Review: Helena Rubinstein (HR) lipstick + Green FOTD

How's everyone? Did you guys enjoyed your weekends? I did! So I hope you are as recharged as me to last for the whole week :)

Anyways, one of my readers asked me to do a review on HR lipsticks since I have a bunch of them (all are gifts by my friends from Japan) . Sorry gurl, if it took a long time before I was able to do this review..I was quite distracted by my Lancome lipsticks these past weeks hehe :)

Here's my review:

PROS
- pretty colors to choose from and majority of them are very weareable for any skin tone
- color is lasting on the lips
- has a sleek packaging..since it is shiny, you can use it as a mirror whenever you want to do touch ups

CONS
- not available locally
- very obvious glitters when applied to the lips
- since it's long wearing, it makes my dry lips drier (so make sure to put a good moisturizing lipbalm underneath to prevent chapping)
- this does not apply smoothly on my lips unlike my Lancome lipsticks

Over-all Rating: 3/5 - Although I love the colors and staying power, I'm more after to the moisturizing properties of lipsticks.

Here's a shot of one of my HR lipsticks..I used this today for my FOTD..Color is so pretty on the lips ^_^
Very cute right? I just hope it's more moisturizing..This is the main reason why I rarely use them..anyways, I'll try using different lipbalms underneath to see which one works for this lipstick coz I do love the color :)

oOo

Now, for my FOTD..
I was attracted to the greens and yellows of the Coastal Scents 88 palette so I decided to do a yellow-green look for today ^_^
FACE

- Innisfree Trouble Care BB Cream

- Ellana Sheer Velvet Primer in White Chocolate 

- Meow blush in Cat Got Your Tongue

- Dayna's Minerals Glow in Violet Vesper

* all face products are applied using a stippling brush


LIPS

- Venus and Mars emu oil lip balm

- HR lipstick #44



EYES

- Mary Kay Signature Concealer in Ivory

- Ellana Minerals concealer in Awake

- MAC Paintpot in Painterly

- Coastal Scents 88 Matte Palette (green, yellow, yellow-gold and gold)

- Ellana Minerals MPM in Ethereal as eyeliner (applied wet using Aromaleigh eyeliner sealant)

* I did not use any mascara because I hate removing them haha ^_^


^ This is the inspiration for my look today. A mint green hoodie T-shirt dress ^_^

I hope you all liked it! Till next time. Bye! :)

My 1st Make-up Tutorial: "Eye Candy"

Hi guys! I got an urge yesterday morning to do a makeup tutorial (maybe due to too much watching of youtube makeup gurus) hehe. Well, I decided to try it just to check if I can or can't do it. So please comment so I can hear some feedbacks ^_^

*WARNING: picture heavy*

Okay, let's start! We are aiming for a wearable "eye candy" look. This is fun and colorful but you can still wear it in school or in work coz I tried to make it subdued for a daytime look. Hope you'll like it :)

Here's the look we're going to do:

Let's start with the base. I used Innisfree Trouble Care all over my face. I applied it using my finger tips. Don't forget to conceal the areas that needs to be concealed so that we can achieve a flawless canvass.

Now, let's do the eyes. Apply your eyeshadow base of choice to help your shadows adhere to your eyelids and give a better color pay-off. I used MAC paintpot in Painterly.

Apply it using with your ring finger and then dab it until you covered your eyelids (from lashline to browbone. Also apply some base on your lower lashline coz we are going to put some colors there later.

Using your flat shader brush, I use ELF eyeshadow brush, pick up a bright pink shadow. I'm using my Coastal Scents 88 matte palette.

Apply the pink eyeshadow with dabbing motion all over your lids until crease. It should look like this:

Get your fluffy blending brush, I'm using my MAC 217 brush, and pick up an orange color. This is the orange beside the pink shade from the CS palette.

Apply it on the crease, overlapping with the pink, using a wiper motion. Don't forget to blend, blend, blend! You can retouch the pink and the orange until you achieved the intensity of the shade you want. Since I'm going to wear it out, I chose to make it subtle.

Then using any fluffy brush you have, you can also use your flat shader brush for this, pick up a white eyeshadow for highlighting the browbone. This is the shade on the upper left corner of the palette. It is a matte white.

Sweep the shadow on your browbone area and blend it with your orange crease color. Blending can help you achieve the flawless transition of the colors. You should not be able to see where each color ends and starts.

This is how your eyes should look like now.

Using your contour or pencil brush, I'm using Ellana contour brush, pick up a purple shade. This is the color just below the pink eyeshadow we used for the lids.

Apply the purple on your lower lashline (3/4 from the outer corner).

The using the same brush, pick up a golden yellow eyeshadow.

Apply it on the inner corners of your eyes and blend it.

Then line your eyes with black eyeliner. Since I don't have any liners, I'm going to use my black eyeshadow for this purpose. I'm going to wet my angled liner brush with a sealant (you can use water too) and make a paste using my black eyeshadow. Then I lined my upper lashline (I also tightlined using the same brush).

