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Monday, May 31, 2010

Mini haul from Priceline





couldn't resist! my new phone. Sony Ericsson X10! i waited a whole week to get this phone.



I’m pretty sure a lot of people now know I never stop buying, it’s a matter of trying to restrain myself and I know that never last very long. Hopefully I will be too busy to be buying anymore stuff for a little while.

However I’m always here to share some new stuff I purchase. This time round may not be the nice expensive stuff, but affordable cosmetics that many uses and are very common. My most recent haul consists of 13 items purchased during a sale at Priceline. That’s right they’re what a lot of people would consider as drugstore products.

I came home with 8 items from Boujoris alone and I can say one thing. I hardly have any of their products. The only one I can think of from the top of my head is a green eyeshadow that I picked up somewhere in the bargain basket. Well these items were all purchased because I think everything was 50% off. There were heaps of people crowding the display of it in Priceline that I had to squeeze in to pick up the random bits. I hate crowds when it comes to testing makeup, so everything was quick and simple. Didn’t want to stay in the crowd too long, who knows maybe I might have picked up more if I did.




First off are 3 of their single eyeshadows and I know for a fact I love their packaging. So cute yet simple and their little applicator is a cutie too even though I never use them. I picked up #17 Prune Intense, #92 Gris Pallettes and #16 Ambre Nude. I’ve changed the ways I do my swatches now, so I hope the way I do them now is more of a use than the way I used to. I do two sets of swatches, one naturally without a base or primer and one with a base or primer. Currently I was using Estee lauder eyeshadow base. I find the base provides another view of how vivid the eyeshadows can show up when applied to the eyes that is primed.





I also picked up a pencil, tho I have to admit I’m not sure how it really works. Effet Smoky #73 Deep green is a gorgeous colour without a doubt (see swatch photo). However is it a liner? It has a brush on the other end supposedly used to give you a smoky effect when you smudge it? I think I’ll have to look it up on how to really use this. I was only planning to use it as a eyeliner, but learning how to smudge and make it looks nice sounds like a good plan for me.





Effect 3D Lip glosses in #61 Rose Acidule and #62 Rose gold was the two colours that appealed to me the most at the time. There were 3 other hands grabbing the glosses while I went for them as well. I was actually quite annoyed that some of the ladies were opening the brand new sale items to test them when visibly there was a tester available only they couldn’t be stuffed waiting for someone else to finish with it. How dirty and rude is that? I had to really grab them quick, the ones that were still sealed. The clean untouched ones were not easy to get a hold of and it is the first time I’ve seen people so rude. No one will buy those opened and used products now; I wonder how much loss they make because of a sale like this. The lip glosses in my point of view were a bit thick, sticky as well but the colours were beautiful. They didn’t really all that bad but didn’t smell very nice either so I don’t’ have a problem with that.





Anyway getting along, I picked up two things in the Clubbing product line of Bourjois. Eye liner in absolute black and mascara volume in absolute black as well. There was no tester for either and so I had to take a risk. Had no clue what the brushes were like and had no idea of the consistency or texture of the products. The liner is all good, the typical liner, but it was definitely very black! However it felt rather wet, so I’m worried it would take longer to dry compared to other liquid liners. The mascara however is the second shock in my most recent purchases. Like last time I was disgusted with the Rimmel 1-2-3 look, this time round is no better! I completely scrunched my face up and I really couldn’t help it at all! The wand was oozing with mascara. A major overload of the product and not something I want to be applying to my lashes. I couldn’t help myself, I did a quick light dab onto my hand and look at how much product was on that wand!










Last Bourjois product was actually a powder brush, well to me it was a kabuki styled brush. Something I needed because I’m supposed to have one but for some odd reasons it decided to disappear. I search high and low and everywhere, but I couldn’t find it so I was a bit upset. Since this one was cheap I thought I just buy one to substitute for now, until I find a better one at a decent price. Very soft bristles and it doesn’t scratch the face so I like using it to powder my face after foundation.



Let’s move on from Bourjois, I’ve done enough review for them for the time being. I bought 2 Australis palettes. Would have bought more if I had the chance but I can’t believe how empty the displays were. People must love this brand because these two were the best ones and they were both the same price. Automatically anyone would think the 4 colours one was more worth it.

Out of the blue is a 3 colour palette and I’m sorry I forgot to do swatches for them. No wonder why I couldn’t find the photo for it. They’re the exact same texture as Choc-a-block, which I did do swatches from. Silky and smooth, is love. Easy to apply and easy to blend. Definitely worth going back for some more.










