2011

Liquid Keratin Hair Treatment Review

April 4, 2011

Keratin or Brazilian blowout hair treatments have been a phenomenal trend lately – it seems every salon I walk pass in Sydney offers this hair treatment. However with all the controversy around this treatment, I opted for a safer option – Keratin Treatment at Home!

There are a lot of Keratin Treatment Home kits to choose from in the market now. The price ranges from $200 a bottle to $50 a bottle. The one I bought is:

Liquid Keratin 30 Day Straight Smooth Strong and Long Treatment

What is it?

It is a keratin treatment that you can use at home that will keep your hair straighter, shinier, stronger and frizz free for up to 6 weeks. It is a safe and inexpensive at home alternative containing NO Formaldehyde and other harmful chemical ingredients.

Basically you apply this product on your wet hair, completely saturating your hair with this product. Wait for 30 minutes then you can use GHD or any hair straightener to flat iron your hair to activate the ingredients.

My thought:

My first impression when I received the product was – wow what a tiny product (120ml). Comparing this with my body lotin in travel size.

I didn’t use it on my entire hair. I only applied it on a few sections of my hair that was frizzy and really bothered me. I have to say I am quite impressed with the result, as I didn’t really have a high expectation on this product to begin with (simply because I have been disappointed at too many hair products in the past). My hair remained quite straight (still with some waves) and frizz free for up to 3 weeks, the best result starts to fade after 2 weeks, and by the end of 30 days my hair reverts back to its original condition. The biggest improvement was it added superior shine to my hair and a lot easier to manage. It is quite a small bottle – one bottle would only last 2-3 applications for me.

Would I recommend it?

Yes and No. Yes to people who have the same hair type as me, not too frizzy and just want the hair to be more manageable; softer and less frizzy.

No to people who have a whole head of frizzy hair or after the same result as you would get in the salon as I don’t think it would be ‘powerful’ enough.

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Labels: HAIRCARE • KERATIN

Essie Mink Muffs Swatch

April 3, 2011

This week I have been wearing Essie Mink Muffs. Essie is one of my favorite nail polish brands because they have this jelly like glossy finish that not many other brands have. Essie nail polish also lasts for about a week without any chipping.

Back to my thought on Mink Muffs. It is a true chocolate brown – to me it is just not muddy/muted looking.. A lot of people say this is a good dupe for Chanel Particuliere which I also own. I think it is a close dupe but not enough – it is missing a hint of grey and taupe undertone that Chanel Particuliere has.

2 coats of Essie Mink Muffs

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Labels: ESSIE • NAIL POLISH

Sportsgirl Makeup

April 2, 2011

I was going to do a post on face products part 2 – foundations overview, but I got sidetracked because I found some lovely treasures at Sportsgirl today. I went there to pick up a hat but their makeups totally caught my attention! I must have been living under a rock for the past few years – I had no idea Sportsgirl is doing makeups these days…and the quality surpasses my expectation of drugstore products. Their products are really smooth textured and pigmented, and the color selection is right up my alley – can’t say about the lasting power yet..

Being a sensible shopper, (haha who am I kidding..:-P) I only picked up 4 items today. 1 Eye Color Pencil, 2 lip crayons and 1 lip gloss.

See the color payoff in my swatches below, these were just 1 swipe each. And the colors are absolutely gorgeous.

As soon as I got home, I couldn’t wait to try them on my face. I applied the teal part of the pencil along my upper lash line, and the gunmetal part along my lower lash line. They are very soft to apply, doesn’t tug my skin.

The pink lip crayon is a very barbie pink or “Jessica Simpson” color – a color I would hardly reach for. I don’t find it flattering on me and in the picture below I had to apply lots of bronzing power to make me look less washed out. If you look like Jessica Simpson, or a blond, or tanned, then this is the color for you!

Lurrrve the beige crayon – actually it appears more of a rosy brown on me. I have been obsessed with anything beige and brown since the start of Autumn.

Lastly, this is the new hat I bought from Sportsgirl, love it!

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Labels: FOTD • Sportsgirl

Foundation Primer Reviews

March 30, 2011

Rather than talking about new makeups all the time, I would like to show you some of my old favorites – starting from Face products. Foundation primer aka Makeup base is not considered as an essential makeup item for some girls. As for me – I can’t live without foundation primer. I have one for every skin condition I can possibly have. Using a primer together with a foundation perfects my skin for a flawless and radiant complexion. On a good skin day, I would only use a primer and skip the foundation.

So here is a group picture of all the primers I am currently using..actually I have to admit I had no idea I own that many primers!

I don’t regret buying them all, each of them serves a different purpose. My foundation primers can be broken down into 4 categories:

1. Oil Controlling

Mac Prep and Prime Skin Base Visage: amazing product, hides my pores without feeling cakey and silicony – keeps the oil at bay for 8 hours! I only use it on my t-zone.

Shiseido (bought it in japan, no English name) : No swatches because this one is only exclusive to Asia, it used to be my HG until I found Mac Prep and Prime.

2. Radiance and Natural Glow

Chanel Base Lumiere – my absolute favorite! It contains no shimmers, but it imparts a really beautiful glow to your skin, gives a “your own radiant skin but better” effect.

Dior Radiant Base – a light pink fluid with tiny shimmers. My second favorite as the shimmers are not noticeable once it is sheered out – gives a beautiful pinkish glow.

Lancome Fluid Illuminator (LE) – a beige fluid with fine shimmers, can be used alone or mixed in with foundation. It is too shimmery for my liking – I only apply it along my cheekbones in summer time when my face is tanned for a bronzey look.

