Saturday, December 31, 2016

2016 beauty favourites round up

It has been years since I did a yearly beauty favourites. What better way to wrap up this year with a 2016 beauty favourites post.
This year I am back home and I have access to all my beauty products. So, I am able to take most of my beauty products for a test drive and find out which ones are really the gem in my collection.

Let's start off with the base product.
It was hard to choose since I do own so many base products. These are products I find myself always reaching for.
Before I go into the products, I am going to give the stats of my skin. I have dry combination skin with pores and dry flaky patches at my nose area and skintone is pretty even. For my shade, I am about a NC15-20.

MAC Mineralized Skinfinish Natural have been my favourite powder for years. I use this to set my makeup. The powder itself applies very light on the skin and it gives some amount of coverage with a slight glow. I never ever end up with cake face with this powder, it sinks really beautifully into the skin and it does not look like I have applied powder on my face.

NARS Sheer Glow Foundation has been my obsession this year. I really get the hype of this foundation. This foundation is while providing a light-medium coverage is really light on the skin, almost second skin like. I like the soft glow it gives. It's not overly dewy or oily looking, very much like a healthy glow from within. It does not cling on to my dry patches on days where my nose is dry and flaky. This foundation has a long staying power. On me, it last about 8-9 hours before it starts creasing a little. My shade is Light 3 Gobi.

Rimmel True Match Foundation is my drugstore foundation of choice. You could see that my bottle looks a little beaten up. I have been using this a lot. This foundation is also very light on the skin and it provides a light-medium coverage. Everytime I use this foundation, my skin looks great.

Missha Cho Bo Yang BB Cream has remained to be one of my favourite Korean  BB cream. I have been using it since 4 years ago. The consistency is on the thicker side so is the coverage. Since I do not need a lot of coverage, I will use the tiniest bit to sheer out the coverage and it will look so good on my skin. The foundation also sinks into the skin, making it very skin-like. Shade wise it does not have much of that terrible grey undertone compared to many BB cream I have used.


My favourite bronzer is The Body Shop Honey Bronzing Powder in #1. I am kinda sad that is not available to purchaser in Malaysia. I got mine when I was still in Europe. I seriously do not know how am I gonna live when this runs out. This bronzer is super fool proof. I can pile on loads of it and it still looks so natural. It provides a very slight touch of warm to the face to make you look radiant and alive.

MAC Mineralized Skin Finish in Soft & Gentle. This is such a beautiful highlighter. I have gotten myself many compliments using this highlighter and I have converted a few friends into using this highlighter too.

Bourjois Blush Pot. These blushers are so good, I love how pigmented they are and how long they last on me. They hold on me pretty much the whole day. I have about 6 of these.


Maybelline Brow Satin. The pencil is fine and thin so it makes it really easy to draw the brows with good precision. Ever since I bought this eyebrow pencil, this is pretty much the only thing I use for my brows. It's very affordable, it does the job and I am happy with it.

Artdeco single eyeshadow in 578. I swear Artdeco is so underrated. Hardly anybody talks about this brand. This eyeshadow is a dusty mauve shade which I have been loving of late. This eyeshadow is so great as an all over base or at the crease. Very versatile

Another versatile eyeshadow that I have been loving is Innisfree Mineral Eyeshadow Matte in 04. It is a milk chocolate shade. It's great as an all over lid colour for those lazy days where you just want to slap on one eyeshadow and look all ready.

NARS  dual intensity eyeshadow in Himalia. This is another beautiful shade but beautiful metallic finish and pigmentation. You can sort of see my favourite type of shadows are those type that I can throw on just one eyeshadow and be done and still look really done up and good.

Maybelline Volum' Express Hypercurl Mascara. This mascara just really volumizes and holds my curls. Also, it;s the most affordable among the Maybelline mascaras at the Asian counter.

I had about hundred over lipsticks. So, it did took me a long and hard time to sort out and bring you my gems of 2016.

NYX Soft Matte Lipcream. This is probably my favourite drugstore liquid lipstick type of product. I have about 8 shades of them. The one in this photo is Istanbul. I like how velvety they go on the lips but they are not transfer proof nor they are bullet proof. I actually do not mind that because they do not dry the heck out of the lips. Don't you just hate those liquid lipstick that leaves your lips looking like the desert at the end of the day.

