Summer + Music = L.O.V.E.

Alo homies ;-)

Sorry, I've been away for a while... Had to recover from my surgery [farewell wisdom teeth!]. Anyways. I'm finally feeling a lil better & thought I'd do a new post.

Since everyone knows that I could never live without music, I thought I'd share some my fav summer jams with you guys.

Unfortunately we learned Saturday night that the gorgeous Amy Winehouse passed away [R.I.H.]. Drugs are NO JOKE kids. A wonderful talent was stolen from us. Still we shouldn't forget all the other horrible things that happened the last week(s): Oslo for example. Since the whole world seems to go crazy & you never know when life's over I guess we should enjoy life right now... WITH music!

Even though I am a HUGE Amy Winehouse fan I won't put any of her CDs in this post since I didn't thought of putting any into my current "summer favs". I think it would be phony & wrong to do it now, "just" because she died. Nevertheless: My favorite Amy Winehouse CD has ALWAYS been "Frank" [I've been a fan since "Stronger Than Me" - yupp... not since "Rehab" -.-]. You definitely have to listen to "Stronger Than Me", "F*ck Me Pumps", "Amy Amy Amy", "In My Bed" & "I Heard Love Is Blind".

In spite of this... Here are my "Must-Listen-To-CDs" for this - not so summery - summer.

Enjoy!

Yours, Lea

1.) Beyoncé "4" + "B'Day Deluxe Edition"

Smells like Summer...

"4"

• "1+1"

• "I Care"

• "Party" feat. André 3000

• "Start Over"

• "Countdown"

• "End Of Time"

• " Run The World (Girls)"

"B'Day Deluxe Edition"

• "Green Light"

• "Upgrade U" feat. Jay-Z

• "Suga Mama"

• "Amor Gitano" feat. Alejandro Fernández

• "Get Me Bodied"

2.) Solange "Sol-Angel And The Hadley St. Dreams"

Smells like Summer...

• "God Given Name"

• "T.O.N.Y."

• "Sandcastle Disco"

• "I Decided - Pt. 2"

• "Cosmic Journey" feat. Bilal

• "Dancing In The Dark"

3.) Chris Brown "F.A.M.E. Deluxe"

Smells like Summer...

• "Deuces" feat. Kevin McCall & Tyga

• "Say It With Me"

• "All Back"

• "Should've Kissed You"

• "Beautiful People" feat. Benny Benassi

• "Bomb" feat. Wiz Khalifa

4.) Adele "21"

Smells like Summer...

• "Rolling In The Deep"

• "Set Fire To The Rain"

• "Rumour Has It"

• "He Won't Go"

• "I'll Be Waiting"

• "Someone Like You"

5.) Jennifer Hudson "I Remember Me"

Smells like Summer...

• "I Got This"

• "Where You At"

• "I Remember Me"

• "Everybody Needs Love"

• "Love Is Your Color" feat. Leona Lewis

6.) John Legend "Once Again"

Smells like Summer...

• "Stereo"

• "Save Room"

• "P.D.A. (We Just Don't Care)"

• "Coming Home"

7.) Kings Of Leon "Come Around Sundown"

Smells like Summer...

• "Mary"

• "Pyro"

• "Mi Amigo"

• "Back Down South"

• "The Immortals"

8.) Alicia Keys "The Diary Of Alicia Keys"

Smells like Summer...

• "Karma"

• "Heartburn"

• "If I Was Your Woman/Walk On By"

• "You Don't Know My Name"

• "Diary" feat. Tony! Toni! Toné!

• "Dragon Days"

• "Samsonite Man"

9.) T.I. "King"

Smells like Summer...

• "What You Know"

• "Live In The Sky" feat. Jamie Foxx

• "Ride With Me"

• "Why You Wanna"

• "Goodlife" feat. Pharrell & Common

10.) Sade "Soldier Of Love"

Smells like Summer...

• "The Moon And The Sky"

• "Soldier Of Love"

• "Morning Bird"

• "Babyfather"

• "Skin"

Just my F.O.T.D. :-)

Used: L'oréal Studio Secrets Professional Anti-Shine Mattifying Primer, L'oréal Indefectible Concealer, L'oréal Perfect Match Powder (C3/K3 Rose Beige), L'oréal Blush (240 Sunset Brown), L'oréal Voluminous Mascara Carbon Black, Essense Pocket Beauty Glamour To Go Eyeshadow, Maybelline New York Gentle Precision Eyeliner (33 Black), L'oréal Made For Me Chocolate Nudes Lipstick (279 Moka & Chocolate)

Just plain old me & my "Face Of The Day". I'll post again tomorrow [actually later TODAY] & I have some exciting news to share very soon... hope this really works out though!

