Reviews: E.L.F Studio Brushes Part 2

I can't sleep.

On to part 2 of the review for E.L.F Studio Brushes. (Oh my god, E.L.F studio has new stuff again. :( )

Kabuki Face Brush



The E.L.F studio kabuki is quite big and fat. The bristles are really soft to the touch. It's not dense but still well packed. Love the brush on the face because it's just so soft. Had been using it for quite a while and I really like it. Would prefer it for buffing finishing powder instead of powder foundation cos the coverage it gives is on the sheer side since it's not dense enough.

Blush Brush



I totally adore this brush now. Didn't try it for the longest while since I was hooked to the Powder Brush for blush application. Wished I did so earlier soI could order more. The E.L.F Studio blush brush is quite a tiny brush (for a blush brush). It's really small with a rounded head. It's a flat brush. This brush is really good for precise blush application, when you just want the blush to go on the apples on your cheeks etc. I tested it with mineral blushes and pigmented blushes and it picks up just the right amount without making the face overdone. Love it to bits. However I don't like to use the brush for blending. You might want to use any brush to blend out the brush as it gets it done faster. Have yet to use this brush for applying contour. I should be trying soon.

Contour Brush



This brush is really soft. I really like the touch of it and how cute the head looks. The head is dome-shaped. Ok, as a contour brush, I find it's only all right. The bristles are too short if you want to use it for defined crease application. The ferrel, on the other hand, is too wide and circular for the bristles so they protrude out a little more. When applying eyeshadow in the crease, the ferrel can be kind of scratchy, especially if you are planning to dig the brush in deep to the socket and blend.. It's not very pleasant. If you want to use it blending, it doesn't do as good a job as the E.L.F blending brush from their regular US$1 line. The feeling of it brushing to and fro feels spongy.

However, I think it works well as a pencil brush. It's good for applying eyeshadows precisely in corners, on the lid, or under the lash line. Light blending is all right, just not when you need to blend at the crease line to get a defined crease. They should change the name of it.


Read Part 1 here.

Review: NYX The Caribbean Collection - I Dream of Barbados

It's been a while. I'm back to blog.

Am reviewing NYX The Caribbean Collection 5 Color Eyeshadow Palette - I Dream of Barbados.



The palette is really gorgeous. Kindly refer to the original photo taken by NYX as colour shows up more true.

Anyway, I picked up this palette from mscuppycakes.com before they jacked up their shipping rates -pouts- (now I can't get small NYX hauls fast anymore). This palette is love. Totally adore it.

Like the other NYX eyeshadow palettes, it comes with a cardboard packaging. This palette is longer and slimmer than the 10 color eyeshadow palettes which I picked up earlier. Comes with a long mirror and it has 2 eyeshadow applicators instead of only one.

I'm really amazed by the quality of NYX's Caribbean collection "I Dream of Barbados" palette. The texture of the eyeshadow is really fine and creamy and blends beautifully. The 10 color eyeshadow palettes have a good amount of pigmentation but some of the colours just don't work. Some are too glittery and some can be too chalky. So maybe out of 10 colours, you'll only like half or more. Whereas for this palette, I seriously like all 5 colours.

Colours from left to right:
1. ████████ Light muted lavender shade with slight shimmer frost.
2. ████████ Charcoal black with shimmers.
3. ████████ Cool toned pastel pink.
4. ████████ Light silver grey with slight shimmers.
5. ████████ Medium purple with slight shimmer frost.

The purples in the palette are quite muted. Not very loud if you are worried they turn up really garish on the eyes. The colours look matte and the shimmers/frost are really subtle. The black is really easy to work with. It's super dark and blends wonderfully. The cool toned pink brings a pop of colour to the eye though I don't really use it.

Overall I really like this palette. Was able to create smokey look with this. Made my eyes look bigger. Totally adore the texture of the eyeshadows.

