Manufaktura: An Original Czech Tradition

When I first arrived in Prague, I saw several tourists carrying Manufaktura Cosmetics bags and as a beauty product enthusiast, I couldn't help but wonder what this company was all about.

Manufaktura is a Czech bath and body company started in 1991. They're well known for their handmade beer and wine scented products and they also sell handcrafted wooden toys and home goods. The Manufaktura storefront is located in the heart of Old Town Square which leads me to believe this company is obviously catered to tourists. Tourist or not, who doesn't love kitsch?!

Manufaktura store on Melantrichova

A look inside the store (that's Zach in the colorful jacket!)

Window view of some of the home goods

Beer shower gel - only in Prague! I'm not a fan of the smell of these, though :/

Beer bath oil - I think the "head" at the top adds a nice touch ;)

It's important to note that the company doesn't use parabens or allergens and it does not test on animals. All products are dermatologically tested, something I find surprising considering beer is an ingredient in several of their products. 

Wine bath oil - didn't love the smell of these either, but definitely more tolerable than the beer products. 

Wine body lotion

In addition to the beer and wine scented products which are sold year round, the brand also sells some limited edition scents. The ones out right now are Mojito, Apricot and Grapefruit & Orange. The Mojito scent didn't really appeal to me but the latter two smell delicious. I tried on some hand cream in the Grapefruit & Orange scent and I'm happy to report that it was lovely. I usually hate hand creams as they make my hands feel really sweaty and gross but this one sank in nicely. 

The Mojito range

Grapefruit & Orange range

It's hard to tell from the pictures, but each range includes hand cream, body lotion, body wash, soap and even potpourri. There are also pre-packaged gift bags (see below).

I'm really surprised by how decently the products are priced. Considering the brand is very tourist-centric, I expected the prices to be jacked up. Most products in the range run for about $7 which I think is completely reasonable. 

I didn't buy anything during this trip, but I did buy a beer scented lip balm a few weeks back... 

....And oh my god, this thing is barf-worthy. It smells only mildly like beer, but mostly like moldy, sour bread and that smell does NOT dissipate after putting it on. The smell lingers and inevitably ends up in your mouth. I can't attest to it's moisturizing properties since I couldn't leave it on long enough to tell. I can't bring myself to throw it away though since I view it as kind of a Prague souvenir. 

Overall, I think the concept of this brand is really intriguing but not something that I would get much use out of. I think the packaging is really cute, but almost too cute to actually use though. I imagine using the bottles more for decoration than for their actual purpose.

I didn't like the smell of the beer or wine products and, to me, that's kind of the "star player" in the brand. While the limited edition products did smell nice, they're not unique enough for me to spend my money on. I think these would make perfect souvenirs/gifts for friends and family back home and I (SPOILER ALERT) will almost definitely be giving some away as Christmas gifts :)

What do you think? Are beer scented body products your cup of tea? 

Thanks for reading! :)

My Inglot Collection: Cream Products

Before I moved to Prague, I was bitten by the Inglot bug... HARD. It seemed like all the beauty bloggers and YouTubers were talking about was Inglot and that meant all I could dream about was getting my hands on some. Since there are very few Inglot stores in the States and I didn't want to order online, I did my best to be patient until we got to London where there's an Inglot storefront. 

A pretty bad picture of the Inglot store in London (in the Westfield Shopping Center). Who has the time to take better pictures with this beautiful store in front of you?!

For those that don't know, Inglot is a Polish brand that's best known for their eyeshadows, though they make a wide variety of other gorgeous products as well. What I like most about Inglot is their Freedom System palettes. This means that you can customize your own individual palette of eyeshadows, blushes, lipsticks, powders, concealer, or pretty much any combination of products! I like this much more than pre-made palettes where you're bound to not use one or more shades. With Inglot's Freedom System, you put together your own palette so you're guaranteed to love every shade. 

Also, the brand as a whole is very affordable. For example, a square eyeshadow pan will run you $6/2.7 grams whereas a MAC eyeshadow is $15/1.5 grams. So you're getting nearly twice the product for less than half the price. 

