Looking back: a visit to Villa Les Rhumbs

The year is almost over, perfect timing to get nostalgic and take a trip down memory lane. I can't believe time went by this fast! One of my favourite moments of 2014 was paying a visit to Villa Les Rhumbs, Musée Christian Dior.

Christian Dior grew up in Granville, a small town in Normandy, France. There, the house which he grew up in, called Villa Les Rhumbs, is still standing thanks to the French ministry of culture and communication. Upon arrival, you see the beautiful garden of Villa Les Rhumbs, it is full of flowers and has a magnificent view over the ocean. In the middle of the estate is the charming pink villa.

The garden is filled with flowers, and everywhere are tiny 'smelling boxes', these boxes have the name of a Dior perfume on it and you can open them and smell the perfume. The boxes contain the flowers used in the perfumes, it was just addicting! So much to see, so much to smell..

After wandering through the garden for a while, I decided to take a look inside the villa. There, some of his collections were shown and also a lot of photographs displaying Dior couture. I enjoyed every second of it, just walking around and gazing upon these beautiful collections, dresses, hats and coats. It was dreamy. 

Upon my visit at Villa Les Rhumbs I had a continuous tingle in my tummy, it was so wonderful to be there, almost magical for a couture lover like myself. The three floors packed with his collections, stories and photographs is something I will never forget. 

What is your favourite moment of 2014? Have you ever been to Villa Les Rhumbs, or would you like to? Let me know in the comments below!

Hope you have a fashionable day,

xo 

Elise

Some proof that I was actually there ;-)

ps: sorry for the crappy photo's, it was very dark in there to protect the clothes, plus they were all behind glass so it was hard to take a decent picture. Anyway, I tried and the photo's are all my own so that counts for something I think :-)

Makeup 101: my products

Hello lovelies!

A few days ago I uploaded the post Makeup 101 and promised you to blog about the products I use. That's why I'm giving you a quick peek in my makeup stash !

All of my brushes are from Estèe Lauder - eyelash curler is from H&M

1. Blush and Powder

For blush I use BE's 002 Delight, powder is the lightest one by essence, but I'm not too happy about this one because it doesn't stick so well. 

2. Eyeliner and Mascara

My eyeliner is a liquid, black one by Max & the mascara I use is also a black one by BE that's called Lash Me Baby.

I like products by BE because they are affordable and of very good quality, this mascara was under 20 euros (approx. 24$/15£) and has served me well for over 6 months now. 

3. Lipstick

I'm a big lipstick fan, but these are my three favourites :

1. Pourpre Jazzy by Bourgois, Rouge Edition

2. Vanilla Cream by Estèe Lauder 

3. Red-y to wear by Clinique

4. Lip pencil by Shiseido

Thank you so much for reading, 

Hope you have a lovely day!

xoxo Elise

Makeup 101

When I was about 15 years old, I wish I knew that there are a few basic rules for applying makeup. Unfortunately nobody told me, and 6 years ago I knew nothing about makeup tutorials on YouTube. Even if I would have known about them, I would not have known where to start. This is why I wanted to make this post: I am not a beauty blogger, nor do I intend to be, but I wanted to share some makeup-hacks on this blog hoping that someone will find them useful. It took me a few years to figure it out, and I wish I had found something like this around that time. Again, I am not trying to be a beauty blogger, and I am certainly not a model. I just wanted to share some useful tips because I know a lot of girls struggle with this, especially when they normally do not wear makeup or have just started taking an interest in wearing it. If you're that girl, take my advice on these: 4 topics to get your makeup right on. Illustrated by yours truly!

1. Concealer

You can create all kinds of optical illusions with concealer. The first place to put it is beneath your eyes, that will give you a fresher look. You can also apply it on the sides of your nose to make your nose seem smaller. Ofcourse, if you have any red spots or acné, those are the places to conceal. Make sure to tap it in with your vingers so that you don't leave any blotches. You can always fixate with some powder. Make sure your concealer is the right shade for you, I always use one lighter than my skintone, it appears more natural.

2. Blush / Bronzing Powder

When applying blush, smile first. When you smile, you can easily see the apples of your cheeks, that's the place to apply your blush. It's a great trick! Then work your way up over your cheeckbones until you reach your temples. I always apply some extra just above my eyebrow to give my face more structure. Never apply blush beneath your cheeckbones! It will make you look strange and possibly puffy. If you want to enhance your cheeckbones, use bronzing powder. Suck in your cheeks and apply the powder there. It is wisest to combine with blush. In summer you can use bronzing powder instead of blush to fake a sunkissed look. 

