Beauty Archives - Page 4 of 22

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Palette in Surreal Light

May 18, 2017 Leave a Comment

Hourglass is one of my all time favourite beauty brands that can do no wrong in my opinion. All their products and new launches have major wow factors and never fail to impress, and the subject of today’s review is no exception. Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Palette in Surreal Light, which was launched as a holiday collection at the end of 2016, is packed full with pretty impressive stuff. It has a gorgeous marble-effect casing and five beautiful brand new shades, ranging from finishing powder to blusher to bronzer. The marble packaging alone already gave me heart palpitations, and I was very intrigued to find out that Hourglass came up with all brand new shades for the palette, as opposed to offering existing shades, which may not appeal to people who own a few Hourglass products and don’t want to get a repeat of what they already have.

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Palette in Surreal Light contains: (top to bottom, left to right)

Finishing Powder in Surreal Light; a sheer and slightly iridescent warm nude shade. From the first glance I thought this would be too shimmery to use as a setting powder, but to my pleasant surprise it does work really well with no trace of glitter and gives a subtle luminosity to the skin true to Hourglass style. It also has a warm undertone and appears to warm up my complexion slightly.
Blusher in Surreal Glow; a soft nude pink shade with a neutral warm undertone. It does show up on my NC30-35 complexion and gives a really flattering soft pink flush.
Blusher in Surreal Effect; a deep rose pink shade, with a swirl of shimmer peachy tone. This is a great shade to use on the apple of your cheeks to give a pop of colour.
Bronzer in Surreal Bronze Light; a neutral tone bronzer, which goes on quite light (but you can definitely build up the intensity) making it natural looking and easy to wear. I’m not sure if this will show up on a darker skin tone.
Strobe Highlighting Powder in Surreal Strobe Light; a subdued golden peach highlighter, very appropriate for daytime. This is not an all out highlighter like Becca’s or the Balm’s Mary Loumanizer, but gives a more subtle glow.

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit palette in Surreal Light is a very versatile palette, very handy for travelling as it offers almost everything you need for your daily makeup. The shades are beautiful and wearable for everyday, and will suit most skin colours. I particularly love the two blushers, which I tend to mix and use as one colour, and also the bronzer, which I also double up as a crease colour for my eyes. I love that I can just chuck this one palette in my makeup bag when I travel and it takes care of all my makeup needs. I wasn’t sure if I would love this palette, thinking it would fall into the usual ploy of beautiful packaging to lure us in with little substance, but the Surreal Light palette has really impressed me. If you are looking for a palette to invest in, Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit palette in Surreal Light, is definitely worth the consideration.

IT Cosmetics CC Cream

May 9, 2017 Leave a Comment

Spring is in full bloom and summer is fast approaching, which means I am chopping and changing my makeup products again. When it comes to spring and summer I always prefer a super dewy skin that radiates health and glow when the sun comes out. I also prefer a foundation that has a built in SPF, the higher the better, because the last thing I need on a warm spring/summer day is having to cake my skin with layers of both foundation and heavy sunscreen.

The foundation that I’ve been gravitating towards a lot this spring is the IT Cosmetics CC Cream. It creates a healthy, radiant looking skin and has a very high and broad spectrum SPF protection of 50+.

What it is:

A super multitasking colour correcting cream, which claims to;

Give full coverage like a full coverage foundation.
Provide SPF 50+ UVA/UVB broad spectrum sunscreen protection.
Colour correct, enhance, and brighten complexion.
Also act as an anti-aging serum.
Minimise pores and double up as a primer.
Moisturise skin and clinically shown to give 179% skin hydration.

This CC Cream comes with a very long list of ingredients (which is not always a good thing in my book). But given that it claims to do so many things, that could vouch for such an extensive list. Another selling point is that the CC Cream is developed with plastic surgeons, and I believe this is in relevance to covering up scars and providing proper and effective hydration to the skin after surgery.

Pros:

SPF 50+ UVA/UVB Broad spectrum sunscreen protection, which is great for summer; not having to cake on both heavy sunscreen and foundation on top of one another.
Enhance brightness and glow to the skin. IT Cosmetics CC Cream really does make your skin glow and looking healthy and radiant.
Convenient packaging. It is packaged in a tube, which is convenient to carry around, with a pump to dispense the product, which makes it super easy to use on the go.

Cons:

Limited shade range and doesn’t cater for different undertones. In my opinion IT Cosmetics CC Cream caters more for cool undertone, so if you have yellow or warm undertone this could look quite ashy and chalky on you. Although it claims to “really adjust to your skin tone perfectly”.
Citrusy scent, which may be overpowering for some people
Has a tendency to make your skin look unnatural and ‘masky’ if you put on too much.

My Verdict:

This is going to be a hit and miss depending on your skin tone and skin type. If you happen to be among the lucky ones and can find a shade that matches your skin tone, then you will likely love this. It is easy to use, fuss free, conveniently packaged and can give you beautiful flawless and radiant complexion. I am in the shade Medium, which can be a tad too light when I have a bit of a tan, and the lack of warm undertone sometimes make my face look like a mask. If I jump up a shade to Medium Tan it is way too dark for me. But when my skin is lighter (during autumn and winter), then the Medium shade seems to match quite well.

I also find that less is more with this foundation. It has a relatively thick gel like consistency and too much of it will really make your skin look and feel cakey. The best way is to use little and build up your coverage from there. For me about a pea size amount is more than enough. It does blend really well and gives medium to full coverage.

Have you tried IT Cosmetics CC Cream? What are your thoughts?

