Byredo Parfums⎪Blanche


I carry this everywhere. If you don't already know, I am a fragrance-lover and I'm very keen on the fragrances I wear. The two brands that I rate as my all-time favorites are Diptyque and Byredo Parfums. (You can check out my fragrance videos on my Youtube channel)

From Byredo I've been eyeing the Blanche fragrance because of its really pure, clean, simple, yet sophisticated and fresh scent. It captures that perfect Sunday morning with clean bedsheets on a breezy Spring day, somewhere in the countryside. 


Happily, Byredo has hand creams for certain fragrances and they had one for Blanche. It comes in a relatively small tube, and the power of the scent is there. I love that the scent is strong and lasts for more than a few minutes. The minute you open the tube and smear it on your hands, everyone around you notices it right away. Well, thank goodness it's a beautiful scent because people always ask what the scent is. I love that the scent is so fresh and clean, and times when I'm especially feeling icky, I love to pull this out and just waft that nasty smell away! 

It is very moisturizing. It might leave a little bit of residue but it's gone in a few seconds. More than anything though is the scent and the packaging. I usually don't think that's a good enough of a reason, but because this is one of my favorites scents, I'll gladly repurchase this! 


The Best of 2014 Beauty⎪Makeup & Skincare



Watch the video here! 
It's the end of 2014. How crazy is it that the year is almost over? I have a lot of things going on next year and I'm both nervous and excited for what's to come. Before I introduce my 2014 beauty favorites, I wanted to wish all of my dear readers a Happy New Year! I hope great blessings will come in 2015 and that you will be filled with happiness and joy :)


It's been awhile since I've uploaded a video on my Youtube channel. There a lot of reasons. After filming just two in front of the camera, I felt I wasn't really a Youtube-y person, and that I felt more comfortable communicating with readers on my blog. That being said though, I do at times still enjoy talking to a camera than typing away in front of a screen.

Since it is the last video of 2014, I thought it'd be easier for you to go through my beauty faves with my face actually on the screen than just my hands. So I've pulled out my camera and filmed in front of it. Please give the video a thumbs up if you've enjoyed it so I'll know this was a good idea or not! (ha!)

But for those of you who aren't fond of videos, I'm listing my faves here for you. Click on the names to read the reviews. I've linked it so it is easier to access them!



MAKEUP
Foundation: Estee Lauder Double Wear Maximum Cover
Primers: Mario Badescu Special Healing Powder, Benefit Porefessional
Concealers: Collection 2000 concealer, Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer
Eyebrow: Hourglass Arch Sculpting Brow
Eyeliner: Jouer Shimmering Liquid Eyeliner in Leopard
Blush: Nars The Multiple in Rivera
Lips: Giorgio Armani lip liner in No.6, YSL Rouge Shine Volupte
Eyeshadows: MAC Soba, Laura Mercier Gilded Rosegold
Mascara: Lancome Hypnose Doll Eyes
Contour and Highlight: Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze and Glow
Nails: Deborah Lippmann Boom Boom Pow, Essie Fishnet Stockings

SKINCARE
Dr. Jart+ Cermidin Liquid and Cream
ISOI Bulgarian Rose Blemish Serum 



Beautiful Rose Gold Eyeshadow by Laura Mercier

I've been a lazy day girl. I've been wearing only one eyeshadow. The last time I tried doing the whole multiple eyeshadow shading and blending, I looked way too overdone. It's almost as if I can't believe I used to wear that much eye makeup on a regular basis! Now that I am used to wearing a single eyeshadow, I feel that feels the most comfortable.



The good news is that I've found an eyeshadow I've been wearing nonstop. I realized I've never blogged about it when this product definitely deserves a good mention.

It is the Laura Mercier "Gilded RoseGold" Illuminating Eye Colour. It is simply beautiful. The pigmentation is super creamy and super rich. It reminds me of the Estee Lauder gelée eyeshadows that I absolutely love! It looks like gel on the eyes. (You can read about that palette here.)

The packaging doesn't look like much, but holy moly! One swatch, and you can see how rich the color is.






Festive Nail Idea⎪Dipping in Gold


Giving you some holiday festive nail inspiration today! When it comes to nails in the holidays, it's all about that glitter. 


I've been loving layering nail polish with glitter. I went all out this time around with Essie "Wicked" and adding gold sparkle only on the tips with Deborah Lippmann "Cleopatra in NY". I also added a little bit of "Boom Boom Pow" but it isn't necessary. Make sure you take the step to use a top coat so that the extra layer of glitter doesn't look like it's bopping out. 

I feel like if you add sparkle on the whole nail, it looks kind of too much. (It's pretty if you do sparkle on top of a nude or pink nail polish though!) But adding just a bit of gold on the tips adds elegance, chic, and festivity! 

