Beauty

My Daily Skincare Routine – Part 1

September 1, 2011

This is a long overdue post as I have been requested to do a rundown on my daily skincare routine many times. Well the reason I’ve been procrastinating was because I had no idea where to begin! Between makeup and skincare, I am probably more passionate about skincare although I don’t talk much about it on this blog as often as makeup. I shop and go through lots of products every month. My approach is quite open-minded so I’m always open to try new things – I am not one of those girls who thoroughly check the ingredients before making a purchase. As long as I think the product will work for my skin type I’m always happy to give it a go.

Just some background information before I embark on my skincare routine. My skin is oily on the surface and dehydrated inside. If it is not well hydrated my makeup would appear just sitting on top of my skin whilst it still produces a lot of oil throughout the day. I also have pigmentation (freckles) across my cheeks. Other than that, I don’t have wrinkles, fine lines, and no signs of loss of firmness. My main goal is to keep my skin looking and feeling fresh, supple, moisturized, firm and plumped with no visible appearance of pores.

These are the products I have been using everyday for the past 2 months. Some of these are my holy grails, some of these are new products I have been trialing through, and I like the results so I have incorporated them into my daily regime. I tend to go for products that are gentle, lightweight and hydrating with some anti-aging benefits. Anything that is too rich and oily will cause congestion or even break-outs to my skin.

As you can see I am not loyal to any brands haha..I generally prefer high end brands for basic skincare but I also have a love for Asian drugstore brands for masks (I have tons of them!).

My Morning Routine:

I clean my face with Elemis Rehydarting Rosepetal Cleanser, then I apply SK II Facial Treatment Essence generously on my face, and pat my face till it absorbs. SK II Aqua Physics Serum is full of pitera and hyaluronic acid which keeps my skin supple and hydrated all day. Finish with Shiseido White Lucent Brightening Moisturising Gel. (probably the best product out of the entire white lucent range)

For my eyes I like to use La Prairie Cellular Revitalizing Eye Gel – have gone through tons of anti-puffiness eye gels and this is the only one that really works!

My Evening Routine:

I remove my makeup with the Eve Lom Cleanser with its muslin cloth – my HG cleanser, then apply the SK II Facial Treatment Essence liberally again. Serum is an essential item in my skincare routine – at the moment I am using the Trilogy Age Proof Nutrient Plus Firming Serum and the CQ10 Booster Serum interchangeably. Trilogy is one of my favorite organic skincare lines that is based in New Zealand. If you are into natural skincare I highly recommend giving them a go as they are affordable and really deliver what they claim to. Moisturizer is switched to the Shiseido White Lucent Brightening Moisturizing Emulsion W – it’s designed for nightime so the texture is slighter richer than the gel version.

I also use a different eye cream at night time – the Shiseido Bio Performance Super Eye Contour Cream keeps the fine lines at bay without being too nutritional for my age so it doesn’t cause any milia. Don’t forget to take care of the neck girls! I am using the Shiseido Benefiance Concentrated Neck Contour Treatment.

That’s it for my basic skincare. I use more products as special treatments throughout the week so there will be part 2, part 3….

{ 32 comments }

Labels: ELEMIS • Eve Lom • La Praire • MOISTURIZER • SHISEIDO • SKII • Trilogy

Jill Stuart blush blossom dual cheek color in 102 Classic Camellia Review and Swatch

August 30, 2011

The Jill Stuart blush blossom dual cheek color in 102 Classic Camellia from its 2011 Fall Collection is pretty, from little details such as the embedded diamante to the signature Jill Stuart floral scent in every product. Like most girls I got lured into Jill Stuart makeup for their pretty packaging, then I found myself addicted as I find the quality of their products are just as superior.

It retails for around $50 USD over the counters in Asia which I think is reasonably priced for what you get. The duo blush comes in loose pigment form – one side is for the cheek and the other is an illuminator. It also comes with a decent sized retractable brush that feels of high quality.

