairstyles" Video and i just love it. You braid a fishtail braid and then a dutch braid on the side of your head to your ear. Then you have the hair out of your face (or the ot behaving fringe covered), but your hair isn't pulled up completely.

//THE WATERFALL BRAID

I do love a good waterfall braid. Hair out of the face, but still loose hair. Easy and it only takes a few minutes. This is a hairstyle i am mostly going for, when my fringe isn't behaving like it should or the hair in my face is annoying me too much.

How to do a winged eyeliner

Winged eyeliner is a challenge everybody seems to face. There is nothing more annoying than spending ages on redoing your flick or trying to match both sides. I do struggle with it everytime i try to do a winged eyeliner, but one technique helped me to downsize the amount of time i spend on doing a decent eyeliner.

You can use this technique with any type of eyeliner. Eyeshadow or gel liners are probably the best ones to use but it works with an eyeliner pen too.

So first you draw a line in your mind from the end of your eyebrow to the outer corner of your eye. Then you place your brush/pen on the line at the point you want your eyeliner flick to end and then draw the line down to the outer corner of your eye.

I like to do this on the other eye right afterwards and compare the two to make sure they are similar.

Now you can do your eyeliner line along your lashline until you reach the outer corner of your eye.

Last but not least you connect the two lines and you can make the part between the beginning of your flick and the line along your lashline as thin or as thick as you want. Depending on the look you are going for.

This technique took my eyeliner flicking (is that even a word?) from over 30 minute application and a lot of correcting and removing to a maximum of 15 minutes and a perfect result.

Do you have any tips on applying winged eyeliner?

Moisture Surge from Clinique

Moisturising is key when it comes to good looking skin and good looking makeup on top. Nobody likes dry patches peeking through foundation or dull looking skin. "Moisture Surge" from Clinique should have changed the game for me and it did kind of.

The outside is typical clinique packaging simple and sleek. The pot is not out of glass as you could think first, it's plastic which makes it lighter and not so easy to destroy. Another benefit of the packaging is, that it's see through so you always know how much product you have left.

Inside is a pink gel-like cream with the typical clinique scent. Nothing special and also not too strong to be annoying.

The cream goes easily onto your skin and sinks in within minutes. It leaves your skin feeling soft and plump. The feeling on your skin isn't heavy as most moisturisers are and it nourishs your skin well with moisture. If you have dry or normal skin, this is definitely a product you should check out.

For the peeps with verydry skin (like me at some parts) it could be too less hydrating. Very dry areas do get hydrated but that doesn't hold on for long, especially throughout the day and with makeup on top your skin gets dehydrated. The moisture surge is also a great moisturiser for wearing it under makeup. The foundation glides on easily and doesn't get flaky or anything.

In combination with other products like serums or oils you can up the game in terms of hydration and then it is also for very dry skin peeps a great moisturiser.