Earlier this year, around February or March, Nars introduced their new base product, Velvet Matte Skin Tint with SPF 30 PA+++. I have been away from BBcreams or skin tints for a long time now. When I saw this new release by Nars I was intrigued to give it a try. As because Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint contains SPF thought it would be perfect for everyday use.
It’s been around two months of using Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint, I build up a serious love-hate relationship with it. There are these days when I love it effortlessly and some days when I end up hating it.
Am I sounds confusing?
Actually, this skin tint turned out to be a real tricky product to use for me. After two months or so I finally get a hold on how I can properly use it so I don’t end up hating it during the day.
Before talking about my experience let me give you some general intro about the product…
Packaging Of Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint
Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint has a nice and sleek black matte tube packaging just like all other Nars products. The actual product is almost mousse-like so with the tube packaging it’s easy to dispense the product. The tube contains 50ml of product which is a lot compared to the standard amount (30ml) of makeup base product available in the market.
The packaging tends to get dirty and catch fingerprints so easily, happens with all other Nars product, I don’t really mind that I kinda got used to with this issue of Nars packaging.
Colour Range of this Nars Skin Tint/BB Cream
There are 12 shades available in the market but Nars Malaysia only had 9 of them as far as I can remember. I matched myself with the shade Annapurna (Medium 2). I would probably get the shade medium 1.5 but that swatched on my skin quite pinkish and pale. Although medium 2 definitely has a strong orange tone I thought I’ll be able to manage it.
The shade medium 2 is the closest one to my skin, it matches me well except for that orange tone which bugs me sometimes. Good thing it doesn’t go more orange over time because it doesn’t oxidize.
My experience with Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint
Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint has a mousse-like texture, glides on and blends effortlessly, has no artificial scents in it, the lasting power is very satisfactory. The oil-free velvety formula gives a nice semi-matte, healthy finish to the skin and keeps skin oil-free for 5-6 hours even in the most humid weather.
I took Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint with me during my Bali holiday as my beach essential and this product didn’t fail me at all. The sun protection in it did protect my face from sun damage and the oil-free long-lasting formula it beat the heat of Bali, kept me fresh throughout the day.
As I mentioned before I have a love-hate relationship with Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint main reason behind that is to apply the right amount. It gives a light to medium coverage and not buildable even a slight bit more by any means. If you layer it up it’ll end up being blotchy and cakey.
The product gives a nice tint, one layer is enough to cover redness and uneven skin tone. If you want to cover up your dark spot or undereye circle then follow up with a concealer.
How is the Nars oil-free BB Cream formula holding up?
Because of its formula, Nars skin tint doesn’t require powder to set on the skin. I’ve combination skin type and I’m normally used to set my base with powder. Sometimes I also layer up powder in my t-zone to prevent further oiliness. That method of mine didn’t work with Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint.
As because it doesn’t require powder to set this when I was layering powder to set the base it was turning cakey within an hour. I made some changes to my routine. Started applying just the amount of product I need, cover-up further imperfections with a concealer. Later set my t-zone only with just a touch of powder leaving the rest powder-free. This makeup trick quite holds up so far to keep skin fresh day-long.
To conclude my thoughts about Nard Skin Tint,
I find Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint applies best with the finger but I’m not good at applying foundations with the finger so alternatively, a beauty blender is the best tool for me.
Overall, I do like Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint and it is my go-to face product nowadays. I love how it stays put in the hot weather without sliding off. However, but because of its slightly overpowered slightly orangy tone, I’m probably not going to make a second purchase.
Have you Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint? How do you feel about it?
Shopping Info:
Shopping Info: Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint | RM170 / $44 Shop from Nars Boutique Malaysia, Sephora online.
Hie there beautiful, how you doing? If you’re following me on my social media then you must have noticed around in the middle of March’16 I was sent these gorgeous bundle of Elysium Brushes. Elysium is a Hong Kong based online company, aims to provide highest quality makeup brushes with an affordable price tag. I have been playing with them a lot for last two months. They have gone through all my experiment so far and finally I think I can state my opinion on Elysium brushes.
So first let tell you about the sets/brushes I got…
Elysium Face & Eye Bundle AKA Deluxe Set:
Elysium Face Bundle
Elysium Eye Bundle
Face Bundle comes with 10 brushes…
Alpha
Multiplication
Infinity
Square Root
Cube Root
Division
Factorial
Beta
Beta Z
Integral
Eye Bundle come with 8 brushes…
Integral
Epsilon
Delta
Pi
Omega
Upsilon
Subset
Selection
All these 17 brushes mainly come within the Elysium Deluxe set but the option to buy them as a face set or eye set (the brush Integral comes as common one in both set) definitely more convenient. I love that each brush has their own unique name so they are easy to mention/remember.
