FOTD: Not-so-recent!

It's been a while since I did an FOTD. I haven't had my "face" on for the past week! :(

 

This was my look for an easy-breezy brunch meeting to celebrate one of my close friends' birthdays. The lacey top was really cute, but the heart buttons ended up coming off in the washing machine!! I had to sew them all back once I pried the buttons out of the washing machine filter thingy. 

 

Items used: 

Face:

Steamcream (once again, from Jian!)

Skin Food Aloe BB Cream in Shade #2

Eyes: 

Holika Holika Eye Charm double eyelid tape 

Daiso "Elizabeth" Eyelashes

Japan Barbie Eye Diamond Brown

Sleek Storm i-Divine Palette

I used (A) over the whole lid, then (B) from the inner corner of my eyes to the outer corner, focusing on the highest point of my eye. Then, I used (C) on the outer "V" of my eyes. I skipped eyeliner altogether, because I didn't want the look to be too severe for a laid-back brunch. All in all, it took me about five minutes, hehe :3

Cheeks:

Benefit Coralista

Lips:

Figs & Rouge Organic Balm in Rambling Rose

Revlon Lip Butter in Macaroon

 

That's about it from me for now - hope that everyone is having a happy Sunday! ^~^

FOTD: 18 February 2012

Husband went to spin music at Kinki's Bar at Customs House and brought me along. Here's my FOTD for the night - I lasted till 3am! I'm too old for partying all night!

Items used: 

Face: 

Holika Holika Face 2 Change Cream Starter

Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation in Vanille

Skin Food Lime Secret Shine Base in #75 Lime Shine Gold (mixed with foundation)
Benefit Georgia Face Powder (to mattify my T-zone)
Liole Marbling Blusher in #1 Shining Aurora (to highlight my puny nose bridge!)

Eyes: 

Etude House Petit Darling Eyes Matte Eyeshadow in Black (used wet to keep my kohl eyeliner in check)

Holika Holika Eye Charm double eyelid tape 

M.A.C. Eye Kohl in Smolder

Brandless Eyelashes (bought in Malaysia) 

Japan Barbie Eye Diamond Brown

Sleek Storm i-Divine Palette (kindly gifted by the lovely Jian!) 

 

For interest's sake, here's how I used the palette - been dying to make use of it properly for ages!

I used (A) over the lid, followed by (B), which lent the whole lid a gorgeous, shimmery glow. Then I used (C) just under my brow and on the inner corners of my eyes. (D) and (E) were used to on the outer 'V' and to contour the crease of my eyes. Lastly, I used (F) to add a bit of depth to the middle of my eyes - applied just in the middle of my eyelid (Does that make sense?).

Cheeks:

Canmake Cream Cheek in #09 Pinky Rose

Benefit Coralista

Lips:

H&M Lip Butter in Fresh Pear and Sweet Pea

M.A.C. Lipstick in Myth 

And there we have it! Any thoughts? ^~^

Haul: February 2012 Bellabox

How quickly a month passes! Just last month I blogged about receiving my first Bellabox, and already, I've received my February Bellabox - the Valentine's edition. ^~^

Here's what I received:

 

The theme this month was "Share the Love" - timely because February is Valentine's month! It's a shame that I only received this after Valentine's Day, because I would have loved to use the perfume - it smells divine!

 

 

First up: Pangea Organics Discovery Kit (S$59.95, presumably for full-size versions)

This is a set of three sachets, namely:

(1) Facial mask in Japanese Matcha with Acai and Goji Berry

(2) Shower gel in Italian White Sage with Geranium and Yarrow

(3) Facial cream in Nigerian Ginger with Lavender and Thyme

Now, I have a pet peeve - I don't like things that come in sachets, especially beauty products. To my mind, they're fiddly, flat, messy to use and really don't deliver enough product to make it worthwhile. I mean, imagine showering with whatever's in that little packet! Hmm... perhaps it's just me?

Still, the ingredients sound wholesome and, well, organic. I think these might come in handy for when I'm next away from home, and don't want to use the shower gel and cleansing products that the hotel provides.

Duchess Marden Body Serum (200 ml for S$89.89)

This product claims to "hydrate, soften and stimulate new cell growth" that is easily absorbed into the skin, without leaving any residue. I'm psyched to use this, because who couldn't use more beautiful, glowing skin? Rather pleased to receive this!

Nvey Eco Organic Eyeshadow in 150 Charcoal Blue (S$49.90)

I quite like the product samples offered by Bellabox, because a lot aren't available in Singapore except through the Bellabox website. A whole eyeshadow is pretty generous, even though it comes packed in a transparent disposable plastic casing. This comes in a lovely shade of grey/blue, which, even though I haven't swatched it, looks like it'd make for pretty eyes if the colour payoff is good. In addition, these eyeshadows are talc-free and have ingredients such as chamomile and jojoba. Pretty alright for an eyeshadow - beautifying your skin while making your eyes beautiful (yay playing with words!).