Since I've moved abroad, I've acquired quite a bit of Inglot products. I thought I'd break up my Inglot collection into 2 posts so you're not overwhelmed with pictures and my inability to be succinct when reviewing. I'll be focusing on the cream products and one nail polish in this post. 

Inglot YSM Cream Foundation in 41

YSM stands for "Young Skin Makeup." According to Inglot, this is a sheer, mattifying cream foundation that contains peach extract. I'm drawn to anything with the word "mattifying" in it and I'm always on the lookout for my holy grail foundation.

While this isn't HG status, it does apply very smoothly and blends evenly into the skin. I like to use this foundation when I'm traveling since its sheer coverage makes for a no-nonsense application. Also, it's small and light and I prefer packing squeeze tube products while on the go. In the swatch above, it looks more yellow-toned but in reality, I think it's more of a neutral color. The shade is a little light for me as I've still got my tan from the summer but I think it's a pretty good match when I lose that color.

One thing that I find interesting about this foundation is that the tube provides a warning that it is not the be used in the eye area. I'm not really sure why that is and I find it a bit odd but I'll take their word for it. I've never experienced any reactions while wearing this foundation, so that's good. I'm looking forward to playing with this a bit more!

Inglot Noble Collection AMC Eyeliner Gel in 94 

My friend Lauren is responsible for the next 2 purchases. She and her boyfriend, Alex, were in Prague visiting and we all took a trip out to Inglot (or "Inkblot" as her boyfriend calls it :) ). She swatched this on her arm and we both thought it was such a gorgeous cream eyeshadow or eyeshadow base. It wasn't until I was in the checkout line that I noticed it is actually a gel eyeliner. Whoops! I decided to go with it anyway because I love the unique champagn-y, rose gold color.

What's interesting about this mixup is had I known it was a gel eyeliner, I never would have thought to use it as a cream shadow and vice versa. This isn't a color I would usually wear as an eyeliner but after playing around with it a bit, I think it's gorgeous in the lower waterline. It's beautiful alone on the eye but also really pretty as an eyeshadow base to make powder eyeshadows pop.

It definitely functions as both a cream eyeshadow and an eyeliner, but if you're using it as a cream eyeshadow, be aware that it dries very quickly meaning you won't have much time to blend it out. The good thing about products that dry down quickly is that it usually means they WILL NOT budge all day and that is definitely the case with this. I'm really glad I bought this since I can use it in so many ways. 

Inglot Noble Collection Nail Enamel in 225

This is, hands down, the most beautiful and intricate nail polish I've ever owned. Like I mentioned above, Lauren is the one responsible for this purchase. She painted one fingernail with the tester and as soon as I saw the metallic-y goodness, I knew I needed it. Its number, 225, is also the area code of Baton Rouge and since we both graduated from LSU, I knew it was fate. Also, LSU's colors are purple and gold so I needed this for nostalgia's sake too :). 

It appears Inglot's Noble Collection contains several metallic shades of nail enamel, eyeshadow and gel eyeliners. If I'm not mistaken, I think the gel eyeliner above corresponds with this nail polish as they appear to be extremely similar in color. It's hard to describe this color because it's constantly changing depending on the lighting you're in. Sometimes it's gold, sometimes more bronze, and sometimes it's rose gold. It definitely has very faint silver glitter in it. If you ask me, Inglot knows how to do glitter right (more on that when I do the second part of my collection). 

At $10, this is definitely the most expensive nail polish I own, but I think the picture below will help you understand how I justified it. 

Photo taken outside in bright sunlight. 

I mean, ARE YOU DYING OR ARE YOU JUST DYING?!?! Look at that color! I wish I could paint my whole body with this. I mean, I guess I could but that would be wasteful and then I'd be all sparkly like Edward Cullen. 

Left: Inglot Cream Corrector in Peach
Right: Inglot Lipstick in 51

This is an example of a 2-pan Freedom System palette. I thought this would be great for traveling since it has 2 products and a mirror in one small compact. As you can see, I chose to put a color corrector and a lipstick in it. 