If you haven't tried this, go and get one as soon as possible. For the same price, you can pick up either the NYX 10 colors eyeshadow palette or this Caribbean collection 5 colors eyeshadow palette. If you really want a lot of colours to work with, you can pick up the 10 colors eyeshadow palette for variety. However, if you already have a preference of colours you want, for instance you just want a grey smokey or a taupe/brown smokey palette, maybe you can pick up the Caribbean palette instead. I think it offers better quality for lesser amount of eyeshadows (though I only bought one). The 10 colors palette may have 10 colours but I don't see the need to get 3 different kinds of blacks and maybe 5 different greys in one palette. (I need to change my "Lemmings" list. )

It's so good for makeup from day to night. You can use the 3 colours for day and the other 2 colours to darken the eye makeup for night. Really love how compact it is. And yes, I'm planning to get more the next time I buy from NYX again.

Review: E.L.F Studio Single Eyeshadows

Sorry ladies. I've been lazy. I haven't been buying makeup lately because I'm on a makeup ban. But I got myself hooked on buying clothes instead. Left me quite broke. :P

An E.L.F haul/review that I've been forgetting to post.

Oh my god, I sneaked a peek at E.L.F website and they have new items again. :( I want the lip stains. >.<

Here's the Single Eyeshadows I bought from the E.L.F Studio line. These come in small packagings. I bought them all except maybe 3 colours.

From bottom left (in clockwise direction):

Coffee Bean, Wild Wheat, Butter Cream, Pebble, Amethyst, Mystic Moss, Charcoal

The colours in the picture above are not true. Refer to the website. It's almost true for all colours except Mystic Moss (which just looks like charcoal grey in the pan).

These eyeshadows are relatively pigmented. Not the best pigmentation but good enough to be used. I tested everything with an eyeshadow primer (L'oreal De-Crease).

Butter Cream: A rather unique shade. It's almost a gold but seems like a creamy yellow shade. Shimmery.
Wild Wheat: A soft brown. Almost like Milo (a chocolate drink). Doesn't really appear on me but great as a all over lid colour.
Coffee Bean: A dark brown with shimmers in it. My favourite. Gorgeous brown as a crease colour.
Pebble: A dark taupe shade with maybe some plums in it. A queer shade. It's too dark of a taupe and too weird for me. :(
Amethyst: Not really a purple. Maybe a plum. Definitely not what it looks like in pictures. It made my eyes look bruised (it might work better if I use a better eyeshadow primer since L'oreal De-crease doesn't really bring out the colours in Amethyst).
Mystic Moss: Supposedly a mossy green but it looks like grey in the pan. Very close to Charcoal except it has some hints of green. I supposed I like it since it's more unique compared to Charcoal.
Charcoal: A dark charcoal grey. Sheer and needs piling. Wouldn't give you that super intense dark grey you would want it to be.

All the eyeshadows have at least a little bit of shimmers in it except for Pebble, which seems matte. I think they are fairly decent eyeshadows. Not fabulous but for the price I paid, I wouldn't mind buying.

Overall, I think they are worth trying out if you like earth toned, more muted eyeshadows. Don't expect vibrant eyeshadows because they really are not. They are really on the dull/muted side but at least they have shimmers. Suitable for work. I would recommend just picking up a few shades to try if you are keen.

I love Coffee Bean a lot. It's my favourite brown. :)

Review: L'Oreal De-Crease Eye Shadow Base

I have been using L'Oreal De-Crease Eye Shadow Base for quite a long while. It's my first eyeshadow primer.

L'Oreal De-Crease Eye Shadow Base comes with a doe-foot wand applicator. It comes in only one shade which is said to be suitable for all skin tones. It retails for about US$8.48 (price taken from drugstore.com).

This primer looks similiar to L'oreal True Match Concealer, which I also own (in picture below).



