Showing posts with label Sigma. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sigma. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Back with a Giveaway!

Hiiii guys *waves frantically* Exams for the year are over and I have completed two years of university, yay :) It is great to be back and free from studying for the next three months, haha.

And as a way for thanking you for your continued support even when I have been on hiatuses... I have a giveaway for my 800+ followers!


I have circle lenses provided by my sponsor, mukuCHU to giveaway - 5 pairs! And I have included a brand new Sigma E25 Blending Brush for those who want to enter the giveaway but don't wear circle lenses. A prize for anyone :D

Things to know about the lenses:
  • They are all PLANO (no prescription), EOS-branded circle lenses. 
  • They are 14.8mm in diameter.


For the brown lenses, the one on the right just needs to be flipped inside out - it's not a defective lens so don't fret!!!


As mentioned earlier, I have a non-sponsored prize for both circle lens wearers and non-circle lens wearers (everyone can enter to win this prize too).

This was a freebie with my last Sigma order and I never opened it because I already had this brush from my previous order (and it doesn't need replacing).

Brand new one is still in the cardboard and I am holding my own. It's great quality and has minimal to no shedding! To me, the blending brush is an essential eye brush :)


Just as a side note - if you happen to be a winner of prizes 1, 2 or 3, please make sure that you are aware of the potential dangers of wearing circle lenses! I do not wish to and will not be held responsible for any issues that you may face while wearing these lenses - it is best to do your own thorough research before entering this giveaway if you have never worn any type of contact lenses before and for you to be informed about the risks involved. As long as you take care of your lenses properly and follow the 'rules', generally everything should be fine.


If you are hesitant or would like some clarification/question answered about circle lenses, you are free to message me privately to my email, via the comments below or on Twitter.

How to enter? Simply fill in the form once and you'll be in the draw! This giveaway ends in exactly a month's time. Good luck!!!




I promise you'll be hearing from me again VERY soon :) I have surely missed blogging~

♥ Jen xx

Friday, April 6, 2012

Cosmetics from Apothica - Cargo, Paul & Joe and Too Faced

Hello and Happy Easter to you all :3 I wish the 5-day long weekend here made a difference for me but it doesn't because it's part of my 2-week break! Oh well, it's an excuse to binge on chocolates/Easter eggs xD

I'm excited for this post because it's been a while since I blogged about makeup! I haven't hauled cosmetics in ages and to finally do so again is awesome :) Let me share with you what I got and my thoughts on them:


3 brands/products not available in Aus/my city: Cargo, Paul & Joe and Too Faced

I'd like to introduce you to my newest blog sponsor - Apothica.com. They are an online beauty store based in Salt Lake City and they allowed me to pick products from their site up to a certain amount and I managed to pick these babies up! Thanks Apothica


3 products and 6 free samples

Usually with an Apothica order, they'd only come with three samples but my order actually came in two packages - they had two of the products I wanted in stock so they sent those out first and sent my third product after restocking.

So now I can introduce you to the product I was looking forward to receiving the most!

Price: $29.00


Metal tin and lid



Swatch

Yay I have a Cargo blush now ^^ I don't think they're that popular but I have seen them in Youtube videos and I really like the packaging. It may not be super pretty however the casing is unique and the pan size is perfect to swirl a blush brush into it for picking up an adequate amount of powder. My other blushes have smaller packaging and less product overall thus I'm happy to add this to my collection.

Apologies for the swatch being a little unclear. The shade is a bright, cotton candy pink and it may seem a little light for my skin tone but I don't think it does. When I wear foundation, it brightens up my complexion so dabbing some of this colour onto my cheeks is perfect!

A swatch using my finger shows up really well however when I smooth the swatch on my finger onto the back of my hand, it appears to be less pigmented. Which for me is totally fine because I don't find pigmented blushes to be ideal. It's better when they're a little opaque so you can build the colour intensity onto your cheeks if needed.



My new favourite blush


Price: $23.80



Gorgeous floral box and mascara



Love the detail on the lid

So about Paul & Joe... believe it or not I actually found out about this brand from the blogging community! I used to read blogs religiously (not so much now due to being more busy) and this led me to discovering new cosmetic brands with pretty cute packaging such as this one :) Are there any Paul & Joe products available in Aus?

This is the prettiest mascara I have owned and not only is it a beauty on the outside but also on the inside! And I'm not surprised that it is because I only just realised that this is a product of Japan =] Many cosmetics from Japan are known to be good quality and good looking at the same time. Do I even need to list out the well-known Japanese brands?!