It should look like this:

Curl your lashes once the eyeliner has dried already. I used my Shiseido eyelash curler for this step.
Then apply your favorite mascara to help hold the curl of yuor lashes. I used Lancome High Definition mascara in black then removed excess products using a clean spoolie.
Then if you have any fallouts or mistakes, just use a wet cotton buds to remove them. Once dried, apply a highlighter on your undereyes. I use Ellana Awake concealer and applied it using my Charm concealer brush.

This also sets your undereye concealer so that it can last longer aside from making your eyes appear more awake.

And this is our finished eye makeup!

Now for the face:
I applied my setting powder, I used Aromaleigh URFP in Peaches and Cream, all over my face using a stippling brush (MAC 187) to help control the oiliness and also set my makeup.

Your face will look more polished after you applied your finishing powder.

Then apply your blush of choice. I choose a pink one, Lumiere Ditt "O" blush, and applied it using a stippling brush, I used my Lumiere duo fiber powder brush because it has a smaller head than my MAC 187 so it fits my cheeks pretty well. Using a stippling brush also produce a "soft" blushing effect but you can also use your regular blush brush.

Apply your blush on the apples of your cheeks for a more youthful look.

Finish your look with your favorite lipstick on top of your lipbalm. I chose to use my HG lipbalm, Venus and Mars Emu oil lipbalm, and topped it with my fave lipstick from Lancome.

All done! Here's the final look in different lighting. Pardon me for the quality of the pictures. I think the light washed out the colors so the it is not that vibrant on film. I'll try to set up my digital camera better next time (I'm still learning about the proper setting for it) ^_^

And here's my outfit for today. I wore a long white tank top and blue jeans paired with baby blue flipflops. I also wore a hoodie on top since it's raining.

Thank you for reading my very long post! Please suggest on what I can do to make my tutorials better. Tell me what you think. Post a comment! I'll be waiting for them :)

Till next time! Bye! ^_^

Initial Review: Innisfree Trouble Care BB Cream

Hello everyone! I got my sample of Innisfree Trouble Care BB cream yesterday from Joeanne of Girltalk. I'm so happy because she shipped my order really fast and her pricing for Korean products are quite affordable so that's another plus point for me. Anyways, I have read mostly raves for this bb cream because it rarely cause any breakouts to the users. As you all know, I always have a hard time looking for my HG products (especially those that I use on my face) because I have a very sensitive skin and I react to almost anything. With MMU, I can only use 2-3 out of 5 brands that I purchased because I always itch and get whiteheads with them and it is the same with bb creams. So when I came across this bb cream, I told myself that I will definitely try this because it is meant for my skin type. Plus, it is much cheaper than other brands too and I have found a local reseller who sells samples for this (I'm glad she still have stock when I ordered) so it's better for me who wants to test it first before buying the full size :)

Description from Sasa.com:

Innisfree extracts botanical nutrients and essence from organic plants to correct various problematic skin types. By pure, natural, professional and effective therapy, Innisfree creates healthy and energetic skin and pleasant mood. All products are dermatologically tested.

Innisfree BB Trouble Care BB Cream simultaneously provides concealment and care for problematic skin. Skin looks smooth and clear.

Diversified beauty ingredients:

Herbal essences hydrate skin.
Tea Tree extracts disinfect and soothe skin.
American Mint helps soothe pressured skin. It also calms skin. Skin feels cool and comfortable. Vitamin A and Moneywort protect skin from external aggressions.

How to use it:

Use after daily skin care. Apply a proper amount to entire face.

Country of Origin: Korea

Suitable for: Oily and acne skin

Here's a shot of the sample I got. It comes in a clear jar that is properly labelled. I just got confused a little because in her label, she placed SPF 17 but in the site, it says SPF 27. Anyways, the packaging is very neat. I like it because my bb cream sample won't dry up or get contaminated (unlike those in sachets).


It also has a lid inside so the product won't spill.

Here's how this bb cream looks. It's not that light or dark. I think it fits my skin tone perfectly just by looking at it. And I can't see any pinkish or graying tone in it so I'm happy hehe :)

Here's a swatch of the product on my hand. As you can see in the picture, it made my skin appear brighter.

I have tried Innisfree Trouble Care BB cream today and here's a shot of me wearing it alone.

*with a different lighting*
Here's my take on it:

PROS

- it has a fluid texture so it is very easy to spread

- coverage is light to medium but I can build it if I want more coverage

- feels light on my skin

- it has SPF

- has anti-bacterial properties to fight pimples

- long staying power

- it did not oxidized on me (I did not get darker the whole time I'm wearing it)

- scent is light

- I can avail it easily because there's a local reseller

- affordable compared to other brands of BB cream

- I look dewy and natural

CONS

- can't help with the oiliness of my skin (actually I'm not sure if it's because I applied too much..I'll apply less amount of product tomorrow to make sure)

I hope this brand of bb cream will work for me..I'm really crossing my fingers..I like the dewy and natural look it gives me plus it has healing properties too for my pimples..I'll test this until my sample runs out..I hope I don't get any adverse reactions from it hehe ^_^

Have you tried this one already? What's your experience? I want to hear from you. Thank you! Bye :)