Kylie liquid lipstick. These made the cut! These liquid lipstick are transfer proof and also, bullet proof , last through all my meals and drinks. Great thing is, they are not drying on my lips and pretty comfortable to wear. My lips still look good at the end of the day. It does not leave the tacky feeling that I hate from liquid lipsticks and it dries completely matte. The shade in this photo is Posie K and I love love love this shade. It's such a beautiful medium mauve pink.

BBIA Last Lipstick Velvet Matte in 04. This lipstick is not completely matte as it claims, it's has a little satin finish but I am fine with it because it means it is not as drying. This shade is extremely beautiful, I am head over heels with this shade.

YSL Rouge Volupte in Pink Fetish. Probably one of my most favourite ever existed on planet earth. I like how buttery and smooth they feel upon application, it makes you just want you keep applying this lipstick. The shade might be a barbie pink but it is very wearable even for daily or office.

Dior Addict Fluid Stick in Kiss Me. Not many talk about these type of liquid lipstick formula, people are more into the matte type. This liquid lipstick formula is just so moisturizing and hydrating. It's fuss free and easy to use, it's pigmented, last pretty long and not sticky at all.

2016 is the year of eyeshadow palettes. Brands are releasing palettes after palettes, it just blows you away.

These are my top picks from my palette collection which is not extensive. I mostly picked them up based on the raves and reviews and yes, I love them!

Anastasia Modern Renaissance Palette. For me, this has got to be the best release of palettes in 2016. The shadows are just so smooth, buttery and pigmented. The formula is top class. The shades are gorgeous and unique. Definitely not for the makeup newbies because it takes some experimenting to know which shade goes together and 14 shades is pretty overwhelming. It is not the eye palette I go for when I am in a hurry. It's more for those days where I have lots of time to slowly go through the palette. I have been loving warm tones and the red and cranberries. So, this is the perfect palette for me right now.

Too Faced Boudoir Eyes. I love how simple is this palette and how the shades put together with the daytime, classic and night rows. I find this palette easy to use for makeup newbies. There isn't a whole lot of shades in this palette that makes you wonder and confused on how are you gonna pair the shades. The shades are very subtle and neutral, nothing over the top. Very suitable for an everyday use. The shadows are smooth and pigmented.

Charlotte Tilbury Luxury Eye Palette in The Dolce Vita. Another extremely beautiful eye palette. I have been loving warm tones so, I have been putting this palette into good use. I love the eyeshadows, they are smooth and luxurious feeling. This palette is so easy to use, probably one of my most reached out palette. I am the type who can live with one eye look as long it looks extremely well put together. So, if I only need one palette in my life, it's got to be this.
This type of palette is the type I would recommend my non makeup enthusiast friends puts on makeup on a daily basis to get because of how simple is it to use and also very suitable for use in almost every occasion.

Tarte Tartelette in Bloom Palette. I bought this on a whim because everyone and their grandmother is talking about it. Do I need another palette? No. Do I love this palette? Yes. Another Beautiful blend of warm and cool neutral eyeshadow shades. With this palette, you can create many looks with it, you are probably set of life if you are a neutral lover and you own this palette. I love the scent of this palette, the vanilla chocolate flavour just make me crave for chocolates everytime I sniff it.

That's all for my 2016 beauty favourites.

Sunday, December 25, 2016

FOTD : Xmas eve

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone. I hope everyone is having a great and fabulous christmas weekend.

I tried out a few new makeup items for this christmas FOTD and I thought I would share.



Base :
Banila Co. Prime Primer
Charlotte Tilbury Magic Foundation
3CE Full Coverage Concealer
MAC Mineralized Skin Finish Natural
H&M Bronzing Powder in Sheer Tan
Makeup Revolution I Heart Blush Hearts in Blushing Heart
Violet Voss Pro Highlighting Powder Palette

Eyes :
Maybelline Brow Satin
ELF Mineral Eyelid Primer
Earthen Glo Minerals Eyeshadow in Cafe au Lait in Paris
Art Deco Single Eyeshadow in 578
NYX Ultra Pearl Mania in Mocha
ELF Lustrous Eyeshadow in Toast
ELF Lustrous Eyeshadow in Gala
Me liquid eyeliner in Brown
Max Factor 2000 Calories Curve Mascara

Lips :
Bourjois Rouge Edition Aqua Laque in Babe Idole

I have finally used my Charlotte Tilbury Magic Foundation. So far,I can give a full review but only a first impression on this foundation yet since I only had it on my face for 4 hours or so. It claims to be a full coverage foundation but I won't say it is a full coverage foundation, the coverage is medium at best. I do not have issues with the coverage since I do not have any skin troubles.
The good thing about it that it really looks like skin. It does not look like foundation on the skin. It looks really nice on the skin.
The foundation did crack a little on my smile lines but I feel like this is unavoidable since my smile lines are deep and I did laugh a lot on that day and all foundations just tend to crack there if I laugh a lot.

