Review: Daiso Blushes - Ellefar Multi Cheek in Beige and Orange

A while back, I was wondering whether there is any cheap (inexpensive) makeup selling in Singapore. I did a little bit of research and of course Daiso was one of the brands mentioned.

For $2, you can get these Daiso blushes Ellefar Multi Cheeks. They are packaged really nicely and in fact, look similar to Canmake Cheek Gradation blushes.

I picked up Ellefar Multi Cheeks in Orange and Beige. I was really drawn to Beige in the box as it's a super pretty peachy pink shade.

From left to right: Ellefar Multi Cheeks in Orange and Beige

Orange is a burnt orange shade which is a little too dark for me but I think it will look nice on slightly medium tanned skin. Beige is this peachy pink shade, which should be flattering on most skintones. When swatched, there's a little bit of shimmer but it's not noticeable on the face. I do not find the blush shades to be extra unique after trying them out but still, these are very decent blushes for the price you are paying. As you can see from the swatches, these blushes are super pigmented. You might want to apply with a light hand when using these.

These blushes come with blush applicators. I usually like to keep the applicators inside the casing (and use them if the bristles are soft) but I would recommend throwing these out because they have a strong chemical smell. Just use your own blush brush.

For $2, I would say these Daiso blushes are definitely worth a try. They are budget friendly for those unwilling to spend too much money on makeup and those who don't really apply makeup often.

There is a total of 4 shades. There's one in Pink, which is just a very sweet pink shade and another in Brown, a dark brown shade which is more suitable for contouring.

New Hauls: Watsons Members' Preview Sale

Sorry for the lack of updates. I was too caught up following Singapore General Election 2011. Politics has always been the last thing in my mind so I'm pretty shocked by my interest. It is taking a long while for the emotions to sink in. I just feel so exhausted.


Went for Watsons Members' Preview Sale on 18 May. Some of the items had discounts up to 20% + 10% off.

Finally picked up Majolica Majorca Puff de Cheeks in OR302 Apricot Macaron. Had wanted PK 301 Peach Macaron too but it was sold out.

Also picked up 2 items from K-palette that I wanted to try out. There wasn't any testers for this.

I got the K-palette 1 Day tattoo 24Hr Real Lasting Eyeliner in Super Black and 24Hr Real Lasting Eyebrow Liner in 02 Greyish Brown. The K-Palette Eyeliner won BEST Liquid Eyeliner for 2010 in Singapore Women's Weekly 'Best Beauty Buys' award .

Picked up a lip balm from Mentholatum too. I've been using Mentholatum lip balms since young. Don't find them to be very moisturising but I heard this is really good so giving it a try.

Watsons was selling ZA bundled packs for $10, which is quite a good deal.

In one set, you get a ZA Eyes Vibrant eyeshadow trio in E10, a ZA Dramatic Eye Color quad in Green, a ZA Wide Eyes Mascara in Rose (I just realised the mascara is not black -.-').

For the other set, you get 2 ZA Pure Shine Lips in 01 Violet Visions and 02 Rose Toffee. These are really sheer and have tiny glitters.

I think there was also a set for ZA foundations but I missed it. I got these 2 sets since I kept missing out the ZA deals whenever I go Watsons. Not too sure how these items are. I wished there were choices for colour. :\ (What am I going to do with a rose-coloured mascara?!?!)

Other than that, it's really a good deal.

I think I'll end here.

Review: Stila Collectible Travel Palette No. 1: Road to Radiance - Across the USA

Did some swatching so here's a quick review.

What it is: Follow this Stila Girl around the world and get five complete looks!What it does: Road to Radiance is the first in a five-part series of collectible palettes. It includes Stila's award-winning eyehadows in four trend-setting shades: Snow Bunny (shimmery champagne), Southern Belle (mauve), Valley Girl (pink), and City Chick (alloy). The palette also includes Convertible Color in "Hibiscus", a limited-edition shade, and a built-in mirror for easy application and touch-ups on the go.

What else you need to know: Born and raised in Los Angeles, Kylie is at a career crossroads. She's an educated, intelligent, and passionately creative twenty-something with the entire world at her fingertips. She's also a free spirit and wary of being held back by a 9-to-5 job. So on a whim, Kylie jumped in her car and decided to live out her life-long dream of crisscrossing the USA, discovering her native country, and finding herself along the way. Join Kylie on the journey of a lifetime, as she travels across the country and uncovers twelve of America's most interesting cities. She mingles with the residents, immerses herself in local culture, and-of course-shares her travel itinerary with you!

