MAC Holiday 2013 - Divine Night Collection

When I first saw the pictures of this collection I didn't know whether to be happy or not. MAC's constant release of new collection is burning a hole in my wallet lol. I'm a huge MSF fan - or rather, their mineralize products - so I'm really excited everytime MAC releases new MSFs!

Here is a sneak peek of this year's holiday collection. Photo credits to honi.blogg.se!

 

Mineralize Eye Shadow

Gilded Night- Bright gold with silver pearlized base/ Black with pearlized pigments

Captivating- Bright white gold base/ Deep gold

Exquisite Ego- Bronze base/ Soft white champagne

Tonight's Temptation- Black with pearlized base/ Royal blue

Past Midnight- Blackish purple with violet pearlized base/ White pink frost

Until Dawn- Soft gold base/ Purple Taupe

Fluidline

Macroviolet- Deep smoked violet with red pearlized pigments

Deliciously Rich- Shimmering mid-tone Taupe

Stares & Speculation- Mid-tone olive with gold pearlized pigments

Kohl Power Eye Pencil

Mystery- Intense black with green pearlized pigments

Orpheus- Intense black with gold pearlized pigments

Raven- Intense black with red pearlized pigments

Feline- Rich black

False Lashes

False Black- Black

Mineralize Blush

Lured to Love- Coral pink base with frost

Talk of the Town- Warm brown base with yellow bronze

Lavish Living- Violet with silver pearlized base with gold pearlized pigments

Mineralize Skinfinish

Perfectly Poised- Bronzey coral with golden tones/ Creamy beige with pinkish purple sheen

Scene to be Seen- Mauve with pink sheen/ Brick rose with gold reflects

Centre of Attention- Pastel peachy pink with fine pink shimmer/ 24 carat gold shimmer

Lipstick

You've Got It- Pink Undertone with Gold Frost (Frost)

Flair For Finery- Cool pink/nude (Lustre)

Exclusive Event- Taupe brown (Satin)

Prepare For Pleasure- Magenta red (Cremesheen)

Private Party- Mid-tone plum mauve (Satin)

Cremesheen Glass

You've Got It- Nude taupe with green pearlized pigments

Flair For Finery- Cool nude

Prepare For Pleasure- Bluish red

Private Party- Plum mauve with pearlized pigments

Nail Lacquer

Fierce Entrance- Rich gold bronze (Frost)

Military- Black matte with silver suede pearlized pigments (Frost)

Gadabout Girl- Blackened plum (Cream)

Etude House Lip & Eye Remover Review

Hey guys! Apologies for the lack of update. Been busy with school these days but now that we've started our mid-sem break, hopefully I can update more :)

When I saw this at Etude House, my first thought was why would anyone want to have their lips and eyes removed?! Lol the name is quite intimidating! Anyway the reason why I chose to review the product is because this is one of my favourite lip and eye makeup remover so far and it deserves to be discovered by more people! I'm currently already on my third bottle. I've tried other removers in between but this one I find still works the best. Moreover, the price is also very wallet-friendly!

The writing on the front side of the bottle says: "Gentle, yet highly effective, this double formulated lip & eye remover easily and instantly dissolves all trances of make-up for a soothing and moisturizing effect on the sensitive eye & lip area without any irritation".

True true. The makeup remover is really gentle and causes me no irritation so far. Some eye makeup remover tend to be harsher on your eyes and can cause burning sensations, eye discomfort and worse of all! - is when an oil-based product gets into your eyes and causes momentarily blurred vision oh gosh! This product is also oil-based but you wouldn't really feel the oiliness.

It works really well to remove my makeup even when I am wearing heavy eye makeup and dries quite fast and doesn't leave the oiliness behind. It also has a clean smell which I truly enjoy. It makes me fresh especially after a long day out with rotten makeup.

How to use: Shake well before each use. Apply to eye & lip area using soft cotton of tissue.