Oscar De La Renta Esprit D'Oscar (100ml for S$125)

Okay, so this one I've tried. It's gorgeous. I love, love, love the scent! It consists of a heady mix of floral, oriental notes, which is so sophisticated. Basically, this scent is an updated version of the original perfume created by Oscar De La Renta in 1977. I must confess that I'm a bit of a perfumey girl (I actually have -eep- about 5 on rotation right now), so this will be a great addition to my collection. ^~^

 

Ansley Show Hot Dual Volume Mascara (S$12.90)

I didn't manage to get a good photo of this, but here's the deal. Ansley is a Korean cosmetics brand, and is one of those dual-ended mascaras that consists of a white-coloured priming essence on one end, and a very black mascara on the other. What I liked about the mascara (in particular) is the brush on the mascara end. It's kind of twisty, which is pretty alright for adding volume to puny lashes (like mine)!

All in all, I'm pretty pleased with what I received this month. Thanks Bellabox, here's to next month!

Wishlist: Fun Things From Sephora

It's a pity I'm not allowed to receive "hongbao" (red packets with money) at Chinese New Year anymore now that I'm married - otherwise I'd definitely be trying to spend my "hongbao" money on these!

Oh, if only Sephora shipped to Singapore~! T___T

 

Tokidoki Airways Palette, US$42

 

Hello Kitty Mon Amour Palette,  US$42

Benefit Hervana Blush, US$28

 

Nails Inc., The Wyndam Collection, US$20

 

Philosophy Sweet Talk Trio, US$22

 

First Aid Beauty Uplifting Serum, US$46

 

Hello Kitty Parisienne Palette, US$36

 

 Sephora Favorites Give Me Some Lip, US$25

FOTD: Chinese New Year

Sorry for the long absence, blogosphere! It's been a busy week at work, and I barely had time to keep my head above water - so it's nice to be back! ^~^ It's the Chinese Lunar New Year weekend, so to all readers who celebrate, Gong Xi Fa Cai in the Year of the Dragon! Let's have a prosperous one! 

Today my family, hubby and I woke up early and headed out to visit relatives and friends.  Here's my FOTD, along with my Vivienne Westwood Anglomania x Melissa jelly shoes ^~^

Items used: 

Face: 

Holika Holika Face 2 Change Cream Starter

Skin Food Aloe Sun BB Cream in Shade 2

Skin Food Lime Secret Shine Base in #75 Lime Shine Gold

Eyes: 

Etude House Petit Darling Eyes Matte Eyeshadow in Black

Holika Holika Eye Charm double eyelid tape

Brandless Eyelashes (bought in Malaysia)

Cheeks: 

Benefit Benetint

Benefit Georgia

Lips: 

Benefit Benetint

Beauty Credit Lovely Lipgloss in Very Strawberry 

A favourite scent of mine lately (that I used today as well) is Juicy Couture's Viva La Juicy. It smells gorgeous!

 

Hope that everyone has a great Chinese New Year!

Tokidoki Sodashop Palette

While the husband and I were in town searching for dinner on Friday, we came across a Sephora outlet. When I had a peek in, this cute palette by Tokidoki caught my eye: 

 

It's called the Sodashop Palette, and retails for S$69.90 at the Sephora outlet in Takashimaya. I thought the packaging was adorable - look at the '50s diner-esque designs! Sugary sodas, sneakers, and even a little couple (who look remarkably like Tony and Sandy from Grease) doing the twist at the bottom! The tin even comes with a cute Tokidoki magnet in the shape of a pennant (shown above) and a whole sheet of character magnets which are tucked inside the tin. ^~^

Upon closer inspection, the palette contains 12 mini eyeshadows, a Perfetto burgundy eyeliner (Carina), and a nail file in the shape of Sandy, an iconic (if you will) Tokidoki character. The whole thing is flanked by a decorative mirror on the inside cover. All in all, it's really cute! 

The 12 shadows come in the following shades, and come with a plastic overlay/insert, containing the names of the shadows, as well as cute Tokidoki drawings accompanying them:

• Skull Donut (nude vanilla)
• Patatino (shimmery pale golden peach)
• Riposino (medium brown)
• Ciccio (bronzy gold brown)
• Mummetto (dark brown)
• Mozzarella (shimmery dark brown)
• Tulipano (pale lilac)
• Nancy Rocks (shimmery purple)
• Romeo (plum)
• Ciotolina (shimmery mossy green)
• Arrosto (dark charcoal gray with shimmer)
• Furbina (dark purple with shimmer)

For the most part, I thought the neutral shades in the palette were lovely, but I wasn't sold 100% on the blue-y. purple-y shades. That might be down to personal preference though, because I have, shall we say, a history with blue-y shades (haha!).

Soo from Makeup Tokki did a post on this palette way back in March of last year - Sephora is streets ahead of us over there! 

