So today's entry has let you wait a bit, sometimes life just takes over. My mum has been in the hospital and she is quite ill so I needed to look after her. Today's is a bit longer as the previous to compensate. Also I am taking questions. If there is anything you would like to know concerning online dating you can leave your question as a comment to this entry or you can leave it as a comment on Instagram. Let's get on with the post!

With your profile all set up you are ready to get active on the dating site.

All the dating site will offer you a way to search for possible candidates. Usually free websites have got a regular search engine in which you can search persons complying certain preferences such as age and gender, as well as the distance to where you are living.

Whereas to paying sites, they offer a more sophisticated way to search. Usually they will offer you "candidate proposals". Based on the personally quiz you took when you signed up at the website as well as your preferences, they will reveal a certain number of candidates to you each week.
They might also have a function in which they present certain candidates who might be interesting for you, however they do not meet all of your preferences. For instance they might live further away or may not fit you age preference. It is interesting to check these out, since it might give you more options. However keep in mind the blog from last week, your "essentials" shouldn't change. Maybe a year older than you prefer isn't that bad, but if he got cats while you're allergic to them, that's simply not going work.

While you are going through the profiles that are presented to you, keep in mind to look further than the picture on the profile. I know I said last week that you will get judged on your profile picture, however it’s important to see beyond that. It’s like they say you can’t judge a book by its cover, the inside of a person is as important, if not even more important as the outside.

So when you find a profile, I would suggest that you read the profile entirely. See whether the person has taken time to fill up his/her profile, see whether you like what he or she has put on his profile and whether it is consistent with the list you put together of what you are looking for.

If he/she is, you can engage in conversation. When it comes to the free sites, you are able to send a message directly to the person. The paying sites usually have some sort of trajectory you have to follow. You can send a message directly however they advice against it. They offer a few steps in order to get to know each other before you engage in a conversation.

The first step that the site I used to be on offer was to smile at someone, which you could do when you really like their profile. This could also be used to gain someone's attention, because maybe that person didn't get you in their partner proposals.
The next step was to like or comment the profile of the other person, for instance if you like their hobbies or whether you want to comment you also practice the same sport.
Then, you could send over five questions. These are multiple choice question you could pick out of a list of predesigned question. The nice part about these question is that you already get to know a little bit more about the person. The thing I also really like about this is that there were three fixed answers and one open question. So if the person you are sending these questions to, doesn't find himself/herself in the answers he/she could fill in something entirely different or a combination of the fixed answers.
The next of the trajectory was to send each other preferences, I never used this, so I don't really recall what this was exactly.
I used to skip from the questions to the final step which is messaging. If you really like the answers you got to your questions, you can send the person a message or you can wait a few days to see whether he/she will send you a message. However don't wait too long, there are many persons active online, so someone might just steal your prince charming away from underneath your nose!

For this next part you will need to create your profile.

When you sign up for the dating site you will be asked to answer an extended personality test. Though I don't recall exactly the questions of this test, it were short statements and you had to decide whether you would rather agree or disagree with them. With this test the site pretends to determine which candidates would be a good fit for you.

Apart from this test you will need to create your own profile. And just as in real life you will get judged on your appearance. So it is important to have a good profile picture. Take your time in making one and deciding which one you are going to use. You want to leave a good impression of yourself and at the same time distinguish yourself from the others.

A good advice I have heard, is to upload one or two good pictures at first. Don't upload thirty pictures at once. Instead upload a new picture once a few weeks have passed so that the other users on the dating site get a notification that you have uploaded a new picture and they will be inclined to visit your profile to have a look.

Further on, I believe it is also important to provide a sufficient amount of information on your profile. usually the website will have a certain layout with information boxes, such as "About you", "Hobbies", "What are you looking for?". There are also checkboxes to indicate whether you are a smoker, whether you drink or whether you want to have children.

Filling in these boxes will help possible candidates to decide whether or not they will get in contact with you or not. Even though at first they might not be attracted to your picture, there are guys who will continue to read your profile and they might be persuaded by the rest of your profile.