After shaking the bottle

The product comes in an ordinary 100ml bottle. Nothing exciting here but I can overlook that as the product is quite inexpensive and effective. When the cap is unscrewed, this is how it looks like:

Overall, I would obviously recommend this product. It is mild yet works well removing your makeup. I honestly haven't tried it with lip makeup yet as I am mostly wearing only natural lip colours which are easier to remove. I would definitely repurchase this again, and again!

Score: 5/5
Price: B$9.90 / 4000W

*You can purchase this product at your local Etude House or at KollectionK*

Tony Moly Panda's Dream Good-Bye Dark Eye Corrector Review

Dark circles under the eyes - probably one of the most unflattering things that would appear in your photos. Have you been itching to try out the Panda's Dream dark eye corrector? Here's my review of the product.

Love the cute concept of the packaging. It's definitely a panda's dream, to get a dark circle-free eyes lol.

 Haha forgive me I just can't pass up posting this pic!

Anyway, the tube is quite big. 20ml of cream just for your eyes will definitely last a long time.

 

So this product is supposed to whiten your under eye area with "immediate whitening effect". It contains Niacin Amide that's supposed to prevent melanin synthesis and hence reducing the dark appearance, as well as Haloxyl that also reduces the dark circle and improves dull skin tone. Anyway let's skip the chemistry part lol. 

Anyway I had been using this since last January. At first I used it quite religiously, until I noticed that it didn't even reduce my dark circle -.-" Since then I had been using it on and off which explains why I still have it now lol. I have always been sleep-deprived especially on school nights so probably that's why it didn't work. The product may work differently for everyone. Maybe it will work on you if you are compliant to using it every night and sleep enough hours. However, honestly I don't think this product is worth the money spent as it showed no change to my under eye at all. 

 

Score: 1/5 (for cute packaging!)

TonyMoly Panda’s Dream Good Bye Dark Eye Corrector is a whitening funcional eye corrector with immediate whitening effect. Have a synergy effect by 2 kinds whitening ingredient:
- Niacin Amide prevents melanin formation and improves dark circle.
- Haloxyl that improves dark circle and dull skin tone silky and smooth eye cream immediate brightening effect.
This eye cream brightens and illuminates your eyes. Creates clear and resilient eyes - See more at: http://www.koreanqueens.com/en/eye-care/94-pandas-dream-good-bye-dark.html#sthash.R6F250TB.dpuf

TonyMoly Panda’s Dream Good Bye Dark Eye Corrector is a whitening funcional eye corrector with immediate whitening effect. Have a synergy effect by 2 kinds whitening ingredient:
- Niacin Amide prevents melanin formation and improves dark circle.
- Haloxyl that improves dark circle and dull skin tone silky and smooth eye cream immediate brightening effect.
This eye cream brightens and illuminates your eyes. Creates clear and resilient eyes.
♡ Benefits: Improve dark circle, Brightens, Whitening effect, illuminates eyes, Repairing, Rejuvenates, Firms skin, Hydrates

♡ How to Use: Apply moderate amount like pointing dots around eyes, and tap with fingertips for absorption. It can be used on entire face for the brightening.
- See more at: http://www.koreanqueens.com/en/eye-care/94-pandas-dream-good-bye-dark.html#sthash.R6F250TB.dpuf

Price: B$ 19.90

Random talk + Flash Etude House Lovely Cookie Blush Review

Hi everyone! Today is the first day of raya in Brunei so I'd like to wish everyone Selamat Hari Raya :) Raya is diabetes season so watch out the sugar level when you go on raya guys ;p

Anyway just wanna quickly talk about Etude House's Lovely Cookie blush today.

This is one of my first few blushes from Etude House. Mine is in the shade #4 - Carrot Cheesecake. I don't know why they name it 'cookie blusher' when the shade is called 'carrot cheesecake' >.>

TADAAA! Am I the only one who rejoices when seeing that I've hit pan on a product? Even more so if I don't like the product. I've been trying to use up this product eversince I hit pan! But it's so hard cos I just can't bring myself to use this often.

