Haul: Saving on Necessities

A quick haul post today! There was an incredible sale going on at John Little and I just had to stock up on some necessities! Because I am ‘blessed’ with tons of hair everywhere *ahem*, I had to stock up on Gillette Venus Embrace and Gillette Satin Care Shave Gel in Wild Berry; shavers and shaving stuff are usually very expensive so I always grab them when they’re on sale – especially if it’s 25% off! I’m also running low on cleansing waters so I took the chance to try the Bourjois Micellar Cleansing Water and Bourjois Micellar Cleansing for Waterproof & Long Lasting Make-up – with 20% off they cost S$12 and S$13.50 each respectively!

This must be the most boring haul ever but I mean, if I save money on necessities, then it means I have more to spend on the ‘fun stuff’ right?

Empties #22: June 2015 – Part 2

I was expecting to go through a lot more than I did this month – I had these large, full-size bottles of skincare that are on their last legs and I thought finally, I’ll be done with them in June! But no, they just keep going and never runs out! They’re like magic or auto-refilling or something! That said, I did use up a good amount of makeup! Skincare products are usually easier to run through, so I’m always doubly happy when I do use up a makeup product!

Unboxing: LookFantastic Beauty Box December 2014

The LookFantastic Beauty Box is fast becoming one of my most highly anticipated mystery beauty boxes of the month – I felt that the last two have been really well curated, with great products and good value for what I paid. The box cost me £15 inclusive of shipping, approximately SGD32. Let’s see if this month’s box continued to be great!

5 Friday Favourites #4

It’s been a while since I did my 5 Friday Favourites… and they have changed up quite a bit since my last one! Of course, my stash has also increased a lot so I have a lot more to choose from!

Healgel Intensive has been helping my skin heal so much faster than before and my only regret now is that I didn’t try it sooner. MAC Ring of Saturn Mineralize Blush is a limited edition blush that I recently rediscovered; this gives a bright pop of colour with a beautiful sheen. The Chanel Les 4 Ombres Multi-Effect Quadra Eyeshadow in 234 Poesie looks like just any other neutral eyeshadow but man it looks stunning applied on the lids, and application is effortless. Had the Bourjois Bronzing Primer for the longest time but I only rediscovered cream base products as my skin is looking a lot better than usual; this makes contouring so easy and looks absolutely natural. Got the Nuxe Reve de Miel Lip Balm in a buy-one-get-one-free sale lately, and boy is it worth it; makes my lip feels so soft and smells incredible, it’s fast becoming my favourite nighttime lip balm.

So that’s 5 items that I have been absolutely loving lately; what about you?

Empties #8: April 2014 – Part 2

Welcome back to Part 2 of my empties post for April – I’ve used up so many items this month that it’s pretty shocking! Following the 16 items that I’ve mentioned in Part 1, here are another 13 more!

17. Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation in 53
I love the staying power, smooth texture and medium coverage of this foundation; I also really like the sweet fruity scent. I would definitely pick another up, although in a much lighter shade as I have lost my tan.

18. Himalaya Herbals Gentle Exfoliating Walnut Scrub
Reviewed here. Not a fan; way too rough for my liking.

19. Maybelline Color Sensational Lipstain in 150 Tender Rose
Got this a few years ago in the US; I really liked how natural it looks and how lightweight it is, although the staying power is rather weak for a stain. I’ve never seen this sold since then so I won’t be replacing it.

20. The Body Shop Tea Tree Skin Clearing Facial Wash
A small facial wash that I bring along to the gym; my bf is very loyal to this face wash, but I’m just pretty neutral about it mainly because I really dislike the scent of tea tree; I will use it, but won’t go out of my way to buy it.

21. Renew Rose Hip Oil
Reviewed here. I love this oil and it works wonders for my dry skin.

22. IOPE Super Vital Extra Moist Cream
Mentioned here. This cream is so thick that it’s practically solid; if not for the heavy fragrance, I think this works well as a a really hydrating night cream for really dry skin but feels way too heavy for oily skin.

23. Stella by Stella McCartney Eau de Parfum
24. Paul Smith Optimistic Eau de Toilette
25. Lancome Tresor in Love Eau de Parfum
A few sample perfume vials that I keep in my purse in case of ’emergencies’. I really like the Lancome one – very feminine and floral. I like to spray perfume on my legs so that the scent doesn’t overwhelm me.

