// in 2020, we‘re printing polaroids from our phones

Hello people of the internet!

How are we doing today? I‘m doing alright, I guess. Still looking for a new job but also applied for Uni and i really hope Uni works out for me this time :D

Anyway, today‘s post is a review of the TOMY Smartphone Picture Printer KiiPix that I got just one day ago. I‘ve had it sitting in my amazon cart for the longest time but I think I initially found out about it for the first time when I was scrolling through my TikTok For You page. 

Yes, I‘m on TikTok. Don‘t judge me, it‘s actually fun. Or it‘s just me trying to fill the void in my heart that vine left when they took it offline. Who knows? I don‘t.

Back to the printer. 

When I opened the Amazon package, I found the printer in a small cardboard box and got pissed because once I took out the printer, I thought I didn’t get the instax film that I was supposed to get with my purchase. But since I‘m an impulsive little b I should’ve taken everything out of the amazon box as the film was under the airwrap.

So, once you take the printer out of its box, you‘re supposed to turn it around to put the film in.

That‘s what you should see if you put the film in correctly.

Now, since the printer works without batteries, you have to use the film ejection dial and turn it clockwise to eject the film cover. After that, you‘re good to go.

Once you did that, you can put up the wings and take the frame out. The small camera will follow the frame up, so no, you didn‘t break it (@ me yesterday).

On the frame, there are plastic protection strips that you have to remove so your phone won‘t slide off. After you did that, you choose your photo and put the frame on your phone. Please make sure your display is bright and auto-lock is turned off. Now put the frame + phone combo on the KiiPix wings. It should look like this:

As you can see, there‘s a small mirror near the lens. That‘s where you can check if your photo looks the way you want it to look.

Now press the shutter button and use the dial to wheel your photo out.

Leave your photos for a while to develop and you should end up with pretty polaroids.

I have no idea what I did wrong but the first 3 photos were a perfect match for the bin. One was completely black and the other two were white.

I guess that depends on how long you press the shutter button? No idea though.

To show you the quality of KiiPix polaroids, I put those next to two polaroids I took with my Instax Mini 9.

I actually can‘t complain much tbh, polaroids never have the greatest quality and Instax ones are a little less blurry but I‘m happy with my KiiPix. As I mentioned before, I always forget my Instax or don‘t want to bring it because I need to save space and this way, I can continue taking pics with my phone but get physical copies as well.

This post is not sponsored, I paid about 60€ for it on Amazon and I don‘t regret it.

Are you a Polaroid fan? Do you think you‘ll get a KiiPix or do you stick with your Instax?

Have a fab day/evening/night wherever you are.

Stay safe.

Wear your mask.

X

// self-isolation and my mental health during the pandemic

Hello people of the Internet! 

It‘s me, ya girl that posts every once in a while :D

I wanted to come on here and share some thoughts I had during the past weeks we all stayed at home (well, I hope y‘all aren’t the people I keep seeing on IG that act like nothing‘s going on).

Lets start with some background info.

I spent the time from November 2019 to mid-January 2020 in a hospital to get therapy for several reasons, all regarding mental health and EDs. One of my main issues is social anxiety. I cannot be in large crowds for too long or I‘ll get a panic attack. One of the things I have to do now that I‘m out of the hospital is putting myself in situations that cause me stress, so for example: go to the mall for a while when it‘s busier etc. I cannot do that now. Which I really don‘t mind because... well... I don’t like busy places. But now, I feel like the progress I made in therapy is all gone because just the thought of crowds is making me very anxious again.

So yes, on the one hand, self-isolation is very easy for me as I‘m home all day anyway. especially now that I had given notice to my previous job. And even before that I spent the past 12 years in my room because I never happened to have friends where I lived. I’m literally only leaving the house to walk the doggo. But on the other hand, any therapy progress feels like it‘s gone and I wasted 3 months in the hospital for nothing. I fell right back into my old habits. The ED skyrocketed again and I‘m having a hard time changing my lifestyle again. I know I can do it but it‘s hard for me. Like the easiest things for „healthy people“ cause me enormous stress and I feel so bad for complaining about this because I know there‘s people who have it worse but this is my blog and therefore a modern diary... I‘m allowed to talk about this on here, right?! 

