Going away new outfit

Because next week will be very tense what with hospital and everything, I wanted to try and make the trip a bit more pleasant for myself. And because I'm going to the land of tanned people, I thought about putting a bit of fake tan on.
But then I remember that one of the tests involve a doctor checking and photographing every single mole/mark on my skin, and some of them would blend in with my skin with some tan from a bottle. Bah! *sulks*

Yesterday I won a few euros betting on the horses so today I went and spent them on a new (cheap in price) outfit for the trip.

hat: Penneys/Primark €4
top/dress: Forever 21 €13
shirt + belt: Penneys/Primark €13

With my natural skin tone I would never ever be able to pull a white shirt/blouse, but with a big pop of colour I think it's a really nice combination. The top is strapless and can also be used as a little sun dress if it gets REALLY hot and we go to the beach(with the power of +50 factor sun cream). Otherwise the top could be paired with leggings, shorts or jeans.
Here's in case it gets a little nippy and I have to close the shirt a bit


The hat is not the greatest of colours against my skin tone, however it can(and will) be jazzed up with a little ribbon or a cute pin.

What do you guys think?

Lil

A little break

(if you follow me on Twitter you can skip this post as you have probably already read about it)

As you may(or may not?!) be aware, 9 years ago I had the nasty misfortune of having to deal with melanoma, the deadliest of skin cancers and cancers in general.
Every 6 months for the first 3 years and then once a year, I've been undergoing a long series of checks to make sure the little basterd isn't back or that he hasn't invited any of his friends around for a bit of a party.
Which is why I will be gone, therefore not posting, for about a couple of weeks. I'm going home and won't be able to post. (once I get back I'm pretty sure a visit to the in-law's will be in order....)
I'm not sure yet if I will be able to use (cheap) Internet on my Italian SIM, but if I do you may find me twit pic'ing(I don't think that's an actual word) and Tweeting about yummy food and a ton of gorgeous window shopping.
I have to say I am VERY nervous and slightly worried. I know I do everything possible to look after myself and stay healthy but once the big C has touched you, you leave forever with the "doubt".
Excuse me while I go pooh my pants a little.....

Lil

PS: just in case you don't follow me on Twitter and have managed to miss the big T cushion on the side bar, my name is @lil_fairy_doll

one for the visually challenged

I get asked about this A LOT in messages on YouTube and Facebook, and also in real life: my "legendary" winged black liner.
I don't think it's featured a lot on the blog, mainly because I will pick it as an effective quick make up when I don't really have time or can't be bothered to put make-up on, therefore not a good FOTD photo opportunity.

What I use is

Maybelline line definer liquid liner

What I like about it is that it's super easy to use!!! You don't have to be super extra careful, like most liquid liners, that it'll pick up a lot of product and you don't have to be super attentive to use just the very tip or your line will be an inch thick.
Using this is as easy as writing with a pen so the whole liquid liner trickiness is out of the equation.
For someone with a visual impairment it's hard enough to line your eyes, especially when doing one eye using the weakest of the 2, never mind using a liquid liner and doing a cat eye.
What I will say, if you have sensitive eyes and/or particularly "sticky" lids, yo do need a shadow base for it to stick on, because it's not waterproof it WILL run if your eyes get teary and it WILL smudge during the day if you have no base.
As far as the cat eye technique itself, there are a million tutorials on YouTube and if you are visually impaired my advice is: take notes on the technique but adapt it to your own visual needs, try and try again, a cat/winged line does need practice. You may find what's a good angle to draw on one eye, may not be ideal to line the other eye.

I hope this was useful to you

Lil

A day out: FOTD & OOTD

Maybelline waterproof The colossal volume(no volume and definitely not colossal) mascara
Maybelline line definer in black(best liquid liner for dummies EVER)
Maybelline waterproof khol express(the teal, has no name or number)
some random white shadow for the inner corner
Sleek original palette, the lightest lemony colour under the brow(I am in LOVE with the colour but unfortunately on my skin can only be detected in natural bright light)
Rimmel sun shimmer bronzing powder in Light matte(used as a blush)

Apologies for the crap lighting but that's the maximum we get on a sunny day. The dress is 3 year old, by my fave Italian brand Rinascimento. Shoes are from 4 years ago, also bought in Italy.

What do you guys think?