Elysium Contour Brushes:
Elysium Contour Brushes
From Left to Right…
Beta, Alpha, Beta Z
There are three flat contour brushes comes in the Face bundle or in the deluxe set. Alpha, Beta and Beta Z. Beta has natural bristle and other two has synthetic hair. Alpha is bigger in size, nicely packed bristle, and short length compared to other two. These type of flat contour brushes are very popular at the moment among all makeup lover like I’ve been loving my Zoeva flat contour brush lately. Needless to say, Zoeva is definitely a bit pricey that Elysium so I won’t compare them.
All three Elysium contour brushes work nicely but I find three same type of brushes wasn’t necessary within one set. Alpha along is enough for cream or powder contour.
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Fact’s I love about Elysium Brushes:
Initially, I love how these brushes look. The gunmetal wooden barrel is well made and surely gives a luxe feeling. Elysium brushes have two types of bristle, natural and synthetic. Both types of bristles are generously soft, especially I’m impressed with the synthetic bristle ones. they feel incredibly smooth on skin. Each brush is fairly dense, I guess just the way they were purposed. I love the fact that all of these brushes also comes with their own brush guard(I forgot to take snap those), a plastic mesh that helps to keep the brush shape on while drying or anytime.
Facts I don’t appreciate:
…hope you can see the uneven cut!
…uneven cut on synthetic brushes!
I won’t lie, this was very unexpected but I find most of my Elysium brushes doesn’t have a nice and even cut. Due to the ‘not-so-perfect’ cut of the eye brushes (picture above) they poke skin while using, hard to pack product and doesn’t give an even application. Now this ‘cut’ issue is more prominent with eye brushes and natural hair brushes but the synthetic ones also have the same problem but as they are incredibly soft so you don’t really feel that while using.
Quite a few of them also shred bristles frequently while working with them or washing them, they feel not glued inside properly .
My Favorite Elysium Brushes:
My Favorite Eye Brushes by Elysium
My Favorite Face Brushes by Elysium
Selection ($7 / BDT520): It’s the smallest brush in the whole collection. Slightly rounded edge, densely packed short synthetic bristle. Perfect for a cream product. I love using it to smudge my liner and also to apply my lipstick.
Pi ($8 / BDT580): This is my most favorite brush from the whole collection. The shape of it is similar to MAC217, a perfect one to apply and blend crease shadow.
Integral ($9 / BDT620): Its a densely packed synthetic bristle brush with a rounded top. I love using it to apply under eye concealer or my eyelid primer.
Square Root ($12 / BDT850): A natural hair brush with oval top. Not much but dense enough, works great applying blush or bronzer.
Division ($11 / BDT800): Its has kind of duo-fiber feeling to it. The root of the brush is dense but the tip is less dense and soft. The shape of division reminds me of Real Techniques contour brush. I find it appropriate for placing powder under the eye are to set concealer. And obviously, if you have a smaller face you might find it very helpful as a contour brush.
Factorial ($11 / BDT800): It’s a natural hair brush specially meant for highlighter application. Bristles in it are slightly long so it’s flexible to work with highlight powder. Can deposit just the right amount of product in your high points.
Overall thoughts:
I absolutely love how these brushes look and how soft the synthetic one feels, however, I can’t justify their uneven cut. Within the Face or deluxe set, I feel there should’ve some dense brush or just a regular flat foundation brush for foundation application rather than three contour brush. I relly miss a thin round or angle brush for eyeliner or such work within the eye set/deluxe set. If there were a typical foundation brush and an eyeliner brush the deluxe set would have been a complete set.
Looking at the price range and the quality I think it’s better to buy single pieces of Elysium brushes (you can take my favorites as a reference, they’re really good) rather than the whole set. Although, it is possible that my ones are only one that doesn’t have an even cut and not glued inside properly.
Do I recommend them? Yes, of course, I do recommend the one I mentioned as my favorite, their other face brushes according to your need. To be more precise If you’re looking for flat contour brushes then you may consider Elysium contour brushes.