Not a big fan of using loose pigment as I am quite clumsy! However the design of this blush gives you really good control over how much product to dispense by gently pressing the brush into the mesh. You can then use the inner lid to mix the color or remove excess powder.

The cheek color is a soft cool toned pink that looks almost angelic on fair skin – as often seen on the models in the Japanese Beauty Mags. It has slight shimmer in it when swatched on my arm but doesn’t really show up on my face. If your complexion is warm-toned and you have trouble finding a blush that shows up as baby pink without the lavender and mauvy tone, this is the blush to go for. The highlighting shade is a shimmery ivory white with a pink undertone. When used sparingly it gives a soft glow to the face.

FOTD:

Both shades are very pigmented – a little bit of it goes a long way and they lasted on me for the whole day. I applied the cheek color on my apples then the highlighter along the top of my cheekbones.

I personally find that Japanese brands make the best cool toned pink blushes for Asian complexions. Comparison of some possible dupes:

Clockwise:

Canmake cream cheek color in 03

RMK cheek color in 03 Light Pink

Etude House Miss Tangerine Cream Blusher in Miss Berry (Korean brand)

{ 12 comments }

Labels: BLUSH • Jill Stuart

Jill Stuart Fall 2011 Collection Haul

August 28, 2011

This post might create some serious lemming for those of you who are into girly and cute makeup, so be prepared if you happen to be on a shopping ban this month! Jill Stuart Fall 2011 Collection was released in Asia about 3 weeks ago, I was totally smitten by this collection as soon as I saw the promo pictures. I cannot thank Jennifer from Lifeandlensofbeauty enough who kindly offered to purchase these products for me in Hongkong. She told me that they have been so popular that as soon as the release was out, she had to send all of her relatives to different Jill Stuart counters..This is just incredibly sweet of her!

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Jill Stuart Makeup – it is a high end makeup line originated in Japan with an über dreamy princessy packaging. It is my must-visit spot whenever I go to Asia – not only do I love collecting their blushes (which is their best selling product) I am also deeply infatuated with all the cute girls working at Jill Stuart who look like real life Barbies haha.

The Jill Stuart Fall collection contains 2 LE blushes, 3 LE nail polishes, 4 LE lip glosses and a whole new permanent line of Prism Carat Eyes which are cream and loose eyeshadow duos – I passed these up as I am not that into loose pigment. To find more information on this release check out this post from Rouge Deluxe.

I bought

– the Limited Edition Blush Blossom dual cheek color in 102 classic camellia (left), and

– the Limited Edition mix blush compact in 105 sweet lock (right)

Three nail lacquers in (from left to right)

– 51 opaline georgette

– 50 layered petal

– 52 vintage beads

I will be reviewing these products very soon 🙂

{ 15 comments }

Labels: Jill Stuart • SHOP

Chanel Le Vernis Tendresse and Ombres Tissées Beiges Reviews

August 27, 2011

I bought the Ombres Tissées Iridescent Effects Eyes in Beiges and the Chanel Le Vernis Nail Color 507 Tendresse a while ago (soon after I posted it here) but never had the time to swatch them for you. For the Chanel makeup lovers in Australia, unfortunately we have only received these two products from Les Aquarelles de Chanel Collection, which means we miss out on the rest of the products such as the JC blush in pink cloud and the Rouge Coco Shine in Royallieu which I am dying to get my hands on! As usual, both CafeMakeup and TheBeautyLookBook have great reviews for all the products from the Les Aquarelles de Chanel Collection.

The Ombres Tissées Iridescent Effects Eyes in Beiges is truely a master piece of art – it shines in the light like a precious jewel.

Once the overspray is removed it loses its glamorous appeal…

Swatches with the overspray

Swatches without the overspray are luminous but without the frost and glitters. They look the same on the skin once they are blended.

Layered it with a matte pink blush

FOTD: I have applied the Chanel Beiges on top of a matte grey shade on my eyes. On my cheeks I applied a pink cream cheek color on the apples then added the highlighter from the center of the apples towards the temples. I would say it is a good highlighter for people who are not overly tanned. On my NC15 complexion it delivers a soft candlelit glow to the face without changing the skin color.

