My Everyday Go-To Blushers

Not sure how many times I've written this, but blush is one of my favourite products to use. It's just one of those things that makes me feel happier when wearing it because I know I no longer look like a corpse.

My preferences lean towards pink colours, more specifically ones that can create a dolly or child-like cheek, although I do occasionally use an orange tone blush. I usually sweep the colour just above the apple of my cheek to create a cuter and more natural effect. I know its written everywhere to apply blush directly to the apples of your cheeks, but I don't think it's flattering for my specific face shape.

Everyone has their own favourite blushes, and here are mine :)

Top row L-R: Mac Well Dressed. Bourjois Rose Frission
Bottom row L-R: Bourjois Rose D'Or. Barry M 05 Orange blush 

MAC Well Dressed Blush

A pale bubblegum pink with delicate silver shimmers.

I love how this blush imparts a light pink glow on my cheeks, making my complexion look brighter and cuter. Its satiny finish doesn't leave skin overly shimmery and applies and blends easily. 

This blusher is quite pale though, so most probably won't show up darker skin tones :(

Bourjous Rose D'Or Blush

Aside from these blushes having a habit of frosting over when used over a period of time, (which is why both Bourjois blushes have scratch marks over them so I can get more colour out of them), I really love the colour of this blush. It's a medium rosey coloured blush with silver and multi-tonal shimmers. I would describe its effect as innocently ethereal.

Bourjois Rose Frisson Blush
That's right, another Bourjois blush! This one is a lot more red based than Rose D'Or and has fewer noticeable shimmers, it leaves a more obvious finish and makes you look as if you've just finished some light exercise. That can't be bad, right? :D

Barry M 05 Orange Blush
The only non-pink blush I use frequently! This blush is SUPER pigmented so you have to use a light hand, but it gives me a fresh faced look without making my cheeks look an odd tanned colour.

What are your favourite blushes? ^^

Jia
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Kate Eyebrow Pencil Review

I only caught onto how important eyebrows were some time mid last year. I first used a matte black eyeshadow to define my arch and fill in sparse spots on my eyebrows, then decided I wanted to try out an eyebrow pencil. After searching high and low on the internet for reviews, I settled for the Kate Eyebrow Pencil. I must say, I absolutely love it.

The pencil is packaged in a simple, small and slim twist up design. At first I disliked the fact that it didn't come with a lid, but the product hasn't been affected by the lack of a lid at all. You get around 2.5cm of product which seems like hardly anything, but it lasts for ages! I bought my first one last August and i have just about 0.5cm of product left. Not bad for around 9 months of use!

Just a small amount left! But it'll last me a while yet.

 The pencil is sort of dry in texture but soft enough so you can create strokes of softer or firmer colour depending on how hard you press the pencil to your eyebrows. The swatch shows the pencil to have rather light pigmentation, but once used on the brows it seems to have a better colour pay off. The pencil also doesn't have the waxy texture that a lot of brow pencils have so your brows will look natural and not gunky and stuck unnaturally to your face.

Swatch! I had to swipe the pencil 10 times to get this colour pay off

And this is how it looks on my brows. I filled in the brow on the left so you can compare the difference, and I must say there's a pretty big one! My brows look naturally dark and defined and the hairs aren't all gooped together.

To use this, first I fill in the ends of my eyebrows. I define the arch, create a slightly longer tail and colour in sparse areas. I don't use this for the head of the brow though as I'm generally quite heavy handed hence prefer using black shadow for the rest of the brow. I also follow the pencil with black matte shadow to set the pencil, but I have used it alone before and my brows look perfect till I remove my make up.

If you've applied a little too much pencil, just use a spoolie to brush off excess colour. Be warned that when you do this, the excess pencil with crumble off in tiny black specks, but a quick sweep of a powder brush will sort this problem. 

I use the colour BK which is perfect for me. The range also includes seven different shades, from blonde and varying shades of brown. I paid a mere $44 HKD for this pencil and for the quality that you get and the longevity of this product, it's definitely worth buying and stocking up on. 10/10 for sure!

