September 2013 Favourites

Gosh, the months of this year are really flying away! It's so hard to believe it's October already, seemed like just yesterday it was July and we were so proud of ourselves for planning in advance for Halloween! It's really been a busy month, and I've seen myself using these products religiously!

Skincare wise, my skin has been absolutely loving the Queen Helene's Mint Julep Masque. I haven't had that oily skin for quite a while now, but this mask has not dried my skin out one bit. I love the refreshing feeling of slapping this mask on, and it really does the job in clearing out the excess sebum and gunk from the skin. My skin feels so soft when I wash this off too. In terms of performance over monetary value, this is definitely holy grail material.

I've also been mentioning the Kitoko Kalani  Super Aqua Gel to no end this month, so it's no surprise it's ended up in my monthly favourites. If you haven't read my past posts, this gel comes out a.. gel (wow big surprise) but upon spreading out on the skin, it turns into water droplets which are then absorbed by the skin. It's super moisturizing despite feeling like water (not even a serum!) and dries down to a nice matte finish. Skin is also smooth after because it does have a tiny amount of silicon in it (not obvious to feel though) and I find that it does calm skin down. I also like to use it on itchy areas of my body.

When I purchased the Kitoko Kalani Gel, the SA also recommended the Tsaio Herb Too Double Scrub Cleanser. I'm not the kind to stick religiously to any single cleanser because I haven't found the one yet, but I might've just found it in this cleanser. The scent is heavenly. It's probably just perfume, but I'm so addicted to the smell I actually look forward to using my cleanser day and night and after taking off my makeup. I've never smelt any other scent like this so I can't pinpoint what it smells like, but it's clean and herby and slightly citrusy. This cleanser is creamy with little pink spheres in it that gently scrub the skin. It's definitely a very gentle scrub and suitable for use everyday. After massaging it into the skin, upon adding more water, this cleanser foams up into micro-bubbles and washes off to leave the skin feeling ever so soft, yet not squeaky nor dry and taut. I can also vouch for its cleansing ability because my industrial strength toner doesn't remove any remnants after using this cleanser.

The Olay Regenerist Night Resurfacing Essence is something I don't use nightly as the name suggest, but I like to smother my face in this once in a while as a mask. It's not very strong, but I do find skin to feel substantially smoother and look brighter after washing it off.

My last skincare item is not really skincare, but it's this rather unique Chrisyl hairband that can be found only in Takashimaya. It's by no means cheap at SGD$10, but it's just about the most comfortable and secure hairband that I've ever used. When I use this hair band on my bangs, my bangs get a curl that is usually only achievable with tongs or blow drying with a round brush! Super useful for a lazy person like me. The Boy also liked this so much that he purchased one for himself because the teeth of the hairband leave a really nice effect on the hair when worn.

L-R: MAC Wonder-Woman Mineralize Skinfinish in Golden Lariat, MAC Sheen Supreme Lipstick in Tea Ceremony, NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Custard, K-Palette 24Hr Real Lasting Eyeliner in Black

Make up wise, my routine has been simplifying itself as I just don't feel like too much makeup is appropriate for a school look. The NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Custard hasn't been with me for a whole month, but it's definitely sticking around. I've been using this in place of any base and it's the best all rounder concealer I've had. It's got high coverage, is not too dry for the undereyes (MUFE Full Cover I'm looking at cha') yet not too hydrating to slip off blemishes. Major heart eyes for this concealer.

I used to think that the MAC Wonder-Woman Mineralize Skinfinish broke me out, but I recently pulled it out of hiding to give it another shot and my skin has not reacted. I think it's because I've gotten slightly fairer that this trio is working so well with my skin. I've been wearing the bronzer mixed with the blush on my cheeks everyday and absolutely loving how it's working with my skin tone now! I also use the highlighter and blush as an eyeshadow when I feel like getting a little more dressy.

Another surprise for me was that I'd been reaching for the MAC Sheen Supreme lipstick in Tea Ceremony as an everyday lipstick. This lipstick is a pinky brown colour and actually almost exactly the same colour as my lips. In fact, it has a little more brown in it than my lips. It doesn't sound great but it photographs quite a peachy brown and just pulls off any look with a bit more polish without being over the top. The vanilla scent of the MAC lipsticks is also irresistible!

