NYX Black Label Lipsticks!

After reading reviews about NYX's Black Label Lipstick, I was on a mission to try them. I'm already a huge fan of their circle lipsticks and have quite a few in my collection. But these black label ones are amazing, far better than the circle ones! Why? Because they are highly moisturizing, almost balm like. I got them from trusty Cherry Culture in four shades - Acapulco, Nude, Beige and India for $6.00 each.

I only swatched two of the four colors because I haven't opened the other ones yet! =p

Nude and Acapulco are gorgeous GORGEOUS colors. I am in love with them! LOVE. I also like the faint grape smell as well. Reminds me of my childhood lip balms!

Acapulco is a vibrant pink with some purple tones. Slightly more pink, but depends on your natural lip color.
Nude is light beige with milky pink and peach tones.
Both have shimmer in it.

Acapulco

Acapulco again!

Nude

Nude again :) Sorry if you see little hairs... I haven't trimmed my beard yet, LOL :)

I use lip balm underneath and a little bit of clear lip gloss on top which is why the lipstick is lighter on my lips than on the swatch. I also use my ring finger to "blot" it, or to smooth it out since the color goes on a little streaky. I do this with all my lipsticks though, maybe out of habit. Makes life easier :)

I cannot wait to try India and Beige now! Now now now. Will show you guys swatches of it soon! 

Thoughts on the Black Label line? What colors do you recommend?  

Borghese makeup brushes at Costco!

I love Costco. And I especially love when they collaborate with makeup companies to sell their products there. This time (and many times before) they released makeup brushes by Borghese. I usually have to wait until the end of the year to get it because they're limited edition during the holidays. But it's the middle of April and I found them in the store while doing my usual weekday Costco runs! And it looks like they're from the Borghese collection, and not a collaboration with Kirkland (Costco's brand)...Yay! I absolutely LOVE them. They are such high quality brushes! Look at the pictures :)

Kabuki Brush - Very dense brush and soft brush head. Picks up powder really evenly.

Angled blush/contouring brush - Probably my favorite of them all! It's dense enough to pick up a lot of product in one sweep. I use it for blushes and bronzers :)

Duo Fiber Stippling Brush - Not sure how it compares to Mac's but this is my first duo fibre brush. 

Round Foundation Brush - Great on the face. Really evens out foundation and creams on the nose areas

Concealer Brush - This one is okay. I have many concealer brushes like this one.

Fluffy Blending Brush - LOVE it. It's perfect for highlighting and blending in colors

Eyeshadow Brush - Brushes evenly right at the lids. I really love this brush as well.

Angled Eye Contour Brush - Haven't used this one yet! 

Angled Brow Brush - Another okay brush. I have many similar to it.

Comes with a magnetic brush roll :) No room for the Kabuki though =/

I really love them so much! They are perfectly sized, perfectly tapered and uberly soft. The brush heads are dense and can pick up makeup better than all my other ones. During Christmas last year, I bought another Borghese set that collaborated with Kirkland but it wasn't as good. Quality wise, this set has been the best so far out of all the years I've seen Borghese brushes from Costco. I was looking on Ebay for different brush sets because my other ones are all old and ratty and I am so glad that I didn't impulsively buy them online *phew* 

Best part? It only cost $23.99! ^_~ Isn't that just ridiculous?! It's probably cheaper than the professional ELF brush rolls. Or around the same price. It is amazing quality for brushes that cost so little :)

If any of you are interested in purchasing this brush set but don't have a Costco membership or don't live near one, I can help you buy it and send it to you. I'll be going back sometime next week and I won't mind picking up more of these. Just shoot me an email if you're interested :) 

Anyway, today was a gorgeous day outside. I woke up early and did my makeup :) I love it when it's all bright outside. It just makes you want to start the day.

I'm wearing Skin Food Aloe BB Cream, Bobbi Brown brown eyeshadow, Loreal Telescopic Mascara, Revlon Baby Pink lipstick, and MAC Dainty blush.

