Front Row Beauty

Majolica Majorca Lash Enamel Glamour Review

July 18, 2011

I did an overview on some of my favorite Japanese drugstore mascaras a long time ago which I promised I will do a review for them. However I got sidetracked by other mascaras and new makeup hence the late review 😛 Today I want to talk about the legendary mascara by Majolica Majorca Lash Enamel Glamour – it is an oldie but a goodie. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like it! If you are new to Japanese drugstore brands, this is a Must Have!!

It has a plastic comb applicator

Smudge proof

Very waterproof

Glossy black

To begin with I have typical Asian lashes – deadly straight; sparse and medium length. For a daytime look I prefer a mascara that defines my lashes and more importantly holds my curl for the whole day without smudging and flaking. This mascara does a fantastic job in terms of what I need. Not only does it hold the curl until you wash it off..the comb wand allows me to easily get to the roots of the lashes and lift the lashes to the maximum extent. It lengthens and thickens the lashes moderately which is good for daytime looks. If you are after a more dramatic look you can always add a few coats of volumising mascara on top of it, as this one is excellent when used as a base to hold the shape.

The only downside I can think of is that it is quite difficult to remove if your eyemakeup remover is water based such as Bioderma H2O (sorry it won’t work for Majolica Mascara..) I don’t have problem removing this mascara if I use a dual phase remover or Shu’s cleansing oil.

Here are some pictures of me wearing 2 coats of Majolica Majorca Lash Enamel Glamour . Please note: I don’t have much lashes to play with hence the result may not be that impressive. For those of you who are blessed with long and thick lashes, I am sure this mascara will make your lashes look like falsies!

I bought this one from my last trip to Hong Kong in Sasa at around $10.

{ 5 comments }

Labels: MAJOLICA • MASCARA

Bobbi Brown Bronze Tortoise Shell Eye Palette Swatch and FOTD

July 17, 2011

Being a neutral shades lover I always pay attention to Bobbi Brown’s new releases. Their latest Tortoise Shell Collection has really captured my heart. It is a collection consisting of only neutral shades that would look flattering on any skin tone. There are two limited edition eyeshadow palettes – the SAND and the BRONZE from the collection. I opted for the Bronze Tortoise Shell Eye Palette after I swatched both at the counter as I prefer the color payoff and the texture more than the other.

This palette comes in a tortoise shell case and has a unique two tier compact design. Perfect size to carry it around in the purse or travelling.

This Bronze palette contains 8 warm neutral shades in 3 different finishes, with 5 of them being the new shades:

Top Tier

Banana – matte

Gold Nugget – New, sparkles eyeshadow

Olive – New, sparkles eyeshadow

Bronze: – New, metallic eyeshadow

Bottom Tier

Tiger’s Eye: New, metallic eyeshadow

Espresso: Matte

Copper Cocoa: shimmer wash

Amber: New, shimmer wash

According to Bobbi Brown’s website, the Bronze Tortoise Shell Eye Palette is designed for medium to darker skintones. Although I am nowhere near that I find all of these shade are easy to work with and look flattering against my skintone after playing with it for a few different looks.

There are millions of looks you can create with this versatile palette. I went for a simple look today wearing the new shades.

EOTD

Olive as a wash over the eye socket. Then applied Tiger’s Eye at the outer corner and defined the outer v with Copper Cocoa.

Along the lower lashline, I had Tiger’s Eye applied then layered with Gold Nugget at the tear duct area and Copper Cocoa towards the outer corner.

Overall Look:

Bottom Line: I really like it. These shades don’t pull too warm on me and it is a palette that I can use all year round. Having all of these wearable shades in an elegantly designed compact is a bonus for women (like me) who like to travel light.

FYI the eye palette retails for $130 in Australia.

