Berlin Round Up 2015

Here's some pics from our July trip to Berlin! This was our second time visiting and it was expectedly brilliant. We used Airbnb again but this time we stayed in Lichtenberg area. We had lots of beer and lots of fun and cannot wait to go back next year. <3

P.S. In terms of vegan food spots I REALLY recommend Fast Rabbit on Eberswalder Straße and Goodies, the cafe in Veganz Supermarket near Warschauer Straße S-Bahn station.

Currently Reading #2

I almost forgot that I had started this section on the blog! So here we go - round two of what I'm currently reading. As always, if you want to keep up with my reading in real-time, add me on Goodreads.

The Fish Can Sing - Halldór Laxness

Ahhh, this is brilliant. I read Burial Rites by Hannah Kent a couple weeks ago (review for this one coming soon) and obviously I couldn't quite let go of the Icelandic setting. Halldór Laxness seems to be a rather popular Icelandic author and this translation from Magnus Magnusson is truly wonderful. The plot seems to be moving quite slowly - and it almost reads like a memoir - however, the writing is perfectly beautiful and I cannot stop reading. It follows the life of a young fishing boy and his ascent in to education and the world of music. I've put some quotes below so you can really observe the beauty of the writing. I cannot wait to finish this book and I've already got some of Laxness' other works on my TBR list.

“I have written about everything at Brekkukot, both indoors and out, which can be given a name; but I have scarcely said a word yet about my grandmother, who was certainly not some useless ornament about the place. On the other hand, if she were likened to the heart of the house, one could say exactly the same about her as one does about healthy hearts in general, that whoever is lucky enough to have such a heart is quite unaware of having a heart at all.” 

"I felt that I was dying, and perhaps I did die a little, or rather began to die in the way that the cocoon of the chrysalis cracks at the end of winter; but unfortunately I did not die so thoroughly that I achieved new life like a butterfly."

The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller

Now I've only just started this one but it's had really good reviews on Goodreads so I'm excited to get stuck in. The Song of Achilles is a re-imagination of Homer's The Iliad. This was Madeline Miller's debut novel and amazingly it won the Orange Women's Prize for Fiction (now the Baileys Prize) in 2012. It's been described as an action-adventure story as well as an epic love-story, and so I'm SUPER excited to read on. After all, I do love a good classically-influenced tale.

Have you reading either of these two titles? What did you think? Let me know!

Recent Buys: Lyonsleaf, Herbfarmacy, Beauty Without Cruelty

So I've been doing some beauty shopping this month and I thought that it might be fun to show you guys some of the things that I have bought! Two of them may be repurchases but if I'm honest, I really doing repurchase that often - therefore, they must be good!

Lyonsleaf Beauty Balm

This brand gets serious love in the green beauty community and rightly so. This product won a silver at last year's FreeFrom Skincare Awards and a couple other LyonsLeaf products have won golds at both this year's and last year's awards. Lyonsleaf creates wonderful waterless beauty products and their Beauty Balm is truly amazing. It's a thick shea butter-based balm that you can use in a variety of ways. I prefer to use it as a cleanser/make-up remover but it also works great as an intense moisturiser for dry skin. I had a little sample of this towards the beginning of the year and I cannot believe that I've waited this long to pick up the full-size.

Herbfarmacy Pure Hydration Serum

Now on to the repurchases! Herbfarmacy's Pure Hydration Serum is brilliant and I love using it under my SPF of choice (*cough* Andalou Naturals Untinted BB Cream *cough*). It's a light-weight clear serum that injects your complexion with a massive hit of deep hydration. This is perfect for my horribly dehydrated skin, keeping it plump without overloading. I've done a full review of this so I won't babble on too much. Trust me, it's great. 

Beauty Without Cruelty Super Cover Cream Concealer 

Now this is my absolute favourite concealer. Well actually, I may have to retract that statement shortly as I've just started testing a possible new winner (more on that later!). It's super smooth and super creamy and just so happens to come in a light enough shade for my super duper pale face. It's also really reasonable priced - you pick this this gem up for just £6.99. I have tried it before but it seemed to vanish from the interwebs for a good six months, leading me to believe that it had been discontinued. Luckily I was wrong!

What have you been buying lately?

Book Review: The Marriage of Opposites by Alice Hoffman | Trident Media

When it was announced that Alice Hoffman - New York Times bestselling author of The Dovekeepers - was releasing a new book, I was quick to jump at the chance to read it. Upon finishing the book, I am still in awe at how much Hoffman actually managed to fit in it...

Continue reading on tridentmedia.org!

Intro to: Marmozel Skincare

This review has been such a long time coming! I've been enjoying this brand for a while and I'm finally ready to put my thoughts in to words. A good couple months ago, I was contacting by the lovely Rimante from Marmozel and asked if I wanted to try a couple of their products. I took a gander at their website - was thoroughly impressed - and so was quick to jump on the chance to test a few out. I'd like to note also, that Rimante was super friendly throughout the entire process and you could actually tell that she had read my blog a little before emailing me, which is something that I REALLY appreciate when it comes to being approached by PRs. 

As a whole, Marmozel is near-enough vegan-friendly (apart from the beeswax in their lip balms), and all their products are made in Lithuania with certified organic ingredients. You can order for delivery to the UK through their website or I did actually notice that there is a reflexologist in the UK that uses their products and there is contact details for them if you were interested. I was sent five products to try, but today I wanted to focus on the three products that have really gone above and beyond in terms of performance.

Hair Mask*

If we're being completely honest, I haven't really used a hair mask at all since going natural. However, recently I've been experiencing some problems with a super dry scalp so this product has been well appreciated. One of the first things that I noticed about this hair mask is that it smells AMAZING - a true lavender and rosemary scent. It's lovely and thick but easy to spread throughout out your hair due to the coconut oil base that melts in to a luxurious oil. I did find myself quite skeptical about the 60ml product size, but I'm glad to report that there was no need for concern as I have safely got four uses out of this little tub, with still at least half of it left. It's been doing absolute wonders for my dry scalp and I love to sleep with this on before washing off in the morning. The scent lingers on the hair and everything feels just so soft and nourished. I would definitely consider repurchasing this product when it eventually runs out.

Floral Face Toner*

I've always been massively in to toners - but never really that much in to floral waters. Here's where things change. This toner is super simple in it's ingredients: using only rose damask and jasmine floral waters, and it's just what my skin has been needing lately. It's perfect to spritz on the skin before applying facial oils and this ritual really helps improve the efficacy of your oils. It did take me a while to get used to the strong rose scent (something that I've never been that keen on), but I'm definitely a floral water convert and already have a couple lined up in my arsenal to try next. 

Very Natural Perfume*

Marmozel also carry a selection of handmade perfume oils and I was lucky enough to try the scent named 'Very'. With a jojoba oil base, this perfume uses notes of bergamot, vetiver, black pepper, and rosemary. It smells absolute divine and the scent does seem to linger for a couple hours after application. I like carrying this around in my handbag as an emergency scent, in addition to a little aromatherapy rollerball when it's needed.

Have you tried anything from Marmozel? Let me know!