Hmm sounds like a pretty blog name.

I've tried one to two creme blushes a long ass time ago and couldn't quite remember how I felt about them. I currently have two in my collection a Korean one that feels like Maybelline's bouncy blush and this one.





TEXTURE | PIGMENTATION | WEAR

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I quite like this brand's matte lipsticks and a lot of people in general like their lipsticks as well. This one though doesn't get the same enthusiasm as the former.

It's pigmented and you really only need a little so it won't end up looking cakey on the skin. Blending it out is easy as well if using a brush or your fingers. The finish is natural, isn't glowy and sits well on my skin. It also lasts quite well I find. A little over four hours would be a fair estimate then it starts to significantly fade. Maybe because it was such a light color to begin with and I only put a very small amount.


That being said, it doesn't feel nice on the skin or to rephrase it's not comfortable to wear. I also think the color doesn't suit me all that well. It's a blue-based light pastel pink which I thought would be a nice break from all the corals and peaches I tended to wear.

In the spectrum of light and dark I'm in the middle. I find this will work well for people with light skin and dark skin but not medium (with warm/olive undertone). If your undertone leans a little more pink or you're neutral I think you can try it out but for the most part the two extremes of skin tone range will pull this one off better than I.

And the scent! Sometimes I like the nostalgia of "old-school" smelling makeup on certain products but I can't stand this one. It does linger on the face for a while and you can smell it on you (until such time that your nose gets used to it).

It's not bad per se. I wouldn't say it's a must-have though. It's cheap so if you want to explore some cream blush options try to swatch this at one of their kiosks as they also have four or five more colours to choose from.


xx,
CJ


PS. Will give this one to a friend.
PPS. I paid no more than Php 200 for this. Don't remember the exact price. I also don't remember the exact shade name or number. Hehe.

I've been on a skincare kick lately on my blog so I wanted to follow it with some (mostly) skincare empties.

These are products that have been in my empties bin in a while. Most of them have even been in here for more than five months. I actually have a couple of stuff that I finished but I deemed them not worthy enough for a post. Because all of these (except one) I actually really like.


1.) ZA Cleansing Foaming Gel

I really really really love this cleansing gel. It's a cleanser/makeup remover that removes even waterproof mascara. I kid you not. Even my hard-to-remove bases —you know the ones that just emulsify on your face but are still there —are removed easily.





To make sure it removes all of my makeup, what I do is wet my face a little take a small (but I usually overdo it, what else is new) pea-sized amount, massage it on my whole face for more than a minute, let it sit a minute more then rinse. It leaves my skin clean and not-taut like some heavy-duty cleansers tend to do.


2.)  ZA Hydration Fresh Lucent Toner

I bought this along with my gel cleanser in one of my hoard-everything hauls when ZA had that 50% off sale (see post here). And I do not regret getting this at all. I kinda feel bad for not getting more.


It's not one of those revolutionary toners, I mean it even has alcohol (which I tend to avoid in toners) but I love it because:

• It doesn't break me out
• It feels refreshing and gets rid of other traces of makeup/dirt my cleanser missed
• It has Hyaluronic Acid which is the magic word if you want to increase hydration and improve skin elasticity plus it works on all skin types — oily, dry, normal and combination.

I'm currently using a non-alcohol toner but I might get back to this if I get the time to get my ass out of the house.


3.) Baviphat Green Tea Mist

Mists are my absolute indulgence. These types of mists aren't really good for anything other than refreshing the face so they aren't particularly used for setting makeup but I use it anyway for that apart from its intended use.



This one doesn't have the fine mist that I like but the smell and the way it feels on the skin is really nice. It wasn't that pricey either. I think I bought this for around Php 200 - 250.


4.) Etude Eye & Lip Remover

Funny name but good product. It removes eye makeup well. For waterproof mascara I tend to go back a second time but sometimes it's not that big of a deal. I much prefer the Maybelline eye and lip makeup remover though but this is an ok alternative and cheap too - less than Php300. (sorry I don't have a close-up shot of it!)


5.) Fashion21 and Darkness Auto Eyebrow Pens

For eyebrow makeup, I'm not that picky. Well, actually I am. But I'm not brand conscious. If it works. It works. And these two are fantastic. Fashion21 is harder in texture, the type I gravitate towards. The color is a cool-brown with no traces of red in it and the packaging is simple, sleek and sturdy.



Darkness is another Korean brand and much softer in texture compared to Fashion21. It has more leeway if you want a softer brow look since you can easily brush out the color because of its texture. The color is also a cool-toned brown and perfect for dark brunettes. The shape of the "lead" is flat and angled which made it easy for me to draw on my brows. But if I had to choose, I'd go for the Fashion21 because good hard eyebrow pencils are hard to come by, most of the time they're creamy and/or too waxy for my taste.


6.) Instant Argan Oil

Aka the super expensive pure Argan oil that wasn't really pure. I bought this for Php 1000 and during that time Argan oil was just being introduced to the Philippine market, so everybody was clamoring to get one. I didn't have proper information about it at the time and bought the bottle on a whim.



It works okay I guess, as a face moisturizer but I like it better for the hair and body. The thing I'm pissed about here is I thought I was getting PURE Argan oil not some heavily perfumed watered-down version of it. The consistency was thick like maple syrup and smelt like talc. It reminded me of those vanilla body sprays from Victoria's Secret.

Argan oil, I learned,  is supposed to smell woody or "medicinal" in a way not powdery and sweet. I blame the SA who said it was pure. It was my fault though for not reading the bottle. It didn't have PURE written anywhere on it.

That concludes my empties post. Have you tried any of these? And what're your thoughts about Sales Assistants "bending" the truth just to get a sale?


xx,
CJ