Anyway, that‘s it for now! Please stay safe and stay at home, you guys!

I also spend a good amount of $$ online shopping during quarantine so I have a ton of makeup products to test and review. Even the Blood Lust palette by Jeffree!

PS: I‘ve been playing ACNH ever since I returned from Chicago, so enjoy this pic of me finding my absolute dreamie on a mystery island: Goldie :D

// On tour: traveling in times of covid19

Hey Internet!

What the hell is going on with the world?! Everyone seems to be going crazy because of Corona and it really is bringing out the ugly in people everywhere. And I‘m not only referring to people panic buying a year‘s worth of bog rolls but also to people being racists towards Asians just because they think Asians are to blame for the pandemic. Newsflash, Karen: they‘re not. Stop being a fuckin bitch and wash your dirty hands.

Now that we got that out of the way, let‘s talk about traveling during Covid.

Did I do it? Yes.

Would I recommend it by now? No.

Would I travel again if I not necessarily had to? Also no.

The only „traveling“ I‘ll do is my trip back home next week. 

I‘m actually not really that worried about catching the virus myself (not because my immune system is particularly strong, but because I‘m telling myself if I get it, I get it and I will recover from it like I did when I had the swine flu. Yes. I had that, too) but I am worried that I might carry it to more vulnerable people that‘s why I did cancel all further travel plans after my return home and I probably will go into some form of self-quarantine as a form of precaution. And while I‘m still on holidays, I keep my distance to large crowds. It‘s not hard for me, actually. My depression and anxiety really trained me for this for the past 10 years so I‘m prepared.

At the time I came to the US, we had like 20 confirmed Corona cases in my hometown and since I don‘t leave my flat that often at the moment, the chances of me having caught it so far are pretty much non existent. However, there are so many people at airports and on planes.. you never know...

*I STARTED THIS POST WHILE ON VACATION THAT‘S WHY I WON‘T WRITE MORE IN THIS BUT CONTINUE IN A NEW POST*

// ON TOUR: Packing for Chicago

Hello Internet!

It‘s me, ya girl. 

I‘m currently sitting in a Starbucks in my town having breakfast after getting a few of my travel essentials at a drugstore and thought: why not blog about my travel preparations and the trip itself? 

So here I am, taking you from Germany to the USA and back!

The first thing I did was setting up a packing list in my bullet journal. I never know what to pack and once I‘ve left the house, I keep wondering whether I packed everything I‘ll need. To take that fear away from me, I checked some blogs, Pinterest and my own list that I made last year. Since I always include whole travel spreads in the journals I use at that moment, that’s exactly what I did this time as well!

Here‘s the one I came up with. Feel free to use it for yourself as well. :)

I‘ll be in Chicago for 11 nights so I‘m traveling with two suitcases. Like, a big one and a smaller carry on and I‘m always kind of struggling when it comes to that because I usually travel alone and I‘m quite short so I needed something to help me handling two suitcases that often like to just roll away on public transportation. On Amazon, I found a set of belts that will let me put the carry on on top of the suitcase. That way, I can walk and just care about not letting go of the bigger case and it will also save some space on trains and busses. The set included two straps and two additional belts and I thank god for that because I should’ve checked my suitcase before ordering blindly. The carry on doesn’t fit right on top of the other because of its height and without the belt, I wouldn’t know how to make the straps work.

So all in all, the „construction“ would look like this:

Now to the „fun“ part: actual packing.

When it comes to packing, I figured it helped me to put everything I want to take with me on a pile. One pile for each piece of luggage I‘m taking. So for this specific trip, I‘ll have three piles:

1. Suitcase

2. Carry On

3. Backpack

Then, I work myself from smallest to biggest luggage. Just because that way I can still sort out stuff from one pile to another. And I‘ll be able to put stuff that didn‘t fit in the carry on and backpack in the suitcase as well as making last minute decisions to not take specific items with me.

So, the first thing I‘ll pack is my backpack.

Did I get it specifically for this trip? Yes.

Do I regret it? HELL NO.