I had a poke around on Sephora's website to see what other kinds of Tokidoki goodies they have in store. My favourite by far was this set of brushes: 

Tokidoki Pittura Brush Set, US$35

These were sold in Singapore Sephora stores over the Christmas period - and sold out real quick! I would have loved to get my hands on these!

Are you a fan of Tokidoki cosmetics? ^~^

Urban Decay Naked2 Palette

So, the Urban Decay Naked2 palette was released on 1 December 2011 (yup, a whole 3 days ago), and I actually crawled out of my medication-addled stupor to get up and head on down to the Urban Decay website just to have a look at it.

I admit, all the hype over the original Naked palette and the added hype that Naked2 was going to be bigger, better and more awesome than the first gave me intense lemmings for the sequel. Furthermore, look at these beautiful nudey, griegey shades:From left: Foxy, Half Baked, Bootycall, Chopper, Tease, Snakebite, Suspect, Pistol, Verve, YDK, Busted, Blackout.

Naturally, they're all sold out on the UD webbie by now, but looks like they'll be hitting Sephora stores end January 2012. Maybe I'll be able to mull it over the Christmas period, hehe ^~^

Did anyone else get the Naked2 craving? Or are you one of the lucky ones who managed to get hold of one? If so, do you think it lives up to the hype?

Images courtesy of Urban Decay.

Haul + Review: Paul & Joe Fall 2011 Collection - "Manhattan" + Swatches

I'd like to share a couple of eyeshadows that have been on heavy rotation for me of late. They're from the Paul & Joe Fall 2011 Limited Edition Manhattan Collection, and are named and inspired by none other than the Big Apple - New York City.


Featuring an undeniably chic chequered design, each eyeshadow pot consists of two complementary colours, and are fashionably named (in the below image from left): Brooklyn Bridge, Empire State, and 42nd Street. The only gripe that I had in relation to the packaging of the shadows was that they can get a little bit fiddly to use, when trying to pick up colour, thanks to the criss-cross design. This can be easily rectified though, with a sponge eyeshadow applicator or eyeshadow brush. If the colours do end up mixing, a quick blow will get rid of any loose bits of eyeshadow - hey presto!
I love the sleek packaging of the shadows, and the pretty prints that, as always, are prints from Paul & Joe's catwalk collection. Paul & Joe eyeshadows offer a soft wash of colour, which is really pretty and subtle, so when I saw the colour combinations for the Manhattan collection, I had to get them. It took a while of collecting and watching out for bargains, but I managed it in the end ^~^



The eyeshadows can be popped out (see below), by sticking a paper clip or similar pointy item into the hole on the back of the pot, and are interchangeable with any other Paul & Joe Face & Eye Color CS shadow. I call them eyeshadows, though they are technically okay to use on the face as well. (I'm guessing cheeks). That said, the lighter shades would do beautifully as a highlighting powder for cheeks and nose bridges - even decollete, if you so choose!


Brooklyn Bridge

Named after one of the oldest suspension bridges in America, Brooklyn Bridge is a really pretty combination of two pinks - a golden, dusty rose, and shimmery baby pink, that are really adorable together. I really love the darker shade just at the outer corners of my eye for giving depth, and the lighter shade for highlighting. Both colours carry a little shimmer, which give a sheer wash of colour to the whole eyelid when used together. I like to think the two shades can help create a dreamy look, like watching a sunset from the Brooklyn Bridge!


Swatch: Under natural light


Empire State

This duo consists of a sheeny, shiny light gold colour twinned with a dark, matte navy blue/black shade. I like how the colours are subtle enough to wear to work, but can be built up to add a bit of sparkle after office hours. The dark shade is good for use as an eyeliner, though you'll probably need a good liner brush that will pick up a good bit of shadow. As you can see in the swatch below, the darker shade can end up looking a bit patchy, as I swatched without using primer, and had to pat on the colour a good four times to get that swatch. Like the Empire State Building, these colours are reminiscent of the roaring '20s and Art Deco, and can be used to recreate the graphic, dramatic eye make-up of ladies during that period, like so:




Swatch: Under natural light


42nd Street

This was tough to capture on-camera. The shades are a light pink - not as light as the pink in Brooklyn Bridge (above), with pink glitter, and a twilight blue shade with blue glitter. The shadow is named after 42nd Street in downtown New York, right near the famous Times Square. I like how vibrant and buildable the two colours are, and when combined, create a shimmery eye that is just lovely. The sparkliness of the colours meant that the shadows didn't photograph very well, but they are definitely worth a look.


Swatch: Under natural light



As the colours are limited edition, this collection will soon be retired (if this hasn't already happened) , to give way to the Holiday 2011 and Spring 2012 collections. These are easy-to-use colours that will see you through the seasons, so if you come across them, it would be a shame to pass them up. Empire State can still be purchased here for £8.95. Since each pot retailed initially at £15 each, it's quite the bargain!