Makeup Revolution I heart blush hearts in blushing hearts is a beautiful drugstore blusher. It not as shimmery as the Too Faced's but still gorgeous. Did held up pretty well through the night.
It's a good option if you want a cute blush in your vanity or you just do not want to spend so much on the Too Faced's.

I love the ELF Lustrous Eyeshadow when I want shimmery eyelids, especially the shade Toast. So beautiful and you can't beat it for the price.

It has been awhile since I picked up my Bourjois Rouge Edition Aqua Laque. I just forgot how much I adored these. These are extremely comfortable and moisturizing. Also, they feel like cool water on the lips. A great product to take a break from the matte liquid lipstick.


Monday, December 19, 2016

USA Haul : Colourpop

Colourpop has been big and blowing up in the beauty community. Known for their affordable price tag with good quality products, I have always been wanting to try Colourpop.
I have seen lots of great reviews on their eyeshadows, on how pigmented and beautiful the finishes are and you can't beat it for the price. It just got me wanting their stuffs even more.
So, I compiled a list of things I wanted from them and went ahead and joined a preorder.

This is my first Colourpop haul.

Alas! Here's my Colourpop haul.

I got myself 4 Super Shock Eyeshadow, 3 Super Shock Cheek and 6 Lippie Stix.

The four Super Shock Eyeshadows I ordered.

Amaze, I Heart this, Bae and Cowboy.

I Heart This.
This is absolutely gorgeous shade with lots of luminosity. It is a metallic silvery taupe, a fusion between a warm light gold and silver. It is a very unique blend of shade which I do not own in my collection.

Cowboy
This is a baby lavender shade. I find the pigmentation and colour pay off of this shade lacking compared to the rest of the shadows but it is still a surprise for me as being how pastel it is, the shadow is not chalky at all. It goes on smooth. Just I wish it packs more colour pay off.

Bae
This colour is such a bae. It is a blackened aubergine shade with mermaid blue shimmers. It has a beautiful metallic duo chrome finish.

Amaze
This is a pinkish-copper shade. It also has beautiful metallic finish.
It is one of those beautiful standalone all over lid shade and everyday shade. Can never go wrong with this shade.

The 3 Super Shock Cheeks.
Thumper, Prenup and Rain.

Rain
Rain is a straight up bright purple blush. This is my first ever purple blush. I have never quite seen a blush shade like this.

Thumper
This is a true pink shade.

Prenup
A beautiful plummy pink with slight silver shimmers.

Here comes all my lovely lippie stix. I have a huge thing for lip products.

The shade I have gotten.

Lumiere
This is a collaboration shade with Kathleen Lights on Youtube. Lumiere is said to be a universally flattering shade and I can see that this shade will look good on most skintones.
It is a dusty mauve pink. A shade that is hard to go wrong with.

Tootsi.
This is a greige shade. Greige has been the shade of the year when it comes to lip colours.

Gossip.
This is a true pink shade.

Frida
This shade is a collaboration with CoffeebreakbyDani on Youtube. Frida is a warm mid-tone nude pink.

Fern
I do not know what on earth was I thinking when I picked out this shade. This shade is a purple and purple lipsticks are not something I wear.
I guess for some fun days I would try to rock this purple lipstick.

Pepper
This is a lavender pink shade.

Overall, I am very pleased with my Colourpop haul and I have already picked up more items from their website which will be in the next haul and also looking forward to pick up more items. 

Sunday, December 11, 2016

Aliexpress haul #3

I am back with another Aliexpress haul. This time around I did not just pick up only makeup items but lots of other miscellaneous items.

From the previous Aliexpress haul post, one would know that how much I dislike the Anastasia Beverly Hills replica.
These are not the replica despite looking similar to it. It is the Anastasla Dragon liquid lipstick, kinda like a rip off . I like the shade selection of these much more compared to the original replica.
There were much more nude selections.

I picked up 3 shades, from left : #2, #14 and #13

I like this formulation way much better. They do not get as crumbly or patchy on the lips. They are 200 times better than the replica Anastasia Beverly Hills. Still you get what you pay more. They can be slightly tacky as they dry but for me, the tackiness is quite unnoticeable. If it bothers you, you can always set it with translucent powder to get the tackiness off.
I will say the formulation is even better than brands like ahemGerardCosmeticsahem.