Jia

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Trying Out Gyaru Eye Make Up!

I've always loved gyaru make up but never weat it out, I personally think I can't pull it off very well plus it seems a little dramatic for daywear with all the falsies and circle lenses. Still I can't resist doing gyaru style make up every now and again.

I got a little bored this evening and decided to try out two styles, the droopy eye make up and one inspired by Tsubasa Masuwaka. The droopy eye make up looked very odd indeed! I don't think I did it right to be honest as it looks a little messy, but I'm generally not a fan of that specific look anyway. I'm quite happy with how the other look turned out though, it looks quite natural and makes my eyes look bigger. I must say, I do like how this type of make up can really transform your look! ^^

I wore the GEO Tri Colour Lenses in green; without make up these lenses make me look super creepy! Like a lizard +_+ Light coloured lenses that aren't brown look really strange on me (like these purple lenses I bought from Acuvue years ago) but with make up, my eyes really stood out and I actually found the colour rather pretty. I also used Dollwyink lashes for these looks: 11 Pure Sweet and 14 Natural Cute. 

Do you like gyaru make up?

^^

Jia

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Embryolisse Lait Creme Concentre: Worth all the hype?

Many of you stalkers of the beauty world would have already heard of this French moistursing cream: Embryolisse's Lait-Creme Concentre. Make up artists all over the world are fans, as are supermodels and new born babies. However is it really as good as people say?

Lait-Creme Concentre claims to 'accelerate cell renewal, reconstitutes the hydrolipidic film, and retains water in the skin' to leave skin smoothed, plumped and soft. It has been made with ingredients that have been carefully selected to not aggravate delicate skin. It also doesn't use parabens to preserve the product, which I'm sure will be of high interest to many of you chemical conscious readers :) It comes packaged in a metal tube which I'm not bothered about, but it may become pierced when you have to squeeze the life out of it to get the last drops out.

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The Magical Ingredients of Lait-Creme Concentre

Shea Butter

Rich in essential fatty acids

Contains vitamins A, D and E

Beeswax

Protects and softens skin.

Acts as a barrier to prevent water evaporating from skin.

Aloe Vera

Contains vitamins A, B and E, selenium (and anti-oxidant),

amino acids and essential fatty acids.

Soy proteins

Firms and moisturises skin by stimulating collagen fibres.

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The cream has multiple purposes; you can use it as a cleanser, face mask, after-sun lotion, shaving product for men and of course a moisturiser. I have only ever used it as a moisturiser as I'm not one to stay out in the sun, don't need to shave my face and I find it to be quite a waste to use this as a face mask if it means I need to wipe it off afterwards. I've also never used it to cleanse my skin. I prefer to massage my cleansing product over my skin to remove make up and dirt hence need something with slip and isn't absorbed easily. My skin just laps up the lait-creme concentre so it doesn't leave me enough time to properly cleanse my skin. 

The texture is smooth and silky and slightly runny. It is easy to spread and absorbs easily into the skin, leaving a satin finish on my skin. It also has a gentle and calming smell that I find really comforting. Embryolisse describes this as the smell of childhood. I really enjoy using this moisturiser during winter when my skin likes to be extra dry as it leaves my skin feeling soft and nourished without being overly greasy. I also use it when my skin is having an allergic reaction to something as this cream doesn't aggravate my skin any further and doesn't sting any open wounds I may have.

The smooth texture blends to a satiny finish that feels comforting on the skin.

I would describe this cream as a good moisturiser suited for people with dry and/or sensitive skin who wants a product that provides decent levels of moisture and can act as an anti-aging product. I don't think it would suit people with oily or acne prone skin as one of the top ingredients is mineral oil. I do find it a nice cream to use but to be honest I wouldn't say its a miracle cream that everyone should own. I can't remember how much I paid for this but it usually costs over £10 for 75ml tube.

Jia

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Tony Moly Bunny Petite Bunny Gloss Bars!

