Phone post: weekend haul

Yeah, I'm not gonna apologise for not posting for so long, screw that. But I am going to change it by posting live from my phone. Now isn't that fancy? Don't mind the messy pictures. 

I've been wanting to tell you about my amazing haul on my shopping trip in the Netherlands (roosendaal) but I can't find the time, so here's some quick food for jealousy!

To be honest, I bought a shameful amount of things to feed my materialist needs, so I'm only gonna tell you about my favourites (see picture). 

My absolute, number one favourite thing of all is the skirt you can see in the picture. It's from Didi, €60 and absolutely lovely. It looks like an underskirt, a style I've been looking for for a very long time. I've already worn it this week (of course) and I combined it with a simple black t-shirt and the sweater in the picture. To top it off I wore some chunky gemstone bracelets and a smokey eye look. And of course, my doc. martins. It looked kind of princess meets rock chick. Quite cute. 

I never thought I was going to follow the furry sweater trend, but I loved this colour and it's so darn soft!

Didi, about €45 on sale

I needed some brown/copper/gold eyeshadow and chose to put my own palette of "art-deco" colours together. The picture doesn't do the colours justice, though. 

Art Deco at Douglas, €31 (€11 for the box, the pans are €5 a piece)

I bought Aussie's luscious long line in Croatia this year and I can't put my finger on it, but I just like Aussie's style. The shampoos aren't spectacular or anything, but I like the very different scents and humorous bottles. This was actually one of the main reasons for me to go to the Netherlands, 'cause they don't sell these in Belgium.

Etos, €5 for shampoo, €5 for conditioner (on sale)

These glass boxes took my fancy for some reason. But I don't know what I'm going to put in them yet...

Xenos, about €4 for the big one, about €3 for the small one. 

I've been addicted to the big blingy earring trend ever since it emerged. These brown ones go perfectly with my new outfits (lots of earth tones)

H&M, €5

I'm growing out my bangs, so I have a million of these lying around. Still, the colours yelled at me. "YOU NEED US FANCY ONES MORE THAN THOSE STUPID BLACK ONES!". Alright already...sheesh...

H&M, €5

I'm in looooooove! I've been reading about the Dior Lip Glow balm in about every magazine, and the marketing works! I leapt into its moisturising arms and fell for the oh so subtle way it makes my own lip colour shine a little. Thank you Dior! This is the new thing that will always be in my purse!

Ici Paris XL, €25 (on sale, normally it's about €35)

Okay, I was wrong...

I hate admitting that! Especially when it's about a product I was so convinced of up front. But no, the L'occitane Angelica Hydra Vital Gel was a fail to me. I talked about how excited I was to try this in my very exited post on the Crème Radieuse or Hydra Vital Cream. After I finished that jar, I immediately rushed to the store to buy the gel for my then nearly spotless face, only to turn it into a miserable landscape of pimples again.

 So, if I liked the cream so much, why did I go and try something else? Exactly: don't do that! When you finaly find something that works for you, don't switch to something else, especially when you have a face that clearly has some serious issues, like mine (I think it might be autistic and hate change, is there a cream for that?). Anyway, my reasoning when I got it was that it would help even better for my oily face because of its texture. Especially in summer, when I hate anything creamy on my face. The Hydra Vital Cream doesn't leave an oily feeling though, so actually there's no need to switch.

Anyway, after doubting my choice again at the store, my curiosity for anything new won me over and I took a leap of faith, buying the Hydra Gel for a little less (€29) than I paid for the Hydra Cream (€33). Advantages? There are some in general. For example, you need less product to cover your face. This gel will probably last you a lot longer than cream. Another plus is that if you keep it in the fridge, it really cools your face nicely when you put it on. I'm afraid that's everything positive I have to say about it.

About 3 days after I first started using it, I noticed a few tiny pimples. I wasn't alarmed and thought it was just a hormone breakout, but after a week I got larger pimples and the rashes came back. Moreover, my face was back to its oily self, and didn't feel hydrated for hours, like when I used the cream. I gave it another week just to be sure it wasn't a hormone thing. Then I switched back to the vital cream to see the effect and indeed, two weeks later my face is looking a lot better again. Still not as great as before I started using the gel, but I'm getting there.

