Tag: powder

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Beauty

My Egyptian Make-up Kit: Base & Face

mde
all the face makeup i took with me to Egypt

Elf Poreless Face Primer

A silicone primer that feels so slippery, I always doubt whether it does anything in terms of prolonging makeup life – but it does. You need the tiniest amount of this – I use a pump because I hate half-pumps, but if you’re okay with those, then maybe try a half and then go from there.

Maybelline Fit Me Concealer in 05 Ivory

Purchased during my trip to Bucharest well over a year ago, but still going strong. I’m about halfway done I’d say. 05 is a good shade for me, but I wish they had something just a touch lighter, to brighten the undereye. This one does a fine job of concealing, but sometimes I want more brightness. Ah well. #palepeopleproblems Nevertheless, this is as close to a shade match for me as I found in a very long time, and I love how it performs – minimal creasing, good staying power, doesn’t affect my mascara. So until I find another option, I’ll be repurchasing this.

MAC Studio Fix Fluid Foundation in NW10

My perfect year-round shade. In the dead of winter I sometimes wish for something paler, but this works fine. At first can be a touch tricky to work with. A good thing to remember that with this formula, a little goes a long way. Start small, and then build coverage where you need it. Rather unforgiving towards any dry spots you might have, so prep your skin well, and prepare to blend, blend, blend. But the result is great.

MAC Studio Fix Powder + Foundation in NC10

My brother bought it, thus the NC instead of NW, but it works okay, just a little pinker than I would have liked. We didn’t have MAC in Moldova for the longest time, and sometimes there’s still trouble with shades – and prices. Overcharge much? But yes, the powder. A great medium to full coverage powder foundation. You can use a light dusting, and you can also go all in. With good blending and a finishing spray it won’t look cakey and/ or powdery at all.

Oriflame Colourbox Face Powder

A powder that does little. It’s almost transparent – at least on my face. I keep it in my purse for some oil control throughout the day, but it doesn’t work well for that. It mattifies, but for a short time. I bought it with the hopes that it’s going to be a workhorse, but no. Oriflame quality deteriorated over time. Colourbox sub-brand is no longer, too.

Avon Mark. Translucent Setting Powder

Now this, I love. I am on the fence whether I would like to continue supporting Avon as a brand though, so I am not sure if I will be repurchasing. This loose setting powder is not the most finely milled out there, but it is transparent (again, I am pale, so perhaps on darker skin it will show up), and it sets makeup well. You don’t need a lot, so I expect this to last me at least another 6 months.

I Heart Revolution Blushing Hearts Peachy Pink Kisses

I believe the brand no longer makes these particular blushers/ highlighters, and it’s a pity too, because the quality is really nice. You can achieve a natural look, or you can make it visible from a plane above. You can use it as a blush topper, or you can use it as a stand-alone highlighter, or a blush. You can mix shades together, you can use each of the three individually. I love this. The only downside is that it can emphasise texture if you’re not careful.

Mary Kay Shy Blush

Some time ago somewhere on the internets I read that this MK blush is a great dupe for NARS Orgasm blush. I’ve no idea, I’ve never had the latter – but the MK one is a pleasant product. Mine is on the older side so it’s losing its pigmentation just a touch, but it’s still workable. It’s a pretty universally flattering shade, though on deeper skin tones you might need to layer it thicker. Once this is done, I will not be repurchasing, as I no longer support MK.

Elf Blush & Bronzer Duo in Fiji

A light bronzer with a good (neutral) undertone for me. Not very pigmented, which in bronzers is always a plus, from where I stand. Blends well, looks natural. Blush is completely matte and fairly neutral. I’ve only used it a couple of times so I can’t say anything bad or good about it, apart from, “I like using it”. If you’d like a deeper review, holler in the comments, and I’ll move it higher up my list of ‘products I want to write dedicated posts about’. 😀

Elf HD Undereye Setting Powder

Absolutely love this setting powder for concealer. It sets, but it also has the tiniest–tiniest amount of reflection for brightening. Unfortunately, it’s discontinued. There’s another undereye setting powder on the official Elf website now. I’m going to try it, but I have no idea when, as Elf is hard to come by in Moldova. There are a couple of sources, but the choice of products is limited.

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Beauty

On Trial in May 2017 – AVON, Relouis, Faberlic

The start of a new series? We shall see. I intend to pick up several products and give them a good use throughout the month. They could be completely new or they could be some poor unfortunate souls stuck in the limbo of my collection. Since I’m on a semi-no-buy, it will more than likely be the latter.

In May, however, all the products were new.

relouis complimenti! face powder

Relouis Complimenti! Compact Powder in 01 (lightest)

My old compact powder (coincidentally by Relouis as well) finally gave up the ghost, so I went and bought practically the cheapest available on the local market. As much as I was OK with the previous incarnation of Relouis compact powder, I am having trouble with this one.

  • It does not appear to be as finely milled;
  • it’s very picky in terms of brushes it wants to work with;
  • it doesn’t stay put for a long time;
  • although the coverage is very light, it piles on and starts to cake, especially around my nose, as the day goes by;
  • I do not enjoy the scent;
  • it seems to be going pretty fast – if you look closely into the photo below, you will see that the ridges of the pan are already visible. They’ve been visible since the first week of usage.

complimenti! face powder

The positive factors are:

  • packaging – it’s black, white, and modern-looking;
  • the compact opens up to 180 degrees;
  • the shade. Although it has a pink undertone (I don’t), it’s light enough and sheer enough to fit my skin tone.

