SMOONSTYLE

'What do to when are are stressed and your body can't relax?'

During stressful periods you can find yourself in a state of non relaxation. Your muscles are tensed and you need to remind yourself to relax them. 

This is definitely the case with me. Whenever I'm stressed, I pull up my shoulders and tense the muscles in my jawline. I carry my laptop, suitcases and my 16 kg boy around and that all together has not been good for my muscles either. 

Last week I suffered from painful knots between my shoulder blades. I've tried to massage them myself.... Normally I don't like to get massages because I've had some bad ones in the past. 

After telling Oliver about my tensed muscles, he surprised me by booking an appointment for a Thai massage. So sweet! 

This woman knew what she was doing. I've had a Thai massage before, but that was about 2 years ago. I have to admit that I am not very consistent with getting massages...

The masseuse found my problem area and worked with all her power to help me to release the knots. Such a tiny woman, but she could probably lift up a bus! She was taking it easy on me, but I was crying from the pain. She said that I need to be treated during a couple of sessions, because she can't massage too hard otherwise she would make it worse.

The next day I was really sore. She told me that that would happen. If someone would touch my back softly, I would squeak. 

Now I am doing better, but I know that I need to take a look in my calendar and schedule some more appointments. Hopefully they won't be so painful.

Another important item is sports. I've been slacking a bit, and ever since the pregnancy I need it more than ever before. The mothers out there can probably relate to this. 

What do you do to relax and take care of your body? A warm bath, meditation, chocolate? ;)

Simone

The Nivea scent takes me back, way back. The perfume is filled with good memories. 

Oliver used to use their original creme for the face.

When I discovered that Nivea released shower mousse's, all three went right in to my shopping card. I didn't think twice for that price ;)

Shower foams are a great way to relax just that extra bit more when you are taking a shower. 

To me it is the most luxurious way to slap on the soap. The mousse never feels cold and is just so soft to the touch.

Compared to the Rituals version, these come out as a mousse right away. The Rituals are a gel that transforms into a foam and doesn't need a shake before use.

Overall, I really like the Nivea Mousse. The scent and the price are unbeatable. So far, the Kneipp and Rituals foams are a bit more moisturizing than the Nivea, but just the slightest.

Price: €2,50 for 200 ml

Simone

Liquid lipsticks are all the rage lately. There are good and bad ones on the market. Lime Crime, Jeffree Star Cosmetics, MAC Cosmetics, Stila, Kat von D, Hourglass, Anastasia Beverly Hills, Colour Pop, and many more. I have tested all those mentioned – some on a daily basis, and some during an EPICA show. Testing them during a show means they are stretched to the max and my mic sometimes touches the lipstick.

Today, I want to show you a cute trio that has been sitting in the corner, waiting to be shown on the blog. I've finally come around to swatch them. They are from Lime Crime and two of these shades are limited edition... sorry about that. The most wearable of them is in the permanent collection.

From the bottom to the top:

Buffy: Greige Nude (Warm-toned grey beige)

Beet It: Deep Berry Pink

Peacock: Teal

Overall, I like them, they are not the best, but not the worst. The color selection is very wide and they are not afraid to think outside of the box. I love blue lipsticks, but this blue makes my teeth look very yellow. I don't have bleached teeth that are whiter than my eyeballs.

Price: $20

www.limecrime.com

15% Off Velvetines Code: VTINEHAUL

Simone

A little wallet that holds enough to get you through visits to the supermarket, clothing shops, and more?

I have found one, thanks to Rob! I love my big Marc Jacobs wallet that fits literally everything, but also weighs like it is filled to the brim. Unfortunately, it doesn't fit in my smaller hand bag. The mini wallets that I own, are not the most practical. I constantly lose my coins and it just doesn't hold everything together well. 

Rob, our base player (that got married today, yay!) showed me his new travel wallet that is from Secrid. It looked very interesting. My mini wallet really needs to retire. I paid a visit to my usual website where I like to shop and came across www.bagageonline.nl where the mini wallets are in all colors of the rainbow with super fast, free shipping. 

Crisple Lemon and Original Black where mine! Absolutely love them. I will be returning the yellow one, because I just love the black one the most. Having a black moment – it is classic and will never go out of style.

The wallet has a card protector as base. It protects your RFID cards from scans. The aluminum case holds 6 flat cards or 4 if the letters are embossed. I put a mix of them and it holds 5 perfectly. You can put put your paper money in the folded plastic interior and even some coins and small paper cards. 

It has been assigned the Red Dot Design Award and is a Dutch product. 

All in all, I think that this is a great little companion to guard your money. It is cute, practical, and safe. 

Thanks Rob for recommending it to me. ;) #robstyledotcom

Simone

Celine is a coveted brand by many fashion lovers. I've tried the original Audrey to then find out that they are way too big for my face. Baby Audrey fits better and looks just the part. 

I would wear my sunglasses at night, if I wouldn't be so night blind. They have always been my favorite accessory and a much needed protection for my sensitive eyes. I don't wear ear rings, wrist bands, hats or piercings. I dress up an outfit with sunglasses whenever I can. 