As a lipstick hoarder, I couldn't say no to these gloss bars from Tony Moly. I love lipsticks that add a noticeable wash of colour on my lips without that obvious I'm-wearing-lipstick look, hence these were perfect. They add a lovely bright pop of colour without leaving a shiny waxy film on your lips, just a slight shine as if you're wearing a lip balm.

I bought two different colours: Juicy Cherry and Juicy Orange. Their little faces always make me smile, too. The cherry gloss looks annoyed whereas the orange bar looks angry. What's not to love?! XD

The orange gloss bar is a vibrant warm orange that contains tiny particles of silver shimmer (you can just about see them in the picture below) but they aren't very visible when worn and the cherry gloss bar is a solid red-pink colour. They smell yummy, too! The orange reminds me of sherbet and the cherry like some other sweet whose name I cannot remember right now. It's a sweet smell though and that's the important bit XD

Swatches under flash and natural lighting. Don't think I need to label which is which. These were all just two swipes of colour. These gloss bars can provide sheer washes of colour but are buildable to quite a high intensity. I wore a couple of swipes of the orange gloss bar on the centre of my lips today, blended the colour outwards and achieved a lovely gradient lip.

As I mentioned earlier, these gloss bars are like a lip balm. They give a nice wash of moisture but aren't overly slippery. I do find the effect wears off after an hour or so, but the colour fades evenly so you can reapply the gloss bar or just a normal lip balm over it.

The gloss bars are dispensed by the usual twist-up mechanism, and its small diameter makes it easy to apply without going over your lipline accidentally. My cherry gloss balm does have a habit of not winding down fully though if I twist up too much product, so I have to push it down manually sometimes TT

And finally some lip swatches all taken by a window. The top picture is my bare lips just so you can compare colours. The middle is Juicy Cherry and the bottom is Juicy Orange. All swatches were two swipes of colour also.

I think I paid $79 HKD each for these gloss bars, which I think is a pretty good deal and would definitely repurchase them.

Jia

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Heat Jewel Hybrid Eyeliner in Cocoa Review

I picked up a liquid brown eyeliner in Hong Kong because I wanted to see if brown would look good on me, but didn't want to spend too much money in case I didn't like it. This seemed like the perfect choice as it was the cheapest one and looked super cute XD 

I can't read Japanese (but have included back and front views of the packaging in case anyone can read Japanese and would like to read it) but from the Sasa site it seems the eyeliner is highly water resistant, and contains hyaluronic acid, panthenol silk, aloe and honey extracts to hydrate the skin on your eyes and condition lashes. It also has a 0.1mm fine tip brush and the pen design allows you to use every last drop of eyeliner. The eyeliner is also easily removed with warm water. 

Handbags and jewels? How pretty! ^^

Anyone for a translation?

The pen itself is a chocolate brown colour with pretty gold accents. I really like the designs on the pen as I find it princessy and cute ^^

I've been using this eyeliner for a few months no and have found the pigmentation to still be the same as when it was new. I'm not sure how they measure the 0.1mm tip but as you can see, the brush really is quite fine. 

 The eyeliner pigment is also quite buildable. The stroke on the right side is just to show the pen can draw very narrow eyelines and the following three to show pigmentation. The second line consists of one stroke of liner, the third line has two strokes and the fourth line has three strokes. The colours looks the same but if you look carefully they do gradually get darker as you go to the right.

I then performed a rub test with my finger to show this eyeliner is quite amazing at staying put. Here I rubbed really hard once.

 Here I rubbed it a second time.

 And finally the liner had come off by the third rub.

I know you're probably thinking 'Only three rubs and it's all gone?!'.

I rubbed really hard on the liner! Something you would (hopefully) never do to the skin on your eye!

Whenever I use this to draw my eyelines, it looks almost the same by the end of the day as it did in the morning. There is sometimes a little fading at the outer corner of my eye and the liner at the inner corner has pretty much gone (my eyes water quite often but I can't tell anyway due to the way my eyelids are), but other than that my liner looks pretty much perfect.

