17Sep 2019

My Favourite New MakeUp Mirror from SimpleHuman

17 Sep 2019 0 Beauty Permalink

Happy Tuesday! Yesterday I arrived in London for a business trip until Thursday. My days are filled with business meetings and delicious meals – so good! But enough of that (check my Instagram to not miss out on any stories), today I am here to talk about my new beauty tech gadget. I am speaking of the Wide-View Sensor Mirror pro from Simplehuman! Sounds extravagant, doesn’t it? Well, it really is a game changer.

For those having read my last few posts, and those that know me, I am such a fan of good lighting! This may sound strange, but for those of you doing your makeup in a bad light, you know the struggle! Our bathroom lights really aren’t good at all, and so I’ve always done my makeup in front of our large bedroom windows, hoping for some natural light. Because, as we all know, natural light is still the best. No one needs an orange makeup line down the jaw before leaving the house :)

Unfortunately, the light outside isn’t always as good, either. Especially now that winter is around the corner again, there will basically be no sunlight before I arrive at the office. But really all year round, a grey cloudy day can ruin everything when it comes to good natural light for your morning makeup routine.

My hubby knew my frustrations and acted (another reason I love him!). A few weeks ago we were looking for a new mirror with light for our bathroom (which we also purchased), when we found this beauty online (here)! What started with us being amazed (we are such gadget nerds!) by the technology descriptions, quickly escalated in an order and delivery a few days later.

This makeup mirror really does it all! And this is NOT sponsored :) It’s got a wide view – basically three mirrors in one, making it possible to see yourself and face from basically every angle! It comes with a small magnetic mirror that you can take off and zooms x10. The light is super natural AND, changes according to your background. Basically, the light changes depending on the light around you. Therefore, I can finally put on my makeup in a completely dark room and still have the most natural light, EVER! Also, so SO cool, is the fact that you can connect it to your app. Basically, I can use a selfie from a certain environment (let’s say candlelight dinner selfie) and the mirror will adjust it’s lighting to “mirror” the light of the place you’ll want your makeup to look natural in. The technology behind it is simply amazing. I have no idea how exactly this works, but I am a huge fan! Also, it turns on automatically once I sit in front of it without even having to turn anything on / or off, that is. So practical!

So yes, the mirror surely isn’t the most inexpensive, but for those looking for a safe bet on getting the best and most natural light, this IS IT. The only negative I’d say, is the small mirror. I would find it more practical if the magnetic field was a little higher up and I wouldn’t have to lean down so far when looking for a close up. Then again, I barely use it so I don’t mind it all too much.

11Sep 2019

7 Must-Have items in my bag

11 Sep 2019 0 Organizational Skills Permalink

Wednesday already! I hope everyone is enjoying the week so far and not stressing themselves overly. Speaking about stress; it’s really gotten to me lately. My stomach is upset a LOT (especially in the evenings) and I am more and more having to deal with anxiety. I would be super happy to receive tipps on what you do against anxiety or any other recommendations you have. I am thinking about starting something to help me off here a little but I need to test and try it first before talking to you guys about it.

So, here we go. I’ve had a discussion with a friend recently about female handbags. Why female you ask? Because we constantly manage to overpack. I am totally on the same page with most of you out there (those that have the same issue) and decided to making a small list and organising myself better before going on trips. Now, it really depends on whether I go by car, train, (I get car and train sick), by plane and how long I travel.

Here however, are my 7 must-have essentials that I try and keep in my bag constantly:

Wallet – it includes everything from my ID to my blood type (yup, always in there), my health insurance card in case something happens, credit cards and some cash. I don’t carry a lot of cash with me most of the times given I feel I spend it way too fast :) though I do like to keep two-three currencies in my bag. In Switzerland that of course would be Swiss Franks, but I usually also carry some Euros and USDs – because well, you never know!
Sunglasses – I always, always, always have a pair in my handbag. Even on a cloudy or rainy day, you never know when the sun peaks out – or when you just want to look super cool. Also, remember it is better for your eyes (if you have sunnies with have UV filter)!
Hand lotion – a must have for me since recently! I was never into hand lotions, though the woman I get my nails done at has been telling me that my hands are too dry for too long. So I decided to now always carry one around with me.
Airpods / Headphones – because you know, music. But really, I love listening to music or podcasts whenever I get the chance! Also, taking a call is always easier hands-free, especially if you have an Italian vibe to you and love to use hand gestures 24/7.
Lipstick – I don’t really use lipstick often. Yet, I do always carry one around just in case. In the end, a good lipstick can save any outfit and make you look party ready when you really aren’t, instantly!
Notebook and pen – I admit it, I love the old school way of writing things down by hand. I usually carry around an agenda, too, though I need to buy new papers to put in there. For now, I am using this cute little notebook for drawing down my notes and thoughts on the go. You never know when that next business idea hits you!
External charger – something I keep forgetting but love having with me SO much. Phones nowadays last much longer than they did 2-3 years ago, yet by far not as long as they used to 10 years ago. Because I am a social media nerd (jk), need to check my emails and be reachable whenever and wherever, my phone has to be charged at all times!