The last two items I bought was just two brushes by Manicare, from their Artiste Professional collection. They weren’t on sales, I don’t think they ever are and I think it was because no one was crowding around them so I ended up there. #17 stippling brush is really soft, but not very dense so I’m not sure how well it’ll work out. #19 Contour brushes, which is very dense yet the bristle are very soft as well. They did have a smell to it and I think it just the chemical smell so I washed them when I got back home. Now they are disinfected and smell beautiful ready for me to use.



Well that’s the end of the mini haul, hope you guys enjoyed it and hope it helped.
Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with any of the companies mentioned and i don't get paid to fo reviews. I purchased all products mentioned with my own money.

Lancome haul and review

I went on a hunt for a better Foundation and concealer, so I gave Lancôme a shot this time round. The young lady behind the counter was very generous and she flashed me a gorgeous smile which already told me she was definitely willing to help me out. I talked to her about finding a good foundation that was good coverage yet not too thick on the skin. She asked me a series of questions that included about my skin condition and whether I wanted it to be oil free or not. She was really helpful and I felt sorry for another customer who was waiting to be served. She spent so much time on me I actually felt like a valued customer.

She let me try a range of foundations to get the feel of the texture and how each one differs. She also took her time testing on my face while I sat in front of a mirror to match my skin tone. She was very generous in recommending different concealers depending on whether I conceal before or after foundation. She actually didn’t recommend that I use finishing powder because my skin is dry during winter but I get oily skin in summer so I normally use it to absorb the oil.

So what did I end up buying?





Lancôme Photogenic Lumessence Foundation
Light-mastering and smoothing makeup 14H comfort, SPF15
01 Beige Albatre

It is definitely light and has a good coverage and I was in heaven when it was been applied on by the lady behind the counter and when I used it at home. It has good coverage and because of my red blemishes it actually tones down the colour of it and I find the colour matches my skin tone really well. I’m currently very happy with this new foundation purchase because I don’t have to use load to get a good coverage yet I feel I’m not really wearing foundation on my face at all. Love the pump on the bottle; nothing satisfies me more than a pump because that way I can pump out small amount at a time to smooth over my entire face without having to over pour or waste excess amount.


Lancôme Effacernes Longue Tenue
Long lasting softening concealer SPF12
01 Beige Albatre

This concealer didn’t really matter whether you apply before or after foundation because it was a matching tone to my foundation. Talk about concealing, this baby does the trick for my bags under my eyes. It makes a big different and I’m loving how well it works. Easy to work with, blends nicely and it’s really soft and smooth during application. I find concealers are always so thick because it has to cover quite well but not this one. I don’t like the tube, it’s not easy to squeeze out so I think that’s probably the only downfall and because of how hard it to deposit it is hard to control how much deposit.

Lancôme Colour Ideal Poudre
Precise match – skin perfecting pressed powder 8H matt effect
01 Beige Albatre

I only tried this one once so I can’t really give much of a review. It is winter season in Australia and its cold so my skin gets dry. I don’t normally use finishing powder because I find it really dries out my skin more and makes it look unpleasant. My first impression of this is it very soft and smooth, but I applied it with a brush instead of the sponge puff it came with. It doesn’t last and it doesn’t fall off your face as fast as other powders do. I’m looking forward to warmer weather when I can finally test this powder to its full potential. However I do love the packaging, it is a simple way of packaging but the flower on the compact cover makes it looks so elegant and a good size to be carrying in a girl’s handbag.




So I spent a good amount on Lancôme but I’m sure I spent my money wise because I will definitely use it heaps and I’ll go back for more, but probably try and find a cheaper place to purchase the products. The purchase came with a free sample gift pack for spending $75 or more and I spent well over that anyway.

The make up bag was huge but the stuff in side is only sample sizes. I do like the large size of the satin blue bag though, perfect holiday bag for my makeup on the go.




Inside came a few test size products that I assume are popular in the Lancôme product range.

