Review: Bourjois Sweet Kiss Naturel Lipstick in Rose Tendre

Seeing that it's mid-March I guess it's not surprising that I finally broke one of my new years resolution (no impulsive lipstick purchase, that is). I picked up this lipstick during a Centro sale but it was only a 10% off so it's nothing to boast about. Besides, for a drugstore quality lipstick, I still consider this expensive. It retails for around $14 here in Indonesia.

So why did I buy it? Honestly, I was drawn to the color. I don't remember having anything like it in my stash and it's hard to find a pinkish coral color that doesn't look too dark or too warm on me. This shade is perfect and very much wearable. I can be pretty self-conscious when I wear a lip color that's not soft pink or nude but I'm comfortable with this one.

Bourjois Sweet Kiss Naturel Lipstick in #06 Tendre Rose

product description: all the benefits of Nature in one lipstick!

Its formula of 100% natural origin brings radiance and care to lips. Enriched with magnolia oil and shea butter, its melting formula intensely nourishes lips, leaving them supple and providing them with 8 hours of moisture. The intense and radiant shades illuminate your lips thanks to the 100% natural pigments selected for their purity and benefits: antioxidant green tea and soothing rose.

8 shades (there are only 4 available in Indonesia) ranging from the most natural to the most sophisticated and from softer to more sensuous hues, for naturally beautiful lips! 

price: Rp 145.000 ($14-15) / 3g

Color wise, I love it. It has a balance of peach and rose hue. If bright corals are too in-your-face for you, this is a great, subtler alternative. It offers a creamy, semi-matte finish. It reminds me of Revlon Superlustrous Lipsticks but with sheerer pigmentation. I find that I have to swipe it at least three times to get a decent color pay-off.

The formula and texture are rather disappointing for me. I don't think this is moisturizing at all. It settles into lip lines and therefore making it look blotchy whenever I try to touch up the color. I would only wear this with my Nivea SPF 25 lip balm underneath. There is NO WAY I'm wearing this alone; too drying!

Staying power is pretty good. I ate and drank but I still noticed some color left on my lips. Without eating/drinking, the color could last for three hours before I have to touch up.

Gah I feel so pale right now. No chance to apply self tanner these days. The lippie makes my face look brighter, I think. I can get away with less eye makeup wearing this lip color. :)
Have you tried any lipsticks from Bourjois before? What do you think about them?

Laura Geller Blush-n-Brighten in Roseberry

No exaggeration here, but I think I've finally found the perfect full-on rose blush! Just in time for spring, right?

I actually got this blush from a swap with a fellow Female Daily forum member. I was reluctant at first because I was intimidated by the shimmers. Baked blushes usually have that obvious shimmers that are too gritty for my liking. Fortunately, that's not the case with Roseberry. The golden shimmers are very subtle. When I swipe the blush across my cheekbones, it gives more of a matte finish with just a bit of sheen to it.

I would describe the color as a medium neutral rosy pink. It's not too cool-toned like NARS Angelika for instance, and it doesn't have too much red or plum in it. Just plain ol' classic rose color which is so universally flattering! If you're fair-skinned, I'd suggest to apply it with light hand because it's highly pigmented.

The texture is almost identical to NARS blushes. It's finely milled and it grabs onto my foundation like there's no tomorrow. Haha. It stays for hours and hours! I'm very impressed with its staying power.

On my medium NC7 skin, it looks very natural. I prefer to wear this color lightly on the temples of my cheeks and pair it with a matte bronzer to contour my cheekbones. I can intensify it to get a deeper rosy tone, but it would look like I have inches of product on my face so I'd rather not. When I want my blush to look more prominent, I usually grab a darker, plummier pink color (MAC Flirt & Tease).

The packaging is a bit bulky but still travel friendly. Maybe I'm used to my MAC blushes that are definitely more compact than this. I do like that it has a mirror inside, that would be handy for touch-ups.

Laura Geller Blush-n-Brighten blushes are available at Ulta for $29.50. You get 9 grams of product and really, that's a lot! For comparison, NARS blushes cost $28 for mere 4.8 grams. This blush will definitely last me a long time given the amount and pigmentation!

Have you tried any Laura Geller's blushes before?

Skincare Haul: La Glace, Clinique, and Garnier

My Sasa haul is here!

I bought three items from a skincare range called La Glace. I'm pretty sure it's a Taiwan brand but all the products are made in France. There's not many reviews written about them yet, but the ones I read over at Sasa have been pretty convincing. I myself was driven to try them after I saw the ingredient list. They are formulated WITHOUT mineral oil, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, fragrance, alcohol or even parabens. How about that? They're like vegan smoothies for the skin!