The corrector is peach toned and super creamy. Peach and yellow toned correctors are used to cancel out blue and purple under eye circles, respectively. I have a lot of blue shadows in my under eye area so I wanted to see if a peachy corrector would really do the trick. It definitely erases any blue discoloration but the consistency is so creamy, almost sticky, that it really takes some time to blend it in. It doesn't dry to a matte finish so I have to set it with some finely milled powder so my under eye area doesn't look glossy. I like this product just fine, but it's not really a game changer for me.

The lipstick I chose is a really pretty rosy pink with some berry tones to it. The color is very easy to sheer out or build up to something more dramatic. I think a variety of different skin tones could wear a color like this. The lipstick has a noticeable vanilla-y scent upon initial application but that quickly wears away after a few minutes. It lasts about 3 hours on me before I notice some wear. Again, a nice product but nothing to write home about. 

I forgot to bring the foundation to the "photo shoot" with me, which is why the background is different than the others. I took that photo on the trail we run on in Žižkov because I love the view of Prague in that area. The rest of the photos were taken in front of The Dancing House in Prague. This building is sometimes called "Fred and Ginger" after the famous dancers Fred Astaire and Ginger Roberts since the house supposedly looks like a couple dancing. It was a source of controversy when it went up in 1996 as the juxtaposition between its modern architecture and Prague's Baroque and Gothic buildings is quite distinct. The controversy eventually died down and it is now a popular attraction in Prague. 

feelunique.com and iHerb.com Order

Hi everyone! There were a couple little treats waiting for me in the mail when we got back from Vienna so I thought I'd share what I got! Since I've never had anything shipped here before, I was a bit worried that something would go wrong in transit or I'd enter my new address incorrectly, but I'm happy to report that both packages got here unscathed. 

I first heard about feelunique.com from one of my favorite bloggers/YouTubers EssieButton. They offer a variety of different skincare and beauty brands at a slightly discounted price, but the best part is the FREE WORLDWIDE SHIPPING! I'm lucky to find a site that even ships to the Czech Republic, so imagine my excitement to find one that is FREE! I only bought one thing because I was kind of treating this as a "trial run" to make sure I would even receive my parcel. The only downside is that a tracking number isn't provided and it took 3 weeks to get here but the shipping was free so I can't really complain. Either way, I'm sure I'll be ordering from them again in the future. Here's what I got!

NUXE Rěve de Miel Ultra-Nourishing Lip Balm 

I was telling my boyfriend probably 10 minutes before I bought this that I would never buy a lip balm in a pot again for as long as I live (and I rate his interest level in this statement a 2 out of 10). I think I was taking out my anger on potted products because I positively despise opening the tin that my Smith's Rosebud Salve comes in and also I'm not a fan of dipping my bacteria-ridden finger into a product and then putting that all over my mouth. All of my discrimination against potted lip balms promptly vanished as soon as lay (laid? Does anyone actually know??) eyes on this beauty. This is a cult favorite which naturally means that I had to have it to see what all the hype is about. 

If I had to describe the consistency, I would say it feels like if you sucked all the oil out of peanut butter and then put it on your lips. That's... a really weird way to describe something but it's all I can think of when I put it on. It's very thick and dry and it doesn't feel like it really sinks into my lips. It smells only a little like honey but mostly has a fresh lemon-y scent to it. It's not something I'd want to wear during the day or under any lip products. I'm still undecided if it actually nourishes my lips but I plan on using it more consistently in the coming winter months. If I end up hating it, at least the packaging is pretty and makes me feel fancy and French. :)


iHerb.com is a site that sells natural, organic and vegan skincare products, food, supplements, etc. Like feelunique, iHerb doesn't provide a tracking number with your order, which I consider to be a downside. There are a few options for delivery and of course I chose the cheapest one ($4, still not bad!). I'm pretty impressed that it only took 8 days to get to me though!