I love the shades from this line. They are so pretty.

Mink eyelashes.
I doubt they are really made out of mink but the quality and style of eyelashes are beautiful. I got these lashes mainly because I will have a few functions to attend and I just wanted incorporate some eyelashes into my look.

The Kylie Liquid Lipstick replica in Posie K.

I got it together with my replica Kylie Liquid Lipstick in Candy K but this arrived much later.

Suede tie choker.

It is much cheaper to get these choker from Aliexpress. I just did not want to spend so much money getting one from Lovisa or Diva.

Marie Beauty Eye Cream

I have been using this glue for the longest time for my false eyelashes. It is literally the super glue for makeup. Once it is on, it is really on. It doesn't budge or move. I have tried so many other false eyelash glue and it still come back to this glue.
I have been really loyal to this glue eversince I started wearing false eyelash circa 2011. It saves me from falsies mishaps, it is just that strong. At the same time it is really easy to remove. Also, it is so affordable.

That's all for my Aliexpress haul this time around. I did not get too many items like the 2nd round. 

Friday, December 9, 2016

Eating out Malaysia : Oribe Sushi

I was treated to a Oribe Sushi for my birthday lunch.
This restaurant serves in omakase style.
I have not been to such sushi restaurant before. It is a first time for me.


This restaurant is located at Vipod Residence. Parking is free if you tell the guard that you are gonna dine here.

Upon entering the restaurant, they will be waitresses to usher you to your seats. The ambiance of the restaurant is nice and quiet.
It is advisable to reserve a place in this restaurant as there are limited seats and it can get busy because it is located nearby to office areas.
We had reserved a seat in front of the chef's table.

We arrived at 12pm and we were the first customer of the day, so we could get a picture of the empty restaurant.

There are a few sets to choose from the menu. We chose the Iga set which comes with an appetizer, 8 chef specialty sushi, chawanmushi (steamed custard egg), a side dish, maki sushi and dessert.

The chef's assistant preparing our food right now.

The ingredients are specially chosen and air-flown from Japan by the chef. The ginger that is going to be served to us is homemade.

Every each piece of sashimi sliced to perfection.

Aburi hotate (scallop) sushi with yuzu zest

Toro (Tuna) Sushi

No sushi experience is complete without toro.

The side dish.
It is sushi rice with drops of shoyu with ikura (salmon roe), minced toro and uni (sea urchin) and grated fresh wasabi to top it.

Chawanmushi (Steamed Custard Egg) with little shrimps.

Miso shiru

Minced Toro Maki. 

Another round of punch of toro. There can never be too much toro. 
Toro is just so flavourful and it just melts in the mouth. Taste like paradise. 

The master chef, Oritsuki Hideaki preparing his masterpiece for other customers. 

To end the meal, Yuzu sorbet with Japanese peach 

Definitely a meal I enjoyed. I haven't tried omakase in Japan yet so I can't comment on how great or the difference between the ones in Japan and the ones we have here. From my point of view, this is one of the best Japanese meal I have ever had. 
Price point, it is on the expensive side. A luxury treat. 

Thursday, December 1, 2016

Life updates

Happy December. I know this sounds cliche, I can't believe how fast time flies and 2016 is already ending.
I felt I hardly even did anything for the past 3-4 months.

For the last week in November, I have been ignoring my blog due to lack of inspiration to post. Sometimes, you just wanna break away from blogging because of a writer's block or whatever personal reasons there are. I just can't seem to form a good sentence for my post, it felt terrible.
Not like my post are exceptionally fancy or there's a wide use of vocab usually.

Also, there's Black Friday, I was so occupied with Black Friday that basically half of the time I am glued to my laptop browsing through online shops. I did get a few things for Black Friday, not too crazy this time around. I will post a haul when I received my items.

I will be heading to Bali next week, so I will pretty much be missing in action for awhile


Monday, November 21, 2016

Hermo cyber sales haul : masks!

Hermo had a bundle special for their cyber sales. It was 3 items for RM49 for selected items.
I saw these masks available in the bundle and I got pretty excited and purchased them right away.

I got the Pearl Bird's Nest Mask, Apple Polyphenol Platinum Mask and Black Pearl Q10 Mask.