Bag porn: spring summer 2011

Miu Miu spring summer 2011: I AM ABSOLUTELY AND COMPLETELY IN LOVE WITH THIS!!!


Juicy Couture, $298 : this is me in bag form

Salvatore Ferragamo, Resort collection 2011 (€1.650).

Mulberry, Alexa soft satchel, € 940.00

Kenzo, spring summer collection 2011

Alexander Mcqueen, £1.195


Lanvin Woven jute beach bag, £960


Alessandro Marras, $800


Manhattan satchel, $795


Furla, $195

ELF haul - spring

Eye Shadow Brush €1.70/£1.50
Tinted Moisturiser SPF 15 Ivory €1.70/£1.50
Brightening Eye Color Butternut €1.70/£1.50
Mango Madness €1.70/£1.50
Foundation Brush €1.70/£1.50
eye crease brush €1.70/£1.50
Smudge Eye Sponge €1.70/£1.50
Mint Cream €1.70/£1.50
Light Pink €1.70/£1.50
Studio Concealer in Ivory €4.00/£3.50
Matte Finisher Clear Nail Polish €1.70/£1.50
Purple Dream €1.70/£1.50
Blending Eye Brush €1.70/£1.50

Makeover?!

So....e are coming up to the first anniversary of my little blog.

...and I'm still stuck on 50 followers despite the efforts, don't know where I'm going wrong..but that's another matter

So I was thinking about completely redesigning the layout.
What do you guys think? Yes or no? What style should I go for?
Let me know your ideas and we'll see how they mix with mine....

Off with the mask

A while ago I found someone on Twitter by pure accident. Someone I used to chat with a lot a few years back on Westlife's message boards. And when I say a lot, I DO mean a lot. It was a group of us chatting away most nights about this and that and we knew one another pretty well.
I remember I used to be slightly jealous of this one person because of their looks, their social life, their boyfriend, etc. So when I accidentally "bumped" into her on Twitter I was quite curious to find out how she is now, although she didn't seem too happy to be talking to someone "from back then". Or maybe she never really liked me back then either.
Anyway....I asked her if she was still at her job and if she was still with X.

She replied by saying she never worked "there" and she was never with someone called X.

Which lead me to thinking: what else did she lie about?! why do people feel the need to lie about their lives when talking to people online?!
I don't get it.
I have no problems in exposing my pretty lame, frustrating life and sharing most of my problems with the world. Why would I have to lie?! At the end of the day if I did lie, my life would still be what it is and wouldn't suddenly turn into my little fantasy.

I don't get it.....

an update

This is a continuation/update of this post.

I did e-mail a few eye clinics in Dublin, 6 to be exact, seeking help pro-bono or for a very reduced fare. And only 2 got back to me.
One through a very useless phone call; the doctor told me that they wouldn't be able to perform "that" kind of surgery at their clinic. He then went on to tell me that if I got a referral to an ophtalmologist from a GP(that's €40 for a trip to the GP) I MIGHT be able to be put on the waiting list and because I'm a EU citizen it MAY not cost me. Which I REALLY doubt as virtually NOTHING in the health system is free anymore. Any other questions I had for him were met by a "I'm not sure". Right....thanks for calling, or NOT!

The second response I got was through e-mail.
He was very kind in the words he used. He told me that they wouldn't be able to perform the strabismus("unstraight" eyes) operation at their clinic and he personally would have doubts about it because, as I' d mentioned in my e-mail, the brain is already formed and the op MIGHT give me more vision problems. However he said that vision wise he's helped other people with my condition in the past and I should go to my GP and get a referral to an ophtalmologist that do deal with these conditions. Which I took as "we're too expensive for you".
Right, thanks anyway.