26. MAC Cream Nail Lacquer in Hanging Loose
Used about half the bottle but it’s dried out. I loved this when I first got it because the formula was nice – 2 coats for opaque color and was not streaky for a cream color, and looked so dainty and ladylike on the nails.

27. IOPE Super Vital Extra Moist Eye Cream
Mentioned here as well. I like the texture – creamy but sinks in easily.

28. Belif Hydra Sebum Control Essence
Something that I just throw on after showering at the gym. From the name I don’t think this is targeted at my skin type but it doesn’t feel too dry for me.

29. Kiehl’s Clearly Corrective Dark Spot Solution
I don’t see any difference from using this product but I also don’t have a lot of dark spots and this is a really small bottle. I love how it feels – just like nothing. Because of how light it is, I tend to mix this with other serums, especially the stickier or thicker ones to make them easier to apply – I feel like I am “powering up” my other serums by using them this way.

And this rounds up all the empties for this month! A grand total of 29 items! I love writing empties posts – it really encourages me to use up my products and because of that, I am also taking much better care of my skin as I am more consistent about using the skin care products daily.

Have you used up any items this month?

5 Friday Favourites #2

It’s been a really long while since I did a Friday Favourites post – the last was in December last year! I noticed that I have been consistently using some items lately, and thought it would be great to do an update!

// Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation makes my skin looks better than it is, is affordable, and has really good staying power. // MAC LoveCloud Satin Powder Blush has been my go-to blush for perking up my face and taking the years off. // Burberry Sheer Eye Shadow in Pale Barley is a repeat favourite; I’m still really loving it as a transition shade – it’s irreplaceable! // The Kiko Water Eyeshadow in 206 is gorgeous; great pigmentation and can be foiled to make it really shimmer. // The Dior Addict Lipstick in 553 Princess was an impulse buy that I did not regret; it’s sheer but gives a nice soft glossy pink tint to the lips and feels really comfortable. //

That’s all for my 5 Friday Favourites! What are you loving lately?

Empties #5: January 2014

I have a ridiculous amount of empties this month – way more than I ever expected to be able to finish! Obviously, I did not use up the entire amount in just one month! With Chinese New Year here, I wanted to spring clean so I made extra effort to use up all the already-opened and half-empty bottles. So let’s not waste time and dive right in for some quick thoughts!

1. La Roche Posay Anthelios XL SPF 50+ Spray
2. La Roche Posay Hydrating After-Sun Melt-In Gel
A couple of items that are not empty but I had to throw out as they have expired. I do love La Roche Posay’s sun protection series, but I just don’t go under the sun enough to complete them and I only use these on my body. I will repurchase them again for my next summer or beach holiday!

3. La Roche Posay Anthelios XL SPF 50+ Melt in Cream
This I did manage to complete. I’m actually a vampire morbidly terrified of sunlight, so I slather this on my face every day religiously. This has not broken me out and dries very quickly without messing up my makeup.

4. Plante System Rosakalm Cleansing Micellar Water
Reviewed here. Not a fan; won’t repurchase.

5. Himalaya Herbals Purifying Neem Face Wash
Although this was meant for normal to oily skin, I did quite enjoy it. The texture is like a gel; my skin felt nice and clean without being too dry.

6. Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser for Face & Body
7. Gillette Satin Care Shave Gel Avocado Twist
A few bath items. I only use the Cetaphil on my body as I didn’t think it did anything for my face; won’t repurchase. I did like the Gillette Shave Gel, but I’ve not actually seen a shave gel that doesnt work anyway.

8. My Beauty Diary Rose & White Peony Brightening Mist
This does smell nice and I appreciate the good spray nozzle, and does feel refreshing. It doesn’t have any real impact on my skin though.

9. Make Up Store Brush Cleansing Soap
I love this brush cleansing soap; it cleans very well – even week old foundation washes out easily to reveal the original brush hair color – without drying out the brush hair. I also like how easy it is to use; just sweep the brush back and forth on the soap itself, then rinse off. Will repurchase!

10. Beauty Blender Sponge
I don’t really understand all the raves for this. I was sucked into the hype and bought two! Since it was so expensive I continued to use them anyway, but once they’re all spoilt, I won’t be buying any more.

