Selena Puff 2 way cotton review

Personally I think makeup cotton must be one of those must have day-to-day beauty supply items. It is quite incredible how expensive things are in Australia at times, in my local stores often the only selection for cottons are just Johnson & Johnson (at like $6AUD a box) or some no name made in China brand that cost $4AUD a box but is scratchy and too thick.

I don't really like the J&J ones either because they tend to be quite thick and absorbs way too much toner and which really just wastes my toner. Then again, you don't want cotton that's too thin and falls apart when you use it.

Honestly the Japanese people make the best makeup cottons. Most random brands I've tried from Japan are absolutely awesome. They are lint free, comes in like all different types (from the large cotton squares to ones you can peel apart to use with lotions to use as a quick sheet mask, to normal day to day ones like this).

Selena Puff contains 90 pieces per box, is made in Japan, and think I got this from some random Chinatown store for about $4 or 5AUD.

They are called 2-way puffs because one side is smooth like below,

The other side has more visible pressed pattern and is slightly 'rougher' (but still feels good on my sensitive skin). This means you can apply toner with the rough side, apply to face and get rid of any makeup residue, flip it around with the smoother side and wipe your face again for a more refined minor exfoliation that feels so soft on the skin.

The rough side is also fantastic for removing nailpolish with glitters or shimmers since you need something with a bit more grip.

Overall 5/5.

Revlon Super Lustrous Lipgloss 040 Nude Lustre swatch/ review

I don't typically buy that many drugstore brands, not because I'm a brand snob, but because the drugstore brands cost an arm and a leg too in Australia and for the same RRP price, I could buy equivalent of department store brand items in my overseas trips. For example, a Revlon lipgloss can retal for 18AUD in stores here, which means with the strong Australian dollars, it is really quite expensive in terms of purchasing power overseas.

However, Nude Lustre is one of the glosses that constantly made it to the 'must purchase list' on makeupalley for a while, so I decided to also buy this.

Typical doefoot applicator:

Consistency is pretty good, not goopy thick but has enough grip to it and not too thin.

On the skin it looks a bit like a pink nude, with some peach undertone.

On my lips, wow it is a pretty nice nude pink that goes with any makeup. I didn't put a photo sans lipgloss because my lips are sometimes really pale and sometimes very pink or red, probably because of circulation or something.

Overall 5/5 for price and color and consistency.

OPI Back to the Beach Peach Nail Lacquer (NL K01) swatch/ NOTD

OPI Back to the Beach Peach is a bright corally pink/peach creme that has a smooth, glazed like finish. It is bright, but not garish, a very nice splash of summer color. I wouldn't call it a straight peach because it is really a blend of medium pink, peach and corals, it's not a straight color to describe.

Here it is under the sunlight, which picks up a lighter pink tone:

The finish is very smooth, applies reasonably opaque in 2 coats (if you apply two very thin coats you might see a tiny bit of nail tip)- but 3 coats will be a very rich luscious creme finish. There is no shimmers or glitters inside, just a very good creme in a smooth consistency, that is not prone to brushmarks, streaks or lines.

This picture under indoor flash picks up a more peachy tone, you can see how smooth and shiny the finish is (I have Revlon clear coat on top, but even without topcoat it is still a very shiny color)

Base of bottle:

Overall a thumbs up for this color. I've been wearing this to the office since it is right after Christmas break (summer in Sydney) and the office mood is pretty relaxed. Definitely not a color I'd be wearing to client meetings at any point though.

OPI Strawberried in the Sand swatch/NOTD (NL B01)

OPI “Strawberried in the Sand” (code NL B01) is probably on the brighter end of the pink color spectrum that's almost at the edge of my comfort zone. It is a discontinued color so might be a bit hard to find (but definitely not super rare). On some websites it is described as a ‘shimmery peachy orange’ – and I’ve read various reviews saying it’s a coral. However, on my nails it as at best a pink with the tiniest hint of coral. It is not an opaque color nor a creme, in the bottle it looks like a fluidy, semi transparent glossy pink base with a lot of very very fine pink iridescence/ shimmers that flecks a slightly hotter pink and a very subtle gold. It applies translucent in one coat but almost full color in 3 coats. Overall on the nail it doesn't look good with one translucent coat because the tip of your nailtip will show. (see picture below). One coat is quite sheer: With 2 coats: I find with brighter colors, it's easy for something to look tacky..and OPI somehow does give this color a little bit extra ommph with the unusual glossy base infused with the shimmers. The shimmers are extremely fine, melts into the base color completely, it's not big enough to make the shade a metallic or foil nor is it opaque enough to make the shade a frost. I would definitely characterise this as a pearl or more of a fine iridescence. Here you can see the pearly flash:

Under some angles I suppose I see a bit more coral:

However with 2 or 2 coats, it's a luscious, rich, summery pink, I wouldn't say it's really like a natural strawberry, maybe what you'd imagine artificial strawberry lollies might look like, it's almost slightly flourescent pink (but not that extreme bright). Definitely more a summer bright color.

I have a slight difficult time figuring out whether this pink suits me- my hand is literally 2 or 3 shades darker than rest of my body (went kayaking and the suncreen totally wore off). Here's a comparison of my hand versus my normal skintone on my arm. The color's probably wearable for both those who are pale or those awho are tanned, but definitely for those who can embrace slightly brighter shades. Overall, not my top color pink, but it's rather fun and interesting summery color if you are looking for a change from bright neon pink or fuschias.

What are your other favorite summery pinks?

Chanel Le Vernis Nail Colour #471 Ming 2009 swatch

Chanel Le Vernis Nail Colour "Ming" (#471) is a 2009 release along with the rouge laque in the same shade.

Ming is a very classic candy rose pink with tiny shimmers, it applies smoothly like most Chanel nailpolishes, it's a sweet pink, very girly and great for the Australian spring/summer right now.

I know that a all these pastel pinks can see pretty generic from time to time, but this is probably easily one that I'd reach for quite often. It's a sweet pink without screaming 'look I'm wearing such a generic pink'- as soon as I wore this, at least 2 people asked what color I was wearing and commented on how nice it looks.

Here it is with 2 coats, indoor flash:

See...pretty much like how it is in the bottle with two coats- one coat is a little bit too translucent though.

As with normal Chanel formula, I do find that it is prone to chipping or flaking quite quickly (within 2 days)- I wonder if it's not compatible with the topcoat I'm using (Seche Vite). I used a basecoat- Orly bonder which is basically translucent too (but obviously didn't seem to help it last longer with this one).

Overall a gorgeous color, very feminine, it's different to a few other Chanel pinks I have like rose satin or pink satin etc. Will have to update this post once I figure out whether there's any dupes in other OPI colors I have...

RMK Spring 2010 product promo photos

Can't believe it's spring collection time soon again! as usual, most Japanese brands start pushing out the typical Spring shades, i.e. what you'd imagine as including pastels, pinks, light greens, aquas and lilacs (these two years a lot more Japanese brands started pushing out the pale amber/apricot shades too).

Here are some sneak preview of RMK 2010 Spring palettes- unfortunately I don't have real product photos just yet. Again, please click to enlarge.

5 eyeshadow palettes (don't the promo swatch make several shades seem almost the same?? There are 5 different palettes available). Retails for 4500Yen.

Cheek color palettes, 3 colors each, retails for 4000 Yen.

Irresistable Lips C lipsticks, 3 colors Nail Color, 4 shades

I'm finding the last Spring collection definitely looking like they were prettier (unfortunately they were fairly pastel/ sheerer too)- Spring 2009 was a lot more etheral looking..

However, you never know! I'm definitely getting my hands on the Cheek colors though, RMK products great blushes that has a great luminosity. Same with the eyeshadow, they have a good array of textures and colors from their 2009 revamped single eyeshadows range- excited to be able to get palettes since it's such a better value.

Here was Spring 2009:

Blushed Wombat ..: RMK 2009 Spring Translucence- product pic preview!

Kanebo Lunasol 2010 Spring makeup collection preview

I'm hoping to compile an order for Kanebo Lunasol 2010 Spring 'Nature' collection soon, the collection features themes with five spectacular: Ocean, Flower, Greenery, Sand, lands. Here are some press release photos I got hold of on the color shades and names. Click to see really big photos!

(please do not copy my photos, please provide direct link to this blogpage only).