Genifique Youth activator 5ml
Bi-facial, non-oily – sensitive eyes instant cleansers 30 ml
Primordial yeux skin recharge, visible smoothing renewing moisturiser SPF 15, 15ml
Primordial yeux skin recharge, visible smoothing renewing eye moisturiser 5ml
Treson Perfume 75ml (love sample sizes because I love taking them when I go on holidays. Small and compact)
Hypnose mascara volume – Noir Hypnotic 2ml
Labsolu crème de brillance lip gloss - #358, 4.5ml
Colour Design Sensational effects eyeshadows 0.05 oz (1.52g) – Filgree, waif, couture, fashion show





Just a pick of the colours inside the palette. Good travel size in my opinion especially if you're only going away for a short while. the colours look like colours you could wear on a daily basis as well.






One last thing that is completely unrelated to Lancôme. I thought I share that I’ve been using Colgate wisp for some time and they’re like these mini toothbrush you can carry in your handbag while you’re out and about. They don’t require any rinsing of the mouth and are definitely very handy for after meals. There are time when we love the occasional meal that have lots of garlic in it or chives and what not that causes bad breath but is all too yummy to resist. There are no worries anymore because with wisp you can clear that bad breath smell before having to feel embarrassed. I’ve been using them for sometime now and I thought there were some cute little things that are worth a try. I love them and I always have a pack in my bag ready to be used.



Have anyone else tried these Lancôme products or any other that they recommend?
How about the wisp? What do you think of them?

Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with the companies mentioned and all products are bought with my own money. I do get paid to do reviews or use their products.
Surprisingly I have a small NYX collection which was everything I bought from overseas due to the fact you cannot purchase this brand in Australia. Bummer! Anyhow this time round during my holiday in Hong Kong I completely forgot about buying NYX products. It really slipped my mind and I’m regretting it. I love their products and it’s not expensive either.



I currently only own 7 single eyeshadows and the full set of 30 pearl mania powders.




Towards the back I also have a set of 10 glitters that I have not once used yet, so I’m not sure why I even bought them.




I have only 3 jumbo pencils in black, blue and purple and one lipstick that I never used even once. 1 lip liner and 2 glitter eyeliners that I bought because I thought they looked cute and the sparkles was alluring to my eyes.




If only I could extend my collection, but how and where can I buy them? Online maybe?

Sunday, May 30, 2010

Mio Piccolo Palette?

Mio Piccolo? What in the world is with the name right? Never heard of it? Neither had I. I got this palette and one more in the purple/blue shades from mum 2 years ago when she went on her trip to Hong Kong. So these are something I unearthed from my clutter of cosmetics from my recent clean out! It’s a Japanese brand so the shadows are very silky smooth and soft. Pigmentation is also good, not great like the MAC ones for example but still good.



I remembered this palette in particular because at one stage I was in love with the peach colour in the collection. That’s why it’s been heavily used compared to the other shades. Anyway was up early in the morning and it was a gloomy day so I didn’t have natural lighting to take photos.



I ended up doing a look using the palette, something simple and quick to do.



without flash
Just noticed i left the peach tag out. It was all over the lid to begin with :p



without flash



with flash



with flash
Had fun the other night before bedtime, because I wasn’t really all that sleepy so I went through some of my stuff. Anyway I pulled out my neglected Manly 120 palette that I have used like a couple of times. I don’t know why but I ended using greens that time. A colour I very seldom wear at all and I would have to admit myself I don’t think I would wear something this bright in broad daylight. Maybe out to some costume party or special event. Never as a casual look though it’s way too bright for my liking.

Here is what the look turned out to be. Excused the plain face and Velcro in the hair, I mean I was about to wash my face and go to bed.



Here are the colours I ended up using for the look.







angle from above without flash and artificial lightings



normal portrait with flash light
What you guys think?
I don’t think I blended the greens together very well so maybe more work in that area.



Saturday, May 29, 2010

FOTD - Purple Amethyst

Just a last post to share my Face of the day with everyone. It was finally a sunny day to start the weekend. It had being pouring like crazy here in Perth, but I guess it was way overdue (the rain that is). Getting ready to spend the day with a couple of girls is always something I look forward to. Lunch, shopping and of course to finish off with a nice cup of coffee in the late afternoon.

I felt quite happy when I woke up this morning so instead of keeping my hair straight and went and quickly curled it with my flat iron. Good old quick flat iron is the way I always curl my hair when just want to give it some loose curls and waves. No need to hassle with hot curlers or the curling tongs.

My make up is quite simple today because for such a nice day there is no need to pile on the makeup and my skin was being great, barely any blemishes at all! All photos were taken with natural light shining through my window so hopefully the colours really stand out or maybe not.