And below is my top! I wore it over a cotton blazer and pants later on.

Non-makeup Post about Random Stuffs :)

How are you all doing this evening? I'm piling up some reviews I'm dying to do and preparing for some visitors this weekend. Heading to Napa! Yay! So far I've cleaned my apartment pretty thoroughly. I cannot wait! The essence of wine country has really drawn me in since the first time I went (my experience here) :)

Here are some random pics from my cell phone... =p

Inside one of my local CVS's. I knew they have a Beauty 360 on their website, but in store too?!! :) I was too shy to go inside because there was no one in there o_o But it's like a Sephora.

A ramen house I went to called Orengi in San Jose :) So SO good! Soft boiled eggs are my weakness especially gooey orange ones! This is the Tonkotsu Ramen, their signature.

A book I just read. It's one of those theory books about humans really being zombies and stuff... =p Quite interesting. I enjoy me some eclectic.

My new 16 oz cup I use at work. 

More later! Time for bed. Goodnight all!

Two week cleansing cycle DONE!

Hey all! Remember my post about the body cleansing regimen here? I finally wrapped it up this past Thursday and I am pleased to say how very happy I am not having to pop a large combination of pills for a long while! LOL =p

In two weeks' time, I ingested 175 vitamins. Jesus freaking Christ, right? I know, I am thinking the same thing! It was a struggle to have to take them after breakfast and after dinner. Alternately, the box also says you can take them all at night... that would be 24 pills at once.

So how was it? Well, if you read my post about it, you would know that this is my 2nd experience within the span of 2 or so years. This cleanse cleans out your colon, detoxes you from all the toxins on a day to day basis, and helps balance out your system overall.

Week 1 was 12 pills each day, 4 in the morning and 8 in the evening. I didn't feel anything drastic happening to my body except needing to pee a lot since I also drank a ton of water to wash the pills down. The water was definitely good for my skin and I felt really good mid week because I was well hydrated and didn't eat as much (probably due to all the water). I'm not an expert pill popper (lol) so I had a lot of water. I know some people can just take a gulp of water and be done with everything but these were kinda big and some of them had powder inside. Just last week one of the pills got stuck in my throat and I was trying to wash it down with water and juice and the casing ended up dissolving and when I coughed, all the gross powder inside was in my mouth. Totally gagging moment but I ended up taking care of it with elegance (downed more juice).

Week 2 was a lot easier. I started to get the hang of the regimen and went to the bathroom regularly. I know when you see the word laxatives, you freak out because you know what it does. The good thing about this is that the laxatives are not active and they do not make you run to the bathroom at all. Everything was calm and there were no surprises. Toward the end of my cleanse, I noticed how much more "awake" i was. I didn't need to have coffee everyday and my energy level at the gym increased. I usually run 2 miles on the treadmill or elliptical but I noticed myself finishing 3-3.5 miles in a 35 minute run. There is no caffeine in this cleanse and I think my energy is due to the toxins being removed from my body.

Overall, I really recommend this cleanse. If you can overlook the crazy amount of pills to ingest, it's a good way to start a diet or clean out your system. I'm not sure how regularly a cleanse should be done but from the comments in my original post, some people cleanse every month. I'd be too afraid that my body would be dependent on it! =p And I really hate taking pills! At most maybe quarterly (every 3 months) to "start fresh" =p

I bought mine at Whole Foods for $12.99. I saw a similar one at Trader Joe's for the same price and there are various ones at vitamin stores (GNC, Vitamin World) and online.

Flickr vs. Blogger

Flickr (above) 

and Blogger (below)

The difference is crazy!! Can you believe it? Flickr uploads my photos in true to camera quality while Blogger makes my photos look really bad. Wow. Have you guys noticed this before?!? Every time I blog, I'm always thinking to myself, I swear my photos don't look THAT bad on my computer! -_- I'm switching over to Flickr now just for that fact. I hate that my pictures are getting dulled down :( Boo. I'm testing Photobucket as well. Thanks for all your tweets! ^_~ I looked into different photo hosting sites and it makes a big difference.

