Outfit of the Day! =D

Hi guys!

This is what I wore today!


The flowy floral top brings out a pop of spring! It looks soft and romantic but on the casual side. The fitted shorts go well with a flowy top, giving balance to the outfit and shape to my body.

I decided to wear long black socks and tan boots because I had a lab class today, which actually requires long pants and closed-toed shoes....>.>....so yeah, I tried to make up for it...sort of. =P But it was warm today and I didn't want to wear pants! XO
Turned out we didn't have lab and we had a computer lab for data analysis so I could have wore sandals....-__- oh well haha
(It's okay, my long socks were the same material used to make tights, so very thin and breathable)

Anyway, I definitely prefer this outfit with some kind of sandal, preferably wedge!

Also, sorry for the glare in the beginning, I didn't notice it until I sat down to edit >.<. I'll do better next time! If you watch it in HD, it is more clear.

Here's a close up still shot of the back if you want a better idea of what it looks like in the back:

So I hope you liked the look! Thank you for watching and have a great weekend! ^_^

Review on Eau Thermale Avene Skincare Trial Set

Hi Everyone!

I hope you have all been well. =)

Today I am going to review the Eau Thermale Avene Skincare Trial Set

I bought this product about 2 months ago, and tried it out for about 2 weeks. I got this trial set at the "My Beauty Diary" store in Los Angeles because I am a VIP member and I got it cheap (for only $1)
Because this was only a sample set, please keep in mind that my review cannot cover long term benefits or side-effects of these products. However, I can give you my input of using it for about 2 weeks.

What do I think of this product?
So, this set came with 1 facial cleanser, 2 moisturizers, and 1 dark spot treatment/lightener.

The facial cleanser: Cleanance Gel
This is a liquid cleanser is said to be for oily and acne-prone skin.  It is said to help fight and prevent acne as well as provide hydrating properties to the skin.
When I used it, I thought it was fine/normal. It lathers up into a light foam. I don't have a lot of acne in the first place so I didn't see much of a difference, nor did my skin feel more hydrated than usual. It tends to make the sides of my face a little itchy after use, so I stopped using it.

The light day moisturizer: Light Hydrating Cream
This moisturizer is said to be for normal to combination sensitive skin and help moisturize the skin.
It is very smooth and light. It does not feel heavy or sticky during or after applying and has a good consistency. However, this product also made my face feels a bit itchy and so I stopped using it. Also, when I applied my sunscreen after using this product, the two products would react with each other and form some kind of solid. One of them got solidified and basically rolled up into tiny white balls which stuck to or fell of my skin. This was kind of annoying since it meant that the product was not staying on and now I have tiny solid specks on my face that I need to get rid of....

The mattifying moisturizer: Mattifying Fluid
This moisturizer is said to be for normal to combination sensitive skin. It is said to moisturize the face and mattify it, preventing that oily, shiny look.
This moisturizing is light-weight and has a smooth consistency. It does tend to make my face a little itchy but not so much. It has great mattifying properties, especially for the oily parts of my face, all the shine is gone! And it makes my face not-shiny for most of the day! However, like the other moisturizer, the moment I put on sunscreen afterwards, the products react and solidify. Then there are tiny white balls of rolled up product on my face which are hard and annoying to get rid of. But alone, I think this moisturizer works great for mattifying an oily face.

The dark spot lightener: D-Pigment
This product is said to be for normal to combination skin. It is said to lighten dark spots such as dark scars, marks, etc.
So, this product must ONLY be applied at night before going to bed (but after cleansing the skin).
To be honests, I do not think I have used this product enough times. I tried it for a few nights but just stopped because....I was lazy. =P Sorry. I am starting to use it again and I will update this post as soon as I feel I can do a proper review on it. Besides that, I think the cream is lightweight and has a smooth consistency. I have not tried it on my face, but on the scars and dark spots on my body and it does not irritate my skin on my body. I am a little hesistant to use it on my face because (unlike the other products)this one does not say it is for sensitive skin, and I have sensitive skin, so, I'm hoping there won't be a bad reaction or something. =P

Do I recommend these product?
So, because of my reaction with them and because I have combination sensitive skin. I do not recommend these products to people with sensitive skin. However, I do think it it is promising to people who do not have sensitive skin. I do recommend the mattifying moisturizer to those with oily non-sensitive skin, just keep in mind that you can probably only wear this moisturizer alone, or find products that work well with this moisturizer (so they don't react, solidify, and form little white balls on your face.) The mattifying moisturizer is great for keeping an oily face mat and shiny free! And I would love it, if it didn't react and solidify with my sunscreen. =/

So I hope that this review was helpful. Not a very well known brand (I think?) but if you were wondering whether you should try it out or not (because it looks rather expensive), perhaps this was more useful. Thank you for reading and I will see you later!