From left to right: Snow Bunny, Southern Belle, Valley Girl, City Chick, Convertible Color in Hibiscus

After swatching, I realised I haven't really tried out this palette yet. The eyeshadow pigmentation for this palette was a little disappointing. Basically each swatch takes two swipes to get colour out of it.Snow Bunny is more of a sheer silverish white highlighter, Southern Belle is a sheer greyish mauve , Valley Girl is a very sweet pink. They all have some form of shimmer in it. City Chick is a matte burgundy brown.

But I was really impressed by the Convertible Color in Hibiscus. It's a sweet rosey pink. It's actually super pretty. Kind of surprised I didn't notice it earlier. The Convertible Color doubles as blush and a lip tint. It blends really well so I'm really liking this.


Stila Collectible Travel Palettes retail for USD$10 but I don't think these are still available on their website or in stores anymore. Try Ebay or Amazon if you are interested in picking one to try out.

Majolica Majorca Chapter 30: Sugary Trap Collection Puff de Cheeks

I can't wait to get my hands on these Majolica Majorca blush macaroons. They are so adorable. I'm not even a pink blush fan but I feel like collecting all of these. :x

From left to right: PK303 Strawberry Macaron , OR302 Apricot Macaron, 

PK301 Peach Macaron and #82 Vanilla Macaron.

PK301 Peach Macaron, OR302 Apricot Macaron are permanent shades while PK303 Strawberry Macaron and #82 Vanilla Macaron are limited edition.

These retail for SGD$22.90 at Watsons. (I'm not sure if #82 Vanilla Macaroon is available in our Watsons).

My First MAC Blush

I finally got my first MAC item. Couldn't resist the 25% sale a few months ago. This came in late because it was specially air-flown over by a darling angel. -coughs- -wide grins-

I bought 2 items but the MSF I wanted was out of stock. It was all right because I ended up spending on something else instead. So anyway, here's the MAC blush in Style that I got.



Style is described as "Coral-peach with gold pearl (Frost)" on MAC website. First impression was it really looks that unimpressive as the picture I posted. It looks like a boring orange peach. It doesn't really look like a coral to me.

I would describe Style as a sheer coral-toned peach with gold shimmers (or frost) in it. The frosty finish is rather hard to describe. It's a mixture of a shimmery and satin finish where you see the shimmers but they are muted and not loud, giving it a nice subtle sheen on the face. I don't find it very pigmented on my NC25-30 yellow toned skin. I piled on quite a bit and really don't find it as pigmented as some have reviewed it to be on MakeupAlley.com. I guess it works differently on different people. It goes on like a subtle peachy glow, very natural. I just put this on and it makes my face look so fresh and awake. It's super gorgeous. Really am loving it.

I'm kind of glad I chose this over Peaches (true matte peach) which I really wanted to get. Think coral blushes suit me better than peach blushes. I love the glow that Style gives.

Is this the start of a MAC blush addiction? Heh. :p

Review: E.L.F Studio Blush & Bronzer Compact

Another E.L.F haul. Finally got it. So happy with it.

I bought a couple more brushes but I keep forgetting to take pictures of those. I'll try to do a post on E.L.F STUDIO brushes as soon as I can. :D

And I finally got the USD$1 Eyeshadow Blending brush. It is amazingly soft. I used to blend with those normal eyeshadow brush and would get irritated over it cos it seemed to scratch my eyelids so much. I was starting to worry about saggy eyelids. Worry no more. I can use this. It actually looked better than I saw in pictures. I wonder if they change the way it's made.

And I also bought E.L.F STUDIO Blush and Bronzer Compact, the Translucent Matt Powder and the Eyebrow Kit in Dark.