Yours truly & sleepy, Lea.

June Favs

Alo!

Better late than never I guess...

Thought I'd share some of my "June Favs" with y'all. Enjoy! :-)

Yours, Lea  

Hair:

 1.) Dove Repair Therapy Hitzeschutz Aktives Schutz-Spray, Regenerierende Haarkur (Dove Damage Therapy Heat Defence Heat Activated Protect + Shine Mist, Treatment Mask)
Got this new Dove heat defence line & I have to say it's amazing! Both, mask & mist... I think they also have shampoo & regular conditioner but I'm happy with these two as well. :-)

2.) Klier Leave-In Spray Volume, Shampoo Volume (Don't know whether available outside Germany)
Got this shampoo & kind of "leave-in-conditioner-spray" from my hairdresser. It's basically for volume, really does its job plus you only need a small amount of product which means you'll be able to use it for quite some time. 

  3.) Gliss Kur Hair Repair Oil Nutritive Haarspitzenfluid Anti-Spliss. (Don't know whether this is available outside Germany either...)

Now this is some hair serum you put in your ends. I cannot say how much I love this! I've always had problems with split hair ends & I just don't have 'em no more! AWESOME!  

4.) Blonde Highlights.

My new hair color :-) Well actually it's just some blonde highlights. They look natural & fun. (Somhow only my Macbook was able to make them visible... not my Nikon :-/)

Face:

5.) Neutrogena Visibly Clear Pink Grapefruit Tägliches Waschgel (Neutrogena Visibly Clear Pink Grapefruit Facial Wash)
 I usually use Garnier when it comes to my face but I recently fell in love with Neutrogena. It's not only doing its job but also smelling delicious! No pimples for me no more. ;-)

Make-Up:

6.) L'oréal Studio Secrets Professional Anti-Shine Mattifying Primer, L'oréal Perfect Match Peach Blush For Medium Skin Tones (Sunset Brown 240), L'oréal Color Indefectible Velvet Powder 24h Hold (Endless Chocolat 012)

My new & beloved L'oréal goodies! I definitely found my favorite blush ever... It's almost a bronzer. The eyeshadow really does what the ads promise: It stays on forever without smearing. The primer is great for oily skin. Just use 3 little drops & put them on your forehead, nose & chin. Done.

Music:

7.) Beyoncé - 4, 4 Deluxe Edition
Being known as an official Beyoncé-Stan this had to be in my June favorites! Her new album "4" - of course the regular Edition AND the Deluxe Edition. I couldn't wait for this album to be released on June 24th [in Germany... 4 days before America! HA! ;-)] Been listening to this ever since then. I love ALL tracks. In my opinion it's one of her best albums (even though all are pretty much GENIUS!) just because it's raw & bold! LOVE IT! Everybody go buy! --> Fav tracks: I Care + I Was Here.

Books:

8.) Siri Hustvedt: The Summer Without Men, Sue Monk Kidd: The Dance Of The Dissident Daughter
First of all: People that know me, know that "The Dance Of The Dissident Daughter" is not only this year's "June Fav" for me.  I read it several times & it really helped me A LOT. I just happened to read it again this month because I felt the need for it & I thought this way I could share it with you guys. It answered a lot of questions I needed answers for. This book changed my life & I really urge every woman to read it! As for "The Summer Without Men": I just bought it recently & I absolutely love it! Another book every woman should read at least once in her life. Actually you should read all of Siri Hustvedt's & Sue Monk Kidd's books/works. They are both GENIUS!

Hometown Glory.

Alo amigas & amigos! 

I'm back!!! 

Back from an awesome week with my family. I stayed at my grandma's house in a village near Bremen & for the first time in almost 10 years I saw my Canadian grandaunt who actually came to visit my grandma last week. I spend quality time with these two amazing ladies & furthermore met several grand cousins, my lovely granduncle Arthur, their wives/husbands etc. & - of course - I also met my lovely aunt & her boyfriend.

