Online dating: yea or nay?

After receiving a number of dull and un-original messages on the dating website you decided to try out, finally, to your surprise there was a message that stood out, that was real and not generic for a change. So of course you joyfully responded and that signified the beginning of a relationship (there’s a reason I’m avoiding describing it as ‘wonderful’).   You have spent hours upon hours talking to him over messages and most importantly on Skype where you have even left your cameras on while sleeping so that you get that satisfaction that you have somehow spent the night together. Skype has enabled you to cook together, watch movies together, to listen to him singing soothing songs to you when you needed someone to help you calm down, to read the bible together, to feel each other’s presence during busy times of the day by leaving your cameras on whilst being preoccupied with other things.

After months of talking nearly 24/7, the time has finally come for the grand face to face meeting.  Tickets have been booked (you are scared of flying so he’s flying to you), plans and dreams have been made, excitement and expectations are high since declarations of love have been repeatedly made over Skype.  You expected your first meeting to be something like out of a movie; your eyes would meet amongst the crowd at the airport and you would run towards each other in slow motion into the biggest, most romantic hug in the world, followed of course by a passionate kiss.

 However, life is not a movie, and Skype is not real life. Yes there was an awkward like hug, because even though you have spent countless hours talking and getting to know each other, sharing your deepest thoughts and feelings, at the end of the day you were both “hiding” behind a camera.  When you are chatting to someone over Skype, or any other form of video calling, you cannot really determine whether or not there’s any chemistry between you, any physical attraction.  You fall in love with an image, with the psychological support they offer that you so desperately need, with their bubbly personality.  Don’t get me wrong, that relationship could turn out to be the best relationship you’ve ever had, he could even be “the one”, the so called love of your life.

Nevertheless, let me get real with you, when you are both “hiding” behind a camera then you don’t notice, hear or smell the end result of any sort of bodily function or any unpleasant odour.  Should you need your space then you can very easily turn the camera off and that person goes away until either one of you wishes to commence chatting again (which doesn't happen in real life!). You don’t see their clumsiness, their messiness and their awkward interactions with other people due to the fact that they suffer from social anxiety and ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).  All in all, you don’t see the real person. When you finally meet in real life there’s no chemistry, there’s no attraction and you’re left wondering what went wrong, why you don’t feel anything for that person when you felt like you were on top of the world when talking to them on Skype. 

Don’t worry though, that is just one scenario out of the many that can take place when meeting your online love interest.  Word of advice though, keep everything at a realistic level; your expectations, your enthusiasm, your plans and dreams so that when you do see them face to face, when your eyes do meet through the crowd, then you just might be pleasantly surprised.

We are feeling Hot Hot Hot!

It has been a bit over 40°C here in Cyprus and as you may imagine it truly is unbearable without the use of an air conditioning unit (and a pool, but hey we can't have it all now can we?). I really don't think I can function under such temperatures, it makes me feel very lethargic, the sweat becomes very real (from head to toe) and it makes me wish I was living in a different country (again, I think I'm asking for too much)!

Now the animals' method of coping with the heat seems to be to lie down on the pieces of furniture which are outside under the shade. The animals that are featured in today's pictures are Avgi (the black and white cat), Harry (the grayish one) and of course Benny. What seems to be strange is that they always pick the same spot to lounge! Harry always chooses the armchair and Avgi takes the sofa (guess Harry is a real gentleman leaving the sofa to Avgi).

What you are about to see in the pictures are the animals mentioned above in their laziest form, aka yawning, stretching and honestly they just generally look like they have had enough of this heat (like every other living thing in Cyprus).

Can't even keep her eyes open!

Time for some stretching!

Biiiig yawn.

Wishing they were in a cooler climate? 

Just a cool looking lemonade, tasted horribly though!

Soak Up The Sun!

Well spring has sprung a couple of months ago, but in good old Cyprus we've actually been having summer like temperatures, so I'm dreading the actual summer!

Lately I had been feeling uninspired with regards to taking pictures, I thought I had to go on a wild goose chase to find the perfect scenery for a picture perfect moment; like going out of town, or to a scenic park, or to the beach. Truth of the matter though all you have to do is just literally step out of your house for a little inspiration, and that is exactly what I did.

Then again I did also go to the beach, but that was for a weekend getaway and my camera just happened to be in my bag! I've also been to the mountains to try out agrotourism, which is basically renovated old houses in villages that have been turned into traditional lodgings. Sounds like fun right? Well it did sound like fun to me cause at the time I needed to go somewhere peaceful and serene with beautiful mountain views, but instead we ended up having to walk up a steep hill to get to our room by which point we were exhausted and out of breath. Needless to say we didn't leave the room again until check out time! On the plus side we did get to enjoy those beautiful mountain views.

The pictures that follow have been taken on very different days, and settings. Enjoy :)

Benny acting like the little prince that he is!
 

A random cat keeping itself entertained in a flower pot!

Trying out agrotourism!

