July 2018 - Page 3 of 4 - Reviews and Other Stuff

Month: July 2018

Samples of The Week

July 12, 2018 / FASHION & BEAUTY / 0 comments

Hi There! I have another set of randomly accumulated samples which I’m gonna feature in today’s post. I don’t exactly have a criterion as to which type of samples I plan to review, I just sorta pick and choose which ones made me curious or I felt like trying, and from then on I’d pay close attention to which products might seem promising and are worth buying in the regular size. So, let’s start this review, shall we?

The first thing that caught my eye is a sample set of the Guerlain La Petite Robe Noire Deliciously Shiny Lipstick (0.09 oz: $32) that I found in my stash. It’s got two colors in it which you can see below. This lipstick truly smells delicious and has a bit of a floral scent as well. I love how the colors have that balmy oily feel, which also is kinda similar to the YSL Rouge Volupte Shine Lipsticks (swatched HERE) or the Tint-in-Balms, reviewed below. It has a shiny effect on the lips and the coverage is medium sheer. It’s also very comforting and has a good lasting power for about 3 to 4 hours.

002 Pink Tie – barbie-pink

003 Red Heels – bright red

This Yves Saint Laurent Volupté Tint-in-Balm in No. 3 Call Me Rose (0.12 oz: $34) is one the latest releases in YSL lip products and it has that signature YSL lipstick fruity scent. It’s so hydrating and really comfortable on the lips even though the No.3 shade is way too light for me. I’m thinking of getting some slightly darker shades of this lipstick soon since I really love the formula but the color on the sample is just not the right fit for my skintone.

Then let’s talk a bit about haircare for a moment. The Alterna Haircare Caviar Anti-Aging Anti-Frizz Blowout Butter (5 oz: $34) is my favorite styling cream at the moment. I’ve been testing this and I really love how I only put a pea-size on my hand and it melts easily giving my hair complete coverage and protection against heat styling, and it works great to tame my frizzies and flyaways even without blow drying or without using a flat iron. For the complete review of the Alterna Caviar Anti-Frizz line (Shampoo & Conditioner), please read it HERE.

I have some Bite Beauty minis that I received as a birthday freebie from Sephora. The packaging looks really cute and though the products are small, they’re still worth trying.

Agave Lip Balm (0.15 oz: $18) – This is so hydrating and it feels a lot thicker compared to most lip balms and because of that, it’s kinda hard to apply and spread it on the lips, so for practicality reasons, I feel like I could skip on this one. I’ve also heard some issues about its packaging as well.

Agave Sugar Lip Scrub (0.26 oz: $18) – This has a vanilla scent with sugar bits on it for exfoliating the lips. I like this product a lot but I feel like the sugar particles are too large to scrub it on my lips and it can hurt. Also, you need to know how to use this product, which basically requires you to add water while you scrub this on the lips. Using this alone without water is just impossible.

Matte Crème Lip Crayon in Glace (0.05 oz: $24) – Further swatched and reviewed HERE. This is my most favorite shade of the Matte Creme Lip Crayon line simply because it’s the most wearable shade for me.

Amuse Bouche Lipstick in Chai (0.15 oz: $26) – The Amuse Bouche Lipstick by Bite Beauty has one of the best range of wearable colors for a lipstick in my opinion, and I would love to have them all. I own some already, but I feel like now my favorite shade among them is this mauve-brown Chai color. A subtle reminiscent of the 90’s lipstick color trend.

Boscia – There are two very promising Boscia skincare products lately that’s certified Clean by Sephora.

Cactus Water Moisturizer (1.61 oz: $38) – This moisturizer has a mild green scent and it feels like a light cooling gel on the skin. But don’t underestimate its lightness because it packs a punch in hydration. Truly, this is so moisturizing without feeling heavy on the face but you need to be careful not to put a lot because it has a tendency to peel. It’ll also take a bit of time for it to be absorbed by the skin, so you’re gonna have to wait a little bit more before you put on your makeup. Other than that, this moisturizer is almost perfect and it’s even more perfect for oily skin.

Matcha Magic Super-Antioxidant Mask (2.6 oz:$38) – If you don’t mind looking like “Shrek” whenever you use this mask, then this is the face mask for you. It’s rich in antioxidants because of the matcha green tea component. I love how this mask hydrates my face even though it’s quite a challenge to rinse it off since this is really creamy and thick. It reminds me a bit of the Tatcha Violet-C Radiance Mask (reviewed HERE) in terms of its scent and consistency.