The packaging is really nice. These come in cardboard boxes and when you open it, you'll see a piece of black cardboard paper keeping the compacts in place. The compacts are very smooth and sleek. However, they are a pain to open. They are not made like those drugstore 2-way foundation compacts where a push in the button will unlock the clasp and the compact will open easily. For these compacts, you have to exert some force to "force" it open. :\

The mirror for the bigger compacts is a good size. However, I was a little disappointed with the size of the pans in the compacts. They look a lot bigger in the cardboard boxes above or other photos posted online. They are actually smaller than the size of the pans for drugstore 2-way foundation(think ZA, L'Oreal, Maybelline). The blush and bronzer duo is still all right for the size (I guess). But no wonder people feel cheated when they bought the translucent matt powder (since the size of it looks like it wouldn't last long).



The Contouring blush and bronzer powder in Blushed/Bronzed is gorgeous. It looks darker in real life. It looks like a peach blush but I don't think it really is. Have tested both and the blush is really really gorgeous. I think maybe it is a coral peach with gold shimmers that are not over the top. Very natural for everyday. It's pigmented and yet I didn't overdo it with my The Body Shop blush brush (I always overdo it if I use it on pigmented blushes). I don't have NARS blushes so I don't know how this compares to them. However I have a few NARS Orgasm's dupes like Majolica Majorca Blush in RD255 (which is my favourite blush!) and The Body Shop Cheek Blush in 04 Golden Pink (which I bought because of this review but it didn't turn up well on my cheeks). I did a swatch with the 3 of them but photos didn't turn up well. (sighs) Basically they look like they come from the family with the same amount of golden shimmers in the following order from lightest to darkest: TBS blush in 04, Majolica Majorca in RD255, ELF Studio Blush duo.

04 Golden Pink didn't turn up much with one swipe that's why it's the lightest. :P

A significant difference between Majolica Majorca Blush in RD255 and ELF Studio Blush duo is the former is more peachy while ELF Studio Blush is darker and obviously more reddish.

Majolica Majorca Blush in RD255 used to be my favourite blush ever since I got it because it's so wearable everyday. But what I don't like about it is that it does not give me enough of a glow. Now my favourite is ELF Studio Blush! Holy Grail!

If you are not interested in reddish blush, you might want to consider Milani Blush in Luminous, another NARS dupe which I heard is more pinkish. :) I have not bought it yet, not yet. ;P

As for the bronzer, it is really quite a dark shade. It's super pigmented. I think it's more suitable for those with skintone NC30 and above. I'm between NC25-NC30 and it's super obvious on my face. But I think I still might be able to use it if I'm super light-handed. I would recommend getting the E.L.F STUDIO Complexion Brush for bronzer as it's pretty good for applying pigmented blushes or bronzers and making them appear more sheer. I haven't tried it on the bronzer yet but it works pretty well for my pigmented blushes.

Overall I think this is a pretty good buy. Get it if you are interested! I think it should be a flattering shade for most ladies. It might not work as well for those who are too fair (since it's darker than in the photo I posted).

Reviews of the other 2 compacts will be done when I've tried it.

And I just realised E.L.F Studio released new products on their site again -bangs wall-

Review: NYX Blushes

These are some of the NYX blushes I bought during 50% NYX sale and what I owned before that. Yes I bought all 3 types of blushes they have: - Mosaic Powder, Powder Blush and Rouge Cream Blush. I'm loving all of them. Can't decide which I like more. One thing's for sure. I'm not done. I still want more. :P


From left: NYX Mosaic Powder in Dare and Rosey

Dare is a coral shade. It's very pretty with some shimmery browns/bronze along with the coral shade in it. Very pigmented and gives a very pretty glow on my face.

Rosey is a medium pink shade. There's a light pink, rosey pink, purple shades in the compact. The overall turnout is really just a vibrant rosey pink shade, which I find it a bit hard to wear. It can turn out to be quite loud when you overdo it. Would probably try using the colours separately as blush. You would need a smaller brush as the compact looks big in the picture but in real life, you would find it to be smaller and harder to just dab on single shade.

For the two mosaic blushes above, they will just turnout like the top rightmost shades.



From left: NYX Mosaic Blush in Peachy and Highlighter

Peachy contains shades like a beige, peach, brown, bronze as illustrated in the photo. The turnout is just a natural flush on the face, which I would say is good for everyday when you don't feel like wearing pink/peach/red cheeks.