Summery weather = hair cut

Glorious sunset by the beach

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Right, so in Cyprus it doesn't really snow all that much and when it does it's most likely going to be up in the mountains. Now I haven't been to the mountains while it is snowy in absolutely years so this year I was determined to go. I even managed to convince my boyfriend to go with me, and he very kindly drove us there since he claims that last time we went on a mountain road (you know those really windy ones), he got car sick. I didn't argue (even though he was wrong), I just let him drive.

Now for the reason that it doesn't really snow all that much here, when it does then absolutely everyone goes up to the mountains and act like they've never seen snow before (which may be true for some people). They go kind of mental once they get up there; they start throwing snow balls at each other without even caring if they are hitting the person they are aiming at, or a complete stranger who just happens to be walking past, while desperately trying to not slip and fall on the icy cold snow.

Benny (my very spoiled dog) came with us as well, unfortunately I didn't manage to take any pictures of him when we got there because he was actually seeing snow for the first time and he went kind of crazy. To be honest I wasn't sure how he was going to react to it but he thoroughly enjoyed it. He was hopping around like a little bunny, sniffing everyone and everything while desperately wanting to run as fast as he could on said icy and slippery snow. That however could not be done because my boyfriend and I were trying very hard to not slip and fall down (trust me it would have been a very ungraceful fall), let alone start hoping and running around like my dog wanted us to.

Due to the conditions and my wrong choice of shoe-wear I only managed to take just a few pictures. I was very limited as to what I could take a picture of, since I couldn't just walk to the spot I'd like so as to take a picture due to the fact that I would slip and fall at least 3-5 times till I got there.  These however are some of the pictures I managed to take so I hope you like them!

This is one of the few pictures I managed to take of Benny. Sticking his head out of the window on our way there :)

A little pine-cone buried in its lonesome in the snow 

A very dashing looking snowman!

Till next time x

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year!

With Christmas being just around the corner, I decided that it was time for my annual (something I just started doing last year really, but let's just go with it) Christmas filled pictures! What is mainly featured here is my Christmas tree, a couple of pictures of some ornaments with Christmas lights glistening in the background (you know, trying to get that Bokeh effect every photographer out there is talking about), and of course my gorgeous but spoiled doggy who is such an attention seeker, especially when my camera is out but is not on him.

You cannot imagine just how excited I am for Christmas. What excites me the most though is not the idea of receiving presents but the act of giving people either something I definitely know they want, or an unexpected gift that will genuinely generate a joyful and appreciative smile on their faces since they are caught by surprise.  Besides all the present giving and receiving, always remember that the most important things in life are health, happiness, family and having people around you who you truly love and truly love you back without an agenda or expectations.

I think it's time for me to stop rambling though and move on to the pictures!

Till next time x

Just look at those puppy eyes, how can you deny this dog anything when he's looking at you with those big pleading eyes?

And of course I had to take a picture of my little Benny since he wasn't happy that my camera was out and he wasn't being photographed (well up until that point anyway!)

Aaah it's all about that bokeh life!

Flowers covered in flour!

After a long absence from the blogging world, I am finally back! Work and life got in the way, hence my year long absence, but I have decided to return since I really have missed sharing my thoughts and my pictures with whoever is interested in these blog posts!

So today I'm sharing with you all a few pictures of flowers sprinkled with flour which I took at my photography class! It may look like snow, but it really isn't (as it has been clearly stated in the title of the post so I really don't know why I'm mentioning it again!), even though that would have been a quite exciting and interesting photo shoot.  However, it doesn't really snow in Cyprus and when it does it's only really up in the mountains, and I am a city girl.  Nevertheless, when it does snow I will try to go to the mountains to capture the snowy scenery! For the time being I hope you enjoy the effect of the fake snow on these stunning flowers :)

Till next time x

This one really reminds me of the flower in Beauty and the Beast!

Powder Photography!

Sooo with a little bit (four bags) of flour, some very willing models (our photography teacher and one of the students) and this is the result.  We had a blast taking the pictures but I have to say that it was hard since with this kind of photography, where you have to capture some sort of movement, you have to know exactly when to press the shutter release so as to get the desired result.  Obviously some 200 shots later I could only select 13 pictures that were actually worth sharing, and even in these ones there are still some where the hand is blurry or they are too bright or yellow but I like them nonetheless so they made the cut!

Hope you like them :)

Till next time x

Thoughts on the Rimmel London Lasting Finish Color Rush Balms

A moisturizing lip product that offers long lasting color? Yes please! But maybe not with the Rimmel London Lasting Finish Color Rush Balms. A little bit of info first: I have VERY dry lips, in the winter they will bleed, it's that bad.  

So let's talk about the 3 balms that I own; the nude one is an incredible color for everyday wear, very subtle and very creamy and soft on application.  However, as the day goes by, I find that it wears off leaving almost no color to your lips buuut it does leave color on the bits of dry skin that I have on my lips so while the rest of my lips are the normal color that they are after it wears off, I will have bits of dry skin with color on them...not pretty.  