These Sister Diary mask usually retails for around RM42 per box (correct me if I am wrong) in Watsons/Guardian. This is such a steal.
I haven't tried Sister Diary before but I have tried My Beauty Diary. They are similar in terms of packaging.

Shipping was very slow for Hermo for these mask mainly because one of them were out of stock and they were trying to get it restocked. In the end, they explained to me how their supplier could not get it restocked asap and they had to wait till around December to get the stock,so, they asked me to change my order to another available flavour to avoid the dreadful long wait.
I changed my Cherry Arbutin Mask to the Pearl Bird's Nest Mask.

The functions of the masks are :
Black Pearl Q10 - Brightening and improving skin elasticity
Apple Polyphenol Platinum - Pore minimizing and oil control
Pearl bird's Nest - Whitening and Moisturizing

I will try them out as soon as I am done with my old batch of mask and see how much I like them and is it worth repurchasing.
Also, hoping Hermo has more sales like this. 

Thursday, November 17, 2016

Around Malaysia : Kluang Street Art

About a week ago, I headed down to Kluang to attend a friend's wedding. After the wedding, she and her husband took us around Kluang's Street Art alley to wander around.

Little towns in Malaysia have been painting their streets up with hopes to lure in tourist.




I did not managed to explore the town further than the street art due to time constrain. Next time maybe when I come down to visit my friend. 

Sunday, November 13, 2016

Aliexpress haul #2

Curiosity kills the cat.
Before anyone starts lecturing me on the items I have purchased, I know that most items I have purchased from aliexpress are replicas/fakes but I couldn't help with the price tag.
I am willing to be the guinea pig to see how good are these products for the price.


These are the Lime Crime replica except for the one that is printed with Lipgloss, it is from a brand called Dragon. The packaging just looks so much like the Lime Crime.


From left : Faded, Bleached, Dragon Lipgloss in #8, Cashmere

I do not know how true to colour these are compared to the original since I do not own these shades.
Anyway, the replicas have a decent formula. They are very light but still go on tacky. Translucent powder always the saviour for toning down the tackiness. They have a nice scent too.
The shades I own do not go on streaky at all. They are pretty drying though, just remember to prime and prep your lips.

These are Anastasia Beverly Hills Replica. From left : Blush and Pure Hollywood
I do not like the formula of these at all and these two are very different in formula. Blush is a medium pink. It applies ok but it will turn up cracking and patchy after drying down. It is still wearable but you have to work with it. Just apply a thin coat and do not build it up.
Pure Hollywood is a neon peach and it is pure rubbish. This one smells like perfume overload and it is super streaky and patchy. There's no way of making it work.Off to the bin it goes.

M.n Liquid Lipstick and Danimer Liquid Lipstick.
From left : 30, 2 and 3.
These are so cheap, I have bought them before, you can refer from my previous haul and they are good liquid lipsticks for the price tag. It can be a little sticky but it can be solved with setting it with setting powder.

Qibest Soft Matte Lip Cream in 620 and NVX Soft Matte Lip Cream in 05

They are light and nice liquid lipsticks, I enjoy the shades. They do crumble throughout the day but not very major crumbling. I do stay well if you don't eat.

M.n Powdery Matte Kiss Proof Soft Lipstick in #15.
The shade is undeniably beautiful, it is a dusty nude pink. Just that this lipstick really tugs during application and it is tacky. On the lips, it doesn't budge at all and it crumbles throughout the day. Since the shade I own leans to nude, the crumbling is not obvious unless someone comes really close to your lips. I will continue using it because I love the shade so much, if not the formula is pretty meh.

I have to got to admit that I got caught up with the whole transparent lipstick with flower beautiful lipstick thing that I got one for myself.

Yes, you can see the flower in the lipstick.
On the lips, this lipstick shade will suit to the pH and warmth of your skin and turn into a lovely natural pink.

Pony Memebox Lipstick in #4

The quality of this lipstick and its packaging is really great.
It is a sheer type lip colour, it is moisturizing and smooth upon application and it leaves a beautiful sheer pink on the lips.

I couldn't resist getting these replica Kylie liquid lipstick. I purchased the one that comes with only the liquid lipstick because I don't think I need the lipliner and it is much cheaper to purchase without the lipliner.
The shade I got is Candy K, I do not know how true to colour these are since I do not own Candy K
I have not tried this liquid lipstick yet, I will get back in a FOTD when I got to try it.

I have a few more aliexpress items coming in but they are mostly accessories and others and will be posting about as soon they arrive my doorstep.

p.s. I have not had any reaction with any of these products.