{ 18 comments }

Labels: BOBBI BROWN • EYESHADOW • FOTD

Becca Radiance Primer Review

July 13, 2011

I bought Becca Radiance Primer not long ago and it has quickly become my all time favorite radiance and illuminating primer. At the time I was purchasing I had a choice between the most raved Shimmering Perfector and the Radiance Primer which is a new product from Becca. As usual I like to go against the crowd…and took this baby home. I am so glad I did because it has surpassed my expectations.

What is it:

– It is an age defying illuminating primer that instantly diminishes signs of dull, uneven complexion with a luminous, dewy finish.

– It has a water based formulation that hydrates and boosts the vitality of the skin.

– Can be used underneath foundation or on its own. Suitable for all skin types.

– Made in Italy

– Paraben Free, Fragrance Free and Alcohol Free.

This primer has a subtle gold tinge to it. When you squeeze the product out, you can see tiny particles of gold shimmer.

What I love about it the most:

– Many primers are ivory or pink based, sometimes they can make my face look too white and oily in the photos . This primer blends into my skin seamlessly – I cannot detect that there is a layer of highlighter or shimmer on my face. It gives a nice glow-from-within effect.

– There really is no rule for applying makeup. Rather than using it underneath my foundation, I like to mix this product in with my foundation to achieve an all over radiant effect. The hydrating formulation also makes my foundation adhere to my skin even better.

– My favorite use of this product is that I like to apply, or more specifically pat this product into my skin on top of my foundation. It takes away the cakiness and thickness of foundation – instantly makes my skin look more lifted and gives a moist and dewy glow. In a way it reminds me of the Clarins Beauty balm but much better. I have no luck with the Clarins as it flakes on me horribly.

More pictures!

Slightly blended out

Applied Becca Radiance Primer on top of the foundation along my cheekbone. Again the effect is hard to capture by the camera – it always looks better in real life.

Becca Radiance Primer retails for $55 in Australia.

{ 17 comments }

Labels: BECCA • Makeup Base

Best Liquid Eyeliners

July 12, 2011

Nothing defines my eyes better than the use of an intense black eyeliner – it is something I cannot live without since high school! I am always on the hunt for the best, blackest and smoothest black liquid eyeliner. I have tried tons of them from the most expensive brands to the most affordable. This post is going to be a comparison of some of the best liquid eyeliners that I have tried so far, and the good news is..most of them are drugstore brands and cost less $12 bucks!

All of these eyeliners are intensely black. They all have a fine tip which allows for easy application and gives a precise and clean line. They go on smoothly and fluidly without smudging and last all day.

From Left to Right:

1. Dolly Wink Liquid Eyeliner in Deep Black: felt tip

2. Majolica Perfect Automatic Liner in BK999: brush tip

3. Koji Linequeen in Strong Black: brush tip

4. MAC Superslick Liquid Eye Liner in On The Hunt: felt tip

5. K-Palette Real Lasting Eyeliner 24h in 01 (best seller in one of the biggest Japanese drugstores): has a brush tip and claims that it wears like a tattoo for 24 hrs

Battle 1: THE FINEST TIP

Winner: Koji Linequeen has the most ultra fine tip of only 0.1mm – perfect for defining the winged look precisely. (shown in the far right)

Runner Up: K-Palette Real Lasting Eyeliner 24h (shown 2nd from the right)

Battle 2: THE BLACKEST BLACK – tested with swatching each eyeliner with only 1 stroke at the same pressure

Winner: Dolly Wink Liquid Eyeliner in Deep Black

Runner Ups: MAC ties with Majolica

Battle 3: MOST SMUDGE PROOF – tested with rubbing my fingers over them several times

Winner: Majolica Perfect Automatic Liner – the opacity stays the same while the rest show signs of fading.

Worst Performance: MAC – the only one that starts to flake off.