Highlighter contains shades like a yellow, pink, purple, white. It is a highlighter for the face, not really a blush. The turnout is really nice, giving a soft focus to where you dust it. It's not really translucent as you can see a little bit of whiteness. Probably would not recommended for darker tone girls. I really like this a lot. :)

Overall, the NYX Mosaic Powders did not disappoint. The blushes look smaller in real life as compared to pictures you see online. I'm not sure why. It could be the mosaic prints playing tricks on the eyes. These are pigmented, but they are also very powdery so it can be a mess after swirling to get a good mix. Some people find it chalky but I don't really think so. Like I've said earlier, you can try using a smaller blush brush to use the shades separately. Haven't really done that so I can't review.

The mosaic powders can be used as eyeshadows too. I've tried it with Dare and it works well. Definitely pigmented enough to be used this way. Pinks and oranges blushes might not work that well as eyeshadows because I doubt most people can carry them off as eyeshadow shades. You can consider getting the brown shades in the Mosaic Blush collection to double as bronzer and eyeshadows. I'm not really interested in the browns in this range so I can't review those. :P


From left: NYX Powder Blush in Pinky and Peach

Pinky is this bright hot fuchsia pink. I feel it is too cool-toned pink for me. It did not work for my yellow toned skin. Looks really off. I have tried it very light hand but it doesn't work. Not recommended for very yellow toned girls. It doesn't go well with yellow. :\

Peach is a very pretty peachy pink. I read it off another blog that it is recommended for Asian ladies so I had to get it. It is such a pretty colour. It's like the most perfect peachy pink I've seen. I like this a lot for it really gives me a nice glow.

Overall, the NYX powder blushes did not disappoint too. They are very pigmented and also very powdery. They are definitely not chalky compared to the NYX Mosaic blushes. As I don't like my blush to show up very obviously, I don't really need to use a lot. I love both colours in the compacts although only Peach suited me better. They look really gorgeous. I'm lemming for more shades from this range.


NYX Rouge Cream Blush in Rose Petal

I bought this with the intention of using this as a cream blush base to make my powder blushes stay longer. Haven't tried it that way yet. NYX Rouge Cream Blush in Rose Petal is the lightest shade in the range so I picked it up. I thought it would be a soft earthy pink, like a rose petal shade. But when swatched, it's just pink. The shade wasn't that bad but it was not what I pictured. When applied on the cheeks, it's very easy to blend and colour is buildable. That's a plus point for me for it's so easy to use. It's something that wouldn't go wrong since you can pile it sheer and build it up another layer if you want a more intense colour. Super easy to use.

I'm lemming for more NYX Rouge Cream blushes too but as cream blushes have a shorter shelf life compared to powder blushes, I don't suggest going excessively crazy over it since they expire faster. Would probably just get one more next time and that's it. :P

If you haven't tried these blushes, what are you waiting for? For their pigmentation level and the price you pay, it's very value for money. Get these if you are ok with powdery blushes that might be a mess.

For swatches of the NYX Powder Blushes, you can check this site.

Review: Maybelline Pure Mineral Foundation and Blusher

Source: http://www.puremineral.com.sg/

Earlier, I had received a PM from a cotter to help try out the Maybelline Pure Mineral products (it pays to be noisy on a forum :P )but I had declined because I'm allergic to Maybelline Angelfit (it makes me itch :( ).

But, later chiaberry passed me a sample of hers to try. :D So I managed to test it without having to let it go to waste. So here's my review. I got to test out shade Light Ochre OC1 and blusher was Rose.

So here's my thoughts. (I'm judging it with some knowledge in mineral makeup). It goes on pretty well, very light just like any mineral makeup will do. The foundation shade was a little off for (too beige and maybe a little dark) but it doesn't seem to be very "off" compared to real mineral makeup (which can be pretty obvious when you get the wrong undertones on). Also it gives a glow on your face, but it turns out to be over-glowy for me after a while. I suppose it's due to the bismuth oxychloride which is added in most non-mineral makeup to give a glowy look.

The blusher was very natural, not so glowy as the foundation. There are 3 shades to play with and I liked how they labelled it. If you are warm-toned, you can buy Peach. If you are neutral, you can get Rose. If you are cool-toned, you can buy Cool pink (honestly I forgot what's the third blusher called).

I do not own the Maybelline kabuki brush but I seriously think it is very rough when I touched it while testing at Watsons. There are better kabukis out there so if you need a brush to use with this foundation, buy a new one. I recommend Everyday Minerals because their kabukis are really soft and price is cheap (when you buy in kits. I can't get enough of their brushes. I'm still planning to buy more.)

