All posts filed under: Reviews

K-Palette Essence in ShadowLiner*

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As you all know (if you’ve been reading my lil ol’ blog for a while), I’m a total slave for K-Palette eyebrow/eyeliner products. Imagine my glee when I received this package—an eyeshadow/eyeliner hybrid called the K-Palette Essence in ShadowLiner*—right before I left for a trip. It’s similar to the dual-ended eyebrow markers that K-Palette makes with a brush-tip on one end and a powder product on the other end. In this case, it’s eyeliner instead of brow marker opposite eyeshadow and a sponge-tip applicator coupled with a spring mechanism. Brush pen liner tip. Eyeshadow/powder sponge tip. I received four colors: the eyeliner in black and varying depths of brown, and shimmery neutral eyeshadow shades. 01 black x brown | 02 brown black x camel brown | 03 deep brown x nude beige | 04 pink brown x nude pink I tried them out on my eyes, sans primer and eyebrow anything. Sorry for the horror. Anyway, look: If you’re low maintenance, these are amazing products to bring on for trips. I brought 01 and 02 …

MAC Viva Glam Rihanna 2

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Hey ho! I have a short review on this lipstick I got a few months ago that I don’t think I’ve properly worn out for the sole reason that it makes me feel uncomfortable. For some reason, I put myself on this mad hunt for the MAC Viva Glam Rihanna 2 lipstick, which is a selection that’s completely out of character for me, since I tend to really, really loathe frost finishes. I do have someone to blame for this purchase, and that’s Liz, because look at how beautiful it is on her! I mean, look at the frost on this mother. It’s described as a “cool mauve,” but to my eyes, it’s just pretty fucking bronze, to be honest. But anyway. It’s kind of a warm, frosty gunmetal type of color that, again, isn’t really my usual style. I’m pretty adventurous when it comes to eye makeup, but I really, really, really shy away from overly bright/weird lip colors for some reason. And right now, I’ve yet to decide if Viva Glam Rihanna 2 …

K-Palette 24H Real Lasting Eyeliner in BB001*

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I received this super cute K-Palette package a little over a month ago, which was essentially one of their newer eyeliner colors packaged like a Pantone series, complete with a swatch booklet. This isn’t exactly an official Pantone collab; the folks over at BeautyBox Corp. were just being cute. 🙂 If you’ve been a reader for a while, you probably know that my favorite eyeliner and eyebrow products are by K-Palette. I’ve mainly used the black liquid liner, but I also own the “deep brown” shade. This time, I was sent the K-Palette 24H Real Lasting Eyeliner in BB001*, which is described as “brown black.” Swatched, top to bottom: SB001 (super black), BB001 (brown black), DB001 (deep brown) People typically say that if you find that black eyeliner is too harsh, you can use brown instead. I find that this works with pencil liners, but prior to BB001/brown black, a brown liquid liner felt stark, too, but in a different way. Brown black is a nice middle ground between the two too-noticeable shades. This is …

Bioré Aqua Rich Whitening Essence*

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Just a quick post to kind of get my bearings re: this blogging business. I received this a few weeks ago, and have been using it for a little over a month, if I’m not mistaken. So I think it’s time that I talk about it a bit. To be honest, I wasn’t really expecting much from the Bioré Aqua Rich Whitening Essence* mainly because it seems to be your standard sunscreen and, also, I tend to be automatically averse to anything that claims to “whiten” your complexion. Still, it was worth a shot. Bioré claims to be “Japan’s #1 sunscreen brand,” and judging from how this performed on me, I can see why. It’s incredibly pleasant to use, especially in this humidity. I find that it’s pretty impossible to find a sunscreen that doesn’t leave your face slick and oily, but this is a true gem. I’ve been using it, with pleasure, every day since I first tried it. It has the triple benefit of UV protection, hydration, and whitening (debatable as a “benefit!”), …

Kainda Sensuous Body Wash in Jasiri*

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Hey all! We gotta stop meeting like this, I guess. I was gearing up for a Beauty Blog Revival, but then… I got a job! Like, a full-time gig, which I haven’t really had since 2010/2011. So, this explains my absence, I hope? I was losing interest in beauty for a while, too… in a way that it overwhelmed me, but I’m starting to get excited about it again, so that’s a great thing, I think. 🙂 Anyway, I wanted to post about something I’d been meaning to post for a while, but haven’t gotten around to. The upside is that I’ve been using it for a pretty long time and found that I still like it. The Kainda Sensuous Body Wash* (PHP 649) could just be your typical, run-of-the-mill body wash, except it’s not. Kainda is a pretty interesting brand to begin with: a plant-based, cruelty-free brand that places an emphasis on sustainability as well as utmost care for the self. Aside from bath products, they have laundry detergent and surface cleaners, for the …

Bits from Makeup Revolution

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I’ve been hearing about Makeup Revolution a lot, when I come across dupe posts, particularly those for the Urban Decay Naked palettes. They’re known for excellent eyeshadow quality, even as a budget brand, so I was thrilled to find out that they would be available here soon. I Heart Makeup Wonder Palette I Heart Chocolate* Since I have/have tried the UD Naked palettes, I decided to give the I Heart Makeup Wonder Palette in I Heart Chocolate* (Php 890) a shot. A long time ago, I mentioned that I had wanted to try Too Faced’s Chocolate Bar Palette, so when I read that this was a pretty spot-on dupe, I knew I had to go for this. The packaging is a little big and clunky, but it’s cute in a kitschy way. Swatches Swatched, L-R: (first row) You Need Love, Piece Me Together, One More Piece, Love Torn, Stolen Chocolate, (second row) Thank Friday, More!, Pleasure Girl, Meet Chocolate, Unforgivable, Love Divine Swatched, L-R: (third/last row) Smooth Criminal, Chocolate Love, You Need More, What a …

Le Métier de Beauté BVVIP June and July 2015

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August marks the beginning of the next cycle of the Le Métier de Beauté Beauty Vault VIP beauty subscription, and it’s the first time in the three short years it’s been up that I opted out of it. I think I have gone down a couple of notches in terms of beauty enthusiasm. So, even though a part of me is excited to learn what they’re sending to subscribers this year, I mostly think it’s a good decision for me to save my money instead. Anyway, I realized that I hadn’t shared what I got for the last two months of the sub—again with the absence of enthusiasm—so here’s what I got for June/July 2015. Items from the BVVIP usually pop up on eBay, so if something interests you, you could probably go check there! June 2015: Instant Line Perfecting Serum This is actually still a “coming soon” item on Dermstore, set to retail at $150. It’s a “heat-activated” anti-aging serum that targets lines and wrinkles. “Within seconds of applying Le Metier de Beaute Instant …