My skin did not know what to do when it found out that Prague has actual seasons, much unlike Texas which only consists of "hot as shit." I was absurdly dry around my eyes and lips and I had several clogged pores that I was dying to get rid of, not to mention my eczema was still driving me mad. I started to really dig around on my favorite skincare forum /r/SkincareAddiction on reddit.com. Seriously, if you're having skin issues or just want to begin a skincare routine, this is the best place to learn about proper skincare. There's so much misinformation on the internet, but this is one of the few places I trust when it comes to treating my skin right. This is also how I heard about iHerb.com. These products are pretty highly reviewed on there so I felt confident in my purchases. 

The haul!

Neem oil

I'd never heard of neem oil before I started having these skin issues (and apparently neither has my computer as it doesn't recognize the word). From what I hear, it is a miracle worker on eczema, zits, dry patches, you name it. I also noticed that anytime neem oil was mentioned, someone had to bring up how awful and potent it smells. The word on the street is that it smells like peanuts, garlic and Indian food all combined into one. I was desperate to find a cure for my eczema no matter how bad I would smell so I threw caution to the wind and bought this. 

The first time I smelled it, I was actually a bit disappointed. I wanted to be part of the "NEEM OIL REEKS" club too! It smelled like garlicky peanuts mixed with some onions. Nothing intolerable, right? WRONG. It wasn't until I put it all over my body that I truly understood what everyone was talking about. It smelled like... a burp after someone had eaten rotten Indian food and burnt tires. AND that person has halitosis. Ok, that was a bit dramatic but seriously, it's bad. I only used it once so I can't attest to its magical powers. I guess I was less itchy, I don't know? All I know is that I was stinky. I'll take the eczema, thanks.

Stridex Maximum Strength Soft Touch Pads 

Talk about a product that brings you back to your teenage days, huh? 

Though they're targeted for acne-prone people, these pads are an all around great product for anyone looking to chemically exfoliate. They're gentle enough to use 2-3x a day and don't contain alcohol like a lot of other similar products. I got these to hopefully keep breakouts at bay and to also clear some of the clogged pores I mentioned earlier. 

To use, it's suggested you: 1) cleanse, 2) use Stridex pad all over face 3) wait 10 minutes 4) apply moisturizer. I've been using these everyday for the past week or so but haven't seen much difference. It's still pretty early though and since I haven't been having any averse reactions to them, I think I'm going to start using them twice a day. Will let you know if they help! 

Queen Helene Mint Julep Masque

This is one of those products I've passed by in the drugstores for YEARS without giving it much thought. It's a face mask designed to draw out impurities, reduce oil and the size of pores. It's been around forever and it's reviewed highly on makeupalley.com so of course I wanted needed to try it.  

The instructions suggest to apply this all over your face and neck after cleansing, wait 15 minutes, then wash it off with a warm washcloth. I think whenever someone thinks of a face mask, this is what they have in mind. It's that classic green mask you seen women wearing in movies and I'm pretty sure I've freaked out my flatmate wearing this. It's a very thick, clay mask that has a cooling, minty feel on your face. After a few minutes, it dries down and leaves your face feeling kind of tight and crackly, if that makes sense (my face doesn't feel tight or stripped after I wash it off though, quite the opposite actually). I've only used it twice so far and I've noticed that any zits I have seem to be more dried out the next day. I'm going to keep using it 2x a week and I have high hopes that my skin will improve. 

Sierra Bees Organic Honey Lip Balm

This was a freebie with my iHerb order and anyone who knows me knows how much I love freebies! I loooooove this lip balm. It smells like honey and feels really moisturizing on my lips. I carry this with me everywhere I go now! I hope this product is still available with my next iHerb order because I'd love to have one as a backup!

For the curious, these pictures were taken at the Church of Saint Procopius in Žižkov, Prague. I think one of my favorite things about starting this blog is that I'm constantly on the lookout for interesting places to take photos of my products. In turn, this allows me to appreciate different parts of Prague/whatever city I'm in that I might have overlooked otherwise. :)

Thanks for reading! Let me know if you have any specific questions about the products :). Bye!

Vienna Makeup and Clothing Haul!

Hi all! We got back from Vienna earlier this week and I wanted to share with you my beauty and fashion haul! We were there for 2 days and 2 nights so I had plenty of time to scope out the drugstore/beauty scene. I had some brands in mind I wanted to try so we trekked around the city hoping to stumble upon something neat.