11. L’Occitane Pivoine Flora Eau de Parfum
I quite like the scent; it’s very feminine and floral, but also very light.

12. Biore Cleansing Oil-in-Cotton Wipes
13. Sulwhasoo Snowise EX Whitening Water
14. SkinFood Fresh Apple Sparkling Pore Toner
Some useful skincare items for the gym. The Biore wipes is a regular item that I bring to wipe off all makeup before I exercise. I also like bringing little samples of skincare to the gym; after sweating it out, it always feel good to do some basic skincare steps. I’m not too concerned about what I bring though, as I usually clean my face again when I get home.

15. Poretol Pore’s Care Cleanser Pack
This was supposed to be a pore clearing wash off mask; I really didn’t like it. It was messy, and did nothing for my skin. The texture is rather gritty, which I guess acts as a scrub as you slather it on. I liked the light fresh tingle when it first go on the skin. Will not repurchase.

16. Avene Skin Recovery Cream Calming Formula
Reviewed here. Really enjoyed it and will be repurchasing!

17. VMV Hypoallergenics Hydra Balance Smart Moisturizer
Hated this. This was supposed to be a “smart moisturizer” that keeps dry areas moisturized, without adding shine or clog pores. My skin is very dry, and I’ve rarely seen a moisturizer that can make me shiny; this is a really weird moisturizer that while its texture felt light, it made me feel unbearably oily the entire time I had it on. Will never purchase.

18. SKII Facial Treatment Clear Lotion
19. SKII Facial Treatment Essence
I used to love SKII items, but I find that with prolonged usage, the effects become less apparent. Maybe my skin are used to the ingredients? I haven’t used these for a couple of years, and after using these sample sizes my skin seems clearer, so I might pick up a few full sizes to see if they will work again on my skin.

20. Good Skin Labs Smooth 365 Intensive Peptide Serum
I quite liked this; it goes on slightly tacky feeling, but the tackiness just goes away after letting it dry for a couple of minutes leaving a very velvety smooth texture. The sample is too small for me to tell if it made a difference to my skin, but I did liked it while I used it so I might check out a full bottle.

21. Lancome Genifique Yeux Eye Illuminating Youth Activator
An item that I thought was pretty gimmicky with its rotating applicator that you use to roll under the eyes to apply the serum. I didn’t think that it did much for me. Will not repurchase.

22. Lancome L’absolu Rouge in 365
A really great find; got this as part of a Christmas Purchase-with-Purchase set. It was my go-to red lip for a while; goes on smoothly, very comfortable and is on the sheer side so I can use it everyday.

23. Too Faced Primed & Poreless Bronze Tint SPF 20
Another item that has expired. I barely used it as I’m too lazy to bother with primers, and I don’t really want to bronze my entire face.

24. Essence Long Lasting Eye Pencil in 15 Bling Bling
I think Essence has a really nice affordable line of eye pencils. While they’re not the most long lasting, they do go on smoothly with good color payoff and a little eyeshadow on top will extend its wear.

25. Bourjois Volumizer Mascara
Another gimmicky item; this mascara has 2 “dials” – step 1 is supposed to give defined lashes, while step 2 is meant to give dramatic lashes. I ended up only using step 2 as I didnt think step 1 did anything for my lashes. I liked the effect of step 2 though, my lashes were nice and big!

26. Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation SPF 15 PA+ in 3 Beige
One of my favourite foundations! It’s just amazing; it gives about medium coverage, and feels so light on. I really like how natural it looks on and I can layer it for better coverage without it looking like it’s caked on. I will definitely be repurchasing this.

The scariest thing about clearing out that much makeup and skincare products is when you realised that even after throwing out 26 items, it still did not make a dent to my collection! And I need to work on using up more actual makeup too! If you’ve managed to read through all I have to say about my trash, I hope it didn’t bore you out! 🙂

EOTD #1: Festive Soft Green Look for Day Time / Work

A quick EOTD today; I didn’t have time to curl my lashes so pardon my stick straight eyelashes, and my ginormous pores. I wanted to do a green and slightly festive look that would be okay for work, since we were having team Xmas lunch, so I used green through my lid, and then blended a brown in the crease to soften the look and make it less like I was going for a night out. I quite like the look; it’s slightly festive without being overdone.

Products used:
1. ELF Eyelid Primer, all over the lid, crease and browbone
2. MAC Extra Dimension Eyeshadow in Modern Pewter, all over the lid
3. L’Oreal Infallible Eyeshadow in Golden Emerald, in the outer corner
4. Burberry Sheer Eye Shadow in Pale Barley, in the crease
5. Wet & Wild Color Icon Eyeshadow in Brulee, on the browbone
6. Pupa Multiplay Triple Purpose Eye Pencil in Black, top eyeline
7. Bourjois Volumizer Mascara

I should have groomed my brows, but I ran out of time! So they’re their usual unruly self. I think the combination of green and soft brown works really well; I guess because the colours occur together in nature as well?