The name I made for this nail is "Dipping in Gold" :)










DISAPPOINTED PRODUCT⎪Marc Jacobs Palette in Lolita


I recently made this purchase. After being disappointed with all the Marc Jacobs beauty products I've tried, I thought it was about time to give the brand another try. This time I went for their "Lolita" palette. I heard a good deal about it, swatched it for myself at the store... and thought I made a good choice to get this. However, after swooning over its sleek packaging and trying the colors on my eyes for over a week, I came to the conclusion that it really wasn't worth the price.





Though the colors look beautiful and the pigmentation is great, the colors did not show up on my skin. It was beautiful to see swatched on my arms, but when they were actually on my eyes, the colors weren't noticeable and even when you could see I had color on my eyes, they weren't exactly flattering. They didn't make me look in the mirror several times a day and think, nice! Instead, I felt that I could save money and get a different palette that actually had color that would complement my skin better. And the really glittery middle shade has such big glitters in it that by the end of the day, I had glitter all over my face!

As much as I tried to love this palette, the color choice weren't that great and not truly worth the money.

Essie "Ladylike" + Deborah Lippmann "Boom Boom Pow"







Just beautiful! I tried layering this with some gold Deborah Lippmann "Boom Boom Pow" and it was so pretty. This is a picture from my Instagram :)


HELP ME kit by Dr.Jart+


This Dr.Jart Ceramidin Starter Kit is the absolute best.




I've never heard of "ceramidin" before, but whatever it is, it is amazing for the skin. This duo kit has one liquid product and one cream product. The liquid is step one, and it immerses into the skin and makes it moist and supple. Then you apply the cream on top (tube) and it kind of seals the moisture in.

These two products are said to provide all-day moisture protection. It is enriched with creamed 3 and sea-butter to soften, moisturize the skin. The "cera-barrier" ensures comfortable, soft skin and long-lasting hydration. And finally, it enhances the skin's natural strength and function.

That mini explanation is right off of their box description, and without a doubt, all of those are true. I was worried about cutting down my skincare routine to just two products, but I really wanted to give this a try. By the first application, my skin felt no tightness and it was so super soft. My angry acne died down, completely. And what is this ceramide thing that locks in the moisture?! It must be some magic potion I just never heard about until now.

This simple two products have changed my skin drastically. I love it. And the products just seep in and disappear, but the hydration? Does not disappear. I usually get really uncomfortable and tight skin day and night, but this is enough for both day and night. I know people like to have something heavy at night, but this seems to satisfy the night time skin as well!

I'm definitely going for the full-size of both, although I love this starter kit size and design! If you haven't tried it, I recommend this 10 out of a 10. It is seriously so good. I wanted to give it a good try, and now that I'm almost done with them, I feel I can honestly tell you that it has been just this all month and it's improved my skin... a lot.

Hydrate and lock it in. NO residue. ALL day hydration. Glow and softness? Yes.

Just so in love with this!

HERA UV Mist Cushion⎪Review


I want to talk about the foundation that I've been using every day since I first got it. It is the Hera UV Mist Cushion.







These "cushion foundations" are big in Korea, and after seeing Korean girls wear it and look great, I thought I might give it a try. I know firsthand that Korean girls really love that dewy natural glow makeup. There's even a word "Mol-gwang" to define that water glow makeup. My skin is starting to look dull and dry, and I thought putting some moisture and life back into my makeup routine would be a good start. Read the Haul post.

Though I love this and I feel safe since I have three more packs of these left, there are a few downfalls to this foundation. But before I go on with what I don't like so much about this foundation, let me tell you why I've been using this over all my other foundations.

First: GLOW. You'll see in the last picture the natural gleam and glow you get. It's beautiful and your skin looks young and healthy.

Second: BRIGHT. Though the color range is very minimal like most Korean foundation color ranges, what I love is that the bright tone of this color remains that way. I'll try to explain myself better. There are some foundations that after application, oxidizes throughout the day, causing the color of the foundation on the face to eventually look yellow, dull, and darker. But what I love about this Hera cushion foundation is that the shade remains the same throughout the day. No oxidizing and all day "brightness".

Third: COVERAGE. Though the coverage isn't Estee Lauder's Maximum Coverage Foundation, this foundation does a pretty good job covering all my scars. What I love is that though it doesn't cover everything, it gives the impression that you have flawless skin. It glosses over scars and blemishes, and it gives this really natural coverage. But natural doesn't mean it doesn't cover well, because it does!

Fourth: PACKAGING. The inside is replaceable so you don't have to buy a new case and content every time. You can save the price by just buying the inside. You just put it out... you'll know when you get it, how that is done. Also, the whole concept of the plastic-like sponge to apply the foundation is wonderful. It really makes the application of the foundation bouncy and alive.