09Sep 2019

Cooking with the Thermomix: for meat lovers

09 Sep 2019 0 Food Permalink

Happy Monday! I hope everyone enjoyed the weekend just as much as we did! Although it rained non-stop yesterday, we had a lovely time at a friends home party. I even got to bake some muffins (vanilla with blueberry and chocolate ones!) and generally we ate like kings yesterday.

Shortly before we went to the home party (not knowing that there would be a cook), we cooked up a meat recipe with our Thermomix at home. The recipe (called Bunter Bauerntopf in German) is super easy and we used one from the German Magazine “mein ZauberTopf“.

Cooking with a Thermomix really is dead easy. I have always wanted one, then became skeptical in the beginning of having it and now I am starting to slowly love it. It really takes so much work from you and can basically do everything from cutting, heating things up, keeping the warm, baking bread, making soups, weighing ingredients, to even making ice cream. Really, it can do almost everything. I believe the new ones even have a function where you can add all ingredients into the Thermomix and tell it to cook at a later time so the food is ready when one gets home / or wants to eat later. So cool! I do still enjoy actual cooking and taking on the whole work once in a while, so I will most likely continue with both strategies!

05Sep 2019

Visiting Frankfurt and speaking about future homes

05 Sep 2019 0 General, Travel Permalink

on the 11th floor in our hotel room at the Hilton Frankfurt City; wearing a Zara outfit and shoes from a small boutique store in Malta

Happy Thursday! Wow, where has the week gone so fast?! I have the feeling the week went by super fast and I barely got as much done as I had hoped. Well no, I did actually get a whole lot done, just not as much in my private life as I had hoped. Either way, we still have Friday and the weekend to come and I am hoping to catch up on some stuff, then.

My dad and I left for business to Frankfurt yesterday by train and arrived in the early evening. Just in time to check another few emails in the hotel room and make our way to the big event. It was HUGE. We were at the Yard in Frankfurt and almost 700 people attended (or so we were told). Really good for networking. We stayed until around midnight and then went back to our hotel – and as tired as I was, I could not fall asleep. So frustrating! It did give me the chance though to calm down and read through some blogs before closing my eyes.

And guys.. the bathroom light. A dream! This may sound a little random but hear me out. Our bathrooms at home are great – they have everything you need (we have two), they are super modern and clean. But they have the worst lighting and it can be SO frustrating at times. I really do not understand how some people can build homes, especially bathrooms, with bad lights. So when we came into the Hilton and I saw the light (even at midnight when everything else was dark in the room), I was amazed. So amazed, that I had to take some selfies, haha.

Believe it or not, this is a mirror I will want to have in my future house. Yes, my house. Ha, I don’t think I have mentioned anything on the blog about it yet but I am already working on my future home. And not just working a little bit, no, I mean really getting together all my inspiration and sources and filing them neatly. What started out with a Pinterest dream years ago already is slowly becoming more and more important to me. It was and always has been my dream to build my own home or renovate a house – whatever it may be. My goal right now, and I am dead serious about it, is to achieving this goal in the very next few years at most. It’s a huge financial commitment and who knows what other stones may be laid in my path before that but I am keen on making it happen.

I also spoke to a woman last night in Frankfurt (the wife of a business partner), whom is an architect. She regularly builds, renovates and styles homes for people of all financial classes (well, rather the upper classes is my guest after our longer talk). Either way, she told me to start a portfolio already now and be sure to put out all pictures and more or less know exactly what I want when the time arrives and I speak to an architect. She says the most money is thrown out when people cannot decide on what they want, or when the architects “need” to help out and decide for them (which is usually more expensive). And even worse – the more you change things during the process the more expensive it gets. She also told me that building from scratch is ALWAYS cheaper than renovating – so that is my ultimate goal. Let’s see, when and how I will be achieving that!

31Aug 2019

Baking for the voluntary fire brigade

31 Aug 2019 0 General Permalink

Happy Saturday! What a week! There was so much going on I barely had time to work on my personal projects, nor update you guys. The week was full of business and business events after I returned from Malta and only today was a little more relaxed – even though I ended up running errands up until now, too. Today the Voluntary Fire Brigade here in Opfikon opened their doors for everyone to see their machinery, their trucks and cars and to see what they work on and how they go about saving lives and, well, houses. It really is interesting to see, and, I even got to fight a fire myself!

As my boyfriend is part of the voluntary fire fighters, I told them I would be more than happy to help in any way I can. And, since I love baking, that is exactly what I did. Not gluten free, not diary free – nope, full on fatty and delicious haha. :) Unfortunately I am not allowed to eat the cake due to the amounts of cream in it but I did try a little bite, and, must admit it is GOOD! It was a chocolate cake with a chocolate cream filling! If anyone is interested in the recipe – do let me know and I am happy to share it! Also, I am quite proud of how it turned out! What do you guys think?

I added the official symbol of the voluntary fire brigade of Opfikon onto the cake! (and added a little fire on the bottom, hehe)

Now I’m off again to the fire brigade with the dogs to pick up my love and then decide whether we will cook at home tonight, go out for dinner or meet my parents for dinner out! So many choices!