I primed, concealed and put on foundation before hand so go ahead and use the ones that suits you best. Earlier I did a quick review on the Maybelline eyshadow quad on Amethyst Smokey. I used the shimmer purple over the lids and the dark purple to crease and do the outer corners. I skipped the black because I didn’t want to make my eyes look so dark. Then used the white to highlight the brow and the inner corners (eye duct?) of my eyes. I mixed the two purple and lined half of the bottom lash line. Lining the whole lash line would have been too harsh so I only did half of it, where it was from thick to thin as I lined in towards the centre.




I did use eyeliner but I used Arezia diamond liquid eyeliner in purple (code 201437). It’s a glitter liner so you probably can’t really see it in the photos but it is there! I quickly whacked on mascara by Majorca. I added a bit of a pink shade to my cheeks from one of my Suki palettes that I bought in Hong Kong so you can really just pick which ever pink shades you prefer. I finished my lips with Maybelline colour sensation lipstick in Pink Sand (005) and Noir Blanc lip gloss with shea butter in shade number B433.




So here is the complete finish look with glasses on of course, was too lazy to put in my contacts. Sorry about my hair colour, it is way overdue for a recolour but I just got too busy and lazy about it so I left it alone.




Comments are welcome and don't forget to vote in the poll to the right side at the top!

Ecotools and mini Red Earth haul.

Bought these ones sometime ago and then the computer died and I had to fix it. Currently my internet is slow too because I used up my quota so it gone kaput. Well my internet will reset early June so it won’t be too long before it is up to speed again.


This is the first time I’m trying some by Ecotools. I’ve seen them around for some time now, but because they were never big I never really paid much attention to them. That was until Priceline had a sale on them! I bought the set that includes the little bamboo holder, instead of the same set with the bag. They were both the same price but I chose the holder over the bag. It wasn’t like the bag was pretty or anything, and I hardly carry brushes that big in my bags.

Ecotools are a planet friendly company so the products they make have low impact on earth’s resources. Thus they used Bamboo for the handles since it is a sustainable plant. Also listed on the back of the box is that the synthetic taklon bristles are 100% cruelty free and sleek ferrule is made from recycled aluminium. Didn’t get to test them in the store since they’re all pre-packaged, but by looking at them closely I cold see they were going to be soft!



They were absolutely smooth and soft and I loved running the brushes on my face while testing it. They were great and I’m glad I actually bought them, however they don’t really have much of a range of brushes so there isn’t much I can spend on them. Perhaps they’ll make a little more in the future when their products start selling more. The set came with;

Blush brush
Eye shading brush
Angled eyeliner brush
Lash and Brow groomer
Concealer brush





While still at Priceline I quickly browsed the makeup section and nothing seems to be on sale except for Red Earth. I missed the old days back when I was a young teen when they used to have stores around in Perth. They all closed down long long time ago and since then I haven’t really seen them around. Priceline in Australia is currently a store that stocks some of their products. Not much but a decent amount I guess. They are pretty pricey so that’s probably why I haven’t bought any since now. A good 50% off the entire range was good! Still pretty pricey but affordable so I picked a few quick things since the display shelves were quite empty already. I must have gotten in too late!
I picked up their last eye primer on the self, and the tester was missing so I had no idea what it looked like or felt like. When I finally got home and opened it, it was a yellow cream kind of base. It reminds me of the Benefit one, that lemon something. I did try it the next day and it’s not bad at all, but it’s pretty flat so doesn’t really hold all that much product. I think original price was $24 and I got it for $12. I’m not sure I would consider purchasing thins one again; there are better eye primers for nearly the same price as the original price. So something I would have to think about again. I mean it does blend nicely and it does smooth out nicely as well and holds quite a bit. Besides the nice packaging I’m not sure about the price for it.



I also got this face primer, it’s a green base one which helps conceals red blemishes (which I need since I have heaps!). It’s smooth and it’s blendable but I don’t feel it actually really helps that much with blemishes.





Last two were lip glosses, these two colours are something I’ve been looking for. I like these kinds of colours and the last one I had I lost. They’re really slim and light so good to carry around, but they’re rather thick and sticky and not to mention they smell bad. It’s that typical chemical smell! Definitely not surprised with the smell, there are too many out there like that. The colours are nice though, so I guess I wouldn’t mind using them, just don’t smell it.







Have anyone else used Red Earth cosmetics or Ecotools before?
What was your experience with them like?