Review on Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain 2nd round!

Hi Everyone!

I'm so sorry that I haven't posted for this entire week! XO
I had a lab report due last Friday, so that took up most of my time. And I was kind of under the weather. =( This weekend I was preparing for and had a hospital internship interview, so finally done with that too!

Anyway, today I am reviewing The Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in the colors: Charm and Darling

These lip balm stains cost about $7.50 and can be found at any drugstore or Ulta.
So I have previously bought the balm stain rendezvous and I really liked it. So I decided to try a couple more!

Charm

What do I think of this product?
So, lately I have been looking for a nude or nudy-pink lip color. When I go out at night to a party or clubbing or something, my eye makeup tends to be stronger and darker, so to balance it out, it is better to choose a more neutral or nude lip color so you have one focus point, your eyes!
So I decided to try out this lip color because it looked very nude and I think it is okay. It is not the perfect nude lip color for me, especially if I don't wear foundation. If I wear foundation it looks better, but alone it makes my lips look a little too pale and sickly. Of course if your skin is paler and not as yellow or warm as mine, this nude lip color may work better on you. However, I can make it work on my by not applying a heavy layer and warming it up with a pink color on top, etc.
The color is pretty sheer but buildable and does moisturize my lips. Like Rendezvous, my lips must be exfoliated and smooth before applying this product otherwise this product makes my dry and chapped lips stand out even more! It is decently long lasting and I only reapply after eating.

Do I recommend this product?
If you are looking for a nude lip color and you tend to have pale skin that isn't too pink or yellow toned, then I think this is a good color to try. Nude colors can be tricky to find, because everyone's skin tone is different. Besides that I think it does a pretty good job of moisturizing my lips and lasting for a good amount of time. Just remember it goes on sheer and if you want more color, just build the color up.

Darling

What do I think of this product?
I just wanted to try out this color for fun. I wanted to know what a purple lip color would look like and I knew these balm stains in general were pretty sheer and heard that this one ends up making some people's lips look more pink than purple. However, it ended up looking very purple on my lips. In light layers, it acts like a gloss and is sheer so there is basically no pigment. However, the more I apply the more purple it gets, and it can build up to a strong lavender/lilac color on my lips, which I don't really like. It looks a little too young and weird to me. =P
It does moisturize my lips and again, I need to make sure my lips are smooth and chapped-free so this product doesn't make my lips look even drier. However, I probably won't use this product very much, it is too purple for me.

Do I recommend this product?
If you like light-purple color on your lips, then I recommend this product. If not, best to go look for something else. =P There are a lot of other lip products that apply sheer on your skin anyway, so no need to buy this for that. Other than that, just make sure to scrub your lips smooth before using this product!

Pictures and swatches:

These are my lips without any color, my natural lip color.

Charm

Darling

Charm on the left, Darling on the right (in light)

Charm on the left, Darling on the right (no direct light)

So I hope this review was helpful to you! Sorry for not posting last week, things happen =P. I'll try to post more often before finals swallow me up! Thank you so much for reading and keeping up with me. I will see you soon! =)

Review on ELF Loose Mineral Eyeshadows

Hi Everyone!

Today I am reviewing about some Loose Mineral Eyeshadows from E.L.F.

I wanted to buy a shimmery gold eyeshadow, but it was hard to find which kind of gold color that I would like, so I decided to buy 4 kinds of gold eyeshadows (or at least what I thought that looked like gold eyeshadow from their online pictures).

The ones I bought were:

-Celebrity
-Golden
-Sassy
-Confident

These eyeshadows cost $3 each and contain 0.03 oz or 0.85 grams of product. You can buy this online at the E.L.F. store.


What do I think of these eyeshadows?
So, I have bought E.L.F. eyeshadows before. I previously bought and reviewed the colors "Angelic" and "Partier".
E.L.F. products are known to be very cheap and affordable, and depending on the product, good or bad quality. Very much a hit or miss thing.
Please keep in mind that loose eyeshadow may allow you to pick up more pigment and blend eyeshadows, but it is very very powdery and can make a mess. But as long as you are gentle and careful, there should not be much of a problem.
Overall I really liked all of these eyeshadows. They are all very shimmery and pigmented. With a good eye primer such as Urban Decay or Too Faced, they stay on very well and are long lasting. I can use the lighter shades as an overall lid color and then a darker gold/bronze color on the outer half of my eyes to give more dimension. Their texture is smooth and soft. It is easy to apply and blend on the eye and with other colors.