I'm sorry for betraying my cream, I'm sorry for wasting 29 f-in' euros and I'm sorry for ruining my face, but hey, how should I know? It's the first time I've taken care of it and apparently, it's not a fan of hydrating gel.

Keep in mind that this might just be my face, maybe it works for other people perfectly, I haven't looked at any reviews yet. But judging from my case: I'm going to stay away from this as far as I can. It took me weeks to get my face to look okay and only one week to ruin it again. I'm not taking risks anymore. For now, only Hydra Vital Cream for me, because I still love that one!

What a pain, my first negative review. I'm sorry money!


Lots of light,

Sloppy D.

Com-pore-ison

You know what people, I'm not sure about this kind of primer. As I said in my last post, I love the texture of these things, but after a weekend of testing, I'm not convinced. Nonetheless, let's look at the difference between high end Porefessional and drugstore find Flower Perfection.

To be fair, I didn't give these two too much time before judging them. I wore both one day this weekend. I put on Flower Perfection Saturday morning, under my BB cream and powder foundation. I also wore some blush and bronzer. Same thing for Porefessional on sunday. That's that. I wore both a whole day and I didn't re-apply any make-up. I was outside both days.

I can't say either one of these made my make-up stay put any longer. Frankly, I don't really care, I don't mind re-applying. It would really impress me to find a product that actually fixed my make-up, these two don't, as expected.

They are really similar to each other when it comes to texture, feel and coverage. Both disappointed me a bit when it comes to tightening my pores. When testing them on my hand they both have the same effect, erasing fine lines and mattifying a little. Neither one of them is powerful enough to help my face. Bummer. I can see the magic happen on my hand, and I know I would absolutely love them if they did the same on my face. Maybe my pores are just too wide. Or maybe I have to wait until I've got some wrinkles to try it again. For now, nothing to get exited about here.

They both make my face feel nice. They're very gentle and soft on the skin. No complaints there whatsoever. They provide a smooth base for my make-up, although I can't help but wonder of that smoothness isn't erased when I put on my BB-cream. These primers seem so fragile...

Another similarity is the fact that they do nothing for my oily skin. It looks a tiny bit more matte at first, but it seems even more oily than usual a little while later. What's the point if they do that? Don't let the looks deceive you, these things look as matte as anything in the jar or on your hand, but for combo skin? I could get over this fact of they leveled my skin out better, but since they don't, no points here.

Maybe we should look at some differences, the only way to decide whether the most expensive product is also the best one. First of all: the packaging. Bourjois' tiny fiddly jar is absolutely no match for Porefessional's tube. What were they thinking, putting this in a jar? It almost guarantees that you will use too much. The tube is way more economical. A little goes a really long way with these products, the jar is just asking for using it up much sooner than you should. Porefessional wins this round with eyes closed.

The only other difference is the colour. Where Flower Perfection is translucent, Porefessional has a bit of a sandy colour. The colour gets into my pores and makes it a tiny bit visible on my face, which I don't like about a primer. It should be either invisible, or it should have a colour that corrects redness. Otherwise there is no point in it having a colour for me. So, Bourjois gets a point for that. 

We have a tie! If I would have to pick one I would still go for Bourjois because of the lack of colour and a very subtle hint of nice scent. However, this kind of product is not for me. It does too little for my face to balance out the fact that it makes it oily. I wish I would've liked it, because I'm still wondering about Clinique's pore filler with the same kind of  formula, but I'm afraid it would be a waste of money if not even Porefessional works for me, as it is such a popular product. I did only use it in the conventional way, maybe it will prove useful as a top coat, for a nice finish. I've heard of it being used that way.

For now my favourite primer is still Essence Sublime by L'Occitane. It's not comparable to the ones I talked about here, since it's a creamy one. But it does a much better job at tightening my pores subtly. It also feels like a moisturiser to my face, but it's got very good mattifying power too. Thank God I love it so much, 'cause it's mighty expensive!

If you love one of these primers and you think I'm doing it wrong, please, feel free to correct me!

Lots of light,

Sloppy D.