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Shopping Info:
Elysium Deluxe Set (includes all 17 brushes) | $150 / BDT 10,000
Elysium Face Bundle | $110 / BDT 7,200
Elysium Eye Bundle | $45 / BDT 3,200
You can purchase them directly from Elysium Website or if you’re in Bangladesh you can get them from NexGen Limited (authorized reseller of Elysium in BD) PS: Use code ‘GreenStory16‘ to avail 10% off from Elysium website and 5%off from Nexgen.
Hi there, how you doing? If you read my last post on beach holiday essentials, then you know I and husband went to Bali, Indonesia. We just came back after spending a whole week there. Beach holidays are always the best getaway from busy life. I’m obviously refreshed and more inspired to concentrate on work. But before everything I want to share our 7 days 8 nights couple trip (not a travel guide but our Bali adventure) with you guys. While traveling Bali on a budget yet having all the fun was the most exciting part of this trip.
We wanted to visit Bali 2 years back but this year finally got time to escape. First of all, we took Malaysian Airways, found that they’re cheaper than any other domestic airlines, for example, Air Asia. Bigger jet, cheap freight, no headache of luggage weight and so Malaysian Airlines it is.
We did book our hotel via booking.com in Nusa Dua for 7 days and 8 nights (approx 700,0000) but I don’t want to talk about that because I hated their service and food. We choose the hotel because of the sea view but it wasn’t the way we expected either.
We also pre-booked a car (Toyota Agya, airport pickup, and drop) for the whole time (for 1300,000IDR) to avoid all the taxi hassle. And who needs a travel guide when Google Boss is there. We realized over the time, hiring a car was the best decision of this trip, thus we were able to roam around the whole city with an ease.
We choose to stay in Nusa Dua because the area is less crowdy and not far from the beaches. Driving in Bali felt a bit critical to my husband because of the busy traffic, motorbikes all around and narrow roads but he got used to after a while.
Bali is an island so it is unnecessary to say that sea is everywhere. A week is definitely not enough to explore the whole island. From 9 am to 7 pm every day we kept exploring. We didn’t spend much time on the most popular beaches like Kuta or Seminyak beach because those were over crowdy, we could hardly breathe there… phew! Other than that we used very wisely each and every precious minute of our stay in Bali.
Let me give you highlights of Bali attractions. Some are simply breathtaking and some are just over-hyped by people. Alert, it’s about to be picture heavy!
Tanah Lot Temple:
Tanah Lot Temple, Bali
Water Blow in the Tanah Lot Temple, Bali
After washing your face in the Holy Spring water they give a flower and Tika of rice 😉
This is one of the most popular tourist attraction in Bali. The way to get into the temple only arises in low tide so you must visit there at low tide. However, you actually won’t be able to get into the temple or even go up. If you only wash your face with the Holy Spring water (and give a donation) then they’ll allow you to climb two steps of the stairs that are on the side of the temple. We did wash our faces and thought there we will get some better view but no, it’s nothing there actually. Nevertheless, the view of whole Tanah Lot area is beautiful!
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Uluwatu Temple:
Sunset at Uluwatu Temple, Bali
Wall of Uluwatu Temple, Bali
Monkeys at Uluwatu Temple, Bali
Tegenungan Waterfall, Ubud:
Tegenungan Waterfall, Ubud
Tegenungan Waterfall, Ubud
If you visit Bali you must visit this waterfall. It’s in Ubud, just an hour drive from Kuta. The waterfall is huge and powerful, water is super chilling.
Mount Batur Volcano & Natural Hot Spring:
Mount Batur Volcano from Kintamani
Up view of Natural Hot Spring, Mount Batur
Pools for visitor in the name of Natural Hot Spring, Mount Batur
In the base of Mount Batur Volcano
Mount Batur, the sleeping volcano is very popular to adventurous people for tracking. We are not that adventurous so we stayed with the view only. There is also a natural hot spring down in the base of Mount Batur. We were very excited to visit the spring, however, we came back disappointed. There are a few companies that operate the area. They actually made a few little pools and runs the spring water into the pool. You can bathe in the warm water there with safety. But the feeling of getting into the actual spring is far away from that. Moreover, entry fees to there are 1500,000IDR each.
Water Blow, Nusa Dua:
At the edge of Water Blow, Nusa Dua
Water Blow, Nusa Dua
The Beauty of Water Blow, Nusa Dua
Water Blow Beach
Water Blow Beach
Within this one place, Water Blow, there are two things to enjoy. One is how the big wave crashes on the rocks and on the other side there is a nice golden beach. On the beach, you can just lounge with a coconut or can get playing with your surfboard and high wave.
