All posts filed under: Personal

Back to blogging?

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Hey there! How are you? It’s been a while, I know. Who would have thought? How a worldwide quarantine tricked me out of my blogging confinement.  A whole year has come and gone, a new one has started once more (and what a year 2020 has been up to now). I’ve been away for quite a while, and I’d love to reconnect with you. My lastpost dates back to December 2018, and I kind of hit a wall around that point. In the months prior, I had been running myself ragged, stressing and fretting constantly, not only about life or work, but especially about blogging. Inspiration had flown straight out of the window, that love and passion seemingly evaporated and all but lost, and I just did not want to blog anymore. Sounds crude, I know, but if I’m being completely honest, that’s exactly what it was. I just did not feel like blogging anymore. The ever-changing nature of blogging, Social Media and PR had thrown me for a loop, especially the whole (Instagram) Influencer …

Easy Peasy Summer Breezy Breakfast

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Oh hey, I know, it’s been longer than usual. Life has been so hectic these past few weeks that I haven’t been able to keep up with the blog updates. As much as I love the blog, sometimes life needs to come first and take over. Today started as any other work-from-home day ( it is 10 pm as I’m writing this…). I woke up, had some coffee, got the kids ready from school, dropped them off, kickstarted my computer and went to make myself some breakfast… On the way to the fridge, halfway here to grab some yoghurt, something stopped me in my tracks. I spotted the Lima Spirulina Matcha Express Porridge* in the corner of my eye, and realized that it was time for a shake up of my boring breakfast routine of yoghurt and granola or two slices of bread. I’ve never been a big porridge fan, partly due to the blandness of the flavour of basic porridge and due to a prep time misconception on my part. However, I’ve really been …

Weleda Beauty Balm

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Now here’s a first: I am not madly in love with these balms. And I am not afraid to say it.  Just putting it out there. No cushioning, no beating about the bush, no diplomatic euphemisms, no nothing. My skin doesn’t like these balms, and these balms don’t like my skin. That being said, this in no way, shape or form means that the product on it’s own is bad. It just didn’t do anything for me. So what do I do? Do I launch a tirade, detailing everything that didn’t work? No, because a) Weleda and I go way back and while there is no love lost on this release, there still is a whole lot of love for Weleda and other of their products (Skin Food = divinity!), and b), just because it didn’t match well to my skin, doesn’t mean it can’t be the definition of beauty balm perfection for someone else. So that’s where I am leaving it at. The realisation that not every cream is my kind of cream, and …

Friday Beauty

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Also known as back to basics. Some days you just wake up, jumping for joy at the idea of doing a three or four shadow look, foundation, concealer, eyeliner, the whole shebang. Today is not that kind of day! Today, less is more rules the roost! My skin is in tip top shape, my under eye area is neither blue nor baggy for the first time in God knows when, and I am just loving that ‘no make up’ make up freshness at the moment. Today I took that even further, and took Casual Friday to another level, and streamlined my beauty essentials to the bare minimum. Not pictured, but a firm fixture is my favourites in the Givenchy Teint Couture Balm. I’ve raved and raved and ravved about this one before, so I won’t go into details, but I’m on tube nr 3 (tube nr 4 has already been bought…), and it’s been used so much the lettering has faded from the packaging…. Givenchy and my daily make up stash have found each oher …

The Future Is Female

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Today is International Women’s Day. A day of tribute, of respect, of kindness and strength! A day to rejoice in what binds us, to find solace and encouragement universally, instead of zooming in on our differences. A day to recognize that these traits, these strengths, are not only to be celebrated today, but all day, every day! As the granddaughter of a strong woman, the daughter of an even stronger woman and the mother of the one I hope will the fiercest of us all, I feel honoured! As a friend to a few ladies who inspire me on a daily basis, I feel honoured! Honoured to walk amongst these giants, to live with and learn from them. To support them, live, love and laugh with them! The future is female. platform is here, it’s ours to take it! Love, Leen