The pink one, oh my, as soon as put it on my lips all I was left with was this bright neon pink which looked nothing like the swatch I had seen on the asos page where I purchased it from.  To be fair it was during the winter time that I got it when all I was wearing was dark or nude colors so this one was a shock.  Now that the summer is nearly here it's not as shocking anymore.  This will again accentuate the dry skin on your lips but it also stains them a bit so you are left with kind of a pinky color after it wears off. 

The mauvish one (I can't really call it mauve or red so let's call it mauvish), now this one will stain your lips, it is a very bright and pigmented color (as all of them are) so I am careful with how much of this I will apply on my lips.  What I actually do is that I will apply it lightly on my lower lip, then go over it with my finger so that the color is not so intense and then I transfer the color on my upper lip by pressing my lips together.

Conclusion: They are very creamy and moisturizing and shiny as soon as you apply them, but as the day goes by I actually find that they leave my lips dry and accentuate my dry bits.  What is more, I find that as they start running out in the packaging they actually become dry themselves and it's harder to apply them smoothly on the lips.  Is it worth it? Sure, they are not expensive at all and at the end of the day the darker colors will stain your lips and are actually long lasting, just don't forget to moisturize before or after!

They are not glittery at all but they are quite shiny on the lips 

Now this is my dog who was very upset that I was taking pictures of beauty products and not of him so I had to include
him!

Till next time x

SKIN79 Hot Pink Label vs. Orange Label

Alright, so today I would like to talk about the difference between SKIN79 Super Plus Triple Functions BB Cream Pink Label and SKIN79 Super Plus Triple Functions BB Vital Cream (Orange Label).

First of all, on their website, they claim that the pink label is supposed to be whitening, wrinkle improving and sebum controlling.  Apparently there has been an upgrade and instead of just providing wrinkle improvement it now claims to be wrinkle free, but I do not have the upgraded version.  To be honest, I have to say that I haven't noticed any skin whitening action going on, neither any wrinkle improvement (yes I am 27 years old and I do have fine lines).  However, I do believe that it does somewhat control sebum (and it does mention that in the upgrade they have enhanced sebum control).

Now onto the orange label ,  they again claim that it controls oil, that it is lightweight, that it provides moisture yet a matte finish, that it contains multi-vitamins that leave the skin moisturized but without the feeling of it being thick or heavy on the skin and of course that it is whitening and wrinkle improving.  Again, I haven't noticed any improvement on my fine lines nor any whitening, but instead it does feel heavy and thick on the skin.

Onto the differences now!

Pink Label vs. Orange Label 

Color: Color wise it is quite obvious that the pink label is just straight up grey whereas the orange label has more of a skin-like color. Even though when you blend it out it does not look grey at all, when you want to increase the coverage on a specific area and thus you add more product onto the area then it does look grey, so for this reason it's not build-able.  The orange label one on the other hand, even though it is very build-able, it is VERY light in color as well, so if you decide to go for a heavy coverage and thus adding 2 layers of the product it will make you look like a ghost (and this is coming from a quite fair skinned girl).  

Finish: Now I wouldn't say that either one of them gives a matte finish, even though the pink label one might not be as dewy as the orange label one, they are both quite dewy nonetheless, neither one dries to a matte finish (you might want to take into consideration that my skin type is EXTREMELY OILY).

Coverage: I would say that hands down the orange label one is a full coverage BB cream whereas the pink label is a light coverage one.  After I have used the pink label one, just because I cannot build it up because of its color, I always go over my blemishes or the under eye area with my concealer.  The orange label one, I have actually used as a concealer on those days that I didn't want to bother with having a full face of make up.  It really does fully cover blemishes, redness, under eye dark circles and anything that needs to be covered basically.

Feel on the skin:  Again, hands down the pink label one is very lightweight on the skin, especially if you only apply one layer of it, you can barely feel that it's there.  The orange label however does have a heavy and thick feel to it, you can definitely feel that you have something on your skin, I would say that it feels and looks like any other heavy foundation would on the skin.

SPF: The pink label one has an SPF of 25 whereas the orange label one has an SPF of 50! For this reason, when I do go to the beach in the summertime I always choose the orange label over the pink label, but because of its heavy feel and look it is not ideal for a relaxed day at the beach.

Final conclusion

On a good skin day I will go for the pink label BB cream with just some concealer on any blemishes or under the eyes and then some powder on top.  On a bad skin day where I have lots of blemishes to cover I will go for the orange label BB cream, again with some powder on top but I do take it off as soon as I get back home from work because of its heavy and think feel and look.  Ideally I would like to find a BB cream that has healing properties for blemishes, that is anti-aging, has a matte finish, a lightweight feel and a good coverage, thus my quest continues!

Here they are right out of the tube  

And here they are just a bit blended out

Think with your brain, dance with your feet! (Part 3)

These are (obviously) some more photos of our ballerina in action. Here we have some pictures where her feet are on the ground, doing her thing, and one of them where she is literally flying.  The last two photos are (again obviously) the same but one is in black and white and the other in color, which one do you prefer?

Hope you like them:)

Till next time x