I love this part of my family beyond limits. It's always fun to be with them & I get to know a lot more about my Romanian/Bessarabian heritage which is not only interesting but also extremely important to me. I just love listening while my grandma (89), grandaunt (77) & granduncle (84) are talking about our "home" & their life there. I urge everyone to study your family's history! SO ENRICHING!

I left crying, feeling bad about leaving them & all that jazz. They all wanted me to stay at least one more week but I had to get back to work etc. I'm so scared to leave them since I love them to death & I'm aware of the fact that my grandma feels lonely. Still, I left with some amazing memories & experiences. I learned a lot of important things:

1.) I'm an "exact mixture" of my grandmother, grandaunt & aunt. 

2.) I admire these 3 ladies for being such strong individuals, such strong WOMEN. Especially my grandmother & grandaunt since being as independent as them wasn't common 60 years ago. I look up to these women & I can proudly say that I was raised by them & another strong woman, my mother.

3.) Damn, they raised me good. ;-)

Like my grandaunt said: "Don't you ever give up! I never did & you won't either. This family doesn't give up. Your grandma is superwoman anyways... If you haven't realized yet."

Last but not least my grandma told me something a lot of people - even myself - tend to forget frequently: "We come to this world with nothing & we leave with nothing." Don't spend your time worrying about material things, spend time & energy caring for the ones you love!

Talk to you guys later!

Yours truly, Lea

Left to right: Grandaunt Frieda, Granduncle Arthur, Grandma

Out eating with my grand cousin & his wife. :-)

************************

 OK, one thing I didn't know: My family "owns" a forest! Can you believe it? Now that makes me proud! They worked their way up from the bottom. They came from Romania having NOTHING & now [actually 30 years ago...] my family bought a forest! :*)

Here are some pictures of this piece of nature + my grandma & grandaunt. BEAUTIFUL!

************************

Grandma opening a bottle of wine. 

 My grandaunt, last evening.

Grandma. :)

O.P.I.-Sin.

Alo sweethearts!

One quick post before I'm off to my grandma's & NOT posting for about a week - YES, I know, sorry. But I'll be back next week I swear! After the last months' stress I just need a timeout & what's better than being with your granny?

One more thing: A lot of people were complaining about me posting in English. No, I am NOT trying to be cool by doing so. -.- Like seriously? Get the hell outta my face!  I have always loved this language plus I have to keep writing & speaking if I really want to study in the UK. Furthermore I believe that more people are able to read my blog in English since it's a WORLD LANGUAGE. Apparently a lot of my friends still have issues with reading/understanding everything though. Implication: From now on (next post actually since I'm busy as a bee! *.*) I'll do posts in German & English (starting off with English & then post the same thing in German beneath).

Back to our regular program... Forgive me God, for I have sinned. I bought some WAY TOO EXPENSIVE nail polishes. I have always heard a lot of good stuff about O.P.I. so I thought - after working a lot - I could get me something "a little more expensive". I had to decide between MAC's "Russian Red" & O.P.I.'s Nail Varnishes. I went for O.P.I. [first.. I need that lipstick!].

Originally I wanted to pick the "Natural Nail Base Coat" & a red color called "The Thrill Of Brazil". Since a lot of colors were on sale I also took a bronzy/gold'ish kind of color called "Rising Star" & the infamous "OPI Top Coat". 

A lot of beauty gurus & stuff have been saying that the "Natural Nail Base Coat" & the "OPI Top Coat" in combination make the varnish stay on your nails for up to 9 days. I can't really say anything about that since I only applied my color yesterday but I'll definitely keep you in the loop. Usually I have problems with nail polish as it never stays on for more than 2 days (I've really tried EVERYTHING!) so I'm pretty excited about this one. 

Besides that the "OPI Top Coat" has a lot of critics. Most of them argue that it takes AGES to dry & loses its shine within a day. I have to say it isn't my favorite so far because it does take way too much time to dry (messed up my nails at least 3 times... UGH!). The shine is pretty amazing though & the color still lasts so let's see... Nevertheless I think 16 € are a little too much. As for the colors: 16€ are definitely okay! They are perfect, shiny, easy to apply, covering & so far long-lasting plus they have a HUGE assortment, colors in various shades etc.

All in all good stuff & I definitely want some more colors... Let's see about the base & top coat though (also heard the top coat thickens easily... ¡NO me gusta!)

I'll put some pictures for you below. I made sure I used both colors ;-)

Talk to you guys on Saturday! Have a great week!