One of my many blogging lessons learned! =p

Here is more pictures of my haircut! 

New 'do - Layers!

Hey all! I got a haircut over the weekend. I have WAY too much hair to just neglect because it was starting to swallow me up and make my appearance look less than shabby.  I had to get them layered and thinned out. Here is the result!

What do you guys think? Is my hair okay? I'm not sure what it's categorized as... a long bob? She pretty much just layered it so I can still have that "edgy" look if I styled my hair with spray or something. I kept it easy and soft at work =p

I'm a little obsessed w/this sweater right now. The fabric is so soft and the stripes are just my style =P Bought it at TJ Maxx for $10. Not sure the brand though.

I wish I could wear pajama pants to work! o_o The one thing I truly hate shopping for is PANTS. Ugh, I can never find the right fit. It's always either too small or too big. I honestly have no patience for pants. Don't get me started on work pants... lol I have like 3 or 4 pants suitable for work and I just keep rotating them. Gross, I know =p So if you have any pant shopping tips, I'd love to know! Or if you share the same feelings as me toward pant shopping, I'd love to know too!

I'm really crazy about Elf's "Pink Passion" blush at the moment. I'm wearing it in the pics. It's such a pigmented hot pink shade. It's gorgeous!! :) I'll post some swatches in my next post. It was on clearance at Target for $2.45 or something. It's already super affordable at $3 but you know I love those bargain bins!

Makeup I'm wearing in the pics: Skinfood Mushroom BB Cream (LOVE THIS STUFF!!! Will review it soon!), ELF "Pink Passion" blush, MAC Viva Cyndi lipstick, Bobbi Brown brown eyeshadow quad, and Maybelline Magnum mascara (Will review this Asia exclusive mascara as well because I am L-O-V-I-N-G it!)

Goodnight!

Review: bareMinerals Skin Renewing Trio Skincare + Blemish Therapy

For the past few weeks, I've been trying out the new bareMinerals Naturally Luminous Skin Renewing Trio with RareMinerals ActiveSoil Complex (what a mouthful!). I was contacted by one of the reps and was pretty excited to get started because skincare is the utmost important thing next to overall well being right? ;)

This new skincare line from bareMinerals focuses on Rare Minerals and ActiveSoil Complex which is ingredients found from untouched soil that is supposed to contain many nourishing minerals.

I was sent the Skin Renewing Trio which contains a cleanser, a moisturizer, and an eye treatment.

Purifying Facial Cleanser - The cleanser has a milky gel consistency and doesn't have a rich lather. This is because it is free of SLS (sodium lauryl sulfite) where the foaming comes from. If you've ever tried Philosophy's Purity cleanser, this is SO MUCH like it, except Philosophy's is more of a milkier texture. The two even have the same lavender-ish smell. I really like herbal smells and especially love lavender :) My face felt really smooth after with no tightness or irritation. This is  easily one of the best cleansers I've ever tried next to Philosophy's Purity cleanser :) Retails for $20 with 6 oz of product.

Purely Nourishing Moisturizer - This moisturizer is the 2nd step after cleansing. A few times when I used this, my skin felt hot and slightly irritated. I'm not sure if it's the alcohol in it... there's two types of alcohol in it, both at the top of the ingredient list making it more potent than anything else. To be quite honest, this moisturizer was not up to par with the moisturization level I was looking for. It definitely passes as a basic moisturizer but it's nowhere as good as I'd expected it to be. It retails for $28 at Sephora with 1.7 oz of product. It's certainly not over the top extreme, but the alcohol in it concerns me.

Firming Eye Treatment - This eye treatment is supposed to restore firmness and elasticity with redness and dark circle reduction with continued use. I didn't see much difference under my eye, but it did reduce puffiness in the morning which was a nice. On their site, they claim that 85% of women felt their eyes looked firmer and more youthful.