I’ve always wanted to purchase this Sunday Riley C.E.O. C + E antiOXIDANT Protect + Repair Moisturizer (0.5 – 1.7 oz: $22-65) in its regular size, but for some reason, I just needed that “push” so I can really make up my mind. With this mini, I feel like I can now pull the trigger and really add this cream as one of my skincare staples. What I like about this cream are the vitamins and antioxidants that it contains which is really a necessity for skin nourishment. Also, the scent of this cream is TDF.

I had mixed emotions when I first tried this It Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye Eye Cream Smooths, Brightens, Depuffs (0.5 oz: $48). I wasn’t used to its cushiony texture at first and I thought that it’s kinda hard to apply, but as I keep trying it, I really enjoyed it. It keeps my undereye looking hydrated and it seemed to depuff it as well. My dark circles are still there but there’s never gonna be a perfect cream for it, however, I’m glad that this eye cream made some difference on my undereye issues.

Overall, I love this batch of samples. They’re so useful and they gave me an idea as to which product I should look out for especially when I’ll have some specific skincare and beauty needs.

Have you tried these products yet?

x.x

Olaplex Hair Perfector No. 3 Review

July 10, 2018 / FASHION & BEAUTY / 0 comments

Hello haircare addicts! yes, I’m one of you, and I have a new haircare discovery that I’m gonna talk about in today’s review. This particular haircare product is so life-changing and I never knew I’d be able to find a product like this ever. Yes, my queens, I’m talking about the Olaplex Hair Perfector No.3 (3.3 oz: $28). This has been recently carried by Sephora and I was so excited when I received their email notification saying that they’re now carrying Olaplex haircare products. Recently, I saw that they just added the No.4 and No.5 Bond Maintenance Shampoo and Conditioner and I can’t wait to get my hands on those.

Anyways, Olaplex has been gaining some popularity lately due to a lot of famous celebs talking about their amazing haircare product. It’s basically a three-step salon hair treatment that works to repair and rebuild broken hair bonds with the aim of repairing and preventing damaged hair. It seeks to rebuild and restore the hair back to its normal glory, making it strong, healthy and shiny. The No.1 (Bond Multiplier) and No.2 (Bond Perfector) treatments are done at the salon or by professionals only, but the third treatment, the No.3 Hair Perfector is meant to be used at home once a week to keep strengthening the hair. I’ve never tried the first two treatments before, but I’ve recently been sold by this No.3 Hair Perfector treatment because I really saw a huge improvement with my hair.

To give you a brief history of my hair and its condition, well, first of all, my hair is really long and straight. I’ve never colored it but I’ve had some straightening treatments done in the past. My hair strands are a mix of fine and thick that could get dry and frizzy easily. I normally don’t do much fuzz on my hair except applying some leave-in conditioners from time to time or use a heat protectant whenever I use a flat iron to straighten it. Most of the time, I like to just wash and wear. But my biggest hair problem is definitely hair breakage or hair fall and frizzies. I seem to have really weak strands and it got even worse since my hair had had some treatments in the past. Frizzies are annoying for me especially in the heat or extreme humidity, so I have to use a really moisturizing and defrizzing shampoo and conditioner to combat the issue.

Enter Olaplex Hair Perfector No.3, thank goodness I’ve tried this thing. It has a bit of a fruity scent that applies rather easily on the hair, but make sure you apply it when your hair is wet or right before shampooing. The instruction said to keep it on your hair for about 15 minutes, but I like to keep mine on for 30 to 40 minutes and the result seems better. After that, rinse your hair and apply your usual shampoo and conditioner. As you do that, you’ll notice your hair feeling really smooth and soft, like it had been in a salon. As soon as you dry your hair and a few hours later, you’ll feel the silky smooth difference. On my part, my hair feels really nice to the touch and it’s straighter than usual like it’s been rebonded or relaxed. I feel like now I have a rockstar hair. LOL. It’s just bouncier, shinier, and softer. I’m down to my second bottle now and I’ve noticed a huge difference in the amount of hair breakage or hair fall that I have. Literally, I barely see much hair breakage now and even fewer hair strands on the floor. It’s a problem solved for me and I’m so thankful for this product. I can now straighten my hair without worrying if I’m harming it too much or if I’ve overheated it with my flat iron.

This product is so good and I really recommend it if you wanna restore your hair back to its normal state. I was a bit scared before using this as it might make my hair worse, but right now my hair looks like it’s back to my teenager days before I did some sorcery on it. LOL. I do wish that they should’ve made the bottle larger because for its price and for the length of my hair, it’s basically only good for 3-4 uses. The bottle is really small and I like to soak the product into my hair. But anyways, I’ll still be hoarding this product from now on, and I’ll definitely try that Bond Maintenance Shampoo and Conditioner (No.4 and No.5) that’s been out in Sephora recently.