These shades that I am about to show you are a new frame called 'Pretty'. They are a great mix between stylish and cool. The cat eye combined with a metal bridge. They are bit on the heavy side, so if you are very sensitive, then you might first want to try them on. I recommend them for special occasions, not for sports or long days at Disneyland ;) 

I got mine from smartbuyglasses

Simone

 

It has been a while since I splurged big time on a high end make up product. Ever since I got to know Zoeva, I didn't feel the need to spend big bucks on eyeshadow palettes.

That was until I saw the palettes at Sephora and one of my friends, who is also a make up artist, told me that the Marc Jacobs palettes are amazing and worth the money.

So, I caved in and got 212 'The Dreamer' during the VIB sale. Like that I saved some coins.

The colors each are a dream and a great match with my colors and needs. I love warm toned colors. They suit me best and make my blue eyes pop almost out of my eye socket ;)

You get 7 colors which are all together 7 grams. That is not that much. 

Pigmentation is good, the mattes are a little weak compared to the shimmers.

The packaging is so lovely! It is sleek and elegant. Right up my alley! It won't take much room in your make up bag. You also get a small pouch to protect the cased from scratches. I alway toss those, because I am a lazy bum. Too much of a hassle for me, but great for those that want their precious make up to stay in tact.

I created a summery gold look and didn't go crazy because I had to run out the door to run some errands later that day. Oliver complimented me that he liked the look, so it was approved by the husband. Always a good thing ;)

Price tag: $59

Conclusion: If you are a sucker for packaging and high end brands, this is a nice treat. There are better palettes out there that cost one third, but the packaging is very simple. 

Simone

   

The new Epica album is coming closer. Today we discussed the final details of the artwork. I can tell you that it will be amazing! Yesterday the final sessions for the backing vocals were wrapped. The mixing and mastering will slowly begin. So exciting!

Who would have thought 14 years ago, that I would still be singing on stages all over the world?! Still in high school, nervous and shy to stand in front of a crowd, I can still remember the small list of gigs that we had on our first website, the forum where we communicated with our fans. In between my lessons, I would go online in the computer room to refresh the forum site. Now we are all connected via the phones that are glued to our hands, or stuck in our pants (or in a toilet).

So much has happened since then. Uncountable things to be grateful for. 

Today, I had to go through all the shows of 2013 and 2014 for book keeping and I tried to remember all the shows. Boy, we have toured like crazy since the beginning!

I feel very 'rich' when I think about all the great memories that I have created, the lessons that I have learned, the faces that I have seen singing Epica songs.

On to many more years filled with the good, the bad, and the Epic. ;)

Simone

Being a world traveler, I need an extra battery to keep the mini office running all day (also known as smart phone). even when I am not near an electricity socket. 

While wandering through Schiphol, I passed by their electronics store where I jumped in to make a spontaneous purchase (which mostly is the case), a compact mirror battery pack with a LED ring light inside. Sounds great, and I can tell you that it actually is! 

It is a clever, technical device that also looks beautiful. Targeted at woman that like their electronics to have a more elegant look, Pearl is a great battery pack in the disguise of a compact mirror.

Available in five colors; pink, red, gold, silver and purple. 

The packaging is lovely, super sturdy and not even that heavy. Around 120 grams.

To protect the compact mirror battery pack (mouth full), you also get a pouch with it. Mine broke after opening the side pocket where you are supposed to put your cable in...  

To get it started, you first need to attach it to a power source. I used my laptop, but you can also use your phone charger as well.

Pros: 

- 3 in 1 tool, replaces two separate products

- Build in ring LED- Light

- A real eye catcher

- Works with iphone, ipad, android and any other usb powered device

Cons: 

- Light should be attached to the normal mirror, not the 3x magnifying one.

I prefer to look in the normal mirror, which means that you are lit from below and that is not very flattering. 

- Scratches easily

- Could have more than 3000 mAh

It retails for €35 at the shop in Schiphol. Online, prices may vary.

Simone

A lovely tag is going around the YouTube world that I wanted to jump in on. This is my very first tag that I'm participating in, even though I'm not tagged. Does that even count? Hehe!

The whole idea was started by the very charismatic Sharon Farrell on YouTube. The tag goes by the name #SOCIALPOSITIVITY, spreading good vibes around YouTube and the Internet. I quit YT back in the day because I underestimated the time that goes into making a video. Respect for those who do what they do! Since I am not on YouTube, I do it via my blog.

The rule is that you pick two people. I adore more than two people on the internet, let alone YT, but if I have to choose: I tag Dulce Delight (Raiza Costa) and Jeffree Star to spread the love as well.

Raiza is just a pleasure to watch, and her creativity and editing skills make my day and stomach very happy!

 Jeffree, he is one of the few YouTubers besides Raiza that really make me laugh. I love a little (or in his case, a lot) of dirty jokes. I can handle and appreciate them. He is very open about his life and very fearless at it! I ordered some of his liquid lipsticks and they shipped within half an hour of placing my order. Very excited to wear them!

Go stalk them to let them know I tagged them, and spread some digital love yourself!

Simone