Here are the ingredients

One thing that they sent me that I REALLY loved is the Blemish Therapy :)

Source: Sephora.com

What it does is it banishes pimples this treatment. You essentially use it as a concealer to neutralize redness with the added benefit of a treatment. It also is supposed to prevent future breakouts. I used it as a concealer for around my nose area for redness and on my nose and some of the blackheads disappeared. My nose became clearer after a few uses :) I really love this treatment! On their site, it says that 82% of women effectively saw blemishes and breakouts reduced.  I loved it so much that I went out and bought another one to give away. I know a lot of you can benefit from this little treatment as much as I did. So if you'd like a chance to win this, please fill out the form below. I'll be announcing the winner in 2 weeks... I guess that makes it Easter Sunday then, the 24th :) 

Let me know if you guys have tried this skincare line from bareMinerals! :) Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

Giveaway Closed!

Disclosure: This reviews contains samples sent from a PR rep for consideration.

Current Skincare Routine + Reviews

Hey everyone! How's your Saturday? I'm at home and blogging... says a lot about me huh? I can be the total homebody. Anyway, a few people asked me about my skincare routine and I was contemplating that I should blog about it someday. That someday is today, I guess! I was really flattered anyone would be curious to what I'm using because.... just cause ^^

I use a lot of things from a lot of different brands. I tend not to stick to a skincare set because I'm afraid I won't like it or that my skin will become so used to it that the product won't be as effective. I don't have a rational reason for it. I suppose I'm being paranoid.

So here it is, in all its wordy goodness.

Morning Routine
Lady and Skin Absolute White Cleansing Foam

Guinot Refreshing Toning Lotion

Shiseido Eyecream

Blu Shu Anti Aging Emulsion (VOV Skincare)
Sunscreen

Lady & Skin Absolute White Cleanser 

I made a post about this a few months ago and I asked if anyone knew where to find this brand! Many of you replied and said to look for it online at Korean sites such as Gmarket. Otherwise, there isn't much about this brand online. A lot of others also said it's one of those brands just very exclusive to Korea o_o My mom's friend gave it to her and she gave it to me so that's how I got a hold of it :) I own their BB cream, face powder, and lip jelly. I'll be doing a review of it eventually. As for the cleanser, it's really great. I used to use the Shiseido White Lucent cleanser and it is totally comparable although the Shiseido one is more drying. A lot more drying. This one creates a rich lather with just teensy amount. I'm talking the size of your pinky nail! And it doesn't make my face feel dry and tight or anything, just really refreshed and clean. I am in love with this cleanser... but I haven't explored Gmarket yet. I will need to find a backup because I love it so much! It has a light ginseng smell, which I personally love because I do like ginseng and herby smells. Some people absolutely despise it so the scent can be bothersome. Definitely HG status for me.

Please translate! :p Are these directions?

Back or side of box :)

Guinot Toning Lotion

I've been using this to put the moisture back into my face after cleansing. I'm not sure if it does anything special but it has a very pleasant rose smell. It's the richest toner/lotion I have ever used, ever! I sometimes use a cotton pad to put it on or I just pour some in my palm and pat (more like slapping) it into my face. It calms my redness in the morning. Have you used this or are you familiar with this brand? I've never heard of Guinot before!

Dr. Lewinn by Kinerase Daily Treatment Serum

I just started using this about two weeks ago because I've never used a serum in my life! I read so much about how serums are jam packed with antioxidants and how they make your other creams more absorbent so I had to get one. It claims to have a high potency of hydraulic acid which nourishes and repairs the skin.

It's a really nice treatment but I can't compare it to others since this is my first serum. I love the light lemon scent so much! I just squeeze two drops into my fingers and massage it into my face. It kind of has that oil-like consistency which i love because it feels very moisturizing to my skin. After about 1-2 mins, you can start using your day/night creams over it. It may be too early to tell but I feel it does a really good job at absorbing any follow up products.