Celebrity
Celebrity is a yellow more cool-toned eyeshadow color. It may look similar to Golden (next one down), but I think it might be slightly lighter or just a more cooler gold color.

Golden
Golden is a yellow more warm-toned color (especially compared to Celebrity). It is a nice standard gold color.

Sassy
Sassy, to my surprise (because it didn't look like the picture on the E.L.F. website), is a red-brown color. It looks like a reddish copper color on the skin. I was surprised by the redness, but, still a pretty color!

Confident
Confident was also a bit of surprise (because it also didn't look like the picture on the E.L.F. website), is a very dark brown-bronze color. I did not expect it do be that dark, but I like the color and put it to good use!

Here are some pictures and swatches:

Note: Sorry about photo quality. These eyeshadows are very shimmery and reflect and refract a lot of light. I tried to edit it as best as I could to show colors as true as possible. I hope it works!

Do I recommend these eyeshadows?
If you don't mind loose powder eyeshadows and you like really shimmery eyeshadows, then I recommend these eyeshadows. You can also use the lighter gold colors  it to highlight the ball of your eyes or the inner corners of your eyes to make your eyes appear bigger, brighter, and rounder. These colors are great for the summer and fall and give a warm feeling in the winter. They are easy to apply, go on smoothly and are easy to blend!

So I hope this review was helpful! If you have any questions or comments, feel free to write in the comment box below! Thank you for reading and have a great rest of the weekend! =)

Heey Guys, it's SunGod!

So yeah,

I just came back from Sun God!

If you know what that is you know which University I'm graduating from haha. XD


So sorry for not posting as often, I needed to study and work before SunGod, because SunGod weekend is a weekend of play and uh...recovery XP, for those who drank too much!

Here are a few pictures of SunGod and the makeup I wore.
I might do a tutorial on this look, I really liked how it turned out.

Stay tuned and I will see you guys soon! =)

Outfit of the Day! (yesterday's actually XD)

Hi Everyone!

This is what I wore yesterday.

I was out all day so I got home late at night, and filmed and edited it. But was too tired and decided to post it today.

This is a sweet and girly look. It is comfortable and great for any occasion, such as out with friends, going shopping, etc.
It was hot during the day, but in the evening it was pretty foggy and chilly so I put on a jacket. But this is a great spring look. If you think it's too hot, just wear shorts, no tights, and no jacket!

Please enjoy the video!


I hope you liked this look and I will see you later!

Review on CoverGirl Outlast Stay Fabulous Liquid Foundation

Hi Everyone!

Today I am reviewing the CoverGirl Outlast Stay Fabulous Liquid Foundation!

This foundation costs about $12 and contains 30mL or 1 fluid oz of product.
You can find this at any drugstore or at Ulta.
It is said to be a primer, concealer, and foundation in one with an SPF of 20. Also said to be shine free.

What do I think of this product?
So I first heard of or saw this product on iheartmakeup92's haul youtube video about 3 months ago. And so I decided to get it, because she loved it so much and I wanted a foundation with less SPF so I could wear it at night and not get a ghastly white face when taking flash photography.
I know this might seem like an overdue review, but I don't wear foundation often. I don't wear it every day, maybe at most, once a week or something. So I won't review a foundation until I am comfortable and confident enough to know all about it. =P

Anyway, my color is 832 in nude beige. The color is just a touch lighter than my normal skin color, but it does oxidize a little bit to a slightly darker color after some time, so it works. I might get the 840 in natural beige for summer, since I will get tanner as California gets more sunny. =P

The product is in a glass container, which looks pretty and has a nice weight. I just need to be careful traveling with it, so I don't bang it around and break it. =P But it hasn't broken yet and the glass seems thick and sturdy. Also, a glass container is especially good if you want a bottle of foundation just for home use where it can stand on it's own, etc. The dispense is a pump with a plastic cap. I really like the pump. It is easy to use and I can control how much product I want to dispense. The cap seems a little loose on the bottle, at least to me, but I haven't had any problems with it falling off and product smearing everywhere in my makeup bag or something. So I'm sure it's okay. I would just prefer a tighter cap or a screw on cap.