I wanted this to be sort of a workhorse, and although I’ll continue using it until it’s gone, I might pick up something else in the interim – something that would actually suit my needs.

avon mark finishing powder

AVON Mark. Magix HD Finishing Powder

I’ve been setting my face with Isadora Loose Powder for a while, but was on the fence about the result I was getting. Although I will not be writing off Isadora Powder completely, AVON Mark. Magix HD Finishing Powder gives me a better result. It doesn’t alter the colour of my foundation as it is truly translucent. It’s not the most finely milled powder I’ve encountered, but it’s nice enough. Gives a matte finish. The sifter is nice too – I’ve barely had an overshake with it, and I’m a chronic powder overshaker. You can also close it, so you can take the powder with you and not worry about spilling it everywhere.

avon mark finishing powder dispenser

I’m pretty sure this will stay with me for a while, and if AVON still runs them when I’m out, I’ll be repurchasing.

faberlic express volume

Faberlic EXPRESS Volume Mascara

I bought this mascara a while ago, but only opened it this month. It was a blind buy, so to say, and I had no idea the brush would be so small. So far, I’ve got mixed feelings about this: Sometimes I feel like it gives me good length and good volume; other days I feel like it gives me relatively long, but messy and spiky lashes with little to no volume. As it ages, it’s getting better.

No gripes with longevity, though. Stays put throughout the day.

faberlic mascara wand

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Beauty

MAC Studio Fix Powder Plus Foundation.

It has occurred to me that I have never posted about this MAC Studio Fix Powder plus Foundation. Pictured here is an NC15.

mac front

One of these days I will have consistent product photography.

mac back

I have to show you the back too, because obviously no one’s ever seen a MAC powder before.

What I loved about it:

Coverage. Coverage is amazing. When applied with a sponge it’s total full coverage, and honestly, at times I would skip the concealer, and it would do the job. Recently I started applying it with a brush, and the coverage is still good, though not as intense as when applied with a sponge.

mac sponge

Staying Power. I’d need to touch up my make-up in the T-zone in two-four hours, depending on how my skin’d be doing on that particular day, but cheeks, jaw line, and most of forehead would stay covered for 6-8 hours.

Scent. Rather, lack of it.

Longevity. I’d say for regular every day use it would’ve lasted me for about 6 months. The way I used it, it lasted about a year.

What was so-so:

Used without a primer or a good buffing technique, this thing accentuates pores remarkably.

Not so much a product itself as the shade selection fail – I’ve come to realise that I’m not an NC, but NW.

mac powder

I have this odd feeling that it might be… Not breaking me out exactly, but not doing many favours to my skin either.

Would I repurchase?

A hypothetical yes. MAC is not available in these dreary lands, so I’d need to rely on friends and relatives to bring it to me. I’d also go for the lightest NW, instead of NC15, as pictured here.

Categories
Beauty

FOTD #3: Matte Skin, Grape Lips.

fotd 3

One of these days I’m going to find a flattering selfie angle, and actually share photos of the result. For now, lookie how I arrange them products on lined paper, eh. Eh, eh?!

Face:

  • Foundation – Oriflame Matte Control Foundation
  • Face Powder – IsaDora Perfect Loose Powder
  • Concealer – Bourjois 123 PERFECT CC EYE CREAM

A discontinued version of the Oriflame Matte foundation. I swear, Oriflame‘s been rebranding like there’s no tomorrow. It’s an OK foundation with medium coverage, but I’m just not sure. When it comes out of the tube, it’s a bit on the yellow/ grey side, which makes me all giddy inside. Yes, I said grey, and yes, giddy. But when you apply it and it oxidises a bit, it a) becomes about a tone darker than in the tube; b) loses all the yellowness and greyness and goes pink. And I do not need pink undertones in my face makeup, nuh uh.

Why am I suddenly accenting about every other word with italics?

Moving on.

The concealer I used for undereye only. I wish it were a lighter shade. It’s an OK concealer, but I don’t think I’d be repurchasing it.

Eyes:

  • Eyeshadow Primer – Artdeco pure minerals Mineral Eyeshadow Base Sensitive
  • Inglot AMC Shine 49
  • Oriflame The ONE Colour Impact Cream Eye Shadow Petroleum Shine 30748
  • Oriflame The One Colour Match Eye Shadow Duo in Brown 30970
  • Avon Hollywood quad
  • Mascara – Oriflame HyperStretch Mascara
  • Oriflame Eyelash Curlers

Inglot was used all over the lid. It’s one of my favourite eye shadows ever. The Colour Impact Cream Eye Shadow is beginning to dry around the edges a little bit, I need to use it more often. It doesn’t last particularly long on the lid, so that limits my ability to wear it, especially since it’s such a deep shade of green. The brown duo doesn’t last long as well, but it’s a pretty neutral shade, so I wear it more often. I used the lightest colour in the Avon Hollywood quad in the inner corners of my eyes.

In all honesty, the colours looked much better together in my head. It worked, but it wasn’t exactly what I was going for.

Brows:

  • Relouis pencil
  • Avon Hollywood quad

Now that I used the lightest shade in the quad for the brow bone (not like I haven’t before, but you know), I keep thinking that the matte brown might work for brows themselves. I’m one of those lucky people who don’t need a lot of filling in or drawing, but it’s still good to give a few strokes here and there just to even things out, especially if you’ve got a full face of makeup going on.

Lips:

  • Oriflame Lip Impact Deep Berry 26573

This is the discontinued version of the Oriflame lip crayons. They have since then released the new ones that you don’t have to sharpen (yay), but I’m not sure what they’ve done to the formula. I’m going to try one soon and report on that.

I was going to do a separate post for each and every crayon I own, because I just love lip crayons like I used to love the damn Crayolas when I was a kid. This is a deep grape colour that’s perfect for autumn.