Hope you’ve enjoyed my first EOTD! 🙂

Empties #3: November 2013

Another month has gone by so quickly. After I stopped buying so many new products to try out every month, I find that I have been accumulating empties at a much faster rate. You know you’re an addict when you feel a sense of happiness as another bottle bites the dust!

1. Bifesta Brightup Cleansing Lotion
Reviewed here. Will definitely repurchase!

2. Tsubaki Damage Care Shampoo with Natural Tsubaki Oil
A great shampoo; I find it makes my skin very nice and smooth, without making my hair greasy despite the “oil” in its name. Will repurchase.

3. Caudalie Vinoperfect Radiance Serum Complexion Correcting
A good sized sample that I received from one of the beauty boxes but after using it for a couple of weeks, I didn’t find that my complexion was any better. It’s quite light in texture and absorbs quite quickly. Won’t repurchase.

4. The Body Shop Nutriganics Smoothing Day Cream
Received this free with a magazine. It’s quite light in texture, which is expected as it’s a day cream, but I find that it breaks down my face makeup way too fast in the usually hot Singapore climate, even for my very dry skin, and there is no SPF. However, it’s also not moisturizing enough for me to use as a night cream. Won’t repurchase.

5. Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector
Reviewed here. A really lovely tinted moisturiser.

6. Revlon ColorStay Lipliner in Rose
I’ve had this for a while and finally finished it. I like it; it’s a nice rosy hue, kind of like my lips but better. It’s very pigmented, glides on easily and affordable. It’s quite soft though, so it tends to break easily.

7. Bourjois Healthy Balance Unifying Powder
One of my favourite face powders; it smells amazing, like some sweet fruit similar to its other Healthy Mix foundations. It’s quite light, and does not look powdery or cake-y on the skin. This is actually the second one that I have run through, and will definitely be repurchasing.

9 & 10. 2 x Eucerin DermoPurifyer Active Concentrate
Bought this, 1 for the bf and 1 for myself, at about S$30 each, after a blogger raved about it. I totally regret it – I later realised that the blogger raves about everything sent to her1 This was an utterly useless product; didn’t do anything for my dry skin or my bf’s acne-prone oily skin.

8. Garnier Clean Sensitive Gentle Facial Cleansing Wipes
9 & 10. 2 x Sulwhasoo Snowise EX Whitening Water
Some useful gym skincare items. Used up another packet of Garnier cleansing wipes, which I really enjoy for its convenience and removes makeup easily. I also bring along little samples tubes of the Sulwhasoo Whitening Water which I use as a hydrating toner; I love the smell and it seems to bring back some moisture to my skin post a hot bath after gym.

11. Shu Uemura Skin Purifier Cleansing Beauty Oil Premium A/O
Not really a fan; I feel like the texture is a bit too heavy – like I have to rub extra hard to spread it over my face. It makes my eyes blur up for a few seconds – it does clear up but I don’t like that feeling. It does remove my makeup very easily, even waterproof ones. I won’t be repurchasing this one but I’m looking forward to trying out the Ultime8 version.

12. Nuxe Gentle Toning Lotion
I really liked this toner – it smells amazing; the rose scent is quite obvious but not overpowering. It feels rather refreshing but does not dry out my skin. Don’t see any skincare benefits but feels great. Will repurchase!

13. Essence Colour & Go Quick Drying Nail Polish in 47 Red-dy to go
14. Revlon Luxurious Color Eyeliner
I’ve had the Revlon eyeliner for so long that I didn’t even realize that I still had it; I must have loved it because it’s quite used up, but decided to trash it since its so old. The Essence Nail Polish also dried out so I had to throw it.

15. PureDKNY Perfume Vial
I’m not usually a perfume wearer but I really enjoyed this! It’s quite a light scent, and does not choke me like most perfumes do. I’m not good at talking about scents but I like how ‘clean’ and fresh it smells.

16. Too Faced Perfect Eyeliner
Blogged about here. I loved this and will repurchase.

And that’s it for another month of empties! It’s quite surprising to me that I have averaged more than 10 empties per month over the last 3 months. I hope you have enjoyed looking through my empties as much as I love reading other people’s empties post!