I picked this up at Walgreens for around $10ish (1 oz). It was on major sale! You can find it on Walgreens online but it's a bit more. They are from the creators of Kinerase Skincare that is sold at Sephoras and other high end retailers.

Shiseido Bio Performance Eye Cream 

I have a bunch of sample sizes like this. I haven't really invested in a staple eye cream yet because my samples will probably last me awhile. I don't see anything spectacular about this eye cream. It's not as hydrating as I'd like it to be, but it's very smoothing and soft feeling. I do like the texture... a very lightweight cream.

VOV Skincare - Blu Shu Anti Aging Emulsion

I posted about this when I first bought it at the Korean market. I was walking around the skincare area where they have tons of amazing, expensive skincare when a sales lady approached me and started chatting about the importance of keeping my skin youthful and young... blah blah blah. She convinced me to get this and I caved because she said a lot of people in Korea use this brand. Came home and Googled it and couldn't find any reviews whatsoever! I still used it and very recently I discovered it came from VOV Skincare from the bottle of the jar. I don't know what VOV skincare at all, but I guess it's kind of like a parent company to many brands.

This is an emulsion, so it's kind of like a toning lotion plus lotion in it. It's quite luquidy, more so than your regular moisturizer but it absorbs really fast into my skin (probably b/c of the serum!) and has a really pleasant Asian skincare scent. I can't say if it's anti aging or not but anything that keeps you hydrated doesn't promote aging, right? :) If anyone knows more about VOV and what other brands they carry, do share! :)

Sunscreens: Garnier UV Protect, Neutrogena Healthy Defense Liquid Sunscreen, Shiseido Face Sunscreen

No, I do not use them all at the same time! I just alternate between the 3 of them since I get bored with using just one. The Shiseido one is the one I only use on super sunny days because it's SO thick. It goes on matte but it's a heavy duty sunscreen. The Garnier one is pretty heavy duty as well, but it's lighter than Shiseido. My favorite one of the 3 is the Neutrogena one. I've gone through a few bottles of this already :) It's a super lightweight sunscreen and feels really nice on my skin. There is an ultra sheer version and a healthy defense version. I've used both but I think I prefer the other one because it's even more lightweight. I bought this one not thinking they had another one, but I still like it :)

Nighttime Routine
Lady and Skin Absolute White Cleansing Foam
Guinot Refreshing Toning Lotion

Dr. Lewinn by Kinerase Daily Treatment Serum 

Shiseido Eyecream

Laniege White Plus Renew Night Cream
or
Skincare Cosmetics Retinol Skin Brightner moisturizer

Laneige White Plus Renew Night Cream

I started using this a few weeks ago and I love everything about it! The pretty scent, the cooling feeling and the yogurt-like texture of the this night cream. It's extremely hydrating. I plan on doing a full review when I'm almost done with it. As far as night creams go, I'm pretty happy with this one at the moment :) I'd love to know what you think of it if you've tried it!

Retinol Skin Brightner

I've read in countless magazines that retinol is very important in skincare because of the anti aging properties. Your skin's outer layer will become thinner to promote skin turnover and thus, new skin!  I quite like this one because it's like a lotion/emulsion and moisturizes effervescently. The one thing I don't like is the old lady smell which is a bit strong... hard to explain. I'll have to sniff it again but I really don't want to! o_o It is supposed to lighten discoloration and fade blotchy spots away. It hasn't done anything noticeable except keeping my skin from dehydrating. This is pure retinol in the form of Vitamin A.  This is non prescription, and has 200,000 ICU of Vitamin A. You can see more reviews from Amazon.com, where they sell it. It's really inexpensive, I bought mine for $12ish. Although, I'm not sure I'd repurchase because of the weird smell.

Weekly/Occasional 

Sana Nameraka Cream - Read my review here.

Laniege Water Sleeping Pack - Read my review here. 

Whew! That was extremely wordy. As always, let me know what you think! Or do a skincare routine on your blog. I'd love to read what others do for skincare! :)

Are you the type that uses the whole skincare kit from one line or do you use different brands like myself?