Maybelline Master Contour V-Shape Duo Stick in Light*
Cream contouring is something that I've avoided for so long. I hate cream highlighters & blushers because they never sit right on top of my base so surely contour products would be the same? Well I finally tried a cream contour product & I absolutely love it! Maybelline came out with this V-Shape Contour Stick & not only is the colour perfect on me, the formula is lovely too. It works well whether I use it before or after powdering my skin & blends out really well without disappearing completely. The stick format is easy to use & stops you from applying too much. It looks like a natural shadow on the skin but is still precise enough to really cut those cheekbones. I'm not as keen on the highlight side as it's not any lighter than my skintone & I prefer a shimmery blinding highlight anyway. Unless you're a professional makeup artist, no one really needs a full cream contour palette in their collection. This stick does it all.
The Ordinary Serum Foundation in 1.0N
As soon as they went on sale I snapped up both of the new foundations from The Ordinary. Their skincare is revolutionary so I had high hopes for their base products. I normally prefer high coverage foundations, no matter how well my skin is behaving so I was surprised to find that I actually prefer the Serum Foundation which has a much lighter formula. The thin watery consistency is very similar to Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua but a little goes a long way & the coverage is much better than I was expecting. On the face it definitely reminds me of Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk as it gives the skin a beautifully smooth & radiant finish. Colourwise 1.0N is slightly peachier than my HG NARS Siberia but it's just as light so it does work well on my skintone. Unless you're significantly yellow or pink toned, this shade will suit a lot of pale people. If you can get your hands on it, this foundation is definitely worth trying.
Hada Labo Gokujyun Premium Hyaluronic Acid Lotion
One thing that asian skincare brands do better than anyone else is hydration. I've learned to love sheet masks, snail secretions & essences as they bring a comfort to my skin unlike anything else. My latest skincare discovery is this Hyaluronic Acid Lotion from Japanese brand Hada Labo. The original Gokujyun Lotion is one of the best selling asian beauty products of all time. I put off buying it for ages because I was using the CosRX Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence but when that ran out I wanted to try something new. I decided to buy the Premium version of this lotion because it has five different molecular weights of hyaluronic acid instead of the three found in the original. That means it's incredibly hydrating & far more potent than most hyaluronic acid serums as it can penetrate deeper into the skin. This lotion makes my skin so unbelievably soft & plump. It fills out any fine lines & gives you a natural dewy glow. If you like using hyaluronic acid serums in your skincare routine, you need to buy this lotion. It's probably the best hyaluronic acid product I've ever used!
Shadow Shields
I've been working on my eyeshadow skills a lot lately. I'm normally fairly lazy & either sweep one colour over my entire eyelid or just blend a transition colour into my crease. I finally have an eyeshadow collection to be proud of & I want to put all those beautiful colours to good use instead of letting them rot on my dressing table. I've started spending quite a bit of time trying out detailed eye looks & I especially like to angle the shadows upwards at the outer corners. There's quite a few ways to clean up your eyeshadow so it fits that angle but my preferred method is to use these Shadow Shields. You just pop them on under your eyes & they really help you to achieve that cat eye shape. They're also great for catching fallout which is inevitable when working with darker colours. They won't disturb your foundation underneath & are gentle on the eye area too. They're such a simple product but have really helped to up my eyeshadow game.
Essence The Cushion Eyeliner
Another innovation that asian beauty brands have brought us is cushion cosmetics. I've tried cushion foundations & cushion blushers and I really enjoy the finish they give & the application process. I tend to mainly buy asian skincare products as I have enough makeup already but when I heard that Essence were coming out with a cushion eyeliner I couldn't resist picking one up. I think Banila Co & Tony Moly also do one but when you can buy something from Wilkos for a mere £3, sometimes it's better to stick with the UK high street! From the outside it looks very similar to a gel eyeliner pot. However inside there's a small round sponge saturated with black liquid liner. When you apply pressure with an eyeliner brush, the liquid starts to ooze out & you can use the product. The liquid is quite runny but I find it far less messy to use than gel eyeliner. It's extremely pigmented & dries down very quickly with a glossy finish. It lasts all day long on me without crumbling or transferring onto my upper eyelid. Liquid liners tend to come in a pen format but with this pot you can apply it however you want, even with something like the Vamp Stamp. If you like the ease of a gel formulation but prefer the finish of liquid liner, this product is for you. It's such a fantastic eyeliner & at this price you'd be silly not to buy one!