I was even more intrigued when I found out that they had a mild cleansing gel with brightening properties. I've always loved the idea of brightening cleanser just because sometimes all the makeup I wear can make my skin look rather dull at the end of the day. I want my skin to be radiant again just in time for bed and when I wake up the next morning. I decided to pick up White Clarifiant Cleansing Gel, White Clarifiant Toner and Hydra-Pur Milky Cleanser. Each of the these products costs $12.80 so in total I paid $38.40 with free shipping charges to Indonesia. I also received a free Collagen Moisture Repair in trial size as a GWP.

Out of all four products I got, I've tried only the cleansing gel. I have rather sensitive and acne prone skin so I always refrain myself from trying out different skincare products all at once. That way, if something is breaking me out, it'll be easier for me to find out the culprit.

My first impression is definitely a positive one. It cleanses really well and it doesn't make my skin feeling tight or dry afterwards. Those are the two critical points for me in judging a cleanser. I'm not sure about the brightening part yet. I may have to give it more time to notice if there's any difference at all.

I also purchased Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel recently. The cap looks different now; a bit taper. I think it's better than the old design. I've tried other Clinique products but the only ones I have repurchased so far are this moisturizer and their 7 Day Scrub Cream. The others I can live without.

The last thing in skincare department I purchased is this Garnier Pure Active Multi-Action Scrub. It was an impulse buy, I admit. I just wanted to try out a new exfoliator and it seems good. Plus, it's cheap! At least I won't feel so bad if I end up hating it. Has anyone tried it before? I'm sometimes iffy about drugstore scrubs because more often than not they are too rough for my skin.

A tip for the skincare newbies: exfoliate, but try to use a gentle scrub so that your skin won't be left irritated. It's really important because I notice that when I exfoliate my skin at least two times a week with the right product, I can see my skin recovering from scars a lot quicker. :)

Lessons Learned

First off, bangs can really make you look more youthful. Seriously.

I wasn't so keen on having bangs because it gets to my eyes and it needs to be redone every month, but I was stressed out and I thought a new 'do would perhaps lighten me up a bit. It did. And now I kind of like it.

 

Secondly, I used to think that I have to be perfect in everything that I do (okay, I still do. Most times). Whenever I do a crappy job at something, I would get frustrated and lose my motivation to go on. Well, I'm learning to accept that maybe, just maybe, it's okay to not be so exceptional at our debut. What's important is that we put an effort to be better. To evolve.

The coolest people I've met/known so far have evolved themselves. They're always working to be better people. The key is, I think, is to keep that curiosity and willingness to learn alive. They're our best bet to banish ignorance. They really are.

Sigma F80 vs Everyday Minerals Flat Top Brush

I got a request to do a comparison between the two so here it is. :)

Honestly, though, I haven't used my Sigma F80 enough so this is more like my initial thought. I actually prefer my Everyday Minerals Kabuki Brush to apply my foundation because it gives a lighter, more natural finish. On special occasions I do like to use my Everyday Minerals Flat Top Brush to get a better coverage. I've owned both for almost three years and they still work well. They don't shed much either despite the fact that I wash them at least once a week.

From their appearance, you can tell that Sigma has a longer handle and shorter bristles than Everyday Minerals. Personally, I find the handle of Sigma F80 rather awkward (I wish it was slimmer) but I guess it's something I will eventually get used to. On the other hand, I like the short handles of my Everyday Minerals brushes because they're more comfortable in my hands and more compact, too.

As for the brush head, it's obvious to me that F80 has more bristles than Everyday Minerals Flat Top. Its bristles are definitely denser too, allowing me to get a precise and flawless application.

I didn't notice any difference with how the bristles feel on my skin until I used F80 on my face. It felt softer than my Everyday Minerals Flat Top but then again my EM brush has already gone through a lot of washes.

Since Sigma F80 has slightly shorter, more concentrated bristles, it transfers and blends product more effectively. With EM Flat Top, you will have to put more effort and time in order to get the same kind of finish.

Will either of the two make you look like you're wearing a mask? I think that significantly depends on what foundation you're using. My foundations generally offer medium to full coverage so yes, in my case, if I'm not patient enough to blend my foundation, I can end up looking cakey. This is why I prefer a dome-shaped kabuki brush for my daily foundation brush.

If you haven't purchased any of these, I'd recommend getting F80 simply because it does the job better. It also doesn't shed (probably a couple of bristles TOPS) or bleed when I wash it; definitely a good, effective brush for the price. The only thing that I don't like about Sigma F80 is that it's pretty hard to get the foundation stain off. I've washed it thoroughly with brush cleanser but take a look at the above picture... that's the best thing I could do with it. *sigh*
Any suggestion?