Sanur Fishing Bay:
Sanur Fishing Bay
Sanur Fishing Bay
If you get here in the time of low tide you’ll enjoy the view most. In low tide, all fisherman gets into the seashore to catch fishes. There are a few nice restaurants by the beach, you can have your lunch while enjoying the view and wind blow.
Geger Beach, Bali:
Geger Beach, Bali
Geger Beach, Bali
This is the beach just in front of the most popular Mulia resort. Before visiting Bali picture of the Mulia resort and the white beach caught my eye. Needless to mention, Mulia is expensive to stay but I didn’t want to miss the beach. But when we got there the beach did disappoint me. It’s not white by any means (as you can see in the picture) and quite dirty as well.
Blue Point Beach:
Up view of Blue Point Beach, Bali
Can you see the surfing people? -Blue Point Beach, Bali
The scary stairs to go the beach! -Blue Point Beach, Bali
Blue Point Beach, Bali
This beach was our favorite of all, so blue, so clear, less crowd and one of the best places for surfing. There you’ll need to climb down a bit to reach the sea level. If you don’t surf and stay at the shore level you might get lucky and meet some sea snakes (I did), coral base and small fishes will mesmerize you without diving underwater.
Green Bowl and Nyang Nyang Beach:
Nyang Nyang Beach
From hill-top, Nyang Nyang Beach
Nyang Nyang Beach
Green Bowl Beach
Both of these beaches are amazing, crystal clear water, high waves, and with less crowd. People go there to surf. However, to reach the shore of both you’ll need to climb down pretty high. Where Nyang Nyang beach doesn’t even have any proper stairs to climb down.
Black Sand Beach:
Black Sand Beach, Bali
Black Sand Beach, Bali
Did you know that there is a black sand beach in Bali just within the town? I didn’t! There is also another one called Lovina Beach which is far from the town, almost in the other part of the island. We kind of accidentally found this black sand beach. This beach literally made my Bali adventure fulfilled!
It’s in the Sanur area, we were looking for Sanur fishing bay and found this one. The beach doesn’t come on the tourist list, it felt kinda abandoned but trust me it is exotic. I’ve never seen any black sand beach before. When we arrived at the beach I thought, ‘what?! why is it so dirty?’ Once we got close then I got stunned seeing the shiny black sand. The sparkly black sand and blue horizon will give you another level of indulgence.
For the location just google, Kebun Bunga, Sanur, there you’ll find an empty field and a narrow road marking beach. Follow the road and you’ll find the Black Sand Beach of Bali.
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The city of Bali and other activities:
City Of Bali, Indonesia
Scalpture Shop
-City Of Bali, Indonesia
Glass Scalpture Shop
-City Of Bali, Indonesia
Scalpture Shop
-City Of Bali, Indonesia
BeachWalk Mall Bali
Balinese Cultural Dance
evening chiller 🙂
My dreamcatcher!
YSL Rouge Volupte Lipstick
If you roam around the city you’ll see the whole city of Bali is adorned with gates and statues. you’ll find a lot of shops and places that make stone, wood, glass and sand sculpture. Those fine creation of sculpture surely blow your mind away and you’ll want them to bring back with you but those are huge to bring back hehe.
If you want to get familiar with Balinese culture you must watch their cultural shows, have some local Balinese food. Nightlife is also happening part of the city but only in the beach area. Like Kuta beach or Seminyak area stays awake for pretty long. Some restaurant and clubs have the beach facing terrace, you can relax the with a drink. You can also discover the malls and local handicraft markets.
Yes, it was a budget travel to Bali but we’re not backpacking either. So, getting some souvenir was a must. There were a lot of choices for souvenirs. I picked up a dream catcher (50,000IDR), a few fridge magnet(15,000IDR each), a couple of shell tray(30,000IDR) and as a makeup lover I also picked up some makeup.
Apart from mesmerizing beaches, the island is also very popular for temples. There was also another twin waterfall that we wanted to visit. Lembongan island, dolphin spot were calling us so badly but we couldn’t manage time. Although we weren’t able to visit every possible spot, we did enjoy out Bali adventure to the fullest.
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Tips on saving money in a Bali Trip
Don’t forget to bargain for whatever you buy except the fixed priced mall/stores. We bought water bottles from 45,000IDR to 2500IDR. The asking price of the dream catcher was 250,000IDR and my husband was too shy to call 50,000IDR for that but ultimately without any word they sold it on 50K! Also if you book your hotel early, a month or so then you can get a cheaper rate.