Cream contouring is something that I've avoided for so long. I hate cream highlighters & blushers because they never sit right on top of my base so surely contour products would be the same? Well I finally tried a cream contour product & I absolutely love it! Maybelline came out with this V-Shape Contour Stick & not only is the colour perfect on me, the formula is lovely too. It works well whether I use it before or after powdering my skin & blends out really well without disappearing completely. The stick format is easy to use & stops you from applying too much. It looks like a natural shadow on the skin but is still precise enough to really cut those cheekbones. I'm not as keen on the highlight side as it's not any lighter than my skintone & I prefer a shimmery blinding highlight anyway. Unless you're a professional makeup artist, no one really needs a full cream contour palette in their collection. This stick does it all.
The Ordinary Serum Foundation in 1.0N
As soon as they went on sale I snapped up both of the new foundations from The Ordinary. Their skincare is revolutionary so I had high hopes for their base products. I normally prefer high coverage foundations, no matter how well my skin is behaving so I was surprised to find that I actually prefer the Serum Foundation which has a much lighter formula. The thin watery consistency is very similar to Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua but a little goes a long way & the coverage is much better than I was expecting. On the face it definitely reminds me of Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk as it gives the skin a beautifully smooth & radiant finish. Colourwise 1.0N is slightly peachier than my HG NARS Siberia but it's just as light so it does work well on my skintone. Unless you're significantly yellow or pink toned, this shade will suit a lot of pale people. If you can get your hands on it, this foundation is definitely worth trying.
Hada Labo Gokujyun Premium Hyaluronic Acid Lotion
One thing that asian skincare brands do better than anyone else is hydration. I've learned to love sheet masks, snail secretions & essences as they bring a comfort to my skin unlike anything else. My latest skincare discovery is this Hyaluronic Acid Lotion from Japanese brand Hada Labo. The original Gokujyun Lotion is one of the best selling asian beauty products of all time. I put off buying it for ages because I was using the CosRX Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence but when that ran out I wanted to try something new. I decided to buy the Premium version of this lotion because it has five different molecular weights of hyaluronic acid instead of the three found in the original. That means it's incredibly hydrating & far more potent than most hyaluronic acid serums as it can penetrate deeper into the skin. This lotion makes my skin so unbelievably soft & plump. It fills out any fine lines & gives you a natural dewy glow. If you like using hyaluronic acid serums in your skincare routine, you need to buy this lotion. It's probably the best hyaluronic acid product I've ever used!
Shadow Shields
I've been working on my eyeshadow skills a lot lately. I'm normally fairly lazy & either sweep one colour over my entire eyelid or just blend a transition colour into my crease. I finally have an eyeshadow collection to be proud of & I want to put all those beautiful colours to good use instead of letting them rot on my dressing table. I've started spending quite a bit of time trying out detailed eye looks & I especially like to angle the shadows upwards at the outer corners. There's quite a few ways to clean up your eyeshadow so it fits that angle but my preferred method is to use these Shadow Shields. You just pop them on under your eyes & they really help you to achieve that cat eye shape. They're also great for catching fallout which is inevitable when working with darker colours. They won't disturb your foundation underneath & are gentle on the eye area too. They're such a simple product but have really helped to up my eyeshadow game.
Essence The Cushion Eyeliner
Another innovation that asian beauty brands have brought us is cushion cosmetics. I've tried cushion foundations & cushion blushers and I really enjoy the finish they give & the application process. I tend to mainly buy asian skincare products as I have enough makeup already but when I heard that Essence were coming out with a cushion eyeliner I couldn't resist picking one up. I think Banila Co & Tony Moly also do one but when you can buy something from Wilkos for a mere £3, sometimes it's better to stick with the UK high street! From the outside it looks very similar to a gel eyeliner pot. However inside there's a small round sponge saturated with black liquid liner. When you apply pressure with an eyeliner brush, the liquid starts to ooze out & you can use the product. The liquid is quite runny but I find it far less messy to use than gel eyeliner. It's extremely pigmented & dries down very quickly with a glossy finish. It lasts all day long on me without crumbling or transferring onto my upper eyelid. Liquid liners tend to come in a pen format but with this pot you can apply it however you want, even with something like the Vamp Stamp. If you like the ease of a gel formulation but prefer the finish of liquid liner, this product is for you. It's such a fantastic eyeliner & at this price you'd be silly not to buy one!
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