L'oreal True Match Concealer has a liquid consistency while L'oreal De-crease has a slightly thicker consistency. The colour of L'oreal De-crease primer is a light beige shade. When applied, it blends out into a light beige colour over your eyelids making your eyes appear more awake since all the darkness on the lids is concealed. I like to just use this alone on the eyelids when I'm running out of time. I don't think it would work as well for darker skintones as the light beige appears really obvious on the lids so wouldn't really advise darker skintone ladies to just use this primer alone.

I'm really not a fan of this primer. It works really well for me initially and I totally adore how it makes me look so awake when used alone. However, gradually I realised the consistency of it just isn't perfect. There are times when it goes on smoothly and blends to a smooth finish. On unlucky days, it blends out to a blotchy finish, the kind of finish you get when you keep rubbing your concealer and it starts to flake. The primer dries fast and just doesn't blend to an even finish so you get patches of super obvious light beige here and there on the lids.

I hated it. But then of course, being me, I would give it another try again and again. So this review is written after I tried it for maybe 100+ times and still, it's the same. -gives face-

In terms of function, this works all right. It's just.....average. It works in making your eyeshadows appear on your eyelids. However, the colour doesn't intensify. You don't get your shadows as bright as they look in the pans. It lasted a couple of hours for me but I wouldn't recommend it for long wearing or heavy eye makeup.

(I think I'm losing touch with blogging. Just can't seem to find the right words or passion to blog. Or maybe I just hate this product. -lol-)

I'm still using it though. It actually works well for me with brands like Silky Girl (also known as Wet N Wild) eyeshadows, which have pretty and vibrant colours but for some reason, they don't appear all that pigmented for me. Else I'll just use it in the following way:

Primer -> Cream base (thin layer) -> Eyeshadow

You have to use the cream base after a primer else it will just crease like crazy. This works the best for all eyeshadows. At least for me so how the primer works doesn't really matter to me anymore.

I would advise you to save your money and invest in a better eye primer like Urban Decay Primer Potion or Two Faced Shadow Insurance (both retailing for about US$22) if your requirements in a primer is to make the eyeshadows pop, minimize creasing and make it last all day. L'oreal De-crease is really average to me and would be only a good alternative for short durations.

An even cheaper alternative worth considering is E.L.F Mineral Eye Primer (US$3). :)

New Haul: Daiso

Look what I found in Daiso (a Japanese store that sells products for $2)!


An Anna Sui inspired earring stand. So cute! How could I resist it. There's a little butterfly and maybe dragonfly engraving at the bottom of the stand.



I have no idea though whether Anna Sui really sells or produces this item. But it's so adorable. It's quite small though, a little bigger than the size of your hand. But I thought it would be good enough to store a few earrings I always wear and air them (after sterilizing) before I keep them. :)




A blurred picture of how it looks like with earrings on.



Found this acrylic holder too. Am so glad I found it again. I used to buy all the acrylic cups and holders Daiso used to carry because they are pretty good for storing all my lip products and concealers and stuff. But the whole range disappeared. :( I had one of these and needed another. I definitely recommend you to get this holder if you have a lot of lippies and pencil liners/bases/concealers. :) So much easier to find and carry about.






And I finally found these! The bottle on the right is a sponge/brush cleanser. Read reviews that it works and have been wanting to try. I finally found it. :)

The tool on the left is used to prevent mascara from getting onto your eyelids during application. Can't wait to try the both of them. :)

New Haul: L'oreal Sale at Raffles City

Here's what I picked up at the L'Oreal Sale last week.