I'm definitely an eyeliner girl, and I've ditched eyeliner in favour of mascaras but ever since getting my fringe cut, I've felt like my eyes needed more definition. I had thought that the K-Palette 24Hr Real Lasting Eyeliner I had was running out of ink, but after not using it for a month the ink seems to have come back in full force! This is the easiest eyeliner to work with, having a flexible brush tip. It's also very long lasting and my 2 sisters and I all can profess our love for this eyeliner. To complement the eyeliner with natural lashes, I've been opting for Majolica Majorca Lash King. My formula has dried since I first had it, but it's less clumpy than ever and adds so much length to my lashes that I cannot resist using it. No smudging or flaking and super long lashes, I couldn't ask for anything more!

So there's my lengthy monthly round up - what are your monthly favourites? I'm looking for a chemical exfoliant other than the Paula's Choice ones, any recommendations?

Empties 2012

Hello lovelies! Hope everyone had a good new year's celebration! Mine was nice and peaceful! I've been MIA for quite some time, but I'm here now! 

This is a post I want to do first because I've been accumulating all these things and I'm quick running out of space and I need to do a spring clean pretty soon. So here are my empties of 2012 or actually, since I decided that I wanted to do an empties post, so it's actually only a few months of 2012

First off, perfumes. I... have varied tastes in perfume. From L-R: Charme by La Perla, Chance by Chanel and Paris Hilton by Paris Hilton. Please don't judge me for using Paris Hilton.

Charme: This was love at first smell. I had to get it. Didn't help that it wasn't too expensive as well. Can't seem to find it anywhere now though! Will repurchase if I chance upon it again.

Chance: I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS. I've been hinting to everyone in my family to get it for me at the airport (this perfume was first passed to me by Mom) and everyone has been steadfastly ignoring me. Too pricey for me to afford at this moment in time T_T But I will definitely get it when I can finally afford it.

Paris Hilton: Was somewhere in the US of A in a perfume shop and asked if they had anything similar to DKNY apple. This was recommended and cheap to boot so I got it. Grew on me after a while and it's really quite fresh and not too sweet smelling (I'm no smell connoisseur). Not sure if I will repurchase. If the price is right I guess.

The trend here seems to be that I'm a cheapo....

 

Makeup items that I've finished. I find it extremely extremely hard to finish anything. So here's the item that I use the most, that is, eyeliners! I have also finished a Shu Uemura foundation but I happily threw that bottle away. That foundation holds the record for the first make up anything that I've finished. Anyway, L-R: H&M Liquid Eyeliner, L'oreal Super Liner, K-Palette Real Lasting Eyeliner 24hr and Rimmel Exaggerate Waterproof Eyeliner.

H&M Liquid Eyeliner: Decent liner for the price but there are better ones out there. I've also realised that the ink turns grey(?) when it's running out.

L'oreal Super Liner: This was a free gift with purchase. Pretty decent, does flake but minimally. I used this till the felt tip went soft and it felt icky to apply. I've recently purchased a similar product - L'oreal Superliner Black Laquer and the brush was soft so I'm not sure if the brush was supposed to be hard or soft in the first place :S

K-Palette: Read my rave review linked above. Tends to be hard to apply when the ink is running out though. Will repurchase but only after I've tried similar products.

Rimmel: This has been by go to pencil liner for quite a few years and I actually bought a backup. It was great all through the first pencil, very minimal smudging and transfer, I loved it. Now I'm on my 2nd pencil and it smudges everywhere so I really don't know what to think ): Will not repurchase anymore. 

Makeup removers L-R: Hada Labo Super Hyaluronic Acid Hydrating Make-up Remover and Mandom Bright Up Cleansing Lotion. I have also finished the Bifesta Cleansing Express but lost the bottle. 

Hada Labo/Bifesta Cleansing Express: Water-based remover, though it was quite heavy, almost like an oil. Stung my eyes but removed make up well without drying out the skin. 