First impression: pore putty

There's something I need to talk about, you guys. Yesterday I was shopping for a gift for a friend and of course, I ended up in a drugstore. On the Bourjois stand I found a tiny jar, nearly hidden away between all the big flashy products. It turned out to be a primer, and the texture fascinated me so much I just had to take it home with me. It even fascinates me so I want to look into other brands that carry this type of primer.

I know I'm late with this again, but I had never seen anything like it before. I've used two primers before, Essence Sublime by L'occitane and That Gal by Benefit. Both are creamy.  So, you can imagine my amazement when I stumbled upon a primer with this kind of texture.

For those of you who, like me, have been living under a rock, this thing looks like a balm, but doesn't feel anything like it. It looks kind of grainy when you dab your finger in it, but it turns to something velvety once it's on your skin. Not a powder, but definitely nothing creamy either. I think it's really hard to describe, you should get a hand on a tester at a drugstore, you have to feel it for yourself.

Anyway, this thing is translucent, so it has absolutely no color and it doesn't show at all on your face. I tested it on my hand and noticed the lines on my hand would fade away without looking like anything was on it. I was hoping for the same effect on my face. It would be great for summer since it feels like there's nothing on your face and it doesn't matter if you get sweaty.

So, today I opened my little jar (7ml, you serious, Bourjois??). My first impression was that this wouldn't last two weeks if I used it every day, but I don't mind that anymore. I've discovered there are lots of brands that have stuff with this texture and I'm eager to try them. But more on that later. Nonetheless, it costs € 10 a jar so it's quite expensive.

It doesn't have as big of an effect on my face as it did on my hand in the store. I don't really see any pore-tightening. It feels extremely light on my face and it has a beautiful, subtle scent, so that part is great. I'm wondering what the effect will be when I actually put foundation over it. I think it will look nice, but that's not what I bought it for. I don't like wearing foundation in summer. But I'll try and see. Maybe with a bit of a coloured powder it will do its magic.

I've read a few things online about it today. Like, you should put it over your foundation, it has no shine control and it causes terrible breakouts. I put it on with some colorless fixing powder (Essence, All About Matt) and a few hours later I have no shine whatsoever. It might be because of the powder though, I'll have to try it with a non-mattifying powder.

I haven't seen any miracles happen yet, but it's certainly made me very curious about experimenting with it. I've also heard it being compared to Benefit Porefessional. By a stroke of luck I got a sample of that a few weeks ago, I will definitly try and compare. For now, I'll be wearing the Bourjois one in several ways so I can really see what it does. I'll keep you posted!

Lots of light,

Sloppy D.

Quick post: Sloppy day lipstick

The Color Boost is helping me feel a tiny bit less sloppy at work today

It's very warm in my house nowadays, which leads to me really, really, not wanting to put on make-up. I'm afraid I'll sweat it all off. Could take some with me and fix myself up at work I guess, but... Anyway, this morning I was in a hurry but I felt uneasy at leaving the house with absolutely nothing on my face, since my outfit's very dull (again, in a hurry) today. I grabbed the first flashy thing in my lipstick box and hurried out. It turned out to be my Bourjois Color Boost lip crayon and I'm glad about that.

Bourjois Color Boost lip crayon n°01

I bought this lip crayon in n°01, Red Sunrise, way back (it's actually not that long ago) when I'd just started to wear lipstick on a daily basis. I remember liking it back then and wearing it religiously until I discovered the L'oréal Color Riche l'extraordinaire lip lacquers and I became addicted to those. I remember liking the Color Boost crayon because it felt very nourishing to my lips. I loved the colour too because it was my very first colour that wasn't dull and had a bit of a pop to it (in those days it looked totally extreme to me, imagine that). What I didn't like was that it got into the fine lines of my lips like crazy.

So, up until this morning it had been gathering dust for quite a while. When I put it on I remembered all things I had liked about it and I'm very glad I picked this one, because the colour gives my dull outfit a hint of colour, without being overpowering. The last lipsticks I've bought have either been nude or very flashy.