There were 3 main drugstores that I noticed - dm, Müller and BIPA (below). There are dm's a plenty in Prague so I wasn't particularly itching to go in (but I did, just because I'm a weirdo who's obsessed with drugstores). If Sephora and CVS had a lovechild, it would be called Müller. Müller has both drugstore and high end products but even the drugstore brands were significantly overpriced ($18 for a Maybelline mascara?! You've got to be shitting me). So naturally, I was drawn to BIPA - and how could you not be considering the store is BRIGHT PINK?! I simultaneously wanted to spend the rest of my life here and leave immediately since it was crowded and hot and it was likely I was going to die. 

This is the BIPA on Mariahilferstraße. I took this using a setting on my camera that extracts dramatic colors but it's actually pretty true to color. 

This store had a "styling lounge"! Cool!

The brand deBBY. Never heard of this before!

This is BIPA's store brand - LOOK. Sorry for the crappy picture, like I mentioned, it was really crowded. 

Now for what I got! Please excuse the inconsistency between picture backgrounds and lighting. The first few were taken in Vienna and the last few in Prague. I wanted them all to be taken in Vienna, but perhaps you can tell that it was raining and the sun had gone down and my feet hurt. Well, you probably can't tell that last part just from the photos, but I assure you, they did :)

In Vienna, I took these photos overlooking the Vienna Opera House which I've heard is one of the best opera houses in the world. The pictures in Prague were taken by the church in Jiřího z Poděbrad Square, about 3 blocks from the Prague TV Tower.   

I should also add that I can't give full reviews of these products as I've only used them a few times. I will let you know first impressions though. 

deBBY matSOLUTION Foundation in 102 Natural (€7.99).

This was kind of an impulse buy and I'm still undecided if that's a good or a bad thing. The shade is a bit too yellow for me (I'm about an NW30 if we're speaking MAC-ese) but it blends in really nicely and doesn't have a strong smell. After some googling, I learned that deBBY is owned by Deborah Group, an Italian cosmetics and beauty brand. The website leads me to believe that deBBY products are only found in Italy and unless I'm wildly mistaken, I was in Austria when I found this. I will update when I learn more about how it performs.

LOOK by BIPA Nail Quickie in Grey Delight (€1.99). See below for a better photo.

I've been so obsessed with these lavender grey-ish nail polish shades lately. I think this is a beautiful Autumn transition color and would go with a variety of different looks. As for the actual polish application, it was just so-so. Nothing spectacular, but not awful either. It does dry quickly but I managed to smudge it anyway. This is with 2 coats and a clear top coat. Please excuse my T-Rex hands ;)

Manhattan Colour Splash Liquid Lip Tint in 54L So Paris! (€3.99).

This is kind of an interesting lip product. It's unlike anything I have - not quite a gloss, not quite a lipstick. I'd say it's similar in consistency to YSL's Glossy Stains. It's not touted as a stain, but it definitely leaves behind a staining effect. It has a pretty potent berry-ish scent that disappears shortly after applying. It isn't something that I would ever wear on its own as it leaves a kind of "film" on my lips that I don't appreciate but all is well once I top it with a gloss or balm. This isn't holy grail material by any means, but I enjoy it and the color is nice for Fall. The Manhattan website leads me to believe that you can buy their products in Germany, Austria, Spain and Switzerland. 

LOOK by BIPA Catwalk Duo Mascara and Eyeliner  (€3.99).

As you can probably tell, I had the hardest time getting a good picture of this product; the fuchsia packaging did not want to photograph properly. Anyway, this has a black liquid eyeliner on one end and a mascara on the other. I was drawn to this product because of its multi-purpose use and I thought it would be an easy way to pack lighter on my trips. (Because everyone knows the answer to packing less stuff is to buy more stuff, right?) I've only used the mascara side of it and I wasn't impressed. It's a very wet formula which caused my lashes to bind together and look like I have about 4 really thick lashes - ew. The eyeliner side swatched very black and matte and I had a hard time washing it off even though it doesn't claim to be waterproof. I am shit at applying liquid liner but I thought this would be a good way to practice!

