My Holy Grail Mascara?

It's definitely not easy to find a vegan mascara that will tick all the boxes and believe you me I have tried many of them as my eyelashes are very thin, short and pale which makes my eyes look like they are pretty naked!!!

Yes... I'm one of those very unfortunate girls and nothing can be done to be honest.

I have tried the alternatives before, like henna but the results where very poor so then I tried the lash extensions (be careful if you want to have it done as there is many salons out there that use mink lashes!) the process was very unpleasant in my case and they only lasted for about 3 weeks (they also fall out and it looks silly when there is a gap between them).  The false eyelashes are way to much hassle to put on on the daily basis so all my options have finished at that.

As you can see below I have a small selection of mascaras starting from a very cheap ones from Essence and ending on a quite expensive one from Too Faced. 

photo by Sandra Bossowska

Let's start from the cheapest ones shall we? 

photo by Sandra Bossowska

Fift Place: Essence, Multi Action Mascara is definitely one of the worst out of them all as it does nothing to my eyelashes... and I mean NOTHING. I can barely see it even when I apply couple of layer so it was definitely a waste of money (I think it was discontinued... well I won't cry :)

photo by Sandra Bossowska

Fourth Place: Essence, Get Big Lashes Mascara is not that bad actually. It does give my lashes length, thickness and it is honestly very black but... the fiber brush is so big that NOT once I have managed to put the mascara on and not get it on my eyelids...grrrr...every time! It also clumps my eyelashes after second layer and I have to use my eyelash comb  that I got from Inglot very long time ago (it always gives me the creeps cos I imagine the spiky needles going tru my eyeballs:O ) 

photo by Inglot

Third Place: Pacifica, AQUARIAN GAZE WATER-RESISTANT LONG LASH MINERAL MASCARA in Deep blue that I got for €12.95 on iHerb.com. I haven't use it yet but I want to start going to the swimming pool from January (a small new year's resolution) and I will definitely let you know if I had a positive experience or not.

You can get Pacifica makeup and beauty products from iHerb.com  

photo by Sandra Bossowska

Second Place: Lily Lolo, Natural Mascara in Black is definitely my favorite daily use mascara as it lengthens my lashes, doesn't clump, defines, gives volume and it creates an effect of naturally beautiful lashes. It dries quickly, is suitable for sensitive eyes, free from fragrances, silicons & alcohol, removes extremely easily but stay on all day without any hiccups! 

I personally love this mascara and would recommend it to anyone who prefers natural makeup products that are great quality,affordable and makes us look good and effortless :)

You can get it from Ecco Verde for €16.49.   

photo by Sandra Bossowska

The Winner: Too Faced, Better Than Sex Mascara which is definitely THE best mascara I have ever used and to be honest I only use it on special occasions as it does give my eyes that WOW factor but it is quite expensive so I'm trying to be very efficient with it :D 

Why is it so fabulous?...well the description says it all:

"Perfect brush silhouette that separates, coats and curls each lash to voluptuous perfection. One coat of the carbon black, collagen-fueled mascara formula and lashes are full, defined and stretched to unbelievable lengths. Two coats and lashes are even more luscious, curled and dramatic. Three coats and achieve the most intense black, oversized, multidimensional lashes possible!"

by Debenhams

I got it from Debenhams for €28.00 ( €23.00 + €5.00 for the delivery).

photo by Sandra Bossowska

I hope this post was at least a little bit helpful to those girls who are still looking for the perfect Holy Grail Mascara and please let me know if there is a Cruelty free and Vegan mascara out there that you could recommend to me and other girls :)

P.s. I haven't tried all the vegan mascaras out on the market but I'm pretty sure that 

Better Than Sex Mascara is in the top 5 (if there is such a list)

Love,

Sandy

Chocoholics Beware!!!

Warning!!!! If you'r craving for chocolate ... RUN and don't read any further!!!

On the serious note these two that I'm about to introduce you to are the top class chocolate bars I have tried so far :D 

Magic Mayan is Irish owned company from Co. Clare that makes luxury Handmade Raw Chocolate bars that are made out of Cacao (not cocoa which is very much processed) and are dairy, gluten and soya free. You can find them all over the country in health stores and as far as I am aware only one of their bars in not Vegan because it contains Bee Pollen but don't worry cos you still have 13 more to choose from!!! 

I have picked up my Raspberry Randezvous at the First Vegan Festival in Dublin that was on the 1st of November and I have to tell you it was like a slice of heaven... no seriously, the combination of dark sweet chocolate with slightly sour raspberry layer is one of the best combinations ever!

The price €3.50 might be a little bit steep but for the quality and deliciousness I am willing to splurge a little from time to time... just because I'm worth it ;) 

You can visit their website http://www.magicmayan.com/ to look for the stockists near you or you can purchase online.

photo by Sandra Bossowska

The second Chocolate Bar that stole my heart (and stomach) is without the doubt the VEGO Whole Hazelnut Chocolate Bar. It's organic, fair trade and gluten free creamy hazelnut chocolate made in Germany that brings back a lot of childhood memories and tastes :) I don't want to say it but look at the size of it!!! It's soooo creamy that it melts in your mouth and the whole hazelnuts are crunchy and full of flavour.  