Yours, Lea 

 

I applied the " Natural Nail Base Coat" first, 1 coat of "The Thrill of Brazil" & on one figer 2 coates of "Rising Star".. Last but not least the "OPI Top Coat".

"Natural Nail Base Coat" (16 €), "OPI Top Coat" (Sale 8 €)

"Rising Star" (Sale 8 €), "The Thrill of Brazil" (16 €)

Prom, Graduation & once again: HI!

 Prom. Marion, Myself & Charlotte (left to right)

Alo! (HA! Guess what THAT means... Still practicing my Romanian. lol)

It took me a whole lot of time BUT I'm finally BACK B*TCHES! ;-) Just kidding...  I thought - since I took a long break anyways - that I should wait til graduation day & prom.

And guess what? Right now I have some awesome pictures to share :-)

Regarding graduation: Preparing for my finals was definitely more work than I expected it to be. Still, I'm glad I made it & my results are in my mom's words "breathtaking" ;-) I think I could have done better (you know I'm never satisfied - shame on me!), but I'm still glad it's over & I obviously did a good job.

At first I was scared. I didn't want this time to end, to leave my friends etc. But now things changed. Without further information I have to say that some people showed their "true colors" & I'm definitely happy I'm not seeing some of them ever again. People can be mean & say stuff they don't know sh*t about. Marilyn Monroe once said: "When it comes down to it, I let them think what they want. If they care enough to bother with what I do, then I'm already better than them." -->TRUE DAT! I have always been very careful. I do not trust people easily & I'm very suspicious. Right now I'm even more. You need to learn to separate the wheat from the chaff & that's what I'm doing right now.

Besides that I am finally FREE - some might refer to it as "unemployed" ;-) And NO - I don't know what's next. Thanks to my A levels I can actually do whatever I want & I'm hopefully able to get a scholarship as well. My only problem is that I have way too many different things I'm interested in. If I want to apply for Cambridge though I have to make a decision NOW (deadline: October 15th). I'll keep you in the loop since I have a lot of time on my hands now & look up everything :-) Either way I will take a year "off". Try to travel (Canada & finally Romania), get my driver's license (yupp.. still didn't get the chance to do that -.- don't ask..), do internships & continue working at my old job.

Let's get to the important stuff though ;-) Prom & graduation day. It was actually pretty cool & I'm glad Marion, Charlotte, Mom, Dad, my godmother & later also my two cousins were able to make it. I seriously had a blast.. And excuse me sounding cocky, but I looked BOMB. I'll post some pictures & put some information about my outfit & make-up beneath. BTW - for the first time I wasn't the one doing every one's make-up, my daddy actually did mine :-D

ENJOY! I love you & promised myself to post AT LEAST every other day.

Thanks for reading! 

Love, Lea.

P.S. What do you guys think about videos? A lot of people were asking me to do make-up tutorials and stuff to upload them on YouTube but IDK :-/

Here we go...

 My father caught me off guard... Practicing for my English finals.

 Last day of school.. me & my Jenni-boo!

 Now that dress is KILLA isn't it? lol

 

Proud parents.

I love my mommy.

 Daddy!

 :-D

 Finally some goofy pictures!

 Woop :-)

 That's a fav actually!

 I don't know what we were doing...

 NOW this is what it looks like if you're trying to strike a "Beyoncé-pose"!!!

Oh, how I love thee...

That should be banned... ;-)

 Make up:

- L'oréal Paris Indefectible Make-Up (145 Beige Rosé)

- L'oréal Indefectible Concealer (Beige)

- L'oréal Paris Studio Secrets Professional Poudre Fixante Universelle

- L'oréal Paris Blush Perfect Match (240 Brun Soleil/Sunset Brown)

- MAC Blacktrack Fluidline

- L'oréal Paris Voluminous Mascara

- Eylure Naturalites Double Lashes (I think it's number 205)

- L'oréal Paris Indefectible Lip Liner (703 Fuchsia Fever)

- L'oréal Paris Color Riche (297 Red Passion)

Dress: P&C

"Cape": P&C

(No comment on the price though... should be banned as well! ;-))

Earrings: Fabiani, yellow gold + freshwater pearl

Ring: From my grandmother, yellow gold + little diamond. 

Ring/Bracelet: (don't know what it's called actually...) Asos.com

Shoes: Gabor (and yeah.. I was actually wearing flats. Judge me.)