This is my happy time of the year! Why? …because, it’s a beach holiday time and tomorrow I’m heading to Bali, Indonesia. It’s been a year we went somewhere out of the country. You can guess right how excited I am? Me and Mr. husband both are pretty much bored with regular life and didn’t want to skip this year’s summer holiday. So we took time and planned a 7day trip to Bali, away from work and everything, just relaxing by the beach enjoy as much as possible. Yes, expect me to be off here in blog for the next week because I’m still not that blogger who will schedule post 😛
So before starting my trip I wanted to share with you guys my five beach holiday essential that are must have to me for a beach holiday. Obviously, I’m taking a shit load of things with me apart from these five but these are the things that I can’t think of skipping. Not only for the holiday but I adore these 5 products in my daily life as well. That’s why I call them my beach holiday essential.
Without any further talking let’s get into my 5 Beach Holiday Essential…
ShiSeido Stage Works Powder Shake | RM80
Where beach-holiday meant to wear beachy-wave hair but this time I’m planning to carry my natural hair texture which is plan straight. Due to color and bleach, I have pretty bad hair condition now so I’m avoiding heat or any strong hair product as much as possible. Shiseido Powder Shake has been a life save and a go to hair product since last year when my hair stylist introduced it to me. It’s a lightweight solution of powder that helps to give hair volume boost as well as a bit of hold and texture. But the best part is hair remains natural looking after using it with that added volume and texture, prevent frizzy locks and no crunchiness or else. You literally can’t tell if you’re wearing any powder spray.
However, using this product in a right way might be a bit tricky. You just need a few spritz and you’re done. Over spraying with make your hair tacky.
Urban Decay De-Slick Makeup Setting Spray | (shop here)
Without any doubt, I’m a big fan of Urban Decay All Nighter Makeup Setting Spray. You must have seen me using it in my makeup tutorials. De-Slick comes along with that in my favorite list. This one especially meant to control oil. As because this is summer now and weather in Bali will be pretty hot I’m totally expecting some oil-flood and sweat. So as a precaution/solution my Urban Decay De-Slick makeup setting spray is a must have on my beach holiday essential list.
Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint | (shop here)
I’m planning not to wear any heavy makeup this time throughout my holiday. I want to look relaxed and casual all the way and want to spend as less time as possible on makeup but enjoy my time. So rather taking any of my favorite foundation I’m taking my recent favorite Nars Skin Tint/ BB cream with me. This has a velvety matte finish which doesn’t dry out skin but gives a glowy look, also keeps skin oil free for quite long. Plus point, Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint has SPF 30/PA+++ in it which makes it as a perfect base product when you’ll be under the sun.
GlamGlow YouthCleanse Daily Exfoliating Cleanser | (shop here)
I’ve been recently trying out this GlamGlow Cleanser and needless to say I’ve been loving it a lot. It cleanses so well also gives a mild exfoliation. Thus, in the morning, you get a fresh face to work with and at the end of the day, it removes all the dirt or dead skin cells from the face.
Biore UV Perfect Spray | RM40
Heading for a beach holiday and there is no sunblock in my Beach Holiday Essential list? Is it even possible? Biore has always been my favorite brand for sunscreen. The one I regularly use is Biore UV Aqua Rich Sunblock. Considering the ease of application I’m taking the spray version of it with me, so I can carry it with me to the beach and spray it all over whenever I want. Biore UV Perfect Spray has SPF 50+/PA++++ in it, protects from sun damage gives no white cast, completely oily or grease free.
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So those are my 5 must have as beach holiday essential. Do you spot any favorite?
Though I haven’t had many difficulties to sort out my essential but not I’m tussled up sorting out other skincare in a travel jars and, needless to mention, there is other makeup as well. I want to be so relaxed but I find this is the hardest thing to sort out minimal makeup …haha!
So beautiful, that’s it for today! will be back writing from next week. Nonetheless, you can stay is touch with me via my FB and Instagram. Defo I’m gonna post some snaps from Bali! If you have any query feel free to drop me a line in the comment box below 🙂
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Have you ever experienced how it feels if you put something like menthol in eyes? It is surely going to buzz your eyes big time, isn’t it? feels scary? haha… The Rohto Cool Eye Drops gives the same sensation for the first 4/5 seconds. Don’t be scared, though it gives that sorta buzz but after that it feels amazingly refreshed and cooling. The first time I used the drop I got a shock due to the buzz but now if I say I’m addicted to the drop it won’t be wrong.