For this bar you also pay around €3.50 and you can easy share with your friends as it is almost impossible to eat the whole thing at once! 

I know it is available in many places across Ireland so off you go and when you find it just let me know so I can share it with others :)

photo by Sandra Bossowska

* I would like to thank very much Frontier Foods  for sending me this delicious chocolate bar. I can assure you it was tested on human who takes chocolate very seriously :) 

With Love,

Sandy

Christmas Presents for My Furry Babies

photo collage by Sandra Bossowska

Christmas is only few days away and I have to confess, I have been online shopping for my doggies like mad and did not even get one thing for my Fiance yet!!! I know... shame on me but I could not resist especially that I have been looking for those products for ages and when I finally found them I could not let go :)

First things first... the Piddle Place Pet Relief System that my dogs have been using for about two weeks now. Bessie my eldest has a rare liver condition (Portosystemic Shunt) that also affects other organs and because of that her bladder has gotten very week over last couple of years and she needs to go to toilet every hour or so. Till recently we had a tray that I have removed from an old kennel and we were covering it with a towel but that has gotten very inefficient as I had to change towels few time a day which was not only pain in the hole but also we were doing hell lot of washing which was a waste of energy, detergents and water. Of course, she still didn't get the idea of using it fully but it is only because the texture of the "grass" is not familiar to her (it's like a rubber) so I kept a towel on top so hopefully soon enough she will wee wee without any hesitation.

 

photos from http://www.piddleplace.com/piddleplace/

The product itself is very well though throughout in my opinion and believe you me I have been looking for something like that for very long time.
It is very innovative, environmentally friendly, practical, easy to empty and clean and also great for traveling as it has a cover to it. It comes wit Bio treatments for the tray and for the grass bit as well to keep it fresh and odorless (due to essential oils)

photo by Sandra Bossowska

I personally think that it is a fantastic idea for doggies that are alone at home for long hours because their guardians are at work or for ones that like my Bessie that have bladder problems.
I found it on 2Tech.co.uk which is a website in UK that sells those and despite the price I think the Piddle Place is way worth it!!

photo by https://tractive.com/en

Secondly, I managed to get cruelty free (non shock!!) vibrating Pet Remote from TRACTIVE for my Benji who is my deaf baby that me and my fiance adopted 2 years ago from NWSPCA.
Unfortunately, he was born deaf so we cannot do anything about it other than try to catch his attention by waving our limbs like maniacs, which not always works especially when he is fixated on other doggies therefore he is always on the extendable lead. It does break my heart as he is very energetic, playful and loves to say hello to everyone out there while we are walking so I had an idea to buy him a vibrating collar and train him to look at me whenever I want him to come back. It is such a simple and cool device (attaches to the collar) that you connect to an app on your iPhone or Android (download is free) and every time you want to use it just press the button and it vibrates , makes sound (if doggie is not deaf) or both :) The price is very appealing as it is only €24.99, delivery was fast and it is also water splash proofed which is great considering that we live in Ireland :D Oh... and they do GPS tracking devices for animals as well :O
I haven't started training Benji yet but I will definitely let you know about the progress in 

near future :p

photo by http://www.frolicat.com/

Thirdly, you have no idea how crazy Benji is about shadows or laser pointers!!! We could not believe when we have first seen the behavior which made us laugh soooo hard that we decided to buy a laser pointer but we went through lot's of them during those 2 years he is with us. Unfortunately, they only last few days and then the battery dies and after replacing them it never worked the same. Then my friend from Cork posted a video of her kitty playing with the FROLICAT BOLT laser toy which automatically made me want one for Benji. It is a fantastic present for any cat or dog that likes chasing shadows or any type of lights and it will give them hours of great fun which of course is great for their mental and physical health. 

What I like about it is that it switches itself off after 15 minutes to allow the animal to catch their breath and have a sip of water. You either leave it on any flat surface or hold it in your hand and it also has an adjustable head button depending on how far you want the laser to go. It only costed me about €27.00 which I think is a great price.

  

photos by Sandra Bossowska

Lastly, I have bought them very cosy and cute pijamas... and yes, I am one of those people who are crazy about their dogs, treat them like kids and from time to time I like to buy them clothes :) Milo was the lucky one cos his pijama was delivered first and he was a bit unsure and froze for a while but after bribing him with banana he got use to it pretty fast. The other two pijamas came a week after but they have notified me that it will happens so it was ok. You can many cute doggy pj's on amazon or ebay for as low as €5.00 so why the heck not!

I'm wondering if there is any people out thereondering if there is any people out there who LOVE spoiling their furry babies as much as I do?!? Let me know in the comments below :)

Love....

Sandy