Pixi Caroline Hirons Double Cleanse

April 18, 2017 Leave a Comment

Double Cleansing seems to be a mantra in every girls’ beauty book these days, and definitely a firm practice of mine. Not for any other reasons but for a simple fact that it works wonder on your skin. Having your face thoroughly cleansed and 100% free of makeups and impurities means that we get optimum results from any skin care products applied to our face afterwards. And of course having our face completely rid of impurities means no build up or clog up of makeups or dirt, which could result in a breakout or dull complexion.

So when Caroline Hirons, the queen of skincare, teamed up with Pixi (whose Glow Tonic is one of my absolute holy grail products) to create a duo cleanser specifically catered for us double cleansing fanatics, I knew I definitely couldn’t pass this up.

What it is

A two in one jar, with one side containing solid cleansing oil and another side containing cleaning cream. The solid cleansing oil contains vitamin E, Camellia Oil omega rich, and Evening Primrose oil, which protects, conditions, nourishes, heals and moisturise the skin. The cleansing cream contains vitamin C (which promotes collagen), peptide complex (which plumps the skin), and arginine (which improves cell renewal and elasticity). Another perk, true to Caroline’s style, of course is that the cleanser is parabens free, fragrance free, and most important of all, not tested on animals.

What does it do

The solid cleansing oil effortlessly breaks down and remove dirt, waterproof makeup, and sunscreen. The cleansing cream cleanses, conditions and preps skin for the next step in your beauty regime.

How to use

Step 1: Use a coin size amount of solid cleansing oil and rub between your hand to dissolve. Gently massage on to dry skin to remove makeups. Remove with damp facecloth.

Step 2: Second cleanse with a coin size amount of cleansing cream. Massage gently and thoroughly all over the face, and remove with damp facecloth or warm water.

My Verdict

This is a really good cleanser and delivers on all counts of what a good cleanser should. It removes all traces of makeup (even my stubborn waterproof mascara), as well as nourishes and moisturises the skin. My face feels squeaky clean afterwards and my skin doesn’t feel stripped nor dry, but pleasantly supple and nourished.

I also love the innovative and convenient packaging; being able to reach for both cleansers within one single container. Although some may argue that the jar is slightly on a bulky side, I still find it much more travel-friendly and convenient compare to having to pack (or remember to pack) two separate cleansers. This has definitely been my go-to cleanser to bring with whenever I travel.

Have you tried Pixi + Caroline Hirons Double Cleanse? What are your thoughts?

My 5-minutes Makeup Routine

March 9, 2017 Leave a Comment

Lately I’ve been having many early mornings, when I literally have next to no time to get ready. So the usual luxury of standing around pondering which foundation to wear, which eye shadow palette to use has, under the circumstance, been thrown out the window. Replacing it is a very quick and super simple routine that requires the least amount of faffing and blending effort. The key to a quick yet effective makeup routine as I’ve discovered, is to choose your products wisely. Despite spending less than the average time it would normally take to do my makeup, I can look just as put together and polished as I would when I have more time to spare.

Step 1 Concealer: MAC Pro Longwear Concealer

I hate the packaging of this; it comes in a pump bottle (concealer in a pump bottle? mind boggling), but the result is amazing so I accept this as being a small price to pay. It gives ‘incredible’ coverage and sometimes I even consider this to be a hybrid between concealer and foundation. If you are short of time, just use one pump and blend under your eyes and on any blemishes and imperfections, and that is enough to give you an even, flawless canvas ready for the next step.

Step 2 Powder Foundation: MAC Studio Fix

This is practically my life saver and what really saves me the most time. When you have next to no time to get ready in the morning powder foundation is your best friend. You don’t want to be faffing with liquid foundation, what with the blending and the messiness that come with it. Mac Studio Fix Powder foundation is my ultimate favourite, and it’s just a matter of pressing your brush in the powder compact, swirl it around to gather the product, and then just blend all over your face. Fuss free, mess free, done in seconds, and you get the same flawless coverage as you would with a liquid foundation.

Step 3 Eyebrows Gel: Blink Brow Build

One of my biggest pet peeves, when it comes to a makeup routine, is doing my eyebrows. It’s my least, least favourite thing to do, and what I waste the most time faffing with. So a brush-on eyebrows gel is a very quick, easy, and foolproof alternative to create a natural-looking fullness and definition without the need to be precise. My current favourite is the Brow Build from Blink, which contains miniscule fibres that mimic the appearance of thicker fuller brows with just a few brush strokes, perfect for a 5-minutes makeup.

Step 4 Mascara: Maybelline Falsie

This is an old school, cult classic mascara that I’ve fallen back in love with. Rightly called the Falsie for the reason that it really gives your lashes that va-va-voom effect akin to wearing false eyelashes. And when you have no time for eyeshadows, having a full and luscious lashes and let your eyes do the talking really does compensate a great deal.

Step 5 Lash Line: Stila Smudge Stick waterproof eye liner

A step that you can skip altogether, but spending extra few seconds on this can make such a huge difference. Lining your upper inner waterline makes your upper lashes appear thicker and more voluminous. And as mentioned if you have no time for eyeshadows, this quick and simple step is all it takes to oomph up the definition on your eyes, making you look more polished and sophisticated.

Step 6 Blusher: NARS Orgasm

A universal blush colour that looks good on just about everybody and will suit anything and everything you wear. It’s a gorgeous peachy-pink shade that also has a golden shimmer so it can be doubled up as a highlighter, for those of us who can’t go a day without that extra boost of glow.