Due to my Lasik surgery, my eyes are pretty dry and I’m continuously on hydrating eye drops. Just this month I was introduced to Rohto Cool Eye Drops. I was a bit hesitant at the beginning (usually, drugstore drops doesn’t work for my eyes) but after trying it out for weeks I’m impressed. The one I normally use (prescribed by my doctor) is pretty expensive and the ‘single use’ ones. Where the Rohto one is pretty cheap and works perfectly keeping my eyes hydrated. Not only if you have a dry eye like me you need to use eye drops but everyone should use refreshing drops. We all living a digital life, screens are the major part of our life along with the dirt and pollution. Just like our skin our eyes get tired and strained as well. A good artificial tear can take care of your eyes by cleaning the dirt and retaining the moisture level.
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About ROHTO
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Rohto Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd has been producing and marketing eye drops for over 100 years. Rohto® is the number 1 brand of eye drop in the world and has been number 1 in Japan for the past 40 years. Rohto Cooling Eye Drops launched in the United States in 2001.
To elaborate more, Rohto Pharmaceutical Co. is a part of Mentholatum Company, INC. that I talked about in my previous article.
Moisturize, Refresh and Provide Immediate cooling relief from:
Dry, strained and tired eyes due to prolonged exposure to TV/computer usage. Effectively retains moisture and natural tear in eyes.
Dryness and eye discomfort due to wearing of contact lenses with protective moisturizing veil.
Minor eye irritations due to smog, dust, wind, sun glare and chlorinated water by giving soothing relief.
Blurred vision.
***It is suitable for usage with or without contact lenses.
The drop is not only effective but looking at the packaging, so cute, isn’t it? The twist and snap cap is very easy to open and I find the packaging quite travel-friendly. There is also a few variation such as Rohto Aqua (gentle moisturizing), Rohto Dry Aidadvancedce dry relief) available in the market. You can get one according to your needs.
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Shopping Info:
Rohto Cool Eye Drops | 16.90 RM
Available at Watsons or any other pharmacies, nationwide.
[/color-box] ***Product was sent to me by the company. Consult your doctor prior taking any medication that isn’t for external use. [signoff][/signoff]
Lush Lush Lush… My love-addiction with LUSH Cosmetics started 6 years before when I was in the UK. The only stuff I brought back with me when I left England was a bunch of Lush product. After that, I didn’t get any chance to buy more because obviously, Lush isn’t available in Bangladesh as well as in Malaysia. Since I’m here in Malaysia I’ve been eyeing on Lush site once in every month(it’s the lust for Lush…lol).
I was mainly looking through Singapore Lush because that’s the closest store to Malaysia, they do ship here in MY but their extremely high price(double than UK/AUS) always turned me off. And finally, after such long (If you’re following me on my FaceBook or Instagram then you already noticed) I did a Lush Haul a few days ago. I got them through Lush UK website. Before putting my order I was debating a lot whether I should place my order on the UK site or not but finally, I did. As because I was a successful shopping experience I thought I must share with you guys why I choose Lush Uk over Lush Singapore and all that jazz.
The reason why I choose Lush UK over Lush Singapore:
If you’ve ever gone through Singapore Lush website then you already know how pricey they are. They ships to a few Asian country via DHL so the shipping is also high but as because it’s DHL shipping so you could get a fast delivery.
If I talk about product price, such as:
Sunnyside Bubble Bar (that Golden tear dot shape one) is £4.75 in the UK and in Singapore site, it’s 25SGD which is around £12+ (current XE rate). Just like that everything is super pricey. Moreover, Singapore Lush doesn’t have that vast and latest collection like the UK either.
UK Lush also offers international shipping with two different option; one is the normal airmail (£17.95 for up to 2kg) and the tracked one.
I wanted to place a slightly bigger order (at least 2 months of supply) and calculating everything Lush Cosmetics UK won the decision.
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Shopping Experience with Lush Cosmetics:
I placed an order for total 18 product including mainly bubble bars, soaps, and shampoo bars. Most of them were in 100g and a few are in 200g so my whole order was around 2kg. Including the shipping (£17.95) my total bill was around £110. As because my order was large so they send me my order in two boxes/cartoon/shipment. The cartoon you can see in the picture below.