Bifesta Cleansing Lotion: I really do like this cleansing lotion range because I can remove my make up in my room. For the cleansers that require me to wash my face I tend to be lazy and remove my make up prior to showering. The only bad thing about this lotion is that I finish it so fast and I use up my cotton pads really fast too which I don't find sustainable. I will definitely keep a bottle of this concurrent with an oil/oil-feel-but-water-based type of cleanser for lazy days.

The only thing about these cleansers that annoy me is their price point. At nearly $15 or >$15 each, they are extremely expensive and more than twice the price of the Kracie one I'm trying out now. I do really like them though. Such a dilemma *twiddle thumbs*. 

Acne saving products from L-R: Mario Badescu Silver Powder, Benzac AC 10, Neutrogena Pore Refining Toner. Please don't judge me from the sad sad sad state of my products.

Mario Badescu Silver Powder: What I like about this powder is that it is entirely natural with only 3 ingredients so it doesn't irritate the face other than drying it out. It really does work wonders when used after a hot bath and before a pore pack (it really pulls all the shit to the surface of the face!). Used over time, my face did feel less clogged and smoother. The ONE big nuisance about this powder is that when it dries, it flies off my face and before I know it my entire table top/pjs is covered in fine white powder. Other than that, A+ for this product and I'm on my back up now. 

Benzac AC: This worked for me for quite a while, then my skin became quite sensitive so I only used it on huge pimples. It works best on large pimples and can get them flat overnight. I have switched to the 5% one now but my skin is still too sensitive so again, only large pimples but even then, my skin does get red in areas that I've applied it. The only exception to that is my forehead where I'm currently using it in a thin layer. Will not repurchase after I finish the tube.

Neutrogena Pore Refining Toner: Blogged about this before, it's ace. It refines pores, cleanses the face spotless, and even removes make up. I have repurchased this and will continue doing so.

Cute little tubs of skincare from L-R: Laneige Sleeping Pack, Hada Labo Moisturing Cream, My Beauty Diary Rose and White Peony Sleep Concentrate.

Laneige Sleeping Pack: I have 4 of these simply because they are sample packs and came in 4s to match the retail size. Bought from gmarket. I quite like these and my face feels nice and refreshed and plump when I use it. My face isn't too oily in the morning either. Does take a while to sink into the skin though. I also like it as a thin layer as morning moisturizer. I will repurchase this when I run out. 

Hado Labo Moisturizer: This product is quite blah. Though it is moisturizing, it's also sticky and I don't like that on my face. For people who don't mind night products that are sticky, it does work quite well, especially for a water based product, in keeping the face hydrated. I won't repurchase this because I really don't like sticky things that sit on my face.

My Beauty Diary: This product claims to deeply hydrate and brighten. I really really like the texture of this sleeping pack. It soaks into the skin so fast, no matter how thick a layer I put. My skin loved it. It also smells heavenly. For people who don't like fragrance, too bad! I did find that my skin did look brighter when I used this mask, but moisture-wise, this wasn't that great. It also can't be used in the morning under make-up because it flakes off/rolls off in tiny pieces. I found that this mask is great to rejuvenate the skin in the day, then wiped off with toner. I would repurchase it if it wasn't like $20... just because I go through it so fast. Buy it in Hong Kong (I assume) or Taiwan where it's really cheap, like under $10 cheap.

Miscellaneous skincare clockwise L-R: Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Eye Cream, Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair, Aqualabel Brightening White EX, Hada Labo Retinol Essence

Estee Lauder Eye Cream: I love this, it is all I could ask for in an eye cream (apart from helping with dark circles mine can't be saved) I would buy it if I can afford it but I can only afford it during extreme sales. 'Nuff said. 

Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair: I like the texture of this but could not really tell from such a small bottle. Very moisturizing so it was good for dry/oily combo skin like mine. It's something that I would buy when I'm tired of layering skincare and want to whittle my routine down to like, 2 or 3 products. Not yet though...not yet. 

Aqualable Brightening White EX: I finished 2 bottles of this. It's so refreshing on the face it's addictive. Need to use for an extended period of time before brightening results/fading of scars can be seen though. I've decided it's not effective enough to buy a 3rd bottle. 