This Seventeen London backpack is amazing! It‘s waterproof, which my beloved Kanken isn‘t and that was pretty much the most important point why I bought it. You never know what the weather will be like in Chicago so having a durable backpack was important to me. Plus, it‘s not much bigger than the Kanken which makes it perfect to take on a plane with you. Another thing that I liked about it was that there’s a zipper on the back of it so you can access it with the top still folded and people can‘t put their stinky fingers in it to grab your wallet. Another thing that surprised me was the padded notebook compartment. It‘s soooo soft! 

And no, I‘m not sponsored by them, I had to pay for it. I‘m just really in love!

As I only pack stuff I‘ll need fast access to in my backpack, I‘m packing the following:

• Passport
• Important documents + copies (booking confirmations, healthcare card, ID, vaccination record)
• Wallet with cash and cards
• Liquid bag
• Charger + adapter
• iPad, iPhone and AirPods 
• Bullet Journal and pencil case/pen
• My meds
• Water bottle
• Brolly
• Tissues
• Wet wipes/deo wipes (which do NOT have to go into the liquids bag)
• Stuff to do on the flight (colouring book? Book? Maybe Netflix downloads?)
• Hairbrush
• Some toiletries

Now onto the carry on. I do have two of them so I‘ll decide last minute which one I want to take with me. I really want to take the Steve Madden one this time but the Harry Potter case does hold a bit more stuff.

As for my carry on, I like to pack a few outfits. So for like 2-4 days just in case something happens to the suitcase i dropped off at the check in. I’m a bit paranoid about this but when my brother and dad went on a trip a few years ago, their luggage got lost and whereas my dad had his after about 4 days, my brother only got his a few days AFTER he returned home.

What I pack:

• Shirts
• Jeans
• Leggings
• Pjs
• Socks
• Underwear
• Makeup bag + brushes
• Chicago Guide
• Hair accessories 

It‘s really not a lot but as I said: it‘s like an emergency packing. 

Nearly done now! Onto the final piece: the suitcase!

I don’t know what else to say than: Just put everything else you want to take in here.

This includes (but is not limited to):

• Shirts
• Cardigans
• Jeans
• Leggings
• Underwear
• Socks
• Curling iron
• Shampoo
• Shower gel
• Face creams/moisturizer 
• Earrings
• Laundry bag
• Jumpers
• Toiletries

And we D O N E :)

I could end right here but I won‘t. When it comes to putting together lists for toiletries and the liquids bag, I always felt like something was missing when taking inspiration from different websites. So since I listed everything else beautifully, I‘ll do that for toiletries, my makeup bag and the liquids bag as well.

Let‘s start with the toiletries:

• Toothbrush
• Toothpaste
• Dental floss
• Tweezers
• Eyelash curler
• Face wash
• Face scrub
• Creams and moisturizers 
• Toner
• Cottonpads
• Curling iron
• Deo
• Perfume/body spray
• Makeup remover
• Razor
• Wet wipes
• Hair ties and bows
• Headband
• Bandaids
• Shampoo 
• Showergel
• Hairspray

Liquids

• Foundation
• Concealer
• Browgel
• Small shampoo/showergel
• Mascara
• Sanitizer (Hi corona, how are ya?)
• Moisturizer
• Toothpaste
• Inhaler
• Primer

Makeup Bag:

• Brushes: powder, blush, contour, highlight, eyeshadow
• Sponges
• Foundation
• Concealer
• Primer
• Fix+
• Eyeshadow
• Eyeshadow base
• Highlighter
• Contouring powder
• Blush
• Mascara
• Browgel
• Eyeliner
• Lipbalm
• Lipscrub
• Lipstick
• Mirror

I‘m aware that I listed a few things twice but that‘s where you have to decide what you‘re taking with you and if you can live without stuff like foundation for a few days if your suitcase may take some time to get to your hotel. I can‘t, that’s why I‘m taking mine in the liquids bag.

X

// FIRST IMPRESSION: Thirsty Palette by Jeffree Star Cosmetics

Heya Internet! How are we doing?

As I promised in my previous post, I‘ll blog more often from now on! So that’s what I‘ll do today!