Now, for the bits of things I don't like about it. This foundation is really rich. At first, I thought there was no way I could wear this and expect the foundation to last even three hours. It definitely felt like it was slipping off my face. But how I remedied that problem was using a powder primer. I've talked about the Mario Badescu Special Healing Powder. I use this as a primer, and wow the difference it makes in the wear and application! Read it here.

So, if you are one really oily skinned person, this foundation may not be for you UNLESS you use a powder-like or a really good primer. You'll have the feeling that your skin is sticky all day, otherwise.

But oh boy, if you have dry skin - you'd love this to pieces!

Anyway, so that was a long in-depth review of this foundation. Have you tried this, and if so, how do you find it?

Beauty Habits⎪Maintaining Hygiene


I've gotten really good at keeping my brushes clean. I make sure to wash them at least once every two weeks. Ideally, I'd like to do it every week but with my ever growing collection of brushes, it takes me forever to get through all of them!




One of my pet peeves when it comes to hygienic makeup is when I see someone carry a brush in their bag without any closure- just a brush rolling around in their bag. Yikes. Think of all the bacteria that collects on that brush, that is later applied to the face! I once watched this beauty show that measured the amount of bacteria that one can find on a makeup brush rolling around in someone's makeup pouch. It measured as much as the seat of a toilet...

So, today I'm bringing to you these two products that have kept my paranoia of bacteria at bay. I got these from an online store called "Feel Unique". It's from a brand called the "Pro Hygiene Collection".

The two products I got from their collection are: Antibacterial Sanitzer for Natural and Synthetic Brushes and Antibacterial Makeup Spray.


The Makeup Brush Cleaner cleans makeup brushes. I use this in-between makeup, when I don't have time to do a deep wash of my brushes. I use this instead. It takes off most of the makeup and sanitizes while doing so. You can use this to wash your makeup in a certain sense, but you'd be using a lot of product. So I suggest using  separate product for wash, and this Makeup Brush Cleaner just for the in-betweens!

The Antibacterial Makeup Spray is my fave! You spritz this on all on your beauty products-- powders, liquids, eyeshadows, and even mascaras. You spritz it once. Let it dry. It not only eliminates bacteria but prevents bacteria from growing.

You know those touchup powders that you use throughout the day. Yeah, that rusty powder thing that you love so much. Putting a spritz of this before you put it in your bag keeps it hygienic for the next use. Then when you come home, don't forget to give it another spritz so that it eliminates any bacteria that collected throughout the day.

SEPHORA VIB Haul







It finally came! Here's what I got:
  • Marc Jacobs Beauty Style Eye-Con in "Lolita" 
  • YSL Touche Eclat 
  • Dr. Jart+ Ceramidin Starter Kit
  • Dr. Jart+ Pore Medic Pore Minish Mist
  • Dr. Jart+ Pore Medic Pore Purifying Mask
  • Sephora Favorites Beauty Unmasked
  • Fresh Sugar Lip Legends


Fashion Spotlight⎪DailyLook on ETSY


The shop is called "Daily Look"(www.dailylook.etsy.com).


I've loved Catbird for years now, but I know they can get expensive. After finding wonderful shops on Etsy that sell similar designs for a much more affordable price, I've been converting. I still look for delicate, feminine, and quality jewelries of course! When a sweet lady from the Etsy store "Daily Look" reached out to me, I was overly excited to check out their products. The shop is called "Daily Look"(www.dailylook.etsy.com).

I've been overly impressed by their packaging, service, and of course... the jewelry themselves. How cute are the boxes they come in? One box came with the rings, and the other box came with the necklaces. All of these jewelries in the shop are handmade, and they are so delicately made!


A closeup of the rings: 


I am in love with their rings and necklaces! How cute are these necklaces? The silver one says "Be Brave and Keep Going", and the gold says "I love you to the moon and back". So cute, and don't you think they'd be great for Christmas gifts? 


I have four rings in total. I have the sizes 5-6. They fit beautifully, and honestly, the ones with studded crystals look really expensive. They are gold plated so they won't tarnish either. The gold leaf with the studded diamonds/crystals is my favorite. What a gem! The daisy ring also is so cute. The pyramid ring, the muted gold leaf ring as well... I love them all! 


Go check out her shop! It's gorgeous and so worth the price! x

Warm Brown Eyes⎪Bourgois Chocolate Bronzing Powder









I've been loving the warm brown smokey eye look. This bronzer is a bit too red for my skin tone, but it makes a perfect eyeshadow. Totally inspired by Tanya Burr on Youtube, I decided to give it a try and now it is my go-to eyeshadow. One sweep of this, and instantly your eyes look softened and warm. For a more grundgy look, you can add the shadow to the bottom lash rim and smoke it out. Add eyeliner and you'll really bring out that smoked look. 

Of course, you don't need to get this if you don't have it. Any warm brown shades will do. I don't have any actually, so it was good to have this. 

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