The other day the boyfriend and I hopped along to Vision Express on Henry St as we had booked a free eye test each with the possibility of me getting spanking brand new designer specs for €100. Well the other half test come out "irritated" me by it basically saying that he has above average exceptional 20/20 vision and may not need glasses for another 20 years at least, if ever at all. Bastard! Call me childish but it really did bother me.
As for my vision there's no news really, I'm still 1/20 (or 10/200 as you prefer it), and it isn't deteriorating, The only "good thing" about my vision is that it won't decrease other than for normal aging factors.
The lovely lady that did our tests, Tara was VERY helpful and totally understanding. For the first time in my life when having an eye test done, the person dealing with me knew all she had to know about my condition and didn't ask stupid/useless questions.
At the end of the appointment I took the chance to ask her about an ophtalmologist and all that.
She was very helpful and gave me the name of a GP in the south side linked to good eye doctors. She also went further in telling me that if I was to go public, the average waiting list in the city is now, wait for it.....EIGHTEEN MONTHS!!!!! 18?! A blooming year and a half?!?! Unfortunately she was NOT joking, and she too wasn't sure if I'd get it for free as a EU citizen.
So what if I wanted to go private? She said waiting time she wasn't sure but for an ophtalmologist consultation it would set ,e back a good €200.
I was not happy, I am not happy. Taking advantage of someone who's trying to just better their vision not get their boobs enlarged.

It is VERY frustrating, I am VERY frustrated...

Correctr pen?! I'll correct you!

Simple Kind To Eyes Eye Make-Up Corrector Pen

As soon as it was released this product caused quite a stir, labeled a "saver" and all that malarky.
But I ask you: do you REALLY need it? do you REALLY need to spend a fiver(or more?!) on this?

My answer is "hell to the no!". Why? because what this thingy does you can EASILY do with a little inexpensive handy COTTON BUD!
Plus the tip of this little bugger gets dirty straight away which means you WILL need a wipe anyway to clean it EVERY SINGLE TIME.
Save your money for something else ladies.

FOTD: rock on!

UD primer potion
L'Oreal voluminous waterproof mascara
Lancome waterproof black kohl
ELF quad in Butternut(the 2 darkest shades)
CLEEK The Original palette(mixed the 2 lightest shades for the brow highlight colour)
Witch Anti-Blemish Pressed Powder With Witch Hazel Extract
Essence lipstick in the colour 01 Frosted
KIKO volume lipgloss in the colour o2

S&G Girligo does go...EVERYWHERE!

I had, had my eyes on this for a good few months but at almost €10 and it only being 250ml and a spray(therefore not taking long to finish) I was very reluctant to try it.
But last week during a day trip to Galway I found it amongst the Soap & Glory products at 1/3 off the price (I usually can't find any of the S&G stuff I wanna try here in Dublin when they have promotions on) so I thought it was time I finally gave in.

I REALLY wanted to love it as I think the concept is GENIUS, especially for people like me that cannot be bothered with moisturising every single day, twice a day and wait for the damn thing to dry.

The lotion itself has the S&G trademark lovely smell and I feel when you apply this you really don't need any perfume. Once spraied on you don't need to spread it much and it doesn't take very long to dry. Also I was surprised to feel the day after my skin was softer than when using their butter .
So all is super cool....apart from the stupid bottle: if only the tiniest of drops of product gets on it, then it's totally unholdable, unmanageable and slides everywhere! I think it's shape doesn't help much has it has no grip whatsoever.

I REALLY like it, I LOVE the concept, I love how quick it dries but the bottle is really a big downside...

Ooops I stick it again...

Soltan Moisturising Suncare Spray SPF30 75ml review

I recently found myself in need of some sun care lotion because the weather here is getting better and better, so for the summer and for when we go to my boyfriend's parents' in the countryside and spend a lot of time outside I need some protection. I'm still debating whether as always I should go back to Palmers butter with spf20 for the warmer months, or stick to normal moisturising and then sticking some sun block on.
In the mean time I decided to get me a little bottle of sun protection anyway, and let me tell you....it's sending me straight back to Palmers....at the speed of light!
I've used Soltan products before and for the hot sticky summer days back home in Italy I swear by their aloe vera gel, especially if kept in fridge, which is why I went straight to their section in Boots. plus the travel size bottle appealed to me because it can easily stuck in the bag without weighting it down. And the plus of all pluses: it has a 5 star UVA rating which never hurts, especially with skin like mine.

Well I'm telling you guys this is a big fat FAIL! And I'm SO mad that I'm now stuck with this, at €6.something I can't just throw it out can I?! ....or maybe I will.