Another thing I love about this pen is that if I make a mistake, I can use a damp cotton bud to easily correct the mistake. This makes me question why they say the eyeliner is water resistant though, but then again lots of Japanese cosmetics have the same claim of being water resistant but easily removed with warm water.

As I don't use this everyday, I can't say it makes an amazing difference to the quality of my lashes or the skin where I apply this eyeliner, but I think it's worth mentioning that this pen hasn't irritated my eyes, even when I'm wearing contact lenses.

I really love this liner pen because it's simple to use, allows me to easily create winged eyelines, stays put for most of the day and doesn't rub off or smudge when my eyelids get a little oily during the day. 

Although it isn't truly water proof, this slimline pen is easy enough to carry with you for touch ups.

I bought this for $79 HKD at Sasa, a brilliant deal if you ask me ^^

Jia

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Biore UV Aqua Rich Watery Essence Water Base Review

I'm one of those people who wears sunscreen everyday, even if I'm just sitting at home. Nothing worse than premature aging and dark sunspots! I first heard about this sunscreen when a popular Youtube vlogger mentioned it and I decided to order it and try it out. My previous sunscreen was the Hada Labo UV Moist Emulsion (link here if you want to read it). It did a pretty good job but sometimes I did get a little annoyed with the layer of light oil left on my skin when first applied, hence I wanted to try this sunscreen that apparently left no sticky residue on skin at all.

I have to say, I'm very glad I purchased this! I absolutely love it! The sunscreen comes in the packaging below. It's a squeezy tube and you dispense the sunscreen via a nozzle. Very hygienic! The nozzle can get a little messy though so it may be wise to wipe it off every now and again. 

The sunscreen is pale cream in colour with a gel like consistency. It feels cool on the skin when first applied and blends in very easily.

As you can see, the sunscreen contains some 'gritty' bits. These don't actually feel gritty at all, it just blends right into your skin!

All that is left behind is velvety smooth skin,no trace of any stickiness or greasiness!

One of the reasons why I love this sunscreen, apart from how it leaves my skin smooth and non-sticky, is that it protects my skin from both UVA and UVB rays so I'm covered on the aging and sunburn part :D It also leaves no white cast on my skin at all which is always a thumbs up, nor has it caused any bad reactions on my skin, no breakouts or unsightly rashes ^^

I bought this from a Hong Kong based seller and all the writing on the packaging was in Japanese :( I did some searching around the internet though and found that the sunscreen also has whitening properties due to natural chamomile extracts and keeps skin soft and hydrated with hyaluronic acid and an essence mix consisting of lemon, orange and grapefruit. I used this sunscreen in Hong Kong and noticed I didn't actually get a tan, so I guess the sun protection and the whitening benefits work together to prevent my skin from tanning. As for hydrating my skin, I find that this alone is not enough for my dry cheeks but it may be suitable as a sole moisturiser for oilier skin types.

The sunscreen smells light and citrusy but I can detect hints of alcohol in the mix too. I found that alcohol is actually third on the list of ingredients (so high! o.O) which explains the smell and also explains why the sunscreen is able to leave a velvety feeling on the skin so quickly. I'm wondering if the alcohol actually counteracts the benefits of the hyaluronic acid? Either way, as alcohol is very drying, I always layer a good moisturiser under the sunscreen. 

This is a chemical sunscreen, with ethylhexyl methoxicinnamate as the active ingredient, but chemical sunscreens have been known to not fully protect skin from all UVA rays, so if you're out in strong sunshine you may want to consider a physical sunscreen for the day. Fun fact! The active ingredient also helps protect the product it has been added to from UV ray induced degradation! ^^

Overall, despite the high alcohol content, I still love this sunscreen for its high level of protection, how it leaves my skin feeling fresh, non-sticky and velvety and leaves no white cast. If they could lower the alcohol content though that would just be perfect :D Between this sunscreen and the Hada Labo one, I would prefer the former. One of my pet peeves is an oily layer that takes a while to absorb, especially if I have to wear my fringe out. 

This sunscreen is very affordable (around $79 HKD) and would definitely recommend it to everyone!

Jia

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