Please bear in mind Pure Minerals is not true mineral makeup. Like L'oreal/Revlon/Red Earth mineral makeup, it still contains ingredients that are comedogenic. Bismuth oxychloride is one example that irritates the skin and it can lead to breakouts in some girls.

If you are already a user of real mineral makeup, I would suggest you to forget about this product. It is very likely you'll get a breakout from it when you switch from your powder to this due to the bismuth oxychloride. I did get a bump after using it.

If you are a user of commericial non-mineral makeup, and you wish to try this product, go ahead. I think it's still a little better than commercial makeup out there. There are currently 4 shades available. From what I remembered, it's OC1, W02, B01 and maybe R01. It's very limited shades and like one shade for each undertone family. If you can't find a match, don't buy it. Just wait for new shades to come. Foundation costs $25.90 and blusher costs $19.90.

My The Body Shop loot is HERE!

Got super excited when I saw my package today. All thanks to my darling angel who helped me order off the US website! :) :) :)

I'm sorry but I must warn my camera isn't really good.



I bought:
- Cheek Bloom (01 Desert Rose, 02 Dune Pink)
- Duo Eyeshadow (Eucalyptus Grey, Khaki Green )
- Sparkle Eye Palette 02
- Retracable Lip Brush

I got a sample of the Aloe Soothing Day Cream free.



The sparkle eyeshadow palette is from their Christmas collection.



The blushers and eyeshadows are from their Autumn Limited Collection. I swear I have been drooling over the blushers for the longest time. However the Cheek Bloom is selling at SG$34.90 in stores which is way too pricey.

Managed to get it at a good deal. Items were going for 3 for US$10. That's about SG$5 each. :D Of course, shipping doesn't come free. But it's still cheap after shipping.

It's my first time trying out The Body Shop cosmetics. I have heard bad reviews about them but there were some good reviews for these. I only wanted Cheek Bloom but couldn't resist the deal so I bought more. :P~ The lip brush is really soft I wished I bought more. It's still available so maybe if you are interested, you can still grab it. As for the blushers and duo eyeshadows, the packaging is really terrible. I had a hard time opening the casing. The eye palette is really pretty and comes with a mirror and a drawer with a long eye applicator. However, the drawer is a pain to open.

I'm not going to be doing swatches since my camera is just lousy. LOL. If you are keen to know, you can read jojoba's review here (she does great swatches :P) for Cheek Bloom and the Sparkling Eye Palette. Or you can try My Women Stuff's review for Autumn Limited Edition and Cheek Bloom here.

Review: Canmake Cheek Gradation

link: http://www.canmake.com/en/ebase/item_base013.html
Price: SG$25.90

This is Cheek Gradation in 04 (Chocolate Stripes).


Bought this earlier during a Canmake sale at 30% off too. Was clearing items and saw it so finally unwrapped it to try today. :p

Cheek Gradation in 04 contains 4 pretty colours. A dark brown, a medium brown, a light pink and a champagne gold colour. All the colours are shimmery. You can use this in any way you like it. You can apply the blusher by:
1. swiping all 4 colours at one go,
2. or as recommended on the website, use the 2 darker colours as the blusher and the 2 lighter colours as the highlighter.

I tried both ways. Method 2 did not work for me cos the browns are too dark to be used as blushers. Contouring maybe but it's very shimmery. The effect of method 1 was rather unexpected. It gave my cheeks a nice glow with pearl sheen to it. Although there were browns, it wasn't prominent. I supposed you have to swipe downwards if you want more pinks on it.

And the best part? This cheek gradation can also be used as eyeshadow. So if you find this doesn't work well on your cheeks, at least you can use it on your eyes. The browns look lovely on the eyes, and the light champagne gold colour can be used for the inner corners of your eyes to brighten up. You can then use the pink stripe separately as blusher. I would totally bring this out if I don't want to bring too much things with me. It's so useful.

I own Cheek Gradation in 02 (the one with orange stripes). It looks really lovely in real life. I think it gives a sunkissed glow. 04 is natural glow. I was lemming for 01 (pink stripes) too but I didn't think it's that unique. But I might pick it up again the next time I see a sale. Now, I just wish they'll bring 05 in real soon. The peachy one looks good too. :)