Bare lashes, no makeup



Curled lashes, no makeup



Curled lashes, with Paul & Joe mascara

What's my verdict? I like it!

In a good way, it makes my lashes look very natural after applying multiple coats of mascara. It doesn't give me any clumps and although the lengthening or volumising isn't spectacular, I still love what this mascara does to my lashes. It holds the curl for the whole day and because it's waterproof, I could confidently cry without having to worry about getting panda eyes haha. I HAVE to use a waterproof mascara, I can't stand non-waterproof ones!! The wand is the perfect size ^_^

Final note on this mascara is that it does require effort to remove! I noticed that the formula sticks to my lashes stronger than regular drugstore mascaras that I normally use. It may depend on the type of makeup remover you use but I even brought out the big guns aka Lancome Bi-Facil (known as one of the best eye makeup removers ever) and I still needed rub my lashes a number of times to successfully remove it. Usually with Lancome Bi-Facil, a few gentle wipes does the job for other waterproof mascaras.


Price: $19.80








I'm going to start by saying that I chose this PURELY because of the packaging :) It's totally cute for the purse or makeup bag.

I am a girly girl and when I see something pink and shiny I am like *__* I want! However I don't get everything that's pink and shiny thing because... I'm not materialistic to that extent xP Just this once I thought, "yeah why not".



A plastic diamante to 'top' it off



 Which shines under the light



Swatch



 L-R: 1 swipe, 2 swipes, 3 swipes and 4 swipes

Drenched in Shea butter, rich colour and diamond shine our exclusive formula smoothes out fine lines and creases while it pampers your lips with a fizzy moisture surge of pure champagne essences. This billion dollar blend of pure pigments has serious staying power and feels as soft as satin on the lips.

I think I can presume that most beauty bloggers/enthusiasts would know of Too Faced, especially for their popular Too Faced Shadow Insurance primers. I don't own one 'cause I opted for an Urban Decay Primer Potion however I was still interested in trying a Too Faced product, hence I chose this lippie.

The shade 'Cupcake' looks lovely in the tube but it appears lighter on my lips. I was expecting a darker pigment, instead I found that this was quite sheer (as seen in the above swatch). Was I let down? Mm, a bit. Though I do admit that it's still a pretty shade.



Swatched on one side
Left: Bare lips
Right: Too Faced lipstick

It sort of looks like an enhanced shade of my natural lip colour with lots of shimmer. Looks kind of fuchsia (pinkish purple) when I was hoping that it'd be a deep pink! Since it is so shimmery I don't think I would wear this on a daily basis therefore I will save it for special evening outings.

Now to refer to what I typed out in grey:
  • I haven't worn this enough to say whether or not it smoothed out my lips' fine lines and creases butttt I can say that in my above picture, my lips were slightly cracked and the lipstick kind of... covered it up o_o I can't guarantee that this lipstick would be able to 'cover up' severely cracked lips, though it might be able to help :D ?
  • Billion dollar blend of pigment? I don't get it... wahh
  • Staying power is quite good and it does feel soft on my lips

I want to address this last one separately because I have quite a bit to say about it... the scent, that is. On the box it says that it's infused with champagne essence and um... to be honest I'm not that familiar with alcoholic drinks so I don't really know what champagne smells like *blushes* But anyway back on topic...

I don't find the scent to be very pleasant :/ Maybe I'm just not a champagne person? Haha... it's kind of distracting. And since it's worn on my lips, the scent can enter my mouth which results in me 'tasting' it :S Doesn't sound good but it's true lol.

I can't describe it, it's sort of sweet but then it has a strong musky punch to it which puts me off. I really need to smell champagne! I really hope it doesn't smell like this =| Perhaps someone should describe it to me to keep me from being absolutely clueless about it!

*~~~*

I haven't tried any of the samples yet but if I end up liking any of them, I'll be sure to mention it on my Twitter or in a future favourites post.

I have a FOTD look which is just all 3 products on my face. A very quick, natural (and lazy) FOTD where I am wearing no eye makeup besides the Paul & Joe mascara~



Products used:
Geo Fresh Brown Lenses from iCandy Style Lens
MeMeMe Flawless Cream Foundation in 03 Honey Lush
QVC Eyelash Curler


I'll leave you now with a questjen:

Which of the 3 is the most important to you:
blush, mascara or lipstick?

I'm so curious to find out :)

My answer: Mascara!! Because the eyes matter to me the most hehe


♥ Jen xx


Disclaimer: Products were sponsored by Apothica. The opinions present in this review are 100% honest and I am not monetarily compensated. I am not affiliated with Apothica. Clicking on any of the links provided in this post do not affect or benefit me.