LOOK by BIPA Baked Eye Shadow Mono in #15 Vintage (€2.99).

For the life of me, I cannot think of an apt way to describe this eyeshadow color. I guess that's a good thing because that means there's nothing like it in my eyeshadow collection. If I had to try, I'd say it's a rosy pink with gold and silver and blue shimmer. That probably just made you more confused so let's just say it has all the colors! Pictures don't do it justice. It reminds me of the Hard Candy baked eyeshadow duos in the way it swatches and applies. I wore it today for the first time and it was VERY pigmented and shimmery. Just my kind of shade! LOVE! ♥ 

b.pretty Baked Eyeshadow in 15 Earth - (€2.49).

Look at this little guy! If this isn't just the cutest, tiniest eyeshadow you've ever seen, then I don't know what is! Now that I'm realizing the price in comparison to the size, it's kind of a rip off but it's cuteness makes me not care. I have a ton of neutral bronzey shades similar to this but it swatched nicely in the store and I thought it would be fun to try a new eyeshadow brand. I used it today for the first time and it's beautiful! Very shimmery and opaque and I think it could be a pretty one eyeshadow look. Though its size is convenient for traveling, I don't think it's something I'd take with me on a trip because the packaging is obviously cheap and baked eyeshadows are notorious for shattering. Happy to add it to my collection though!

Top to Bottom: Manhattan Lip Tint, b.pretty Baked eyeshadow, LOOK by BIPA Baked eyeshadow (all swatched once in natural light, no primer)

Of course, I couldn't resist stopping in Forever 21 while we were in Vienna. There isn't one in Prague and I needed a new pair of sunglasses and some inexpensive basic pieces for Fall. Despite being a 5 story store, I wasn't very impressed with the selection. There were about 7 pairs of sunglasses to choose from and I hated all of them. The jewelry section left something to be desired as well. Oh well, I guess that's better for my wallet. Here's what I got:

Left: Silver Wishbone Earrings (€1.90). Right: Abstract Zigzag Boyfriend Sweater  (€23.75).

I love funky jewelry so these wishbone earrings were right up my Ali (get it? my name's Ali). I really liked this oversized chunky sweater and I think that you could wear it with jeans, jeggings or tights of any color. It's super comfortable and warm and I was impressed with the quality. What a weird face I'm making... I blame it on the sun. 

And that's everything! Hope you enjoyed reading! :)

My Travel Makeup Bag!

Zach and I are going to Vienna tomorrow to pick up our visas so I thought it would be a good time to show what I pack in my travel makeup bag. As a beauty product enthusiast, I think it goes without saying that I am not a light packer! Every trip we make, Zach challenges me to take as few products as possible and I definitely think I've outdone myself this time!

My makeup bag by Vera Bradley was a gift from a friend. It is a bit bigger than your average makeup bag which is why it's so perfect for me! It's easy to clean inside as it is lined with plastic.

This is what I use to store my makeup brushes in. It's from EcoTools and though it's a bit small, it forces me to limit the brushes that I pack. 

From L to R: EcoTools Large Powder Brush, Sigma F40 Large Angled Contour Brush, EcoTools Blush Brush, Bare Minerals Foil Brush, MAC 217 Blending Brush, Real Techniques Expert Face Brush  (I forgot to include an eyeshadow brush. This is the one I'll bring)

Here's everything! (Sorry for the crappy lighting, I took these as the sun was going down)

L to R: Anti-bacterial hand gel (a MUST for me while traveling!), Cerave Moisturizing Lotion in a Purity bottle, Benefit Porefessional primer (travel size), my foundation in a The Body Shop sample container, Inglot Pressed Powder #13

Benefit's They're Real! mascara (travel size), Urban Decay eyeshadow primer (travel size), ELF Eyebrow Gel

Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Exposed, MAC eyeshadow quad (top row): Nylon, All That Glitters, (bottom row): Satin Taupe, Print, MAC lipstick in Lustering 

Swatches L to R (one swatch, no primer): Nylon, All That Glitters, Satin Taupe, Print, Lustering

I tend to be somewhat low maintenance when I'm traveling so I like to keep the makeup light and simple. The MAC eyeshadow quad has everything I need in it and some products are multi-functional: I can use Nylon as a cheek highlight and Print as an eyeliner! I think traveling is a perfect time to use up some of the samples you've accumulated too. 