Hada Labo Retinol Essence: Bought this because I feared wrinkles and I have an *ahem* matured face and was hoping to slow that down so I can look young for longer. I don't have wrinkles so I cannot tell whether this product worked -.- . Texture is nice but sticky. Will not repurchase... yet. I hope I don't get wrinkles for at least 3 decades more (cross fingers). 

So that rounds off the empties reviews I hope it helps some people in striking off some items in their WANT list and hopefully not add too many to that list. Feel free to ask me to elaborate as I've tried to keep each "review" short (though I tend to ramble, I know), or let me know what you think of the products too, maybe? 

Have a good start of year everybutty! <3

K-Palette Zero Kuma Cover Control Concealer (03 Orange Beige)

I love K-Palette for its eye products. And I trust the Japanese. So when I saw that K-Palette had a concealer in the market, I couldn't help myself. 

I have really bad eye rings. I think it comes from 4 years of poor sleeping hours, but then again, my sisters seem to have it too. So it might just be genetic. Whatever it is, I have a hard time concealing them. That's why I bought the Zero Kuma Concealer in 03 Orange Beige.

There are 3 colours. 01 Natural Beige, 02 Yellow Beige, 03 Orange Beige. All are undereye concealers.

I chose 03 as the peach colour is supposed to counter the blue/green eye circles. Yellow doesn't work a single bit. Peach is the best! Also, this concealer claims to improve blood circulation with Swertia Japonica Extract, Silver Birch Leaves Extract and Amino Acid (Glycine), with a beauty serum incorporated to care for the eye area. The ingredients are highlighted in bold at the back of the packaging, hard to miss.

At S$19.90 and 13g of product, it's not exactly very cheap. But with claims like that, I was suckered into it.

It's a really sturdy plastic squeeze tube with a screw on silver cap. I recall the outer packaging being extremely cute with a bear, but the concealer itself bears no hint of "cute" apart from the paw prints. 

I like squeeze tubes because i can control accurately how much product gets dispensed, and this one, being transparent, lets me see how much product I have left. 

I seem to like pictures that look like that recently. The applicator is a smooth slanted tip, very much similar to the shape of doefoot applicators. I do like the concept of it, as well as how the concealer applies from the slanted tip, however, when used that way, product gets all over the applicator and I don't like that. It is also not very hygienic. 

credits to mac swatch: http://karlasugar.net/2009/07/mac-studio-sculpt-foundation/

The product itself is 3/4 way between a cream and a liquid. If you can see from the photo, when applied in a sufficiently thick layer, it doesn't just smooth itself out. Despite it being pretty thick, it does spread very nicely on the skin and blends decently. The colour is a very nice beige tint, however, it is just a tad wayyy too light for my NC30 skin.

It is extremely opaque, so really, a little goes a long way, and plenty of effort goes into blending it out nicely. It is still not enough for my eye rings because mine need serious colour correction, but for the normal eye ring it would be really useful. When I use this, I make sure I blend the colour out on my hand first then dab it on the darkest areas, then I top it up with a normal skin tone corrector.

Check it owwtttt. I caked my entire undereye area! Like I said, this concealer is too light for me, that's why it looks sooooooo caked up. Also, I was suffering from serious dry skin/eyes that day. Well, you can see from the picture that the entire undereye area is the same colour. The coverage is top notch! Just be careful not to apply too much as it will look cakey as with applying too much of anything. I only wish I had a colour match. 

I do cheat a little sometimes on the colour by mixing this with a darker shade. I find that it works quite well to increase coverage of other thinner concealers! 

Being so creamy, I would expect it to crease on me, but really, there's nothing too serious about the caking when I wear this. Lasts 8 hours or so without needing to set with powder. It also doesn't separate from the skin through the day, as I've noticed with some other concealers that start to ride to the surface of the skin. Yuck. I'll save those for another day. 

I haven't noticed... better blood circulation and dissipation of my eye circles, but then again, due to the poor colour match I don't wear it every day. I also would not put too much hope on that as this is a makeup product, not skin care. If I had this in a proper colour match I think it would be possible to go without foundation and just blend this over spots! 