This is the product that I mentioned in the Princess Jewelry Finish Pact review. In real-life this blush is actually a medium coral colour and has some slight shimmer in it. However, it finishes matte. I'm really disappointed with the pigmentation. I have to apply like 5 times to see it appear on my cheek! Not only that, it has a lot of fallouts and is powdery, especially after applying 5 times!

I find that the colour shows up better when I apply a 'base' underneath. In this case, it works the best with Etude House Golden Ratio Face Glam in #1, the gold liquid highlighter. I've seen a lot of people liking this blush but for me it's a no-no. 
 
If you would still like to try out this product it is available here.

Etude House Eraser Show Mascara Cleaner Review

The hardest part when removing makeup is probably when it comes to removing your mascara, especially waterproof ones. When you are using liquid type cleansers you are more likely to tug on your eyelids which could cause wrinkles to develop. Hence you wanna try to minimize the amount of tugging as much as possible. 

Not properly removing your eye makeup can also clog the oil gland around the eyelash root area. I got a stye three times last year (tmi but really that was a lot!!) all because I was a really lazy girl. And one of it was during my sister's wedding fml T.T 

When Etude House released this product I was really, really curious to try this out. I mean have you ever seen a mascara remover that looks like a mascara itself? With a wand?

The product comes in a mascara-like tube with Etude House's signature design at its cap. I love the design. It looks really girly and clean. The bottle holds 12ml of product which I feel is quite little. This is my second tube - I feel that I went through the first tube rather fast as I enjoyed using it on a daily basis.

Directions:

1) Apply remover by thoroughly combing through lashes, moving from roots to ends.
2) Leave on for 1-2 minutes.
3) Wipe off gently with a clean cotton pad, starting from the roots.
4) Clean the comb with a tissue after each use.

Closer look of the wand

The liquid inside the tube has a clean scent which is good. I'm not very comfortable with the idea of applying scented product on my lashes. It is milky, not too runny and not too thick either. When applied it stays put on your lashes. I find that it is easier to remove starting from the bottom side of the upper lash followed by the upper one. That way, the product doesn't get wiped down your eye.

The product is really gentle yet it works perfectly. I had never encountered any irritation or any adverse reaction with this product. It did get into my eye a couple of times but it didn't really sting. Although this product is an extra step for me before I actually remove my whole eye makeup, but I feel that it's worth it as really gets the mascara off easily and makes me feel really clean. I really love this product and it is now a staple for me. I would definitely repurchase this again and highly recommend you to try it too.

Pros: 

• Clean scent
• Very efficient 
• No irritation
• Not runny 
• Minimizes tugging of eyelid

Cons: 

• Contains only very little product
• Time consuming

Rating: 5/5
Price: B$ 15.90 / 8,000won

**If you don't have Etude House in your country, you can still purchase them here!

**Giveaway Alert** Kollectionk

Don't you just love giveaways?!

Two winners will receive this limited edition Etude House Ice Ribbon Tumbler from Kollectionk. Yep I'd like to have one of those to around in uni hehe. 8 more days left until the giveaway closes.
Click here to enter the giveaway.

MAC Cremesheen Modesty Review + Swatches

I know I've been talking about Etude House and other Korean products lately. So I'll be doing MAC for a change. I will be featuring a MAC cremesheen lipstick, Modesty. This is my favourite go-to everyday colour by far.

I love how sleek MAC bullets are!

 

Close up under natural lighting

Modesty is one of my first few products from MAC. I got it as a present from my sister. I had heard so much about Cremesheen finish before and was really overjoyed that she chose this! The first time I tried this lipstick, I fell instantly in love. It has the minty-vanilla scent that is typical of MAC lipsticks. It is described as muted neutral pink. On my lips, the colour appear pinkish-plum and it glides on perfectly smooth on my lips. 

The pigmentation is perfect. The best thing about this lipstick is that I can wear this even without putting on any lipbalm/moisturiser beforehand and it still moisturises my lips without making it feel waxy whatsoever. It lasts for quite a long time, I would say up to 4-5 hours. You might find yourself needing to reapply after eating or drinking cos the colour transfers rather easily. Overall I'm really, really happy with this lipstick!

