April Empties

1. Batiste Dry Shampoo(Tropical)
2. John Frieda Frizz-Ease Straight Fixation Smoothing Creme
3. John Frieda Weather Works Style Creme
4. L'oreal Total Repair Hair Mask
5. Soap & Glory Calm One Calm All Bubbling Bath Soak
6. Lush Hot Toddy
7. Origins United State Toner
8. Elizabeth Arden Flawless Future Caplet Serum
9. Bath & Body Works London Calling 3-Wick Candle

Finished 4 hair products this month. I love John Frieda hair products, especially their frizz-ease products. I have frizzy hair and these 2 products help me much so much. Batiste dry shampoo is my favorite and Tropical is the only scent/formula I go for. It smells divine and it doesn't leave a white residue like the other scents. L'oreal Total Repair hair mask is a very good drug store hair mask. I find it very comparable to the Macadamia Deep Hair Mask, only more affordable. I do find a slight built-up from this mask though.

Two shower/bath products finished. Hot Toddy is a limited shower gel from Lush Christmas collection last year. I am glad I only got the smaller bottle. I am not a big fan of the scent as it reminds me of Chinese herbal medicine. Soap & Glory Calm One Calm All Bubbling Bath Soak is my new favorite for a good bubble bath. I just use two bottle caps and run it under hot water and you got yourself a nice bath with lots of bubbles. Also it is very moisturizing and the scent is very nice. Highly recommend this if you are a bubble bath lover.

My favorite toner is the Origins United States. I have been using this for a couple of years. Whenever I try to use another toner to switch things up a bit, I notice my skin always act up a few days after I switch up and I always go back to that. Got this Elizabeth Arden caplet serum from my TopBox last year. It is an ok serum. I find it so tough to decide whether I am sold on a serum or not. Even though this little sample last me a good two weeks, I am still on the fence on whether I should buy this in full-size or not.

So sad to burn my last Bath & Body Works London Calling 3-wick Candle. I bought a few of these over the past year and I honestly say this is my favorite. It is a mixture of tea and lemon scent and I am a big tea lover. Really hope they would come up with this again this year or similar scent. So hard to find tea-scented candles.

What have you finished this month?

Battle of Primers

Purpose of face primers is to smooth out the texture of your skin and help your foundation stay longer. I have oily combo skin and in the hot summer months, a good primer is totally necessary so my foundation would not slide off my face.

Benefit Porefessional has been my go-to for years. Minimizing pores is its major pro. You literally see the smoothing of skin and pores disappearing upon application. To me, it is magic. It has a slight tint of color and the texture is easy to blend out. 

L'oreal Lumi Magic is a primer which gives you the prettiest dewy glow. I wouldn't say it does a good job in helping your foundation stay longer. I apply this just on my cheeks but not on my t-zone. If you like the dewy look, this is the best drug store primer you can get.

Hourglass Mineral Veil receives so much love from the blogging world. Among all the primers I have, this has the silkiest texture and it smooth out skin beautifully. As my main issue is pores minimizer, this does not blur pores. This is very good for oily skin though. I would say if you have extremely oily skin, this would work best for you.

MUFE Step 1 Skin Equalier(Smoothing) is the latest one I try. This is one of 10 new primers from the brand. Nourishing, hydrating, color-correcting, mattifying, radiant. The deluxe-sized sample I got from Sephora is the Smoothing one. Like the Benefit Porefessional, this is awesome to minimize pores. It also has a slight tint to it. 

Too Faced Primed & Poreless Skin Smoothing Face Primer. I have only been using this for a couple of times so far so really can't decide what I think of this. Even though the name suggests everything I want in a primer, I don't really see my pores minimized using this. I have been curious to try this in powder form which I heard is very good. 

Have you tried any of the above or other brands? What is your favorite one?

Clinique Pop Lip in Plum

My last order from Sephora came in and it only consists of one item. Check out the rest of my Sephora haul in this post.

Clinique is a brand I have a long history with. I recall my first skin care products were in fact Clinique which is a brand my mom uses and loves. Over the years, I have used various products from Clinique but just lately, I have been drawn to their makeup products.

Few favorites from the brand are their bottom lashes mascara and cheek pop. I can now add this new item to my list.

Clinique Pop Lip in Plum

This new line of lip products comes in a wide range of colors. Just perfect for the spring/summer.

Let's talk about the chic packaging. Top half of the tube can be used as a mirror to apply your lipstick on the go. Bottom half is the true color of the lipstick. If you have a whole bunch of these, you don't have to flip the lipstick upside down or open the tube to see what color it is. Very convenient design.