About it getting in the fine lines of my lips: since I've bought it I've learnt to prep my lips with some lip balm. That does help a lot. It still gets in there but it's waaay less noticeable than when my lips aren't prepped. I still love how it feels as nourishing as a lip balm. It doesn't dry out my lips and the feeling is really addicting. I like re-applying it now and then.

About re-applying,  this crayon does need that. Don't be fooled by the packaging, saying it lasts up to 10 hours and is waterproof. That would be great, but no, it doesn't do that at all. However, it does have quite a bit op lasting power. I've only re-applied it once since this morning (it's now nearly one P.M.) and there was still quite a bit of colour left. Also, apart from the line crawling it stayed in place.

I think I would like to get more of these, but I've been wondering about the Clinique ones. Maybe I should get one of those so I can compare them (yeah, I'm looking for excuses to shop more).

This adult toy does wonders for my hair

A lot of people say it looks kind of phishy. I have to admit I made sure my parents knew it was a hairstyling product before I opened the box. I told them so many times when I ordered it, when it arrived and right before opening it, they must have found it even more suspicious. Anyway, its weird look doesn't take away from the fact that it's pure magic. Let's talk about the Revlon Curl Magic bubble curling wand!

This is a really long post. In a hurry? Skip to the conclusion (in italic) way down below!

I saw this thing on Itsjudytime on YouTube. Despite all the comments on how Judy was "doing it wrong", I really liked the effect. It looked a bit messy (sloppy, ya know), not like those boring curls that are all the same size you get from a classical curling iron. At the $20 mark I thought this fascinating thing was definitely worth seeing what I could do with it. The hunt was open!

After looking for a European version for ages, I gave up on my continent. As far as I know, a bubble wand like this isn't available in European stores or web shops yet. Bummer. Normally, I would give up by this time, but I wanted it so badly I just tried to find the Revlon one. I managed to find a store on Amazon(.com) that shipped it to Belgium, and voilà, my magic wand was on its way.

It's only after I hastily ordered it (like it would get sold out within the five minutes it would take to see which Amazon I was on) that I realized I'd bought it from America, where the plugs and voltage are quite different... But you know that shopping rush when you've been looking for something for so long and when you find it your mind goes blank until it's yours, right? (it might just be me)

Luckily, the wand turned out to be suitable for worldwide dual voltage, so the only thing that I needed to use it here was a plug adapter. The funny thing is, I bought the wand for $22 (€16!) and the adapter cost me more than the wand (€18). That's really stupid, I know, but in the end, I think it was worth the investment. I'm sure you can find an American to European adapter for like €3 online, but after looking for it a while and considering what I would have to do to return it if it didn't work, I decided on just going to a real store. I'm glad I did that, 'cause I bought a wrong one at first, but I'll tell you about that later on.

Now, let's finally get to the product and what it does. The wand can be used in several ways. You can swirl your hair in between the bubbles for tight little curls. By placing your hair on top of the bubbles you get a wider, more mermaid like curl. As usual I didn't go for the conventional way on the packaging, because I wanted a mix between tight and loose curls. I'm sure if you focus on it you can get your hair to kinda look like Merida's in Brave (the look I was going for). I didn't put much time and effort in it, because I desperately wanted to test it but it was already late at night. I took wide strands of hair and wrapped them evenly over the wand. So without aiming them in between or on top of the bubbles. Just all over the place! It took me about 15 minutes to make my hair look like this (excuse the bad pictures).

left: right after curling, right: a day later, about noon

On the left you can kinda see what it looked like when I'd just curled it (before combing). It gave me a great mix between nice, tight curls and loose waves. For me, this look is a bit too 17th century, but if you want real dramatic curls it's wonderful. Once I'd combed it it looked perfect for a night out. Still dramatic, something in between curls and waves.

On the right you can see what my hair looked like a day later. It's the exact wavy look I like for a casual day out. Still not too much for work either. I'm already exited to use this right before a party at evening, knowing my hair will look great for work in the morning. That's more than I bargained for when I bought this cheap thing.