Remembers there is no readymade answers in filling in your profile, you just have to be yourself!

If you have any questions you want me to handle, leave a comment on this post. I will answer them in the next installments of this series!

I know, usually on Wednesday's you are here waiting for the next installment of the Online Dating Series. And you probably noticed there wasn't one published today but fear not, it will be online tomorrow.

I just wanted to take this moment to explain why the blog was delayed by a day. Even though I had the post almost ready yesterday evening, it just missed something. Over the past couple of days a lot went on and I have been deciding whether or not to comment on it. Because I found that in expressing my opinion on this subject, I might offend some people.

We all know about Paris (#Pray4Paris). Don't get me wrong, Paris never should have happened, I am not approving the actions what so ever. When that happened me and my partner were on a holiday in London, so we only heard about it the next day. And you know, you don't want to show fear but all of a sudden you seem  more aware of the people surrounding you. There was this moment that my partner and I basically got out of the underground because we didn't trust this one guy, mumbling to himself. Obviously nothing happened, that person was probably just praying to himself, but you start paying attention to everything, just in case.

I still got to write about our trip to London, we did some sightseeing and of course some shopping (read quite a lot actually!).

But it was when we got home that we realized the impact Paris would have on our daily lives. All of a sudden Belgium was pointed the finger for being responsible because the terrorists were radical Muslims with the Belgian nationality. While what they say about Muslims is also true about Belgians. Not all Belgians are terrorist.

Since the attacks, the "terror treat level" was risen to 3 and last Saturday to 4 for Brussels. Four is the highest level possible, meaning that an attack is very likely to happen and the police and military are more present on the streets in order to prevent such from happening. There was the anti-terror operation on Sunday night, in which the police asked the public not to report on the officer's movements, in which the Belgians responded in tweeting cats.

At this point the treat levels stays up, but it appears that life is slowly pulling itself together again.

On a more positive note I finished the first six months on the job last week. I am currently working through an employment agency. Finishing six months, basically gives the company I am working for to take over the contract from the employment agency without having to pay an extra fee. So fingers crossed!

So I hope you will enjoy the next installment of the Online Dating Series tomorrow and talk to you soon!

These new babies just got in a couple of days ago and I just had to share them with you. This is the new Real Techniques Bold Metals Collection. They have been released since the beginning of the year, however they were only just released in Belgium, yay! So I just had to get my hand on these. Unfortunately they were such a success, plus there was the 10% off promotion, that they were sold out quite fast. And I was only able to get one of the brushes here in store and the store owner couldn’t tell me when they were getting any more of these brushes. Luckily I was able to order them at a Spanish online shop, where I had ordered before. At that point they were having a 21% off promotion, so with shipping added to the price they were as expensive as if I would have gotten them in the shop here with the 10% off promotion.

Nic and Sam are very successful in the Youtube world by now. They launched their first brush series back in 2010-2011. This is their “Basic Line” and rest assured, these are not going to leave the shop shelves. Compared to the new brushes these are less expensive and soft and basically I use them almost every time that I do my makeup. But these new brushes, the “Bold Metal Collection” are a bit more premium, more expensive.

The brushes themselves are a bit more heavier, because they are weighted so that they fit perfectly into you hand. Plus the bristles are softer.

Like I said these just got in, I still haven’t gotten around using these, since I wanted to take pictures of them with them being clean. One of my concerns at this point is that the bristles are white so it might be difficult to keep them white.

200 18,99 euro, 201 18,99 euro and 202 18,99 euro

200 Oval Shadow: Great for blending

201 Pointed Crease: Great for putting eye shadows in the crease

202 Angled Liner: Use for eyeliner or brows

100 29,99 euro and 101 27,99 euro

100 Arched powder Brush: Perfect to apply powder, powder foundation or bronzer.

101 Triangel foundation Brush: Can be used for foundation, buffing in, contouring

300 27,99 euro and 301 29,99 euro

300 Tapered Brush: Blush brush

301 Flat contour: Contouring brush

Do you have these brushes? What is your experience with the brushes?