Have you tried this product yet? You really should.

The Olaplex Hair Perfector No. 3 is currently available at Sephora and Revolve

Becca x Chrissy Teigen Endless Summer Glow Collection Review & Swatches

July 7, 2018 / FASHION & BEAUTY / 0 comments

Hey guys! Happy Weekend! There’s lots of new beauty stuff to look forward to this weekend starting with the fresh and newly-released Becca x Chrissy Teigen Endless Summer Glow Collection. I am so excited about this collab just as I was so excited when the first Becca x Chrissy Glow Face Palette (swatched HERE) was released last year. This year, there are three limited-edition featured products and they’re inspired by the idea of having that sun-kissed skin all throughout the year. So, expect to see some shimmers and sun-inspired warmth in this collection.

First off, let’s start with the Glow Body Oil (3.5 oz: $42). I love the look of the packaging, it looks sleek and luxurious with its golden shimmers floating inside the bottle. The oil smells great, it has this perfumey floral scent, though for some it may be too strong, but for me, I like it, it gives me that nostalgic tropical scent. Formula-wise, I think this body oil could be improved. No matter how much product I applied on my skin, I still couldn’t see the shimmer. I’ve shaken the bottle I don’t know how many times and I still couldn’t see much glow. In fact, photographing it is a challenge. Also, this body oil doesn’t seem to set immediately on the skin, it just sorts of sit on top and it has a bit of a slightly sticky feel which made me wary about oil transfer to my clothes and anything I touch. But nevertheless, this Glow Body Oil still feels light and moisturizing. Another thing I wanna point out is how impractical its packaging can be. It does look pretty yeah but it’s not well-thought-out because it doesn’t have a sprayer nor a pump. So you kinda have to tap the opening of its glass bottle several times in order to release some products, which is kinda tedious.

Next up is the Endless Bronze & Glow (0.25 oz: $38) compact that contains two shades of Becca’s top Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed Highlighter in Moonstone and Beach Nectar (one of the shades in the Glow Face Palette) and it also contains the new Sunlit Bronzer in Aloha Bronze. Moonstone is a pale golden pearl shade, while Beach Nectar is a golden peach. The Aloha Bronze is a medium brown with a slight terracotta tone a bit similar to the Glow Face Palette’s Malibu Soleil, just without the slight clayish red blend. At first glance, the design and the colors inside this compact are so pretty. It has this sun and waves etching and it’s simply tempting to try. All three shades retain the same excellent quality, pigmentation and overall good formulation that we usually expect and see with most of Becca’s highlighting and bronzing products. The nice thing about this compact is that it’s so versatile and it can be that one face compact you’ll ever need especially when you’re out and about or traveling. There’s basically a shade for highlighting, a shade for bronzing, and a nice shimmery blush. When swirled and combined, the overall shade becomes a bronzy shimmery coral. On my skin, it pulls off as a highlighting blush and yes, it really gives that sun-kissed glow.

Lastly, there’s the Glow Lip Gloss (0.18 oz: $22) which gives shine and feels ultra-hydrating, cushiony like a balm and pigmented like a liquid lipstick. It has a softening comforting feel that doesn’t weigh the lips and it has that peppermint scent and flavor which gives that plumpy feel after application. It takes a couple of swipes here and there to get a full coverage on the lips (especially if you have fuller lips) since the formula is a bit thick and the tube’s opening is quite narrow, not to mention the slim brush applicator. The way Chrissy applies it as seen in the video is the best way to apply this gloss. It’s great to be worn alone or as a lipstick topper and the shades are really great. There will be some color transfer of course especially when you eat or drink, but most of it remains on the lips and it will stay there for about 4 to 5 hours.

Beach Bum – supposed to be a warm sandy pink, but it looks more like a light tan beige on me.

Malibu Soleil – mauvy rose without any shimmer and it’s not sheer. It’s just like my lips’ natural shade but better

Beach Nectar – described as a “neutral berry infused with a hint of light catching pearl”, on me, it slightly sheer, shimmery, and it’s kinda reddish brown.

In conclusion, this year’s Becca x Chrissy Teigen collab is an exciting one that is definitely worth trying. The products are great especially with the Lip Glosses and the Endless Bronze & Glow Compact. The Glow Body Oil would have been really great if it wasn’t for its lack of shimmer and its impractical packaging.

The Becca x Chrissy Teigen Endless Summer Glow Collection is currently available at Sephora, Nordstrom, and JCPenney