Swatches are as shown below. The left one is where I tried to build up the colour with three swipes. Hmm, not a very significant difference.

 Swiped once (R), Swiped thrice (L)

Another similar colour would be Patisserie, which has a Lustre finish. It is described as sheer creamy neutral pink. However Patisserie is slightly darker.

Overall score: 5/5

Price: SGD 29 (currencies are dependent on where items are purchased)

Etude House Princess Jewelry Finish Pact Review

Hi everyone! This review will be about another Etude House product!

 Yet another eye candy from Etude House!

This finish pact reminds me of Princess Etoinette. It's shaped like a diamond, it's pink, it's a pink diamond. There is even a tiara at the top and at the bottom of the pink diamond. The packaging is a win!

 How it looks like upright

Everything is written in Korean in this packaging, it's quite inconvenient for people who doesn't know Korean (like me) T.T However, this is a relatively old product. Before I bought this, I had seen that this product had been sitting on the shelf for quite a while. Anyway, I notice that most Korean products are starting to add in English translations on most of their products nowadays which is really helpful.

This finishing powder came with a brush as well. But I honestly have never tried it out. I usually put away mini brushes that come with powders/blushes. When this little diamond is opened you will notice that the top part is heavier than the bottom, so the whole container would topple backwards if it's opened all the way without support. 

Opened halfway. Here is how the powder and the mirror look like

A close up of the finishing powder

OKAY, here's the deal. I have to admit the packaging is really pretty. However the product is really meh! So far I like almost every product from Etude House, except for this. Well maybe the cookie blusher too. The BB Dation I didn't really like at first but I came to like it better in the end. But this! 

This was my very first finishing powder. So back then I didn't really know what to expect from a 'finish pact' (I didn't know it was a highlighter lol). When I tried it on, nothing! I thought that was how it was supposed to be. Until my friend told me that her mother had to 'really dig into it to get the product'. So I tried that. After digging the crap out of the powder, I finally saw some of the powder on my brush. I think they're spending too much money on the packaging quality and not the product for this :( I'm getting quite pissed off just thinking about it right now lol. 

The powder is supposed to be used on your T zones, cheekbones and chin. It does give off a beautiful iridescent shimmer. However it not really pigmented. It is very, very, very subtle on the skin. I had to build it up to see it working. It has a really faint fragrance, I can't really make out what it smells like but it smells nice. I personally don't really reach out for this product especially when I'm in a hurry to go out as it takes quite an amount of time to 'dig' out. 

Pros: 

• Beautifully packed
• Nice faint smell
• Beautiful shimmer

Cons: 

• Did not work for me
• Topples backward without support
• Not pigmented
• Quite troublesome - not suitable in a hurry

Rating: 2.5/5 for the pretty packaging 

I don't really remember the price hehehe. 

** This product I would not repurchase. It may not work on my skin (medium), but it may have different result on others. 

Etude House Precious Mineral BB Dation Review

This BB Dation is a part of Etude House's Precious Mineral line. So far, I'm impressed with all the other BB creams in this line. 
BB Dation is quite an odd name. This product is supposed to be a combination between bb cream and a foundation. So basically, instead of having the sheer coverage of most bb cream, you get a better coverage with this one. 
 

As usual I like to begin by describing the packaging. Lol a product's packaging is really exciting for me! It is housed in a 30g transparent bottle that comes with a vacuum pump. I find it more convenient that this bottle sits upright instead of upsidedown like how most bb creams are packaged.

Notice how the vacuum pump pushes the product up efficiently so there's no wastage

Mine is in the shade W13 (Natural Beige)

It has a slightly creamy consistency and it doesn't feel too thick, but not too thin either. It only has a faint fragrance which is fine with me. When I first tried this product, I really didn't like it because I find that this bb cream is so difficult to blend with fingers. I put it away for months until I decided that I should try to use it up. When I tried it again with an angled foundation brush, the result was better thank goodness.

Apart from that, the product also takes its sweet time to settle on my skin. A little goes a long way for this product and since it contains SPF, it may also cause a whitecast. You don't wanna overapply and end up looking like a geisha. However, the coverage is quite good and it's suitable for daytime use. 