This product does not seem to irritate or redden my skin or cause breakouts. But please keep in mind that I don't wear foundation often, so I don't know if frequent usage will cause skin irritation or acne.
The foundation has a nice and smooth consistency. It is easy to spread out and blend during application. It comes out as a liquid but actually dries to more of a powder finish. This is great for the oily parts of my face which tend to get oily and shiny, so this foundation helps mattify that. However, for the dry areas on my face, this powder finish can tend to make my face look somewhat too powdery or cakey.
What I end up doing is applying this on my oily T-zone area on my face, and using less product on the dry areas of my face such as my cheeks and chin area to prevent the powdery look. Despite that drawback, I do like this foundation and it is a pretty decent everyday drugstore foundation. It gives good enough coverage for my skin and is easily buildable. It is great for giving me an even complexion and getting rid of redness.

Also, I find that the longer I wear it, the better it looks. Haha, so, what I mean is that, the powder finish of the foundation becomes less powdery looking throughout the day. This may be because eventually the dry areas of my skin do become oily later in the day and after coming into contact with the foundation, the oils and moisture from my face just sort of get absorbed by the powder. Or the oils from my face make the powder damp/wet (so it doesn't look powdery anymore)? And so I end up with a more satin finish. But this is really kind of my own speculation. I don't exactly know why it becomes less powdery throughout the day. =P Sorry. But, I hope my speculation...makes sense? XP

About feel and longevity. This foundation does not feel heavy to me. Maybe it feels a little sticky in the beginning after application, but that goes away soon. And I think that this foundation is pretty long lasting. When I wear it, I don't use a primer underneath so as a primer and foundation I think it works pretty well. It also does not really smear or slide on my face. But at the end of the day, it can settle into my smile lines a little bit and I will get somewhat shiny from the oils from my skin, but I can just mattify it with powder again. Because I do not have a lot of marks, acne, or scars on my face, I can't say how well this works as a concealer. It is buildable and I think it gives light to medium coverage if that is what you are looking for. It is great for making the complexion look balanced and smooth and helps cover redness and random spots like freckles. However, I would not know how well it works as a concealer if you have more imperfections or what not to cover.

Here are a couple of swatches of the foundation:

So this is when I first applied the foundation.

And these are swatches on my arm, and if you look carefully, you can see that the edges of the swatches are turning a bit darker. This is when it is starting to oxidize.

Overall, I think the color matches my skin pretty well. It might look a little pale but my face is paler than my arm and it oxidizes a little darker too, so it fits.

Do I recommend this product?
Overall, I think if you are looking for light to medium coverage and you have oily skin, I recommend this product! It can oxidize and darken a little after application, so please keep that in mind if you want to buy this foundation, and maybe go a shade lighter. If you have normal skin, then it is kind of up to you to decide if you want a powder finish or not. It may or may not look powdery on you. You can always get rid of the powdery look by spraying a little bit of water on your face after applying. If you have dry skin, I do not recommend this product, because it may just look really powdery and flaky on your skin. And of course if you have sensitive skin, make sure the ingredients don't irritate your skin, possibly consult a dermatologist, and go light with the application on the first try. This product does not irritate the sensitive areas of my skin, but everyone is different, and I would prefer to be safe than sorry!

So I hope you liked this review. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to write in the comment box below! Thank you for reading and I will talk to you later! =)

Have a great weekend! ^o^

Let's talk about "Buffing"!

Hi Everyone!

I hope you had a good weekend!

Today I'm going to talk about Buffing!

Buffing, in makeup terminology, is the procedure of using a makeup flat-top face brush or a stippling brush to apply foundation onto the skin using a pressing and swirling motion.

Why Buff?
The purpose of buffing is to not only help cover and conceal imperfections but to also to temporarily fill in and conceal pores. Buffing product into the skin allows the pores to be filled up and covered by foundation, giving a very flawless appearance to the face. Buffing foundation also tends cause the foundation to stick on better to the skin and last longer. For those of you who hate an oily appearance, buffing powder into the face can give a great matt look.

What foundation can I Buff with?
You can use any type of foundation, powder, cream, liquid are all fine. It also depends on the coverage you are going for. Generally powder has the lightest coverage and cream has the heaviest coverage. Just start off with a little product and build up gradually, this way you can get the coverage you want without looking too cakey.
Quick note: you can also buff concealers, just most people tend not to do that because concealers tend to be thicker and heavier, but if you want, you can!