I thought handling this wand would be really tough, because I'm not used to using clipless wands.  I the comments on amazon I read horror stories about people who burnt themselves constantly with this thing. Since I believe I'm the most clumsy person in Europe, I already pictured tearful scenes of desperation and third degree burns. The wand comes with a heat protection glove and although it works for the heat, I have to agree with all other users that it's just a pain to use. I gave up on using it very quickly. So, how many times have I burnt myself? Guess what? None! People reading this who don't know me will have to take my word on this, but if I don't burn myself, there's no reason anyone should. If you use this thing how it's supposed to be used, I'm pretty sure you'll be alright.

But is it easy to use? Yes! It's super easy! I like it much better than my iron with clip. I don't have to redo every curl, which is the fact with my iron with clip. Apparently, a clipless iron just works better for clumsy me. I have, however, read about a lot of people who think clipless irons are a lot harder to use, so I can't guarantee you'll like that aspect of the Curl Magic wand.

Some last details about the wand that might be interesting to you are that it has several heat settings (actually quite a lot). I have thick hair and I don't even set it to the highest setting, so it's quite powerful. It also has an on/off button and the bubble on the very tip of the wand is made from a material that doesn't heat up. That's very nice to rest your curling hand on while you wait for the magic to happen. The cord is quite long, but not too long so it doesn't get in the way.  Some people say they find the handle too thin, but I like it a lot. It's not as bulky as most handles, I think it's perfect.

Conclusion: I love, love, love this thing and I don't mind at all that I had to buy an adapter to use it, because this wand is so cheap for what it does. At $22 it's definitely a bargain, considering I paid at least double for my straight barrel curling iron with clip and I like the Curl Magic bubble wand twenty times better. I don't think I'll be switching to my old wand any time soon. You can get a lot of different curly or wavy looks and the curls stay in very long.  My close friend and fellow blogger Anine saw me two days after I'd curled my hair with it and she thought I'd curled it right before we met up.

Warning: keep in mind that to use this thing in Europe, you will need a plug adapter. It can handle dual voltage, so no problem there, but of course the American plug won't fit in European sockets. You can come by a plug adapter very easily online, HOWEVER: the plug is not just an ordinary A-type plug, but an A type with two poles that are different in width. Most European adapters have two holes that are equally large, so make sure you get the right type. It shouldn't be hard to find though, I found mine here.  

As you can see, two different poles, two different holes

If you've been looking for the perfect curling wand, don't hesitate. It might seem like a fuss to use an American one in Europe, but I don't think we have anything that compares to this wand in Europe and it's really worth the effort! If you have any concerns or questions or if you have a curling iron you couldn't miss for the world, please let me know in the comments below.

Lots of light,

Sloppy D.

Open for business!

Yo!

I hereby officially open the Sloppy Diva blog! Hurray! *and there was much rejoicing*

Now, to wait for visitors...

Anyway, have fun! suggestions and stuff welcome :). Hatin' unwelcome. I'm just a fragile little girl who wants to write a little...

What my lips will be wearing all summer

I recently saw some swatches of the L'Oréal Color Riche l'Extraordinaire lipgloss (if you can call it that) online. As I loved some of the vibrant colours for summer, I went on a hunt for them. The first one I found was in 410 fuschia drama.

It looked great! The perfect combo of lipgloss and highly pigmented, flashy colour. I was so excited to try it that I immediately put it on when I got in the car.

I was very disappointed at first (read on, it gets better!). It seemed the colour wouldn't stick to my lips, as I moved it around it just accumulated on the edges of my lips. A bit frustrated (because I did love the colour I had chosen) I drove home, but I kept playing with it with my lips 'cause it tasted like peaches(!) and felt really good. When I looked in the mirror at home I was surprised to see it had spread out beautifully on my lips, with a very classy gloss. 

After that first time I actually never had problems when putting it on anymore. Don't know what went wrong then, but I really love it now. The colour (fuschia drama) is gorgeous. I've been complimented on it a dozen of times. I've worn it nearly every day since I've had it. I even selected my outfits so I could wear the gloss. Because I missed some of my other looks I bought Molto Mauve (500) too. It's a lot more neutral and I didn't like it at first, because I thought it was too close to my own lip colour, but this one grew on me too. It does have a beautiful colour that subtly compliments my own lip colour. I've been wearing this one like crazy too. Can't wait to get more colours! (Which is a pain in Europe, because the stores only carry, like, six...)