If you wear large glasses, it is best to apply blush right beneath them.

Smile :-) , start on the apples, work your way to your temples over the cheeckbone, round of under or just above the eyebrow (I did not use bronzing powder because it seems unnatural in combination with my white skin)

3. Eyeshadow / Eyeliner

When you put on eyeshadow, always start with a light color in the corner of your eye, and gradually go darker towards the outer side of your eye. That way your eyes will look bigger. If your eyes are close to each other, this is also a good trick to make them look more centered. The darker your eyeshadow in the corner of your eyes, the smaller your eyes will look. If you want smokey eyes, remember to always use a lighter shade of grey to start with!

1. Start at the corner of your eye with the lightest color in your pallet, 2. Start in the middle of your eye to apply the grey (or the one-but-darkest color in the pallet) 3. If you want smokey eyes, use the darkest color on the outsider and in the sockets of your eyelid to create more depth 

Same goes for eyeliner, a lot of girls draw a line over their entire eyelid, this makes your eyes look smaller and more narrow. If you want your eyes to look bigger, start with a thin line in the middle of your eye and make it thicker at the end. This will also give you a more feminine look.

4. Lashes

Use a curler. That's about all I have to say on the matter. Your mascara will be easier to apply afterwards. When applying your mascara, don't zigzag, you will get lumps in your lashes if you do so.

Before / After

The difference may not be staggering, but it doesn't have to be. A natural look is something you should strive for, makeup is just a way to enhance your positive features and not to conceal your face or look fake. 

Thank you for reading, 

Hope you have a wonderful day!

xo

Elise

PS: If you would like to know which makeup I use or how to find it, I have uploaded a post with all of my products at Makeup 101: my products !

Mata Traders Dress

I am so happy with my recent buy: a patterned Mata Traders dress. It's very retro and playful, and good for any occasion. Also, I like the cut-outs on the collar. 

I'm wearing Cuplé Retro shoes. 

Oh, and I had my hair cut real short, but I'm absolutely loving it. I used to think I couldn't combine short hair with a feminine look, but it turns out I was wrong! A little hint of lipstick and a pretty dress are all it takes to feel and look girly. 

When I don't know how to pose, I just start dancing, I think it portrays my personality rather well when I saw the results of my rock 'n rolling.

 Do you think being girly and having short hair match? Would you ever cut your hair really short?

Hope you enjoyed my post,

Have a nice sunday!!

xoxo 

Elise

Birthday Wishlist

It's my birthday in a month, and I've been obsessing over these items, so I thought I'd share them with you. What do you think? What's on your wishlist?

1. The Barisieur: An alarmclock that makes coffee when you wake

I need this in my life (unfortunately this is just a prototype, so it's not for sale yet) 

2. Rolex

3. The classic of classics: Chanel n°5

4. Purple fedora/panama hat

5. Pink wintercoat, Gucci has one in stores which is absolutely dreamy

6. Perfect pink lipstick by IMAN

7. Portable vinyl player

8. Statement necklace

HairDO! Raging Red

Lately I've been really uninspired, feeling a bit dull and lost. So I decided I needed something new to spruce up my life. I then (very impulsively) went to the hairdressers and, well, here's the result:

For those of you who read my previous blog: well spotted! I found the scarf I wanted! Scarf is by Esprit and it's quickly become my absolute favorite accessory.

If you haven't read my post you can find it here: 4 must-have items for fall

Wearing: black dress by Etam, black pumps by Cuplé and knitted bordeaux sweater by Mango

The purse is vintage

Wearing: earrings by Six, checked flanel shirt by Only

I had enough of my same old-same old hairstyle and color. So I said: f* it, and went for something completely different. Sometimes a girl needs a little change. Anyways, although it was a bold choice, I love it! What do you guys think?

XoXo

Elise

Many thanks to my good friend An-Sofie for the pictures!

Last bits of sun: September Picknick

Yesterday the BF and I went out for a September Picknick. We threw everything together that we had in our fridge (which turned out to be more than expected) and made it into a cozy picknick. This is a great idea to do on your day off, and it doesn't even have to cost you anything if you just throw together the leftovers in your fridge.

Our menu:
White wine
Caesar salad & Greek salad
Salmon sandwiches
Cakes

We spent the whole afternoon in the sun, eating and laughing. I highly recommend you doing this before it starts raining and snowing again!


xo,
Elise


I am wearing: green retro dress by Shikha London