I went to Germany last week to watch the Eurovision Song Contest in Duesseldorf. The event itself was very well organised – easy to get to, well set out, and easy to get home from, and all the service people were very friendly and helpful. I love watching Eurovision on TV every year but this was the first time that I went to actually see it live and I had a great time. I definitely recommend it as a fun holiday!
I actually lived in Germany for a while and I have to say that it’s my favourite country in Europe (apart from my home, the UK of course :) ) so it was really nice to be back there for a few days and I took the opportunity to do a little make-up shopping of course! Unfortunately it’s much more expensive to buy things there at the moment than it was when I last lived there in 2003 due to the current exchange rate of GBP – EUR. However, there are still many good buys to be had and shopping in Germany can still represent good value.
If you would like to try out some German beauty products then I would recommend the store DM which is similar to Superdrug in the UK. They stock international brands such as L’Oreal and Maybelline but also some low cost brands that are not available in Britain such as P2, Manhattan and Essence. I’ve also just checked on their website and they say that none of their own brand products are tested on animals which is an added bonus (I try to avoid products which may have been tested on animals but sometimes it can be difficult to know), and they also stock many “bio” and “eco” products such as snacks made from whole foods, organic products, and beauty products with an emphasis on natural ingredients.
I picked up some Essence eyeshadows which cost 1.55 euros each. Although this isn’t one of DM’s own brands it is not tested on animals either. I’d never tried this brand before but the products looked cheap and cheerful so I thought I’d give them a go.
In the pic below you can see the names and the finishes.
Clockwise from top left:
- No.16 Go Glam shimmer effect
- No. 41 …spotted! matt effect
- No. 44 it’s up to you shimmer effect
- No. 19 Disco Diva metallic effect
The colours are very soft and quite subtle on the skin, but they are definitely buildable. In the swatch above I was trying to show that they’re blendable but unfortunately the picture didn’t come out so clearly.
I’ve only used these shadows a few times but it seems like I’ve used quite a lot of product as the embossing has noticeably faded:
However, at 1.55 euros a pop they’re really not going to break the bank and the large range of colours available means that you can experiment with loads of different shades and effects. Definitely worth checking out if you’re looking to stock up on some new eyeshadow monos.
I also picked up a chubby eye brightening pencil from the range P2. This cost 2.25 euros, which again is a total bargain because it’s huge. It’s a very similar product to the Eye Bright pencil from Benefit. The consistency is very soft and it’s a light pink colour, and you simply pop it along your waterline and/or smudge it along the corners of your eyes and upper lash line to make your eyes appear brighter and your whole face look more awake.
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 | Oh dear, this isn’t a great photo at all! I hope you can see something though. Top: P2 Open Up Your Eyes! Eye brightener Bottom: Benefit Eye Bright |
Finally I also picked up a brown gel liner from the Essence summer collection for 2.95 euros. It’s a nice strong brown with a gold shimmer running through it that applies well with a slanted eyeliner brush. I bought the brush that was also part of the summer collection for 1.45 euros and for the price it was a very good buy – a nice, fine brush that creates clean lines.
I do have some more products to show you but I think I’d best save them for another post as this one is quite long already, and I also have to go and finish my Swedish homework that’s due tomorrow now! Hope you enjoyed this post, I will be back soon with more!
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