So I received two boxes like that marked 1 and 2 and they were shipped not together but apart(maybe at the same time). Surprisingly I received the second box first(I didn’t take a picture of that box. As soon as that arrived I rushed using my product haha), just within 7days after placing my order and the first box arrived (approx) in 18 days.
LUSH Cosmetics now sent out the product in naked packaging (which wasn’t before, they use to wrap up things with plastic or in a paper pack). Naked packaging means products are stacked with spongy chips, separated with cardboard and then the main cardboard box. Although the liquid and creams come with their pot/tub/bottle packaging. I wasn’t aware of this and made me surprised when I saw the box like that.
One of my product (Full Of Grace Serum Bar, has melt warning on their website) came melted and soaked up by the cardboard. I obviously contact with Lush customer service right away and they were amazing, explained to me that the naked packaging is to reduce the waste and save the environment(I truly appreciate their initiative), already sent out(just received that today) a replacement for that. Other than that everything arrived nice and intact with the shape.
The package also includes the invoice, list of product, ingredient list, Usage details, and a collection handbook. They all are produced is 100% recycled paper and somehow the smells amazing😅
Within my order only one thing came with extra packaging (picture below), paper wrap and another extra packet, that is by the Lush Kitchen.
being able to place an order for Lush Kitchen product was definitely a double plus point for Lush UK 🙂
Lush kitchen products are freshly and exclusively made a product, new menus every day and once gone they’re gone type. I couldn’t resist ordering the Egg Hunt soap (£4.50 for 100g) from Lust Kitchen range.
The main reason I love Lush Cosmetics is the way they smell. I’m a big fan of their bubble bar, soap, and shampoo. Especially the bubble bars are amazing, I couldn’t find any other bubble bar/gel that creates much bubble/foam as Lush does. Each and every bath product by lush gives me that serene feeling that no brand can even get close to!
In this slot, I bought some of my old favorite item as well as some new that I haven’t tried before. Will try to do so some review one by one to stay connected if you’re interested.
Last word, my shopping experience with Lush UK was very satisfying and I’ll not think twice to place my next order. If you’re an international (specifically from Malaysia) and thinking to do some Lush Cosmetics shopping then I highly recommend you to shop from Lush UK site.
Maybe She’s Born With It, Maybe It’s Maybelline! Who’s not familiar with this slogan?
Since 1991 to 2016 this tagline has been the most iconic (or I should say successful) line ever. However, this year Maybelline came up with their new slogan ‘Make It Happen’ to encourage young women in their journey of pursuing their dreams. The old tagline was an everyday lullaby to me but no doubt I love the new tagline more because it focused on the willpower. It sings the word from our hearing that we can overcome the block of self-doubt, we can #MakeItHappen, achieve that dream we living for on our own terms.
Maybelline NewYork ‘Make It Happen’ Media Launch
Maybelline NewYork ‘Make It Happen’ Media Launch
Makeup Demo using all IT Collection
Makeup Demo using Maybelline,NY IT Collection
Maybelline IT Girls (Asia’s Next TopModels4 Finalist
5th April 2016 here in Kuala Lumpur, the afternoon was was grand and festive at the launch of the new tagline. Ping Fong, the Marketing Manager of Maybelline New York Malaysia, explained the vision behind the new brand slogan. She said,
As a beauty brand that is close to women, we see the need to evolve the way we speak to then, especially the new millennials,so as to reflect the way they live, think and act today. In out previous tagline we told that she is defined by the look she is ‘born with’ or she can transform it with Maybelline Makeup.
With the new tagline ‘Make It Happen’ we are now asking women to define her own beauty in her own terms, but with a drive and go-getter sprit that transcends beauty to an action to make watever matters to her happen. The ‘IT’ in the tagline is a very powerfull word that has lived with Maybelline for decades; now it is in her hands to define it. Essentially this expresses how the brand empowers women today to define her beauty, live her life and make it happen.
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At the event, there was a highlight and story of the transformation of Malaysian ‘IT’ girls from diverse background but shares a common interest of making things happen in life, as well as the finalist of Asia’s Next Top Model 4 reality show in which the brand is the proud official makeup sponsor.
Besides those amazingly inspirational ‘Make It Happen’ stories, the girls also take over the stage runway after being transformed with Maybelline makeup by the magical hands of Makeup Artist Steven Sunny.