Does it work for all skin types?
No, unfortunately it does not. Buffing is best for people who have oily to normal skin.
For dry and or sensitive skin, buffing can cause micro-exfoliation of the skin. This can cause shedding of the skin, irritation, and redness.
For example I have an oily forehead, and nose area. But my chin and cheeks are dry and sensitive. Therefore, I only buff foundation on my forehead and nose area and use different techniques with the dry and sensitive areas of my face.
If you really really really really want to buff foundation but you have dry but not sensitive skin, before you buff foundation, gently exfoliate your skin when washing, and afterwards apply moisturizer. You want to make sure you use a very hydrating moisturizer so that your skin won't start shedding when you buff....otherwise, that's kind of gross and annoying. If you want to be safe, after you moisturize your skin, use a hydrating primer. The primer will help create a barrier between your skin and the foundation, protecting your skin. The primer also will allow product to apply on easier, glide more smoothly against your skin, and help make up last longer.

Can Buffing make me break out?
Because buffing product into the skin pushes more product into the skin, and especially the pores, it can clog pores. So, yes, buffing can make anyone break out, but as long as the skin is washed and cleaned properly, buffing usually doesn't cause break outs or acne.
If you are breaking out from buffing and you've made sure that you wash the makeup off properly there could be some reasons why:
1) no, you're not really washing the makeup off properly =P
2) you're buffing with too much strength, use a lighter hand, and don't press so hard
3) it's not buffing, but you may be allergic or sensitive to the particular product you are using
4) the brush you are using has bristles that irritate your skin
5) or finally, hey, seems like your skin is sensitive to the process of buffing, so instead of buffing foundation, use a different technique

Is Buffing harmful?
Buffing may be harmful to those with dry and/or sensitive skin. If you do have these skin types, then it is probably not a good idea to buff on product. A gentle patting/tapping motion of the product with a makeup sponge or your fingers is probably better.
For those with oily or normal skin, just make sure that the foundation you are using does not have an allergic reaction or something with your skin, and buffing should be okay.
If you have some sort of skin problem like eczema, hives, etc. DO NOT BUFF. This process will harm your skin and make your skin not only look and feel bad, but make it worse.

How to Buff?
There are a few ways to buff liquid or cream foundation onto your face.
The easiest and most common way is to:
1) Dab dots of foundation on your face where you want it to be.
2) Get a flat top face brush and with a tapping/dabbing motion, spread out the foundation on your face.
3)Then gently start swirling the brush on your skin, lightly pressing or "buffing" the makeup into your skin as you swirl.
4) If you want more coverage, just dab some more product on your face and repeat steps 1-3.

Some people like to apply cream or liquid foundation first onto their brush and then apply. I don't like this, because first, when you start applying, the most amount of product will land on the first spot you touch, which is not an even application and second, the moment you put product on the brush, the product will start sinking into the brush, especially as you buff. Because when you buff, you push the brush against your skin, which will in turn, push product into the brush. So, most of the product will end up going into the brush than on your skin. To minimize this, this is why I said earlier, to first apply product onto the face, and then go over with the brush.

To buff powder foundation onto your face:
1) Gently put your brush into the powder or swirl it in the compact of pressed powder
2) Tap off the excess (please tap and don't blow off)
3) Apply the powder in the buffing motion described earlier. Use a light hand, swirl the product onto while pressing gently into your skin.
4) To build coverage, repeat steps 1-3.

What kind of brush should I use to Buff?
Really, any brush that you like to use that tends to have a flat top is fine. You can use a flat top brush, a buffing brush. Some people use powder brushes, or foundation brushes for cream foundations. To find a good brush, make sure it is soft and the bristles are packed well together. This makes the brush dense and is able to pick up more product and cover more surface area, giving a smoother and more flawless appearance.

A very affordable and popular brush is the E.L.F. flat top kabuki brush:

 

I own two of these brushes and they work very well with all types of foundation!

So I hope you found this post helpful. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to write in the comment box below! Thank you for reading and I will see you soon! ^_^

If you're wondering why I haven't been posting recently...

Hi guys,

Sorry, I've been busy!

I have 2 exams tomorrow and then a lab report due the day after tomorrow.

So I'll be working my butt of studying and writing a lab report.

And then I'm going to straight to LA to visit family and the bf.

So yeah, I'll be back next week!

See you guys later and have a great weekend =)