Maybelline EyeStudio Quad in GR-1 Matcha Mousse Cake and Mx-4 Venice Carnaval
Maybelline Angelfit Brighten-Up Blush in Velvet Apricot and Peachy Sweetie
Maybelline EyeStudio Gel Liners in Black and Brown
Maybelline Moisture Extreme Lipstick in 914 Iced Peach Tree and 938 Honey Ginger
Maybelline Watershine 3D Collagen in 425

From top left to right: Angelfit Brighten-Up Blush in Velvet Apricot and Peachy Sweetie
EyeStudio Quad in Mx-4 Venice Carnaval and GR-1 Matcha Mousse Cake

I love these eyeshadow quads a lot. They are not the most fantastic drugstore eyeshadows but I love them anyway. I think it's because this range is formulated for Asians so I find the colours suit me well. I have 3 other quads but I find these 2 (more shimmery) which I just bought have a tendency to fall out and get all over the face. Venice Carnaval (silver/gold/black quad) is rather gritty. Not recommended if you hate making a mess.

The blushes were a pleasant surprise. I've been wanting Velvet Apricot ever since it came out. Am so glad I bought it. It reminds me of the Maybelline Dream Mousse blush in Peach Satin which I bought earlier in the previous sale. Very nice peachy(orange) glow. Peachy Sweetie is a bubblegum pink blush. A little too pink for me but still really nice.

From left: Maybelline EyeStudio Gel Liners in Brown and Black

And of course the famous Maybelline EyeStudio Gel Liners. They were selling at $10 each so I got both. It comes with a brush each. The brush was all right. Reminds me of the small precision brush. The brush is thin enough to give a really fine line. The jar is just like a normal 5g sample jar, just that they added a thick base to the bottom of jar to make it look bigger.

Am loving the gel liner in Black. Managed to draw a thin line that was super natural looking. Was not too fond of the brown because it doesn't look like a straight brown to me. It seems like a purplish brown with shimmers. Overall I still like these. They don't smudge on me. :)

The only thing I'm probably not fond of is the lipsticks I bought. Was quite excited about these. Had wanted to grab a few more Maybelline Moisture Extreme lipsticks because I really like how smooth it glides on the lips. I had been contemplating to get 914 Iced Peach Tree for the longest time after swatching it. It seemed like a nice light nude peach when I swatched the testers. But after trying it on, it's a bright orange coral colour. ARgh. And I bought two. Got 938 Honey Ginger after reading a review that it's a nice nude colour. It was a straight brown on me. So imagine my disappointment when I realised the nude colours which I bought were so bold on me. Maybelline Watershine 3D Collagen in 425 was nice though, a sweet rosy pink.

So yup, that's it. My entire haul was all Maybelline. Still quite pleased that I like most of it. -Can't stop grinning- I think Maybelline is getting better and better!

Treating Eczema

Six Ways to Treat Eczema Naturally

If you suffer from red, scaly, dry patches of skin that are extremely itchy, you may have eczema. Also known as atopic dermatitis, eczema is an allergy-related skin condition common in young adults, children and infants. Simple measures can often help to minimize symptoms and provide relief. Instead of turning to the topical steroids often prescribed for eczema, which I believe suppress the problem and may worsen it over time, try the six suggestions below and see if they work for you.

1. Eliminate cows' milk and all cows' milk products from your diet, as well as foods that contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils (often found in snack foods and baked goods) and trans-fatty acids (margarine, vegetable shortening).
2. Take 500 milligrams of black currant oil or evening primrose oil twice a day (half that dose for children younger than 12). These are sources of gamma-linolenic aid (GLA), an essential omega-6 fatty acid that promotes healthy growth of skin, hair and nails. You should begin to notice positive changes in six to eight weeks.
3. Apply aloe vera gel (from a fresh plant or buy lotions or moisturizers containing aloe) or calendula cream to the affected areas of your arm.
4. Experiment with lotions and salves containing chaparral (Larrea divaricata), a desert plant used topically in Mexican folk medicine for skin conditions.
5. Bathe or shower as quickly as possible, and use a non-perfumed moisturizing soap. Apply a thick moisturizing cream immediately after patting yourself dry - don't rub your skin when you towel dry your body.
6. Practice visualization and hypnotherapy. They can have a significant positive impact on allergy-related skin conditions. And try to relax - stress can make the condition worse. Explore relaxation techniques such as breathing exercises and yoga.

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