Eyeshadow quads x 5:

#01 Nature Blue #02 Nature Green #03 Nature Brown #04 Nature Beige #05 Nature Colorful

Cheek colors trios (refill, compact and brush sold separately):

#05 Light Pink #06 Light Beige #07 Light Coral Lipgloss N: #17 Soft Coral #18 Soft yellow #19 Soft Beige #20 Clear #21 Soft pink Lipsticks #26 Orange Beige #27 Soft Coral Red #28 Soft Orange #29 Fresh Orange #30 Cool Beige #31 Red Brown #32 Sheer Beige #33 Pink Beige #34 Soft Pink #35 Shiny Pink Red Shiny Water Eyes (eyegloss/ liquid cream eyeshadow in a tube) EX01 Shining Blue EX02 Shining Green EX03 Shining Brown EX04 Shining Beige EX05 Shining Pink Lipliners duo: #07 Pink beige #08 Beige Orange #09 Pink Red

MAC Full of Grace Suntints Liquid Lip Balm SPF20 (Baby Bloom Collection 2009)

MAC Full of Grace Suntints Liquid Lip Balm is a limited edition product from the MAC Baby Bloom collection on 30 July 2009. Retails for 14.50USD. MAC Suntints are limited edition releases. They are truly more like tinted lipbalm than lipgloss, it doesn't have the typical tacky or thick texture you see in most lipglosses. The shade I picked was 'Full of Grace', which looked like the most pigmented medium pink shade available out of the collection, in fear of lack of pigmentation following reading reviews online. MAC describes the shade as a 'soft sheer rose' which is relatively accurate- I would say although it looks rosy in the tube it's more a pink though. MAC suntints lip balm comes in a squeeze plastic tube with slanted applicator, it contains 10ml and has SPF20. The packaging cannot be faulted in terms of convenience and ease of application, but it's not super appealing and a tad too plastic for me. Ingredients: The suntint itself smells a little bit sweet, like the lightest hint of vanilla, however if anyone's familiar with the scent Prada lipbalms, this smells and tastes almost exactly the same! There's that light sunscreen scent of some sort. I don't particular love it, but don't find it intrusive to the nose either. The shade 'Full of Grace' is a medium neutral pink, however once on the lips, it only gives the slightest pink tint. Swatch below under different lights. Photo of bare lips: (went hiking for a few days in New Zealand and suffered some serious chapping, lip still recovering so there are some discolourations). Photo with MAC full of grace suntints- can tell the light pigmentation means suntints does not entirely cover the uneveness in color. It gives my lips a very slight pink tint, neutral toned, not really warm and not really cool. I initially thought the shade had a tinge of mauve (which is a base shade I can never wear)- but on application it's just a true sheer pink. I like the wear and feel of the balm, it feels light, non-sticky, spreads easily and almost slightly plumps up my lips and blurs any lines. It is not sticky, does not wear off in gooey bits when I drink or talk. Wears off evenly. 10ml is really quite a generous amount since all you need is a small amount. It is also lightly moisturising- it feels fine on my super dry and sensitive lips even without another lipbalm underneath. Having a SPF during summer is always a plus too! The collection comes with a total of 5 suntint shades:

(left to right:) Lilt of Lily – Soft Creamy Pale Pink

Pinktinge – Clean Bright Yellow Pink with Gold Pearl

Full of Grace – Soft Sheer Rose

Just A Smidge – Soft Pastel Yellow with Multi-Coloured Pearl

Moist Plum – Light Lilac with Very Fine Pearl

Shiseido Pureness Mattifying Stick review

Shiseido Pureness mattifying Stick is basically a makeup primer for localised areas where you have enlarged pores. It's probably mainly for the t-zone or nose area to provide a smooth canvas before your foundation application. Housed in a lipstick-like silvery blue metal tube in a twist up mechanism.

Applies like a thin whiteish cast on the skin, it has a relatively fine consistency though:

Smoothed out- it definitely leaves a slight white cast (but should not be noticeable under foundations), it does help to smooth out small pores and just blurs any lines a little bit, but honestly if you have bigger pores on your nose this will not be able to fill it in much. This swatch is just on the back of my hand which has far smaller pores anyway.

Overall 2.5/5. There are just slightly better pore filler products out there. It does mattify a bit but with the white cast it's not like you can easily repair your makeup throughout the day by applying this on top.