These glosses have a peachy scent and taste, I really like it and I can't stand a lot of scents and tastes, so I think they will be fine for most people. As long as you don't drink too much or eat anything they last quite long. When they fade, they have a nice, even fade, so they just get less intense and glossy, but it's not like you'll end up with a line around the edges of your lips. To me, its lasting power is absolutely fine.

This is the first type of lip gloss/lip colour hybrid I've tried and I like it a lot more than a classical lipstick or lip gloss. I barely wore anything else for two weeks when I got it, so I decided it might be interesting to invest in a high end one. A few weeks later, Doir entered my house for the first time. I'll be posting something on the Addict Fluid Stick very soon!

Lots of light,

Sloppy D. 

If l'Occitane was a charity, I'd be a wonderful person

It started like all bad shopping habits start. With a sample. One tiny tube of awesome smelling hand cream made me go into a store I would've never visited before. In my head I had labeled it "overpriced" and therefore "snobby". Once inside, there was no going back. 

I'm not going to talk to you about the hand cream, although it smells like God's flower garden (nope, I have no idea where that came from). Instead  I'll share with you some thoughts about the l'Occitane product line I swear should come with a warning sign, because it's  so addictive it makes you panic twice a day when the thought "but what if they discontinue this?" comes to mind. Agony, I say!

Anyway, I'm talking about the Angelica line. I started using it because I'd been having a lot of trouble with rashes on my face. Breakouts were another common phenomenon to my combo-skin. I figured that was normal, and frankly, I didn't give a damn about how unhealthy my skin was. It's only after I started taking care of it that I realized many of the blemishes on my face could be avoided. That's all thanks to my discovery of the Angelica face care products. If they hadn't been so darn addictive, I would've never used them long enough the see the difference. So allow me to advertise them a little!

I discovered the "crème radieuse" through a sample (figures). When I got it I uninterestedly gave it to my mom, but one day a rash on my face got so bad even I was desperate enough to put something on it. The sample was the only thing at hand, so I rubbed it on without thinking about it too much.  After a few hours, I noticed my face felt weird. It wasn't oily. It even felt soft, fresh and very hydrated. Quite impressing I could still feel that after a few hours, n'est-ce pas?

So, yet another l'Occitane product won me over. About two days later I was at the shop, buying a €33 jar of face cream. Me, a person who had spent a total of about €5 on face care over the previous 22 years of her life. The shop keeper was really nice. We spent a long time going over several products to determine which one would be best for me. After half an hour of debating we ended up deciding my first choice was going to be the best one ('cause that's how us girls roll, ain't it?).

For about six weeks now I've been keeping up with my new skincare routine. First, I wash my face with the Angelica cleansing gel (they have great salespeople at l'Occitane), then I apply the Crème Radieuse and that's that. I do this every morning and every evening. For the first four weeks I thought the only difference it made was that my skin was a little less rashy and definitely less oily, but over the past week I have really noticed a big difference. My face has become a lot less oily in general and feels super soft.

Where I used to get a big pimple about every two days, often even several on a small spot, nowadays I barely get any. I think I've had about three over the past three weeks and those were just tiny, negligible ones. That's a huge difference. I've also noticed a significant decrease in blackheads on my forehead, nose and chin. The rashes have stopped nearly completely. I honestly never thought my face could look like this. Of course, I still have wide pores and it doesn't look perfect, but it's such a big improvement. I'm over the moon!

And then there's that smell... I'm véry picky when it comes to smells and this one is so natural I can honestly say it's my favourite smell in the world right now. It doesn't really smell like a perfume, more like flowers, but not sweet and rosey and still not sharp either. You know what? I'm bad at describing smells. But I can tell you that every time it's on my face I rub some extra underneath my nose and make this face every few seconds:

convincing enough for ya?

The Angelica face cream retails at €33 a jar (50ml) in Europe. For summer they've added a new edition, that's more of a gel and seems great for sweaty days. Can't wait to try that one out. The Angelica Cleansing Gel is €17 for 200ml. The pump on it is great because you always get just the right amount of product and it lasts you ages. 