Chanel Le Vernis Nail Color 507 Tendresse is a lovely nude neutral pink – my number one staple shade if I want my hands to look polished and clean. The consistency of this polish is very thin and liquidy compared to the other Le Vernis. I had to apply 4 thin coats to achieve a semi opaque jelly-like finish.

{ 20 comments }

Labels: CHANEL • HIGHLIGHTER • NAIL POLISH

Suqqu Eyeshadow Brush Large Review

August 23, 2011

Suqqu Eyeshadow Brush Large could be the best buy of the year for me. It is expensive (costs around USD$75) but it is worth every single penny! Ever since I got this brush I barely used any of my other blending brushes in my stash. It is made of 100% grey squirrel hair. The softness is on par with the Suqqu cheek brush (reviewed here). My eyes have been super sensitive lately – as a result I cannot use some of my usual go-to brushes because I find them irritating on my fragile skin around the eyes. This brush feels exceptionally silky soft and soothing, it makes applying makeup just that little bit more enjoyable!

The shape of this brush is wide and rather flat compared to the usual blending brushes such as MAC 224 or MAC 217. The brush is fluffy, voluminous and bouncy – you will love the feel of the soft resistance coming from an ultra soft brush, which is what a goat hair brush lacks.

Although this brush appears quite flat from the side, the brush head is just as fluffy as the MAC 217 and 224 but more tapered. Quite a multifunctional eye brush in my opinion. I like to use the wide side to apply the eye color over a large area, and the tapered tip for defining the crease and for swirling the brush to blend. This brush is designed to provide a sheer wash of color (not a laydown brush) so it picks up about the same amount of color as MAC217.

The amazing thing about this brush is that it applies the eyeshadows beautifully. I have no idea what magic has been cast on to this brush (could be the fact that it is made of super fine and silky smooth natural ending squirrel hair)..I have been using this brush with all sorts of eyeshadows ranging from sheer to rich, shimmery and powdery (ie baked version of Chanel). It never fails to distribute the color incredibly evenly over the area you apply, and it polishes to a smoother finish.

Bottom Line: A must have for anyone who loves a good brush! Definitely worth saving up for.

You can find Suqqu brushes on Selfridges.

{ 15 comments }

Labels: BRUSHES • MAC • SUQQU

Lunasol Aurorized Eyes in 05 Contrast Variation Review and FOTD

August 21, 2011

One of my lovely readers at phbr.tumblr asked me if I could do an EOTD and FOTD with the Lunasol Aurorized Eyes. She was one of the first people who found my blog and it just means so much to me that I still have readers from the beginning! Lunasol is known for their eyeshadow palettes and quints – they carry many lines in different themes. One of my favorites is the Contrast Variation quints from the Aurorized Eyes Line.

The quints are a pleasure to play with – one of the best amongst my Lunasol collection. The darker colors are rich with a satiny sheen, the glitters you see in the pan do not show up on the eyes. The two lighter colors (the one in the middle and the one on the bottom left) are all flesh toned in Lunasol’s signature wet sparkly finish. Once they are blended out the difference between these two shades is small, although the center shade is more sparkly. All shadows apply silky and buttery smooth with no fallouts.

EOTD:

Upper: Applied the top right shade all over the eye socket area then layered the top left shade along the lash line. As usual I like to apply the darkest shade, which is the purple navy shade on the bottom right on the outer V.

Lower: Applied the bottom left shade along the lash line, the middle shade was added on the tear duct area and the top left shade was used on the outer third of the lash line.

FOTD

The lovely Elaine also did an EOTD with Aurorized Eyes in Contrast Variation, check it out here!

{ 35 comments }

Labels: EYESHADOW • FOTD • LUNASOL

Suqqu Eyelash Curler Review

August 19, 2011

I have such mixed feelings about the Suqqu Eyelash Curler. I am in denial that this is not the perfect eyelash curler for me – it just falls short of my expectation after I have read so many wonderful reviews about it (mostly from Asian bloggers).