Into the Glow

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Into the glow we go! After a long festive season, a polar vortex winter and the mother of all allergic reactions, I am more than ready to welcome Spring and reclaim that glow! I might have to wait a bit longer to feel that first crisp in the air or see those first buds on the trees, but I do have a few new tricks up my sleeve to lightly amp up the volume and get that soft lit-from-within effect I love. Preparation is key, no gorgeous painting without a pristinely prepped blank canvas, so after my morning routine, I apply a thin layer of the Elizabeth Arden Eight Arden Cream. A golden oldie, but as my nan always used say:  ” The classics never go out of style”, and this product is the textbook example of a classic! A thin layer of the thick cream seals in the moisture, acts as a barrier between my skin and the extreme elements we are battling this moment, and functions as a primer for the Bourjois Air …

Sunday Nutella Cookie Funday

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Sundays equal quality time. Quality time with Mr B, quality time with our mini’s, and truth be told, even some me-time (bath + face  mask + silence = heaven). As with most families, our kitchen is the core of the LLS household, and many an hour is spent there, laughing, talking, yelling, working, relaxing and straightout living. A little perusing session a few lunchbreaks ago (oh who I am kidding, I was procrastinating my lunchbreak away) I stumbled across this picture on Tumblr, and it looked just so mouthwatering, so damn delicious! There was no recipe linked, no article to be found, nothing, but just look at those cookies!! Those dollops of (what I believe to be) Nutella, that cookie with it’s crunchy exterior, chewy interior charm, and that finishing touch of a hint of salt to set ofF that indulgent chocolate decadence! Baking has always been a quality moment with our mini’s, a bit of flour here, a splash of sugar there, a stir here and a whisk there, they adore it, and I …

The Banana Bread My Kids Go Bonkers For

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Banana bonkers… that’s a way to describe my kids. We are certified banana lovers over here, whatever way, shape or form is adored, but this banana bread really does take the crown. Several loafs are whipped up every month, and the yellow goodies aren’t the only thing that have my mini’s jumping for joy. This recipe is not only quick and easy, it is also perfect to get your kids involved and let them join in. Mine are always happy to help, and I just love spending that quality time with them, together in the kitchen, making something out of nothing. A few leftover bananas transform into a loaf of love that makes a delicious breakfast (on the go, guilty as charged), a lunchbox extra or a sweet tea time snack. A friend of mine passed me this recipe, without the thrills and frills, and I started playing around with it, adapting it and ended up with this version that is a hit in the LLS household. Here we go! Ingredients: 4 smaller, ripe bananas …

Treading Into Glossier Waters

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Glossier…. Aka the Holy Grail of skincare according to many. I’m sure this is not the first article you’ve read on the brand, God knows how many articles I’ve read on it, but still, I’d like to add in my 2 cents as well. I couldn’t resist temptation any longer, and asked (no, pleaded) sweet Katia to bring me back some Glossier goodies when she hopped across the Atlantic to discover New York, and thanks to her being the amazing friend that she is, I finally got my mittens on some products. All in the name of blogging of course! For those not aware who or what Glossier is (where have you been?), it’s a beauty and skincare brand created by a super savvy woman (Emily Weiss) super savvy women who know what they want: Enhance what you’ve got and flaunt it, instead of hiding it. No frills, no faffing about, but luxury products that work for a price that doesn’t break the bank. Add in smart packaging, formulas that work and a loyal millennial …

Bourjois Rouge Velvet The Lipstick

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It’s Friday, I’m in love! What better way to start the weekend than a kick-ass lipstick and an overflow of shades to choose from? A girl has to have options, right? Bourjois understands that like no other, and launched their Rouge Velvet The Lipstick Collection late last year. A mouth-watering series of 12 matte lipsticks promising to be intensely pigmented and long-wearing, a touch of French glamour and va va voom. Oh la la…. The Rouge Velvet The Lipstick is not the first lipstick collection I’ve tried from Bourjois, and they’ve  proven themselves to be a premium drugstore brand with their previous lippie launches. Their attention to detail sets them aside from their competitors, with the lipstick bullet shaped for precision application and the casing of the lipstick matching the shade inside. Now all that could just be unnecessary extra’s if the lipsticks themselves turn out to be a dud, so I put the 6 shades that I have at home through the ringer over the holidays, and to be honest, I was suitably impressed! The …