3. Color Correction

– Shiseido Control Base: a light green fluid designed to correct the redness in your skin. This one is amazing..I only use it when my skin looks dull. A tiny amount would turn your complexion into “you have just slept 10 hours”!

– Giorgio Armani fluid sheer no 5 – recommended by GA’s makeup artist at a makeover event. It is a peachy fluid, very pigmented so I can’t imagining applying it all over the face. I like to use it on my cheeks to create a natural flush.

– Etude Pore Smoothing Peach Base (korean brand) – a purple fluid that brightens up your complexion by a few shades. I won’t recommend using it all over the face unless you want a geisha look. Again it’s a good product for a dull skin day.

These products were heavily swatched in the picture. The effect on your face would be a lot more subtle than shown in the picture. Even for my whole face I would use less than what I used for swatching.

4. Primers with sunscreen

Shu Uemura UV Under Base: it’s been a cult favorite in Asia for ages – can be used as sunscreen, makeup base or tinted moisturizer. On a good skin day, I would only use this product on my face – very sheer but evens out skin tone.

Kanebo Lunasol UV Essence: A makeup base with spf of 25 , has the same texture as a serum. It absorbs into your skin like a serum, makes your skin look hydrated and glowing, leaves no white cast on your skin like other suncreens do. The best sunscreen I have ever come across!

LASTLY, my Nars is one of the best all purpose makeup bases.

It hydrates your skin, creates a perfect canvas for foundation and makes the foundation look better and lasts all day long.

OMG..what a super long post!! Now I need some TV therapy..

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Labels: CHANEL • DIOR • Etude House • Giorgio Armani • KANEBO • LANCOME • MAC • Makeup Base • NARS • SHISEIDO • Shu Uemura

March Favorites

March 29, 2011

This is one of my favorite posts to make as a beauty blogger! Every month I would use different makeups and try out different skin cares. This is a good way of displaying my monthly affection.

Eyeshadows: Loving Taupes

Chanel soft touch eyeshadow in Taupe Grise

Nars eyeshadow duo in Kalahari

Blushes: Pink and Peach

Nars Blush

Mac Blush in Mighty Aphrodite from wonder woman collection

Lipsticks: switching between beige and pink

Chanel Coco Rouge Shine in Aventure

Clinique Color Surge Butter Shine Lipstick in Baby Baby, a cheaper version of CRS

Mascara: Kiss Me Heroine Make Volume and Curl Mascara

This is my 10th tube..absolutely the best mascara for Asian Lashes!

Skincare: Philosophy Microdelivery Peel

A near perfect product to keep my skin congestion free and radiant

Drugstore Products

Say Yes to Carrot Conditioner – thhhe most moisturizing organic conditioner

James Brown Rich Moisture Conditioner – almost as good as my Frederic Fekkai shea butter conditioner

Shower Gel: Lush – The Joy of Jelly

Feels like tofu smells like heaven

One disappointment: La Prairie Cellular Hydrating Serum

At $280 a pop, the price does not equate to its performance- it didn’t hydrate my skin any better than any other cheaper product could

Fashion Accessory: Tiffany Key necklace

Watching the girls wearing key necklaces in Gossip Girls reminded me of how much I loved my Tiffany Key

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Labels: La Prairie • LUSH • My Favorites • NECKLACE • TIFFANY

My Vanity Table

March 28, 2011

I love looking at other beauty bloggers’ vanity tables. This is what mine looks like, very girly.

Love the glass panel, perfect for displaying some of my perfumes.

Anna Sui makeup organiser

Anna Sui brush holders

Anna Sui Vanity Mirror

Royal Doulton Vase

Juicy Couture candle in jasmine

Mirrored frame

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Labels: anna sui • HOME

Chanel Nail Polish in Intermezzo

March 28, 2011

This week I am wearing Chanel Intermezzo, one of the 3 nail polishes released by Chanel for spring 2011 collection.

To view my swatches for Black Pearl, click here.

Chanel Intermezzo is a very elegant and classic white shade – it looked opalescent on my nails. The gold and pink shimmers are quite noticeable if I look closely. I do like this shade, it is a nice break from the dark shades I usually wear. But I can only see myself wearing this shade in spring and summer time when my hands are more tanned.

The formula of this one is not the best Chanel can do! It is quite sheer and streaky. In my photos I applied 4 coats of it because I didn’t like my nail lines to show through.

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Labels: CHANEL • NAIL POLISH

NARS Nouveau Monde Swatch

March 24, 2011

NARS Nouveau Monde is another must have eyeshadow duo from Nars – it is part of the NARS Spring 2011 collection. When it comes to eye shadows, I know Nars will never let me down. The beauty of Nars duo eyeshadow is when you look at the color combination in the pan, sometimes they do seem odd to me. When you have them on your eyes, this is the moment you realise Francois Nars is a genius for makeup creation.

The combination of Nouveau Monde was beyond my expectation the moment I applied them on my eyes. The lilac shade is just perfection. It is not frosty, neither too silvery nor too bluey, just a perfect lavender shade with a taupe undertone. I was a bit wary about the moss shade at first – it can look too warm on me. Surprisingly it complements the cool toned lavender shade.

NARS Nouveau Monde on my eyes. I applied the lavender shade all over my eye lids,then apply the moss shade in the outer corner.

The thought of wearing lavender and moss shades to the office has never crossed my mind until I found this one. I would totally wear this color combination to work tomorrow – glad tomorrow is Friday!

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Labels: EYESHADOW • FOTD • NARS

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