I picked the shade Plum which is a true plum mauve shade. 

True to the color and has a bit of sheen to it. Super moisturizing.

The lipstick is easy to apply. It is said to be a primer as well. I guess it helps the lipstick stay longer on the lips. The average time on mine is about 3 hours.

Clinique Pop Lip is priced at CAD $21. I have tried other luxurious brands such as YSL, Chanel and Marc Jacobs and the texture certainly is very comparable without the price tag. 

Have you tried this new product from Clinique?

My $6.99 It Cosmetics Eyeshadow Palette

I am always in for landing on great deals on makeup. A couple of weeks ago, the Shopping Channel(Canada) offered free $50 credit for new customers. They carry It Cosmetics and I love their Bye Bye Under Eye Concealer and Celebration Foundation Illumination. I have always wanted to try their eyeshadow palette and what a perfect time for that.

The one I picked was Naturally Pretty Vol.1 Matte Luxe Eyeshadow Palette with a duo brush. I have tried a few of their brushes and they are so luxuriously soft. Highly recommend those.

It comes in a dusty pink velvet palette. Very unique and chic. 

The palette consists of 14 matte shadows with the "its" logo embossed. 

What is unique about this palette is it consists of a "transforming pearl" shade. When it is applied on top of other matte shades, it magically transform into a pearl finish.

I have only tried this palette a few times and the shades are very pretty and quite buttery. Pigmentation is better for some shades than others. I love a good neutral matte eyeshadow palette and so far I am enjoying this.

For this deal, I only have to pay the shipping which is $6.99 which makes this regularly-priced at $42 palette an awesome deal.

Currently, the Shopping Channel is offering new customers $50 off $75 purchase which is still a pretty good deal. 

Big Sephora Haul

Happy day for my mailbox today! My orders from Sephora have arrived.

With the Sephora sale, I made 4 orders(one more is on its way). I managed to stick to my wishlist. Oh well, pretty much, plus a few more things

Skincare:

Fresh Rose Hydrating Serum

Origins Oil Free Night-A-Mins

Dior Creme de Rose

Hair:

Tangle Teezer Compact 

Makeup:

YSL Volupte Tint-in-Oil 

Clinique bottom lashes mascara

Clinique Cheek Pop in Cola

YSL Volupte Tint-in-Oil in 5 Cherry my Cherie is such an innovative lip product. It is an oil which is moisturizing but also a lip tint which will leave a subtle flush on your lips. See my previous post on how pretty this shade is how it looks on me. 

I have tried the Fresh Rose Hydrating Serum in the store and I am sold on that. It is a new product from Fresh which is a skin care brand I love and adore.  The serum is so hydrating but yet not tacky and absorbs into the skin well. 

Other two are my staples: Origins Oil Free High Potency Night-a-mins. Best night moisturizer and there are two versions: regular and oil free. I prefer the oil free version which suits my oily combo skin better.

Dior Creme de rose is a luxury lip product. It is my third one. It is pricey and I use it every day and one last me a good 3 to 4 months so the price is totally justified.

I have recently re-discovered Clinique cheek pop. I bought the shade in ginger pop last year but for some reason, it got pushed to the back of my vanity drawer and got totally unloved. So when Clinique came up with new shades this spring, I knew I had to grab one. I picked Cola Pop which is the darkest shade. I don't have any shades like this in my blush collection. It may look a bit intimidating in the pan with its rich pigmented color. But when it is applied on the cheeks, it is a pretty berry shade.

Clinique Bottom Lashes Mascara is my other staple. Love the formula and the brush bristle so tiny that it is perfect for my bottom lashes.

Tangle Teezer Compact Styler is kind of an impulse purchase. Want to try a different hair brush and this one claims to comb through hair with ease. I have long hair. Even though they are quite easy to brush through dry or wet, I want to try to see this one would help improve my hair quality. Sephora only carries the compact styler which is a bit smaller than the original one. I think it is easier to handle without dropping it.

I made separate orders since I want to get this Make Up For Ever Smoothing Primer deluxe sample. You can only use one promo code with each online order and with the sale, it is either the 15% off or the sample promo. I made a small order before the sale just to get the primer. There are 10 new primers from MUFE and I want to try the smoothing primer which I have seen significant results after application from other blogs.

Also got the Clinique Moisture Surge Intense with the 100 perk. 

What have you got from the Sephora sale?

YSL Volupte Tint-in-Oil Cherry My Cherie

I love YSL lip products. Not just their cute packaging is so appealing. The formula is always impressive.