Battle 4: MOST WATERPROOF – tested with spraying water over them

Winners: All good except for K-Palette

Worst Performance: K-Palette starts to come off as soon as it touches the water

Battle 5: BEST STAYING POWER – swiping them off using a cotton pad

Winner: Dolly Wink

Runner Up: K-Palette – although the color has faded you can still see the remnant (“the tattoo effect”) in a smooth line

Battle 6: EASIEST TO REMOVE -removed them using Bioderma Sensibio H2O Crealine Cleanser

Winners: All good except for K-Palette

Worst Performance: K-Palette: it definitely wears like a tattoo

Prices:

MAC: >$30 in Australia (cannot remember the exact price)

The rest of the brands: <$15

I know we are all looking for different qualities from an eyeliner. I hope this post would help if you are interested in any of these brands. After years of experimenting I really think there is no point of spending more than $15 on a liquid eyeliner. The drugstore brands, especially the Japanese ones are just as good. As for me, hands down, I would repurchase Dolly Wink and Majolica over and over. They are the best!

{ 24 comments }

Labels: Dollywink • EYELINER • KOJI • MAC • MAJOLICA

Nars Douceur and Penny Lane Blushes Review

July 11, 2011

Nars Douceur was my first blush that was not in the family of pink, coral or peach blushes. I passed it up when it was first released as LE as I had this idea that any brown blush would look too muddy on me. I caved in as I read more and more great reviews about it. The minute I applied Douceur on my face it all made sense what all the hype was about. So this post is really dedicated to those of you who are still contemplating whether to get it or not! I love Douceur so much so I bought Nars Penny Lane Cream Blush which looks very identical to it in the pan.

The texture of Douceur is consistent with other Nars blushes – smooth, pigmented and easy to blend.

I also really like the cream formulation of Nars blushes. Penny Lane is neither too dry nor too creamy – very easy to spread the color without settling into the pores.

Douceur is a lovely soft dusty matte brown color with a hint of pink. It is a sophisticated color, in an understated way.

Penny Lane has more pink undertone. For those of you who are still not convinced in using a brown blush, this is a good start. It can be worn alone for a natural sophisticated look, or layered underneath brown blushes such as Douceur, or Madly to bring out the pink tone.

Douceur on me:

I personally love to apply Douceur along the hollow of the cheeks up the temples, rather than having it on the center of the apples. It creates this modern, polished and sophisticated look that is very office appropriate. To show you its versatility I paired it with bold orange lips. (of course I am not that daring in real life haha).

Bottom Line: Love it. I am on the hunt for more blushes in a similar hue. Any recommendations please let me know!

{ 30 comments }

Labels: BLUSH • NARS

Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation Review

July 7, 2011

Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation is one of my holy grail foundations. I have been using it ever since it was first launched! I am switching between many foundations, but this is the only one that I rely on when I have important occasions to go to. For example I wore it for my engagement party, on my wedding day, and any other events that I want my face to look “naturally flawless”, luminous and most importantly – to photograph well.

Some background information:

– Oil Free in a fluid texture

– Made in France, housed in a weighty glass bottle

– Natural finish with a sheer to moderate coverage

– My shade is 04 Light Sand which matches me perfectly

What I love about this foundation:

– I love the texture, it glides on the skin like silk and feels weightless.

– It is an all year round foundation for me. I like to use it in summer because it is long lasting and controls the oil. It is also ideal for winter as it works effectively with dry skin as well. It sinks into your skin and doesn’t enhance any dry patches on the skin.

– Love the natural and luminous finish. The coverage is buildable – on a normal day I would just use 1 pump for a sheer coverage but good enough to hide 70% of my imperfections. For special occasions I use 2 -3 pumps for a flawless coverage and yet still look natural. It is long lasting and stays fresh for a whole day.

– It looks good in day light, night time, and as mentioned earlier, it photographs extremely well! I want to mention that the makeup artist who did my makeup for my wedding, she had 2 huge closets of makeups!! (I am not kidding). After trying on so many options we still went for this one.

What I don’t love about this foundation:

– None haha..if I really have to be picky, I would say it feels slightly more silicony than other foundations because of its silky texture. However it is by no means full of silicone unlike the smash box primer…If your skin reacts to silicone you might want to try out a sample of it first.