• What kind of relationship are you looking for? (Long term relationship/Short term benefits)
• Are you ready to be in a serious relationship?
• What kind of characteristics do you like your future partner to have, which ones not?
• When you look for someone with whom to share your life, what is the most important thing you see?
• Describe yourself (strengths, fears, dreams, character qualities....)
• Note down characteristics you look for in a possible partner, good/bad habits. Note whether these are essential, flexible, good but not essential. The absolute "No-No's" and the prefer he doesn't have or do.

 

• 4 White onions
• 1 litre Organic Beef stockRGANIC / Chicken Stock/ Veg stock
• Rustic Bread
• 30g Salted butter
• Cheese

These days it seems harder and harder to meet someone in the real world. Maybe you are one of those lucky few who meet their partner during high school and stay together forever. But if you are not, things might be a little more complicated.

This is so my experience. I was far from Miss popular. I had my first boyfriend when I was eighteen years old, but due to the distance between us and time spent at university it simply didn't last.

While back in the day, when my parents were younger say about thirty years ago, people would meet up in bars, I feel like that has changed and discotheques (clubs) have become hunting grounds for a new conquest for the night. Or maybe that just says something about the discotheques I used to visit.

Over the last few years a new phenomenon has risen: Internet dating.

In this series I want to talk to you about the good, the bad and the ugly when it comes to Internet dating. This all will come from my personal experience and from those near to me who have also done their fair part of dating on the Internet.

Stay tuned to discover whether I found my Prince Charming on the World Wide Web..

“In the aftermath of a family tragedy, an aspiring author is torn between love for her childhood friend and the temptation of a mysterious outsider. Trying to escape the ghosts of her past, she is swept away to a house that breathes, bleeds - and remembers.”

• 119 minutes
• Drama / Fantasy / Horror
• Director: Guillermo del Toro (Known from “Pan’s Labyrint”, “Pacific Rim”, “Hellboy”)
• Writers: Guillermo del Toro, Matthew Robbins
• Stars: Mia Wasikowska (Known for “Alice in Wonderland”), Jessica Chastain, Tom Hiddleston (Known for “The Avengers” & “Thor”), Charlie Hunnam (Known for “Sons of Anarchy” & “Pacific Rim”),…

Tonight is the night dead rise from the death. Tonight is also the night I bring my blog back from the death.

I look at my timeline and I can’t believe it has been over three months since my last post, which was supposed to be my big return but yes life got in the way of that once again. And I am sure you are probably tired of hearing this, but yes… I am having another go at this.

At this point I have an entire team behind me, I have support and I have my girl Rachael who is going to help me out. So I am feeling very good about this right now and lately I feel more energetic than the last couple of months.

I won’t make you any promises but I will do my best in updating this blog and creating a place you can come back to and enjoy the posts that we will bring.

Thank you for sticking what me!

Summer has officially arrived. For the last days it’s been extremely hot here in Belgium, too hot. Basically no one is really prepared for this kind of heat. Over the past days we were up to 35ºC and up. However it was said that today, with 40ºC would be the hottest day of all, allowing us if all went well to be the record on highest temperature, which was previously at 38,6ºC (8th of August 2003). We are still waiting for the official number to come in, but let me tell you, it’s be too hot to even leave the house or to do anything.

So what better to do then to work on my blog…

As you might notice, I have put up a new layout. It is a temporary one until I finish the one I really want to put up. For me this new layout, also symbolizes a brand new start. I know I have probably said this before, but life simply has gotten in the way for a few months. I have moved in with my boyfriend, meaning a lot of my things still haven’t gotten to leave their moving box and it has taken a lot of planning to get everything rolling, I have also started a new job, so it has been a bit hectic. I know it’s no excuse, but sometimes life simply takes over.

For those who are still sticking with me after all this time, thank you for following me. For those who are just discovering this site, welcome!