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Collective Makeup Haul and Hiatus

Hello! It's been a week already since I last posted :) This was my final week of uni for the semester which now means that I should be studying hard for exams! Just thought I'd do a blog post before I get into major study/cram mode, eek I'm so not looking forward to my first university exams :( I have 4 to do by the end of this month.

Thanks for the comments on my two previous posts which I wrote last week. If you haven't checked them out, they are here and here. And in one of the posts I held a mini giveaway of two 10-pair false eyelash boxes and I have drawn the winners. They've already been contacted but I'll still share the winners here...

Sue
Jennifer H

Congratulations girls, hope you'll like the lashes ^.^ And for everyone else, I promise you that there will be more giveaways from me!!

One of the main points of this post is to say a temporary goodbye from my blog while I prepare for my exams. I didn't want to be MIA without giving you guys any notice, that would probably make me a bad blogger. I'll be on hiatus for 3 weeks as my exams will finish on the 28th of this month. It sucks for me that I will be absent from the blogosphere while most of you will still be here (those on summer holidays and those who can study for exams + blog) and I will definitely be missing you guys haha T.T Sorry that I have to do this, I hope that you'll all understand. I really need to focus on my studies now...

Don't worry though, because when I'm back I will be on holidays! Which means more time for blogging instead of once a week AND I'll have time to create a new blog header, so be on the lookout for that when I make my 'comeback' ;D Feel free to create a blog header for me while I'm away, I'd really appreciate that (since I'm a major photoshop noob) and I'll feature/mention you here =P

Now that I've got the sad/bad news out of the way, I'll now attempt to make this post more happy to read. Not much has been happening to me recently besides uni, but I have bought/received new makeup products. This will be a collective haul because I didn't get all of these items at once (that'd be a little crazy for me) or from once place. Some were bought online and some were from my favourite drugstore, Priceline.

Maybelline The Falsies Volum' Express Waterproof Mascara


I bought this when it was on sale, and my main reason for purchasing it was because I received a $3 discount voucher for the mascara! I thought I'd make use of it and purchase a mascara that I was rather curious about. I think there are a few mascaras that claim to give that 'false lash' effect but I reckon Maybelline's version is the latest. I have tried this so I can give a review if requested. I'm happy with the price I paid instead of the RRP (around $17 is the RRP and I paid around $12)


Manicare Precision Blending Sponge

Funny how I bought this a while ago but still haven't used it yet! In case you're not familiar with this sponge, it's an egg-shaped sponge to apply foundation and have it evenly distributed. I guess it's a dupe for the more expensive and well-known beauty blender. It was around $7-8 and I didn't get it on sale. I don't use a liquid foundation (I use a velvet/cream textured one) so it would hard for me to test out how well it blends. I do however have a tinted moisturiser with a very smooth consistency but it wouldn't require the use of a blending sponge. When I do get around to using it, it's likely that I will do a review =]


Red Earth Brows Perfecting Kit


This was in the bargain basket where all the heavily discounted items were sitting. Priceline has now discontinued selling Red Earth cosmetics and so most of the items are around $2 each. I picked this up because I really wanted/needed an eyebrow kit and $2 was a more-than-ok price to pay! I love how it comes with mini tools, so cute. I'm glad it's the right shade for my natural brows but since I've dyed my hair (if you're not following me on Twitter, you probably didn't know that I've become brunette!), I've wanted to slightly lighten my brows but I don't know how without using a dye =[ I know how to totally redraw the brow but no idea how to lighten! Someone teach me pleaseeee.


1000 Hour Heated Eyelash Curler

Another product that I had wanted and was on my wishlist. It definitely won't be replacing my usual manual lash curler and I don't think anyone should even consider replacing a regular lash curler with a heated one - they work differently and have different purposes :) But yeah, so far I'm liking it and it was worth the $15 or so dollars I paid when it was on sale.


88 Ultra Shimmer Eyeshadow Palette

I won this from an eBay bid for under $20 shipped and the seller happened to be from the same city as me, so I received it in a matter of days xD That was pretty cool actually. Anyway, I had been wanting an 88 palette for a while, just so I can have heaps of colours to work with for makeup looks. I won't be buying anymore eyeshadow anytime soon, I swear! I must say though, that I am happy with the pigmentation.