Thankfully last week I only had my neck/chest area and my forearms to protect or I REALLY would have risked getting slightly burned as I would have NOT put up with this on more areas.
First of all just because it's a spray it doesn't mean you don't have to spread it, if anything you possibly have to go back and forth more than a normal cream before it dries. In fact, it actually NEVER dries despite claims of being easily absorbed, I felt sticky even after 3 hours when I went to re-apply it. Thank God I wasn't on the beach and not covering myself in this or I DREAD to imagine the feeling.....
It claims to not clog pores which is easily achieved by the fact that it sits on top of skin and not in pores....
Good point: it's water resistant, but so resistant that it took me quite a bit good of scrubbing my hands with tons of hand detergent before I could get MOST of it off my fingers and palms.
It left an awful looking white cast, and if you can notice it on my skin, I dread to imagine what it would look like on anyone with pigmentation.
And don't get me started on the "moisturising" bit of the name: couldn't be any further from moisturising if it tried!
STAY AWAY FROM THIS GUYS!

E.T. phone home! In Russian!!

I have to say I REALLY like this video and the song!!
And I know why I love the song, because it REALLY reminds me of this....



Mind you the Katy Perry has a plus: it features Shaun Ross a very established American model with albinism. And I think Kanye (who I artistically worship) had some input in the video making process. Why? You ask... Well because he himself featured a model with albinism in one of his videos last year



Any artist, director, etc etc out there: I'M YOU R GIRL FOR A COOL NEW VIDEO!!!!!

I'm the face of something?!

Yep! Couldn't quite believe it myself!!!

The Albinism Network ( @Albinism on Twitter) picked yours truely to be their face of April ! Here's my little feature.

THANK YOU for that, it does mean A LOT!

You might have seen me and @Albinism doing some educating on Twitter, with a little side of sharp sarcasm on my side as well.

So, raise your glasses peeps and let's toast to me being the face of anything!! Especially regarding my condition, and in a positive way... CHEERS! CIN CIN! SALUTE! SLAN!

*hiccup* ... sowwy...

NOTD: purple magic

Very simple: a french tip with the new ELF Purple dream, then I drew a line over the tip edge on the nail with China Glaze Electric Lilac, I made sure I didn't cover the whole french tip with the glitter. Then I just applied some stickers, a top coat and voila!
Mini ELF Purple dream review: I painted my nails with it a couple of weeks ago and I REALLY liked the colour! Although the application was a bit tricky, I really can't make peace with ELF polishes' brushes, ouch! But for its €1.70 it is one pretty amazing colour! And it didn't chip at all, even without a top coat! I only noticed a tiny bit of tip wear on 2 fingers after 5 days: brilliant!

Do you like my purple magic? Let me know!

Some OOTD's

This jacket is from my beloved Italian brand Rinascimento, bought in the winter sale in January

I went to an afternoon gig of The Blackout here in Dublin with my friend Nicole

ready to go visit the "in law's" in the country

Ray Bans eat ya' heart out!

15 quid from Vero Moda with super duper UV protection!
BARGAIN!!!

What I've been lusting for lately (beauty)

Benefit Dandelion blush, €33

Urban Decay 15th Anniversary 24/7 Pencil Set, €75

Sigma Make Me Cool kit, about €80 with shipping

The Body Shop coconut shimmer lotion, €12


Models Own Yellow Meringue, approx 8€

Models Own Feeling Blue, approx €8

Sting did my eyebrows...

...or rather a Body Shop threading review.

I have never EVER let anyone at my eye brows, NOBODY!
After I got them shaped for the first time when I was (I think) 16, I've always done them myself. With tweezers that is.
I am VERY OCD about them, I go at them every 3 days or so. If I say a little unruly hair coming up it drives me nuts until I've removed it.

Today I was in town to do some stuff and I remember a friend showing me a flyer about The Body Shop now doing threading in their branch in Henry St. I've heard many rave about threading so I wanted to find out what it was all about.
You can just call in and have it done, no need for an appointment...plus side for that! It took the time of a song - Sting "Every breath you take" live, I ADORE him! Not to mention he lives in amazing Tuscany now, GENIUS! - she was THAT quick! The lovely lady had such a soft touch that I barely felt her applying a softening and soothing lotion before and after threading! And she did a pretty neat job!
And all of it for €12. For people that can't be bothered or don't know how do their own brows, I say it's a pretty neat service!
Although there is something they could fix: the reclining chair they have you sit on, is basically in the middle of the shop, with everyone walking around ya and looking at you. How about moving the chair elsewhere a bit more private?

This one gets my thumbs up!