Just a week ago I've added another Angelica product to my daily face care routine and I've been loving that one too. Stay tuned for a review!

Lots of light,

Sloppy D.

Sloppy what?

Diva! Because there's no reason why I can't be both at the same time.

Just a few weeks ago I would define myself as sloppy. Although it's okay to be and look messy from time to time, it's not okay to neglect yourself, which was exactly what I did.

I've never been one to spend a lot of time in the bathroom before leaving the house. In fact, I barely even looked in the mirror. Not only because I didn't like how I looked, but, and this is worse, because I simply didn't care. Make-up, fashion and pretty things were for pretty girls, no need to waist them on me.

Recently I realized I was wrong and I had every right to take care of myself, because who else would?

So here I am, a twenty-something, overweight girl, taking her first steps in the world of pretty things. I hope you enjoy my journey as much as I do and remember, there's no reason you can't be sloppy and a diva, just make sure you appreciate the beautiful mess you make.

Lots of light,

Sloppy D.

Wake up delight

The first thing I indulged myself with when I got my very first pay, was something I've been wanting for quite some time. I've always loved the idea of a wake-up light. I was very skeptical about their ability to actually wake people, but when I stumbled upon one in a time that I could actually afford to take the risk, I decided to give it a go.

(No time to read the full text? Skip to the conclusion at the bottom instead!)

I bought the cheapest one that was still from a well known brand, which meant I still had to cough up €80. The cheaper ones just look awful and I doubt they are powerful enough to wake you. I could be wrong though, haven't tried them yet.

I love the simplicity of my Philips one. It doesn't have a lot of functions, it's really nice to handle and I actually use every function I paid for. That's quite refreshing for technology nowadays (or do you actually use the stock features on your iPhone? Yeah, me neither...). In a few simple steps it was set up and good to go. I was glad to discover there's still a possibility to play sound along with the light, just to be sure it would definitely wake me. 

The first day I used it, I was surprised to see the light actually woke me up before the sound did. The light starts going on about half an hour before alarm time and gradually increases, like a sunrise. It's actually a really warm, natural light. It's so nice I even use it to fall asleep (there's also a sleep function where the light gradually decreases). I let it start at the lowest light setting, and then it goes out in about 20 minutes. It's so soft I easily fall asleep with it lid. I love it when I'm very tired but I still have to do things like put on cream or something. After I've finished, I don't even have to turn off the light anymore. (what? That can be very annoying when you're sleepy!)

Anyway, so the light wakes me up sometime before the "alarm" goes off. That means I wake up in a very natural way, not with a shock like when I used to have "Raise Your Glass" by Pink as an alarm and she started screaming "right, right, turn off the lights!" at me in the morning. I usually doze off for a few more minutes after the light wakes me up. When I hear blackbirds singing a few minutes later, I know it's actually time to wake up. The sound's so natural I caught my mom looking out my window one morning, wondering since when we had so many blackbirds in town. 

Overall it's made a huge difference for me. It doesn't really feel like I have to wake up. It just feels like my body decides to wake up by itself. You know how it can spoil a song forever when you've used it as an alarm? Well, I have absolutely no problem when I hear blackbirds singing. They make me think of my bed in a good way. 

the most expensive model with docking station

The Philips wake-up light I have costs about €80. There are two more expensive models as far as I know. The first retails at €110. The only difference is that it has 5 wake-up sounds and several colours. Don't know if I would use those, though. The yellow sun-like light is pretty! The most expensive model is about €130. It comes with a docking station for you iPhone or iPod and an app so you can operate the light with them. It also has 8 wake-up sounds. I like the idea of it, but I'm sticking to my "cheap" one, since I try not to take my phone upstairs at night and I certainly don't like leaving it right next to my head as I sleep (it stresses me out).

Conclusion: I knew I would like the warm light of this thing, I just thought it wouldn't wake me up. It does and in a great way. This is definitely not an alarm clock, because I've never woken up alarmed anymore since I've had it. I highly recommend this for all you stressed out people who hate the thought of waking up for another working day.  Great investment!

Lots of light,

Sloppy D.