I picked this up last week before the Sephora Chic Week as the shade I want(My Cherie) has been out of stock for a week and when it came back to stock, I couldn't wait anymore.

YSL Volupte Tint-in-Oil (5 Cherry My Cherie)

After a long cold winter and too many lip tints and matte lippies, my lips are quite chapped. Decided to try the YSL Volupte Tint-In-Oil as the concept of oil lippies is interesting. 

It was quite hard to pick the shade as I know the lighter shades barely show up on lips. I picked No. 5 Cherry My Cherie. It is a cherry pink shade. It may look quite neon pink on the wand but when it is applied, it is not.

The applicator is so unique. With its angled applicator, it is a breeze to appl with even product distributed onto your lips.

When swatched, it is a very sheer and pale pink shade.

When it is first applied, it appears glossy and it is totally moisturizing.

When it is dried(usually about an hour after initial application), the glossiness disappeared and leave a tint. This picture is taken about an hour and you can tell it is much darker than when it is freshly-applied.

This product is a very interesting product. It seems to have pros for both worlds: moisturizing and color pay-off.  It leaves a very subtle tint on your lips after the initial gloss is worn off. However, don't expect it to last for the whole day just like your typical glosses. It lasts about 2 hours on my lips. 

I wasn't totally sold on this before but after trying out a sample, I really enjoy it and think it is great especially on days when you wear minimal makeup. It gives your lips a hint of color and at the same time moisturized. If you want to give it a try, I suggest to go for  darker shades as the lighter shades would not show up too good on lips. 

Have you tried this new lip product from YSL?

I also got this deluxe sample of belif aqua bomb. I think it is a brand Sephora just started to carry. 

It is a gel texture moisturizer. Curious to try this out as I read good reviews about this product.

Also got some samples including the Urban Decay Sheer Lipstick samples, Clinique concealer and Hourglass foundation.

Sephora Chic Week Wishlist

Sephora will have its Chic Week sale starting April 12 for VIB Rouge. I believe a couple of days later for VIB. I am trying not to go overboard with the sale, mainly sticking to skin care and staples.

This is what is in my shopping cart right now. But I am sure I will add or remove items between now and the sale begins. So tempted to place an order now as only one promo code can be used and I won't be able to get the deluxe sample(I picked the Giorgio Armani luminous silk foundation).  Will see.

Are you excited about the Sephora Chic Week? Even though the discount is not too impressive(hoping for 20% for VIB rouge) but money saved will be money saved. What is on your wishlist?

March Favorites

This month, I am wearing very minimal makeup. Half the month, I find myself without eye makeup. Just basic minimal foundation, curled lashes with mascara and a bit of lip color.

Loving my new Pixi Flawless Vitamin Veil (No.2 Medium). I got it when I went home to Toronto for visit middle of the month. Picked this up at Target with deep discount and I am so surprised how much I love this. This is the most interesting foundation I have ever tried. It is a gel-cream texture. When you swatch it in the pan, it is the most creamiest and smooth texture. I like to apply it with dabbing my fingers into the pan. Got enough product on my face and then buff it in with a kabuki brush. It gives medium coverage and it gives my skin a smooth, even-toned finish. Unlike any other foundation, it makes my skin look like "skin". 

Favorite lip combo this month is Essence Lip Liner in Soft Berry with NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Stockholm. The two together gives the prettiest mauve color which last a long time.

Another lip favorite is Marc Jacobs Lip Cream Rouge in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Got this deluxe sample from Sephora. I am still into mauve lip color and this is a rich rose shade which is moisturizing and the formula is excellent.

Clinique is coming out with new spring cheek pop shades and I have my eye set on a couple, which reminds me that I have one from last year which I neglected. Clinique Cheek Pop in Ginger Pop has been "re-discovered" from my stash of blushes. It is a pretty pink shade with a hint of brown. I wasn't into it last year as I find it hard to get the product onto the brush. But found out the best way for me is to dip my fingers into the pan and dab onto my cheeks and then use a stippling brush to even it out to give the prettiest natural blush.

Last product this month is another "re-discovery" from my makeup drawer. It is the Anastasia Brow Duality. It is a dual pencil to highlight brow bone. One side is a matte finish and one side is a shimmery finish. The side I use the most is the matte. Perfect to highlight brow bone with its "chubby" pencil. Just one slide to each brow bone, I'm set to go. 

Quite happy with March favorites even though it is not much. But I have re-discovered a few goodies from my stash which I totally forgot about. It is like getting "new" makeup without taking out your wallet. 

Do you like going through your stash to re-discover products you totally forgot and suddenly can't live without?