With the new tagline, Maybelline also introduced a few of ‘IT-LOOK’ and how you can create them using all their product. Star products for IT-LOOKs are the new Magnum Barbie mascara, Fashion Brow Duo (review here), Blushed Nudes Eyeshadow Palette, Hypersharp Power Black Liner, Vivid and Rosy Matte Lipstick and White Superfresh Liquid Powder.
I myself trying out a few will update you soon with my review 🙂
Earlier this month I got the chance to get introduced with Shizens, a Malaysian makeup & skincare brand, product in their Glamouresque Beauty Workshop.
Shizens founded in 2010, based on it’s natural-inspired philosophy, nature’s encrypted benefits are harnessed to help you look desirable, enviable and sensuous. Shizens offers skin care and make-up solutions based on a well-balanced artistry combining nature’s best and science.
Shizens’ products are a combination of eastern values, emphasising on the benefits of botanical extracts; and the advancement of western technology, enriching the products with natural ingredients selected from different parts of the world. Shizens embraces seasonal trends and individualistic lifestyles, the products are created to make you look luminous, confident, stylish and elegant.
After achieving success on its regional root in Malaysia, Shizens now continues to grow in Australia and South East Asia (Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand).
At the workshop, we were introduced, described and given a full demo session of the star makeup and skincare product by Shizens. Being an almost new (from 2010, 6 years isn’t much long. Is it?) brand I was impressed seeing their versatile range of product. There was a whole bunch of product from makeup to skincare, not everything I can possibly accumulate in one post! Thus, today I’ll share my overview on a few of Shizens product that really caught my attention.
First of all, Shizens has a two different range of skincare product. One is for younger skin (the pink packaging) and another is for mature skin (white packaging). Under these two type, they also offer a vast range of product starting from cleanser, toner to facial serum.
Within Shizens Skincare Range 3 product attract me the most:
Aqua Mist: It’s in their pink range (for younger skin) and a face mist if I generalize it. A great one to instantly refresh and restore skin hydration. I love the fresh scent it has. It can be used daily at any time of the day and to prep skin before makeup.
Hydra Quench: It’s a gel-like essence from their White range, for mature skin and has anti-aging benefit. It’s an intensely hydrating essence formulated to boost up moisture level for all skin type especially dehydrated skin with soothing effect up to 24 hours. It has nourishing ingredients like including Sodium Hyaluronate and Gigawhite (7 natural plant extracts), which makes it an effective hydrating essence with firming and brightening benefits.
Hydro Liposome Essential: Hydro Liposome Essential is formulated with multi-layer microcapsule contained in a silky smooth moisturizer, encapsulating honey extracts and pearl extracts. Microcapsule penetrates deep into the skin and unveils active ingredients layer by layer. Pearl extracts improve your cell metabolism, stimulate the growth of collagen and skin rejuvenescence. Honey extracts help to reduce fine lines.
I find this product very interesting (this was my first time experiencing microcapsule formulation), the pearls smashes into paste when you dispense it out and melts into skin leaving skin fresh and smooth.
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I absolutely loved two of Shizens makeup item.
Sheer Tint Foundation: The foundation comes in one shade but when warms up with the touch of skin it adheres the skin color. I didn’t believe it at the beginning but when I tried it on myself I got surprised seeing how that white-ish foundation turns into my tan skin color. As the name says, it has a sheer/light coverage so if you’re a full coverage foundation lover then you might not like it. I find it very appropriate for everyday use.
Shizens says, It is formulated with a unique WOW technology (Water-in-Oil-in-Water), where water molecules are double coated to provide the skin with extra moisture and hydration. On top of that, it contains red algae extract, an ingredient which is highly beneficial for the skin. It has the ability to promote microcirculation, thus preventing the complexion from dulling, evens the skin tone and enhances skin radiance. Even under air conditioning, The Sheer Tint Foundation application can last up to 8 hours, without clogging the pores.
Lip Tattoo: It’s just like a lipgloss, white in color but when applied it turns into a rosy pink tint. The tint last throughout the day and you can also double it up as a blush. The tint is very natural, just like a natural pink lip will look, nothing like a random lipgloss or else.
I loved the effect of it and it is also the best seller of Shizen.
This was really a pleasant experience for me to know the brand Shizens. Their product quality was way too impressive than my expectation. I feel happy when a local brand has such good product to offer so we don’t need to look outside much.
All Shizens products are available nationwide at their outlet of any Shizens counter, priced within the range of RM150 to RM250. They also have bundle offer where you can save some bucks.