My verdict is that I would like it if I had a better colour match. 

Summary:

Pros:

• Good creamy consistency that spreads well
• Very good pigmentation and coverage
• Doesn't crease undereye
• Lasts long (looks the same through the day)
• Packaging is thought out

Cons:

• No colour match ):
• Looks cakey if too much is applied
• Does not work on dark circles

K-Palette Real Lasting Eyeliner 24h

I feel like a cliche reviewing this, but I do love this. This is my current everyday go to eyeliner. It's pretty much foolproof and doesn't do funky things. The K-palette Real Lasting Eyeliner 24h  or 1 Day Tattoo (No idea what the actual name actually is I'm just listing everything that's written on the pen) is probably the best liquid eyeliner one could use in my opinion. It's idiotproof and I love it. As Japanese brand eyeliners go in Singapore, it's not fantastically cheap again, retailing at S$19.90. This is like the Pilot G Tech (my favourite pen of all time, you know...the one that sells pens of 0.25, 0.4, 0.5 nibs?) of eyeliners.

Besides the fact that I have the limited anniversary edition that is bright pink which I know some girls will gush over and which I will also guiltily admit I bought because it was pink (shy face), I think the normal brown/black case is better because this gold print shows wear and tear like crazy. It just gets pretty scratched up and I don't like that. However because it's pink it's so easy to find when I reach for my eyeliner in the morning. 

Pen snaps shut securely and product doesn't dry out.

No way to cap the cover at the back of the pen!!!! BOO. Seriously, this is something all pen manufacturers need to learn. Despite the pen not being as sleek and single diameter all the way through the length of the pen, it is so much more user friendly to provide somewhere to fit the cap when open. PEEVE. 

I've been using this pen for a month now, almost everyday. The brush is still as perfect as it was when I bought it. Though the ink seems to not be running to the tip of the brush as well as when it was new and I can't tell if it's because there's something wrong or if the ink is running out. If the ink is running out after a month then it's really got the least ink in a pen that I've ever seen, especially since I don't spam thick lines. Pity because I love it so much.

As I mentioned at the start. This eyeliner is idiotproof. It has a calligraphy-type brush for a tip which is just the right stiffness to get good control of the line. I can't say whether I prefer the marker-type/felt tip-type tip for drawing or this flexible brush tip, because both work equally well for me. I do find that a flexible tip allows me to draw nicer and more natural looking flicks that a stiff felt tip. It's also slightly easier to taper the line into a thin edge with a flexible brush.

As you can see from the photo, I can draw thick and thin lines. I can even draw 2 thin lines branching from each other without having them bleed across the skin into each other (though unless you're an artist you'll probably only draw one line on your eye....). Just to be honest I just wanted my thin line to look straight, that's why I drew a branch.

Ink is an intense black that's not the shiny flaky kind of black. Great pigmentation, but please be sure to use a proper cleanser to get this out. My sister used a lousy cleanser with this and she said it left a green line on her eyelid. I don't have a problem when I cleanse.

How it looks like when drawn. You get what you draw because it simply does not bleed.

Lasts all day, very very waterproof through sweat and humid weather. I've worn this and gone full out cycling and it did not budge. I've also taken a long haul flight and then continued a day of touring with this. No fading, it's quite sick. The only thing that budged was the tip of the line where it is thinnest, and that just faded a little, not disappeared. I don't have incredibly oily eyelids, but I have a feeling oil will definitely cause this baby to fade. I haven't heard of any oil-proof liners though...unless it's permanently tattooed eyeliner. owch.

Don't rub eyes vigorously because that WILL rub it away. Apart from that, (for the third time), idiotproof!


summary:

pros:

• cute eye catching packaging (at least the one I have)
• quality brush that does not seem to deteriorate
• proper black pigmentation
• ink does not bleed 
• able to draw variety of lines from thin to thick
• flexible brush head allows good control
• lasts ridiculously long

cons (there's nothing wrong with this, really):

• nowhere to cap the cover when open
• quantity of ink seems to run towards the low side