6 Shades Contour Palette

Another item that I wanted which used to be on my wishlist hehe - got this on eBay as well for $11 and free shipping. Now I can contour my face and nose to make it all look slimmer hehe. I'm not that great with contouring but I am practicing and trying ^^" I don't mind that they aren't that pigmented and are a little chalky because I did get this really cheap and it's not meant to be pigmented like eyeshadow.


L'Oreal Infallible Make-up Sample

Being a Priceline club member has a few lovely privileges and one is getting samples. This is actually the first time I've received a sample from Priceline so it's not like they send out samples often. I guess I could try out my blending sponge with this foundation sample, cool =]


Sigma Miss Taylor Retractable Kabuki Brush

As a Sigma affliliate, I received this cute purple kabuki brush and I love how it's retractable - so purse-friendly. I will be doing a review on this next month after I make use of it :P All I can say now is that it's super soft like fur! Hope the analogy isn't too bad, especially to those who are anti-fur... oops ;S It's synthetic hair by the way so no worries ^_^


Maybelline Baby Lips Balm in Anti-Oxidant Berry

I think most people in Australia got this for free in the mail but the letter than came with mine said that I was one of the lucky few to win this so yeah @_@ I can't even remember how I entered to win this but it was such a surprise to me when I received this haha. It smells lovely and I probably will eventually do a review when I have time.

Since I'm going to be away for a while, here's a little something for you....


Another mini giveaway, 1 prize =]

- My Beauty Diary Pearl Powder Mask
- Cellnique Jar Samples (inside the box)
- Pupa Triple-Purpose Eye Pencil


I know it's not much at all but I've decided to giveaway items to match the theme of my post (just like my previous mini giveaways lol).

To enter, please leave a comment with your name and email address AND also your answer to this week's questjen. I will randomly draw the winner's name out of a hat when I make my return:

Do you prefer makeup or skincare?

My answer:
It's tough to pick one because as much as a makeup junkie I am, I also care a lot about my skin. Despite sensitive skin being low-maintenance, it requires quite a lot of attention. It's almost like a skin disorder because when an allergic reaction occurs, it should be treated with special cream etc. I have never visited a dermatologist but I have seen a doctor about redness/itchiness/rashes on my face. I haven't had any problems with my skin recently so I haven't been needing to use specific cleansers or creams. To be honest, I don't even have a skin care routine! I usually just wash my face with water and put on moisturiser, that's it haha. I use makeup wipes to remove foundation and don't bother with toner. I could do without using makeup and skincare but makeup... I love how it can transform your look. Concealers and foundations can hide an ugly pimple so well whereas skin care products only help the pimple to become gradually smaller. So what do I prefer? It's almost a tie but not quite - makeup wins for me.

One last thing before I go - I have some new pictures of me :) I went out on Wednesday night to my friend's 18th dinner! An OOTN to share hehe~

- Grey woolen dress with a turtle-neck style?
- Grey blazer ($10 fromValleygirl)
- Brown and gold belt ($5 from Temt)
- Black glittery tights ($2 from Supre)

Oh and the bag I used is also seen in this picture, it's sitting on my chair! Burberry-inspired vintage bag

Now onto my jewellery which I kept very simple

Wearing the dangly earrings that Natsumi aka Bunny got me, yay (:
And my crown studs which I adore
You can also see my lashes and I didn't wear falsies, just used my The Falsies mascara hehe

Flower ring which I got from Lovisa for $3!
I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it

This sort of reminds me of something that you'd see on Tumblr. Don't ask why lol. I don't even use Tumblr but I've seen pictures like this where they don't show their face haha

My hair doesn't look as brown as it really is in those pictures above but I shall do a post where I do a before and after comparison so you can have a better look.

One last picture before I go for good....

See you again at the end of this month bloggies, I will miss you guys!

 Hugs anyone? Or not...
 Look at the mess on the floor... my studying materials x]

TAKE CARE EVERYONE, and best of luck to those who also have exams now or soon :]
Byeeeeee~~

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Review: Sigma F80 Brush

Hi there =] Today I'll be reviewing the Sigma Flat Top Synthetic Kabuki F80 brush that was sent to me by Sigma Beauty to review for your guys. I've reviewed Sigma brushes before so I was delighted to be given the opportunity to review another. The shipping was really fast (it took about a week to reach me from the US).

The items came in a red pouch
(Package was in a yellow bubble wrap-padded envelope)


This is one of Sigma's new brushes under the Sigmax Brush line which has been designed for high definition makeup application. The brushes in this collection have been specially designed for applying powder and liquid products without any of it absorbing into the fibers of the brush hairs.