Where do I begin..I was not in desperate need of a new eyelash curler. I have been content with the performance of my Shu, Koji and Shiseido eyelash curlers – they work great for me. I caved in after seeing Suqqu eyelash curler featured in numerous Japanese beauty magazines, as well as praise from everyone. Knowing that the design is tailored for Asian eyes and hooded eyes, I was attracted to it because I am an Asian with slightly hooded eyes!

The special feature of the Suqqu eyelash curler is that the tip is extended out in the center. When you hold the curler against your eyelid, this enables you to push and lift your eyelid up so it gets to the roots of your lashes for a more curled and lifted effect. A great feature for people who have hooded eyelids, short and straight lashes.

This is the instruction that comes with the eyelash curler. As you can see, the first step is to hold it horizontally against the lid and gently push it in to lift the lash line . It took me a while to get use to it.

Compared to the Shu Uemura and Koji eyelash curlers, the curvature of suqqu is in between – it is slighter flatter than Shu Uemura and more curved than Koji. It fits into my eye socket perfectly.

It would have been a perfect curler if it didn’t have a square rubber pad. Why Suqqu…why?! I have to apply more pressure to curl the lashes and they are slightly crimped for my liking. The curvature along the lash line is almost straight, so it doesn’t get to the two ends of the my lashes in one go. I had to curl it in different angles. Having said that, it is subject to the shapes of your eyes. My eyes are almond shaped so Shu fits better.

Bottom Line: Overall it is a good eyelash curler, it doesn’t pinch and it curls the lashes from the roots very well. I would still prefer Shu Uemura as it requires less effort for around the same result. I found that the special feature of the Suqqu eyelash curler didn’t have much benefit for my eyelids. It might work better for you if your eyes are more hooded or monolid.

If you are interested in Shiseido, Shu Uemura or Koji eyelash curlers, you can find my review here.

{ 14 comments }

Labels: Eyelash Curler • KOJI • Shu Uemura • SUQQU

My favorite lipglosses – Chanel Rouge Allure Extrait de Gloss

August 17, 2011

Ever since I started blogging, I plan my weekends based on the availability of sunshine. Last weekend was a sunny day so I took the opportunity to swatch the Chanel Rouge Allure Extrait de Gloss which are my all time favorite lip glosses. Trust me, I am not biased just because they are by Chanel. I have had a fair share of lip glosses and these glosses are by far the best I have tried. They come in the most flattering shades and I have collected all the pink shades from the line.

The packaging reflects the high price tag for a lip gloss. Different to their lipsticks, these glosses come in a weighty black lacquered glass tube. As I have said earlier, I feel my money is justified if a product is packaged beautifully and carries some weight, as opposed to the cheaper drugstore makeup. All of the ones I own contain no shimmers and are semi opaque. The colors are rich enough to show up on the lips whilst still showing a hint of your natural lip tone – which is exactly what I am after from a lip gloss. The finish is a cross between luminous and jelly like. They also felt extremely hydrating to the lips – as soon as they are applied on my usual dry lips, they look instantly more plumped and the appearance of lines and chapped skin is gone.

Let’s start with Rouge Allure Extrait de Gloss in 57 Insolence – a bright yet wearable pink

Rouge Allure Extrait de Gloss in55 Confidence – a rosy pink

Rouge Allure Extrait de Gloss in54 Liberte – a peach with a hint of pink

Rouge Allure Extrait de Gloss in56 Imaginaire – a pink with a hint of coral, my favorite shade out of them all

Last but not least, a group swatch – aren’t they all so pretty?!

Bottom line: All shades are extremely wearable and would work well with any skin coloring. Highly recommend if you prefer lipglosses that provide just the right amount of color to your lips with a high gloss shine that is not shimmery nor frosty. They are non sticky and wear for about 3 to 4 hours. Of course they can be layered with lipsticks for a more dramatic look.

{ 45 comments }

Labels: CHANEL • LIPGLOSS

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