Pros: 

• SPF40 - suitable for daytime use
• Good coverage
• Vacuum pump

Cons:

• Difficult to blend
• Causes whitecast
• Takes a while to settle

Rating: 3.5/5

Price: BND 33.90~36.90 (I forgot!! >.<)

**If you don't have any Etude House locally you can purchase this here!**

Etude House Wonder Pore Freshner Review

Today's review will be about the Wonder Pore Freshner from Etude House!

  

Comes in a pump bottle, similar to Tony Moly Aqua Aura Cleansing Water

This is one of the most highly-raved about product from Etude House. Wonder Pore Freshner claims that it has a 7-in-1 function:

• Deep cleansing pores 
• Maintaining pH level 
• Controlling sebum amount
• Minimizing the pore appearance
• Refining skin tones 
• Maintaining pore elasticity
• Moisturizing

Just like every other Etude House products, the packaging really attracted me. Mine is the 500ml bottle. The difference between this and the 250ml bottle is that the latter doesn't come with the pump. The bottle itself is quite ordinary but I really like the Wonder Woman concept. However, after trying this product for quite some time, I'm honestly a bit disappointed. 

The toner doesn't sting or cause irritation when applied and has an unnoticable smell. It is recommended to apply this toner after cleansing. For me, my skin dries seriously fast after cleansing and that makes it feel tight and hence uncomfortable. After applying this product my skin does feel moisturized and less tight. 

I also noticed that my skin has become less oily after using this product. However, my pores still look like how it used to be when I first started. There seems to be not much changes to the appearance. I'm disappointed because I was really looking forward for improvements on the pore appearance T.T 

I'm still using this toner though cos I find the pump bottle fun to use lol I think it's a novelty :p

Yay:

• Pump bottle
• Affordable for a huge container
• Moisturizes
• Doesn't sting & no irritation 
• No noticable smell

Nay:

• Doesn't minimize pore appearance 

Rating: 3.5/5

Price:  33.90BND

**if you don't have Etude House locally you can purchase this product here!

Holika-Holika Aqua Petit Jelly BB Cream #02 Natural Beige Review

Today I will be reviewing Holika-Holika's Aqua Petit Jelly BB Cream. This is probably one of Holika-Holika's bestselling BB Cream. Next to Etude House, I think Holika-Holika has one of the best BB Creams! I have tried a lot of their BB Creams and there is not one that I don't like but so far, this is my favourite. 

When I first saw it I knew I had to get it!

 

The product itself comes in a uniquely-shaped packaging - it is a matte glass packaging that feels smooth to touch. The shape is supposed to resemble a jelly, although at first I didn't notice that until I turned it upsidedown. The glass container is also designed to keep the product inside cool. The glass always feels cool everytime I touch it. Little things like this makes me happy hehe!

I've discarded the box so I can't show you the list of ingredients. Anyways, this bb cream also came with a blending sponge.

Suitable for daytime use as it has SPF 20 PA++.

As you open the cap, you will find a piece of spatula attached. The spatula helps to scoop up the product easier plus it maintains the hygienity. However I don't feel that the spatula is long enough to scoop up the products at the bottom of the container. 

The cream itself has a jelly-like consistency. It even wiggled inside the bottle when I shook it! It feels cool and refreshing when applied onto your skin which is why I like to wear this especially in the morning, it awakens me lol. Not forgetting the smell, it is wonderful! It makes you feel pretty lol. However it doesn't last as long as I wish it would.

It has light texture and sheer coverage on application. Don't even try to build up the coverage otherwise it will make your head looks as if it belongs to a different person! I find it easier to blend the bb cream with my favourite Missha Profesional Rounding Angle Foundation Brush which looks like this:

 

 Swatches:

Pluses: 

• Amazing smell
• Cooling & refreshing when applied
• Unique packaging
•  Comes with spatula & sponge
• Has SPF 20 PA++ 

Minuses:

• Sheer coverage
• May get cakey

Rating: 4/5

Price ~ BND29.90