I was really excited about trying this brush because it's so different compared to the brushes out of the Sigma range that are used for applying foundation. The most popular styles of brushes used to apply foundation are paddle brushes and stippling brushes but now Sigma has introduced a range of kabuki brushes for the application face products. Here's an overview of the Flat Top Synthetic Kabuki:

It has a very flat top, flat enough to allow the brush to stand up on its own

The F80 Flat Top Kabuki brush is perfect for applying and blending liquid, cream and powder products onto the skin. The flat surface allows perfect buffing with flawless results. Synthetic Sigmax HD filament. (Price: $16.00)

Look how dense the hairs are on this brush!

I decided to test this out with a sample of Shiseido Perfect Refining Foundation Teint Lissant Perfecteur in 140 Natural Fair Ivory which I picked up at my local Shiseido counter. I currently don't use a liquid foundation (I use one with a thicker, cream texture) so I thought that this would be the perfect opportunity for me to test the foundation and the brush, which is supposedly perfect for liquid foundation.

I buffed some on my cheek.
The foundation looks a few shades darker than my actual shade but once it's blended it, it matches my skin tone

All blended in with the Sigma F80
Shiseido foundation: medium to heavy coverage

Back to the brush, I had very high expectations for this brush prior to use which wasn't a bad thing because the brush actually did meet my expectations. Referring to the image above, it was such a perfect application of foundation! No streaky marks, nicely blended and gave me a flawless-looking face.

The fibers/hairs are EXTREMELY soft! I can't emphasise that enough. They are so gentle on my skin, not scratchy at all. I am very please with this brush and it has high quality written all over it from top to bottom - the handle, the silver ferrule and of course, the hair filaments. The hairs being so dense but not too dense is absolute perfection. It makes blending and buffing a breeze.

When I think of a kabuki brush, I think of it as having many functions and purposes. For this F80 Kabuki brush, I do believe that it has more than one purpose. As well as a brush for applying foundation, this brush can also be used for applying powder. I haven't given it a try yet since I don't use powder for my face so instead I tested this brush with blush.

The description didn't mention it being suitable and/or recommended for blush however regular kabuki brushes that I know have a density which allows them to be used as a blush brush. Here's the result that I got when I used it for applying some blush:

Using the F80 as a blush brush
It's quite faint in this picture, but still noticeable. Not bad...

When I used this brush to apply blush, I buffed it onto my cheeks first and then blended upwards. For blush application, blending wasn't so much of a breeze as it was difficult to blend out the pigmentation. Overall it turned out looking alright but the problem with blending was enough to make me feel self-conscious if after applying the blush I were to leave the house.

So my verdict is sure, you could use this brush to apply blush but beware of the pigmentation on your cheeks which may be hard to blend out with this brush. If you're in a rush and you end up using this brush for your liquid foundation, powder and blush, you can definitely get away with 'cheating'. I'm likely to do that one day.

I gave this brush a wash with my brush cleaner spray and there was no shedding of the hairs at all. Not even one piece fell out and I was scrubbing pretty hard! Here's what it looked like after:

Almost good as new :) Top hairs are back to being white

Another thing to be thankful of for this brush is that it comes with a clear brush protector/cover. After washing my brush, I slipped the brush cover on so that the hairs could dry and remain in that shape. It's also a really good way of protecting it from dust or dirt particles getting onto your brush before the next use.

PROS:
- Majority of the brush hairs are brown so it doesn't look too 'dirty' after each use
- Extremely soft hairs, very gentle for the face
- Hair density is perfect
- Brush head is not too large compared to regular kabuki brushes
- Silver printing on the handle looks very sleek and professional
- Large silver ferrule ensures that the filaments are tightly in place
- No shedding of hair (so far)
- Buffing and blending of liquid foundation gives a flawless finish
- Can be used for applying powder as well as foundation - multi-purpose

CONS:
- Dense brush hairs prevents the hair to dry quickly after washing
- Requires more scrubbing and cleaning time for the dense hairs compared to other brushes
- May not work well with a velvety cream texture product as it may be too thick for the hair
- Not available in-store, can only purchase online

To anyone who is looking for an alternative to a paddle/stippling foundation brush, I highly recommend the brushes from the Sigmax brush line, in particular, the F80 Flat Top Synthetic Kabuki!

You can purchase the Sigma F80 Flat Top Kabuki brush from here

That's it from me, I hope you found this review helpful and/or interesting. Thanks for reading! if you have any questions, feel free to ask me :)
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