As usual, I applied Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation on half of my face. I only used half a pump hence the freckles on my face are still showing through a bit, which I don’t mind as I find it quite natural.

What is your HG foundation and I am curious to know which foundation did you wear for The Big day?!

{ 48 comments }

Labels: FOUNDATION • Giorgio Armani

Kanebo Lunasol 04 Smoky Ocean Scene Eyes Swatch and FOTD

July 5, 2011

If you are familiar with Asian cosmetics, you will know Kanebo Lunasol eyeshadow palettes are highly raved in Asia. Some of their signature neutral palettes as well as their seasonal limited edition palettes are always sold out. I too am a big fan of Lunasol in general and I have collected quite a few palettes from them. Today’s review is for the beautiful 04 Smoky Ocean eyeshadow palette from Lunasol’s Ocean Scene Eyes Line which is their newest range.

The Ocean Scene Eyes Line adopts a new Soft Powder Formula Technology which delivers a moist and smooth texture. It carries 5 permanent palettes – I chose 04 Smoky Ocean because it seems to be the most cool toned palette out of them all. All eyeshadows in the palette are shimmery as this line is designed to create a translucent and wet looking finish.

Each eyeshadow is very finely milled with lots of fine silver shimmers. They do stand up to their claims – the shadows are cushiony soft and silky smooth. When I ran my fingers over each shadow I couldn’t feel any trace of graininess from the shimmer.

Shades description from left to right for the below swatch:

white silvery shade with a hint of beige (lower left in the palette)

a light grey with a hint of taupe (upper left in the palette)

a pale blue with silver undertone (upper right in the palette)

this is such a unique color, a bluish charcoal with a hint of moss. (lower right in the palette)

These are swatched heavily using the sponge applicator. When applied on the eyes using a brush, these shades appear more sparkly and translucent for a wet look finish which is the way I prefer.

How I wore them on my eyes for a subtle smokey eye look:

I only used 3 shades – the light grey all over the eyelid with the bluish charcoal applied along my upper lash and the outer v. The pale blue is applied along my lower lash.

Bottom Line: The texture and the translucent finish of these eyeshadow are to die for. I am most impressed with its long wearability as they stay put for 8 hours. As for the palette, I won’t say it is a must have as it is more for summer only and is limited to smokey eye use.

Other products used:

Cheeks: Nars Multiple Tint in Turks and Caicos

Lips: Shu Uemura Lip duo tint and gloss in Love Apricot from the Takano Collection

Falsies by Kiss Me in style 02: I have to give special credit to these lashes. They are incredibly beautiful and they make such a huge difference to the eyes.

Overall Look:

Lunasol is not sold in Australia. They cost around $60 AUD if they are purchased over the Kanebo counters in Asia. Price varies online.

The Ocean Scene Eyes Range has recently released two LE palettes for their summer 2011 collection. Check out the gorgeous Elaine and PrettySeaEagle for their beautiful swatches!

{ 19 comments }

Labels: EYESHADOW • FALSE LASHES • FOTD • KANEBO • KissMe • LUNASOL • NARS • Shu Uemura

OPI Mermaid’s Tears Swatch

July 5, 2011

I have been neglecting OPI for a while – the OPI Mermaid’s Tears from the Pirates of the Caribbean Collection reminded me of how much I used to love them. Mermaid’s Tears is a sophisticated seafoam green that mimics the color of Jade. It is neither too bright nor too muted, versatile enough to wear to the office to add a pop of color to the usual boring work attire, or for a casual day out. Two words – love it! A must have for those of you who like greens.

Swatched with 2 coats

Comparing it with the greens from Essie, you will see Mermaid’s Tear is more dusty than the Essie Turquoise and Caicos and is brighter with a stronger turquoise tint than Essie Da Bush.

{ 1 comment }

Labels: NAIL POLISH • OPI

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