I'll likely be scoping out the drugstores/pharmacies in Vienna to see if they have any brands that are new to me. Stay tuned for an update! :)

A Weekend in Berlin

Zach and I went to Berlin a couple weekends ago to meet up with my friend from high school, Morgan. She's been living in Dusseldorf for a few months and we've been meeting up in different cities whenever we can find time (first in Munich, then in Prague). We took the Student Agency bus, a very modern bus with mini TVs in every chair and it took about 5 hours to get there. We stayed at the Maritim Hotel thanks to Zach finding a great deal on Priceline. 

I should add that I had a particularly bad reaction to something when we left for Berlin that caused my eyelids to swell up and my eye area to be extremely dry (hence the sunglasses in all pics). I can't be completely sure of it, but I think the offender is the Bioderma Atoderm PO Zinc creme (see previous blog post). It says it's safe to use for your face but perhaps there's an ingredient my face doesn't like. It put a bit of a damper on the trip for me because it was very uncomfortable and I couldn't put on makeup (just about my favorite thing to do ever). Fortunately, I'm all better now!

Anyway, we spent most of Saturday walking through Kreuzberg-Friedrichshain, a cute, Bohemian style neighborhood filled with lots of second hand shops and cafes. I found a tiny little coin purse at a second hand store to house the absurd amount of coins I carry on a daily basis (I guess that's what you get when the change is actually worth something in the country you live in). 

Street view of Kreuzberg-Friedrichshain

We found a Nivea storefront! I'm don't really use any Nivea products regularly but this store was just calling my name!

Look at all these lip butters! I got a raspberry one and it smells delicious :)

This is a Nivea "orb" (?) that you can walk into and learn different things about your skin's needs.  

Inside the orb

Zach, me, and Morgan in front of the Brandenburg Gate. No, I'm not super short, they're just really tall! (Zach is 6'2" and Morgan is 6'3"ish!) 

I didn't get to indulge my pretzel obsession in Munich, but I definitely made up for it in Berlin!

The Berlin Wall

Another picture of the Berlin Wall

View of the Wall from above.

Oh, what's this we found? We all had a field day in The Body Shop!

I'm obsessed with European pharmacies. I convinced Morgan she needed to try the Bioderma makeup remover. There's a lot of hype surrounding this product but I can safely say it's very deserving!

Delicious green tea

Goulash - very good, but doesn't compare to the goulash in Budapest

And now for the beauty products I got from Berlin. Most of these are samples, but, as Morgan found out, I am a FIEND for some samples. I kept eyeing her samples from The Body Shop and the pharmacy before she finally asked if I wanted them. YES I DO THANKS!!!

The products marked with an asterisk (*) are ones I paid for. The rest are samples from the cashiers or ones I stole from Morgan ;)

Perfection!

A Muslin cloth from The Body Shop*, Melissa Day cream from Dr. Hauschka, Nivea Body Milk, Dr. Hauschka Translucent Makeup, The Body Shop Vitamin C Microdermabrasion*, Nivea Soft Souffle lotion 

The Body Shop Aloe Soothing Day Cream x 2, The Body Shop Vitamin E Sink-In Moisture Mask*, Nivea Repair & Care body lotion, Nivea Raspberry Lip Butter, Nivea Creme* (this was an impulse buy at the counter - just look how cute it is!), The Body Shop Vitamin E Body Butter sample (I NEED THIS!!!), La Roche Posay Hydraphase Intense Mask* (I would highly recommend this if you have very dry skin), P2 Volume Gloss nail polish in Urban Queen

Berlin is a great, diverse city filled with a ton of history. Aside from my body failing me, I really enjoyed the trip and getting to see Morgan. Hope you enjoyed it :)