I recently used my Thirsty Palette by JSC for the first time even though I had it on my vanity for almost a year now. I just never got around to diving into it with work and simple tiredness dominating my life. Since I‘m slowly reclaiming my life again, I did find the joy of doing my makeup again as well! So I grabbed the palette and just.. started.:D I made a TikTok while doing that which will be at the end of the post.

So, shall we start? Y E S!

The palette:

I bought this palette at the Morphe Cosmetics store in London for about £45, if I remember correctly.

It‘s good quality with barely any fallout. I wouldn‘t say that the shadows in my palette are as creamy as they are in other JSC palettes I own, but I don‘t know whether this is usual for Thirsty or if it‘s because it‘s been sitting around for a while. Colour payoff is great, though. And they blend like a dream!

Here‘s the look I came up with:

I‘m sorry that this photo is not a professional one but rather taken using my iPhone. I do not have my DSLR at the moment. :/

Since I‘m having way too much fun on TikTok at the moment, I keep making some myself. Drawing, colouring, journaling... doing my makeup... :D here‘s the one for the Thirsty palette:

I‘m not sure if blogger will let you watch the video I uploaded, but I‘ve got you! Here‘s the Link :)

To wrap this post up, I‘d say that Thirsty is an overall cute and well thought out palette with colours that go really well with each other. If you want it and can still get your hands on it now that JSC discontinued it and these are your colours: buy it. However, I don‘t think you‘re missing out if you don‘t have it. I for myself am not sure, how often I‘ll use it from now on. I have a lot of eyeshadow palettes by now, nearly all JSC has released and I rather use those than Thirsty. Jawbreaker is my holy grail!

I‘ll see you guys in the next post! Stay cool!

X

// Still alive and finally well

Hello people of the Internet!

It has been a while since I last posted on here. A while as in 4 whole years!

And let me tell you: a lot has been going on since then! I moved to England for a year after school, came back, started Uni, left uni without getting a degree because I realised I didn’t want to do this for the rest of my life, I went from working part time to working full time at the green apron coffee company, ended up in a hospital for two months and just recently left my job to learn how to be myself again. Did I ever forget about my blog? No. I have so much to write about, I could probably post about that for 4 more years. But will I do that? Probably.

Lately, I‘ve been getting a lot of emails from Bloglovin as it seemed like my blog caught some attention and I gained a few more followers. HI EVERYBODY! How are you doing? You guys are basically the reason why I finally caved in and ended up posting again! 

This post marks the beginning of a new era on here. I will start posting about makeup again, as I intended and did when I first started. But I will include some posts about mental health and my puppy as well! I‘ll basically post about whatever comes to my mind and I‘m really looking forward to doing this again! A huge part of the next few posts will probably be my trip to Chicago this month! If you guys have any wishes/ideas you want me to write about, just let me know!

Here‘s to new beginnings!

X

// Review: The most hyped eyebrow product ever

Hi guys!

As you've probably seen in my post about my new babies (aka my Anastasia Beverly Hills contour kits), I also ordered one of the ABH dipbrow pomades.

And yes.

It is worth the hype.

I ordered the dipbrow pomade and the ABH brush 12 along with the contour kits on beautybay.com.

Before ordering, I did a bit of research as I wasn't too sure about which shade I should get. My eyebrows aren't blonde or brown so I had to get something in between. A shade not as dark as the NYX eyebrow pomade in "Chocolate" which I've been using for a while now.

So for me, it was pretty obvious that I should get the ABH pomade in "Taupe" but it was kind of hard to find some reviews of taupe that didn't only include a swatch but also a pic of someone wearing it.

Long story short: The only thing I found were swatches. That's why I'll put a pic of me wearing it at the end of this post.

I'm in love with this.

You don't need a lot of product and you can blend it easily.

And it's not too dark. For me, it's perfect.

I tried to take pics of a swatch that show the "real" colour but it's kind of hard. So, if your eyebrows are neither blonde nor brunette I would definitely recommend the ABH pomade in "taupe".

As swatch:

On your eyebrows:

(it's a bit blurry and yes, it's a pic I posted before but I'm not good at taking selfies haha)