I still haven’t decided what kind of articles I want to put up, but I want to make it more than it was, more than makeup. I want to show you part of my life. I am also up on Instagram again, so you can follow me at thefreckledsoul for more updates. And I will see you all soon again!

Let’s do some cooking today. And you just have to admit it, who does not love a yummy, sweet dessert. I made this mousse using the delicious Oreo cookies. I am sure you all have heard about them and have tried them. I simply can’t keep my hand off of them. So, will you cook with me?

It is still spring but these days it really feels like summer has arrived. April does tend to bring hot summer weather here in Belgium, so we want to enjoy it to the maximum, while it lasts. Taking walks in the woods or enjoying ice-cream in an outdoor café or taking the opportunity to do some gardening.

It’s been almost a month since my last post and it feel like march and the beginning of this month simply have gotten away from me. There has been so much to do these last weeks. I have been job hunting, doing job interviews, at least one a week, sometimes even two. Next Tuesday I will be starting my new job, so I am really excited.

Plus I have been preparing my big move. Next month I will be moving in with my boyfriend and it seems like there is still so much work that need to be done. I have lived on my own before, but it’ll be my first time living together, plus the apartment I rented back then was fully equipped. Personally I am moving about 10 kilometres from where I am living at this point, from my boyfriend it is only a couple of hundred metres. I never knew so many things needed to be done. It’s been couch shopping, kitchen utilities… boxing up my things, cleaning out the closets, looking for furniture… I do feel blessed my family is helping me a lot during these days, borrowing utilities, plates, cups,… so we can still save a bit of money.

So I want to apologize upfront if posts slow down over the next weeks. Things are going to get quite hectic once we start moving and I am not sure whether we will have internet right away.

As some of you might know, I will be moving in 6 weeks and I have started to prepare the move little by little. For me this has given me the opportunity to go through my makeup and toss out some products that I don’t use anymore because they are simply too old or because I never really cared for them.

Want to see what I tossed? Keep on reading…

Finally after two years I finally got my first BACK2MAC empty… yes finally. Did I love this product, did I hate? Keep reading to discover my review.

(Available in Spanish at NeshamaBeauty)

Products used:

- Maybelline Color show street artist #04 Alley Attitude
- Yes love #337 white
- Yesensy #1526-022 turquoise

Instructions

1. Apply a base colour. I applied a white colour nail polish on all my nails. Make sure you let the nail polish dry completely after each step.
2. Add a second coat. Since the white nail polish wasn’t too opaque I applied a second coat on those fingers that would remain white.
3. Add the turquoise nail polish to the fingers you want to have in another colour. I picked the thumb and the ring finger.
4. Final step: Add the top coat “Alley Attitude” by Maybelline to achieve the speckled look

What do you think of this look?

Ingredients (for 6 cakes)

• 90 gr of cookies (I used Maria cookies, but petit beurres would also do the trick)
• 90 gr of butter
• 50 gr of powdered sugar
• 300 gr of apples
• 30 gr of sugar
• 25 gr of brown sugar
• 20 gr of flour
• nutmeg, cinnamon (add according to own preference)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius.
2. Grease the cake moulds with a non-stick butter spray.
3. Crunch the cookies to create crumble.
4. Melt the butter in the microwave during 30 secs. It doesn’t need to be entirely melted, it’ll be very soft if there are still pieces that aren’t completely melted.
5. Mix the cookie crumble with the powdered sugar and butter.
6. Evenly distribute the mixture in the cake moulds. Press it along the bottom and the sides to create a “cup”.
7. Bake for 5 minutes and let it cool completely.
8. Peel and chop the apples into little pieces.
9. Mix the apples, the sugar, the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg.
10. Add to a dish and bake during 5 minutes in the microwave until the apples are getting soft
11. Scoop the apples into the backed cups. You can add a bit of cookie crumbs on top
12. Bake for 10 minutes on 160 degrees.
13. Let them cool completely before removing the cakes from the moulds